Humans Who Make Games with Adam Conover Alex Beachum (Outer Wilds)
Apr 8, 2020
Alex Beachum, Creative Director for the groundbreaking game Outer Wilds, discusses his unique journey from a student project to an award-winning title. He shares insights on the innovative design of environmental storytelling, the challenges of player engagement, and the balance between exploration and objectives in gameplay. Reflecting on his childhood memories and game mechanics evolution, Beachum reveals his emotional rollercoaster during game release and hints at future projects, including a horror game and a quirky film about llamas.
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Developer Watches Player Streams
- Adam streamed Outer Wilds and Alex watched the stream and recognized him.
- Alex found Adam often came up with plausible but overthought solutions that diverged from intended design.
Public Play Reveals Hidden Player Hypotheses
- Playtesting in artificial settings misses organic player behavior and hypotheses.
- Watching wild streams uncovers misunderstandings and emergent play that studio tests can't always reproduce.
Early Gaming Roots
- Alex grew up in northern Michigan and later studied at Michigan State before attending USC.
- His first memorable games were Magic School Bus CD-ROMs and Ocarina of Time at a friend's house.
