In this episode, Tim and Joel discuss massively multiplayer games. We’ve both been a bit disappointed with the games we’ve tried in this vein, and we talk about why that is, what appeals to people about these kinds of games, and where we hope the…
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In this episode, Joel and Tim discuss environmental multiplayer — the form of multiplayer that happens when a game isn’t directly about interactions with other players, but where other players are still present in the experience. We talk shared…
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In this episode, Joel and Tim discuss competitive multiplayer games, including e-sports titles like Smite and Starcraft, more open sandbox matches like show favorite Hunt: Showdown, and asymmetrical matches like Dead by Daylight. We also discuss…
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In this episode, Joel and Tim discuss competitive multiplayer games, including e-sports titles like Smite and Starcraft, more open sandbox matches like show favorite Hunt: Showdown, and asymmetrical matches like Dead by Daylight. We also discuss…
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In this episode, Tim and Joel discuss the recent Elite Squad trailer from Ubisoft, how the game’s narrative partakes in the growing fascist movement in the United States, and how it all ties into the recent lethal shootings by a fascist-influenced…
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In this episode, Joel and Tim discuss multiplayer games. We deep dive into the history of video game multiplayer, and outline some of the main forms in which multiplayer is used across gaming, including co-op games, competitive matches, and…
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In this episode, Joel and Tim discuss recent news. We talk COVID cases in the UK and US, the Trump administration’s ongoing attempt to obscure COVID data, our unhappiness with the Biden/Harris ticket and the old guard of the DNC generally, and our…
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In this episode, Joel and Tim discuss some of the ways politics interact with games, and some of the ways different games have portrayed morality, through systems and narrative. Topics Discussed: Morality in narrative branching choices (KOTOR, Jedi…
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In this episode, Tim and Joel discuss emergent systems storytelling in games like Dwarf Fortress and Rimworld, as well as Sea of Thieves and reasons why that game world sometimes feels so empty. We discuss frame stories in games like Outer Wilds, Gone…
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In this episode, Joel and Tim continue to discuss the mechanics of storytelling in games. We look at some of the specifics of why mechanics are important with an in-depth look at FTL vs. Some Distant Memory and Long Journey Home (25:15). We look at…
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