Hey there, I'm Nisha! I'm passionate about video games and the power of stories. I received my B.S. in Computer Science and Comparative Media Studies from MIT. After two years in industry, I'm now working on my PhD in Human-Centered Design & Engineering at the University of Washington.


Reach out at ndevasia@uw.edu!

Skills

Programming

Worked for gaming giants PlayStation and Twitch, focusing on backend systems. 5+ years of rigorous coding experience in Python, Golang, C++, and HTML/CSS.

Designing

3+ years of designing for various playful experiences; created my own games in Unity, prototyped UI tools for game developers, and written interactive curricula for K-12 students.

Writing

Publications in academic conferences, workshops, and journals. More informally, maintained blogs where I blasted all my thoughts to the Internet since 2011, both personally and professionally.

Work

Selected projects from internships, research positions, and other forms of employment.

Twitch

Software engineering, Golang, AWS

Escape!Bot

Human-robot interaction, Game design, Unity

Dancing with AI

AI education, Curriculum design, Teaching

EDC

Curriculum design, activity design, R

GenAI

Web design, UI/UX design

AI Education Websites

Web design, UI design, HTML/CSS

PlayStation

Software engineering, Game tools, UI design

TaleBlazer

Game tools, UX design, Prototyping

MIT Admissions Blogs

Blogging, Writing

Projects

Projects that originated from a smattering of classes, hackathons, and the deep recesses of my brain.

Open Collectives: CarePod

Sensory ethnography, writing, storytelling

Interval

Music technology, UI/UX design, Python

AirGuitar

Unity, UI/UX design, XR

Pixel Hero

Game design

Final Fantasy Network

Graph visualization, Python, Gephi

MITCentral

UI/UX design, HTML/CSS

Miscellaneous

Occasionally, I dabble in things that aren't strictly technical.

Streaming

Twitch, Content creation

Music

Singing, Guitar, Composition

Writing

Media studies, Blogging, Ethnography

Art

Blender, Animation

The Story So Far...

The plot is always changing, so keep checking back in for updates!

  • 2012

    Played Final Fantasy 7 for the first time

    Fell in love with a world that wasn’t my own, and embarked on a lifelong journey to learn everything I could about video games.

  • 2013-2017

    Learned Japanese

    Achieved professional fluency in Japanese, mostly to play Final Fantasy 7 as it was originally written. Studied abroad a few times and literally overdosed on green tea.

  • 2017-2021

    B.S. in Comparative Media Studies and Computer Science from MIT

    Carved out a video game shaped niche for myself professionally. Lived in a bunker where I used my first power tools, stayed up too late every night, and made lifelong friends.

  • Summer 2018

    Undergraduate Researcher at The Education Arcade

    Worked on my first ever mobile game. Created more paper prototypes than I can count, and shipped my first features. Played way too much Pokemon Go.

  • 2019-2021

    Researcher at the MIT Media Lab

    Got decent at Unity, web dev, and being a real researcher. Researched and designed playful interactive experiences with the most empowering and inspirational group of people.

  • Summer 2019

    Engine Programming Intern at PlayStation

    Got my first taste of the game industry, and got way too into God of War. Figured out how to manage my own memory in C++. Checked working for PlayStation off my bucket list.

  • 2020-2023

    Backend Engineer at Twitch

    Battled impostor syndrome while hammering out improvements to the internet's premier streaming platform. Forced my friends to watch me stream.

  • 2023 - Present

    PhD Candidate at the University of Washington

    Researching the ways in which games can be a positive force for education and wellness.

  • To Be
    Continued
    ...

Contact Me

Feel free to reach out!

ndevasia@uw.edu

University of Washington | Seattle, WA