Pixel Vision

Pixel Vision turns 50 with some earthshaking news, before Ben and Tao turn protector and carrier and take on the armies of Provence in A Plague Tale: Requiem, sequel to A Plague Tale: Innocence. The duo take opposing views as they discuss the contradiction between a didactic story and fun gameplay; why all in-game villains have caricature evil voices; how The Last Of Us sets the benchmark for effective storytelling in adventure games; if crafting, collectibles and upgrade elements are superfluous and interfere with a strong narrative; the influence of JK Rowling; force walk; and rats. Lots of rats.Every key story element is spoiled by the end, but the first 45 minutes are spoiler free and pretty much all spoilers are heavily forecast.Content Warning: PEGI 15. Coarse language, violent scenes, tragic developments.Clarifications:* The soundtrack to A Plague Tale: Requiem which features heavily is by French composer Olivier Deriviere, who also composed Greedfall, Alone in the Dark and Dying Light 2 among others. Ben's a fan: * The Arnaud aka Beast aka Wall confusion exhibited by both Tao and Ben is real, as testified to by several Reddit threads and errors in YouTube compilations. The Beast and the Wall are not the same guy:* https://www.reddit.com/r/APlagueTale/comments/yrz5an/when_it_comes_to_arnaud_and_the_beast/* https://www.reddit.com/r/APlagueTale/comments/z3njza/the_beast_arnaud/* https://www.reddit.com/r/PlagueTaleInnocence/comments/10cj2dq/major_spoiler_why_did_arnaud_become_hunted_by_the/* https://www.reddit.com/r/APlagueTale/comments/y6cx7o/a_plague_tale_requiem_chapter_vii_discussion/Audio extracts:* Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring* The Prodigy - Firestarter* The Last Of Us OST by Gustavo Santaolalla* The Godfather 3* Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King* Monty Python and the Holy Grail* Dame Vera Lynn - We'll Meet Again* Citizen Sleeper - Density* Disco Elysium OST* Fleetwood Mac - The Chain* The Revenant OST by Ryuichi Sakamoto* Wes Anderson Horror Trailer - SNL* Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)* Skyrim Level Up* Playstation 5 start up sound (reversed)* Wolcen Lords of Mayhem OST by Jean-Gabriel Raynaud & Cedric Baravaglio* Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels - “Chill Winston”* Pentiment OST by Alkemie* Dark Souls OST by Motoi Sakuraba* The Offspring - Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)* Brad Mehldau - Exit Music (For A Film), original by Radiohead* The Mouse Outfit - Money* The Elder Scrolls V: SkyrimSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.net Twitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.comPS. So long and thanks for all the fish (and the listening!) - Ben and Tao xx Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Ben and Tao dive into A Plague Ta - oh wait, no they don't, what's been going on?!Content Warning: PEGI 3. There's literally no content. WTAF.Clarifications:* Yeah, to be clear, nothing to see here.Audio extracts:* Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? composed by Matthew StrachanFind us at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Wake up, Citizen! Ben and Tao are in festive spirits as they dish out a Christmas feast of sci-fi turkey with roast story spoilers on the side and cranberry DLC toppings in dice rolling space adventure, Citizen Sleeper - to be clear, absolutely not a turkey, by any definition! Your boys riding the mic get lyrical, discussing the overlap between board games and video games, gaming achievements, romance and gender in RPGs, playing good and evil, characters you can root for, and, naturally, Pixel Vision's Christmas tradition… There's a multitude of story spoilers after our initial reactions and the Taomun-ologue.Content Warning: PEGI 12. Pretty PG this one. ‘Tis the season, innit.Clarifications:* Citizen Sleeper's excellent soundtrack is by Amos Roddy. It's available on Spotify: * Gareth Damian Martin talks to PCGamer about his personal experience relating to gender and its influence on the game's development.* The other game by Gareth Damian Martin and ‘Jump Over The Edge' studios is In Other Waters, which also looks really cool…Audio extracts:* Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring* The Twelve Days of Christmas - The King's Singers and The Tabernacle Choir* Slade - Merry Christmas Everybody* Disco Elysium OST* Weird Al Yankovic - Smells like Nirvana* The Beatles - All You Need Is Love* Kool & The Gang - Get Down On It* Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows* Icewind Dale 2* The Dark Knight* Free Guy* The Sopranos* Repo Men* Nina Simone - My Baby Just Cares For Me * Sunless Sea OST* Shaun of the Dead* Hearthstone OST* Observation OST* Paradise Killer OST by Barry "Epoch" Topping* In Other Waters OST - A Drifting Lens by Amos Roddy* A Plague Tale: Innocence OST* Frank Sinatra - Jingle BellsSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

The big wheel keeps on turningOn a simple line, day by dayThe earth spins on its axisOne man struggle while another relaxes~ Massive AttackBen and Tao are on a roll, fleeing the all flattening, deadening turn of the great wheel of time - or not time, just a massive, physics defying concrete cylinder crushing everything in its path for all eternity - aka The Eternal Cylinder. Your hosts try to make sense of the allegories therein, pondering metaphors and surrealism, story narration, procedurally generated landscapes, the perks of multiplayer gaming, and when an animal's trunk is not a trunk but a snoot. As usual the game's ending is outlined with some spoilers, but given the nature of the story, the gameplay impact would be minimal.Content Warning: PEGI 12. Swearing. Ranting. One offensively audible clip from the Teletubbies.Clarifications:* The UK's Teletubbies narrator was Tim Whitnall. This is a seriously disturbing show with an adult's eye.* Stephen Fry explains the story behind the ‘Pocketed It' compilation. (TL;DR - he stumbled over the phrase while narrating the Harry Potter audiobooks so JK Rowling inserted it into every subsequent book).* Ben enjoyed this take by Lewis Gordon of Vice: “I couldn't help but look back towards the gigantic cylinder, an image nearly bursting with allegorical possibilities. In a way, we're all the tiny Trebhum, doing whatever we can to postpone our eventual annihilation. In another, perhaps we—and I mean this in the humanity-encompassing sense of the word—are closer to the cataclysmic rolling pin, flattening and destroying everything we encounter.” And this one too: “For this time of gigantic crises we find ourselves in—none more so than that concerning the environment—it's a fitting allegory, a reminder of the power that resides in the collective, and that our differences are an asset, not a hindrance.” You can follow Lewis here if you haven't yet abandoned Twitter to the vultures and ashes.* If you nostalgia hard on the Zoombinis reference, we recommend this video ‘deep dive' into the game by GamesOnHardMode - it's worth it for the comments alone: * According to his Wikipedia entry, Peter Molyneux did not have any involvement in Creatures, Tao's memory playing up (again). It was created in the mid-1990s by English computer scientist Steve Grand.Audio extracts:* Dance of the Knights by Sergei Prokofiev aka The Apprentice theme* Other tracks from The Apprentice by Dru Masters* Sir Alan Sugar, also his fictional secretary, whose real name is Samantha Moon, not ‘Frances'.* Left 4 Dead OST* Apex Legends OST* Outer Wilds OST* Void Bastards* Midsomer Murders* Stephen Fry - ‘pocketed it' compilation* Baldur's Gate 2* Chicago - If You Leave Me Now* Blues Brothers - Everybody Needs Somebody to Love* David Cronenberg's ‘Crimes of the Future' trailer* Zoombinis* Creatures game SFX* Spore OST* Astroneer OST* Line of Duty TV Series - End Title themeSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

To explore what it means to be human, Ben and Tao play with a pussy - a personified cat with an AI drone sidekick - while befriending wannabe artistic bipedal robots in feline post-apocalyptic, post-Homo sapiens adventure tale, Stray. It's not all highfalutin social commentary though, they do get to remote detonate mutant bacteria with a light gun strapped to their teeny weeny cat vests. Analysis includes discussion of dystopian storytelling and tropes, the role of animals in games, children's storybooks, whether art is a uniquely human venture, Tom Hanks, prison escapes in games, plus Ben shares why he's not fond of cats or domesticated animals in general. As usual, some major story spoilers towards the end of the pod. If you're going to play it, it's recommended you do so before listening.Content Warning: PEGI 12. Cursing. Animal cruelty. Egregious cockney accents.Clarifications:* All music for Stray was composed by Yann van der Cruyssen* The collective noun for cats is, apparently, a ‘Clowder'. Doesn't roll off my tongue either. The collective noun Ben used, ‘Posse', is ‘a group of people armed with legal authority', for instance, policemen.* The Road is a dystopian novel by Cormac McCarthy. There's nothing ‘basic' about it. Ben regrets the term!* The book Tao is clutching for is not ‘The Earth Remains', an entirely different and unrelated novel by Shelley Burchfield, but sci-fi classic, Earth Abides, a 1949 American post-apocalyptic science fiction novel by George R. Stewart. It tells the story of the fall of civilization from deadly disease and the emergence of a new culture with simpler tools.* Kurt Zouma's personal contact details are… not really going to be published here. That was a joke. Read the room, or alternatively, this article about his crimes against cats.* Here's details on the prevention of migraines using vitamin B2, riboflavin.* Machinarium was not from Annapurna Interactive, it was Amanita Design. It was released in 2009.* Tom Hank's new movie is called A Man Called Otto* Prison escape features in Fable 1 and 3, but it's also a story element in Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, The Witcher 2, Metal Gear Solid, Splinter Cell: Double Agent, Deus Ex, Dragon Age: Origins, Resistance 3, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End and Dishonored to name just a few.Audio extracts:* Machinarium soundtrack by Tomas Dvorak* Prey* DePresno ft. Liv Dawson - Gold* Cats (2019)* Transporter 2* Half Life 2* Minions* Vinnie Jones and Ross Kemp in Extras* Jason Statham* Ocean's 11 and Ocean's 12 soundtracks, by David Holmes* The Quarantine Zone (20 Years Later) from The Last of Us OST by Gustavo Santaolalla* The Sixth Sense* Superbad* LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring* John Prine - Pretty Good* The Lion King* Eddie Vedder's ‘Tuolumne' from Into The Wild* Rush Hour and Rush Hour 2* Fallout 4 OST - Main Theme* The Police - Every Breath You Take* Alone Too Long - Daryl Hall and John Oates* Fable* Shawshank Redemption OST* Escape from Alcatraz* Blaktrix - Ironfist* Castaway* The Witcher* A Man Called Otto* Max Payne* Snowpiercer* Alex Jones ranting* Squeeze - Cool for Cats* Goat Simulator trailer* Halo Infinite - Zeta Halo* The Eternal Cylinder OST* Cats and Dogs - Dr Syntax and Pete CannonSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Happy Halloween! Ben and Tao wallow in corporate servitude and debt until unionisation galvanises them to join the intergalactic picket line in zen, outer space deconstruction simulator, Hardspace Shipbreaker. In addition to the usual breakdown of the game's story and gameplay mechanics, the duo get into gaming loops, micro objectives and puzzles, corporate megalomania and mandatory agreement to terms and conditions, the role of banter and companionship in games, dystopian retro futurism, and if gaming companies should use unsigned musicians for their soundtracks to foster more variety and cultivate new talent. Major story spoilers towards the end of the pod, but nothing detrimental to gameplay.Content Warning: PEGI 12. Institutional oppression, bosses from hell, occasionally explicit cursing.Clarifications:* All music for Hardspace Shipbreaker was composed by Blackbird Interactive, specifically Jono Grant, Traz Dimji, Ben McCullough, Philip J Bennett* Hardspace Shipbreaker was released on 16 June 2020* Tao was right about the navigation system in Myst. It's marginally different, but certainly comparable: * While digging out the South Park ‘terms and conditions' audio, I found this track by Seb Lowe which I think is worth sharing. Seems like a talented young guy: * According to the Nintendo product page, there are actually 500 different products in Wilmot's Warehouse* Owen Wilson says ‘Wow' compilation is, bizarrely, worth watching in full. It's absurd: * Vincent D'Onofrio, who acted Edgar in Men in Black (1997) is not the voice of Hal Rhodes. That honour goes to Adam Nurada.* ‘Welcome to Night Vale' is a twice-monthly podcast in the style of community updates for the small desert town of Night Vale, featuring local weather, news, announcements from the Sheriff's Secret Police, mysterious lights in the night sky, dark hooded figures with unknowable powers, and cultural events. Check out their website here: https://www.welcometonightvale.com/* Hypnospace Outlaw was our second ever episode and is available here. I like to think we've come a long way: Audio extracts:* Futurama theme* Half Life 2* Radiohead - Everything In Its Right Place from Kid A* 2001 A Space Odyssey* Men in Black - Farmer Edgar* Chuck Brodsky - Bill & Annie in full. Available for purchase here: * The Office - ‘Good news and bad news'* The Office - David Brent interviews Tim Canterbury* South Park - HumancentiPad - S15E01* Wilmot's Warehouse OST by Eli Rainsberry* Pigs In Space, The Muppets* Owen Wilson says ‘Wow' over and over* Welcome to Nightvale* Hypnospace Outlaw by Jay TholenSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.net Twitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Ben and Tao tug and pull each other - not like that - as they swing from leaf to bough to frog to swan, in stringy suburban couch co-op pendulous puzzler, Unravel Two. The duo break down exactly what they're looking for in a co-operative platformer and if this side scroller has all the right ingredients. Between comparisons to other co-op titles and nearly random film references, they talk friendship, fascism, faux urgency, the role of metaphors in story design, and of course their own interpretations of the Unravel Two plot. Plus, what makes a suitable audience, and why Ben's sudden interest in simulations may be linked to his new VR headset. Negligible spoilers.Content Warning: PEGI 12. Some bad language but not worse than your average playground. No violence. No sex. Good or bad? You decide! (And let us know in our Suggestion Box…)Clarifications:If it isn't obvious, the audio at the end is Ben and Tao narrating their own playthrough of Unravel Two. It's not the commentary track of an inappropriate DVD.Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) is a sci-fi comedy from Mark Duplass. Vengeance (2022) is a comedy film written and directed by B. J. Novak. Ben enjoyed it and recommends. You can see other films he liked (and hated) here: BennyViews.comTao references N! - game you can still play in browser here: https://www.thewayoftheninja.org/n.html (it's not as fun as everyone remembers it)We reviewed Overboard! Here: We reviewed It Takes Two here: We reviewed Astroneer here: We reviewed Greedfall here: Audio extracts:Monty Python - Bring Out Your DeadAl Bowlly - Goodnight ViennaSpanish Flea by Herb AlpertOverboard! Game (2021)The Amazing Spiderman - 1960's Cartoon themeThe Mighty Boosh - ‘Hold Me'Half-Life 2Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes by Liam SauvéIt Takes Two OSTAre we the baddies? - Mitchell and WebbWho Do You Think You Are Kidding Mr. Hitler by Jimmy Perry and Derek Taverner (Dad's Army theme)A Way Out game (2018)Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons game (2013)Portal OST - 'Still Alive' by Jonathan CoultonAstroneer OSTSafety Not Guaranteed (2012) feat. Mark DuplassGreedfall OST by Olivier DeriviereSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

