Why Your Game Mechanic Is the Learning with Elisa Navarro Chinchilla | Episode 404
Release Date: 08/04/2025
The Magic Doesn’t Start Where You Think It Does | Episode 425
Professor Game Podcast
Want to run away from destroying an experience? Happy to brainstorm → A magical Christmas experience in Madrid almost collapsed because of one overlooked detail. We break down a real-world holiday experience through the stages of gamification, and reveal where confusion can destroy even the most beautiful experience. Rob Alvarez is Head of Engagement Strategy, Europe at (TOG), a leading gamification and behavioral design consultancy. A globally recognized gamification strategist and , he founded and hosts , the #1 gamification podcast, and has interviewed hundreds of global experts. He...
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Your Bio as an Origin Story: Gamifying the Job Hunt with Jade Arthur | Episode 424
Professor Game Podcast
If you’re considering gamification for engagement, retention, or loyalty, I’m happy to compare options with you: What if your bio was more than a skills list and your job hunt felt like a well-designed game? We explore with our guest Jade Arthur how to gamify the job search for the games industry, creating stories, systems and mindsets that boost confidence, visibility and long-term career engagement. Jade is a language and mindset coach for job seekers in gaming. She helps job seekers take down the villains in their job search like the "Cover Letter Crusher" and the "Interview Assassin."...
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You're Using Streaks Wrong - Here's What Actually Works | Episode 423
Professor Game Podcast
Exploring useful streaks for your product or org? Let’s chat → Why do streaks motivate users at first but eventually push them away? Rob explores the psychology behind collapses, the dangers of existing habit metrics, and practical ways to redesign streaks so they support, not sabotage, long-term engagement. Perfect for product leads, community builders, and behavior designers. Rob Alvarez is Head of Engagement Strategy, Europe at (TOG), a leading gamification and behavioral design consultancy. A globally recognized gamification strategist and , he founded and hosts , the #1 gamification...
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Quests, Self-Talk & Health: Glen Lubbert's Stamina Lab Game of Life | Episode 422
Professor Game Podcast
Retention or loyalty on your roadmap? Happy to brainstorm → We unpack the “tell the cab driver where to go” strategy, health quests, and the eight magic words that shift self-talk from guilt and shame to possibility and lasting change on this chat with Stamina Lab CEO Glen Lubbert. We discuss how to turn health and well-being into a game you can actually win. Glen is the co-founder and CEO of Stamina Lab, a health tech company that helps people create lasting well-being—not through willpower, hacks, habits, or fixing themselves—but by building on the inner resources and skills they...
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Stop Shaming Your Users: Ethical Alternatives to Dark Patterns | Episode 421
Professor Game Podcast
Exploring behavioral design without shaming? Let’s chat → In this episode, we break down the wild world of “confirm shaming”: manipulative, guilt-driven prompts apps use to push you into saying yes. From hilarious to downright unethical examples, we unpack why these dark patterns harm long-term loyalty and how to use motivation ethically to build real engagement and retention. Rob Alvarez is Head of Engagement Strategy, Europe at (TOG), a leading gamification and behavioral design consultancy. A gamification strategist and , he founded and hosts , the #1 gamification podcast, and has...
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Building Beats Playing: Matt Dalio’s Path | Episode 420
Professor Game Podcast
Build a thriving, monetized community—without chasing members or cranking out content 24/7. Join us for free: 🏡 When is failure the first step to real success? In this episode, Matt Dalio, founder of Endless Studios, shares how a dream project collapsed—and sparked a breakthrough. Discover how building games, not just playing them, helps kids master coding, design, and 21st-century skills. From pragmatic lessons on profitability to testing assumptions cheaply, Matt reveals how to turn ambitious visions into lasting, scalable impact. Matt is the founder of Endless, which is fighting for...
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8 Years Building the Global Leading Gamification Podcast | Episode 419
Professor Game Podcast
Aiming for sustainable retention? Intro chat (no sales pitch): Eight years, 420 episodes, and countless insights later: we celebrate the incredible journey of the Professor Game Podcast. From humble beginnings to becoming the #1 gamification podcast in the world, this episode dives into consistency, growth, and what’s next for the Engagers community. Rob Alvarez is Head of Engagement Strategy, Europe at (TOG), a leading gamification and behavioral design consultancy. A gamification strategist and , he founded and hosts , the #1 gamification podcast, and has interviewed hundreds of global...
