Category: Episodes

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Of all the attributes that shape a game’s personality, difficulty is surely one of the most important. Difficulty not only structures the player’s in-game experience, it also defines important pieces of the game’s larger conceptual framing. How do the game’s designers understand their players? How does the player community understand itself in relation to this shared experience? From Plants vs. Zombies to Dark Souls, great games have answered these questions in vastly different ways, telling us much about the psychology of game design along the way. Join us for a close look at these fascinating issues as we tour the landscape of challenge, achievement, and game difficulty.

Show Notes

• Factorio has Chris reaching for his graph paper.
• Hearthstone has Derek reaching for the Advil. Brian Kibler has a good analysis of the current state of Hearthstone’s metagame.
• George Fan’s talk on tutorial design in Plants vs. Zombies is a masterclass in encouraging player engagement.
• Chris Dahlen has an terrific essay on Dark Souls’ elegant use of challenge: “Difficulty isn’t the club the designers bash you with, but the palette with which they paint the experience.”

Image credit: From Software and Bandai Namco

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If you’ve played a game anytime in the last decade, chances are you’ve heard the “ba-boop!” sound that signals the unlocking of an “achievement”: a supplementary goal parallel to a game’s core objectives. Achievements have become an expected part of modern game design, but what can we say about how and why they work? What separates the great achievement structures that keep us striving for 100% from their more forgettable counterparts? Let’s open up the trophy case and see what we can learn about the motivational science and artful design of compelling achievement patterns.

Show Notes

• Mice and Mystics by Plaid Hat Games is a terrific tabletop RPG experience for families and young players.
• Dinosaur Polo Club’s Mini Metro is a strikingly elegant puzzle game inspired by the distinctive art of subway transit system maps.
• Like the gaming equivalent of Pavlov’s dog, a generation of Xbox players will forever associate this unassuming sound effect with the thrill of victory.

Image credit: slgckgc

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The turn-based strategy genre has a rich history, ranging from the storied world of XCOM to fan favorites like Final Fantasy Tactics. Many hardware generations have come and gone since the first of these classic titles, but the genre retains its appeal due to its challenging, consequential gameplay, and the ever-tantalizing prospect of guiding your squad to a perfect tactical victory. This week we’re sitting down with a new member of the turn-based strategy family: Invisible, Inc., by the excellent creative team at Klei Entertainment. Borrowing design cues and conventions from 2012’s XCOM: Enemy Unknown, Invisible, Inc. evolves its heritage into a stylish espionage sneak-em-up with a unique focus on evasion and misdirection. So what’s it like to be an Invisible agent? Come along with Chris and Derek and find out!

Show Notes

• Derek’s open game creation project, In Development, continues with a new episode on finding inspiration for gameplay design.
• Invisible, Inc. official site
• How Klei Entertainment forged its unique path to success as an admired independent studio
• Rock, Paper, Shotgun reviews Invisible, Inc.: “the best turn-based strategy game to come out in years”

Image credit: Klei Entertainment

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From playing ball to playing with words, the varieties of play that humans engage in are almost limitless. When it comes to games though, only a tiny fraction of that richness is typically represented. How might we broaden the kinds of play that games can embody? Join Chris and Derek for an optimistic exploration of game design and play’s many permutations.

Show Notes

• Dialect is an innovative new game about language from Thorny Games.
• The Game Design Roundtable had an excellent discussion on game design with Thorny Games’ Kathryn Hymes.
• Twenty years on, Pa Rappa the Rapper is still a fresh, inventive experience.

Image credit: Donna Nook

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In 2014 Respawn Entertainment debuted Titanfall: an inventive new entrant in the high-stakes world of AAA first-person shooters. The game won numerous accolades for its fluid dual-mode gameplay, but long-term player engagement ultimately proved disappointing. Two years later Respawn has returned with Titanfall 2: a sequel that takes dead aim at the perceived shortcomings of the original. Packing improved multiplayer depth and a dedicated single-player campaign, does the new iteration have the muscle to compete with the FPS juggernauts? Call in your titan and join the fray as we dive into the gameplay and game design of this hotly anticipated sequel.

Spoiler warning! Campaign spoilers are discussed starting at the 47-minute mark.

