Best Pixelated Playgrounds Podcasts (2024)

1
DotAGE

2h ago

—

Bryan and Josh recently spent some time managing a series of settlements in rogue-like city builder and prophecy-defier, DotAGE. Long time project of solo game developer, Michele Pirovano, DotAGE is wonderful little management sim with bright cheerful pixel art, sharp entertaining writing, and a level of ease and polish that you do not often see in…

1
126: Cocoon (with Brenden Groom - Pass the Controller) 1:15:32

1h ago1:15:32

1:15:32

Every now and then, I want to take a break from story-focused games and just play a puzzle-ass puzzle game. Geometric Interactive's Cocoon was just what the doctor ordered, from that perspective. But Cocoon's world hinted at a deeper story, one that seems inaccessible yet present, and that left me with a feeling of want, despite how great the puzzl…

1
Making Unforgettable Memories on Lake George at Silver Bay 37:41

4h ago37:41

37:41

In this episode of ADK Talks, we visit a unique destination on the Queen of American Lakes: Silver Bay YMCA. Lindsey Butler, Executive Director of Sales and Marketing, is our guest as we take a deep dive into this unique place to visit and stay along one mile of gorgeous Lake George shoreline. Lindsey provides all you need to know about why Silver …

1
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree (Preview) (with Charlie Young) 1:09:57

2d ago1:09:57

1:09:57

In this bonus episode, I'm joined by returning guest Charlie Young to discuss FromSoftware's Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. The public feed includes roughly the first half of the episode, and all paid members at [patreon.com/realdavejackson](patreon.com/realdavejackson) will get the entire discussion. This is a full spoiler discussion…

1
125: Gris (with Eric Gess - The Unlockables) 2:04:43

34m ago2:04:43

2:04:43

I was convinced to try out Gris after seeing a single screenshot, but in true gamer fashion, I bought it a few years before finally playing it. It took the backlog resolutions challenge in our Discord server to finally get me to play it, and unsurprisingly, I was hooked by what Nomada Studio had created immediately. The marriage of art, music, game…

1
Pixels to Peaks: Digital Art and AI Breathe New Life Into Adirondack History 42:14

2h ago42:14

42:14

In this episode of ADK Talks, we delve into the unique world of Doug Smith, the digital creator of ADK Legends on Instagram. He weaves captivating stories about the history and people of the Adirondacks through his original digital art, a blend of creativity and cutting-edge technology that is sure to pique your interest. Doug shares what inspires …

1
124: Lisa: The Painful (with Rick Firestone - Pixel Project Radio) 2:42:50

3d ago2:42:50

2:42:50

For any lover of RPGs, and especially "weird RPGs", as former guest on the show Rebekah Valentine termed them, Lisa: The Painful, by Dingaling Productions, will probably jump out at you. From its art style, non-pretty boy protagonist to its serious themes and punishing gameplay, this is not a game for the faint of heart. However, if you are willing…

1
123: 1000xRESIST (with Michael Higham) 1:55:05

15d ago1:55:05

1:55:05

Sunset Visitor's 1000xRESIST came out of nowhere for me. Releasing on May 9th, 2024 meant it faced stiff indie competition on its day of release, and it wasn't until others were shouting from the rooftops that I found myself drawn to try it out (and a big thank you to Sunset Visitor and Fellow Traveler for the review code!). What I found was a stor…

1
Sonic the Hedgehog 1 & 2

27d ago

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Bryan and Josh continue their race down memory lane for the Sonic series with a look at Sonic the Hedgehog 1 and 2! Both of the guys have a long history with these titles and were excited to take a look back at the character’s origins. While the original Sonic the Hedgehog was certainly an impressive debut for the Sega mascot, it did not have quite…

1
Scooping the Best: The Sweet Tale of Adirondack Creamery's Ice Cream Journey 45:35

20d ago45:35

45:35

In our inaugural episode of ADK Talks, we sit down with Paul Nasrani, founder and CEO of Adirondack Creamery, a premium ice cream brand made in the Adirondacks known for its commitment to fresh, local, and high-quality ingredients. Paul shares his remarkable journey from being a corporate CFO in New York City to following his passion for ice cream …

