Read along with the Sword and Laser book club! From classic science fiction to the latest gritty fantasy, we cover it. Subscribe for book discussions, author interviews, hot releases, and news from the genre fiction world!
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No Small Games is an indie game recap and review podcast brought to you by hosts Kate and Emily! They became friends while streaming on Twitch and bonded over their love of indie video games. In each episode of No Small Games, the two will discuss an indie game they both played independently. They’ll compare their experiences: the good, the bad, their most memorable moments of their playthroughs.
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How do we build an inclusive world? Hear intimate and in-depth conversations with changemakers on disability rights, youth mental health advocacy, prison reform, grassroots activism, and more. First-hand stories about activism, change, and courage from people who are changing the world: from how a teen mom became the Planned Parenthood CEO, to NBA player Kevin Love on mental health in professional sports, to Beetlejuice actress Geena Davis on Hollywood’s role in women’s rights. All About Cha ...
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One black runner trying fill the gap in the running community through stories and conversations on running.
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A video games podcast where Dave Jackson and guests break down and discuss the games they play. Each episode looks at one game in depth, focusing on mechanics, story, music and other aspects, with no spoilers until a clearly marked spoiler wall in the middle.
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Stay up to date with the most important issues in military psychology with the Society for Military Psychology, Division 19 of the American Psychological Association. We are producing several short series on applying psychological principles in military settings and military populations. This Military Psychology Podcast Network will feature topics including diversity in the military, the psychology of consulting with military organizations, behavioral health in military and veteran populatio ...
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165: SUPERHOT (with Emily Merritt - No Small Games)
1:35:06
1:35:06
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1:35:06Support my work on Patreon https://patreon.com/realdavejackson Is it really the most innovative shooter I've played in years? SUPERHOT Team struck gold with this idea, did just enough with it, and got out before things got stale. Now that's what I call SUPER. HOT. Guest info: Emily Merritt aka aspecificegg Check out No Small Games https://nosmallga…
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We discuss the return of Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files and Frank Herbert’s posthumous SFWA Infinity Award, Audible’s AI narration plans and Amazon’s cancellation of The Wheel of Time—while nominating hamburg steak and vegan enchiladas and sharing listener stories from Matt Dinniman’s event. We round out the show with in-depth discussions of The Lives…
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167: Lorelei and the Laser Eyes (with Jesse Guarascia)
2:19:17
2:19:17
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2:19:17What if Resident Evil 1 was just puzzles? What if it was also about eccentric artists and how they view their art and the creative process vs how their work is perceived? Lorelei and the Laser Eyes (Simogo, 2024) is that game! Tune in to find out how we felt about it! Guest Info: Jesse Guarascia Find Jesse's work on Noclip's YouTube channel https:/…
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Gary Sinise: Doing More for Our veterans with the Gary Sinise Foundation
27:29
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27:29Gary Sinise is an award winning actor, on the stage, TV and big screen. He is best known for playing Lieutenant Dan in Forrest Gump. Inspired by this role and his family members, Gary is now the head of the Gary Sinise Foundation, which offers support for service members who need help with mental wellness, trauma, physical recovery, and loss. He Al…
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PAX East 2025 was an absolute whirlwind of meeting wonderful friends and colleagues, chatting with developers and publishers, and getting our hands on awesome indie game demos! Join us for our day-by-day PAX East 2025 recap, where we relive all the exciting and memorable moments we experienced at this year's event! No Small Games was honored once a…
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166: Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (with Derek Van Dyke)
1:50:52
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1:50:52Support my work on Patreon I can hear it now- "Another Ace Combat game? Didn't Dave just do one?" and the answer to those questions is "You bet your ass I'm doing another one, I'm IN IT NOW"....ahem, Ace Combat rules, and Ace Combat 7 (Bandai Namco, 2019) is the most Ace Combat that Ace Combat has ever been. Join us as we give it the deep dive! Gue…
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Support my work on Patreon- https://www.patreon.com/realdavejackson PAX East 2025 show floor was dominated by indie games, and here are all 17 of the indie games that I had a chance to play! Thank you to the folks at PAX for allowing me to cover the convention! TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 0:47 Tanuki: Pon's Summer https://store.steampowered.com/app/32185…
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Kinnier went from not being able to run a full 5K in high school without walking to running several marathons in a variety of places.It is safe to say that high school Kinnier would have never guessed how much running would be a part of his life. Recently, Kinnier received his sixth star at The Boston Marathon, while running with his dad. Learn mor…
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Ashlyn So: Combating AAPI/Asian- Hate Through Peaceful Protest & Fashion
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26:54Ashlyn So is a remarkable rising star in the design world, already showcasing collections at New York and Paris Fashion Weeks by age 16. She powerfully combines her striking fashion with dedicated activism, driven by the belief that fashion provides both identity and a voice. This conviction fuels her work speaking out against bullying and AAPI/Asi…
