The Secret Lives of Games

Latest Episodes:

Into the Depths: Kentucky Route Zero - Part 2 Mar 05, 2021

Show notes

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

64: Giving Games a Voice with Sarah Elmaleh Feb 26, 2021

Show notes

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

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

Into the Depths: Kentucky Route Zero - Part 1 Feb 21, 2021

Show notes

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:

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

63: Finding Your Own Path with Daniel Helbig (Lonely Mountains: Downhill) Feb 12, 2021

Show notes

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

62: Rethinking Difficulty with Maddy Thorson Jan 30, 2021

Show notes

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

61: The Joy of Shipping with Xalavier Nelson Jr. Jan 15, 2021

Show notes

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

Into the Depths: The Music of Mutazione - Part 4 Jan 08, 2021

Show notes

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

60: Games of the Year 2020 with Laura E. Hall Jan 01, 2021

Show notes

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

Into the Depths: The Music of Mutazione - Part 3 Dec 25, 2020

Show notes

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

59: Making Magic with Chevy Ray Johnston (Ikenfell) Dec 19, 2020

Show notes

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