with Arvi "Hempuli" Teikari
Releasing 2019's "Baba is You" after more than a decade of making puzzle games was a milestone for this week's guest, but it was also just the beginning of his design journey.
2025.02.27
Nice Replay
- Communicating Difficulty
- Remixed Play Modes
This week, Ellen kicks things off with a chat about how games tell players, “This might be tough!” and how to make that fun and fair. Stephen and Mark jump in with their takes on what makes difficulty settings shine.
2025.02.20
with Jarryd Huntley
Entering the clubhouse this week is our the third Owl (employee of Owlchemy Labs) and first Peabody Award winner (as lead developer for We Are OFK), to talk about the "dos," "don'ts," and "good enoughs" of optimization.
2025.02.13
Nice Thinking
Stephen brings a half-baked thought into the clubhouse for this Nice Thinking episode: how can we improve dialogue systems? He's got some opinions, which Mark and Ellen immediately debunk, but it leads to some engaging conversation.
2025.02.06
- Theming vs. Aesthetics
- Parries
It’s hot in the clubhouse and hot in Ellen’s greenhouse this week, so your hosts are eager to crunch through some discussion.
2025.01.30
with Luke Spierewka
"Tutorials shouldn’t feel like tutorials!" Like most aspects of game design, it's an easy concept to summarize but a difficult one to pull off.
2025.01.23
- King Making
- Thinky Bits (Off-Screen Gameplay)
In the episode, Mark, Ellen, and Stephen talk local events, including (don’t worry everyone’s fine) a fire in the clubhouse’s building, construction, and the games they are playing, so if you are just here for the topics, go ahead and sk
2025.01.16
Nice Games Jam
2025.01.09
with Ron Gilbert
Your nice hosts welcome famed designer Ron Gilbert (Monkey Island, Thimbleweed Park) into the clubhouse to discuss the virtues of inexperience, friction for its own sake, how it's all about story, and it's puzzles all the way down.
2025.01.02
- Code Libraries
- Game Overs
This week, your nice hosts talk about code that isn't yours and ask about the natural conclusion of the narrative. Mark is handy, Ellen kinda wants to add a note, and Stephen is grounded.
2024.12.27
with Rick Stemm
In this episode your nice hosts welcome Rick Stemm of PikPok to the clubhouse to talk about what happens after a game gets greenlit.
2024.02.29
- Secrets & Easter Eggs
- Player Trust
In this episode, Mark makes up a reason to take a road trip, Ellen outwits everyone, and Stephen was also there.
2024.02.22
Nice Games Jam
2024.02.15
- CSS
- Skill Trees
2024.02.08
- Branding & Iconography
- The Ethics of Engagement
It's spooky season! Stephen is SO over it, but he can't escape all the scary stuff happening in this week's episode.
2024.02.01