Backstage Gaming

This week, we ping-pong from game to game, looking at a common literary trope, and how it applies to video games: the unreliable narrator. We're joined for this episode by Alex, co-host of the Super GG Radio podcast! Check them out at anchor.fm/superggradio, or wherever fine podcasts are sold! Like the show? Support us on Patreon! Patreon.com/BSGPod Follow us on twitter @BSG_Cast

This week, we dive into re-castings in long-term series or ports and re-releases of beloved games. Why do they happen? How do people feel about them? And what do they add or change about the stories they tell? Also included: Port Mistakes and New Dylan

*** Spoilers for Celeste *** This week, we talk about the recent indie platformer Celeste, it's story, and how it tells it. We look at the level-by-level challenges, the characters' arcs, and how this game ties itself together.

What is aesthetic? What is art? What is zombies? These questions have haunted thinkers since the dawn of time, and this week, two dweebs with a podcast are gonna answer them. Join us as we talk about what "aesthetic" actually means, and look at a few game franchises that have made unique use of their individual aesthetics.

Welcome to the loop-zone! Dylan's in Tech for a show, Chris has been recording a lot, and we both needed a nice, fun, breezy episode this week. Welcome back to Spot The Dud! Chris reads some review for games in the same general 1-10 ranking ballpark, and Dylan has to guess which one is the biggest stinker!

**Spoiler Warning for Undertale, because we know that game is fresh and important to a lot of people** This week, we're here to talk about games that ask you to pull your punches. Whether it's an encounter that forces you to put aside the usual violent options, or a game with pacifism built into it's DNA, looking at how games approach non-violent storytelling in a usually violent medium is fascinating. Also included: Dwelling on Dreams, God-Smacked, Dylan Fils Aime, and the great Chris Bait-And-Switch Follow us on Twitter @BSG_Cast, or find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube by searching for Backstage Gaming. Like what we're doing, support us on Patreon! Patreon.com/BSGPod

This week, we've gotta go fast, but not in the way you'd expect! We hop back into our regular Writer's Room segment to talk about F-Zero, the Nintendo property known for it's speed and cartoonish characters, to try to figure out how we could best translate these unique strengths into another medium. We think we did a pretty ok job!

This week, we're all about games with multiple campaigns or perspectives. Whether you're choosing your side at the beginning, or the game shifts itself around to show you the different sides of the story, using perspective shifts and concurrent storytelling can add a unique twist to your game's story and how your audience approaches or replays it. Also included: Sonic "The" Hedgehog, Hehehehehehe... Duty, and The Big Plug Collection.

This week, we take a break from looking at the more complex elements of game story telling, and instead look at the simpler building blocks: dialogue, narration, and cutscenes. Are they good? What are some games that use them interestingly? Are they necessary? Let's find out! Also included: Use Cake on Man, Dissociation Dylan, and Tim Cook: Podcast Warden.

This is one of those episode where we know *what* we want to talk about, but we're not entirely sure what's gonna happen when we do that. This week, we're talking about yet another medium-specific method of storytelling, but we kick video games to the curb in favor of trading card games. Come along as Chris rambles about Magic: The Gathering to a largely bemused Dylan! Also included: Off-Brand Hayter the wackiest Playbill of all, and OG Digimon Like the show? Visit our Patreon!

This week, we’re joined by a close personal friend, Coop, of “Dude, You Remember Macross” fame, to join us in a conversation about all things weeby. We talk Dragon Quest, take a brief diversion into God of War (so Chris can contribute to the conversation), and then wrap by talking about our first impressions of the new Fire Emblem: Three Houses, particularly how it manages to meld its character and mechanical choices together. Also included: A Dylan Surprise, Big Weeb Energy, One Star Please, and the Looooooooong Fade. Be sure to check out “Dude, You Remember Macross,” at www.anchor.fm/dudeyouremember, or on twitter @DudeYouRemember

This week, we take a walk on the dark-side. We talk about what makes a good villain, a few things you should never do in creating a villain, and why sometimes you just need to rehydrate your villains. Also included: Papa-Dorf, "The Moan," and Dylan's Metal Gear Dissociation.

This week, we were thrilled to be joined by our good friend Will Quam, a Chicago-based director, playwright, and the brain behind Brick of Chicago, an Instagram feed and tour company focused on the brickwork around the city of Chicago. With the help of his eye as a director and observer, we talk about all the little visual ways that games tell their stories. Also included: Fart. Please do check out Brick of Chicago at www.BrickOfChicago.com, or at instagram.com/BrickOfChicago.

Do you have any games that changed how you think about games, or stories, or life? Well, we sure as heck do, and this week, we talk about a few of those flash-bulb games that have impacted us over the years. Also included: The Funny Sex Number, Warlock Daddy, Nasty SNES, and Relevant Seinfeld Humor

All this talking about storytelling and narratives has gotten exhausting, and who has the energy for that in this summer heat? Instead, let’s take it easy, and not talk about story at all. In fact, let’s talk about some games with a very pointed lack of story, and see if we can riddle out how those work! Doesn’t that sound refreshing? Also included: TIME TO KILL, Funky Kong ASMR, Slimy Wilson, and Football-Sonas.

Step into the wardrobe with us today as we talk about how the design of a character, and notably a redesign, can act as a useful shorthand for how we perceive of our favorite characters. It’s also another morning recording, and you know how those get! Also included: Plunge You Up, The Fall, and Mummy Love.

The big 3-0, eh? Join us on our traditional 10-episode trip to the Writer’s Room. On the chopping block this time? Only one of the longest-running and most beloved RPG franchises in the world, Final Fantasy! Can we succeed where three motion pictures and two anime adaptations failed? Let’s find out!

This week, we’ve got E3 Fever! We take some time to talk about games that spawned a lot of discussion, and how that discussion is EXACTLY what the industry wants. This whole thing is an elaborate constructed narrative, and we’re here to unravel that. Also included: Hunkendorf, Dank Basement Chris, and a Complete Mess at the End.

This week, we ease back into the recording process after our long tech-break by playing a game. Chris finds games with bad review scores; Dylan has to guess which one scored worst. It’s fun. We have fun here. Also included: FIFA Sex Tattoos, The Uno Fuck-Up, Twitter of the Past, and Sonic Boo.

We return from a long technical-difficulty-induced hiatus, and we’re back in rare form, frantically trying to build connections between a centuries-old form of Italian theatre and modern voice-acting and RPG game design. Buckle up, friends! Also included: Hive Queen Bezos, Make Clowns Happy 2019, The BSG Onsen Episode, Dylan’s Final Fantasy Hole, DadBook, and Using Every Part of the Artist