Idle Thumbs

Some games love you. Some games are indifferent to you. Some games fucking hate you. Some game DEVELOPERS fucking hate you. Bennett Foddy, by god, fucking loves you. He believes in you. He knows you can do it. And also he'll be there, laughing, every time you fail. Get to know one of modern game design's uncompromising masters of the absurd and the sublime in this installment of Tone Control. And also try to figure out what the fuck cricket even is.

Important If True 56: In the Shade of the Puffin by Idle Thumbs

The year is 1998 and the 500 lb. gorilla in the room is Starcraft. Blizzard creates the finest Warhammer 40K game ever made and changes the RTS landscape forever. Half-Life. Ocarina of Time. Baldur's Gate. Is 1998 the greatest year in history for gaming? Listen to Rob, Rowan, and Troy "Starcraft: The cutscenes were nice" Goodfellow discuss the details.

Half-Life, Ocarina of Time, Falcon, Grand Prix Legends, Starcraft, Baldur's Gate, People's General, Star Wars: Rebellion, Seven Kingdoms, Battlezone, Mech Commander, Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines, Anno 1602, Caesar 3, Railroad Tycoon 2, Suikoden 2

Important If True: A Funky Bad (Good) Apology by Idle Thumbs

Do you like submarines? Do you like being irrationally angry at your best friends? How about checking your phone at 2 AM? Subterfuge may be the relationship ender you've been looking for. Rob is joined by Kotaku's Heather Alexandra, PC Gamer's Philippa Warr, and freelance writer Nick Capozzoli to talk about Subterfuge, a game about being a jerk. Inspired by the long-form RTS gameplay of Neptune's Pride, Subterfuge is as much a game about relationships with other players as it is tactics. The panel discusses their emotional highs and lows when dealing with the hell that is other people, and you can hear the frustration as Rob demonstrates the most exaggerated sigh in the history of podcasting.

Naughty Dog Month is completed by my interview with Richard Lemarchand! One of the sweetest, most thoughtful and supportive folks I know in game development, Richard charts ;) his course from jolly olde England to the sunny shores of Santa Monica, California, going from a kid growing up on ZX Spectrum games, to helping create one of modern gaming's most iconic series.

On this belated episode of Idle Weekend (Danielle is sorry for the wait), we discuss the things that really just do it for us—and the alternative, the games that leave us cold. It’s a very hot and cold weekend here, just like real life! Sort of!

Discussed: The Division, Surviving Mars, Black Maps: The American Landscape and the Apocalyptic Sublime, Into the Breach, The Martian, Tropico, Star Trek, Dude Watching with the Brontes - Hark, a Vagrant!, Daniel Ortberg’s Texts from Jane Eyre, The Muppet Christmas Carol, Goodfellas, The Punisher, Bringing Out the Dead, Legion

Important If True 55: Consider the Water Lobster by Idle Thumbs

The Winter of Wargaming marches on with Gary Grigsby's War in the West. Bruce joins Rob and Troy "No, really, the Canadian military was actually very invol-" Goodfellow to talk about the the thundering behemoth that is War in the West. It's been long established that panel enjoys Gary Grigsby's earlier War in the East, but does that love carry over to War in the West? The eastern front may have certain qualities that make it the perfect candidate for strategy at this level, while the west finds itself pushing and pulling the player's attention in too many different directions. Listen in to find out what the panel thinks and why PC gaming is dead. Forever.

Idle Thumbs Ruination: March 2018 by Idle Thumbs