Blog Archives
Space-Cast! #19. Attacking the Bloc
In the midst of a time of social unrest, one game dares to investigate the polarities of popular protest. That game is Bloc by Bloc by T.L. Simons and Greg Loring-Albright. For today’s episode, join Dan, T.L., and Greg as we discuss how their game offers both contradiction and clarity in politics, violent and nonviolent disobedience, popular expropriation, and the danger of having an uprising stolen from under your feet. Bloc by Bloc: Uprising is currently funding on Gamefound.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #18. Game Design Wizard
For the first time ever,* game designer, instructor, writer, and overall wizard Geoff Engelstein appears on a podcast to discuss a trio of his games, along with some insider baseball. Join us as we discuss getting an author’s permission to treat a protagonist like a doofus, what it’s like to gamify a peace conference, and why “gravity” is one of the greatest gaming metaphors of the decade.
(*Not the first time ever.)
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #17. Making Magnates Work
What goes up must come down. That’s the proposition of James Naylor’s Magnate: The First City, the modern Monopoly that sees its housing boom through to the inevitable bust. Today, James joins Dan to chat about real estate development, game development, and what makes Humbleburg more of a “first” city than the many counter-examples that are undoubtedly popping into your head.
This month, we’re making a donation to the National Alliance to End Homelessness. Please consider making a donation of your own or searching for ways to help your local homeless community.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #16. A Nicaea Conversation
Nearly seventeen hundred years ago, a bunch of theology nerds were called together to answer one simple question: what is the nature of God? Their answer has shaped the way we’ve thought about the divine ever since. That’s the topic of Amabel Holland’s Nicaea, plus an irreverent twist or two. Today, Amabel joins us to chat about orthodoxy, heresy, and the politicking that happened in between the extremes all those years ago.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #15. Paleopalooza
There’s something dangerous in those bushes over there. A sabre-tooth tiger? A handful of poisonous berries? Nope, it’s designer Peter Rustemeyer, here to chat about the origins, development, and history of Paleo, 2021 winner of the prestigious Kennerspiel des Jahres.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #14. Mind Managed
For today’s “podcast,” our topic of discussion is everything about Mind MGMT by Sen-Foong Lim and Jay Cormier. Over the course of a single episode, we discuss Sen and Jay’s psychic powers, origin stories, and the process of designing, iterating, and activating latent psychic potential — sorry, I mean adapting Matt Kindt’s comic series.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #13. Lethargic Gods
This month on the Space-Biff! Space-Cast!, we’re joined by Ryan Laukat to discuss his latest game, Sleeping Gods! In the process, we also discuss open-world video games, open-world board games, and how to adapt the former into the latter.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps and further notes can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #12. Slavery and Emancipation
This month on the Space-Cast!, we’re investigating a difficult topic — the representation of slavery in board games. To help navigate these waters, we’re joined by Patrick Rael, Professor of History at Bowdoin College, to discuss how board games have depicted slavery in the past, what they’re doing right now, and how we can use them to learn about sensitive historical issues.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps and further notes can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #11. Beyond the Cardboard
As promised, today we’re talking about nothing but tech trees — specifically, Dennis Chan’s Beyond the Sun, a game about exploring the far reaches of the galaxy by climbing the branches of the humble technology tree. Along the way, we discuss some of Dennis’s inspirations, favorite tech systems, and whether Dan is bad at traversing outer space.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps can be found after the jump.
Space-Cast! #10. An Holy Kiss
Smooch! For the Space-Biff! Space-Cast!’s decepisode, today I’m joined by Ben Madison to discuss The Mission: Early Christianity from the Crucifixion to the Crusades. Along the way, we investigate religion as an inspiration in game design, including an examination of what happens when playthings, religious beliefs, history, and personal faith journeys intersect.
Listen over here or download here. Timestamps can be found after the jump.
SPACE-BIFF! 