The Community Lounge

"We raised $50K for charity with a video game" ft. Community Manager Greg Cummings

Today's guest is Greg Cummings, Community and Content Manager at Far From Home, a Polish indie studio behind the survival game Forever Skies. Greg's journey into community management began while working full-time in retail and being a dad; he built experience through unpaid work as a content creator, streamer, and unofficial community moderator for PlayStation Access before landing his first industry role in 2021. We chat about managing communities across time zones with a team of moderators, how Far From Home turned negative reviews into a comeback story by listening to their players, and their inspiring charity work that's raised over $50,000 for Whale and Dolphin Conservation. Greg shares practical advice on building trust with your community, managing your time effectively, and why negative reviews from engaged players are actually valuable feedback. Shoutouts: * Untold Tales [https://untoldtales.games/] * Enigmatic Play [https://www.twitch.tv/enigmaticplay] * Playstation Access [https://www.youtube.com/PlayStationAccess] * WDC Whale and Dolphin Conservation [https://uk.whales.org/] * War Child Charity [https://www.warchild.org.uk/] Find Greg On: * Linkedin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-cummings-737878350/] * Bluesky [https://bsky.app/profile/nowherenearberlin.bsky.social] The Community Lounge is brought to you by Feature Upvote – Painlessly collect feedback from your players. More insights, less noise. Subscribe to the Community Lounge newsletter and get notified of new episodes and guides [https://featureupvote.com/thecommunitylounge-newsletter]. CHAPTERS * (00:00:00) - Greg's History as a Community Manager * (00:03:06) - Working for Far From Home * (00:08:03) - Remote Work with a Global Team * (00:13:19) - Charity Initiatives and Social Responsibility * (00:17:17) - Handling Feedback and Reviews * (00:21:58) - Balancing Work and Personal Life * (00:23:58) - Why Good Moderators are Essential * (00:28:51) - Building Trust with Your Community * (00:35:53) - What Greg is Playing and Final Thoughts

Introducing the Community Lounge Guides for Community Managers (solo episode)

Welcome to a solo episode of the Community Lounge Podcast! I'm launching the brand new Community Lounge Guides: A series of practical resources designed specifically for community managers: The first one is now available: "Becoming a Community Manager: Real Life Stories [https://featureupvote.com/thecommunitylounge/becoming-community-manager]" This guide explores the diverse paths people take into community management, organised into four categories: Volunteering, Transferable Skills, Study, and Community Creators. It features stories from real-life Community Managers who were guests on the show, like Jarvs Tasker, Christian Jürgensen, Lyn Dang, and Erik Jakobsson. Mentioned in the show: * Nicolas Mérouze [https://www.customerfitted.com/] The Community Lounge is brought to you by Feature Upvote – Painlessly collect feedback from your players. More insights, less noise. Subscribe to the Community Lounge newsletter and get notified of new episodes and guides. [https://featureupvote.com/thecommunitylounge-newsletter] CHAPTERS * (00:00:00) - Introduction to Community Lounge Guides * (00:02:42) - The Importance of Community Management Guides * (00:04:42) - Sneak Peak at the First Guide: 'Becoming a Community Manager'

"The industry is smaller than you think" ft. Community Manager Vicki Fieldhouse

Today's guest is Vicki Fieldhouse, Senior Community Manager at Secret Mode. Vicki took an unconventional path into games, entering community management in her mid-30s after years of trying to break into the industry. Her journey involved customer service from running her own business, social media management, and streaming RPGs during COVID—all of which became the perfect foundation for her community management career. We chat about how Vicki landed her first games job by streaming Fighting Fantasy books on YouTube, why being genuinely passionate about the games you work on matters, and the challenges of taking a lead management role that led her back to hands-on community work. Vicki also shares insights about the differences between working for developers versus publishers, the importance of honesty when you can't fix a bug, and her work on Cozy Quest: Secret Mode's annual celebration of cozy games featuring nearly 300 developers. Games mentioned in this episode: - Fighting Fantasy (Gamebooks): https://www.fightingfantasy.com/ - Kingdom Two Crowns: https://store.steampowered.com/app/701160/Kingdom_Two_Crowns/ - A Little to the Left: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1629520/A_Little_to_the_Left/ - Loddlenaut: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1644940/Loddlenaut/ - Winter Burrow: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3008740/Winter_Burrow/ - Sqeuakross: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2871440/Squeakross_Home_Squeak_Home/ - Everything is Crab: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3526710/Everything_is_Crab_The_Animal_Evolution_Roguelite/ - Spore: https://store.steampowered.com/app/17390/SPORE/ - Split Fiction: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2001120/Split_Fiction/ - Jurassic World Evolution 3: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2958130/Jurassic_World_Evolution_3/ Find Vicki on: - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/victoriasteele/ The Community Lounge is brought to you by Feature Upvote—Painlessly collect feedback from your players. More insights, less noise. Subscribe to the Community Lounge newsletter and get notified of new episodes and articles: https://featureupvote.com/thecommunitylounge-newsletter CHAPTERS * (00:00:00) - Vicki's Journey into Community Management * (00:07:09) - First Steps in the Gaming Industry * (00:10:40) - Transitioning Roles and Responsibilities * (00:13:03) - Understanding Community Management Roles * (00:16:18) - Tips for New Community Managers * (00:17:54) - Memorable Moments in Community Management * (00:21:54) - Challenges Faced as a Community Manager * (00:27:38) - Navigating Community Issues and Player Expectations * (00:29:35) - What Vicki is Playing and Personal Favourites

