Nice Games Club

In a heavy start to a very fun episode, your nice hosts check in on each other as the COVID-19 pandemic stretches into the fall. Ellen unknowingly makes a timely West Wing reference, and Stephen only allows Mark to tell three Star Trek stories.   You can watch Mark's mini-talk at PAX Online 2020, called "People, too" It was part of a panel on animals in games called "Lovely or Lethal: Will these animals cuddle me or kill me?" If you are looking to stay informed on the latest about the pandemic, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and other news websites are providing extensive daily COVID-19 coverage for free to non-subscribers. Games in Other Media 0:15:25 Ellen Burns-Johnson Category Game Design Gaming Narrative

Welcome Heather Gartner, Art Director for Team Toadhouse studio, art streamer and huge D&D fan. Heather (she/they) has been an illustrator for 10+ years. We were so happy to have them in the virtual clubhouse and talk about impostor syndrome—what it is, where it comes from, and how to live with it...or maybe even overcome it. If you've had a tough week, or if you ever feel like your artistry is fighting you, give this one a listen. And check out Heather's art at the links below. :)   Meta Perkins or Denny's for late-night breakfast fare?   Impostor Syndrome Category Art   Mentioned during the interview: Team Toadhouse: Call Me Cera The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo Da Vinci and is displayed at The Louvre in France Lightbox Conference & Expo   Further materials on teamwork and imposto

Narrative designer Xalavier Nelson Jr. enters the clubhouse to discuss the need for game designers to curate influences outside of games, the Half-Life 2s that weren't, the XCOM that wasn't quite, and some things that were! Also, advice for criminals. Game Devs of Color Expo Media Influences Category Game Design IRL Narrative Frog Fractions Has Done It Again--Here's How To Access A New Sequel - James O'Connor , Gamespot Destiny 2: Forsaken Brings Back Paul McCartney's Very Bad Song From the Origina… - Caty McCarthy , USgamer

Your nice hosts recorded a live Nice Games Jam episode at 2D Con 2020! You can listen to the edited audio of the recording here! You can find the video of the live recording here! Prompt Create a game where you are working together to construct a robot, but each player has a secret task they are trying to get the robot to complete along the way. Game type Tabletop game Player count 3-8 Materials 1 Deck of Robot Parts 1 Deck of Player Roles 1 Deck of Objectives 1 Die Setup Deal out an even number of Robot Parts to each player, and one Player Role. Then draw the first card in the Objectives deck for the team's objective. Rules Each player has a Player Role, this is their victory condition. Example ro

This week, Mark becomes a game publisher and a PAX speaker, Ellen builds a desk and reads a book, and Stephen learns his lesson (almost). Color Jumper is available on Switch NOW! Our live episode for 2D Con is up on YouTube! The audio will be in the regular feed next week. Mark will be part of the PAX Online panel "Lovely or Lethal: Will these animals cuddle me or kill me?" on Thursday, September 17th at 6:30pm CT. PAX Online is free for all on Twitch. Actionable Gamification: Beyond Points, Badges, and Leaderboards - Yu-kai Chou Online Events 0:10:15 Mark LaCroix Category Events IRL

Your nice hosts are joined by another nice guest! Jonathan Jennings is a games and XR engineer out of California. In this episode, the Clubhouse hears from Jonathan on the state of VR—programming and design challenges, industry updates, and what we might expect from VR experiences in the near future. Also, we discuss how VR fighting games make us tired, our favorite Ninja Turtles, and who really invented the internet. Jonathan Jennings Category Programming Here's a full list of topics and relevant links from this week's episode. Additional articles and such are below. Enjoy! Magic Leap Galactic Bar Fight (in development, by our nice guest) Locomotion options in VR (for players, for devs)  Weapons systems and physics in GORN (probably NSFW because it’s a “ludicrously violent VR gladiator simulator”) Oculus Connect 4 - Accessibility in Games

+!+!+ NICE TRANSMISSION INTERRUPTED +!+!+ Evil Games Club is back! Dale, Adia and Dylan have returned from outer space to be mean and make trouble in their 5th somewhat-less-than-hostile takeover of the program. Working From Home 0:04:47 Dale LaCroix Category IRL Your Nice Hosts also talked about working from home in "The new normal." Small Projects 0:45:46 Adia Alderson Category Game Design Narrative Play Adia's small stories!

