Building for Kids: Safety, Imagination, and the Future of Social Play | Cheat Codes Podcast

In this episode, TaSh Elzie sits down with Karin Johnson, Chief Product Officer at Magic Potion Games and one of the builders behind Imagine Island, a social gaming world designed for kids under 13. Karin's path winds through Disney's Club Penguin, Epic Games, and Fortnite before landing her at Magic Potion, where she's putting everything she's learned about community, safety, and joyful design into building something new for the next generation of players. They talk about what it looks like to build safety into a product from the ground up rather than add it later, how care becomes the foundation for community, and what it means to create a space where kids can imagine freely and feel genuinely protected at the same time. If you're building community in games, thinking about safety by design, or curious about what it takes to build something that truly puts young players first, this one is for you. Karin Johnson is the Founder and Chief Product Officer at Magic Potion Games, where she leads product strategy, strategic partnerships, and child safety initiatives for Imagine Island. With 18 years of experience across games, entertainment, and interactive media, she has held product leadership roles at Disney, where she worked on Club Penguin; Epic Games, where she helped expand Fortnite; and Industrial Light & Magic, where she supported productions including films in the Marvel franchise. At Magic Potion Games, she leads with a focus on creating safe, social online experiences for children that earn the trust of parents. Karin will be speaking at the Boss Mode breakfast at GamesBeat NEXT in San Francisco on November 3, 2026. Links & Resources •  Magic Potion Games: https://magicpotiongames.com/ •  Imagine Island: imagineisland.game •  GamesBeat NEXT — Boss Mode Breakfast (Nov 3, SF): gamesbeatnext.com •  Women in Games International: getwigi.com •  WIGI Social: @getWIGI 00:00 Introduction and guest background 01:00 Karin Johnson's career journey from Disney to Epic Games 02:06 Lessons learned from Club Penguin and visual effects work 02:58 Transition to building kid-friendly online worlds 06:55 The motivation behind creating Imagine Island 07:54 The impact of childhood experiences on game design 08:58 Incorporating storytelling and community in Imagine Island 10:08 Community engagement and user-generated content 11:56 Safety as a core principle from day one 17:02 Technical and compliance strategies for child safety 22:02 Advice for developers creating kid-safe games 23:59 Encouragement for new developers in the space 29:06 Designing inclusive and representative character creation 30:53 Fostering positive community and role models 35:47 The power of community and positive social norms 37:59 Upcoming features and seasonal events in Imagine Island 38:50 Closing remarks and how to connect with the team