Rainbow Road: a Gay Gaming Podcast

Rainbow Road returns for an all new season as Travis and Mike are joined by producer Matilda (she/her) and Laurence Turner-Cordova (he/they) of the Gay for Play Podcast join in to talk about It Takes Two. We talk pacing issues, uncanny children, and the heterosexual institution of marriage not being very slay and yas. Stay tuned for new segments and the same old laughs! You can find Gay for Play on all podcatchers, as well as on Twitter (@gayforplaypod). You can also find Laurence themself as @afroman76 on there! Rainbow Road is on Twitter as @rainbowroadpod, and our email is [email protected]. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike are joined by therapist Mariya (she/her) for a special episode talking about mental health, therapy, using gaming for healing, and why anxiety can be your waifu. You can find Mariya at https://www.chosenfamilytherapy.com/ Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike are joined by drag queen and illustrator Chara Couture (she/they) to recount their experiences with Unpacking - the game AND the chore. Enjoy 90s nostalgia as the crew compares notes on what they took away from each level, and recount some achievements you might have missed! Find us on Twitter at @rainbowroadpod, or write to us at [email protected]. Theme Music by UzzBuzz

Ashley Cooper (she/her) returns, joining Matilda (she/her), Travis, and Mike as they peel back the many layers of Davey Wreden's two most well known games. Find out whether Coda is real, how the Stanley Parable REALLY ends, and which character we somehow manage to make queer so this still fits under our umbrella. Twitter: @rainbowroadpod Email: [email protected]. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Content warning: discussions of suicide, substance abuse, & domestic violence.  Kyah (they/them) helps Travis and Mike remember what actually happened in Tell Me Why, as they break the story down character by character.  Things get heavy as the gang talks about their personal relationships to the game, their thoughts on its value for queer people, and whether Travis will ever be allowed to host this show again. Twitter: @rainbowroadpod Email: [email protected] Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Just when you thought you'd gotten rid of us! Travis and Mike catch up on the past few months, tease some upcoming episodes, and whine about the state of open world games for a bit.  Twitter: @rainbowroadpod Email: [email protected] Theme music by UzzBuzz.

To celebrate the podcast's first birthday, Travis and Mike invited past guests to rave about a character who's near and queer their hearts. Featuring Andrew Orsie (he/him), Ashley Park (she/her), Chara Couture (she/they), Faustine Pelipel (she/her), & Mr. Gaboobily (he/him). Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike have broken out of the Underworld to chat with Ashley (she/her) and Chara (she/they) about roguelike narratives, Sisyphian tasks, and the thirsty thighs of a specific God, on this week's episode about Hades!  Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Jordan (he/him) and Brooke (she/her) from Queer Quadrant are back to help Travis, Mike, and new guest Ophira (she/they) dissect the Black Mirror episode "San Junipero". The gang critiques the show's portrayal of disability, opines on love in a digital age, and puzzles over Yorkie's glasses. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis brings on Matt (any pronouns), Ashley (she/her), and Kyah (they/them) to revel in the beauty and horror of Naughty Dog's most ambitious game yet, and all the controversy that came with it. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Jacqueline (she/her) helps Travis and Mike explain the enduring appeal of the Zelda franchise to a Hyrule newcomer, Producer Matt (any pronouns).   Theme Music by UzzBuzz.

Ashley Cooper (@ashleyversus, she/her) joins Travis and Mike to recount fond memories of past console generations, in preparation for the PS5 and the new XBoxes. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

To prepare Mike for potential future Kingdom Hearts episodes, Travis invited Eitan (he/him) and Andrew (he/him) back to help explain the convoluted plot of the series, and why something so disjointed has captured the hearts of so many fans.  The Red Dead Redemption video we reference is at https://youtu.be/7rWYlQduZMQ (and doesn't contain any spoilers). Theme Music by UzzBuzz.

Matt emerges from the mixing studio once more to talk with Travis and Mike about the trios most cherished games, the horror of aging, and how they all became... like this. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Our friends from Queer Quadrant, Jordan (he/him) and Brook (she/her) join Mike and Travis to talk about video game movie adaptations! Let's debate the ultimate Tomb Raider adaption, enjoy the fluffiness of Pokemon, and fan-cast the new Last of Us series!  Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike bring on Ashley Cooper (she/her) and Ike Pastel (any pronouns) to revel in the positivity and nostalgia trip that is Netflix's new docuseries, High Score. Theme music by UzzBuzz

Travis and Mike host Eitan (he/him) and Faustine (she/her) to talk environmentalism, class consciousness, and hand massages.  Theme music by UzzBuzz. 

Travis and Mike are joined by Eitan (he/him) and Andrew (he/him) to simp for some cartoon zaddies, recount their dating horror stories, and realize the real dream is the Amandas we raised along the way.   Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike coax producer Matt (he/him) out of the booth again to join Kenzie (she/her) for a chat about Gone Home, other walking sims, and the inherent queerness of lonely journalling. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

With Mike on vacation, Travis recruits the Ashleys - Park (she/her) and Cooper (she/her) - along with Eitan (he/him) and Anthony (he/him/they/them) to talk the granddaddy of queer gaming, its many alien races, and how it stands the test of time. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike bring on Kyah (they/them), and Ashley Cooper (she/her) to recount memories of their first terrifying play-throughs of the Citizen Kane of gaming, and remind themselves, before getting their hands on the sequel, that the series has always been queer. Theme Music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike, as well as guests Ashley Park (she/her) and Ashley Cooper (she/her), rewind time to 2015 to discuss Life Is Strange. Spoilers for all episodes of season 1, warn your earholes. If you need a break from these trying times, a list of black-developed games is at https://bit.ly/2BUHLZH. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike, joined by writer of game and screen Alix (she/her) and producer Matt (he/him), ask: every other medium has a plethora of coming out stories, so where are they in games? Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Bow chicka bow wow! Travis and Mike host Zach (he/him) and Ashley (she/her) to talk about their history with queer romance options in games. How do they compare to their straight counterparts?   Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike talk with Vivian (she/her) and Mackenzie (she/her) to theorize: what makes Animal Crossing, Stardew Valley, and the Sims so popular with queer communities? You can find Mackenzie on Twitter at @KenziePhoenix, or with her other podcasts at @VGTMPodcast and @MuppetsPod. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis and Mike are joined by Ty (he/him) to talk about how Pokemon has evolved as a series over the years, and why we still love playing it. Theme music by UzzBuzz.

Travis (he/him) and Mike (he/him) are joined by Vivian (she/her) and Eitan (he/him) to discuss Overwatch's colourful cast of diverse characters, as well as Blizzard's real-life controversies. Correction: Blitzchung, the Hearthstone streamer referenced in this episode, received their prize money back after Blizzard's revised stance, but was still banned from play.  Theme music by UzzBuzz.