Nice Games Club - a gamedev podcast!

This episode bops! Our guest on the show this week is Chel Wong, an award-winning game composer who has worked on several published and early-access titles, like Watch This Space and Kine . Her work on Kine earned the game the award for Best Audio at Reboot Develop Red 2019. From composing to mastering, we ask Chel to describe her preferred tools and workflows for creating music for games. Also, t...

In a heavy start to a very fun episode, your nice hosts check in on each other as the COVID-19 pandemic stretches into the fall. Ellen unknowingly makes a timely West Wing reference, and Stephen only allows Mark to tell three Star Trek stories. You can watch Mark's mini-talk at PAX Online 2020, called "People, too" It was part of a panel on animals in games called "Lovely or Lethal: Will these ani...

Welcome Heather Gartner, Art Director for Team Toadhouse studio, art streamer and huge D&D fan. Heather (she/they) has been an illustrator for 10+ years. We were so happy to have them in the virtual clubhouse and talk about impostor syndrome—what it is, where it comes from, and how to live with it...or maybe even overcome it. If you've had a tough week, or if you ever feel like your artistry is fi...

Narrative designer Xalavier Nelson Jr. enters the clubhouse to discuss the need for game designers to curate influences outside of games, the Half-Life 2s that weren't, the XCOM that wasn't quite, and some things that were! Also, advice for criminals. Game Devs of Color Expo Media Influences Game Design IRL Narrative Frog Fractions Has Done It Again--Here's How To Access A New Sequel  -  James O'C...

Your nice hosts recorded a live Nice Games Jam episode at 2D Con 2020! You can listen to the edited audio of the recording here! You can find the video of the live recording right here! Prompt Create a game where you are working together to construct a robot, but each player has a secret task they are trying to get the robot to complete along the way. Game type Tabletop game Player count 3-8 Mater...

This week, Mark becomes a game publisher and a PAX speaker, Ellen builds a desk and reads a book, and Stephen learns his lesson (almost). Color Jumper is available on Switch NOW! Our live episode for 2D Con is up on YouTube ! The audio will be in the regular feed next week. Mark will be part of the PAX Online panel " Lovely or Lethal: Will these animals cuddle me or kill me? " on Thursday, Septemb...

Your nice hosts are joined by another nice guest! Jonathan Jennings is a games and XR engineer out of California. In this episode, the Clubhouse hears from Jonathan on the state of VR—programming and design challenges, industry updates, and what we might expect from VR experiences in the near future. Also, we discuss how VR fighting games make us tired, our favorite Ninja Turtles, and who really i...

Your nice hosts are doing a LIVE Nice Games Jam in a few hours , and Mark thought maybe he should tell people about it! Listen for details... It's happening at 10pm CT... TONIGHT! at https://twitch.tv/2dcon 2D Con is raising money for AbleGamers, please donate here: https://2dcon.net/donate

Evil Games Club is back! Dale, Adia and Dylan have returned from outer space to be mean and make trouble in their 5th somewhat-less-than-hostile takeover of the program. 0:04:47 Working From Home Your Nice Hosts also talked about working from home in "The new normal." 0:45:46 Small Projects Play Adia's small stories! Adia spoke at a recent igdatc meetup about her Electron+Ink work IGDA TC YouTube...

In this episode, Mark and Stephen are joined by guest host Adia Alderson for a thoughtful conversation with Glen Henry, an indie developer out of Jamaica. Glen runs Spritewrench Studios and has released multiple creative titles like M@ge (pronounced "Mage") and Grimm and Tonic . The club talks about Glen’s current projects, as well as creative processes, maintaining community during COVID-19, and...

This week, Mark hires quack calendar scientists, Ellen proposes a glossary, and everyone contradicts Stephen... including Stephen. The next "Twin Cities Playtest" is August 19th on Twitch! Parsec Actionable Gamification: Beyond Points, Badges, and Leaderboards  -  Yu-kai Chou 0:13:50 Prototyping Mark cited a "Nice Games Jam" episode as a good example of a paper prototype for a digitial game: Blob...

Your nice hosts are joined by nice guest Alanna Linayre, founder of the indie studio Team Toadhouse. Alanna (rhymes with "banana") guides the gaming world towards healthier work practices and personal habits. We asked her a lot of questions about best practices in mental health, and about Team Toadhouse's upcoming game Call Me Cera . Also, Mark has a mission for artists, Ellen names a canary, and...

Your nice hosts are tired, then get energized. Stephen is thinking about it, Mark brought a few unlikely examples, and Ellen is also thinking about it. Here's a fun new thing: We've recently started a Discord channel for listeners to discuss the show with each other. It's part of the Twin Cities Gamedev Discord server, but you don't need to be a Twin Cities gamedev to partisipate! Get directly to...