In servitude to a higher power and with a mysterious brand to show for it, Ben and Tao dominate multiple characters (and creatures), fill their posse, and ride hard all over the weird west in Wild West twin stick shooter, action RPG, supernatural spin-off: Weird West. And that infantile summary is in no way representative of the content herein. Tumbleweed tumbles. Dust billows. High noon rings out from a nearby bell tower. “There ain't enough room in this personality for the both of us!” calls a voice, and Ben and Tao face off, eyes narrowed, hands hovering at gun belts, ready to quickdraw. They discuss in-game reputation; aim and controller systems; the role of incentives in gaming; loot, upgrades and skill trees in RPGs in general and if isometric RPGs face a unique difficulty in world building; independent journalism and the role of critics in general. Plus, Tao reveals a personal connection to the devs. Sorta. Basic story spoilers from around half way through, plus a major story spoiler (the ending!) which is very clearly flagged in advance.Content Warning: PEGI 15. Strong language and strong opinions from the start. And a Trump quote, for which we are very sorry.Clarifications:Interestingly, after both Ben and Tao criticised the gaming controls and aiming system - the devs just announced they're releasing a new aim mode. There's no suggestion these things are related.The film to which Tao refers depicting violent Native Americans is Bone Tomahawk (2015).We still don't know if it's possible to recruit Across Rivers to your posse if he is corrupted by the Spirit of Greed during his storyline.Audio extracts:ITV Take Me Out - TV Show theme and intro feat. Paddy McGuinnessBite Your Crush - Monster Prom OSTThe Wanted - I Found You (as heard in ITVs Take Me Out)Calamity Jane from ‘Deadwood'The former and possibly soon to be incarcerated President of the USLy O Lay Ale Loya (Circle Dance)Vince Noir from The Mighty Boosh says, ‘Oh Yeah'Weird West OST performed by Weird Wolves and Choose HellthArcanum - Main Theme from OSTSpider-man (2002)Baldur's Gate - Main Theme from OSTDISHONORED - Main Theme by Daniel LichtThe Pink Panther theme song by Henry ManciniThe Sword of a Thousand Truths - South ParkI Need A Dollar - song by Aloe BlaccDragon Age 2 - Main theme from OSTDollar - song by Electric GuestOne Pound Fish! Meme song. Turns out this guy made a music video out of this meme. All the power to him: Morrowind OST - main themeCommandos: Beyond The Call Of Duty main menu musicCommandos character voicesDesperados 3 OST - main themeGame creator, Raphael Colantonio, talks about implementing the aiming system and how it nearly broke the game's development. More in this Gamespot vidNuclear Throne OST - main themeOptions - song by GomezFallout 3 Soundtrack - I don't want to set the World on Fire'Bodied (2017) - brilliant film, check it out if you didn't alreadyBone Tomahawk (2015)Jeannie's Diary - song by EelsDeath Stranding OST - main themeWolcen: Lords of Mayhem OSTSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.net Twitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Ben and Tao think therefore they are, getting mindfully and consciously philosophical, in 2015’s subaquatic survival horror existential crisis cultivator, SOMA. The conversation gets as deep as the abyss, with topics covering euthanasia; the nature of human existence, consciousness and digital transcendence; different forms of horror - the horrifying and the horrendous; artificial intelligence, super intelligence, digital taps and the Paperclip Maximizer hypothetical; and the concept of the ‘Human Black Box’ to document the last seconds of people’s lives. Plus, Tao becomes the second person to diagnose Ben with Oppositional Defiant Disorder. Tao is not a doctor. Caution: a crap ton of story spoilers from early in the pod. They are forecast in advance.Content Warning: PEGI 15. Swearing, sounds of screaming. Tao’s tap. The horror, the horror…Clarifications:SOMA was released on September 22, 2015. It’s a sci-fi horror game from Frictional Games, the creators of Amnesia: The Dark Descent.The name SOMA is not an acronym, it originates from the Greek word σῶμα (soma) which refers to the body, specifically the body as distinct from the mind or the soul.Robert Nozick was an American philosopher.The Paperclip Maximizer is a thought experiment described by Swedish philosopher Nick Bostrom, author of the book Superintelligence.Audio extracts:Windows XP start up and shut down soundsUpgrade (2018) feat. Logan Marshall GreenThe Magnificent Seven theme by Elmer Bernstein performed by Cincinnati Pops Orchestra and Erich KunzelThe Ricky Gervais Show feat. Stephen Merchant, Ricky Gervais and Karl PilkingtonNat King Cole - There Will Never Be Another YouThe countdown timer from ‘24’A Real Hero - College & Electric YouthThe Last of Us OST - The Quarantine Zone (20 Years Later) by Gustavo SantaolallaCéline Dion - All By MyselfClippy - Office XP launch, 2001Amnesia: The Dark Descent OST by Mikko TarmiaTexas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)Return of the Obra Dinn OST by Lucas PopeOuter Wilds - Angler Fish soundsThe Manchurian Candidate (2004)BioshockSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Penal denizens Ben and Tao lower their visors and enter the airlock, ready to race against time and depleting oxygen, evade security cameras, turrets and warbots, and massacre all manner of space monsters in the droll and aptly titled looter-shooter, Void Bastards. Issues discussed include Roguelike game lengths and replayability; procedural generation, randomness and its impact on decision making; comedy in games versus TV or film; and if Void Bastards would work as a tabletop board game. No story spoilers.Content Warning: PEGI 13. The yobbish space monsters are full on Sweary McSwearface, but your hosts are fairly restrained this ep. You’re welcome.Clarifications:The original music for Void Bastards was composed by Ryan Roth. The developers are Blue Manchu.It was originally released on May 28, 2019.Ben annoyingly conflates two separate (but very similar!) space comedies, each released in 2020. One is Armando Iannuci’s Avenue 5 starring Hugh Laurie:  The other, whose audio is featured, is Space Force, a series created by Greg Daniels and Steve Carell for Netflix. They’re both a bit crap, so his point still stands.Audio extracts:The Terminator (1984)MC Devvo - ‘Have a game of coins, mate’: Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom MenaceHalf-LifeSlay the Spire OST by Clark AboudLovespeake - DNABorderlands 3 OST by Michael McCannAlan Partridge - Tannoy (Steve Coogan)The Mighty Boosh - IsolationSpace Force (2020)Dale's Supermarket SweepArrested Development - ‘Come on!’Terminator 2 theme by Brad FiedelHades OST - House of Hades theme by Darren KorbAnd, of course, from Pixel Vision’s back catalogue - E1 Disco Elysium: Substack:Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Ben and Tao get jiggy with gravity in colour coded cubic confounder, Manifold Garden. As they get lost explaining its abstract infinity and implausible geometry, they find a lack of boundaries just as thorny in the manifold garden as in Tao’s vegetable patch, they weed out bugs (and I’m not talking ladybirds), deconstruct the ratio of time played to problems solved, and ponder how the sandbox has revolutionised creativity: specifically, whether computational technology has suppressed as much cultural innovation as it may have spawned. No spoilers (for once!)Content Warning: PEGI 13.Clarifications:The original music for Manifold Garden is composed by Laryssa OkadaHere’s the explainer Ben watched on Non-Euclidean Geometry by YouTuber, CodeParade: Christopher Nolan’s short early film was called ‘Doodlebug’ not just ‘Bug’. You can watch it here: Incidentally, if you’re an affectionate critic of Nolan (which is to say, you like his films but think they all suffer from expositional incontinence), you might enjoy comedian Michael Spicer’s take: Here’s the Reddit thread where they confirm the yellow tree cube bug Ben laments: https://www.reddit.com/r/ManifoldGarden/comments/ifydmf/missing_cube_on_a_yellow_tree_bug/ (note the thread is 2 years old!!)Here’s the developer explaining how to load older save versions of the same save file: Game Maker’s Toolkit is presented by Mark Brown on YouTube. Coincidentally, the magnet concept Tao mentions is actually implemented in Qube, the 2011 puzzler from Toxic Games.Antichamber - a hugely similar game to this one - is a first-person puzzle-platform game created by Australian developer Alexander "Demruth" Bruce and released in 2013.Audio extracts:The Shining (1980)The Mighty BooshJesus Walks by Kanye WestThe Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers (2002)The Other Guys (2010)The Witness challenge musicReturn of the Obra Dinn OST by Lukas PopeUrban Species - I WonderCoherence (2013)QubeAntichamberDoodlebug by Christopher Nolan (1997)BBC Sherlock feat. Benedict Cumberbatch (2010)Austin Powers (1997) feat. Mike MyersPortal 2 feat. Stephen Merchant as WheatleyBlade Runner (1982) - Vangelis - Tears in RainHalt and Catch Fire theme by TrentemøllerThe Rite of Spring - Ballet by Igor StravinskySubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Always Rebels at heart, Ben and Tao finally join the Alliance, drop some sweet lightsaber sweeps, get feely with the Force and kick some Empire ass while reviving the Fallen Jedi Order in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, colon included. Ben alienates Star Wars fans with a hybrid cow-horse metaphor mashup and a broad critique of recent incarnations of the franchise; Tao settles into his psychology sofa to talk trauma’s role in the storyline and the Dark Side more generally, and the pair discuss how this Souls-like Star Wars experience compares to the original FromSoftware formats. We get into spoilers around two thirds of the way through the pod.Content Warning: PEGI 15. Swearing and stuff. Ben tempts you to the dark side. Oh, and autosave is enabled on this podcast - don’t turn off while it’s saving.Clarifications:The music for Fallen Order is by Stephen Barton and Gordy HaabBD-1, Chewbacca and Wall-E are all voiced by Ben Burtt (not Brad or Bret, Tao! He only shares a name with your co-host…)Andy Serkis did not win an Oscar / Academy Award for his performance as Gollum. Indeed, he has never won an Oscar. However, according to Wikipedia, for his role in The Lord of the Rings film series, he won the Empire Award for Best British Actor, Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor, and Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, which he obviously shared with the rest of the cast.The difficulty levels are: Story, Jedi Knight, Jedi Master, and Jedi Grandmaster (which means if Tao did play it on Jedi Knight, Ben completed it a superior level. In your face, Tao!)Our episode on Subnautica is here: Our episode on Sekiro is here: Our episode on Immortals Fenyx Rising is here: Oh, and Lara Croft doesn’t really ‘wall run’ in Tomb Raider, she kinda wall scrambles.Audio extracts:Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999), theme and audio clipsStar Wars Episode IV: A New Hope - Cantina (1977)5 live bulletins remix from 10 Jun 2022 - apologies to my former colleagues, it’s just a bit of fun!Only Fools and Horses themeStar Wars Pod Racer N64The MandalorianThe Book of Boba FettObi Wan Kenobi 24 - Season 2 - actor Carlos Bernard as Tony AlmeidaStar Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) - Luke Lands On DagobahWALL-E (2008)Beverly Hill Cop 3 (1994)The Taming of Smeagol from The Two Towers OST by Howard ShoreThe Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) feat. Andy Serkis as GollumDark Souls OST by Motoi SakurabaImmortals Fenyx Rising OST by Gareth CokerSpaced, Season 1: Chaos feat. Simon PeggImperial March (From "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back")The Prince of Egypt (1998) - Parting the Red Sea SceneSubnautica OST by Simon ChylinskiThe Mighty Boosh - Howard Moon (Julian Barratt)The Martian - feat. Matt DamonGame of Thrones Season 7 - Ed SheeranAustin PowersSekiro OST by Yuka KitamuraFamily Guy - ‘Join The Empire!’ spoofSamuel Jackson asks George Lucas for a purple lightsaberSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.net Twitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Danger lurks as Ben and Tao figure out not just how to get away with murder, but how to do it with aplomb, in Inkle’s inverted murder mystery whodunit - (we did!) - Overboard! As well as discussing the various solutions and outcomes of the tricksy puzzler, the pair discuss the innovative use of time, repetition as both an obstacle and invitation to discovery, player knowledge to supplement character knowledge and whether there’s method to Inkle’s madness. Plus, Pixel Vision make a special announcement…  Spoilers upon spoilers. This game would be nearly impossible to discuss without game critical reveals. If you like the sound of it from the intro, it’s recommended you play before listening.Content Warning: PEGI 12. Seduction and saucy behaviour, but nothing graphic (in the game, Tao and Ben are platonic as ever). Delightfully sociopathic murders depicted through comedic text snippets (also in the game. Ben and Tao are alive and well. At the time of writing).Clarifications:You may hear us refer to the main character, Veronica Villensey, as Villensley, with an L. This is an error. Ben regrets this error. Tao says “it might as well be the same name”.Much of the music is performed by the US Army Band, US Army Blues, US Army Strings and The Dixieland Band of the US Army Band's Jazz Ambassador and includes:Flight of the BumblebeeCoventry CarolSouvenir De Florence Mvt 1Main StemKelli's NumberStardustBugablueBayou FarewellThe a cappella group Ben references is not The Inkspots, it’s ​Birmingham Jubilee Singers, singing Pharaoh's Army Got DrownedBen mentions the love poems and at the time of recording hadn’t figured out their usage. They are relevant to a playthrough achievement dubbed ‘The Leap of Faith’.Despite many endings and achievements discussed here, there are many more!The Ordeal of Gilbert Pinfold is a novel by Evelyn Waugh (1957)Here’s evidence of Ben’s fastidious note-taking:Audio extracts:Knives Out! (String Quartet in G Minor) by Nathan JohnsonDeath on the Nile (ITV’s Poirot)Deathloop Theme by Tom SaltaPalm Springs (2020)The Simpsons - Marge joins the Springfield PoliceBright Young Things (2003)Heaven’s Vault OST - Before the Fall by Laurence Chapman80 Days OST by Laurence ChapmanFormer British PM, Gordon Brown, calling a lady a ‘bigoted woman’ in 2010Leon Bridges - If It Feels Good (Then It Must Be)Gomez - Meet Me In The CityRounders (1998) feat. John MalkovichThe Godfather (1972)Louis Prima - Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)Dixieland One-Step by Sidney BechetDjango Reinhardt - Sweet Georgia BrownOpen a Breach from the Into The Breach OST by Ben PruntyDexter - Blood Theme by Daniel LichtMain Stem by Duke Ellington & His Famous OrchestraPsycho (1960)Beethoven - Moonlight Sonata Handbags and Gladrags arr. by Big George from The Office (UK) (2000)Star Wars - Imperial March (Apashe Remix)I Love You, Man (2009) - ‘Ridonculous’Rachmaninoff plays Prelude in C Sharp MinorSubstack: Sign up free to read our reviews and commentary at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Among the streets and sewers of Racoon City, Ben and Tao flee the relentless Nemesis, hunt an elusive vaccine, stop an unstoppable sociopath, and split up to look for survivors in Capcom’s riveting zombie horror remake, Resident Evil 3. They discuss the gimmick of the invulnerable enemy, the controversial redesign of classic characters for new generations and modern sensibilities, the role of partially locked map design to mitigate backtracking, the fine line between B-movie hyperbole and cult success, and how even originality of script and narrative can play second fiddle to good fun and near-flawless execution. Story spoilers abound. Seriously, don’t listen to this if you’re worried about spoilers, play the game first. Otherwise, come get some!Content Warning: PEGI 15. A subtle blend of lateral thinking and extreme violence. (No, not like ‘It’s a Knockout!’)Clarifications:The original soundtrack to Resident Evil 3 is by multiple composers, including Masami Ueda, Azusa Kato, Ryo Koike, Takumi Saito, Kota Suzuki, Takayasu Sodeoka, Saori Maeda, Jeff Broadbent, Zhenlan Kang. It’s available on SteamAs Tao suspected, there is an accompanying series of novels. Wikipedia says the first Resident Evil novel was Hiroyuki Ariga's novella Biohazard: The Beginning, published in 1997 as a portion of the book The True Story of Biohazard. The story serves as a prelude to the original Resident Evil, in which Chris investigates the disappearance of his missing friend, Billy Rabbitson.Ben says this is a continuation of the events of Resident Evil 2. It would be more accurate to say they happen in an overlapping time frame. Parts of Resident Evil 3 even take place before Resident Evil 2, though this concludes later in time. The YouTuber Gamer’s Little Playground does an admirable job of piecing the cutscenes together chronologically: Ben reviewed Alien Isolation here:The character of Jill Valentine also appears in Resident Evil 1 & 5 as well as some non-numbered Resident Evil games.Here’s the episode where we discussed achievements in Desperados 3: Audio extracts:Channel 4’s Spaced. Series 1 Episode 3. Watch the whole series here for a slice of fried gold: https://www.channel4.com/programmes/spaced I MONSTER - The Blue WrathNight of the Living Dead (1968) OST - Driveway to the CemeterySimon Pegg in Mission:Impossible (who knows which one of them…)Resident Evil 2 - The Beginning of Story MusicThe Simpsons - McBainResident Evil 2 Remake OST - Mr.XLove is in the Air by John Paul YoungAlien Isolation theme by Joe Henson and Alexis SmithZombieland feat. Jesse EisenbergPuffin de herb - Human TrafficBob Marley interview Falling Down (1993) - ‘take some shooting lessons’Ratchet and Clank PS5The Room (2003) - ‘Oh, hi Mark’Scooby Doo - ‘We should split up’Ivan Ave - CircleThe Forest theme by Gabe CastroThe Flight of the Bumble Bee from the Overboard! Trailer:Substack: Out with the old Patreon, in with the new Substack. Find us at www.pixelvision.net Twitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Ben and Tao notch their bows, load their trebuchets, unsheath their swords (thankfully not a euphemism) and lay siege to their enemies in Microsoft’s docuseries revival of historical RTS, Age of Empires IV. The duo flashback to memories of Age of Empires 2 and the role of games in education, query the environmental ramifications of forced epic downloads (that’s epic, not Epic), and debate whether the RTS genre is dead on its feet. They also explore at what point real world historical violence becomes acceptable for monetisation and entertainment in video games. Bur first, Tao decides, unilaterally, to make an apology. Story spoilers in all good history books and Wikipedia - not many here!Content Warning: PEGI 13. Lessons on historic warfare and violent conquest. Culture wars, old and new.Clarifications:The original soundtrack to Age of Empires IV was composed by various musicians including Tilman Sillescu, Alex Röder, Henning Nugel, Armin Haas & Mikolai StroinskiThis is the BBC The Inquiry episode, ‘Are Video Games A Waste Of Time?’ which Ben produced: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3csv1bv Nathan Brown wrote a persuasive piece on balancing AI in gaming in his Substack, Hit Points. Pixel Vision recommends: The controversy over Manchester Cathedral in Resistance Fall of Man: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/6736809.stmAudio extracts:Age of Empires 2: Age of Kings theme and introAge of Empires 2 various sound effectsAge of Empires 2: ConquerorsNoah Visits from The Village OST by James Newton HowardWhiplash feat. JK SimmonsThe Lord of the Rings: The Two TowersTracy Chapman - Baby Can I Hold YouAge of Empires IV Main Theme and soundtrackThe Jungle Book (1967)Age of Mythology Soundtrack - A Cat Named MittensPeter and the Wolf - Sergei ProkofievTeenage Dirtbag - WheatusThe Motorcycle Diaries - Sendero - by Gustavo SantaolallaTiger King feat. Joe ExoticBBC The Inquiry - Are Video Games A Waste Of Time?The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the RingStar Craft 2 soundtrack, by composers Derek Duke, Glenn Stafford, Neal Acree, Russell Brower, Sascha Dikiciyan and Cris VelascoA Knight's Tale OST by Carter BurwellRome Total War OST by Jeff van DyckBuild A Wall by East Park Reggae CollectiveYour Highness (2011)Bill Bailey - Chaucer’s pub jokeHitman 3 OST by Niels Bye NielsenChannel 4’s Spaced feat. Simon PeggDiablo 3 OST by Russell BrowerThe Mighty BooshThe Postal Service - Such Great HeightsSky NewsFawlty Towers feat. John CleeseResistance Fall of ManSpec Ops: The Line OST - Truth Revealed by Elia CmíralFable 3Resident Evil 3 main theme by Kōta SuzukiPatreon: We’ve moved! Our Patreon has closed in favour Substack. Find us at www.pixelvision.netTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

