In this week's episode, Mark teaches us to cast polymorph, a 4th level transmutation spell. Just kidding! But Mark does put his high INT score to work helping us understand polymorphism, a useful feature of object-oriented programming. Later on, Stephen talks about the pattern of "save scumming" and considers how it might influence how designers create games. Ellen noodles on things. Noodle demo game - Ellen Burns-Johnson , The Training Arcade 0:04:48Polymorphism31:57:0Save Scumming Shepard. Wre...
Oct 27, 2023•Ep. 328
Nice Games Club continues to celebrate the Spooky Season with the second-ever “Nice Games Panel”. Our panelists include creators known for their work on horror games: James Pratt, TorpalDork, and Max Kunze. We discuss the using humor and using nostalgia in horror games and if clowns have ever not been scary. Horror Games 201 Game Design
Oct 19, 2023•Ep. 327
In this episode, the team gets back to all the regular reasons to complain about Unity. Stephen makes a pun, and Ellen searches for elegance through the power of internet research. Noodle - The Training Arcade Mark and his bike took a train to Chicago. 0:07:41Composition over Inheritance Composition over inheritance Wikipedia0:33:00Elegance Elegant Program PC Mag 10 Things Elegant Woman Wear - How to dress classy and elegant Australian Finishing School Terms of Art #30: Elegance (and Aesthetic C...
Oct 12, 2023•Ep. 326
It's the first-ever "Nice Games Panel," in which we invite multiple guests on the show to discuss something interesting! Our panelists today include multiple creators who are known for their work on horror games: Schera Wyss, Conner Rush, Henry Hoare, Samuel Guglielmo, and Nick F. We discuss the fundamental nature of horror as a genre (or maybe a theme or an "orientation"), and what devs should consider if they're looking to make horror games that haunt players long after the end credits roll. P...
Oct 07, 2023•Ep. 325
Mark is back from Toronto, and guest host Holly Harrison is back in the clubhouse! Holly completes a topic, Stephen likes that part, and Ellen reads half a book. Talking Heads Take Over TIFF As ‘Stop Making Sense’ Reunion Has Crowds Dancing … - Anthony D'Alessandro , Deadline 'Lost Ladies' Review: Kiran Rao’s Delightful Hindi Comedy Swings and Wins - Proma Khosla , IndieWire 'Robot Dreams' Review: A Beautiful Tale of Friendship and Love in the Hand-Draw… - Tomris Laffly , The Wrap 0:09:09Complet...
Sep 28, 2023•Ep. 323
Earlier today, Unity issued an update to their controversial "runtime fee" policy introduced last week. What changed? What didn't? How could this have even happened? What does it mean going forward? Can we ever trust Unity again? We get into all of it , from the original announcement on September 12th, to the "open letter" update and "fireside chat" on September 22nd. Your nice hosts are joined by special guest and "Unity Insider" Freya Holmér, who offers some additional context and much-needed ...
Sep 23, 2023•Ep. 324
We continue the recent production talks this week as we welcome Julia Keren-Detar into the clubhouse! The discussion topic is "working on a bigger team" but we also somehow talk about rain water barrels at some point? It's relevant, I swear. Mushroom 11 - Untame , Steam Working on a Bigger Team Production Work: A deep history, from the stone age to the age of robots - James Suzman , Penguin Random House An example of what Ellen brings up during the episode, probably....
Sep 14, 2023•Ep. 322
It's been a while but your nice hosts come up with a game in roughly an hour, this one for the cat owners out there! After a fairly long meta, we get into the mind of a cat and design a competitive game for them to play. Toronto International Film Festival Renew an adult passport - USA.gov Bloor–Yonge station - Wikipedia PromptCreate a game my mother can (and wants to) play with her cats, with the supply list below. Bonus points if this can be played a single cat or multiple cats at the same tim...
Sep 07, 2023•Ep. 321
This week, Stephen and Ellen catch up with Mark about his (and Dale's) trip to GenCon. There is a happy minor Glom update, and then it's down to business. What's grind? What purpose does it serve, and what are the mechanics of it? Your nice hosts attempt to come up with some definitions & guidelines—you decide whether they succeed. And feel free to share your opinions on Discord :) Gen Con 06:08Grind A Necessary Evil: Grinding in Games Brice MorrisonGame Developer26:32Emphasizing Uniqueness...
Sep 02, 2023•Ep. 320
In this episode your nice hosts welcome Rick Stemm of PikPok to the clubhouse to talk about what happens after a game gets greenlit. Turns out the answer involves building your team and trust. Rick touts the idea of a sh*tty first draft - faster and worse. Coaching feedback givers for what you are looking for, and the importance of building a trust in a team. Rick spouts useful idioms and your host claim points for each time Rick says ‘cohesive’ or ‘holistic.’ Who scored the most points? Turns o...
