The Spelunky Showlike

In the fifth installment of our Kentucky Route Zero miniseries, we broadcast our thoughts on the Un Pueblo De Nada interlude, before prowling our way through Act V and our closing thoughts on the game. Show notes: Kentucky Route Zero Stephanie Boluk  Patrick LeMieux Sarah Elmaleh Alice Munro - Dear Life Clara Rockmore - The Art of the Theramin Clara Rockmore - The Swan Brian Rotman: Signifying Nothing - The Semiotics of Zero Bob Moog WEVP-TV transmedia videos Sandin Analog Image Processor Our Town Jenny Odell - How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy How to unlock the bonus interlude Noah Caldwell-Gervais - Notes From Along Kentucky Route Zero Robert Frost - The Death of a Hired Man Orthographic projection Projective Geometry Haruki Murakami - The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle Can't Tell Me Nothing with Zach Galifianakis HQ Walt Whitman - Song of Myself, Verse 52 Nabokov and spirals Jon Cates Metal Gear Solid 3, I Love You With All My Heart Jordan Youngblood “Is Metal Gear’s Rectum a Digital Grave?: Q

Echodog Games' Dyala Kattan-Wright joins us to discuss their wildly unique and wonderful narrative card game Signs of the Sojourner. We chat about the process of developing the game's innovative dialogue system, its surprising effects on player experience, and why sometimes you just can't go home again. Show notes: Eggplant Patreon Dyala Kattan-Wright Echodog Games Signs of the Sojourner Slay the Spire Ascension: A Case Study in Deckbuilding Games Friday Consentacle Fog of Love Hanabi Hearthstone Dream Quest 80 Days Arkham Horror: The Card Game Signs of the Sojourner Original Soundtrack

In the fourth installment of our Kentucky Route Zero miniseries, we dial in our thoughts on the Here and There Along the Echo interlude, before bringing our insight to bear on the brittle facts of Act IV. With guest co-hosts Stephanie Boluk, Patrick LeMieux, and Sarah Elmaleh! Show notes: Kentucky Route Zero Stephanie Boluk  Patrick LeMieux Sarah Elmaleh Limits and Demonstrations Little Berlin installation Sarah's Part 3 Twitter thread Karl Marx, Capital Vol. III Karl Marx, The Fragment on Machines Museum of Jurassic Technology Lee Tusman Richard Lemarchand, Attention Not Immersion Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy (Will Oldham), I See a Darkness Kelly Reichardt, Old Joy Martin Deny, Exotica Audiogames.net Kenji Eno, Real Sound: Kaze No Regret Sound of Metal Nomadland Gabriel A. Radvansky et al., Walking Through Doorways Causes Forgetting Andre Bazin, Ontology of the Photographic Image Sigmund Freud, The Uncanny

A special episode originally created in partnership with AMC Games for the in-flight entertainment of Airplane Mode, a very literal flight simulator. We chat with its creator Hosni Auji about the challenges and benefits of simulating the mundane, our strangely poignant experiences with the game, and our personal flight etiquette. Show notes:  Airplane Mode Hosni Auji AMC Games F.E.E.D. Zero Age NYU Game Center Incubator Gone Home The Twilight Zone - Nightmare at 20,000 Feet BLAH airlines Captain Bennet Foddy

In the third installment of our Kentucky Route Zero miniseries, we take a seat for The Entertainment interlude, before exploring the physical manifestation of debt in Act III. With recurring guest co-hosts Stephanie Boluk and Patrick LeMieux, and bonus guest Sarah Elmaleh! Show notes: Kentucky Route Zero Stephanie Boluk  Patrick LeMieux Sarah Elmaleh Giving Games a Voice with Sarah Elmaleh Resonance game The Consolidated Power Company The Entertainment paperback Maxim Gorky, The Lower Depths Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Kubla Khan Eugene O’Neill, The Iceman Cometh The Last of Us Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot Julee Cruise, Rockin’ Back Inside My Heart on Twin Peaks Colossal Cave Adventure Junebug, Too Late to Love You Vannevar Bush, As We May Think Steve Russell et al., Space War! Joseph Weizenbaum, Eliza/Doctor Eliza   Douglas Engelbart, The Mother All Demos   Ted Nelson, Computer Lib/Dream Machines Roberta and Ken Williams, Mystery House David Graeber, Debt: The First 5000 Years IF titles: the next

