Game Developer MBTI

Profile List

Axis Definitions

SC: System / Rule ↔ Sensation / Emotion

(Structure / Rules ↔ Feel / Emotion)

Definition

SC represents whether game fun is expected to come from learning and mastering rules and systems, or directly from immediate sensory and emotional stimulation.

Viewpoint

  • The System / Rule side sees games as cognitive systems to understand and internalize.
  • The Sensation / Emotion side sees games as experiential media that trigger feeling and emotion.

DE: Deliberation ↔ Experiment

(Decision / Specification ↔ Experiment / Observation)

Definition

DE represents whether decisions are aligned through prior hypotheses, specs, and principles, or refined iteratively through implementation, play, and observation.

Viewpoint

  • The Deliberation side treats development as a problem that can be defined in advance.
  • The Experiment side treats development as a problem you only understand by building and testing.

TM: Tight-control ↔ Modular-interaction

(Tight-control / Progression ↔ Modular-interaction / Interaction)

Definition

TM represents whether rules are used for tight control of experience and outcomes, or opened up so players can generate situations and meta through modular interactions.

Viewpoint

  • The Tight-control side views games as experience structures owned and guaranteed by designers.
  • The Modular-interaction side views games as situation-generating systems shaped by players.

One-line summary

  • SC: Is fun rooted in understanding or in felt sensation?
  • DE: Does development begin with definition or learn through experimentation?
  • TM: Are rules tools for tight control or ingredients for modular interaction?
SDT character

Rule Conductor (SDT)

A game should be a fair test of skill inside the magic circle created by clear rules, where even a loss has a clear, understandable reason.

View detail SDM character

System Alchemist (SDM)

A game should be a playground where fun emerges from systems and player invention, not designer-provided answers.

View detail SET character

Data Pilot (SET)

A game should reliably produce the intended experience, and decisions should align through observation and verification.

View detail SEM character

Meta Gardener (SEM)

A game should be a long-running ecosystem shaped by players, and live ops is design work to keep it healthy.

View detail CDT character

Emotional Director (CDT)

A game is a medium for emotion and meaning; what players feel is the final product.

View detail CDM character

World Architect (CDM)

A game should be a coherent world where player choices produce outcomes that make sense in-context.

View detail CET character

Feel Artist (CET)

A game should feel smooth moment-to-moment; friction is the fastest way to lose players before fun even appears.

View detail CEM character

Community Producer (CEM)

A game should be a social space where players gain meaning through each other, and trust sustains long-term fun.

View detail

References

Work Link
Hunicke, R., LeBlanc, M., & Zubek, R. (2004). MDA: A Formal Approach to Game Design and Game Research. https://aaai.org/papers/ws04-04-001-mda-a-formal-approach-to-game-design-and-game-research/
Juul, J. (2002). The Open and the Closed: Games of Emergence and Games of Progression. https://www.jesperjuul.net/text/openandtheclosed.html
Juul (DiGRA DOI record) https://dl.digra.org/index.php/dl/article/view/214
Pacini, R., & Epstein, S. (1999). The relation of rational and experiential information processing styles to personality, basic beliefs, and the ratio-bias phenomenon. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.76.6.972
Denisova, A., et al. (2024). Towards Democratisation of Games User Research. https://doi.org/10.1145/3677108
Isbister, K., & Hodent, C. (Eds.). (2018). Game Usability: Advice from the Experts for Advancing UX Strategy and Practice in Videogames. https://global.oup.com/academic/product/game-usability-9780198794844