Aug 24, 2023•Ep. 319
We return to the topic of cheating for the third (and final, maybe?) time this week! In this episode, Ellen brings cheating to a close, Mark makes up a band he'd totally listen to, and Stephen comes up with an engaging dish washing game. Cubistry - Match 2 LLC , Google Play Store 0:12:26Cheating, Part 3We first visited cheating in this episode. "What's a little grand larceny?" Cheating Part II in this episode. Cheating, Part 2 Anti-cheat in video games: The A to Z Reinhard BlaukovitschIrdeto Med...
Aug 17, 2023•Ep. 318
Your nice hosts get called to the boss' office to interview Frani Esquenazi, who is Stephen's actual boss at Future Club. Frani discusses servant leadership, getting your "C" legs, and not having all the answers. Leadership IRL Production Servant Leadership - Mind Tools Servant Leadership is NOT What You Think - John S. Todorovic , LinkedIn Women in Games - Discord...
Aug 10, 2023•Ep. 317
In the second installment of your nice hosts' discussion about cheating in games, we talk about the nature of cheating in contemporary video games: what it looks like, what factors shape it, and how worried we gamedevs should be about it. Yeah, we had so much to say about cheating that we couldn't fit it into one episode. Can we fit it into two? Also, Mark skips the punctuation, Stephen is excited, and Ellen quits a game. Gex Is Coming to Modern Consoles - Alex Stedman , IGN 0:16:58Cheating, Par...
Aug 04, 2023•Ep. 316
In this episode your nice hosts chat with Anna C. Webster lead writer on The Foglands, and her cat Montezuma. Anna talks about how writing for games is different than writing for other medias, including making decisions on what options the player can make (you can never let your player do anything because scope), and writing for players that role-play as the character vs. wearing the character's costume as yourself. And the importance of frequent Narrative Reviews and getting together with other...
Jul 28, 2023•Ep. 315
After a fairly self-indulgent meta, your nice hosts eventually get into the nitty-gritty of both Player Motivation and Copying Others. Listen after the outro to hear a plethora of fun horse names! Normal Gossip - Kelsey McKinney , Defector Tour de France: Unchained - Netflix 0:26:57Player Motivations Gamer Motivation Profile Quantic Foundry Board Game Motivation Profile Quantic FoundryWe've talked about types of players this episode as well. "Killed the flightmaster, killed the griffin..." We al...
Jul 20, 2023•Ep. 314
Quinn K joins the clubhouse to break down their IGF-nominated game "An Outcry." Your nice hosts learn about choosing your own limitations, the Haunted PS1 scene, and how much playtesting is still not enough playtesting. Postmortem: "An Outcry" An Outcry - Quinn K , itch.io RPG Maker 2003 Oulipo: freeing literature by tightening its rules - Andrew Gallix , The Guardian Dogme 95 - Movements in Film Huanted PS1 Demo Disc 2021 - itch.io The Shrike (ship) - Memory Alpha...
Jul 13, 2023•Ep. 313
In this week's roundtable, Ellen needs help with ALL the things. Stephen and Mark offer advice on where to find people who can help, and discuss some of the hidden challenges of expanding one's team. Later, Stephen challenges everyone to think about how games can do a better job of implementing companion characters. Also, some host backstory tidbits, weird horse names, and (of course) a bit about Glom. Rival Stars: Horse Racing (the game that Ellen’s playing) - PikPok , Google Play Store “What’s...
Jul 08, 2023•Ep. 312
(Some of) your nice hosts went to Origins Game Fair last week! Aside from taking in the show and learning more about the world of board games, they were there to attend the launch of their card game Glom . But before they went, they talked about the state of the next card game they're working on (and working on pitching to publishers), Dogpile! The Historical Legacy of Juneteenth - Smithsonian Institution W. E. B. Du Bois: A Resource Guide - Angela McMillian , Library of Congress The State of "D...
Jun 29, 2023•Ep. 311
Your nice hosts return to form with a roundtable recorded together for the first time in a while! In this episode, Stephen sneaks a mini-topic in, Ellen asks some controversial questions and Mark helps us realize when we're breaking the law. As a side note, Glom is available right now! We've talked about it plenty on the show, but for more information or purchasing info you can go to nicegames.club/glom . Summer Games Done Quick 2023 - YouTube 0:10:27Licensing A complete guide to font licensing ...
Jun 21, 2023•Ep. 310
After Mark's time with COVID, the first day he was free to go outside, the area was covered with the smoke of distant wildfires. Another bout of smoke has rolled in to the Twin Cities just in time for the release of this episode. The club spends this Nice Thinking episode talking about the making of Glom , and discussing their feelings about pitching and publishing board games. They discover that Mark and Stephen dread pitching, but Ellen thinks it can be fun (it's her superpower). This section ...
