3 Bit Design: Recent Episodes
3BitDesign
A game design podcast, where a couple of game designers break down some of the most influential games into the three bits that defined them the most.
Original music by Vid Gobac and Emma Donald - https://www.vidgobac.com/ Thumbnail art by Harry Gould - http://Instagram.com/hg.create Opinions are our own and do not represent the views of our relevant employers.
Tristan and Oliver are joined by systems maestro Scott as they germinate their army of Daughters to end Suffering in Lightbulb Crew’s Othercide, breaking it down into these three bits:
- Dynamic Timeline - Deep dive on the core which makes the action tick
- Evolving Customisation - Discussing the roguelike ruthlessness and the strong encouragement of failure
- The Surgeon - Analysing the first boss and how it acts as the perfect setup for the rest of the game
Let us know what you think:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some References:
Crafting Nightmares - Othercide's Art Direction - Alexandre Chaudret, Game Developer (article)
A Coffee Break with: Alexandre Chaudret, Othercide - gofig_news, Turn Based Lovers (interview)
Going Rogue: Othercide - Gwen C. Katz, Medium (article)
Tristan and Oliver buckle up tight and blitz across the galaxy, pumping EDM as they break down 34BigThings’s antigravity racer Redout 2 into these three laps:
- Eyes on the Road - Maintaining awareness and control at 1000km/h
- Not yo mamma's Mario Kart - Drilling into the tight focus of the mechanics, pure racing without the usual frills
- Multisensory Experience - How the game requires your full focus and leverages music and visuals to induce players into a flow state
Let us know what you think:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Leave us a review!
Some References:
E6 - Redout 2 On Gameplay, Design & F-Zero Influence - Shacknews (video interview)
How the Redout 2 team created the follow up to the universe's fastest game - Miri Teixeira, RedBull (article)
The real engine driving Redout 2’s liquid-fast graphics - Brian Crecente, Unreal Engine Blog (article)
Redout 2 - Developer Feature - Team VVV (video interview)
Tristan and Oliver are once again joined by the insightful Amy Goodenough as they put on their best joker-face to break down LocalThunk’s viral phenomenon Balatro into these three blinds:
- Deck Rebuilder - The low barrier of entry presented by designing on top of classic playing cards offering high familiarity
- Cheating Encouraged - Designing systems that make players feel like they've broken the game and they’re the masters of it
- It’s All In The Movement - All about the extremely satisfying physicality and tactility of the game’s user interface
Let us know what you think:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Leave us a review!
Some References:
Getting to the Heart (of the cards) of Balatro - Josh Bycer, Game Wisdom (blog)
Balatro's 'Cursed' Design Problem - Mark Brown, Game Maker’s Toolkit (video essay)
The Making of Balatro - Video Game Story Time (video)
“There is a lot more design to explore within Balatro” an interview with Localthunk - Jess Norris, XboxEra (article)
Balatro creator unveils a few slick signposting strategies - Justin Carter, Game Developer (article)
Tristan and Oliver ain't afraid of no ghosts, as they strap on their Poltergust G-00 and plunge into Next Level’s Luigi’s Mansion 3, breaking it down into these three bits:
- Vertical Progression - The elevator, level structure, and thematic variety
- Crossing the streams - Evolving the Poltergust’s vacuum-based combat mechanics
- The Nintendo Charm - Analysing which design elements bring out the brilliant humour and tone of the game
Let us know what you think:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Leave us a review!
Some References:
Improving control usability in Luigi’s Mansion 3 - Sara Tung, Medium (article)
Luigi’s Mansion 3: Behind the Screams! - Electric Playground Network (video interview)
The Iterations of Luigi’s Mansion - innegativeion, Parry Everything (blog article)
The Genius of Luigi's Mansion 3 - Mariomikester (video)
Tristan and Oliver are joined by glamorous guest designer Jade Ostle as they embody their inner humanoid felines and immerse themselves into the cozy island life of lamedeveloper’s Webfishing, reeling in these three bits:
- Chatroom Game - How Webfishing revitalises the social charm of a dwindling genre;
- Less is More - Exploring the game’s core gameplay mechanics and how their simplicity elevates the overall experience;
- Situational Design - Passive progression and how everything in the game’s meta design feeds back to the core pillar of it being a social experience
Let us know what you think:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Leave us a review!
Some references:
Taxonomy of Fishing Mini-games - Davide Aversa, Game Developer (article)
How WEBFISHING Is Reviving A Dead Genre - Lucid (video essay)
WEBFISHING and Third Places - Maybe: Salem (video essay)
Webfishing is the ultimate yapping game - Ana Diaz, Polygon (review)
In between seasons, Oliver takes the chance to reflect on some of the games we have discussed previously (Little Nightmares, Planet of Lana, Inside, and Trek to Yomi) to break down the genre of Cinematic Platformers as a whole into three recurring bits:
- Player As Spectator - Camera, sound, and other key influences from the silver screen
- Impactful Minimalism - Simple one-button controls with a heap of personality
- Environmental Storytelling - Using the full visual canvas to communicate strong themes and lingering interpretive narratives with minimal dialogue
Let us know what you think:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Leave us a review!