1
Introduction to ADK Talks 1:59

17d ago1:59

1:59

ADK Talks brings you the stories behind the people, places, and things to do in the Adirondack Park of New York State. With 6 million acres, the Adirondacks are the ultimate playground. We take you beyond the guidebooks and into the heart of one of America's most breathtaking regions. Just like we do on our website, adktaste.com, our podcast uncove…

1
122: Mother 3 (with Rebekah Valentine) 2:41:16

17d ago2:41:16

2:41:16

Famously never localized for an English-speaking audience, HAL Laboratory and Brownie Brown's Mother 3 has almost become a meme at this point. So much so that I wondered if it could live up the inflated expectations that I unwittingly put on games that are unavailable or difficult to find, a kind of forbidden fruit syndrome. So I made sure to put M…

1
121: The Last Guardian (with Chris - Franchise Festival) 2:11:48

24d ago2:11:48

2:11:48

Fumito Ueda's trilogy of Playstation games- Ico, Shadow of the Colossus and The Last Guardian- are idiosyncratic, minimalist art pieces. The final game in the trilogy, before the unfortunate dissolution of Japan Studio, was The Last Guardian, showcasing the uneasy partnership between an unnamed boy and a large, fearsome beast named Trico. The Last …

1
Casino Cast 2 ft. Balatro and Slice & Dice

1M ago

—

Its time for another Casino Cast with Josh and Bryan! Last time we tackled dice (Dicey Dungeons) and slots (Luck be a Landlord), so this time around we are tackling cards with recent world-beating indie success, Balatro, and more dice with the extremely compelling roguelike, Slice & Dice. Balatro is a game that at this point needs no introduction: …

1
120: Roadwarden (with Bryan Skursha - Pixelated Playgrounds) 2:14:31

1M ago2:14:31

2:14:31

From the first screenshot I saw of Roadwarden (Moral Anxiety Studio), I knew that I needed to check the game out. The art is simple, yet striking, and any screenshot will convey the quality of writing. Once I booted up the game, I found that the choose-your-adventure writing, the confident RPG mechanics and the music wrapped this into a rich total …

1
119: Cyberpunk 2077 + Phantom Liberty (with Adam Gumbert - Respawn Aim Fire) 3:20:46

1M ago3:20:46

3:20:46

Cyberpunk 2077 has had quite a journey. From the disastrous launch, the warranted criticism, and years more work by the developers at CD Projekt Red, the game is finally in proper working condition, fine tuned into a magnificent experience. Add in the Phantom Liberty expansion, and you have some of the most compelling storytelling in AAA gaming. Jo…

1
Cobalt Core

2M ago

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Bryan and Josh recently got stuck in a time loop out in deep space and wound up playing a lot of cards trying to fight their way out… in other words: For this episode they played Cobalt Core! Even in a crowded genre like the roguelike deckbuilder, sometimes a game can do so many things right (and a few things transcendently) that it breaks through …

1
118: God Hand (with Derek Van Dyke - Super Deluxe GamesCast) 1:48:14

2M ago1:48:14

1:48:14

Sometimes you hear about a game and you know you're going to love it. God Hand, released by Clover Studio and Capcom in 2006, is one of those games. Despite hearing about its difficulty (which was true, my hands still hurt), I loved playing this game and it deserves its resurging cult status. Now if only someone could convince Capcom that this is w…

1
117: The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (with Jared - Play Along Podcast) 1:53:03

2M ago1:53:03

1:53:03

As the Legend of Zelda series has pivoted to free-flowing and creativity-focused open words, "The Zelda Formula" has fallen by the wayside, left in the memories of those who grew up with it. That's certainly the case for me, as I welcomed the change that Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom brought to the series. However, the old ways still …

1
Helldivers 2

3M ago

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In this podcast the whole crew squads up to play the latest and greatest in Co-Op PVE action, Helldivers 2! As soon as word of the game’s rock solid mechanics and exceedingly fair live service implementation reached his ears, Clint boarded his Hellpod and shot like a literal bullet into the fray. His enthusiasm eventually spread to Bryan and Josh, …

