This week AJ chats with Alanna Okun and Chase Allhart about their experiences with game design (and game design adjacent) education! They also confront the age old question: what even is a video game, anyway?

Into the Game Jam Links
itch page: https://itch.io/jam/itgj-summer-2024
Find the forum thread on the TWG Discord: Navigate to the "Games Forums" category, select the games-events forum, find "Into The Game Jam (Summer 2024)" forum thread and say hello!

Alanna's Links
Website: https://alannaokun.xyz
Buttonmash newsletter: https://buttonmash.substack.com/
Games made with bitsy: https://itch.io/games/made-with-bitsy

Chase's Links
Video Game Podtimism: https://podtimism.com

Discussed: TWG's Into the Game Jam (Summer 2024), Chase's Gamer Cred, Alanna's journey to game design, Alanna's Majora's Mask piece, what is a game, Journey, idea games, Bitsy, telling stories through mechanics, the search for tighter experiences (again), Outersloth, 1000xRESIST, Unicorn Overlord, Animal Well, sweet and salty games, Elden Ring, an embarrassment of riches, Persona 3 in its various forms, Skald: Against the Black Priory, Slice & Dice, Loop Hero.
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Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
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Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
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Welcome to the first EVER episode of Into the Aether: X-Strike Summer! We kick of the series with games industry pros (and TWG community members) Kyle Labriola, Murray Cameron-Smith and NBZ!

This week's episode is REQUIRED to be listened to at .75 speed to make up for all the times you were listening at 3x, you sickos.
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Kyle's Links
Blog: https://blueberrylemonade.pika.page/
Indie Games of Cohost: https://cohost.org/IndieGamesOfCohost
Rhythm Doctor: https://store.steampowered.com/app/774181/Rhythm_Doctor/
A Dance of Fire and Ice: https://store.steampowered.com/app/977950/A_Dance_of_Fire_and_Ice/

Murray's Link
A Shell In The Pit: https://ashellinthepit.com/

NBZ's Links
This Nintendo Life: https://open.spotify.com/show/1P4WI8rVRpAMjDIxJLqJUn
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@lordnbz
Playstack Steam Page: https://store.steampowered.com/developer/Playstack

Discussed: X-Strike Summer!, podcast listening speeds, Adam Sandler’s opus: Click, the competitive value of Shuckle, the slow boil of becoming an indie game dev, watching a game blow up, separating work brain and regular brain, how to work from home, Dadish 3D, Sokpop Collective, short experiences, Toree 3D, Cavern of Dreams, Pseudoregalia, Persona 3 Portable, Beyond the Beyond, Lufia 2: Rise of the Sinistrals, Rhythm Sprout, this Rhythm Heaven tiktok, maimai, searching for tighter experiences.
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Find us everywhere: https://intothecast.online
Buy some merch if you'd like: https://shop.intothecast.online
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Follow on Threads: https://threads.net/@intothecast
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Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
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Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
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You've traveled far and faced trials that would demoralize most... or worse.

But here you emerge, into the sun, holding in your hands the thing you've been searching for so long: The Uncharted bonus episode of Into the Aether.
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Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
---
Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
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iO, eat your heart out.

See you on July 17th! 

Discussed: XStrike Summer, Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, Myst, Animal Well, Brendon solving the final puzzle of The Witness, Brendon's number 16 Game of the Year, Zero Stranger, Void Ranger, Burnout Paradise, the PSP, Soma Bringer, the Xeno series, Diablo, have a good Summer (to our Northern hemisphere pals)!
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Find us everywhere: https://intothecast.online
Buy some merch if you'd like: https://shop.intothecast.online
Join the Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intothecast
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Follow on Threads: https://threads.net/@intothecast
Follow on Tumblr: https://intothecast.tumblr.com
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Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
---
Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
---
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When hope is lost and humanity is on the brink of devastation, there's only one tried and true strategy to snap victory from the jaws of certain evisceration.

Discussed: Out of the Realm, being a regular: revisted, Brendon on The Besties!, Crow Country, Resident Evil, Signalis, Zero Ranger, Void Stranger, NieR: Automata, gaming on the Apple iPad, Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, emulation, Monster Hunter Portable Third, PPSSPP, FTL: Faster Than Light, Civilization VI, Shogun: Total War, Rome: Total War, Total War: Medieval 2, Age of Wonder IV, this video from Game Maker's Toolkit, Stardew Valley, Minecraft, 8bitdo SN30 Pro, Apple Arcade, Orion, Final Fantasy XVI, Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, IQ tests, 90s cartoons, Charted: Found Legacy, something in the future tehe, and dotzip.
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Find us everywhere: https://intothecast.online
Buy some merch if you'd like: https://shop.intothecast.online
Join the Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intothecast
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Follow on Threads: https://threads.net/@intothecast
Follow on Tumblr: https://intothecast.tumblr.com
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Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
---
Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
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Ah crap, this guy comes in everyday and orders the same thing: podcasts, puzzle games, double helping of Pokémon, and Supergiant game... hey buddy! The usual? Aha yeah... death to Chronos... that never gets old...

