#10b - Adorable Small Business Tyrant Simulator
The Blood Zone
Alex Ross (@Alexrosswrites) returns for part two of this examination of the indie game world via a few documentaries for part two. this time we cover the post-indie boom from around 2015-now. first we look at depressing vanity project/indie survival story "Surviving Indie" from late 2016, then we look at a surprisingly quality documentary about the indie game scene in China called "Indie Games In China" from 2018. and then in an ill-advised move... we look at this year's E3 "Wholesome Direct" stream.
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#10a - White Collar Mario From The Future
The Blood Zone
hey everyone! for the 10th episode i've brought game academic and writer Alex Ross on board for part one of a punishingly long journey relitigating all the ridiculous things of independent game development scenes past via a few documentaries.
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#09 - We'll Be Middle-Aged Children (But So What)
The Blood Zone
hi folks! it's 2021 now, i guess. perfect time to get back into the Cinderella story of a bunch of middle aged guys who hit the big time from the city of Dayton, Ohio.... Guided By Voices. specifically i focus on what i consider the strangest and most unique album of their catalog, 1993's Vampire on Titus.
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#08 - Hurtling Over Peak Videograme
The Blood Zone
it's a video...grames episode! i briefly talk about cool oddball that very much bear the mark of their creators: the colorful and goofy Super Bogus World (which has a new sequel) and the very unsettling Pagan: Autogeny.
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#07 - The Great Sea Swallows Her Whole For A Treat
The Blood Zone
greetings and apologies for the time between episodes! the music industry facing a severe downturn because of the recent pandemic and the general deluge of traumatic news has made me reflect more on smaller, more understated artistic triumphs as an antidote.
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#06 - Enduring Mock Funerals
The Blood Zone
a journey through the myth, the legend, the phenomenon Travel Channel tv show and Ghost Bro hunter sanctum Ghost Adventures featuring special guest Ian Williams.
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#05 - Remixed Down In The Scab Hole
The Blood Zone
hello fellow dark voyagers of the great beyond,
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#04 - That's A Dead Kid
The Blood Zone
welcome back, universe!
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#03 - Third Eye Wide Blind
The Blood Zone
greetings! on this very chunky special episode, i rewatched Stanley Kubrick's final film Eyes Wide Shut (1999) and talk about its various allusions and resonances to the modern day hell world we are all trudging through. major spoilers for the film.
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#02 - Trapped Inside A Soul Cube
The Blood Zone
my brain is forever infected by worms after 15 hours of Soul Axiom, the Southland Tales of videogames... maybe? it's a bizarre and clunky videogame released in 2016 that is far more ambitious than it has any right to be. because my mind is a prison now, i talk Jeffrey Epstein, eugenics, corny indie game cliches, and the tech world. uhh oh yeah, and also a lot about Soul Axiom. is it a good game? is it a bad game? is it a "so bad it's good" game? who the hell knows anymore.
info_outlinewriter and academic Alex Ross (@Alexrosswrites) returns for part two of our examination of the indie game world via a few documentaries. this time we cover the post-indie boom, aka the time of the "indiepocalypse" and beyond from 2015 till today. first we look at the depressing vanity project/indie survival story "Surviving Indie" from late 2016, then we look at a dense but surprisingly quality documentary about the indie game scene in China called "Indie Games In China" aka "Alonewalk" from 2018 and talk about the endlessly complex landscape for game development in China. and then... we do the ill-advised and look at this year's E3 "Wholesome Direct" stream, a subject of much intense discourse.
things referenced in the episode:
"Spinning is winning" a research paper that Alex is a co-author on: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1469540521993931
2017 Failure Workshop at GDC featuring Tim Rogers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H67itWCG1JY
Surviving Indie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7CWZhhBMSo
news article about Ryan Zehm: http://ireader.olivesoftware.com/Olive/iReader/IdahoStatesmanPress/SharedArticle.ashx?document=ISM%5C2016%5C01%5C25&article=Ar00108
Ryan Zehm's sneaking into GDC video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF2NlwJjEm0
Indie Games in China (aka Alonewalk): https://store.steampowered.com/app/825400/Indie_Games_in_China/
EGM article about the state of China's indie game scene: https://egmnow.com/the-closing-walls-around-chinas-independent-game-development-scene/
long video essay by youtuber NeverKnowsBest on the Chinese indie scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VrTZ_UeUxM
Gao Ming's ludum dare page: https://ldjam.com/users/gao-ming/games
2021 E3 Wholesome Direct stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ozqhc7YXd3M
article in the verge on "The Rise of Wholesome Games": https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/10/21172972/games-wholesome-themes-uwu-frog-detective-wattam-sokpop-keita-takahashi
People Make Games video on Zach Barth and Minecraft: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__Nq2vNcpIo
as always, you can support this podcast (and me) on patreon at https://www.patreon.com/ellaguro
outro music is "Home" from the FEZ ost by Disasterpeace
intro music (as always) is "Museum Agony" from the Stretch Panic ost by Norio Hanzawa