design — Experience Points Podcast

Episode 130 Christopher Stuart on Applied TTPRGs

In this episode of Experience Points, Dr. Christopher Stuart, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at UNC Wilmington, delves into the transformative role of tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) in education and facilitation. Christopher shares insights from his research on game dynamics, player engagement, and the collaborative art of facilitation. He discusses how TTRPGs foster systems thinking, play, and failure as essential learning tools. Reflecting on his academic journey, Christopher explores how gaming language and frameworks can create inclusive, engaging classroom experiences. He also highlights the impact of design, accessibility, and playful pedagogy on student engagement.

Christopher StuartDave EngJanuary 26, 2025TTRPG, facilitation, playfulness, collaboration, pedagogy, engagement, design, communication, christopher stuartComment

Episode 88 How do you Design Games for Flow State?

On today’s episode we’ll answer the question “How do you Design Games for Flow State?” Flow is a very sought after experience in game design. It’s really engaging and enthralling because players lose a sense of time and space when they are in the flow state. They become lost and completely enveloped in the game world. But designing a game to engage players’ flow states is not an easy feat to accomplish. So, just how do you design games to that take advantage of this flow state?

flow, difficulty, challenge, goalsDave EngJune 18, 2023flow, design, goals, feedback, difficulty, knowledgeComment

Episode 39 Abstraction in Games

On today’s episode we’ll cover abstraction in games. Abstraction is not something that we often think about deeply when we play games. Most of us play games for fun. That’s what most games are for. But abstraction is the heart of what makes games… games.

abstractionDave EngAugust 8, 2021abstraction, games, design, fidelityComment

Episode 28 The Player Experience

On today’s episode we’ll cover The Player Experience. The player experience is something that we all shoot for in game design. That’s because the player experience is what the player goes through when they play the game.

player experienceDave EngMarch 1, 2021players, player experience, designComment

Episode 13 Formal Game Structures

On today’s episode we’ll cover formal game structures. Formal game structures are the cornerstone on which game designers build their experiences. These structures shape what the designer intends to convey. These structures also help define what the player hopes to takeaway. Recognizing these formal structures helps your players define their experience. Games are a technology.

formal game structuresDave EngJuly 22, 2020games, game design, game structures, design, goals, feedback, rulesComment