Game Dev Story

Game Dev Story: Minh Le, Counter-Strike

Tue, 22 Jul 2025 07:00:01 +0000

Minh "Gooseman" Le, the creator of Counter-Strike, sits in for an hour-long podcast about his history developing videogames, from the creation of one of the most beloved and influential multiplayer games of the '90s to his work on new projects that blend all of his influences together, like the upcoming Alpha Response. We discuss changes in the game development industry, work culture at Valve, and what makes Counter-Strike so fundamentally special and lasting in a world crowded with a plethora of options for First Person Shooters. Counter-Podcasters win.

Game Dev Story: Christopher Atallah, ODR Hockey Heroes

Wed, 25 Oct 2023 13:00:00 +0000

ODR [Outdoor Rink] Hockey Heroes is an exciting new arcade-style hockey game from Christopher Atallah, a fellow hockey historian who has played all the stick-and-puck game conversions and put the best influences back into his game. On the eve of this year's hockey season, we talk about our diehard hockey habits, create the Mount Rushmore of hockey videogames, and give an exciting preview for Atallah's new game ODR Hockey Heroes, inspired by NHL 94, Wayne Gretzky's 3D Hockey, NHL 3-on-3 Arcade, and Midway's NHL Hitz series. This is Christopher Atallah's Game Dev Story.

Game Dev Story: Michael Long, Kaiju Wars

Tue, 24 Oct 2023 03:25:12 +0000

Michael Long of Foolish Mortals joins the show to discuss Kaiju Wars, a great riff on Advance Wars that pits your military against a rogue's gallery of awesome Kaiju. The game is a unique spin on the turn-based strategy play style employing timed puzzles to route the Kaijus before they cause unspeakable destruction to each area. We love Kaijus, Advance Wars, and Kaiju Wars, and now we get to tell Michael Long's Game Dev Story.

Game Dev Story: Nolan Bushnell, Atari

Thu, 12 Oct 2023 12:00:00 +0000

Nolan Bushnell is one of the foremost figures in the world of games, one of the first true innovators in the market who brought the coin-op experience home, Bushnell brought us Atari, Pong, the 2600, and Chuck E Cheese. Few creators in games have given us so much... and now, Nolan Bushnell tells us his Game Dev Story, from the storied beginnings of console games to the expansion into his own arcade spaces to his present work in cultivating a game market for education. Bushnell is one of a kind and you won't want to miss his journey through the history of games, which also happens to be the history of games themselves.

You can order Nolan Bushnell's new book Shaping the Future of Education on Amazon

Game Dev Story: Zach Barth, Zachtronics

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Zachtronics made singular games for engineers and people who make games. They made the game that inspired Minecraft. Imagine the breadth of their influence and it's clear what their open-ended puzzle games have truly inspired in modern game design. We chat with the studio's founder Zach Barth about the legendary history of these programming-forward computer games, the weight of outsized influence, working for Valve, and what he's up to today. This is Zach Barth's Game Dev Story.

Game Dev Story: Carlos Bordeu, Zeno Clash

Wed, 13 Sep 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Andres, Carlos, and Edmundo Bordeu (ACE Team) are surrealist Chilean game developers who began with Doom and Quake mods and led to a publishing contract with Atlus. The eccentricities of the Zeno Clash & Rock of Ages games point to a colorful story about a studio coding outside the lines. There’s even more to the story and we’re proud to help tell the story of three brothers and their videogame dream in Chile. This is ACE Team's Game Dev Story.

Game Dev Story: Ken Williams, Sierra On-Line

Wed, 09 Aug 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Alongside his wife Roberta Williams, Ken Williams co-founded Sierra On-Line, the most influential computer game publisher of their era. Hundreds of games followed. Sierra On-Line published everything from perennial in-house favorites like King's Quest and Leisure Suit Larry to outside games that defined generations like Half-Life and Ultima. This is an interview podcast about the foundation of Sierra On-Line, a business partnership, life after game development, and returning to the fold. This is a document of one of the most influential subjects in videogames and an outline of an inspiring career. This is Ken Williams' Game Dev Story.

