The Indie Diarist

Sometimes leaps of faith can pay off! In this episode I spent some time with Julian, a Belgian game developer living in Normandy, who shared his raw journey from childhood gaming memories to launching his first bullet hell game, Particulitix. After being laid off from his tech job, Julien took a leap of faith and he hasn't looked back since. I wish I were as brave sometimes! In this episode: J...

Get ready for a whopper of an episode! In this one, I spent some time with Tali from ORIGAME DIGITAL, developer of Penguin Colony – a short narrative adventure game which re-imagines H.P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness in... unexpected ways. Our conversation soon went completely off the rails, embracing topics such as games as a form of art, the power of political philosophy, and how...

Itching to make a cool game late this year? Seasoned developer or complete newbie, this might be a good chance to do something special for it! To celebrate episode 100, I'm hosting the Meaningful Games Jam 2026 . It's a jam to make a game that means something to you! Listen to this episode to learn about all the rules and details, or skip to the good stuff with the links below. 🎒💛 Check out the...

Game development is a journey of passion, persistence, and often a little bit of sweat and tears. In this episode, I spent some time with Pippo and Alex from Cobalt Lane, a small development studio currently working on narrative gem Imprinted. If you're into David Lynch and obscure vintage references, this episode is for you! We're going to have a dev commentary livestream with these two l...

Can a childhood visit to a dentist’s office game plant the seed for a lifelong journey into game design? Well, you're about to find out! Most game developers have a secret weapon for turning mundane ideas into deeply compelling experiences. AP Thompson (the Brooklyn-based solo dev behind Titanium Court ) discusses that hidden magic in this episode, revealing how a tiny spark of curiosity trans...

In this episode I spent some time with Fred Hoffman , art director and co-founder of Newfangled Games – the studio behind an award-winning little puzzle game gem called Paper Trail ! This was my first time exclusively hosting an art director on an episode and all it told me is that I should definitely do it more! You will notice the questions are a little different which should help keep things fr...

DISCLAIMER + APOLOGY: Audio issues on my track :( but Liza and Igor sound great! In this episode, I spent some time with the SHARQ IT Labs team, the developers behind action-roguelike Ritualist, to talk about their unconventional paths into game development and how their backgrounds merged to found their incredibly passion-led studio. Enjoy! 🎒💛 -------------- Support Liza & Igor 🎒💛 - Ritua...

In this episode, I spent a lovely hour with Kate Killick, co-founder of Glowfrog Games and developer of the delightful cosy puzzle game Pieced Together ! Which is apparently a game that makes many people cry. Can't say I don't love that as a writer. Enjoy! 🎒💛 ------------- Support Kate 🎒💛 - Buy Pieced Together: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2891370/Pieced_Together/ - Insta: https:...

In this episode, I spent some time with Huw Millward, a super talented developer of a Steam bestseller ( Warsim: The Realm of Aslona ) who's now working on his next project: One of the most ambitious indie projects ever made. He's also a friend of Chaz, an old guest of the show! Enjoy! 🎒💛 -------------- Support Huw 🎒💛 - Get Warsim: https://store.steampowered.com/app/659540/Warsim_The_Realm_of_...

In this episode, I spent some time with the founder of O'Saurus Studios, a lovely (and beautifully-named) women-led studio based in Australia that's only just released its first game, Call of the Golden Valley . Maddy is a former Google software engineer turned game developer, and a breath of fresh air in an industry more globalised than ever! Enjoy! 🎒💛 ----------------- Support Maddy 🎒...

This is a special one! I spent some time with Chris Gardiner, Head Writer and Narrative Director at London-based studio Failbetter Games, to talk about the studio's approach to narrative, game design, community, and player engagement. I've been a longtime fan of Failbetter Games and their work ever since the team released Sunless Sea in 2015, and it's always a pleasure to catch up with...

In this episode, I spent some time with Timbo Johnson, a lovely solo developer from Wales with a burning passion for making small, fun, and beautiful games with amazing art. Though Timbo secretly has a dream... Will he make the game he's been dreaming of since childhood? Enjoy! 🎒💛 ----------- Support Timbo 🎒💛 Itch: https://timbojay.itch.io/ Bubble Frog DX: https://store.steampowered.com/ap...

Happy end of January! In this episode, I spent some time with Oswin (also known as Nimso), the developer of cosy platformer Shallow Pond , to talk about creative problem solving and how to approach some of the toughest challenges in game design / game development. Enjoy! 🎒💛 ------------------------- Support Nimso 🎒💛 Find Shallow Pond on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2950750/Shallow...

