Bookwarm Games

We're bound to the mast with wax in our ears, playing blind and playing leapfrog through the overworld around Timber. Also, a Sorceress and her boy. For more FFVIII study resources : https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/final-fantasy-viii/ Thanks for listening!

But the moogles, chocobos, and loveable misfit rebel groups are still here. Returners, AVALANCHE, step aside: the Owls are still around. From the Training Center to the trains of Timber, swerving Homerically/Quixotically into a dream sequence with Laguna and Julia, and plotting with the Owls. For more FFVIII study resources : https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/final-fantasy-vii...

Did you pass the SeeD Exam? I heard you only have to kill a hundred people to get a perfect score! For more FFVIII study resources : https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/final-fantasy-viii/ Thanks for listening!

That's pronounced gee ef. The Little Prince > FFVIII (but then again, The Little Prince > almost everything else, n'estc-ce pas? With Alexander Schmid, replaying and reflecting on Final Fantasy VIII. A few more preliminaries this time: guides, versions, whys and wherefores... Storywise, we're through Fire Cavern and SeeD exam, respectively. For more FFVIII study resources : https://videogame...

That's pronounced ef ef vee ay ay ay. With Alexander Schmid, replaying and reflecting on Final Fantasy VIII. Apologies for dog- and cat-related interruptions. For more FFVIII study resources : https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/final-fantasy-viii/ Thanks for listening!

Audio from a broadcast for Signum Academy on Twitch in Fall 2020. After the Summer of Storytelling, it was the Fall of Philip Pullman! ⁠⁠⁠⁠Slides⁠⁠⁠⁠ to accompany the ⁠⁠video⁠⁠ (⁠⁠ part 1 ⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠ part 2 ⁠⁠). Quite a few of these are uploaded to YouTube, and there may be even more still lingering in the Twitch archives. I tried to track the project ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠ . As Signum is rebranding some of i...

Audio from a broadcast for Signum Academy on Twitch in Fall 2020. After the Summer of Storytelling, it was the Fall of Philip Pullman! ⁠⁠⁠Slides⁠⁠⁠ to accompany the ⁠⁠video⁠⁠ (⁠ part 1⁠ and ⁠ part 2⁠ ). Quite a few of these are uploaded to YouTube, and there may be even more still lingering in the Twitch archives. I tried to track the project ⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠ . As Signum is rebranding some of its conten...

Audio from a broadcast for Signum Academy on Twitch in Fall 2020. After the Summer of Storytelling, it was the Fall of Philip Pullman! ⁠⁠Slides⁠⁠ to accompany the ⁠⁠video⁠⁠ ( part 1 and part 2 ). Quite a few of these are uploaded to YouTube, and there may be even more still lingering in the Twitch archives. I tried to track the project ⁠⁠here⁠⁠ . As Signum is rebranding some of its content in the...

Audio from a broadcast for Signum Academy on Twitch in Fall 2020. After the Summer of Storytelling, it was the Fall of Philip Pullman! Slides to accompany the video . Quite a few of these are uploaded to YouTube, and there may be even more still lingering in the Twitch archives. I tried to track the project here . As Signum is rebranding some of its content in the Plaza , there may be a more polis...

Audio from a broadcast for Signum Academy on Twitch in Fall 2020. After the Summer of Storytelling, it was the Fall of Philip Pullman! ⁠Slides⁠ to accompany the ⁠ video⁠ . Quite a few of these are uploaded to YouTube, and there may be even more still lingering in the Twitch archives. I tried to track the project ⁠here⁠ . As Signum is rebranding some of its content in the ⁠Plaza⁠ , there may be a m...

The preview session for Video Game Studies in SPACE . Inviting students to share their delight in, and deepen their appreciation of, video games, we will discuss examples of the art, music, gameplay, and story from a range of influential titles. We will introduce and experiment with some of the theoretical frameworks that have been applied to video games as media objects and cultural artifacts. Bu...

