Shows / The Game Design Round Table
The Game Design Round Table
Covering the full breadth of digital, tabletop, and role playing games, The Game Design Round Table inspires and educates aspiring and experienced game designers.
Episodes
- The Game Design Round Table
#222 Elizabeth Hargrave Talks Wingspan
Dirk, David, and designer Elizabeth Hargrave discuss the hit game Wingspan: how she decided on the unique theme, why that theme might have been so successful…
- The Game Design Round Table
#221 Nikki Valens Talks Eldritch Horror
Dirk, David, and designer Nikki Valens kick off the Designing Thematic Games series with a discussion about the highly thematic games Nikki worked on at…
- The Game Design Round Table
#220 New Directions with Dirk and David
Dirk and David catch up with each other and what's new in their game design careers. They talk about the new direction for the show and announce a new series…
- The Game Design Round Table
#219 Cole's Thoughts on Pax Pamir: Second Edition
Dirk catches up with Cole Wehrle, designer of Root, and they discuss Cole's latest game Pax Pamir: Second Edition. Cole also talks about starting Wehrlegig…
- The Game Design Round Table
#218 Geoff Engelstein and Isaac Shalev: Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design
Dirk speaks with game designers Geoff Engelstein and Isaac Shalev about their co-authored book, Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design: an Encyclopedia of…
- The Game Design Round Table
#217 Soren Johnson and his 4X Game: 10 Crowns
Dirk speaks with former co-host and former Civilization designer Soren about his next game, 10 Crowns. This episode will be the first in a series with Soren…
- The Game Design Round Table
#216 Playtest Groups and Guilds with Tony Tran
Dirk speaks with Skye and Tony Tran about their experiences attending and starting local game design guilds and how those groups helped them progress as…
- The Game Design Round Table
#215 Tabletop RPGs and Streaming with Adam Koebel
Dirk and David speak with TTRPG game designer and streamer Adam Koebel about how RPGs often influence one another and how to get your TTRPG in front of an…
- The Game Design Round Table
#214 Game Themes with Will Thompson
Dirk talks with digital and tabletop game designer Will Thompson about game themes, including the recent controversy surrounding the game Scramble for Africa.
- The Game Design Round Table
#213 Carla Kopp, Kickstarter and Big Easy Busking
What happens when a Kickstarter doesn't go as planned? Dirk speaks with Carla Kopp from Weird Giraffe games about publishing, Kickstarters, and the game Big…
- The Game Design Round Table
#212 Tabletop Prototyping Highlights
Take a look back at previous TGDRT episodes with a focus on tabletop prototyping. Dirk, David, Kathryn, Harrison, and Isaac Shalev are all featured in this…
- The Game Design Round Table
#211 Slay The Spire - A Designers Deep Dive with Anthony Giovannetti
David and Dirk are joined by Anthony Giovannetti, designer of the game Slay The Spire. Together they take a deep dive into the creation and game mechanics of…
- The Game Design Round Table
#210 Listener Questions from SaltCON with Skye Larsen
Skye Larsen calls in from SaltCON to answer listener questions with Dirk and Cole about board and video games.
- The Game Design Round Table
#209 Kevin Kulp - Swords of the Serpentine
David and Dirk are joined by game designer, Kevin Kulp. They discuss his new game, Swords of the Serpentine and Timewatch. They also discuss how a beta test…
- The Game Design Round Table
#208 Game Designer Jennifer Scheurle
This week Dirk is joined by Jennifer Scheurle, a multi-award-winning, world-travelling Game Designer and public speaker. They discuss her work, her experience…
- The Game Design Round Table
#207 Emily Grace Buck
This week Dirk is joined by Emily Grace Buck, Creative Director at Buckshot Interactive. They discuss Emily's background in game design and what she is…
- The Game Design Round Table
#206 Jon Shafer of Conifer Games - At the Gates
This week David and Dirk are joined by Jon Shafer, a co-founder of The Game Design Round Table. They discuss Jon's game At the Gates and some of the innovative…
- The Game Design Round Table
#205 Deep Dive - Root: A Game of Woodland Might and Right
Cole and Dirk are joined by Kaitie Aidley and take a deep dive into Cole's game Root.
- The Game Design Round Table
#204 Listener Questionnaire Results and the Future of TGDRT
Dirk share results from the recent listener questionnaire. He also shares some exciting changes coming up for the show.
