Taking one game per month (old, new and everything in between) and talking though an in-depth examination of narrative, mechanics, theme, and the interplay between the three.
Join the guys as they rip and tear through one of the best FPS games on the market today - DOOM ETERNAL! A lot has changed since '93, come see what the latest entry in this iconic franchise brings to table and why it might be worth the trip to hell and back.
Construction and management sims like Dwarf fortress or, more recently, Rimworld have a way of immersing the player fully into a tiny world that they control every aspect of… until disaster strikes and plunges your tiny world into chaos. Rimworld keeps players engaged by continually creating compelling stories and forcing players to adjust to increasingly hectic obstacles, from raiders or inclement weather to the psychological quirks of your colonists. Listen in for Josh and Bryan’s trials and t...
There’s murder on the high seas! … as well as beheadings, executions, maimings, devourings, drownings, stranglings, shootings, and good old fashioned disappearances. In Lucas’s Pope’s 2018 mystery masterpiece you play the role of an insurance adjuster attempting to figure out what happened aboard the mysterious Obra Dinn after it recently showed up with its entire crew dead or missing. Join us for a discussion about what makes Obra Dinn different from other mystery games and why this is a must-p...
Clint and Bryan prepare for Titanfall as they make their way through what is remembered as one of the most innovative and compelling FPS campaign modes of its time. Each mission brings a fresh perspective and framing to a rock-solid set of mechanics, as well as some unfortunately lackluster writing. They also set their sights on multiplayer, where this game still shines to this day. It's easy to see the lineage of excellence at Respawn Entertainment would give us one of the most successful battl...
The world’s largest multimedia franchise made its debut on the Nintendo Switch in 2019 and the book club has Pokemon fever like it's 1998 all over again! It’s been at least a decade since each of us had played an entry in this long-running series and it was interesting for the book club crew to take stock of what has changed… and what hasn’t. Join Bryan, Josh, and Clint for a Pokemon safari in the tall grass of nostalgia and see if you can separate our actual critical analysis from our reminisci...
It’s a BOY! Clint's a dad now and for this special episode that has been released on the day of his son’s birth, we check out a heartfelt game about a father and his son, God of War (2018). Check out how this franchise has totally reinvented itself into something truly special that helped Clint prepare for his own adventure into fatherhood. Clint: That’s My Boy Bryan: Dad of Boy
RHETORIC: Should Bryan, Josh and Clint talk about Disco Elysium this month? LOGIC: Yes they probably should, its won a ton of awards, has an engaging story, and boasts some of the best writing they can remember. EMPATHY: That writing is always in service to this game’s true strength: telling a deeply affecting and sometimes hilarious story of how a person grows and forms their personality in the face of a bleak, brutal world. CONCEPTUALIZATION: It has an incredibly well fleshed out game world as...
Perhaps one of the most influential games of the 2010’s is From Software’s Dark Souls. As the inspiration of the ‘souls-like’ genre and immense source of frustration for many a gamer, Dark Souls combines deep (if impenetrable) RPG systems with stellar world building to create a profoundly memorable experience. If you can get through it. Listen in as Bryan, Josh, and Clint talk through their respective encounters with this modern gaming landmark. Three Word Reviews: Clint: In the Dark Bryan: Enga...
Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering the Super Smash Brothers series by Nintendo. Show Notes: Bryan’s 2018 GOTY List The Smash Brothers Documentary Home Run Contest World Record Kirby Survives the Apolcalypse Three word reviews: Bryan: Glee For All Josh: Furious Pickup Basketball...
Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Cave Story by Pixel, released in 2004.
Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Remnant: From the Ashes by Gunfire Games, released in 2019.
Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Resident Evil 2 (2019), released in January 2019 by Capcom.
Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Heroes of Might and Magic 3, released in February 1999 by 3DO.
Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering the Hotline Miami Series. Hotline Miami was released in October 2012 by Dennaton Games.
Episode 16 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Cadence of Hyrule: The Legend of Zelda ft. Crypt of the Necrodancer, released in June 2019 by Brace Yourself Games.
Episode 15 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Celeste, released in January 2018 by Matt Makes Games.
Episode 14 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, released in 2019 by From Software.
Episode 13 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, released in 2017 by Nintendo.
Episode 12 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Hollow Knight, released in 2017 by Team Cherry.
Episode 11 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Undertale, released in 2015 by Toby Fox.
Episode 10 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Into the Breach, released in 2018 by Subset Games.
Episode 9 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Brogue, released in 2009 by Brian Walker.
Episode 8 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Hitman 2, released in 2018 by IO Interactive.
Episode 7 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, released in 2011 by Bethesda Softworks.
Episode 6 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Resident Evil 7, released in 2017 by Capcom.
Episode 5 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Dwarf Fortress, released in 2018 by Unknown Worlds Entertainment.
Episode 4 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Dwarf Fortress, released in 2006 by Bay 12 Games.
Episode 3 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Minecraft, released in 2009 by Mojang.
Episode 2 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering West of Loathing, released in 2018 by Asymmetric.
Episode 1 of Video Game Book Club by Pixelated Playgrounds covering Tacoma, released in 2017 by Fullbright.
