🤖 About the Workshop

Great games rarely start polished.

They start with rough ideas, simple prototypes, testing, feedback, and quite a few things that don’t work.

In Fail Fast. Play Faster, Stefan Zamfir will show how game designers test mechanics, find what is actually fun, and decide what is worth developing further.

Using examples from games such as Portal, Super Mario 64, Splatoon, Fortnite, XCOM and Hades, you’ll see how ideas evolve through prototyping, playtesting and iteration.

Because good game design is not about getting everything right on the first try.

It’s about knowing what to test, what to keep, and what to change.

🎯 What You’ll Take Away

•  How to turn an idea into a testable prototype
•  What makes a prototype useful
•  How to test whether a mechanic is actually fun
•  Why playtesting matters
•  How feedback shapes design decisions
•  Why failing early can lead to better games

👤 Meet Stefan Zamfir

Stefan Zamfir has 20+ years of experience in game development.

He spent much of his career at Gameloft, working as Game Designer, Producer, Lead Designer, Lead Studio Designer and Product Operations Manager, across several international studios.

His experience includes projects such as N.O.V.A. 1 & 2, Asphalt 8 and Chuck Norris.

Today, Stefan teaches Game Design at ECHO School, bringing real industry thinking into the classroom.

🎟️ Who Is This For?

This workshop is for you if you:

•  are already interested in game design
•  have tried Unreal, Unity, Godot, Roblox Studio or your own game ideas
•  have joined a game jam or built a small project
•  want to understand how designers actually work
•  are considering game development as a future study or career direction

💜 Why ECHO

At ECHO, we believe the best way to understand game development is to experience how the work is actually done.

Our students learn through real projects, feedback, iteration and direct interaction with lecturers and mentors from the industry.

This workshop gives you a glimpse into that process, before you decide what your next step could be.

Ready to think like a game designer?

Join the workshop.