Episode 25: Jill Scharr
You're Not a Bad Writer, You Just Don't Get the Assignment
When writers join a project, they're not always fully aligned with that project's tone and style - sometimes, it hasn't even been defined yet. Today we talk with Jill Scharr (Destiny 2, The Lamplighters League) about that crucial process...
Episode 26: Graham Walmsley
Let’s make an 80 Days tabletop roleplaying game
We're joined by TTRPG designer Graham Walmsley (Cthulu Dark, Cosmic Dark) to discuss his approaches to creating table-top games. How do we create a coherent world when don't have control? How do we know when our mechanics are working?
For more inf...
Episode 27: Emma Kidwell
Your AAA game should be more mundane
We're joined by Emma Kidwell (Civilisation VII, Midnight Suns) to discuss the quieter, mundane moments that make a blockbuster game sing, by bringing out the humanity of the characters and realities of their world. How do we structure the story to allow for t...
Episode 28: Josh Boykin
Choose Yourself
We're joined by Josh Boykin (Lancer Tactics) to talk about how we bring ourselves into the work that we do - especially in a world full of injustice and very real political risk. How does being vunerable lead us to tell better stories? And how do we make sure we stay on the right...
Episode 29: Adriana Jacobs
Poems Make Games Better
Adriana X. Jacobs is an Associate Professor of Hebrew Literature, and also a game writer and designer. This week she talks to us about the use of poetry in games: the use of text and spoken performance to slow the player down and draw them deeper into the world of the gam...
Episode 30: Pedro Giglio
Blending In by Standing Out
Pedro Giglio (Town of Zoz, Cobra Kai 2) joins us to talk about bringing local detail to a global market. How do we adjust our material to make sure it connects with people from different cultures? And how do we broaden the audience's understanding of the world without...
Episode 31: Josh Labelle
Set-ups, Attempts, Complications and Pay-Offs
We're joined by Josh Labelle (Disney Dreamlight Valley, Kim Kardashian's Hollywood) to talk about the bare bones of what makes a story - and how that plays out over episodes and seasons of a live-service game with a hugely invested fanbase. How much ...
Episode 32: Julia Minamata
Why I Love Text Parsers
We talk with Julia Minamata (The Crimson Diamond) about the joys of implementing a text parser-based game in the 2020s - but also about creativity as a process and craft as hard-work with no shortcuts. How do we find our way through a project when we don't know where we'r...
Episode 33: Bertine van Hövell
Biographies: The Quick and Dirty Way
Bertine van Hövell (Old Skies, Stellaris) talks to us about creating characters for LARPs by creating their biographies. How can adding a contradiction to a person's backstory spice up a character and give a steer on roleplaying that character? And how do we ...
Episode 34: Alex Epstein
Translucent Lies and other "Dirty Narrative" Techniques
Narrative designer and screenwriter Alex Epstein (We Happy Few, South of Midnight) about gaps, lies and narrative tricks that make our worlds feel bigger than they are - especially other characters who lie. How do make players feel safe, if...
