Adam Orth chats with Ken Levine, the legendary creator behind the Bioshock series and the upcoming Judas. Together they discuss Ken's journey into game writing; using art as a healthy outlet for processing uncomfortable subjects; dealing with the pressure of following up the first Bioshock game due to its massive success and popularity; how to tackle complex narratives and concepts aimed at general audiences; his thoughts on AI; and how to avoid falling into the trap of arrogance. If you...

Ted Price chats with Todd Howard about Bethesda's much anticipated spacefaring RPG, Starfield. Together they discuss the early ideas that led to Starfield and what the first year of development looked like; how they go about designing multiple complex game systems; how their extensive experience in open world RPGs helped them prioritize goals and milestones; building lore for an expansive original IP; and how player creativity has far exceeded their expectations. The Game Maker's Notebook is...

Adam Orth chats with SVP of Production at Enhance, Mark MacDonald. Together they discuss Enhance's recently released game Humanity, including the origin of the surreal puzzle-action experience; how Mark and Tetsuya Miziguchi met experimental artist Yugo Nakamura, the game's designer; abstract narratives and how COVID influence their own story during development; and why they decided to leave the fate of humanity up to a Shiba Inu. The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To learn...

Strange Scaffold's Xalavier Nelson Jr. chats with Adam Hines & Sean Krankel from Night School Studio. Together they discuss releasing their latest game, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals; how new tools are improving the development process; trying to stay unpredictable as a studio; identifying core principles during development; and writing authentic worlds and characters while working with the complex conversation system present in Oxenfree. Be sure to check out Xalavier and Strange...

Adam Orth chats with Jaeho Hwang and Nolan King from MINTROCKET Games, the studio behind the hit sushi restaurant/deep sea exploration RPG, Dave the Diver. Together they discuss where the idea behind such a unique mishmash began inlcuding various influences inside and outside of games; forming the development team and pitching the game to the publisher; balancing all the gameplay systems including making diving fun and challenging; and how they went about creating an endearing and relatable...

Austin Wintory chats with actor Ben Starr, who played the lead role of Clive Rosfield in the latest entry to the Final Fantasy series, Final Fantasy XVI. Together they discuss how he started acting and his early love of video games; his thought process behind when getting into character and bringing the writing to life; the psychological toll of performance art; and the difficult but freeing process of acting for video games. The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To learn more,...

Adam Orth chats with Max "Larry" Fink, one of the 3 developers behind the smash hit online shooter, BattleBit Remastered. Together they discuss the history of BattleBit Remastered's development; how the team uses community feedback; being in the eye of the storm with the massive attention their game has garnered; and the unique design choices that help BattleBit Remastered stand out. The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To learn more, go to xsolla.pro/AOIAAS. Follow us:  ...

Austin Wintory chats with actor Laura Bailey about her iconic work in games and animation. Together they discuss her early career and catching her first big break; her work in animation that led to a prolific career in video games; her process for getting into character; being a part of the highly popular Critical Role; and working together alongside the all-star cast of the recently released Stray Gods.  The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To learn more, go to...

Enter for a chance to win The Last of Us: The Complete First Season on digital: bit.ly/aiaslou Contest rules here. We're back with one of our past episodes with Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart Creative Director, Marcus Smith!  Ted Price chats with his long-time colleague at Insomniac Games, Marcus Smith. Together they discuss their history at Insomniac Games; his experiences on the Resistance series and Sunset Overdrive; his thoughts on being a creative director; how to build consensus...

We're on a break from new content this week, but check out one of our past episodes with Bryan Intihar, Creative Director at Insomniac Games for Marvel’s Spider-Man! Originally released in April 19, 2019, Bryan joins host Ted Price of Insomniac Games live on the D.I.C.E. Summit stage to talk about his journey from journalist to game developer, the challenges of working on an existing IP, and his perspective on what it takes to be a successful creative director.  The Game Maker's Notebook...

Austin Wintory chats with longtime Star Wars franchise composer Gordy Haab. Together they discuss how Gordy found himself scoring more music for the space epic than even John Williams; creating music new music for an established franchise with your own voice and avoiding imitation; the complex approval process when working on Star Wars titles; and the fundamental differences between composing for video games and other types of media. The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To...

Digital Eclipse LA's Adam Orth chats with John Johanas, the Game Director for the recently released rhythm-action game, Hi-Fi Rush. Together they discuss John's journey into development and how he landed himself in Japan and working with legendary game creator Shinji Mikami at Tango Gameworks; transitioning from design to leading his first full game project on The Evil Within 2; the personal weight of directing a sequel to a high profile game and earning your team's trust; how John's...

Austin Wintory chats with Composer Stephen Barton. Together they discuss his career inside and outside of games including his early work as part of the Metal Gear franchise; working with Infinity Ward on the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare franchise; and his recent projects with Respawn Entertainment on the Titanfall games, Apex Legends, and the Star Wars Jedi series including the recently released Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.  Watch this episode on our Youtube channel. The Game Maker's...

