GameDev Breakdown CodeWritePlay

Buildbox CEO, Jonathan Zweig, and Design SVP, Doug Manson, call in to address questions about the company, its game development products and services, and concerns raised in the development community about recent revenue changes for developers.



















Show links







* CodeWritePlay coverage - Buildbox to claim up to 70% of user revenue soon* CodeWritePlay coverage - Our 5 unanswered questions for Buildbox* Buildbox.com







Video show









https://youtu.be/cuaByU4_dxI

Susanna Pollack calls in as Games For Change kicks off its 18th annual festival exploring the impact of games on education, healthcare, research, civics, and social issues.



















Festival highlights







* Nsé Ufot (New Georgia Project) - The Grassroots Game: New Media for Voter Engagement* Josh Shen (State Dept) - Can Governments Help Grow the Gaming Community?* Jenny Wu (Understood - festival’s support of accessibility and usability) - Raising Good Gamers: Youth, Safety, and Diversity* John Hanke (Niantic) - Keynote - Building Real World Communities with Niantic* Katie Salen (RGG) - Well-Played / Raising Good Gamers: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at 3 Families’ Experience in Minecraft







Show links







* GamesForChange.org* G4C on Twitter* G4C on Facebook* The Games For Change Newsletter

3D Generalist Rik Oclon calls in to discuss his project Retro Space Ball, how he navigated a huge debacle with a major games publisher (and received no payment), and he gives us some great data about his player base as well as some insight into his marketing and community management research.















Support our sponsors







This show was sponsored by Appfigures! Appfigures is all about giving game makers the tools they need to reduce risk and get more downloads. To find out more, head to https://appfigures.com/on/GameDevBreakdown to try Appfigures for free. If you like it, use our special code GDB3030 to get 30% off for the next 3 months.







Show links







* Retro Space Ball on itch.io* Dodge People VR on itch.io* RikOclon.com* @RikOclon on Twitter







Video Show









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0_qtxTlPjk

Luis Alonso of Recombobulator Games calls in to walk us through his experiences contributing to series like Need For Speed and Mass Effect--or if you prefer, Hannah Montana and VeggieTales--before going indie with his wife (accomplished writer Michelle Franklin) to realize a creative vision that's stayed with him since childhood.



















Show links







* Space Boat on Steam* Recombobulator Games* Luis Alonso / Space Boat on Twitter

Todd promotes--and in one case, absolutely does not promote--his new book, Inside Video Game Creation, in three more chats with industry podcast hosts at Moonlight Game Devs, What Else Do You Do?, and GamerHeads.















Show links:







* Inside Video Game Creation on Amazon * The Moonlight Game Devs podcast* The What Else Do You Do? podcast* The GamerHeads podcast

Sebastian Deken calls in to discuss his book, Final Fantasy VI from Boss Fight Books, and how his musical background led to his unique approach in covering the game. We go over the Final Fantasy series' history in the US and how the games have progressed over time. There is almost no gotcha journalism.















If you're already a fan of the Boss Fight Books series, you know that each author tends to bring a unique approach to their installment. Some books revolve around deeply personal stories while others are a result of incredibly thorough investigative journalism. In Final Fantasy VI, Deken introduces yet another approach: a music-first exploration of one of the most popular RPGs of all time.







Deken brings the perspective of a well-studied professional musician to the challenge of capturing what makes Final Fantasy's metronome tick, and he's been reflecting on the magic of the third/sixth installment (we refresh this timeline in the episode) since the day fate placed a knowledgeable toy store sales associate in his father's path just after the game's North American release. His verdict? Final Fantasy VI's music is much more than background noise.







"I pitched it as sort of a look at the game through the music and how the music functions within the game to advance the drama and to hold the game together, because the script is a disaster," Deken joked during our discussion. "It's just--it's a trainwreck. There's so much going on that it's hanging by a thread, the story."







During our chat, Deken explains how music helps move the game's narrative throughout its notorious twists and turns in gameplay. The book explores these choices, the soundtrack's later transition to live performances, and the composer's achievements in bringing video game music into its own as a legitimate genre.







Final Fantasy VI is available in ebook format from Boss Fight Books with a paperback edition coming this summer.







Show links:







* Final Fantasy VI from Boss Fight Books* Sebastian Deken on Twitter







Video Show:









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTtqYjOZtK0