To help me get back into the swing of things, and explain why I've been unable to post, I went back and visited something from our Solo Series. I wanted to talk through what has been keeping me from making. Also thought it would be a good way to show off the kind of content I make for [Quest Markers] our Patreon exclusive podcast. So in this week's episode I talk through my recent run of bad health, explain one way to get back into creating, and I do all while playing My Favourite Pilot!!
Nov 18, 2019•23 min
This week's episode of solo is a super short one! We're playing a single person graffiti RPG. It asks you to put yourself in the role of a pilot, likely about to die in battle, writing your final goodbye on the inside of your giant robots cockpit, like all those that came before you. And you do this by writing poetry on a building. You can see what the finished poem looked like by checking out the album art for this track, or heading over to our website.
Oct 27, 2019•13 min
CW: Alcohol In following with the example set by the festival. I would like to acknowledge the Awabakal and Worimi peoples, who are the traditional custodians of the land the festival was held on, and that this podcast was made on. I pay respect to their elders past and present as well as to any listeners with a connection to the world’s oldest continuing culture. I would also like to acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded and this always was and always will be Aboriginal land. National Yo...
Oct 20, 2019•55 min
In following with the example set by the festival. I would like to acknowledge the Awabakal and Worimi peoples, who are the traditional custodians of the land the festival was held on, and that this podcast was made on. I pay respect to their elders past and present as well as to any listeners with a connection to the world’s oldest continuing culture. I would also like to acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded and this always was and always will be Aboriginal land. The first in our series...
Oct 14, 2019•54 min
This week we have a special interview with my partner, and collaborator Rae. We've been working on a poetry board game together. In it you write poems about the rooms of a house you imagine yourself to be exploring. There are prompts about the contents of the house to help you, and at the end you do a reading of your house poems. It's called Architype and we thought interviewing Rae would be a fun way to introduce it to you. https://twitter.com/wings_humming https://raycox.itch.io/architype
Oct 06, 2019•46 min
This week were talking to Blake. Blake is a creator from the Seattle area of the US. They've recently been growing their presence in the game design community by taking part in a lot of game jams. I've been enjoying following their work, and hearing their voice in the community. Twitter https://twitter.com/fencedforest Itch https://fencedforest.itch.io/
Sep 29, 2019•45 min
In The Ocean is a micro rpg with prompt cards that ask you to answer questions about the world, or play out scenes from your past. In it you play as a mech pilot stranded on an ocean planet, watching the battle overhead. As you wait for rescue you remember your past. It's a pretty excellent game, and I hadn't thought about it during the recording but it could be an excellent way to build the setting for a more expansive mech game. If you'd like to get a copy, you can find it on itch: https://mar...
Sep 22, 2019•47 min
Just a little quick update about why we were unable to post a new episode this week.
Sep 17, 2019•3 min
Soup is the creator of As I Imagine The Falling Rain, an RPG we played on Solo. We had a lovely discussion about the layout of the game, and how that informs your play. We also talked about the RPG design course that pushed Soup to start making more games. Itch: https://literalsoup.itch.io/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/LiteralSoup Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0nPdOEG7UF9KSk4BiAb2Sc?si=05gmPUP_QUSZn5o8z2R4Yg
Sep 08, 2019•55 min
This week is a bonus episode of solo a RPG about a mech being rebooted after a long time alone. We'll explore that loneliness, andand the new world our mech awakens in. If you want to play Reclaimed for yourself, you can buy it here: https://elibees.itch.io/reclaimed
Sep 01, 2019•44 min
CONTENT WARNING: Death, Injury, Lizards, Birds. This was weird play experience. You ask questions of the other players...or in solo mode, you ask yourself? It was an interesting game, I liked it. In particular, I think it's a great idea for a game. This did come out of a game jam, so sometimes the product is just an expression of a raw idea and it is a fantastic idea. I think the multiplayer version is where this game would shine. Solo play felt a little flat but I came to a rather interesting p...
Aug 25, 2019•39 min
CONTENT WARNING: Death, Injury, Fire, War. (This game REALLY should be played before you listen to the AP, it is totally possible to have this game spoiled for you. Get it here: https://mossytoes.itch.io/recollection-gloaming ) A wonderful, emotional, and atmospheric episode of Solo. Playing through this guided solo RP experience was my FAVOURITE part of this series so far. It pulls together several underused tools of storytelling that we don't see nearly often enough in RPGs. Not at the mechani...
Aug 19, 2019•37 min
All this month we're airing episodes of our new show Solo, where Ray plays single person RPGs and talks about their mechanics. This weeks episode explores a poetic RPG that provoked an interesting thought about the power of labels. If you enjoyed listening to As I Imagine The Falling Rain, you should get your own copy here: https://literalsoup.itch.io/falling-rain
Aug 12, 2019•24 min
It's August, it's nonbinary TTRPG month, and we've got so much planned. 2 conventions, a Ray's birthday, some collaborations with other nonbinary folks, and a new product release from Ray. And to make it even more fantastic; we're going to be bringing you 4 episode of our new series Solo. This series is all about exploring single player RPGs, and highlighting this innovative and avant garde area of RPG design. This week we're playing My Favourite Pilot!! A game by Sophie Mallinson that was made ...
Aug 05, 2019•24 min
Content Warning: Death, War. Solo is a new series from us where Ray will be taking a closer look at single player RPGs. The first season of this new show will look at Solo RPGs from the Emotional Mecha Game Jam. First up is Death Sentence, a game by Jeff Ellis. In it you play as a mech pilot, left behind after helping a colony ship safely escape this sector of space. The enemy approaches, and you have to decide what to do with your final moments...and compose your final words. We hope you like t...
