Game Maker's Notebook

This episode is supported by Xsolla Jun Shen Chia  chats with  Brian Kwek , founder and owner of boutique indie publisher  Ysbryd Games . Together they discuss their catalog of games such as  VA-11 HALL-A  and  World of Horror , as well as the upcoming  Love Eternal ; the challenges and strategies they employ to reach potential customers; the importance of attending trade shows; how they work toge...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Austin Wintory  chats with composer  Piotr Musial . Together they discuss his career including his multiple collaborations with  11bit Studios  from  This War of Mine  to the  Frostpunk  series; the differences between dynamic and linear scores; working with live orchestras and unique instruments; and how the increase in scale from  This War of Mine  to  Frostpu...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Adam Orth  chats with CEO & Co-Owner of  IO Interactive ,  Hakan Abrak . Together they discuss Hakan's journey in games; the history and future of the  Hitman series; their unique approach to live service in single player games; how they're preparing for a post-pandemic development environment; and their upcoming projects in the 007 universe and their own origin...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with Creative Leader and Author  Fawzi Mesmar . Together they discuss his career in games from mobile to AAA; the lessons he's learned along the way and how he applies them in his current leadership role; and the ideas he explores in his upcoming book,  Demystifying Creativity On Originality in Game Development   including his concept of cre...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with  Marco Minoli , Director of Publishing at  Slitherine . Together they discuss the world of licensing in video games; the benefits and opportunities that can be found; how deals are structured; how to collaborate with license holders; and then explore Slitherine's catalogue of games from consumer facing war games to war simulations used...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with  Balatro  creator  LocalThunk . Together they discuss the early titles he created with his friends; the inspirations that led to  Balatro ; his ideas around design and balance; how real life experiences influenced the Joker designs; and the steps he's taking to ensure  Balatro is never conflated with gambling. If you enjoyed this episod...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with President of  The Behemoth ,  John Baez . Together they discuss  The Behemoth's  20+ year journey as an indie studio; their breakout hit during the early days of Xbox Live Arcade in  Castle Crashers ; how that success propelled them forward as a studio; the importance of trade shows for developing the relationship with their community;...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Austin Wintory  chats with composer  Kenny Young . Together they discuss his career featuring several collaborations with  Media Molecule  on the  Little Big Planet  and  Tearaway franchises all the way to his latest project,  Team Asobi's  galactic trek across  PlayStation  history,  Astro Bot . If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving us a  rating...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Chris Charla  chats with industry veteran  Jen MacLean . Together they discuss her journey in the games industry; what she's learned at each studio she's been a part of; the importance of the first hour in games; and what she thinks developers have to focus on to capture the attention of Gen Z and Gen Alpha. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving u...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Alexa Ray Corriea  chats with  Abby Howard  and  Tony Howard-Arias  from  Black Tabby Games , developers of  Slay the Princess . Together they discuss their backgrounds in graphic novels before moving into games; how they approached writing for a game with many possible narrative choices; the technical hurdles they had to overcome; and the different ways that ...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with Maria Cornelius, the Chief Product Officer for  HELLDIVERS™ 2  developer  Arrowhead Game Studios . Together they discuss her life outside of games at  Spotify   and how she found herself at  Paradox Interactive  and then to  Arrowhead ; the profound impact mentoring programs have had on her career; the development of  HELLDIVERS™ 2 ; t...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Alexa Ray Corriea  chats with  Final Fantasy VII  actor  Briana White . Together they discuss the casting process and how she originally auditioned for both Tifa and Aerith; respecting the original Japanese performance by Maaya Sakamoto; how localization transforms the creative process; how she dealt with insecurity and imposter syndrome ahead of her performanc...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Adam Orth  chats with  Dom Matthews , Studio Head of  Senua's Saga: Hellblade II  developer  Ninja Theory . Together they discuss the history of  Ninja Theory  as a studio and the unique DNA found in their games; their mission of crafting life changing art with game changing tech; avoiding making games for "everyone" and finding their audience; becoming a part...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with  Derek Yu ,  Jon Perry , and  Eirik Suhrke . Together they discuss how they collaborated along with other legendary indie developers to brainstorm the 50 games found in the retro-inspired collection,  UFO 50 ; how important it was to have a core vision for each game, the creative decisions they made to fit within the limitations of the...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Adam Orth  chats with  Tim Willits , Chief Creative Officer at  Saber Interactive . Together they discuss Tim's long tenure at  id Software  and his work on the  Quake  series; why after 23 years he decided to leave and join  Saber ; the development of  Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 ; the importance of "finding the fun" early; the creation of the swarm techn...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with  Eric Monacelli , an executive producer at  Marvel Games . Together they discuss his career working on the marketing and community side of some of gaming's biggest franchises including  Bioshock, The Last of Us, and  Call of Duty ; the process of how development studios come to work with  Marvel and what a successful collaboration look...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Austin Wintory  chats with composer  Jon Everist . Together this discuss how he transitioned from a career path in economics to composing music; his work with  Harebrained Schemes  across their library of games and his most recent contributions on  Star Wars Outlaws ; and how the concept of constraint can lead to creative freedom.  If you enjoyed this episode,...

This episode is supported by Xsolla Austin Wintory  chats with award winning composer  Mikolai Stroinski . Together they discuss his extensive work on the  Witcher  franchise for  CD PROJEKT RED ; his work on various projects both in and outside of games; the various influences that helped him score games across different genres; how his work on TV and film inform his compositions for games; and t...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Xbox's   Jun Shen Chia  chats with  Kris Antoni , Founder of  Toge Productions . Together they discuss the history of  Toge  including the release and reception of their hit indie game,  Coffee Talk ; what's next for the studio; the burgeoning development scene in Southeast Asia; and how  Toge is working with studios in the region to help them reach audiences w...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Alexa Ray Corriea  chats with  Alison Lührs , Narrative Director on  Bungie's   Destiny 2 . Together they discuss her approach to writing for fantasy in the  Dungeons & Dragons  universe and now sci-fi for  Destiny 2 ; the unique aspects of writing for live service games; how to start projects effectively; and how theater and improv have informed the way she wr...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with indie gaming business guru,  Dan Adelman . Together they discuss his time at  Xbox  and  Nintendo  helping to start their digital content marketplaces; transitioning to working independently with game developers to help them launch and market their games; how he decides which developers and projects to work with; and his perspective on...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Austin Wintory  chats with longtime  Valve  composer and music designer,  Mike Morasky . Together they discuss how he started his career outside of music in the visual effects industry working on film series such as   The Matrix  and  The Lord of the Rings ; how he found himself pursuing music and then joining  Valve ; and his work across several of  Valve's  m...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with  Tynan Sylvester , creator of  RimWorld  and author of  Designing Games: A Guide to Engineering Experiences . Together they discuss his ideas around development concepts and processes; how crystalizing those ideas in book form led to the creation of  RimWorld ; his ideas around core systems and how they lead to successful games; genera...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Trent Kusters  chats with brothers and co-founders of  SFB Games ,  Adam  &  Tom Vian . Together they discuss how they began creating games in the early days of Flash and  Newgrounds ; transitioning to console development and working with Nintendo on the multi D.I.C.E. Award winning  Snipperclips ; the inspirations and development of  Crow Country ; and the sec...

This episode is supported by  Xsolla Greg Rice  chats with  Aggro Crab  developers  Nick Kaman  and  Caelan Pollock  about their recently released undersea soulslike,  Another Crab's Treasure . Together they discuss how the team got started as a game design club in college; their first commercial project in  Going Under ; the early ideas that led to  Another Crab's Treasure ; avoiding the pitfalls...