In this episode, Mark and Stephen are joined by guest host Adia Alderson for a thoughtful conversation with Glen Henry, an indie developer out of Jamaica. Glen runs Spritewrench Studios and has released multiple creative titles like M@ge (pronounced "Mage") and Grimm and Tonic. The club talks about Glen’s current projects, as well as creative processes, maintaining community during COVID-19, and re-imagining the visual novel. Also, Adia defines a game genre with food-like products, Mark brings up cozy bunkers, and everyone’s a crusty old developer.  Meta GIG - Games Industry Gathering University of West Indies GGJ site   Glen Henry Category Game Design   Check out Glen's games on Itch.io and Steam!  We talked about most of these titles during the episode: Grimm and Tonic Questlike Hail SHLD FLNG M@g

This week, Mark hires quack calendar scientists, Ellen proposes a glossary, and everyone contradicts Stephen... including Stephen. The next "Twin Cities Playtest" is August 19th on Twitch! Parsec Actionable Gamification: Beyond Points, Badges, and Leaderboards - Yu-kai Chou Prototyping 0:13:50 Ellen Burns-Johnson Category Game Design Tools Mark cited a "Nice Games Jam" episode as a good example of a paper prototype for a digitial game: Blob Ball D.I.C.E. Summit 2002

Your nice hosts are joined by nice guest Alanna Linayre, founder of the indie studio Team Toadhouse. Alanna (rhymes with "banana") guides the gaming world towards healthier work practices and personal habits. We asked her a lot of questions about best practices in mental health, and about Team Toadhouse's upcoming game Call Me Cera. Also, Mark has a mission for artists, Ellen names a canary, and Stephen learns about "hustle culture." Mental Health Category IRL Production Alanna’s guidelines on depicting mental illness in games: Ask yourself why you’re putting mental health issues in your game. Make sure to have correct definitions, and not promote stigmas. Try not to use triggering content for the audience you’re serving. Avoid harmful tropes.  

Your nice hosts are tired, then get energized. Stephen is thinking about it, Mark brought a few unlikely examples, and Ellen is also thinking about it. Here's a fun new thing: We've recently started a Discord channel for listeners to discuss the show with each other. It's part of the Twin Cities Gamedev Discord server, but you don't need to be a Twin Cities gamedev to partisipate! Get directly to the Nice Games Club discussion channel via https://nicegames.club/discord Burnout 0:06:43 Stephen McGregor Category IRL Burn-out, an "occupational phenomenon" - World Health Organization Teacher Burnout: What It Is, Why It Happens, and How You Can Prev

What does it mean to manage a community of players? How do you do it well? Is it just about social media, or is community engagement part of game creation? In this episode, community manager and MageQuit player Christine "Birb" Marten gives your nice hosts a primer on using data, dealing with trolls, and getting input from gamers. Also, Mark sends out an invite, Stephen doesn't like horror games, and Ellen gets the giggles.  Community Development Category Game Design Marketing Production Games Industry Gathering ArcGIS PaxSouth: MageQuit (Review) - Christine Marten , Gaming Access Weekly

It's another week of brotherly love/war as Stephen's bro Charles McGregor re-enters the clubhouse to talk about his experience designing and building the level editor for his game HyperDot. Charles also joins your nice hosts in a discussion about their favorite level editors, and Ellen reveals the origin of her game design journey! In the middle of the show, Ellen mentioned a kind tweet from Pheonix Simms, who recently reviewed Widget Satchel. Level Editors Category Game Design Programming Tools UI / UX Hypersonic.Xtreme Custom editor (Track 4) - Rwaaaaar , YouTube Starcraft 2 Map Editor - Getting Started - s