In between seasons, Tristan takes a quick solo flight, to reflect on some of our most-listened to episodes. And these are three bits he plucked out:
- Bioshock (Ep3, Bit3): The Player’s Choice
- Pokemon (Ep18, Bit3): Rock, Paper, Scissors
- Slay the Spire (Ep9, Bit3): Enemy Intentions
Let us know what you think:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Leave us a review!
Tristan and Oliver are joined by very special guest designer Kike as they take to the lovecraftian waters to dredge up their deepest darkest memories of Black Salt Games' Dredge, fishing out these three bits:
- I Love My Job - The cozy game charm and getting lost in the routine, how clever onboarding and progression gets players into the groove
- Never Put All Your Fish In One Bucket - How the game brilliantly re-purposes its systems yet delivers substantial variety
- Dreadful Undertones - The style, nuance, and the little details that make up the game’s masterful worldbuilding
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Trawling in the deep: How Black Salt Games made spooky fishing RPG, Dredge - Chris Kerr, Game Developer (article)
Creating the creepy, salty world of Dredge - GD Podcast ep.32 - Danielle Riendeau, Game Developer (podcast)
The Design of Dredge - Noclip - Video Game Documentaries (video)
DREDGE's Game DESIGN is... FISHY - Pixel Soup - The Indie Game Detective (video)
How Dredge Was Made and Why it Blew Away Expectations - GameStudioLore (video)
DREDGE Deep Dive #1: Inventory Design - Black Salt Games (video)
Tristan and Oliver are cursed to deathlessly roam the barren plains of Mordor cultivating nemeses as they take a stab at Monolith Productions’ Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor with these three bits:
-
Into The Deep End - Discussing the game’s wide range of objectives and the visual challenges of open world design
-
I Will Take It, Personally! - Forming personal connections with NPCs through the nemesis system
-
Assassin’s Arkham - Inspiration and improvements from the Assassin’s Creed and Arkham games
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
Shadow of Mordor Dev Made "Some Pretty Big And Painful Cuts" - Eddie Makuch, Gamespot (article)
Postmortem: Monolith Productions' Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor - Game Developer Staff (article)
How the Nemesis System Creates Stories - Game Maker’s Toolkit (video essay)
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor Designers Reveal How They Made the Nemesis System (Mini-Documentary) - Game Brain (video essay)
Tristan and Oliver escape to the tall grass and enjoy the breeze on the painterly trees as they break down Wishfully’s stunning Planet of Lana into these three bits:
Cinematic Influence - Nods to Ghibli and masterful cinematography from a team with a film industry background
Care for your Companion - Exploring the relationship between Lana and Mui and how it augments the gameplay
The Art of Juxtaposition - How stark contrasts in the art, music, and design work together to augment the storytelling calibre
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
‘Planet of Lana’ — Running Towards a Dream - Hafsa Hashmey, Medium (article)
Exploring the art and animation behind hand-painted odyssey Planet of Lana - Chris Kerr, Game Developer (article)
Planet of Lana | Developer Commentary Demo - Thunderful Games (video)
SGC21 - The Making of Planet of Lana - Sweden Game Arena (video interview)
Planet of Lana: Exploring the Ghibli-inspired world with game director Adam Stjärnljus - Alicia Haddick, Epic Games Store (article)
Tristan and Oliver find themselves locked in a dimly lit cabin putting their trust into talking cards, as they sacrifice Daniel Mullins’ Inscryption into these three bits:
- Talking Cards! - Exploring the game’s meta narrative design and novel narrative devices
- Sacrifice - How the game holds true to this one core thematic pillar throughout
- Cabin Fever - Blending roguelike deck building with escape room puzzling and beyond
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some References:
Good Game Design - Inscryption: Dismantling a Genre - Snoman Gaming, video essay
Inscryption Game Designer Daniel Mullins chats with BAFTA Young Game Designers winners - Young BAFTA, video
How Inscryption Compels You With Meta Game Design ft. Daniel Mullins - The Escapist, video essay
Inscryption — How and Why - Mike Shepard, Medium (article)
How a game jam on "sacrifices" became Inscryption - Joel Couture, Game Developer (article)
How Inscryption breaks all the game design rules and prospers - GLHF, USA Today (article)
Tristan and Oliver catch each other’s drift on Summoners Rift as they break down Riot Games’s multiplayer sensation League of Legends into these three lanes:
- Battling Toxicity - The famed stigma behind the game’s community and ways in which Riot has been using the power of design to fight it
- Summoners Rift - The balance, the build, the blisters
- Comeback Mechanics - Maintaining the thrill over long session times through strategies and tactics
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some References:
Unsolved League of Legends Mysteries With Lead Designer Greg Street - Ars Technica, video interview
How Learning League of Legends Helps Me Understand Game Design - Bryant Francis, Game Developer (article)
Riot Games | Game Design Masterclass - BAFTA Guru (video)
Game Design: Every Game is an Epic Quest - Riot Games (video)
