The Game Design Dojo Podcast

Brian McRae and Ike Herman: Indie Game Developers, Designers, Podcasters
  • 4.9 (73)
  • DESIGN
The Game Design Dojo Podcast

All About Game Design, Production, and Publishing in Today’s Fast Paced Global Market

  1. 01/02/2016

    GDD 026 : Limitless Production

    Get more done in less time for lone wolf developers, hobbyists, large teams, and everything in between. Listen now to Game Design Dojo Episode #026

    1h 5m

  2. 06/25/2015

    GDD 025 : Virtual Reality Deep Dive

    In this expansive episode Brian and Ike discuss the dream, tech, design, best practices, and market strategies of virtual reality for game developers. Listen now to Game Design Dojo Episode #025

    1h 8m

  3. 05/11/2015

    GDD 024 : Design – Metroidvania #1

    In this first Metroidvania discussion Brian and Ike define the popular gameplay style, discuss its history, cite game examples, and explore player motivations. Listen now to Game Design Dojo Episode #024

    1h 6m

  4. 04/17/2015

    GDD 023 : Production – Lean Startup Decoded

    How to use the "Lean Startup" method for game development. A discussion and exploration of how and when to use it for your projects. Listen now to Game Design Dojo Episode #023

    1h 3m

  5. 02/12/2015

    GDD 022 : Design – Physics Gameplay

    An exploration on using physics as the core mechanic as opposed to just a supporting simulation system. Listen now to Game Design Dojo Episode #022

    54 min

  6. 12/18/2014

    GDD 021 : Business – Monitizing Your Game

    Brian and Ike dive deep into different ways to monitize your games, and how to tie your monitization strategy with your brand. Listen now to Game Design Dojo Episode #021

    57 min

  7. 09/20/2014

    GDD 020 : Puzzle Design

    In this episode, Brian and Ike dive into puzzles and how to implement them in your game design. They compare games using puzzles as their main gameplay or as a feature thrown into the gameplay. They'll also discuss how they go about using puzzles in their own games. So, enjoy! Today's Developer Diary Brian has starting using Notepad ++ instead of MonoDevelop and Unity Visual Studio because it's so light and fast. It's a totally free, tiny little program that he changed all the colors to look like Unity and trained it to get all the key words in there. It's just fantastic! Ike has taken the opportunity to step back and put a couple of patches on the three games he has in the store after taking some of the feedback he's gotten. He also has a fourth and fifth game in the works! Brian explains that even though Fenix Fire hasn't released any games this year, they have a lot that is being incubated so they've had a really busy year and it's been the work for hire that's been able to keep them going. Brian and Ike also discuss the totally different approaches their companies have to releasing games and the importance of having your game featured in the initial launch. Puzzle Design As a starting point, puzzles should include a couple of key traits: It should be very clear what the puzzle is  - For example - With a jigsaw puzzle you know exactly what you're supposed to do, fit all the pieces together It should show progress as you're solving the puzzles - Jigsaw example - As you join more pieces together, not only are you building a larger cluster but you're also filling in this picture which is satisfying There should be some sort of a pay off when the puzzle is solved - Jigsaw example - The joy of seeing the picture all together gives a sense of accomplishment and a feeling of completeness Puzzles in Level Design The puzzle should be obvious with clearly defined rules. In games like Metroid and Zelda, the camera takes over and points the player to where they need to go. This gives the player a call to the puzzle and also shows the player the ingredients of the puzzle. The most common are a torch, a totem, a door, or a lock and key. You can be innovative as much as possible when designing your game because you have the amazing opportunity to design a brand new game and can do whatever you really want in it so why resort to something that has been done a million times before? But, be careful since it's very easy to lose the player the more you innovate. You'll still need to have a lot of conventional game design elements because if the game is too weird or out there then people won't be able to understand it.  Puzzle Games - Match 3 In a puzzle game, the call to the puzzle is the game itself and it's just a matter of learning what the mechanics of the puzzle are. Candy Crush example. Familiarity in games -  some players want something new but in a way that they understand it immediately Feedback Loop - the faster a path to failure is identified, the better it is Having clear, constant feedback is good - like a jigsaw puzzle trying to match pieces Sounds are very important - having satisfying sounds when making progress Effects are very important - Puzzle and Dragons example Having a tiny bit of input gives you tons of positive feedback - makes you feel great Prime demographic of match 3 games is women over 40 -  coincides with slot machine games Every Game is a Puzzle Anything that requires strategy, which is almost every game, the puzzle is defined by the fact that you have to make choices. Starcraft - The puzzle is how to win the war.  You have all these tools at your disposal and there's a constant change in strategy. Clash of Clans - The puzzle is when you go to attack a village which of your pieces do you put down and where. Gears of War - The puzzle is being in a large open space and shoot all kind of enemies. The AI is a puzzle and the level layout,

