Game Dev Podcast | Coffee with Butterscotch

Good day, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss hipsavers, pattern recognition, and what problems are actually interesting. Plus, we revisit our old standby “Design By Chaos” and examine whether or not it still holds up! People place a lot of value on the idea of hard work, but sometimes hard work is just hard. If it can be made easier, why not do it? There are infinite problems out there to sol...

Heya, Shenanites! This week, we talk about Air Bud situations, M&M revenue, and negative feedback loops. Work-life balance isn’t about time; it’s about having the ability to control how things interact and integrate. It’s not your fault that society is set up to burn you out. Remember, you’re a person. At some point, maybe you stopped doing the thing. That’s okay. Just start it up again when y...

Hello, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss goose mace, the black mirror effect, and a paint-by-numbers player experience. When the whole world is artificial, how do you make things not feel contrived? Just like in real life, the answer has to do with reasons. As in, you should have them. If you’re going to teach a bear ballet, you better know why you’re doing it. Questions answered (abbreviate...

Greetings, Shenanites! This week, we talk about spoons in the pot, car sheets, and emotional appeal. Rules aren’t there because they’re true; they’re there because they’re useful. Until they aren’t. Experience is learning when and where to break those rules. Still, all the VC money in the world won’t save you if you completely miss the point. Questions answered (abbreviated): challosis: How much t...

What’s up, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss immortal cultures, kitchen dreams, and capturing visibility. Creating a moment is easier when everyone is anticipating your every move. It’s harder to capture eyeballs when no one’s around. When you’re analyzing the strategies of the rich and famous and wondering if they could work for you, it’s important to take a moment and ask yourself: are you...

Howdy, Shenanites! This week, we talk about structural supports, allocation of resources, and making meaning. Since we didn’t get to questions last week, this is purely a question episode! Well, except for a slight skeleton detour. Isn’t it weird how without bones or exoskeletons we’d be bags of goo? Just slurbing from one place to the next. Talk about road rash. Questions answered (abbreviated):...

Top of the morning (or afternoon, or evening) to ya, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss runner’s gut, carnival games, and suspension of disbelief. It’s easy to fall into the trap of more information is always better, but that’s not necessarily true. Even if you could have all the details to start with, does that really make your experience better? After all, when you’re going from plan to exe...

Hi, Shenanites! This week, we talk about sure things, hot pipes, and what design by chaos really is. Our old friend the Jevens paradox pays us a visit, and it turns out that heuristic has some layers! Plus, listen in as we dive deep into our most contentious internal debate. Three brothers enter… and, well, three brother leave. Because conservation of mass. Questions answered (abbreviated): Flyhop...

Hello, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss a zombie way of life, a package full of people, and getting out of the work and working on the work. You can’t make people care about something important if they don’t understand what the experience is going to be. And you can’t explain to someone what the experience is because it’s experiential. ...Is lying required to get at a truth? Questions answe...

What’s up, Shenanites! This week, we talk about wet noodle whips, stress stew, and the walled garden. We’ve also got two -- that’s right, TWO! -- brand new podcast segments for you this ep: Seth’s English Language Corner and DUNKWATCH 2021. Will this be the first and only time that these segments appear? Who’s to say? Once there’s a turn, then there’s the possibility of a return. Questions answere...

Hail, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss good gestures, brain quirks, and arbitrary rules. The first step of any undertaking is visibility. You can’t think about the problems you’re trying to solve until you know what those problems are. If you don’t know what you’re trying to do, then you’re just doing things randomly. And like we’ve said before, it’s fine to flip randomly, but you better kn...

How’s it going, Shenanites? This week, we talk about the fractal universe, flippin’ bacteria, and urgent chaos. When you navigate by chemical receptors, the best you can do is to flip flop around until you find a nutrient gradient to pay attention to. Even a fancy flip is better than no flip when you’re trying to find new local maxima. Or maybe it isn’t. Everything is chaos. Questions answered (ab...

