We think that it’s great to make games that innovate new ways of storytelling and redefine what the medium can do. We also think it’s great to make games that are punchy, hilarious, and fun. We think those two goals can go hand in hand, and we’ve set out to prove it by becoming a two-headed dragon that breathes videogames. One head can discuss formal design theory, and the other wears sunglasses. One head reads stories, and the other pushes all the buttons. Together, they have like a million hit points and make games with a chance of dealing critical happiness.

We’re working hard to pull this dragon through the floofy fabric of dreams into reality. These games are all passion projects, things we would work on for fun, things we’re scared no one else would make. We’re putting our all into making these games happen, and it’s our sincerest hope that you’ll want to play them.

Who Is Rad Dragon?

Rad Dragon was founded by two game designers. We met as graduate students in USC’s Interactive Media Division, where we researched game design and narrative. Since then, we’ve formed an independent game development studio based in Los Angeles. We are:

Teddy Diefenbach

LinkedIn  |  Twitter
Favorite Games:
Super Mario RPG, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Bomberman 64, Final Fantasy Tactics, Earthbound

Teddy has been designing games professionally for six years, with teams at Microsoft Studios, Disney Online Studios, and Gameloft, specializing in narrative and systems design. He has designed for established brands like Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean and Cars and on new tech like Microsoft’s Kinect when it first launched. His game Din was featured in IndieGames’ book “250 Indie Games You Must Play“. He studied game design and film production at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, where he earned an MFA in Interactive Media as a Microsoft Scholar, and holds a BA in Music & Computer Science from Columbia University. On a more relevant note, he is a former personal trainer, classically trained vocalist, and 5th grade science fair champion. Teddy grew up in the misty swamplands of Washington, DC, home of presidents. There, he conducted years of research on Japanese role-playing games, which consisted mostly of playing them and having snacks.

Mike Sennott

LinkedIn
Favorite Games:
Final Fantasy VI, Shadow of the Colossus, Soul Blade, XCOM: UFO Defense, MVP Baseball 2005

Growing up in the idyllic frozen forests of New Hampshire, Mike often dreamt of playing games that did not yet exist.  Troubled, he set off in search of the skills to make those, and later, much better games.  He graduated summa cum laude from Hamilton College with a BA in Computer Science and Creative Writing, winning awards for his fiction and poetry, then acquired an MFA in Interactive Media from the University of Southern California.  Over the course of his journey, Mike has worked professionally in games as a designer, engineer, and quality assurance lead.  He has presented work on dynamic game narrative at TEDx, the USC Annenberg Symposium, and the Cooney Center Leadership Forum.  Mike has also worked on numerous game projects with the Universal Happymaker collective, written some stories, and occasionally fronted a short-lived rock band.

Collaborators

For each project, we work with different collaborators. Here are some of the talented folks  who have made games together with us.

   Irene Koh

   Dustin Painter

   Samantha Vick
   Kyla Gorman

   John Carey

   Wesley Martin

   Mari Arakaki
   Alexa Rockman
   Kenny Wood
   Emmett Lee Stang
   Kahle McCann
   Sara Engelhardt
   Roxanne Goodcell
   Bridget Underwood
   Katie Gately
   Sergio Vellatti

   Bryce Walters
   Zoey Ikemoto
   Stephanie Tucker
   Annick Huber