Eric Zimmerman

Biography

Photo of Eric Zimmerman

Eric is a game designer who has worked in the game industry for 15 years. For nine years, Eric was the Co-Founder and Chief Design Officer of Gamelab, a game development company based in New York City. Gamelab’s award-winning games include the casual game blockbuster hit Diner Dash. Founded in 2000, Gamelab created innovative games for broad audiences, including singleplayer and multiplayer online games, as well as games in other media both on and off the computer. Gamelab worked with partners including LEGO, HBO, VH-1, Nickelodeon, Yahoo!, Microsoft, Disney, Mattel, PlayFirst, PBS, Fisher-Price, Leapfrog, and many others.

Gamelab helped create two companies: Gamestar Mechanic, an online site that was funded by the MacArthur Foundation that lets kids create games, and the Institute of Play, a nonprofit that looks at the intersection of games and learning and is currently launching a school in New York City based on play as the model for learning. Eric’s prior work includes the critically acclaimed SiSSYFiGHT 2000, Gearheads, and The Robot Club.

Eric is the co-author with Katie Salen of Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals (MIT Press, 2004). He is also the co-editor with Katie Salen of The Game Design Reader (MIT Press, 2006). Eric has taught courses at MIT, NYU, Parsons School of Design, and School of Visual Arts. He has exhibited game artworks at museums and galleries in the US and abroad.

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