This week, Dylan and Chris dive into a discussion of McGuffins; what they are, how they're used, and how adding them to game stories can be a little more complicated than it first seems!

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Happy Day After Halloween! For this week's festivities, we return to our old favorite of "Spot The Dud," where it's up to Dylan to guess the numerical ranking of a number of game reviews (and he does SHOCKINGLY well).

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This week, we return from a long hiatus to chat about attract modes: those splashy trailers and snippets of gameplay that pop on when you've let a game idle on the title screen for too long. We talk about their arcade origins and the different ways they can impact how we think about the games we play.

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This week, we're thrilled to once again have our friend Dakota Curry on to talk about concept art, illustration, and all the ways that artists put their minds to creating the games we love. Also, Chris enters a fugue state trying to succinctly summarize the rules of Magic the Gathering. Enjoy!

Backstage Gaming is a proud member of the HP Video Game Podcast Network (@hpvgpodnetwork on Twitter)

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This week, we kick off a two part special looking at the visual design aspect of games. Today, we take a look at some fighting games near and dear to our hearts to figure out all the little ways that the designs of their characters make a difference to the feel of the game. And next time? Well... you'll just have to tune in and see!

Backstage Gaming is a proud member of the HP Video Game Podcast Network (@hpvgpodnetwork on Twitter)

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This week, we talk about what happens after the credits role; content that's unlocked or context that's expanded after you have "finished" a game. The energy on this one is also... let's say 'unique.' Give a listen!

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This week, we take a deep dive into a small, goofy scene from the classic PC stealth game, Thief. Sometimes, the best scenes are the ones you just sort of walk through. Anyway, you shoulda seen the bears in my day.

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We made it to episode 100! Thanks to all of you for your support and for coming along for the ride. To celebrate, we headed back to the Writer's Room to try taking Street Fighter in our own direction and synthesizing all of the adaptations that have come before. A tall order, it turns out!

Backstage Gaming is a proud member of the HP Video Game Podcast Network (@hpvgpodnetwork on Twitter)

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This week, we hunker down and get into our core competency: acting! We take a scene from Vagrant Story, one of Dylan's favorite games, give it a read through, and help direct each other to better and more nuanced performances to give you a glimpse into the real work we do as performers. Come give a listen!

Backstage Gaming is a proud member of the HP Video Game Podcast Network (@hpvgpodnetwork on Twitter)

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This week, we discuss some games with weird design choices. Whether it's a control scheme that chooses not to use established rules or cameras that behave strangely, we dig into designs that have been maligned and ask if they may have something else to offer.

Backstage Gaming is a proud member of the HP Video Game Podcast Network (@hpvgpodnetwork on Twitter)

Enjoy our show? Consider supporting us on Patreon! (patreon.com/bsgpod)

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