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A bi-weekly video game development podcast by John R. Diaz, a veteran game designer who goes 1:1 in candid conversations with the developers behind today‘s hit games where we discuss their journey and learnings in this wild industry with no punches pulled. John is a kid born to emigrants from the Dominican Republic in New York City, raised with lots of love, off of food stamps & welfare, where English was not his native language, who got lucky enough to find his passion in developing video games. It took him years in college before figuring out that video game development was something he could learn and do. It wasn‘t until 2007 when he got his lucky 1 in a million chance to get his foot in the door, which required him to move away from all of his family into a city that he knew no one in, Austin Texas to work on his first game Blacksite Area 51 with Midway Games. Since then he‘s gone on to work on some of the biggest games of our time including Grand Theft Auto V and both Red Dead Redemptions. However that road was long, exhausting, and expensive, and it didn‘t have to be. That‘s why he‘s making this show. The video game industry needs more people from all walks of life, beliefs, countries, cultures, languages, shapes, sizes, and origins to make the next big game the world wants to play. If John could do it so can you. This show is all about sharing the experiences of his network, the developers behind the games you love and play, including Game Designers, Animators, Artists, Producers, Engineers, Testers, Directors, Writers, and everything in between, sharing their stories and advice, to answer all those questions you have about how video games are made, and how do you even become a game developer. If you are making video games or want to make them this show is for you, the current & future video game developers where we discuss our art and motivations out of the lines, out of the play area. This is to help put you on to get the opportunity to make the video games you want to play, by hearing how they are made and how the people got here. http://outofplayarea.com Connect with us on Twitter @OutOfPlayArea & the host John R. Diaz. @ElKingpin
Episodes
Monday Mar 28, 2022
Monday Mar 28, 2022
On episode 29 we sit down with Jason Jurecka, a Lead Software Engineer at Visual Concepts, who just released WWE 2k22 laying the smack down on the competition. He’s a fellow Full Sail Alumni who I had the pleasure to work with at R* San Diego on Red Dead Redemption 1 and GTA V, and who has worked with damn near all the heavy hitters in the game from Blizzard, to EA on Battlefield, to where it all started at Big Huge Games on Catan & Rise of Legends.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Who is Jason Jurecka?
- (13:12) UGC Tools for Wrestling Games
- (23:07) A Day as an Engineer
- (35:36) Coming Up in a Small Texas Town
- (46:23) Finding the Right School for Comp Sci
- (56:58) Unpacking Burnout
- (01:04:42) Tools & Pipeline Engineering at Rockstar
- (01:12:44) Final Project at Full Sail
- (01:21:02) Schools of Engineering
- (01:31:15) Final Round
- (01:45:57) John's Final Thoughts & Teaser
Episode Resources:
Support Humanitarian Relief for Ukraine (epicgames.com)
Jason Jurecka’s' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-jurecka-9362182/
Visual Concepts’ Careers: https://vcentertainment.com/careers/
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Show: https://outofplayarea.com
Learn more about Full Sail University https://www.fullsail.edu/
Monday Mar 14, 2022
Monday Mar 14, 2022
Episode 28 is dedicated to the people of Ukraine.
We sit down with Alan Blaine, a Principal Technical Designer for Bungie on Destiny, and a former Rockstar Designer for Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto V. We talk about the latest release of the Witch Queen, his upcoming GDC 2022 talk, and the craft of being a Technical Designer and a good manager while still staying hands on as a Technical Designer.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Who is Alan Blaine?
- (12:37) Principal Tech Designer Responsibilities
- (25:59) Play Your Game
- (32:20) Starting as a Technical Artist
- (47:30) Thrasher & Skate Boarding
- (53:58) Shared World Shooters
- (01:04:20) Grand Theft Auto
- (01:12:40) The Chopping Block
- (01:21:57) GDC Presentation
- (01:28:59) Final Round
- (01:38:58) Words for Aspiring Devs
- (01:48:27) John's Final Thoughts & Teaser
Episode Resources:
GDC 2021 Panel Avoid an Identity Crisis as a Technical Designer: https://www.gdcvault.com/play/1027541/Avoid-an-Identity-Crisis-as
GDC 2022 Talk: 1000 Hours of Difficulty: How Destiny Build Systemic Challenge: https://schedule.gdconf.com/session/1000-hours-of-difficulty-how-destiny-builds-systemic-challenge/882052
Alan Blaine’s' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alan-blaine-4163314/
Alane’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alan_M_Blaine
Bungie Careers : https://careers.bungie.com/
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Monday Feb 28, 2022
Monday Feb 28, 2022
Episode 27 of Out of Play Area the game developer's podcast features James Kane, a Game Designer & QA Manager at Raccoon Studios in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He's an old WB Games Montreal buddy in arms during our time on Metallica & Gotham Knights, who has gone on to do major things in the industry coming up through QA and studying Game Design at Dawson College.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Who is James Kane?
