The Debug Log

Latest Episodes:

Episode 73: Design Patterns: Singleton Apr 25, 2017

Show notes

Hello, Debuggers. In today’s episode, we continue our series about design patterns with one of the most polemic design patterns of all, Singleton. We explain when you might want to use a Singleton, we go over the definition of this design pattern, we talk about two very common definitions, and finally, we go over some of the reasons why people do not like to use Singletons.

Thanks for tuning in this week and we hope you enjoy the show! Contact us at: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 72: A Master Study in Content Design with Joshua Herbert and Benjamin Gross Apr 12, 2017

Show notes

From Tomb Raider to Ninja Turtles, this pair of Game Designers have been through it all. In this week’s episode we sit down with Benjamin Gross and Joshua Herbert about their roles as Content Designers in the game industry.

We discuss the basics behind content design but also take a deep dive into the world of interactive storytelling and how it plays out in both the Indie game development realm as well as within AAA game development. If you have ever been curious about the role of a content designer or what it takes to get started within the field, then this episode is one that should surely help shed some light!

Thanks again for listening in this week and we hope you enjoy the show! If you have any questions about content design, be sure to contact us at: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 71: Common Developer Mistakes Apr 06, 2017

Show notes

Mistakes. We all make them, especially as developers. The good news is that we can all learn from each other and try to avoid them in the future. This week we discuss a really interesting article by Tomas Macek entitled, The 10 Most Common Mistakes That Unity Developers Make. This article served as a great jumping-off point for us to discuss the most common problems we see every day. Hopefully, you'll be able to glean a few gems from this discussion and be able to implement some of these tips, in your game, today.

Thanks again for listening in this week and we hope you enjoy the show! If you have any questions about today's episode, be sure to contact us at: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 70: Status Updates Mar 29, 2017

Show notes

“Whatchu working on?!”

In this week’s episode, the gentlemen of The Debug Log discuss their progress on their respective games. Eduardo drops a few more hints on THE new VR game he has been working on. Zack and Andrew outline some of the work and challenges that were encountered during the development of their hot, new Rougelike. They also announced the name of their new company. Obinna also explains some of the major challenges and decisions that he and his team have been faced with over the past few months and the strides they have taken to overcome them.

Thanks again for listening in this week and we hope you enjoy the show! If you have any lingering questions about our projects or general development, be sure to contact us at: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 69: Design Patterns: State Mar 24, 2017

Show notes

In today’s episode we talk about design patterns in game development, specifically, the State pattern. This is going to be an episode mostly oriented to developers, but it is an important part of our effort to bring good programming practices to other devs. We explain the basics of what a design pattern is and we mention some of them. Later on we present a very common scenario in game development, which is the implementation of an AI. We explain why an implementation with if and else is not recommended and we show you a great way to implement the State pattern.

Thanks for tuning in this week and we hope you enjoy the show! Contact us at: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 68: How To Pitch Your Game Mar 17, 2017

Show notes

Before the thousands of players, before the money, before the press conferences, even the biggest games had to start with one simple thing; the pitch. Whether it's to investors or collaborators, fans or the press, pitching your game is something you will be doing constantly as a developer. Not only is it hard to become comfortable with the idea of "selling yourself", it becomes hard to distill the passion you have for your project into a clear and enticing message.

In this week's episode, we sit down and discuss the best ways to pitch your game. We go over my "3 C's of Problematic Pitches", some great advice on purpose and structure from Vlambeer's Rami Ismail, and the crisis of confidence everybody faces when pitching their own projects. All that plus a pretty wild "Game of the Week".

Thanks for tuning in this week and we hope you enjoy the show! Feel free to send any emails with questions you may have about Pitching to: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 67: A Product Manager's Purpose with Vignon Zinsou Mar 08, 2017

Show notes

Tired of getting your PM’s mixed up? Not sure what goes into product management? Eager to impress your friends and co-workers with some key, trivia-ready information about what a product manager does? If you answered, ‘Yes’ to any of the above questions, then this episode is for you!

In this week’s episode, we sit down with Vignon Zinsou, a Product Manager at “Sprockets,” who has had the unique experience working with both eastern and western markets of mobile games. Vignon provides a detailed outline of the purpose of a product manager within a game studio while sharing his experiences.

Thanks for spending your time with us this week and we hope you enjoy the show! Feel free to send any emails with questions you may have about Product Management to: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 66: Unity Analytics with John Cheng Feb 23, 2017

Show notes

In this episode, I have to pleasure to talk to John Cheng, the head of Unity Analytics. We go over the different parts of Unity Analytics and its features to show you all the power that you have in your hands if you use Unity. Finishing a game is not enough if you want to have a game development business. That is why I ask John how a developer can use this business intelligence tool to make better design decisions. Listening to the players of your game is fundamental. Unity Analytics helps you do exactly that, but don’t take my word for it, listen to the episode and hear it from the leader of the team who created this tool. Thanks for tuning in and have an amazing day.

Thanks for tuning in this week and we hope you enjoy the show! Contact us at: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 65: Makin' Stuff Look Good with Dan Moran Feb 15, 2017

Show notes

You lookin’ gooooood!

In today’s episode we are covering the topic of visual effects in a conversation with our friend Dan Moran. Dan runs the Youtube channel Makin’ Stuff Look Good and works with Obinna and I at Sprockets as a Graphics Engineer. He is very knowledgable when it comes to the subject of visual effects and graphics programming and shares this knowledge with us on the show.

We talk about how he got his start, tools of the trade, shader programming, and how he approaches creating a new visual effect, like Winston’s shield from Overwatch. Get ready to have some knowledge dropped as we make stuff look good with Dan Moran.

Thanks again for tuning in this week and we hope you enjoy the show! If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about makin' stuff look good, send us an email at: thedebuglog@gmail.com

Episode 64: UI/UX: Theory & Practice Feb 07, 2017

Show notes

It's time to stretch our academic muscles! On today's episode, we revisit a topic we've discussed previously, UI. This time we look at it through the lens of User Experience Design. Instead of listing Unity libraries and various technical solutions, we try to take a more formal design approach to the subject and look at what the body of research has to say about UI and UX. We also break down, and I mean really break down, how a player interacts with your game and what questions you can ask yourself to make that experience better. Finally, we wrap it all up with a particularly delicious Game of the Week!

Thanks for joining us this week and we hope you enjoy the show! Feel free to send any emails with questions you may have about today's discussion to: thedebuglog@gmail.com

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