Call and Response: WOFF Dispatch September 2019
Added 2019-09-13 16:52:13 +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, September 15.
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
(Greg here) The recent controversy with violence in video games coming up once again just drives home the point that there are still millions of Americans -- especially the ones making policy -- who don't play videogames, much less get them, even though it's been almost 50 years since Pong and we're into a third generation of game players. Like our impact on the environment, there's not much a single person can do on their own to change this mindset, so I'll ask you guys -- is there anyone we can do to try to help to make people realize that games are not just for kids anymore and it's OK to play them when your an adult? Or is there really nothing that can be done and we just have to wait for the older generation to no longer be in charge?
Greg Polander
2019-10-21 22:36:51 +0000 UTCYou are cursed (or blessed) to become one game character forever. We can play this multiverse style so you can pick one protagonist and one antagonist. Which ones do you choose and why?
Doug Lief
2019-09-17 20:39:23 +0000 UTCHey Gary and Kole, how does Wifi work? how is it possible that data can just get to my phone through the air? I know that I could google this but I have faith in Contact. Viva Contact. sincerely Jan Champion
Jan Champion
2019-09-17 09:17:54 +0000 UTCThe remake of Link's Awakening has made me think again of a moral conundrum I pondered long ago. Is it ethical to wake up the Wind Fish? (Spoilers for a 26-year old game...) The entire world is part of the Wind Fish's dream. To escape Koholint Island and return to Hyrule, Link must wake the Wind Fish up, but doing so destroys an entire island filled with seemingly sentient people and creatures. https://games.avclub.com/when-zelda-traded-heroism-for-the-murky-morality-of-dre-1798267869 It will be interesting to see how they deal with this in the remake.
Paul Thacker
2019-09-16 02:35:19 +0000 UTCAs men who love chachkies but also have feline companions, how do you display your knick knacks? I've had to put everything in drawers since my little fuzzball joined the family.
Holland Hume
2019-09-16 00:05:41 +0000 UTCDo you think you’ll ever cover a fan-translated game on the show? I’ve been getting into older Famicom and Super Famicom games that never made it over to the states in the past few years and some of them seem like great WOFF fodder (Sweet Home, Live A Live, Dark Half, to name a few), but I don’t remember you guys ever tackling a fan translation before. Is that something you’d be up for or do you think that relying on someone other than the developer for part of the experience throws too big of a wrench into the mix?
Mark Mahler
2019-09-15 18:30:02 +0000 UTCwhat really matters: your favorite cool swords in games
Sid Menon
2019-09-15 15:56:35 +0000 UTCThank you! The October theme sounds amazing, can't wait to hear it.
gwenny_
2019-09-15 06:19:46 +0000 UTCThank you for this. I've been meaning to talk about this for a long time. We won't do it for September (we already picked something) and I think we're going to spend October talking about what ways a game can be successfully scary, but this is a good topic and we'll definitely hit it, either in november or in a catchup episode. -GB
Duckfeed.tv
2019-09-15 05:40:32 +0000 UTCMy suggestion for a discussion topic: Trophies and Achievements in games. How do you think this changes the way people approach games, and how does it inherently change the game?
gwenny_
2019-09-15 05:34:25 +0000 UTCYou get to choose one fictional artifact/device/item from any video game. You need to use this item to make the world a better place (in your vision). What do you choose and how do you use it? Can you think of anything that might go wrong?
gwenny_
2019-09-15 05:33:17 +0000 UTCHey gang! In your Half-Life 2 episode, you touched on something that I've been thinking about a lot the last few years: linearity vs. non-linearity in games. What are your positive and negative experiences with both modes of play? As someone who tends to prefer a well-crafted linear experience to an open world one and hears a lot of arguments in favor of the latter approach, I’m curious to hear what y’all think. (Obviously, these styles, particularly “linear”, cover a lot of ground and genre, so I realize I’m probably painting them with too broad of a brush.)
zero dark thotty
2019-09-14 21:42:46 +0000 UTC(Greg here) What episodes of any of your podcasts would you consider some of your best work and/or are personal favorites of yours? Conversely, are there any episodes that you wish that you could remove from the Internet and try again?
Greg Polander
2019-09-14 15:20:17 +0000 UTCCan I throw the term 'lovers' into the mix? Can that appear anywhere in the hierarchy?