Baggy trousers, hanging shirts, tentacles and Furry flirts! Ben and Tao reminisce about school days gone by after trying to get laid in supernatural dating sim, Monster Prom. The innuendo filled discussion bounces from hentai to bestiality, UK vs UK cultural touchstones to what constitutes critical acclaim, and a voiceless new contributor joins in from the wings: Tao’s mysteriously anonymous vampire girlfriend (or so he says). Both hosts profess to(o) much ignorance of online pornographic kinks, Ben finds dating every bit as tough as he remembers, and Tao surprises no-one revealing a Furry fetish. Sort of. No story spoilers. Content Warning: PEGI 13. An explicit, hypersexual discussion including many taboos and tone-deaf singing. Keep your pets locked up! Clarifications:The original soundtrack to Monster Prom was composed by Claudi MartinezWeebl’s Stuff was a 2002 era flash website. It still exists as a shadow of its former self.Here’s Polygon writers Jeff Ramos and Allegra Frank offering the flipside of our discussion: https://www.polygon.com/2018/5/2/17304752/monster-promAudio extracts:Baggy Trousers by MadnessByker Grove theme tuneThe Inbetweeners theme (instrumental)Press Gang themeNelson from The SimpsonsDr Hakim from It Takes TwoChristopher Walken SNL ‘gotta have more cowbell’Just the two of us by Bill WithersMass Effect (Tali)Monsters UniversityMonsters IncHolding Out For A Hero by Bonnie TylerMona The Vampire opening titlesMonster Prom’s kickstarterFriday Night LightsBadger Badger - Weebl’s StuffAlexandre Desplat’s theme to The Shape of WaterYamete memeJurassic Park (1993)Arrested Development Mr FAn American Werewolf in London by Elmer BernsteinThe Animals of Farthing Wood theme (1993-1995)Paradise Killer OST - The Lemegeton BopBack to the FutureSuperbad - Michael Cera sings ‘These Eyes’Blind Date with Cilla BlackAge of Empires 2 themePatreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpodTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

