Designer Notes Designer Notes 91: Tomislav Uzelac
Nov 18, 2025
Tomislav Uzelac, a veteran developer known for creating the MP3 decoder for Winamp and the Unity of Command series, shares his journey from childhood tape trading to game design. He reflects on the unforeseen cultural impact of MP3s and his transition from software demos to strategy games. Tomislav discusses simplifying wargame mechanics for playability, his approach to balancing supply in Unity of Command, and the challenges of campaign snowballing. He also hints at future projects and emphasizes the emotional connection games foster with players.
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Recording Games From Radio
- Tomislav taped Spectrum games off a local radio show that broadcast the cassette audio for players to record.
- He and friends traded tapes because retail imports were scarce and expensive in Zagreb.
MP3 Decoder Began As A Student Project
- Tomislav implemented an MPEG audio decoder as a college hardware assignment and optimized it into usable software.
- That work became the basis for the MP3 support used later by Winamp and reached millions of users.
Prototype To Reignite Development
- Use small prototype projects to re-energize after burnout and test core ideas quickly.
- Tomislav rebuilt a Panzer General prototype as a warm-up that evolved into Unity of Command.