Lewis Shaw
2019-09-14 01:04:02 +0000 UTCHey chaps. So I did a summer of crunchy CRPGs, and played BG2 and am currently playing Divinity:OS2. Loved all of it. Obviously I listened to your BG2 coverage a bunch. I've got a question for you (and I really hope this doesn't come across as a "gotcha" : this is in no way intended as that) Gary: in the BG2 episode you say that BG wouldn't really work with XCOM-style turn-based combat. After playing D:OS2 and knowing that Larian are doing BG3 have you changed your mind? Or do you have any hopes for what they will do with the combat? I didn't really get on with the BG2 combat and am bloody loving D:OS2 but I guess the change might piss some people off. What about you, Kole? Any preference? X
Lewis Shaw
2019-09-14 00:57:10 +0000 UTCHell Gents. A few questions here. I know recently on The Level Kole heard more about "Remnant: From The Ashes" I was curious if it is something you two might try out for BFSC as from one person who I watched a playthrough of it stated, it was a lot like Immortal: Unchained only better (in their opinion) I can't speak to either as I haven't actually played them yet (I'll get to that steam backlog eventually) but it does look like a really cool game and I know you both really enjoyed Immortal:UC. Have either of you checked out Carnival Row on Prime? Or intend to? Was curious your opinion it appears to have a lot of germanic mythology (seemed kinda D&D to my uneducated eyes at first) mixed with some Lovecraft stuff. I've only watched the first 2 eps but like it so far and seems intriguing/promising. I'm guessing probably not something you'll do for Unfilmable as it's a much heftier time commitment than a 2 hr movie. I also had a great time at Duckfest, glad you put it on. I was a little too tired to drive back to the meetup at Quarter World after so I didn't take an opportunity to tell Jeremy and Kole I really appreciate and enjoy the apparently more niche (or lesser commented) on Radio Free Midworld pod and thanks to them and Autum and all the other regular guests on that podcast. It's good to have a Jeremy face to go with the RFM and DoFC voice. Well thanks again.
Limowreck
2019-09-13 23:36:47 +0000 UTCHey guys, love what ya do. I respect your approach to political issues and the way you address them. I don't always agree with your conclusions but I understand and can get behind your reasoning. I'm sorry if you have addressed this before but have you considered having a political show? I would definitely be a Listener.
Cthulhu R'lyeh Flatagan
2019-09-13 22:36:18 +0000 UTCDo you ever worry that there’ll come a point where games just aren’t made for you any more? I personally don’t think it’ll happen; there’ll likely always be someone with similar sensibilities putting something out there, but I did feel that things were moving without me when MMORPGSs got huge and again when Battle Royale games broke big.
Craig Stewart
2019-09-13 22:28:33 +0000 UTCNinjas sneak into your homes and steal your cats. You can enlist the aid of one character from a game you've played in the last 12 months to get them back. Who do you pick.
David
2019-09-13 21:46:46 +0000 UTCHey Gary & Kole, cool network you have here! What's your weirdest quirk? Choose one your comfortable telling us about.
Luddekudde
2019-09-13 20:26:54 +0000 UTCHey guys, One thing I've been wanting to ask about, is your relationship to each other. Do you treat each other as friends first and business partners second or vice versa? Also if your comfortable answering have you have had any major conflict over the direction or other things related to the Network. Thanks, Nicholas Prior
Nicholas Prior
2019-09-13 19:53:02 +0000 UTCPlaying half life 2 and Control recently had me thinking a lot about physics in shooters. We see a lot of non combat games like Amnesia or Portal-like games play around with physics puzzles similar to HL2, while combat focused games seem to shy away from this type of thing. Are there any other examples you can think of that incorporate HL2 style physics into a more traditional shooter? Do you think modern FPS games like new wolf or doom would benefit from this?
Joelle
2019-09-13 19:36:12 +0000 UTCHey guys, got a bit of a life advice question for you. So, I've been GMing a tabletop RPG for about a year now, but recently the passion has nearly become poison to me. One of my players (a genuinely great friend and person) has made this a massive stress source for my life. Due to financial reasons she had to move to a different state with her husband and we've been using video messaging to compensate, however this is obviously something that is therapeutic for her in a way that I am NOT prepared or capable of handling. Every rescheduling makes me feel like crap because it obviously upsets her a lot. Adding on that, her character is making me rip my hair out, as she will constantly refuses calls to action, though ultimately going along will NOT stop vocalizing how much she hates having to do something she doesn't want to do (understandable on some level when you work menial job for a crap company/boss, but good lord!). This has literally driven two of my other friends from the campaign. I have no clue what to do here. I've tried gently broaching the subject, but that hasn't worked. I don't know, am I overreacting? I miss running for my other friends and want to start a campaign with them, but doing that feels like emotional violence to me. P.S. Duckfest was incredible! Everyone I met was kind and fun, and the shows had me suffering a laugh headache. I couldn't make the meet-up afterward though, maybe next year.
