Like many gamers, I’ve always got a “game of the moment” going – something I’m playing in my off-time, sometimes a board game, and sometimes a video game. Games have been the passion of my professional life and my hobby for as long as I can remember, back to when my mom let me drop …
Ages ago, my industry friends and I had a running joke about young designers who viewed themselves as the “idea guy.” The framing stems from an uninformed view of how games are made – the concept that there’s a lonely genius on a team somewhere, possibly with a fancy title like Creative Director, who comes …
Idea Guy: The Myths and Realities of Game Inception Read More »
It’s Photo Album Week here on the blog. I mentioned in passing a few weeks ago that one of the small but nice things about working in games was all the free swag that flows your way. Developer t-shirts are a mainstay, but over the years I’ve collected a veritable mountain of cups, clothing, and …
Swag Collection: Physical Memories from a Game Career Read More »
In between consulting work, I’m plugging away on a solo project. While I’m not ready to talk about the details of the game itself, the process to date has been educational. Regardless of when I finally deliver it, I’m happy with the approach I’ve taken. The last time I worked on a solo project, just …
First Steps: Lessons from Indie Game Prototyping Read More »
Ages ago, when I was a kid growing up in New Hampshire and Maryland, summer stretched out to Labor Day. It wasn’t until September that I’d wearily trudge back to the bus stop with a backpack full of fresh notebooks and pencils. Not so for my son in Texas, who starts his school year in …
Dog Days: Hobbies from a Game Developer’s Summer Read More »
It’s no secret that the last couple of years in the game industry have been rough. Tragic layoffs continue, though the pace has slowed compared to last year’s bloodbath. Though the indie scene is still vibrant, triple-A studios are struggling creatively. As I wrote about last week, developers have responded to the tough times with …
Unlike my typical lengthy discourses on the joys of niche games, this week’s blog is a brief one. I couldn’t let a week go by without commenting on a couple of recent industry headlines. The first stunner was word that Microsoft recognized a union formed by the staff at several Bethesda studios. The second, following …
Slice of the Pie: The Game Industry Gets Organized Read More »
Back in January, I wrote about traditional wargames and their somewhat problematic nature. Still, it’s a genre I enjoy when I’m in the right mood. Digging deep into a historical battle and then re-reading a military history book to see how my experience differed from reality scratches a unique gaming itch. One of the most …
Island Hopping: Three Wargames Take On the Same Conflict Read More »
Some months back, I wrote a love letter to SCS’s Euro Truck Simulator 2 – still one of my favorite relaxing gaming experiences. ETS2, which has been in active development for years, is a robust title with a ton of depth in its simulation. The various name-brand trucks feel genuinely different. They take damage in …
Rich Soils: The Relaxing Joy of Farming Simulator Read More »
Over my long career, I’ve developed a short list of game development principles. The list is pretty short because one of the principles is that there isn’t a single right way to make games. The story of every great game’s development is unique. Different teams have found success with radically different approaches. Everything from team …
Nuts and Bolts: Great Tools for Indie Game Developers Read More »