The Game Design Round Table

David and Dirk catch up and talk about David's new work. They discuss some of the different ways he's found this new studio operates organizationally and how he thinks it may be a growing trend across the industry. --------------------- David Heron - @DavidVHeron Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, artana.com, [email protected] --------------------- Episode Outline 0:38 What is David doing now in terms of job roles and companies? It's not quite what he expected 3:29 What is David's new project? 5:14 David discusses that this is the first time he's run a project from the very beginning. 7:32 Lean Engineering 9:13 How decisions are distributed across a team 12:14 How are the new ideas of developing a game applied in his new environment? 14:42 Where is the design happening? 18:02 What does the team look like? 20:50 What is the impressive part of the way this team is assembled and the game is being developed? 27:07 Is this new way of team design unique to the new company or is it something that is happening across the indu

David, Dirk, and Kathryn dive into the digital mailbag and take a shot at some listener questions. Topics include Kickstarter Cancellations, design organization and ways to pitch a game. --------------------- Kathryn Hymes - @chicalashaw, thornygames.com David Heron - @DavidVHeron Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, artana.com, [email protected] --------------------- Episode Outline 0:20 Everyone thinks it has been a good week. 0:26 Some listener comments 0:36 Listener Michael Hopkins - Kickstarter Cancellations 3:18 Q: Glen Slagel - Do you go back through old notes? 7:17 Q: Tristen Angeles & Ryan Sumo - How do you organize your design? 15:02 Q: Aaron Wilson & Trevor Willis - Pitching a game by video vs. at a convention? 18:15 Q: Tristen & Ryan - How do you organize play tests? 22:53 Art Quality of prototypes - How does high vs. low fidelity impact testing? 26:06 Events for designers 27:00 Q: Derek Tocaz - Score keeping mechanisms - what do you like? 34:23 Kathryn got some cool games while in Japan

In this episode, Mo Turkington from Unruly Designs joins Dirk and Kathryn to discuss LARPs and specifically chamber LARPs focused on women in WWII. The conversation also touches on the roles LARPs can have in understanding social privilege. --------------------- Mo Turkington - unrulydesigns.com, [email protected] Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, artana.com, [email protected] Kathryn Hymes - @chicalashaw, thornygames.com --------------------- Episode Outline 0:14 Mo introduced and background 0:49 What is a LARP? 2:02 How does the idea of a LARP fit into Nightingales? 4:18 What attracts Mo to the subject of historical LARP? 8:53 As a designer how do you approach the historical details? 11:43 What are the concrete goals a LARP player has? 17:20 Are LARP games meant to be replayed? 19:51 Differences between LARP and tabletop games 20:40 Onboarding and Offboarding mechanics 25:54 Privilege Lines 29:51 Debreifs 35:12 The changing narratives of LARP, RPG and tabletop games 40:17 What's the right way to play a LARP f

Dirk, Kathryn, and Rob get together for the much anticipated game design axioms episode. Listen as they share their their top design principles.---------------------Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Kathryn Hymes - @chicalashaw, thornygames.com Rob Daviau - @robdaviau---------------------Episode Outline 0:06 Greetings 0:22 Rob has a sultry voice 0:41 Kathryn and Rob are on the show together for the first time 0:57 Game design axioms 1:23 Axiom - Rob - Never make a person lose a turn 5:26 How Rob's experience at Hasbro contributed 6:45 Axiom - Kathryn - Design for the Human Animal 8:20 Heuristics - Group info and decisions in 3's 8:58 What are humans great at? 10:47 Insight - The Friction Is The Game 11:57 Flout Axioms with purpose 12:19 Kathryn background for her axiom 13:01 Axiom - Dirk - Know who you are designing for 16:29 User testing is core to knowing your audience 17:59 Tips for getting the right play testers 20:37 Axiom - Rob - Experience is more important than the rules 24:1

Paul Kilduff-Taylor from Mode 7, join David and Dirk for a discussion about the games Tokyo 42 and Frozen Synapse. They dive deep into some of the key decision drivers for these games as well as some history of the game industry since 2005, and where it is headed. They also touch on Paul's thought provoking article on Medium, "Playing With Toys While People are Dying"---------------------Paul Kilduff-Taylor - @mode7games, www.mode7games.com David Heron - @DavidVHeron---------------------Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Outline 0:17 - Paul's Background in the games industry 1:14 - What is the game Tokyo 42 about? 2:26 - Is the amount of killing in the game intentional? 3:48 - Frozen Synapse has a smaller scope, why? 5:55 - Discussion on the 'Charm' between Tokyo 42 and Frozen Synapse 8:13 - Is frustration and simultaneous turn design a conscious decision in your games? 10:21 - Frozen Synapse 2; why make another? 12:55 - Buy a game, get a give away; how doe

This week Tom Francis, creator of the game Gunpoint, joins Harrison and Dirk to discuss the state of games journalism, how Gunpoint came about and what to expect next.---------------------Tom Francis - @pentadact, www.spaceships.cool Harrison Pink - [email protected], harrisonpink.com Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, [email protected], www.artana.com---------------------Episode Outline 0:16 - Tom's Background 1:29 - What Motivated Tom to make his own games? 3:13 - Tom's programming background 4:15 - What brought Tom into the gaming industry 6:42 - Is games journalism shrinking? 11:51 - What drives games journalism traffic? 12:50 - What inspired the format of Gunpoint? 14:49 - Gunpoint did well especially for a first release. 17:35 - Why the name Gunpoint? 21:41 - Blogging during the development of Gunpoint. 28:42 - How do you stay motivated during the dark times?

