207: Skate Story (with Josh Leslie - IndieQuest)

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson Discord, Socials and more- https://linktr.ee/talesfromthebacklog Join Dave and special guest Josh Leslie as they discuss Skate Story, developed by Sam Eng and published by Devolver Digital in 2025. How does the skating compare to touchstone games like Tony Hawk's Pro Skater or skate.? How does its poetic storytelling land? How do the aesthetics enhance other aspects of the game? All this and more- enjoy! Guest info: Josh Leslie (he/him) Check out IndieQuest podcast https://indiequest.buzzsprout.com/ Check out The Monthly Mishap podcast https://monthlymishap.buzzsprout.com/ TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Title Card 0:21 Introductions 5:00 Our Histories with Skate Story 9:05 Top-Level Thoughts 16:00 Story Setup and Poetic Storytelling 23:42 Open Zones and City Life 27:58 Visuals and Music 41:00 Skating and Downhill Sections 50:48 Boss Encounters and Challenges 59:43 Plan and Perform 1:03:30 Recommendations 1:07:13 Josh's Work- IndieQuest and The Monthly Mishap 1:11:34 Spoiler Wall & Patron Thank-Yous 1:13:21 Spoilers- Eating the Moons 1:31:08 Spoilers- Emotional Arc & Interpretations 1:50:20 Spoilers- Final Boss and Ending 1:56:32 Spoilers- We Still Exist Music used in the episode: Collapsing, Like Clouds Into Smoke (Blood Cultures), Where the City Can't See (Blood Cultures), Redvoid (John Fio), Lyceum (John Fio), Alcian Blue (Blood Cultures), Hole in the Sun (Blood Cultures), Godhook (John Fio) Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures