Literate Gamer

Nick and Trevor regale Jonathan with the simple joys of zombie dismemberment in Dead Island 2, a worthy successor, if a bit delayed.

Jonathan and Nick recount purging lots of heretics in Inquisitor: Martyr, a great action game with a few rough edges, but absolutely lives up to the standards of the Warhammer 40K franchise lore. If you're new to lore, don't miss Luetin's channel. https://www.youtube.com/@Luetin09

Nick regales Jonathan with his experience of Forespoken, a decent enough action game, but the aspirations of open world and story evaporating in the sunlight.

Jonathan and Nick revisit the free new major content drop for Valheim "Mistlands". New weapons, new enemies, new materials, lots of new geography, and magic!

Sethatos returns to talk about Dwarf Fortress, now on Steam, thanks to KitFox games. Still the best home for all of your war-rhinocerous needs.

Jonathan describes the inventory-optimizing Roge-Like "BackPack Hero". Lots of fun if you're a huge nerd. :)

Jonathan describes the wonders of the new Rogelike deckbuilder "Inscryption". It's wonderfully atmospheric, and a remarkable blend of mechanics and narrative.

Jonathan expounds on the state of the podcast, Sundered: Eldritch Edition comes to the Nintendo Switch, and Elden Ring final thoughts.

Jonathan and Nick discuss Diablo Immortal, and dopamine machines generally, if they can be good, and the future of the industry.

Jonathan recounts the delightful and relaxing tile countryside builder 'DorfRomantik', on Steam now.

Jonathan and Nick discuss the pitch perfect vampire action/base-crafting game 'V Rising'. The name may be ridiculous, but the game is fun and flawlessly themed, aimed squarely at those seeking to wet their fangs playing a classic vampire.

Jonathan gushes about the inclusive and delightful dating-action romp, Boyfriend Dungeon.

Jonathan and Nick talk about Tiny Tina's Winderland, a goofy, first-person, looter-shooter: the first good successor to Borderlands 2 in quite some time.

Jonathan recounts the joy of Kingdom: Two Crowns, a wonderful follow-up and enhancement to the original work. A pleasant and fruitful continuation of the series.

Nick regails Jonathan of the joys and tribulations of Horizon: Forbidden west, highs lows, and lots of bows.

Jonathan expounds on comfort food games and electronic self-care.

Nick regales Jonathan with the latest Rune Factory, and the strange and surprising choices within this entry in the series.

Jonathan recounts the tiny twinkling gem of Vampire Survivors, fun for anyone with a few bucks and a love for a CastleVania-feeling rogue-lite.

Jonathan and Nick discuss Humankind, the era-spanning, turn-based, empire-building game to truly rival the Civilization franchise. This one is legitimately good, and you should get it.

Jonathan recounts the wonderful experience of the wide-ranging techno-fantasy romp "Phoenotopia Awakening". It's a deep, well-written, and overall incredibly fun game for a very agreeable price.

Jonathan and Nick discuss the late game of Elden Ring: hard learned lessons, giant birds, our troubles, and our joys. Wondrous lore: https://www.youtube.com/c/VaatiVidya A great Elden Ring Wiki: https://eldenring.wiki.fextralife.com/Elden+Ring+Wiki

Jonathan expounds on the action sidescroller rogue-light "Dead Cells": lots of fun, especially as a snowman!

Jonathan and Nick froth and gibber about the new and amazing Elden Ring, open world successor to the Dark Souls, and an absolute triumph. Not perfect, but absolutely worth it, even if you haven't ever played any of them before. Get it. Do it now.

Jonathan discusses Mega Man X 4 and 5, fresh from the Mega Man X legacy collections on the switch, preserving fond memories and playing experiences of classic platformers: loyal to the franchise with more content and minor tweaks.

Jonathan recounts the joy of pummeling a hundred evildoers to Nick in the new game Sifu, a mechanical masterpiece that is 100% loyal to the kung-fu theme.

Nick recounts his experiences with Crusader Kings 3, the Royal Court expansion, a bubbling pot of organic experiences in feudal mostly-Europe. Bring on the parade of wars, disinheritance, and assassin-nuns.

The Literate Gamer book club finishes the last book in the Dune series written by Frank Herbert, ChapterHouse Dune. A lot of weird ideas, strangely assembled; who can say they're surprised?

Nick and Jonathan discuss Icarus, a novel take on survival crafting, introducing a mission system, with pleasing results, though a bit of balance at the top is needed. Quite fun, and content updates are forthcoming.

