Wayfinder | Darion Lowenstein

The Fine Art of Playfulness | Nick Fortugno

In episode 13 Susan sits down with  Designer and storyteller Nick Fortugno has spent more than 20 years pushing games into new spaces on screens, on streets and in the classroom. He talks about co founding studios like Rebel Monkey and Playmatics, helping define early casual and social games, creating playful public experiences through Come Out and Play, and now running the digital game program at City College in New York while designing “games about non game things for people who do not play games.” Nick reflects on pattern recognition in a fast changing industry, what it really means to treat game design as an innovative discipline, and why he believes live, physical play and community centered work will remain vital no matter how technology shifts. * (00:00) - Intro * (01:20) - Meet Nick Fortugno * (03:23) - The Wandering Path * (05:45) - From Literature to Games * (08:29) - Criticism and Philosophy * (10:03) - What it Means to be a Game Designer * (13:38) - Dinner Dashing to Success * (18:16) - Making Things that Matter * (20:34) - Making Serious Fun * (27:22) - Rebel Monkey * (30:12) - Leadership & Risk * (31:28) - Playmatics * (33:17) - The Impact of One is Many: Ephimeral Work * (37:38) - Criticism * (41:23) - Expertiese Performance * (43:21) - The Single Thread * (46:17) - Keeping it Together Guest Bio:  Nick Fortugno is Director of the Digital Game Development Program at City College of New York, leading its new game development degree, and is an entrepreneur, interactive narrative designer and game designer based in New York City.  He is a founder and principal of Playmatics (www.playmatics.com), an interactive development company. Playmatics has created a variety of digital and real-world experiences for organizations including Pro Publica, Red Bull, AMC (such as the CableFAX award winning Breaking Bad: The Interrogation), Disney, American Museum of Natural History, the Corporation of Public Broadcasting, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and the Red Cross/Red Crescent. For the past twenty years, Fortugno has been a designer, writer and project manager on dozens of commercial and serious games, and served as lead designer on the downloadable blockbuster Diner Dash and the award-winning serious game Ayiti: The Cost of Life. Nick is a Lead Artist on the Frankenstein A.I. project (featured at the Sundance New Frontier Festival in 2018), and has worked extensively on interactive narrative projects in a variety of formats. Nick is also a co-founder of the Come Out and Play street games festival (www.comeoutandplay.org), winner of the Indiecade's 2019 Bernie DeKoven Big Fun Award and hosted in New York City and around the world since 2006, and is co-creator of the Big Urban Game for Minneapolis/St. Paul in 2003. Nick has taught game design and interactive narrative design for 20 years at institutions such as Columbia University and the Parsons School of Design, and has participated in the construction of game design and immersive storytelling curriculum. Nick holds an MFA in Design and Technology from Parsons School of Design. Some of Nick's writing about interactive narrative can be found in the anthology Well-Played 1.0: Video Game, Value, and Meaning, published by ETC-Press. Find Nick's work! www.nickfortugno.com [http://www.nickfortugno.com/] https://nicholasfortugno.substack.com/ [https://nicholasfortugno.substack.com/] https://www.ccny.cuny.edu/digital-game-development [https://www.ccny.cuny.edu/digital-game-development] Join our Substack - https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack [https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack]

Beautiful Pixels | Lisette Montgomery

In episode 12 Susan sits down with Lisette Titre Montgomery, veteran art director and co founder and CEO of Cornerstone Interactive, looks back on a two decade career that spans Freakstyle, Tiger Woods PGA Tour, The Simpsons, South Park and Psychonauts 2, and forward to new ways of making games feel truly handmade again. She talks about leading teams through tricky visual problems, building Gameheads Oakland for youth from underserved communities, and using AI and emerging tools in ways that still put artists and human authored work first.  * (00:00) - Intro * (01:13) - Meet Lisette Titre-Montgomery * (05:58) - Early Years * (10:40) - Becoming a Leader * (12:19) - From EA to Double Fine * (17:24) - Keeping the Chemistry Up * (19:30) - Mentoring * (21:00) - GameHeads * (24:26) - Cornerstone Studios * (26:18) - TechTools of the Trade * (29:01) - AI * (31:39) - Roles and Skills for the Future * (36:11) - Preparing for the Future * (37:50) - Wrapping Up * (39:36) - Outro Guest Bio:   Lisette Titre-Montgomery is an Art Director who leads teams that solve complex visual challenges with consistent vision, language, and technical execution. Her career spans over twenty five years of industry experience and  14 hit game releases.  Lisette has led art studios large and small in the US, Japan, China, Australia, India, and the Philippines. Lisette has contributed to some of the industry’s highest profile games, including Tiger Woods Golf, The Simpsons, Dante’s Inferno, Dance Central 3, SIMS 4, South Park, and Transformers Age Of Extinction for Android and iOS. Her most recent project was Psychonauts 2 with Double Fine Productions. She is currently launching Cornerstone Interactive, a new studio focused on reimaging cinematic and interactive experiences. Lisette’s list of personal achievements are just as impressive. She has been featured on CNN,  invited to The White House, and a member of the US Department of State's Speakers Bureau.  Mrs Titre-Montgomery has been a featured keynote speaker at N.A.S.A., Goggle, Intel, Black Girls Code, Girls Who Code and more. She has also been named One of the Most Powerful Women in Tech by Business Insider.  Find Lisette's work! https://linktr.ee/LisetteTitre Join our Substack  [https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack]

