The Sandbox.Space Weekly Podcast by GDEX

Game Industry Lawyers Veda Cruz & Conner Richards join us from Oden Law with a ton of really insightful conversation. Veda Cruz is a video game lawyer, educator, and indie game developer passionate about helping creators thrive. Former in-house counsel at award-winning game studio Gearbox Software, she now teaches video game law and business at the University of Miami and advises developers on...

Friend of GDEX Tony Justo joins us this week for some really good conversations about how to make your games using #unity and other tools to make your dev life easier. Tony Justo is a seasoned game enthusiast and software development professional, public speaker, and entrepreneur, who has over a decade of industry experience. He dedicates his time to creating custom tools and assisting other devel...

Friend of Multivarious and GDEX, Jon Gazda, comes to us live from Germany with some really good conversations about developing your first game and running a studio, and the importance of building a good team. Jon Gazda is our longtime friend who composed music for Multivarious for our game Hatch-It! He is now Founder and Project Manager for Couch Lion Studios , which is based out of Columbus Ohio...

Developer Jason Wheeler from Nationwide Children's Hospital is our guest today. We have some good conversations about Virtual Reality and a host of industry topics! Jason Wheeler is a Senior Interactive Media Developer in the IT Research & Innovation division at Nationwide Children's Hospital with over 15 years of full stack development experience ranging from desktop applications and web apps...

John Daly from VIV Games joins us this week for a great discussion around #GDEX, challenges in the games industry, and sex in games. Come join us for this great conversation! XBOX Dev Kit Price Increase: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/new-report-claims-xbox-has-increased-costs-of-its-development-kits-to-2000-a-33-price-hike Sex in Games: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/report-nearly-half-of-us-adoles...

Friend of the community Caleb Eno joins us this week to discuss AI & Adult content, as well as the importance of personal connection in growing your career and a community. Caleb Eno is one of Ohio's most devoted and passionate developers and is a core admin of the Central Ohio Gamedev Group . He has been building web and application software since at least 2015 and knows a thing or two about...

Garrett Davis of ShawneeXP Gaming Accelerator joins us for the latest news and all the craziness going on around AI and it's impact on the industry and country. Garrett Davis is a game developer, serial entrepreneur, and startup accelerator director with a deep passion for building and scaling gaming companies, consulting firms, and startup ecosystems. He is the Managing Director of the ShawneeXP...

Thomas Allenbaugh, lead programmer and partner at Multivarious, joins us today to talk about the latest news around the EA acquisition and lots more. Tom Allenbaugh is the technical lead of Multivarious , GDEX and the Sandbox. Space . He also teaches a game development capstone as an adjunct at Columbus State Community College. You can find him around many corners of the internet as Argembarger. V...

Henry Bawden from Bawden Studios joins us today to talk all about the latest in Game Industry news. Henry Elmo Bawden is a 3D art and animation wizard, as well as an up-and-coming author, a devoted professor and loving husband and father. Among many other hobbies and interests, he runs Bawden Studio and is Volunteer Czar and runs the Art Portfolio Review panel for GDEX . Visit this episode's page...

Stephen Heywood joins us to recap the exciting GDEX & Corgscon 2025! As the founder of The Tech Buzz Gaming , Stephen has created a hub where gamers from around the world can come together to celebrate their shared passion. Through his platform, he continues to educate, entertain, and inspire a new generation of gamers, shaping the future of gaming one pixel at a time. Visit this episode's pag...

Chris chats with the community as we prepare for GDEX! Chris Volpe is the final boss of GDEX and The Sandbox. Space! Executive Director and Founder of GDEX and Multivarious Games. He has been helping to grow the games industry in the Midwest for over a decade and has worked in the indie and AAA space to develop games. You can check out many of his personal works at volpecreates.com Visit this epis...

Friend of the show Ross Hersemann joins us for some legal chat and our excitement for the upcoming #GDEX2025 Ross Hersemann is the founder and lead of Loading Law ( @LoadingLaw ), an Adjunct Professor of Video Game Law at DePaul University , a leader of IGDA Chicago , and organizer of the Chicago Video Game Law Summit . Visit this episode's page and watch the video version at https://www.thesandbo...

Aaron Brown from Table Top Cafe joins us to discuss the changing Boardgame and Tabletop industry. There are challenges to be overcome as the industry finds itself in a difficult position. Aaron Brown is the owner of Tabletop Game Cafe in Columbus, Ohio, which hosts a vibrant gaming community and which believes that we all need more time around the table with people we like. Visit this episode's pa...

