Taya Read
Game Design & Development
Game Design & Development
My name is Taya Read. I am a 19 year old student at the Academy of Interactive Entertainment (AIE) about to complete my Advanced Diploma of Game Development.
I have been making games since I was in primary school, doing both the design and programming of my own projects. In 2025, after leaving highschool, I enrolled at the Academy of Interactive Entertainment (AIE) where I studied game design for two years where I built my skills and developed a respectable portfolio.
Please have a look through my work and feel free to contact me if you have any questions!
Hag's Labyrinth
Slavic Myth-Themed Horror
Hag's Labyrinth is an ongoing 20-week total project where I work as a designer and programmer for a horror puzzle game based on slavic folklore. The project is made with a 14 person team (4 design students & 10 art students) in Unreal Engine 5 intended to be played on PC.
So far, I have been responsible for:
Enemy AI - I designed and programmed a base 'hunter' AI and a specialized AI for our first 'hunter' that can patrol the area until they see the player and has sight and hearing abilities.
Puzzles - I designed and programmed a puzzle system with configurable settings and 3 components that allows for quick setup of puzzles with infinite possibilities.
Clocking On!
Fast Paced VR Minigame
Clocking on was a 10-week total project in which I worked as a designer for a VR 'job simulator' game about building clocks. The project was made with a 14 person team (4 design students & 10 art students) in Unreal Engine 5 intended to be played on a VR headset.
In this project, I was responsible for:
Clock Crafting - I designed the core idea for the game involving grabbing parts off a moving conveyor belt and using them to create various clocks.
Level Design - I designed the general layout of the main room and placed props to provide the player with a sense of immersion.
Mixed Hands
Strategic Cheater Card Game
Mixed hands was a 12-week total project in which I worked as a designer and programmer for a strategy blackjack game focused on 'cheating'. The project was made with a 2 person team (2 design students) in Unreal Engine 5 intended to be played on PC.
In this project, I was responsible for:
UI Design - I designed the UI layout and appearance and created it in engine. Including, main menu, dialogue system, shop and main gameplay HUD.
Base Card System - I designed and created the base card system that the rest of the game is built on including card design, hand, deck and card shop.
These are some sketches I have drawn for various projects that I have been a part of. They are intended to convey mechanics and UI designs and assist in providing direction for the design process to follow.