Furidashi Game Design Academy

Nicholas interrogates Lauryn about the various stages of the video game production process, and together they try to figure out ways to get past doing things the way they've always been done, which only serves to exclude certain voices. Unlock the full episode (and more!) for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter....

Lauryn and Nicholas examine why it is mass market games have such a difficult time representing marginalized groups, when indie games seem to do it so easily. Also starring: Lauryn's Slack adventures and "narrative wrappers." Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/academicality

Following up on their interview with Russ Perkins, Lauryn and Nicholas psychoanalyze each other by going back into their pasts, thinking about their most formative game experiences, what kinds critical perspectives they have as a result. Also on the docket: Even. More. FFXIV. Talk. Unlock the full episode (and more!) for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twi...

Russ Perkins joins Lauryn and Nicholas to talk uncommon careers in gamedev, cocktail arcade cabinets, and the importance of celebrating in your peers' success. Also: the delightful peculiarities of Firewatch and how Russ is just like a pineapple pizza. Joygasm Podcast Russ's portfolio https://twitter.com/Russell_Perkins Furidashi Patreon Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://tw...

Lauryn and Nicholas try to explain the how's and why's of video game production in terms of auteur theory, where, despite being made by an army of gamedevs, the games themselves seem to have an "authorial" vision. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/uahsenaa

Hear how the sausage gets made! Or not made! Lauryn and Nicholas talk a bit about their personal backgrounds, how they go about making the podcast, and how the episodes try to model a particular way of thinking about game design. Ep. 10 - Free to Role Play Unlock the full episode (and more!) for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Laur...

Lauryn and Nicholas look back on some of our and your favorite episodes, talk about what we think of them now, and announce big changes going forward! Thank you all for a great year and many more to come! Ep. 6 - Hell is Other Games Ep. 8 - There's No Such Thing as a JRPG Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash N...

Round 2 with Masao Kobayashi, we finally talk about intention in game design and how various forces in video game production maybe cause you to make a game wholly different from the one you set out to. Also: Dynasty Warriors, and, seriously, if you want to help pay for Banana Whiplash... Unlock the full episode (and more!) for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Masao: https:/...

Returning champion Masao Kobayashi sits down with Lauryn and Nicholas to talk video game production and demystify the whole process from the perspective of a longtime producer in both AAA and indie studios. Also on the docket: if any VCs out there want to help make Banana Whiplash... Masao: https://twitter.com/MegaMasao Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furida...

Lauryn and Nicholas discuss how in recent years mobile games have entered the cross platform mix, how mobile games have reinvigorated arcades, and the future of mobile gaming from companies like Niantic. Also on the docket: redefining RPGs. Unlock the full episode (and more!) for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twit...

Lauryn and Nicholas talk about how mobile games should no longer be thought of as peripheral to the games industry but rather central, and how old video game design ideas are re-emerging as a result. Also starring: 80 MILLION ACTIVE USERS!! Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/uah...

Lauryn and Nicholas talk about how moral choices in games are as much about the total framework in which those choices appear as what the content of the individual choice is. Unlock the full episode (and more!) for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/uahsenaa

Lauryn and Nicholas address the difficult problem of how to design games that make you feel for and understand characters without completely alienating the player. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/uahsenaa

We discuss how the games industry and its typical production cycles train and reproduce a particular kind of developer who, in turn, internalizes and perpetuates that cycle. Also on the docket: how Fordism relates to crunch! Unlock the full episode (and more!) for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaury...

Following up from last week's chillrant on the core gameplay loop, Lauryn and Nicholas talk about how that loop is both a product and reflection of the "design loop" and compartmentalization under which video games are produced. Also: someone should hire us to make Battlefield's Edge! Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/t...

Nicholas explains what the core gameplay loop is, why it's so fundamental in game design, but also why it doesn't quite reflect what the player experiences in game. Also on the docket: dire bat wing stew. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/uahsenaa

Lauryn and Nicholas look at specific examples of how the masculine assumptions embedded in how creative decisions regarding games get made make for experiences that could be richer and more compelling. Also: reskinned white dudes. Takeshi and Hiroshi Chillrant: https://youtu.be/FT_6OdY6TT4 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter....

Lauryn and Nicholas begin from the recent suit against Activision Blizzard and go on to discuss the rampant issues surrounding harassment in the video games industry and how to be a better ally to those who suffer within it. Also on the docket: Alanah Pearce on why boycotts aren't always a great idea. Pearce's video: https://youtu.be/ApDnEuUOzS8 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter:...

Once Lauryn dreamed of making her sleeper hit UnderBlind, but now she languishes in the deep, dark halls of AAA development despair. Also on the docket: the legal veil between major studios and indie devs. Unlock the full episode (and more!) for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: http...

Lauryn and Nicholas explain why AAA game studios operate the way they do and why the market as a whole causes them to gravitate toward producing franchises and otherwise very similar games. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/uahsenaa

Nicholas wonders whether, given the way the market works now, if it even makes sense to make a distinction between indie developers and major studios. Unlock the full episode for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/uahsenaa I Don't See the Branches, I See the Leaves...

Normally, we go off on our little tangents to some relaxing beats, but this week Lauryn really had to get something off her chest. On the docket: why Google Stadia's recently announced revenue sharing model is indicative of so many problems in contemporary game design. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nich...

Lauryn and Nicholas try to explain the how's and why's of video game production in terms of auteur theory, where, despite being made by an army of gamedevs, the games themselves seem to have an "authorial" vision. Unlock the full episode for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://...

We brought Masao Kobayashi on for a more industry focused episode, diving into the differences between the video games industry in the US, Canada, and Japan. Also starring: work/life balance and how weather makes you work better? Masao: https://twitter.com/megamasao Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nichola...

Lauryn and Nicholas have a perfectly civil argument about what makes Final Fantasy X-2 so awful and/or amazing. Unlock the full episode for $5 a month on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/furidashi Twitter: https://twitter.com/furidashipod Lauryn: https://twitter.com/thelaurynash Nicholas: https://twitter.com/uahsenaa