The cybernetic pixel kids and their anarchic mate, Keanu, are dickin’ about in the hood, implants upgraded and optics on point to hack the system and collapse the corps, in CD Projekt RED’s Night City brain dance RPG, Cyberpunk 2077. Dissecting what might be the most sexually explicit and graphic game covered by Pixel Vision to date, Ben and Tao discuss if raunchy RPGs are made for men, if Cyberpunk’s infamous launch controversy has left any bugs crawling the system, how even Tao can be impressed by graphics, and why in-game Keanu works better than Norman Reedus did in Death Stranding (clue: charisma is everything). Story spoilers heavily forecast and only about the early game. This was recorded pre Patch 1.5 update.Content Warning: PEGI 16. Like drugs, sex, rock and roll and hacking? We got you covered.Clarifications:All Cyberpunk 2077 music is composed by Marcin Przybyłowicz, P.T. Adamczyk, and Paul Leonard-MorganThe Night City song is by REL and Artemis DeltaDeath Stranding’s actor is Norman Reedus.The show Ben can’t remember is Altered Carbon on Netflix.The GPT3 AI Ben references is Generative Pre-trained Transformer 3, an autoregressive language model that uses deep learning to produce human-like text.Tao’s gripe about the phone automatically answering has been fixed in the latest patch, post-record, pre-broadcast. At least they agreed it shouldn’t have happened!The ‘wheelie thing’ Ben is on about is a SegwayCD Projekt RED’s game engine is called the RED Engine.Audio extracts:The Matrix (1999)Monty Python - The Penis SongAnimal Crossing OSTSex and the City themeITVs Love Island themeMario Kart 64 Rainbow Road themeSnatch (2000)Rage Against The Machine - Wake UpKelis - MilkshakeThe Mask (1994)Dr Syntax - SubculturesSeth Sentry - My SceneJungle - The HeatAltered CarbonWatch Dogs themeWatch Dogs 2Urban Species - I wonderGoldfingerGoldeneyeTina Turner - Goldeneye themeThe Sex Pistols - Anarchy in the UKFosters - Good Call advertThe Simpsons duff beer adPLEBSThe Witcher 3: Wild HuntWest World HBOTravis Eliot yoga instructorOblivion OSTThe Pixies - Where is my mind?BBC Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy themeBBC Line of Duty themeObserver OSTPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpodTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

The boys are back for their first episode of 2022, armour donned and dropping feet first into a guns blazing, heady and impassioned round of Team Doubles in Halo Infinite: Multiplayer. Except there are no Team Doubles in Halo Infinite’s multiplayer - but don’t worry, they cover that; that and everything from TTK to the Freemium Model, to the Mangler, Step Jump, Curb Slide and the competitive scene gets a look in. Nostalgia versus modernity - was it worth the wait? Story spoilers. Just joking… This is a Pixel Vision first - a multiplayer exclusive. Stay tuned for the Campaign follow up later in the year. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Happy days, the duo drop a few F bombs, but nothing even a rookie Halo player couldn’t repulse. Clarifications:Observations are accurate as of the time of recording. Eg. No anti-cheat at the time of recording.A couple of the medals Ben references are actually Mythic medals, which is the tier above Legendary.343 Industries first Halo game was Halo 4, before that it was BungieSprint was introduced in Halo: Reach back in 2010, Clamber was introduced in Halo 5 (along with Thrust)Audio extracts:Halo Combat Evolved, 2, 3, ODST, Reach, 4, 5 and Infinite OSTs featuring original scores by Martin O'Donnell, Michael Salvatori, Neil Davidge, Kazuma Jinnouchi, Alex Bhore, Gareth Coker, Curtis Schweitzer, and Joel Corelitz.N64’s GoldeneyeQuakeMarathonThe Office - David Brent meets Steve CarrellHalo 2 Mjolnir MixRobot Wars “Activate”Ace v Pistola Halo 4 Global ChampionshipsGrange HillApex Legends - Main ThemeBattlefield 4ShywayLucid Style Points (HCS Raleigh) OG v SentinelsSuperbadV for VendettaJust Cause 3Good KillSpider-Man 1967 themeStar Wars Episode 1 Phantom Menace Gungan BattleTitanfall 2 OSTDonkey KongHalo player ‘Frosty’ gets a ninja in scrimsMonty Python and the Holy GrailCaptain America: The First AvengerFast FiveBackstreet Boys - I Want It That WayLucid - HOLD THIS montageInceptionTell Me Why - The BeatlesThe Specials - Why?Taylor Swift - Tell Me WhyNeil Young - Tell Me WhyThe Kid Laroi - Tell Me WhySupermoder - Tell Me WhyGhost of Tsushima - The Way of the GhostThe Big LebowskiThe Social Network - Trent RexnorBill and Ted's Excellent AdventureSplitgate theme by Christopher TinHCS Raleigh 2022 feat. OnsetPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpodTwitter: @pixelvizEmail: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com Get full access to Pixel Vision at www.pixelvision.net/subscribe

