All Episodes

Displaying 1 - 30 of 1226 in total

#1226: Replies with Rachel and Sarah

Many years ago, I would drive my eldest daughter to school, and occasionally, we did a segment called "Replies with Rachel" where the two of us would answer questions....

#1225: Interrupts in Limited Edition (Alpha)

Magic's very first set had a card type that no longer exists called interrupts. In this episode, I walk through all the cards of this card type in Limited Edition (Alp...

#1224: Why We Do Themes

In this episode, I explain the value of themes by going through the various teams that work on a Magic set.

#1223: Design Feedback

In this episode, I explain the numerous ways designers give feedback to each other by going through the entire exploratory design and vision design process.

#1222: Top 20 Most Influential Designs, Part 3

This is part three of a three-part series going over a talk I gave at MagicCon: Chicago 2025.

#1221: Top 20 Most Influential Designs, Part 2

This is part two of a three-part series going over a talk I gave at MagicCon: Chicago 2025.

#1220: Top 20 Most Influential Designs, Part 1

This is part one of a three-part series going over a talk I gave at MagicCon: Chicago 2025.

#1219: MagicCon: Chicago 2025

In this episode, I talk about my recent trip to MagicCon: Chicago.

#1218: Weatherlight

This episode looks back at the design of Weatherlight, the third set in the Mirage block.

#1217: Visions

This episode looks back at the design of Visions, the second set in the Mirage block.

#1216: How to Make Losing Fun

One of the truisms of game design: make sure your players enjoy losing your game. How do we do that? This podcast walks listeners through six key lessons.

#1215: BroadwayCon 2025

Every year, my eldest daughter, Rachel, and I go to a convention dedicated to Broadway called BroadwayCon. It's interesting going to a convention from the perspective ...

#1214: Why Is Magic So Good?

I do a lot of interviews. A question I often get is, "Why is Magic so good?" I have a lot of answers to that question, enough for a 30-minute podcast.

#1213: Aetherdrift Set Design with Yoni Skolnik

In this podcast, I sit down with Yoni Skolnik, the lead set designer for Aetherdrift, to talk about the design after it was handed off for set design.

#1212: Drawbacks

I talk about the history of drawback mechanics, what they are, how we design them, and how they've changed over the years.

#1211: Fresh Out of Design – Aetherdrift

I recorded this podcast two years ago when I handed off the Aetherdrift vision design to the Set Design team. Hear my thoughts on Magic's latest set as it came fresh o...

#1210: Rarity Changes

In this podcast, I walk through the various reasons why we reprint cards at a different rarity.

#1209: Protection

In this podcast, I talk about the history of the protection mechanic, starting from Limited Edition (Alpha) to present day.

#1208: History of Creature Types

In this podcast, I walk through Magic's history to talk about how the use of creature types has changed over time.

#1207: Lessons Learned – The Lost Caverns of Ixalan

This is another in my "Lessons Learned" podcasts where I talk about sets I led or co-led the design for. I walk through the various lessons I learned in leading the de...

#1206: Draft Archetypes

Almost every randomized booster product is designed to be drafted. To do that we have to build around what we call draft archetypes. In this podcast, I talk all about ...

#1205: Innistrad Remastered with JC Tao

In this podcast, I sit down with JC Tao, the lead designer of Innistrad Remastered, to talk about the making of the set.

#1204: Apocalypse

In this podcast, I talk all about the design of Apocalypse, another set from the Invasion block.

#1203: Planeshift

In this podcast, I talk all about the design of Planeshift, a set from the Invasion block.

#1202: Psychology

I gained a love of games from my father and a love of psychology from my mother. This podcast talks about how my interest in psychology has impacted me as a Magic desi...

#1201: Card Preview Articles

Part of writing a weekly Magic column involves writing card preview articles for new sets. In this podcast, I talk all about what goes into writing them.

#1200: Two-in-Ones, Part 2

This is part two of my two-part series where I talk about the history of two-in-one cards.

#1199: Two-in-Ones, Part 1

This last fall, I wrote a two-part article about what I call "two-in-one cards," or "two-in-ones" for short. These are designs where more than one spell is represented...

#1198: Variance

Variance is an important aspect of Magic design (and game design in general). In this podcast, I explain what it is and how we use it.

#1197: Top-Down and Bottom-Up Design Evolution

There are two ways to begin a design: from the top down, where you start with flavor, and from the bottom up, where you start with mechanics. In this podcast, I talk a...