Quest Markers

HeartLoop Games Founder, Creative Director, and veteran Game Designer Osama Dorias joins Marina Ryan to talk about designing game systems and feel. They talk about what game design is (and why it’s impossible to define), the challenge of designing a hybrid roguelike-fighting game, designing game systems and feel, and more. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat.* * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:04:35) Osama’s journey into game development(00:10:00) What is game design?(00:16:10) What roles fall under game design? (00:20:00) What is Poly Fighter? Designing a hybrid roguelike-fighting game(00:32:20) How does a designer put forward a design hypothesis? (00:41:00) How does a designer create both a low skill floor and high skill ceiling? (00:52:00) What is tuning and how does a game designer tune a video game? (00:55:40) Final thoughts on game design from Osama (01:03:50) What advice would Osama give his younger self? (01:05:50) What advice does Osama have for young designers? * * * * * FOLLOW USPoly Fighter: https://store.steampowered.com/app/39... Quest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Osama’s Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/osamadorias.... Marina’s socials: ⁠https://marinaryan.carrd.co/Live Show on Twitch: ⁠  / marinahascoffee  Live Show on YouTube:    / @questmarkers   Music by Marina RyanAlex Jaffe’s GDC Talk:  Cursed Problems in Game Design  

Award-winning mastering engineer and sound designer Jordan Fehr (Guild Wars 2, Pacific Drive, Donkey Kong Country Returns) joins Marina Ryan to demystify the final step in the music making process. They talk about the differences between music mixing and mastering, topics like loudness and sound perception, why mastering is important for specific types of in-game music, what it’s like working on an MMO, and more. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat.* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:03:50) Jordan’s journey into games (00:11:21) What is music mastering?(00:17:38) What is the difference between mixing and mastering? (00:23:50) The value of working with a mastering engineer (00:26:20) Discussing loudness, sound perception, monitoring, normalization(00:41:08) What it’s like working on an MMO (00:45:27) If Jordan could only have 3 tools for the rest of his career… (00:52:04) What Jordan is listening for when receiving a mix(00:56:15) Jordan’s advice for up-and-coming audio engineers(01:00:00) What advice would Jordan give his younger self?(01:03:15 ) Outro * * * * * * * FOLLOW USQuest Markers: ⁠https://questmarkers.carrd.co/Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeJordan’s socials: https://lnk.bio/jordanfehr Jordan’s website: https://www.jordanfehr.com/ Marina’s socials: https://marinaryan.carrd.co/Music by Marina Ryan

Grammy-winner Brooke Vlahos (Destiny 2, Halo Infinite, Shadow of Mordor, Guild Wars) joins Marina Ryan to talk about live music recording for AAA games, how she got into live recording, the various roles that she holds (scoring stage engineer, stage manager, front of house engineer), what makes for a good recording day, and more. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!**********************TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:04:00) How Brooke got into live music recording for games(00:05:55) Brooke’s roles: scoring stage engineer, stage manager, front of house engineer(00:09:15) What makes for a good recording day? (00:10:00) Is live recording becoming more available to non-AAA titles?(00:12:37) Advice for someone’s first recording session(00:17:30) Brooke’s dream collaborations(00:24:47) What is Brooke’s definition of success?(00:27:20) What advice would Brooke give her younger self?(00:29:20) Outro(00:30:33) From Q&A: Hardware that Brooke uses during live recordings**********************FOLLOW USQuest Markers: ⁠questmarkers.carrd.coMarina’s socials: marinaryan.carrd.coLive Show on Twitch: twitch.tv/marinahascoffee Music by Marina Ryan#gamedevelopment #gamedev #gamedeveloper #g

Musician and sound designer Ryako joins Marina Ryan to talk about the music and sound for The Spirit Lift, a ghostpunk, roguelike game. They dig into Ryako’s journey into game development, how her experience as a music producer has helped her with sound design, and what it’s like working on your first game. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:03:03) How Ryako got into game development (00:05:40) The music of The Spirit Lift(00:08:30) Sound designing the characters & implementation(00:12:05) Mixing and mastering the music (00:13:07) Ryako’s music composition process (00:16:45) What it feels like working on your first game (& being a first-time sound designer)(00:19:20) What it’s like working on a fully-remote team (00:29:30) Where Ryako draws inspiration from (00:39:15) What advice would Ryako give her younger self? (00:44:30) Outro* * * * * * * FOLLOW USRyako’s website: https://www.ryakomusic.com/ The Spirit Lift Soundtrack: https://ryako.bandcamp.com/album/the-spirit-lift-original-game-soundtrack Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠ Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan#gamedevelopment #gamedev #gamedeveloper #gamedevpodcast #videogames #videogamesoundtrack #indiegames #indiegamedev #indiegame #roguelike #roguelikedeckbuilder #deckbuilder #sounddesign

Parker Hartzler (Resident Evil 4 Remake, Forza Motorsport, New Tales from the Borderlands) joins Marina Ryan to talk about motion capture, lighting, and technical art in video games. They dig into each discipline and discuss what game developers are responsible for as motion capture technicians, lighting artists, and tech artists.Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:04:13) How did Parker get into game development?(00:10:05) What is motion capture?(00:16:30) What does a mocap technician do? (00:22:55) Is mocap becoming more available to indies and AA studios? (00:27:27) What do lighting artists do? (00:37:45) How is lighting done differently in cutscenes vs. gameplay?(00:46:50) What do technical artists do? (01:01:10) What advice would Parker give their younger self? (01:06:53) Outro* * * * * * * FOLLOW USParker’s socials: https://bsky.app/profile/parkerhartzler.bsky.social Parker’s Unreal Engine tool: https://bsky.app/profile/parkerhartzler.bsky.social/post/3mhgoxan3tk2t Marina’s socials: ⁠https://marinaryan.carrd.co/Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan

Abigail Carey (Morbid Metal, Mecharashi, Liminal Point) joins Marina Ryan to talk about the journey of becoming a voice actor for video games. They touch on various topics, from auditions, to equipment, to growth and overcoming failure. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:03:23) How did Abigail get into acting?(00:07:17) How did Abigail get into acting for video games? (00:10:51) What kind of characters does Abigail most enjoy portraying?  (00:12:40) How is voice acting for video games different than voice acting for animation or podcasts? (00:14:35) How does Abigail prepare for a role?  (00:17:10) What’s it like being in the booth?(00:19:17) How does Abigail prepare to be in the booth?  (00:21:47) How does Abigail continuously work on her craft?  (00:25:25) Talking about equipment (00:30:47) Growth, failure, feeling ready, perfectionism (00:35:30) What advice would Abigail give her younger self?  (00:00:00) Outro* * * * * * * FOLLOW USAbigail’s socials: https://linktr.ee/abigail.carey Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠  Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan#gamedevelopment #gamedev #gamedeveloper #gamedevpodcast #videogames #videogamesoundtrack #indiegames #indiegamedev #indiegame #voiceacting #voiceactingtips #voiceactingadvice

Dr. Miko Charbonneau joins Marina Ryan to chat about best practices for remote work, how to prioritize the team’s wellbeing and happiness, and the path that took Miko from working on Minecraft to starting her own studio.Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:06:00) Miko’s path into game development(00:13:24) What is THE SPIRIT LIFT?(00:23:23) Game design, player psychology, and narrative   (00:28:55) Starting a remote game studio (00:34:13) Running a healthy game studio that prioritizes the team’s happiness(00:56:50) What advice would Miko give her younger self? (01:04:34) Outro* * * * * * * FOLLOW USTHE SPIRIT LIFT Steam page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1727590/THE_SPIRIT_LIFT/Miko’s socials: https://linktr.ee/mikocharbonneau prettysmart games’ socials: https://linktr.ee/prettysmartgames prettysmart games’ YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@PrettySmartGames Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠  Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina RyanMiko’s podcast episode about Ada Wong: https://www.hotbaddies.club/episodes/s1-e9 Miko’s book recommendation (not sponsored): Building Your Business the Right Brain Way by Jennifer Lee This episode of Quest Markers is not sponsored.

Rachel Heleva is back on the show to answer your questions about video game publishing! Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:03:20) How Rachel got into the games industry (00:07:22) “What should I talk about when presenting a pitch deck?” (00:19:40) “What support do publishers offer besides financial support?”(00:27:50) “Should a game have a demo before we approach a publisher?”(00:34:55) “Where can I find a publisher that’s going to be the best fit for my studio?” (00:42:35) “What are some ideal terms and red flags in publishing contracts?” (00:49:55) Advice for independent game studios (01:00:05) What advice would Rachel give her younger and older selves? (01:07:11) Outro* * * * * * * January’s episode with Antonio Freyre: https://youtu.be/1NId9pvBvHI?si=aac3OAMNMjFRGu-h * * * * * * * FOLLOW USRachel’s Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hlywa.bsky.social Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinahascoffeeLive Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan

Tangleworm joins Marina Ryan to talk about the journey that led him to develop NOMIA, a tactics roguelike game.They delve into how fantasy and sci-fi can help us imagine a better world, how playtesters can shape the development of key game mechanics, and techniques to stay motivated while working on something as complex as a roguelike video game. Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro(00:04:00) Tangleworm’s path into game development(00:06:00) What is NOMIA?(00:07:35) The inspiration behind NOMIA’s development process (00:11:45) Why NOMIA is a game (and not a graphic novel) (00:15:50) NOMIA’s worldbuilding and narrative themes (00:26:00) Making indie game development sustainable (00:32:18) What’s been fun and challenging when developing NOMIA (00:36:36) Personal game dev philosophies(00:43:07) Advice for new game developers(00:48:50) What advice would Tangleworm give his younger self?(00:51:40) Outro* * * * * * * FOLLOW USMagenesium Ninja’s website: https://magnesiumninja.com/ NOMIA’s Steam page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3608900/NOMIA/?curator_clanid=45661602 Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠ Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan

Mike from Archangel Softworks joins Marina Ryan to talk about his game development journey and upcoming title, Highway Noir.They delve into what it’s like going from a solo developer to leading a team, managing complexity on larger-scale projects, the importance of prototyping, cohesive art direction, self-doubt, and much more.Grab a coffee, and join us for a chat!* * * * * * * TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Intro (00:03:15) How Mike got into game development(00:07:00) Mike’s upcoming game, Highway Noir(00:13:10) Being a solo dev vs. being the captain of the freelance ship(00:18:13) Managing responsibilities: coding, admin, art, marketing, music, and more(00:23:15) Party selection: how hiring decisions are made (00:27:48) Art direction and artistic cohesion (00:33:15) Prototyping and practice: how experimentation and learning (00:38:30) What has been the most challenging thing about working on highway Noir (00:43:50) What has been the most fun?(00:45:50) You’re sitting on the precipice of release, how are you feeling? (00:47:58) What advice would Mike give his younger self? (00:50:00) Outro* * * * * * * FOLLOW USMike’s socials: https://bsky.app/profile/archangelsoftworks.co.uk Highway Noir Steam page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3317730/Highway_Noir/ Marina’s socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/marinaryan⁠  Live Show on Twitch: ⁠https://twitch.tv/marinahascoffeeQuest Markers: ⁠https://linktr.ee/questmarkers⁠Music by Marina Ryan