Scratching the creative itch: lecturer Joe Kennett’s path in indie games

It’s been a busy year for Joe Kennett. 2024 has seen him take on a new role as lecturer on Falmouth’s Indie Game Development MA (Online) course, while also returning to the games industry as a developer for Observer Interactive.

After a particularly intense few years as a founding member and 3D artist at Tiny Planet Games, Joe transitioned into lecturing, thinking he’d never look back. He went on to teach game art courses at several institutions across the north of England before the lure of creating games once again called him back. Now, as an environment artist at Observer Interactive, Joe balances this role alongside lecturing on the Indie Game Development (IGD) course.

We caught up with Joe to explore his passion for games, how it feels to be back in development, and to hear about his first term teaching online is going.

When did you know you wanted to make games?

I've been around video games for as long as I can remember. While we didn't have a console at home, I grew up playing my grandmother's SEGA Megadrive and my cousin's PlayStation. I spent countless hours in my early years glued to games like Spyro, Sonic, Rayman and, probably inappropriately, Metal Gear Solid. I was five in December 2001 when I was given my own console — a PlayStation 2 with a copy of Jak & Daxter — and from that moment on, I was completely absorbed in games.

I think I always knew this is what I wanted to do with my life, but it really cemented itself in 2004, which saw the release of games like Monster Hunter, Halo 2, Metal Gear Solid 3 and World of Warcraft. These games remain hugely influential to me, even today. They gave me an understanding of what great games were, even if I didn’t fully understand why. That understanding began to develop later with titles like The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King and Dark Souls. These allowed me to rationally analyse design decisions based on the exceptional games that came before.

What gave me the clearest vision of all, though, wasn’t even a game; it was Indie Game: The Movie — a 2012 documentary focusing on three titles that played a pivotal role in the indie game boom of the time. Watching the trials and tribulations of the development of Fez, Braid and The Binding of Isaac showed me exactly what I wanted to do with my life.

You've recently gone back into making games after lecturing exclusively for a few years—how have you found it?

When I found lecturing in 2018, it was at the end of a particularly challenging year of 'pot-noodle-budget' development. I quickly fell in love with the role and spent five years thinking I’d never return to full-time development. I thought quick contracts and personal projects would be enough to scratch my creative itch. That wasn’t to last, though, as earlier this year I was approached by some close friends and talented developers to join Observer Interactive.