Harbinger Of Fun

By Joe Mares

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.... more

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FAQs about Harbinger Of Fun:

How many episodes does Harbinger Of Fun have?

The podcast currently has 37 episodes available.

Harbinger Of Fun episodes:

August 01, 2025 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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1h 4min
July 16, 2025 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 more fun.
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1h 20min
June 26, 2024 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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1h 22min
June 19, 2024 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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45min
June 12, 2024 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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54min
May 30, 2024 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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1h 4min
April 09, 2024 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 Disney parks. We also talk about what makes something fun in general, how to be a maverick when it comes to innovation and design, and how to communicate your design to a larger team. I was beyond honored to be interviewing this man.
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1h 27min
January 01, 2024 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 also provide motivation, and how new technology such as VR and AR can help via exposure therapy. Check out his book Afraid: Understanding the Purpose of Fear and Harnessing the Power of Anxiety.
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1h 3min
November 02, 2023 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 make learning engaging and fun, the state of the current school systems, and innovation in the learning space such as using virtual reality and artificial intelligence.
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42min
October 27, 2023 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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1h 3min

FAQs about Harbinger Of Fun:

How many episodes does Harbinger Of Fun have?

The podcast currently has 37 episodes available.