Starving Up | Alexander Fernandez

In episode 11 of the GGJ Podcast, Alexander Fernandez, co founder and CEO of Streamline Media Group, shares how he turned a four person apartment in the Netherlands into a global studio working on franchises like Final Fantasy, Gears of War, Bioshock Infinite and James Cameron’s Avatar. He explains his “starving up” mentality, surviving the 2008 financial crisis, closing Streamline’s Amsterdam studio to protect his team, and rebuilding in Malaysia to connect talent in the global south with opportunities in the global north. * (00:00) - Intro * (01:20) - Meet Alexander Fernandez * (04:20) - The StarveUp Mentality * (05:42) - The Beginning of Streamline * (07:25) - Time as Currency * (11:03) - Don't be agreeable * (13:56) - Downfall * (19:01) - Reputation * (19:47) - Moving to Malaysia * (24:30) - Second Thoughts? * (26:48) - Steam Frame * (30:07) - Making Decisions and Telling the Truth * (32:20) - Making your own Games * (36:19) - Harvard OPM Program * (40:12) - How do you do it all? * (44:18) - Winding Down * (48:13) - Outro Guest Bio:   Alexander L. Fernandez is the CEO and Co-Founder of Streamline Media Group, a global video game and technology company operating across Malaysia, Japan, Colombia, and the United States. Over 25 years, he has led Streamline’s contributions to more than 500 productions generating over $6 billion in revenue, including Final Fantasy XIV, Street Fighter V, and Avatar. A recognized Endeavor Entrepreneur and Harvard Business School alumnus, Alexander champions the Global South’s rise as a creative and economic force. His leadership philosophy, “Delivering the Promise,” emphasizes mastery, responsibility, and integrity as the foundation for global collaboration and sustainable growth. Find Alex's work   Streamline Studios (Company): https://www.streamline-studios.com Streamline Media Group: https://www.streamline-mediagroup.com Work with Streamline: https://www.streamline-mediagroup.com/workwithus Streamline's Video Podcast: https://www.streamline-mediagroup.com/delivering-the-promise Substack: https://starveup.substack.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexanderfernandez/ Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/starveup Join our Substack - https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack [https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack]

Reinventing Yourself | Nico Castez

In episode 10 Susan sits down with Argentine game maker Nico Castez to talk about cranking out 100 games at Avix, chasing strange ideas instead of trends, and turning that wild energy into his new studio, Goraku Club.  They dig into hard‑won lessons about money, momentum, and community, plus what Nico wants the next wave of Latin American creators to build. * (00:00) - Intro * (01:28) - Meet Nico Castez * (03:47) - The Road to Avix * (13:04) - Making Games with Friends * (16:23) - What it was like * (20:43) - COVID Times * (23:37) - The End of Avix * (31:59) - Moving On * (35:31) - Goraku Club * (37:31) - Buenos Aires vs La Plata * (39:34) - The Future & Take Aways * (41:46) - Explore, Play & Stay Creative * (44:39) - Where to find Nico * (46:34) - Outro Guest Bio:  Nico is a visual designer and entrepreneur from Argentina who successfully ran a small indie game studio for over a decade, reaching millions of players worldwide. After closing Avix, he’s been exploring new creative paths—focusing on photography, organizing live music events, and developing personal projects. Currently in a transitional stage, he’s rethinking how to balance creativity, independence, and sustainability while continuing to build things that feel meaningful. Follow Nico's journey! https://allmylinks.com/nicocastez This episode was brought to you in part by the University of Miami: School of Communications [https://com.miami.edu/department-of-interactive-media/] & the Knight Foundation. [https://knightfoundation.org/] Join our Substack - https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack [https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack]

Payment Due | Alexis Jolis Desautels

In episode 9 Susan talks with Alexis Jolis‑Desautels, a veteran designer and design leader who has spent two decades inside some of the world’s biggest game franchises helping studios actually understand their players. From starting as a QA tester at Ubisoft Montreal to building user research labs, leading design teams on major AAA projects, and mentoring the next generation of designers, Alexis brings a rare mix of craft, honesty, and cultural insight to every conversation * (00:00) - Intro * (01:20) - Meet Alexis * (05:26) - Mentors & Inspiration * (07:17) - Ubisoft * (11:06) - Crunch * (13:58) - Staying Sane * (15:49) - RLD * (21:30) - Jams * (26:13) - Burnout * (35:12) - The Ladder is a Lie * (38:54) - Community * (41:16) - Wrap-up * (45:23) - Outro Guest Bio: Alexis is a designer mostly interested in new applications of science and psychology in the field of interactive experiences.  Focused on issues of creativity and design processes, but also, by using a background as an actor and journalist, developed skills as a trainer and a communicator, mostly about Game Design but also about games and digital interaction as a medium and human activity. Join our Substack - https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack [https://tinyurl.com/GGJPodcastSubstack]