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CoffeeWithCross

@coffeewithcross

Studio Game Director. Career from Warcraft 2 Tides of Darkness to Silent Hill Ascension. Watch my podcast Brain Arcade. Let’s accelerate the indie revolution. CoffeeWithCross.com https://linktr.ee/coffeewithcross

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Latest posts by CoffeeWithCross @coffeewithcross

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Support Rob's Game Shack Support Rob's Game Shack

#IndieDev If you would like to get involved with #RGS maybe do an interview or have any of your projects/teams/skills/sites listed, please get in touch. It's all free for you guys to promote more indie love!

If you want to support us - we have:
- ko-fi.com/robsgameshack
- swag.robsgameshack.com

29.08.2025 13:38 👍 25 🔁 7 💬 1 📌 0
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Wow!!!! What a blast from the past. Cleaning out some shelves and found my OG hard copy of the Medal of Honor GDD. I wrote like 90% of this.
#psx #medalofhonor #gamedesign #nostalgia

19.02.2026 22:30 👍 8 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

mini break from the break to share that amazing dev and wonderful friend Felix has launched the steam page for his equally amazing and very fun game Helmet Head.
Go take a look and if you like what you see leave a wishlist or share to make another solodev's day♥️

#indiedev #solodev #gamedev #gaming

15.02.2026 21:46 👍 21 🔁 3 💬 1 📌 0

Seems like Bend Studio @bendstudio.bsky.social doesn't really use this site anymore. That's a bummer because I've just finished #DaysGone for the 4th time and wanted to tell them for the 4th time how much I love the game.
#PlayStation #DaysGoneRemastered
@playstation.com

09.02.2026 01:07 👍 1 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0
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💪 Looking for an extra arcade challenge? Jump into Trasmoz Legends 💀, a classic 2D adventure by solo dev @volcanobytes.bsky.social!

🙌 Play solo or team up with a friend in this retro experience. The golden arcade era is back! 🕹️

#Retro #Arcade

03.02.2026 11:02 👍 4 🔁 2 💬 2 📌 0
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After 13 years, my game comes out in 29 days. I can't wait. :)

Wishlist on Steam now!! store.steampowered.com/app/893710/

#gamedev #indiegame

15.01.2026 23:40 👍 81 🔁 13 💬 4 📌 1
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My typical week. Not the worst. Not a lot of leisure time. I’m not sure I’d have it any other way.

11.12.2025 05:02 👍 4 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Shoot me an email and let’s guest on each other’s pods?

05.12.2025 18:05 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

Let’s do it! I’m biased mainly because of bad experiences as well as the era I started.

05.12.2025 18:04 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Yay right on! TY for listening!

03.12.2025 23:53 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
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Happy Thanksgiving to all our American friends! 🦃

Taking a short break to recharge and prep some great new Brain Arcade content. Next season, I’ll be deep-diving into game dev topics across multiple episodes!

What do you want to learn about? Drop your ideas below!

#GameDev #IndieDev #BrainArcade

27.11.2025 19:25 👍 7 🔁 1 💬 1 📌 0
Build Better Leaders to Build Better Games
Build Better Leaders to Build Better Games Leadership matters even more on tiny teams. Coach and trainer Andy Coley shares how to communicate clearly, set expectations that stick to keep scope and moral under control so you can actually…

The best artists / devs don't always make the best leaders but the best communicators often do.

I talked with Andy Coley of Game Studio Training about what really makes teams work, avoiding burnout, and building trust through better conversations.

🎧 buff.ly/fxmWG2Q

#GameDev #Leadership #IndieDev

14.11.2025 02:09 👍 12 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
From TV to Unreal with Chris Knauer
From TV to Unreal with Chris Knauer Writer Chris Knauer joins Brain Arcade to talk about his leap from writers’ rooms into Unreal Engine. We dig into what it means to treat games as a conversation with players, how art and…

Huge respect for indie devs who plan, persevere, and actually ship!

I chatted with Chris Knauer about his path from TV writer to game designer, lessons from making his own Unreal game, and how to keep scope in check so you finish.

Listen In:
buff.ly/dkV5eoF

#GameDev #IndieDev #BrainArcade

06.11.2025 01:51 👍 13 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
How do Juniors Get Experience? with Nathan White (Threeclipse Inc.)
How do Juniors Get Experience? with Nathan White (Threeclipse Inc.) Nathan White, founder of Threeclipse Inc. joins to talk about building opportunities for juniors in game dev through mentorship and real shipped projects. We dig into what it takes to break in today,…

How do you get a job in games when entry roles want experience?

Nathan White, founder of Threeclipse Inc, is helping juniors get real experience shipping games with real mentors. We talk breaking in and how to ship a game with a small junior team.

Listen in: buff.ly/UaopzIA

#GameDev #IndieDev

30.10.2025 16:46 👍 11 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
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Profit and Play: The Business of Games Returning guest Mark Netter and I dig into the business of play. From mergers and layoffs to AI-driven development and the shrinking middle class of indie studios. We look at how money,…

Mergers, layoffs, acquisitions. What do they really mean for the future of games?

Mark Netter, co-founder of ElectraCast Media, and I talk business. From EA’s $55B acquisition to how art and money shape creative industries.

