This is The Here's Waldo Podcast where we sit down with top visionaries and creatives in the video game industry. Together, we'll unravel their journeys and learn more about the path they're forging ahead.
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Happy National Video Game Day! 🎮 Today, we celebrate over 50 years of creativity, evolution, and the incredible people who’ve brought unforgettable gaming experiences to life. Here’s to the power of play and the people behind the magic! #GameIndustry #GameDevelopment #Hiring
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Creative director & world builder for game studios | Ex-Star Wars | 16 years in game dev & marketing
At big companies, I felt like my title was one of the only ways to validate my career growth. I yearned to have words like 'senior' and 'director' in there for years. Now, working for myself and servicing studios as a consultant; no one cares what I'm called. All that matters to them is my work's impact. And that's helped me refocus on that too, and be cured of my addiction to titles. This fun and casual conversation I had with Lizzie Mintus ended up covering many topics that I hope are relevant to those eager to make career transitions towards that which they love. Thanks for having me on, Lizzie!
EA & Respawn Entertainment initially shot down Neel Upadhye's pitch to create Apex Legends transmedia content. Instead of taking no for an answer, he moved into their office, won them over and helped launched the iconic “Stories from the Outlands” series for Apex Legends which received millions of views. Neel is an award-winning writer, director, and transmedia storyteller with over 15 years in gaming. He's led multiple internet-breaking shorts for Apex Legends, Star Wars, Battlefield, and Need for Speed. Today, Neel runs Riddermark Creative that specializes in delivering in-game narratives and marketing campaigns. Past clients include Scopely, Giant Skull and Roboto Games. This episode is a must-listen for anyone who's interested in learning how to navigate unorthodox career paths to do what you love, or how to transform game marketing with compelling storytelling.
Curious how games are revolutionizing healthcare? Tune in to learn from Noah Falstein's four decades of industry wisdom—where he led iconic games and teams at Lucasfilm, 3DO, DreamWorks Interactive LLC, Google, and more. Today, as the founder of The Inspiracy, Noah shares his journey in integrating game tech with health. #neurogaming #gamesforhealth
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You may know Noah Falstein because he was famously one of the first 10 employees at Lucasfilm Game. But did you know that these days he's all-in on how games are revolutionizing healthcare? Noah has worked for 3DO, he was Chief Game Designer at Google and he was the first elected chair of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA®). Tune in to hear more about Noah's current venture, The Inspiracy and what exactly is going on in games meets healthcare.
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Mark 🔜 Gamescom Subotnick aka "Bot" is VP of Partner Alliances at ProbablyMonsters, but he got started in games as a QA tester at Sega of America, Inc. This is an excellent reminder that the majority of highly successful people (many who've been on my podcast) started in a not-glamorous entry level job, volunteered to do whatever was needed and worked their way up. Mark has worked in nearly every category of gaming, and has credits in over 31 games with experience across 10 platforms and 8 platform launches. Tune in to hear about his unconventional journey, the evolution and challenges of the gaming industry, and the importance of nurturing relationships this week on The Here's Waldo Podcast.
🎧 Tune in to this week’s episode to discover how Squanch Games sets itself apart with a unique blend of humor, creativity, and a strong studio culture. Michael Fridley also shares his leadership approach, emphasizing the importance of understanding the team and fostering an environment where creativity thrives. Don’t miss this deep dive, behind the scenes into what makes Squanch Games and their hit game, High on Life, so distinct! https://lnkd.in/g3sAVKqK #GameDevelopment #Leadership
Warm Intros > Cold Emails. In the gaming industry, where community ties run deep, warm introductions from satisfied customers or industry networks can truly make a difference. Tune in to this week’s episode to discover how Siddharth Dhulipalla's networking led to unexpectedly securing a $7.6M seed round for Hathora, plus more, including: ☁️ The balance between cloud and bare metal servers for multiplayer games 💰 Strategies for optimizing operational costs while scaling a gaming platform 🎮 Stress testing #Stormgate for up to 1 million concurrent users https://lnkd.in/gGuwVutG
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Siddharth Dhulipalla's networking with investors like Kevin Zhang led to him being handed a term sheet when he wasn't actively raising and closing a 7.6M seed round. Sid is the CEO and co-founder of Hathora, the server orchestration platform powering Frost Giant Studios, Inc. new game, Stormgate. Their cloud and bare-metal hybrid deployment model is transforming cost-optimization in game development. Check out the full episode to hear about how they broke into the game industry, landed their first customer, and their journey developing their product hand-in-hand with game studios they support.
#Stormgate is playable now on Steam for Early Access, and will be playable free on August 13th! 🎮 https://lnkd.in/gZAgMCQr
Stormgate, the new RTS from Frost Giant Studios, Inc. launched in early access today. Their CEO Tim Morten joined me on The Here's Waldo Podcast to share behind-the-scenes insights on creating the company's first title. Tim has worked in leadership on Command & Conquer at EA and on StarCraft2 at Blizzard. Listen to the full episode to learn about the challenges and strategies behind RTS game development, the value of community feedback, and the ins and outs of securing venture capital and crowdfunding. Stormgate will be free-to-play starting August 13th!
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David Elton has led studios like Electronic Arts (EA), Microsoft, Zynga, and Capcom, contributing to multiple titles from Microsoft's Solitaire to iconic franchises like Need For Speed and SSX. More recently, he helped build Mario Kart Bowser's Challenge for Universal Studios Hollywood, the first major attraction to incorporate AR. Join us on this episode of The Here's Waldo Podcast for David's career highlights, insights for business development, and the intersection of virtual and physical worlds in both gaming and theme parks.