41 episodes
Out of Play Area John R. Diaz
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- Leisure
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5.0 • 9 Ratings
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Out of Play Area is the video game developers podcast by video game developers for video game developers, from veteran to aspiring. We sit down with the people behind the games for your information & entertainment.
New episodes drop every other Monday, where we interview Video Game Designers, Animators, Artists, Producers, Engineers, Testers, Directors, Writers, and everything in between.
Hosted by veteran video game designer John R. Diaz @ElKingpin who started from very humble beginnings as 1st generation Dominican-American that went onto work for some of the most critically acclaimed games of our time in Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 1 & 2.
He now works at Electronic Arts while seeking to join the entire games industry through his podcast.
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Jason Knobler | Senior Staff Engineer @ Lightning Games | Ep 39
Episode 39 features Jason Knobler, a Senior Staff Engineer at Lightning Games in Philadelphia. Jay’s a fellow Full Sail University alumni, who has worked as an Engineer on Rockstar Games’ Red Dead Redemption, and is also writing his own Harmony Game Engine.
Chapters:
(00:00) John’s Life Notes
(4:15) Who is Jason Knobler?
(14:19) Origins
(28:41) First Job Digital Embryo
(40:38) Rockstar San Deigo & Red Dead Redemption
(01:14:03) Going Back to Philly
(01:17:05) Harmony Game Engine part 2
(01:26:24) John’s Outro
Links:
Harmoney Game Engine GitHub: https://github.com/GameOverture/HarmonyEngine
Jay’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Game_Overture
Jay’s Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/game_overture
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Come On The Show: https://outofplayarea.com
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/out-of-play-area/id1550421307
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Da0qLAOBi6rV6ccSzx1gX?si=043f4ec5a6034bf0
Follow @outofplayarea & @elkingpin on Twitter
Check out Descript using my affiliate url: http://descript.com?lmref=john@outofplayarea.com -
Claude Jerome | Lead Gameplay Designer @ Firewalk Studios | Ep 38
Episode 38 features Claude Jerome, a Lead Gameplay Designer for Firewalk Studios part of the Probably Monsters family. Claude’s experience has led him from Vicarious Visions, 1st Playable, to Microsoft on Project Spark, and Bungie on Destiny to where he is today. We talk about how he got where he is, where he’s trying to go, and everything in between.
Chapters:
(00:00) John’s Life Notes
(2:56) Who is Claude Jerome?
(17:23) Island Mates
(24:26) Firewalk Studios & Probably Monsters
(46:08) Building Culture
(50:18) Bungie
(01:09:32) Project Spark at Microsoft
(01:19:45) East Coast Dev
(01:27:33) Origin
(01:38:07) Final Round
(01:49:19) John’s Outro
Links:
Claude’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Claude_Jerome
Claude’s LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/claudejerome/
Game Devs of Color Expo 2020: Advanced Game Feel: https://youtu.be/EABa8X3lEPM
Project Spark E3 Demo: https://youtu.be/m37sVEgJrOA
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Come On The Show: https://outofplayarea.com
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/out-of-play-area/id1550421307
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Da0qLAOBi6rV6ccSzx1gX?si=043f4ec5a6034bf0
Follow @outofplayarea & @elkingpin on Twitter
Check out Descript using my affiliate url: http://descript.com?lmref=john@outofplayarea.com -
Chris Cole | Senior Technical Artist @ Amazon Game Studios | Ep 37
Episode 37 features Chris Cole a Senior Pipeline Technical Artist working at Amazon Game Studios as of the debut of this episode. We discuss his time at Survios working in VR, breaking in on Blacksite Area 51 at Midway Austin, life at Blizzard working on World of Warcraft, and we discuss ways to better manage and retain your talent.
Chapters:
(00:00) John’s Intro
(2:10) Who is Chris Cole?
(13:15) Amazon Game Studios
(25:39) Breaking in at Midway Austin
(41:03) Leadership Style
(52:47) Neuro-Divergence & Superpowers
(01:15:07) Activision Blizzard
(01:24:05) Pay Transparency
(01:38:47) Final Round
(01:44:09) John’s Outro
Links:
Chris’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/overlorddagon/
Electric Nodes UE Plugin: https://unrealengine.com/marketplace/en-US/product/electronic-nodes
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Come On The Show: https://outofplayarea.com
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/out-of-play-area/id1550421307
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Da0qLAOBi6rV6ccSzx1gX?si=043f4ec5a6034bf0
Follow @outofplayarea & @elkingpin on Twitter
Check out Descript using my affiliate url: http://descript.com?lmref=john@outofplayarea.com -
Leon Kuperman | CTO @ Cast.AI | Ep 36
Episode 36 features Leon Kuperman, who gets his gamedev cred from text based Zork style adventures, and is a Co-founder and CTO at CAST AI. Formerly Vice President of Security Products OCI at Oracle, Leon’s professional experience spans across tech companies such as IBM, Truition, and HostedPCI. He founded and served as the CTO of Zenedge, an enterprise security company protecting large enterprises with a cloud WAF. Leon has 20+ years of experience in product management, software design, and development, all the way through to production deployment. He is an authority on cloud computing, web application security and Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), e-commerce, and web application architecture. And that's where we talk about his journey through development, his views on building a resilient team and product, and more.
Chapters:
(00:00) John’s Intro
(3:20) Who is Leon Kuperman?
