Kiwi Talkz

Rob Carr is an audio designer who is best known for his tenure at Rockstar Games on L.A. Noire, RDR1, GTA 5 and RDR2. He is currently living in Finland working on his game Nyrkkipöytä #rockstargames #gta #gta5 WEBSITE - https://audioexpat.wordpress.com/TIMESTAMPS00:00 - Intro00:30 - How Rob Went From Being A Music Teacher To Working At Rockstar Leeds07:51 - Moving From Handheld Games To Console Games/Rockstar Have Unlimited Resources08:30 - The Psychology Of Sound/Finding Sounds That Sound Like Other Sounds11:19 - There Are No Constraints On Audio With Rockstar Open World Games13:10 - In Audio Everything You Can Use Is Recordable/Rob Has A 3TB Audio Library15:17 - Tools & Workflow19:50 - Technology Evolution/AI 23:51 - Rob Has Been Unemployed For Over A Year/Problems With The Game Industry/25:50 - Learning A Coding Language27:40 - Difference Between Numbers People & Creative People30:30 - Working On Audio Bugs For Red Dead Redemption 1/Why It’s One Of Rob’s Favorite Games34:30 - Playing A Game And Not Disecting It37:30 - The Cost Of Buying Games39:10 - GTA 643:21 - Why Rob Left Rockstar45:24 - Crunch Culture/Europe Has Better Work Life Balance46:45 - Moving To Finland/Rob’s Brother Has Motor Neuron Disease51:35 - Rob Can’t Relocate For Work Anymore/Dire State Of The Game Industry53:10 - Working From Home Has Ceased Because Of Security Reasons55:20 - Why Rob Worked At The Office During Covid56:51 - Dealing With Ear Fatigue During Crunch/How Audio People Deal With Crunch1:05:30 - Q+A - Do You Physically Go On Location To Get Raw Recordings1:08:00 - Q+A -What’s Rockstar Setup To Test Audio Systems1:10:48 - Q+A - Is There A Particular Idea That Had To Be Cut1:13:52 - Robs Game - Nyrkkipöytä1:21:19 - Where To Follow Rob

I got some of the old devs who worked on Fallout to help review Season 2 of the Fallout series. Bruce Nesmith got the time wrong so didnt join until the last 20 minutes. #fallout #falloutnewvegas #bethesdaTIMESTAMPS 00:00 - Fallout Is The Best Video Game Adaptation Of All Time 02:21 - Fallout S2 Thoughts Overrall 05:40 - Macauley Caulkins Acting 06:48 - Walton Goggins/The Ghoul 07:44 - Ella Purnell’s Accent As Lucy 08:40 - The Deathclaws 17:05 - The Prydwens/Factions 18:06 - Brotherhood Of Steel Tone Was Wrong 18:50 - Trust The Audience More/Have More Talking Instead Of Actions Scenes 20:21 - S2 Is A Setup For S3/The Roaches Were Scarier Than The Deathclaws 21:07 - Release Strategy 21:56 - Super Mutants/Ron Perlman 26:15 - Super Mutants In Fallout 4/Todd Howard’s Direction 26:50 - Deprioritize Brotherhood Of Steel In Fallout 5 28:10 - Bethesda’s Views On Fallout New Vegas 31:45 - Where Will S3 Go?/The Toddification Might Cause A Degrade 33:00 - Thaddeus/Keep The Show Low Key & Not Focused On Spectacle 35:55 - Casuals Buying The Games As A Result Of The Show 36:37 - Fallout 3 Remaster Will Release After S3/Remasters 37:50 - Bethesda Games Won’t Be Remade 38:57 - Deathclaw Differences Between Fallout 3 & 4 40:10 - Favourite Scenes 46:18 - Devs Give The Show A Score Out Of 10 47:00 - Making The Show Go On Indefinitely 48:13 - Bruce Nesmith Joins & Gives His Review 50:25 - Bruce’s Hopes For S3 50:45 - Will The Show Influence Fallout 5 51:56 - Bethesda Will Give Fallout 5 To Someone Else/Todd Howard 55:45 - Todd Howard’s Retirement 59:22 - Story Threads In S3 Will Be Less 1:01:20 - Hank’s Story/Will The Ghoul’s Story End In S3 1:03:30 - Practical Effects 1:04:59 - Actors Everyone Would Like In A Cameo 1:10:09 - Final Thoughts

