Nice Games Club - a gamedev podcast!

This week on Nice Games Club, we talk about Naming Things and Rhythm Games! Stephen lays down a beat, Martha brings up fuzzy math, and Mark uses every excuse to talk about Star Trek.We mentioned the previous Train Jam episode (#17):GDC 2017 Special (Part 1)0:17:47Naming ThingsGoogle Trends0:52:45Rhythm GamesHarminix's next music-making game puts your DJ skills to the testChristine FisherEngadgetEpisode where Mark talks about his Rock Band experience (#153):"She also cheats a lot."Ape Out - Arcade Mode GameplayIGNYouTube

Your nice hosts finally get around to some classic topics in this week's episode. Mark explains why Widget Satchel takes longer to download than he'd have liked, Stephen is worried that you might learn the wrong lessons, and Martha disagrees.It took some sleuthing, but Mark found proof that Crunch, the mascot for the Minnesota Timberwolves, was named for the Nestle candy bar.0:02:48Day-One PatchesWhy 'Day-One Patches' Are So CommonRami IsmailKotakuThe Switch patch for Widget Satchel that Mark mentioned working on just passed though Nintendo's lotcheck system and was released today. Pick up a copy it if you haven't already!0:42:22Crunch'Anthem' is proof that crunch can't save AAA gamesJessica CondittEngadgetVideo Game Delays Cause More CrunchJason SchreierKotakuBook Review: If You Want to Write by Brenda UelandJoel FriedlanderThe Book DesignerCrunch Time: How Indies Are Falling Victim To Launch Day PressuresKate FanthorpeThe Indie Game WebsiteStudio MDHR delays Cuphead DLC to 2020, in bid to avoid development crunchAaron MamiitDigital TrendsMark referenced how Mr. Scott maintains his reputation as a miracle worker.

Ellen Burns-Johnson joins us in the club house to discuss the latest in game dev news! We talk about the latest releases, GDC getting "postponed", Kickstarter unionizing and more. Be nice and have a listen!Bulletin topic (Recent releases)Timecode0:05:34HyperDot is a local game by Stephen's brother Charles! Buy it!Bulletin topic (News)Timecode0:20:22Important GDC 2020 Update - GDCTrain Jam is still on!Wings Fund is providing GDC relief funding.Plan B Project has an event page on Facebook.AltGDC will have conference talks and panels that will be recorded.#notGDC is an annual, free, online event that runs concurrently every year.​​​​​​​COVID-19 information from the World Health Organization.Google's ambitious push into gaming is floundering, and it's due largely to too… - Ben Gilbert, Business InsiderKickstarter employees vote to unionize, relieving tension among game developers - Charlie Hall, Polygon

We're back! This week, your nice hosts talk about what they did over their winter break, from taking up residence in a new clubhouse, to developing a new logo and website, and more! But in the end, everything is still nice.Highlights of this extra-long special episode:Martha proposes a Nice Games Club IDE color theme......Dale joins the show to point out that making a logo for a podcast is harder than making a logo for a game......and after all the redesign work, Stephen makes a late pitch to rename the show "Hot Takes Games Club."Plus, the entire clubhouse goes back and forth making promises (setting expectations) on the new website. It's an iterative process, people!What We Did On Our Winter Break (2019-20)Nice Games Club Logo DevelopmentHere's a Nice Game Club "Bug" concept that was rejectedLogo Option #1: StarsLogo Option #2: Git TreeLogo Option #3: Coding BracketsStephen and the Fingeance team talk about their love of "choice #3" in one of our "Code Comment" episodes:Code Comment: "Fingeance"Iteration on Logo #3 (brackets)Logo in multiple color contexts, including the "Valentine" themeVariations on the "logo on a cartridge" conceptWe made our new site using Drupal, a VERY open source web development tool.December 2019IGDATC's monthly meetingsDale talked about developing Reravel, which was first developed during a Nice Games Jam episode:Reravel: A Backwards Storytelling GameJanuary 2020ProtospielHyperdot, a game by Stephen's brother Charles McGregor was released this month on January 31st. It is available on Xbox, Steam, itch.io and Windows PC. You can buy it now.Global Game Jam 2020The Global Game Jam 2019 keynote (aka: the best keynote ever) starts at 04:00The Global Game Jam 2020 keynoteWe mentioned Rachel, the head of GLITCH's Discord, who we have had on a previous episode:Games Education Mark worked with Scott Lembke for GGJ 2020. We interviewed Scott on a previous GGJ episode:"Steal this episode."Mark's logo for his team's GGJ 2020, with character art by teammate KissiKissi worked on a few games during the jam!Screenshot from "Super City Mayor," Mark's GGJ gameYou can play Dale and Beth's GGJ game, "Corporate Espionage" right in your brow…February 2020Mark and Dale saw David Byrne's American Utopia!American Utopia on BroadwayAmerican Utopia: Full Cast AlbumSpotifyNew York Transit MuseumDale in a very old subway car at the transit museumDale in a moderately old subway car at the transit museumNYU Games Center has playtest events every Thursday

