Episodes
Amelia Price from Sustainable Film joins Oscar on his Podquest to explore the different challenges and lessons faced by Film and Game Studios when it comes to leaving a reduced impact on the world. What practical ways can we be more sustainable?
Published 12/04/24
Greg Hennessey, Design Director at CCP Games (Eve Online), has had an interesting and winding journey through games which has brought him from his home country of Canada all the way to Iceland. In this episode, we take a peek at his life as a Design Director, cover how leaders can make themselves open to critique and leave the door open for conversation and talk about the his idea of a great party.
Published 11/27/24
Published 11/27/24
In this episode of Growing Pains, GDL host and Games Strategy Consultant Jay Uppal sits down with Anime Producer Will Feng to discuss everything about life in Japan. Will has been in the Animation space for 20+ years and has been right on the frontlines of the recent Anime boom that has inspired some of the recent transmedia strategies in games. Jay and Will dive deep into everything from life in Japan as a foreigner to the secrets behind building working relationships in Japan. Growing...
Published 11/20/24
Fellow host Laura joins Oscar on his Podquest to explore the nature of professional learning in various forms from the humble webinar to interactive workshops, accelerator programs, mentoring and even peer information sharing. Why does it matter that we keep on learning? And what does someone doing that training need to consider in the ways they deliver that?
Published 11/13/24
In this episode, host Nina Kim sits down with David Evans, the indie developer of Sail Forth. David delves into the creative inspirations behind his project, reflecting on the journey of building a game as a solo dev. With candid stories from his personal experience, David opens up about the challenges and triumphs he faced during development, and offers insights for anyone who is starting on a similar journey.
Published 11/06/24
In this episode of Growing Pains, GDL host and Games Strategy Consultant, Jay Uppal sits down with Bastian Bergmann, the Co-founder of Solsten.io. Solsten is a Consumer Insights research firm that aims to put individual players back at the core of the game development cycle. They use psychologically backed techniques meshed with traditional behavioural research to identify the way and how behind a player’s action to offer clearer insights for decision-makers to better understand their...
Published 10/30/24
Nina Kim from Rare joins Oscar on his Podquest to discuss the challenges of defining the multifaceted role of game designer, as well as the joys of the ever-evolving nature of design.
Published 10/23/24
In this third episode, of Growing Pains, GDL host and Games Strategy Consultant, Jay Uppal sits down with Kamen Brestnichki, an AI researcher and Co-founder of Martian Lawyers Club, a newly founded Indie Games Studio based out of the UK. They dive into all things AI, discussing the hype behind the AI ecosystem and the broader ramifications of AI technologies in games and beyond. Growing Pains is a series focusing on key business trends and people shaping the Global Games Market and their...
Published 10/16/24
In this episode, Ioana from Mojiworks joins Oscar on his Podquest to learn everything about game development to explore how to design games meant for sharing, which is also the topic of her new book with CRC press.
Published 10/09/24
This week I am joined by my friend, Nicholas, who is a narrative designer, artist, and founder of Essay Games. His artwork and games have been featured in Kotaku, Rock Paper Shotgun, Game Developer, Critical Distance, Unwinnable, The Washington Post, and The New York Times. His games are interesting, thoughtful, and delve deeply into human stories. While his last two games relied on his skill for research, his current undertaking, Bundle of Joy, draws on his recent experience of becoming a...
Published 10/02/24
In this second episode of Growing Pains, GDL host and Games Strategy Consultant, Jay Uppal sits down with Shariar Sharabi the Creative Lead at VR studio Realities.io. They delve into the VR ecosystem, the process of learning and what it means to lead. Sha's personal journey in games and endless drive for growth provide an interesting backdrop for framing this discussion around learning and leadership in a new light. Growing Pains is a series focusing on key business trends and people...
Published 09/25/24
In this episode, 'Hot Take', Stuart, Laura, and Oscar explore what the what, why, and wherefore of using Early Access in game development and give our own hot takes on the topic at the end.
