Two Player Theory

Cynthia is joined by guest hosts Derek and Zach for another special "guest episode!" While playing through Her Interactive's 2011 game Nancy Drew: Alibi in Ashes, the theorists try not only to solve the case, but also to unearth how point-and-click games fit into women's history, in gaming and beyond. But who is the George, the Nancy, or the Ned of the pod? You'll have to listen to find out!

For this very scary season, Zach and Derek trade horror games, horrible jokes, and excellent Dracula impressions. Derek reflects on Observation (No Code, 2020) as an existential thriller, and Zach dives deep into (gay) survival horror in SIGNALIS (rose-engine, 2022). Do you fear the horrors you may encounter in this episode? Or are you... compelled by them? Perhaps it matters not... for you will listen. Or perhaps, you already have...

Zach and Derek are joined once again by special guest Kyle to talk through Suzerain (Torpor Games, 2020), a political, narrative game where you play the role of a newly-elected president in a fledgling democracy, and have to find a way to bring about your political ambitions, whatever they may be. We theorists three all discovered our strong political convictions may not translate well to strong political maneuvering, but found a lot to like and learn from this game.  As the ground continues to shift metaphorically beneath our feet in the US, we hope you'll take our thoughts and analysis here as provisional and limited, subject to revision and supplementation. Nevertheless, we hope you enjoy.

Joined once again by special guest Sean (or Bean, has the Theorists end up calling him), Derek and Zach meditate on 2024's beloved indie game about a failed nun, INDIKA (Odd-Meter). They talk fate, faith, work, play, and imagine "What if the devil was real?" If you've ever wanted to listen to a podcast half the length of the actual game, THIS is the episode for you.

Derek and Zach make their way through Arco (2024), an indie, postcolonial (??) turn-based action game about the violence of colonization and the stories of indigenous people seeking revenge and redemption for past injustices. Challenging at mechanical, thematic, and narrative levels, Arco was difficult in all the best ways.

Thanks to a listener suggestion, Zach and Derek drift into the neon-lit world of Cloudpunk (Ion Lands, 2020). They reflect on Cloudpunk's unique, "cozy" take on cyberpunk, and try to figure out what they want and expect from a game about techno-feudalist collapse.

Derek and Zach are joined by special guest Sean to recount the highs and lows of their relationships with FromSoft's classic Dark Souls (2011). They reflect on narrative and mechanical design, struggle, failure, vulnerability, prophecy, and more. Check out Sean's podcast! https://www.gokvet.ch/ Works Cited Kelly: "I Can’t Take This: Dark Souls, Vulnerability, and the Ethics of Networks" Keogh: “Dark Souls: A Time To Grind”

Zach and Derek talk about one of the biggest games in the world: Minecraft. They test their knowledge, try their hand at some amateur foley work, and work through why procedural generation in games like Minecraft feels good, but generative AI sometimes really doesn't.  Threads: https://www.threads.net/@twoplayertheory Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/twoplayertheory/

On this unintentionally-well-timed-nearly-Valentine's release, Zach and Derek visit the dating-sim/dungeon crawler Boyfriend Dungeon (Kitfox, 2021), a game far less saucy than the title suggests. How does the game bring together these disparate genres, and what do The Theorists think of it? Listen in and find out!   Article referenced: Boyfriend Dungeon Is Being Subjected To Tumblr's Messiest Death Throes (Renata Price, 2021), https://kotaku.com/boyfriend-dungeon-is-being-subjected-to-tumblrs-messies-1847506425

It's Two Player Theory Award Season!! Zach and Derek highlight their favorite moments with games in 2024, both the big and the small. Wanna see the full list of our awards? Check them out on social media here: Threads: https://www.threads.net/@twoplayertheory Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/twoplayertheory/  

Or, The Life and Death of Robo Derek Zach and Derek (and a special guest ??) do a game swap to tackle a favorite genre: roguelikes, roguelites, and everything in between. They focus on FTL: Faster Than Light (Subset Games, 2012) and Cult of the Lamb (Massive Monster, 2022), but touch on many other games in this genre. This episode is the first of a mini-series on roguelikes - more coming soon!

Has the die already been cast? Are we all just floating along for the ride? What makes a memory, a dream, a ghost, or an echo (un)real? Is there hope for community and life after the flood? Derek and Zach consider it all as they explore their thoughts and feelings about Annapurna Interactive's Kentucky Route Zero (2013- 2020).

Derek goes back to the very beginning of his interest in first-person shooters with  Team Fortress 2 (Valve, 2007), and Zach tells the tale of his time at summer camp in Psychonauts (Double Fine, 2005).

Friend Kyle joins Derek and Zach to talk about a really bad tweet thread - but also about Sid Meier's Civilization V, Baldur's Gate 3, and what we want from good criticism.

Zach explores the many pathways of Chrono Cross's story, within the game and across his life growing up.

In this episode, Derek and Zach talk through their experiences with the latest instalment in the Animal Crossing series, New Horizons. Topics include utopia, friction, and the debut of the Fruit Minute with Derek and Zach. -- Links: Flores, Natalie. “Animal Crossing: New Horizons Is as Anxiety-Inducing as It Is Relaxing” (https://www.pastemagazine.com/games/animal-crossing-new-horizons/animal-crossing-and-anxiety) Minsky, Yaz. “Animal Crossing and the Ideology of Chill” (https://youtube.com/watch?v=JN8Q0KASClE) Signor, Jeremy. “Animal Crossing and Queer Agency” (https://unwinnable.com/2020/04/02/animal-crossing-and-queer-agency/)

Derek talks about his decade-long relationship with the rogue-like that started it all (for him) - The Binding of Isaac (Nicalis, 2014)

In this first episode, Derek and Zach talk through their experiences with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom