This week, we talk about being your own Petri dish, the explore/exploit model, and lunch debt. Institutions ossify over time and end up more interested in preserving their own existence than fulfilling their original purpose. Similarly, if you don’t design for human interaction right from the beginning, it’ll be much harder to change that community culture later on. The result is a lot of wasted human potential, and NOBODY’S GOT TIME FOR THAT.

00:00 Intro

01:58 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

03:15 Seth’s India game plan

07:40 Immortality

15:35 The explore/exploit model

Questions answered (abbreviated):

• 23:40 QuantumAnomaly: You've talked in the past about wanting to support player-driven content in the original Crashlands and how player-driven content can help grow a community. Are you thinking of supporting modding while making Crashlands 2?

Other things mentioned:

• Chaoshead by Tyoeer and AradArbel (https://github.com/tyoeer/chaoshead)
• Slay the Spire Levelhead mod by noob_jr (https://bit.ly/StS-Levelhead-mod)

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

In this episode, we discuss metaverse, deep fakes, and the displacement problem. What it means to make and consume art has always changed as technology advances. With the arrival of AI art generators, that change might be more aggressive than anyone can anticipate. Change isn’t inherently bad, except we live in capitalism. So…universal basic income?

## Summary:

00:35 Intro

02:54 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

03:19 Metaverse

Other things mentioned:

• Book: How the World Really Works by Vaclav Smil (https://bit.ly/3VBUrsF)

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

This week, we talk about working on legacy games, the power of success, and the business of education. There's no single right path for getting into the games industry. Everyone’s needs are different! The one thing that is guaranteed to help you make games is making games. Approximate knowledge of A WHOLE LOT of things doesn’t hurt either.

00:22 Intro

01:40 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

Questions answered (abbreviated):

• 04:10 FlyhoppieAxerompa: Do any of you bros ever feel the urge to just make more LevelHead content?
• 21:51 Beekie Boppaboop: What your opinions are on computer science degrees and game design degrees?

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

In this episode, we discuss perceived problems, invisible hand-holding, and playtesting hijinks. The most sensitive part of the game experience is onboarding, so testing that onboarding is important! To get the most out of it, you need to understand the context your testers bring along with them. Otherwise, it’ll be impossible to analyze the results. Even if the rest of your game is spectacular, a bad onboarding experience can be a dealbreaker.

00:24 Intro

00:56 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

09:40 Crashlands 2 playtest

40:02 Google Stadia

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

This week, we talk about flying spoons, spooky season, and handy checklists. Before adding an ingredient to a recipe, you need to know what you’re making and what that ingredient does. Similarly, adding a new enemy to a game requires understanding what kind of game you’re making and how the addition will change the player experience. As we always say, context is everything! (But having some checklists doesn’t hurt.)

00:23 Intro

00:53 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

04:08 Kitchen Story

11:45 GTA

27:39 Favro (favro.com/bscotch)

Questions answered (abbreviated):

• 31:42 Doopaplie Pana: Pumpkin spice everything is back on the shelves Any upcoming plans (that may or may not include 12-foot tall skeletons)?
• 49:06 Mimmabip Gourkee: What's the checklist that you go through in your mind when you want to add a new enemy?

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

In this episode, we discuss memoizing, robomancing, and masterminding. The emotional roller coaster of excitement, frustration, annoyance, relief, and joy is part and parcel of running a game studio. From a game’s concept to its release, you have to manage So. Many. Logistics. Mastering that art is how the battle is won… or lost. 

00:34 Intro

01:16 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

Questions answered (abbreviated):

• 03:15 challosis: Some parts of making a game are really fun. Some parts are really annoying. Which part of making a game feels exactly in the middle?
• 22:32 Rayboblio: What tech or programming language are you using for your robomancing needs?
• 30:34 Gibbs: What surprised you the most about running your own video game company? Was anything easier than you expected? What was harder?

Other things mentioned:

• Make.com (https://www.make.com)

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

This week, we talk about sleep science, meaningful death, and cultivating self-compassion. 

It’s common to doubt your abilities and feel like a fraud in your work life. But thinking “It’s only a matter of time before people realize I’m not that good at what I do” will only make you doubt every action you take. Being honest about what you know and don’t know is crucial for clarity, but should come along with heaps of self-compassion to keep you going. After all, it’s doing the work that’s important, not the perception of what you’re doing!

00:00 Intro

00:45 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

14:10 Fitbit

29:11 Crashlands 2

Questions answered (abbreviated):

• 44:54 CooCooCachoo: Hey BScotch Brudda's! Curious if any of you have faced imposter syndrome during your formative years in game dev

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

In this episode, we discuss Thor’s Bifrost, gravity indifferent walls, and designed experiences. How do you construct a unique player experience and actually deliver that intended experience using the tools you have? Do you create a procedurally generated world or intervene and do it yourself? Well, that depends on the scale of the game and what kinds of story moments you want the player to have!

00:00 Intro

08:56 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

Questions answered (abbreviated):

• 18:52 Zivix: Can you hoard ceilings? If you remove a ceiling from a home, is it still a ceiling?
• 26:06 TimConceivable: do you like cheese? what is your favorite kind?
• 34:56 Beekie Boppaboop: how did you come to the conclusion that handcrafting the world is the way to go?

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

This week, we talk about captive audiences, synchronized teams, and the no code revolution. 

As tools get better and require less expertise to use, a whole new world is opening up to people who didn't have access before. The problem is when you run into the limitations of the tool you're using -- anything the tool can't do, you can't do. You want the shortest learning curve with the most design expressivity. There's always a trade-off, so you gotta know where it is!

00:00 Intro

01:55 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

02:19 Game Devs of Color Expo (https://www.gamedevsofcolorexpo.com/)

11:15 Favro (www.favro.com/bscotch)

Questions answered (abbreviated):

• 15:57 blondeviking91: OK, bros, just admit it - you are skirting around developing or retooling a programming language as part of the Game Changer. Have you addressed this head-on?

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.

In this episode, we discuss sacrificial lambs, interface crash testing, and bumper savings. Building tools to automate repetitive tasks not only saves time in the long run but also helps with frustration management. Creating an enjoyable work environment and prioritizing the work experience are ridiculously important if you want to deliver your goods real good. 😉

00:00 Intro

00:53 Thanks to our supporters! (https://moneygrab.bscotch.net)

01:24 Cult of the lamb (https://www.cultofthelamb.com/)

17:56 Crashlands 2 Quest Manager

Questions answered (abbreviated):

• 41:25 Mimmabip Gourkee: What's the most difficult part about designing UI & what is your strategy to overcome it?

To stay up to date with all of our buttery goodness subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcasts (apple.co/1LxNEnk) or wherever you get your audio goodness. If you want to get more involved in the Butterscotch community, hop into our DISCORD server at discord.gg/bscotch and say hello! Submit questions at https://www.bscotch.net/podcast, disclose all of your secrets to [email protected], and send letters, gifts, and tasty treats to https://bit.ly/bscotchmailbox. Finally, if you’d like to support the show and buy some coffee FOR Butterscotch, head over to https://moneygrab.bscotch.net.