Dev Game Club

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on 1992's Alone in the Dark. We discuss the ending of the game, where we needed cheats, and turn to our takeaways. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played: To or near the end (T/B)

Issues covered: restarting the game, getting blocked, a full inventory, blocking the enemies in the attic, looking up hints, camera angles and spacing, experimenting to success, the text adventure lineage, how they rendered the 3D stuff vs the rooms, characters that chase after you, attempting to fully realize the mansion, the limits of simulation fidelity, finding clues in books, cluing the suit of armor, an identical sword, feeling unclued, everything being bespoke puzzles without connective tissues, good moments, the ancient evils below ground, Harold the tree, the end encounter, a non-obvious weapon, a potential clue, a game whose reach exceeds its grasp, working cinematically, survival horror mix, putting puzzles in context, the creeping dread of cosmic horror, needing consistent rules, supporting action elements properly, the mix of game design elements, the audio archive, putting the podcast on vinyl.

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: Ian Livingstone, Sid Meier's Pirates, Plundered Hearts, Zork, Colossal Cave Adventure, Resident Evil, Fallout 3, Gothic Chocobo, Tomb Raider, H. P. Lovecraft, Darkman, Edgar Allan Poe, Trees Hate You, Googlymoogly, Final Fantasy IX, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia.

Next time: ?? TBA

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp Discord [email protected]

As Tim takes a few weeks out to heal his brain and the podcast winds towards its end, we are reaching into the Discord Game Club interview archive. This time around, BioStats and Calamity Nolan interview Kendrama94, talking about streaming but also quite a bit about pedagogy. We expect to return next week.

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp Discord [email protected]

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 1992's Infogrames classic, Alone in the Dark. We talk a bit about its structure again, and also discuss the tension between the adventure game and the use of combat, among other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played: More of the house?

Issues covered: translating Greek and Latin, trial and error, the overwhelm of options, the tension between verbs and adventure game, usability problems, telegraphing the wrong information, tunnel vision in development, a great QA department, the value of a new tester, trying to do many things, taking too few notes, thinking too systemically, a 2D space for saving, holding to play an animation, going a different direction from RPG-derived 3D games, combat states and action choices, stun locking, animation timing for combat, analog aiming for ranged combat, how to get hints in 1992, an unkillable suit of armor, feeling disempowered, the save slots, misreading a long death animation, a reward for failure, revealing that something is going on elsewhere in the house, being wrong about Louisiana, bringing in New England, many rooms and many possibilities, having the pixel hunt, showing you're done with a room in later games, getting stuck and letting your brain chew, Tim the maker of an amazing game, it takes a team, getting out of the way.

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: Emily Wilson, LucasArts, Day of the Tentacle, Dark Forces, Beyond Good and Evil, King's Quest, Space Quest, Dave Grossman, Tim Schafer, Ultima Underworld, Ultima (series), Wizardry (series), Prince of Persia, Out of This World, Pirates, Resident Evil, Little Shop of Horrors, Sierra, Dragon's Lair, Eternal Darkness, Jonas, Star Wars Republic Commando, Warren Spector, Deus Ex, Adam Piper, Sir Ian Livingstone, Eidos, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia.

Next time: More AitD

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp YouTube Discord [email protected]

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new, final spooky series on 1992's Alone in the Dark. We set it in its time and then get into the survival horror of it all. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played: About an hour and a half

Issues covered: the end, 1992 in games, focusing on world 3D vs characters, 3D in games at this time, the 2D/3D mix, pushing the boundaries of film, the origins of survival horror, seeing itself as an adventure game, 3D rendered backgrounds, theories of how it was made, film and game overlap, not having to navigate the stairs, having a character choice, the horror that drives you mad, finding , finding additive ways to use space on a CD-ROM, the introduction to the house, playing with frogs, a high degree of difficulty, looking forward to this gem, empathy and understanding games development.

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: Ultima Underworld, Wolfenstein 3D, Flashback, Out of this World/Another World, Shin Megami Tensei, Persona 3, Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, Dragon Quest V, King's Quest VI, Star Control II, Street Fighter II, Mortal Kombat, Sonic 2, Super Mario Kart, Hudson Hawk, Infogrames, X-Wing, Lightwave, Frederick Raynal, Chaosium, HP Lovecraft, GoldenEye, Christian Slater, Stephen Dorff, Uwe Boll, The Room, Tommy Wiseau, Tara Reid, Sweet Home, Resident Evil (series), Grim Fandango, Return to Monkey Island, MYST, Ron Gilbert, Thimbleweed Park, Day of the Tentacle, Sam & Max, Lumiere Bros, Fatal Frame, Eternal Darkness, Bioshock, SW: Starfighter, John Keats, Logan, Shadow of the Colossus, Portal 2, VtM: Bloodlines, Matthew, Dark Souls 3, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia.

