Edge Guard

Episode 16 - One Night Stand

Gather ‘round the campfire kids, it’s time for us to regale you with spooky tales of video games! This week, we address One Night Stand  by Kinmoku. Shudder in fear as we discuss #niceguys, stealing ladies’ underpants, and other shenaniganery.

 

Play the game on steam: http://store.steampowered.com/app/549860/One_Night_Stand/

 

And, if you like it, follow @GamesByKinmoku to see what they’re up to next!

Episode 15 - Oblige

I must say that I feel OBLIGEd to let you know that another episode of Edge Guard is here, this week talking about a game by Jocelyn Kim called, you guessed it, Oblige, which follows a woman in 1979 Hong Kong trying to balance the responsibilities of work, family, and life. Tune in for some hot takes on typing as a game mechanic, simulated boredom (spoiler: it’s suspiciously similar to regular boredom), and how much our husband just, like, sucks, man.

 

Download the game here: https://jocelyn.itch.io/oblige

Follow the creators on Twitter: @jocelynkimchi, @ivantsangHK

Episode 14 - HOT DATE

Hot Date! This week, the boys are looking for love in the most unlikely of places - David Batchelor’s pug dating sim Hot Date. This steamy conversation over the candelabra includes: discussion of mechanics informing comedy, Tinder dating, and emotionally manipulating cute lil pugs.

 

Find the game on itch.io: https://georgebatch.itch.io/hot-date

Episode 13 - Where the Goats Are

Shhh, listen! What’s that, rustling in the grass? Could it be? It is! Another episode of Edge Guard is here! This week Blake and Jordan discuss Where the goats are, a quiet, “meditative” game about raising goats in the midst of a catastrophe. Our hosts touch on topics as wide-ranging as the strange appeal of farming simulator games and the meaning of the word “meditative.” Come for the goats, stay for the hard-hitting games journalism.

Episode 12 - Packing Up the Rest of Your Stuff on the Last Day at Your Old Apartment

In this week’s episode, Jordan and Blake talk about moving! More specifically, they discuss Turnfollow’s
Packing Up The Rest of Your Stuff on the Last Day at Your Old Apartment. This includes discussion of nostalgic calculus, inventory tetris, and overly long (but incredibly descriptive) game titles. Then the guys wax nostalgic about all the cool places they lived in college and get all sappy about the fun times they had. Yuck!

 

Be sure to check out the game on itch: https://turnfollow.itch.io/packingup

 

And follow the devs on twitter: @_turnfollow, @carterlod, and @iendsl

Episode 11 - A(s)century

Quick, charge your devices, bust out those headphones, and procrastinate your obligations: another episode of Edge Guard is here! This week, Blake and Jordan unpack a cyberpunk Twine game designed by Austin Walker (of Waypoint and Giant Bomb fame), cleverly titled A(s)century. Topics on the table include cyberpunk naming conventions, the function of choice in text games, corporate satire, and Mark Zuckerberg’s thoughts about dying squirrels. Also: Kevin O’Leary is probably a robot.

 

Check out the game: https://thecalcutec.itch.io/ascentury

 

And follow Austin Walker on Twitter! @austin_walker

Episode 10 - Devil Daggers

Watch out! It’s another episode of Edge Guard, this time about the 2016 arcade-style arena shooter game Devil Daggers, developed by indie team Sorath. Our hosts take a deep dive into what makes this fast-paced, frantic game work, from its slick sound design to its addictive combat mechanics. They also talk strategy and remark at how absolutely unbelievable the times of the global leaderboard are.

 

Please pardon Jordan’s sniffle, follow Sorath on Twitter, and check out Devil Daggers on Steam!

 

Twitter: @sorathdev

 

Steam: http://store.steampowered.com/app/422970/Devil_Daggers/

Episode 9 - Windowframe

On today’s episode, Blake and Jordan talk about the first game on the show that caused both of them to rage quit: Daniel Linssen’s Windowframe. The guys discuss the nature or frames in games, contrast that with frames in film, and delve into the fetishization of difficulty in the post-Dark Souls era.

Find the game on itch: https://managore.itch.io/windowframe

And be sure to follow Daniel Linssen (@managore) on twitter to see what he is working on.

Episode 8 - Like Roots in the Soil

Behold! Another podcast! Blake is ramming all sorts of words together, Jordan is a hack (but an honest one), and we played “Like Roots in the Soil” by Italian Devs The Space Backyard. We discuss the limits of what makes something a game, games working with two closely related timelines, and the irrevocable march of time.

 

Find the game here: https://spacebackyard.itch.io/like-roots-in-the-soil

And find the devs on Twitter: @SpaceBackyard

Episode 7 - Subsurface Circular

Join us today for a discussion of Subsurface Circular, a recent text adventur/puzzle game from Bithell Games about a future society driven by automation. Blake and Jordan discuss what makes a puzzle satisfying, detective fiction, and fully-automated luxury robot communism.

 

Check out the game on Steam: http://store.steampowered.com/app/676820/Subsurface_Circular/

 

And follow Mike Bithell on Twitter: @mikeBithell

Next week: Like roots in the soil: https://spacebackyard.itch.io/like-roots-in-the-soil