The Short Game

The best legs in video games are on display as we tippy-tap our way through Pikuniku . This three hour puzzle-adventure is out now on Switch and PC/Mac from developer Sectordub and publisher Devolver Digital. Pikuniku – Launch Trailer – Nintendo Switch – YouTube The First 12 Minutes of Pikuniku Gameplay – YouTube What’s Making Us Happy This Week? Nate: Kehinde Wiley Laura: Spider-Man: Into The Spi...

GRIS is a beautifully animated and colorful game about a girl on a journey through grief. The artwork is absolutely top tier, while the gameplay is presented without challenge or danger making the game extremely accessible. Do we have to be moved by this game if it to be a success? Is it okay to be kind of empty if it’s beautiful enough? GRIS is available on Nintendo Switch and Steam. Expect it to...

After a delay in recording due to Raygan’s daughter being born (what a sorry excuse!) we are back with our Game of the Year episode for 2018! It’s been a great year for short games, so the deliberations were fierce. Join us for the results! Thank you for supporting the show in 2018. We have an exciting year ahead of us in 2019 and we hope you’ll join us! If you like the show, spread the word, and...

The Obra Dinn was lost at sea along with all its cargo and 60 crew members. Suddenly the ship has reappeared, but what became of the crew? In this intricate mystery deduction game you’ll use a mysterious pocket watch to see the moment of each crew member’s death and try to reconstruct each of their fates. Return of the Obra Dinn is available for Windows and Mac on Steam, Humble, and GOG for $19.99...

The Tetris Effect is the latest music/puzzle/synesthesia experience from legendary game designer Tetsuya Mizuguchi. Shane spends most of this episode mercilessly clowning on me for my Tetris skills while we discuss the benefits playing Tetris in veeeeee arrrrrr. Tetris effect – Wikipedia Tetsuya Mizuguchi – Wikipedia Ecstasy of Order: The Tetris Masters (2011) – IMDb The Story of Tetris | Gaming H...

IFComp 2018 is nearing its conclusion, so it’s time for a few last games! On this episode we discussed: 00:02:09 The Origin of Madame Time by Mathbrush 00:12:01 Terminal Interface for Models RCM301-303 by VigiMech Corporation 00:26:04 Polish the Glass by Keltie Wright 00:33:27 Campfire Tales by Matthew Deline 00:36:18 They Will Not Return by John Ayliff 00:38:09 smooch.click by Devon Guinn 00:43:1...

IFComp 2018 is nearly done, and we’re closing the comp talking about some really strong games! This is the first part of a two part episode rounding out our coverage of IFComp 2018. I was going to chat with Laura for a few minutes, but we ended up talking for nearly an hour, so rather than release one massive episode I’m splitting this one in two and releasing the second part (featuring Shane and...

And we are back with more IFComp 2018! We discuss nine more of the games on this year’s ballot. Horror, mystery, and extended IFComp in-jokes abound! If you play something in the comp you think we should cover, please let us know! We’re @_shortgame on Twitter, or you can use the contact form at our website. Games covered in this episode: 00:03:32 En Garde by Jack Welch 00:14:57 Re: Dragon by Jack...

The leaves are changing, folks are putting up Halloween decorations… that’s right it’s IFComp season once again. Long time listeners to this show already know how passionate we are about the Interactive Fiction Competition . Now in its 23rd year, it’s the biggest event in interactive fiction and one of the highlights of our year. We’ve been covering IFComp annually since 2015. If you’re new to int...

In Wandersong you play as a bard, and interact with almost everything through a fun and expressive singing mechanic. You’ll do a LOT of singing. Turns out there is no problem that can’t be solved through song, even the end of the world. Wandersong came along at the right time. Its sweetness and positivity never felt cloying, and despite its story sometimes going to some dark places it felt like ju...

After years in development and what seems like decades on the Short Game upcoming games spreadsheet, solo developer Ben Esposito has finally released Donut County. We loved playing as as a hole in the ground in this odd story driven physics puzzle game. Just the right length, and with a ton of charm, this game was made for our podcast. Donut County is currently available on Steam and GOG for Windo...

In this, the year of too many Metroidvanias (jk there can never be too many Metroidvanias) Drinkbox returns with a long awaited sequel to their 2013 action platformer hit Guacamelee. (We covered Guacamelee way back in episode 37 , and their dungeon crawler slice-em-up Severed in episode 108 . If you played Guacamelee and (like us) you wished for more of it then you’ll find lots to love in Guacamel...

