Client Referenced: Warner Bros. Games
Studio: The Platform Group
Role: Junior Art Director / Graphic Designer
Tools: Photoshop, Jira, internal CMS
Studio: The Platform Group
Role: Junior Art Director / Graphic Designer
Tools: Photoshop, Jira, internal CMS
Overview: While working on digital storefront assets for WB Games, I quickly realized how much time was being consumed by manual tasks—especially exporting, quality assurance, and file finalization. These steps were not only time-intensive but also prone to human error. Each title required dozens of exports tailored to platform-specific guidelines, and with multiple platforms to support (PlayStation, Xbox, Steam, Epic, Nintendo), the workload scaled rapidly. This process slowed down the entire team, particularly during high-volume release cycles such as Mortal Kombat 1, where new character drops and DLC packs introduced even more complexity.
The Solution: To solve these bottlenecks, I developed seven custom Photoshop scripts entirely from scratch. I used JavaScript, ChatGPT as a coding partner, and a Photoshop debugging tool that allowed me to access the console for fine-tuning. Each script was designed with a specific pain point in mind:
Save for Web PNG / JPG: This script prompts the user to choose a file path and saves their selection for future use, eliminating the need to retype paths. It also ensures that files meet platform constraints—such as keeping PlayStation exports under 2MB.
QA One / QA All: These scripts scan the current document (or all open documents) to catch errors like hidden layers or linked layers that haven’t been rasterized. It highlights issues in red and displays them in a non-destructive popup, allowing for review and correction without risk of accidental deletion.
Finalize One / Finalize All: These scripts prepare files for export by rasterizing necessary layers but preserving smart objects, text, and shape layers. This ensures quality while preventing destructive edits. The “All” version applies this action across all open files.
Replace Linked Layers (for MK1 Metadata): Built specifically for Mortal Kombat 1’s metadata, this script allowed me to replace character images across dozens of files by entering just a reference name and new image path. This dramatically sped up production when working with multiple characters and title treatments.
Implementation: Before integrating them into production, I tested each script thoroughly on dummy files to ensure they were safe and functional. Once validated, I created video tutorials for the team that explained how to install the scripts, assign them to keyboard shortcuts, and use them effectively. These tools were soon adopted across the team and became a critical part of our metadata pipeline.
Impact: The use of these scripts led to a dramatic increase in efficiency. Tasks that previously took hours—such as replacing artwork, QA'ing layers, and finalizing files—could now be done in a fraction of the time. For metadata production in particular, total turnaround time was reduced to roughly one-fourth of what it had been. Not only did this help us meet tight deadlines, but it also resulted in cleaner, more consistent outputs with fewer errors and less fatigue.
Reflection: Building these tools taught me how to approach problems with a systems-based mindset. Instead of grinding through repetitive work, I focused on how to remove the bottlenecks entirely. I learned to break complex problems into small, actionable steps and use automation to scale my impact. If I were to do it again, I would have started this process even earlier. It changed the way I approach creative workflows—I now look for ways to streamline every phase, so I can spend less time on the mechanical and more time on what matters: the creative.
QA One | Finalize One
Export JPG | Replace Linked Files