Episodes
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Ep. 37 - Emotional Game Design with special guest Marina Díez
Game Designer Joe Mares, and Narrative Designer Ariel Giacobbe chat about creating an emotional hook in games, and what better guest to chat about this topic with than Emotional Game Designer Marina Díez. We talk about why emotions matter in game design and how to intentionally create them.
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Ep. 36 - Blueprint for Fun author interview!
The tables have turned! The author of Blueprint for Fun and the host of this podcast Joe Mares, is interviewed about his recently released book! Narrative Designer Ariel Giacobbe asks about why it's important to engage an audience, where this Blueprint came from, and how it can make your product...
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Ep. 35 - Author, E.K. Johnston
Joe (game designer) and Ariel (narrative designer) interview author of Ahsoka, Star Wars: The Padmé Trilogoy, and Crimson Clmb, EK Johnston. We chat about her writing process, working with IP such as Star Wars and Dungeons & Dragons, and what to focus on when you're starting out as a writer.
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Ep. 34 - World's leading expert on location based VR, Bob Cooney
Joe (Game Designer) and the World's leading expert on location based VR, Bob Cooney chat about trends in VR, how to make your location based VR business profitable, and common mistakes VR entrepreneurs make in their ventures.
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Ep. 33 - Mental Cartographer, S. Stephon Brown
I chat with Mental Cartographer and Muse for Hire, S. Stephon Brown. We chat about the principles of improv, how to create psychological safety on a creative team, and why certain companies may only be filling their wants and not their needs.
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Ep. 32 - Narrative Designer Ariel Giacobbe
Game Designer Joe Mares and Narrative Designer Ariel Giacobbe chat about what a Narrative Designer does in the game industry, the difference between writing for linear story telling (tv/books) vs writing for interactive story telling (video games), and what makes a compelling story. Also Star Wars
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Ep. 31 - Disney Imagineering Legend, Tony Baxter
Tony Baxter created the biggest hits in Disneyland history, Splash Mountain, The Indiana Jones Adventure, Star Tours, and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, to name a few. Tony gives insight into his thought process on how he goes about designing themed attractions as he did for Disneyland and other...
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Ep. 30 - Psychiatrist, Neuroscientist and Author of "Afraid", Arash Javanbakht
My co-host Paulina Slivkova (UX/UI designer) and I chatted with Arash about understanding the mental health of creatives. How we create ideas and explanations to help anxieties and fears, and when it becomes hurtful. We also talk about mental illness, how fear can make creative people rigid but...
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Ep. 29 - Nolan Bushnell and Dr. Leah Hanes
The godfather of the video game industry, and founder of Atari and Chuck E Cheese, Nolan Bushnell, and CEO of the Two Bit Circus Foundation, Dr Leah Hanes talk about their new book, Shaping the Future of Education. Co-host Kristin Torrence (learning designer) and I chat with them about how to…
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Ep. 28 - The Anxiety MD, Russell Kennedy
Russell Kennedy, my co-host Paulina Slivkova, and I talk about how the creative person can deal with their anxiety to be able create their best work. We chat about the science of fun, why play is important in healing, and how new technology like virtual reality can help in therapy.
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Ep. 27 - Veteran Executive in the Game Industry, Chris Heatherly
Chris Heatherly (Disney, NBCUniversal) and I chat about why innovations is important in design, the difference between interactive storytelling (video games) and linear storytelling (movies/TV) and our shared love of pro wrestling and what advantage WWE has over AEW. We also chat about Fortnite,...
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Ep. 26 - Cartoon Writer/Producer, Rich Fogel
My co-host Ami (VO Actress) and I interview cartoon writer and producer Rich Fogel. Rich has worked on Muppet Babies, Pinky & The Brain, Transformers, Batman Beyond, Justice League, The Smurfs, the list goes on and on. We talk about what makes an engaging cartoon, how to write story and…
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Ep. 25 - Learning Ingenuity Lead at Accenture, Bob Gerard
Co-Host of The Learning Geeks Podcast and Learning Ingenuity Lead at Accenture, Bob Gerard, and I chat about how to make learning fun, how to do effective game and learning design, Super Mario Bros., Tears of the Kingdom and more!
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Ep. 24 - Comic Book Writer, Chuck Dixon
My co-host Ami (voice-over actress) and I had the honor of interviewing comic book writer Chuck Dixon. We talked about his process when he wrote for Batman, Punisher, and Nightwing and co-creating Bane. He also gives writing advice, what makes an interesting character, how to engage and retain...
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Ep. 23 - Disney Legend, Rolly Crump
Disney Imagineer, animator, and legend Rolly Crump talks to my co-host Ami Clover (voice over actress) and I about his career and gives advice for young creative folks. I, of course, ask about what it was like to work with Walt Disney. I could not be more honored to interview Rolly, who sadly...
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Ep. 22 - Veteran Game Producer, Dean Martinetti
Veteran Game Producer (Majesco, SEGA, Sony, 2K Games) Dean Martinetti and I chat about how to get in the game industry, what we look for when we hire game designers, how to build an amazing team culture, and how women in the game industry are underrepresented.
