State of Play: Tommy Refenes of Team Meat

Here's the full interview we did with Team Meat's Tommy Refenes!
Tommy has been a programmer for years now, and his work with Edmund McMillen resulted in one of the biggest independent video games of the past few years, SUPER MEAT BOY, which has sold over a million copies.
In this interview, we cover everything SUPER MEAT BOY, we talk Team Meat's new game, MEW-GENICS, and we discuss his life-changing experience of being featured on the (excellent) documentary, INDIE GAME: THE MOVIE.
Enjoy this honest and revealing look at an excellent game designer.

[@AARNOLD9999]

Tommy looks so much healthier since Indie GTM. Good on you pal :)

[@rachelwan-art]

This is my second time watching the interview while working. I really love your style of interviewing. You make these indie stars so comfortable that they're really honest in telling us what they had experienced. It's great input for those who might wanna start making independent games.

[@KitsuneSefam]

Thanks a lot for bringing us this amazing interview Brandon. And thanks to Tommy for taking time to be interviewed.

[@ehhhhhhhhhh]

It's so awesome that you were able to get in contact with Tommy and Ed.. they both seem like great dudes.

[@justplainc]

Was waiting for this. You're an excellent interviewer and the video quality is great, so is the intro.

[@Slumpen]

This is really good. Nice flow in the interview, good chemistry and quite nice picture as well.

[@kuntay88]

great watch.. your channel deserves way more views.

[@GustavoHorn]

Awesome, thanks for the interview! Tommy and Edmund are so inspiring!

[@helikaon5]

Man, I love your channel. I just want to say that, I am actually quite angry at your lower end number of subs, it doesn't make sense to me. These guys inspire me to be creative and get things done and you provide us with these sick hour and a half long interviews. I really hope your channel gets a ton more subs man. Keep up the great work, you keep your interview subjects very calm and open, not everyone can do that.

[@StateofPlayShow]

Thanks for that! We'll keep at it!

[@sirdavies94]

Awesome! I've been playing Super Meat Boy just today (by the hell world it starts to get really hard) and now this! Also, there's a lot of interviews with Edmund but not many with Tommy, so thanks!

[@StateofPlayShow]

Our talks are just that: talks. They're meant to be long-from and personal and relaxed. It's a conversation, not a piece to fit into a three-minute news show; as such, they will contain pauses, laughter, and everything else you find in one. We like it that way. Thanks for watching the show!

[@saambruhh]

Why doesn't this channel have more subs? It's great!

[@erictodoverano]

I was hoping you guys would do this. Awesome.

[@MsBickle76]

I love these interviews! Thank you very much Brandon!

[@mainHERO88]

seriously dude, I love your interviews. You make videos with real game developers that are also REAL GAMERS!! Always entertaining. Always informative. So good:)

[@mvandevander]

I think this is probably your best interview yet. Plus we so rarely get to see Tommy come out from his cave. "Hey Tommy! It's not so bad out here. Well, actually it is pretty bad but you get used to it after a while."

[@StateofPlayShow]

Thanks! And thanks, everyone, for the nice responses.

[@StateofPlayShow]

Ha! I'm taking that compliment to the bank - the Ego Bank, that is. ... Thanks for watching. I was very lucky to get Tommy to sit down with us; he's a good man.

[@DinDinAlright]

Awesome as always, thanks man.

[@StateofPlayShow]

Thanks for the positive feedback. It made our day! We'll keep at it. Thanks for watching!

[@ninjoshot]

great interview, thank you for this

[@MyHumanLife]

This was awesome, I love these interviews. Tommy Refunes seems like a pretty cool guy. Really looking forward to Mew Genics!

[@StateofPlayShow]

Awesome. Thanks. We're getting better!

[@arnzzz1]

im struggling through this interview in 5 minute chunks and i assume its my bloody internet connections fault :( but its totally worth it, well done, very cool interview :)

[@SHARPEYEis1337]

I felt the same exact way about the Ipad, and I came to the same realization too x)

[@dustoff1340]

I love the interviewers occasional fake laugh.

[@exxent88]

Great stuff, awesome interviewer and Tommy is just amazing :)

[@samaraliqazalbash]

Wonderful interview of Tommy Refenes

[@akmadsen]

Great interview. Felt like you were both very comfortable with each other. Gotta love Tommy. I mean, Ed's games are great, but involving Tommy just puts them completely over the top.