Discussed: Being a regular, Paws and Clause, dotzip, Out of the Realm, Animal Well, Fez, The Witness, being 34, Pokémon Unbound, a Nuzlocke run 👁️, Pokémon Legends Z-A, Hades II Early Access, death to Chronos!
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Find us everywhere: https://intothecast.online
Buy some merch if you'd like: https://shop.intothecast.online
Join the Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intothecast
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Follow on Threads: https://threads.net/@intothecast
Follow on Tumblr: https://intothecast.tumblr.com
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Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
---
Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
---
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Welcome to Out of the Realm: Petals and Ashes! An original tabletop roleplaying game adventure written by Stephen Hilger based on the Dungeons and Dragons Fifth Edition ruleset!

This episode is part one in a three-part Patreon-exclusive series. To hear parts two and three head to https://patreon.com/intothecast and become a monthly supporter!

Our adventure begins in the city of Lakelight Keep, a mysterious mountain city where it is perpetually Spring. Our heroes, Artyk Bygguy (played by AJ), Izhi (played by Kim), Kailani Gladesong (played by Chase), and Mr. Hollos Cheeks (played by Brendon), have come in search of the missing children of the Eudicott family. Their journey begins in Lakelight Keep, but there's no telling where this mystery may take them.
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Thanks to our patrons for making this episode possible! 
Support the show - https://patreon.com/intothecast

Original score by Will LaPorte - https://ghostdown.bandcamp.com/
Additional music by Brendon Bigley - https://boqeh.bandcamp.com/
Art by Scout Wilkinson - https://ko-fi.com/humblegoat
Produced and edited by AJ Fillari - https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social

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Yeah yeah "Sonic the Hedgehog stole from Dragonball Z," I've heard it all before. The thing people are afraid to say is that Master Roshi stole his entire vibe from Jimmy Buffett. Think about it.

This episode is brought to you by Flight Rising! Register for free at flightrising.com.

Discussed: Life updates, Out of the Aether, Sonic the Hedgehog 1 & 2 (the movies), the possibility of a Sonic x Dragonball AMV from early YouTube (something like this, perhaps 😉), Dragonball Z: Kakarot, Dragonball Xenoverse 2, the Trails series, Trails in the Sky, Trails from Zero, Another Crab's Treasure.
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Find us everywhere: https://intothecast.online
Buy some merch if you'd like: https://shop.intothecast.online
Join the Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intothecast
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Follow on Threads: https://threads.net/@intothecast
Follow on Tumblr: https://intothecast.tumblr.com
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Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
---
Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
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Sorry, what? You’ve seen the grenade roll downhill before? Haven’t you heard that being jaded is over? We’re past that! The grenade is ROLLING down the HILL!!

Discussed: Gamecube, Star Fox Adventures, Dexter on Showtime, Animal Crossing, Tidings from the Aether, Dragonball Z: Kakarot, the Sega Saturn, Grandia, Farcry 2, Idle Thumbs, Austin Walker's talk at the Different Games Conference 2016, a mysterious project coming sometime in the future hehe.
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Find us everywhere: https://intothecast.online
Buy some merch if you'd like: https://shop.intothecast.online
Join the Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intothecast
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Follow on Threads: https://threads.net/@intothecast
Follow on Tumblr: https://intothecast.tumblr.com
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Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
---
Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
---
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Behold! Behold! Gaze up the resplendent curvature of Egg! Let those who dwelled here shout out in His glorious voice! Cock-a-doodle doo!

Use code AETHER20 when subscribing to Pika Pro for 20% off your first year of blogging!

Discussed: Out of the Aether, Fallout (the TV series), Fallout 4 (the video game), Fallout 3 (the video game), Noah Caldwell Gervais' "A Thorough Look at Fallout", Fallout Shelter, Idle Thumbs, Lifeline, Fallout Shelter updates, Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, upcoming bonuses.
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Find us everywhere: https://intothecast.online
Buy some merch if you'd like: https://shop.intothecast.online
Join the Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/intothecast
---
Follow on Threads: https://threads.net/@intothecast
Follow on Tumblr: https://intothecast.tumblr.com
---
Follow Stephen Hilger: https://stephenhilgerart.com/
Follow Brendon Bigley: https://threads.net/@brendonbigley
Produced by AJ Fillari: https://bsky.app/profile/ajfillari.bsky.social
---
Season 6 Cover Art by Scout Wilkinson: https://scoutwilkinson.myportfolio.com/
Theme song by Will LaPorte: https://instagram.com/ghostdownphoto
---
Timecodes:

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