Jonathan recounts the magnificence of Metroid Dread for the Nintendo Switch, a glorious sequel to Metroid Fusion: everything you want from a Metroid game, completely loyal to the franchise and gobs of fun to play!

The gang discusses Heretics of Dune, a welcome source of politics and action after God-Emperor, if unfocused, and full of more of the novel weirdness we've all come to expect from Frank Herbert.

Jonathan and Nick discuss League of Legends and Wild Rift, the incredibly successful MOBA properties of Riot Games, and the wonders and flaws therein.

The gang discusses God Emperor of Dune, the philosophical conclusion to Frank Herbert's political thesis, though not the series. Meaning comes to the patient, or at least orgasms.

Nick regales Jonathan with the bizarre Arkane Studios shooter 'DeathLoop', and its novel narrative and mechanical devices.

In this week's Dune book club, we discuss Children of Dune, a good book, though our sourness at what flaws do exist reach epic proportions, and once again Jonathan misses the orgy.

Nick recounts his experience to Jonathan of Elden Ring, the new FromSoft open world vehicle, and whether it's loyal to the franchise(s), and above all, if it's good.

Jonathan recounts the delicious ridiculous Warhammer 40K gem of Real-Time-Strategy 'Dawn of War'. That intro video gives me chills every time! https://store.steampowered.com/app/4570/Warhammer_40000_Dawn_of_War__Game_of_the_Year_Edition/ Dawn of War with all DLC: https://store.steampowered.com/sub/30560/

Jonathan and Nick discuss Kena: Bridge of Spirits, a fun 3rd-person action puzzler with incredible art and some adorable little buddies.

The Book Club gang discuss the 2021 Dune movie by Denis Villeneuve, a smashing success by all metrics, other than one wailing woman.

Jonathan and Nick discuss Asymmetric Multiplayer, a blooming young game type, often involving predators, aliens, zombies, and a wide assortment of famous murderers.

The book club discusses part 3 of Dune, containing the political climax, with lots of bizarre innovations: some breathtaking, others disappointing, but still a great and fantastic book, and once again Jonathan misses the orgies. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_9DDewKiZhpkrlXv2yGRbEKEI_Ma1JvH https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRXGGVBzHLUeKJACdXs8zxQde31wpnqKv https://www.youtube.com/c/QuinnsIdeas

Literate Gamer revisits where it all began: Demon's Souls, specifically the Blue Point remake for the PS5. It is a faithful and beautiful recreation, loyal, with little extra in just the right places.

The Dune book club continues in part 2, where Paul and Jessica enter the desert, he has a family (theoretically?), and somehow Jonathan misses an orgy.

Nick regales Jonathan with the first-person multiplayer shooter Aliens FireTeam Elite, a fun game and faithful use of the IP.

The gang discusses the first part of the classic sci-fi novel Dune, the original text, how it was, how it is: ahead of its time, but also a product of it.

Jonathan and Nick speak with Justin from TheTallGuyGamer about Returnal, a haunting experience of platforming, bullet-hell, and don't forget despair, desperation, and madness. This game is a masterpiece, and incredibly strong early entry for the PS5. Check out more of Justin's good works on YouTube, or his featured post on Destructoid: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkqmxgDz3GpV2fvFiHE5XNQ https://www.destructoid.com/video-game-memories-throughout-the-years/

Jonathan recounts the serene-yet-intense side-scrolling tower defense game Kingdom: New Lands, a delightful diversion for a few hours per run, at an extremely affordable price.

Jonathan and Nick speak with El Whitcomb, Community Manager for Ox-Eye Media, which includes DeepWater Games, and their fantastically fun and accessible games, named FloorPlan and Welcome to your Perfect Home. Also Hot new games coming soon! DeepWaterGaming.com @DeepWaterGames

Jonathan recounts and wonderful gameplay experience of Rogue Legacy: charming, fun, and a great rogue-lite all around.

Nick and Jonathan speak with Matt Forbeck, a truly phenomenal font of creativity, writer of dozens of books, contributor to scads of games, including BioMutant and the upcoming tabletop Marvel role-playing game, and of course his own Shotguns and Sorcery. Check out everything at Forbeck.com.

Jonathan recounts the joy of Castle Crashers, a fun, brilliantly-animated beat-em-up, great for couch co-op, or as a solo experience.

Jonathan and Nick discuss Marvel's Avengers, Read Dead Online, and other live service games. In each are some successes, some failures, noble attempts, and bad behavior. A few rays of hope pierce the gloom.