Make That Game! A Game Design Podcast

By Claire and Isaac Caldwell

Come hear pitches for the latest, greatest new video games, that will never be made! Listen as Isaac and Claire share their own vide game ideas (that of course, they will never make), discuss games th... more

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FAQs about Make That Game! A Game Design Podcast:

How many episodes does Make That Game! A Game Design Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 161 episodes available.

Make That Game! A Game Design Podcast episodes:

March 31, 2026 153: What's Up, Catsup?
Welcome to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming! This episode's theme is "Jam"! Isaac pitches sliding tile puzzle game and Claire pitches a stealthy game about sticky kids.
After the rapid fire round we talk about "quality of life" and what it means when games get QoL improvements!
Each episode of Make That Game includes:
- Original game design pitches from our hosts
- Rapid-fire game creation using three random words
- Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics
Whether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!
00:00 Intro
02:19 Isaac pitches traffic jam
06:37 Claire pitches jam hands
11:38 Rapid fire round!
26:11 Discussion: Quality of life in video games
Music: Lounge Jazz Elevator Music
Audio File URL:https://pixabay.com/music/traditional-jazz-lounge-jazz-elevator-music-324902/
...more
45min
February 25, 2026 152: My Valley, My Prison
Welcome to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming!
This episode's theme is "Four"! Isaac pitches a game that doesn't really count for the theme and Claire pitches a musical rhythm-based learn'em up!
After the rapid fire round we... tease next week's discussion! That's right, Isaac is coughing again so we cut it short to save his poor lungs. Tune in next week to hear us talk about "quality of life"!
Each episode of Make That Game includes:
- Original game design pitches from our hosts
- Rapid-fire game creation using three random words
- Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics
Whether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!00:00 Intro
01:15 Isaac pitches Bullet tetris
07:28 Claire pitches a rhythm learn'em up
14:31 Rapid Fire Round!
...more
33min
February 17, 2026 151: New Game +: Beat the Heat!
NEXT LIVE STREAM IS 2/21/2026 AT 11:30 AM EST! Be there or don't! I'm not your boss.What's old is new again with our first "New Game+" episode! It's technically a re-run, sure, but! You probably haven't listened to it! We have stats that say so!
This week, Claire's pitch puts you on the other side of Diner Dash and has you playing a character who... has to order food? That's the game!
Then, Isaac goes into his New England weather-trauma and digs a game idea right out of the snow! It blows! Snow, that is. This game is for you people from warmer climate!
Our deep dive discussion this week is... what's the difference between a hard-lock and a soft-lock? What are they and why do they happen? We also talk about some notable ones!
We also tangentially revisit the honks and bonks for Breath of the Wild, just sneak a few more things in there!
...more
49min
February 03, 2026 150: Research-O-Rama
Welcome to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming!
This episode's theme is "Vitamin"! Claire pitches a vitamin themed side scroller and Isaac has us surviving harsh environments while maintaining a balanced diet!We mix things up a bit and do the Rapid Fire Round BEFORE the topic of the day: does Isaac like Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun!?
Each episode of Make That Game includes:
- Original game design pitches from our hosts
- Rapid-fire game creation using three random words
- Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics
Whether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!
02:42 Claire pitches her vitamin themed side-scroller
08:17 Isaac pitches Hatchet: the vitamin survival game
12:07 Rapid Fire round!
24:57 Discussion: Isaac maybe doesn't like Boltgun
...more
43min
January 27, 2026 149: Snack Run
Welcome to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming!
This episode's theme is "Demon"! Claire gives Wii Fit a devilish redesign and Isaac wheels and deals. Then we talk about open world games and the end game! How open should your open world be!?
Each episode of Make That Game includes:
- Original game design pitches from our hosts
- Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics
- Rapid-fire game creation using three random words
Whether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!
00:00 Intro
01:55 Claire pitches Exercise your Demons
08:27 Isaac pitches deal with the devil
18:41 Isaac and Claire talk open worlds and endgame
33:46 Rapid Fire round!
...more
48min
January 20, 2026 148: [Fantasy Kingdom Name] Quest!
Welcome BACK to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming! This episode's theme is "New"! Claire gets inspired by Minit and Isaac pitches a roguelike, but like, longer I guess? Then we talk about our 2026 goals!
Each episode of Make That Game includes:
- Original game design pitches from our hosts
- Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics
- Rapid-fire game creation using three random words
Whether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!
04:13 Claire pitches her Minit-style game
10:04 Issac ptiches a loooong rogue-like
14:33 2026 podcast goals!
28:25 Rapid fire round!
...more
46min
December 16, 2025 147: Finding Dr. Montgomery
Welcome to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming!This episode's theme is "Sweater"! Isaac gets sweaty with a game about workin' up a sweat, and Claire unravels a tale about yarn!This week for discussion we go a lot of places but mostly talk about the Great British Baking Show/Great British Bake Off. Listen to Isaac try to make it related to game design!Each episode of Make That Game includes:- Original game design pitches from our hosts- Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics- Rapid-fire game creation using three random wordsWhether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!
"Hold" music by Ievgen Poltavskyi from Pixabay
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49min
November 04, 2025146: John Watkins National Forest
Welcome to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming! This episode's theme is "Drive"! Isaac's idea is for a chaotic game of golf, and Claire pitches a game of stealth, driving, and stealing hard drives!

Each episode of Make That Game includes:
Original game design pitches from our hosts
Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics
Rapid-fire game creation using three random words

Whether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!

00:58 Isaac pitches his real time golf MMO
05:28 Claire pitches drive the drive!
08:19 Claire and Isaac gaming update
37:09 Rapid fire round!
...more
49min
October 28, 2025 145: Pollution Solution
Welcome to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming! This episode's theme is "Sun"! Claire's pitches an idea for a planetary city builder, and Isaac pitches a hide and seek game powered by the sun!This week we bring back the "Claire 2 Guess" gaming slang guessing game. See how Claire does!
Each episode of Make That Game includes:
- Original game design pitches from our hosts
- Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics
- Rapid-fire game creation using three random words
Whether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!
01:42 Claire pitches a planetary city builder with complex sun systems!
06:23 Isaac pitches his sun hide and seek game for lonely millennials!
15:39 Claire 2 Guess round 2!
35:46 Rapid fire round!
...more
52min
October 21, 2025 144: Creepy Escape Episode 1: The Spooky Cabin
Welcome to Make That Game, the podcast for indie game developers, design enthusiasts, and creative minds in gaming!
This episode's theme is "Rock"! Claire's idea is about throwing rocks in the sky to draw pictures, and Isaac pitches a game about collecting rocks to improve the body of a rock monster and wreak havoc!
This week we discuss the science of builds vs just going by vibes with character attribute/skill/item allocation AKA the meta game!
Each episode of Make That Game includes:
- Original game design pitches from our hosts
- Breakdowns of popular and indie games we've played or discussion of game design topics
- Rapid-fire game creation using three random wordsWhether you're exploring game mechanics, level design, or just love the chaos of creative brainstorming, this podcast will entertain and hopefully get those juices flowing!
02:41 Claire pitches a very realistic rock sky drawing game
05:51 Isaac pitches his rock armor game
09:52 Discussion: Science vs Vibes with skill trees
32:17 Rapid Fire round!
...more
51min

FAQs about Make That Game! A Game Design Podcast:

How many episodes does Make That Game! A Game Design Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 161 episodes available.