Oathsworn: Into the Deepwood
Dark Fantasy Boardgame by Shadowborne Games (2020-2021).
“Only a few cities still stand as pillars of civilization against the madness of the cursed Deepwood, which tries to devour even these last bastions every day. And yet a few brave souls venture there voluntarily in order to wrest its secrets from it, clinging to their weapons and the hope for survival in the face of unnatural horrors.”
I wrote interactive story chapters 10 and 11 (in English, ~20k words each), was involved in additional worldbuilding for the A’Dendri species as well as the narrative and character development for my chapters.
The game‘s first and second edition got funded on Kickstarter with the staggering sum of almost 5.2 million dollars. Among games with above 2.000 ratings, with 9.2 it scored as the highest rated game on boardgamegeek.
Awards:
- 2 x UK Games Expo Award 2023 – Best Board Game American Style (Judges Award & People‘s Choice Award)
- Golden Geek Award 2022 – Best Cooperative Game (2nd Place) and Best Thematic Board Game Nominee
- Board Game Quest Awards 2022 – Best Cooperative Game, Best Production Value Nominee
- Meeple’s Choice Board Game Revolution 2023 – Best Production 2022 (Silver), Game of the Year 2022 (Bronze)
- Goblin Magnifico 2023 – Nominee, 4th Place
Reviews:
“This is a AAA board game experience” – Justin, on Table Top
“The most immersive fantasy game I‘ve ever played” – 3 Minute Board Games
“This narrative is better than any other board game narrative I have ever experienced” – Tablenauts
“This is something I have waited an entire lifetime for” – Rob‘s Tabletop Channel
Links:
Official Website
Kickstarter
Sample from my chapter (Spoiler warning!)
– narrated by James Cosmo:
The Dark Eye – Drakensang: The River of Time
Classic PC-Fantasy-RPG by Radon Labs (2008-2009), published by DTP.
“A story about greed and power and the beginning of a wonderful friendship. The heroes travel across the Great River, encounter elves, fight pirates and demons, and uncover a political conspiracy.”
The prequel to the first part, set in the world of a famous German TTRPG. My debut in the industry.
I was mainly responsible for IP integration, narrative design, story production, character development, dialogue writing (in German) with extensive branching, and cinematics scriptwriting. I had narrative ownership of two main locations and was responsible for the guidance of an intern.
Awards:
- German Developers Award 2010 – Best Role Playing Game
- GameStar Gold Award 2010 – 85% rating, 5 stars for Story/Atmosphere
Reviews:
“The atmosphere thrives on its wealth of detail, its variety of lovable, quirky characters, and a constant undercurrent of humor.” – GameStar
“A game world to fall in love with and a well-crafted adventure. It is quite evident that the dialogues were written with a profound understanding of the world of The Dark Eye. The game rightfully ranks among the best in its genre. Seven editors agreed that the game deserved the Editors’ Choice Award.” – PC Games
“This is pretty much the perfect sequel. It keeps the original Drakensang’s awesome stat and combat system, but improves on nearly everything else: much better writing, dialog, and production value.” – Der Ungrund
Links:
Release Trailer
Steam Page
Fata Deum
PC-Strategy God Sim Game by 42 Bits Entertainment (in development since 2019). Publisher Hooded Horse Inc./ Aerosoft GmbH. Funded by Film- und Medienstiftung NRW.
“With the power of a god, who will you become? As a newborn heavenly entity you must prove yourself against the ancient deities Pleasure, Fertility, Deceit and Violence through gathering followers in Ylis. It’s up to you to discover which means you are willing to use.”
Early Access Release is planned for September 2025.
As Lead Narrative Designer I was responsible for world building, characters, story production, cinematics, quest design and dialogue writing in both German and English.
Reviews:
“Fata Deum is a god game with Black & White vibes.” – PC Gamer
“Out of all the god games that have sprung up over the last couple decades, Fata Deum is the one that definitely looks to capture something I didn’t know I was needing.” – PCGames
“It has been added to more than 200,000 wish lists and is currently the 148th most wanted game on Steam.” – Gamesmarkt (06/2025)
Links:
Kickstarter Trailer
(voiceover script written by me)
Steam Page
Adamara: Harsh Waters
Educational Mobile Game (Postapocalyptic Adventure) by Cultures Interactive e.V. (2021-2023), funded by BKM (German government).
“Long after Earth was flooded, it‘s a rough life for most of the few survivors in the floating city of Adamara. An orphaned teenager breaks free from their authoritarian mentor in the search of identity and self-empowerment and has to choose a side in the escalating ideological battle of two streetgangs. When the city‘s solar-energy magnate reaches for even more power over the city, chaos and violence erupt and call for desperate measures and hard choices.”
Through a game-based learning approach this project was designed for youth education in the form of game development workshops in schools. Developed under the nationwide “Call of Prev” initiative, it serves as a door opener to engage teenagers in discussions on the political, societal and personal challenges of our time, dealing with themes of equality, group-hatred, radicalisation, anti-democratic attitudes and the dream of a better future. The game and its editor are open source which allow students to create and discuss their own quests.
