To kick off X-Play's unprecedented coverage of the 2008 Penny Arcade Expo, we've asked each of the PAX 10, the Expo's top ten highest rated indie games of the last year, to answer some questions for us.

Daniel Bryner, one the masterminds behind Polarity was happy to answer our questions and offer some sage advice to young independant game developers.

G4: How long was the game in development?

DB: The game took about 5 months to develop.

G4: Where did you get the idea/inspiration for the game?

DB: The original inspiration for using magnetism came from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. It got us thinking about other magnetic mechanics that might be interesting to use, and other genres that magnetism might be suitable for.

G4: What's your all-time favorite game?

DB: My all-time favorite game is probably Beyond Good & Evil.

G4: If you could have dinner with any one developer, who would it be and what would you eat?

DB: It may sound trite, but I'd love to have dinner and talk game design with Shigeru Miyamoto.

G4: With unlimited resources, what kind of game would you make?

DB: That's a good question, and unfortunately I only have a vague answer. I think I'd like to make a game focused solely on multiplayer - something that anyone could play, but something that had incredible depth at the same time. I guess I'd have to think about it some more when those unlimited resources get here :-)

G4: Which existing franchise would you like to work on?

DB: As far as existing franchises go, I'd like to work on something classic like Mario, Zelda, Metroid, or Castlevania. However, I'd prefer to work on something original in most cases.

G4: Where do you see indie gaming going in the future?

DB: It really is amazing to see how fast the bar is being raised in indie development, and indie gaming is going to continue to get more sophisticated at an astonishing pace. Originality and inspiration already eclipse the mainstream in a lot of cases, but the gap for things like quality and production values will continue to shrink. I'm sure we'll see more success stories like Portal and Braid as the indie scene continues to mature.

G4: What piece of advice would you give to someone looking to develop their own indie game?

DB: If I had to give one piece of advice to an aspiring game developer (of any kind), I would say focus on gameplay first. It's the one thing that makes the medium special, and there is no substitute for fun interactivity.

G4: What was the biggest lesson learned from your development process?

DB: My biggest takeaway from developing Polarity is that you can't put a price on rapid iteration. We developed our own custom editor that enabled us to adjust the game live, and it proved invaluable.

G4: Besides the obvious—making games—what are some of your hobbies?

DB: I like to see a movie or a stand-up comedy show from time to time. I also like to get outside and play sports since I work in front of a computer most of the time.

G4: Favorite movie, food, sports team, video game character, and actor/actress?

DB: The Shawshank Redemption, homemade blueberry muffins, the Buffalo Bills, Jade from Beyond Good & Evil, Matt Damon, Diane Lane