In Harmony — Kevin Alan Smith

Development Director
- Dec 2018 - Aug 2019

A game about communing and empathizing with a beast. Developed in Unreal 4 with a 17 person team over 8 months at Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy.

I worked as Development Director on In Harmony. I formed a project schedule, generated tasks, configured a Jira project with custom dashboards, filters, workflows, and permissions, organized meetings, and facilitated communication between disciplines to ensure a smooth asset pipeline. I performed on-the-fly process analysis which improved efficiency and team morale, while implementing agile methodologies adapted to team requirements (Scrum, Prototyping), including stand-ups, sprints, and asset check-in.

The game can be downloaded on Xbox One from the Microsoft Store.

In Harmony is a rhythmic adventure about achieving unity with the world around you. Play as a dancer who develops a special affinity with a mysterious beast, which will help her unravel the disappearance of her mentor. Use dance moves to affect the environment, overcome challenges, and follow the beat of the world within the ancient ruins of a legendary proving ground.

I also created a Return on Investment calculator in Excel VBA, which algorithmically determines task priority, performed process analysis which improved efficiency in sprint planning, saving over 35 man-hours of lead time and clarifying task requirements for team members, and improved estimate accuracy by 20% using data-driven analysis.

The game released on Xbox One as part of Microsoft’s Creator’s Program, a first for the FIEA program. This was a Herculean technical achievement for a student team, which involved an intensive process of optimization and testing, as well as custom engine modification. I provided the workflow and plan for the programming and design teams as they worked to make this goal a reality. I researched and scheduled the Xbox One deployment process, ensuring the game was ready and all necessary materials were provided.

I also assisted on the project in other areas, including voice casting and direction, audio implementation, level/mechanical functionality and menu behavior with Unreal Blueprint, and our level design process. While Development Director was my primary role, I provided assistance wherever possible to help alleviate the load on my teammates and bring the game additional production value and polish.

I implemented audio in the game, including sound effects and dialogue, using a combination of Blueprint and FMOD. I cast our voice actors, directed multiple recording sessions, and edited hours of dialogue in audacity to be used in our custom dialogue system.