This week, Dirk and Kathryn talk with Ross Cowman, owner of game design studio Heart of the Deernicorn. They discuss the game Fall of Magic.---------------------Ross Cowman- @rosscowman, www.heartofthedeernicorn.com Kathryn Hymes - @chicalashaw, thornygames.com Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Outline 0:00:19 - Ross’ background 0:01.08 - Origin of company name 0:02:22 - company name SEO 0:02:57 - Origin of Fall of Magic 0:10:40 - Talking about a turn of the game 0:22:37 - What opportunities and difficulties have come from the game? 0:27:16 - What's next? 0:29:16 - Overseas reception of the game 0:33:22 - Translation of the game

This week, David, Rob and Dirk get together to catch up and answer listener questions. Ice cubes are involved.---------------------David Heron - @DavidVHeron Rob Daviau - @robdaviau Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Outline 0:00:26 - What's David been up to 0:03.37 - Update from Dirk on the Tesla vs Edison Dual kickstarter 0:05:18 - Rob got a haircut 0:07:27 - Listener Steve asks about cancelled kickstarter backers 0:10:43 - Listener Steve asks about the 'Winner Effect' 0:15:18 - Listener Doug asks about Escape Rooms 0:23:27 - Listener JC asks about revealing key information in a game 0:26:04 - Listener Glen asks a question regarding an idea you can't get off the ground, when do you shelve it or keep going? 0:28:48 - The Little Zen Handbook

This week, Dirk and Kathryn welcome veteran game designer Emily Care Boss to the show. Emily has a long history in designing RPG games and making tools available to players to challenge their views and expand their gaming horizons. Some of her games encourage players to examine uncommonly represented topics, such as romance and sexuality.--------------------- Emily Care Boss - @emilycare, www.blackgreengame.com Kathryn Hymes - @chicalashaw, thornygames.com Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Outline 0:00:19 - Emily’s background 0:03:25 - Tabletop games and sexuality 0:15:40 - Emily’s catalog 0:25:56 - RPG and game theory

Dirk and David are joined by Owlchemy Labs’ Chelsea Howe to talk about Virtual Rick-Ality and the new frontier of VR. Chelsea’s involvement with VR goes back to her days at EA and she continues to be on the forefront of development for this new platform. Chelsea describes what it’s like to develop and port games for VR and gives Dirk a pop culture lesson on Rick and Morty.--------------------- Chelsea Howe - @manojalpa David Heron - @DavidVHeron Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] --------------------- Episode Outline 0:01:14 - VR and Virtual Rick-Ality 0:09:03 - VR 101 0:13:39 - Augmented Reality 0:17:28 - Virtual communities 0:19:35 - New tech and novelty 0:22:21 - Dirk learns about Rick and Morty

Dirk and Kathryn are joined this week by designer John Harper, the mind behind Blades in the Dark. John’s transition to full-time developer has been helped by his fans that support him via Kickstarter and Patreon - this following allows him to fully concentrate on his multi-disciplinary craft and continue to release free, hackable material.---------------------John Harper - onesevendesign.com, @john_harper---------------------Kathryn Hymes - @chicalashaw, thornygames.com Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Episode Outline 0:01:41 - Blades in the Dark 0:10:51 - Growing in tastes as a designer 0:20:49 - Supporting yourself with indie work 0:27:34 - Game development over several disciplines 0:32:19 - Hackable game designs 0:35:13 - Upcoming designs

Dirk, Harrison, and Kathryn dive into the mailbag once again to answer your game design questions. Is it really that difficult to get published in North America from other markets? What’s life on the digital side like when it comes to publishing? And what can you do when you (inevitably) get stuck?.---------------------Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Harrison Pink - @gilespink, [email protected], harrisonpink.com Kathryn Hymes - @chicalashaw, thornygames.com.---------------------0:00:24 - The difference between design and development and getting stuck 0:06:05 - Publishing from non-American or European markets 0:10:04 - Linear narratives 0:16:03 - Game design and budget 0:21:53 - Self-publishing and digital games 0:26:02 - Players vs. The Game

Designer Nels Anderson stops by to talk to Dirk and Harrison about his work on 2016’s hit Firewatch. Nels worked with a small team at Campo Santo studios to create a unique storytelling adventure that was a critically acclaimed success. Nels describes the pros and cons of working with a small team of core developers and the lessons he learned from working on a team that was birthing their first game together.---------------------Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Harrison Pink - [email protected], harrisonpink.com Nels Anderson - @nelsormench, above49.ca---------------------Episode Outline 0:00:58 - Firewatch 0:08:00 - Getting started 0:11:53 - Narrative and level design 0:15:14 - Working with a small team 0:18:42 - Firewatch as a first game 0:23:14 - Current projects 0:26:13 - Design lessons learned