- The Game Design Round Table
#203 TL Simons - Bloc by Bloc
David and Dirk chat with TL Simons of Out of Order Games. They discuss the creation of the game Bloc by Bloc, it's connection to social issues as well as the…
- The Game Design Round Table
#202 Listener Questions - Accessibility and Get-Back Mechanics
Cole, Dirk and Kathryn take listener questions. They have a great discussion surrounding the topic of accessibility. Additionally they discuss the topic of…
- The Game Design Round Table
#201 Tim Burrell-Saward and Smart Speakers
Tim Burrell-Saward joins The Game Design Roundtable and discusses games that use smart speakers.
- The Game Design Round Table
#200 Reflections on 200 Episodes of TGDRT
On this 200th episode of The Game Design Roundtable, many members of the team share thier thoughts on the show, the industry and people who have inspired them…
- The Game Design Round Table
#199 Tabletop Game Designer - Scott Almes
In this episode, Dirk and Cole have a conversation with tabletop game designer Scott Almes. The discuss tiny box games as well as Scott's experience with a…
- The Game Design Round Table
#198 Michael Woods, 38 Studios and Subatomic Studios
In this episode, Dirk and David have a conversation with Michael Woods. Michael previously worked at 38 Studios as well as Subatomic Studios. He shares his…
- The Game Design Round Table
#197 Megagames with Ben Kanelos and Leslie Loy
In this episode, Dirk is joined by Ben Kanelos and Leslie Loy about megagames, also known as large scale simulation event with up to hundreds of participants.
- The Game Design Round Table
#196 Admired Designers, Unlikely Games Enjoyed and Listener Questions
In this episode, Cole, Dirk and Kathryn name some admired designers, some unlikely games that they enjoy and answer some listener questions.
- The Game Design Round Table
#195 Game Designer Alex Roberts
In this episode, Dirk and Harrison chat with game designer Alex Roberts. They discuss her recent experience with The Star Crossed Kickstarter as well…
- The Game Design Round Table
#194 Kickstarter Results and Listener Questions
In this episode, David, Dirk and Rob get together for a discussion recapping a Kickstarter campaign for Restoration Games' Fireball Island. They also take a…
- The Game Design Round Table
#193 Game Designer Kellee Santiago
In this episode, Dirk has a great conversation with video game designer Kellee Santiago. They discuss the game Cloud, the state of VR games and this history of…
- The Game Design Round Table
#192 Engineering Game Design with Aljernon Bolden
In this episode, Dirk and Harrison welcome Aljernon Bolden to the show. They discuss game design from an engineering approach.
- The Game Design Round Table
#191 Fireball Island
In this episode, David, Dirk, and Rob get together to answer some listener questions, which turn into a good discussion and a deep dive into a single question…
- The Game Design Round Table
#190 Listener Questions - Cons, Kids, Games and Names
In this episode, Cole, David, and Dirk get together to answer some listener questions.
- The Game Design Round Table
#189 Gaming the Past with Jeremiah McCall
In this episode, Dirk and Cole have a conversation with Jeremiah McCall who uses games in the classroom to help in teaching history.
- The Game Design Round Table
#188 Listener Question - You Don't Blind Test a Painting
In this episode, Dirk, Kathryn and Rob get together to answer listener questions around playtesting and professional backgrounds in design.
- The Game Design Round Table
#187 Listener Question - Acronym Edition
Description In this episode, David, Dirk and Harrison get together to answer listener questions. Lots of acronyms and great insights in this episode! JRPG…
- The Game Design Round Table
#186 Looking forward and back, 2017 to 2018
In this final episode of 2017, David, Dirk and Kathryn get together to review 2017 and look forward to 2018.
