Stupid Little Games with Jess Pardue

Release the Kraken - With Orvar Halldorsson!

This week, Jess sits down with Minecraft creative lead and DigiPen senior lecturer Orvar Halldorsson!
They chat about taking gaming classes at 3AM, rotoscoping Liam Neeson's beard, and how Orvar's team enables Minecraft players to craft their own experiences. Then they play a Stupid Little Game about *totally* real Minecraft mods. Shout out to Butter Dog!
Thanks so much for listening! Please consider leaving us a review on Apple or Spotify. It really helps out.
Special thanks to today's sponsor:
Bean Sidhe: the new narrative walking sim from Sealbee Games. Available now as pay-what-you-want on Itch.io with all proceeds going to trans and Palestinian mutual aid. 
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Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.

Achieving Total Clarity - With Mike Varley!

On today's very special episode of Stupid Little Games, Jess chats with true Brooklyn creative Mike Varley: video game producer, award-winning multi-media artist, and professional bagel eater! 
They discuss the latent political power of gamers, the traits that can make you a successful producer, and how to walk 7000 miles without dying. Then they play a Stupid Little Game that asks how long it takes to walk from Kakariko Village to Hyrule Castle.
Thanks so much for listening! Please consider leaving us a review on Apple or Spotify. It really helps out.
Special thanks to today's sponsors:
Phantoms, Ghosts, & Other Heartbreaks - a debut novel by Beth Morton. You can find it on Amazon paperback and kindle. Available now!
Outreach Program - the sophomore album by Brooklyn indie rock band Social Robot. Visit socialrobotmusic.com for more info!
And you can check out some of Mike's amazing projects: HIghleyVarlet.com; EverythingisEverything.nyc, and the Total Clarity Podcast!
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Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.

QA is Game Dev - With Andre Coleman!

Hello friends old and new!
Jess is back this week with Andre Coleman - a 10+ year Senior QA Engineer who has worked with EA, Experis, Microsoft, and Avalanche Studios! They discuss turning off "QA brain" when you're playing games for fun, what QA *actually* entails (spoiler alert: it's not just playing games all day), and Andre makes us all hungry talking about New Orleans cuisine. 
Then they play a Stupid Little Game called Smarty Gras, all about Mardi Gras trivia. "Throw me something, Mister!"
Note: There are some construction sounds that we couldn't 100% remove from the background (NYC will be NYC after all) so just pretend that there's a Tom & Jerry cartoon happening in the background. Special thanks to engineer/wizard Gabe for working so hard to make this episode sound nice.
Special thanks to today's sponsors:
Phantoms, Ghosts, & Other Heartbreaks - a debut novel by Beth Morton. You can find it on Amazon paperback and kindle. Available now!
Outreach Program - the sophomore album by Brooklyn indie rock band Social Robot. Visit socialrobotmusic.com for more info!
_____________________
Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.
Thanks so much for listening!

Pour Yourself a Drink - With Thomas Klingstrom!

Hello friends old and new! We made it to February. Good job, us!
We're back with an exciting new episode this week as Jess chats with veteran AAA Art Director Thomas Klingstrom! They discuss entering the game industry as a new artist, how to not stray from your vision during production, and why if you see a celebrity in New York, no you didn't.
Then they play a Stupid Little Game called Video Game Sommelier!
Special thanks to today's sponsor:
Phantoms, Ghosts, & Other Heartbreaks - a debut novel by Beth Morton. You can find it on Amazon paperback and kindle. Available now!
_____________________
Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.
Thanks so much for listening!

There's No Such Thing as a Straight Line - With Scott Smalley!

Repost Alert! Jess was very smart and accidentally erased this episode a few weeks ago. Did we mention she's very smart? So we're reposting so that it can be discovered all over again! Please enjoy this banger from a few months back. See you next Tuesday with a brand new episode.
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Hello friends old and new!
On this week's episode, Jess chats with veteran hard-surface artist Scott Smalley - best known for the Just Cause, Red Dead Redemption, and Midnight Club series!
They discuss making cars that don't look "off", why perfect is the enemy of shipped, and the fact that "PBR" is more than just Pabst Blue Ribbon. Then they play the stupidest Stupid Little Game yet, but Scott was a really good sport.
_____________________
Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.
Thanks so much for listening!

