Narrative designer Cara Ellison began her gaming journey with a BBC Micro her father borrowed from work. Her first captivating game was the 1987 text adventure Acheton. After years as a games journalist, she transitioned to design, working on titles like Dishonored 2 and Void Bastards. She served as senior narrative designer on Bloodlines 2 before the project changed developers.
Ellison currently works at Gravity Well Games and on Sleight of Hand, a deckbuilding stealth game inspired by Metal Gear Solid and Vampire: The Masquerade—Bloodlines. She describes it as a spiritual successor to Bloodlines.
In an interview, Ellison shared insights into her gaming habits. She is currently enthralled by the demo of Titanium Court, praising its Douglas Adams-quality writing. The last game she played was Routine, which she admires for its Blade Runner-esque, lived-in atmosphere, though a difficult robot encounter paused her progress.
The oldest game on her PC is the original Vampire: The Masquerade—Bloodlines, which she keeps installed despite its technical challenges. She cites three key elements for its greatness: the perfect gothic atmosphere of LA, the exceptional writing and voice acting, and the exaggerated, lifelike conversation animations.
According to Steam, her most-played game is Kentucky Route Zero with 103 hours, partly due to journalistic research. The game she will never uninstall is Sunless Sea, captivated by its mysterious map and compelling writing that preserves anticipation.
For her work, Ellison relies heavily on Scrivener for scriptwriting, citing a lack of standardized narrative tools in game engines like Unreal. Her desktop is relatively tidy, featuring work files and a Vertigo screenshot wallpaper that inspires tension in her horror game design.