Procrastination, productivity and inspiration: how research is like designing video games

"I got my PhD in philosophy from the University of Melbourne, Australia, in 2007. After that I did a postdoc for three years at Princeton University in New Jersey, then a second postdoc at the University of Oxford, UK. I wrote my breakthrough game, QWOP, in 2008 while I was at Princeton. After that, I began a gradual pivot away from academia. Like many academics, including so many of my friends, the thought of leaving was at first totally unthinkable. It's not as though my philosophy career was going badly; I had secured prestigious postdocs and enough publications."

"A key transition point for me was a gaming conference in 2011. Unlike at a philosophy conference, where nobody would have known who I was, people were excited about my work. It was a bit of a shock to the system and in that moment, I realized it would make sense to think about whether I could switch tracks."

"In 2013, I moved away from philosophy, taking an opportunity to teach at the New York University (NYU) games department. Then, in 2021, being a little bit fed up with COVID-19 remote teaching, I moved to being a full-time independent games designer. I released Baby Steps last year."

"Philosophy as a career is a creative art that's concerned with finding out what the truth is and trying to elucidate it. To paraphrase a theme covered in the 2025 book What Art Does by musician Brian Eno and writer an"

A philosophy PhD led to postdoctoral work at Princeton and Oxford. QWOP was created in 2008 during the Princeton period, using keyboard controls to animate an athlete. The game became a widely shared internet meme and increased attention to the creator’s work. A gaming conference in 2011 provided a turning point by generating excitement around the work in a way that differed from philosophy settings. In 2013, teaching in a games department marked a move away from philosophy. In 2021, dissatisfaction with remote teaching during COVID-19 coincided with a shift to full-time independent game design, followed by releasing Baby Steps.

Read at Nature