Published 09/18/24
In this episode, our host Max Louis of MLC, and freelance artist James Brady sit down to explore his journey into the world of game art. James shares how he first got into freelance work, detailing the challenges and rewards of building a career in this competitive field. We dive deep into his experiences, discussing the highs and lows of freelancing, from the creative freedom it offers to the unpredictability of the work. James also gives us an insider's look at his impressive career in AAA...
Published 09/09/24
In the first episode of a new series titled Growing Pains, GDL host and Games Strategy Consultant, Jay Uppal dives into some of the key trends that are currently driving the Global Games Market alongside Devan Brennan of Newzoo. They discuss all things in Games Business and share tips for doing business in today's global games industry. Growing Pains is a new series focusing on key business trends shaping the Global Games Market and their impact on the Games Industry. In this series Jay...
Published 09/02/24
In this episode, Laura Donohue, Senior Design Researcher joins me this week to dive into the realms of user research, and how it can be used to empower and inform creativity in game dev. We talked about collecting player feedback, how to use it responsibly as well as personas and knowing how to balance vision and player desires!
Published 08/26/24
In this episode, GDL Host Laura Donohue speaks to Claire Vergnes about what inclusive design is, why it's important, and how to do it. We also talk a lot about how smells impact memory, we promise it's related!
Published 08/19/24
In this episode, GDL Host Laura Donohue speaks to Jonathan Bieda about the iterative process of UX Design and how it can help teams better cater to their audience. There was also a lot of talk about meatloaf. Find Laura Donohue at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ljdonohue/ Find Jonathan Bieda at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonbieda/ https://www.jonathanbieda.com/
Published 08/12/24
In this episode, GDL Host Laura Donohue speaks to Steve Stopps from Excalibur Games about all things data! Steve shares his not so secret secrets on how to leverage data to make vital game development decisions. Editor's Note: Due to technical issues, the mic sounds were too low and picked up unintended background noise, so we had to use echoed audio from camera footage instead. We're working hard to improve this for future episodes. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Published 08/05/24
It is the very first episode of Structured Creativity with Najmah Salam (but you can call her Naj). In this show, we'll be exploring that space between process and play and how leading figures in games and otherwise nurture and harness creativity. In this episode,Our guest is Jason Thai-Kennedy, Senior Communications Manager at Electronic Arts. We discuss underrated skills for game devs, Jason's adrenaline-junkie antics and a brilliant theme park idea.
Published 07/29/24
Hot Takes is a new format where GDL hosts from various professional backgrounds share their opinions on the latest news and trends in the game industry. In this episode, Stuart De Ville, Laura Donohue and Oscar Clark exploring the realities of the publisher (and self-publishing) from the perspectives of a new indie dev, experience developer and a publisher. We ask what we want from a publisher, whether we really can do it all ourselves and give our own hot takes on the topic at the end.
Published 07/22/24
In this episode, GDL Host Laura Donohue speaks to Dr. Mark Brady from Sutherland Labs about their shared experience in games research. They discuss why research is important, what are some of the types of topics and methods they've tackled, and how to become an empathetic and effective researcher.
Published 07/15/24
In this episode, Oscar's ongoing "Podquest to learn everything about #gamedev that you never dared to ask" continues with Kristian Rivers, Founder of Adinmo. They talk about their shared history of the earliest days of mobile games and the rise of the role of ads in the ecosystem. But what has led to poor experiences using ads and why it's important for the players and the brands for us to make the ad experience actually "Good".
Published 07/08/24
In this episode, Join Tom Morgan as he interviews Daisy-may Hutton, the new GDL Host and Producer at Glowmade. Daisy shares her journey into the games industry, offering insights on entering the industry with transferable skills, pivoting your skill set from another industry to game development and what life is like as a game producer. Tune in for valuable advice and firsthand experiences from a game producer!
Published 07/01/24
In this episode, Oscar's ongoing "Podquest to learn everything about #gamedev that you never dared to ask" continues with PlanetPlay CEO Rhea Loucas. They talk about how games and developers strive to make real world impacts on the world around them. PlanetPlay were recently nominated in the Sustainability category of the Develop: Star Awards 2024.
Published 06/24/24