Playing With Form

Originally created as a response to the question "Are video games art?", Playing With Form is a painstakingly-produced sonic research paper appreciating the medium, and investigating what it has to offer.

Episode 10: Where the Magic Happens 09/11/2025

Episode 10: Where the Magic Happens Ready for action! This episode, "Where the Magic Happens", is all about small sound cues, how our brain processes them, and how a specific genre, and series, makes the most of them. This is the kind of show you can listen to out of order, but I’d recommend listening to the first episode at some point. It explains why this podcast exists, and was a lot of fun to make. And if you end up buying Warcraft 3 because of this episode, be warned: the current remastered version (Reforged) changed the audiovisuals for the worse, but luckily, player feedback got them to add classic graphics and more importantly, a classic sounds toggle. Switch those on, it really does make a difference. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/38188195

Episode 9: Behind the Closed Door 11/21/2024

Episode 9: Behind the Closed Door A late Halloween special, because I'm not great at time management. In this episode, "Behind the Closed Door", I talk about tools of the trade for horror writers, and we're getting Lovecraftian about it. Some things to look forward to: A house containing a bug of variable size, a completely normal hike through the woods, and me hamming it up the whole time. This is the kind of series you can listen to out of order, but I’d recommend listening to the first episode at some point. It explains why this podcast exists, and was a lot of fun to make. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/34079001

Episode 8: Know Your Limits 07/09/2024

Episode 8: Know Your Limits Another one! In this episode, "Know Your Limits", I talk about a whole heap of things, but mainly save points. Some things to look forward to this time: A boss fight decades in the making, Link putting on pants, and a conversation between three thinkers who have never met. This is the kind of series you can listen to out of order, but I’d recommend listening to the first episode at some point. It explains why this podcast exists, and was a lot of fun to make. And I got some links for you all, both interviews with Satoshi Nakai, both very different, and both very worthwhile. - The switch port of this SNES mecha platformer comes with this lovely interview covering Nakai's history, and his approach to mecha visual design. Thanks to the ShiryuGL youtube channel for capturing the footage. - A very different interview, including the sections on horror and limits that I mentioned, but also his version of Stephen King's argument in "What's Scary?", and more focused discussion on his Resident Evil monster/character designs. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/32064327

Episode 7: The Building Blocks of Life 02/25/2023

Episode 7: The Building Blocks of Life The triumphant return of Playing With Form! In this episode, "The Building Blocks of Life", I talk about composition. Some things to look forward to this time: Music written and performed on a Nintendo DS emulator, a suspiciously important 2 years of game design, and multiple literal interpretations of the term "worldbuilding". This is the kind of series you can listen to out of order, but I’d recommend listening to the first episode at some point. It explains why this podcast exists, and was a lot of fun to make. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/26040504

Episode 6: To See With Your Ears 04/15/2020

Episode 6: To See With Your Ears The sixth episode, talking about the practical and philosophical merits of game sound. Some things to look forward to this time: Poetry from inside the womb, a commentated romp through the underworld, and repurposed film theory. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/13993838

Episode 5: A Story About A Story About A Tree 12/07/2019

Episode 5: A Story About A Story About A Tree The fifth episode, ruminating on human connection and the mushrooming of ideas. Some things to look forward to this time: Amateur philosophy and virtual film noir, all framed by the world's most boring Let's Play. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/12313439

Episode 4: Where to Draw the Line 08/30/2019

Episode 4: Where to Draw the Line The fourth episode, talking about music, and the concept of nonlinear media. Some things to look forward to this time: A Final Fantasy X rant, the merits of virtual radio, and a Russian composer very much out of his element. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/11052098

Episode 3: An Ode to Gibberish 05/22/2019

Episode 3: An Ode to Gibberish The third episode, exploring voice and identity. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/9884852

Episode 2: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Random Number 05/22/2019

Episode 2: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Random Number The second episode, discussing random number generation. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/9884579

Episode 1: To Do is To Be 05/22/2019

Episode 1: To Do is To Be The very first episode of Playing With Form, laying out the show's mission statement, and explaining the diegetic world. /episode/index/show/playingwithform/id/9884132

Playing With Form

TOPICS