Best Videogame Writing Podcasts (2025)

1
XCOM Creator Julian Gollop Shares Game Design Tips, Dev Stories and More 1:34:15

1d ago1:34:15

1:34:15

Trent Kusters chats with Julian Gollop, founder and game designer at Snapshot Games. Together they discuss his legendary journey designing games from the creation of the original XCOM: UFO Defense to his studio's latest release, Chip 'n Clawz vs. the Brainioids; how to use constraint as a key design pillar; having the courage to remove features for…

1
Patricia Bracewell - author of the Emma of Normandy series. 44:07

4d ago44:07

44:07

Patricia Bracewell's website: https://www.patriciabracewell.com/ Link Tree:⁠ ⁠https://linktr.ee/RockPaperSwords⁠⁠ Support us on Patreon:⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast⁠⁠ Buy us a beer and get a shoutout by heading to⁠ ⁠https://ko-fi.com/rockpaperswords Patricia Bracewell is the author of the Emma of Normandy trilogy, which started…

1
How Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's Epic Story was Crafted with Jennifer Svedberg-Yen 1:34:44

8d ago1:34:44

1:34:44

*This episode contains heavy spoilers for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Alexa Ray Corriea chats with Jennifer Svedberg-Yen, the lead writer on Sandfall Interactive's debut hit, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Together they discuss how she went from a career in finance and investments to her first job in games; how the world and characters evolved throug…

1
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II with Lead Designer Prokop Jirsa 1:53:00

15d ago1:53:00

1:53:00

Trent Kusters chats with Prokop Jirsa, Lead Designer on Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, the hit historical RPG by Warhorse Studios. Together they discuss the key pillars of the Kingdom Come series that influence the decisions they make around narrative and design; their focus on emergent gameplay and how that informs their philosophy on quest structu…

1
Ale/beer consumption throughout history! Pete Brown tells us some drinking stories! 49:15

18d ago49:15

49:15

Pete Brown's website: https://www.petebrown.net/ Link Tree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/RockPaperSwords⁠ Support us on Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast⁠ Buy us a beer and get a shoutout by heading to ⁠buymeacoffee.com/rockpaperswords Pete Brown is a British author, journalist, broadcaster and consultant specialising in food and drink…

1
Writing the Mythos of South of Midnight with Zaire Lanier and Dani Dee 1:17:03

22d ago1:17:03

1:17:03

Alexa Ray Corriea chats with writers Dani Dee and Zaire Lanier about their work on Compulsion Games latest action-adventure, South of Midnight. Together they discuss how they began their careers in writing and what led them to Compulsion Games; how the team stayed authentic to the folklore of the American Deep South; the process of writing the main…

1
Brendon Chung & Laura Michet 1:17:58

28d ago1:17:58

1:17:58

Hello hello! We're back with returning guests Brendon Chung (founder of Blendo Games and creator of such games as Gravity Bone, Flotilla, Atom Zombie Smasher, Thirty Flights of Loving, Quadrilateral Cowboy, and the recently released Skin Deep) and Laura Michet (writer and editor who's worked on such games as Where the Water Tastes Like Wine, Frog F…

1
Expedition 33 with Maelle Actor Jennifer English 59:29

29d ago59:29

59:29

Alexa Ray Corriea chats with actor Jennifer English, best known for her iconic roles in games like Elden Ring, Baldur's Gate III, and Sandfall Interactive's debut smash hit, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Together they discuss her prior career in classical theater as well as her previous work in games leading up to playing Maelle in Expedition 33; wo…

1
MJ Porter - Vikings, Saxons, swearing in historical fiction and much more! 52:07

1M ago52:07

52:07

M.J. Porter is an author of historical fiction and nonfiction. She has written about Anglo-Saxons and Vikings as well as three twentieth-century mysteries and Viking age/dragon themed fantasy. She is a prolific hybrid author, with independently published and traditionally published books. We met up with MJ at the HNS Conference last year for a quic…

1
Navigating the Shifting Corridors of BLUE PRINCE with Creator Tonda Ros 1:59:59

1M ago1:59:59

1:59:59

Trent Kusters chats with Tonda Ros, the creator of the mind bending puzzle roguelike, Blue Prince. Together they discuss his prior career navigating the film industry and how he found himself creating his first game; the early tools and resources that helped him get started; brining in additional team members and what that meant for the project tim…

