The Insert Credit Show

The panel reviews Cookie’s Bustle, a Japanese PC adventure game hindered by endless copyright strikes and finally freed by the Video Game History Foundation.

Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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SHOW NOTES:

1: How did we get here? (05:53)

2: How hard is it to get this Japanese abandonware game from 1999 running on your PC in 2026? (11:38)

3: What is happening in Cookie’s Bustle and what are you doing in it? (18:18)

4: Apart from financial cost, what are the material advantages of keeping a development team small? (36:43)

5: Chopemon asks: If you were to go on an adventure, what items have video games taught you to take that you wouldn’t normally think to take? (43:26)

6: Developer Keisuke Harigai once said in a 2001 interview that he designed Cookie’s Bustle with the European market in mind. What do you think that means? (49:51)

7: Do you like Cookie’s Bustle? (56:07)

8: Let’s talk about the mystique of inaccessible games (01:04:24)

LIGHTNING ROUND: Recommendations (01:15:56)

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Writer, Musician, and Experimental Games Workshop Organizer Liz Ryerson takes on GDC 2026’s expo hall and buttered cocoa with the help of Ty Underwood, Kory, and many more. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

Segments:

1: Mar 9 at 1-17 PM - in the park (00:14)

2: Mar 11 at 1-05 PM - game changer (03:51)

3: Mar 11 at 3-21 PM - overheard at GDC (08:45)

4: Mar 12 at 4-01 PM - GDC expo floor (10:10)

5: Mar 16 at 5-14 PM - rambly sick after show reflections (01:20:20)

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Insert Credit Gaiden is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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Writer and Game Developer Mathew Kumar joins an episode hosted by Esper Quinn, covering live service games, personalized Silent Hills, and the Kentucky Loan Ranger.

Hosted by Esper Quinn, with Frank Cifaldi, Brandon Sheffield, and Mathew Kumar. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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SHOW NOTES:

1: What would it take to get you into a live service game today? (03:57)

2: Has a video game ever led to you taking up a non-video game hobby? (10:56)

3: Brandon Sheffield asks, have you ever found a piece of media you didn’t realize was based on a video game, then played the video game? (17:24)

4: If you had access to the most advanced 3D graphics rendering capabilities available today, what would you make? (24:19)

5: Alex Jaffe asks, what would your Silent Hill be like? (30:20)

6: What’s the most work you ever put into a video game doing something that wasn’t explicitly encouraged by the game? (37:00)

7: What is the anime waifu car wrap of video games? (47:05)

LIGHTNING ROUND: Name Design - Magic Cards, Odyssey Block Edition (51:05)

Recommendations and Outro (58:32):

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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Video Game Journalist Catherine Masters joins the panel to cover console prices, the Microsoft BDS boycott, and Bubsy helping Mario with something. Hosted by Catherine Masters, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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SHOW NOTES:

1: How much more expensive can game consoles get? (04:43)

2: Why do people treat a Steam release like “the” PC release? (09:51)

3: After a year, what impact has the BDS Microsoft boycott had? (15:23)

4: What’s the deal with all these egg games? (19:05)

5: Alex Jaffe asks, what tattoo would you give to a tech bro asking for “gamer cred”? (24:55)

6: What games could you rework from single player to multiplayer? (31:10)

7: What should Catherine do instead of watching Insert Credit this week? (36:17)

8: What’s the juicy cotoure tracksuit of video games? (38:56)

LIGHTNING ROUND: Pokedexperts (47:45)

Recommendations and Outro (56:33):

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by 0nlygh0sts, Kyle Brown, Kory, Alexander Davies, willROAR, Jordan Thornquest, Death_Strandicoot, Sean Patrick, PlazmaGoose, and more patrons like you. Thank you.

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(A previous version of this episode used an image from yolkfolk.com that we were not aware was AI generated. This has been fixed, and we apologize for showing it to you. Generative AI sucks, sorry about that.)

Your Insert Credit Panel covers bargaining with publishers, sordid secrets of video game couples, and the Zohran Mamdani of esports.

Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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SHOW NOTES:

1: What’s your favorite cartridge shape? (03:19)

2: As a game developer, how do you buy more time from your publisher? (08:21)

3: What are the most important skills people don’t talk about in esports? (13:16)

4: Given recent drama, what are some other secrets of video game character couples? (18:55)

5: What video game would you recommend to Mary Shelly? (27:15)

6: SteveWithaB asks, was there a time you remember being bullied for enjoying video games? (30:04)

7: What is the waking up just a few minutes before your alarm of video games? (37:47)

LIGHTNING ROUND: ARE YOU FUCKING STUPID? (41:26)

Recommendations and Outro (58:38):

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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Our panel of experts discuss AI in game development, how to guide players, and Duke Nukem’s actual, real balls of steel. Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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SHOW NOTES:

1: At what point is a production tool considered AI? (08:38)

2: What are the benefits of setting a game in the post-apocalypse? (15:26)

3: What’s the worst answer you’ve ever heard from a video game professional to a question? (20:43)

4: What video game facts would you put on a Snapple cap? (26:16)

5: LeFish asks, what are the best ways of misdirecting players in videogames? (33:49)

6: What are historically the smallest decisions that have had the largest impact on video games? (40:30)

7: What is the realizing you were dehydrated when the water you drink is too good of video games? (45:56)

LIGHTNING ROUND: Letters Delivery (51:26)

Recommendations and Outro (54:52):

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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Necrosoft Games Director and Intrepid Reporter Brandon Sheffield interviews fellow developers and attendees of GDC 2026.

Hosted by Brandon Sheffield, with Brendon Chung, Tony Grayson, Laura Michet, Chris Pruett, Phil Salvador, and Antonio Uribe. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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SHOW NOTES:

1: Antonio Uribe, AKA Fáyer, creator of PancitoMerge and Dig! Dig! Dino!, on baked goods and making a Playdate game (04:14)

2: Phil Salvador, Library Director of Video Game History Foundation, on building a library (21:56)

3: Tony Grayson, Director of Antonblast for Summit Sphere, on platformers (36:08)

4: Laura Michet, Narrative Director of Blendo Games and writer of Skin Deep, on comedy in video games (50:05)

5: Brendon Chung, Creative Director of Skin Deep from Blendo games, on signposting in immersive sims (01:02:03)

6: Chris Pruett, Director of Games at Meta, on modern horror games (01:17:35)

7: Brandon Sheffield, Writer and Director of Demonschool, on AI and being home from GDC (01:29:00)

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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Our heroes convene to discuss the changes at Microsoft and Sony, the liberation of Cookie’s Bustle, and the Year of the Horse.

Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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SHOW NOTES:

1: What does the landscape of console gaming look like now and in the future? (03:58)

2: When in a video game would you prefer to play as yourself, versus a character with a distinct personality? (12:45)

3: If you had to lock in video game aesthetics forever, would that point be right now, or another time? (17:36)

4: What was the endgame for the Cookie’s Bustle patent troll? (23:59)

5: Frank, talk about the weird NextFest experience you had (32:03)

6: The AV Club’s Catherine Masters asks: Happy year of the horse! What does a AAA horse game on the level of Forza or God of War look like? (41:34)

7: The AV Club’s Catherine Masters asks, what would the Pink Pony Club be like as a place in a game? (48:52)

LIGHTNING ROUND: Year of the Horse - Mane Six (54:56)

Recommendations and Outro (01:01:06):

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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The panel reviews Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures, deeming it the most British Japanese game ever, and potentially the future of video games. Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums

SHOW NOTES:

1: Why is this game like this? (06:16)

2: If you had to live in a house shaped like a video game character, who would it be? (38:53)

3: What other video game sequels take such a big swing they deserve the subtitle “the New Adventures?” (41:08)

4: Spencer Gifts asks, should Zelda style game be called adventure games or should point and click games be called adventure games? (46:56)

5: Let’s talk about the hot girl in Pac-Man 2. (52:56)

6: Let’s talk about the arcade segments stapled onto this game. (58:17)

7: Is this a good game? (01:03:37)

LIGHTNING ROUND: Name Design - The New Adventures (01:13:21)

Credit Report (01:21:06)

Recommendations and Outro (01:22:45):

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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Ash Parrish hosts the blackest episode of Insert Credit yet, with an all-star panel of former guests and contributors. Hosted by Ash Parrish, with Topher Florence, Vanessa B, and Pro Kesadia. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums

SHOW NOTES:

1: Is there still a place for live service games right now? (05:01)

2: Who should be the next Nintendo character to get hit with the baby ray? (13:46)

3: If you were taking up the mantle of MF Doom, what cartoons would you use in your skits? (17:42)

4: Who is the “I would have voted for Obama for a third time” of video games? (20:51)

Insert Credit Quick Break: Brenton Woodrow’s Marathon (25:35)

5: Alex Jaffe asks, which 21st century video games would be best for a 1980’s DiC-style cartoon? (26:52)

6: Brandon Sheffield asks, why is the Sega Genesis for black people? (31:51)

LIGHTNING ROUND: Cookout (38:09)

Recommendations and Outro (52:50):

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by Brenton Woodrow’s Marathon and patrons like you. Thank you.

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