Creating League of Legends Champions: Our Production Framework Revealed - GDC talk (video)
An MDA Analysis of “League of Legends” - David Tran, Medium (article)
Design Club - League of Legends: Summoner's Rift - Level Design Analysis - Extra History (video essay)
Balancing League of Legends for Every Player, from Bronze to Bengi - Greg Street, GDC talk
Tristan and Oliver are once again joined by very special guest Ioana-Iulia Cazacu, as they open the wonderful box of wonders that is Witch Beam’s Unpacking to unpack it into these three bits:
- Impactful Representation- The importance and effectiveness of a story with queer representation, being told in a game that leaves much to the player’s own interpretation
- Personal Touch- Freedom of choice in a puzzle game, and the emergent narratives it creates in a story driven context
- Hyper-nostalgia- Creating longing for a past as we remember it rather than how it was, through the use of level aesthetics and design
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
Let’s Unpack That - Disegno Journal, article
The Design of "Unpacking" Broken Down by its Developers - NoClipCrew, video documentary
Unpacking | Dev Diary - Humble Games, video
'Unpacking' the design pillars of a chill puzzle game - Danielle Riendeau, Game Developer (article)
Tristan and Oliver are sure to stay sharp and pointed, as they slice through Terri Vellmann, Kitty Calis, DOSEONE and Jan Willem Nijman’s clever dodge-em-up Disc Room into these three bits:
Simple Hand-Crafted Levels- Discussing learning from prototyping and why the developers opted for curated level spawning over procedural randomness
Forgivingly Hardcore- Balancing frustration and exhilaration through alternate avenues, rapid replayability, and occasional rewarding
One Button Variety- The abilities and the three ways the game leverages them to keep things fresh; disc variety, goal variety, and level variety
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
Designing for death and difficulty in Disc Room - Joel Couture, Game Developer (article)
Anyone could make Disc Room, but only the creators of Minit ever would - Jonathan Holmes, Destructoid (article)
Disc Room: Who knew a hard game could be so relaxing? - PC Gamer (video review)
Disc Room designer on its granular difficulty options: 'accessibility helps everyone' - Natalie Clayton, PC Gamer (article)
Designing player death: Using intention and meaning to add depth - Jay Johns, Game Developer (article)
The only guests Tristan and Oliver are joined by this time are the unwanted ones in their head, as they focus Ninja Theory’s Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice in on these three elusive bits:
The Furies - The iconic voices in your head and how audio replaces the traditional HUD in Hellblade;
Outmersive Game Design - Framing the player as an onlooker, and three Cs of the coinhabited avatar;
Lies & Deception - Unreliable narrators, the rot, and other fabrications of the mind;
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
Rotten and Possessed - Control and Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice as Models of Outmersive Game Design (academic paper)
Framing Mental Health Within Digital Games: An Exploratory Case Study of Hellblade - Joseph Fordham and Christopher Ball (academic article)
“Understanding” Narrative; Applying Poetics to Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice - Eoghain Meakin, Brian Vaughan, Charlie Cullen, Game Studies: International Journal of Computer Game Research (academic article)
Exploring the Mindset Behind Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice - De Daniel Kayser, Unreal Engine Blog (article)
Hellblade Development Diaries- Ninja Theory (video playlist)
Tristan and Oliver delve into the crow’s underbelly together with special guest, gameplay guru, Adam Pearce, as they harvest Acid Nerve’s Death’s Door into these three soulful bits:
A Puzzling World (aka Worldy Vibes)- Exploring the game’s unique small ghibli-esque worldbuilding, and how it blends a variety of genres
Dash & Slash- Talking all things combat; iconic bosses and how refining a limited moveset over elaborate combat depth plays to the game’s strengths
The Little Things - Highlighting some of the little unsung details and tidbits that make the game such a joy to play
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
Acid Nerve developers David Fenn and Mark Foster on making ‘Death’s Door’ - NME (article)
Oddly Enough, Death’s Door Started With The Concept Of A Door - Well Played (article)
Death’s Door is simple yet difficult and incredibly fun all at once [Review] - GStyle Magazine (article)
Death's Door Developers Explain its Design & Philosophy | Noclip - Noclip (documentary)
Crafting Death’s Door’s intricate environments - Unity blog
Death’s Door — Inspiration Overtaken - Mike Shepard, The Medium (article)
Death’s Back Door: The Pros and Cons of Acid Nerve’s Crow-centric Reaper Simulator Death’s Door - The Gemsbok
Tristan and Oliver strap on their Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device and bask in the rays of Nintendo’s Super Mario Sunshine, refracting it into these three bits:
Swimming in Secrets - How the game drives innate player curiosity through its Shine, level, and Coin placement;
FLUDD - Breaking down the splashy mechanics provided by Mario’s unique AI sidekick;
Stages of Insanity - Diving into the platforming stages and how their punishing nature contrasts with the rest of the game.