Game Dev Story: Ron Gilbert, The Secret of Monkey Island

Wed, 26 Jul 2023 12:02:00 +0000

Ron Gilbert designed some of the most enduring adventure games, Maniac Mansion (1987) and The Secret of Monkey Island (1990), and is rightly heralded as one of our great genre pioneers. Gilbert's career, now stretching over several decades, offers many inflection points, and thoughtful swerves with and against the tides of the market. In this edition of Game Dev Story, we delve into Gilbert's full career, spanning from his time at LucasArts, to the foundation of the top-tier children's computer game studio Humungeous Entertainment, to crowd-funding his own games. It's a swashbuckling good time as we plunder the full career of such a notable game designer. There's something for everyone here, whether you may be a long-time fan or a game designer yourself, so let's sit back and enjoy Ron Gilbert's Game Dev Story.

Game Dev Story: Quentin De Beukelaer, Decarnation

Wed, 12 Jul 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Quentin De Beukelaer has gone from designing major games with Ubisoft to creating his own pixel horror scape, blending the styles of David Lynch & Satoshi Kon, with original music scored by Akira Yamaoka. Quentin joins the show to discuss his path to game development, the difference between developing massive franchises and more personal indie projects, and the Game Dev Story for his studio Atelier QDB's new narrative horror game, Decarnation.

Cathryne Czubek & Nabwana I.G.G., Once Upon a Time in Uganda

Mon, 10 Jul 2023 12:00:00 +0000

The best cult cinema of the century is being made in Uganda. We interview the creator of some of Africa's best contemporary film exports, Nabwana I.G.G., and documentarian Cathryne Czubek who has made a new film about the Wakliwood project. Who Killed Captain Alex? (2010), Crazy World (2014), and Big Black (2016) will go down as some of the most thrilling action movies of our time. We talk about the influences of visceral kung-fu movies, cultural differences which inform the materials, the present and future of Ugandan cinema, and what it was like making a documentary about such globally revered action films.

Game Dev Story: Al Lowe, Leisure Suit Larry

Wed, 28 Jun 2023 14:00:00 +0000

Al Lowe is the creator of Leisure Suit Larry, the irreverent Sierra On-Line franchise that broke all the unspoken rules of game development. A crucial contributor through all of Sierra On-Line's brightest years, Al went from teaching music to students to developing videogames loaded with wit and personality. In our inaugural episode of Game Dev Story, a series where we talk to veteran and indie developers about their history in games, Al joins our show to share his philosophy about game development and to give the inside scoop about one of the most interesting studios of the '80s and '90s. Like playing one of Al's games, listening to him reflect on his career in games is compelling and very charming.

Reed Harkness, Sam Now

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 06:25:21 +0000

Seattle-based filmmaker Reed Harkness stops by for a chat about his new documentary Sam Now, an exploration not just of family, but in the same vein as Sarah Polley's miraculous Stories We Tell (2012), about how we tell our stories, the ways our environment shapes who we are, and what it means to film our families. Sam Now is showing in Seattle this month at Northwest Film Forum & The Grand Illusion. You won't want to miss it.

Mickey Reese, Country Gold

Tue, 04 Apr 2023 16:00:00 +0000

Mickey Reese is creating a scene in Oklahoma. His many films are communal exhibitions made with friends, crafted out of love for the great American filmmakers who came before him. Reese's recent genre works have caught attention at festivals and now his Altman-esque Country Gold is seeking an audience. We had a great chat with the director, exploring the themes of his new film and its relationship with American movies about country music and the established canon of movies about the place of idols in pop culture.

The Film Lads, The Lad Goodbye

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 13:00:00 +0000

do it themselves, weaving together a neo-noir stoner comedy overflowing with dedication and homage to all of their favorite filmmakers. The film is The Lad Goodbye, and Vaughn and Jack are here to talk to its trio of creators, The Film Lads - Nolan, Kirk, and Victor.

Today, find out how the lads met, the process that led to the creation of the film, its dizzying array of influences, how The Lad Goodbye's hazy stoner logic all came together, Letterboxd as a platform for social film discovery, and so much more.

The film is available to watch for free any time on their Vimeo page, and you can connect with the Film Lads on Nolan, Kirk, and Victor's Letterboxd pages.

Angus MacLane, Lightyear

Thu, 23 Jun 2022 12:00:00 +0000

Angus MacLane is the director of Pixar's latest venture Lightyear, returning the studio to their rightful place in theaters, and expanding upon the meta fiction of the Toy Story franchise. MacLane was previously co-director on Finding Dory (2016) and notably has directed a series of shorts and significant pieces of animation for the studio. Join us as we discuss the path to directing at Pixar, why Buzz needed his own origin story, what it's like to develop a major animated film during a pandemic, and much more.

