Jenny Jiao Hsia
There’s a lot going on beneath Jenny Jiao Hsia’s bubbly, cute aesthetic. Her latest projects are Beglitched, a “cyberpink” hacking game, and Consume Me, an intimate look at the destructive, compulsive cycles of extreme dieting.
It was cold at the NYU Game Center the day I met Jenny Jiao Hsia. Three to four inches of snow had fallen overnight, and the wind was doing its best to make the whole concept of “outside” as unappealing as possible. I had gotten lost among the complex’s maze of restaurants and bookstores, and my long leather coat felt like tissue paper against the harsh New York winter. Then my phone rang. It was Hsia, who quickly told me not to worry and immediately offered to help guide me to the coffee shop where we had planned to meet.
As I walked up to the café entrance, she stepped outside and greeted me at the door. I apologized for being late, and as we got in line for some coffee, she told me I was “absolutely fine” and shared some of her own stories about getting lost on campus. We were just strangers at this point, but speaking with her was so easy that it felt as if we had been already been friends for years.
I began talking to her about her experiences making games as a student at the Game Center, and quickly learned that as an artist, she is no less welcoming. “I want to design for many different types of people,” she explained. “I want anyone to be able to play one of my games and be able to understand it.” To do this, she avoids making difficult or complex challenges, and instead prefers to make games that poke fun at relatable, everyday situations.
