Quest Markers

Quest Markers
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A monthly-ish podcast about video games and the stories they tell.

  1. JAN 29

    EP 39 | Appealing Video Game Worlds with Merlino Games Founder Antonio Freyre

    Antonio Freyre joins Marina Ryan to talk about his game development journey that led him to developing his upcoming title, As Time Surrenders.They delve into topics such as ambient storytelling, using art as a way to engage in conversation, how mechanics and symbols can be used to tell game stories, building appealing worlds, Antonio’s creative process, and much more. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro (00:03:23) How Antonio got into game development(00:08:55) Games that inspire Antonio(00:13:30) Using game mechanics and emotions to tell a story(00:22:43) “The point of art is to share and engage in conversation, not to impose” (00:26:57) Using symbolism to infuse games with meaning(00:30:31) Antonio’s game dev philosophies(00:37:20) Building appealing game worlds (00:44:09) Being a musician & Antonio’s creative process (00:53:40) As Time Surrenders, Antonio’s upcoming title(00:57:00) Advice Antonio would give his younger self(01:00:48) OutroFOLLOW USAntonio’s socials: https://linktr.ee/merlinogames Merlino Games Steam page: https://store.steampowered.com/develo... Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠ Live Show on Twitch: ⁠  / marinahascoffee  Quest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan

    1h 1m

  2. JAN 27

    EP 38 | Grammy-Nominated Cody Matthew Johnson on Life, Creativity, & Getting Into Video Game Music

    Cody Matthew Johnson is back! He joins Marina Ryan to talk about his path into video game music, his recent Grammy nomination, his plans for 2026, and advice he has for new video game composers.  They also delve into topics such as embracing failure, choosing action over hesitation, and decisive minimalism.  Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat! * * * * * * *  TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:00) Intro  (00:03:43) Cody’s path into video game music  (00:10:11) A pivotal moment in Cody’s life (00:12:14) “Ready” is not a feeling, it’s a decision  (00:17:55) Action over hesitation (00:20:07) Cody’s mantra for 2026  (00:21:59) Cody’s Grammy nomination (00:26:41) Embracing failure (00:34:07) New things we want to try this year  (00:42:00) Cody’s favourite way of landing a gig (00:44:29) Advice Cody has for new video game composers  (00:49:00) Advice Cody would give his younger self (00:55:35) Outro * * * * * * *  FOLLOW US Cody’s website: https://www.codymatthewjohnson.com/  Cody’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/codymatthewjohnson/  Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠   Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠ Music by Marina Ryan

    57 min

  3. 12/13/2025

    EP 37 | From Resident Evil to Star Wars: How Cody Matthew Johnson approaches music making

    Cody Matthew Johnson joins Marina Ryan to talk about his creative process in making video game music. Cody has worked on everything from Resident Evil to Bayonetta, to most recently Star Wars: Outlaws, which landed him a Grammy nomination (congrats, Cody!!!).  They delve into the differences between different music roles, how to balance a project’s needs with our own creative ideas, how limitations can make us more creative, what a great collaboration looks like, imposter syndrome, finding play and gratitude, and more.  Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat! * * * * * * *  TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:00) Intro  (00:05:17) What’s the difference between a composer vs. a songwriter vs. a music producer? (00:15:28) Balancing a project’s needs with bringing our artistry into the music  (00:23:39) What does a good collaborative environment look like? (00:30:40) Creativity and limitations  (00:32:20) What does a great collaboration look like?  (00:37:25) Finding inspiration and flow state   (00:45:47) Imposter syndrome (00:47:08) The inevitable failure that is ahead  (00:48:08) Finding play and gratitude  (00:57:15) What does success mean to Cody?  (01:03:05) What advice would Cody give his younger self?  (01:07:25) Outro * * * * * * *  FOLLOW US Cody’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/codymatthewjohnson/  Cody’s Twitter: https://x.com/codymatthewj  Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠   Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠ Music by Marina Ryan

    1h 8m

  4. 11/18/2025

    EP 36 | How indie game Shroom and Gloom drove 125k+ wishlists

    Ben Lazerbeam joins Marina Ryan to talk about the development of Team Lazerbeam’s upcoming roguelike double deckbuilder, Shroom and Gloom. They delve into the game’s design and balancing, art and implementation, and the marketing strategy that led them to 125,000+ wishlists on Steam! Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:05:50) Ben’s game development journey(00:10:37) Designing and balancing a deckbuilding game (00:26:29) The art, lightning, and implementation of Shroom and Gloom(00:35:05) Marketing, wishlists, and going viral on TikTok(00:54:52) What advice would Ben give their younger self? (01:02:45) Outro* * * * * * * FOLLOW USShroom and Gloom on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3271280/Shroom_and_Gloom/ Ben’s socials: https://linktr.ee/benlazerbeam Team Lazerbeam’s socials: https://linktr.ee/teamlazerbeam Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠ Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan#gamedevelopment #gamedev #gamedeveloper #gamedevpodcast #videogames #indiegames #indiegame #indiegamedev #shroomandgloom

    1h 3m

  5. 10/23/2025

    EP 35 | How do indie horror games get made?