Charles Roxburgh, Monsters, Marriage and Murder in Manchvegas

Thu, 23 Jun 2022 05:15:00 +0000

It's our honor to welcome Charles Roxburgh to the show. As the director mastermind behind the Motern Media vehicle, Charles is responsible for so many of our new favorite cult movies and is just as amiable on our show as is apparent in all of his lovely movies. Join us for a longform open-hearted conversation discussing yet another gem in the Motern canon, but also our collective love of cult and outsider films as a whole. There are many details here you're just not gonna get anywhere else!

Matt Farley, Freaky Farley

Wed, 04 May 2022 04:18:00 +0000

The incomparable Matt Farley joins the regular Moterncast crew to highlight a gem from the Motern catalogue: 2007’s Freaky Farley, a rare throwback to ultra specific horror tropes. You won’t want to miss our interview, full of new details you won’t find anywhere else about the slate of upcoming Motern projects!

Panah Panahi, Hit the Road

Thu, 07 Apr 2022 12:00:00 +0000

Panah Panahi's Hit the Road is an emotional new journey from Iran. Directed by the son of one of Iran's great filmmakers, we had the pleasure to chat with Panahi about family ties, becoming a great director himself, controversy and Iranian cinema, and a profound love of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).

Telluride 2021: Mark Cousins

Mon, 13 Sep 2021 12:00:00 +0000

Mark Cousins is a foremost chronicler of the new film canon, expanding our culture and understanding of cinema in innovative and diverse new directions. With The Story of Film (2011) and Women Make Film (2018), Cousins has provided us with new pathways for discovery and a more diverse appreciation of film. With his new project, The Story of Looking, premiering at Telluride, Cousins creates a more internal document: exploring the gift of looking and what it means to observe the world. In The Story of Looking, wherein Cousins is preparing for a risky eye surgery, the camera is turned inward, examining what it means to see the world, through the lens of cinematic language. Our conversation covers all this and more, in our latest entry of our Interviews series.

Fantasia 2021: Frank & Zed

Mon, 16 Aug 2021 13:00:00 +0000

We have a chat with Jesse Blanchard, creator of Frank & Zed, a puppet horror film with analogues to Frankenstein and the history of puppet cinema. We chat about the Pacific Northwest puppetry scene, the technical side of working exclusively with puppets, and do a bit of show and tell with some of the puppets created for the feature.

View the interview and our show and tell with the puppets on The Twin Geeks YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJINgApKpYE&t=283s

Bill Morrison, let me come in

Wed, 05 May 2021 13:00:00 +0000

Bill Morrison is a director devoted to the lost films. His long-running filmography explores what often gets left behind. It’s a filmography of revival and preservation, with painstaking aesthetic attention paid to recovering films. This is a story about more than films. It’s about filling the gaps in our cinematic history. It’s about the intrinsic beauty of degrading nitrate film stocks and how that can all come to life, given just the right musical backing.

Morrison’s latest film, let me come in, is the subject of today’s discussion. Using recovered footage of the lost German silent film Pawns of Passion (1928), the short boldly asserts its themes of separation, connection, and discovery. Working with Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang and the incredible soprano voice of Angel Blue, it’s a short film driven by the music.

In our interview, we’ll explore Morrison’s filmography, from the remarkable site favorite Dawson City: Frozen Time (2016) to his new short, let me come in, premiering at the Turner Classic Movie festival.

SXSW 2021: Alien on Stage

Fri, 19 Mar 2021 22:01:00 +0000

Alien on Stage is the best kind of success story. It is about a troop of bus drivers moonlighting as amateur entertainers who want to put on a stage production of Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979). The documentary is the story of how their workmanlike production began on a small stage in Dorset before maximizing the show’s notoriety online, and landing a prime spot on stage in London’s West End. It is the story of workers creating the most amazing fan art. It was all I could do to write a glowing review. Everything about the film resounded beautifully with what I value about the incredible original film and keyed into something crucial about workers making art. So, inspired by their work, the next step was to interview both of its directors, Danielle Kummer and Lucy Harvey, about their wonderful new film.

Slamdance 2021: Blackwater

Thu, 18 Feb 2021 05:27:41 +0000

Recovery and representation are the topics of the day, in our audio interview with Blackwater director Boise Esquerra. A series of short films, the first of which is showing at Slamdance, Blackwater is the story of a country musician who has bottomed out and returned to her reservation, finding that addiction does not discriminate. We swap stories about our own personal journeys of recovery and what it means to put those stories on screen. There's also a great conversation about de-stereotyping Native Americans on film and what it means to create effective representation. Blackwater's a great, and important, short series, an early highlight of this year's Slamdance.

