The Secret Lives of Games

We're joined by Trent Kusters (League of Geeks) and Kayin (I Wanna Be The Guy) to discuss Porgy, the 22nd game in the UFO 50 collection. "Strange happenings near the coast! Dive deep and get to the bottom of what's fishy in the sea." Next week: Onion Delivery Audio edited by Dylan Shumway.   Discussed on this episode: Kayin's Porgy Blog Post – "On Backtracking" https://kayin.moe/backtracking   Gam...

We're joined by Liz Ryerson (Sounds from the Abyss) and Ben Esposito (Neon White) to discuss Waldorf's Journey, the 21st game in the UFO 50 collection. "Waldorf didn't go looking for adventure. He was just trying to enjoy a nice nap..." Next week: Porgy Audio edited by Dylan Shumway Show Notes: Terry's Other Games – A collection of Terry Cavanagh's smaller works https://terrycavanagh.itch.io/terry...

Doug and Rob chat with mut moochi, Jonny Hopkins, and Gurn Group about their experimental game and emulator hacking practice, which they call "plunderludics". We're also joined by special guest co-host Bennett Foddy. We describe some of their pieces, the comparison against plunderphonics and other related terms, the tools they've developed, and more. Show notes:  plunderludics wiki https://plunder...

We're joined by Adam Saltsman (Finji), Liz Ryerson ( musician, writer, podcaster ), and Bijan Stephen (Compulsion Games) to discuss Warptank, the 20th game in the UFO 50 collection.   "Use your tank to regain control of the station and sever all ties to Capsule World!"   Next week: Waldorf's Journey   Audio edited by Dylan Shumway.   The Cousin Game is one of the oldest and most underappreciated g...

We're joined by Alfredo Barraza (Riot) to discuss Big Bell Race, the 19th game in the UFO 50 collection. "Do you have what it takes to become the Big Bell Race Champion?" Our show has been nominated for a 2024 Thinky Award in some great company! Check out the full list here ... and if you should be moved to vote for us, that is between you and whatever higher power you recognize. Thanks to Thinky...

We're joined by John Axon (Capybara Games) and Ben Wilson (Die Gute Fabrik) to discuss Golfaria, the 18th game in the UFO 50 collection. "Deep beneath the fairway, a golf ball awakens. Where did it come from? What is its purpose?" Next week: The Big Bell Race Audio edited by Dylan Shumway.   John Axon on Bluesky Zerofiftyone.net (Ben's crosswords) Episode 69 – Building a Better Bridge with Ben Wil...

We chat with Mo Cohen (Queermo Games) and Hagen Deloss about Queer Quest, a point-and-click adventure that's best described as "gay Monkey Island meets feminist Leisure Suit Larry ".  Audio edited by Dylan Shumway. Show notes:  Queer Quest official site (Queermo Games) Mo Cohen Queer Quest on Steam and itch.io Hagen Deloss Eggplant interview with Gilles De Coster (De Mol) Leisure Suit Larry Monkey...

We're joined by Carolyn Petit (Kotaku) and Russ Frushtick (Polygon) to discuss Campanella, the 17th game in the UFO 50 collection. "Fly the Campanella through five challenging worlds! And don't forget to stop for coffee!" Next week: Golfaria Audio edited by Dylan Shumway.   Discussed in this episode: Space Taxi Alfonzo's Bowling Challenge Carolyn on Bluesky Russ on Bluesky The Besties Podcast   ht...

We're joined by Adam Saltsman (Finji) and Izzy Kestrel (Funomena, No Goblin) to discuss Camouflage, the 16th game in the UFO 50 collection. "Blend in with your surroundings to evade predators and fulfill your destiny." Next week: Campanella Audio edited by Dylan Shumway.   Discussed on this episode: Celine Dion's Let's Talk About Love – A Journey to the End of Taste by Carl Wilson Willy's Wonderla...

The whole crew assembles to share our personal five favorite games of 2024, alongside picks from previous show guests and our listeners. Happy 2025! Audio edited by Dylan Shumway. Our GOTY picks ( SPOILERS ): Doug: Xenosphere B3313 (Mario 64 mod) Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 Slice & Dice 3.0 Caves of Qud Sarah: Velgress (from UFO 50 ) Balatro Bridge Command Waxwing Key of Dreams Zach: Astro Bot Astro Bot...

