“Everyone Can Make Games Now” – Talks at Google

Two weeks back, I spoke at Google about the increasing availability of game engines that are friendly to non-programmers, such as Inform 7, Construct 2, Twine, ChoiceScript, and Unity (with Playmaker). I discussed the technologies involved, the people using them, and how this change is nothing short of an artistic and cultural revolution. The talk is about 45 minutes long, followed by about 15 minutes of Q&A.

Thank you again to all the non-programmers who shared experiences and insight with me. I was deeply honored to hear your stories, and I hope I did them justice.

Thank you also to all the programmers who thought, “We can make game development possible for non-programmers,” and then acted on that vision. You are literally changing the world for the better.

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5 Comments

  1. Love this speech, really puts into frame the importance of making game design accessible. It doesn’t benefit art to keep it exclusive. I love the positive value that accessibility of new game design systems bring, and I hope it’s a forward-going trend.

    One of the things I’ve been wondering about is what the next step; I saw your call for people who didn’t identify as programmers, and I didn’t know how to respond. I don’t really identify, but then I did such big games in I7, was I a programmer? Certainly not one who can apply to most programming jobs. But learning about Hearthstone’s history gives me hope. Thanks for this talk! :)

    • Thank you!

      The I7 question was a little tricky for me, too. Before learning C, I’d done some really complicated programming sequences in I7 (most notably the procedurally generated terrain sequence), and I had many of the tools to do programming. But after learning C, I saw how I7 (and other scripting languages) protected me from the complexities of lower-level programming. That’s why I asked people to self-identify… I didn’t want to draw the line myself!

  2. I only recently watched “Get Lamp” for the first time. A fantastic doco, but it doesn’t talk about the rising phoenix of modern IF. Your talk feels like part of the same story. Fantastic.

    Felicity Banks

  3. Thanks for the kind words, and also for passing it along!

    If I recall, at least half but not everyone raised their hands. It would have been helpful if I said something on the video, wouldn’t it… oh well, a lesson for next time!

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