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From Hugo admins resigning over AI panel vetting to the latest award winners and a fresh Murderbot clip—to set the stage for our book club pick. Then we dig into Mickey 7’s Ship of Theseus dilemma, sharing listener takes (yes, even foot‑fetishting AIs) and the questions that keep us up at night.By Tom Merritt and Veronica Belmont
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164: Monster Hunter Wilds (with Brad Gallaway)
2:17:34
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2:17:34Support my work on Patreon Review code provided by Capcom. Thank you! Monster Hunter has been around for a long time, but has only recently fully broken into the mainstream. And with mainstream success comes grumbling from longtime fans. Is the game actually too streamlined? Does quality of life take away from quality of game? And what about the ne…
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Ep. 45 - 1000xRESIST feat. Jenny Windom
3:34:44
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3:34:441000xRESIST, developed by Sunset Visitor and published by Fellow Traveler, took 2024 by storm in the indie game world. You navigate a strange yet slightly familiar futuristic society as Watcher, whose role is to be witness to the Allmother's memories. Touching on topics of resistance and social change, generational trauma, love, friendship and moth…
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Welcome back to the NSG Indie Game Roundup, our monthly series featuring indie games news, plus game demos and new release discussions. 2025 is ramping up, people!! April brought us more showcases, a huge number of new releases, and some brand new indie game demos to check out. We're unpacking our experiences with demos from the Galaxies and Triple…
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163: Vagrant Story (with Aidan Moher)
2:34:58
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2:34:58Like many of Square's RPGs of the late 90's and early 2000's, Vagrant Story is an ambitious, flawed, divisive and fantastic RPG, full of big ideas that didn't get a chance to full develop into what was planned. What we got was only one part of a larger saga (see also: Xenogears from just a few years prior), a game that stands on its own, proudly di…
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Eli Beer & United Hatzalah: Saving Lives in 90 seconds or Less
30:20
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30:20Eli Beer is a pioneer, social entrepreneur, President and Founder of United Hatzalah of Israel. In thirty years, the organization has grown to more than 6,500 volunteers who unite together to provide immediate, life-saving care to anyone in need - regardless of race or religion. This community EMS force network treats over 730,000 incidents per yea…
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We wrap up Dungeon Crawler Carl, including our horrible imitations of Jeff Hays. Plus, we announce the next pick for May and ponder data-driven determinations of the best SFF books of Tom’s life.By Tom Merritt and Veronica Belmont
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162: Prey (2006) (with Asa GreenRiver)
2:01:39
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2:01:39No, this isn't the Arkane Studios Prey, this is the one that Arkane was forced to name their game after for no good reason. In fact, that's what got me interested in Human Head Studios' Prey (2006) in the first place, even before I learned what the game is about. So what did we think of this shooter caught between two eras, with seemingly 10 differ…
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Izzy is the latest guest on the podcast. He is man of many interests and we get into several of those, including running of course. Learn about how Izzy reconnects with fitness after college, keeps running fun, his favorite books and find out the reason he does not love eating outside. Enjoy getting to know Izzy.…
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Afterlove EP, developed by Pikselnesia, is a slice-of-life story that follows a young musician named Rama, as he struggles to reconnect with his friends and his music in the wake of the death of his girlfriend. The game takes place in modern day Jakarta, and players will find themselves immersed in the sights and sounds of the city through the game…
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161: Wanderstop (with Matt aka Stormageddon & CGDannyB)
2:45:34
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2:45:34Review code provided by Ivy Road- thank you! I think we all viewed Davey Wreden's new project announcement, a "cozy game about making tea", with a bit of side-eye. Is it really just going to be about making tea? You sure there isn't going to be a subversion in there? Are you still reading this? Well, Wanderstop is here, and it may not have the type…
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Professional football player Jonathan Jones: Mentorship and Making an Impact in Your Community
22:49
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22:49Jonathan Jones is an NFL cornerback for the Washington Commanders who rose from the undrafted ranks to become two-time Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots, a businessman, philanthropist, and licensed pilot. In 2019, Jonathan founded the Jonathan Jones Next Step Foundation in 2019, a platform dedicated to empowering youth through educa…
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We have Murderbot trailer! And we like it! Plus, the Hugo nominees are out and we wrap up our thoughts on The City and the City and begin our April dungeon crawl.By Tom Merritt and Veronica Belmont
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160: Sifu (with Ryan Juengling - List Off)
1:44:19
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1:44:19From the first trailer, I knew that Sifu (Sloclap, 2022) looked like a game I wanted to play. There was just one small thing- it released two weeks before Elden Ring, and I was clearing the decks in a big way. No mental bandwidth to get stuck in a demanding action game. And so I waited. And waited. And forgot about it. And waited some more. And now…
