Podcast | Polygamer

Polygamer #113: Maia Weinstock of LEGO Women of Computing

Posted on May 19, 2021 by Ken Gagne

Maia Weinstock is the creator of LEGO Women of NASA, a kit she proposed on the LEGO Ideas site that won approval to be made into a real product. Now she’s pitching the Women of Computing, a set that pays homage to Ada Lovelace, Grace Hopper, and other women who were instrumental in the early days of computers.

In this podcast, Maia and I talk about how she got into LEGO as an adult; the value of representation in LEGO; how the brick manufacturer itself has come around to including different skin tones; the opportunities Maia’s had to meet her heroes, including the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and present them with custom minifigs; the lessons Maia learned from previous pitches to promote judges and bioengineers with LEGO; her work by day at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and her upcoming book about Mildred Dresselhaus.

Stream the audio edition of this interview below or from iTunes, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, Spotify, Overcast, Pandora, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, RadioPublic, or the Internet Archive. Click past the jump for a transcript and links to resources mentioned in this episode.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 58:55 — 34.6MB) | Embed

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Polygamer #112: Kate Olguin of Other Ocean Interactive

Posted on April 14, 2021 by Ken Gagne

Kate Olguin knew that finishing her undergraduate career and searching for a job would be difficult; she did not expect a pandemic to make it even harder. Fortunately, armed with a degree in interactive media and game design from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Kate landed as a game designer at Other Ocean Interactive, where she currently works on Project Winter. From her home in Connecticut, she also continues to volunteer with Boston Post Mortem, whose monthly events have moved to a virtual format.

In this podcast episode, Kate and I talk about how the pandemic affected not only her studies, but also her team’s development of the game The Call of Karen; what it was like to exhibit at WPI’s booth at PAX East; the tradeoffs of specializing in one field versus being a “nightmare jack of all trades”; how her minor in music will play a role in her game industry career; what makes a good guest speaker for Boston Post Mortem; and differences in the 19 years between when we each graduated from WPI.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:03:21 — 37.2MB) | Embed

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Polygamer #111: Artist & unschooler Ivy Dolamore

Posted on March 17, 2021 by Ken Gagne

Ivy Dolamore is an artist, cryptid, and unschooler. The product of a curriculum-free homeschooling education, Ivy quit her job at GameStop to become a full-time artist, supported by commissions, Patreon, and an extensive social media following. Her creations span a variety of art styles and media, including prints, jewelry, and Diamond Art.

In this episode, I chat with Ivy about how she made the leap to being an artist; how her retail experience lends itself to her new craft; which social media channels she finds most valuable; the vulnerability of vlogging; how unschooling differs from homeschooling; how an unschooler finds teachers and fills gaps in her curriculum; and what her next big projects are.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:00:51 — 35.7MB) | Embed

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Polygamer #110: Librarian Amanda Pegg-Wheat

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Ken Gagne

Amanda Pegg-Wheat is a children’s librarian and branch manager in Quincy, Massachusetts. In addition to books, movies, video games, and Internet access, Amanda offers her patrons another service: Dungeons & Dragons campaigns. As the DM, she guides young adventurers through the fantasy world of Theros — even when the pandemic keeps them from gathering around the gaming table in person.

In this podcast, Amanda and I chat about what made her want to pursue the children’s librarian track of library science; the value and services that libraries offer in our digital age; what kids can learn from Dungeons & Dragons; whether parents ever object to their children playing D&D; why librarians also need to be community managers; how libraries have adapted to the COVID-19 pandemic; and the joys of reading aloud.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:11:35 — 41.9MB) | Embed

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Polygamer #109: Dianna Lora of Massive Entertainment

Posted on January 27, 2021 by Ken Gagne

Dianna Lora is an account manager at Massive Entertainment, the Ubisoft studio working on the next Star Wars video game. She is an accomplished multimedia maven, having written reviews, produced videos, and edited podcasts for such outlets as Sony, DualShockers, and GoodgameTV. Now, from her new home in Sweden, Dianna manages corporate relationships with producers, developers, and creators to ensure everyone has what they need to build a successful product together — something she learned from her days in musical theatre.

In this interview, I ask Dianna more about the role an account manager plays in the video game industry; what it’s like to be working with as storied a brand as Star Wars; how being an actor taught her to handle rejection; how someone who’s lived in New York, San Francisco, and Europe defines “home”; what we can do to make it easier for people to go to college; and the problematic behaviors that pop up around Black History Month.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:05:11 — 38.3MB) | Embed

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Polygamer #108: Dr. Rachel Kowert of Psychgeist

Posted on December 16, 2020 by Ken Gagne

Dr. Rachel Kowert is the host of Psychgeist, a YouTube series that examines the psychology of video games. In her videos, Dr. Kowert examines such concepts as escapism, flow, esports, and Animal Crossing. She is also the research director for Take This, a non-profit that seeks to destigmatize mental health issues in the gaming industry; and she is the author of Pragmatic Princess, a children’s book about empowerment and self-reliance.

In this interview, Dr. Kowert and I talk about the role of MMORPGs during a pandemic, and what the long-term effects will be on our social skills; why the moral panic over video games has seemingly lasted longer than previous ones; how escapism can be a way not just to get lost, but also to be found; whether escaping into books are subjected to the same judgment as escaping into a video game; how Take This has adapted its AFK Rooms to online events; and what the best Final Fantasy is (and why it’s VI).

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:05:12 — 38.2MB) | Embed

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