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Design With Audiences: Mister and Mischief’s Playful Guide to Engagement | Episode 418
Professor Game Podcast
Build a thriving, loyal community—without chasing members or cranking out content 24/7. Join us for free: 🏡 From theme parks to zines, Andy & Jeff Crocker reveal how analog thinking powers modern engagement. We explore Infinite Right Answers, designing for collaboration, embracing imperfection over performance, and a field-tested model (confidence + generosity) that boosts motivation, loyalty, and community value. With roots firmly planted in the worlds of theatre and themed entertainment, Mister & Mischief (a.k.a. Jeff and Andy Crocker) create fun-forward journeys beyond the...
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The Secret Framework That Keeps Users Coming Back | Episode 417
Professor Game Podcast
Exploring gamification for your product or org? Let’s chat → We dive into the fascinating overlap between product thinking and gamification. By bridging Marty Cagan’s product discovery mindset with the Octalysis framework, we uncover how to build not just functional products — but ones users love coming back to. Rob Alvarez is Head of Engagement Strategy, Europe at (TOG), a leading gamification and behavioral design consultancy. A gamification strategist and , he founded and hosts , the #1 gamification podcast, and has interviewed hundreds of global experts. He designs evidence-based...
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From Viral Spike to Sticky Play: Doug Weitzbuch on Building Housle | Episode 416
Professor Game Podcast
Want your members to actually stick around and engage without burning out or guessing what works? Join our free community of retention-focused leaders: 👥 What happens after “going viral”? Doug Weitzbuch (Housel) breaks down the Wordle-style mechanics, player feedback he wishes he’d acted on sooner, and the roadmap to localized, high-intent engagement. Practical lessons on PR, streaks, and turning play into business outcomes. Doug Weitzbuch is a television producer with credits on hit series including Hell’s Kitchen, World of Dance, Lip Sync Battle, and Duck Dynasty. After...
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All inside our Professor Game community: 🎁 professorgame.com/freecommunity-web
What happens when a powerful game opens Pandora’s box? Elisa Navarro Chinchilla shares the highs, lows, and serious challenges of designing games for real-world impact—from schools in Mexico to reforestation efforts in Afghanistan.
Elisa Navarro Chinchilla is the CEO and co-founder of Gold Bug Interactive and a veteran educational video game developer with more than 25 titles under her belt. Her most recent projects include Dino Dance for PBS Fred Rogers, Sabz, a reforestation game for Afghanistan; Protection, a tabletop game to teach Results Based Protection for InterAction; Chuka: Break the Silence, developed for the Education for Justice initiative of the UNODC, that leverages social and emotional learning to help prevent domestic violence, and consulting for Project 21, FES, to develop a game for youth participation, governance and citizenship in the MENA region. Convinced of the power of games to support underprivileged contexts through collaborative learning, she has received several national grants in Mexico (Fonca, Procine, Prosoft) to create educational experiences with networked technology, alternate reality games, and digital literacy workshops. Her games challenge players to develop resilience through problem solving, stimulate critical thinking, and practice transferable skills. Elisa has an MA from the Institute of Education at UCL, UK.
Rob is a host and consultant at Professor Game as well as an expert, international speaker and advocate for the use of gamification and games-based solutions, especially in community building and education. He's also a professor and workshop facilitator for the topics of the podcast and LEGO SERIOUS PLAY (LSP) for top higher education institutions that include EFMD, IE Business School and EBS among others in Europe, America and Asia.
Guest Links and Info
- Website: goldbuginteractive.com
- Website: seriousplayconf.com
- LinkedIn: Elisa Navarro Chinchilla
Links to episode mentions:
- Proposed guest: Gonzalo Frasca
- Recommended book: What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy by James Paul Gee
- Favorite game: Puerto Rico
Lets's do stuff together!