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
Concept to Console: ‘Super Mario Sunshine’ - Reece Goodall (blog)
Super Mario Sunshine: The Mario That Should Have Been More - themancalledscott, WizardDojo (blog)
The Complex Beauty of Super Mario Sunshine - Skyehoppers (video essay)
Breaking Down Bianco Hills | A Super Mario Sunshine Deep Dive - 2CPhoenix (video essay)
Game Design | Super Mario Sunshine VS Super Mario Galaxy | How Controls Define a Game- Aggressively Medium (video essay)
Tristan and Oliver put on their comically oversized toques and tuck their legs in as they scramble for tips in Ghost Town Games’s Overcooked, finely chopping it into these three bits:
The Art of Readability - Exploring the game’s purposefully chunky art style and bold colours
Well-orchestrated Nonsense - Breaking down how the game naturally encourages cooperation through the evolving level design and mechanics
Three Star Mastery - Why Overcooked is one of the best references to date when it comes to star ratings
Let us know what you think:
Leave us a review!
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some References:
How Overcooked’s Kitchens Force You to Communicate - Game Maker’s Toolkit (video essay)
Overcooked: How Design Creates Teamwork - Abhishek Iyer, Medium (article)
Overcooked — The Other as Gameplay - Yvens Serpa, Medium (article)
Development by expo: How Ghost Town built Overcooked - Christopher Dring, GamesIndustry.biz (article)
A Simple, Yet Effective Game Design Method - Overcooked - Pixel Soup - The Indie Game Detective (video essay)
The UX of Overcooked: From umami to unexpected design principles - HeyMilou, Medium (essay)
How overcooked thrives on simplicity? The BENEFITS of shallow gameplay- Game Design with Michael (video essay)
Tristan and Oliver pair up, side-by-side, for their first ever in-person recording to venture deep into the land of giants in Starbreeze Studios’ Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, as they break it down into these three bits:
Two Perspectives - How the two characters react to the world differently and the implications it has on puzzle design
Your Other Half- The mechanics of controlling two characters at once and the resulting, physical character building as the narrative unfolds
Show Not Tell - The wordless worldbuilding leveraging land and soundscapes
Let us know what you think:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some References:
Designer Reviews BROTHERS: A TALE OF TWO SONS - Farlands Design Den
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons - Masterful Game Design || A Retrospective Analysis - Baran Esen
“Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons”. Intertwining Story Theme and Game-Mechanics - Gerald, Video Game Narrative (blog)
A Critique of Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons- Matt, A Mind of Madness (blog)
Tristan and Oliver are joined by special guest game designer Ioana-Iulia Cazacu to ponder on the leisurely farm life of Eric ‘Concernedape’ Barone’s masterful Stardew Valley, as they harvest these three bits:
A Fresh Start - Joja Mart’s corporate capitalism versus the leisurely pace of village community life
Casual Pressure- The yearning for a peaceful life, the idealisation of a pastoral life and how the game uses time and character energy to comment on it
Nudging to Explore - How the hands-off game cleverly leverages core loops and collection mechanics to drive natural exploration and discovery
Find us on socials:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
Game Design Perspective: Stardew Valley - Game Design Perspectives (article)
The Anatomy of Stardew Valley - JM8, Design Delve (video essay)
How Stardew Valley Was Made by Only One Person - ThatGuyGlen (mini-doc)
Game Design: Stardew Valley and the Farming Genre - Craig Perko (video essay)
How Great Games Do Progression | A Stardew Valley Video Essay - James Likes Games (video essay)
Why Players become obsessed with “farming games”? - Yongcheng Liu, Game Developer (article)
An Objective Analysis of Stardew Valley’s Design - Tan Chong Han Alden, Game Analytics with Lenses and Tools (blog)
Learning to love Stardew Valley’s terrible fishing game- Polygon (video essay)
Tristan and Oliver link up like two materia in a pod coming down with an Avalanche of thoughts as they break down Square Enix’s Final Fantasy VII Remake into these three bits:
Redefining Remakes - How FFVII set a new bar of what a remake can be, from visual overhaul to larger gameplay and narrative changes.
Best of Both Worlds - The evolution of Final Fantasy combat and how past learnings coalesced into the exhilarating ATB combat system (MK II).
Class Dismissed - Exploring how the weapon and materia systems create flexible, versatile characters to experiment with.
Find us on socials:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
The making of FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE - SquareEnix (official website)
Final Fantasy VII Remake review: Thundaga can’t strike twice - Josh Brown, Digital Trends (review)
Anatomy of a Game | Final Fantasy VII Remake - Game Design with Chris (video essay)
Perfecting Final Fantasy 7′s legacy, as told by its creators - Gene Park, Washington Post (article)
Reverse Design: Final Fantasy VII - Patrick Holleman (book)
Fight, Magic, Items: The History of Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and the Rise of Japanese RPGs in the West - Aiden Moher (book)
The Systems of FF7, Then and Now - Ajai Raj, Medium (article)
Final Fantasy 7 Remake is a flawed, but fascinating, reimagining of a classic- Carolyn Petit, Polygon (review)
Tristan and Oliver slick back their hair and put on their hat made of loose Jenga pieces, as they lock in to beat the following three bits out of Bandai Namco’s seventh (main) instalment of the iconic fighting game Tekken:
Judging By Looks - Discussing the diverse character roster compared to other fighting games and how the game builds character depth with mystery.