Next time: More AitD!

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp YouTube Discord [email protected]

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we add another to our interview series where we talk through a career or a set of games and how they influenced an important person to our industry. This week, it's Sir Ian Livingstone, of Fighting Fantasy, Games Workshop, Eidos, and so much more. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Podcast breakdown: 00:17 Interview 1:07:10 Break 1:07:40 Outro

Issues covered: getting the title wrong, a Lifetime achiever, no dice -- only negotiations, being near to others who played, encountering D&D and ordering six copies, getting a deal for Europe, phoning around for deals and then backstabbing away, sharing a payphone with the landlord, attending GenCon 1976, delivering cars around the US, going to borrow from the bank when not investor-ready, naming White Dwarf, finding the tribe, branching into miniatures, "failure is success work in progress," hiring enthusiasts, hosting a games convention, writing a solo adventure, splitting the work, getting lucky with a refusal, spreading by word of mouth, the Satanic panic, teachers encouraging the use of these books, the many benefits of games, learning in different ways, the Steves Jacksons, a prize for completing the game, creating Eidos, deciding to cross the mountains in the snow, an incredible success, putting out a sequel every year, moving the IP, writing the Fiend Folio, saying no to a merger with TSR, creating tabletop rules for Warhammer, an incredible phenomenon, needing something of your own, a culture around miniatures, humility and motivation, signing in Budapest, enthusiasm as a through line, why we do this, keeping an eye on the creative side, a creative off-site, quite a room.

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: John Peake, Steve Jackson, Owl and Weasel, White Dwarf, Fighting Fantasy, Deathtrap Dungeon, Dicing with Dragons, Domark, Eidos, Square Enix, Tomb Raider, Hitman, Hiro Capital, Tomb of the Golden Skull, Peter Molyneux, Dicemen, Ed Fries, Diplomacy, Don Turnbull, Albion, Brian Bloom, Gary Gygax, Dungeons and Dragons, TSR, Ral Partha, Van Morrison, Empire of the Petal Throne, Fantasy Games Unlimited, Chaosium, Judge's Guild, Bryan Ansell, Citadel Miniatures, Games Day 1979, Penguin Books, Play and Politics, Geraldine Cooke, Allen & Unwin, Lord of the Rings, Puffin Books, Citadel of Chaos, The Forest of Doom, Rollercoaster Tycoon, Hidetaka Miyazaki, Dark Souls, Elden Ring, Car Wars, Eureka!, Tom Kirby, US Gold, Silicon Dreams, CORE Designs, Jeremy Smith, Sony, PlayStation, Crystal Dynamics, Toby Gard, Planet Cherry, Tank Girl, Morgan Gray, Fiend Folio, Apocalypse, Talisman, Judge Dredd, Battle Cars, Rick Priestley, Richard Halliwell, Henry Cavill, Golf Clash, Paul Gouge, Playdemic, Alex Rigby, City of Thieves, Janos Flosser, Ed Fries, Spacewar, Spelunky, Bloodborne, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia. Links: Sir Ian Livingstone: The first Knight of the nerds

Next time: Alone in the Dark (1992)

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp YouTube Discord [email protected]

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on Persona 3. After talking about a game we're releasing, we talk about how this story can go mature places, modern themes, and other things. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played: Up through Arqa

Issues covered: finaling a 90-day game, great graphic design, the rhythms of life, school testing and the "level playing field," knowing more about what's going on but everyone talking about it anyway, looking forward to a new character, the tiles changing in the second set of Tartarus levels, just understanding everything, what you leave out, dwelling on modern problems, adding little additional mechanics, managing the tonal palette, the voice acting, the presentation, style and substance, the modern setting, how the stories and the systems tie together, well-presented menus, the excellence of the audio and music, reusing motifs for impact, "hate mail" and thanks.

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: BioStats, Calamity Nolan, bookslap, From Software, Project Octavia, The Wizard's Assistants, H. R. Giger, Metal Gear (series), Final Fantasy (series), JRR Tolkien, Diablo, Elite Beat Agents, Yakuza (series), Judgment, Sega, RGG Studio, LucasArts, Like A Dragon, Spider-man (series), Yuri Lowenthal, Jennifer Hale, Peanuts, Valheim, World of Warcraft, Spelunky, Witcher III, Baldur's Gate III, LoZ: Breath of the Wild, kdw/Not Mysterydip, Matthew, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia.