Jun 15, 2023•Ep. 309
Your nice hosts recorded separately again this week, as Mark has been isolating at home. Stephen rants about examines fall damage mechanics in Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and other games. Is fall damage overrated? Well, Stephen has OPINIONS. Mark talks about all of the things he's been doing to occupy his mind while he's been stuck in his apartment by himself—including some deep thinking about Tears of the Kingdom . Ellen rides her bike. Slayers X is OUT NOW! - Steam Gumshoe Gooper plush...
Jun 11, 2023•Ep. 308
This week, Ellen and Stephen learn guest Zack Gilbertson's whole deal. Afterwards, Zack walks your nice hosts though an overview of what it's like for an indie developer to work with Unreal Engine, a popular-but-slightly-less-popular-than-Unity game engine. Unreal Engine Game Design Production Programming Tools Unreal Engine - Epic Games Lighting in Unreal Engine 5 for Beginners - William Faucher , YouTube Introduction to Blueprints - Unreal Engine Documentation , Epic Games Alina Matson joined ...
Jun 01, 2023•Ep. 307
Max Kunze, Nice Games Club Guest Booker, takes over for Mark while he's still sick this week on another Nice Games Jam! Mark actually created the prompt for this episode, and your nice hosts find a way to inject many explosions into this board game made from it that you can try out yourself using the rules below! The playtest session we alluded to in the episode is on Patreon! If you want to hear how we playtested it over Miro, check it out there! PromptCreate a game where risk is extremely attr...
May 25, 2023•Ep. 306
On this episode, we talk with two of Ellen's coworkers and the Games Agency, Jamaal Sawyer-Dymski & Greg Borreson. They talk about their career paths, from their time as young nerds, to working in very different areas of computer sciences and programming, to the fact that saying "Enhance" doesn't actually help with anything CSI style, to working with your nice host, Ellen. Ellen has some audio problems (they get better), Stephen gets called out, and Mark calls it in from home (because Dale e...
May 18, 2023•Ep. 305
In this episode, Stephen points out the number three! It’s everywhere! Also, what is it about animation that captures our minds and imaginations so effectively? Your hosts explore the topic and share some ideas. Ellen gets hung up on math, and Mark tries to keep everyone calm. Good Question: How Do Street Sweepers Work? - WCCO - CBS Minnesota , YouTube A street sweeper in Bloomington, Minnesota. Image from https://www.bloomingtonmn.gov/ 0:17:30Stephen's "Rule of Threes"0:48:16The Psychology of A...
May 15, 2023•Ep. 304
This week, your nice hosts clop along sprawling acres of horse games and horses in games. They are led to water by the foremost expert on the topic, Alice Ruppert, creative director of the recent Horse Tales - Emerald Valley Ranch and writer of the horse-gaming blog The Mane Quest . The Taxonomy of Horse Games Game Design Gaming Production The Mane Quest Horse Tales - Emerald Valley Ranch...
May 04, 2023•Ep. 303
Your nice hosts explore the finality and the lusory this week with these two topics. In the process, Stephen struggles with a simple concept, Mark gets to 82% completion and Ellen figures out a way to blow up a transition. Glom is available for preorder! Find links here. 0:13:40Endings0:38:51Lusory Attitude Lusory Attitude Wikipedia Lusory Definition Merriam-WebsterWe bring up our Curling episode during this topic. "No referees?!"...
Apr 27, 2023•Ep. 302
According to Minnesota Public Radio, it's hot girl sinkhole spring . In other words, we have an insane number of potholes right now in the Twin Cities, and since we can't do anything other than wait for the hardworking folks of road repair to fix them, we made a game about the whole situation. Andy and Beth Korth join for this special Nice Games Jam! GLOM preorder through Miniature Market GLOM preorder through GameNerdz ✨hot girl sinkhole spring✨ - Minnesota Public Radio Uptown washout leaves 8-...
Apr 21, 2023•Ep. 301
Dale learned a lot while editing this episode. She learned the board game ‘Spirit Island’ is about spirits that protect an island, and she is pretty sure that this is the same premise as hit TV show ‘LOST’. She learns that CSS is not a programming language or a mark-up language And she learns that CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheets She learns that AAA games are easy (not sure why she struggles with them) That there are either wrong choices in skill trees OR it never really mattered And that S...
Apr 13, 2023•Ep. 298
Ellen and Stephen get spooked discussing small and/or novel horror games and experiences with Online Simulator developer Rosalie Vile. Ellen works backwards from the punchline, Stephen doesn't know about 80%, and Mark is still in California (thanks, calendar math). Tiny Horrors Game Design Narrative Online Simulator - Rosalie Vile , itch.io Sunday - EZBake Games , itch.io Skinamarink A Normal Lost Phone - Dear Villagers This House Has People in It - Adult Swim , YouTube Haunted PS1 Demo Disc 202...
Apr 06, 2023•Ep. 299
