Pixel Pizza

Joining us this week from Bangkok is gaming communications expert Kimmi Goh! Kimmi is the Communications Lead at Goldpact Goblins, working with dev teams across Southeast Asia to promote their work and build communities around them. We discuss successful social media campaigns, seeing your coworkers grow, and "friendslop" as a term of endearment! Plus, music from DDRKirby~LINKS:

Hey! Welcome back to another new Pixel Pizza! This week we've got French art director Simon Hutt Troussellier on the show to chat about his work on games like Furi, Tinykin, and the recently announced Acornia. Simon brings some insight on visual worldbuilding, simple yet distinct character designs, and making connections over drinks. He also tells us about his experience working on the Invader Zim movie!! And, if you speak French, check out his new comic AMR

Summer's about to end, so get ready for the snowy season with Austrian snowboarding game expert Hannes Lugstein aka ByteParrot! Hannes hit the scene about two years ago with the cartoony racing game SlopeCrashers, and is now hard at work on the more intense and stylish boarding game, CarveOut 2160

*chomp chomp* That's the sound of my schedule hungry for an upload of pizza! My guests for this week fell through, but you'll be hearing from them soon ;) I didn't want to leave you guys with another encore so soon after the last one, so here's my annual run-through of what I've been playing. We cover new games, old games, roguelikes, and provide some frigid-yet-relevant takes on the industry developments of the year so far. Featuring some music from chiptune artist Azureflux!LINKS:

Ayo, it's Yayo! This week we have composer and sound designer of the acclaimed Promise Mascot Agency (and several exciting games to come), Alpha Chrome Yayo, on the show. We talk about learning traditional Japanese instruments, capturing the right vibe in your home studio, and chasing your dreams. With music from the man himself!LINKS:☁️ ACY's BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/alphachromeyayo.com

Grab an ice cold drink and join us on this hot summer weekend for a chat with Headless Chicken Games CEO JP Chacon! He tells us about founding his own studio, giving opportunities to industry newcomers, and pivoting the design of the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer game in a month! Plus the wild story of how the team acquired their PS4 devkit! Ft music from Cass Preston aka Witch's Cadence

This episode originally aired on October 13, 2022.Hot off the heels of his video game debut in the hit game Motorslice, we're revisiting a chat with Harvey Jones aka Pizza Hotline! If you've played it, come hear about his earlier work and DJ experience. If you haven't, get ready for some incredible tunes~LINKS:

HIKE! We hit the weirdest gridiron this side of Saturn this week with the Birdup and Ratttz, the duo behind the upcoming asymmetric 1v1 puzzler Intergalactic Puzzle Touchdown- releasing in late September! The duo tells us how they met through the competitive puzzle game scene, introducing elements of chance, and how hobbies like street hockey and mycology have influenced their work together. Featuring music from Dāku!LINKS:

Pick up those pencils, this *will* be on the test! Canadian indie dev Keely Brown joins the show this week to chat about his upcoming party drawing game Chicken Scratch. We discuss everything that went into the game's unique corporate bird theming, roguelike mode, and clever marketing. Featuring music from Neon Cyan~LINKS:

Monkey around with us this week as we speak to Turkish 2D game artist Ece Aslı Erikci. Ece recently entered the industry with the social bomb diffusal game BOMBANANA!, the most played game at this summer's Steam Next Fest! Ece talks about her work on children's books, Turkish rug history, and how Avatar: the Last Airbender influenced the blindness mechanics in Bombanana. And much more! Featuring music from Virus Sign.LINKS:

We welcome game designer Aubrey Rugroden to the show this week to talk about how she's approached designing for multiple genres. Some of her work has been on the GTA/Goat Simulator-inspired Pigeon Simulator, the turn-based strategy game Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tactical Takedown, and the hand-drawn metroidvania GNAW. (Wow was that a lot of hyphens or what?) Aubrey tells us about her time studying at Digipen Institute of Technology, understanding every aspect of gamedev to communicate with your teammates, and the appeal of great box art. Featuring music from Isaac Jupp!LINKS:

Join us for a shorter Pixel Pizza this week (a personal pie?) as we speak with Armando Webb, half of the Mexico-based indie studio Odd Men In! The team's debut title is the 90's cartoon-inspired metroidvania Oh, My Doug! Armando tells us about the handmade visuals (both drawn and modeled) that went into the game, creating a game world out of the human body, and not saying no to your own ideas. Featuring music from Craig is Complacent!LINKS:

Join us this week for a talk with Brazilian pixel artist and game designer Cecilia Santos, better known online as CeciHoney! Ceci has done freelance pixel art for a wide variety of indie games, including the upcoming titles Atomic Owl, Torment Hexus, and One Fenix Down. She tells us about her pixel art method, how tarot cards helped revitalize her career, and her collaborations on character design with her fashion designer husband! Featuring music from R3D_Rose

