Call and Response: WOFF Dispatch April 2020
Added 2020-04-17 19:36:04 +0000 UTCHello! The purpose of this post is to call for your questions and prompts for WOFF! Dispatch. Please leave your response as a comment on this post by the end of the day on Sunday, April 19.
We're looking for two kinds of things:
1. Suggestions for our long-form discussion prompt.
2. Q&A about the shows, behind the scenes details, and miscellaneous (including off-the-wall and off-topic questions). Ask us about games or other media, life in general... You name it.
One caveat we've given in the past: If the question is too personal or gross, we may dance around it and not give a direct answer.
We look forward to making this new kind of WOFF! episode together with you.
Comments
Any genre mashups that you desire, but have never found? (Poorly executed examples can be ignored)
Julia
2020-04-19 14:55:39 +0000 UTCNever mind, just got around to finishing the Sands of Time episode, which cleared things up. Sorry again!
Shaun
2020-04-19 10:29:41 +0000 UTCI love music games, but at a high level every one is either becomes a zero-sum "how close to perfect can you do this chart, (your Rock Bands or Amplitudes) " which loses music's potential for expression, or "play around with this toy and make fun music, (Wii Music)" which loses a chunk of the point of the game. I've never seen anyone nail the middle ground of judging my performance while still allowing me to play around and do something unique in the middle of a game. Are there any mechanics or genres that you've never seen executed to your satisfaction that you've always wanted someone to come along and get right?
Matt Bixler! Hello!
2020-04-19 03:30:49 +0000 UTCFor both of you, what are your comfort food games for times like these?
Markus Blomer
2020-04-18 23:35:08 +0000 UTCAlso, for Q+A. Kole, do you notice any friction with your progressive politics living in small town Ohio? Considering a move from Chicago to smaller city and curious about the culture.
Michael Schneider
2020-04-18 23:01:47 +0000 UTCI'd be curious to know how you expect the diologue on video games to change as we move past the pandemic. Already, NYTimes is writing about professional streamers. Game companies are becoming increasingly present in general media for their outreach to consumers. Will this be the turning point that finally stops the video games are for losers and violent people discussion?
Michael Schneider
2020-04-18 23:00:20 +0000 UTCYou guys have talked in the past about great games that would've been tarnished by one terrible design decision (e.g. if Portal had fall damage). Are there any existing games you can think of that do suffer from a single awful design choice that brings your whole enjoyment of the game crashing down? (Examples for me would be Prince of Persia's 1-hour time limit, and Grim Fandango's original keyboard-only controls).
Alex Honeydew
2020-04-18 12:33:30 +0000 UTCStupid question, I wrote in a response for Prince of Persia via the WOFF Contact tab about a week ago, but then became a patron yesterday. Is this where I'm supposed to write my game response or is this for the other half of the Dispatch episode? Judging from everyone else's comments its just for prompts n stuff but I can't help but make sure. Thanks and sorry!
Shaun
2020-04-18 10:44:57 +0000 UTCAny particular visual style you'd like to see more of in games? I've enjoyed the return of late 90s era visuals for games like Dusk and the Haunted PS1 Demo Disc, for example.
Jon Cheetham
2020-04-18 08:36:21 +0000 UTCThis came to me tonight: Have either of you seen "The Commitments"? What did you think of it if you did?
Lucy
2020-04-18 00:36:53 +0000 UTCI've been thinking a lot about lockpicking minigames and by extension the entire subgenre of minigame activities and their purpose in game design. In my opinion, the value they add is almost exclusively related to their ability to exert pressure on you, and forcing you to spin plates. This is especially true when most of these 'puzzles' fall under the umbrella of 'activity', where there is very little actual challenge. For me, the platonic ideal of this is Alien Isolation. There are a number of simple activities that you need to do in the environment, from hacking puzzles to using a plasma cutter. In a vacuum, these are pretty useless activities that are not very interesting or challenging. But in that game, it works incredibly well because the game does not pause while you are doing them. It forces your focus to the task, with long animations in and out of the activity. Some of them make noise, and all of them force you to stand still with your back to whatever perils are around you. This can be really nerve-wracking, and is the best expression of 'fumbling with your keys' that I've found, where the penalty is just forcing you to spend more time exposed. I found myself constantly cursing under my breath when I pressed the wrong input, or mumbling 'come on, come on!' when I was taking too long to cut through a panel or turn a crank. Beyond the mini-games themselves, what games do you think integrate these activities to elevate the experience?
Adam Bucceri
2020-04-17 22:59:55 +0000 UTCDo you think there really is such a thing as an “Educational Game”? I tend to think that phrase is an oxymoron unless you’re talking about typing or basic math. Oregon Trail did teach me what cholera and dysentery were, but I don’t think that qualifies as “educational” in the way that my 5th grade teacher meant.
Mark Mahler
2020-04-17 22:50:40 +0000 UTCDo you all have any contenders for “Best Tiny Details” in games? I’ve been playing FF7 Remake lately and some of my favorite bits are that you can see the materia you have equipped on your weapons and that Cloud moves his ridiculous-size sword out of the way when he sits on a bench. Just some nice added touches here and there. (The action-specific taunts from the Island Master at the end of Grimrock 2 also fall into this category for me, and I was glad to hear you give them a shoutout on that episode.)