A Fighting Chance- Rage arts, power crushing, and other ways Tekken 7 is designed to be beginner-friendly.
Adopt & Adapt - Depth & discovery through play, and how the game encourages experimentation in playstyle.
Find us on socials:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Or email - 3bitdesign@gmail.com
Some references:
Perfecting Tekken 7 - Designing the Definitive Version - IGN (video)
Tekken 7 - PS4/XB1/PC - Character Development (Q&A Dev Interviews) - Bandai Namco
How Tekken 7's Arcade Roots Are Shaping Its Console Form - Edmond Tran, Gamespot
https://www.gamedeveloper.com/design/between-a-rock-and-a-harada-place-the-massive-i-tekken-i-interview - Brandon Sheffield, Game Developer (article)
The Making Of... Tekken - Edge staff, Edge (article)
The Pure Game Design of Fighting Games- The Game Overanalyser (video)
Tristan and Oliver strap into their jetpacks and hope they don’t run out of fuel, as they hack Relic Entertainment’s sci-fi epic Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine into these three bits:
- Hordes of Fun - Fun in numbers; the joy of ploughing through enemy hordes and how the game capitalises on this;
- Takedown Heal- The execution mechanic and the game’s health design;
- Fictional World- The strong focus on gameplay and its effect on the believability of the worldbuilding;
Find us on socials:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine - Be a Space Marine Gameplay Developer Diary (2011) - XboxViewTV (video)
Wot I Think: Space Marine - Alec Meer, Rock Paper Shotgun (article)
What Made Warhammer 40K Space Marine So Unique - Cameron Swan, GameRant
How many ways can THQ’s Space Marine game rip off Gears of War? - Dean Takahashi, GamesBeat
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine - Combat System ViDoc (2011)- XboxViewTV (video)
Tristan and Oliver put on their warmest parkas and their creepiest clown mask as they head up to the snowy Washington Lodge, ready to slice Supermassive Games’ blockbuster, choice-driven, survival horror Until Dawn up into these three bits:
- The Lodge - Evaluating the level design of the game’s most iconic and recurring central space;
- Boom, Butterfly Effect- Discussing characters, narrative, replayability, and the thin line between life and death;
- Previously on Until Dawn- The ease of catching up and the pacing offered by recaps, totems, and The Analyst;
Find us on socials:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Creating the atmosphere of Until Dawn - Staff, MCV
Until Dawn - Observations on Interactive Drama Design ➣ RagnarRox - RagnarRox, video essay
Until Dawn: Anticipation as Horror - Shelby Carleton, Game Developer article
‘Until Dawn’: An Interactive Horror Story - Joelle Jacoski, Medium article
Supermassive Games' top three rules for narrative-driven horror - Danielle Partis, Games Industry.biz (article)
Experimental Games: Critique, Play, and Design in the Age of Gamification - Patrick Jagoda (book)
On tonight’s episode of Night Springs… Tristan and Oliver gather their thermoses and prepare to aim down hard on their beaming flashlights, as they unravel Remedy’s multilayered, narrative-action-adventure Alan Wake into these three bits:
- Follow The Light - Everything light and darkness; narratively, thematically, and mechanically;
- Multimedia Madness- Discussing the layering of storytelling mediums; including the episodic structure and the manuscript pages;
- Balancing Simplicity - The complexity of balancing approachability and minimalism with progression and pacing;
Find us on socials:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
How Alan Wake Was Rebuilt 3 Years Into Development | War Stories - Ars Technica (video)
The Cult Classic That Refused To Die (Alan Wake) - Nerdstalgic Gaming (video)
The Making of Alan Wake - Remedy Entertainment (video)
Alan Wake turns 10: Remedy's game took five years to emerge from the darkness of development, the studio explains how it finally saw the light - gamesradar+ (article)
Dissecting Design -- The Action-Horror of Alan Wake - Game Wisdom (video)
Alan Wake: Illuminated- Jorg Neumann & Tony Elias (book)
Tristan and Oliver huddle up to dive deep into Playdead’s masterful narrative platformer Inside, defining it through these three bits:
- Learning By Ear - The game’s unique audio driven design, often telling before showing.
- Impactful Minimalism - Less is more, one button controls and guiding the player through subtlety.
- Interpretive Narrative - The elements that made this compelling world of mystery, that sparks conversation long after finishing playing.
