The first in a new series diving into the artists, engineers, and mad scientists behind Winchester Mystery House. We sit down with UI artist, 3D modeller, and graphic designer Joshua Clay to talk about what it takes to shape the look and feel of Barrels of Fun’s most ambitious game yet. From haunting interface layouts to the subtle textures that bring the mansion’s ghostly charm to life — this episode opens the door to the minds that built the house.

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00:00:00 - Cold open and the idea behind “Meet the Team…”

00:01:02 - Introducing Joshua Clay and his creative role

00:02:11 - Why the Winchester Mystery House fits pinball perfectly

00:03:05 - From Dune’s desert to Winchester’s hallways: shifting tone

00:04:09 - Building rooms from reference photos and architectural plans

00:05:02 - How to give each room personality through 3D lighting

00:06:17 - Modeling tricks learned from gaming UI projects

00:07:25 - Adapting mobile design instincts to pinball readability

00:08:13 - The rotating turntable—what it adds to the gameplay experience

00:09:04 - Getting motion and texture right on the spinning floor

00:10:27 - Collaboration between 3D art and mechanical design

00:11:18 - Music, sound, and visuals syncing across modes

00:12:35 - Ghost shader experiments and the “spectral fog” look

00:14:10 - The eerie charm of the planchette animation

00:15:39 - Why Winchester’s visual tone avoids clichés of “haunted” games

00:16:53 - Giving players orientation through UI glow and camera framing

00:18:05 - Why the team went pre-rendered instead of real-time

00:19:12 - Tools of the trade—Blender pipelines, lighting templates, and asset reuse

00:20:26 - Voice-over direction and the concept of a haunted tour guide

00:22:01 - Early concepts that didn’t make the cut (and why)

00:23:15 - Using color cues for different areas of the mansion

00:25:07 - The challenge of layering UI over a busy playfield

00:27:14 - When readability trumps realism in pinball design

00:29:46 - Working with Karl DeAngelo to balance clarity and mystery

00:32:02 - Ghost animations that behave differently per room

00:34:10 - Special effects inspired by old horror films

00:36:20 - How shadows became storytelling devices

00:39:33 - Scene transitions that match game rhythm and music beats

00:42:18 - The evolution of the match sequence on the planchette

00:45:41 - Fine-tuning glow intensity for llighting

00:47:50 - Making each mode feel like its own short film

00:50:11 - Expo debut and reactions from players seeing the visuals live

00:53:06 - Last-minute bug hunts and shader optimizations

00:55:39 - Lessons learned moving from still renders to gameplay integration

00:58:12 - The emotional payoff: when the house feels alive

01:00:27 - What Joshua’s most proud of in the final build

01:03:19 - Looking ahead

01:05:46 - Closing reflections and the philosophy behind good pinball design

01:07:20 - Credits, laughter, and post-show wrap-up

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