[@Brennan163]

Jesus, after seeing the differences between Tommy in regular interviews and Tommy in Indie Game: The Movie, making a game just seems like a DREADFUL experience.

[@LargeTurn1p]

Wonderful interview.

[@kenneth4life]

Insightful interview! You make a really greate job Brandon!

[@StateofPlayShow]

Awesome! Thanks for watching!

[@Evilolex]

really love this interview

[@StateofPlayShow]

Thanks for watching! We'll keep at it.

[@Maldito011316]

Great interview! :)

[@TiagoPradoOliveira]

Awesome interview man

[@Semikami]

Best interviews on the interwebs.

[@moeezS]

Dude, thanks for this!

[@mexicangamer2011]

very nice interview

[@Skinkemann]

Aw yuss! Terrific interview! I love Ed & Tom, they are totes rad dudes, and their games kick all of the butts. Pumped for Mew-Genics!

[@braincrumb]

Tommy certainly looks allot healthier now than he did in Indie Game! Haha, great conversation man! Thoroughly enjoy your work, and don't worry, I for one enjoyed the laughter, it made for a more human video, it pisses me off when the dev says something so heartfelt, and the interview is 'professional', and just kinda moves onto the next question. It's not human.

[@BAGG8BAGG]

Love your interviews really, great questions as well :) also it's like watching Peter Parker as all these cool game devs sweet questions!

[@RawwestHide]

a surprisingly personal interview from Tommy

[@StateofPlayShow]

Thanks for watching. We see these talks as conversations, so if that makes me not an "interviewer," that's fine by me. Any laughing was done because I was having a good time talking to an interesting person. If anyone would rather watch a video of a guest speaking their answers to questions popping up on a computer screen, they should start making 'em!

[@StateofPlayShow]

Thanks, man! Be well!

[@indeimaus]

Where are you Brandon!?

[@Nazareadain]

Looking at the comment section, I'll venture a guess and say somewhere better.

[@joshansell8631]

You need to calm down

[@schokomesser]

I love this show. Brandon, you are a great interviewer =)

[@ax23w4]

Hey Brandon. This interview is in some ways better then Indie Game: The Movie. Also Tommy is a really good talker. I guess he really could be an actor and play a caricature of himself.

[@StateofPlayShow]

Thanks for that!

[@sandplasma]

I think its great to have these interviews to give us a more realistic view of these guys, the movie gave me a somewhat negative view of Tommy but after watching this he seems like a great guy. A+!

[@TrueColors05]

Both of Team Meat seem like genuinely cool guys who love doing what they do. Rare to see even one person like that in the game industry now-a-days.

[@indeimaus]

Amazing interview.

[@smannlymann]

I love your laugh. It makes me smile :) Also Tommy is awesome! Thanks for posting.

[@sadeghbroomand4047]

thank you so much we love you tommy

[@indeimaus]

Been waiting for this one!

[@Louthsk8er]

Great interview

[@StateofPlayShow]

Hey! Yeah, try loading it again. The whole thing should be 1:26:56. Thanks for watching!

[@LargeTurn1p]

I think you may have been cut off from the ending. Try loading the video again. He talks about the lasers close to the end (about speedrunners jumping through them), but there is a definitive ending.

[@MrConstant1n]

Guys. Edmund posted on Team Meat blog about Mew-Genics yesterday. Check it out.

[@sandplasma]

LOL I get those bright lights sometimes too. appear/disappear little lines of light.

[@StateofPlayShow]

Kick ass! Thanks for watching.

[@thedittozaur]

Did the Ludum Dare game ever come up on LD? I remember tweeting Tommy about it and he was really reluctant to answer at the time, I understand why now.. : P

[@daggereye89]

Great interview, I wanted to know if Tommy actually played binding of isaac or maybe finished binding of isaac.

[@JEWGENI1]

Finnaly nice nice interview

[@MrDimakoles]

I'd like to fix mac version. Is it possible?

[@unleashthedog]

54:30 Well, actually a friend of mine programs on an iPad. Of course, using the bluetooth keyboard, in that case it works like a netbook.

[@STLeoTS]

Since he mentioned loving his interviews with Edmund why don't you guys invite both of them to the show once Mewgenics comes out. Thumbs Up and Sub from me nice interview funny and informative.

[@wyattsailors]

Interviewer has an impressive ability to get antisocial developers comfortable enough to just talk relatably with little to no intervention or questions.

