Brandon is director of indie game studio Necrosoft Games. He is former editor in chief of Game Developer magazine and occasionally writes for publications like Gamasutra.com, Zam.com, and Vice.com. He is also the adviser to multiple game conferences and competitions, including GDC, Reboot, Digital Dragons, Sense of Wonder Night, and others. Our teammates can be our greatest allies but we still must keep ourselves safe. For whatever reason, good or bad, if the team breaks apart, there should be contracts in

42: Contracts for a Peace of Mind with Brandon Sheffield

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Mikolai Stroinski is a music composer that has worked on the Witcher 3, Dark Souls 2 trailer, Vanishing of Ethan Carter, and much more. We discuss:  Think not just as a composer but as a video game maker as well. You don’t want to get too attached to your music because it might not fit the game. Trust your inner voice because it's a sign to either continue or stop composing. Study different music vocabularies and play lots of different games. Don't just study video game music. Be a good human being because good karma ricochets back to you. Don't think about just making money. Think about how you can contribute more and positively affect people's lives. The challenges of getting a visa in America.  *** If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in ranking higher. Subscribe to the podcast if you felt inspired and loved this content. Sign up for Tony's email newsletter at gamedevloadout.com/subscribe Follow Tony: Twitter: twitter.com/gamedevloadout Facebook: facebook.com/gamedevloadout Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chantony/

113 Trust Your Inner Voice When Composing Music with Mikolai Stroinski

Jeremy Liu was the narrative design lead at NetEase Games, an intern at EA, and a technical designer at Rockstar Games. Titles include Red Dead 2, NBA Live Mobile, and Realm of Duels. We discuss:  How to get into technical design Why you need to study and plan ahead of time before taking action His worst moment of working on a game that was destined to not be a commercial hit Listening is a great quality of a leader Do power naps, 20 minutes How he becomes a walking exoticism in China because of his experience in the USA The culture shock of working in the USA and China Imagine ramming through a brick wall to join the game industry. You have to want it badly enough. Market yourself as niche as possible, show how different you are to everyone else Network with the people who you want to model  *** If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in ranking higher. Subscribe to the podcast if you felt inspired and loved this content. Sign up for Tony's email newsletter at gamedevloadout.com/subscribe Follow Tony: Twitter: twitter.com/gamedevloadout Facebook: facebook.com/gamedevloadout Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chantony/

112 Who Are Your Games For and What Are Their Needs with Jeremy Liu

Gary Kings of National Insecurities is a lead game designer, writer, editor that has worked on games such as Once Upon a Crime in the West and 2000:1 A Space Felony. We discuss:  Get a producer to optimize teamwork and productivity. Before choosing a university, make sure it has the courses you want and need. Get better at game design - play lots of games, have outside people play your games, figure out what’s have been done and what hasn’t been done before. How Gary overcome his worst moment of not getting his game funded and his granddad passing away. He still found the motivation to make plans and finish his games. Don’t get too excited if a publisher is excited about your game, it’s not a guarantee that they will fund you. Take a proportional break based on your project to go on vacations, events and relax. Keep making plans even when the last one fails. Keep a lookout for new opportunities. Have an editor on board to improve the quality of writing. Go to game jams to network and create quick games. When you network, focus on making friends instead of just networking.  *** If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in ranking higher. Subscribe to the podcast if you felt inspired and loved this content. Sign up for Tony's email newsletter at gamedevloadout.com/subscribe Follow Tony: Twitter: twitter.com/gamedevloadout Facebook: facebook.com/gamedevloadout Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chantony/

111 Take Breaks, Get a Co-Producer & Co-Writer, Take Breaks Again with Gary Kings

Ivy Dupler is a NYC-based voice actress who can be heard in video games, commercials, and cartoons. Her recent work includes voicing protagonist Special Agent Vera Englund in Whispers of a Machine (Clifftop Games/Faravid Interactive), as well as several roles in Unavowed (Wadjet Eye Games) and Lamplight City (Grundislav Games). We discuss:  Don’t get distracted by mistakes during voice recording. Take a deep breath and wait a few seconds then just go again. Focusing on the mistake can mess up future takes and use up the studio and the audio engineer time. Take Improv and voice acting class. BE ALERT. Don’t miss an opportunity or a deadline. Stay on top of your tasks. Change your mindset in the audition, the employer is not looking out to get you, they are looking to you as a solution to their problems. They want you to succeed to help them. Tips during recording: measure distance by putting your pinky on the mic and extending the thumbs towards your chin. Keep headphone volumes low to around 30 percent to avoid a sound leak.  *** If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in ranking higher. Subscribe to the podcast if you felt inspired and loved this content. Sign up for Tony's email newsletter at gamedevloadout.com/subscribe Follow Tony: Twitter: twitter.com/gamedevloadout Facebook: facebook.com/gamedevloadout Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chantony/

110 Practicing Voice Over Involves 90 Percent Interpretation with Ivy Dupler

Solo UK indie Nic Rutherford is working on a game called Fringe Plant. We discuss:  His decision to go full indie after having a good amount of savings Think about the accessibility of your games such as subtitles, sound effects, or controller inputs Ask questions asap to get answers asap External entities can be a waste of time such as responding to emails to people who never answer back or waiting on the phone Take some downtime as soon as you notice you are not being productive Stream your game development to talk to people and build a rapport Games are positive for the world, you are creating something for people to enjoy, relax, and feel good Use Twitter!  *** If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in ranking higher. Subscribe to the podcast if you felt inspired and loved this content. Sign up for Tony's email newsletter at gamedevloadout.com/subscribe Follow Tony: Twitter: twitter.com/gamedevloadout Facebook: facebook.com/gamedevloadout Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chantony/

42: Contracts for a Peace of Mind with Brandon Sheffield

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