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Ep. 21 - Personal Brand Coach, Juliet Peay
Juliet and I chat about how to define your persona so you can resonate and engage with your audience. We also talk about being authentic to yourself, generative AI in copywriting, and the "curse of knowledge".
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Ep. 20 - Songwriter, Logan Grimé aka ViB3 MACHiNE
Songwriter Logan Grimé and I chat about how to innovate when songwriting, using generative AI during the creative process, and what the future of music holds.
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Ep. 19 - Voice Over Actress and Influencer, Zelda Diana Black
Voice Actress and Tiktok influencer Zelda Diana Black talks about how to approach different characters when voice acting and how to resonate with and engage your Tiktok audience.
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Ep. 18 - Screenwriter, Paul Guyot
Screenwriter Paul Guyot talks about how to resonate with an audience, and how to write a truly compelling piece of work. We also chat about his time writing for the show Leverage, our opinion on Star Wars Episode 8, and what the game industry has in common with the film and TV industry.
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Ep. 17 - HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Scare Actress, Lauren Sanders
Happy Halloween 🎃 Scare Actress Lauren Sanders talks about what it's like haunting people for a living, and I talk about what haunt this year at Universal Studios' Halloween Horror Nights worked particularly well on me.
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Ep. 16 - Script Consultant, Nick Fore
Nick Fore gives advice on writing screenplays, how to engage any audience, and how to write something innovate and new to an audience while keeping archetypes that are still readable by that audience.
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Ep. 15 - CEO of Schell Games, Jesse Schell
Special guest host Kristin Torrence (learning designer) and I interview Distinguished Professor of the Practice of Entertainment Technology at Carnegie Mellon, and CEO of Schell Games, Jesse Schell. We talk about his time in Walt Disney Imagineering, how to approach design for VR Experiences, and...
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Ep. 14 - Game Designer Matt Fleming
I chat with Matt Fleming about his career working with The Game Show Network, and as Lead Content Desinger on Conan Exiles. We also discuss what makes a good Game Designer, the difference between a Senior Game Designer and a Design Lead, and what makes a good Game Producer.
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Ep. 13 - Legendary Game Designer Scott Rogers
Scott (Maximo and God of War designer) and I talk about the difference between designing a board game and a video game, how to get your creative passions into the production, and his infamously hard boss design for Pac Man World.
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Ep. 12 - Interview with Robert Taylor, CXO of Pendulum Studios
Robert talks about his experience developing the motion capture for movies such as Avatar, and the Lord of the Rings movies, doing the cinematics for games such as Silent Hill, and directing and developing location based VR experiences Alien: Descent, and Army of the Dead: Viva Las Vengeance for...
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Ep. 11 "What makes horror movies so fun?"
Joe (Game Designer) and co host CJ (Game Producer) talk about what makes a fun horror experience. Are Jason and Mike Myers still scary? And how to design a good horror experience in VR.
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Ep. 10 "Safety is the prerequisite of fun"
Joe (Game Designer) and co host Henry (UX Designer) talk about why safety is the most important part of fun, Seinfeld, Morbius, and Walt Disney.
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Ep. 9 "Is it sometimes smarter to leave a company because of bad creative decisions?"
Joe (Game Designer) and co-host Henry (UX Designer) talk about bad creative leadership, and how to develop an environment that your creative team doesn't want to leave.
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Ep. 8 "An artist makes art for themselves and a designer makes art for others"
Joe (Game Designer) and co host Henry (UX Designer) talk about the difference between art and design, and passion versus business goals.
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Ep. 7 "It should ALWAYS be the players fault if they lose."
Joe (Game Designer) and CJ (Game Producer) talk about the difficulty levels in games like Stuntman, and nostalgia in classic games like Terminator 2 the arcade game.
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Ep. 6 "You don't have a lot of time to do the things you want to do"
Joe (Game Designer) and Henry (UX Designer) talk about doing what you're passionate about as a creative person and balancing it with making a living.
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Ep. 5 "If you're not taking care of the creative person, you don't even have a company."
Joe (Game Designer) and co-host Henry (UX Designer) talk about how to protect and nurture the creative people on your team.
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Ep.4 "There's a difference between discovery and surprise."
Joe and co-host Matt (Level Designer) talk about designing Call of Duty levels, Star Wars Episode 8, and how to be a creative lead on a team.
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Ep. 3 "If you innovate... you become the leader forever in that field."
Joe and co-host Henry (UX Designer) chat about innovation, the first-movers advantage, and why Pokémon is more successful than Digimon.
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Ep. 2 "You can either be critical, or you can be entertained."
Joe and co-host Henry (UX Designer) chat about authenticity in design, tired formulas, and how to teach the Blueprint for Fun in schools.
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Ep. 1 "Don't follow those rules, follow my rules."
Joe and co-host Henry (UX Designer), chat about the secret formula to making anything fun.
About this show
Award winning Game Designer Joe Mares and his guests give tips and advice on how to make your entertainment experience fun, and how to take care of the creative people on your team.
Hosted by
Joe Mares
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