Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 2006's Dwarf Fortress . We explore our failures by telling some stories about our experiences, and describing what that tells us about what this game is and what its systems might be. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Our first Fortresses Issues covered: needing a Trade Depot, changing state of a building, feedback on buildings, iconogr...
Mar 01, 2023•1 hr 6 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our themed series on the flexibility of text with 2006's Dwarf Fortress . We set the game in its time and then start delving into the play of the game, and the steep cliff of learning how to play it. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: A couple of hours Podcast breakdown: 0:46 Dwarf Fortress 54:36 Break 55:13 Feedback Issues covered: an early early acc...
Feb 22, 2023•1 hr 21 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Plundered Hearts , the pirate romance text adventure, and also turning to a short bonus discussion about Twine games. We mostly discuss our takeaways before turning to the bonus discussion. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Podcast breakdown: 0:18 Takeaways 51:02 Break 51:12 Bonus Discussion Issues covered: text adventure length, an introductory adventu...
Feb 08, 2023•1 hr 33 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our mini theme of the flexibility of text. We examine the Infocom era by playing a late title, Plundered Hearts . We discuss some of the rougher aspects of the game and the mechanics of text adventures, including the facilities of the language and some of its modern descendants. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Tim (all), Brett (the first section) I...
Feb 01, 2023•1 hr 9 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we elaborate our series on Rogue by looking at one that continues its legacy, that is, Rogue Legacy 2 . It's right there in the name! Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: A few hours (well, about a dozen for Brett) Issues covered: Rogue -likes and Rogue -lites, comparing it a bit with Spelunky, the journal in Spelunky, games like it Tim has played, getting somethin...
Jan 18, 2023•1 hr 11 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our brief series on Rogue , though admittedly if you want the full experience, cut up the two episodes into one minute pieces and randomly select fifty to eighty of those pieces and play them in random order. This week we talk about strategies, life lessons from Rogue , and of course give our takeaways. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: A few more ho...
Jan 11, 2023•1 hr 12 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on 1980's seminal and genre-naming title, Rogue . We set the game in time and talk about what constitutes the genre before diving into some particulars. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: A few runs Issues covered: buying the game in a box, being disappointed in the ASCII, being turned off by procedural games, the differences in later games,...
Jan 04, 2023•1 hr 4 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we look back at the interview that were, relistening and highlighting some great bits from our conversations with other developers this year. We again extend our thanks to Jaime Griesemer, Clint Hocking, Patrick Redding, Rosie Katz, and Ian Milham. Thanks too to our perennial thanks: Kirk Hamilton, who composed our intro and outro music, Aaron Evers who sponsored it, and Mark Garcia for our logo and our store. Finally, thank you also to our listeners, fo...
Dec 22, 2022•1 hr 9 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we conclude our bonus episodes about Dead Space by chatting with Ian Milham, who was a former LucasArts colleague of the hosts and the Art Director on the space horror classic. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Podcast breakdown: 00:47 Interview 1:15:32 Break 1:16:02 Outro Issues covered: the cost of getting in, the set top box, an homage, getting an internship on the basis of a...
Dec 15, 2022•1 hr 25 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we present an interview with Rosie Katz,. who acted as a level designer not only on Dead Space, but the Call of Duty series (and with whom the hosts work today). Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Podcast breakdown: 0:47 Interview 1:03:30 Break 1:04:00 Outro Issues covered: starting in central tech testing, getting in through QA, using Maya as a level design tool, bringing in the...
Dec 07, 2022•1 hr 14 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our main series on Dead Space . We talk animation and audio support for player state, economics, the ammo balance, and how the game shifts more to shooter than horror towards the end, before turning to takeaways. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Tim (Ch7), Brett (finished) Issues covered: it's always the doctors, the resource economic loops, kinesis...
Nov 30, 2022•1 hr 11 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 2008's survival horror in space, Dead Space . We talk about the ways we are maybe breaking the game a bit, art design, level design and camera framing, and sometimes... how it doesn't work. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Into Level 7 (Brett) or 4 (Tim) Issues covered: unkillable aliens, alien encounter tropes, taking themselves serio...
Nov 23, 2022•1 hr 3 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 2008's space survival horror game Dead Space . We talk about the fantasy of competence and the grounded elements of the tasks, and contrast that a little bit with the spells. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: A few more chapters Issues covered: a weird D&D one-shot, the player insert character, rebooting Space Quest, being in the ri...
Nov 09, 2022•1 hr 8 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on 2008's EA space horror game Dead Space . We position it in a change in Electronic Arts at the time (having just done another game from 2008) and then get into the spookiness of it all. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Chapter 1 Issues covered: Halloween Longo shenanigans, doubling down on 2008, the limits of the podcast, Electronic Arts...
Nov 02, 2022•1 hr 13 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we turn to a second bonus interview with Patrick Redding, credited as Story Designer on Far Cry 2 , though we would tend to call that a Narrative Designer today. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Podcast breakdown: 0:45 Interview 1:16:50 Break 1:17:20 Outro Issues covered: happening to start listening at the right time, a background in physics, avoiding computer programming, app...
