Bookwarm Games

Discussing La Belle Sauvage Ch 10 Lord Asriel & 11 Environmental Protection/Three LegsRecommended Reading: Milton's hymnal setting of Psalm 136 ("Let us with a gladsom mind"/ "And the Horned moon at night, 'Mid her spangled sisters bright") - https://milton.host.dartmouth.edu/reading_room/psalm_136/text.shtml Pullman's Blake Society Annual Lecture - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wbcVXLLChY...

Reading and discussing the opening of Part I of Kierkegaard's Either/Or, in which he invites us to listen again to Mozart's Don Giovanni. Also mentioned: Phish, The Line; One Battle After Another; Mario Galaxy... Thanks for listening.

The first excursion in a new series of Side Quests with Alexander Schmid and the folks at Video Game Academy, where we've been gifted a couple of copies of Final Fantasy Tactics Ivalice Chronicles on Switch by amigo of the show and my longtime friend, Ryan. Thanks for listening!

The repeated "no" and the boundless energy of the great opera of the rake punished. Thanks for listening.

Discussing his book Reverse Design: Chrono Trigger with the author, analyst and game developer Patrick Holleman. Sundry allusions and fascinating connections ensue. For the video and detailed description, please see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VQDA7d4kpo Many thanks again to Pat for his time, and to Alex for hosting and recording. We should be back soon with the long-awaited Side Quests seri...

Do you have the nerve, the skill, and the derring-do to challenge the wind and play PERIL OF THE POLE? Ain’t no if... Discussing Pullman's second companion novella to His Dark Materials, Once Upon a Time in the North (2008; aka the little blue book) with reference to: Once Upon a Time in the West dir. Sergio Leone - https://bridgetothestars.net/news/once-upon-a-time-in-the-north-our-review/ Pu...

Discussing Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade and its contexts, filling in some of the material between the opening of the game and our last conversation with Otto on the Train Graveyard. Thanks for listening.

Having read the whole, we discuss the conclusion of Byron's unfinished poem. Thanks for listening!

Considering the canonical ending and the clear line of development for a sequel it implies, along with the mechanisms of Lavos and the Entity's involvement in the evolution of consciousness. Thanks for listening.

Though he's the only one of us to have actually played it, Otto takes the time to talk with Alex and me about the themes at play in Remake's take on the Train Graveyard sequence. Like us, I hope you'll keep an open mind and be willing to give it a try! Thanks for listening.

Reading and discussing the unruly comic romantic epic, and it's growing on me. Thanks for listening!

Or Prometheus and Atropos. On the remaining side quests. If the earthbound ones and Mother Brain are in fact references to EarthBound/MOTHER 2 and you can verify that at all plausibly, please let me know! Thanks for listening.

The Romantic hero goes to war, and his poet pursues greatness. Thanks for listening.

Going back to old games, known and unknown, and returning them to the present. The main game and side quests considered in the light of the campfire and the writing on the gravestone. Thanks for listening.

How will Juan and all lovers, the poet, and the nation find their way out of enslavement to freedom? Through copious lashings of mock-epic verse, of course! Thanks for listening.

I'm joined by Red aka The Well-Red Mage, Moses Norton, the author of The Definitive Book of SNES RPGs. He's quite possibly the only person ever to have played every RPG released in the US on the system on original hardware--and certainly he's the only person to write a great book about it--and he's been kind enough to take the time to reflect on that experience with me here. Catch...

We're circling around many of the same topics, but with our outlines completed and submitted and the rich endgame of Chrono Trigger before us. Thanks for listening

Of shipwrecks and sex on the beach, with sundry learned allusions. Thanks for listening.

or, "it feels as if the whole city’s looking out for us…" The first in a series of discussions of the companion books, the little books published between His Dark Materials and The Book of Dust, beginning with Lyra's Oxford. With continual reference to His Dark Materials and (spoilers) The Book of Dust. An example of a Baedecker on Bohemia: https://aba.org.uk/assets/catalogues/rarebo...

As far as Zeal, at least, and our first scrape with Lavos in the main storyline. Outlines are submitted and awaiting feedback from the editors at Psychgeist. Will it be the black wind blows or memories of green for us? Time will tell! Thanks for listening.

Launching our new series on Byron's comedic epic Don Juan (rhymes with "new one"). Thanks for listening.

Many a reference for your consideration, with thanks to the folks at Psychgeist. See https://videogameacademia.org/courses/current-semester/chrono-trigger/ for more

Many thanks to David Nixon, Associate Pastor at Carrubbers Christian Centre - http://www.carrubbers.org/ Apologies for the abrupt cut-off at the end of the episode. Our connection was severed by the parsimonious razor of zoom... Recommended reading: "The Gospel in Secular Scotland: in Conversation with David Nixon" - https://www.solas-cpc.org/the-gospel-in-secular-scotland-in-conversatio...

We wrap up our discussion of this challenging, beguiling, and not altogether satisfying work by Nabokov, then begin to look ahead to our next book, Byron's Don Juan. Thanks for listening.

RIP Lucette, we hardly knew you!