Dirk and Rob are joined by writer, artist, and game designer Jason Thompson to talk about his innovative drawing game "Mangaka: The Fast & Furious Game of Drawing Comics", co-published by Mock Man Press and Japanime Games. Jason talks about his background in manga and writing as well as the process that caused Mangaka to evolve over the course of several years into the game it is today.---------------------Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Rob Daviau - @robdaviau Jason Thompson - @mockman---------------------0:01:33 - Mangaka 0:09:15 - Early ideas 0:15:48 - How the stories unfold 0:17:48 - From writing to game design 0:21:48 - Jason’s future plans

Dirk, David, and Kathryn Hymes are here to answer your questions. This week they go over replayability, ambitious ideas, and the differences between design and development.---------------------Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] David Heron - @DavidVHeron Kathryn Hymes - www.thornygames.com.---------------------0:01:04 - Replayability and value 0:16:06 - Trimming game length 0:26:39 - IP creation and long-term goals 0:31:19 - The difference between design and development

Dirk and Harrison are joined by Jessica Price and Wes Schneider from Paizo games to talk about their voluminous tabletop roleplaying library. Paizo is best known for their Pathfinder roleplaying system, a successor to Dungeons and Dragons Version 3.5. Wes and Jess talk about their paths into game development as well as the highly anticipated new RPG, --------------------- Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.CQGames.com, [email protected] Harrison Pink - [email protected], @colonialpink Jessica Price - @delafina777 Wes Scneider - @fwesschneider --------------------- Starfinder. 0:00:21 - Paizo Games 0:09:00 - Backgrounds before Paizo 0:18:10 - Creating tabletop modules 0:29:40 - Starfinder RPG

Dirk and David are joined by Dominic Crapuchettes of North Star Games to talk about their breakout hits and the process of creating mass market games. North Star Games is most well known for their widely-available games Wits and Wagers and Say Anything but also their educational Evolution series that is used by teachers across the country. Dominic shares what it’s like balancing creating games using a winning formula and branching out into something new. --------------------- Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.CQGames.com, [email protected] David Heron - @DavidVHeron Dominic Crapuchettes - www.northstargames.com, [email protected] --------------------- Episode Outline 0:00:30 - The beginnings of North Star Games 0:01:59 - Wits and Wagers and Say Anything 0:06:17 - Business partners 0:10:20 - Evolution: Climate 0:19:44 - Managing success and aspirations 0:22:29 - The Evolution series 0:30:48 - New and upcoming games

Description David makes his return to the show after a brief absence and fills us in with what’s been going on in his world. We’re also happy to announce a new half-hour format that will hopefully yield shorter shows that are posted more often. Dirk, David, and Rob take on more listener questions as they settle back into their old routine. --------------------- Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.CQGames.com, [email protected] David Heron - @DavidVHeron Rob Daviau -@RobDaviauGamer, [email protected] --------------------- Episode Outline 0:01:16 - Where did David go? 0:05:14 - Designing a game to be more than mechanics 0:10:26 - Women in game design 0:16:49 - What pre-existing IP would you pick to work on? 0:20:32 - Choose ONE game design axiom 0:24:45 - Kickstarter advice 0:26:35 - How has crowdsourcing impacted replayability?

Dirk and Harrison are joined by Suzanne Zinsli of Cardboard Edison to talk about game design, publishing, and running their amazing resource for game designers. Cardboard Edison is a gather of best practices, tips for designers, and information about publishers. Their Cardboard Edison Award also helps grow and develop designers through the submittal process. Suzanne covers their own games like Cobra and Dubai and goes over what you should (and really shouldn’t do) to submit a game for the Cardboard Edison Award. --------------------- Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Harrison Pink - [email protected], @colonialpink Suzanne - @cardboardedison, [email protected] --------------------- Episode Outline 0:00:46 - Cardboard Edison and other jobs 0:08:05 - Publishers vs. self-publishing 0:11:47 - Firewalling your own games 0:14:06 - Cobras 0:19:06 - Cardboard Edison Awards 0:32:16 - Having three partners 0:40:59 - Dubai 0:44:02 - Managing a large amount of projects 0:47:58 - Pot

Dirk, David, and Harrison tackle the mail bag after an exciting announcement about Rob’s new company, Restoration Games. Restoration’s goal is to reprint and modernize classic games that are no longer available. Our hosts go on to talk about games that are overproduced (as well as micro games), the concept of player choice vs. direction, and where to get all the shiny bits needed for prototyping. --------------------- Dirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, [email protected] Rob Daviau - @robdaviau Harrison Pink - [email protected], @colonialpink --------------------- Episode Outline 0:00:32 - Harrison’s status 0:03:03 - Rob and Restoration Games 0:07:37 - When is game setup part of the game? 0:11:40 - Number of decision points in a game 0:18:57 - The incremental idle genre 0:25:19 - Overproduced games and micro games 0:31:47 - Where can you draw inspiration from? 0:34:35 - Forcing interactions or letting players choose 0:40:33 - Using real locations in games 0:44:39 - Should rules always place setup f