(14:45) Computer Scientists
(22:14) Cloud Computing
(34:57) Cloud Instance Pricing
(43:01) Cast.AI
(50:57) Finding the Right Fit
(01:04:35) Company Culture
(01:15:45) Final Round
(01:23:38) John’s Outro
Links:
Claim this Exclusive Offer from Cast.AI: https://cast.ai/outofplayarea/
Leon’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itexecutivecto/
Follow Cast. AI on Twitter: https://twitter.com/cast_ai
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Come On The Show: https://outofplayarea.com
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/out-of-play-area/id1550421307
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Da0qLAOBi6rV6ccSzx1gX?si=043f4ec5a6034bf0
Follow @outofplayarea & @elkingpin on Twitter
Check out Descript using my affiliate url: http://descript.com?lmref=john@outofplayarea.com -
Shawn Alexander Allen | Founder @ NuChallenger | Ep 35
Episode 35 of Out of Play Area the game developer's podcast, we sit down with the creator of Treachery in Beatdown City and discuss founding his company NuChallenger, alongside his time working in the Game Devs of Color Expo, as well as his journey from NYC and the games industry.
Chapters:
(00:00) Who is Shawn Alexander Allen?
(11:14) Sneakerhead Transformation
(23:49) Hip-Hop
(29:57) NuChallenger Full Time
(37:29) Running Your Own Studio
(43:29) Treachery in Beatdown City
(58:52) Inspirations and Origins
(01:09:58) Combat Mechanics
(01:28:36) Game Devs of Color Expo
(01:48:33) Game Dev Origin
(02:00:38) John’s Outro
Links:
Shawn’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnalexanderallen/
Shawn’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/ShawnDoubleA
GDC Vault - Independent Games Summit: Indie SoapBox - https://gdcvault.com/play/1027343/Independent-Games-Summit-Indie
GDC Vault - Knights, Fist Fights, Lasers & Catacombs: Subversive Diversity to Improve Our Games - https://gdcvault.com/play/1023756/Knights-Fist-Fights-Lasers-Catacombs (Beyond Basic Represenation)
Treachery in Beatdown City: A Postmortem #GDoCExpo 2021 - https://youtu.be/4YKA_swJm5A
Game Devs of Color Expo's Shawn Alexander Allen on COVID-19, Allyship & Future Plans - https://youtu.be/MKRl1TeOlQA
Go Straight: The Ultimate Guide to Side-Scrolling Beat-’Em-Ups - https://www.bitmapbooks.com/products/go-straight-the-ultimate-guide-to-side-scrolling-beat-em-ups
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Come On The Show: https://outofplayarea.com
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/out-of-play-area/id1550421307
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Da0qLAOBi6rV6ccSzx1gX?si=043f4ec5a6034bf0
Follow @outofplayarea & @elkingpin on Twitter
Check out Descript using my affiliate url: http://descript.com?lmref=john@outofplayarea.com -
Henry Golding | Principal Software Engineering Lead @ Xbox Game Studios | Ep 34
Henry Golding is a Principal Software Engineering Lead at Xbox Game Studios currently spreading the significance of Test Driven Development and Automated Testing in Game Development. He's a native of the UK who has programmed for Sea of Thieves, Minecraft, Disney Universe, and Dead Space: Extraction for the Wii.
We talk about his latest endeavors as well as discuss his journey into the games industry.
Chapters:
(00:00) Who is Henry Golding?
(11:21) Software Architecture In Games
(25:13) Development Team Dynamics
(37:30) Academics & University
(51:02) Deadspace Extraction
(01:05:44) Rare & Work Visas
(01:19:01) Breaking in at Microsoft
(01:27:19) Final Round
(01:37:43) John’s Outro
Links:
Henry’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hgolding/
Henry’s MobyGames:https://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,451834/
The Games Automated Testing Resource Hub : https://trello.com/b/nGE5yqZk/game-automated-testing-resource-hub
Henry’s GDC Talk - Lessons Learned in Adapting the 'Sea of Thieves' Automated Testing Methodology to 'Minecraft' https://gdcvault.com/play/1027345/Lessons-Learned-in-Adapting-the
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Come On The Show: https://outofplayarea.com
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/out-of-play-area/id1550421307
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Da0qLAOBi6rV6ccSzx1gX?si=043f4ec5a6034bf0
Follow @outofplayarea & @elkingpin on Twitter
Check out Descript using my affiliate link: http://descript.com?lmref=john@outofplayarea.com
Customer Reviews
Love the podcast
It’s so great hearing the content and the explanation of different kinds of games! Can’t wait for the next one!
Fills A Void - AAA Game Devs Having A Conversation!
As a 20 year AAA industry veteran (engine/rendering engineering), I’ve often found developer podcasts, insightful articles, and online communities to be full of new talent to the game. While these communities are usually fueled with enthusiasm and passion, more often than not it’s coming from a place of little to no real experience, or indie developer studios - because let’s face it - AAA companies make their employees sign agreements basically saying they can’t do anything online including sharing internal fun stories or tricks of the trade (to name just two items off the long list), and involving yourself in those communities isn’t worth risking your job.
This podcast hits the nail on the head - AAA experienced industry talent talking about their careers and trade in ways rarely found elsewhere, in the public domain. I enjoyed every minute of episode 1, and am stoked to hear more!! In some ways it just felt like a natural conversation - like I was having lunch with and getting to know a new coworker that’s also “been through it all.”
I hope this podcast is here for the long run! Great debut!