David "Wotan" Wessman, a notable figure in the realm of video game development, is most celebrated for his contributions to the acclaimed X-Wing computer game series. His professional journey in the industry commenced in 1991 when he joined LucasArts as a tester. It was there that he encountered Lawrence Holland and voiced his aspiration to become part of Holland's team. Consequently, he secured the role of internal test lead for the video game Star Wars: X-Wing, later becoming a co-founder of what evolved into Totally Games. David then transitioned into development, taking on the responsibilities of mission builder and lead writer, roles he continued in with Star Wars: TIE Fighter. During this period, he also collaborated with Rusel DeMaria and fellow mission builder David Maxwell to co-author the official strategy guides for both games. He received a promotion to lead mission designer for Star Wars: X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter and served as "gameplay & story lead" on Star Wars: X-Wing Alliance.
Following his departure from Totally Games, Wessman held lead or senior designer positions on titles such as Blood Wake (2001), Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (2004), Saints Row (2006), and Death Jr. 2: Root of Evil (2006).
In 2008, he transitioned away from the game industry to pursue a career in education, teaching game design at the University of Advancing Technology in Tempe, AZ. Serving as a professor in game design, he has instructed at both graduate and undergraduate levels. Since 2015, he has been a lecturer at Breda University of Applied Sciences in The Netherlands, while also maintaining his involvement in game development, with his most recent project being a hard science fiction space combat simulator titled In The Black.
David "Wotan" Wessman, a dedicated enthusiast of all types of games, especially video games, embarked on his career in the game industry in 1991, accepting a position as a tester at LucasArts, which was then known as Lucasfilm games. During his tenure at LucasArts, Wessman contributed to the testing of adventure games such as Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis and Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge, as well as Lawrence Holland's World War II flight simulator, Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe, and its associated expansion packs.
In 1992, Wessman became part of Holland's independent development team, which later became known as Totally Games, taking on the role of internal test lead for Star Wars: X-Wing, a Star Wars flight simulator that the team was developing for LucasArts. He was joined by fellow tester and longtime friend David Maxwell. Together, they assumed additional writing and mission-building responsibilities, transitioning from testers to developers. The overarching narrative of the game was crafted by lead developers Lawrence Holland and Edward Kilham. Wessman and Maxwell were granted the autonomy to design their own scenarios, creating more than twice the required number of missions and selecting the best ones for inclusion in the final game.
One of Wessman's key priorities was ensuring that all missions were beatable—when players encountered failure, he provided a debriefing offering advice on where the player went wrong. After the release of X-Wing in February 1993, Wessman collaborated with Maxwell and Rusel DeMaria to co-author X-Wing: The Official Strategy Guide. The book featured the story of the player character, Keyan Farlander, as written by DeMaria. Wessman and Maxwell contributed mission strategies and general tactics, along with most of the screenshots in the book.
As the team commenced work on X-Wing's 1994 sequel, Star Wars: TIE Fighter, Wessman transitioned to full-time mission design. He continued to collaborate with Maxwell on designing missions for the game, and the pair once again contributed strategies to the subsequent TIE Fighter: The Official Strategy Guide. Wessman remained with Totally Games until 2000, serving as lead mission designer for 1997's Star Wars: X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter and as the gameplay and story lead on 1999's Star Wars: X-Wing Alliance.