Fresh off his appearance at Day of the Devs 2026, artist/filmmaker/developer Case Jernigan stops by at Pixel Pizza! Case's new game, Bub, is a heartfelt story of inspiration and identity told through real papercraft, watercolor, and other mixed media. We fittingly get vulnerable and discuss some heavy topics including anxiety, bullying, and multiple sclerosis. Plus some talk about real Italian pizza! With music from FluxDrive~LINKS:

Swing into the weekend with a new episode of Pixel Pizza! Stopping by this week are HappySquared and Emlise of the indie studio Minibunnies. They're best known for their work on the atmospheric momentum-based Metroidvania, Rusted Moss. We discuss the development of that game and its post-launch support, and even get into the making of their hotly anticipated successor to Rusted Moss, Iron Bramble! Featuring music from Hitboxx.LINKS:

Spice up your weekend with a chaotic new Pixel Pizza! Joining us this week is Slug Glove, the developer behind the whimsical and wildly open-ended adventure game Rhell! SG explains how the game's striking 2D/3D art style came to be, integrating the over one million spell combinations in the game, and valuing yourself in freelance work. Plus, they give more insight into the currently-in-development sequel: Seqrhell :O With music from Kibo Amiibo!

Get a look behind the totally normal worlds of indie creator Tom van den Boogaart on this week's show! Tom's best known for the recent Dutch countryside mystery game Grunn, as well as the cult hit alien walking sim Bernband. We chat about his experimental work as part of the Sokpop Collective, and the Bernband remaster currently in development! Featuring tunes from Missu Kissu

Dig your paws into an all-new Pixel Pizza! Just in time for the release of Bubsy 4D, we have game artist Sabaku on the show! She tells us about her early days in the German RPG Maker community, bringing her ideas into 3D with Skellboy, and the process of working with Fabraz on Demon Tides and Bubsy. Featuring chiptune music from Refmaven~LINKS:☕️ Sabaku's Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/sabbi_tabbi☁️ Sabaku's BlueSky: http://sabakudoesart.bsky.social

This episode originally aired on May 10, 2024.Sorry for two encores in a row, but lots of brand new episodes coming over the next few weeks- promise! This time we're revisiting our talk with Swedish game writer and solo dev Christoffer Bodegård. His latest title, the DnD and Disco Elysium-inspired Esoteric Ebb, came out earlier this year and is one of 2026's best reviewed games so far! We talk about freelance writing, the Swedish gamedev scene, and adding dumb fun choices to your game. Music from Slamhaus!LINKS:

This episode originally aired on May 30th, 2025.Swipe right on this week's episode to hear from writer on the hotly anticipated dating sim Date Everything, Jay Choi! Jay tells us about his background in writing for animation and film, finding his way into the industry by being a "LEGO drug dealer", and making wholesome romantic storylines. Music from Epshirey!LINKS:

This week we talk about a rarely discussed but essential part of game development: QA! And few people are more well-versed in the field than our guest Paul James. Paul has tested over 30 projects in the indie sphere, including breakout hits like Foolish Mortals and Blue Prince. He tells us about how his work touches on all aspects of game dev, when in the process developers should bring in QA testers, and the satisfying feeling of catching a bug. Featuring music from Lion Wisdom!LINKS:

Joining us on Pixel Pizza this week is my fellow CMU alum Lawrence Plofker! For the past five years Lawrence has been a game designer at Simcoach Games, developing educational experiences for players on the autism spectrum. We get into his experiences playtesting, teaching life skills through games, and the wider success of the team's game Tidekeeper. Ft music from Cloning People!LINKS:

Joining us this week is multitalented game designer Osama Dorias! Osama's wealth of experiences extend from mobile games with Gameloft to AAA games like Diablo IV and Gotham Knights to his current independent venture with HeartLoop Games! His small team at HeartLoop is currently working on the roguelike fighting game Poly Fighter. We chat about how developers can bring their personal experiences into the content of their games, recapturing the feeling of discovery in fighting games, and Magic the Gathering

Go out and touch some grass while you listen to this week's Pixel Pizza! We've got Connor Quinn, one of the devs behind the wholesome adventure Lil' Gator Game, joining us this week. Connor talks about growing up with ADD, his core pillars of what makes a good game, and the recently-released "In the Dark" expansion. Featuring music from Spring

We've made it to EPISODE 200 BABYYYY! (shhh never mind the encores)I loved what we did last time to celebrate: Hearing from former guests about where their professional and personal journeys have taken them since appearing on the show. So I decided to do it again! Who needs originality anyway? Join the party and listen to what nine super talented game industry folks have to share. Plus heavy metal music from guest Ali Cedroni's band, Tungsind