Bomb Chicken is the first console game from mobile game royalty Nitrome . It’s a perfect example of a developer creating a entire game based on a single, super polished mechanic. Nitrome uses clever level design to spin their simple one button bomb-egg mechanic into dozens of unique challenges. Also the chicken is so fat. So so fat. Links for this episode Mark Brown – Game Makers Toolkit Bomb Chic...

It’s an all-singing-all-dancing episode this week as we play Peter Panic, a mobile game that mixes WarioWare style micro games with the magic of musical theater! This mobile game stands out by being a fully-sung musical sung by actual broadway talent. Peter Panic is available for iOS and Android. It’s free to download and try, with the ability to save your progress available for $2.99. Links Varie...

This week we’re taking a vacation from our typical format to talk about playing games while traveling. The obvious topic is how the Nintendo Switch is chainging how we play, but we also discuss gaming travel memories from childhood, the pros and cons of portable platforms, and even some non-video-games for travel. Have fun on your trip to Ireland, Laura! 00:00:00 Gaming and Traveling 00:01:39 Thin...

Yoku’s Island Express is a pinball-metroidvania. Yeah. And as a synthesis of those two seemingly incompatible ideas it actually succeeds incredibly well . We break down what makes this bizarre fusion more than just a novelty. Yoku is available on Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and Steam for $19.99. Expect it to take about 5-8 hours to complete, not including post-game content, secrets, etc… 00:00:00 Yoku’...

Gary Butterfield of Duckfeed.tv joins us to discuss West of Loathing , the hilarious stick-figure open-world RPG by Asymmetric . West of Loathing originally released last summer on Steam, but it recently launched as a console exclusive on Nintendo Switch. This is an extremely funny game, but it also respects your time in ways that other RPGs and open world games could learn a lot from. Thanks to G...

For our fifth year in a row, The Short Game is discussing this year’s Apple Design Award winning games. The ADA winners are often some of the best iOS games of the year, but they also shine a light on the state of iOS as a gaming platform, and give a hint as to what Apple is planning for games on their devices. Joining us again this year is friend of the show Mark Bramhill . Mark is a radio produc...

Mike Bithell’s follow-up to Subsurface Circular is another single sitting dialogue driven text adventure game, but this time it’s on a boat! Also there’s an alien. We discuss the second “Bithell Short”, a spiritual sequel to the previously covered Subsurface Circular . If you liked Subsurface Circular or interactive fiction this is definitely worth a look. Quarantine Circular is available on Steam...

In Far: Lone Sails you’ll pilot a massive rattletrap machine across a beautiful, desolate world. This “atmospheric vehicle adventure game” feels a bit like it was grown in a lab to appeal to The Short Game. It has a presentation that begs comparisons to past favorites like Inside , but the vehicle system feels fresh and keep the game engaging and mechanically interesting throughout. Far: Lone Sail...

In a world where absolutely everyone cares about golf… Golf Story is an indie developed golf RPG in the Mario Golf tradition, developed by Sidebar Games. It was an early indie exclusive on the Nintendo Switch. In this episode we discuss our history with golf and golf games, the bizarre and hilarious world of Golf Story, and get into the weeds with golf game history and mechanics. Expect Golf Story...

It’s been 18 months since the release of the PSVR and against all odds there are still great short games coming out! Shane brings us his impressions of the second wave of PSVR games, starting with Moss, a VR game about guiding a sword-wielding mouse through a dangerous storybook world. Games mentioned in this episode: Moss SUPERHOT VR Farpoint Rec Room CoolPaintr VR Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-al...

We’re joined by special guest Patrick Kelpek of Waypoint to discuss his recent article Most Video Games Are Too Long , in which he compares the experience of playing God of War with Minit . We discuss about value of editing and restraint in video game design, and the economic and business factors that drive game length. We also get his suggestions for great short games to play. Thanks to Patrick f...

In Minit, you are cursed to die (and be reborn) every 60 seconds. This makes solving puzzles and Zelda-like action challenges a bit more interesting. The game was developed by a four person team consisting of Jan Willem Nijman (co-founder of Vlambeer), Kitty Calis (who most recently worked on Horizon Zero Dawn), Jukio Kallio (composer), and Dominik Johann (art director of Crows Crows Crows) and pu...

Into the Breach is the second game by FTL developer Subset Games. FTL was the focus of the fifth episode of this podcast , way back in May of 2014,and has been a major obsession for all of us (but especially Nate) ever since. This time, Subset has taken on the tactical strategy genre, but their take is one of the most streamlined and cleverly designed games in the history of the genre. We are join...