#149Buttons and Triggers and Sticks, Oh My!Nice Games Jam2019.09.25This week's episode is sponsored by Codecks, the project management tool for game developers, by game developers! Sign up for free at http://codecks.io/nicegamesclub to let them know we sent you!It's another Nice Games Jam! This time, our boyfriend Dylan sent in a particularly interesting challenge, asking your nice hosts to design a game where the player's load-out impacts the game's controls.After an aborted attempt to make it into a game consisting of physical props, we came up with a very strange concept for a video game where you equip and battle a bunch of different controllers as if they were Pokémon or something!PromptDesign a game where the player's load-out impacts the game's controls.Game typePaper prototypePlayer count2-4MaterialsA controller of your choosingPieces to "slot" to your controller's buttonsSetup"Buttons and Triggers and Sticks, Oh My!" (Prototype)In this game, you control a "battlebot" vehicle that you configure using equipment and weapons that are auctioned off between players before the match. The twist is that your bot is a vehicle shaped like the actual controller you play the game with, and its capabilities are determined by the physical configuration of the input elements. Want a different bot, you gotta plug in a different controller!ControllersEach controller, from a knock-off Xbox 360 controller to a Nintendo Switch Joy-Con, has a list of "inventory slots" which line up with the physical controller's buttons and input elements. Items placed in these slots are "attached" to the in-game representation of the controller.Each controller also has general properties such as hull strength and overall weight, and controllers with special properties like rumble, motion controls, or expansion ports would have additional in-game potential. Additionally, wired controllers would have different properties than wireless controllers, etc.EquipmentEach piece of equipment has the following characteristics:TypeMovementEnginesRanged weaponsMelee weaponsTraps/environmentShieldsBonus/special itemsStats: depends on type. Engines would have speed/power stats and weapons would have damage stats, for example.Input compatibility: Which set of buttons, sticks, and/or triggers can this equipment be attached to? For example, the Z button on a Saturn controller is a face button, but it's a trigger on a Nintendo 64 controller. A machine gun might be placed on a trigger, or it could be placed on an analog stick and work as a turret! Maybe certain items can only be placed on controllers that have a "Select" button, etc.RulesAuctionPlayers configure their loudouts from stratch before every match, at the same time, using an auction system. Pieces of equipment comes up for auction one-by-one.First, players are given vague information about the next item up for bid, and may pre-bid for it, gambling that it will be something useful to them.If no player pre-bids for the item, it is fully revealed and players bid normally for it. Certain items will be incompatible for certain controllers, but a player may wish to bid on it anyway to deny it to another player (maybe they can then "melt down" the unwanted piece of equipment for some other resource).This process continues either until all players are out of resources, or all the items (some subset of the total items in the game) have been put up for auction.Resources could be limited, meaning that high-bidding contests would result in weaker players and more tactical, less chaotic matches (since all equipment would be expensive). Alternately, resources could be plentiful, providing players with lots of options, and any left over resources could be used to power and/or upgrade equipment, providing some motivation not to overspend for equipment.GameplayBattles would be essentially multiplayer deathmatchs, where each player operates the equipment they've equipped to thier vehicle by using the input element they've assigned it to.Battles would be heavily focused on targeting other players various equipment, in order to disable or destroy them.Play could work using a 3rd person "Mario Kart/Twisted Metal battle mode" style of skill-based play, or perhaps it could use a Fallout VATS style targeting system where players would need to assign targets in real-time but would only need to hit the other player (letting an RNG system determine how successful the hit was)The game might include other genre staples like item pickups (energy, ammo, etc).Campaign/Progression?Outside of regular matches, perhaps players could run campaigns where the results of each match would provide winnings that they can later use to upgrade their vehicle or purchase new equipment.

