Y'all, it's been a whole year since we first locked down in our homes last March with nothing but Animal Crossing to keep us company. It's been a tough couple of weeks, & we're all feeling some type of way about this Panniversary, so we decided to take things a bit more casual this week.
Instead of focusing on one game, we're joined by our good friend: actor & composer Connor Marsh (he/him) to kiki with us on some game news and take a retrospective look at this past year in Gaming Culture & games that meant a lot to us over these past 12 months

Plus, we convince Connor to brag about his PS5, Eric argues that Death Stranding is camp, Laurence continues to be a Barb. We all talk about which Zelda game is the gayest, and argue over whether or not the Ring Fit Adventure dragon is hot (he is.)



Check out CheckPointOrg.com for mental health resources focused directly on gamers and game makers! <3

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Eric Solis:
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Laurence Turner-Cordova:
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Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by (this week's guest!) Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)

Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)
Special thanks to our patron, Blueberri Mary <3

MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Super Mario Bodyssey" by soap eater (Megan Thee Stallion x Super Mario Odyssey)

Craft your med-kits and molotov cocktails, because we’re tackling a big game on our list this week! We’re joined by our dear friend, Chicago-based actress Becca Rowland, to talk about Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us (Part 1!)

Widely considered by many to be one of the best video game narratives of all time, this post-apocalyptic action-adventure game explores the relationship between Joel & Ellie, two strangers who become surrogate father/daughter figures for each other as they journey across a version of America decimated by..... a deadly pandemic that turns people into fungus zombies. (Look, sorry we keep talking about the panorama on the pod but it’s impossible not to draw some comparisons with this one.)

While there’s no way for us to cover everything this game has to say in one episode, we try our best to talk about the important stuff, the gay stuff, and the important gay stuff-- most notably Ellie! the game’s co-protagonist who has become a landmark queer character & a paragon of sorts for queer representation in video games. This is a deeply beloved game which famously received a sequel last year! So we hope you enjoy our discussion on the first half of this saga.

TIMESTAMPS for ~SPOILERS~

Left Behind  DLC Spoilers: 48:00-49:20, 54:04-54:26
Ending of the game Discussion: 59:52 - 01:10:03

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Follow Becca Rowland on Instagram and Twitter, and check out her D&D stream on twitch.tv/stopdropandrolldnd

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Eric Solis:
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Laurence Turner-Cordova:
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Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)

Special thanks to our patron, Blueberri Mary <3

ARTICLES mentioned this week:

LGBT+ representation in an ultraviolent dystopia by Hannah Ryan
Virtual Intimacy and Queer Confrontations in The Last of Us: Left Behind by Michael Paramo

MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"The Last Of Us" by Gustavo Santaolalla
"All Gone (Seasons)" by Gustavo Santaolalla
"Wanda's Cunty Vision" by Ocean Kelly

Our Patreon page is finally here!!!
You can support us at www.patreon.com/gayforplaypod at our $1, $3, or $5 tiers

Please indulge us for 10 minutes as we explain to you why you should consider giving us your money! (if you can & want to, obvi. truly super chill if you don't! we still luv u <3)
If you *do* subscribe, we'll have bonus content, a Discord server, and some more cool perks for ya!

In any case, thank you SO much for supporting the show! We're excited to bring you more Gay for Play in the future and thrilled to have y'all along for the ride.

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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

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FIND US!

Eric Solis:
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Twitter @eric_of_the_sun

Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)

Happy 25th Anniversary, Pokémon Trainers! Can you believe it's been a whole quarter century of catching-them-all?

This week we're taking a deep dive on one of the most beloved video game franchises of all time (well, for one of our hosts at least.)

We discuss all of the Pokémon-related news from the last week including the surprisingly delightful Pokémon Post Malone Virtual Concert and the new video game announcements: Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl (remakes of Laurence's favorite Pokémon games, the Nintendo DS's Pokémon Diamond & Pearl,) & Pokémon Legends: Arceus (a new open-world Pokémon game seemingly inspired by Breath of the Wild)

We then go in-depth on a conversation about why the gays love these pocket-monsters so dang much, as well as a hearty conversation on our tenuous relationship between Pokémon and anti-capitalism, queer themes in the franchise, and so much more!

