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Patrick Rau (1976) is a communication designer, media artist, and game designer.
He is the founder of the studios kunst-stoff and Mad About Pandas and has worked for over 25 years at the intersection of art, interactive media, and games.
His work combines artistic-experimental processes with game design, narrative, and interactive systems. He is particularly interested in how meaning emerges through space, mechanics, and images—and how these structures can be questioned and reimagined through design.
- Game design & interactive systems
- Artistic-experimental media practice
- 3D environments, narration & environmental storytelling
- Funding and development of game projects
- Teaching & process-oriented design
Patrick Rau has led or personally developed the game design of all projects within his studios.
His work integrates mechanics, narrative, and atmosphere into cohesive player experiences and has received numerous national and international awards, including the German Computer Game Award, the German Developer Award, and the Red Dot Design Award.
Key projects include Yerba Buena, Hitchhiker - A Mystery Game, Laika, and The Great Jitters (with Links to Steam)
Alongside his work in game development, Patrick Rau maintains an independent artistic practice in the field of media art and interactive systems.
His works—such as Video Scans—have been presented at institutions including the ZKM Karlsruhe and explore questions of perception, mediality, and spatial experience.
At the core of his artistic approach is an experimental engagement with image, space, and interaction, understanding design as an open, process-based practice.
Patrick Rau is teaching as a Professor of Game Art and Design at the HBK Essen, where he developed courses in game design, 3D environments, and narrative systems.
His teaching approach is process-oriented and research-driven, supporting students in developing their own methods, creative positions, and experimental practices.
Key teaching areas include:
- Game design & concept development
- 3D environments and environmental storytelling (Unity)
- Character development for games
- Integration of design, technology, and narrative
- Funding, Project Development and Business Development
A core aspect of his work is the development and realization of funded projects.
Patrick Rau has extensive experience working with public funding programs (including federal and regional instruments) as well as international publishers and partners.
He combines creative development with strategic planning, guiding projects from initial concept and pitching through funding, production, and release.
His work is defined by a process-based understanding of design, where ideas emerge through the interplay of experimentation, reflection, and production.
He operates across disciplines, combining:
- artistic exploration
- design precision
- technical implementation
- entrepreneurial thinking
- 1976 born in Waldshut, Germany
- Master's degree in Communication Design (2001)
- 2005 founded kunst-stoff GmbH
- 2017 founded Mad About Pandas GmbH
- Collaborations with Disney, Ubisoft, Apple, Meta
- Professor of Game Art and Design at HBK Essen
- Multiple national and international Awards
