Ludology

What games cross over into traditional retailers like Target and Barnes and Noble? Mike and Geoff are joined by Andrew Lupp, National Sales Manager of PSI, to learn the ins and outs. Andrew works with big chains to help them decide which games will sell to the general public, and walks us through the process. Duration: 1:18:15

NEW CONTENT! Geoff interviews Vlad Niculae of Cornell about his recent research on predicting betrayal via written communications. The foundation of the study? An only repository of 300 Diplomacy games and all 150,000 messages they generated. Vlad's new project is the online game StreetCrowd , which is also exploring communications and team dynamics. Duration: 20:27

Mike and Geoff select their top 10 entries from the Ludology contest, and reveal the winner! Duration: 1:04:57  

In this classic GameTek Geoff looks at memory, and how games work with or against it. Duration: 06:10

Mike and Geoff are pleased to welcome pinball game designer Keith Johnson, designer of games such as Simpsons Pinball Party, Revenge From Mars, and Lord of the Rings. What are the special design techniques used for designing a pinball game? How do you keep players engaged? How do you make the fixed physical layout feel different in different modes? Duration: 01:05:40

In this classic GameTek, Geoff talks about luck and what increases or decreases it. Duration: 06:13

Mike and Geoff are pleased to welcome guest Richard Borg to discuss the art of designing war games with mainstream appeal. Mr. Borg is the designer of the Command and Colors series of games, which includes Memoir 44 and Battlelore. What are the features of an entry-level wargame? How can you simplify but still capture the essence of a battle? Duration: 56:06

In this classic GameTek, Geoff talks about making the player feel powerful.  We also launch our part of the big Dice Tower Network contest! Duration: 7:42

Mike and Geoff open up the mailbag and answer difficult and interesting listener questions! Duration: 1:09:26

In this classic GameTek, Geoff takes a look at the debate that raged in the 1990's between Narratologists and Ludologists. Duration: 05:59

Geoff is pleased to welcome Scott Rogers, designer of video games such as Darksiders and God of War, and author of the books Level Up! and Swipe This! The discussion centers around the concept of a 'level' as popularized in video games. Why is it such a popular way to organize games? What advantages does it give the designer? And what is the analog in the boardgame world? Duration: 01:16:05

In this classic GameTek, Geoff looks at how a good analogy can dramatically simplify learning a game. Duration: 06:00

Mike and Geoff take a deep dive into the Antoine Bauza game Seven Wonders. What works? What doesn't? What drove the design decisions? Duration: 01:16:26

In this classic GameTek, Goeff talks about how innovative a game can really be. Duration: 06:14

Mike and Geoff welcome guest Emerson Matsuuchi, designer of Specter Ops and VOLT Robot Battle, to discuss hidden and programmed movement in games. Why use these techniques? What are good and bad examples? Duration: 01:14:11

In this classic GameTek, Geoff discusses a game designed to explore the relationship between rules and morality.  Duration: 6:15

Inspired by an article by Matt Thrower , Mike and Geoff talk about games that try to tackle controversial topics, and why there aren't more of them. Duration: 1:05:35

In this classic GameTek, Geoff takes a look at what factors make a game 'mean'. Duration: 06:18

Mike and Geoff are joined by guest Rich Sommer, host of the Cardboard! podast  and star of stage and screen to discuss games receiving mainstream acceptance.  Is it good for the hobby to have games go mainstream? If so, what can designers, publishers, and hobbyists do to make that happen? Duration: 01:05:09

In this classic GameTek, Geoff takes a look at an ancient text that lists games that will distract you from achieving enlightenment. Duration: 06:18

Mike and Geoff dive deeper into the world of cards. What is a card? What tools do cards give the designer? What card games exhibit great depth? Duration: 01:22:22

In this classic GameTek, Geoff looks at the way different types of noise mirror different random processes in games, and how these can be tuned for maximum player interest. Duration: 06:24

Mike and Geoff are joined by Stronghold Games President Stephen Buonocore, to discuss the current state of the board game industry. Special guests may also pop in! Duration: 01:20:18

In this classic GameTek, Geoff explores the different types of noise. Duration: 06:21

Geoff and new host Mike Fitzgerald talk about card games and why they are often treated as second-class citizens in the game world. Duration: 01:07:00