Show Notes

• Titanfall 2 official site
• Though Titanfall 1 lacked a dedicated single-player campaign, the story told through its multiplayer missions was suprisingly detailed

Image credit: Electronic Arts

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In the last decade Nintendo has become synonymous with quirky hardware designs: sometimes inspired leaps of creativity like the original Wii and 3DS, and sometimes befuddling mish-mashes like the Wii U. So, as the first details on the venerable game maker’s seventh-generation console began to trickle out this year, fans and analysts alike were gripped with suspense. Would the new platform be a return to form or a second consecutive stumble? Now that we’ve had our first official look at the Switch, it’s clear that Nintendo is continuing to follow its own muse, this time emphasizing a unique take on the future of home and mobile gaming. Join Chris and Derek for a look ahead at Nintendo’s next chapter, and a wide-ranging discussion of the Switch’s unique creative possibilities.

Show Notes

• The Nintendo Switch announcement trailer
• Nintendo Switch official site
• The Wii U’s befuddling announcement trailer foreshadowed the console’s troubles
• Reggie Fils-Aimé on what went wrong with the Wii U and what Nintendo learned
• Eurogamer’s analysis of the NVIDIA Tegra chipset and its implications for Switch performance
• Everyone wants to be friends with Nintendo Switch Karen

Image credit: Nintendo

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Curling up with a great game on a crisp autumn afternoon is surely one of life’s best simple pleasures. With the leaves outside changing and the days growing shorter, let’s settle in for a cozy chat about fall gaming memories, as well as the end-of-year releases we’re most excited to play this year. There’s a lot of great games to discuss, so get yourself a toasty mug of hot chocolate and let’s begin! Plus, a special bonus this week: Chris and Derek finally introduce themselves.

Show Notes

• Reed College, calligraphy, and Steve Jobs
• The NES Classic Edition is looking sharp! The console’s visuals and audio will deliver much higher fidelity than Wii U emulation.
• Battlefield 1 is raising the bar for triple-A first-person shooters.
• Titanfall 2 is off to a great start, bolstered by Respawn’s promise that all future content will be free.
• Civilization VI brings a more active, board-game-inspired sensibility to the classic series.

Image credit: Klim Levene

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The social communities that form around games are complicated creatures. The enthusiasm and energy of a positive, engaged audience can elevate a good game into a phenomenal experience. Yet when communities lapse into immature or toxic behavior, the results make games less welcoming for everyone. So: as players and as creators, how can we better steer our communities towards the positive side of this divide? Join Chris, Derek, and special guest Amanda Knowlton from Gamers with Jobs for a spirited discussion of the best and worst aspects of playing games together.

Show Notes

• This week Derek announces the start of In Development: a new experiment in creativity and making games. Check it out!
• Overwatch ditches the “Avoid This Player” feature after it turns into a way of avoiding skilled competitors.
• How can you learn to listen to your audience with skill and grace? Chris recommends starting with this book by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen.

Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment

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In a crowded marketplace, a game’s success or failure often hangs on the creator’s ability to woo an audience prior to release. Game creators have to be able to explain, often months or even years before their game is complete, what it is that will make the experience they are offering unique. When done well, this kind of pre-release messaging can build communities and propel previously unknown games to success. But! The path is a perilous one. When creators promise more than they can deliver, the audience’s ire can be swift and severe. This week, Chris and Derek tiptoe onto the treacherous tightrope of managing expectations. What’s the right way to build excitement for your game without over-reaching your grasp?

Show Links

• Hello Games to be investigated by the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority for misleading consumers in No Man’s Sky advertising
• Soren Johnson offers an excellent write-up on how Offword Trading Company successfully navigated Early Access
• A balanced perspective on the difficulties that have dogged crowdfunding behemoth Star Citizen

Image credit: Hello Games

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When we think about making games we tend to focus on the creative journey: the path of ideas and insights leading from a rough initial design to an engaging final product. Most of the time though, this process is only half of the true challenge. Taking a game from start to finish also requires negotiating an obstacle course of real-world challenges. How do you find like-minded collaborators? Where can you go for working capital? And of course, if you can’t work full-time on your great idea, how do you squeeze in the sheer number of hours you need to make it happen? This week Chris and Derek take on these tough questions with special guest host Dru Erridge, a game developer who bootstrapped his own creation from the seed of an idea into an incredibly impressive project. Let’s find out how he did it!

Show Notes

• Guest host Dru Erridge on Twitter
• The Maestro’s official site

Image credit: U.S. Navy Seabee Museum