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
How Inside's levels were designed - Alex Wiltshite, Rock Paper Shotgun (article)
Video games and the auteur theory - Jeff Spoonhower, Game developer (article)
How Games Tell a Story: Exploring the Different Methods of Interactive Storytelling - Randen Banuelos, Game developer (article)
Developers provide their [spoiler-free] take on Inside - Joel Couture, Game developer (article)
Low Complexity, High Fidelity: The Rendering of INSIDE - Mikkel Gjoel, GDC talk.
Huddle up! Making the [SPOILER] of INSIDE - Playdead, GDC talk.
The Art of Minimalism | Limbo and Inside Retrospective - CloudConnection (video essay)
Tristan and Oliver meet up with Professor Oak and face the ultimate discussion, as they lay out the classic generations of Game Freak’s global sensation Pokémon into these three elements:
- Gotta Gacha 'Em All - Catching, collecting, and pioneering the gacha games we know today.
- Becoming a Pokemon Master - The micro decisions that offer a personalised journey despite minimal customisation and linear storytelling.
- Rock, Paper, Scissors - The iconic elemental combat system and turn based combat at its most accessible.
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Design Doc - How To Make Great Game Rivals - Pokemon and Devil May Cry (video essay)
Extra credits - Mechanics Shaping Story - Re-examining the Core Gameplay Loop (video essay)
An Exclusive Look At Pokémon’s Early Design Documents - Game Informer (video essay)
5 Game Design Decisions That Made the Original Pokémon Games Classics - Jack Fennimore, UWM Post (article)
Analysis of the first-generation Pokémon game development process - Went, Daily Longform (article)
Tristan and Oliver have chosen, or been chosen, to embody free men as they break down Valve’s industry defining title Half-Life 2 into these three bits:
Situational Variety - The sandbox-like combat created through the game’s physics, objects, and weapons.
Full, Continuous Control - The narrative devices deployed to tell a compelling story while always maintaining full player control.
Diegetic Wayfinding - Expertly guiding the player exclusively through visual and audio queues, minus objective markers.
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Half-Life 2's Ravenholm is peak Valve level design - Polygon, video essay
Half Life 2's Game Design is Incredible - JacksonX, video essay
How Valve Introduces a Game Mechanic - Htwo, video essay
Half-Life 2: Raising the Bar - A Behind the Scenes Look: Prima's Official Insider's Guide - Prima Development, book
Classic Postmortem: The making of Half-Life 2 - Game Developer, article
Reverse design: Half-life - Patrick Holleman, book
"The narrative had to be baked into the corridors": Marc Laidlaw on writing Half-Life - Rock Paper Shotgun, article
Tristan and Oliver get caught in a web of intrigue as they string together Insomniac Games’ PS5 launch title Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales into these three bits:
- Feeling Like Spiderman - all things web swinging and open world parkour traversal
- Brawling With Agility - Looking at Spidey’s combat design and how the character creates a unique opportunity for brawling in large, open levels.
- Living Breathing NYC - How the wizards at Insomniac made the big apple feel alive, and what such a bustling city scape means for wayfinding.
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Marvel's Spider-Man Miles Morales: The Creative Journey - Brian Horton, GDC talk
Inside the inspiration that shaped Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales - Brian Crecente (Epic games store)
Marvel Spiderman’s Level Design - Ketul Majmudar, Medium article
Marvel's Spider-Man Design Analysis - Stanislav Costiuc, Game Developer article
Creating The World Of Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales - video interview with Brian Horton, Game Informer
How Insomniac Refined Combat In Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales - video interview with Cameron Christian, Game Informer
TRANSLATING SPIDER-MAN FANTASY INTO COMBAT MECHANICS - Jason de Heras, blog
Tristan and Oliver passionately channel Lucio’s ultimate as they break down Blizzard’s hero shooter phenomenon Overwatch 2 into these three bits:
- Teamwork By Design - Naturally enforcing team play through the classes system and other defining in-game features
- Asymmetric Level Design - Lifting the curtain on the compelling attack/defend dynamics and how they are enabled through the level design
- Zero Downtime - Keeping the player engaged in an endless loop of play
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
‘Overwatch 2’ review: a colourful shooter that just works - Jake Tucker, NME article
BEHIND THE SCENES OF OVERWATCH 2’S DEVELOPMENT - Blizzard Entertainment
OVERWATCH REVIEW: A MASTERPIECE IN UX DESIGN - Kyle Hamel, Akendi article
Overwatch and Asymmetric Level Design - What Makes the Maps Fun? - Extra Credits, video essay
Blizzard's Aaron Keller Breaks Down Overwatch Map Design - Ars Technica, video interview
Overwatch and Asymmetric Character Design - The Challenge of Varied Playstyles - Extra Credits, video essay
Asymmetrical Game Design: How to find the balance - Josh Bycer, article
Tristan and Oliver tap and swipe through their emotions, frantically trying to hold the podcast together as they break down Mountains’s mobile hit Florence into these three bits:
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Designing For The Medium - Using natural intuition over complex tutorialisation
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Small Changes, Big Differences - Conveying story through the power of returning mechanics & repetition
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Emotions Through Colour - Establishing the mood of a scene through clever use of colour.