A talk given at Cascade Moot (August 31, 2024) on the theme: "From the Fringe: The Importance of Secondary and Tertiary Characters" A Tale of Two Tonys: Loss and Recovery in The Golden Compass and EarthBound Presentation slides - essential for playing Name That Tony! with us and reading text boxes from EarthBound Reflecting on two secondary characters, Tony from Snow Wood and Tony Makarios, respec...

The audio from a discussion held at TexMoot 2024. Among the voices you'll hear is that of Corey Olsen, the host of the event and president of Signum University. This one proved more engaging than my talk on Final Fantasy and King Arthur. I don't know if that was because it was more open-ended and participatory, of if it was because the other was at the end of a long day of talks. For more on the p...

Inspired by Prof Kozlowski's recent post on FFVIII and IX , I'm sharing the audio from my talk on a not-too-dissimilar essay, Rat Tail and Knights of the Round: Summoning King Arthur in Final Fantasy IV and VII . Abstract: Video games play a significant role in transmitting images of heroism in contemporary culture. This talk concerns allusions to King Arthur in the Final Fantasy video game series...

Resolving everything, including seemingly arbitrary AU retelling material, up to the end of Danganronpa 2. https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/danganronpa/ Thanks for listening!

Exploring the final island and the limits of luck. https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/danganronpa/ Thanks for listening.

Lost in the Funhouse that is Danganronpa 2... https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/danganronpa/ Apologies for the abrupt cessation of audio. Such are the vicissitudes of the killing game. Thanks for listening!

Somewhere in the ocean, an island paradise named after the Lewis Carroll poem "Jabberwocky" hosts the sequel to Danganronpa. https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/danganronpa/ Between our last release and this, a few discussions went unrecorded, but we're carrying on undeterred. Thanks for listening!

Just published in the journal Humanities, Contrapasso, Violence, and Madness in Dante’s The Divine Comedy and Westworld, by Alexander E Schmid, is freely available to read: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/13/5/109 We discuss reveries and memory, freedom and madness, truth and representation, and how they connect these medieval and contemporary works of art. For a related project touching on FF6 and...

The Ultimate Summer School Discussion treads carefully though intrepidly through the manly bonds and broken promises of Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc Chapter 2 - Boys Life of Despair. https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/danganronpa/ Spoilers and CW: be ready to talk about gender, sexuality, jealousy, transphobia, and "Gentleman" Genocide Jack. Thanks for listening!

A discussion of the opening case of Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, with appropriate levels of hope and despair foreshadowing major philosophical stakes ahead. https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/danganronpa/ Spoilers and CW: see the M rating on the game. Thanks for listening!

Sorry, no Tom Bombadil here. Well, a brief mention... Moses Norton, aka the Well-Red Mage, joins me to dig into the recent film adaptation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Tolkien, Dune 2, Dragonslayer, and lots of Gamelogica references round out our discussion of the film's visuals, characters, story, and themes. Enjoy! Gamelogica youtube channel The Pixels We're still hoping for a Cri...

Dylan Holmes joins me to discuss his history of storytelling in video games, A Mind Forever Voyaging . Read his book if you're interested in games like FF7, MGS, Deus Ex, and Dear Esther, or in questions about cinematic technique, player choice, power and escapism. Read Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow , by Gabrielle Zevin all the way to the end and you'll find it among her acknowledgm...

We come full circle, as it were, Alex and I, discussing his recently published paper " Popularizing Paradiso : On the Difficulties of Podcasting Dante’s Most Academic Canticle " and his work bridging popular culture with the field of comparative literature.

At long last, Alex and I wander off on another side quest, discussing Miyazaki's recent film, The Boy and the Heron, and its resonances for us with myth and history. (As always, I wish I knew more about the language, like how to translate " How Do You Live? ") Other episodes in this series on the storied Studio Ghibli can be found most readily on Alex's youtube . Thanks for liste...