We're joined by Patrick Traynor (Patrick's Parabox) and Frank Lantz (Universal Paperclips, NYU Game Center) to discuss Block Koala, the 15th game in the UFO 50 collection. "Flamingus has stolen all the water! Solve puzzles to defeat him and save the park!" Next week: Camouflage Audio edited by Dylan Shumway. Discussed in this episode: Frank Lantz's Substack Patrick's Parabox PuzzleScript Stephen's...

We're joined by Casey Yano (Mega Crit), Trent Kusters (League of Geeks), and Alfredo Barraza (Riot) to discuss Bushido Ball, the 14th game in the UFO 50 collection. "It's the annual Bushido Ball tournament. Choose from 6 fighters and compete to win!" Next week: Block Koala http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

In the 2nd installment of our current Into the Depths series, we dive into  Caves of Qud . This sprawling open-world roguelike has been in development since 2007 and Early Access since 2015, and in this episode we celebrate this month's momentous v1.0 release. Doug and Rob talk to one of the game's creators  Jason Grinblat about Qud basics and the early game (up to Golgotha). Don't forget to join...

We're joined by Bennett Foddy (Getting Over It), Kenny Sun (Mr. Sun's Hatbox), and Zach Aikman (Chuhai Labs) to discuss Mooncat, the 13th game in the UFO 50 collection. "Jump and dash through forests, caves and mountains, in search of the egg." Next week: Bushido Ball http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by UFO 50 developers Derek Yu, Jon Perry, and Eirik Suhrke to discuss the first 12 (?) games in the collection.  http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by Tanya X. Short (Kitfox Games), Star St. Germain (Aconite), and Zach Aikman (Chuhai Labs) to discuss Avianos, the 12th game in the UFO 50 collection. "In a time when birds rule, an epic war rages between the red talons and the blue beaks." Next week: Mooncat http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by John Axon (Capy Games) and Hayden "Docky" Scott-Baron (Planet Coaster) to discuss Kick Club, the 11th game in the UFO 50 collection. "Sports are fighting over who is best! Let's all play together!" Next week: Avianos http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by Tanya X. Short (Kitfox Games) to discuss Devilition, the 10th game in the UFO 50 collection. "Build and detonate chain reactions to drive the demon horde out of town!" Next week: Kick Club http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by Adam Conover (Adam Ruins Everything) and Alfredo Barraza (Riot) to discuss Attactics, the ninth game in the UFO 50 collection. "Carefully arrange your troops for maximum advantage in this game of realtime tactics." Next week: Devilition http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by Marc Flury (Thumper) and Alfredo Barraza (Riot) to discuss Planet Zoldath, the eighth game in the UFO 50 collection. "Brave the wilds of Planet Zoldath in search of the intergalactic treasure map!" Next week: Attactics http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by Derek Lieu ( derek-lieu.com ) and Colin Northway (Fantastic Contraption) to discuss Velgress, the seventh game in the UFO 50 collection. "The space pirate Alpha is trapped in the deep pit known as Velgress. Help her climb out!" Next week: Planet Zoldath http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by Aaron "ix" Kearsley (speedrunner), Stephanie Boluk (UC Davis), and Patrick LeMieux (UC Davis) to discuss Mortol, the sixth game in the UFO 50 collection. "How many people will lay down their lives to save Mortolia?" Next week: Velgress http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

We're joined by Daniel Mullins (Inscryption), Stuffed Wombat (Mosa Lina), and XanaGear (youtube.com/xanagear) to discuss Magic Garden, the fifth game in the UFO 50 collection. "Stop the jealous witch Cloverana from sabotaging your garden!" Next week: Mortol http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow

In the first installment of a new Into the Depths series, we dive into the brilliant Caves of Qud . This sprawling open-world roguelike has been in development since 2007 and Early Access since 2015, and we're celebrating it as it nears a v1.0 release. Doug and Rob, together with guest host and Qud-head Jack Schlesinger ( Puzzmo, Knotwords, Good Sudoku ), talk to Caves of Qud creators Brian Buckle...

We're joined by Frank Lantz (The Beauty of Games) to discuss Paint Chase, the fourth game in the UFO 50 collection. "Rev your engines and color your way to victory in the local paint racing competition!" Next week: Magic Garden http://discord.gg/eggplant https://www.patreon.com/eggplantshow