Featurecast is a DJ turned video game composer, he is most associated with @BitmapBureau and his most recent work was his stellar work on Terminator 2D No Fate. #terminator #terminator2 #terminator2dnofateTIMESTAMPS00:00 - Intro00:19 - How The Name Featurecast Came About04:05 - Working With Bitmap Bureau08:57 - Learning To Make SFX While Doing It10:50 - Getting Creative Freedom On Terminator 2D No Fate14:30 - Scrapping Music And Starting From Scratch/Reviews Praising The Soundtrack15:45 - Trusting Your Gut16:00 - How Featurecast Composed For Terminator 2D No Fate18:10 - Researching The T2 Score/Recreating The Score For T2D No Fate20:58 - Easter Eggs From T1 & T2 Score/T1000 Death22:31 - Having The T2 Score On Loop To Prepare/Different Genres In The Music24:15 - Melody/Terminator Film Scores Don’t Have Melody26:50 - Blurring The Line Between Music & Sound Design28:00 - Later Terminator Movies Didnt Capture Brad Fiedels Musical Identity29:30 - Different Time Signatures/Police Station Time Signature/Future Level 331:20 - Writing & Mixing At The Same Time34:56 - Making The Soundtrack Loud For Bitmap Bureau Games36:00 - Playing The Game For Inspiration On The Music38:05 - Music In The Escape From Hospital Level/Bitmap’s Custom Engine 40:10 - Recording The T1000 SFX/Creating SFX/Finding Your Own Way Of Doing Things43:01 - Not Wanting To Be Influenced By Other Music44:25 - Going Back And Listening To Your Own Music/LEGO Breakfasts46:28 - It’s Not What You Know But Who You Know48:12 - No Longer DJing In Clubs/Patreon/Mashups51:49 - Q+A - What Drives Composition For Licensed Material53:22 - Dealing With Imposter Syndrome54:00 - Playing Music For The Devs The First Time57:14 - Q+A - What Is Your Favourite Moment From Terminator 259:08 - Q+A - What Are Your 3 Favourite VST Instruments1:00:42 - Changing VSTs For Every Project1:03:26 - Closing Comments

Jay Epperson is a concept artist who is probably most famous for his concept art on Donkey Kong Country Returns and especially on Tropical Freeze. #nintendo #donkeykong #donkeykongcountry Thanks to the Patreon Producers for making this happen Stipe, Borkey, Magic8TIMESTAMPS00:00 - Intro00:35 - How Jay Went From Being An Illustrator To Becoming A Concept Artist At Retro04:50 - Interview Process At Retro/Getting Artists To Draw In Interviews07:22 - Coming In As A Concept Artist Towards The End Of DKC Returns10:20 - Retro’s Environmental Artists Were Smart11:13 - Jay’s Art Is In The DK Theme Park13:15 - Working With Designers16:10 - Doing Concept Art On Tropical Freeze18:42 - Choosing Vikings Over Aliens For The Concept19:57 - Tikis Vs Snowmads/Reusing Assets21:20 - Why The Ice World Is The Last Level22:00 - Sales On Wii U/Coming Up With The Different World Themes25:06 - CONCEPT ART REEL - Juicy Jungle World29:27 - CONCEPT ART REEL - Water World31:11 - CONCEPT ART REEL - Mangroves World/Cut Concepts32:38 - CONCEPT ART REEL - Savannah World33:18 - Showing Portfolios To Potential Employers Without Breaking NDAs33:50 - There Arent Limitations On The DK IP34:35 - Referencing Rare’s Work35:33 - Nintendo Japan Were Hands Off On Concept Art36:22 - Working On Mario Kart 7/Jay Isn’t Included In The Credits38:30 - Jay’s Outlook “My Next Piece Will Be My Best Piece”40:25 - Japan & Retro Testing Mario Kart 741:06 - Jay Reviews DK Bananza25:29 - Jay Thinks DK Bananza Is A One Off47:00 - Jay Doesnt Like K Rool’s Character Design50:39 - DK’s New Look52:22 - Why Jay Left Retro Studios53:20 - Retro Studios Is One Of The Best Studios To Work For54:00 - Retro Studios Art Team/Metroid Prime 455:35 - Nintendo Are Art Forward Not Technology Forward56:35 - Will Retro Work On Donkey Kong Again?57:35 - Will Retro Work On Metroid Prime 5/Would Jay Work On DK Again If Retro Asked59:40 - Closing Comments

Denis Dyack, veteran game designer behind Legacy of Kain and Eternal Darkness, now leading Deadhaus Sonata. He discusses deterministic loot and a tarot-style skill system. Talks game design choices like celestial clocks and weather effects. Covers engine journeys, industry troubles, Nintendo’s resilience, AI’s role, and making peace after the Epic lawsuit.