In this special, early Christmas Day release, Ben and Tao upload themselves into neural noir, cyber arthouse, psychological horror, Observer. As they detangle the convoluted murder mystery, Ben finds his inner Luddite, Tao imagines cyber-limbed, animal-spliced, Super Tao, and discussion veers into dangerous political territory, sordid subject matters, and extensive deliberation over dystopian futurism. Story spoilers late in the pod, but it's a short game, so either play it first or don't complain!   Content Warning: PEGI 17. This is seriously dark and very explicit. Sorry. Also, Tao's cat miaows offensively in the background.   Clarifications: Observer music is by composer Arkadiusz Reikowski The main character is called Daniel Lazarski The upcoming ‘cyber renaissance' game from Greedfall devs, Spiders, is called Steelrising (apparently at Spiders, titles either rise or fall…) The film Ben references on the theme of uploading consciousness is Transcendence, a 2014 American science fiction thriller directed by Wally Pfister and written by Jack Paglen. Anon is a 2018 British-American science fiction thriller film written and directed by Andrew Niccol starring Clive Owen Audio extracts: 'Figment' by Simon Park (from Dawn of the Dead) Multiple tracks from Observer OST by composer Arkadiusz Reikowski Love Actually (2003) feat. Hugh Grant Iron Harvest OST The Coup - Pork and Beef Saw (2004) - and its soundtrack by Charlie Clouser So You Wanna Be A Boxer(Bugsy Malone Soundtrack) by Paul Williams (1976) ANON (2018) feat. Clive Owen Soylent Green (1973) The Herbaliser - Very Mercenary The Simpsons - ‘tis a fine barn Fitter Happier by Radiohead Paranoid Android by Radiohead Elysium A Touch of Frost by Ray Russell Harrison Ford has lost his family (My Wife! My Family! Compilation) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-vjbuodBEU Alien Isolation OST by Christian Henson Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach Steelrising trailer by Spiders David Fincher's Se7en (1995) Transcendence (2014) The Matrix (1999) Halo 2 Mjolnir Mix by Marty O'Donnell feat. Steve Vai HCS Raleigh 2021 Slade - Merry Christmas Everybody Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Good morning, Blackreef! Captains Ben and Tao rack their brains, reignite their memories, and mow down endless Eternalists in Arkane Studios' cocksure first person shooter, Deathloop. The team talk character development, playing detective, stealth, Twitter, Tao's reluctance to play scary games, oh, and a spot of incest. Story spoilers abound I'm afraid, it's just one of those games, but as ever, they're generously forecast. Content Warning: PEGI 15. Effin and jeffin. Tarantino blood spatter. Graphic innuendo. Clarifications: All Deathloop instrumental music was composed by Tom Salta & Ross Tregenza‎ Colt's first word is not ‘F*k' (although we're surely forgiven that it could have been) Ramblin Frank's tunes were written and Performed by Erich Talaba Duskers is a strategy video game by independent developer Misfits Attic. It was released on May 18, 2016. There are three Dishonored games to date. Tao's out of the (Death)loop. Bulletstorm is a 2011 FPS from Gearbox, it was rereleased as the Full Clip Edition in 2017. The time bending FPS Singularity was released in 2010, not 2011.a The ‘Unknown Man' in the boathouse is not just a tantalising tease, his secret is very much discoverable Audio extracts: W.G. Snuffy Walden's score to Aaron Sorkin's ABC series, Sports Night. Land of the Giants - The Drop Duskers OST The West Wing Weekly podcast theme Lost Unanswered Questions by College Humor Deadpool ft. Ryan Reynolds Reservoir Dogs Dishonored main theme by Daniel Licht Fallout 4 main theme The Outer Wilds main theme Bulletstorm main theme by Piotr Musiał, Michał Cielecki and Krzysztof Wierzynkiewicz Left 4 Dead Prey Superbad feat Jonah Hill Outlast OST by Samuel Laflamme Robert Kilroy Silk - Shafteda Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao step aboard a floating shanty town in the purgatory of Afterlife, meeting spirits and harvesting crops in 2D platformer farming sim, Spiritfarer. Ben is grumpier than usual, testing the question, ‘How bad tempered is too bad tempered to record a podcast?' While Tao stoically hunts for redeeming game design features. It's an admirable effort. The duo touch on minor story spoilers but nothing that would detrimentally affect gameplay more than the game mechanics themselves. (Guess who wrote these Show Notes?)   Content Warning: PEGI 13. Cancer, protracted dwelling on death, dead kids. It's a bundle of laughs.   Clarifications: All Spiritfarer game music is composed by the brilliant, Max LL The YouTuber Ben refers to is Jack Pierce, with his video, The Power of Music in Film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSkJFs7myn0 Othercide is a horror-themed tactical role-playing video game developed by French independent video game development studio Lightbulb Crew and published by Focus Home Interactive. The game was released on July 28, 2020. Agricola is a board game Tao loves and Ben is rubbish at. Both recommend it: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/31260/agricola  Audio extracts: Oasis - Live Forever Back to the Future 2 - music by John Williams Ayub Ogada – Kothbiro (from ‘The Constant Gardener') Rhod Gilbert at the Comedy Store John Denver - Thank God I'm A Country Boy Stardew Valley OST by Eric Barone (who also did everything else in that game. The whole shebang.) A Clockwork Orange Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring Jesus Christ in Richmond Park - Fenton: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GRSbr0EYYU Circle of Life - The Lion King by Elton John Breath of the Wild OST - original score composed by Manaka Kataoka, Yasuaki Iwata, and Hajime Wakai Eastenders - Julia's Theme (sad theme) Jack Pierce YouTube Channel - The Power of Music in Film Pyre Original Soundtrack - Downside Ballad by Darren Korb Othercide Man of Steel directed by Zack Snyder feat. Henry Cavill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao prove their '90s credentials and try not to drop the ball as they get happy flappy paddle slappy in 2D micro-adventure, Yoku's Island Express. They talk pinball, completionism, sound effects, map modes, and what makes a ‘phone game' a ‘phone game'. There's some nostalgia, some gentle and not so gentle mockery, and very minor story spoilers (flagged in advance) towards the end of the ep. Hop on the bug wagon.   Content Warning: PEGI 7. Druidic rituals and balls, balls everywhere. Fruity balls. Suitable for kids? You tell me.   Clarifications: Yoku's Island Express official soundtrack is composed by Jesse Harlin. The Wolverine game Tao is referring to is X-Men Origins: Wolverine Uncaged, and yes Ben got completionist on it. He still brags about it. I mean, it's pretty cool, right? DJ Jumps has now, sadly, left The Cat Empire. Hopefully it wasn't anything Tao said. Audio extracts: Metamorphosis (Original Game Soundtrack) - Music by Garry Schyman and Mikolai Stroinski Skype SFX Harry Nilsson - Everybody's Talkin' from Midnight Cowboy College & Electric Youth - A Real Hero The Who - Pinball Wizard The Ricky Gervais Show - Rockbusters Microsoft's 3D Pinball Space Cadet ‘Beautiful butterfly' - A Bug's Life Ralph Wiggum - The Simpsons GTA Vice City - Tommy Vercetti Worms Armageddon Hollow Knight OST - Enter Hallownest X-Men Origins: Wolverine game Rayman 1 OST Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay Portal The Cat Empire - Beanie feat. DJ Jumps The Who - My Generation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Those renowned legends of the Frontier, Ben and Tao, plummet into the Apex Games, where they compete for small change, notoriety, and ideally, at least one victory as Apex Legends. But do they succeed? The chaps discuss running and gunning, the legacy of Titanfall 2, and the sinister viability of the freemium model. Tao regales us with his exploits playing hide and seek, and Ben rages against short TTK and the deathmatch exodus. It's the first Battle Royale on the pod - but will it be the last? And the next time you're at the checkout and you hear the beep, think of the fun you could be having…listening to Pixel Vision. No story spoilers because there's no story. I guess that's a spoiler.   Content Warning: PEGI 13. Effin' and jeffin' and reveling in the glory of the hunt. But it's all pretty tame this week.   Clarifications: Both Tao and I got the podcast email address wrong. Strong start. It's pixelvisionpod@gmail.com and it's always listed at the bottom of these show notes! Say hi! Stephen Barton composed the Apex Legends OST. Audio extracts: Jaffa Cake Song (1990s Advert) Dale's Supermarket Sweep (Theme) Family Guy The Prodigy - Their Law Fader Gladiator - Battle Of The Planets (Imperial March remix) Ttanfall OST Cosmology by Stephen Barton Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring SSX Tricky PUBG theme (Player Unknown's Battlegrounds) by Tom Salta also known as Atlas Plug Titanfall 2 Richard Simms aka The Simms casting PUBG Ninjas first game of Apex (allegedly…) Halo 3 announcer - Killamanjaro The Big Lebowski Astroneer OST by Rutger Zuydervelt WOW Classic farming stranglethorn vale I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside sung by Kidzone HiTMAN 3 - Death Awaits (OST) by Niels Bye Nielsen No Time To Die - Billie Eilish  Valorant OST Splitgate OST by Christopher Tin The Office UK Gladiator - Are You Not Entertained? Hearthstone OST by Peter McConnell Overwatch OST by Adam Burgess The Matrix feat. Keanu Reeves Halo 3 theme by Martin O'Donnell Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao rock out with their Gods out adventuring through the beautiful, peacefully fraught open world of Breath of the Wild wannabe, Immortals Fenyx Rising (no colon). After introducing the pre-jingle jingle - a novel feature nobody asked for - they discuss what makes great comedy writing in games, the power of narration (reliable or otherwise), how first instincts can be misguided, keeping things fresh with limited game mechanics, and the merits of learning about Greek Mythology, be it through games or literature. Story spoilers are dramatically announced around half way through, but some minor game spoilers appear earlier on.   Content Warning: PEGI 12. Cavalier language, some sexual innuendo, rampant silliness.   Clarifications: Credit to the two top voice actors: Prometheus is voiced by Elias Toufexis, Zeus by Daniel Matmor. Audio extracts: Bosch S07E02 - ‘housekeeping' Hades Breath of the Wild Goldeneye - ‘I am invincible!' Futurama feat. Bender Austin Powers - ‘fricking lasers' Friends - Ross' British accent Disney's Recess theme Control OST - Voces Ignotas World of Warcraft OST - ‘Elwyn Forest' Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao ride the ferry to forever and back again, and again, in time-twisting, ghost story campfire-and-click, Oxenfree. The duo revisit teen angst, past selves and old features - etymology disco anyone (no, sadly, it's not a thing), introduce new characters - who is Henri's gran anyway?, coin new terms - (‘wadsy', you heard it here first), and hopefully flesh out what makes an indie adventure game win friends or alienate people. Spoilers from early on but with extensive discussion about them beforehand.   Content Warning: PEGI 12, bad impressions, casual anti-Americanisms, and some swearing.   Clarifications: Oxenfree soundtrack is by American music composer and sound designer Andrew Rohrmann, known under his alias scntfc "Olly olly oxen free" is a catchphrase or truce term used in children's games such as hide and seek, capture the flag, and kick the can to indicate that players who are hiding can come out into the open without losing the game According to GoodReads, Mark Twain's full quote is: “When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it had happened or not; but my faculties are decaying now and soon I shall be so I cannot remember any but the things that never happened. It is sad to go to pieces like this but we all have to do it.” Audio extracts: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) Skyfall - Adele Halo 5 - ‘Reunion' Kentucky Route Zero - ‘The world is not my home' The Usual Suspects (1995) The Simpsons Inside OST by By Martin Stig Andersen & SØS Gunver Ryberg Theme to No Code's Observation composed by Nine Inch Nail's Robin Finck It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018) Man in the Mirror - Michael Jackson The West Wing Alan Partidge Arrested Development S04 Syd Matters - To All Of You from Life is Strange OST Gone Home OST by Chris Remo Comedian Pablo Francisco Extras feat. Stephen Merchant and Barry (from Eastenders) played by Shaun Williamson Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao sit down to overcome their differences through Dr Hakim's therapy-with-a-difference in the maritally redemptive, cooperative 3D platforming genre mangler, It Takes Two. In a very grown up discussion, they chat relationship difficulties, target audiences, comparable cooperative games and the confusion of critical acclaim, the role of minigames - charming or cheap? - and there's even some bonus audio from their hilariously incompetent gameplay together.   Spoilers from early on and with warnings, but nothing that would ruin the gameplay experience.   Content Warning: PEGI 12, argumentative and petty, with poor parenting tips. We are not counsellors. Very coarse language.   Clarifications: It Takes Two is rated PEGI 12 for moderate violence and use of bad language. Violence is non-realistic, and no blood or injuries are shown. The Stanley Parable is an interactive drama and walking simulator designed and written by developers Davey Wreden and William Pugh. The game carries themes such as choice in video games, the relationship between a game creator and player and predestination/fate. The therapy podcast referenced is Where Should We Begin with Esther Perel. Ben references (and highly recommends) Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression – and the Unexpected Solutions by Johann Hari The music for It Takes Two was composed by Gustaf Grefberg and Kristofer Eng. One track (‘The Extermination') also includes reference to "Flight of the Bumblebee" by Rimsky-Korsakov Audio extracts: Puss in Boots (2011) Peer Gynt Suite No. 1 Op. 46, III: Anitra's Dream Portal ‘Still Alive' All Shook Up - Elvis Presley Super Mario Party Battlezone 1980 Honey I Shrunk The Kids (1989) Hercule Poirot - Murder Under The Sun The Lion King - Mufasa's Death Wall-E (2008) Olympics Long Jump Final Rio 2016 A Little Less Conversation - Elvis Presley A Way Out OST by Sam Hulick and Gustaf Grefberg Fortnite title music for seasons 3-10 by composer Pinar Toprak Hitch (2005) Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao conceal their weapons and don disguises as they pit their wits and murderous imaginations against operatives of the shadowy organisation, Providence, in Hitman 3. They introduce an exciting new feature to the show...Housekeeping...Tao's a fan. Long may it continue. The chat covers replayability, title menus, spectacle and spectating, realism versus photorealism and why everybody relishes pushing the boundaries of in-game violence.   Spoilers from around an hour in, heavily forecast in advance.   Content Warning: PEGI 18. Wanton killing. Violent confessions. Spurious parenting advice and the usual swearing.   Clarifications: The original Hitman music is composed by Niels Bye Nielsen. In a first for the series, Nielsen also wrote all of the music in the game rather than incorporating other tracks. The Order: 1886 is a 2015 third-person action-adventure video game developed by Ready at Dawn and Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was released for the PlayStation 4 on February 20, 2015. Audio extracts: James Bond theme Jonathan Pie - Reporter gets angry… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P979HaI5qlk The A-Team theme Quincy Jones - Soul Bossa Nova Johnny English 2 theme Cuno voiced by Dot Major from Disco Elysium The Apprentice feat. Claide Littner Mission Impossible theme by Danny Elfman Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Grape Lady Falls! (Youtube Viral Clip) Mozart in the Jungle feat. Gabriel Garcia Bernal Collateral (2004) feat. Tom Cruise Man On Fire (2004) Sinnerman by Nina Simone (Thomas Crown Affair version) Casino Royale (2006) Knives Out (2019) Skyfall (2012) OST - Adele Jonathan Creek theme ‘Danse Macabre' by Camille Saint-Saens Mac Miller ‘Best Day Ever' Hitman 2 - Miami Drivers Lounge - Composed by Dynamedion specifically for Hitman 2 The Order 1886 OST ‘The Knights Theme' by Jason Graves The Matrix (1999) Eminem - My Name Is Hitman 2 - Yoga Lesson The Simpsons Invisible Inc. OST by George Watsky and musicians Daniel Riera and Max Miller-Loran It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia - What Are The Rules? Whirling Cafeteria - Disco Elysium OST Rockstar's Manhunt (2003) by Craig Conner Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao take a deep dive into the awe-inspiring underworld of Subnautica: Below Zero. Is everything as it seems or is something fishy going on? Nah, it's as it seems, I just really wanted to use that pun. They talk breathtaking moments, the exciting and troubling possibilities of VR, the magic of sound design, vocal protagonists, photorealism, and why horror works best when it's unintentional. Big story spoilers from around 45 minute mark. Warnings given in advance. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Playful and exasperated swearing, and longer than usual - sorry not sorry. Clarifications: There are four difficulty levels, Survival (survive alone on 4546B while investigating the death of your sister), Freedom (like Survival, without hunger or thirst), Hardcore (Survival mode with only one life. No O2 alerts) and Creative (build anything with no constrains. Oxygen, food, story and death disabled). Here's a link to the People Make Games piece by Chris Bratt that Tao mentioned: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVnOcmiEdIE The overview of Amazon's growing dominance over the supply chain that Ben mentioned: https://logisticsviewpoints.com/2021/03/24/amazon-supply-chain/  Audio extracts: Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999) Memories - Elvis Presley Good Morning, Vietnam! - feat. Robin Williams RIP Foreigner - Cold As Ice Black Mesa - Xen Homeworld - Transcendent OST Chris Rea - It's All Gone (1986) A Bug's Life (1998) - Francis The Ladybug Under The Sea - The Little Mermaid (1989) Eye in the Sky (2015) drone scene The Lion King ‘Circle of Life' (1994) Ready Player One (2018) The Forest title theme by Gabe Castro Spock and Captain Kirk, Star Trek The New Secretary. Hancock's Half Hour Series 4 feat. Kenneth Williams Heat (1995) feat. Al Pacino Gimlet's Homecoming podcast Episode 1 Diamonds Are Forever (1971) theme Faster Than Light OST by Ben Prunty Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod  Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao gear up to destroy everything and take no prisoners in dieselpunk real time strategy (RTS) barn stormer, Iron Harvest 1920+. Ben goes on the attack while Tao rallies to defend as they discuss RTS versus base-building, retro-futurism, parallel histories and the rising [insertgenre]punk trend, destructible environments, micro-squad management and balancing enemy AI, and Nvidia Geforce Now issues. As always, they cover the gritty questions, like: how many employees constitute a ‘small studio'? Is there such a thing as a grating language? Is everything better with legs? Was cowardice the reason Ben dodged every invite to a multiplayer game that Tao sent? (We may never know.) Some story spoilers, warnings given in advance. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Machines! The acrid stench of war! Casual cursing. Clarifications: Turns out there really was a bear rescued by Polish soldiers, called Wojtek, who ended up going to war: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twr38iHXYVw According to their own website, King Art Games do indeed have 70+ employees: https://kingart-games.com/page/1-about-us When Tao says C&C, he means Command & Conquer (1995) Company of Heroes is a 2006 real-time strategy video game developed by Relic Entertainment and published by THQ. Company of Heroes 2 was released in 2013. Cossacks: European Wars is a real-time strategy game made by Ukrainian developer GSC Game World, released on 24 April 2001. ‘Red Alert 2' is Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2, released in 2000. Audio extracts: War Horse (2011) HBOs ‘The Pacific' Dawn of War 2 Starcraft 2 Wings of Liberty theme Age of Empires 2: Age of Kings theme Warcraft 3 Reign of Chaos theme Frostpunk Theme by Piotr Musial Age of Empires Soundtrack - Track #1 - Conquest Nancy Sinatra - These boots are made for walkin' Tombstone feat. Kurt Russell as Wyatt Earp Gandalf Leaving Edoras - The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) Hercules (2014) Miss Congeniality (2000) Iron Man feat. Robert Downey Jr. Age of Mythology OST - A Cat Named Mittens Rawhide by Frankie Laine The Simpsons - Look At All These Idiots Cossacks - European Wars OST Salutations from Subnautica OST Red Dead Redemption 2 - harmonica Telegram notification sounds Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod  Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpod@gmail.com