Jul 21, 2019•21 min
Ross Payton is a podcast producer and freelance game writer. He's worked on content for Eclipse Phase, Delta Green, Red Markets, and more. He's the producer of Role Playing Public Radio and all their affiliated shows, as well as The Mixed Six! Ross Payton is someone I've always wanted to interview and I'm so grateful I finally got to speak with him. And I'm excited to share it with you! Find Ross on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosspayton And get Ross' shows here: http://slangdesign.com/rppr/
Jul 15, 2019•57 min
CW: Death, Suicide, End-Of-Life Care Sidney, Jamila, and Ray are 3 game makers that are all interested in how games explore death. We brought them together to open up and talk about their experiences with death, and how we might explore death and themes adjacent to it in more interesting and varied ways.
Jul 08, 2019•1 hr 20 min
This week Nika and Ray pretend to be Hot, Gay, Bro Dragons. Dating each other and opening up about their love for one another. It was a blast getting tipsy, confessing our love, and saying bro a lot. You can get this game for yourself by following the link: https://riverhousegames.itch.io/hot-gay-bro-dragons
Jun 30, 2019•43 min
We chat with the Sword Queen herself Jamila, a game maker from the Philippines working in a bunch of different design spaces, and a genuine delight! You should all check out Jammi's new game https://temporalhiccup.itch.io/take-my-revolution
Jun 23, 2019•1 hr 1 min
This week to members of the San Jenaro Co-Op are on to teach us about some of the hidden challenges of Kickstarters, and what their experience was like working on their first KS Project for their new Co-Op. Liam has worked on Kickstarters before and is one of several mentors helping the fresh on the scene members of the Co-Op. JR is one of those fresh on the scene members! With background in theatre and writing, it was lovely to hear about how JR become a designer, and their experience preparing...
Jun 16, 2019•58 min
CW: Fire, Storms, Earthquakes, Riots, Police Brutality, Death. My friend Andrew and I played our first game together, and they graciously let me record it. We played Live. Love. Die. Remember. together and explored a world where mechs are used to hold back the extreme weather events caused by anthropogenic climate change. Get your own copy of LLDR here https://raycox.itch.io/live-love-die-remember
Jun 09, 2019•1 hr 30 min
It's time for part 2 of our 2 part interview series. This week we’re talking to Freyja about her role in making Hard Wired Island. We talk with Freyja about where she got started as a designer, and she's tried to reinforce the themes of the game in its mechanics. If you missed part one you can hear it here: http://insertquesthere.com/2019/05/hard-wired-island-interview-part-1-ettin/ You can support Hard Wired Island on Kickstarter, by clicking here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ettin/har...
Jun 02, 2019•48 min
We have a 2 part interview series to celebrate Ray's continuing recovery. This week we're talking to Ettin about his role in making Hard Wired Island. Ettin talks us through some of the setting, it's weirder parts, and almost goes on a rant about AI. Next week we'll be talking to Frejya about her role, the mechanics of the game, and how she got into game design. Hard Wired Island is up on Kickstarter right now, you can find more here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ettin/hard-wired-island...
May 26, 2019•40 min
Our 30th interview, and it's a really interesting topic. The San Jenaro Co-Op is a new experiment in RPG production. A cooperatively owned and run organisation working together to promote and produce RPG content. With each member sharing in the profits. They sent 2 members of their org over to talk to us. New comer to the industry Chris, and established designer Liam. I was excited to be part of Chris' learning process, and also to hear both of them tell me about the interesting work they are do...
May 05, 2019•48 min
We're back from our short medical break with a fantastic interview. Ray spoke to Nova and L who are making Sundown, a Science-Fantasy, wild west, transhuman queer punk game! We're really impressed by the work they've done. It's live on kickstarter for another 2 weeks, so go take a look. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grasswatchgames/sundown/ They're also on twitter. The company; Grasswatch Games https://twitter.com/GrasswatchGames Nova https://twitter.com/novarionnoel L https://twitter.com...
Apr 28, 2019•46 min
We've been quietly following a game called Relics since Ray first heard about it at GXAustralia in 2017. The fact that it's about Angels was enough to get us interested, but it's exploration of memory, power, and and strange events pulled us in deeper. This week we talk to Steve Dee, the Australian game dev responsible for much of Relics. Ray and Steve also talked a little bit about the history of game design in Australia and how the scene has changed. As well as talking about zines and newslett...
Apr 14, 2019•49 min
After talking about it on [Quest Markers] I wanted to share the game of Dungeon Planet we played back when we launched our patreon. It is of particular merit because of the way we described our Space Adventure. Using descriptions that conjured images of earl sci-fi special effects. Thank you to Alex, Ryan, and Eric for joining Ray for this 1960's sci-fi romp. If you want to watch the 12 hour live stream this was pulled from, you can find it here. https://youtu.be/NjHqtrUFqqI
Apr 07, 2019•1 hr 51 min
Nika and Ray take a look at a romantic 2 person RPG about Dragons and Riders and the apocalypse. It's a lovely emotional game that also feeds into some cool power fantasy stuff. And has some nice tools for helping you build the mood and tone.
Mar 24, 2019•3 hr 38 min
This week Ray wanted to play LLDR again. We fixed a few typos, and tried out playing a different number of scenes. Thanks to Emily for giving Ray an excuse to play, we hope you enjoy this thoughtful and intimate game.
Mar 17, 2019•37 min
The first of our series of APs from the Emotional Mecha Game Jam, and also our first AP of a game Fin wrote! It's short, it's edited and processed in an interesting way, it's very intimate. We hope you enjoy our shortest Actual Play yet. And if you'd like a copy of Together Here At The End; you can get it by following the link. https://finbah.itch.io/together-here-at-the-end
Mar 10, 2019•17 min
![[insert quest here] - podcast cover](https://assets.metacast.app/images/podcast/artwork/zVeXG4KD)
