Most Underrated Video Game Writers

The gaming industry is full of unsung heroes. People who are rarely praised, despite the pivotal contributions they make behind the scenes. Writers, narrative directors, storytellers – regardless of what title they have, those who write the interactive experiences we love deserve their dues. Many have received some acknowledgment, but too often does it feel like these talented individuals simply don’t receive the acclaim they deserve.

Across regions, genres, and platforms, stories remain central to gaming. Where the tech that makes these games possible continues to evolve, the one constant in the industry is the importance of good writing. So join us in celebrating those who wrote some of the most influential gaming narratives.

10

Nicole Martinez

Nicole Martinez made a name for herself at Telltale games by working on many of the studio’s biggest projects over the years. One direct result of the developer’s focus on narrative-driven games is the opportunity it has given writers like Martinez to show their skills.

She received her first writing credit for The Wolf Among Us before moving on to Telltale’s Game of Thrones. Here, Martinez was part of the team that wrote episodes two and four. Martinez rose to the position of lead writer for the first pair of episodes in Guardians of the Galaxy: A Telltale Series and then wrote the story of The Walking Dead: Michone with Michael Mcormick.

9

Junko Kawano

Junko Kawano’s contribution to gaming dates back to the ’90s. A frequent character designer at Konami, she got her first writing credit on a video game for Twinbee RPG. Within two years, Konami handed her the reigns to produce, write and plan the cult classic Shadow of Memories.

Having worked in a design capacity on Suikoden since the first title, it was only natural that Kawano’s role in future games in the series was expanded. She wrote Suikoden 4 and was also the game’s motion capture director. Kawano later took on a truly gargantuan task for Suikoden Tactics, writing the story, producing the game, and even designing its characters.

8

Sandra ‘Sachka’ Duvall

Sandra ‘Sachka’ Duvall’s first major writing role for a video game came in Cyanide Studios’ Styx: Master of Shadows. By then, she’d already worked across a number of different areas of game development, including beta testing.

Thankfully, she continued working in a narrative capacity and just two years after the first Styx was released, Duvall moved to Arkane, ready to work on some massive titles. First up was Dishonored 2, for which she served as Lead Narrative Designer. She then worked in the same capacity on Dishonored: Death of the Outsider as well as Deathloop.

7

Gordon Rennie

Most prominently known for his extensive list of excellent licensed novels and comics, Gordon Rennie’s career has also allowed him to craft a number of excellent sci-fi stories for gamers to enjoy. His grasp of action and drama that made stories like Execution Hour and Rogue Trooper: Crucible work so well, continues to effectively steer gamers across multiple genres.

Some of the largest gaming titles Rennie has worked on include Rogue Trooper, Strange Brigade, and Sniper Elite 5: France. For Zombie Army 4: Dead Army, the author was responsible for the title’s narrative and script. He was also the Lead Writer of Terminator: Dark Fate-Defiance.

6

Jakub Szamalek

Jakub Szamalek is a CD Projekt Red veteran who has had a hand in almost all the company’s major titles since before 2015. Szamalek received his first writing credit for the company on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. He went on to work on both of the game’s expansions, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine, being listed as a writer and story Designer respectively.

For Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales, Szamalek earned a Principal Writer credit. He worked in the same capacity on Cyberpunk 2077 before providing story support on the 2023 title The Invincible, a video game adaptation of Stanislaw Lem’s book of the same name.

5

Susan O’Connor

Susan O’Connor has had a long career in gaming that has seen her work on over 25 games at some of the most prestigious games studios, including Ubisoft, Microsoft, and Relic Entertainment. Some examples of her early successes include credits as a script and dialogue writer on the first Gears of War and as a writer of 2007’s action-RPG Conan.

Some of her most significant contributions to video game writing came via a range of games as diverse as Bioshock: Remastered and Dishonored 2. Alongside Philippe Boulle and Kyle Berndt, O’Connor was also credited with creating the story of Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III.

4

Matthew J. Costello

Speculative and horror author Matthew J Costello has had a great impact on some of gaming’s most treasured series. The bestselling author’s long collaboration with iD Software saw him provide story and dialogue support on Doom 3 and write the official novelization of the game. He was also a writer and story consultant on the first-person shooter Rage.

Costello hasn’t slowed down since, continuing to write across multiple genres and disciplines. Perhaps most famously, Costello was the scriptwriter on the 2023 remake of Resident Evil 4. Other games he has worked on include The 7th Guest, Just Cause, and 2017’s Planet of the Apes: The Last Frontier.

3

Tameem Antoniades

Tameem Antoniades has had a long career at Ninja Theory where he worked on some truly exceptional single-player games. Following work as one of three credited writers on the classic PS3 launch title Heavenly Sword, he would work alongside Alex Garland crafting the story of the studio’s adventure title Enslaved: Odyssey to the West.

Since then, he has worked as a Lead Developer on Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice and received credit as a writer for its sequel. Both games continue the studio’s strong tradition of seamlessly melding great narratives and motion capture technology.

2

Mary DeMarle

Mary DeMarle’s career has taken her to some of the biggest companies in the gaming industry, but her first official video game writing credit was as a writer on Presto Studio’s Myst 3: Exile. She also worked as a writer on Myst 4: Revolution and Homeworld 2.

During the 2010s, DeMarle worked on some of Eidos Interactive’s biggest games. She was the Narrative and Lead Writer of Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Executive Narrative Director of its sequel, and Senior Narrative Director of Marvel’s Guardian of the Galaxy.

In 2022, DeMarle joined Bioware and worked as a Narrative Director on Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

1

Yasumi Matsuno

A major contributor to the development of tactical RPGs, Yasumi Matsuno used his work in the subgenre to write stories that are dark, gritty, and way ahead of their time.

In 1995, he designed and directed Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together, a game that would heavily influence his later work. Clear examples of his signature style can be seen in Final Fantasy Tactics and Vagrant Story, both of which were written and directed by Matsuno.