Ben and Tao take a walk on the wild side in Lost meets The Descent survival game mash-up, The Forest. The duo share their adventures in the deep and discuss inventory management, save mechanisms, enemy AI, slaughtering animals, big breasted naked mutants and getting wood. The latter is not connected to any of the former. Promise. Major story spoilers from around 45m, heads up given beforehand. Content Warning: PEGI 15. Dead babies. Nuff said. Clarifications: The Beach (2000) is an adventure film directed by Danny Boyle and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Alex Garland. It was filmed on the Thai island of Ko Phi Phi Le. James Cameron’s The Abyss and Sanctum were actually neither 10 nor 30 years apart, but 22! Cameron was Exec Producer for Sanctum, rather than director. Spawn points are randomised to a certain degree, within certain areas. Audio extracts: The Hills Have Eyes theme Silent Hill theme Resident Evil 1 ‘save room’ theme Monty Python - “Lumberjack Song” Kill List (2011) OST by Jim Williams Breath of the Wild ‘Main Theme’ OST (Live) Bear Grylls gets stung by a killer bee. ‘Life and Death’ from the Lost OST BBC Springwatch theme by David Poore Ali G feat. Shaggy - Me Julie The Village OST ‘Noah Visits’ by James Newton Howard The Cinematic Orchestra - Arrival of the Birds Michael Jackson - Earth Song The Royal Welsh Show 1996 - log shopping feat. Mike Perceval The Descent - extract from first sighting of the creatures Sanctum OST - ‘main theme’ by David Hirschfelder Autumn Leaves feat. Chet Baker and Paul Desmond The Mighty Boosh - Isolation song Firewatch theme by Chris Remo Roadrunner ‘meep meep’ Sexual feat. Dyo by NEIKED Black Books S03E01 - Manny Come Home ft. Simon Pegg Olé guitar group, live at Patrick Sébastien: Music-Hall et Compagnie. Christian Bale singing on set of Terminator Salvation The Silence of the Lambs Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana Thomas the Tank Engine narrated by Ringo Starr Grease - Summer Lovin I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue (full theme) - The Schickel Shamble Astroneer OST by Rutger Zuydervelt Spaced feat. Simon Pegg Cocoon OST by James Horner Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod  Twitter: @pixelviz Email: pixelvisionpodcast@gmail.com www.pixelvision.net

All aboard for the rogue-like deck-building card game sensation, Monster Train - a relatively new entrant to the genre, but already super popular. Ben and Tao plumb the depths of hell to see if it really deserves all its accolades, while admitting to differing degrees of n00bdom. Under scrutiny is the rise of the digital card game, the barrier to entry for online games, and the philosophy of gaming. Yeah, that’s right, we go deep. No spoilers really, not that kinda game. Content Warning: PEGI 12. The usual tom foolery and jiggery-pokery with a smattering of bad language. Oh, and a weird f intro. Clarifications: Doctor Zhivago is a 1965 epic romantic drama film directed by David Lean and set in Russia between the years before World War I and the Russian Civil War of 1918–1922. It’s unclear if Hearthstone makes more money for Blizzard than WoW, but very evident they both make a ton of dollar overall. Finite and Infinite Games is a 1986 book by religious scholar James P. Carse. Audio extracts: Spider-man feat. Toby Maguire The Queen’s Gambit main title by Carlos Rafael Rivera Hearthstone theme by XX World of Warcraft main theme by XX Apex Legends trailer Beauty and the Beast (2017) Good Will Hunting Valve’s Artifact launch Darkest Dungeon Metro Exodus Slay The Spire theme by XX Hercules feat. Kevin Sorbo Angry Birds theme The Japanese Stories youtube channel Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod  Twitter: @pixelviz

Even more breathlessly than usual, Ben and Tao discuss the (quite literal) ups and downs of fast-paced parkour slasher, Ghostrunner. They get competitive in stat-chat to see whose reflexes aren’t quite holding up with age, discuss the increasing trend towards masochistic games and the Crash Bandicoot dilemma, and whether autosaves are the difference between a good, challenging game and a gamer’s hellscape. Chunky story spoilers, but no-one plays this game for the story. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Some swearing, lots of shooting, sweaty palms. Clarifications: Mirror’s Edge Catalyst was not an exclusive. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One in North America in June 2016. The firearm-based martial art used by Kurt Wimmer and Jim Vickers in their 2002 film Equilibrium is Gun Kata. Atlas is the name of the Bioshock character who Ben compares with Whisper aka. The Architect. The Ghostrunner Original Soundtrack is by Daniel Deluxe, released 27 October 2020 Audio extracts: Crocodile Dundee Alan Partridge in Tesco Synne Sanden - Tigers`s Net (Synthomania RMX) Equilibrium Bioshock System Shock The Lawnmower Man (SNES) Frostpunk theme Crash Bandicoot Titanfall 2 theme by Stephen Barton Jungle Book 1967 Mirror’s Edge OST by Solar Fields Dying Light theme by Paweł Błaszczak Premium Rush feat. Joseph Gordon-Levitt ‘Escape’ by The Chemical Brothers from Hanna Frogger MTV’s ‘The Matrix’ spoof with Sean William Scott, Justin Timberlake and Will Ferrell Arrested Development - Tobias Funke ‘excuse me’ The Last Samurai main theme by Hans Zimmer The Harry J All Stars - The Liquidator Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pixelvisionpod  Twitter: @pixelviz

Finally out of exile, Ben and Tao visit the resort of island 24 for a spot of light holiday crime solving in the surrealist fantasy mystery puzzler, Paradise Killer. Cocktails in hand and against a backdrop of sexy synths and sunsets, the duo talk kinks and dating sims, Vimto and Diogenes, and when it’s simply not cool to accuse your friends. Major story spoilers, primarily towards the end. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Moderate randiness, a bit of light swearing, sweet ass tunes. Clarifications: Music from Paradise Killer is by Epoch According to the developers, the mature content filter just replaces swear words with **** and blocks some of the voice acting lines which contain swearing. It doesn’t affect any gameplay or visuals. Rule 34 is an Internet maxim which asserts that Internet pornography exists concerning every conceivable topic. The dating sim games Tao is pretending to have no knowledge of are: Dream Daddy and Monster Prom. We’re talking about Kafka Memory, not Kafka Memorise (whoever that is) Diogenes, also known as Diogenes the Cynic, was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynic philosophy. The duck test is a form of abductive reasoning. This is its usual expression: “if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.” Audio extracts: The Simpsons - Who Killed Mr Burns? Edward Scissorhands Mass Effect: Andromeda Braintax feat. Dubble Edge - Anti-Grey Midsomer Murders Theme Exit Music (For A Film) by Radiohead All This Love by The Similou Don’t Bring Me Down by PREP Love on a Real Train - Tangerine Dream (State Azure cover) Sound of da Police by KRS-One GTA San Andreas theme by Young Maylay The Cat Empire - 1001 (Hidden Track)

Fresh from the saloon with dusty wide-brimmed hats a-tilt against the scorch of the midday sun, Ben and Tao turn gun-slingin’, knife-flingin’ cowboys and massacre their way across the Wild West in pursuit of vengeance in the paradoxically stealthy, real-time tactics showdown: Desperados 3. Topics include: when it’s ok to cliché, bad parenting, charming shamans, and if game themes really matter, so long as the game is fun. Major story spoilers in the final third, heavily forecast. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Some swearing, lethal dynamite and a bit of hoodoo voodoo black magic. Clarifications: Music from Desperados 3 is by Filippo Beck Peccoz Ben’s Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun review Dr Bones McCoy Star Trek compilation made vastly easier with thanks to YouTuber Biribissi Biribissi, their video here. Audio extracts: Rango Back to the Future 3 Red Dead Redemption 2 Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid The Quick and the Dead The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly theme by Ennio Morricone Taken Taken 2 Mariachi Sol De Mexico The Wolf of Wall Street The Mighty Boosh S01 There Will Be Blood Prison Break theme by Ferry Corsten and Ramin Djawadi Mouse Outfit feat. Dr Syntax - The Shaman Will Smith - Wild Wild West The Offspring - Pretty Fly (For A White Guy) Dr Bones McCoy - Star Trek compilation Dragon Age Inquisition Commandos 2 Superbad