#118"It's Black History Month, y'all!"Roundtable2019.02.26In this episode, your nice hosts make sure you know that Treasure Stack, the game Stephen "is paid to work on," is coming out Friday, March 1st!Mark then gives a primer on some audio basics that will help you understand how sound works, and works in your game. Even if you're bored by that, be sure to stick around for a discussion Stephen leads about representation in games."Treasure Stack Reveals Launch Date With a Trailer Powered By Artisanal, Locall… - Hardcore GamersAudio Basics0:05:32Mark LaCroixAudio"MP3 'died' and nobody noticed: Key patents expire on golden oldie tech" - Andrew Orlowski, The RegisterDigital Audio Basics: Sample Rate and Bit DepthTurns out, there is a ".2" in certain surround sound setups.Get free sounds on freesound.org!The reduction in audio dynamics in pop music is a result of the so-called Loudn…Representation in Games0:41:57Stephen McGregorIRLProductionKey & Peele - Black Republicans"Here's a good argument for a black Batman" - Dan Neilan, AV Club"Hopi-less: How Kachina Became Donut County" - John Walker, Rock Paper Shotgun"What It's Like To Write About Race And Video Games" - Gita Jackson, Kotaku

#143Ants of Destiny: Morsels of the QueenNice Games Jam2019.08.13This week in the clubhouse, Stephen is still away in New York.Ellen is back to help out with a Nice Games Jam! Our prompt: create a JRPG-inspired game in under an hour. But like any good JRPG, it took twice as long to complete as expected...Ellen's handwritten notes are worth a look! (PDF) And here's the Wikipedia page for Weevil, which Ellen wanted you to see.PromptWhat would the Nice Games Club take on a JRPG be? Do thatGame typePaper prototypePlayer count2SetupA two-person pen-and-paper RPG. One player portrays the party of ants, and the other player controls all enemies and narrates the story as the GM.The StoryYour queen is dying, and for unknown reasons (foreshadowing!) your colony is running out of resources. You, a young worker ant, and your party of misfits must set out from your home to collect the extra food and supplies needed to save your colony, battling foes and overcoming challenges along the way!RulesThe PartyWorker Ant (Player protagonist)Bite (attack): 2Carry (inventory): 5Exo (armor): +0Ability: "Defend" - Once per encounter, secretly choose (and write down) a party member. The next attack against that character will automatically fail. This remains in effect until an enemy attacks the selected player, or the player uses their ability.Soldier AntBite (attack): 3Carry (inventory): 4Exo (armor): +2Ability: "Command" - Once per encounter, use this ability to grant an automatic success on a party member's next attack.Flying AntBite (attack): 1Carry (inventory): 3Exo (armor): -1Ability: "Fly" - Once per encounter, choose an attack target, then exit play for this round. This character cannot be attacked by a non-flying enemy until they return at the start of the next round, when the attack is executed (as long as the target is currently in play).Weevil (in disguise)Bite (attack): 1Carry (inventory): 4Exo (armor): +4Ability: "Push" - Once per encounter, you can select an enemy to remove from play until the end of the round. This enemy cannot attack or be attacked.All party members have 10 hit points (HP).Party stats Move: 4Overworld The GM prepares a map on a 20x20 grid, with multiple paths, each ending with a resource. This map is kept hidden the player. The player has their own map, which starts out blank. The GM draws new information on this map as the player uncovers it.Each path on the map has the following information/stats:Sense threshold (the number the player must roll above to detect its existence)The shape and length of the path on the map.The "peril value" representing the number added to random encounter checks (1-3).The type of resource at the end of the path (food, item, etc. During our playthough, we only used food).The amount/value of the resource at the end of the path (food: 1-3)Paths don't all have to start from the origin point of the party. Some can begin in the middle of another paths, but the party can only discover a path if they are within sensing range of the beginning (how near is that? Um, we didn't figure that out).Overworld turn sequenceSense check: Player rolls 1d10. This value is compared against the "sense threshold" of each path which is within sensing range of the party. All paths whose sense threshold is equal to or below the value of the roll is "discovered" by the player. For each path whose sensing threshold is below the value of the roll, the player rolls another 1d10. The higher the roll result, the more information is revealed about it (1-3 no info, 4-7 some info, 9-10 all info). The exact information revealed is up to the GMs discretion. Paths which are revealed as a result of the initial roll being equal