Tue, 12 August 2008 In this last episode before GenCon 2008, Ryan talks about a problem he's recently encountered in his own and other people's projects -- that we spend too much time on mechanics and not enough on situation. He talks about why we likely run into this problem, what "situation" is (opposed to mechanics or setting), and an exercise he did in order to get his head out of mechanics and into situation. Jared Sorensen's blog post on Game Elements. Running time: 26:07 / File size: 18.0 MB Discuss this episode on the forums: http://www.hmfy.com/masterplan/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=38 |
Thu, 31 July 2008 This week, Ryan talks with Chris Birch of Cubicle 7 Entertainment about two licensed properties they're working with: Starblazer Adventures & the Doctor Who RPG. The two licenses are radically different, and Chris has a background in working with the intellectual property of others due to his clothing company, Joystick Junkies. They talk about some of the issues around and advice with licensing, as well as touch on why he chose to also license a game system as well for Starblazer Adventures. Afterwards, Ryan gushes about how much of a nice guy Chris is, and Jerry "J-Nasty" Grayson provides us with July's Sponsor Quote. Chris Birch & Cubicle 7 Entertainment:
Running time: 28:51 / File size: 19.8 MB Discuss this episode on the forums: http://www.hmfy.com/masterplan/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=37 |
Wed, 16 July 2008 On this episode (which is my longest yet), Fred Hicks and I kick off the long-awaited series on mechanics with a discussion about "points of tension," relating both to Don't Rest Your Head's Exhaustion mechanic and Mythender's Mortality mechanic. Fred starts with a wacky assertion -- that conflict is underutilized in RPGs -- and goes from there. Afterwards, Ryan brings up three things: the now-in-preorder Don't Lose your Mind (which he's proud to be the editor of), Levi Kornelsen & Amagi Games, and a new podcasting project with Paul Tevis called This Just In From GenCon. This time, he remembers the Design Watch bump. Specific Mentions:
Discuss this episode on the forums: http://www.hmfy.com/masterplan/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=36 |
Wed, 2 July 2008 On this episode, Ryan talks with Clint Krause of KNRPG Productions about his early game, Roanoke, for the Designing from Other Games series. Clint released this game some time ago, derived from the Wushu system. They talk about issues Clint had to deal with, which given how light the base system is, meant more dealing with establishing tone & genre conventions that systemic hacking. They also talk briefly about thoughts on historical-based games and endgame mechanics. Afterwards, Ryan brings back the Design Watch segment to talk about some things Brennan Taylor has mentioned in the last few days. Clint Krause, KNRPG Productions:
Discuss this episode on the forums: http://www.hmfy.com/masterplan/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=35 |
Fri, 13 June 2008 Ryan talks with gaming luminary Robin Laws about his upcoming game, Mutant City Blues. Mutant City Blues is the latest GUMSHOE game, this one not focused on the horror genre but on police procedurals & super-powers. They talk about designing this game from the original GUMSHOE framework, what was changed to make the game focused on the new premise, and overall the experiences of making this game. Throughout the show, Robin also talks a bit about moments in GUMSHOE's design in general. Robin Laws & GUMSHOE:
Discuss this episode on the forums: http://www.hmfy.com/masterplan/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=34 |