1
How Gaming Has Influenced Our Taste in Music (with Ryan Juengling - List Off! and Jon Haig) 1:33:59

2M ago1:33:59

1:33:59

Video games have the power to connect with players to tell stories, but have you ever considered the role that video games had in shaping your taste in music? From sports games like Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, Madden and FIFA to rhythm games like Guitar Hero, Rock Band and Fuser, and even non-licensed soundtracks like Mega Man, The Last of Us and Final…

1
116: Transistor (with Alex - Low Five Gaming) 1:49:13

2M ago1:49:13

1:49:13

Transistor, by Supergiant Games, is an interesting game to go back to after playing Hades. You can see a lot of ideas that started here in Transistor and made their way all the way to Hades, with Transistor still being a really engaging and strategic game in its own right. I loved revisiting this game, and am glad it won the poll on Patreon to appe…

1
115: Xenogears (with Michael Berger - Bits of Time) 3:17:56

2M ago3:17:56

3:17:56

Xenogears, by Square, is one of the big RPGs of this era that I wanted to check off. As a fan of the Xenoblade Chronicles games and JRPGs in general, going back to the root of the series felt like an interesting trip back through history. A few things had initially put me off, like all of the talk about an unfinished second disc and heavy use of re…

1
Idle Cast ft. Universal Paperclips, SPACEPLAN, and (the) Gnorp Apologue

3M ago

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In this episode, Bryan and Josh dip their toes into the idle/incremental game space! Three idle games have been chosen: Universal Paperclips, SPACEPLAN, and (the) Gnorp Apologue. All are quite different manifestations of the idle/incremental game and each has its own strengths and unique offerings to explore. Universal Paperclips (2017) was created…

1
114: Baldur's Gate 3 NON-SPOILER SECTION (with Jim Rodeman & Chris Rettig) 2:06:40

3M ago2:06:40

2:06:40

Sometimes I try to write clever little descriptions about the games on the show, but this week's game doesn't feel like it needs it.** Baldur's Gate 3*, by **Larian Studios, excels in just about everything it sets out to do. It has impressive writing, almost unparalleled choice-based storytelling, memorable characters, a deep and engaging combat sy…

1
Baldur's Gate 3 SPOILER SECTION (with Jim Rodeman & Chris Rettig) 2:04:58

3M ago2:04:58

2:04:58

Our Baldur's Gate 3 recording ran so long, I had to split it up into two episodes. This is the full-spoiler discussion, where we talk about the decisions we made, how we solved our quests, how things turned out in our games, and much more. In particular, Jim's evil and Dark Urge playthroughs brought about some wild results that you'll love to hear …

1
CRPG History & The Breakout Success of Baldur's Gate 3 (with Felipe Pepe - The CPRG Book) 2:05:52

3M ago2:05:52

2:05:52

During the first few months after Baldur's Gate 3 released, I heard a similar refrain coming from my friends and people on social media- people would say something like "I normally don't play RPGs like this, but I love Baldur's Gate 3! Flash forward 6 months and now Baldur's Gate 3 has swept the major award shows and broken into the top 10 most-pla…

1
Chants of Sennaar

4M ago

—

Aspiring linguist Josh and professional guess-and-checker Bryan recently made their way up the tower featured in 2023’s indie puzzle game Chants of Sennaar! Along the way they marveled at the game’s superb use of color, clever language puzzles, and occasionally regrettable use of stealth mechanics. At its heart, Chants of Sennaar is a game about cu…

1
113: The Case of the Golden Idol (with NinaStruggles) 1:57:00

3M ago1:57:00

1:57:00

From the first time I saw a screenshot of The Case of the Golden Idol, by Color Gray Games, I was struck by these caricaturish portraits and knew I'd have to follow up on it someday. Then the comparisons to a favorite of mine, Return of the Obra Dinn, started rolling in and I knew I would have to play it sooner rather than later. And a big shoutout…

1
112: Sunset Overdrive (with Goohi) 1:22:11

4M ago1:22:11

1:22:11

Sunset Overdrive feels like a game that's been lost to time, doomed to a life of only being mentioned when a new game comes out that reminds people of it, despite being made by one of the industry's heavyweights (Insomniac Games) in the not so distant past. It's got a goofy tone, a bangin punk rock soundtrack, and an exquisite movement system that …

