Tone Control

Steve interviews Tom Francis, journalist turned game developer, about his path into game development and his approach to designing a stealth game focused on throwing yourself through plate glass windows. They discuss his journey from disc editor to writer in the PC game industry, his preferences in video games and exploration of weapon types, his inspiration from Valve and notable game developers, the challenges of implementing branching content in Gunpoint, strategies for taking down enemies in the game, and the importance of writing in games.

Piranha. Barracuda. Beluga Whale. A frog. These and other fish-types are discussed in episode 7 of Tone Control with Brendon Chung, founder of Blendo Games. Hear discussion on Brendon's earliest mod work, to his time in AAA at Pandemic, to the creation of Blendo games like Flotilla, Atom Zombie Smasher, 30 Flights of Loving, and the upcoming Quadrilateral Cowboy. Salamander.

In a very special episode of Tone Control, Steve and Randy Smith got onstage at FantasticArcade in Austin, TX to talk about their games and approaches to game design. Afterwards they huddled in an alley and worked back through Randy's career at Looking Glass, Ion Storm Austin, and through to the founding of Tigerstyle Games.

Tom Bissell: author, critic, video game writer. What was his path to authorhood? What inspired him to write the video game-focused essay collection Extra Lives? And how did he end up in Cliffy B's lambo? The writer of Gears of War: Judgment (and a number of unannounced upcoming games) tells all. Also this month, Steve is joined by co-host Michael Abbott of the Brainygamer blog and podcast! Savor his dulcet tones.

It's what all Idle Thumbs readers have been waiting for: a personal appearance by none other than the man behind that legend of legends, FAR CRY 2. Roll this pod down a hill into your ears and observe as a procedural conversation emerges in your brain. This is what video games are all about.

Steve visited Seattle to talk with one of the creative minds behind the classic series No One Lives Forever, F.E.A.R., and now co-founder of Blackpowder games. Hear white-knuckle tales of checking in code for a new weapon on ship day and other wild west reminiscences from one of game development's veteran creators.

Steve sits down with Neil Druckmann at the Naughty Dog offices to talk about his long and winding path to becoming Creative Director of The Last of Us. Explore the origins of the critically acclaimed game's world and characters. It's possible Joel, Ellie, Hartigan from Sin City, and a certain ottsel share more history than you'd expect...

Steve talks to Jake & Sean, design and story leads of Telltale's The Walking Dead Season 1, and founders of the indie studio Campo Santo. You can't put lipstick on a manatee, according to Jake but not Sean. And yet these very differences are what set this timeless love story in motion...