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Episode 56: Second Project Slump, and Finding the Core

Nov 252012

As you may have noticed, the Game Engine Podcast has gone quiet for a while. We’ve stopped recording for various reasons, but are looking at some options for continuing the podcast. In the meantime, we’ve got 3 episodes and some iFest interviews that we never got around to posting (these episodes are at least 2 months old).

In this episode, Saul and Paul go all introspective, as we discuss a process for discovering the core of a project that we’d recently undergone for our Flatland project*. Along the way, we discuss the Second Project Effect as well.

*Note that shortly after this recording, we realised that the backlash of the Second Project Effect meant that we’d lost too much momentum to make a proper go at building Flatland. We subsequently split the team in two to build completely new projects as a palette cleanser, which has been fairly successful. We’re still wanting to come back to Flatland at some point, but we’re unsure as to when exactly this will happen. Regardless, I (Paul) feel that the exercise we describe here was well worth it and well worth posting.

Thanks to Jack Gillespie for cleaning up the audio as much as possible (sorry for recording on a dodgy voice recorder!).

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Ep 50: Definition of Gamification

The Game Engine 1 Response »

Jul 052012

Gamification: it’s a wonderful word. And by wonderful I mean woefully defined. Join Andrew and Paul as we attempt to weave our way through this minefield of meanings.

You can, as always, contact us through email, twitter, facebook or google+. This episode can be found here on this lovely website, as well as via the RSS Feed or iTunes (we would love some more ratings and reviews, if you please!). If there’s somewhere you can’t find us but wish you could, let us know.

Thanks again to Jordan D’Arcy for editing the podcast.

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Ep 49: Dance as a metaphor for Games

The Game Engine 2 Responses »

Jun 292012

This time, Paul and guest Anurag (SeeThrough Studios) take Andrew for a spin as they discuss how dance relates to game design, stepping between the concepts of connections, leading/following, improvisation and pacing amongst others.

Thanks again to Jordan D’Arcy for editing the podcast.

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Ep 48: Supanova, and Showing off your game

The Game Engine 1 Response »

Jun 212012

This week, Andrew, Saul and Paul are joined by Rebecca from Convict Interactive to discuss what happened last weekend at Supanova.

Supanova is a pop culture expo where SeeThrough Studios and Convict Interactive were joined by 6 other Sydney-based indie studios to show their wares. In this episode, we look at Supanova as a case study for showing your games in public places.

Thanks again to Jordan D’Arcy for editing the podcast.

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Episode 47b: How to make Games that Educate

The Game Engine 2 Responses »

Jun 142012

This week, the Game Engine Podcast gets a special double episode as Andrew and Paul are joined by Ben Sand of Brainworth to discuss games for education. In this first episode, we discuss why the gaming medium is a great way to educate real-world skills.

Our action item for this week: What have games taught you?

Thanks again to Jordan D’Arcy for editing this week’s double header.

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Episode 47a: Why Games are great for Education

The Game Engine No Responses »

Jun 142012

Our action item for this week: What have games taught you?

Be sure to tune in for part 2 of the education extravaganza, where we ask how best to make games that educate.

Thanks again to Jordan D’Arcy for editing this week’s double header.

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Episode 45: The Future of the Game Engine… Podcast

The Game Engine No Responses »

May 312012

This week, Andrew, Saul and Paul ask the question: what is the Game Engine Podcast?

After most of a year of coasting along, the Game Engine Podcast is getting a facelift. A new mission, new format, new length, and new… other things. In this episode we discuss the changes, the biggest of which is an actual mission statement: that “nothing is irrelevant to game design”.

So the question we have for you, our listeners this week is: What do you think is least relevant to game design?

You can, as always, contact us through email, twitter, facebook or google+. The episode can be found here on this lovely website, the RSS Feed or iTunes (which we would love some more ratings on if possible). If there’s somewhere you can’t find us but wish you could, let us know.

Thanks again to Jordan D’Arcy for his mad audio skillz.

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Episode 37: Topics in Design

The Game Engine 1 Response »

Apr 102012

This week, Andrew (Moving Target Games) and Paul (SeeThrough Studios) wind back the clock in this episode back to the time when things were simpler, were in terrible audio quality and were without the melodic manly tones of Saul. With just the two of us again, we decided to pick our most loved, our most precious topics in game design to discuss without telling the other. Because every game developer has a game design topic they would love to work on tirelessly day in and day out. And thus we have Episode 37 (for real this time because Paul can’t remember the number): Topics in Design recorded on the 3rd of April.

