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Matt James

b. 1981

American game designer

Designer Role-playing game designerGame designer
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About Matt James

Born 1981. Matt James is an American designer, role-playing game designer and game designer.

Matt James is an American game designer and a decorated veteran of the United States Army. As a game designer, James is best known for his online and print works for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game published by Wizards of the Coast, Pathfinder role-playing game by Paizo, and Privateer Press. He has also designed game content for Wolfgang Baur's Kobold Press (formerly Open Design LLC). In 2012 James won an ENnie Award for Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale and has been nominated for several Origins Awards. In 2014, James won an ENnie Award for Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Bestiary 4.

Game design career James began designing games at a young age while writing content for a live action roleplaying game called Avalon LARP. After his service in the military, he began designing professionally. He received his first break when he was asked to fill in for another designer for a Dungeons & Dragons adventure that would be published in Dungeon Magazine. From there, he would regularly contribute to Dragon Magazine and Dungeon Magazine. Since then, James has co-authored many Dungeons & Dragons and Pathfinder products, including the award-winning sourcebook Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale (2011).

James and his older brother Brian R. James have teamed up to produce additional content for the Forgotten Realms as well as D&D as a whole. They have announced that they are moving forward with their long-established game company Vorpal Games.

Honors 2012: Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale wins a Silver ENnie Award for Best Monster/Adversary product. 2014: Pathfinder: Bestiary 4 wins a Gold ENnie Award for Best Monster/Adversary

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Important facts

Born
1981
Birth century
Nationality
Awards
Bronze Star Medal; Purple Heart

People in Matt James's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Matt James's

Frequently asked questions

Who is Matt James?

American game designer

When was Matt James born?

Matt James was born in 1981.

What is Matt James's occupation?

Matt James is a designer, role-playing game designer and game designer.

What nationality is Matt James?

Matt James is American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Matt James

· Wikidata: Q16221353

· DBpedia: Matt James (game designer)

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Matt James. https://biography.guide/matt-james-designer/

MLA: "Matt James." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/matt-james-designer/.

Chicago: "Matt James." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/matt-james-designer/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-24 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

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