Game Maker's Toolkit - Why Jonathan Blow's Puzzles Aren't Just Puzzles
For
Jonathan Blow, a puzzle is never just a puzzle - it's a communication from the designer to the player about the game's universe. In this episode, I share the philosophy and design process of the brains behind
Braid and
The Witness.
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More on
Blow's philosophy:
IndieCade: "Jonathan Blow &
Marc Ten
Bosch - Designing to
Reveal the
Nature of the
Universe"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGSeLSmOALU
IndieCade: "Jonathan Blow, Marc Ten Bosch & Droqen - Empuzzlement"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ul_ZfzfHRek
Shivmoo: "
Game City Jonathan Blow Braid
Talk"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwsi7TEQxKc&feature;=youtu.be
A
MAZE: "
Berlin 2014 -
Masterclass with Jonathan Blow"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LDJt9zS8ko
Gamasutra: "Jonathan Blow:
The Path to Braid"
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/132180/jonathan_blow_the_path_to_braid
.php
Gamasutra: "The Witness: Modeling epiphany"
http://gamasutra.com/view/news/218953/The_Witness_Modeling_epiphany.php
GrabItMagazine: "How To
Design Deep Games with Jonathan Blow"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0m0jIzJfiQ&feature;=youtu.be
GameSpot: "
Break Room Interviews: Jonathan Blow"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OV2rYM6mRo&feature;=youtu.be
GDC Vault: "Jonathan Blow -
Truth in
Game Design"
http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1014982/Truth-in-Game
Games shown in this episode (in order of appearance):
Braid (
Number None, 2008)
The Witness (Thekla,
Inc, 2016)
Oracle Billiards (Jonathan Blow,
Unreleased)
Galstaff (Jonathan Blow, Unreleased)
Music used in this episode:
00:00 -
Greenhouse (
The Swapper, Carlo
Castellano)
00:38 -
Adventure (Fez,
Disasterpeace)
03:08 -
Flower Girl (
Gravity Ghost,
Ben Prunty)
05:38 - Terraforming (Gravity Ghost, Ben Prunty)
07:53 - I just like to sleep under the stars (Gravity Ghost,
Ben Prunty)
Other credits:
Simon Carless: "
IGS 2007:
Jon Blow - 'Indie Prototyping, Braid, & Making Innovative Games'"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4903fcskqY
JustJack: "Oracle Billiards Game"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKl8CM1Cft4
tvdays: "
1980 RUBIKS CUBE
IDEAL TOYS"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxU7e0qHk4o