New Year is off with a flash and a bang and not just on Capitol Hill as Ben and Tao get down to some rigorous rib-ripping, head-lopping and eye-popping demon slaying to save Earth from the ravages of Hell in first person shooter, Doom Eternal. Tao flexes his thumb muscle dominance, Ben finally uses the platform to bang on about time-to-kill (TTK), and the duo disagree over the innocence or not of the phrase ‘Mortally Challenged’. No serious spoilers. Things die. Content Warning: PEGI 16. Gruesome animations, generally violent delights and swearing. Lots of swearing. We’ll do better... Clarifications: All Doom Eternal music is by Mick Gordon. The opening music is Igor Stravinsky’s ‘Rite of Spring’ which caused a riot on its debut in Paris in 1913. It seemed appropriate... The original Doom was out for MS-DOS in December 1993. The weapon Ben refers to in Dead Space is the Plasma Cutter. The four demon types are: ambient, fodder, heavy, super-heavy Audio extracts: Doom Eternal OST London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Simon Rattle perform Stravinsky’s ‘Rite of Spring’ The Revenant feat. Leonardo DiCaprio Elon Musk talks to Joe Rogan on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast about his flame throwers. Parks and Recreation S05E16 - Bailout - “She’s the worst” Cupa Soup advert c. 2002 Halo Grunt Birthday Party Skull God of War ‘Ragnarok’ theme by Bear McCreary Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End by Henry Jackman Handsome Jack, Borderlands 2 It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, S03E05, Dennis Reynolds peaks. Dead Space 2 Rollercoaster Tycoon theme Teletubbies theme Desperados 3 OST main theme

In this special Christmas bonus episode, Ben and Tao give Royal Mail a run for their money as post-apocalyptic couriers, stacked high with teetering packages but ready to deliver by road, zipline or exoskeleton in Death Stranding. Ben grills Tao on exactly what he found to enjoy in Hideo Kojima’s post-Stranding USA (or UCA as it’s called in-game: The United Cities of America). They debate product placement; the use of celebrity voice acting; voyeurism, auteurs and their egos; and whether Tao is a passive and subservient consumer. (He’s not sure.) Some spoilers from around the half way mark, but nothing that will shed any serious light on the confusing plot. Content Warning: PEGI 16. Frequent strong language and angry rants abound. Plus some eejit tries to nuke a few cities. Clarifications: The original score was composed by Ludvig Forssell Tim Rogers’ review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZHUY-nVXKU Tim Rogers’ spoilers summary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYlDQbHJ_ms  Audio extracts: Red Dead Redemption 2 OST Minority Report feat. Tom Cruise and Colin Farrell Die Hard feat. Bruce Willis Rock Flag and Eagle feat. Charlie Day (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) The Transporter films montage feat. Jason Statham Forrest Gump feat. Tom Hanks Prince of Persia 1989 OST Fable OST ‘Witchwood’ James Bond 007 theme by David Arnold ‘Fields of Gold’ by Sting ‘Sound of Silence’ by Simon and Garfunkel ‘Bones’ by Low Roar ‘Don’t Be So Serious’ by Low Roar Nursery rhyme montage from Identity, Conjuring 2, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Dead Silence Theresa May Quiet’s Theme from Metal Gear Solid V by Akihiro Honda

A road trip through the Deep South finds Ben and Tao soaring among the clouds and scouring the deepest mines on route to deliver a prize antique in surrealist point-and-click-and-choose-your-own-adventure-kinda, Kentucky Route Zero. From poetry and music to humanity’s impending obsolescence and the nature of, as Tao likes to say, voracious capitalism, no stone is left unturned as the duo try to decipher the impossible. Fasten your seat belts. Spoilers throughout (but it’s not that kind of game). Content Warning: PEGI 12. Surprisingly clean fun for once. Just careful of the bears... Clarifications: Tao is referring to the Neil Gaiman book Neverwhere Andy Shauf’s bar concept album is Neon Skyline Harry James Angus’ album is Little Stories Audio extracts: Barack Obama and crowd chant Spaced S01E07 ‘Ends’ (1999) feat Simon Pegg and Jessica Hynes Greensleeves (anon and F. Cutting) performed by Daniel Estrem on renaissance lute Gerry Rafferty - Baker Street (1978) saxophone OSMOS (2009) game soundtrack Billie Piper - Because We Want To (1998) Phil Collins - Sussudio (1985) The Shining feat. Jack Nicholson and Joe Turkel Andy Shauf - Neon Skyline (2020) Harry James Angus - The River Queen (2017) Rage Against The Machine - Take The Power Back (1991) Twin Peaks OST Sunset Overdrive Johnny Greenwood’s ‘Spooks’ from the Inherent Vice OST Lemon Jelly - The Staunton Lick

Our two adventurers set sail through the Deadfire archipelago, hot on the heels of the keep-stomping, giant-stealing, adra-devouring God, Eothas, in Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. But with Ben playing as impatient neutral and Tao as dignified evil, can they get along? They spill secrets of their raunchy (on-screen) romances, question the rising trend of maritime oriented games, and probe the merits and disadvantages of diving too deep into the ‘role playing’ in role playing games. Major spoilers from around half way, also spoilers for the original Pillars of Eternity. Content Warning: PEGI 15. Strong language. Slavery, colonialism, backstabbing, and ribald crewmates bragging in explicit detail of sexual conquests. Clarifications: This game was released in May 2018. The first one was released in March 2015. The party member is correctly identified by Tao as Pallegina. The original soundtrack is composed by Justin Bell who also scored the first game. The original sea shanties were written and performed by Nils Brown and Carrie Shaw. “Stanley’s Parable” is a reference to The Stanley Parable game. In the words of its designers: “an experimental narrative-driven first person game...an exploration of choice, freedom, storytelling and reality.” Netflix has not officially cancelled Mindhunter, but show director David Fincher has strongly implied it will be discontinued. Audio extracts: Pillars of Eternity OST by Justin Bell Sid Meier’s Civilisation 2 OST  Command & Conquer Red Alert theme - ‘Hell March’ Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 1 - feat. Emma Watson Arrested Development feat. Will Arnett Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring feat. John Rhys-Davies Mighty Morphin Power Rangers theme South Park - ‘Make Love, Not Warcraft’ S10E08 Hitman Baldur’s Gate OST by Michael Hoenig feat. Jim Cummings (Minsc) True Blood OST feat. Anna Paquin Mass Effect 2 OST - ‘New Worlds’ by Sam Hulick and Jack Wall Anchorman feat. Will Ferrell Schindler’s List theme by John Williams Mindhunter OST by Jason Hill

Drawing on divine favour and Godly boons, Ben and Tao are seduced by Aphrodite, hastened by Hermes and emboldened by Ares as they push the boundaries of daddy’s discipline in tongue-and-cheek roguelite, Hades. The two dissect the ‘roguelike’ genre, Tao finally finishes the game (not once, but twice!), and Ben reveals why his attitude towards this is the same as to shopping in Ikea. Plus, when is a spoiler not a spoiler? Minor spoilers heavily forecast around half way. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Flashing lights may trigger epilepsy, migraines and extreme pixel vision. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. (Maybe.) Clarifications: Zagreus and Megaera are not brother and sister… Prometheus was bound to a rock, and an eagle--the emblem of Zeus--was sent to eat his liver (in ancient Greece, the liver was often thought to be the seat of human emotions). His liver would then grow back overnight, only to be eaten again the next day in an ongoing cycle. According to Wikipedia, “Roguelike (or rogue-like) is a subgenre of role-playing video games characterized by a dungeon crawl through procedurally generated levels, turn-based gameplay, tile-based graphics, and permanent death of the player character.” In ‘Patriot’, to prevent Iran from going nuclear, intelligence officer John Tavner must assume a non-official cover —that of a mid-level employee at a Milwaukee industrial piping firm. The HBO show ‘Beforeigners’ is set in Oslo, not Copenhagen/ Denmark. Ben is talking about Super Mario Land, the 1989 side-scrolling platformer developed and published by Nintendo as a launch title for their Game Boy handheld game console. (The first Mario platform game ever to be released for a handheld console.) The music for Hades included in the audio bed here was composed by Darren Korb. Audio extracts: The Old Bachelor Z. 607, by Henry Purcell (for Harp) Borderlands - ‘Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked’ Avengers: Age of Ultron Hollow Knight theme by Christopher Larkin The Champs - ‘Tequila’ ‘In the Flame’ from the Pyre Original Soundtrack Kalandra - Skaldespille (from the HBO® Nordic series Beforeigners) Wayne’s World - “We are not worthy” It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Season 5, Episode 2: "The Gang Hits The Road" Planet Earth 2 OST - ‘Dancing Bears’ Halo 2 Soundtrack - Halo Theme (Mjolnir Mix) by Martin O’Donnell Faster Than Light OST main theme ‘Nude’ by Radiohead Palm Springs (2020) ‘Patriot’ TV series Dragon Age 2 Harry & Paul, Series 2, Episode 2 - ‘40...45 years’ Futurama, S4E4, "Less Than Hero"

Like ghosts in flying space balls, floating laptops and archaic CCTV, Ben and Tao go full Wheatley, buddying up with Dr Emma Fisher to solve the mysteries of low orbital space station, Observation, and its wonky AI, SAM. The pair ask where all the decent AI games are and tease apart scifi’s genre trope of ‘space gloop’, before Tao goes full Sigmund Freud on the nature of Emma and SAM’s inter-organism, robosexual relationship. Spoilers from around half way (including one for Horizon Zero Dawn). Content Warning: PEGI 12. Occasional strong language. Doppelgangers and evil robot alien space gloop. (Yeah, we don’t know either.) Clarifications: Observation was released for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4 on May 21, 2019 and for Xbox One on June 25, 2020. Uplink is a simulation video game released in 2001 by the British company Introversion Software. The player takes charge of a freelance computer hacker in a fictional futuristic 2010, and must break into foreign computers, complete contracts and purchase new hardware to hack into increasingly harder computer systems. Observation was built in Unity. Actress Kezia Burrows is, in fact, also Welsh. Born in Neath, she lived in Porthcawl and then Carmarthen. She trained at RADA, graduating in Summer 2004. Anthony Howell voiced SAM and has also voiced roles in Dragon Age: Inquisition, SOMA, Vampyr, Anthem and Alien: Isolation (among others). Audio extracts: Men In Black (1997) ‘Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes’ Xbox trailer Her (2013) feat. Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson Agatha Christie's Poirot main theme The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) Interstellar OST by Hans Zimmer Julie Andrews: ‘Getting To Know You’ from Disney’s ‘The King and I’ Horizon Zero Dawn OST - ‘Aloy’s Theme’ feat. Julie Elven Uplink OST - ‘Deep in Her Eyes’ Hackers (1995) Who wants to be a millionaire? Human Traffic (1999) feat. Danny Dyer and John Simm The Expanse OST, title theme by Clinton Shorter Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six/ Splinter Cell ‘Let There Be Love’ feat. Nat King Cole ‘Stay Alive’ from Portal by Jonathan Coulton Better Call Saul theme by Little Barrie