Game historian and documentarian Summoning Salt joins us to discuss the world of speedrunning, the process behind his deep-dive videos that unpack its most exciting moments, and the ineffable magic that makes some classic games so beautifully broken. Show notes: Summoning Salt Home - We're Finally Landing Breaking World Records with Kinnijup and ix The Quest for 1 Million Subscribers Games Done Quick SS's speedrun.com records The Quest to Beat Matt Turk The History of Wii Sports Resort Golf World Records Jon Bois Tim Rogers' Action Button Summoning Salt Patreon The History of Contra World Records Mario Kart 64: The Quest for World Record Perfection Video Game History Foundation World Record Progression: Half-Life 2 Andy's latest EP

In the second installment of our Kentucky Route Zero miniseries, we marinate in the Limits & Demonstrations interlude, before navigating the Zero to Act II to tackle bureaucracy, bears, and the recurring question: are we inside, or are we outside? Show notes: Kentucky Route Zero Stephanie Boluk  Patrick LeMieux Nam Jun Paik, Random Access Edward Packard, UFO 54-40 Museum of Other Realities KRZ Fulltext Jack Burnham, Software Catalogue Eddie Shanken, "The House that Jack Built" Le Corbusier, "Five Points of Architecture" The Jejune Institute  SCP Foundation Robert Frost, "Two Tramps in Mud Time" Robert Frost, "Death of the Hired Man" Mark Z. Danielewski, House of Leaves  Rene Magritte, The Blank Signature Marie Foulston, Videogames: Design/Play/Disrupt

Actor, advocate, and consultant Sarah Elmaleh (Afterparty, Anthem, Gone Home) joins us to discuss her craft across myriad game roles, the connections between voiceover and design, and using your voice to fight for equity and connectedness.  Show notes:  Sarah Elmaleh Eggplant Podcast Community Game Jam Void Protocol Babycastles Behind the Voice Dominic Armato Afterparty  Anthem  Gears 5 Superbowl spot Getting Over It With Bennett Foddy A Play of Bodies Hades Disco Elysium Johann Sebastian Joust Lifeline Earplay: Jurassic World Revealed SAG-AFTRA Low Budget Agreement Pyre Star Wars Twitter thread Gamedev.world IndieCade 2020 Awards

In the first installment of our Kentucky Route Zero miniseries, we meet our guest co-hosts, with whom we put Act I's opening scene under a microscope, discuss the game's novel dialogue system, and dive deep into the first batch of its many intertextual references. Show notes: Stephanie Boluk Patrick Lemieux Kentucky Route Zero Cardboard Computer A House in California Metagaming book Mutazione Designing for Mystery in KRZ GDC talk Dear Esther Fluxus Grapefruit Successful Reflective Choices in Interactive Narrative Colossal Cave Adventure Where the Water Tastes Like Wine Recoding Gender: Women’s Changing Participation in Computing Playing with Feelings: Video Games and Affect Game of Life Somewhere Nearby is Colossal Cave One Hundred Years of Solitude A Pedestal, A Table, A Love Letter: Archaeologies of Gender in Videogame History Hundred Thousand Billion Poems 1976: Adventure Mathematical Theory of Communication New Media Reader

Daniel Helbig of Megagon Industries (Lonely Mountains: Downhill) joins us to discuss the magic behind their pitch-perfect 2019 mountain biking game. We discuss the trials and techniques of their game-defining controls, physics, and camera work, and mastering multifaceted mountains (phew!). Show notes: Eggplant Game Jam Daniel Helbig Megagon Industries Lonely Mountains: Downhill Skiing Yeti Mountain Ski Stunt Simulator Game Feel book Downhill Domination Deep Rock Galactic Ring of Pain

Maddy Thorson (Celeste, TowerFall) joins us to discuss the evolution of their excellent catalog of platformers, how Celeste made them reconsider difficulty, and the benefits of working with a team you can trust. Show notes: Maddy Thorson Celeste Classic 2 Celeste source code Axiom Verge randomizer Spelunky Dare Challenge Bot Maddy's Mario Maker 2 courses Maddy's Super Mario World Remix Twilight Imperium Detransition, Baby book Dreamsnake book Line Rider Andy's first Spelunky 2 Cosmic Ocean run

