Yishan Ma
Yishan Ma is a game and interactive media designer and researcher studying MAGI at RMIT University. Her work explores interactive narrative and emotional experiences in games. She has experience in game design, UI, sound, and game market research, and enjoys experimenting with systems that give players unexpected ways to interact with virtual worlds. Destiny 2 was supposed to be her forever game, but she never expected it to stop getting updates before she even graduated.
Designing Disagreement in Virtual Characters
TG Lightning Talks @ Melbourne International Games Week 2026
Virtual characters are typically designed to be helpful, easygoing, and responsive to user needs. However, what happens when they disagree with the user? This talk explores how to intentionally incorporate “disagreement” into the design of virtual characters, focusing on how different forms of disagreement shape character personalities and relationships with users, and examining how these interactions create a more dynamic and authentic character experience.
Yishan Ma
Yishan Ma is a game and interactive media designer and researcher studying MAGI at RMIT University. Her work explores interactive narrative and emotional experiences in games. She has experience in game design, UI, sound, and game market research, and enjoys experimenting with systems that give players unexpected ways to interact with virtual worlds. Destiny 2 was supposed to be her forever game, but she never expected it to stop getting updates before she even graduated.