- (9:02) Day in the Life of a Junior Designer & QA Manager
- (18:59) Different QA Branches
- (24:37) Levels of QA Part 2
- (30:44) Alternative to Bug Quotas
- (38:06) Origin Story
- (50:00) Going to Typhoon Studios
- (56:51) Raccoon Logic
- (01:02:35) Final Round
- (01:13:04) John's Final Thoughts & Teaser
Episode Resources:
James' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-kane-14893b47/
Racoon Logic : https://www.raccoonlogic.com/careers
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Monday Feb 14, 2022
Monday Feb 14, 2022
Marie has a long career in game development, where she has worked on several AAA titles such as Batman Arkham Origins, Dead Rising, RollerCoaster Tycoon and Deus Ex. She worked for a number of well-renowned studios such as Ubisoft, Capcom, Warner Bros and Eidos, eventually making her way up to Game Director.
Nowadays, she is a consultant who offers her services for studios, publishers, investors and schools. Marie was also one of the early pioneers of eSports, which she started her side career in by co-driving Femina Gaming, the world’s then-biggest community org for female esports. Her focus was on events and she arranged Counter-Strike competitions at Dreamhack 2004-2010. She then continued in competitive MOBA SMITE, fielding roles such as commentator, analyst and coach for a top #12 team. She also organized and produced tournament broadcasts for ESL and Meltdown eSports bar.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Who is Marie Mejerwall?
- (12:00) A Game Director's Job
- (22:46) Do What You Love
- (31:53) Earn Your Credits
- (39:32) Breaking into AAA at WB Games Montreal
- (51:26) Change is Key for Growth
- (59:32) More Than Your Role
- (01:07:12) Negotiating & Selecting Your Team
- (01:20:25) Final Round
- (01:39:52) John's Final Thoughts & Teaser
Episode Resources:
Marie's Website: https://mejerwall.com
Marie's MobyGames: https://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,592335/
Marie's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariemejerwall/
Game Dev Map: https://www.gamedevmap.com/
Show Website: http://outofplayarea.com
Connect with the host: http://elkingpin.com
Monday Jan 31, 2022
Monday Jan 31, 2022
On Season 2’s premiere episode we surf the waves of change with Mauro Fiore,
Studio Design Director at EA Firemonkeys in Melbourne, Australia.
Mauro has spent 20+ years navigating the ever evolving gaming landscape - from console to casual to mobile and beyond.
Join us as we discuss his journey from Carnegie Mellon University’s Entertainment Technology Center to Angel Studios, Rockstar Games, Zynga, Forgame, Linekong, and EA, working on titles such as Midnight Club 2 & 3, Red Dead Redemption, CityVille, FarmVille 2, BattleCore, Independence Day Extinction, Real Racing 3, Need for Speed No Limits, the Sims Free Play, and the Sims Mobile.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Who is Mauro Fiore?
- (14:37) Leaving Artifacts
- (25:56) Higher Education
- (37:50) Angel Studios
- (52:49) Part of the Angel Family
- (01:11:03) Designing the Wild West
- (01:25:12) Strive to Stay Relevant
- (01:39:17) Head North to Zynga
- (01:55:03) Developing for Mobile Startups
- (02:07:09) Life Down Under in Australia
- (02:25:10) The Metaverse & NFTs
- (02:41:59) Better Hiring Practices
- (02:56:01) John's Final Thoughts
Show Resources:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maurovfiore/
Portfolio: https://www.maurovfiore.com/
Monday Dec 27, 2021
Monday Dec 27, 2021
This bonus episode features your host John R. Diaz, a Senior Technical Designer for Electronic Arts Frostbite Engine. In this 1:1 we look back on the podcast and the inaugural year, where we've been, and where we hope to go in 2022.
Season 202(2) will kick off at the end of January / early February. See you all then!