"Players like to feel listened to" ft. Community Manager Joshua Mathews

Today’s guest is Joshua Mathews, Marketing and Social Media Manager at Doborog. Josh has spent years in community and marketing roles across the indie games scene, working on projects ranging from Calvino Noir to Clone Drone in the Danger Zone and its VR successor Clone Drone in the Hyperdome. Before joining the industry, Josh built a following as a YouTuber spotlighting under-the-radar indie games — a passion that still fuels his work today. We chat about how his early experiences making trailers and talking with developers shaped his approach to community management, why empathy and gut instinct can be just as important as analytics, and how players often find unexpected meanings in games. Josh also shares insights on managing diverse communities across Discord, what to watch out for when your loudest fans don’t always represent the majority, and how he balances professional marketing work with his personal creative projects — from Warhammer storytelling to Vampire: The Masquerade cosplay. Games mentioned in this episode: * Clone Drone in the Danger Zone [https://store.steampowered.com/app/597170/Clone_Drone_in_the_Danger_Zone/] * Clone Drone in the Hyperdome [https://store.steampowered.com/app/2401230/Clone_Drone_in_the_Hyperdome/] * Calvino Noir [https://store.steampowered.com/app/316890/Calvino_Noir/] * Still Wakes the Deep [https://store.steampowered.com/app/1622910/Still_Wakes_the_Deep/] * Battlefield 6 [https://store.steampowered.com/app/2807960/Battlefield_6/] * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 [https://store.steampowered.com/app/1903340/Clair_Obscur_Expedition_33/] * Easy Delivery Co [https://store.steampowered.com/app/3293010/Easy_Delivery_Co/] Find Joshua on: * LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-mathews-b98481275/] * TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@jershmagersh] * Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/jershftl] * YouTube – Strange Adventures [https://www.youtube.com/@StrangeAdventures] The Community Lounge is brought to you by Feature Upvote [https://featureupvote.com/] – Painlessly collect feedback from your players. More insights, less noise. Subscribe to the Community Lounge newsletter [https://featureupvote.com/thecommunitylounge-newsletter]

“That's my name! I'm in a game!” ft. Community Manager Charis Reid

Today’s guest is Charis Reid, founder of Cut Teeth, an ad-hoc community management agency. After unexpectedly being made redundant earlier this year, Charis turned a setback into an opportunity—launching her own business that lets her collaborate with multiple studios and projects at once. We chat about how redundancy pushed her to build something new, the challenges of setting boundaries when running your own agency, and the lessons she’s learned from juggling clients across the industry. Charis shares her unconventional path into games—from studying game art and dreaming of building environments to discovering her passion for connecting players and developers. She also tells a touching story about being honored in-game by a small indie team she supported, how an ambitious ARG campaign went hilariously off-script, and why knowing a community’s “deep lore” is the secret to succeeding as a new community manager. Games mentioned in this episode: * Mechajammer [https://mechajammer.com/] * Rainbow Six: Siege [https://www.ubisoft.com/en-gb/game/rainbow-six/siege] * Pokémon Go [https://pokemongo.com/] * League of Legends [https://www.leagueoflegends.com/en-gb/] * DEEEER Simulator [https://store.steampowered.com/app/1018800/DEEEER_Simulator_Your_Average_Everyday_Deer_Game/] Find Charis on: * LinkedIn [https://uk.linkedin.com/in/charisreid] * cutteeth.co.uk [https://www.cutteeth.co.uk/] The Community Lounge is brought to you by Feature Upvote – Painlessly collect feedback from your players. More insights, less noise. Subscribe to the Community Lounge newsletter and get notified of new episodes and articles. [https://featureupvote.com/thecommunitylounge-newsletter/] CHAPTERS * (00:00:00) - Introduction and Agency Overview * (00:02:12) - Navigating Redundancy and Starting Fresh * (00:03:22) - Challenges of Running an Agency * (00:06:15) - The Journey to Community Management * (00:09:07) - Changing Perceptions of Community Managers * (00:12:12) - Memorable Moments in Community Management * (00:14:15) - Recognition in the Gaming Community * (00:16:44) - Challenges in Community Management * (00:20:26) - Learning and Adapting as a Community Manager * (00:24:33) - Understanding Community Dynamics * (00:26:48) - Balancing Work and Personal Life