Episode 145 - Possibility

Karen Morrison, program director of virtual events at the International Game Developers Association Foundation and narrative designer at Soda Den, joins Ben this week to talk about her adventures in Argentina and all of the wonderful things she and her peers do at IGDA and the IGDA-F to help passionate folks gain entry into the video games industry. After a quick Argentinian-flavored travelogue compliments of Karen, Ben talks about the game he’s been playing, ZOE Begone! Then it’s time to explore the endless expanse of the word and what it means—the sky’s the limit! To conclude the program, they discuss what IGDA and the IGDA Foundation do to grow and foster a diverse, welcoming community of video game industry professionals. *** 00:00:20 - Needs more exuberance, a fellow “neato” person, way too swanky, and Argentina 00:02:52 - Anagrams, activities in foreign countries, Evita Perón’s grave, and pescatarianism 00:07:28 - Cool Hand Luke, not crying, the Broadway tie-in, and Ben is playing ZOE Begone! 00:11:41 - Arcade game energy, film editing mechanics, and playing Toem: A Photo Adventure 00:14:40 - The definition, another n-gram introduction, the aliens, and distracted by disco 00:17:18 - Word counter, science as a framework, endless creative pursuits, and robot dogs 00:21:50 - Rich person art, viewer and artist, synthesis and separation, and H.P. Lovecraft 00:25:53 - Becoming part of the zeitgeist, AI art impacts, and Mango’s spicy noodle interlude 00:30:12 - A Goldblum quote, paper plates collecting your information, and Arc Raiders’ AI use 00:34:15 - Slippery slopes, thoughts on "The Expert" short, and the value of design compromise "The Expert" - A Short by Lauris Beinerts https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg 00:40:04 - How Dad handled errors, politics in Ben’s throat, and Karen shares positive stories 00:43:54 - Misdirected passion, crunch definition, burnout, work/life balance, and permission 00:47:00 - Marginalized individuals, Karen’s IGDA origin story, and a cross-learning cohort 00:51:28 - Process improvement metaphors, the word “moist," and the local chapters of IGDA 00:55:02 - Events and mixers, being awkward in groups, networking, and upcoming events 00:59:28 - Ben’s game idea, Double Fine’s involvement, Tim Schafer, and devious reasons *** Follow Two Vague on… Our website: https://www.twovaguepodcast.com On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/two_vague_podcast On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@twovaguepodcast On Substack: https://twovaguepodcast.substack.com/ On Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/twovaguepodcast.com For show appearance and other inquiries, contact us at: [email protected] -AND- …for all of your PRI and 2VP merchandise, check out the Partly Robot Industries store at TEEPUBLIC! https://www.teepublic.com/user/partly-robot-industries *** References, Links, and Tags Learn more about IGDA and the IGDA Foundation https://igda.org/ https://www.igdafoundation.org/ Check out Soda Den on Steam https://store.steampowered.com/developer/sodaden Click the links below for additional information on Retchy Games’ ZOE Begone! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=779Iu4YBFmA https://store.steampowered.com/app/1266610/ZOE_Begone/ #Podbean #DIYPodcast #ApplePodcast #VideoGames #Trivia #Comedy #Talkshow #2VP #TwoVaguePodcast #PodernFamily #InterviewShow #GamersofThreads #Gamer #PartlyRobot #PartlyRobotIndustries #TeePublic #MicrocosmPublishing #IGDA #IGDAF #PMStudios #ZOEBegone #RetchyGames #SodaDen #TheExpert #LaurisBeinerts