Narrative Director Xalavier Nelson Jr. joins us fresh from his announcement of Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator, the latest in his lengthy list of collaborations. We discuss the methodology behind his prolific oeuvre, the benefits of planning ahead, and how he approaches the unique narrative of a game like Hypnospace Outlaw. Show notes: Xalavier Nelson Jr. Xalavier's Itch.io page Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator Hypnospace Outlaw An Airport For Aliens Currently Run By Dogs Guts of Glory Up in the Air Paper Mario: The Origami King Oreskaband Skatune Network

The final installment of a special miniseries produced by developer Die Gute Fabrik, an examination of their wonderful 'mutant soap opera' told through the lens of its music. In this episode, they discuss the rest of the game's Story Mode music, and play some early sketches. Show notes: Die Gute Fabrik Mutazione (Original Game Soundtrack) Alessandro's Spotify playlist of music that influenced Mutazione Nils' Spotify playlist of music that influenced Mutazione

Immersive puzzle designer Laura E. Hall returns for another huge year-end show, as we each count down our Top 5 games of 2020, alongside picks from previous guests and our listeners. Happy New Year! Show notes: Laura E. Hall Planning Your Escape: Strategy Secrets to Make You an Escape Room Superstar Every Game in This City Our GOTY picks (SPOILERS): Laura: Animal Crossing: New Horizons Box One Presented by Neil Patrick Harris Holovista The Room VR: A Dark Matter The Truth About Edith / Cain's Jawbone Zach: Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Persona 5 Final Fantasy VII Remake Hearthstone Battlegrounds Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Andy: Spelunky 2 Death Stranding Through the Ages Disco Elysium Outer Wilds Doug: De Mol 2020 season Spelunky 2 Kentucky Route Zero The Crew: The Quest For Planet Nine PlayingCards Nick: Ghost of Tsushima Spelunky 2 Astro's Playroom A Short Hike / Lonely Mountains: Downhill Spider-Man: Miles Morales Guest picks: Astro's Playroom Sludge Life Penko Park Deep Rock Galactic Apex Legends Du

The third installment of a special miniseries produced by developer Die Gute Fabrik, an examination of their wonderful 'mutant soap opera' told through the lens of its music. In this episode, they discuss the creation and iteration of the game's main 'town' music. Show notes: Die Gute Fabrik Mutazione (Original Game Soundtrack) Knytt Stories Sea & Cake

Ikenfell creator Chevy Ray Johnston joins us to explore the inner workings of his tactical magic school RPG, from building a meaningful story with interpersonal stakes, to nailing the timing on a streamlined yet dynamic combat system. Show notes: Chevy Ray Johnston Ikenfell Ring Fit Adventure Carry On by Rainbow Rowell Carmilla YouTube series Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga Ikenfell Original Game Soundtrack A Shell in the Pit Sammus Rowan Atkinson bee comedy

The second installment of a special miniseries produced by developer Die Gute Fabrik, an examination of their wonderful 'mutant soap opera' told through the lens of its music. In this episode, they discuss the creation of the game's generative musical gardens. Show notes: Die Gute Fabrik Mutazione (Original Game Soundtrack) Gardens teaser video Brian Eno - Music for Airports

Greg Kasavin and Amir Rao of Supergiant Games join us for a deep design dive on their smash hit dungeon-crawler Hades, from how (and why) they tackled gameplay and narrative persistence in a roguelike, to creating dynamic systems and characters that always have something new to say. Show notes: Hades Greg Kasavin Amir Rao Dead Cells Slay the Spire Noclip's Hades: Developing Hell series

Introducing a special Into the Depths miniseries produced by developer Die Gute Fabrik, an examination of their wonderful 'mutant soap opera' told through the lens of its music. In this first installment, they discuss the origins of their collaboration, and the early direction and influences that informed the tone of both the game and its music. Show notes: Die Gute Fabrik Mutazione (Original Game Soundtrack) Rückblende Alessandro's Spotify playlist of music that influenced Mutazione Nils' Spotify playlist of music that influenced Mutazione The Books - Lost and Safe (album) Sifteo Cubes

Josh "Stuffed Wombat" Hollendonner joins us to discuss his inspiring oeuvre of Small Games, from creating the 10mg collection - and his entry Always Down - to exploring the tiny text adventures of Ord, and the sustainability and learnings of exploring the Small Games space. Show notes: Stuffed Wombat 10mg Collection The Small Game manifesto Gutwhale How to delete your Twitter account Ord. Handulum+ qomp