- The Game Design Round Table
#185 Game Designer Cole Wehrle
In this episode, David and Dirk speak with game designer Cole Wehrle. They discuss Cole's work and how to find balance designing games with deep historical and…
- The Game Design Round Table
#184: Narrative Designer Edwin McRae
In this episode, Harrison and Dirk speak with Edwin McRae, a narrative designer. They discuss the importance of the narrative line in game design and how it…
- The Game Design Round Table
#183: Listener Questions with David, Dirk and Rob
In this episode, David, Dirk and Rob finally get back together to catch up on each other's projects and answer listener questions. --------------------- David…
- The Game Design Round Table
#182: Game Designer Mike Bithell – Thomas Was Alone
In this episode, Dirk and Harrison have a chat with Mike Bithell, designer of games such as Thomas Was Alone, Volume, EarthShape, and Subsurface Circular. They…
- The Game Design Round Table
#181: Listener Questions with David and Dirk
Description David and Dirk answer listener questions surrounding game design, board production, 3d printing and play testing. --------------------- David Heron…
- The Game Design Round Table
#180: Spy Club from Foxtrot Games; How Collaboration helped deliver results.
In this episode, Dirk is joined by John Schulter, Sarah Graybill and Randy Hoyt to discuss their work on their new game, Spy Club from Foxtrot Games. They…
- The Game Design Round Table
#179: Elizabeth LaPensée; indigenous self-determination in game development.
Description In this episode, Elizabeth LaPensée joins Kathryn and Dirk and they discuss indigenous self-determination in game development and how a destructive…
- The Game Design Round Table
#178: Niki Crisci, Will Glow the Wisp
In this episode, Niki Crisci calls in from Germany and chats with David and Dirk about his recently release game, Will Glow the Wisp. They discuss his…
- The Game Design Round Table
#177: Tomer Perry, Ethics and Political Theory
In this episode, Tomer Perry, political theorists, avid board and table gamer from Harvard University joins David and Dirk. They discuss how games are used to…
- The Game Design Round Table
#176: Methodology and Management
David and Dirk catch up and talk about David's new work. They discuss some of the different ways he's found this new studio operates organizationally and how…
- The Game Design Round Table
#175: Listener Mail August 2017
David, Dirk, and Kathryn dive into the digital mailbag and take a shot at some listener questions. Topics include Kickstarter Cancellations, design…
- The Game Design Round Table
#174: Mo Turkington and LARPs
In this episode, Mo Turkington from Unruly Designs joins Dirk and Kathryn to discuss LARPs and specifically chamber LARPs focused on women in WWII. The…
- The Game Design Round Table
#173: Game Design Axioms
Dirk, Kathryn, and Rob get together for the much anticipated game design axioms episode. Listen as they share their their top design…
- The Game Design Round Table
#172: Mode 7's Paul Kilduff-Taylor
Paul Kilduff-Taylor from Mode 7, join David and Dirk for a discussion about the games Tokyo 42 and Frozen Synapse. They dive deep into some of the key decision…
- The Game Design Round Table
#171: Gunpoint's Tom Francis
This week Tom Francis, creator of the game Gunpoint, joins Harrison and Dirk to discuss the state of games journalism, how Gunpoint came about and what to…
- The Game Design Round Table
#170: Ross Cowman
This week, Dirk and Kathryn talk with Ross Cowman, owner of game design studio Heart of the Deernicorn. They discuss the game Fall of…
- The Game Design Round Table
#169: Listener Mail June 2017
This week, David, Rob and Dirk get together to catch up and answer listener questions. Ice cubes are involved.---------------------David Heron - @DavidVHeron…
- The Game Design Round Table
#168: Emily Care Boss
This week, Dirk and Kathryn welcome veteran game designer Emily Care Boss to the show. Emily has a long history in designing RPG games and making tools…
- The Game Design Round Table
#167: Chelsea Howe and VR
Dirk and David are joined by Owlchemy Labs' Chelsea Howe to talk about Virtual Rick-Ality and the new frontier of VR. Chelsea's involvement with VR goes back…
- The Game Design Round Table
#166: John Harper
Dirk and Kathryn are joined this week by designer John Harper, the mind behind Blades in the Dark. John's transition to full-time developer has been helped by…
- The Game Design Round Table
#165: Listener Mail April 2017
Dirk, Harrison, and Kathryn dive into the mailbag once again to answer your game design questions. Is it really that difficult to get published in North…
- The Game Design Round Table
#164: Nels Anderson and Firewatch
Designer Nels Anderson stops by to talk to Dirk and Harrison about his work on 2016's hit Firewatch. Nels worked with a small team at Campo Santo studios to…
- The Game Design Round Table
#163: Jason Thompson
Dirk and Rob are joined by writer, artist, and game designer Jason Thompson to talk about his innovative drawing game "Mangaka: The Fast & Furious Game of…