to the sensing threshold are discovered but no extra roll is made and no information is revealed.Move: Player chooses a path and advances along it equal to the number of spaces of the party's "move" stat.Random encounter check: The GM rolls 1d10. The "peril value" of the current path is added to the roll. The value is checked against an encounter table. This table (which, oops, we didn't create) would have more dangerous encounters the larger the number is, while the low range of numbers (say 1-4) would have no encounter at all.Sense points During the episode, we discussed letting the player "bank" sense points. For example, a player rolls a 9 on a sense check, but only chooses to use 6 and save the other 3. The GM then treats it as if the player rolled of 6, and the player now has 3 points to add as a modifier to future rolls.Enemy Encounters At the start of each round of battle, the player and the GM roll 1d10 for initiative. The higher roll goes first.Each character has one action per round. Initiative passes between the player and the GM and the round is over when all characters and enemies have taken an action.ActionsAttack: This is an opposed roll. The attacking character rolls 1d10. The defending character rolls 1d10, plus its Exo modifier. In the case of a successful attack, the defending character loses HP equal to attacker's attack stat. If the roll (including modifiers) is a tie, both players roll again with no modifiers to determine the result.Ability: The character may use their ability instead of attacking.After the player's party defeats certain opponents, its body can be converted into resources, which use up the "carry" stats of various party members, distributed as the player sees fit.Obtaining resources Once the party reaches the end of a path, the GM rolls 1d10 (in secret) to determine the state of the resources in this area. We develop a table for this during the episode, but it might go something like:1 - 2: All resources are immediately available to collect. 3 - 5: Resources are trapped, players must attack or dismantle a barrier of some kind. The Exo value of the barrier is equal to this roll and the barrier's HP value is equal to a second 1d10 roll by the GM. 6 - 9: Resources are hidden, with this value being the threshold value the player must roll above in order to discover them one by one. 10: Resources are completely inaccessible.If resources are trapped or hidden, the player can roll 1d10 to find them or attack the barrier to release them. After each attempt, an encounter check is made, so players will have to make calculated risks.Once the player collects all resources, or declines further attempts to collect them, the party returns to the home colony, unloads thier resources, heals all their HP, and starts again on a new path.Once the player brings 30 pieces of food (or some other metric of resources) back to the colony, the colony is saved! ...OR SO IT SEEMS!!The Big Twist!This is a JRPG-inspired game, so now it's time to turn the tables, expand the world to a preposterous scale, and raise the stakes as high (or higher) than makes any sense.What the story twist is will be determined using a die roll from the GM.1 - 3: An Evil Weevil Infiltration It turns out the weevil in your party isn't the only "ant imposter" in your colony! Via a tearful confession, your weevil friend reveals that they have had a change of heart and must tell you the truth... your queen, and much of the high guard who protects the colony, have been replaced by EVIL WEEVILS in disguise! No wonder resources have been limited: The weevils have been stealing them! It's now up to you and your party to stop the them and win back your homeland!4 - 6: Nearby Colony Has Incredibly Advanced Technology A huge rumble shakes the ground. Suddenly, a fleet of dragonflies descends at the edge of the colony, dispensing super-soldier ants from a neighboring colony, who have somehow obtained unimaginably powerful technology. No wonder resources have been limited: the neighboring colony has developed... industry, evaporating water reserves and contaminating local food supplies! It's now up to you and your party to shut down their terrible war machine and bring peace back to the colony!7 - 9: The Truman Show Ending Wait, what's that? A violent shake disrupts the ground below, the walls around, and the ceilings above you! It's as if the entire colony has been knocked around and then dropped from a great height. Well, that's exactly what happened! It turns out, you've all been living in a large, artificial ant farm! No wonder resources have been limited: the human who is supposed to feed and take take of you has neglected their duties. It's now up to you and your party to rescue the members of your colony from this disaster, and find a way to break free of the plastic shell that represents your entire reality!10: Roll again!

#120Developer/Publisher RelationsInterview2019.03.12This week, August Brown (senior producer for Kongregate Publishing) enters the clubhouse to reveal the secrets of successful developer/publisher relationships!Your nice hosts learn what publishers expect from a pitch, how forming a relationship with a publisher isn't always strictly business, and that publishers also think you're not charging enough money for your game.Developer/Publisher RelationsProductionKongregate PublishingSelf-publish on KartridgeMartha mentioned the Sokpop Collective.August brought up The Flash Games Postmortem that his colleague John Cooney pre…

#115"Steal this episode."Roundtable2019.02.06Your Nice Hosts are back from PodCon 2 and fresh off the Global Game Jam where Martha wrote a game for the first time! We talk all about that experience as well as celebrate Public Domain Day for the first time in 20 years. Mark guides us through the history of copyright, Stephen jams in 3D and Martha is a totally normal McElroy Fan (tmtmtmtm)Photo by GLITCHLiving Computer MuseumGlobal Game Jam games from MinnesotaWriting for Games0:15:15Martha MegarryNarrativeOne Polar NightIntellectual Property and the Public Domain0:37:57Mark LaCroixNewsProductionPublic Domain Day 2019 (Duke University Website)“Happy Birthday” is public domain, former owner Warner/Chapell to pay $14 - Joe Mullin, Ars TechnicaCopyright vs Trademark vs Patent - United States Patent and Trademark OfficeAll by Myself - Irving Berlin, Aileen StanleySherlock Holmes in the 22nd CenturySherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century theme songThe Patent on Loading Screen Minigames is About To Expire - Luke Plunkett, KotakuOracle vs Google trial Java runtime

#141Nostalgia and the Lo-fi AestheticInterview2019.07.30Wishlist/purchase Anodyne 2: Return to Dust on:Steam | Itch.io | Kartridge | GoGThis week, your nice hosts are joined by Marina Kittaka, artist and co-developer on the upcoming Anodyne 2: Return to Dust.Marina made the 30-foot journey from her desk to the clubhouse in order to discuss Anodyne's theme of nostalgia, the "personal" authenticity of the game's lo-fi PS1-era aesthetics, jumping in to her first 3D project, leveraging your limitations, and more!Nostalgia and the Lo-fi AestheticArtWishlist/purchase Anodyne 2: Return to Dust on:Steam | Itch.io | Kartridge | GoGSean Han Tani (@sean_HTCH) is Marina's development partner. His solo game All Our Asias was a inspiration for their current collaboration.Analgesic Productions' previous titles:AnodyneEven the Ocean