The Faces of Full Circle: Get to Know a Product Manager

Tell us a bit about yourself?

Hello! I’m Levi, a Product Manager at Full Circle working on skate. I’m based in Vancouver, BC and began working in the game industry upon graduating from the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia (UBC). Ever since I was a kid, I’ve always loved playing video games.

What’s your origin story - how did you end up working in the gaming industry, and what brought you to Full Circle?

I was introduced to anime as a kid and was wowed at the amount of detail and care that went into the art form. After that, I began to draw. That was the spark that got me super curious about making things in general…especially the video games I loved to play. Throughout high school and university, I made a few games with other students. I dabbled in a bit of everything: art, programming, writing, voice acting, and general production, etc. In other words, I took what was seen at the time as an unconventional path for a business major. 

I remember hearing a lot of talk that the game industry was notoriously difficult to enter. Doubly so in business school, as all the networks and opportunities provided by the school tended to focus on more traditional business careers and industries. It was also difficult to convince my family that the time I spent pursuing a career in games was time well-spent. There were a lot of societal misconceptions about working in the industry when I was growing up too. My strategy was to do both the expected and unexpected, because I believed that everything I did and learned would come in handy some day on my journey – plus there’d be no more complaints or side-eyes if I could do both, right? (I was right, ha.)

The COVID pandemic hit right as most of my student cohort was gearing up to find their first co-ops. Indeed, the time and effort I spent first making games in the UBC Game Development club before working as its president paid off. I got my first job in the industry at Archiact.

Fast forward a few years, I landed a product management co-op with Full Circle during my last year of university. Thanks to a lot of determination, hard work, and a little luck, I ended up receiving an offer to return to the team upon graduation. I feel blessed to be working on skate. with such passionate and dedicated individuals!

Can you tell us a bit about what a Product Manager does?

Product Manager roles can vary a lot depending on the company, team, and stage of development, but we generally focus on delivering the product vision and working closely on areas related to business success. Often, we may find ourselves defining strategies, coordinating with stakeholders in other areas of game development, and bringing data-driven ideas to the table to help achieve KPI goals.

Where do you find inspiration in everyday life?

I find inspiration in pretty much everything in everyday life – I believe that wonder and a sense of “play” is important to staying young at heart, inspired, and refreshed. Whether it’s meeting new people, reading a book, going to a new place, or learning an interesting fact, something can spark my imagination at any time. The game industry is a creative one at the end of the day – so if our job is to entertain, then I believe we must remember to entertain ourselves too.

I do what one of my creative writing professors recommended in university: I take note of the things that pique my interest as they come up and store them in the form of notes, sketches, a tune I hum, or whatever I think is best so I won’t forget. You never know what or when something inspires a new idea or helps you solve a problem!

What’s your motto?

A quote from one of my favourite games: “Don’t assume your dreams are just fantasy.” 

Growing up without really knowing anybody working in creative industries, I was largely told that working in games is a distant impractical fantasy. The trailer that contained that quote came out near the end of my time in high school, and I’m so glad it did. It truly is the reason why I never gave up on my dreams. 

What’s one piece of advice you would give to someone wanting to do what you do?

Play games, but also try to make one if you can, even if it’s something small and simple. It will help you understand the key parts to game development and get you thinking about the who, what, why, and how. I believe it is important for Product Managers to have a deep and nuanced understanding of their products and the product space in order to work alongside other disciplines to make a great game.

Lean in to your passions and pursue excellence!

In three words, how would you describe your job?

Dynamic. Collaborative. Creative.

Are you looking to get into the gaming industry? See open positions at Full Circle here.