Games We Have Known And Loved

Alice O'Connor on Dota 2: “…there is nothing more satisfying than that very British thing of being overwhelmingly polite to someone who is very rude to you…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("alice_oconnor_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/alice_oconnor.mp3"});

James Wallis on Rez: …do you know about the Trance Vibrator?…“ (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("james_wallis_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/james_wallis.mp3"});

Joel Goodwin on World Of Goo: …you’re part of a very giant vast universe. You’re a tiny thing. You can hardly understand it’s majesty…“ (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("joel_goodwin_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/joel_goodwin.mp3"});

Fernando Ramallo on Ninja: “… It never happened with any other game before – that feeling of community, of ambiance…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("fernando_ramallo_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/fernando_ramallo.mp3"});

Bennett Foddy on Pyro 2 (& Crusader Kings 2 & others): “…what I love about it is that everything in the game is completely literal….” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("bennett_foddy_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/bennett_foddy.mp3"});Full rousing manifesto version (with praise for ZiGGURAT)

Andrew Sheerin on Junta: “… it feels like it shouldn’t work, but it’s just such good fun to play - as it relies on trusting untrustworthy people….” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("andrew_sheerin_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/andrew_sheerin.mp3"});

Ed Key on Pandemic: “…the way the cards come out really dramatically affects the landscape of the game….” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("ed_key_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/ed_key.mp3"});

Robert Yang on Thirty Flights Of Loving: “…It’s one of the most important games made in the last twenty years. Thirty years. Forty. Thirty years….” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("robert_yang_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/robert_yang.mp3"});(or click here for a longer version, with the full drunken wander through the streets of Soho)

Tom Francis on Dark Messiah of Might and Magic “…it’s like being in a film where everyone wants the film to be spectacular…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("tom_francis_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/tom_francis.mp3"});

David Kanaga on a game of musical improvisation he plays: “…if at any point someone becomes bored, they ding the bell, read the next card, and the next game is played…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("david_kanaga_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/david_kanaga.mp3"});

Rudolf Kremers on Quake: “…you could just walk around, look at the environment, no pressure…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("rudolf_kremers_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/rudolf_kremers.mp3"});

Kit Richardson on King’s Quest VI: “… all I remember is the sound of midi waves, and the occasional seagull noise, and just serious levels of frustration …” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("kit_richardson_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/kit_richardson.mp3"});

Jenn Frank on Berzerk: “…And it wasn’t until I was demonstrating Berzerk for my friend Brian that I realized – I’ve been playing it wrong in every way…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("jenn_frank_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/jenn_frank.mp3"});(half hour extended interview edition : hear Jenn try out the game the “proper” way)

Lewie Procter on zooming (in Spore, R.U.S.E. and Osmos): “…and then when you zoom out to the next level, it’s generals stood around it in a war room, with units represented by counters on a table…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("lewie_procter_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/lewie_procter.mp3"});

Quintin Smith on Pathologic: “…and he never found out – none of us ever found out what it was!…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("quintin_smith_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/quintin_smith.mp3"});

Ben Milsom on Mos Speedrun: “…you just feel like you’ve completely mastered these controls…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("ben_milsom_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/ben_milsom.mp3"});

Rami Ismail on Gorillas: “…I changed a number somewhere. I think I changed it from 1 into 2. And suddenly all the bananas went twice as high…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("rami_ismail_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/rami_ismail.mp3"});(Gorillas source can be found here) **** BONUS CONTENT : Rami couldn’t stop talking, so there’s also another 20 minutes where we discuss Fez, Journey, Minecraft, Sword and Sworcery, Starcraft, Transport Tycoon, Metal Gear Solid, Mass Effect and bad sci-fi books. “…try to make 5 minutes out of it…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("rami_ismail_extended_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/rami_ismail_extended.mp3"});

Patrick Ashe on Deadly Premonition: “…you spend weeks waiting in a graveyard for it to rain so you can catch a specific type of fish…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("patrick_ashe_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/patrick_ashe.mp3"});

Aubrey Hesselgren on Star Wars: TIE Fighter: “…T-ALPHA ONE IS THE EMPEROR’S STOOL PIGEON!…” (mp3) (audio player in full post) AudioPlayer.embed("aubrey_hesselgren_player", {soundFile: "http://nottheinternet.com/bestgamedesign/audio/aubrey_hesselgren.mp3"});