The Definition of Squonder - With Matthew Laurence!

Hello friends old and new! 
On this week's episode, Jess sits down with Matthew Laurence; *nearly* 20 year games industry veteran formerly of Crowdstar, Rovio, Megazebra, Embark, and Ubisoft. Currently he's the Engagement and Narrative director (yes both!) at Avalanche studios. He's also a HUGE nerd (affectionate). 
They chat about being a garbage human (and that's ok!), the importance of game economy design, and chasing gaming jobs all over the world.
Then they play a Stupid Little Game - complete with theme song! - called "Where in the World is this Video Game Location?".
Thanks so much for listening! Please consider leaving us a review on Apple or Spotify. It really helps out.
Special thanks to today's sponsors:
Phantoms, Ghosts, & Other Heartbreaks - a debut novel by Beth Morton. You can find it on Amazon paperback and kindle. Available now!
Outreach Program - the sophomore album by Brooklyn indie rock band Social Robot. Visit socialrobotmusic.com for more info!
And you can check out Matthew's books:
Freya & Cause and Effect Game Design
_____________________
Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.
Thanks so much for listening!

WTF is a Lambanana? - With Alison Lacy

Hello friends old and new! 
This week Jess is joined by Alison Lacy, Chief Operating Officer of Radical Forge and Co-Chair of Liverpool GameChangers! They talk about video game towns, the importance of inter-studio coalition building, and the myth of the genius asshole. 
Then they play a Stupid Little Game all about knitting in video games (and Weezer songs).
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Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.
Thanks so much for listening!

Two Grown Women Talk About Lazytown - With Stefanía Guðrún Halldórsdóttir

Happy New Year Stupid Little Gamers! We're back with a banger this week as Jess sits down with Stefanía Guðrún Halldórsdóttir, current CEO of Avalanche Studios Group, former GM of CCP games (of Eve Online fame), and perhaps most importantly, accomplished Sportacus mustache artist!
They chat about the best mobile games to disassociate to, the wonder and magic that is LazyTown, and a few lessons and challenges from a lifetime of being a woman in games.
Then they play "Satt eða ósatt" a Stupid Little Game all about wild Icelandic facts. It's an "educational" podcast after all... 
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Hello friends old and new! Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.
Thanks so much for listening!

And the Stupid Little Game Award Goes to... - With Hamish Young!

In this very special episode, Jess welcomes back Hamish Young (our first repeat offender!) for a comprehensive chat about The Game Awards from an insider game dev perspective. We go through every upcoming announcement (yup, ALL of 'em) and then give out a few Stupid Little Game Awards of our very own. 
Is this a long episode? Yes. 
Is this episode still shorter than the actual Game Awards? Also yes. 
This is the last episode of the year (boo...) but don't worry, we'll be back on January 7 (yay!) for a whole new year of Stupid Little Games. Happy Holidays from Jess, Hamish, and the SLG crew!
_____________________
Hello friends old and new! Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.
Thanks so much for listening!
 
 

The True Mayor of the Pit - With Anya Combs!

This week, Jess sits down with video game, TTRPG, and board game crowdfunding expert Anya Combs!
They chat about Dragon Age: The Veilguard, sexism in the world of music (and games!), "riding the cow to get to the horse" when trying to fund your passion projects, and Anya's amazing gig as a professional punk saxophonist. 
Then they play a Stupid Little Game called "Saxophoning it In!"
_____________________
Hello friends old and new! Stupid Little Games is a podcast all about gaming from the inside out!
Each week, I (Jess Pardue) sit down with an insider from various parts of the gaming industry, from indie to AAA. We talk about our current gaming obsessions, tell stories from projects past and present, and then play a Stupid Little Game I write especially for each guest.
Thanks so much for listening!