Nice Games Club

It's the finale of our double-sized GDC 2017 special, recorded on the final day of the Game Developers Conference.Martha and Mark were joined once again in San Fransisco by "Special Reporter" Dylan Skerbitz to talk about the back half of the conference, while Stephen joins in remotely from Glitch HQ to talk all about the Nintendo Switch! GDC 2017 Sessions 0:02:40 Martha MegarryEventsSid Meier tells Civilization’s origin story, cites children’s history books - Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica Martha meets her Hero, Sid Meier Double Fine's Digital Archaeology - Brendan Sinclair, GamesIndustry.bizLadykiller in a Bind Review - Allegra Frank, PolygonDouble Tap - Ste Curran Nintendo Switch Launch 0:19:48 Stephen McGregorGamingHardwareUnreal Engine 4.15 supports Nintendo Switch, HDR, and A

Martha and Mark were in San Fransisco for the Game Developers Conference, and there was so much to say we had to split it into two episodes!While Stephen was holding down the fort back home, we were joined in San Fransisco by Nice Games Club's in-house "special reporter" Dylan Skerbitz. Train Jam 0:00:58 Martha MegarryEventsTrain JamTrain Jam participants heading to GDC 2017 anxious about ‘Muslim ban’ - Charlie Hall, Polygon Train Jam Interviews 0:13:13 Dylan SkerbitzEventsArvind Raja Yadav made Zombies on Demand More from Arvind: Pyrodactyl GamesAndrew Shouldice made Uncomfortably More from Andrew: Secret LegendKate Gray made Post Birb More from Kate: https://kategray.me/Kate Compton made Travels in Od More from Kate: galaxykate.comAlex Carlson made Ultimate Train Fighter 2600 M

On this Co-Op Recap episode, we welcome developer Lane Davis and writer Felix Foster, who were the co-facilitators of the Glitch Co-Op Talk about Transmedia and Intellectual Property.Also, friend of the show Adia Alderson returns to fill in for Martha, who we all missed very dearly, but you wouldn't know it by how lively our conversation was. We really get into it! Transmedia IRLI Have No Mouth but I Must ScreamZelda CYOA books - ZeldaWiki"Why Are There No Good Video Game Movies?" - Extra Credits, YouTubeMortal Kombat chess - WikiaMortal Kombat Tetris - WikiaHitchhikers' Guide to the Galaxy - WikipediaHow Transmedia Made LEGO the Most Powerful Brand in the World - Animation World NetworkOverwatch Comic - Tracer - Blizzard EntertainmentFelix FosterGuestFelix Foster is a writer and narrative designer. He is on the board of Twin Cities Pride. External link @felixxx244Felix is on

Developer, pixel artist, and YouTube vlogger Will Tice joins the club to talk about building his own game engine, and what it's like to go solo. Solo Development IRLLibgdx"It's official: XNA is dead" - IndieGames.comunTied Games devlogunTied Games - Speed Sprinting videoWill TiceGuestWill Tice is a developer, pixel artist and Youtube vlogger. External link unTied Games@untiedgamesunTied Games FacebookunTied Games YoutubeunTied Games Patreon

It's an episode packed to the gills, hosted by two manatees and an otter!Your hosts each talk about their time with Glitch's Immersion program, and Mark shares what he learned about its most recent cohort, which he filmed for an upcoming documentary.We then bum ourselves out talking about how we never have enough time to work on our projects, but things pick up for the final segment as we gab about some of our our favorite gamedev tools, including a bunch of suggestions from listeners. Be sure to browse the links below to learn more about them! Glitch’s Immersion Program 0:04:00 Mark LaCroixTools Work/Life Balance 0:18:22 Stephen McGregorIRL Tools of the Trade 0:32:33 Mart

