Every episode of the Professor Game podcast, hosted by Rob Alvarez of The Octalysis Group. Honest breakdowns of gamification, behavioral design, and the Octalysis Framework, applied to real products, retention, and engagement. New episodes weekly, plus interviews with leading experts.
Using AI to Build Better Learning Games | Episode 436
Have a product challenge around retention? Quick intro chat → professorgame.com/chat Episode Summary Leif Sørensen, founder of Actee, argues that most learning games fail because clients treat them as “magic powder” that can absorb a dozen frameworks at once, and because designers say yes […]
Why Your Team Hates Your AI Strategy (And How to Fix It) | Episode 435
If you’re implementing AI and want to realize that promised ROI, let’s see if Octalysis fits → professorgame.com/chat Episode Summary Rob Alvarez argues that AI implementation in 2026 is a behavioral problem and not a technical one, and that most AI rollouts fail because […]
The Blueprint to Leading High-Performing Teams from Day 1 | Episode 434
I’ve interviewed hundreds of experts and now lead Engagement Strategy (EU) at TOG. If you want help applying this, start here: professorgame.com/chat Episode Summary Clark Aldrich returns to introduce Socratic Cards, a physical deck designed to replace expert-led teaching with peer-driven inquiry. Each card […]
Getting ADDICTED to CAREER PROGRESSION is Easy, Actually | Episode 433
Have a product challenge around retention? Quick intro chat → professorgame.com/chat Episode Summary Applying the Octalysis Framework to personal career development, arguing that real-life growth feels invisible because win states are spaced too far apart, and that breaking goals into quests with defined win […]
From Tank to Healer: Gamifying Academic Teams | Episode 432
Recently funded and aiming for sustainable retention? Intro chat (no sales pitch): professorgame.com/chat Episode Summary Raúl Mora describes how his Medellín-based research lab survived the pandemic and produced an academic book on second language users as gamers by importing MMORPG team structures into research […]