Trent Kusters chats with Sarah Northway and Colin Northway from Northway Games. Together they discuss both of their early careers and the path they eventually took which led them to develop games together; early projects including the Fantastic Contraption series and Rebuild; how their releases always seem to be at the zeitgeist of cultural and technological shifts in gaming; traveling the world while developing games; and the development of their latest hit, I Was a Teenage Exocolonist. ...

Ted Price chats with Diablo IV Game Director, Joe Shely. Together they discuss the challenge of meeting expectations for such a beloved franchise; key decisions around classes, balance, and skill trees; their goals behind the end game; and how to design memorable bosses. Watch this episode on our Youtube channel. The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To learn more, go to xsolla.pro/AOIAAS. Follow us:  Twitter Instagram

Trent Kusters chats with Ben Esposito, Game Director behind the Annapurna Interactive published Neon White. Together they discuss what sparked his interest in game development; his work at The Unfinished Swan and What Remains of Edith Finch developer Giant Sparrow; the long development journey of his previous game Donut County; and how he followed that up by creating the "gamiest game" he could think of in Neon White.  Watch this episode on our Youtube channel. The Game Maker's Notebook...

Austin Wintory chats with award-winning composer Neal Acree, who has created music for several of Blizzard's most well known franchises including Warcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch. Together they discuss his career inside and outside of games; how he first started working with Blizzard; the differences between composing music for an existing universe and creating for a completely new IP; and his work on Critical Role's The Legend of Vox Machina. Watch this episode on our Youtube channel. The...

Austin Wintory chats with veteran composer Chance Thomas. Together they discuss his 20+ year career across video games, television, and flim and what ultimately led him to recently announce his retirement. They cap off their discussion exploring his final and most ambitious work, the procedural score for Ubisoft's The Settlers: New Allies. Check out Chance's memoir here: https://hugesoundrecords.com/memoir Watch this episode on our Youtube channel. The Game Maker's Notebook is...

Trent Kusters chats with Shiny Shoe Co-Founder and CEO Mark Cooke. Together they discuss his journey in game development starting off as an intern at LucasArts; founding Shiny Shoe and the evolution of the studio; the conception and development of Monster Train; and their upcoming early access title Inkbound. Watch this episode on our Youtube channel. The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To learn more, go to xsolla.pro/AOIAAS. Follow us:  Twitter Instagram

Trent Kusters chats with Benjamin Coquelle (Project Manager and Game Designer) and Bruno Laverny (Marketing Director) from Ishtar Games. Together they discuss the journey that led each of them to Ishtar Games; the development of The Last Spell; the features they felt were crucial to showcase to funding partners and potential customers; communicating with your community during early access; and their next game, Lakeburg Legacies. The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To learn...

Trent Kusters chats with Phil Crifo, the Creative Director behind the recently released tropical open-world adventure game, Tchia. Together they discuss his path into game development; meeting his development partner and releasing their first game to little fanfare; finding the courage and inspiration to start the next project; and how his home island of New Caledonia became the inspiration and setting of Tchia. Watch this episode on our Youtube channel. The Game Maker's Notebook is...

Trent Kusters chats with Tarn Adams and Zach Adams, brothers who together created Dwarf Fortress. This is part 2 of an extended interview where they discuss the 20 year journey in creating the aforementioned title including the early inspirations that led them to learn programming; the games they developed before Dwarf Fortress; crucial creative and community milestones; working together with Kitfox Games on the updated version for Steam; and their favorite stories from their ever growing...

Trent Kusters chats with Tarn Adams and Zach Adams, brothers who together created Dwarf Fortress. This is part 1 of a 2 part extended interview where they discuss the 20 year journey in creating the aforementioned title including the early inspirations that led them to learn programming; the games they developed before Dwarf Fortress; crucial creative and community milestones; working together with Kitfox Games on the updated version for Steam; and their favorite stories from their ever...

Austin Wintory chats with Aurélien Piters (Audio Director) and Maxime Touchon (Sound Designer). Together they discuss developing the audio design behind Asobo Studio's A Plague Tale: Requiem including their influences; the process of casting the actors; what they learned from the previous entries; working together with composer Olivier Deriviere and the music team in creating the right mood; and what it takes to create the unsettling sound of a mischief of rats.  Listen to the full episode...

Min Kim from Bonfire Studios chats with Jeonghee "JJ" Jin, the CEO of Pearl Abyss America. Together they discuss how Korea's unique culture and environment has helped shape it's games industry; how Korean game companies are growing and evolving based on years of global expansion; and building experiencing for an ever growing global audience.  Listen to the full episode here or watch this episode on our Youtube channel. The Game Maker's Notebook is sponsored by Xsolla. To learn more, go...