Jonathan Scratch
2019-09-13 19:23:34 +0000 UTCFirstly, my question for gary, Have you checked out previews for the next Magic set, Throne of Eldraine? If so what are your thoughts? Secondly, for Kole, How are you finding home-ownership? I'm partially asking because I have no idea how I will ever afford one, and also I'm about as handy as a double amputee. Next some quick yt reccomendations: Syrmor for some interesting (and sometimes very touching)interviews in VRchat, and Jacob Geller, in particular his video essay on Wolfenstein is great! Lastly , i just wanna say, loved duckfest! My wife and I had a whole lot of fun :)
Orkybits
2019-09-13 19:15:33 +0000 UTCFirst a comment in reference to a previous discussion on movies that you're embarrassed to like: Both Moonstruck and As Good As It Gets are universally acclaimed movies. I don't think anyone should feel weird about liking them. No question here, just wanted to say there's a lot of garbage out there that has huge audiences; those who like legit good movies shouldn't apologize. Second, politics: There is one cause that's embraced by the greater 'left' that I can't quite get on board with, despite the fact that I'm furiously left-wing in most other ways. Is there anything that you two have a hard time buying into that your wider political sphere makes a priority? I love you guys, keep up the fight!
Douglas
2019-09-13 18:53:42 +0000 UTCI'm glad to hear that because that was definitely the cadence we were going for. Lord knows I have my esoteric long running series that I willfully throw into my blindspot. Kole does too, as a big survival horror dude. -GB
Duckfeed.tv
2019-09-13 18:43:38 +0000 UTCBig thanks to both of you for how you handled Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones. I’m a huge fan of the series, but it was obvious that this wasn’t your cup of tea (for Kole or Gary). Nevertheless, I really liked the way you did your best to put yourself in the shoes of inveterate gamblers/Fire Emblem fans (silly me, same thing) who still enjoy putting ourselves through the bullshit of random stat gains and constantly resetting battles if we lose our virtual anime pals.
Mark Mahler
2019-09-13 18:33:53 +0000 UTCRecently a wave of bad behavior (to put it mildly) by game developers has been exposed - when things like this happen, does it change your opinion on the games they made? Is it hard for you to seperate art from the artist?
Zoombini
2019-09-13 18:04:24 +0000 UTCLikewise, so sorry for the loss of your cat. It's so tough.
Eric Nagurney
2019-09-13 18:03:05 +0000 UTCWhat's the class/archetype that you gravitate to in every class based game? For me, it's usually a heavy cleric/paladin if possible, but when not there, I go for the guy with the biggest weapon.
Gearman_14
2019-09-13 17:55:46 +0000 UTCAre there any game series you either came to late or never got to play that you wish you had tried earlier?
Pat Doherty
2019-09-13 17:32:25 +0000 UTCI'm so sorry for your loss, Eric. I was going to write a very similar comment to yours, I lost one of my cats last week in similar circumstances, and listening to BSC and abject suffering on the long drive home alone from the ER vet might have been the only thing that kept me in any condition to drive. Since then I've been spending all my free time in New Vegas as a means to cope.
rob
2019-09-13 17:31:17 +0000 UTCLong Form Discussion Prompt: What's your opinion on remakes and remasters? How different are they this console generation vs the last? What are some of the pitfalls they can fall into? What do they bring to the table that you view as valuable?
Jake Fortier
2019-09-13 17:19:13 +0000 UTCLast month, I unexpectedly lost my beloved dog to a gallbladder infection. I've been pretty shattered by grief ever since, but listening to the network has been one of the few things that's consistently brought me joy. Thank you guys so much for doing what you do. Are there any pieces of media, games or otherwise, that hold special significance because you came to them in a time of mourning? I know Dark Souls 2 will likely remain my favorite Souls game, since I played it shortly after a close friend (and, incidentally, original owner of my dearly departed dog) passed away.
Eric Nagurney
2019-09-13 17:18:17 +0000 UTCMaybe more toward Gary than Kole, but based on your preference in tabletop games have you ever looked into Stars Without Number? Having an OD&D framework and mindset applied broadly to sci-fi has been one of my favorite experiences in tabletop recently, especially due to the systems high lethality and being set up to reward planning from the players to avoid or approach combat tactically.
Ryan
2019-09-13 17:16:48 +0000 UTCEasy question, if a pancake or waffle has chocolate chips in it, do you also put syrup on it?
Nich Phillips
2019-09-13 17:09:49 +0000 UTCAs a soft midwestern boy myself, I was wondering if you guys have been to Portillos. If you have, do you miss it.
Popofoshosho
2019-09-13 16:57:40 +0000 UTCAs we are approaching October, what is a horror film you found too scary, either in concepts or execution, to watch or finish?
Jordan and Maya M.
2019-09-13 16:57:36 +0000 UTCMaybe a dangerous question, but has anyone ever changed your mind about a game or piece of media that you originally thought was bad. Like, not just thought it was ok, but actually thought it was bad. I find that the reverse happens a lot (I like something then with time and reading more about it, I will turn, sometimes completely) but I don't know if this has ever happened to me, and I'm curious.
William
2019-09-13 16:56:36 +0000 UTC