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Guacamelee is an indie classic, that released by in 2013 from DrinkBox Studios. This action platformer is a stylish take on the Metroidvania genre and its story and vibes were inspired by Mexican-culture and folklore. You play as a young farmhand-turned-luchador, who escapes the world of the dead using a magical mask. As you traverse these gorgeous…
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159: Metaphor: ReFantazio (with Scott White)
2:13:51
2:13:51
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2:13:51Only one studio out there can inspire the following sentence- the first time I saw the menu UI in Metaphor: ReFantazio, I knew that Atlus and Studio Zero were cooking. They've mastered the art of making menu-based RPGs flashy and stylish, as well as mastering the "Persona" calendar-based structure in general. On several fronts, this is the best gam…
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Surprise!! It’s a rare Tuesday edition of No Small Games. And there’s absolutely nothing unusual going on here. Just another totally normal episode of No Small Games, the indie game podcast hosted by Bo_Po and DiscoCola! In this episode, the two cover the beautiful action RPG Haven. In this game, developed by The Game Bakers, you play as two lovers…
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Indie Game Roundup - March 2025 feat. Jacob McCourt
1:33:16
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1:33:16Welcome back to the NSG Indie Game Roundup, our monthly series featuring indie games news, plus game demos and new release discussions. Welcome special guest Jacob McCourt to No Small Games! We were delighted to have Jacob join us for our March Indie Game Roundup episode. First, we dug into indie game news from the past month, and discussed winter …
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Jay Ruderman - How to Find Your Fight & Drive Social Change
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32:17Jay is more than just the host of All About Change podcast. He is a lawyer and international activist, who has focused his life’s work on seeking social justice by advocating for the rights of people with disabilities worldwide. On the special episode of All About Change, Mijon Zulu, the managing producer of the "All About Change" podcast, is takin…
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158: Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (with Geoff Moonen - "Fun" and Games)
2:49:47
2:49:47
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2:49:47In my ongoing first-time playthrough of the Metal Gear Solid series, we've arrived at the canonical end of Solid Snake's story, while seeing series creator Hideo Kojima at his most self-indulgent (yet) and most creative. Metal Gear Solid is a series of multitudes, and 2008's Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is no different. Listen in to fin…
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Ep. 42 - Mouthwashing feat. Dave Jackson
2:41:27
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2:41:27Mouthwashing, developed by Wrong Organ and published by CRITICAL REFLEX, is a psychological horror game following the actions of the Tulpar's crew as they work together to survive a catastrophic crash in the middle of outer space. Tensions rise as food and supplies run low. You play as Jimmy, the acting captain, as he grapples with how to take resp…
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157: Unpacking (with Kate Hunter - No Small Games)
1:59:57
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1:59:57Ever since the podcast started in 2021, I always knew I'd do an episode about Unpacking (Witch Beam, 2021) someday. John Fogerty sang that someday never comes, but here we are, and Unpacking is on the show! Unpacking is a great example of using the interactivity of video games to tell a story in a unique, gameplay-forward way. Through the ONE SIMPL…
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Alexis Tutunnique of United Ukrainian Ballet - Ukrainian Cultural Resistance
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26:52Alexis Tutunnique is a ballet dancer, a graduate of the Kyiv National Ballet School, a member of the United Ukrainian Ballet Company, and the subject of the recent documentary Front Row. In Front Row, Alexis befriends and invites Sascha, a former Ukrainian soldier who lost his legs in a bombing, to join the dance troupe for a performance in LA. Jay…
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Tom forgot to write the intro to the show this week, so you’re stuck with the Veronica Edition. March is still full of madness, which makes sense because it’s a full moon eclipse coming up and Venus is in retrograde. Or something! We check in on The City and The City by China Miéville, and we see and unsee your perspectives on the book thus far.…
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156: Mouthwashing (with Ash Parrish)
1:51:06
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1:51:06Mouthwashing (Wrong Organ, 2024) is a rare horror game that gets scarier after you finish the game. Its nonlinear structure, reality-blurring presentation and subtle (at times) storytelling leave you to put the pieces together yourself. Once you do that, you'll find a strikingly real story where the most unbelievable thing is the fact that it takes…
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Grunn is a completely normal gardening game, developed by Sokpop Collective and Tom van den Boogaart, where nothing strange or off-beat is going on. You arrive by bus at a quaint Dutch village in the countryside, with instructions to clean up the manor house's garden by the end of the weekend. Very soon, however, you begin to notice some strange go…
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155: Shenmue (with Luis Aguasvivas)
1:52:58
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1:52:58I remember reading about Shenmue (AM2 of CRI, Sega, 2000) in the magazines back in the day and really marveling at how cool it all sounded- a revenge/investigation story, a town with characters that live their own lives outside of interacting with you, life in small-town Japan...but I didn't have a Dreamcast, so I never got to play it and eventuall…