Once a month, the Twin Cities chapter of the International Game Developers Association holds a public meetup, where all are welcome to view presentations, plug their projects, and network with others.As chair of the IGDA-TC, Ryan Foss coordinates and hosts the meetup, and his example helps foster a welcoming and supportive environment for Twin Cities gamedevs. In this episode, we talk to Ryan about what it takes to maintain an "extracurricular activity." Extracurricular Activities EventsIRLInternational Game Developers Association, Twin CitiesMinnesota Virtual Reality and Human-Computer Interaction GroupIGDA-TC podcastRyan FossGuestAs chair of the IGDA-TC, Ryan Foss coordinates and hosts the meetup, and his example helps foster a welcoming and supportive environment for Twin Cities gamedevs. External link Independent Game Developers Association, Twin Cities Chapter

Our 10th(!!!) episode has your nice hosts teetering on the edge of not-so-niceness as they each describe something they just don't get (or don't quite like) in gaming, and hope the other two can bring them around. Watching Games 0:01:28 Mark LaCroixGamingIRLEVO Fighting Game TournamentThe Controversial Dichotomy Between Sports and eSports - Jesse Aaron, Huffington PostAchievement Hunter - Rooster TeethThe Best of Modern Warfare Mythbusters - Defend teh House, YouTubeContradiction: Spot the Liar! - Giant BombHer Story"On Let's Plays" - That Dragon, Cancer Narrative in Games 0:13:00 Stephen McGregorNarrativeLudonarrative Dissonance in Bioshock - Click NothingHow many times can you enter the cell? - Batman: Arkham Knight - YouTubePortal 2 - funniest quotes - ultrasoftcore, YouTubeTh

Some firsts in this episode: Our first iTunes review (thanks, Abdiwak!), our first episode of interconnected topics, and our first big ideological disagreement (ooo, drama!). Gaming Mastery 0:01:33 Gamer Motivation Profile quiz - Quantic Foundry Strategy Guides and Wikis 0:20:45 Martha MegarryGamingTools(Martha) Pokemon Crystal guide - Nintendo Power(Stephen) Donkey Kong Country 2 guideNintendo Power's Dragon Warrior giveaway - Press the Buttons Designing Party Games 0:38:30 Mark LaCroixGame DesignUltimate Chicken HorseWe Didn’t Playtest This At All!SpaceteamJackbox Party PackSave the WhalesSushi Go!Overcooked

Musician and educator Troy Strand joins the club to talk about writing music for indie games and working with indie devs, and your nice hosts do a lot of learning. Troy also shares details about his new crowdfunding platform Raisable. Music for Indie Games AudioVerdant SkiesVenture AcademyRaisableTroy StrandGuestTroy Strand is a musician and educator, who creates music for Minnesota game developers among other things. External link https://twitter.com/yellowchordVimeo Music Demo Reel

In this special episode, your nice hosts say some nice things about a few games they played and loved in 2016, and talk a little about what they're looking forward to in gaming for 2017. Martha got new insulation material for our ice-cold clubhouse. Doing it right. Martha's Nicest (2016) Martha MegarryNicestOvercookedOverwatch Mark's Nicest (2016) Mark LaCroixNicestPaper Mario: Color SplashStar Trek: Ascendancy Stephen's Nicest (2016) Stephen McGregorNicestConceptDivinity: Original Sin Consensus Pick (2016) Mark LaCroixMartha MegarrySt

Our first Co-Op Recap episode features writer and developer Adia Alderson to discuss all things Interactive Fiction!Interactive Fiction - Wikipedia Interactive Fiction Narrative[Tools]Ink Scripting LanguageChoiceScriptTwineInform[Discussion]Writing Ages in Myst - WikiaThe Lost PigStrong Bad - Thy DungeonmanHitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy game - BBCHitchhiker's Guide To Douglas Adams' Secret Gaming Passion - Game Informer PodcastInteractive Fiction DatabaseGDC Talk "Ink: The Narrative Scripting Language" - Joseph Humfrey , GDC[Outro]Glitch Event: Story ForgeAdia Alderson on Twitter - @Adia_AldAdia AldersonYour Evil HostsGuestAdia Alderson is a Software Engineer and web developer. She currently works at Slalom.Adia loves narrative games and announcing to you what’s going to happen next in suspenseful movies and TV shows. Adia is the first to see the flaws, and point them out to you, and the last to follow directions,