Find us on Twitter:3-Bit Design: @3bitdesignOliver - @oliverwautersTristan - @theatrewalkerSome References:
Narrative Tactics for Mobile and Social Games: Pocket-Sized Storytelling - Toiya Kristen Finley (book)
Florence: How game design can tell love stories - Marie Dealessandri (MCV Develop, article)
The breathtaking Florence captures falling in love better than almost any game - Allegra Frank (Polygon review)
The Lead Designer of Monument Valley Deconstructs His Latest Game, Florence (Ollie Campbell, Milanote)
The Making of Florence | Episode 1 - Annapurna Interactive (Dev Diary, video)
Tristan and Oliver voyage beyond life and death as they pick up the blade and slice Leonard Menchiari & Flying Wild Hog’s Trek To Yomi into these three bits:
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Situational Awareness - distinguishing action from exploration and the side-scrolling combat design
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Player As Spectator - framing the player as a bystander and other influences from the silver screen
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The Ultimate Dilemma - projecting the hero’s burden of societal expectations onto the player through clever narrative design
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some References:
Trek to Yomi review — Beautiful art direction and tense combat combine to create an enthralling ode to Japanese cinema - Richard Allen, Gaming Trend (article)
Walk, Don’t Run Through Trek to Yomi - Damien Lawardorn, Escapist (article)
How Akira Kurosawa inspired the vision of developers Leonard Menchiari and Flying Wild Hog.- Leonard Menchiari (Playstation blog)
Trek to Yomi - Original pitch concept (2019) - Leonard Menchiari (video footage)
Tristan and Oliver are joined by guest game designer Amy Goodenough to guide them through the vast expanses of Tyria, as we break down ArenaNet’s MMORPG Guild Wars 2 into these three bits:
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Encouraging community - how the game nurtures a positive collaborative community and surprising design choices that have contributed to it
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Dynamic events - questing in a living breathing world; linear vs emergent gameplay
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Compartmentalising play styles - How GW2 seeks to present its broad PvP and PvE experiences in a way that allows for depth without overwhelming players
Find us on twitter at:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Guild Wars 2 Design Manifesto - Mike O'Brien (article, Guild Wars website)
Guild Wars 2 Game Designer Discusses Challenges of Modernizing Living World Season 1 - Eric Law (article, GameRant)
Horizontal VS Vertical Design [MMOPINION] - Josh Strife Hayes (video essay)
The Four Core Concepts That Guild Wars 2 is Built Upon - Mike Fahey (article, Kotaku)
Why Guild Wars 2 Has the Best Fishing Mini-Game of All Time - The anatomy of Guild Wars 2 , The Escapist (video essay)
Tristan and Oliver tune into the frequency of Night School Studio’s cult classic, Oxenfree, as they interrupt your broadcast with these three bits:
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Communication as the main mechanic - Tackling all the items of a traditional adventure game with a single mechanic
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Walking and Talking - Narrative pacing and the dynamic dialogue system
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3D interactivity in a 2D environment - How Night School Studio blended art style with level design tricks to depth in the 2D spaces
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some References:
“I thought we were going to go out of business” - Sean Krankel on the development of Oxenfree - Chris Wallace, MCV develop (article)
Building Game Mechanics to Elevate Narrative in Oxenfree - Sean Krankel (GDC talk)
5 Game Design Innovations from 2016: Oxenfree - Natural Conversations - Mark Brown, GMTK (video essay)
Road to the IGF: Night School Studio's Oxenfree - Bryant Francis, Game Developer (article)
The Very Best and Worst Thing in Oxenfree: Game Design Review - Platformer Game Design (video essay)
Dramatic Storytelling & Narrative Design: A Writer’s Guide to Video Games and Transmedia - Ross Berger (book)
Cutting Through the Static: The Immersive Greatness of Oxenfree’s Radio - Ishaan Sahdev, Black Shell Media (article)
OXENFREE | Part 3: Mechanics & Gameplay - Robert Kirkman’s Skybound (video essay)
Tristan and Oliver team up to wreak havoc in Pandora as they blast open Gearbox Software’s iconic FPS Borderlands 2 into these three bits:
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Co-op RPG Shooter - How Gearbox tackles this mashup of genres throughout the different aspects of the game.
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Procedurally Generated Loot - Weighing up the benefits of generating millions of unique guns.
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A Feast For The Eyes - Discussing the HUD elements and visual feedback design approach of the game.
Find us on twitter at:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Hard Edge Creativity: Defining Borderlands 2 - Christian Nutt, Game Developer (article)
Crazy Town: Gearbox on making Borderlands 2 - Russ Pitts, Polygon (article)
Inside the Box: Designing humor in Borderlands 2 - Anthony Burch, Gearbox Software (article)
Looking for Love on Pandora: PCG and Borderlands 2 | Design Dive - Tommy Thompson, AI and Games (video essay)
Borderlands 2's amazing weapons and their bizarre inspirations, from Apple to Austrian cars - Brian Crecente, Polygon (article)
Tristan and Oliver seek to play their cards right or face permadeath as they break down MegaCrit’s seminal roguelike deckbuilder Slay the Spire into these three bits:
- Risk VS Reward - How the game masterfully goes about presenting truly meaningful choices to players.
