Justin Coombs

16 YEARS IN ADVERTISING /
12 YEARS IN GAME DEV

Award-winning Art Director with 15 years in creative leadership and 10 years in independent game development, uniting the craft of advertising with the vision of worldbuilding. As co-founder of Warballoon (creator of Star Command® and Star Command Galaxies®), I’ve led small, agile teams through every phase of production — from concept and style development to launch.

In advertising, I’ve guided some of the world’s biggest brands (USPS, Amazon, Cigna, Samsung, Volkswagen) through visually iconic campaigns.

I thrive on defining visual languages, mentoring creative teams, and crafting emotionally resonant, story-driven experiences that players and audiences remember.

MRM // McCann 

Associate Creative Director 2024–Present — Lead integrated creative for USPS, Amazon Eero, Gulf States Toyota, and Wilscott Storage. Define visual direction, storytelling frameworks, and overall brand aesthetics across digital, video, and experiential. Mentor art teams and uphold a unified craft vision across multiple work streams.


MRM // McCann 
Senior Art Director 2018–2024 — Directed national campaigns and activations for USPS, Lysol, Allegra, Cigna, Sanofi, Sony and Samsung. Helped USPS become “Most Beloved Brand in America” (Morning Consult, 2022). Designed interactive USPS experiences reaching over 130M homes annually. Co-created digital products, websites, and content experiences driving $100M+ in attributed revenue.


Warballoon Games

Co-Founder /Game Maker 2012–Present — Directed art and design for Star Command® (Apple Editor’s Choice, #2 Paid App, 1M+ downloads, 4.5★) and Star Command Galaxies® (Steam). Led a distributed team of 2–8 artists and developers from prototype through launch. Established art style, interface design, and in-game visual identity. Produced concept art, UI/UX systems, marketing art, and cinematic keyframes. Managed external partners and vendors to maintain stylistic and production consistency.


Agency Experience (Selected) 

Art Direction / Design – 2008–2018 — The Barbarian Group – JBL, Samsung Big Spaceship – Blizzard Activision, Google, Nintendo, YouTube Mother – Rembrandt, Vevo, Reading Is Fundamental BBDO / Atmosphere BBDO – Visa, FedEx, Snickers, M&M’s CP+B / DDB / McGarryBowen / Digitas / Roar / Health4Brands – Clients include Chase, J&J, Burger King, GMC, Microsoft, Volkswagen

EDUCATION

Santa Chiara Study Center 2004, 2007 
Renaissance Art History study
Castiglion Fiorentino, Toscana, Italy

Japanese Exchange and Teaching Programme 2006 – 2007
Satte-shi, Saitama-ken, Japan.

Colorado State University 2001-2005
BFA in Graphic Design,
Fort Collins, CO

Colorado State University 2001-2005
BFA in Drawing
Fort Collins, CO

ACHIEVEMENTS