This is a show about videogames, the people who play them and the people who make them. Each episode, a guest on the show talks about the games that have shaped their life in one way or another. Games that have inspired them, games that forged connections with others & games that have soothed wounds. Checkpoints!

My guest today is Ori Takemura. Originally from Russia, Ori is an award winning UX and product designer, a video game designer and the founder of qixen-p design. This is perhaps the most international episode yet. I spoke to Ori about growing up in Russia, winning design awards in Germany, being inspired by Japan and living in Singapore.

This is a hell of a chat. We talk about growing up with games in Russia (the 16 bit console wars were televised!), what it's like playing Command & Conquer Red Alert as a Russian teenager, how a Bang & Olufsen CD player changed his life, how Braid changed his life again, how the UX design of twitter is like a video game and how many downloads you can get for your game when you're hit by a truck.

"I'm sorry, but the princess is in another castle."

PATREON! - patreon.com/checkpoints

iTunes HERE - SUBSCRIBE / RATE / REVIEW

Games discussed: Braid, Space Invaders, Tetris, Carmageddon, Quake, Snake Bird, Ending, Shapist, Tallnum, Bro Force, Command & Conquer, GTA, Scorched Earth, Monument Valley, Thomas was Alone, Deus Ex.

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Twitter - twitter.com/CheckpointsShow

Cover design: Craig Stevenson - http://onedinosaurandhisballoon.blogspot.co.uk

Music: Samuel Baker - http://soundcloud.com/furoshiki