Today’s episode is hosted by William Thompson and they are joined on the podcast by Douglas Kaufman, Design Director, Dmitriy Temchenko, UI/UX Design Director at Spearsoft, Adrian Fuentes, Design Director at GSC Game World and Haz Dulull, Founder and Creative Game Director at Beyond the Pixels.

The conversation explores how creative leaders think about game design at the earliest stages and what new designers should understand before starting their journey. The guests discuss the foundations of strong ideas, the importance of clarity in early prototypes and the collaborative nature of shaping interactive experiences. Listeners gain an overview of how vision, systems thinking and team communication intertwine during the formative stages of development.

The exchange highlights evolving expectations across the gaming industry, including shifts in player behaviour, the growing relevance of UI and UX principles and the influence of emerging tools. By touching on production workflows and creative problem solving, the discussion offers a broad and practical introduction to game design while keeping focus on sustainable practices and long-term craft.