Lightmap - Conversations with video game creators

This week on the show we were joined by two of the fantastic team at Giant Margarita, based in Tasmania, and making the cracker new game Party Golf. Dr Ian Lewis and Adam Zulkifly joined us today to talk about their "seconds to shouting" metric, designing a game perfect for parties and securing state government funding. You can check out their game at www.partygolfgame.com, and pick up the game on Playstation 4 and PC later in the year.

Developer Tiny Build revealed this week that gaming key reseller G2A had sold approximately US$450,000 of their games. While many of the users who use this site are selling legitimately purchased in bundle a small number of people have been selling a large number of keys which in some cases have been purchased with stolen credit cards. We talk about the impact this has on developers, gamers, and the expectations on those sitting in the middle.

With gaming media expanding beyond the older mastheads, and the push from game developers to get their games in front of as many people as they can. Reddit user NYstate proposed unplugging from the games media cycle when new games come out, in order to preserve that experience. How do developers balance providing enough information to gamers without giving away too much and what happens when fans share too much of your game?

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store

This week we speak to a master of animated gifs, Jacob Janerka. He’s a talent artist and designer and he’s working on his first game Paradigm, inspired by the weird and wonderful point and click adventure games made by Lucasarts and Sierra. We spoke about the challenges of making a game by yourself and the freedoms a one person dev team can bring. You can find more information about Paradigm over at http://www.paradigmadventure.com where you can download a demo right now.

It’s one of the biggest events in gaming of the year and this year’s E3 was no different. We dive into the big announcements, some of the missteps, and pretty average justifications for decisions from the biggest developers.

Finally today with a massive desire from the film industry for new stories, video games are being optioned to be made into feature films at a blistering rate. We explore when this has been done well, and when games fall far short of expectations.

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store

We’re back from our two-week break and we’re hitting the ground running, Gianni has returned from the land of pineapples and beaches to host once again.

First off this week we’re talking justice for cheaters in online games. With player vs player elements in pretty much every title these days, the temptation to cheat can be too much for some people. But the creators of Overwatch, Blizzard have found a unique way to take down cheaters and keep them out of their servers for good.

This week we spoke to sibling founders Elissa and Leigh Harris of Flat Earth Games. They spoke to us about their game “Objects in Space”. This space fairing simulator strays away from classic twitch based space combat to a more strategic system management style game coupled with a unique home built physical interface. Elissa and Leigh tell us how they are taking the genre into a new direction. You can find out more about their game at www.objectsgame.com

With many new developers making great games, systems like Steam Greenlight can really get the ball rolling. But sadly there is a new disturbing trend is rearing its head in the gaming world. Organisations posing as legitimate publishers are now approaching small inexperienced developers promising huge exposure and a guaranteed audience for a “small” percentage of profits, only to leave them high and dry when things don’t go as planned. The team discuss ways to weed out the frauds and the difference between social media statistics and true audience engagement.

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store

This week on Pixel Sift we had to do without our fearless leader Gianni. In his absence Mitch took the helm along with guest presenter Brad Power. A long-time friend of Pixel Sift, Brad is a lecturer in Games Art and Design at Murdoch University.

 We started off on a grimmer tone, with a discussion on how the Australian Government has recently cut funding to the arts, which may see many of the indie studios that benefit from more general arts funding losing out. 

Earlier this week we spoke to Lisa Evans, a PHD candidate at Murdoch University and developer with Stirfire Studios. Lisa was kind enough to share her knowledge on implementing video games in research, and how that research will help with teaching people about science. Lisa is looking for more participants so if you have a moment to contribute, or you'd like to learn more about Lisa’s project visit her website to sign up.

With game betas getting more publicity every year you could be forgiven for mistaking a beta period for the actual retail release. As more resources are being thrown at all-inclusive beta programs, are players wearing themselves out on the unfinished product only to pass on the game when it really hits the shelves? Brad Power helped us out with some industry insight into the matter.

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store

There are many games that are so tough you feel like you can't win, but some games can be designed to be completed but at the end you aren't "victorious." We explore the different types of narratives, and compare stories in games to films, where the protagonist isn't always better off at the end.

We spoke to Michael Cann, he's a Perth based developer from Epic Shrimp, and maker of the newly released Steam game Mr Nibbles Forever. We talked about how a misstep caused the removal of all his apps from the Google Play Store, and how working with a publisher to bring his mobile games to PC. You can find Mr Nibbles Forever on Steam, or check out Epic Shrimp's other games on their site http://www.epicshrimp.com

This week it was claimed that developer Squad, makers of the hit indie game Kerbal Space Program, were paying their developers only US$2400 annually. With conflicting goals, and changes in direction have Squad bitten off more than they can chew or are they taking advantage of people who are working hard to developed the game?

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store

This week developers have been throwing digital punches on social media, with Battlefield developers throwing shade at the latest trailer for Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare. An online spat can not only damage individual reputations, but also the companies that they represent. As the dust settles it leaves everyone wondering, was it really necessary?

