Kit: "Metal Gear Solid Made Me a Game Designer" - Indie Diary #101

Welcome back for the first Indie Diary post Episode 100, my faves! In this episode I spent some time with Kit, the founder of Artificium Games and developer behind Ooops, You're The Hero – which sounds exactly as interesting as it is. From games changing lives to rope swinging pains, this episode is a really cool one! Enjoy! 🎒💛---------------------Support Kit 🎒💛 Steam: ⁠https://store.steampowered.com/app/3166160/Oops_Youre_the_Hero/⁠Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/kitathanatosdev.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/athanatos_dev/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kit-arnold-209872142/Bluesky:  https://bsky.app/profile/artificiumgames.bsky.socialTwitter:  https://twitter.com/ArtificiumGWebsite: https://www.artificium.games/------------------Support the show 🎒💛Meaningful Games Jam 2026: https://itch.io/jam/meaningful-games-jam-2026Join the community: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvjBecome a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠

We've had more than 100 episodes together. Here's to 1,000 more! 🎒💛What's next for the show? Many great things, I hope, but most importantly... meaning!See you in the next Indie Diary, my friends. 🎒💛

It's here! 100 episodes, over 100 developer interviews, and 4 years of The Indie Diarist join forces for a major milestone of the show. How do I even begin to describe the amount of knowledge, stories, passion, and achievements I've heard about in 4 years, and how do I condense them into one single episode? Believe it or not, I tried.In this Indie Diary #100, you finally get to hear from Ant, The Diarist himself, on what almost half a decade of the show means to him (me!), the beauty of game development, and why people keep wanting to create things against all odds.Enjoy! 🎒💛--------------------Support the show 🎒💛Meaningful Games Jam 2026: https://itch.io/jam/meaningful-games-jam-2026Join the community: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvjBecome a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠

Episode 100 is just around the corner! In this one, I spent some time with Flint Burchett, a lovely developer working on the ambitious and intriguing top-down shooter Suqare: Hired Gun. Flint's persistence and sense of wonder are constant drivers for his work, and it was amazing to connect with such a passionate dev.Truly couldn't wish for a better guest for episode 99. 🎒💛Enjoy!------------------Support Flint 🎒💛Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3314260/Suqare_Hired_Gun/Linktree: https://linktr.ee/FlintBurchettInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/invites/contact/------------------Support the show 🎒💛Enter the Meaningful Games Jam 2026: https://itch.io/jam/meaningful-games-jam-2026Join the community: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvjBecome a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠

Get ready for a bit of an unconventional episode, friends! In this one, I spent some time with Eegar, a talented game development student who's working on his commercial game while sharing his game dev journey online. Eegar is seeing some success on socials with his content, and I just had to snatch him for a quick hour together to learn more about what he does, and discuss some marketing best practices for you all.Interestingly, this episode brought back my much feared audio issues... but in an entirely unique way that I think led me to create quite an interesting episode after all. Hope you enjoy! 🎒💛--------------Support Eegar 🎒💛- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/its.eegar/- All links and games: https://eegar.carrd.co/?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio---------------Support the show 🎒💛Join the Meaningful Games Jam 2026: https://itch.io/jam/meaningful-games-jam-2026Join the community: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvjBecome a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠

You don't hear many of these stories, but when you do, they're always worth the time! In this episode, meet SUPERita, the energetic solo developer who was able to turn his dream into reality in just six months. From a failed mobile game to a global hit, his story is a testament to perseverance, smart scoping, and heart-driven creation.In this episode:How SUPERita's love for The Witcher fuelled his journey into game developmentThe importance of small projects and rapid iteration to build confidence and skillThe behind-the-scenes of creating IncreKnight, a successful incremental game with a unique villainThe power of community feedback, game jams, and choosing the right nichePractical tips for handling development challenges like UI polish and art sourcingThe emotional moment of hitting the sales goal that finally allowed full-time indie lifeDreaming big: future projects, game ideas inspired by personal stories, and going beyond just making gamesEnjoy! 🎒💛--------------------Support SUPERita 🎒💛Get IncreKnight: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4305480/IncreKnight/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0vkmE9at3BRQZW6RVouXRwOther games: https://store.steampowered.com/developer/superita-----------------Support the show 🎒💛Meaningful Games Jam 2026: https://itch.io/jam/meaningful-games-jam-2026Join the community: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvjBecome a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠

Sometimes leaps of faith can pay off! In this episode I spent some time with Julian, a Belgian game developer living in Normandy, who shared his raw journey from childhood gaming memories to launching his first bullet hell game, Particulitix. After being laid off from his tech job, Julien took a leap of faith and he hasn't looked back since. I wish I were as brave sometimes!In this episode:Julian’s nostalgic first game: Burger Time on Commodore 64The leap from hobbyist to full-time developer after losing his jobConquering the unique challenges of bullet hell and roguelite hybrid designSecrets to making a bullet hell feel intuitive and funHow feedback and noise shape a game’s evolutionThe importance of core mechanics that players don’t see but feelA peek into indie development’s messy, beautiful code and endless iterationBuilding meaningful connections with games designed for loved onesEnjoy! 🎒💛--------------------Support Julien 🎒💛X: https://x.com/TheWorkshopGeekBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/workshopgeek.bsky.socialParticulitix on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4139330/Particulitix--------------------Support the show 🎒💛Join the community: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvjBecome a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠

Get ready for a whopper of an episode! In this one, I spent some time with Tali from ORIGAME DIGITAL, developer of Penguin Colony – a short narrative adventure game which re-imagines H.P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness in... unexpected ways. Our conversation soon went completely off the rails, embracing topics such as games as a form of art, the power of political philosophy, and how creativity allows us to reclaim meaningful narratives while condemning others. It was a privilege to both record and take part in this episode. Enjoy! 🎒💛-----------------Support Tali 🎒💛Wishlist Penguin Colony: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3695930/Penguin_Colony/Follow on Bluesky: ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/veselekov.bsky.social⁠-----------------Support the show 🎒💛Join the community: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvjBecome a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠

Itching to make a cool game late this year? Seasoned developer or complete newbie, this might be a good chance to do something special for it! To celebrate episode 100, I'm hosting the Meaningful Games Jam 2026. It's a jam to make a game that means something to you!Listen to this episode to learn about all the rules and details, or skip to the good stuff with the links below. 🎒💛Check out the Meaningful Games Jam 2026: https://itch.io/jam/meaningful-games-jam-2026Join the Discord server to vote the theme with us: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvj---------------Support the show 🎒💛Become a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠

Game development is a journey of passion, persistence, and often a little bit of sweat and tears. In this episode, I spent some time with Pippo and Alex from Cobalt Lane, a small development studio currently working on narrative gem Imprinted. If you're into David Lynch and obscure vintage references, this episode is for you!We're going to have a dev commentary livestream with these two lovely peeps on Discord soon, so make sure to join the community from the links below!Enjoy! 🎒💛--------------Support Alex & Pippo 🎒💛- Wishlist Imprinted: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3980340/Imprinted/- Social links: https://linktr.ee/cobaltlanegames--------------Support the show 🎒💛Join the community: https://discord.com/invite/J84aPfSSvjBecome a Patron: https://patreon.com/theindiediaristYouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheIndieDiaristTwitch: https://twitch.tv/theindiediarist⁠TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@theindiediaristThreads: https://threads.net/@theindiediaristTwitter: https://twitter.com/theindiediarist⁠