Continuing our coverage of IFComp 2017, we’ve played a dozen more games. Check out past two episodes for an intro to IFComp and our first batch of this year’s games. Let us know what caught your attention from this year’s competition!

Games covered:

00:01:26 Insignificant Little Vermin by Filip Hracek

00:11:16 Domestic Elementalism by fireisnormal

00:17:24 Salt by Gareth Damian Martin

00:25:22 Unit 322 (Disambiguation) by Jonny Muir

00:31:42 The Wand by Arthur DiBianca

00:40:39 Deshaun Steven’s Ship Log by Marie L. Vibbert

00:46:49 Hexteria Skaxis Qiameth by Gabriel Floriano

00:52:57 Measureless to Man by Ivan R.

01:00:29 Transient Skies by dgtziea

01:08:06 Swigian by Rainbus North

01:11:51 Nyna Lives by Sarah Rhiannon Nowack

01:15:29 The Dragon Will Tell You Your Future Now by Newsreparter

01:21:11 Outro

Also discussed:

Sorcery! series

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Your hosts this week were:

• (00:00) - Intro

Our coverage of IFComp 2017 finally begins in earnest, with impressions of a dozen of the incredible 79 games entered this year.

If you’re new to IFComp or interactive fiction, check out our previous episode for an introduction.

Games covered:

00:03:06 Eat Me by Chandler Groover

00:11:50 a partial list of things for which i am grateful by Devon Guinn

00:14:01 The Unofficial Sea-Monkey(R) Simulation by B.J. Best

00:20:42 The Owl Consults by Thomas Mack, Nick Mathewson, and Cidney Hamilton

00:27:40 The Wizard Sniffer by Buster Hudson

00:37:47 Harmonia by Liza Daly

00:39:14 Will Not Let Me Go by Stephen Granade

00:47:14 1958: Dancing With Fear by Victor Ojuel

00:53:02 10pm by litrouke

00:56:40 The Living Puppet by Liu Zian

01:01:47 Grue. by Charles Mangin

01:03:13 Tuuli by Daurmith and Ruber Eaglenest

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

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Your hosts this week were:

• (00:00) - Intro

In this short episode we’re introducing our upcoming coverage of IFComp 2017 with an introduction to the competition and to interactive fiction for new players. We covered IFComp in both 2015 and 2016, and this year we’re preparing for the best and biggest year the competition has ever had. Join us on our next episode for reviews and reactions to some of the games of 2017.

Want to learn more? Here are a few of our past episodes on IF:

Guides for IF Beginners:

How to Play Interactive Fiction (An Entire Strategy on a Postcard)

Emily Short’s Guide to Interactive Fiction (PDF)

IFComp – About IF

History of the Festival

http://ifwiki.org/index.php/Mathbrush

The twine invasion of 2012 (most interesting moment in the recent history of the comp)

http://www.intfiction.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=22855

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Your hosts this week were:

Nex Machina is an arcade shooter with an incredible pedigree. Super Stardust developer Housemarque teamed up with video game legend Eugene Jarvis, creator of games like Defender, Robotron 2048, and Smash TV to create a modern dual-stick shooter with obvious arcade influences.

Shane and Raygan discuss the game, their history with the dual stick shooter genre, and a few other notable games to check out if you like arcade shooters.

Nex Machina is available on Steam and PS4 for $19.99. It has an arcade structure designed around frequent re-plays and high scores. Expect it to take about two hours to complete a play through, though this will vary widely by difficulty level and ability.

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Your hosts this week were:

Gotta go fast! This episode we’re talking about Sonic Mania, the first Sonic the Hedgehog game in years to recapture the feeling of the original 2D Sonic games. We discuss our history as Sonic fans, the fascinating development story behind the game, and how Sonic Mania measures up as part of the Sonic series.

[00:00:00] The Short Game The Hedgehog

“___ the Hedgehog” Google Image Results:

Raygan the Hedgehog:

Shane the Hedgehog:

Nate the Hedgehog:

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• (00:00) - The Short Game The Hedgehog