Overthinking Games

This week, Dempsey talks with classical guitarist and video game enthusiast, Josh Garofolo, about music in video games, and his personal passion for creating incredible arrangements of video game music for the classical guitar on his YouTube channel, Josh Garofolo Guitar.

Got something to share? Have an idea for who we should interview next or a topic we should cover?
Let us know at: [email protected]

Find us on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Instagram/Tik Tok Theme music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

Interview with Pat Naoum

This week, Dempsey has the chance to interview Pat Naoum, the solo developer of The Master’s Pupil. A puzzle platformer, The Master’s Pupil combines smooth platforming, clever puzzle mechanics and incredible environments, painstakingly painted by hand over the course of years, to create a beautiful and unique experience.

Also discussed: How excited we are about The Master’s Pupil, Dempsey checks out some indie souls-like gems, Katie’s back in high school with Persona 5, and Seth is digging Oracle of Seasons. Got something to share? Have an idea for who we should interview next or a topic we should cover?

Let us know at: [email protected]
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Theme music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

This week, we take a break from our more scholarly content to talk about what games we like to play on the go.  To determine the best portable games, it helps to know why you want them portable: Seth likes strategy games he can pick up, put down, ruminate upon, and then make his move. Dempsey wants something he can play for 5-10 minutes in between Uber jobs. Katie just wants to be able to play in different rooms of the house and to achieve maximum cozy vibes.

Other things discussed: We think our moms should probably do a guest episode, Dempsey once again comes through with a sad game to kill our spirits (“Renal Summer,” where you play as a terminally ill dog’s kidneys), Katie has been playing “Hue,” which is, incidentally, a great mobile game, and Seth has been doing real life stuff, like painting figurines(but most likely because his computer died last week).  Email us your favorite summer games on the go at: [email protected]

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Theme music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

This week, the crew tackle what games can teach us about thinking.

We deep dive into different kinds of thinking, and how they’re built into games. From linear puzzle solving in Resident Evil 4, to the lateral thinking needed for speed running, there’s a lot to think about when it comes to thinking!

Also discussed: Seth’s power supply bit the dust, Katie is still playing Planet Zoo, and Dempsey stopped playing Family Feud in favor of a game he actually enjoys: Disco Elysium!

Email us your thoughts at: [email protected]
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Theme music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

The Beginner’s Guide In this week’s episode, we seriously overthink The Beginner’s Guide, a masterpiece of video game narrative. Spoiler Warning: YOU NEED TO PLAY THIS GAME FIRST, we fully spoil the game!
Order of operations: Listen until 19:40, then go play The Beginner’s Guide, then finish the episode, then email us your thoughts on The Beginner’s Guide!

Also discussed: Dempsey is oddly fascinated with the Family Feud mobile game, Seth has been playing Tears of the Kingdom, Katie is hooked on Planet Zoo, and we all love Baba is You.

Listener question of the week: What is YOUR favourite part of The Beginner’s Guide?

Email us your thoughts at: [email protected]

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Theme music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

In this episode, we dive into 5th grade literacy standards, and examples of games we think are great at meeting those standards.
Dempsey talks about Florence and inferencing, Katie talks about Dangonronpa and summarizing with details from the text, and Seth talks about Game Jams as a way to compare and contrast similar topics and themes.

Also discussed: Seth and Dempsey are obsessed with Tears of the Kingdom, Katie finally got a Steam Deck, and everyone needs to play The Beginner’s Guide.

Find us on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Instagram/Tik Tok
Email: [email protected]
Theme music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

In this episode, we talk about video game music and what it means to us.

Dempsey loves some good space banjo in Outer Wilds, Katie hates nostalgia but loves The Last of Us, Seth has curated a playlist that equates to the timeline of his childhood, and we all really love the Hollow Knight OST.
Also discussed: Tears of the Kingdom and how much Dempsey just wants to keep playing it, Seth is running out of steam playing Command and Conquer: Red Alert 2, and Katie really wants to get a steam deck so she can play all of the games.

Songs mentioned:
Outer Wilds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPyaFR7poL4&t=34s
Artful Escape: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZa06J2bn-w
The Last of Us Title Theme: https://youtu.be/pfA5UqEU_80
Gang-Plank Galleon - Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: https://youtu.be/Y_jlo952yP0 Pokémon National Park: https://youtu.be/2XjouKSkSeM
Hollow Knight Title Theme by Josh Garofolo: https://youtu.be/ozn9DgtkqmU
Hollow Knight Mantis Lords: https://youtu.be/Lp5M2BAXwSo
Hollow Knight Broken Vessel: https://youtu.be/dyHn4980MPY
A Short Hike: https://youtu.be/xsagJ3BYUAs

Email us questions, comments or suggestions at: [email protected]

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Theme music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

In today’s episode, we talk about personal strengths, Persona 5, and valuing differing abilities in the classroom.

Dempsey loves project based learning, Seth gives perspective on different kinds of intelligence, and Katie talks about different methods of expressing understanding. Also discussed: Dicordian Gods, made by elkniodaphs, a Switch exclusive 2D RPG found on the Switch’s RPG Maker MV player app, Dad-games, including Command&Conquer: Red Alert and Thief(2000 and 2014), and, of course, we talk about Tears of the Kingdom(Dempsey’s game of the year?).

We are taking listener questions, suggestions and comments, so please feel free to email us at: [email protected]

Find us on Apple Podcast, Spotify and Youtube at Overthinking Games

Music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

In this episode of Overthinking Games, we delve into Darkest Dungeon to discuss failure, and what we can learn from it.

Also discussed: Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, Jenny LeClue: Detectivu, Celeste, Nuclear Throne, and our own personal failures.

We are taking listener questions, so please feel free to email us at: [email protected]

Find us on Apple Podcast, Spotify and Youtube at Overthinking Games
Music is copyright free and from: https://www.youtube.com/@Pixverses

Overthinking Games is a podcast about what video games can teach us. 

In our first episode, we introduce the premise of our podcast and talk about what games can teach us, using Bloom’s Taxonomy as our jumping off point. 

Also discussed: Games we’ve been enjoying lately (Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, Nuclear Throne, and Resident Evil 4 Remake, to name a few), as well as whether or not it’s actually fun to play Elden Ring as a hoity-toity magic user who never levels up their health.