Up top we also discuss Gayming Magazine's 1st annual Gayming Awards! An event celebrating and honoring LGBTQ video games, creators, and members of the video game industry. (Our invite must have gotten lost in the mail but that's okay!)

Whether you're a diehard Pokémon-stan like Laurence, or kinda lukewarm on the series like Eric, we hope you find something to love about this episode! One thing we both agree on is that Pokémon is a cultural tour de force, so we're happy to celebrate 25 years of it here on the pod.

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Get your TICKETS to Cabin 12: An (Animal Crossing) Summer Camp Jubilee here!!
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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

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Eric Solis:
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Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)

MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Introduction (Pokémon Diamond & Pearl)" by Go Ichinose
"Lake Theme" by Go Ichinose, arr. Carlos Eiene (insaneintherainmusic), Doug Perry
"Ending Theme" by Go Ichinose, arr. Carlos Eiene (insaneintherainmusic)

Check out & support insaneintherainmusic on Youtube, Spotify, and Patreon!

Hey all you cool cats and kittens! It’s just us (Super Mario) bros this week, coming at y’all with a super Nintendo-centric episode. We’re sharing our thoughts on last week’s Nintendo Direct announcements, talking about Animal Crossing theatre-making, and then warp-piping right into our game of the week:
SUPER MARIO 3D WORLD + BOWSER’S FURY!

This latest Mario outing on the Switch is a polished-up port of the underappreciated Wii U game of the same name, packaged in with BOWSER’S FURY, an all new open-world Mario adventure utilizing 3D World’s engine.

Not too much gay stuff to talk about in this one, but we simply love the red plumber man and all of his fun platforming adventures & wanted to dedicate some time to talk about him! Plus naturally we find some queer/queer-adjacent things to talk about. (Mario IS, after all, a bear...)


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"CABIN 12 - An (Animal Crossing) Summer Camp Jubilee" by Aurelia Grierson (friend of the pod!) is streaming March 7th & 12th as part of the Fresno Rogue Festival. Get your tickets here!

To learn more about the show, check out our write-up in BroadwayWorld! 
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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

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Eric Solis:
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Twitter @eric_of_the_sun

Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)

MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Scamper Shores" by Daisuke Matsuoka, James Phillipsen
"Lake Lapcat" by Daisuke Matsuoka, James Phillipsen

You feeling the love in the air? It's probs because THIS week, we’re joined by playwright, actor, and self-identifying weeb Carlos-Zenen Trujillo (they/them) to dive deep into the world of DATING SIMULATORS! A game genre we've *flirted* with multiple times on the show before that we've now decided to go steady with for a whole episode. We take a look at why these simple, innocuous visual novels resonate so deeply with queer gamers like us, and how the genre has evolved from its heteronormative, trope-y roots into games that are more inclusive, queer-centric and simply a joy to play!

We mostly discuss the genre as a whole, but we also take a close look at two dating sims in particular that subvert & redefine the genre: Dan Salvato's twisted Doki Doki Literature Club, and The Game Grumps' queer smash hit, Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator.

PLUS, in our culture corners, we talk about everything from teen films based on classic literature, K-pop, the Britney Spears doc, Rebecca Black's comeback-era, and so much more!

We hope you fall deeply in love with the 2D anime character of your dreams, or at least enjoy us talking about ours!

Find our guest Carlos on Twitter @caroluscubanus and Instagram @carlosdeservesadrink
Catch them in Seattle Shakespeare's Romeo y Julieta by Ana María Campoy, touring virtually this spring!

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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod

Instagram: @GayForPlayPod

EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!

Eric Solis:
Instagram @eric_of_the_sun
Twitter @eric_of_the_sun

Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)

MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Doki Doki Literature Club!" by Dan Salvato
"Dream Daddy" Performed by Baths, Written by Will Wiesenfield
'Poems Are Forever" by Shoji

***SUPPORT BLACK & QUEER GAME DEVELOPERS***
Check out ValiDate: Struggling Singles in Your Area an upcoming romantic visual novel featuring a cast of BIPOC protagonists. Donate to their Ko-Fi to support them directly!

Hey! Listen! This week, we are joined by actress, gamer, and delightful friend of the pod Hannah Berg (she/her) as we cover our first (but certainly not our last) Legend of Zelda game on G4P!
We’re talking 2011’s The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword for the Nintendo Wii!

