Idle Thumbs

Len and Rowan are joined by Brian "Chef Lu Bu" Smawley and Axe of the Blood God's Eric Van Allen to discuss Marvel Snap, the latest free-to-play comic book card battle sensation. We talk about how it sets itself apart from the likes of Magic or Hearthstone, what our favorite cards are, and which deck archetypes make you an objectively bad person if you play them.

In this episode, Soren interviews independent game developer Matthew Davis, co-founder of Subset Games and best known for his work on FTL and Into the Breach. They discuss whether FTL is a roguelike, how they resolve conflict at Subset, and whether Soren can convince them to add unlimited undo to Into the Breach. This episode was recorded on Sept 19, 2022. Games discussed: Super Mario World, Secre...

Len and John are joined once again by UNC Chapel Hill's Dr. Bret Devereaux to finally, at long last, discuss Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord. We have some mixed feelings about it. What did we love and what did we really not? How do the systems and battles stand up to a military historian's eyes? And at the end of the day, is it actually good?

Len is joined this week by a full squad of developers from Creative Assembly to talk about Total War: Warhammer 3's Immortal Empires beta launch, and what may be to come in the near future. DLC Director Richard Aldridge, Lead Designer Sean Macdonald, Lead UI Programmer Mikaela Lidstrom, and designer William Hakestad talk about everything from the challenges of getting this beast working to their p...

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

(Originally from 2012 - Reupload after server move.)

The long-awaited steel and steam macroeconomics simulator from Paradox has finally graced us with its presence, and we've assembled a League of Extraordinary Lady and Gentlemen to discuss it. Len and Jon are joined by Kotaku's Luke Plunkett, PCGamesN's Ian Boudreau, and our good friend from UNC Chapel Hill, Dr. Bret Devereaux to analyze this absolute behemoth of a game from every angle. Hold on ti...

Rowan is joined by Firaxis Narrative Lead Cat Manning and freelance writer Ruth Cassidy to discuss Crusader Kings 3, two years on. How do we feel about it after all the patches and DLCs? What's great about it, and what's still not so great? And what would our dream version of this game look like?

This week, Len and Jon discuss the concept of the Forever Game: the strategy game you could keep playing from now until the end of time. Do they even really exist? What has come closest for us? And has the trend of continuous development brought them into existence only recently?