During the course of the project, I took on a co-lead position and was mainly responsible for story and character development, additional worldbuilding, quest design and implementation, dialogue (German), content design and cinematics. We worked closely with a team of researchers to integrate relevant topics adjacent to the main themes specifically targeted to inspire reflection and serve as discussion anchors.
Links:
Trailer
Project description
Workshop offer
Publication for political education
Drone Swarm – New Earth
Title Song for Sci-Fi-Game by astragon entertainment,
Music by Only Sound (2020), vocals by Chiara Tahnee.
Lyrics:
“We have lost our home
Spread our wings and fled into space
The stars and galaxies now frame the void we roam
For our souls’ rebirth
We have to find New EarthWe have found a new home
Just survived through great sacrifice
The stars and galaxies might still become our doom
For our souls’ rebirth
There is no place like Earth”
Humanity is forced to flee into space after a catastrophe. With the help of alien technology and a transfer of human souls into a swarm of drones, the survivors search for a new home.
I wrote the lyrics for the song (in English) in collaboration with the composer.
Awards:
German Developer Awards 2020 – Innovation Award Nominee
Links:
Song from Official Soundtrack
(voiceover script written by me)
The Parallax
Mobile Game (Zombie Apocalypse) by Extraordinerdy (2017-2018).
In seasons 7 and 8 of this parable on modern network society, it’s control versus passion, and an unexpected love blossoms amid zombies and human monsters.
Interactive Fiction in the style of a messenger app.
I contributed to the story arc around the character Lucas for the chapters “Camp Fire” and “Shelf Life” and the development of side characters contained therein, as well as being responsible for the writing and implementation of dialogue trees (German).
Awards:
German Developer Award 2017 – Ubisoft Blue Byte Newcomer Award Nominee
Links:
Official Website
Vater der Fluten
Printed Lorebook for TTRPG by Ulisses Spiele (2009-2010).
A detailed, atmospheric description of the locations and characters in the computer game “Drakensang: The River of Time”. The content is designed for Germany’s largest pen-and-paper RPG, “The Dark Eye”, and encourages players to create and experience their own stories with their friends.
I was responsible for transmedia research and content selection, the writing of several texts (in German), and overall content editing for consistency with the video game.
Reviews:
“Definitely a good collection of ideas that brings many places, areas, and situations on the Great River to life. In addition, with its high-quality graphics and character descriptions, it is one of the best works available for The Dark Eye. Building on the game material was definitely worthwhile for the editorial team.” – Tarnelrik, wiki-aventurica
“I’ve been collecting The Dark Eye stuff for almost 15 years now. And the Drakensang Compendium ranks among my top 3.“ – LeganFuh
“This book is worth its weight in gold!” – A. Kuhn
“This book is, unfortunately, one of a kind. Aside from the unusual full-color printing and atmospheric images, it offers a wealth of detailed background descriptions, a plethora of NPCs, locations, and scenario ideas. It reads well, looks good, and stimulates the imagination. I am thoroughly impressed.” – Aramas
Links:
Official Website
Psst
Interactive Mobile Story (Magic Realism) by Alternate Reality Strategies (2022) for Schaubühne Lindenfels, funded by BKM (German government).
“What is time? What is reality and what is fiction? These are concepts that are supposed to help us separate things – to draw a line. But this line does not exist. There is permeability between different timelines and different levels of reality.”
A pioneering example of merging theater and digital interactive storytelling to engage audiences in new ways. In this free app, developed for a local theatre in the city of Leipzig, players could engage in a plethora of stories related with the theatre‘s history, personnel and program.
I was a consultant during the concept phase and wrote three episodes (in German): “Oasis in Paradise” is a musical journey of artist Anka Baier through time about finding your own dreams. In “Beyond Morality” you can meet Loe von Salomé, a pioneer of psychoanalysis, and engage in a thought experiment with a deceased philosopher. Visit a very old Shakespearean play in “The Whole World is a Stage” and learn about Leipzig in the 17th century.
Links:
Project website
Client page
News coverage
Mittendrin – Ninas Welt
First German Mobisode/Webisode Hybrid by icon impact (2006-2007) in cooperation with mobile service provider o2.
“Nina has a gift that allows her to see the truth in other people. After learning that she has a terminal illness, she sets out on a journey of self-discovery and finds love.”
As team lead in my first freelancer project, I was responsible for concept development, storylining, episode outlines in the writers’ room, scripts, editing, and transmedia content on the blog. I wrote 22 episodes myself (in German).
This show aimed at teenagers was the first in Germany that was produced specifically for mobile television and the web (3-minute videos per episode, 78 episodes in total). It was broadcast three times a week to over 65,000 mobile phones. In addition, 1.5 million viewers visited the website each month. The show’s star guest was pop singer LaFee
Awards:
Global Mobile Awards 2007 – Best Mobile Video Service Nominee
Links:
Wikipedia