Despite its reputation as the “black sheep” of 3D Zelda games, we discuss our fondness for it as we reflect on how it still succeeds as one of the most charming and character-driven Zelda adventures, with a gorgeous art style and incredible puzzle & enemy design to boot. 

We obvi talk about our crushes on Link, Zelda, and the other denizens of Skyloft, reflect on motion-control woes, unpack our complicated feelings about queer-coded villains, and plead for Nintendo to give us a remaster for this game’s 10th anniversary!

All that and more on another adventurous episode of Gay for Play!

Find our guest Hannah on Instagram @hannahlberg and Twitter @hannahlberg!

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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod

Instagram: @GayForPlayPod

EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!

Eric Solis:
Instagram @eric_of_the_sun
Twitter @eric_of_the_sun

Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)

MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Ballad of the Goddess" by Hajime Wakai, Takeshi Hama
"Skyloft" by Shiho Fujii
"Romance in the Air" by Takeshi Hama

Hey oomfs and besties!! This week we're joined by Super Dating Simulator's Sara Brown to talk about PERSONA 5 ROYAL: Atlus's critically-lauded JRPG about living the life of a Tokyo high schooler who moonlights as a monster-fighting "phantom thief" crusading against injustice. (It's very anime.)

It's a game all 3 of us love dearly... even though it misses the mark pretty heavily in terms of positive LGBTQ+ representation. So we get *into* it! We chat about why high school teachers dating their students is Bad™, commiserate over the protagonist's lack of gay romance options, and how Futaba Sakura is definitely mining crypto and robbing hedge fund managers blind! (we stan!!)

We also chat about the game's themes of found-family, the struggle for justice, and its nuanced portrayals of masculinity. Despite its flaws, we love these troublemaking Tokyo teens to bits and we're so excited to finally dig into this massive game!


Follow Sara (@saraisnotfamous) on Instagram and Twitter, and check out her show, Super Dating Simulator here! Their interactive comedy show streams live on Twitch once every month!

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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod

Instagram: @GayForPlayPod

EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!

Eric Solis:
Instagram @eric_of_the_sun
Twitter @eric_of_the_sun

Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)

MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Wake Up, Get Up, Get Out There" by  Shoji Meguro, Vocals by Lyn
"BAR にゅぅカマー" by Shoji Meguro
"Beneath the Mask -rain, instrumental version-" by Shoji Meguro

Greetings traveler! Rest by the campfire and look up at the stars with us for a bit, won’t you? This week, we launch into orbit and talk about Outer Wilds, an open-world space exploration game where the only objective is to follow your own curiosity as you unravel the secrets of a little alien solar system that has "met with a terrible fate, hasn't it?"

We chat about alien gender identities, space colonialism, how the Straights have monopolized time, the inevitable end of all things, & plenty of other *fun*, light topics.

So grab some marshmallows, try not to experience too much cosmic dread, and settle in as we take y'all on a loop this episode. (a time loooop!)

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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod

Instagram: @GayForPlayPod 

EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!

Eric Solis: @eric_of_the_sun on Instagram & Twitter 

Laurence Turner-Cordova: @afroman76 on Instagram & Twitter 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)

Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams) 

MUSIC THIS WEEK:

Outer Wilds by Andrew Prahlow

Morning by Andrew Prahlow

End Times by Andrew Prahlow

There is no escape y’all; we’re finally here to talk about a game we’ve been obsessed with for months: HADES by Supergiant Games! We tackle this roguelike action RPG by talking about our *supergiant* crushes on these hot Greek gods, portrayals of queerness in Greek mythology & how it’s represented in this game, and explore why this super addicting game took a spot as one of our 2020 Games of the Year. We also gab on new years rezzie progress (or lack thereof, lol. There was a coup, ok???), THAT rat TikTok musical, speedrun couture, and Real Housewife tangents, because of course. It's hot as hell on Gay For Play this week, let's get to werk! 

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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod

Instagram: @GayForPlayPod

EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!

Eric Solis:
Instagram @eric_of_the_sun
Twitter @eric_of_the_sun

Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76 

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)

MUSIC THIS WEEK:
No Escape by Darren Korb
On The Coast by Darren Korb