Great community conversation about XBOX's Future, Fishing in games, and of course the upcoming GDEX 2025 Expo! GDEX: www.thegdex.com Fishing in Games: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/please-stop-making-me-fish-in-video-games/1100-6533681/ XBOX: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-is-an-increasingly-unstable-platform-for-anyone-to-invest-in/1100-6533717/ Outworlds 2: https://www.ign.com/articl...

Caro Murphy (Experience Designer & Educator) joins us to talk about starting BostonFIG, games education, and the Disney Star Wars experience. Caro Murphy is a game and interactive experience designer with a focus on live performance and live-action gameplay. They are Cofounder and Creative Director of Incantrix Productions (founded 2016), Co-Executive Director of Playable Theatre (founded 2020...

Caitlin Burt, Actor/Voice Actor and Motion Capture Artist, joins us for a conversation about voice acting in the games space, and then a rambling road through the political wilderness. Kojima Name: https://www.polygon.com/videos/2019/11/11/20959269/unraveled-kojima-name-generator-death-stranding PS Dual Sense: https://www.gamespot.com/gallery/playstation-30th-anniversary-collection-restock/2900-57...

ShawneeXP Gaming Accelerator Managing Director Garrett Davis joins us today to talk about the changing dynamics of the industry and how indies may be the hope for the future. Garrett Davis is a game developer, serial entrepreneur, and startup accelerator director with a deep passion for building and scaling gaming companies, consulting firms, and startup ecosystems. He is the Managing Director of...

Voice Actor & Director, Michael Schwalbe joins us for a great conversation about the industry and creativity. This one is not to be missed! Sand. Cloth. Metal. Screams. Weeny...worm. Let's Go Plac-...wait, what? Voiceactor and casting / performance director Michael Schwalbe has contributed to over 100 released videogames and anime in their career (and a whole lot of commercials and other stuff...

Our friend IzzyDojo joins us today to talk GDEX, game development and a lot more. Mike Schmittle is a content creator and the founder of IzzyDojo. Hailing from Ohio, he is on a mission to cultivate a thriving gaming community. When he's not immersed in virtual worlds, you can find him constructing intricate models and engaging in lively discussions on a wide range of topics on YouTube , Twitch and...

Lead Programmer and long time game developer Tom Allenbaugh joins the show for a great conversation about the Nintendo Switch 2 and getting weird with video games. Switch 2: https://www.polygon.com/nintendo-switch-2/606222/switch-2-launch-sales-record Games Pass: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/dev-who-launched-game-into-game-pass-warns-against-launching-games-into-game-pass/1100-6532306/ Hideo...

Game designer and programmer Caleb Eno joins to talk about the changing game engine landscape, building communities, and lots more. GDEX: https://www.thegdex.com COGG: https://thecogg.com VolpeForAmerica Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/volpeforamerica Witcher 4 Tech Demo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_aRhNcHryA Hypercharge Article: https://www.polygon.com/news/602867/hypercharge-ps5-shooter-best...

Sandbox. Space Executive Director does a solo show and talks to the chat about community toxicity in what is an industry we all love and how we can focus on making the industry better for all of us to enjoy. Chris Volpe is the final boss of GDEX and The Sandbox. Space! Executive Director and Founder of GDEX and Multivarious Games. He has been helping to grow the games industry in the Midwest for o...

We're talking a ton of Nintendo Switch 2 in this weeks episode featuring special guest @AbdallahSmash ! Abdallah "Smash" Elayan is a renowned Nintendo Ambassador and family-friendly content creator on YouTube, offering a diverse range of engaging gaming content for viewers of all ages. With a passion for Nintendo games, he is the go-to destination for families and gamers looking for high-quality,...

Narrative Designer and Founder of Digimancy Games joins us this week to discuss creating compelling game stories, and how to build strong main and side quests. George Ziets is a veteran design lead and writer who has been developing games since 2001. He spent most of his career making RPGs at Obsidian and InXile, where his credits included Wasteland 3, Pillars of Eternity, Neverwinter Nights 2: Ma...

Good friend of the show, Voice Actor and Director, DB Cooper, joins us this week. With a pedigree in musical and dramatic theater, DB Cooper has been acting and directing for more than 30 years. You’ve heard DB in Bioshock 2, Shadowverse, DC Universe Online, Hearthstone, Job Simulator; and in Monster Train where she created voices for 47 Good Guys, 18 Bad Guys, and 10 other creatures for the Legio...