The Challenge

GCEA required far more than a traditional broadcast workflow. The show needed to function as a fully interactive game system, with remote contestants, an in-studio host, producers, and viewers all connected through synchronized interfaces that controlled gameplay, scoring, visuals, and pacing in real time.

The production involved hundreds of thousands of animated sprites, dynamic score states, one-time effects, and gameplay logic that had to remain perfectly in sync with the live broadcast. Any latency, desynchronization, or manual intervention risked breaking the flow of the show.

In addition to the technical complexity, the show demanded polished broadcast execution, talent management, remote contestant workflows, and a visually bold game-show aesthetic that could support rapid transitions and high-energy moments without overwhelming viewers.

Our Solution

Atomic designed and built a custom gameplay engine and suite of web-based applications that automates nearly all gameplay aspects of the show. This included dedicated interfaces for producers, contestants, and the host, all tied directly into the live run-of-show, and gameplay broadcast systems.

The producer interface served as the automation backbone of the show, allowing real-time control over questions, scoring, buzzers, gameplay state, graphics cues, sound effects, and one-time visual effects. Advancing the rundown automatically triggered coordinated actions across the broadcast.

The host interface integrated directly into the prompter, providing scripted prompts, questions, answers, gameplay context, and live score updates, enabling Brian David Gilbert to focus on performance and pacing without managing technical details.

Contestant interfaces provided synchronized return video, gameplay state, scoring, and low-latency, web-based online/remote buzzer system, supporting both for remote contestants while maintaining competitive fairness.

We worked hand-in-glove with Pokémon's internal producer and creative services team to take a show design, asset kit and motion graphics and bring it to life in the broadcast.

Atomic developed and integrated a massive dynamic graphics system featuring hundreds of thousands of animated sprites, real-time scoreboards, question reveals, correct and incorrect answer animations, leaderboard updates, and dramatic one-time effects that elevated the game-show spectacle.

In parallel with software development, Atomic delivered full broadcast production, including cameras, lighting, audio, live switching, graphics integration, and streaming infrastructure. We also handled talent workflows, technical checks, and show operations to ensure smooth execution.

The result was a tightly synchronized, visually explosive live game show that seamlessly blended software, broadcast production, and interactive gameplay into a single, high-energy viewing experience.

See how we took the Gotta Catch 'Em All Gameshow to the next level at Pokémon Worlds in Anaheim, CA.