Hey, Good Game

James Sinclair shares his remarkable journey from immigration lawyer to full-time puzzle crafter and creator of the Artisanal Sudoku Substack—a haven for lovers of elegant, human-made Sudoku variants. In this episode, James breaks down his puzzle design philosophy, his preference for handcrafted logic over AI generation, and how he’s turned personal passion into a growing newsletter, a community o...

Bryan Chen joins Nate Kadlac and Aaron Kardell on Hey, Good Game to unravel how a simple coding side project exploded into Duotrigordle , the 32-Wordle brain buster beloved by millions. A computer science student at the University of Waterloo, Bryan walks us through his programming journey from C# exercises in grade school to building viral games during online college lockdowns. The episode explor...

Angela Swain and Mariam Mollaghaffari join Aaron Kardell on Hey, Good Game to share how two longtime friends turned a nostalgic obsession with wordplay into Silly Little Games —a vibrant, human-crafted daily puzzle experience. Angela (a flight attendant with a journalism background) and Mariam (an architect with design chops) break down the collaborative, scrappy spirit behind their Rebus-style pu...

From Haunted Pixels to Conservation: Peter Lazarski on Art, Accessibility, and Indie Game Grit Indie developer and visual artist Peter Lazarski—aka Imaginary Monsters —joins Nate to explore his creative evolution from childhood horror obsessions to crafting cult-favorite lo-fi games like Halloween Forever and Deathstate . Known for his pixelated gothic aesthetic and offbeat charm, Peter shares how...

Award-winning artist, animator, and game designer Michael Frei joins Nate and Joseph to share his creative journey from apprentice construction draftsman to co-founder of Zurich’s Playable, the indie studio behind critically acclaimed interactive works like Plug & Play , Kids , and the meditative mortality sim Time Flies . Michael breaks down his minimalist approach to game design—how strippin...

Pete Muller is not your average guest—he’s a quant hedge fund legend, a touring singer-songwriter, and a prolific puzzle constructor whose creations appear in The New York Times and The Washington Post. In this episode we dive into Pete’s polymath life: his journey from math to markets, from poker tables to music stages, and how puzzles tie it all together. We also discuss his latest creation, the...

Indie-game luminary Tatiana Delgado joins Nate to trace her 20-year journey from drawing paper games as a kid to co-founding Madrid’s Out of the Blue Games . She explains how titles like Call of the Sea create emotional tension without combat, why early VR prototyping was both thrilling and nausea-inducing, and how small studios can balance artistic vision with funding realities. Tatiana also teas...

What does it take to turn a minimalist text-based game into a global phenomenon? Indie developer and software craftsman Amir Rajan joins us to unpack his unconventional path from enterprise software to the top of the App Store with A Dark Room . In this episode, we explore how Amir built the DragonRuby Game Toolkit, why betting on hyper-niche communities pays off, and how rapid prototyping drives...

What does it take to create unforgettable game audio—from eerie soundscapes in Death Stranding to iconic branding in Mortal Kombat? Composer and sound designer Joel Corelitz joins us to talk about his path from writing music for pharmaceutical ads to shaping the sonic identity of major titles. We dive into the creative process, what good feedback really sounds like, the overlooked potential of sou...

Meet David Workman, known in the puzzle world as "HalfBakedLunatic" - a Microsoft veteran who creates Sudoku puzzles so difficult he can't solve them himself. David shares the incredible story of how he invented TiVo's core technology in 1996, only to watch it slip away when his two-page concept paper got buried at Microsoft. He reveals his epic gambling simulation that proved why casinos always w...

In this episode, we talk with Jason Todd—aka Timberlake—the faceless creator behind the YouTube channel Smart Hobbies. Jason shares how he turned Sudoku from a personal pastime into a thriving YouTube channel with over 900K views on a single video. We dive into the strategy behind his growth, why he stays off-camera, how he connects with an older audience, and the surprising power of Sudoku games...

Kevin Glikmann, actor and creator of WordGlyph, joins us to share his wild creative journey—from voicing unforgettable characters in Red Dead Redemption to hand-building one of the most unusual word games on the internet. We talk about the inventing spirit that started with childhood roller coaster blueprints, the challenge of onboarding players in a genre-breaking game, and how Kevin used AI to a...