Slamdance 2021: Bleeding Audio

Wed, 17 Feb 2021 05:17:49 +0000

Bleeding Audio is the story of Oakland punk rock band The Matches. It’s not only about a group of talented young musicians bringing the band back together. It’s a narrative about the democratization of music and the challenges facing any band when the market shifted toward online file sharing and distribution. In the story of The Matches is the heroes journey, the story of every band with a dream of finding their audience. We’re honored to speak with director Chelsea Christer, producer Erin Persley, and The Matches bassist Justin SanSouci.

Fantasia 2020: Survival Skills

Thu, 01 Oct 2020 00:42:00 +0000

1980s training videos have carved out a peculiar niche on the internet. Searching for a purpose for his new picture, director Quinn Armstrong utilized these training videos as a lens to tell a different kind of police story. Given recent events, the context of his film has landed differently than planned at inception. Between a wide-ranging change in the discourse on police and the shifting realities of COVID, there has never been a stranger time to shop such a film to the market. We’re proud to present an interview with Armstrong about his new film — the talk of this year’s Fantasia, Survival Skills takes VHS de-making to another level in this intriguing experimental film, with a great theatrical turn by dramatist Stacy Keach. Listen to our interview for all this, and much more.

Cuties Cast: An Open Conversation

Sat, 26 Sep 2020 05:26:50 +0000

Maïmouna Doucouré’s feature film debut has provoked a firestorm of controversy. The story of Cuties (Mignonnes) began favorably. The French-Senegalese director picked up the Directing Award at Sundance, landing a deal with Netflix for an amplified international release, and enjoyed a broadly acclaimed release in her home of France. Then the Netflix marketing arm spun the controversy out of proportion — they have since recorded record-high cancelation figures and the film has become a hotbed for online debate about the exploitation of children in film. Cuties is more than the controversy, a story about precocious youthful rebellion against conservative parents, what it means to be Black and Muslim, and finding out what truly matters in life. It’s an uncomfortable film, to be sure, but one adamantly against what it’s accused of promoting. We’re proud to present an in-depth chat with our friend Renee, who brings her own deeply personal perspectives to the coming of age story.

Hirokazu Kore-eda, The Truth

Thu, 02 Jul 2020 04:52:53 +0000

Director Hirokazu Kore-eda is one of the most respected auteurs of the Japanese cinema. An heir to the legacy of Yasujirō Ozu, Kore-eda has found universal acclaim for his heartfelt family dramas. Expanding his international lens, this year finds the release of his first non-Japanese-language film, The Truth. We're honored to present a conversation about his new film, touching on the shifting realities of a long career in filmmaking, and what is so tangibly elemental and human about Kore-eda's own work. The Truth is a different kind of family drama: this time, concerning the family of a famed French actress (Catherine Denueve), and how success has adjusted her relationship with daughter (Juliette Binoche). Also starring Ethan Hawke, as the English-speaking husband absorbed in these dicey family dynamics. Listen to our interview for more on The Truth, premiering July 3 online.

Slamdance 2020: The Penny Black

Mon, 03 Feb 2020 14:08:00 +0000

The Penny Black is an intriguing new documentary fresh out of the Slamdance circuit. A man has left a stamp collection from a mysterious, potentially dangerous neighbor. The collection stays with him for years as his neighbor fades out of existence at the apartment complex. In the meantime, director Joe Saunders has filmed the story of the multi-million dollar bag of stamps, tracing the new ownership of his friend, a son of a conman who seems to be constantly wrestling with an urge to sell the collection. Some of them going missing and a noir-ish documentary emerges in the process. We're delighted to speak with Joe Saunders, the film's director, along with producer Alexander Greer.

Jennifer Reeder, Knives and Skin

Thu, 19 Dec 2019 05:59:37 +0000

Jennifer Reeder's Knives and Skin is a great victory for compassion. The director weaponizes empathy as though it were her blade and directs the hell out of this new mystery picture. What truly elevates her voice is a great sense of accessible feminism. Knives and Skin is feminism for everyone. It invites all of us to engage fully with its principles as such and succeeds fully in voicing its feminine characters. The feeling is that Jennifer knows what it is like. She works predominantly with strong female characters and has lived their experiences. Hailing from Ohio, she has deeply felt the need to escape, the outsider impulse she so wonderfully captures here. We're delighted to have the opportunity to chat with Jennifer about her new picture, her experience moving from short films to a feature-length mystery, and the nature of feminism in her work.