Bookwarm Games

We gather down at the Video Game Academy farm for a round-picnic-table discussion of the phenomenal Stardew Valley. For more, see the full almanac over at http://videogameacademia.org/ Music from the OST

We get acquainted with Sigil, meet some friendly denizens and fellow wanderers, and consider some of the factions vying for our services. http://videogameacademia.org/courses/planescape-torment/ Music from the OST

What makes us think this life is real? Well, we spot Bob the skull--I mean Morte--, Willem Dafoe--er, The Nameless One--, and, on the heels of Deionarra the ghost, Corey! And Mike joins us to provide some lore on the background for the OG Planescape: Torment, including World of Darkness and the Outer Planes of D&D. Dusties, zombies, etc. look out! https://videogameacademia.org/courses/planescape-torment/ 

Discussing ch 36-37 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html 

Esteemed listeners, big news. Website tidyings-up and new mascots are on the way. Plus, by popular demand, t-shirt giveaways? https://videogameacademia.org/ 

It's the Sunday afternoon of the year, and we're setting up plans for the coming semesters. That means a little Planescape: Torment, a smidgeon of Shadowrun: Dragonfall, and maybe some Undertale and Stardew Valley. Help us with our follow-through? We'd love to hear from you. https://videogameacademia.org/2021/08/15/the-sunday-afternoon-of-the-year/

Discussing ch 32-33 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html 

We throw it back to Shakespeare and Chesterton, eschewing the Holy Smokes and helping the Smuggler's friend make it back to the surface. https://videogameacademia.org/courses/deus-ex/ Music from the OST. 

Discussing ch 30-31 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman, with a glance towards his novel Galatea. http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html 

We wanted orange and it gave us lemon-lime. It's a conspiracy! Discussing the UNATCO HQ and its bizarro alter ego in Battery Park. Videos of Prof Ben's gameplay and more course materials: https://videogameacademia.org/courses/deus-ex/ Music from the OST. 

The dreaded stealth training sequence, famed first mission, and general milieu of Deus Ex: Revision. Midway through Liberty Island, Steve's neighbor must have hacked us (that is, I forgot to refresh the recording tab) so we lost a few minutes there of Prof Ben laying out what's at stake in the interlocking character creation/progression and moral choice systems and the headless Statue of Liberty. Still, not bad for a first foray into the FPS CRPG darkness. More course info and twitch streams coming soon at https://videogameacademia.org/courses/deus-ex/ Music from the OST. 

On ch 28-29 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman, with apologies for the delay and recommendations for further listening:  https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2021/07/signum-academy-discussions-on-pullman.html  There's short discussions of Pullman's Fairy Tales from The Brothers Grimm, Clockwork, The Scarecrow and his Servant, and The Firework-Maker's Daughter

Welcome back, it's summer again and we have much to discuss. If you'd like to get honest feedback on original work, read books with us, or suggest a future game, visit https://videogameacademia.org/  Another look at RPG history from Gamemaker's Toolkit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJiwn8iXqOI  

Time for the final showdown with the evil AI du jour. Three personalities and nanomachines galore MAIK may have, but with feelings and friendship we can prevail--feelings like disappointment, annoyance, regret... but also relief at World's End Club being over. Music from the OST. Visit us at https://videogameacademia.org/ 

We come up to the mid-game twists and turns and stop just shy of the obligatory bad end. Apologies for the delay posting this episode, but camping last week was a lot of fun. Provided the rolling blackouts here in Spokane hold off another day or two, we'll be back on schedule. Visit us at https://videogameacademia.org/ for more. Music from the OST. Edit: The Ezra Klein interview mentioned is with Brian Christian. 

We discuss the long-lost EarthBound script files recovered and analyzed by The Video Game History Foundation: https://gamehistory.org/earthbound-script-files/. Then, as we make our way to Osaka in World's End Club, there's a twist you may or may not have seen coming a mile away. https://videogameacademia.org/ 

We chat summer plans and run through the first hour or so of World's End Club. Music from the OST. For more on visual novels: https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/ 

Here we are at the end(s) of NieR: Automata. If it's a bit too abstract to understand at this time, if it feels like carrying the weight of the world, we're here for you. The Video Game Academy: we get that being alive is pretty much a constant stream of embarrassment. Music comes from the OST. https://videogameacademia.org/ 

We discuss the meat box and soul box, sand worms and cannibal machines; or in other words, the mind-body problem, Hegel, Nietzsche, and Pascal. For more un-compressed conversation, see https://videogameacademia.org/ or tune into https://www.twitch.tv/3rdstrongest Music comes from the OST. Thanks for listening. 

Could it be we're at the start of yet a third game? It's hard to tell with all that static and visual distortion, but we're soldiering on. The Operator says we're doing great. For more, check out our twitch channel at https://www.twitch.tv/3rdstrongest and read more from the grimoires housed at https://videogameacademia.org/ Music comes from the OST. Thanks for listening, and let us know what we should play next!