Employee Spotlight: Melissa Mok
Favorite childhood game?
My favorite childhood game is probably Super Mario Brothers 3. Tanooki Mario was the cutest thing and it was the only game I was ever actually decent at playing. I would say Super Mario Brothers 2 is my second favorite — I didn’t like the stage you needed a character with exceptional leaping skills to clear because you had to use the slick-footed Luigi who couldn’t land a jump even if he were trying to take home the gold at the Olympics. SMB2 had the best music though.
Best game of all time and why.
The Legend of Zelda with the gold cartridge. It was a great story and you went on a real adventure to save the princess plus you could save and return to where you left off. I’m showing my age here, but I grew up with games that had no save file so you played it through in one sitting and you’d play as many times as you could to finally clear them in one sitting.
I also liked that it had a secret game mode, you could clear the game and you could play it again.
Favorite game you’re playing currently?
Animal Crossing Pocket Camp. As I started working more seriously in gaming, I had less and less time to play actual games so something you can pick up casually, play intensely if you want to, or not lose progress if you don’t have time for weeks, really appealed to me.
Talk about that first game that made you want to work in gaming.
Don’t laugh, but Sword of the New World: Granado Espada. I finally started to play games and involve myself in the community via forums, met the community team, and thought to myself, I want to do that. It wasn’t a childhood dream to work in gaming, it was a young adult’s dream; I wanted to connect with people who had a passion for the IP and help them explore more interesting and creative ways to continue to support and connect with their communities.
When did you first decide to pursue a career in the gaming industry?
It was probably when I started to figure out what Twitch was. YouTube was a platform I used to watch random videos or play music, but that was the extent of it. My boyfriend told me he really wanted to be a content creator, he was passionate about making content and I thought that was really grand so I set out to support him. After immersing myself into the Twitch culture, watching Lord knows how many streams simultaneously for months, I found that I loved content creators and what they do. With a simple platform, they can create communities of like-minded individuals who can support each other, talk about topics and gaming hobbies that are not completely accepted in everyday society, and become friends without ever really having met in person. I wasn’t aware that influencer relations/management was the technical term for this role at the time.
Describe what you do at work.
I’m the Merchandise Event Coordinator for Design by Humans. Basically, I bring the Design by Humans online experience to a gaming or pop culture convention near you. Most of my work is spent planning, figuring out what works within our budget, collaborating with people on what we’ll bring to the shows, how we want our booth to look, and how we’ll execute our social media.
What is your best advice for people who want to do what you do or want to break into gaming?
Do what you love, create meaningful communities or experiences, network (actually learn to speak to people and create friendships rather than to just further your career goals) and take opportunities to volunteer at tradeshows. There is this saying going around “if you do something well, don’t do it for free” and people think that means if they are trying to break into the industry, you should never volunteer your time. As with many jobs in other fields, they want you to have experience. Volunteering helps with that. Sometimes volunteering early on will help you determine if you like the industry, the different opportunities out there, and if you like the people.
Who are some of your role models in the industry?
Major Nelson, Mallory Loar, Reggie Fils-Aimé, Naoki Yoshida and Soken.
If you could reach out to your childhood self and give them some advice, what would it be?
Your mom was wrong. If you hadn’t listened to her and tried to conform to society with a respectable job, you would have saved yourself a decade of unhappiness working as a cog in a machine. Don’t do it, be you and do what you love.
What projects have you been a part of what what work in particular has made you proud?
When I worked at Versus Evil, I helped coordinate a charity event that pit players from St. Jude, GameChanger, Operation Supply Drop and Save the Children against each other in Antihero. It started online in matches and ended at PAX East. For being as crazy and hectic as it was, we raised money for some great causes and I made some amazing friendships from that experience.
Pineapple on pizza?
Always. 🍕
You can find Melissa on Twitter as @rawrsnacks