Feel free to connect with John www.elkingpin.com
And connect with the show at www.outofplayarea.com
Links to other recommended podcasts:
Game Dev with a Shot of Jameson: https://open.spotify.com/show/2lvzEmdq6X9vwKWMi4F6CF
The AIAS Game Maker's Notebook: https://www.interactive.org/Interviews/the_game_makers_notebook.asp
The Game Dev Show: https://www.ptw.com/thegamedevshow/
The Habibis: https://thehabibis.transistor.fm/
GDC Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3IjaJ0YoZiVvgOK5xRlDQx
Zero To Play Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/13V48s0adPvEQRHHKPUU13
Monday Dec 13, 2021
Monday Dec 13, 2021
Johnny Wu is a QA Director at Riot Games in Santa Monica who has worked for Respawn on Apex Legends, King, Zynga, and King.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Who is Johnny Wu?
- (07:34) A Toast with Johnny
- (15:43) What is a QA Director?
- (25:20) Getting into Games
- (32:37) Learning the QA Craft
- (39:52) Working at King
- (51:10) Canada to London
- (59:13) L.A. L.A. Land
- (01:07:36) Manager Life
- (01:13:46) Riot Games
- (01:23:08) Final Round
Links:
Johnny Wu on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnnywu85/
Connect with the host: https://linktr.ee/jkingpin
Follow the show: http://outofplayarea.com
Monday Nov 29, 2021
Monday Nov 29, 2021
Episode 22 of the game dev's podcast features Elaine Gomez a Game Designer at Brass Lion Entertainment based out of New York City.
Elaine Gómez is an award-winning game designer currently working at Brass Lion Entertainment with 5 years of experience in gameplay and systems design. She is one of the six co-founders of Latinx in Gaming and supports the non-profit organization with game development-related initiatives and resources. Elaine is passionate about mentorship and often lends her design knowledge and resources to serve young game developers across the globe.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Episode Origin Notes
- (02:57) Homeland Talk
- (09:17) Elaine’s Roots & Hustling to Get On
- (17:28) Design Portfolio
- (26:03) Designing In The Pandemic
- (32:57) Being Your Authentic Self
- (45:16) Soft Skills Are Essential
- (51:46) Emotional Intelligence & Self-Advocating
- (01:08:14) Founding a Family in Latinx in Gaming
- (01:14:42) Representation & Women in Design
- (01:28:27) Academics & Graduate Programs
- (01:39:09) Final Round Games
- (01:52:26) UX in Beyond Blue
Links:
https://twitter.com/chulatastic
https://brasslionentertainment.com/careers/
https://www.amazon.com/Games-Design-Play-detailed-iterative/dp/0134392078
Monday Nov 08, 2021
Monday Nov 08, 2021
Angelica "Jel" Baca is a UX Designer at Intercept Games who found her way through QA for Glu Mobile, Bungie, PopCap, Card Kingdom, and King.
Listen to her journey through this industry and how she thrives today.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Who is Angelica Baca?
- (07:23) Customer Support @ Big Fish Games
- (14:55) First Game
- (22:28) QA Ground Floor
- (30:45) Networking & Professional Relationships
- (37:21) Stepping out of Games for Ads Colony
- (45:29) Discovering UX at King
- (56:15) Card Kingdom
- (01:13:57) Final Round
- (01:26:14) John's Closing Thoughts
Links:
Jel Baca on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jellbel
Jel Baca on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelica-baca-16518230/
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back - Nes Playthrough
Connect with the host: https://linktr.ee/jkingpin
Follow the show: http://outofplayarea.com
Monday Oct 25, 2021
Monday Oct 25, 2021
Ryan Paradis, Design Director at Bungie working on Destiny talks about his journey through Full Sail University, working at Rockstar Games in San Diego, to Bungie on Destiny, to 343 on Halo Infinite and more.
Chapters:
- (00:00) Who is Ryan Paradis?
- (10:39) Full Sail University Alliances
- (16:49) Live Design Director Life
- (26:30) Personal Sustainability
- (33:40) Power of Cutting Content
- (49:02) Wearing the Producer Hat
- (1:01:31) Game Release Windows
- (01:22:33) Team Play
- (01:30:07) Minimum Viable Product
- (01:40:43) John's Final Thoughts & Next Episode Teaser
Additional Links:
Ryan's Moby Games: https://www.mobygames.com/developer/brian-dumlao/credits/developerId,92531/
Connect with the host - https://linktr.ee/jkingpin
Connect with us: http://outofplayarea.com