On episode 199 of the Pixel Pizza Podcast (yes really!), our game industry guest is Nitrome's Mat Annal! In his prolific career so far, Mat's worked on dozens of games spanning flash, mobile, and console platforms. We discuss the missed opportunities that ultimately built up his career, collaborating with Yacht Club Games on Shovel Knight Dig, and how the team built their Switch 2 exclusive game Mouse Work... before they had a Switch 2 devkit! Feat. music from Slamhaus. Stay tuned next week for the big two hundo~LINKS:

Settle in for a brand new Pixel Pizza, where we're speaking to Argentinian developer Kenneth Azcurra! Kenneth is the Chief Technical Officer at indie studio GamKat, who just released their cozy puzzle game Piece by Piece (the one with the fox

This episode originally aired on May 17, 2024.It's GDC week, so most devs are out of town! But it makes for a good excuse to revisit an older episode that I've heard a bunch of people say they really enjoyed featuring environment artist Sophie Stübinger. Since this episode aired, Sophie's worked on the recent Double Fine game Keeper and is currently doing environment art over at Anchor Point Studios! Check out what she had to say about Party Animals and some of her other previous work here. With music from Pixelization!LINKS:

Enter the strange world of the Outer Zone with its Denmark-based studio head Malte Burup! Malte is behind the dystopian psychology simulation Mind Scanners and the grid-based soulslike Death Howl (recently released on consoles)! He tells us about creating haunting pixel art, leaning into the perception of your game, and paper prototypes. With music from KB!LINKS:☁️ Outer Zone BlueSky: theouterzone.bsky.social

Draw your sword and SLICE 'em up :P This week we welcome Danilo Barbosa, lead dev at Spanish studio Retro Reactor, to the show! Dan created the high-stakes samurai fighting games One Strike and Two Strikes, where as the titles suggest a single hit or two decides a match. He talks about his previous work on educational games, authentically capturing Japanese history and style, and the inclusion of iconic manga character Baki in Two Strikes! Plus, we discuss the brand new DLC for the game! With music from Ariosodev~LINKS:

Throw some AA batteries into your listening device (it's totally there, I swear) and get ready for this week's show with homebrew Game Boy developer Max Oakland! Max recently released his open-world platformer, Wink & the Broken Robot, on real cartridges. He tells us about all the pieces that go into creating physical copies, his other creative passions like music and claymation, and taking level design inspiration from forgotten parts of our world. Featuring songs from KChG!LINKS:

Get a crash course on all things gaming PR this week from industry vet Stephanie Tinsley Fitzwilliam of boutique agency Tinsley PR! Stephanie talks about her journey promoting games from the PS1 era to launching the Xbox 360 all the way to last year's award-winning phenomenon Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. She dissects how media consumption has changed (for better or worse) in that time, and how we can adapt to the ever-changing ways people get their information. Plus music from Melocactus!!LINKS:☁️ Tinsley PR BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/officialtinsley.bsky.social

It's a blast from the past on this week's Pixel Pizza as I catch up with my former game development teacher Sam Eng! Sam is a founding member of the NYC developer workspace GUMBO, and the creator of last year's surreal hit Skate Story

This week we welcome concept artist, UI artist, and 3D modeler Silvia Lara Blanco to the show! Silvia currently works at Undercoders, the Spanish development studio behind the upcoming high-octane train runner game Denshattack! She tells us about her passion for accessibility in UI, the way Denshattack's exaggerated sense of scale comes to life, and how she's been passing on her gamedev knowledge as a professor at the ENTI school in Barcelona. Featuring music from Jetdarc

Hey and welcome back to the show! On the mic with us this week is Creative Director at Thunder Lotus, Nicolas Guérin. An industry veteran of 20 years, Nick worked on AAA titles like the Assassin's Creed franchise before working on the beloved indie game Spiritfarer. We discuss the themes of his upcoming project At Fate's End, the artistry of Rayman Origins, and how games can help us process our feelings. With music from Incognizant!*Spiritfarer Spoilers: 39:18-44:22*LINKS:

After a holiday hiatus, Pixel Pizza is hatching into the new year with Austo, lead developer at New Future Kids ✨ He's currently working on the cozy digital pet sim Bobo Bay! We discuss building upon the influences of Sonic Adventure 2's beloved Chao Garden mode, building a community on Patreon, water physics, and more. With music from Falling Starheart!LINKS:

Suit up for an all-new Pixel Pizza! Joining us from Chicago is the President of Trinket Studios, Tom Eastman. You may know their work from the Kickstarter success Battle Chef Brigade and the recently released sci-fi deckbuilder Battle Suit Aces

Sitting down with us this week is the incredibly talented animator Aniket Natekar! Aniket most recently was Animation Director on one of this year's breakout hit games, Dispatch. Aniket discusses his beginnings in animated film, entering the game industry at Hangar 13, and the process behind some of Dispatch's most hard-hitting scenes. Featuring chiptune music from Aubery aka Elysian Tunes!LINKS:

We're back after a holiday break with a jam-packed new episode! This week we are joined by Dmitry Minsky of the Lithuanian game studio Button Mash. The demo of their upcoming typing battle royale game, Final Sentence, has been making waves on Steam for its unique premise and addictive gameplay loop. Dmitry goes into the many failed projects it took before finding success, the importance of keeping a game idea "on freeze" for the right time, and how many hours there REALLY are in a day. Featuring DnB music from Baychimo!LINKS:

Joining us this week is developer of the beloved Runner series, Mike Roush of Choice Provisions! We revisit Mike's career through his days at Santa Cruz Games, then making his own games at the beginning of digital distribution for consoles and mobile, all the way to his more recent work with Riot Games on Hextech Mayhem: A League of Legends Story. Plus, we go deep into our shared love and memories of David Bowie

Put on your nicest pair of headphones and get ready for a masterful audio experience with music designer Seth Wright! Seth's brought his talents to acclaimed titles like Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Marvel's Iron Man VR, and Batman: Arkham Shadow. Most recently he's gone freelance and founded Wright Music Interactive. We discuss the making of those projects and a bunch more on this week's show! Featuring music from Waddoop

We are back with a brand new game industry interview, and it's a blast! WayForward Producer Austin Ivansmith joins us to talk about his directorial process on games like DuckTales Remastered and The Mummy Demastered, as well as the live TV-like interactive experience Silent Hill: Ascension. We also discuss unconventional ways to communicate your vision to your teammates, typos in emails, and woodworking. With music from Grounds.!LINKS:☁️ Austin's Bluesky: ivandashsmith.bsky.social

No new guest this week, sorry!

Get crafty with us this week as we chat with Art Director & UI Artist Sofie Wikström! Sofie worked for years on the LittleBigPlanet franchise, as well as other popular titles like SteamWorld Build and the recently released Islanders: New Shores. She tells us about overcoming burnout, breaking down the art style of a franchise when developing sequels, and the importance of making environments look literally good enough to eat! Featuring tunes from JamelBurger

This week we have a fantastic conversation with Co-Lead at 7th Beat Games, Kyle Labriola! Kyle has worked on the popular rhythm games A Dance of Fire and Ice and Rhythm Doctor, and he's also done animation work on some of the Jackbox games. We discuss how Kyle "fell into" the industry, his initial reluctance to call himself a game developer, how Rhythm Doctor has evolved in its 10+ year development cycle, and accessibility for blind players. Plus music from PICE!LINKS:☁️ Kyle's BlueSky: https://kylelabriola.bsky.social

Gear up for an all-new Pixel Pizza with multidisciplinary artist Mark LaCroix! Mark runs the development & publishing studio Noble Robot. He talks about creating animations for the show Parks & Recreation, building an open-source engine for the PlayDate handheld, game design philosophies, and his involvement on previous guest JJ's Blippo+! Plus lots more AND music from Kaskatron!LINKS:

Take a trip out of the airwaves and Into the Unwell with Mathias Johansson and Andreas Göransson of the Swedish game studio She Was Such a Good Horse! Mathias is the studio's Co-Founder and Andreas is its Creative Community Manager, and they're currently hard at work on the cartoon-inspired roguelike brawler/platformer Into the Unwell. We discuss recreating the classic rubber-hose animation style in 3D, the importance of contextual abilities in roguelikes, and giving power to the powerless. Featuring music from GLLTCH!LINKS:

You made it to Friday!

Tune in to an all-new episode of the Pixel Pizza Podcast featuring music video director, commercial producer, and game developer Jennifer Jupiter Stratford! JJ's new FMV game Blippo+ is out on PlayDate and coming soon to Nintendo Switch. We get into recapturing the public access era of TV in a loving and authentic way, building confidence as an artist, and also her work with Sabrina Carpenter! Plus music from CMYKitsune & Alison Grace

Drop on in for an extremely fun episode this week featuring the director of the acclaimed indie adventure game OneShot, NightMargin! She tells us about pivoting from biology studies to game development, the process of creating OneShot, and her current work on the upcoming Margin of the Strange! Then we swap stories about our strangest dreams and keeping things too long in the freezer. Featuring music from BeatScribe!LINKS:☁️ NightMargin's BlueSky: http://nightmargin.bsky.social

Dive into a new Pixel Pizza featuring accomplished game designer James Beech! James has contributed design work to AAA games like Crysis 3, Darksiders 3, and Metroid Prime...4! He's also been making his own independent games: the philosophical exploration-focused titles Ultraworld and Carceri. We discuss gameplay flow in Metroidvanias, telling a story within an individual game level, and go to some really deep places by the end. With music from Luke Carlin again!LINKS:☁️ James' Bluesky: http://neonserpent.bsky.social