67 episodes
Designer Notes Idle Thumbs
-
- Leisure
-
-
4.8 • 90 Ratings
-
Why do we make games? Every designer has a different and very personal answer to that question. Soren Johnson, founder of Mohawk Games, sits down with noted designers to find out by examining their careers as a whole.
-
Designer Notes 67: Old World
In this episode, Tom Chick and Bruce Geryk interview Soren and Leyla Johnson about their new historical 4X, Old World. They discuss whether the Old World timeline really makes sense, how they approach Early Access differently, and why Soren didn’t want to give up on the name 10 Crowns.
-
Designer Notes 66: Luca Redwood
In this episode, Soren interviews Luca Redwood, the developer of 10000000, You Must Build a Boat, and Photographs. They discuss why 10000000 has no commas, how he makes sure the player never gets unlucky, and why you need to build a boat. This episode was recorded March 18, 2019.
-
Designer Notes 65: Robin Hunicke - Part 2
In this episode, Soren interviews veteran game developer Robin Hunicke, co-founder of Funomena and best known for her work on MySims, Boom Blox, and Journey. They discuss why developers overperform their authority in large companies, how they almost accidentally made Journey a competitive game, and why they decided to let thatgamecompany run out of money to ship the game. This episode was recorded December 1, 2021.
-
Designer Notes 64: Robin Hunicke - Part 1
In this episode, Soren interviews veteran game developer Robin Hunicke, co-founder of Funomena and best known for her work on MySims, Boom Blox, and Journey. They discuss why HyperCard was so great, why AI development is game design, and how Steven Spielberg almost made Angry Birds for EA. This episode was recorded March 24, 2018.
-
Designer Notes 63: Josh Sawyer - Part 2
In this episode, Soren interviews veteran RPG designer Josh Sawyer, best known for his work on Icewind Dale, Fallout: New Vegas, and Pillars of Eternity. They discuss the purpose of grinding, the difference between viable and optimal characters, and why RPG players don’t welcome rebalancing their games. This episode was recorded December 1, 2021.
-
Designer Notes 62: Josh Sawyer - Part 1
In this episode, Soren interviews veteran RPG designer Josh Sawyer, best known for his work on Icewind Dale, Fallout: New Vegas, and Pillars of Eternity. They discuss how making a website for a tattoo parlor led to his game career, what is the purpose of traps in an RPG, and how much lore is too much lore. This episode was recorded March 24, 2018.
Customer Reviews
In depth conversations with legendary game designers
A really great podcast with some legendary guests and extremely thorough conversations. Soren covers a lot of ground in each episode. I appreciate that he goes deep into the careers and creative decision making processes with his guests. The extended length of the interviews is welcome - I only wish I could listen to both parts of an interview back to back but it’s worth the wait.
👍👍
I always find this podcast super interesting with how the business works, the theory behind games, the various ways people have come up in the business, etc. It’s also good to learn about games I might have missed back when they were knew and check out now.
Just about every episode is worth a second or third listen
I’d probably never work in game dev but I love hearing about the business and all the trade offs that have to be made to get a game out the door
Top Podcasts In Leisure