Good day, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss the torch problem, confetti cards , and table scraps. We’ve talked about project creep and scope creep - now let’s talk about complexity creep! People expand the fill the spaces that they’re in, whether those spaces are physical or virtual. You know you’re outgrowing your current systems if you spend most of your time handing off work instead of ac...

Hiya, Shenanites! This week, we talk about automagic, motion waste, and toothpaste mining. Sometimes when you use a robot that’s designed for someone else, you have to build another robot to undo some of the design. Better than doing it yourself probably. There are a lot of questions you should ask yourself when you’re investigating a new tool. Chief of these should be “but does it work though?” Q...

Good day, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss extraneous chats, what happens in the margins, and your house bones. It’s weird to think that we all live in a skeleton that we fill with personalized guts. And that, even though you and your life are changing constantly, that skeleton always stays the same. Well, at least until you decide to turn all your outlets right side up again, but who wants...

Hello, Shenanites! It’s a bit of a shorter episode this week because Sam got a new mic and it did NOT want to play nice. Even still, we talk about things that don’t exist, things that do exist, and CHAOS. There are infinite variables that influence what will happen, and you can’t predict them all. But once what happens happens, it’s already happened, so does it matter that you can't predict it? Ta...

Greetings, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss metajokes, how little people know, and bikeshedding. Sometimes figuring out the when for tackling a problem involves figuring out the why. You don’t wanna put Bandaids on poop piles. That solves nothing. Instead, consider putting on your fanciest boa and buying some avocados. We’re pretty sure that’ll bring us all one step closer to a better world...

Salutations, Shenanites! This week, we talk about Victorian treatises, invisible structures, and how people aren’t robots. People are also different from each other - who knew? As it turns out, when you acknowledge those two facts, you can construct a conscientious, flexible environment that actually prioritizes a person’s experience. Let’s make the implicit explicit. There’s no reason to have the...

Ahoy, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss dinosaur clipping, the purpose of ghosts, and perpetual impostor syndrome. Starting a creative project is like crossing a rickety rope bridge over a deep canyon -- if you think too much about the distance to the ground, you’ll never take the first step. And sometimes you need to prioritize the experience over technical perfection. After all, people wil...

Hello, Shenanites! This week, we’re all about listener questions! We talk about reality TV, fragile retention, and NFTs. Sometimes the hook is buried so deeply that it’s too hard to explain; you have to experience it in order to get enough context. Does that mean anything? Well. Anything can mean something if people decide it does. Questions answered (abbreviated): Beekie Boppaboop: Are there any...

Hi, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss degrading magical experiences, the dentist backlog, and inelastic demand. Are rooms defined by what’s within them or what’s without? Do they need walls, and if so, how many? Are roofs required or optional? It turns out that sometimes the simplest concepts are actually quite complex, and complex concepts are even more so. Basically, if you find yourself s...

Good day, Shenanites! This week, we talk about why ketchup is in the sink, weird replay value, and the ratcheting cost of rewards. Early commitments might mean turning down future opportunities. But hey, if it makes sense for you to do, then do it. After all, if it’s good enough for physics, then it’s good enough for us. Podcast recs: This American Life, Radiolab, The Cut, Syntax.fm, Darknet Diari...

Hiya, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss long weekends, ear bleeds, and managing noise. Everything that you do is about moving something from one place to another, whether you realize it or not. Recognizing the steps to the dance gets you that much closer to automation. It’s about cutting out the noise. Remember, the most powerful key at your disposal is the delete key! Questions answered (ab...

Hey there, Shenanites! This week, we talk about compounding actions, administrative creep, and the panopticon performance. The solution that works best on average is going to be suboptimal for everyone. Assuming you’re even solving the right problem. Knowing things is expensive. That’s why you should get robots to know things for you. Questions answered (abbreviated): Ockpop Haphop: Do your new st...

Hello, Shenanites! In this episode, we discuss the human scale, the pros of catastrophic errors, and Sam’s squibbly baby hands. The easy answers are always the wrong ones, especially if you aren’t asking the right questions. It’s all too likely you'll overlook the three boxes of kiwis right in front of your face when you’re out there looking for grapes. Questions answered (abbreviated): Wigglyhonk...