Guest host Charles McGregor starts the episode by getting REVENGE. The group talks a bit about the state of the growing "serious games" industry and what it's like to work alongside family members. Also, Stephen does a good transition, and... no one mentions Star Trek?! In his intro speech, Charles references episode 37: "Ugly and hard to use." The last days of Mixer - Mikhail Klimentov , The Washington Post Twitch Reckons with Sexual Assault as it Begins Permanently Suspending Streamers - Jacob Kastrenakes , The Verge Twitch bans popular streamer Dr Disrespect - Michael McWhertor , Polygon

No, your nice hosts aren't pitching an adaptation of the 1974 film of the same name, but returning guest host Sarah Seember Huisken counts it as an inspiration for the solo-play tabletop RPG we workshopped in this episode! Immerse yourself a galaxy of corporate factions, fluid allegiances, and space pirates! Scum and Villainy The 5 best solo board games - Rafael Cordero , PC Gamer Prompt Workshop existing solo-play TTRPG concept. Game type Tabletop game Player count 1 -? Materials Player dossier (player character/ship sheet, notes) Dice (how many? which type? we didn't figure that out!) Module booklet (includes blank pages for journaling/recordkeeping) Setu

Storyboard artist Sarah Huisken joins the club this week to talk about NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) and the factors that make games as deliciously "replayable" as Mass Effect 2. Also, Stephen sort of gets the final word, Mark does a transition (!), and Ellen is slow to get the joke.  Sarah Huisken's website - Sarah Huisken Sarah's Twitter handle is @BoringHeathen - Sarah Huisken Everything Sony Announced in Today's PS5 Event - Chris Kohler , Kotaku Ways you can help support efforts for racial justice in the U.S. Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality raised $8.1 million!

Two architects of wildly different philosophies share an office space and compete to influence the design of their client's latest project. It's an excellent sitcom premise, but it's also the subject of our latest Nice Games Jam! News Itch.io Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality ends with a stunning $8.1m raise… - Wesley Yin-Poole , Eurogamer For a major Star Trek fan like Mark, this episode is a rather special, if unusual, milestone. When Star Trek: The Next Generation's episode count surpassed the original Star Trek in its 80th episode, it paid homage by including a subtle reference to the 79th (and final) episode of that series. As Star Trek: The Next Generation itself ran for 178 episodes, it felt fitting to make reference to that bit of TV trivia in this episode, our 179th. M

In this extra big and beefy (and somewhat late) episode, your nice hosts talk about recent events and share some personal thoughts on anti-black racism, police violence, and white privilege. Also, Mark is a smart animator, Stephen makes us feel the space and the place, and Ellen doesn’t want to live on the planet Zebes. Special: George Floyd, police violence, protests Donate and help our communities! Official George Floyd Memorial Fund We Love Lake Street Black Visions Collective Black Table Arts Reclaim the Block Since we recorded this episode, Itch launched a massive bundle of over 1500 titles (including Widget Satchel and other Minneapolis-made games), whose proceeds will be donated to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and Community Bail Fund. Meta notes Widget Satchel is out in Japan! Well, technically it's Widget Satchel ~Ferret's Treasure~ Keep an eye on igdatc for upcoming virtual playtesting sessions using Parsec.

This week on the program, Ellen sings along, Mark sings praise, and Stephen sings the gospel of Stephenism. DONATE! Official George Floyd Memorial Fund We Love Lake Street Black Visions Collective Black Table Arts Reclaim the Block Meta notes: PlayDate Why the quirky Playdate portable could succeed where Ouya failed - Kyle Orland , Ars Technica ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ To Be More Optimistic And Episodic, Says Co-Cre… - TrekMo