    Vincent Adinolfi joins Marina Ryan to talk about the development of his survival horror game Heartworm. They delve into the inspiration behind the game, Vincent’s development journey, the game’s OST, visual identity, production, accessibility, and so much more. The episode is chock-full of great development and life advice. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview (00:00:36) Intro(00:03:28) Vincent’s path: working on his first game(00:04:47) Overview of Heartworm(00:05:53) The development of Heartworm & taking risks(00:09:25) The inspiration behind Heartworm(00:12:17) Heartworm’s creative direction and visual identity(00:15:35) The making of Heartworm’s music(00:30:15) Building in accessibility options(00:33:55) How difficult is it to get fixed camera angles right?(00:36:18) How Heartworm got published(00:40:10) Heartworm’s production (00:45:15) “Done is better than perfect” (vulnerability and finishing things)(00:49:49) Making games is hard(00:52:25) If Vincent could give his younger self a piece of advice…(00:55:48) Outro* * * * * * * FOLLOW USHeartworm on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1257030/Heartworm/ Heartworm: https://heartwormgame.com/ Heartworm’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vadinolfi Heartworm’s Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/adinolfi.bsky.social Heartworm’s TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heartworm.game Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠ Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan

    56 min

  6. 09/27/2025

    EP 34 | How do indie studios get funded?

    Rachel Heleva (Akupara Games, Spiral Up Games, Strange Scaffold) joins Marina to talk about her games publishing and development journey.They delve into how game publishers work, what it means to be a game scout, the importance of production, and Rachel gives tons of advice for up-and-coming studios seeking their next publishing deal. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat! * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview (00:00:22) Intro(00:03:00) Rachel’s path: getting into the industry(00:05:39) What is a games publisher?(00:09:10) What is a games scout?(00:10:40) Rachel’s experiencing helping start a publishing house (00:14:50) What makes an indie studio stand out?(00:18:40) What indicates to a publisher that a studio isn’t ready for funding yet? (00:21:33) What indicates to a publisher that a studio is ready for funding now?(00:24:28) How have Rachel’s production skills helped her in her publishing and scouting work?(00:27:15) How has Rachel’s production experience helped her identify a studio’s ability to deliver on their timelines? (00:32:33) What advice would Rachel give her younger self?(00:34:47) Words of wisdom for studios (00:37:07) Outro(00:37:27) Q&A: How did Rachel first get into her role? (00:39:36) More advice for studios (feedback, playtesting, making games publicly) FOLLOW USRachel’s Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hlywa.bsky.s... Marina’s socials: https://linktr.ee/marinahascoffeeLive Show on Twitch: ⁠  / marinahascoffee  Quest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan

    44 min

  7. 09/23/2025

    EP 33 | Video Game Writing, Narrative Design, and Feeling our Emotions - A Game Dev Chat with Kate Gray (Hello Kitty Island Adventure, Moonstone Island)

    Kate Gray (Hello Kitty Island Adventure, Moonstone Island, Dimensional Double Shift) joins Marina Ryan to talk about her game development journey. They delve into what it’s like being a games writer and narrative designer, player agency and dialogue writing, the challenge of writing item descriptions, what it’s like working in VR, narrative procedural generation, Dragon Age, and more.  Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat! * * * * * * *  TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:00) Preview  (00:00:28) Intro (00:03:08) Kate’s Intro (00:04:53) Kate’s path getting into game dev (00:13:48) What Kate is most proud of (00:16:30) Writing item descriptions and dialogue  (00:19:21) Player agency & writing dialogue choices (00:22:51) Seeing writers’ voices in games (00:23:55) Narrative design & writers rooms  (00:28:19) Kate’s creative process   (00:31:25) Working on VR games (00:35:28) The fun and chaos of narrative procedural generation (00:44:16) Dragon Age: Inquisition, branching dialogue systems, & realistic characters (00:51:34) What advice would Kate give her younger self?   (00:53:44) Wrap up (00:57:00) Q&A: Writing about impactful emotions in cute, cozy games * * * * * * *  FOLLOW US Kate’s Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hownottodraw.bsky.social  Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠   Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffee Quest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠ Music by Marina Ryan #gamedevelopment #gamedeveloper #gamedev #gamedevpodcast #videogamewriting #narrativedesign #videogames #hellokittyislandadventure #moonstoneisland #dimensionaldoubleshift #dragonage

    1h 5m

  8. 08/20/2025

    EP 32 | Video Game Writing, Narrative Design, & Resident Evil - A Game Dev Chat with Anna C. Webster

    Anna C. Webster joins Marina Ryan to talk about her game development journey. They delve into what it’s really like being a games writer, how narrative design roles vary from studio to studio, their love of the Resident Evil series, and much more. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat! * * * * * * *  TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:00) Preview  (00:00:40) Intro (00:04:30) How Anna got into game development (00:08:30) Training as a performer (00:10:00) Lesser-known facts & misconceptions about being a video game writer and music composer (00:19:03) Using theatre techniques in game writing   (00:21:51) What does a narrative designer do?  (00:26:33) How narrative designers collaborate with QA  (00:28:32) Talking freelancing (00:34:05) How we got into Resident Evil  (00:38:55) Our favourite Resident Evil games (00:41:41) Our Resident Evil hot takes (00:44:26) Our love of Code Veronica and Ada Wong (00:46:18) Resident Evil hot takes continued  (00:48:57) Favourite narrative moments in Resident Evil (00:55:49) Resident Evil 9 (00:58:56) Raid!  (00:59:39) What advice would Anna give her younger self?   (01:1:44) Outro * * * * * * *  FOLLOW US Anna’s Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/annacwebs.bsky.social  Anna’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@annacwebs Anna’s Website: https://annacwebster.com/  Marina: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠   Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffee Quest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠ Music by Marina Ryan

    1h 2m
See All (40)

About

A monthly-ish podcast about video games and the stories they tell.

Information

  • Creator
    Quest Markers
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    40
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Quest Markers
  • Show Website
    Quest Markers