1
How 3 Brothers Started a Game Studio - Butterscotch Shenanigans 1:07:53

1M ago1:07:53

1:07:53

Trent Kusters chats with brothers Adam and Seth Coster of indie studio, Butterscotch Shenanigans, who recently released Crashlands 2, the sequel to their hit debut release. Together they discuss their story of 3 brothers working in different fields who came together to make games; the mistakes and lessons they learned while building the studio; how…

1
Avowed Game Director Carrie Patel talks World Building and Narrative Design 1:02:07

2M ago1:02:07

1:02:07

Alexa Ray Corriea chats with Carrie Patel, the Game Director on Obsidian Entertainment's Avowed. Together they discuss how the team worked within the Pillars of Eternity universe while expanding the world and characters; transitioning the gameplay from an isometric RPG to a focus on first person action; writing memorable companions; and the complex…

1
From Dragon Age to Eternal Strands with Mike Laidlaw 1:13:13

2M ago1:13:13

1:13:13

Alexa Ray Corriea chats with Mike Laidlaw, Chief Creative Officer at Yellow Brick Games. Together they discuss his career developing role-playing games including his role as Creative Director on the Dragon Age franchise; the development of his new studio's first release, Eternal Strands; creating the physics based combat system; the key pillars for…

1
RPS NEWS! Plus Dire wolves? We chat about bringing things back from earlier periods in history. What would YOU bring back? 45:07

2M ago45:07

45:07

Link Tree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/RockPaperSwords⁠ Support us on Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast⁠ Buy us a beer and get a shoutout by heading to ⁠buymeacoffee.com/rockpaperswords Buy UPRISING, this week's sponsor from Paul Bernardi! Buy link for Paul Bernardi's book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0F38L728Z We don’t have a guest …

1
Creating the Super Earth of Helldivers 2 with Arrowhead's Johan Pilestedt 3:17:22

2M ago3:17:22

3:17:22

Trent Kusters chats with Johan Pilestedt, the Game Director on Arrowhead Game Studios' smash-hit, HELLDIVERS™ 2. Together they discuss his path in games that led to the founding of Arrowhead alongside his classmates in Sweden; the development and release of their first title, Magicka; the original ideas around that laid the foundation for the Helld…

1
Becoming Indiana Jones with Troy Baker 1:19:49

2M ago1:19:49

1:19:49

Alexa Ray Corriea chats with actor Troy Baker. Together they discuss his award winning performance as Indiana Jones in MachineGames's Indiana Jones and the Great Circle; his biggest challenges in playing an iconic character; lessons he learned from his past projects that informed his preparation and performance; and the difference between a perform…

1
Book cover design! Oliver Bennett from MORE VISUAL joins us to discuss current and future trends and the threat (or otherwise) of AI to creatives. 1:07:44

2M ago1:07:44

1:07:44

Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/RockPaperSwords Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast Buy us a beer and get a shoutout by heading to buymeacoffee.com/rockpaperswords Our guest today has designed countless book covers, including all of Steven’s independently published books! Oliver Bennett is a graphic designer and co-fo…

1
Magic, Kevlar, and Conspiracies with Tactical Breach Wizards Dev Tom Francis 2:37:25

3M ago2:37:25

2:37:25

Trent Kusters chats with game designer Tom Francis of Suspicious Developments, developers of hit indie tactical strategy games like Gunpoint, Heat Signature, and Tactical Breach Wizards. Together they discuss how Tom went from games journalism to game development; his ideas around challenge and difficulty; weaving gameplay with narrative; and his t…

1
The GDC 2025 Grab Bag Episode 1:08:41

3M ago1:08:41

1:08:41

We return with another grab bag episode for GDC 2025! Like last year, we brought a bunch of simple questions to ask folks, and in these three groups you get to hear how their answers differed. In our first group we had Chase Dodge (NYU student), Ruari Root (NYU student), Calliope Ryder (prev Lead Producer on Tales of the Shire at Weta Workshop), Ch…

1
Jason Kingsley OBE - Modern History TV & Rebellion - Judge Dredd, 2000AD, Sniper Elite & more! 1:10:46

3M ago1:10:46

1:10:46

Link Tree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/RockPaperSwords⁠ Support us on Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast⁠ Buy us a beer and get a shoutout by heading to ⁠buymeacoffee.com/rockpaperswords⁠ Our guest today is Jason Kingsley, an incredibly successful businessman and a technologist who is also obsessed with the past. He is CEO of Rebellion…