Next time: ??

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp YouTube Discord [email protected]

Tim and I are super busy this week finishing a small, short game at Twin Suns Corp. Therefore, we are reaching into the Discord Game Club interview archive. This time around, BioStats and Calamity Nolan interview bookslap, talking about streaming and his work with Inner Sloth, makers of Among Us. We expect to return next week.

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp Discord [email protected]

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Persona 3. We talk about the boss fight, challenges in localization of content, more about the structure, and other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played: Through first boss

Issues covered: meeting a foreign exchange student, the calendar in the menu, seeing all of the pieces now, unlocking another level of Tartarus, an easier version of the game, enjoying the lack of grind, rebalancing the game, separating the flow of combat from other systems, the feel of the little vignettes, directing the player to new places, parallelizing development, an evolving market, respecting the rhythm of the original game, Japanese cultural differences, censorship questions, cultural undercurrents, games as entry points, various social links, the tension of spending time, how stats progress, story mode should be super-easy, choosing your social links, finding secrets via the purchased URLs, getting contacted by Elizabeth for quests.

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: Final Fantasy (series), Baldur's Gate, Yakuza (series), Kingdom Hearts, Fear Effect, The Ring, Ju-On: The Grudge, Tales (series), Metal Gear (series), Psychonauts, PlayStation Vita, Raymond, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia.

Next time: More Persona 3!

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp YouTube Discord [email protected]

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Persona 3. We talk about the game's structure, how everything ties back to Tartarus, and the virtuous cycle around combat, among other things. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played: Into late April (T), early May (B)

Issues covered: how you spend your hours and days, small levels and menus, scheduling school, a same-y grindy dungeon, a well-presented simple concept, exhaustion, major arcana and social links, upping your stats and having a preview of other options, tying progression into Tartarus, stories and S-Links, advancing a social link and failure, explaining fusion and additional XP, falling down a vicious cycle, the snappy feel of combat, a virtuous cycle of simple things you do one by one, dividing options up well, turn-based that feels almost like a direct action, dividing up abilities into personas, games for casual players, protections around digital goods, letting things go, first good-bye email. Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: Final Fantasy (series), Chrono Trigger, Square, Metal Gear Solid, Dark Cloud (series), Mass Effect, Bioware, Baldur's Gate, Pokemon, Ashton Herrmann, Plants vs Zombies, Mario (series), Split Fiction, LoZ: Twilight Princess, Zach and Wiki, Metroid Prime 3, Skyrim, Tomb Raider: Anniversary, Solitaire, Gorogoa, Matthew, Fallen London, Zuma, Raymond, Sony, Drew, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia.

Next time: More Persona 3!

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp YouTube Discord [email protected]

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on Persona 3. We start off with a big announcement, then we get into setting the game in its time and with the general property of Shin Megami Tensei before turning to the game's opening few hours. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played: To first fight (T), most of Tartarus 1 (B)

Issues covered: the end, our focus on genre and the difficulty of saying something new, picking the time to end, knowing when to quit, the next few months, picking the final game, Discord Game Club, Tim continuing to stream, the basis of this spin-off series and the hosts' history, common elements, a little discussion of the suicidal imagery, updates to the remake, "similar to Metal Gear for me," loving the modern setting games, the weird mixture of other JRPGs, groundedness, having entry into a game developed in another region, starting with a big mystery, the modern setting cutting both ways, a good player parallel, following your heart when you play, punk rock and its problems, signing your name on a contract, understanding the archetypes, setting up characters/characterization in advance, Apathy Syndrome as a metaphor, a game with voice.

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: June, The Odd Couple, System Shock 2, Dwarf Fortress, Dead Rising, PlayStation, Wii, GameCube, The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent, Kingdom Hearts 2, Hitman: Blood Money, Final Fantasy XII, LoZ: Twilight Princess, New Super Mario Bros., Tomb Raider: Legend, Onimusha, Rainbow Six: Vegas, Brain Age!, Nintendo DS, Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth, Condemned: Criminal Origins, Okami, Bully, Gears of War, Metal Gear Solid (series), Reed Knight, Andrew Kirmse, Shin Megami Tensei, Devil Devil Summoner, Final Fantasy (series), Atlus, Phoenix Wright (series), Ghost Trick, Resident Evil, Grasshopper Interactive, Suda 51, No More Heroes, Square, Ultima (series), Wild Arms (series), The World Ends with You, Yakuza (series), Hideo Kojima, Snoop Dogg, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia.

Next time: More Persona 3!

Twitch: timlongojr and twinsunscorp YouTube Discord [email protected]