What does it mean to manage a community of players? How do you do it well? Is it just about social media, or is community engagement part of game creation? In this episode, community manager and MageQuit player Christine "Birb" Marten gives your nice hosts a primer on using data, dealing with trolls, and getting input from gamers. Also, Mark sends out an invite, Stephen doesn't like horror games,...

It's another week of brotherly love/war as Stephen's bro Charles McGregor re-enters the clubhouse to talk about his experience designing and building the level editor for his game HyperDot. Charles also joins your nice hosts in a discussion about their favorite level editors, and Ellen reveals the origin of her game design journey! In the middle of the show, Ellen mentioned a kind tweet from Pheon...

Guest host Charles McGregor starts the episode by getting REVENGE. The group talks a bit about the state of the growing "serious games" industry and what it's like to work alongside family members. Also, Stephen does a good transition, and... no one mentions Star Trek ?! In his intro speech, Charles references episode #37: "Ugly and hard to use." The last days of Mixer  -  Mikhail Klimentov ,  The...

No, your nice hosts aren't pitching an adaptation of the 1974 film of the same name, but returning guest host Sarah Seember Huisken counts it as an inspiration for the solo-play tabletop RPG we workshopped in this episode. Immerse yourself a galaxy of corporate factions, fluid allegiances, and space pirates! Scum and Villainy The 5 best solo board games  -  Rafael Cordero ,  PC Gamer Prompt Worksh...

Storyboard artist Sarah Huisken joins the club this week to talk about NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) and the factors that make games as deliciously "replayable" as Mass Effect 2 . Also, Stephen sort of gets the final word, Mark does a transition (!), and Ellen is slow to get the joke.  Sarah Huisken's website  -  Sarah Huisken Sarah's Twitter handle is @BoringHeathen  -  Sarah Huisken Everythin...

Two architects of wildly different philosophies share an office space and compete to influence the design of their client's latest project. It's an excellent sitcom premise, but it's also the subject of our latest Nice Games Jam! Photo Credit: Ian Samkov on Pexels News Itch.io Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality ends with a stunning $8.1m raise…  -  Wesley Yin-Poole ,  Eurogamer For a major Sta...

In this extra big, beefy, and somewhat late episode, your nice hosts talk about recent events and share some personal thoughts on anti-black racism, police violence, and white privilege. Also, Mark is a smart animator, Stephen makes us feel the space and the place, and Ellen doesn’t want to live on the planet Zebes. Special: George Floyd, police violence, protests Official George Floyd Memorial Fu...

This week on the program, Ellen sings along, Mark sings praise, and Stephen sings the gospel of Stephenism. DONATE! Official George Floyd Memorial Fund We Love Lake Street Black Visions Collective Black Table Arts Reclaim the Block Meta notes: PlayDate Why the quirky Playdate portable could succeed where Ouya failed  -  Kyle Orland ,  Ars Technica "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" To Be More Optimis...

Your nice hosts interview Ryan Sumo, Art Director and CEO of Squeaky Wheel Studio, an independent developer and publisher based in the Philippines. Topics include community building, conferences, becoming a publisher through serendipity, and the benefits of being transparent with your development practices. Plus jokes! Gamedev in the Philippines Misc. The Top 50 mobile games of 2006  -  Stuart Dre...

Your nice hosts talk big picture and get deep into the weeds this week. Mark runs Flash at 60fps on the Switch, Ellen makes a Star Trek reference, and Stephen wants more games that aren't fun. Hey you! If you're porting a project, whether it's just to a new Unity build target, or to a whole new codebase, we want to hear about it! contact@noblerobot.com or @NiceGamesClub . GDC’s summer event will b...

Mark gets back to Metro Nexus , Stephen explores the strange land where in-game and real-world economics overlap, and Ellen makes sure we have good posture. Metro Nexus is running on the Switch! Global Games Pitch IGDATC Widget Satchel Postmortem  -  igdatc 0:11:20 Economies Currencies in Star Trek Online Gamepedia How Warframe built an ethical free-to-play economy Ben Kuchera Polygon I Am Not At...

Mark interviews Sébastien Deguy and Jérémie Noguer, the Vice President and Principal Product Manager of 3D & Immersive at Adobe, about developing Substance, the leading suite of tools for 3D texturing and material creation. In a wide-ranging discussion, your nice guests reveal what it's like joining a big ol’ company like Adobe, how to design a tool for multiple audiences, the difference between "...