🎧 Listen: buff.ly/eJwMFPU

#GameDev #IndieDev #BrainArcadePodcast

27.10.2025 22:07 👍 7 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
Ep.2 Chris Cross IRL
Ep.2 Chris Cross IRL In this episode I sit down with my friend and legendary game designer Christopher “Chris” Cross ,the guy behind Medal of Honor and a career’s worth of AAA and indie projects. This wasn’t some stiff…

Had a great chat with Keith Waggoner on his new podcast Keith IRL! 🎙️
We talked game marketing, creativity, and staying motivated in unpredictable industries. Always love Keith’s energy and “let’s make it happen” spirit.

🎧 Listen here:

16.10.2025 18:24 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
From Pixar to Silent Hill: Stephan Bugaj on Storytelling, Community & Discovery
From Pixar to Silent Hill: Stephan Bugaj on Storytelling, Community & Discovery Stephan Bugaj (Pixar, Telltale, Genvid) joins me to explore the real reasons games succeed and why traditional marketing no longer cuts it. We dig into the saturation of the games market, the myth of…

What’s the biggest challenge for creators today?
Discoverability.

I talked with Emmy-winning Stephan Bugaj (Pixar, Telltale, Genvid) about how game marketing has changed, and why finding your community early matters more than ever.

🎧 Listen here: buff.ly/g7qoADe

#GameDev #IndieDev #BrainArcade

14.10.2025 22:07 👍 8 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
Discoverability, Community, and the Death of Traditional Marketing
Discoverability, Community, and the Death of Traditional Marketing Chris chats with Producer and previous VP of Production, Arthur von Nagel (Ubisoft, Genvid, Telltale), about how small teams build community-driven hits like Vampire Survivors, Balatro, and Cult of…

I say this all the time, traditional marketing is dead.
Arthur von Nagel joins me to unpack why discoverability is broken, and how indie hits like Balatro & Cult of the Lamb found their people through community.

🎧 Listen in
buff.ly/CQ5d7ht

#gamedev #indiegamedev #gamemarketing #brainarcade

07.10.2025 18:24 👍 10 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
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So fun even Joe is enjoying his own voice. 🤣🤣🤣

02.10.2025 03:51 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Becoming a Director: Storytelling lessons from Games and Film Chris sits down with longtime friend, animator and filmmaker Joe Ksander, to trace his path from dorms of UCLA to EA’s Medal of Honor and from Hollywood VFX into making films. They talk about crunch…

Joe Ksander & I have been debating storytelling for 30+ years. From UCLA dorms to his days at Netflix & ILM, we talk perseverance and evoking audience / player emotion. So stoked we finally captured one of our chats!
🎧 buff.ly/pOd7aLz

#gamedev #Storytelling #IndieGameDev #animation

30.09.2025 23:56 👍 14 🔁 2 💬 1 📌 0

The end of an era. We’re in uncharted waters now. Will have a podcast episode soon about this.

29.09.2025 22:06 👍 7 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Comedy writing from Nintendo to the Tonight Show with Mike Drucker
Comedy writing from Nintendo to the Tonight Show with Mike Drucker Emmy-nominated comedy writer, Author, and Comedian Mike Drucker (Nintendo, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, The Tonight Show) joins Brain Arcade to talk about punching up the comedy for everything…

What shaped your sense of funny?

We had an absolute blast talking to Mike Drucker Comedian, Emmy Nominated Comedy writer, and Author of Good Game, No Rematch. How do you write comedy without being corny? What's funny about Mortal Combat?

🎧 Join the convo
buff.ly/u6eiiJz

#GameDev #ComedyWriting

23.09.2025 19:25 👍 11 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
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Games made in New Zealand Steam Event has begun!!!
store.steampowered.com/app/3782840/...

We’re super stoked to have Neon Knives, Snug, and Mingle alongside so many other awesome games made in Aotearoa 🫶!

You can find our 3 games here ☺️
store.steampowered.com/developer/co...

#indiegame #indiedev

23.09.2025 05:06 👍 10 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0

i love looking at art and having horrible moments of eldritch-esque fear considering the amount of decision paths an artist /didn't/ take. someone arrived at a choice when they had infinite options, continually narrowed by constraints and then finally, their own taste or discretion.

20.09.2025 05:52 👍 3 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
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Gumshoe Detective Agency: The First Case on Steam A missing person case straight out of 1995. Search the early internet, dig through emails and dusty floppy discs, and uncover the secrets behind the disappearance of Victoria Mason.

My indie game comes out soon and I really want to hit 5,000 wishlists! Wishlist if you like point-and-click games!

Play the Demo & Wishlist: tinyurl.com/wishlistgda

#IndieGameDev #IndieGames #SummerGameFest #IndieDev #SteamNextFest #NextFest #GameInformer #PCGames #VideoGame #PointandClick

19.09.2025 21:39 👍 19 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
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External development teams are often the key to shipping games, but how do we invest in these partnerships and empower them to do their best work?

🎙️Janyl Lambee Tanoy joins Brain Arcade to talk building trust, clarity, and synergy with external dev teams.

Listen here!
buff.ly/YAwNIRM

09.09.2025 23:04 👍 7 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Check out Joe on @coffeewithcross.bsky.social !

03.09.2025 12:28 👍 1 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0

Thanks for coming on Joe! @terribleposture.bsky.social

02.09.2025 20:01 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 1
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What does it take to ship an indie game in 2025?

Joe Mirabello walks us through creating Battle Train and surviving 4 years of dev, funding, growing a company, and finding the right publisher to successfully make a 9/10 on Steam!

🎧 buff.ly/WqvtYDH
#BrainArcade #GameDev #IndieDev #battletrain

02.09.2025 18:25 👍 11 🔁 1 💬 1 📌 0

Congrats!!!!

01.09.2025 19:03 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0