Alpha 7 is a professional mocap studio that was spun off from owner Maciej Kwiatkowski from working with CD Projekt RED( He played Geralt in the Witcher from 1 through to III.) Staff as follows Maciej Kwiatkowski, Madeline Page and Michal Derlicki #cdprojektred #witcher #cyberpunk2077SOCIAL MEDIA INSTAGRAM MACIEJ - @maciej_kaskader MADELINE - @madeline_maddie_page MICHAL - @derlickimichal WEBSITE - https://alpha7.pro/TIMESTAMPS00:00 - Intro00:50 - Mocap Performers Training Regime 03:21 - Gameplay Sessions/Behind The Scenes Of Mocap04:44 - Advantages Of Mocap Over Shooting On Location05:45 - Differences Between Mocap In Film & Video Games07:50 - Motion Capture Changes From Witcher I To Witcher IV11:21 - Becoming Geralt In The Witcher14:35 - How The Game Industry Changed In Poland After Witcher III/CD Projekt RED18:00 - Poland Has An Advantage Over America Now In Terms Of Development Costs21:23 - Working On The Witcher IV Trailer25:09 - How They All Met/You Need To Be A Good Actor To Do Mocap31:35 - Males & Females Playing The Opposite Gender In Mocap36:55 - Explaining Motion Capture Is Hard To Do Through Words/Gollum37:50 - Most Challenging Characters To Work On42:28 - Doing Mocap Despite Being In Pain43:39 - How Alpha 7 Started49:21 - Q+A - What Equipment You Need To Do Mocap At Home52:50 - Q+A - What Is Special About Working With CD Projekt Red58:55 - Q+A - Benefits & Drawbacks Of AI In Motion Capture & Game Development1:05:45 - Where To Follow Alpha 7/Gaming Industry Advantages Over Hollywood

I am joined by Kynan Pearson (Senior Designer on DKC Returns) and Ted Anderson (Environmental Artist on DKC Returns & Tropical Freeze) to review DKC Bananza#donkeykongbananza #donkeykong #donkeykongcountry TED ANDERSONS UPCOMING GAMES https://store.steampowered.com/app/3565460/Tahitian_Driftin/ https://store.steampowered.com/app/3968340/Foolish_Earthlings/ TED ANDERSONS GAME STUDIO PROMOTION IN AUSTIN TEXAS INFO IS HERE https://www.oddwoodbrewing.com/TIMESTAMPS00:00 - Intro00:39 - 2D Sections In DK Bananza02:45 - Voxel Tech Limiting DK Bananza/Destructible Terrain06:15 - Animal Transformations/Nintendo’s Design Philosophy Evolution17:29 - DK Bananza Is A Beautiful Mess/Honouring Rare’s Contributions22:00 - DK Bananza Music/David Wise’s Absence Is Felt26:15 - Nostalgia In Nintendo Games27:10 - Favourite Layer Debate spoilers 30:20 - Void Kong31:53 - The Final Boss/Ending ***SPOILERS***37:50 - Nintendo Universe Merging40:51 - Mario & DK Crossover 42:50 - DK Bananza Was Built On The Foundation Of Odyssey43:49 - DK Bananza Control Scheme51:20 - Voxel Terrain/Camera Issues53:33 - Art Direction Of The Final Boss55:30 - Void Kong Boss Fight/Ending Build Up58:07 - Pauline Singing Mechanics01:00:28 - Donkey Kong Film01:02:03 - Closing Comments/Pixel Arcades

Joe Houston who worked on Demon Souls Remake joins me to review the GTA of indie games Hollow Knight:Silksong!! I did an interview with him a number of years ago, which you can find here. https://youtu.be/skAWid5zYfg #silksong #hollowknight #hollowknightsilksongTIMESTAMPS00:00 - Intro00:40 - Silksong Overview01:30 - Silksong’s Difficulty/The Purpose Of Difficulty In Games07:10 - Runbacks10:54 - Bosses Of Silksong13:40 - Progression Doesnt Help With The Difficulty16:20 - Top Moments In The Game/Story19:50 - Best Areas In Silksong22:45 - Demon Souls & Dishonored Shaping Joe’s Views On Silksong26:37 - Why Demon Souls Remake Didnt Have An Easy Mode/Silksong Nerfs29:10 - Team Cherry Sticking To It’s Vision/Serving Core Players31:30 - Silksong Is Too Long/Length In Games35:12 - Replayability37:45 - Bosses That You Die on The Most39:37 - Will Silksong Win GOTY/GOTY Nominees44:05 - Specificity Of Silksong45:09 - Tastes In Games Change As You Get Older 48:18 - Distribution Model Of Games50:00 - Team Cherry’s Intentions/Devs Get Bored While Developing Games52:00 - Playtesters On Games56:00 - Team Cherry Won’t Make An Easy Mode/Achievements Provide Data To Devs 58:30 - WHATS MORE IMPORTANT TO DEVS - PLAY TIME OR SALES?1:00:20 - Vertical Slices/Why A Games Quality Can Be All Over The Place1:02:40 - Closing Comments/Silksong DLC