[@NickPascoal]

I love it at 29:45 where you say he doesn't mean it, but then he says he does and you crack up and says he means it

[@video.james.]

Tommy has a really cool mindset. He's a cool dude.

[@m.r.268]

Hey Brandon, did you know that Tommy said this was his favorite interview he has ever done? He said so on his Formspring account.

[@StateofPlayShow]

Sending you a gift basket!

[@StateofPlayShow]

Hey - thanks for watching the show. I'm sorry you find my laughing fake. I can assure you that all of my laughing is as real as can be. I like meeting people and talking with them, especially those whose work I respect. I'm constantly trying to improve my skills and my style. We'll keep getting better at it the more we work on it. First and foremost, this show is a passion project. We're doing our best with an idea we love (on our own dime), and there will always be room for improvement.

[@StateofPlayShow]

Thanks so much! Your comment means an awful lot.

[@SuperDuckPro]

Thanx

[@FelipeMendez]

would be great to hear about the ipad games rant again now that monument valley is out

[@yoidagb]

I bought Super Meat Boy for Mac! and it crash always before loading the forest. But I have a windows and now enjoy this wonderful game.

[@Jennifer-cg5ih]

Who here in 2021 baby

[@someonenamevalencia7527]

TEAM MEAT AMAZING I wish there more vjds of them

[@CRM1114]

I have enjoyed this man's interviews. I don't understand why people feel the need to be pricks. Interview is no where in the title of this video. They are talks, and they are still entertaining, perhaps more so than a cut 'n dry interview would have been. Good video!

[@indeimaus]

Alright princess, me and a ton of other people enjoyed this relaxing interview. If you think a laugh is enough to "destroy" an interview then you're too sensitive.

[@yoidagb]

xCode 4, it's the main IDE for Mac OS X

[@Rambo28]

Thanks for your reply. Instead of "fake", I should more accurately state that you seem a bit nervous and awkward during the interviews, and the laughs seem like nervous laughs at times. I'm sure much of this is due to you being on camera, talking to cool/famous game personalities etc. I'm sure you'll continue to improve as you become more comfortable in these interview situations. Good luck!

[@glumbardi]

TOMMY HOW DO I PROGRAM?!?!?!! :D

[@GirlyHowToGirl]

If this is not a joke and I'm not missing something... google.com and THIS WEBSITE FOR GOD'S SAKE. Just search "how to program." If it is a joke, sorry. Ha ha, ha :)

[@glumbardi]

itsa joke lol

[@GPepicness]

Can you do an interview with Phil Fish?

[@jgcooper]

is it just me or is the volume kinda low?

[@LaymensLament]

Tommy Refenes "Games need to be hard". I concur.

[@StateofPlayShow]

Ha! Thanks!

[@kaded_]

I own it and its playable, but it takes around 3 or 4 crashes before it will work for me.

[@sheepthehack]

The disconnect from reality is a common thing, my wife recently went on holiday for a week, all that week i stayed at home coding non stop.. (bar sleep) even though i spoke to her on the phone each day , i still became disconnected to the point where, when she finally got home.. i couldnt barely recognise having a conversation with a REAL person.. (only having meg my dog with me) It felt so strange.. humans need humans!!

[@M1l0shHasCam0]

sword and sworcery totaly fits the IPAD controls and hardware, at least in my opinion

[@karmapolice247]

He looks like the future version of Jay Bauman.

[@evertchin]

i thought i was alone!!

[@LazarheaD]

Tommy is such a heel

[@whatyouguysmissed]

Tommy Refenes is just an alias for Northernlion, right?

[@StevenOBrien]

39:36 "If Romney had been elected, the next election would've been even worse". lol, so much for that

[@marcthomas4488]

That prediction, lol

[@joshansell8631]

@@marcthomas4488 omg #blessed  ÛÙÇŒ

[@MeatNinja]

I wonder if Tommy has played Rayman Jungle Run and/or Fiesta Run.

[@Jargonloster]

+MeatNinja I completed (collected every lum) every level of Jungle Run before the iap levels and was kinda pissed that it doesn't acknowledge the fact at all or give any kind of ending unless (i'm guessing here) you also complete the 20 extra levels. Otherwise I did enjoy Jungle Run.

[@ChenHuang]

are you Tommy?

[@AN4RCHID]

A million thanks sir. Sounds fan-facking-tustic.