Tracy Rosenthal-Newsom
The power of playtesting and customer empathy
Tracy Rosenthal-Newsom is an award-winning game producer and product leader who brought you hits like Rock Band and Dance Central. I worked with Tracy in the early days of bringing Rock Band to life – and learned so much from her. In many ways, we’ve traveled parallel paths – moving through the worlds of gaming, digital healthcare and humanistic product design. The common thread is a deep, abiding interest in creating experiences that connect with people in a deep and positive way. And I’ll tell you – Tracy knows how to do that. Join us and discover the key practices that led this innovative creative powerhouse towards success.
Amy Jo Kim
Tracy Rosenthal-Newsom: Playtesting and customer empathy
About this episode
Tracy Newsom has had such an interesting career in both the entertainment and gaming industries. Here are a few highlights from out remarkable conversation:
- A day in the life of Tracy Newsom (2:45)
- How Tracy got started in Design and Tech and her journey (7:05)
- What Tracy knows about successful innovation now that she wishes she knew 10 years ago (22:12)
- Understanding play testing (24:45)
- The effect that Tracy’s background in dance had on her work with Dance Central (28:30)
- Common mistakes companies make in the early stages of bringing their ideas to life (33:00)
- Bringing the entertainment and healthcare industries together (40:40)
- What gets Tracy excited about a project (42:15)
- Tracy’s opinion on Harmonix Music Systems (49:51)