    1h 3m

  8. 09/05/2014

    GDD 019 : How To Get Contract Work

    Brian and Ike discuss the practicalities of how to get a company off the ground and rolling. If you're looking for work-for-hire, then this episode provides some useful ways to obtain client work and how to build up your business development. Today's Developer Diary Ike is back! He is fresh after working at iD Tech Summer Camp where he taught high school students game design. It was fun to show them how to make games and by the time they left the camp in two weeks they had their own prototype working on their own phones. Ike also rang his "game release" bell! Puzzlin' Pieces: USA is now available on iTunes, Android and Amazon. His daughter helped develop this new game about learning about US geography. If there's any Windows 8 Microsoft people listening, please reach out to Ike. He wants to release the game for Windows, but keeps on hitting road blocks. So, if anyone can help please reach out to Ike! Brian just got back from Seattle! After doing his very first talk at Unite 2014 -  High End Mobile Development - highlighting his game Gates of Osiris. During the talk he spilled some tips and tricks on how they're going about the art of the game, a lot of the effects and how they're building the terrain. Was what really awesome was during his introduction when he mentioned he was a co-host of the Game Design Dojo, people clapped! And people also clapped when he mentioned their responsible for the Tuscany World Demo for Oculus VR. Our listener Vinny came up and talked with Brian. Thanks Vinny so much for coming out to the talk! Contact Work/Work For Hire The secret to Fenix Fire's longevity has been balancing work-for-hire with their own IP. Brian has been an indie for the past eight years and was in AAA for the previous six years. So, he's actually been an indie longer than he's been in the friendly confines of being an employee. He owes this primarily to work-for-hire by getting good contracts and doing good business development. General Thoughts About Work For Hire: It's a balancing act - you don't have control over your clients needs and timetables and you'll have to work around their deadlines as opposed to yours Repeat business - is the most efficient way to get get more contract work Making your own games - can yield a lot of opportunities Have at least one game shipped - really important and brings credibility Where do you begin to try to get Work For Hire? For the purposes of this episode, Brian and Ike use the scenario of a start-up company either with a team of 2-3 or a lone wolf who has all the skills needed to make a game. So, how would you go out and start landing a steady stream of clients for full service game development? Approach #1 - Try doing pro-bono work Go to a bigger company and offer to make a game for them for free. You'll make the game for them, they'll share their IP and you'll market it. If you have the ability to pull this off: You'll be getting a game on the shelf to then go and show other people When you go to those other people, you're showing the work you did for a big company You might actually get numbers because that big company is going to be able to do a lot of marketing This is something that's recommended to do for your first project, you shouldn't do it more than once. But it's a great way to get your name out there and to build some credibility. Approach #2 - Make your own IP Coming up with your own IP and putting it out there does yield opportunities. Brian has had experience of this first hand when he released his game Roboto. Approach #3 - Target a category of companies Once you've targeted a category of companies that you're interested in, come up with a prototype or a demo that they can play on the device that you ultimately want to launch it on and show it to them using their brand. When they see it playing in the device, it will make it a much easier sell for them. Make sure it's something that you can expand upon yours...

    1h 8m
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About

All About Game Design, Production, and Publishing in Today’s Fast Paced Global Market

Information

  • Creator
    Brian McRae and Ike Herman: Indie Game Developers, Designers, Podcasters
  • Years Active
    2013 - 2016
  • Episodes
    26
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    Copyright © Game Design Dojo 2013
  • Show Website
    The Game Design Dojo Podcast

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