We glanced northward this week with the story from husband and wife team that operate out of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. Jeremy Eade and Kim-Saskia Risser-Eade of Outback Pixels talked about making games in WA’s red heart, and making games that make them feel happy about getting up every day for work. You can find out more about their games Roid Rage and the upcoming Thwart GEO on the Outback Pixels site.

Sometimes politicians are accused of being out of touch. The Environment and Communications References Committee, a group within the Australian Senate, has just completed their report into the state of Australia’s video game industry. We explore the recommendations of this report, and discuss how this will influence the policy and legislative decisions of future Australian governments.

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store

This week we look at video game rumours reported by the mainstream media outlets,  and when popular news sites fall into the trap of reporting on speculation without fact checking. Reddit user el2mador confessed this week to tricking some of the biggest video game sites on the web with their glitch in “The Division.” Is the 24-hour news cycle causing journalists to skimp on fact checking and verification?

We spoke to Fallout: Lanius creator Wade K. Savage this week and Wade told us about the challenges of filming a Fallout based short film in Perth. He also spoke about his new project Skourge Legacy, a new franchise spanning the mediums of television, toys and a videogame. You can watch Fallout: Lanius on YouTube here, or follow the progress of Skourge Legacy over on Facebook and Twitter.

Lastly on this week’s show we examine the underground gambling culture within Counter Strike Global Offensive. Players are using the mechanics of the game to trade weapon skins for real world money independently of Valve’s in-game trading system. These unofficial gambling avenues have no age restriction, and it means teenagers and children are able to gamble their money away. In an effort to address problems like this Valve has implemented a new type of matchmaking, with verification of personal information, which will hopefully stop people from creating fake accounts and being hacked. Will this help curb the problem and help create a better fairer online community? 

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store

On this week’s show Colton Onderwater, from Perth’s Bear-Tooth Studios, joins us in the studio and we talk all about his new game Super Salmon Migration, and his previous game Arbalest 3035. We explored the finer points of designing stimulating gameplay for games with simple mechanics, and even simpler user inputs. Colton also shared his personal attitude toward game feel and how the specific design elements work together to form a fun elegant experience. Super Salmon Migration will be out in the first half of 2016, but you can pick up the demo right now on the Google Play store.

Video game retailer GameStop, the parent company of Australia’s EB Games, announced this week that they would start publishing games.  Already signed up to the new publishing deal are notable mainstream development studios Insomniac Games (Ratchet & Clank) and Ready At Dawn (The Order: 1886) will be publishing under the new subsidiary GameTrust. GameStop has been exploring alternative sources of income to compensate for a shrinking retail return, but if once company controls how a game is funded, and how it’s distributed will consumers still get the best deal?

Lastly how does the game development “crunch” really effect the people putting in the many extra hours finishing their game? Are people being fairly compensated for their time, or are they suffering for their art? The founder of WildTangent Inc Alex St. John wrote an article that heavily implied that since making games is “not a job” the developers should not expect to be compensated on the same level as someone in a more traditional occupation, a position that has been strongly criticised. With a maturing industry, and huge companies making the games we love, does gaming employee relations need a rethink to make sure everyone gets a fair deal?

On Sunday 15th of May we’ll be hosting along with Perth Rocket League and The Glitch, a Rocket League mini tournament. Teams of two will be shooting to score some fantastic cash prizes. We’ll also be shoutcasting the finals so if you can’t make it down to The Glitch you can watch live on twitch.tv/pixelsift. For more information head over to our events page.

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store

This week we are joined by Jason Imms, he’s the founder of the Tasmanian Game Dev Society, a group that aims to raise awareness on the game development scene in Tasmania. High quality games can be made anywhere in the world, and states like Tasmania and Western Australia may not be as isolated as it seems. Jason talks about building the reputation of Tasmanian game development scene and the future of making games in states outside of the major capitals. You can follow Jason on Twitter @jasonimms

Earlier this week private World of Warcraft server “Nostalrius” was shut down when the organisation’s hosting company “received a letter of formal notice from US and French lawyers, acting on the behalf of Blizzard”. With almost 150,000 active users, and over 1,000,000 registered accounts, private legacy servers were providing a service that Blizzard isn’t interested in selling.  Blizzard has every right to do this, but are they missing the demand for a product that could be a potential revenue source, following the example of other popular MMOs such as Runescape?

Journalism is currently experiencing a disruption due to emerging technologies and dwindling revenues. This has meant that the many of the older mastheads are closing shop, or changing focus. What does this mean for the future of the games journalism, and what place do journalists have when anyone can start a YouTube, or Twitch channel or create a new podcast? Jason shared with us his experiences as a freelance journalist and we talked about the future of games journalism.

You can find us on all the social media sites, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and Steam. Just search for "pixelsift".

Support the show: https://sifter.store