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.
Why Your Game Mechanic Is the Learning with Elisa Navarro Chinchilla | Episode 404
Episode Summary Elisa Navarro Chinchilla, CEO of Gold Bug Interactive, argues that a serious game’s core mechanic must be bound to the learning itself. Anything else produces “chocolate-covered broccoli” where a platformer pauses to ask quiz questions. She walks through the production cycle from […]
Secrets to Building the Most Engaging Community Ever | Episode 403
Episode Summary Rob Alvarez argues that community founders burn out because they build feedback loops for members but not for themselves, and because they build communities they don’t personally want to inhabit. He recommends a personal momentum tracker (points for posts, member wins, helpful […]
From Boring to Brilliant: Rethinking Education with AI and Engagement | Episode 402
Episode Summary Matt Metzgar, a clinical professor of economics at UNC Charlotte and author of The Overnight AI Educator, argues that faculty are overestimating the work required to redesign courses for the AI era and that piecemeal AI additions produce a Frankenstein result. He […]
Failed Game Becomes a Hit — 8 Years Later with Dain Saint | Episode 401
🚀 Want your community buzzing and bringing in more revenue? Snag my free mini course with 3 killer gamification hacks: professorgame.com/freebie-3-gamification-hacks Episode Summary Dain Saint, founder of Reckless Magic and curator of Futurefull, recounts how Cypher Prime spent months trying to build Tailwind (a […]
Level Up IRL: Designing Your Purpose with Yu-kai Chou | Episode 400
Episode Summary Yu-kai Chou returns to introduce 10,000 Hours of Play, his second book, co-authored with former Octalysis Prime student Mark Diaz. He lays out a six-step framework (choose your game, identify your attributes, choose your role, enhance your skills, build alliances, achieve quests) […]