In this engaging conversation, Filip Coulianos, co-founder of Keepsake Games, discusses his journey in game development, the influence of Half-Life 2 on his career, and the creative processes behind his latest project, Jump Space. He shares insights on addressing motion sickness in games, the importance of marketing for indie developers, and the evolving landscape of the gaming industry. The discussion also touches on the impact of working with Josef Fares and the lessons learned from successful titles like It Takes Two.#jumpspace #ittakestwo #fpsgamesTIMESTAMPS00:00 - Intro00:42 - Half-Life 2 Is The Citizen Kane Of Video Games01:52 - Becoming A Video Game Designer03:34 - How Half-Life 2 Influenced Jump Space06:00 - FPS Evolution/Animation Is Key To A Good FPS Camera09:10 - Motion Sickness In FPS Games14:30 - Moving Between First Person & Third Person In Jump Space17:30 - Camera Techniques/It Takes Two Camera19:19 - It Takes Two Devs Studied Super Mario 64 & Odyssey To Make The Game23:20 - The Making Of It Takes Two28:22 - Working With Josef Fares36:30 - Why Filip Left Hazelight/Having The Idea Of Jump Space Since 201241:43 - Jump Space’s Popularity/Daniel Kaplan’s Importance/Marketing48:00 - Jump Space’s Early Access Release Was Threatened By Silksong And GTA 651:09 - Jump Space’s Release Date52:00 - The Cost Of Game Development/Why So Many Game Studios Close57:38 - Where The Term AAA Came From/Some Games Will Survive The Game Studio Apocalypse59:37 - Studios Need To Sell 10 Million Units To Break Even On $100 Million Budget1:02:10 - Sweden Game Industry/Filip Was Determined To Succeed In The Game Industry1:05:15 - Will Jump Space Be Relased On Switch 2/PS5?1:08:17 - Where To Follow Keepsake Games & Jump Space

Joshua Jay was a former world artist at Bethesda who worked on Fallout 4, 76 & Starfield, prior to that he was a world artist on the Gears Of War trilogy. Josh built a living saloon set in the style of Fallout 76 here! Check it out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7gBi3_lyag&t=167s #fallout #starfield #gearsofwar JOSHUAS ARTWORK CAN BE FOUND HERE https://www.joshuajayart.com/ https://www.artstation.com/joshua_jay_artTIMESTAMPS00:00 - Intro00:38 - Lord Of The Rings/Kurt Kuhlmann04:18 - Building A Fallout 76 Saloon13:43 - Todd Howard/Early Work On Fallout 417:51 - Fallout 4’s Colour Palette19:00 - Josh’s Work On Fallout 4’s World Art21:38 - Josh’s Gears Of War 3 Art Was Inspired By Fallout 322:30 - Epic Games Base Their Games On Licensing/Bethesda Vs Epic Culture25:10 - Unreal Engine Vs Creation Engine28:20 - Problems Developing Fallout 7633:25 - Why Fallout 76 Wasnt Delayed/Starfield Was Delayed Due To F07635:18 - Josh & Kiwi Butcher Shigeru Miyamoto’s Quote37:00 - Game Development Costs/Fallout 538:45 - What Josh Wants To See In Fallout 540:15 - Fallout TV Show Being 5 Seasons/TV Shows With Filler42:50 - Video Games With Filler/Alien Isolation45:15 - Video Games Should Be Shorter/Elder Scrolls VI/Rockstar Games48:30 - Josh Got Burned Out On Gears Of War/Josh Avoided Starfield For As Long As Possible52:40 - Working On Starfield53:30 - Q+A - How Bethesda Seamlessly Transition From Different Biomes In Their Games58:09 - Q+A - Were There Talks For Smaller Galaxies In Starfield In Pre-Production59:25 - Game Devs Not Having Time To Play Games/Josh Doesnt Play Many Games These Days1:01:42 - Josh Loves Shadow Of Mordor & War1:02:10 - Q+A - How Was Josh’s Day Organised In A Pie Chart At Epic & Bethesda1:04:45 - Pros & Cons Of Big & Small Studios/Star Wars Games1:07:32 - Josh Loves & Hates The Industry/Story Of Soldiers In Afghanistan1:11:24 - Josh Tells A Touching Story Of A Fallout Fan Who Died1:16:41 - Outro