Samuel Johnston, co-founder of Bleppo and co-creator of Word Salad , joins us to share how a daily word game turned into a viral hit with over 50 million views. We talk about designing for TikTok, teaching new users game mechanics, building games that are fun (not addictive), and what it’s like growing a studio by betting on the right kind of sharing. Check out Samuel's Resources: https://bleppo.c...

David Steinberg went from submitting crosswords to the New York Times at age 12 to becoming the editorial manager at Andrews McMeel. In this episode, he shares how puzzles captured his imagination, what makes a great daily game, and why accessibility, surprise, and player-first design are key to long-term success. We also dive into how AI, onboarding, and syndication are shaping the future of game...

In this episode of Hey, Good Game , we sit down with Jeff Doka — creative director, writer, and co-founder of World Seekers , a GPS-based deckbuilding game that fuses exercise and entertainment. Jeff shares lessons from building Chess Puzzle Blitz, why most daily games fail to create lasting habits, and how deep mechanics and storytelling can transform casual gaming experiences. We dive into the r...

Elyot Grant, CEO and Game Director at Lunar Studios. Elyot shares his prolific journey from academia to game development, highlighting his expertise in creating engaging puzzles and successful indie games like Prisma. He discusses his favorite classic games, including Tetris and StarCraft, and provides deep insights into the intricacies of game design and puzzle creation.  Elyot also recounts comp...

Gabriel Stürmer, CEO of Clap Clap Games. Gabriel shares his remarkable journey from working in e-commerce at Dell to venturing into gaming with Cupcake Entertainment and eventually founding his own game studio. Despite facing the setback of being fired from Cupcake, Gabriel taught himself game development through Unity tutorials and successfully published two hit games, 'Submarine Jump' and 'Snow...

In this episode, we dive deep into the world of video game music composition with John Robert Matz, the talented composer behind scores for games like For the King, Tchia, and Gunpoint. John Robert shares his journey from classically trained musician to award-winning game composer, offering insights into his creative process and how he approaches each unique project. John Robert discusses how he c...

In this episode of the Hey, good Game podcast, host Joseph Rueter interviews Áron Csatlós, a software engineer from Hungary and the creator of the cryptography puzzle game Decodex, which is available at playdecodecks.com. Áron shares his journey from working at Nokia for over a decade to creating various games and AI-powered tools, including Ground Kids, a personalized training plan generator. The...

Justin Gary, CEO of Stoneblade Entertainment and author of 'Think Like a Game Designer.' They discuss Gary’s core design loop framework, focusing on how AI can enhance each step: inspiring, framing, brainstorming, prototyping, testing, and iterating. Gary talks about the importance of games in learning and building connections, his favorite games, and the role of AI in accelerating game design. Th...

Martin's journey in game development, starting from his early days as a web developer to his current focus on iOS mobile applications. Martin shares his thoughts on AI in game development, his preferences for using Swift and Godot over Unity, and his experience with board game conversions and licensing. Martin also delves into his design philosophy, the challenges of monetizing games in the App St...

Johannes Ahvenniemi, a seasoned mobile gaming industry professional with a diverse portfolio, including working on hits like Best Fiends and Angry Birds. Johannes shares how his interest in games started at a very young age, inspired by his brother. He discusses his passion for creating quality games without ads, his consulting work, and innovative projects like escape puzzle magazines and Sudoku...

A masterclass in modern game development with Osebo, revealing his journey from sketching word puzzles on a flight to Jamaica to launching Couples Game using AI tools and smart design principles. Learn how this former Tumblr and Facebook designer leverages LLMs to create engaging puzzles while building Castle's next-gen mobile game engine – proving that the best games start with pen and paper befo...

Brian Reynolds, co-owner of The Bridge Teachers, brings a unique blend of creativity and gaming expertise to the world of bridge instruction. As an actor, writer, and director, Brian partnered with his wife Samantha to transform bridge education through their subscription-based platform thebridgeteachers.com. Key takeaways include: - Their innovative approach to teaching bridge through accessible...

Slavi Grozev, the creator of Random Trivia Generator. Slavi, originally an acoustic engineer, shares his journey of developing the popular trivia website, discussing his inspiration from long drives and quiz bowls during his time at engineering school. Despite having a full-time job and family commitments, Slavi dedicates time daily to update and evolve the platform. The conversation delves into S...