Bookwarm Games

Ben and I decipher the statues of the Statues and mourn General Leo

Ben and I parley with the Empire and sail to Thamasa, helping Strago save Relm from the burning house--and being saved by Shadow

Ben and I double back for Mog, then dungeon-crawl to the threshold of the Espers and sealing of the gate

Ben (and William) and I discuss the World of the Espers and the first round of airship exploration

Ben and I infiltrate Vector and the Magitek Research Facility

Ben and I discuss the Opera sequence

Ben and I make our way through Kohlingen, Jidoor, and Zozo after Terra, with flashbacks for Edgar, Sabin, and Locke. 

Ben and I discuss Locke and Terra's quests, regrouping with Celes and the rest in Narshe to defend the Esper from Kefka.

Ben and I tackle Sabin's quest, meeting Cyan and Gau, and taking the Phantom Train. 

Ben and I discuss Final Fantasy VI, from Figaro Cave to the Returners Hideout. Join us at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia

Ben and I discuss the opening of Final Fantasy VI, up to the escape from (of?) Figaro Castle.  Join us at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia

Ben and I discuss the ending of Little Inferno.  Join us for more at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia

Ben and I discuss more Little Inferno, catalogs 3-5 and Sugar Plumps.  Get involved at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia

Ben and I discuss Little Inferno, from the opening through the second catalog.  Join us at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia  

on ch 16-17 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support. 

On ch 14-15 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support. 

On ch 12-13 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support. 

Touching on the immram journeys by water and the alchemical gardens and forges of The Book of Dust, Kris Swank, also of Signum U, graciously shares some of her theories with us! Read more at Mythlore: "The Child's Voyage and the Immram Tradition in Lewis, Tolkien, and Pullman" and beyond: John Granger on Alchemy in Harry Potter  and an intro to Francois Beroalde   See the course page to...

One last look at the classic JRPG and its relevance today, closing out this series of Bookwarm Games. Thanks again to Jason, media studies maestro and fellow reader. I'm hoping to be back soon with a third installment under the Bookwarm Games banner; see https://videogameacademia.wordpress.com/ for more studies of classic games meanwhile. 

Many thanks to independent scholar Kat Sas, who joins me to discuss JK Rowling and Philip Pullman in the context of the impression of depth lent to modern fantasy by JRR Tolkien. 

On ch 10-11 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman  https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html 

On ch 8-9 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman.  https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html 

On ch 5-7 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman

The author of the invaluable Xenogears and Xenosaga Study Guide , AC, and I talk once more about the mirroring of Xenosaga and the unfinished large-scale story sketched in Perfect Works. Here's hoping that he, and Takahashi, find time to complete their respective projects!  

Patrick Holleman , author of the Game Design Forum and Reverse Design book series , joins me for a discussion of game studies and Xenogears. See his rockin' collabs with Resonant Arc on Xenogears, Becoming Whole , and FFVII's Deeper Meaning . For a distillation of some of his research, check out the Game Design Extracts .