Pixel Pizza

Have you heard? Game Informer is BACK! Here to explain it all is Executive Editor Brian Shea. Brian and I discuss his start in music journalism and the risks he took to put himself out there in writing about games. Lots of talk about cooking and Pittsburgh too! Plus, some chiptune rock from Kade Kalka 🤘

LINKS:

📰 Game Informer: https://gameinformer.com/

☁️ Brian's BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/brianpshea.bsky.social

📸 Brian's Instagram: @Brianpshea

💿 Kade Kalka: http://kadekalka.bandcamp.com/

Enter the Spooky Doorway (Studio) and meet its co-owner & narrative designer, Dave McCabe! Dave tells us about his background in filmmaking and tabletop games, and how he and his writing team flesh out characters for their mystery games: The Darkside Detective franchise and the upcoming Séance of Blake Manor. Chiptune music from Flleeppyy!

LINKS:

☁️ Spooky Doorway BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/spookydoorway.bsky.social

🌳 Spooky Doorway LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/SpookyDoorway

💿 Flleeppyy: https://flleeppyy.bandcamp.com/

We're going beyond the average podcast experience with this week's guests, Beyond the Board devs Guilherme Gama and Bruno Mascarenhas ♟️ Their game is. The three of us discuss roombas, design sketches, and nonlinear puzzle design. Music from MoGesus!

LINKS:

📸 Beyond the Board IG: @beyond__the__board

🎮 Beyond the Board Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2794160/Beyond_The_Board/

💿 MoGesus: https://mogesus.bandcamp.com/

Get ready to get cryptic with a look into the works of narrative designer Jonas Tarestad! He's collaborated with award-winning Swedish game studio Simogo on games including Year Walk, Device 6, and last year's Lorelei and the Laser Eyes. We discuss engaging players outside of the game, the thin line between the player and the character, and pizza on a farm. Music from Luke Carlin!

LINKS:

☁️ Jonas's Bluesky: http://jonastarestad.bsky.social

💿 Luke Carlin: https://anfeorh.bandcamp.com/

🍕 Pixel Pizza Bluesky: http://pixelpizza.bsky.social

This week we sit down with Brazilian 2D animator & 3D artist Juli Ivy! In her 10+ year career in the industry, Juli has worked on lavishly animated games including Skullgirls, Indivisible, and Dawn of the Monsters. We get into graphic design, accessibility in games, and giant robots 🤖 Music from chiptune artist Domesticatrix!

☁️ Juli's BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/fyscuit.cafe

🌐 Juli's website: https://fyscuit.cafe/

💿 Domesticatrix: https://domesticatrix.bandcamp.com/

Wake up and listen up 🗣️ for this week's show with singer/songwriter/game developer Devin Santi. He's been deep in development on his debut game, the surreal 3D platformer Mr. Sleepy Man. Devin tells us about the illusion of game feel, processing your emotions through art, and the balance between comedy and horror. With chiptune music from Post_voron!

LINKS:

🐦 Devin's Twitter: @Devin_Santi

📺 Devin's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DEVINSANTI

🎮 Mr. Sleepy Man Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1657740/Mr_Sleepy_Man/

💿 Post_Voron: https://postvoron.bandcamp.com/

This episode originally aired on February 10, 2023.

I can't believe it's been two years since this great chat with Fallen Aces co-creator Trey Powell! In the time since then the game has been released into Early Access on Steam and garnered over 5,000 positive reviews! If you've been enjoying the game and want to know more about Trey, now's the perfect time. Music from Computrhead!

*The game I mentioned at the end was The Forgotten City, available on all platforms*
LINKS:
🐦 Trey's Twitter: @TreyPowell1964
🕵️‍♂️ Fallen Aces: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1411910/Fallen_Aces/
📀 Computrhead: https://computrhead.bandcamp.com

This week we welcome Canadian power couple Annie Macmillan and Lukas Steinman to the show! They run the studio Max Inferno, best known for their cozy puzzle game A Little to the Left. We discuss the process of translating everyday puzzles into game levels, expanding a game jam project into a full release, and using your website to tell a story. Music from John "Joy" Tay!

LINKS:

🔥 Max Inferno Socials: @MaxInfernoGames

🎮 A Little to the Left: https://www.maxinferno.com/

💿 John "Joy" Tay: https://johntayjinf.bandcamp.com/

Whether you're sober or...not so much, treat yourself to a pizza and a chat with COO/Executive Producer at Squanch Games, Matty Studivan! Matty has produced for projects like Dance Central and God of War: Ragnarok, but most recently has been part of the team at Squanch Games developing sci-fi/comedy games like Trover Saves the Universe and High On Life.

We talk about the importance of understanding the entire game development process, building connections for collaborations, and being in a band.

Music from 0x1444 (courtesy of Moth to a Flame Records)!

Pizzeria of the Week: New York Pizza (in Boston) 🍕

🎮 Squanch Games: https://squanchgames.com/

☁️ Matty's BlueSky: http://beatonthematt.bsky.social

💿 0x1444: https://moth-to-a-flame-records.bandcamp.com/

Change of plans this week! Doing something I've wanted to try for some time, ranking my top 50 favorite games of all time. Strap in because this is a long one. (My voice can hardly handle it by the end 🤣) Whether it's RPGs, shooters, platformers, or roguelikes, you'll find it on this list. Hope you enjoy and see you next week with another interview! Chiptune artist of the week is Sushi-Nator 🍣

LINKS:

💿 Sushi-Nator: https://simasima.bandcamp.com/

☁️ Pixel Pizza BlueSky: pixelpizza.bsky.social