Bret Wardle
From his home base in Salt Lake City, Bret has spent the last 15 years doing what he loves most: creating better digital experiences by applying mechanics and psychology used in games. His unique approach comes from asking questions others might not think to ask: What makes pro gamers and software power users tick? Why do things like arcade high scores still grab our attention and influence our behavior? How can we lose ourselves in everyday software like we do when we play an engaging RPG?
His 2022 TEDx Talk, "Can a 90s video game be a standard for experience design?", shows exactly how he thinks: finding practical design lessons in unexpected places. When he's not crafting software or building games, you'll find Bret exploring everything from classic arcade cabinets to the latest digital releases, from intense tabletop sessions to emerging VR experiences. He's convinced that great games of any era or medium have valuable lessons to teach us about making better experiences today.
Play with Purpose: Remembering Games Through Empathetic Notes
This session invites participants to rethink how they study games and experiences by paying closer attention to both mechanics and emotion. Rather than relying on vague impressions or memory gaps, participants will use empathetic note-taking to capture what actually happens when people play, feel, and decide.
Through guided play and reflection, participants learn a practical, structured template for documenting experiences in a way that improves recall and deepens insight. The session focuses on noticing emotional responses alongside design choices, then translating those observations into usable insight for learning, game, and experience design.
Takeaway: Better experiences come from remembering not just what happened, but how it felt and why.