This week you may also notice something new in the audio. That’s right, it’s called an intro and outro. We recently made a Call for Music on the promises that anyone that submitted their music for use in our podcast would get promoted. Our first submission comes to us from Matt Hamm who is, in his own words, “an aspiring video game music maker”. Matt’s music comes from his MolyJam submission “Every Night I Dream I’m Better” (http://whatwouldmolydeux.com/display.php?GameID=2). Matt is also working on “Mallow Drop” over at http://www.gritfish.net/games/mallow-drop/ and you can find more of his music over at http://brainfed.net. Matt also says:

“I’m doing a song a week as part of the Weekly Beats project this year, so if anybody is after music for something and one of my tracks appeals, shoot me an email (matt@brainfed.net) - I’d love for people to use it!

And if anyone is after some original stuff for a project and they like what I’ve done then they should contact me and help me achieve my dreams!”

Thanks again Matt!

News that also popped up this week:

MolyJam – What Would Molydeux?

http://www.whatwouldmolydeux.com/

Developer Survey News

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/167805/Indie_developers_earned_much_more_in_2011.php

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/167804/Survey_Game_industry_workers_happier_laid_off_less_often_in_2011.php

Prime World offers discounts to women players

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/167814/Prime_World_offers_discounts_to_women_encourages_mixedgender_play.php

As always, you can find us through all the available means necessary such as this lovely website, the RSS Feed or iTunes. And you can contact us about anything at all through email, twitter, facebook or google+. On this weeks theme we would love to hear about what game design topics you hold close to your heart since we’d love to talk about them also! And remember, Game Club is on this Thursday the 12th of April at 8pm. Check out the details over at our usual haunts!

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Episode 36: Show me the Money!

The Game Engine No Responses »

Apr 032012

This week’s podcast was going to be the business paradigm, but then something interesting happened: SeeThrough Studios, represented this week by Saul Alexander, Anurag Dey and Paul Sztajer realised that they had an issue that many indies face:

They had no money.

Luckily, Epona Schweer (Indie Bits) was on-hand (to talk about the business paradigm), and so this became our second case study in two weeks: if you’re an indie developer who has some longer-term money coming your way (in this case government funds), but no short-term cashflow because that money was delayed, what do you do?

In this week’s installment, some answers. Certainly not all of them, but some.

As always, remember to find us and send us your electronic love over such tools as Facebook, Twitter , email (gameenginepodcast@gmail.com), and/or Google+. And we love suggestions for new topics, we are after all a podcast of the people (or just ‘of people’) and feedback in general is most welcome. You can also watch for new podcasts on our RSS Feed or by subscribing on iTunes. I personally think you should like and favourite and rate and follow everything we have.

Finally, next Thursday, the 12th of April marks the start of the Game Engine Game Club. At 8pm AEST (so +10 GMT) we’ll be hosting a live podcast somewhere on twitch.tv about the game Q.U.B.E. Check out the facebook event and/or watch this space for the link to the show.

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Episode 25b: Sandbox Games

The Game Engine No Responses »

Jan 202012

So you may have listened to our critically acclaimed Episode 25, but we have a secret: we may have also recorded a longer podcast as per our usual routine.

So to follow the illustrious Episode 25, the Game Engine Podcast has Episode 25b: Sandbox games. The games that make you once again feel six years old with the world as your oyster and a bucket and space as a tool with which to craft your own imagined world with grains of pure imagination (or sand). To discuss the styles of game worlds that let us ignore the critical mission of saving the world and instead going off to discover the effect of gravity on ragdolls this week we have Andrew, Saul and Paul.

We also have some news this week! It feels like a while since we’ve had that:

Game Jam Sydney – http://www.gamejamsydney.com/
Video Game Designer sentenced to death in Iran over propaganda games – Gamasutra
Kinect for the PC – Gamasutra
Nominations from the new year!

Writers Guild nominations for game writing 2012 – Gamasutra
IGF Nominations – IGF

To save yourself visiting this ~~fugly~~ awesome website too often you can watch for new podcasts on our RSS Feed or by subscribing on iTunes.

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