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Chris Nowinski - Protecting Athletes from Head Injuries & Preventing CTE
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27:28Chris Nowinski is a former football player at Harvard University and professional wrestler with WWE, World Wrestling Entertainment. After enduring a career-ending head injury, Chris has dedicated his professional life to serving patients and families affected by brain trauma, particularly Chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a progressive neur…
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Indie Game Roundup - February 2025 feat. Michael Gruar, Lunar Chippy Games
2:04:41
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2:04:41Welcome back to the NSG Indie Game Roundup, our monthly series featuring indie games news, plus game demos and new release discussions. This has been both the longest and shortest month in existence, but the good news is that we're back with a bunch of awesome indie games to talk about! This roundup features some brand new releases from the tail en…
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Emily MacQuarrie is the latest guest on the pod. We spend some time talking about how being a quiet person has helped her running, compare swinning and running, and I try to convince Emily to start speedwork. Enjoy getting to know Emily!By Michel Moreau
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154: Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector (with John Rogers - Gaming in the Wild)
2:23:27
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2:23:27When Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector (Jump over the Age / Gareth Damian Martin, 2025) was announced, it was a surprise, but it also jumped straight to the top of my most anticipated games list. And while it fulfills the promise of a sequel by doubling down on the strengths of the first game, it also introduces some harsh mechanics that took a lo…
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March Madness has begun, so get your votes in now. Plus do we like Alexander Skarsgard as Murderbot? And our final thoughts on Will of the Many and non-spoiler intro to The City and the City.By Tom Merritt and Veronica Belmont
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Believe it or not, we just closed out our second year of No Small Games! This has truly been such a wild ride! From meeting in person for the first time at PAX, to helping to judge the Indie Game Awards, to launching our written reviews on the website, we've cherished every minute and every opportunity. And we can't thank you all enough for support…
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153: Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (with MarcoMeatball)
1:56:33
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1:56:33Sometimes I think I know about video games, and then a series that I'd been ignoring for years absolutely blows me away. Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (Namco, 2004) is one of those games. Exhilerating air combat, the best spectacle that the PS2 could offer, and a grand and amazing soundtrack all set the hooks, then a surprisingly good story pulls yo…
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Tyler Merritt - Before You Call the Cops, Storytelling and Empathy Driven Social Justice
30:59
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30:59Tyler Merritt is a Nashville-based actor, comedian, vocalist, and creator of The Tyler Merritt Project. He believes empathy is a powerful tool to fight injustice and encourages people to step out of the anonymity of social media and engage in face-to-face conversations. Using his creativity, Tyler Merritt challenges racism and promotes empathy. In …
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#505 - The Roman Empire is My Roman Empire
50:35
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50:35The nominations have begun for our March Tournament! Why do we care if eBooks and print books are the same? And our first thoughts on The Will of the Many.By Tom Merritt and Veronica Belmont
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152: The Plucky Squire (with Roger Reichardt - The Gamerheads Podcast)
1:20:36
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1:20:36Entering 2024, there were very few indie games as hotly anticipated as The Plucky Squire (All Possible Futures, Devolver Digital)...but then release date came, it got good-not-great reviews, and seemed to inspire more disappointment than anything else. So what happened? And how is the game, actually? Buckle up, because we've got you covered. Guest …
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Ep. 40 - Crypt Custodian feat. Matt Storm
2:37:45
2:37:45
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2:37:45Crypt Custodian, developed by Kyle Thompson, is a touching and adorable metroidvania. You play as Pluto, a little cat who has just arrived in the afterlife, after a tragic end cut short his cozy life with his human family. Some accidental shenanigans lead to him being banned to spend all of eternity cleaning up trash from the outskirts of the under…
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Shaheeda and I get into how she got her start with running and how her relationship with the sports has evolved. We also spend some time talking about her creative outlets and future goals she has.By Michel Moreau
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Fullbright made a name for themselves with 2013's Gone Home, leading many to anticipate their next project. 2017's Tacoma, however, seems to have come and gone without much fanfare. It is a fairly simple game that may not reach the emotional peaks of Gone Home, but Tacoma is a very good game in its own right. And then, due to director Steve Gaynor'…
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Joe Bates - Indigenous Resistance Against Big Oil
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26:31Joe Bates is a member of the Bad River Band, a Native American Tribe residing along Lake Superior in Wisconsin. He and his community have been embroiled in a long-standing legal and public relations battle against Enbridge, a Canadian energy company, to protect their ancestral lands. This struggle has been documented in "Bad River," a documentary f…
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