David Ethan Kennerly directed five massively multiplayer games in the US and Korea. He localized Korea's first world, Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds

Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds

NEXUS: The Kingdom of the Winds , alternately known as Nexus TK or simply Nexus, is a Pay to Play MMORPG, currently run in the US by Kru Interactive. Nexus began as a U.S. version of the Korean game 바람의 나라 developed by NEXON Inc...

, and designed the social system of Dark Ages: Online Roleplaying

Dark Ages (computer game)

Dark Ages is a MMORPG based on Celtic mythology, originally developed by Nexon and now operated by KRU Interactive. It is loosely based on the Korean game called Legend of Darkness. The American version was developed by David Ethan Kennerly who based it somewhat on the works of horror writer H. P....

. Before joining Nexon in 1997, he designed The X-Files

The X-Files

The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...

 Trivia Game for 20th Century Fox

20th Century Fox

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...

, and troubleshot US Army networks in Korea

Korea

Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

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David encourages creativity among developers and players. He helped organize MUD-Dev Conferences, and founded an online library of fan fiction. David has authored on game design

Game design

Game design, a subset of game development, is the process of designing the content and rules of a game in the pre-production stage and design of gameplay, environment, storyline, and characters during production stage. The term is also used to describe both the game design embodied in a game as...

 for Charles River Media, ITT Tech, Westwood College, Gamasutra

Gamasutra

Gamasutra is a website founded in 1997 for video game developers. It is owned and operated by UBM TechWeb , a division of United Business Media, and acts as the online sister publication to the print magazine Game Developer...

.com, GameDev

GameDev

GameDev.net is a website dedicated to game development, founded by Kevin Hawkins, Dave Astle, and Michael Tanczos among others, in 1999. It serves as a central trade resource and media outlet for the computer and video game industry, with particular regards to hobbyist and independent developers...

.net, and IGDA.

After a stint designing board games at TableStar Games, David is now doing video game design in Utah

Utah

Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...

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External links

• http://www.finegamedesign.com - Web site of David Kennerly with articles, resources, and information.
• http://www.gamedev.net/reference/articles/article2206.asp - "Randomness without Replacement." Article on RPG game mechanics.
• http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20030815/kennerly_01.shtml - "Better Game Design through Data Mining." Article introducing data analysis for improving design in online games.
• http://www.nexustk.com - Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds
  Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds
  NEXUS: The Kingdom of the Winds , alternately known as Nexus TK or simply Nexus, is a Pay to Play MMORPG, currently run in the US by Kru Interactive. Nexus began as a U.S. version of the Korean game 바람의 나라 developed by NEXON Inc...
  
  
• http://www.darkages.com - Dark Ages
  Dark Ages (computer game)
  Dark Ages is a MMORPG based on Celtic mythology, originally developed by Nexon and now operated by KRU Interactive. It is loosely based on the Korean game called Legend of Darkness. The American version was developed by David Ethan Kennerly who based it somewhat on the works of horror writer H. P....