Nice Games Club - a gamedev podcast!

It's still Wednesday in the clubhouse, which means an extra-long meta section where your nice hosts discuss showing off games at the recent 2DCon convention, Martha maturing both as a person and a culture, and what it feels like to have your words translated into Japanese.Oh, and we talk about designing rumble for your game, and close out the show with a great discussion about making games designed for unique spaces, including perhaps a preview of a future Nice Games Jam.Widget Satchel in being translated into Japanese! Neat!Adobe's page about Source Han Serif, one of their open-source CJK fonts.Source Han Sans on GitHub!Martha and Mark both missed TypeCon!0:21:27RumbleSony's first rumble controller was the PlayStation Dual Analog Controller (in J…WikipediaNintendo's HD Rumble will be the best unused Switch feature of 2017Sean BuckleyEngadgetRead about the lawsuit which was the likely cause of the lack of rumble in the …Wikipedia0:47:04Making Games for SpacesRead about the Riddle Mia This installation.Our previous episode on Game Instalations."Ugly and hard to use."Our previous episode on Physical Games."We should go outside!"Our previous episode on Escape Rooms (with Art Allen)Puzzle/Escape Rooms"Seattle Immersive’s ‘Romeo & Juliet’ has audiences on their feet"Misha BersonThe Seattle Times

It's Nice Games Bulletin time! We bring you all the news from the video game world leaving no stone unturned. We’ve got news in all varieties- Nice News, Medium News, Bad News and Dad News! So much news! Join your Nice Hosts as we sort it all out.Photo credit: Foam Sword Games- Knights and Bikes promo screenshotBulletin topic (Recent releases)Games:Knights and BikesMan of MedianControlRemnant: From the AshesAstral ChainTelling LiesAncestors: The Humankind OdysseyMonster Hunter World IceborneNBA 2K20Gears of War 5Anodyne 2Local game! Listen to our interview with Marina Kittika here to learn all about how she created the game’s lo-fi aestheticBulletin topic (News)Timecode0:16:10PAX stuff is happening/has happened!Friend of the show Beth Korth was on a panel at PAX DEV about diversity consulting but since there doesn’t seem to be a way to watch it yet check out our interview with her about Narrative Design!Bulletin topic (News) Not Nice News :( Timecode0:17:29Not Nice News :( Game Informer layoffsPeople you should totally hire because they are amazing:Matt Bertz Elise Favis Javy GwaltnyKyle Hilliard Imran KhanJeff MarchiafavaSuriel VazquezContent Warning: sexual assault and abuse- if you don’t want to hear discussion about these topics please skip from [19:59] to [23:50]New allegations of sexual assault surface against established game devs - Kris Graft, Game DeveloperContent Warning: transphobia, homophobia, sexism - if you don’t want to hear discussion about these topics skip from [23:50] to [28:41]Ion Fury Developer Backtracks, Says It Won’t Remove Gay Joke Because Of ‘Censor… - Nathan Grayson, KotakuBulletin topic (News) Medium News :/Medium News :/“Two People Who Didn’t Work At Telltale Games Say They’re Bringing Back Telltal… - Jason Schreier, KotakuBulletin topic (News) Nice News Now :)Timecode0:30:01Nice News Now :)“A Remaster Of Disney’s Classic Lion King and Aladdin Games Is Coming In Fall” - Mike Fahey, Kotaku“Dungeons & Deceptions: The First D&D Players Push Back On The Legend Of Gary G… - Cecilia D’Anastasio, Kotaku“Hey, remember When Star Trek Did Galaxy’s Edge, 20 Years Before Star Wars?” - James Whitbrook, IO9GDC Summit talk submissions are open August 29-September 30, 2019. Submit your …“Play retro 8-bit sports in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020” - Samit Sarkar, Polygon

This week your nice hosts are joined in the clubhouse by visual artist and games UI designer Jajeev Nithiananda. He talks the good and bad of game UI, working with demanding clients and argumentative co-workers, and explains how function and form must work together to create a good experience for the player.User InterfacesArtUI / UXPGA TOUR Golf Shootout on Google Play and iOS App Store.UI Breakdown: Metroid Prime - SYH, MediumThe Long, Desperate Search To Understand Poise In 'Dark Souls 3 - Patrick Klepek, ViceLessons Learned Creating UI for The Division - Christian Savoie, GDC

This week your Nice Hosts break open Power Fantasies and Indie Game Trailers and analyze what makes them work! Can boredom be a game mechanic? Is the age old storytelling rule "show don't tell" actually bad advice for indie game trailers? Can a power fantasy game really ever have too many explosions??Picture credit Gearbox SoftwareIf you have a trailer for your game and want to get some feedback on it send us a link on Twitter to see if it gets the "Stephen Would Actually Watch This" Seal of Approval!Game Devs of Color Expo TalksFriends of the show gave talks! Aubrey Scott talks at 49:57 and Evva Kraikul is on a panel at 4:07:54.Swimsanity (If your team includes two brothers it has to be sea themed)Worker Bee is publishing Widget Satchel in Japan!The Ooblets team is amazing and you should plan on buying the game on the Epic …(Ooblets was going to be published by Double Fine until Double Fine was bought …0:18:08Power FantasiesMonster Den was a game store/event space in Minneapolis where Martha first played Halo- there is a different game store there now called Dreamers Vault Games0:43:27Game TrailersWidget Satchel Trailer

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!