In this FIRST episode of 2026, I spent some time with George, a solo developer working on a delightful party-based roguelite game called Luminas. From making your dream game to learning to prioritise work, this was a lovely one to open the new season of the show with! Enjoy! 🎒💛 -------------- Support George 🎒💛 - Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3724100/Luminas_Parasite_Reign/ - Instag...

Happy Holidays friends! This episode is a podcast version of The Silksong Paradox , a long-form video essay on the story of Team Cherry and Silksong's development journey. A little bonus to end the year! It's also a preview of the Indie Chronicles audio series, which will be available exclusively to Patreon members from episode 2 onwards. Enjoy! 🎒💛 --------- Gain access to future episode...

In the last Indie Diary of the year, I spent some time with the folks at Zeitglas, a lovely development studio based in Switzerland that has just released Sanatorium , a mental asylum simulator game. Such a great story from these two and a lovely pair of guests, glad to have it as the last Indie Diary of 2025! Enjoy! 🎒💛 -------------- Support Zeitglas 🎒💛 - Discord: https://discord.gg/USE5bJRHE...

We all know children love games and toys: they're fun and give them a creative outlet for their imagination. But did you know video games can be priceless in hospitals too? For this episode, I spent some time with Gamer-in-Residence Steven Mair from the Glasgow Children's Hospital Charity, digging into why games matter to children and how crucial they can be in a hospital environment. A re...

In this episode, I spent a lovely hour with Nathan & Mason, two longtime friends and co-developers of Hermit and Pig , a story-rich, turn-based RPG about mushrooms and... social anxiety, among other things! Nathan & Mason have really mastered the concept of pouring all of yourself into your creations, and their passion for the game they're making comes through in every second of the episod...

In this episode, I spent some time with Eugene, developer of Dead Cells-inspired roguelike Katanaut. From handling player feedback to battling perfectionism, Eugene's journey is definitely worth hearing about! Also, I could probably listen to his voice to relax before sleep. Enjoy! 🎒💛 ------------------------- Support Eugene 🎒💛 Twitter: https://x.com/VoidmawGames Bsky: https://bsky.app/pro...

NOTE: My audio capture pains around my microphone continue in this episode, but I'm getting closer to a fix 🥲 sorry everyone! I'll have them sorted for Episode 81! In this one, I spent some time with Joseph McCormack, a solo developer working on a third-person RPG called Aetherfall - which blends martial arts and elemental interactions. Joseph is working on a very ambitious game for a sol...

NOTE: I'm in the process of switching my setup, which is leading to some occasional audio quality issues 😢 apologies if you notice them in this episode, they'll go away soon! In this episode, I spent some time with David & Jeremy, two Canadian comedy writers for TV turned game developers. They're working on Dumb Sherlock, a hilarious point-and-click adventure, and they have so man...

In this episode, I spent some time with "Simy", a tattoo artist solo dev working on his first roguelike game 03: Hollow Descent . Simy is preparing to launch his Kickstarter campaign soon, and his journey from tattoo artist to game dev is so interesting! Enjoy. 🎒💛 ------------ Support Simy: - Kickstarter (pre-launch): https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ta2gamesstudio/03-a-surreal-rog...

In this episode, I spent some time with Outsider Games director Stephen Downey, one of the creative minds behind Tax Force – a game about a tax collector in space. From translating comic books into interactive experiences to the impact of creating worlds for others, this episode is a fun one! Enjoy! 🎒💛 --------- Support Stephen 🎒💛 Wishlist Tax Force: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2508290/...

In this episode, I spent some time with Rory from Giraffe Head Studios – one of the developers behind Ragdoll Physics Experiments, and also a content creator at RateMyFuneral on YouTube! From physics-based games to handling criticism in creative projects, this episode is packed with a lot of great moments. Enjoy! 🎒💛 ------------- Support Rory 🎒💛 Website - https://www.ragdollphysicsexperiements...

In this episode, I spent some time with Ian Lynch, founder of Jaggy Snake Games and an ex developer at CD Projekt RED, Scopely and Donkey Crew – now working on a Pong meets bullet-hell game called Questing. Ian is a writer who's learned to embrace the subjective nature of creative work – and he had so much to share during our chat. Enjoy! 🎒💛 ----------- Support Ian 🎒💛 Bluesky: https://bsky...