1
From Theater to Video Games with 1000xRESIST Actor, Nhi Do 1:01:00

3M ago1:01:00

1:01:00

Alexa Ray Correia chats with actor Nhi Do, who starred in Sunset Visitor's debut narrative adventure, 1000xRESIST. Together they discuss her background in theater and how she landed her first part in video games; finding the entry point when playing a new character; the catharsis of finishing a project; and the importance of compartmentalization wh…

1
Donovan Cook - WODEN'S SPEAR! Vikings, Norse mythology and more... 1:00:07

3M ago1:00:07

1:00:07

Support us on Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast⁠ You can buy us a beer and get a shoutout too, by heading to ⁠buymeacoffee.com/rockpaperswords Donovan Cook is the author of the Ormstunga Saga series set in the Viking world and inspired by his interest in Norse Mythology. His second series, The Charlemagne's Cross Series, is p…

1
Mysteries of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle with MachineGames 1:12:18

3M ago1:12:18

1:12:18

Adam Orth chats with MachineGames' Jens Andersson and Axel Torvenius about their critically acclaimed title, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. Together they discuss why they decided to make an Indiana Jones game in first person; the importance of introducing players to the Indiana Jones world by recreating the iconic opening scene from Raiders of…

1
Becoming Yuffie in FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH with Actor Suzie Yeung 45:12

3M ago45:12

45:12

Alexa Ray Correia chats with actor Suzie Yeung. Together they discuss how she got her start acting in games; her performance as Yuffie Kisaragi in the recent reboot of FINAL FANTASY VII; her extensive work in the anime industry; the process and differences in recording for animation versus games; how she prepared for her performance as Yuffie; and …

1
Edoardo Albert - History, archaeology, Warhammer, swords, writing & more! 1:00:44

3M ago1:00:44

1:00:44

Support us on Patreon from as little as £1 per month: https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast Today’s guest is Edoardo Albert. Edoardo is a British writer of Italian and Sri Lankan descent. He writes about Britain in the early medieval period (between the Romans leaving and the Normans arriving), the 40th millennium in the Warhammer universe…

1
Founder Ted Price Reflects on 30 Years of Insomniac Games and Retirement 1:23:20

4M ago1:23:20

1:23:20

Trent Kusters chats with Insomniac Games' Ted Price. Ted recently announced his retirement from the games industry and received the 2025 AIAS Hall of Fame award at the 28th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. In this conversation, Ted recalls his life in game development as the founder and president of Insomniac Games from key projects and career milestones to…

1
A Man Dies But Once - Matthew has a new novella OUT NOW! 10:18

4M ago10:18

10:18

Matthew Harffy has a brand new Western novella out NOW, and it's a prequel to his novel DARK FRONTIER. Buy it on Amazon, but first give this episode a listen, it's a good laugh. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Man-Dies-But-Once-Frontier-ebook/dp/B0DYJV6KF1

1
[Sponsored] Chat with Xsolla's Berkley Egenes 36:17

4M ago36:17

36:17

Xsolla is a leading global video game commerce company with a robust and powerful set of tools and services designed specifically for the industry. Since its founding in 2005, Xsolla has helped thousands of game developers and publishers of all sizes fund, market, launch, and monetize their games globally and across multiple platforms. To learn mor…

1
Astro Bot Director Nicolas Doucet 1:00:57

4M ago1:00:57

1:00:57

Shuhei Yoshida chats with Team ASOBI Studio Director Nicolas Doucet. Together they discuss his journey in game development from his early days in QA to his move to work at Japan Studio; building Team ASOBI to work on the emerging technology within SIE; the origins and development of Astro Bot; and how they worked with publishers around the world to…

1
Writing for videogames/writing exciting novels - we discuss two great topics today! 1:08:23

4M ago1:08:23

1:08:23

Support us on Patreon from just £1 per month: https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast Today we're going to cover a couple of subjects. One that will be of use to all aspiring writers and anyone who is interested in the mechanics of writing a page-turner. The other will be interesting to anyone who would like to see behind the scenes of the p…

1
Writing the Haunting Narrative of INDIKA with Dmitry Svetlow 49:53

4M ago49:53

49:53

Alexa Ray Corriea chats with Odd Meter Studio Director, Dmitry Svetlow. Together they discuss the development of INDIKA including the origins and inspirations behind the haunting narrative; how they built the team and what it takes to be part of a small indie studio; their use of juxtaposition between dark and playful imagery; and balancing how muc…

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