Equipped with space suits, backpacks and their trusty terrain tools, Ben and Tao shuttle between stars and planets while sucking up every available resource in space industry sandbox, Astroneer. The duo ponder the contrast between procedurally generated sandboxes and narrative driven adventures, the importance of tutorials, creation versus consumption, and the rise of efficiency-maximising factory simulators. Plus, they get a little sidetracked with what makes good TV... No spoilers. Content Warning: PEGI 3 game with a PEGI 12 analysis. Some strong language. In-game purchases. Beware labyrinthine caves. Clarifications: Lewis Saunders is a compositor who has worked on a wide range of triple A Hollywood titles. His work is here: http://lewissaunders.com/ The Astroneer Reddit guide that Ben found so helpful is here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Astroneer/comments/e46cfo/guide_from_start_to_finish/ Here’s the guy who made Pong: https://www.reddit.com/r/Astroneer/comments/i2xxeh/i_made_pong_more_info_in_comments/ Audio extracts: ‘Space Walk’ by Lemon Jelly feat. Ben and Tao Death Stranding OST Mario Kart ‘64 - ‘Raceways’ Don’t Starve OST ‘Widows’ trailer Subnautica theme Journey to the Center of the Earth trailer Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith ‘The JCB Song’ by Nizlopi ‘Supermoon’ by 65daysofstatic, from No Man’s Sky House theme and excerpts (including ‘Teardrop’ by Massive Attack) Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy (2014) Doom ‘64 - Level 02, The Terraformer Astroneer ‘Automation’ trailer Red Dead Redemption 2 theme Pewdiepie plays Minecraft

Arrr, me hearties! Step aboard as Ben and Tao turn insurance sleuth to investigate the mystifying, mysterious mystery of her not-so-good ship, The Obra Dinn. On the Orlop Deck they enlist the help of the Bosun (or is it Boatswain?) and his Mate (or Steward?) to decipher all the nautical jargon (or is it lingo?); they offer competing high brow references in their effort to find an appropriate analogy for Lucas Pope’s unique style of game design; and are tested on their knowledge of ancient geography and accents. Much lolling is had by all. Major spoilers throughout. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Strong language. Arguably offensive accents. Homicidal Kraken and mer-people and that. Clarifications: William Hogarth (1697-1764) was an English painter, printmaker, pictorial satirist, social critic, and editorial cartoonist. The Bayeux Tapestry is an embroidered cloth nearly 70 metres long which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England and culminating in the Battle of Hastings. Moby Dick is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. Heart of Darkness is an 1899 novella by Polish-English novelist Joseph Conrad. Bill Bailey riffs on the West Country accent at length in his brilliant stand-up show, Part Troll. Audio extracts: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner - Samuel Coleridge (1772 – 1834) Master and Commander - feat Russell Crowe Jean-Philippe Rameau's "Les Cyclopes" - Rondeau in D minor The Wire - Season 1 Episode 4: "Old Cases" The Simpsons [S06E25] - Who Shot Mr. Burns? Part 1 Austrian Yodeling HBO’s ‘Game of Thrones’ Theme Rockstar’s ‘LA Noire’ Theme The Lighthouse - feat Willem Dafoe Age of Empires 2 (Dock Sound) The Office (UK) Shaun of the Dead Part Troll - Bill Bailey

Ben and Tao don their tricornes, unsheath their long swords and spare no prisoners as they ravage the virgin lands of Teer Fradee in colonialist RPG epic, Greedfall. Tao takes issue with the representation of race and colonialism, while Ben takes umbrage with just about everything else. Despite the theme, diplomacy goes out the window and harsh truths are aired. Major spoilers from around half way through. Content Warning: PEGI 16. Very strong language. Vehement criticism. The slaughter of innocents. General tyranny. Clarifications: Petrus/ Heimlock is voiced by English actor Steven Hartley. Dragon's Dogma is an ARPG hack n slash developed and published by Capcom in 2012. In Mass Effect 2, the Krogan are a species of large reptilian bipeds. Spider’s previous game was The Technomancer (2016) Audio extracts: Adele - ‘Skyfall’ Brian Blessed Masterchef UK Martin Harley - ‘Money Don’t Matter’ Monty Python’s ‘The Spanish Inquisition’ Fiona Shaw as Carolyn Martens in ‘Killing Eve’. Dragon Age: Inquisition OST Dragon’s Dogma Fable OST The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Civilisation 4 OST - ‘Out at Sea’ The Apprentice UK

Fresh off the Hotline, directors Ben and Tao uncover the mysteries of the Oldest House and resist the Hiss, all while clearing out a serious Mold infection in Remedy’s third person shooter, Control. (Yes, Ben does take Issue with the Lazy Naming Convention of all those Proper Nouns.) Subjects include why gaming tropes are so persistent, the power of actors to make or break a game, and if criticising female characters risks you getting labeled a chauvinist. Heavy spoilers from around half way through. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Some strong language. Creepy kids videos. Disembodied voices. Clarifications: Remedy also released Alan Wake’s American Nightmare in 2012. Dr Casper Darling is played by Matthew Poretta. He also voiced Alan Wake and starred in Robin Hood: Men In Tights The music for the Ashtray Maze is by Old Gods of Asgard - ‘Take Control’ The last game we talked about was Outer Wilds, not Outer Worlds! God damn… Greedfall (our next game to be reviewed) is by developer Spiders. They’ve been around since 2009 and Greedfall is their 8th game. Audio extracts: Barton Fink (1991) - Coen Brothers film Lost - TV series intro Old Gods of Asgard - ‘Take Control’ ‘Time’ by Hans Zimmer, from Inception Max Payne theme by Kärtsy Hatakka & Kimmo Kajasto Keymaker scene from The Matrix Reloaded (2003) The Witcher 3 ‘Happy’ by Pharrell Williams Popeye theme song

Ben and Tao big up and break down space exploration puzzler, Outer Wilds, while coming a bit unstuck on life, the universe and everything. They consider whether binge gaming is detrimental to enjoyment, what point open world game design becomes too open (if ever), and somehow, weirdly, the Fermi Paradox. This episode features a cameo from PhD physicist, Dr Noah Waterfield Price. Heavy spoilers from the start. Content Warning: PEGI 7. Some strong language. Terrifying fish. The destruction of the universe. Clarifications: Outer Wilds original music is composed by Andrew Prahlow In The Making Of Outer Wilds documentary, co-creative lead Alex Beachum admits to being a massive Zelda fan. The mathematical formula described by Ben is the Fibonacci sequence, and the spiral is the Golden Spiral. Audio extracts: Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere by The Who Edge of Tomorrow feat. Emily Blunt and Tom Cruise Thunderbirds theme tune Back to the Future feat. Christopher Lloyd as ‘Doc’ Brown The X-Files theme song Myst The Simpsons: S08E10 - The Springfield Files BBC Hancock’s Half Hour theme song Spaced: S01E05 “Chaos” The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - “Lost Woods” Shrek 2

Ben and Tao eventually navigate their way past the podcast intro to explore the tundra and blisteringly cold wilds of Victorian era, steam punk city builder, Frostpunk. They dissect the differences between real time strategy and city-builder genres, argue the merits of employing child labour, debate the importance of replayability and ponder the pitfalls of emotional storytelling. Some minor spoilers. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Bad language. Children crushed to death. Tyrannical rule. Audio extracts: This War of Mine theme The Last of Us theme and scene extract feat. Joel and Ellie The Mighty Boosh S01E04 - ‘Tundra’ The Last Post Half-Life 2: Episode 1

Ben and Tao climb out of their vent to revel in nostalgia and relive the glory of 1998 first person shooter, Half-Life, as they talk through the newly released Valve endorsed fan remake, Black Mesa. They whip out their (non-existent) PhDs, lament loading screens, rave about the longevity of really great graphics, analyse the value of remakes, and marvel at the scale and ambition of this timeless, pioneering and cinematic FPS. Minor spoilers, but come on, we’re a decade later…! Content Warning: PEGI 12. Mild language. Extended clip of man torn apart and eaten alive. Clarifications: According to LinkedIn, the Crowbar Collective has 13 employees. Alien: Isolation is a 2014 survival horror video game developed by Creative Assembly. Ben has now played it, and reviewed it on pixelvision.net! Black Mesa left early access and got its official Steam release in March 2020. Audio extracts: ‘Stranger Things’ theme Spaced S02E04 - ‘Help’ ‘Welcome to the Suck’ from Jarhead, by Thomas Newman A Toast to 15 Years tribute song to World of Warcraft Classic. The Longest Journey OST

Ben and Tao arrive in character (and with a new microphone!) to confront their demons and run through the cheerfully derivative action RPG/ Diablo-rip-off-hack-and-slash, Wolcen Lords of Mayhem. The duo chat about inexperienced devs, lag spikes and game breaking bugs, gender stereotyping, coop multiplayer, why feeling like a bad ass has limited appeal, if Wolcen and Candy Crush Saga have something in common, and whether the grind of loot farming is a curse when it comes to replayability. No real spoilers. Content Warning: PEGI 7. Some mild language. Lovecraftian level gore. Seriously, more than an abattoir. Audio extracts: Shaun of the Dead/ Zombie Nation Wave by Antonio Carlos Jobim Candy Crush Saga

Shinobis Ben and Tao give Japanese a whirl, lament the naming conventions of video game franchising, and discuss the virtues or not of Souls-like-samurai-boss-brawler Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. The conversation swings from Dark Souls and the genre it spawned, to controller defaults and remapping, skill versus luck, gaming versus musicianship, godliness versus impotence, subtitles and dubbing, to fast travel or not, game design decisions (No cutscene pause! No quit game option!) and punitive time-wasting by devs. No spoilers. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Some bad language (and bad Japanese). Lots of dying. Violently. Clarifications: ‘Equanimus’: adjective. having or showing equanimity; even-tempered: It was difficult to remain equanimous in the face of such impertinence. (Dictionary.com) The game was released in March 2019 by developer, FromSoftware. Audio extracts: The ‘Friends’ theme - I’ll Be There For You by The Rembrandts

The podcast gets a name. Ben and Tao run through the ups and downs of moderating a 90s era cyber space in the sci-fi web simulator, Hypnospace Outlaw. Topics include the early internet, nostalgia, when puzzles become too puzzling, minigames, microtransactions and pseudo-currencies, music genres, and the limits of satire. Spoilers from half way through, clearly delimited. Content Warning: PEGI 12. Bad language. Hacking, piracy and heavy censorship. Clarifications: The original soundtrack is mostly by Jay Tholen. It’s available on Spotify. The Witness is a game by Jonathan Blow (of Braid) and Thekla, Inc. BWL allegedly means ‘bursting with laughter’ Audio extracts: Papers, Please Halt and Catch Fire Satellite Anthem by Barnaby’s Chair (aka Dan Warren)

Ben and Tao introduce themselves and the podcast before jumping straight into a forensic analysis of the hilarious and novel RPG game, Disco Elysium. Topics include censorship, discrimination and politics in game stories, save scumming, whether Ben’s an unlucky person, gaming alter-egos and breaking the rigid gamer mindset, and the merits of an in-game sidekick. Spoilers. Content Warning: PEGI 16. Very strong language. Reference to drugs, violence, discrimination and war crimes. Clarifications: The game writer is Robert Kurvitz, a Karelian-Estonian novelist. He founded the video game development company ZA/UM in 2016, which employs about 20 developers. WW2 soldier hiding in Guam jungle didn’t know war had ended. The official soundtrack is by British Sea Power. Audio extracts: Gladiator The Simpsons Saturday Night Fever Magic Roundabout theme The Internationale Lord of the Rings OST Trump v Clinton Presidential Debate The Bill theme