Oct 26, 2022•1 hr 30 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we discuss Far Cry 2 with none other than Creative Director Clint Hocking. We talk about his early career before getting into the game proper. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Podcast breakdown: 0:43 Interview with Clint Hocking 1:07:12 Break 1:07:37 Outro Issues covered: starting out in writing, taking a terrible pay cut, good fortune, taking on many jobs, tough development cy...
Oct 19, 2022•1 hr 17 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on Far Cry 2 . Brett describes to Tim some of the buddy system stuff he missed, and then the hosts look at later installments before turning to takeaways. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Far Cries 3, 5, and 6 Issues covered: a cry too far, buddies dying and having to choose how, variants on missions and why you might not do one, being ab...
Oct 12, 2022•1 hr 15 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Far Cry 2 . We talk about some more systems in the game as we plan to play the descended versions and present our takeaways next week. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Midpoint (Brett) and more (Tim) Issues covered: gun loot and such in the ongoing series, the elimination of friction, putting the objective marker far from the quest giv...
Oct 05, 2022•1 hr 9 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Far Cry 2 . We talk about the extreme friction of the game, landmarking and open world layout, and touch a little bit on the buddies. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Several more hours Issues covered: variations on the same song, high degree of friction, a simulation of a place, allowing for authorship within the simulation, clashing ...
Sep 28, 2022•1 hr 14 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Far Cry 2 . We talk about the tutorial some more, the perils and pleasures of an open world game, and avoiding being a map game despite having a map. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Issues covered: casual colonialism, doling out tutorial bits at the right pace, feeling equipped with skills for the game and for the open world, remembering the location,...
Sep 14, 2022•1 hr 19 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on UbiSoft's 2008 series-establishing classic, Far Cry 2 . We set it in its time, and talk a bit about shifting engine wars and attendant publisher/developer drama, before briefly getting into the tutorial. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: The Tutorial Issues covered: the UbiSoft open world formula, picking your UbiSoft ur-game, engine war...
Sep 07, 2022•1 hr 5 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on SimCity 2000 . We talk disasters and scenarios and of course, our takeaways. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: A new beginning and a scenario Issues covered: looking at the scenarios, recovering from disasters, plane crash disaster, choosing what disasters you would use, flooding in particular, kicking down the sandcastle, what it model...
Aug 31, 2022•1 hr 13 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on SimCity 2000 . We talk about the lore of SimCity and what Brett and Tim appreciate or don't about sim games these days. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Speed-playing to modern day and beyond Issues covered: unsung hero CPAs, playing on cheetah speed, taxing different areas at different rates, digging into a hole, being in a deficit sp...
Aug 24, 2022•1 hr 14 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on SimCity 2000 . We end up spending a lot of time talking about the political choices that inform the game, as well as other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: More hours? Issues covered: being the opposite of what rangers or druids do, the San Francisco method, finding natural borders, responding to the water crisis, getting clued...
Aug 17, 2022•1 hr 18 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on that classic sim, SimCity . We very briefly situate it in time and talk a little bit about Will Wright before talking over some of the strangeness that is this game (or toy). Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Tutorials or A Few Cities Issues covered: which version and why, establishing the SimUniverse, Wright and describing his design pr...
Aug 11, 2022•1 hr 14 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on MegaMan 2 and X . We talk difficulty for sure, before turning to our usual takeaways. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: More of MegaMan X Issues covered: the big story turn inside the boss, the tedium of taking out enemies again and again to get drops, minimal loot tables, seeing more of an enemy, the limitations of trial and error and ...
Aug 03, 2022•1 hr 17 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Megaman games, turning to Megaman X . We very briefly set it in its time, discuss the new feel that the SNES gets you, as well as other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Three bosses Issues covered: the SNES Classic deal with using the reset, setting difficulty on the emulated game, sequels and console generations, "the new stan...
Jul 27, 2022•1 hr 7 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Capcom's MegaMan series, looking at the latter half of the game, exploring its difficulty and how it presents a final exam, among other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Finished the Game! (Hmm...) Issues covered: multiple forms of mastery, leaning on rewind, playing "au naturale," analogues in the podcast hosts, being confused ...
Jul 21, 2022•1 hr 15 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we start a new series on MegaMan 2/X , looking at them as different platformers from the time. We set it in context a bit. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Three enemies Issues covered: Dog Game Club, playing a couple games instead of one, fighting mens for their weapons, playing second iterations, bringing in past favorites, setting the game in its time, masco...
Jul 14, 2022•1 hr 23 min
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on Dark Souls , and so we turn to our takeaways and discuss our final hours with the game. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Brett finished Issues covered: the podcast mirrors the game, feeling like you have godlike powers in New Game+, spending hours on farming different resources, putting the pieces together, enjoying mysteries and putti...
Jun 01, 2022•1 hr 31 min