- Class Variety - The curation of playable characters and how they make a punishing, almost traditional, roguelike exciting to replay.
- Enemy Intentions - designing around RNG and leaning into player strategy through the power of UI and enemy designs.
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
On slay the spire, progression, and making games more loser-friendly - Cheryl-jean Leo (article, blog)
Slay the Spire: Metrics Driven Design and Balance - Anthony Giovanett (video, GDC talk)
How Slay the Spire Keeps You Guessing (Game Design) - Patch Quest (video)
25: Slay the Spire with Anthony Giovannetti - Eggplant: The secret lives of games (podcast episode)
Game Design Tips from Slay the Spire - AC Atienza (article, Cloudfall Studios blog)
How Slay the Spire Defined a New Genre - Josh Bycer (article, Superjump)
Why Classes Are D&D's Best Idea - Adam Millard: The architect of games (video)
Tristan and Oliver canoe down to the magical realms of Midgard as they chop up Santa Monica’s epic God of War (2018) into these three bits:
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The Hub World - Breaking down the central Lake of Nine hub area and the key role it plays in the structure of the game.
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One Shot Take - The framing, fluid movements, and seamless transitions that make up the game’s third person camera.
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Boy! - A deep dive into the player character’s buddy AI/NPC companion, Atreus, and how his presence affects the player experience.
Find us on twitter at:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
Some references:
Taking an Axe to God of War Gameplay - Jason McDonald (GDC talk)
Evolving Combat in 'God of War' for a New Perspective - Mihir Sheth (GDC talk)
How Santa Monica Studio Nailed Exploration in God of War - Anthony DiMento (article, PlayStation.Blog)
A Father Presses, A Son Acts: A Kratos-centric Model of God of War’s Universe - Em (article, Deorbital)
God of war deconstructs the action genre in the worst way: analysis - Josh Bycer (article, Game Wisdom)
The Secrets of Brutality: God of War's Combat Design - Christian Nutt (article, Game Developer)
In this episode, game designers Tristan and Oliver grab onto their walkies as they go bit-spotting in the Wyoming forests of Campo Santo’s gorgeous hit Firewatch - specifically these three bits:
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Open World Metroidvania & environmental breadcrumbs - lifting the lid on the reactive open world and its systems.
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First Person Characterisation - Defying the generic blank slate player character trope most first person games resort to and creating an immersive emotional attachment to a character players can’t see.
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The Passing of Time - One of the game’s biggest themes; how it was handled and convincingly represented to the player largely through environmental storytelling.
Find us on twitter at:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
In this episode, game designers Tristan and Oliver venture down deep into the underworld of Supergiant Games’s renowned roguelike HADES as they nimbly dash through these three bits:
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Repetitive Fun - Putting the ‘fun’ in death and making each run feel fresh in this “narrative roguelike”
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Encouraging Experimentation & Variety - How the game drives exploration and nudges players towards trying new things.
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Feel like a god - Why does it just feel so damn good to play?
Find us on twitter at:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
In this episode, game designers Tristan and Oliver take on a bird's eye view in Adamgryu’s A Short Hike as they explore these three bits:
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Living in the moment - How the game creates a world of explorative freedom of exploration and anti-completionism.
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Meta-awareness by design - Looking at the game’s witty writing and how it self-awaredly pokes fun at modern day video game conventions
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Battling mental health - Connecting with players through relatable scenarios of everyday mental health and how the subject is tackled in a positive lighthearted way.
Find us on twitter at:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
In this episode, game designers Tristan and Oliver work together as they lovingly pull apart Hazelight’s It Takes Two into these three bits:
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A game to get into games - Why It Takes Two makes the perfect starter pack for any newcomer to videogames.
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The discordant storytelling - Questioning the narrative composition as well as ‘elephant trauma’.
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It really does take two - Contemplating the decision to make it co-op exclusive.
Find us on twitter at:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
In this episode, game designers Tristan and Oliver dive deep into the world of Rapture to break down Ken Levine’s Irrational Games’ seminal title Bioshock into these three bits:
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The engrossing worldbuilding
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The anatomical control scheme
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The player’s choice
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
In this episode game designers Tristan and Oliver break down gaming's creepiest little gem, Tarsier Studios' Little Nightmares, into these three bits:
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The sense of scale
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The eerie pacing
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The environmental storytelling
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker
In this pilot episode game designers Tristan and Oliver break down Thatgamecompany's ground-breaking game Journey into these three bits:
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The movement mechanics and flow
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The minimalistic storytelling
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The profound multiplayer experience
Find us on Twitter:
3-Bit Design: @3bitdesign
Oliver - @oliverwauters
Tristan - @theatrewalker