1
Tunic

4M ago

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Isometric Games’ Tunic, released in 2022, is a game that delivers stronger than almost any other title on the promise of a genuine feeling of discovery. From you moment that you are dropped onto the isometric, flat color-shaded beach with nothing but the ethereal soundtrack by Lifeformed and Janice Kwan to keep you company, you are expected to star…

1
111: Balatro (with Matt aka Stormageddon & Aaron Klaassen) 1:20:34

4M ago1:20:34

1:20:34

SURPRISE! Balatro comes for us all. Developed by solo developer LocalThunk and published by Playstack, the poker-themed roguelike deckbuilder has singlehandedly caused productivity to drop by 7% worldwide since its 2024 release. Thank you to Playstack and LocalThunk for providing me with a review code so that I could become a statistic! Joining me …

1
PAX East 2024: Reflections & Games Played 43:17

4M ago43:17

43:17

This is the PAX East 2024 retrospective and run-through of all of the games I played! Woooo! Games featured: Animal Well: The Art of Flight Duck Paradox Enter the Chronosphere Fallen Aces Fretless Lucid So to Speak Sorry, We're Closed Tape to Tape Throne of Bone YouTube VoD of the Nintendo DS panel I participated in! Support Tales from the Backlog …

1
110: Titanfall 2 (with Adam & Cory - Half Tone Takes) 2:33:46

4M ago2:33:46

2:33:46

Titanfall 2, developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by EA, is one of those unfortunate games that seems to be universally beloved, but apparently didn't sell well enough for them to continue the series. Instead, Respawn is stuck in the Apex Legends and Star Wars mines for the foreseeable future, and we're left to replay this wonderful cam…

1
Jusant

5M ago

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Climb to new heights with Josh and Bryan as they ascend the tower, learn its history, and rediscover a love of climbing while playing Jusant! Developed by the narrative powerhouse studio, Don’t Nod, Jusant puts the player in the shoes of a lone wanderer who must ascend a desolate tower filled with remnants of a civilization long past with only thei…

1
109: Resident Evil 2 Remake (with Gerry - Super Ghost Radio & Nick - Friday Night Gamecast) 2:55:09

4M ago2:55:09

2:55:09

- Support Tales from the Backlog on Patreon! or buy me a coffee on Ko-fi! Join the Tales from the Backlog Discord server! Social Media: Instagram Twitter Facebook Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://www.instagram.com/jackallencaricatures/ and his other pages Listen to A Top 3 Podcast on Apple, Spotify and [other podcast platforms](atop3pod…

1
108: Final Fantasy X-2 (with Adam - The Good, The Bad & The Backlog) 2:42:12

5M ago2:42:12

2:42:12

How do you follow up a story that ends the way that Final Fantasy X did? Well, Square decided that Final Fantasy X-2 needed to shake things up. Most sequels escalate, but that wasn't really an option here, and so the girlpower J-Pop Final Fantasy game was born. This game gets a lot of hate out there, but not for the reasons that I think deserve it.…

1
The Looker

5M ago

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In this episode Bryan and Josh cover The Witness from Jonathan Blow… sort of. Actually they cover The Looker, which is a loving homage/scathing satire of Blow’s game and at the price of Free and the runtime of about 60 minutes, comes highly recommended by the guys. Good satire is hard to find and that is doubly so in the video game sphere, but deve…

1
Evaluating Retro Games Roundtable 2:38:00

5M ago2:38:00

2:38:00

In this discussion, Dave is joined by Chris Coplien (Retro Hangover podcast), Rick Firestone (Pixel Project Radio podcast) and Andre (Fine Time podcast) to discuss the challenges and our personal approaches to evaluating retro games. In this episode, we discuss our perspectives and some specific games like Rocket Knight Adventures, Super Mario Bros…

1
107: Final Fantasy VII Remake (with Aaron Angle & Ryan Arrington) 2:20:53

5M ago2:20:53

2:20:53

How do you remake one of the most beloved games of all time? How do you fend off the masses who want to hold you to every decision made over 20 years ago? Well, in our opinion, Square Enix figured out the way with Final Fantasy VII Remake. This is a shining example of how a remake can update the graphics, completely revamp the gameplay, add voice a…

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