Our post-Xmas episode features "happiness, all over the place," multiple instances of the word "chill," and is covered with Mark's since-Thanksgiving sniffles.SUPERHOT VR Review - Ben Lang, Road to VR Bugs! 0:02:36 Street Fighter II designer opens up about the cancelling 'bug' - Game DeveloperIndie Game Project Management with Trello - Michael CannBethesda. Bethesda Never Changes...Regression testing - WikipediaGoat Simulator Hits Xbox One With "Millions of Bugs" - Eddie Makuch, GameSpot Game Jams! 0:20:55 Stephen McGregorEventsGlobal Game Jam (January 20 - 22 , 2017)Gamecraft.mn (Minnesota GGJ site)Midwest Game Jam 2016 gamesHow to Get the Most Out of a Game Jam - Christer Kaitila, tuts+Ludum Dare

Without Glitch, there would be no Nice Games Club, so we were very happy to welcome the Executive Director and co-founder of GLITCH, Evva Kraikul, to share with us what it takes to build a community of game makers, how to get involved, and the "small moments that define a community.” Resources for Game Makers Glitch.mnGlitch ConnectGamecraftMetropolitan Regional Arts CouncilMinnesota State Arts BoardThe McKnight FoundationNorthern Spark - Twin Cities MNMeetup.com searchHow to create an Eventbrite eventIGDA Chapters listingGameNest - San FransiscoGlitchCityLA - Los AngelesHand-Eye Society - TorontoBabycastles - New York CityThe Video Game Industry's Problem With Racial Diversity - NewsweekHow Diversity Makes Us Smarter - Scientific AmericanEvva KraikulGuestEvva Kraikul is a Founder & Creative Director at GLITCH Projects Claw Breaker

Nothing can stop us, not even good jazz at high volume!MN Gamedev Twitter Bot Westworld as a Video Game 0:02:00 Mark LaCroixMisc.What People Who Make Video Games Think of Westworld - io9 - Evan Narcisse, IO9 Crafting Systems 0:11:44 Martha MegarryGame DesignMinecraft's unique crafting systemNo Man’s Sky is an existential crisis simulator... - Peter Suderman, VoxLittle AlchemyDoodle GodLittle Inferno Designing Games for Non-Gamers 0:27:30 Stephen McGregorGame DesignBoom Blox, a Steven Spielberg/EA Game - WikipediaOperant Conditioning Chamber (aka Skinner Box) - WikipediaVideo Games Are Boring - Brie Code, GamesIndustry.biz

On our first interview episode, it's a family affair, as Beth and Andy Korth (plus adorable baby Gabe!), join us in the Nice Games Clubhouse to share their experience getting their upcoming game Verdant Skies though the Steam Greenlight process. Little Gabe, making eyes at Martha. Steam Greenlight MarketingProductionVerdant Skies Greenlight pageSkye Storme's YouTube video on Verdant Skies - Skye Storme's , YouTubeVerdant Skies website@Verdant_SkiesBeth KorthGuestBeth Korth is a narrative designer, and the Vice Chair at the Independent Game Developer Association, Twin Cities. External link @BethKorthVerdant SkiesAndy KorthGuestFounder and developer for Howling Moon Software. External link Howling Moon SoftwareVerdant Skies

Holy bolts, our first episode! Impostor Syndrome 0:01:58 Stephen McGregorIRLImposter Syndrome - WikipediaInternational Game Developers Association - Twin CitiesGlitchMN Gaming Events 0:22:38 Mark LaCroixEventsGamingOculus Touch controllersLone Echo multiplayerFingeance demo downloadObduction VR VR Development 0:55:57 Martha MegarryVR / AR / XR"Attack on Titan" VR experimentAndrew Fladeboe VRBeach Ball ValleyIntropy Games