Interview with Super_Dipsy from PlayDiplomacy

Amby visits London and interviews the code guru and go-to man at PlayDiplomacy, Super Dipsy (known at PlayDip just as "Dipsy".) They talk about changes down the pipeline and afterwards Amby's toe in the water at PlayDip.

Intro

• The guys introduce episode 40, recorded the same time as episode 39, their new drinks and Kaner tries to get his head around the name of where Amby interviewed Super Dipsy (0 mins 10 secs)

Interview with Super Dipsy from PlayDiplomacy

• Amby learns about glass clinking protocol from Dipsy (4 mins)
• Amby mentions this is the first time we've interviewed someone for the second time, before mentioning who's next up in the interview schedule (5 mins 30 secs)
• Dipsy and Amby talk about having real politicians play Diplomacy (7 mins 30 secs)
• Dipsy introduces some of the upcoming changes at PlayDip, including steps to make it better for the players based on their recommendations in the forum such as mobile phone notifications (8 mins 50 secs)
• He discusses moves to hunt for cheats (13 mins 50 secs)
• Dipsy talks about the real challenges to keeping the hobby alive and growing (16 mins)
• They talk about player behaviour (17 mins)
• Amby asks about whether PlayDip allows you to ban players you have had a run-in with (19 mins 10 secs)
• After a quick break in recording, Dipsy discusses Friends games at PlayDip (21 mins 15 secs)
• He then discusses PlayDip's Player Classes and how they try to maintain a certain level of game for hardcore players (23 mins 10 secs)
• They talk about the size of the PlayDip community (24 mins)
• Amby reflects on the PlayDip ratings system (25 mins)
• Amby asks about PlayDippers and face-to-face games (27 mins 45 secs)
• Dipsy discusses his professional background which resulted in him becoming PlayDip's resident coder. He goes onto discuss his role in the broader PlayDip community (28 mins 40 secs)
• Dipsy talks about the different types of variants at PlayDip and what goes up (30 mins 30 secs)
• Amby belatedly does the drink pairings and his time previously living in the UK (34 mins 50 secs)
• Dipsy teases Amby on a possible artificial intelligence (AI) solution to take over CD'ed positions/surrendered countries or if you have a "friends" scenario but are short of players and AI could significantly help (36 mins 30 secs)
• Dipsy discusses how player suggestions can help make things easier in the game (41 mins 40 secs)
• Amby is reminded by the Escalation variant element at PlayDip (43 mins 45 secs)
• Amby asks about whether adding more and more functionality detracts from the user experience (45 mins 50 secs)
• Dipsy talks about what new variants may be coming down the pipeline for coding at PlayDip (47 mins 10 secs)
• Dipsy - wash his mouth out - says the game he'd most likely to see brought online is a railway game! Although there IS a Dip connection (49 mins 20 secs)
• Amby asks how Dipsy got into Diplomacy, before they discuss Dip in schools and its impact on the community (50 mins 50 secs)
• They discuss functionality to make it easier for online tournament directors (53 mins)
• In wrapping up the interview, Dipsy discusses the prospects of using the large datasets on PlayDip for someone to do a heavy statistical analysis (54 mins 45 secs)

Discussion about the interview

• Kaner and Amby return to talk about the interview, jumping straight into the AI concept - apologies on the wind in the background. Kaner channels his inner Terminator (1 hr 2 mins)
• Amby discusses the concept of phone based notifications and his thoughts (1 hr 6 mins 30 secs)
• Between eating they turn to Dipsy's idea about the Dissolution variant being coded up (1 hr 8 mins 30 secs)
• Amby talks about how he has signed up for a PlayDip premium membership and is waiting on two Versailles games he has joined to begin (1 hr 12 mins 30 secs)
• He discusses the normal standard press experience he's craving in Versailles and the flip side of Versailles but with other variant options in PlayDip like Age of Empires and Fog of War (1 hr 13 mins 30 secs)

Around the grounds

• Amby asks Kaner talks about his whole one game he's in at the moment. Kaner ignores this and instead talks about a die-off variant he has kicking around in his head (1 hr 16 mins 45 secs)
• Kaner touches on the gunboat anonymous Youngstown game he's joined. Amby quickly works out he's in the same. They agree to keep mum on the topic (1 hr 20 mins 45 secs)
• Kaner asks Amby about his Divided States anonymous game, before agreeing to talk about that next episode (1 hr 21 mins 30 secs)
• Amby touches on a standard anonymous Classic gunboat game he's in. Without giving detail about who he is, he talks about an aggressive opening strategy which while it has worked in the past, failed him now (1 hr 22 mins)
• Kaner talks about improving his Classic experience before they head to Melbourne for the March tournament down there (1 hr 24 mins 30 secs)
• Kaner discusses putting together a Sopwith game. Amby brings up having a Google Translate game (1 hr 27 mins)
• Amby discovers his unrated Imperial Diplomacy game where he was playing as Russia just finished in a draw (1 hr 28 mins)
• Amby closes the show with a joke (1 hr 32 mins)

Venue: Museum Tavern, London & Little Big House, Brisbane.

Drinks of choice:

London:

Super Dipsy - Sambrooke's Junction from London, UK

Amby - Greene King IPA & Sambrooke's Junction from London UK

Brisbane:

Kaner - Bulmer's cider from United Kingdom

Amby - Tequila from Mexico, fresh lime juice and soda

Just a reminder you can support the show by giving it 5 stars on iTunes or Stitcher. Or if you want to help improve the audio equipment... or get the guys more drunk,  you can donate at Patreon. Lastly, don't forget to subscribe so you get the latest Diplomacy Games episodes straight to your phone!