Mark Mahler
2020-04-17 22:45:46 +0000 UTCDo you guys think it is more valuable to expand and perfect a genre, or risk exploring something totally new. For example, Super Mario World nailing a 2d platformer , or Jumping Flash exploring a novel way to platform in 3d space.
Popofoshosho
2020-04-17 22:35:51 +0000 UTC(Greg here) Recently I've been trying to find solutions to the problem of 'too many games to play, not enough time'....first world problems, right? I'm not lucky enough to be like you guys and still trudge into a office for 40 hour a week shifts, even during this virus thing going on right now. (however, I did volunteer and they are paying extra money). One solution I've come up with is to watch what I call a 'game video' on the game. Several YT channels post all of the dialogue and cutscenes for a game with a little gameplay between them to provide the tissue and I've found that it works very well to let me experience the game without having to play it for much less of a time investment. A 40 hour game, for example, could be broken down to a 3 hour long game video. I do feel a little guilty about experiencing games this way, but I also rationalize it by saying it's a efficient solution to the problem. What do you guys think and have you ever done this personally?
Greg Polander
2020-04-17 22:33:17 +0000 UTCI’ve listened to a lot of the real early episodes so I don’t know if I missed it in the ether, but how did you 2 meet? Also this may not be the place for it but, I’m listened to the abject suffering episode Zombie Nation, and you made note of no zombies being in the game, and how it seemed to me, was that your player character was the zombie traveling around America spotting ur tongue and eyeballs at people to kill or infect them since u we’re fighting airplanes and the military and stuff just a long past observation.
Andrew Akridge
2020-04-17 22:19:14 +0000 UTCOutside of the Resident Evil and Silent Hill series, what are the best classic (PS2 and prior) survival horror games? I'd say I'm a fan of the genre, but almost all my affection is confined to those two series. Are there any unqualified (or nearly unqualified) recommendations that I'm missing out on?
Eric Nagurney
2020-04-17 21:10:35 +0000 UTCRemembering Woffs of yesteryear, Breaking Bad was a big talking point between the two of you, and I loved the enthusiasm about it. But I don't ever recall either of you bringing up Better Call Saul, what are your thoughts on it, if you've watched it? Personally I think it has surpassed the quality of Breaking Bad.
Nicholas Prior
2020-04-17 21:00:30 +0000 UTCI'd like to hear you guys discuss what makes a game's writing and lore evocative and cool vs. being trite and overwrought. Why is Dark Souls good and Lords of the Fallen bad?
Glukeose
2020-04-17 20:40:16 +0000 UTCI am using this quarantine time to get better at Guitar. I have been playing for around 15 years and have just recently gotten into the musical theory to provide a bit of focus to my noodling. I know that Kole and Gary both occasionally drop some advanced trtms to describe things like soundtrack songs. I also know that Kole was in choir and Gary is in a band. Can you tell us more about your musical backgrounds? What you like to play, how you practice, how did you start out. I would also love to know the chords to the Bonfireside chat intro and outro. Thanks.
Dustin Burt
2020-04-17 20:20:28 +0000 UTC“Ding dang ding dong dong dong ding dong ding dang.”
Jack Corrigan
2020-04-17 19:59:45 +0000 UTCI finally beat Getting Over It a few days ago, weirdly satisfying a supremely unfun experience that happened to be coincident with my reading "Manifesto" edited by Mary Ann Caws. I was struck by the fact that rarely in videogames are there "movements" formalized in the same ways we find in other media, say 12 Tone composition in classical music or Dada in painting. Bennett Foddy seems to advocate for such a movement with his disposition for bitterness, and I was wondering if you think that other games or designers proposition similar such theories or artistic ideals in their work? If not, why don't games have these formalizations so prevalent in other mediums?
Béa(u)
2020-04-17 19:54:19 +0000 UTCI recently listened to the Fallout 3 episode, and it inspired this question: what are your personal ideals for what food should be in video games, mechanically? Are you intrigued by hunger mechanics? Should food even be commonly used as a healing item? Should it have some good, albeit minor, storytelling purposes as it does in Dishonored, where it communicates class dynamics?
Jack Corrigan
2020-04-17 19:49:09 +0000 UTCHave you played, or are interested in playing Pathfinder: Kingmaker? Not necessarily for WOFF, just in general. I recently picked it up on sale, and have been loving it. The 3.5/Pathfinder system makes for very interesting tactical and character building considerations, and it definitely seems like it would be up Gary's alley. Allso, I started playing a Dark Souls randomizer after hearing your sales pitch, and it has been a blast. Thanks for the recommendation!
Billy Eshleman
2020-04-17 19:47:31 +0000 UTCAnthony Kiedis calls and pleads with you to join the RHCP. The payday from the resulting album and tour will mean that you never have to work again. However the one condition is that you have to take it seriously. The whole endeavour must be in earnest. Do you take him up on his offer? Do you think you can carry it off?
Paul Duffus
2020-04-17 19:46:52 +0000 UTCAny current theming/style/period of game you are into at the moment? For me I’m down the rabbit hole for 80s nostalgia and synth wave so way into FarCry Blood Dragon etc. Additionally, on your Whipfest YouTube series Gary, is it Levi that says whipfest at the end of the intro?
Dan Sayer
2020-04-17 19:44:14 +0000 UTCShould I move in with this family of raccoons I've spotted in my neighborhood? Thanks!
Luddekudde
2020-04-17 19:38:59 +0000 UTC
