This week on the cast, I spoke with Michael Highland from thatgamecompany; to talk about the studio and their unique approach to designing video games.
We started off talking about how thatgamecompany was founded and their use of a flat architecture system similar to Valve. Interestingly, we talked about how thatgamecompany came up with the inspiration for their titles and it really is something different from your conventional studio. They’re focus on developing the experience and then figuring out mechanics that fit with that experience, instead of developing the mechanics first.
That led into talking more about Journey and the decision not have any voice chat which somehow brought in talking about the Dark Souls series and how thatgamecompany really enjoys the series. We also got on the subject of casual and social games and that Michael and I aren’t a fan of most Free to Play titles.
For our final topic, we went big with talking about art vs. business when it comes to the Video Game Industry: How do you balance creativity and uniqueness with also trying to earn enough money to stay afloat? I asked Michael about his thoughts on this and how thatgamecompany balances putting out unique experiences and their own unique design process, with making something that can be enjoyed by all and hopefully turn a profit.
Michael brought up several great points on the topic, such as knowing at the start whether your game leans towards art or a product and the importance of accessibility with your game, regardless of which side it falls on.
- Here is my post on Art vs. Products and what that means for game development.
- To learn more about thatgamecompany, here is their company site
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | RSS
