S1 E1: Using UX Strategy to Put Players First with Celia Hodent, PhD

Enduring Play: A Game Development Podcast

From her work as UX Director at Epic Games on classics like Fortnite to her widely respected published books on the psychology of video games, UX Strategist and author Celia Hodent, PhD has helped a broad variety of games, gamers, and game developers wrangle the complexity of possibility using classic human-centered design and research psychology techniques. In this first episode of Enduring Play, Celia and Cheryl go far beyond wireframes to redefine your mental model of what the discipline of user experience can truly bring to the table for video game teams. We also explore ethics for modern game economies, inspired by Celia's time as the founder of the Ethical Games initiative.

There's something in this conversation for everyone because the application of user experience to video game development is critical to crafting video games that thrive: far more than just delivering screens, the craft of user experience can help game development teams foresee potential problems early, make smarter business decisions, and apply the best of cognitive psychology to make games more fun to play.

Enduring Play is a uniquely crafted, high production value podcast about the modern craft of game development with a format inspired by gaming itself, with a level structure and tutorials and asides that help listeners of all experience follow along. Season 1 of the Enduring Play podcast is drawn from interviews that informed Cheryl Platz's new book The Game Development Strategy Guide: Crafting Modern Video Games That Thrive, which is available worldwide as of September 16, 2025 and received a "Get It" recommendation from Kirkus Reviews. Show notes, including a full bio, episode outline, and links are available on the Enduring Play website.

Use code ENDURINGPLAYS1 at RosenfeldMedia.com to get 15% off your order - and all physical orders at Rosenfeld Media receive a free ebook. Podcast Season 1 discount offer expires November 30, 2025. Love the podcast or the book? Please spread the word with shares and reviews so we can change the industry together!

For readers of Cheryl Platz's new book The Game Development Strategy Guide, Celia's episode is a perfect complement for Chapter 1: What Makes Us Play, which covers basic cognitive psychology and motivational principles that apply to all forms of play; Chapter 4, which is dedicated to user experience design in video games; Chapter 6: The Why of Multiplayer, which covers the difference between companionship and competition in more detail; and Chapters 10 and 11 which cover video game monetization and ethics.