The Serious Games Podcast

The Serious Games Podcast

Rediscover Learning. Work Smarter.

Playposium

Playposium

Adam Lusby and Maarten Koeners explain why Playposium has no published minute-by-minute schedule, how a vegan vampire dinner replaces awkward conference networking, and what happens when you stop teaching the dance moves and start DJing the room.

Drake's Dice

Are we alone in the universe? For decades, that question has been tackled with complex formulas. Drake’s Dice flips the experience: you explore the Drake Equation through dice, risk, peer review, and discovery cards, without doing any math. Game designer Daniel Larose shares how he and Alissa Pott built a science outreach board game designed to stand on its own at home, while staying grounded through expert review.

Serious Play Conference Europe

The Serious Play Conference comes to Europe for the first time. Dr. Philipp Busch, co-organizer of the first European edition in Mainz, unpacks what it takes to move game-based learning from niche enthusiasm to cross-sector cultural change — and what happens when the right people finally share a room.

The Climate Business Challenge

The Climate Business Challenge helps organizations link climate ambition with real business constraints instead of feel‑good wishful thinking. Creator Tim Riedel and facilitator Jan Störkel explain how their 4‑hour workshop moves from systemic awareness (how our economic system drives growth at all costs) to redesigning business models and generating concrete, organizations‑specific ideas.

CounterPlay Festival

CounterPlay is a playful festival and global community that invites adults to reclaim play as a way of living, learning, and being together. In this episode, founder Mathias Poulsen shares how building a “play commons” gives us the courage to unhide play in everyday life – from libraries and design schools to horses, soap bubbles, and serious work.

Finding the Top Topic with Topaasia®

Jussi Galla and Wiro Kuipers join Julian to unpack Topaasia® – a card-based gamified dialogue tool that gets any group to the one thing that actually matters, in just 75 minutes. No dominant voices. No endless stickies. Just one rule, one topic, and the "alibi" as built-in design feature, which gives people permission to raise the topics they have always been too cautious to name. If you've ever left a meeting wondering why nothing got decided, this episode is for you.

Jargon Busting with Poetry for Neanderthals

Lucy Chambers joins Julian to explore how playful word games like Poetry for Neanderthals can help teams break down jargon, foster empathy, and create more inclusive communication. Drawing on her journey from “word nerd” outsider in tech to facilitation expert, Lucy shares practical ways to make language accessible, fun, and meaningful for everyone at work.

The Power of Story in Team Transformation

Pen & Paper is more than just a game for Irmi. In this episode she reveals how the magic of tabletop roleplaying games can spark trust, creativity, and genuine transformation in teams. Experience how storytelling and playful immersion break down barriers, ignite emotional connection, and inspire teams to grow beyond their comfort zones.

Moonshot

Moonshot transforms innovation from a rigid, post-it-laden process into a playful, immersive experience. Co-creator Till Hasbach reveals how this “innovation lab in a box” helps teams break out of their routines, embrace chaos, and generate truly groundbreaking ideas. Through game mechanics, creative constraints, and collaborative prototyping, Moonshot empowers participants to think bigger, laugh harder, and own their ideas – making innovation culture tangible and fun.

Strategy Knotworking

Strategy Knotworking is a playful, inclusive approach to strategy development rooted in Liberating Structures. Christian explains how this method transcends rigid planning by involving all stakeholders to co-create a meaningful North Star, adapt to multiple possible futures, and facilitate genuinely participatory workshops.