Development conversation 01
Hakeem (Game Developer)
A developer conversation for listeners looking for an honest view of making work and finding a place in the culture around games.
Watch on YouTube ↗Game development podcast
Make the game.
Keep the story.
Jams and Joysticks is a game development podcast for the creators, builders, and community carrying an idea into something people can play.
The work is bigger than one role
A game becomes real through a thousand connected decisions.
Game development is rarely a straight line from a good idea to a finished build. A small creative spark has to survive questions about scope, play, pace, tools, feedback, and the people in the room. The work moves forward because creators keep looking at the same challenge from different angles, then find a way to make the next choice together.
That is where a real conversation can be useful. It puts names and experiences around the parts of game development that can otherwise feel hidden: deciding what to protect, learning a new discipline, finding a collaborator, or staying close to the feeling that made the project matter in the first place.
Jams and Joysticks brings those human stories into focus. This is not a feed of shortcuts or a substitute for doing the work. It is a place to hear creators, builders, and community talk about the paths, questions, and relationships that help games take shape.
Start where the work feels familiar
See every episode →Choose a perspective that meets the project, curiosity, or creative question you are carrying today. Then let the archive take you somewhere unexpected.
Development conversation 02
Myles Blasonato (Game Designer)
A game designer perspective for anyone paying closer attention to how an idea becomes an experience people can enter.
Watch on YouTube ↗
Development conversation 03
Renee Gittins (Game Developer, Stumbling Cat)
A developer conversation that brings an independent path and the work of building a studio into the wider picture.
Watch on YouTube ↗
Development conversation 04
Jordan Horton (Creative Director, Wakeup Super Studios)
A creative director perspective for people who want to hear how a point of view can guide a project and a team.
Watch on YouTube ↗Bring a useful question
More ways into the work you care about.
For the idea taking shape
When a project is still early, the next move can feel larger than it is. Listen for the detail that makes progress more concrete: how someone described their first step, the limitation that sharpened an idea, or the question that helped them see the work differently. You do not need to copy their route to carry a better question back to your own notes.
For the people building together
Games ask different disciplines to meet around the same experience. Design, development, art, music, direction, production, and community each change what a player eventually feels. These conversations make that shared effort easier to see, which is valuable when you are learning how to contribute, collaborate, or explain what the work needs next.
For the community around games
A finished game carries decisions that can disappear behind the screen. Getting closer to the people behind the work gives players, supporters, and future creators more context for what they love. It also makes space for a better conversation about the care, culture, and many kinds of labour that help a game find its audience.
A listening practice
Listen for what changes the next session.
Start with the guest whose work feels closest to the question on your desk. If you are working through a game mechanic, a designer conversation may help you notice the player experience beneath the feature. If you are trying to hold a project together, a creative director may offer language for the choices that protect a point of view. If you are figuring out where you belong, a developer or community story may widen the map.
Give yourself permission to listen slowly. The useful part of a conversation is not always the broad lesson. It may be a small observation about working with another person, a moment of doubt that made room for a new direction, or a reminder that a game can be ambitious without pretending every answer arrives at once.
Then make it practical. Pause when something lands and ask what it might change in your own work. Could it help you frame a playtest, explain an intention to a collaborator, protect a quiet idea from being rushed, or see a contribution in your team more clearly? A good conversation does not hand you a formula. It gives you a sharper way to look again.
That is the kind of perspective Jams and Joysticks wants to keep moving. The archive is built around people who make games and the community that helps the work travel. Return when you need a new voice, share an episode with someone in your corner, and let the next conversation open a better one.
Keep exploring
Follow the thread that matters to you.
Game development is wide enough to hold many paths. If you want a closer focus on the people writing, building, and guiding projects, continue with the game developer conversations. If you are thinking about player experience and creative choices, the game design collection gives you another place to begin. Independent work and game music offer two more useful doors into the same larger creative world.
Every route is connected by a simple belief: the people behind games deserve to be heard in full. Start with the role, discipline, or story that feels closest to you. Then follow the links into more creators, builders, and community.
Frequently asked questions
Good to know
What is this game development podcast about?
Jams and Joysticks is a place for conversations with the people making games. Episodes bring together developers, designers, creative directors, and community voices to explore the ideas, relationships, and decisions that shape a playable experience.
Who is this game development podcast for?
It is for people building a project, learning a discipline, looking for collaborators, or simply wanting a closer view of how games come together. Start with the conversation closest to the question in front of you, then follow the people and ideas that connect to it.
Are the conversations useful beyond one role?
Yes. Making games is shared work. A developer can learn from a designer, a creative lead can hear a useful community perspective, and a curious player can understand the care behind a finished game. The archive makes room for those connections.
Where can I watch the conversations?
You can watch full conversations on YouTube, listen on Spotify, or browse the episode archive here. Every route leads back to the same collection of creators, builders, and community.
Keep the conversation moving
Find the people behind the build.
Watch original conversations across games, music, and culture, then bring someone from your community into the mix.