20: Being a Dude vs Being a Guy
Side Story
The winter is here and our love of warmth means that we're stuck inside, dreaming of greener pastures. Greener pastures like: "A train that you can make prettier" and "A frozen over dystopia where you are forced out into the cold to deliver pizzas and televisions." Hey, wait a minute... Show Notes Chapters 00:00 Introduction 02:33 Spatial Puzzles (Kanoodle, IQ Gears, IQ Circuit) 08:10 Locomoto 27:19 Locomoto Full Game Spoilers 56:07 Easy Delivery Co. Featuring Austin Walker, Janine Hawkins, and Jack de Quidt Produced by Austin Walker
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19: Silent Hill f Spoilercast
Side Story
Happy 2026! We're kicking the year off (a little belatedly) with what would've been Ali's 2025 Main Story Award winning Silent Hill f. She's joined by Keith and Jack as they talk (with full spoilers) about the first new full length Silent Hill game in over a decade. Featuring , , Produced by Austin Walker
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The 2025 Main Story Awards 05: The Purpose Of Gameplay Is To Hide Secrets Award and More!
Side Story
Welcome to the inaugural Main Story Awards, Side Story's end-of-year sendoff to the games and topics that captivated our attention this year. Look forward to a new short episode Every Day This Week! Today you'll be hearing from Jack, Keith, and Austin as they discuss (the) Blue Prince, before Keith tags out for Sylvi, so that we can end the year chatting about Horses (the game and, briefly, the animal). Show Notes Featuring , , , and Produced by Austin Walker
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The 2025 Main Story Awards 04: The Yes Nostalgia! and No Nostalgia! Awards
Side Story
Welcome to the inaugural Main Story Awards, Side Story's end-of-year sendoff to the games and topics that captivated our attention this year. Look forward to a new short episode Every Day This Week! Today you'll be hearing from Dre, Art, and Keith who are bringing us Yes Nostalgia! and No Nostalgia! awards! Featuring , , and Produced by Austin Walker
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The 2025 Main Story Awards 03: The Best-Yet Version of a Game That Isn't What I Truly Want Award
Side Story
Welcome to the inaugural Main Story Awards, Side Story's end-of-year sendoff to the games and topics that captivated our attention this year. Look forward to a new short episode Every Day This Week! Today you'll be hearing from Keith, Janine, and Austin who are bringing us The Best-Yet Version of a Game That Isn't What I Truly Want Award! Show Notes Featuring , , and Produced by Austin Walker
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The 2025 Main Story Awards 02: The Feel the Love Award
Side Story
Welcome to the inaugural Main Story Awards, Side Story's end-of-year sendoff to the games and topics that captivated our attention this year. Look forward to a new short episode Every Day This Week! Today you'll be hearing from Sylvi and Jack, who are bringing us the Feel the Love Award. Show Notes Featuring and Produced by Austin Walker
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The 2025 Main Story Awards 01: The Clockwork World Award
Side Story
Welcome to the inaugural Main Story Awards, a week long showcase where we make up awards to give the games and topics that really took center stage for us this year, and which we felt like deserved a little more attention than they already got on the show this year. It's not a traditional game of the year, but we did try to restrain ourselves to a single game or topic each, which means that there are definitely some things that were big that didn't get included. We'll have a short episode every day, normally, but not always, covering one game or topic suggested by a member of the cast....
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18: Your Mother's Delightful Bonanza
Side Story
Side Story only exists because of support from listeners like you. Go to to support us! Today we explore a bevvy of different worlds: 2.5D fantasy realms, alien FMV planets, and a land of climate apocalypse and raw nerve paranoia. Wait, that last one is... it's kind of sounding familiar. Oh well, get in, buckle up, and make sure to bring your favorite childhood food, because we've got places to go. Games discussed this episode: The Octopath Traveler series, Blippo+, No, I'm Not a Human, Horses (and the other games of Santa Ragione) Show Notes Chapters 00:00...
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17: A Buffer Arm and a More Traditional Hammer
Side Story
Mysterious internet occurances abound this week on Side Story. Mysteries like "What is the dark secret of the famed Roottree family, Pittsburghian candy magnates" and "Why did Austin's connection totally fall apart before we could reach the second half of the podcast?" Like all good mysteries, the twists and turns are just as exciting as the answer, as a stunning second segment appears, drawing the listener (you) in closer... closer... ever closer, until it is too late. Show Notes Chapters 00:00 Introduction 02:27 The Roottrees Are Dead 21:45 "AI" in Game Development 47:14 Back to The...
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16: Paradise Honk
Side Story
Between the barter system and the coin, there were other currencies. Cyrus the Great's Achaemenid Empire, which would one day stretchout from the Iranian plateau as far west as Egypt and north as the Aral Sea, used silver bullion when this-for-that wasn't an efficient enough means of trade. Could you decide who's paying for lunch on a flipped silver bar? Unsure. Perhaps, slightly later, the 'knife money' of the Zhou Dynasty or Old Chosŏn would be better suited for such chance game. Perhaps they tossed them straight up, wagering on them as they fell, to see if they'd stick in the ground. Yes,...
info_outlineAfter promising not to talk about the Summer Games Fest for too long, Janine, Keith, and Austin spend a full hour chatting about the event's resonance with various ongoing malaises and maladies affecting games culture. Then, finally, they dig into Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time. Has she also stolen their hearts, or is their dream game just a fantasy?
Show Notes
Unearthed Treasure Room Showcase
New Virtual Influencer Is Unbelievably Bad - Jarvis Johnson (Anna Indiana context)
Janine's Fantasy Life Witching Hour LP Playlist
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
01:40 Summer Games Fest & the Green Games Showcase
01:09:46 Break
01:09:52 FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time
02:07:08 Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma
02:10:15 Elden Ring: Nightreign
Featuring Austin Walker, Janine Hawkins, and Keith Carberry
Produced by Austin Walker