The Short Game

We're back with our 2nd IFComp Episode, this time focusing on community picks from our discord! The Short Game is listener supported on Patreon. Check out the Patreon and links to join our discord at www.shortgame.fm.

The Short Game kicks off its 2026 IFComp coverage with a new three-episode format, along with a brief chat about custom IF engines and the comp's new AI rules.0:00 - Intro and IFComp Basics5:00 - How We Are Covering IFComp This Year10:54 - 9 Days in a Van with Your 3 Best Friends by Nathan Leigh25:55 - Sidetrack: Custom Engines, AI, and IFComp29:41 - Forensic Necromancy: A Murder in Nineveh by Daniel M. Stelzer45:10 - Ryan Veeder's Agatha Christie's The Murder on the Orient Express57:39 - Wrap Up (00:00) - Intro and IFComp Basics (05:00) - How we are covering IFComp this year (10:54) - 9 Days in a Van with your 3 Best Friends by Nathan Leigh (25:54) - Sidetrack about custom engines, AI, and IFComp (29:41) - Forensic Necromancy: A Murder in Nineveh by Daniel M. Stelzer (45:10) - Ryan Veeder's Agatha Christie's the Murder on the Orient Express by Ryan Veeder (57:39) - Wrap Up

Shane and Laura played The Incident at Galley House, Evil Trout's remake of William Rous's TypeHelp. Before the spoiler break they discuss the game's deduction interface and some gameplay highlights, then they had so much to talk about they needed TWO spoiler breaks: one for "what's going on", and one for Act III's shift into **************************. (00:00) - The Incident at Galley House (00:05) - Intro (01:16) - Elevator Pitch (04:34) - Development History (22:20) - Spoiler Break & Patreon (22:30) - Story Discussion (44:14) - Act 3: Modern Timeline (01:04:41) - Outro

This week, Nate, Laura, and Shane play Pizza Possum — a chaotic arcade game that's stealthy and snackable. We talk about the gorgeous Italian countryside, dog cops, difficulty spikes, and the little bits of polish and shine that make this one sing. Plus possum stories, pizza tales, and a literary return of What's Making Me Happy.(00:00) - Pizza Possum (01:55) - Pizza Possum Background (04:08) - The Basics (10:03) - This game didn't have to go this hard (on the polish) (14:33) - The little details (20:33) - Replayability (23:44) - Have I told you guys about when a possum got in my house? (26:43) - More possum stories! (27:49) - We've discussed possums, let's discuss pizza (33:16) - What's Been Making Us Happy (Besides Pizza) (41:42) - Outro

They react to a surprise release and share split feelings about Chapter 5. The conversation digs into tougher bullet-hell combat, new platforming and trial mechanics. Long festival and town scenes get debated for pacing and small payoffs. They note a soda-machine easter egg, strange changes to Chris, and praise Toby Fox’s soundtrack charting on Billboard.

This week, Shane and Laura talk about some Short, and Not So Short Games.(00:00) - Grab Bag: Short Games and Not-So-Short Games (00:06) - Intro (00:58) - Hermit and Pig (07:59) - Little Guardsman (10:02) - Split Fiction (12:51) - Dispatch and Hugo Video Game Nominees (18:11) - Map Map (22:45) - Dorfromantik (26:02) - The 7th Guest Remake (32:48) - Fallout: New Vegas (33:40) - Death Stranding 2 (35:06) - Sky Rogue (38:00) - Minish Cap (39:30) - Outro

A quirky troll-chess game with an incomplete rulebook and a cheating opponent that reveals rules as you play. Familiar chess moves behave oddly, including pawn ascension and bishops vanishing. Players debate strict strategic play versus exploiting built-in cheats and landmines. The conversation covers replayability, difficulty spikes, and platform control quirks.

A haunted 1990s CD-ROM aesthetic drives a retro horror vibe with maggots, grotesque visuals, and era-perfect music. The conversation traces the game’s lineage and haunted-software trend alongside Pony Island and Inscryption. They highlight how solitaire mechanics and pacing are framed by slideshow horrors, shops with gross charm, and alternate endings that flip the cursed narrative.

Titanium Court. An absurd game that refuses to explain itself. Winner of the 2025 Whoever McSomeone Grand Prize.

This week we're talking Skate Story, a skateboarding game where you're a demon made of glass and pain on a mission to eat the moon. We open with skaterboi stories before kicking into the game's large arsenal of tricks, vaporwave soundtrack, and surprisingly difficult boss fights. Curse you, The Eternal Centipede!(00:00) - Skate Story (02:00) - Skater Bois and Girls (09:36) - Skating in Video Games (14:55) - Aesthetics (16:45) - In praise of Bizarre (19:33) - Mechanics (22:33) - Late Night Gaming (24:00) - It's tricky, tricky, tricky (25:34) - The Camera Angle (30:21) - Yes, This Game has Boss Fights (33:39) - The Skater's Dream (35:34) - Controls (38:52) - Shattering into a Million Shards (40:25) - Final Verdict (41:26) - Outro