The Secret Lives of Games

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 generation of generation

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 Duck Game Hades Cinco Paus Animal Crossing: New Horizons Web Liero Death Stranding Umurangi Generation STALKER: Shadow Over Chernobyl Listener picks: Hades Universal Paperclips Mancala Roundguard Mutazione Blaseball Signs of the Sojourner Tenderfoot Tactics Animal Crossing: New Horizons Ring Fit Adventure Paradise Killer Treachery in Beatdown City