Idle Thumbs

Rob is joined by Cameron Kunzelman and Evan Lahti to discuss Gears Tactics, which adapts the familiar rhythms and dynamics of Gears of War to a turn-based, squad-tactics format with generally positive results.

In this episode, Bruce Geryk interviews veteran game developer Roger Keating, co-founder of Strategic Studies Group (SSG). Roger is best known for his work on the Warlord series as well as many digital wargames. They discuss what it was like to do pathfinding before A*, how SSG worked from home before it was cool, and how to determine who is a game designer.

Games discussed: Conflict, Operation Apocalypse, Reach for the Stars, Carriers at War, Europe Ablaze, Gold of the Americas, the Warlords series, Ardennes Offensive

Kert Gartner loves making VR game trailers, and he's constantly breaking new ground in virtual cinematography and mixed reality. He's been making indie game trailers for about 10 years, and with his years of experience in the feature film VFX industry, he's most comfortable making trailers in After Effects. We discuss how the heck that works, why he wouldn't have it any other way, how he got into making game trailers, and what interests him most about the work.

Trailers Discussed: Gato Roboto, Canabalt, Nidhogg, Serious Sam: Random Encounter, Hotline Miami, IceBurgers, Space Channel 5 VR, Museum of Other Realities, Genital Jousting, Minit, Dungeon Hearts, Vacation Simulator, Eighth Grade, Whiplash, Neverending Nightmares, Snow Runner, Fantastic Contraption.

If you have questions or comments please send them to [email protected].

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Rob, Rowan, and Bruno Dias start working the mean streets of City 31 as they discuss XCOM: Chimera Squad.

Elisha Male is a AAA game trailer editor at Hammer Creative in Los Angeles. We talk about her journey from editing emo Kingdom Hearts music videos to editing trailers for AAA games like DOOM Eternal, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Shadow of the Tomb Raider and more!

Trailers Discussed: DOOM Eternal, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Elder Scrolls Legends - Heroes of Skyrim, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Neo Cab, Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, The Green Knight, The Lighthouse, Parasite.

If you have questions or comments please send them to [email protected].

Join us in the Idle Forums to discuss this week's episode!

With the sports world mostly on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sports games have emerged to take their place in some of the oddest ways. Rob discusses this weird moment for sports sims with Troy, Jenn Cutter, and Kat Bailey. They chat about why sim motorsports seem to be working well, but most console sports sims don't seem to have the same resonance. Rob accuses Troy of being the target audience for beat reporting based on Out of the Park leagues. Troy denies the charge, then describes the travails of his Expos dynasty in detail.

Rowan, Jon, and T.J. are joined by Waypoint and Friends at the Table's Austin Walker to once again ask the immortal question: Is Stellaris good now? On the heels of a diplomacy rework and four years of expansions, what has become of Paradox's oddball 4X space child?

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Twin Peaks Rewatch 1: Pilot by Idle Thumbs

Twin Peaks Rewatch 2: Traces to Nowhere by Idle Thumbs