Dax Gazaway was raised in a gamer family. His parents met in a Dungeons & Dragons group, and he was surrounded with games being played and made. From a very early age, Dax was fascinated by the numbers in games. He would pour over monster manuals and board game books, dissecting the rules to figure out how the systems worked.

Dax started in the video game industry in the late 1990s. During his tenure in the industry, Dax pioneered game system design at multiple independent and AAA studios, helping to refine and define the subdiscipline. In recent years, he has become a course director at Full Sail University, specializing in teaching new students the concepts and tools of the system designer. Dax has created new curriculum and multiple classes for system design students, and he teaches introduction to system design courses.

The following is a selection of Dax's game design credits:

Star Wars: Obi-Wan, System and level designer Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter, System and level designer and QA liaison Star Wars: Bounty Hunter: System and level designer Gladius: System designer Syphon Filter franchise: Lead designer and system designer Spider Man 3: Lead system designer Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2: Lead system designer Guitar Hero franchise: System designer

In addition, Dax has been the studio lead system designer for Row Sham Bow Games and a system design consultant for multiple projects.