While Stephen is away at the Game Devs of Color Expo in New York, Ellen Burns-Johnson joins in the club house to discuss organizing your game library and what to do when you actually know nothing about marketing. Martha throws it in the 'eh' pile, Mark delegates, and Ellen has it all under control.Game Devs of Color Expo 2019Depression and the Solace of 'Grinding' in Online Games - Julie Muncy, Wired0:02:49Game LibrariesHow to deal with your Steam backlogMichael McWhertorPolygonAdobe Flash Debug Downloads - The "Flash Player Projector" can open SWF files from your desktop or from a URL. It is a portable application that doesn't need to be installed.2064: Read Only Memories - Turing Collector's Plush (SOLD OUT, to Martha's lame…When your nice hosts went to Seattle for PodCon this year, they visited the Liv…Mark has been watching a lot of "old tech" content on YouTube latelyTechnology ConnectionsYouTubeThe 8-Bit GuyYouTube0:28:08Marketing 001How, why, when and how much to pay for indie game marketing?TavroxMediumBest PR, Marketing & Community Talks / GDC 2019Thomas ReiseneggerMedium

This 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

This week your Nice Hosts appear out of nowhere to discuss Stealth Games and Motion Controls! Mark shoots lasers, Stephen time travels and Martha joins a geriatric gang.Dishonored 2 cover art copyright Bethesda.0:01:30Stealth GamesBanana Bread (Griffin & Justin of Polygon play SpyParty)PolygonYouTubeGiant Bomb Plays Hitman Let's PlaysFly On The WallYouTubeWhy Fashion in (Most) Games Sucks, and Why You Should CareVictoria TranGDCOur Interview with Freya Holmér of Neat Corporation maker of Budget CutsSelf-education, et al.Spider-Man is (Definitely Not) Murdering PeopleBrian David Gilbert, PolygonYouTubeLevel Design Workshop: A Narrative Approach to Level Design (Or, why Die Hard g…Jolie MenzelGDC0:28:52Motion ControlsSega ActivatorSega's Forgotton Motion GameRerezYouTubeMicrosoft "Microsoft announces an Azure-powered Kinect camera for enterprise"Brian HeaterTechCrunchRhythm Game Accessories on Wikipedia (including the Rock Band pro controller)Wikipedia

This week, your nice hosts talk about a pair of game genres that none of them are that wild about, and Mortho returns to brighten the proceedings!Our previous episode on "unloved" topics: “Try it once!”"Try it once."You Never Realized Fonts Could Be This Exciting - Mike Fahey, KotakuDonut County is the Anti-Katamari - Marcus Estrada, Hardcore GamerSlay the Spire is my favorite game to lose  - Jeff Ramos, Polygon0:16:46Designing Horror GamesDownload Stephen's horror game Infectious!How the Resident Evil 2 remake's Mr. X actually worksWesley Yin-PooleEurogamerThe Difference Between Horror Movies And Horror GamesHeather AlexandraKotaku0:44:37Designing Sports GamesMark couldn't find anything about the Minnesota professional basketball teams discussed in the episode, but he did find "Who wins a fight to the death, Lynx vs Wolf?" on Quora.Why Is Tennis Scored So Weirdly?Merrill FabryTimeMichael Chabon Will Showrun Star Trek: PicardJames WhitbrookIO9Anti-loot box bill poses a real threat to sports video gamesOwen S. GoodPolygon

All the news that fit to pod! Mark makes a Mario, Martha adds things to her wishlist and Stephen gets mad at his TV.Bulletin topic (Recent releases)Timecode0:00:42Super Mario Maker 2: Building On Success - Kyle Hilliard, Game InformerBloodstained: Ritual of the Night: The Kotaku Review - Joshua Rivera, KotakuThe making of Samurai Showdown (2019) - Alex Kane, PolygonCrash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled: No Rust On This Ride - Andrew Reiner, Game InformerCadence of Hyrule is the best Zelda spinoff ever made - Russ Frushtick, PolygonHarry Potter: "Wizards Unite" Improves On What Makes Pokemon Go Great" - Gita Jackson, KotakuBulletin topic (News)Timecode0:18:01Summer Games Done Quick raised over 3 million dollars for Doctors Without Borde…Devs hit by Steam promo confusion as games are pulled from Wishlists - Chris Kerr, Game DeveloperDr. Disrespect Doesn’t Seem To Be Taking His Twitch Ban Very Seriously - Nathan Grayson, KotakuTwitched app removed from Roku - RedditThe Human Cost of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 - Jason Schreier, KotakuValve Index Review - The Enthusiast’s Choice - Ben Lang, Road to VRSomeone Turned Mario Into A Battle Royale, And It’s The Best Thing - Heather Alexandra, KotakuHere’s how to save up to $360 on Xbox Game Pass over 3 years (The article says … - David Carnoy, CNETWe might get a Myst movie, TV series, and even a reality show - Susana Polo, PolygonThe Mouse Guard Movie Is Officially Dead, But This Demo Reel Shows What Could’v… - James Whitbrook, GizmodoMicrosoft, Nintendo, and Sony say [the president]’s tariffs on China will hurt … - Charlie Hall, PolygonEpic says it’ll eventually stop pushing for exclusives - Tyler Wilde, PC Gamer