Independent Incidentals

The titular Undertale. Look at its visage and sigh a breath of wonder. Venerate Toby with your gamer fingers and your reading eyeballs. Also look towards Oneshot, and think to yourself, how the hell do these game work? I mean, breaking the forth wall is one thing, but telling a meaningful story? And changing my desktop wallpaper to hide messages within the computer itself? How does it work!!!!?

Telltale was one of the pioneers of an interactive genre of game that played more like a TV show or a movie than a full “game”. Even still, they were insanely popular and doted on for years for their innovations — being able to place a player into a game that had moral choices that were thought to make an impact. What changed? How did this house of cards come crashing down?

CODE RED. THE SHOW IS NOW A LET’S PLAY. I REPEAT, DOMINICK PLAYS THE GAME THAT HE’S DISCUSSING. And that game is Papers Please, one that requires you to make simple but stressful choices to survive within a nation under a totalitarian regime. Will you BUCKLE??

There was a time for the 00’s kids, who got to experience the joys of playing on a tablet and divulging in those tantalizing games. You know the ones: Angry Birds. Subway Surfers. My Singing Monsters. But do those games still hold up against the tide of lying, microtransaction-riddled, copycat slop? Or is was this wave triggered by the bad practices that the first wave of mobile games practiced, but amplified for the newer generation?

Dominick and Ellize discuss the charming and clever puzzle-roguelike-housebuilder Blue Prince! They discuss why a boy shouldn’t have a manor all to himself, the utter SNUBBING that occurred at the Game Awards, and clue notebook comparisons!

WELCOME TO IDLE GAME HELL! Don’t worry we’ll get something sustaining and nourishing for the mind in another episode. For now we need to fulfill our oligarchic obligations and control some little guys (aka gnorps)!! In this episode, Dominick discusses the minute differences between idle and incremental. Are these games a waste of time???

We cap off the year with a little childhood pearl of a game, remastered for the modern day! In this episode, Dominick chats about the impact of Heroes and Might and Magic 2, Ubisofts recent blunders, and Game Award nominees!

Ever wonder how we got to the point where people are playing Wordle ritualistically? Everyday, logging on to a website to guess a 5-letter word. This is not a recent fascination! Culture has, for the past century, been obsessed with habitual, daily games. It all starts with the crossword…

The genre that gave Dominick his palate as a teenager and is a staple in pretty much any playlist I make, Psychedelia provides a creative spark within the music industry. Tame Impala, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, and even Will Wood are bands and artists that invoke this in their creations. Join Dominick as he delves into the impact these artists had and still have on his life!

NOW UNVEILING SILKSONG! For real this time I promise. Join Dominick as he details the world of Pharloom, discussing the design philosophy of Team Cherry’s 7-year passion project. At the end Dominick ranks every area in the game, you wont wanna miss this!!!

A renewal of the boomer shooter genre with a retro PS1 style, as you eviscerate demons in Hell. How does it mash games as similar in vibe such as DOOM and Devil May Cry design mechanics that cater to action-FPS audiences?

This short episode contains a little overview of my first thoughts of Silksong, including first impressions, early moments and critiques. But not that much, this game is PEAK!!

As of writing, Hades 2 won GOTY! WOOO!! Ellize and Dominick explain how this sequel to a beloved roguelike based on Greek mythos rose in popularity in early access, and how they enhanced the original hack-and-slash formula to allow for more depth.

Every time I hear someone say they only play visual novels, I always wonder, what IS a visual novel? It can’t just be limited to the GUI and static character portraits, there must be a bigger net we can cast with this genre. And I have finally devised the means to do so…

Welcome to the new Season of Independent Incidentals! It’s gonna be the same old premise but with a year that’s gone by, Dominick has some sweet anouncements to share… Also briefly discussing Tall Trails!

From FTL: Faster Than Light to a game completely different, the ex-2K employees create a game that has a unique battling mechanic that is more like Chess than anything else. But with bug-punching mechs, a concept that pretty much writes itself, right? RIGHT?

Roguelikes. Dungeons and Dragons. Dashcon 2. What do all these things have in common? They all, in their own ways, loop back to the ripples that Tolkien left on the world. How did he write the most successful fantasy series? And how did it disseminate into popular culture?

The vast, revolution-ruined city of Revachol is a fascinating tapestry of worldbuilding that inhabits the world of Elysium. It’s also the place where an amnesiac cop struggles to find meaning and purpose. In this episode, Dom unpacks the world and the different mechanics that are designed to make the player suffer for their success and grapple with politics in a political setting. But, you know, in like a fun way!

A story of digital advancement, indie developer success, and corporate greed. Join us in solemnity as Dominick recites the obituary of Flash Player; its triumphs, its stagnations, and its eventual downfall into obsolescence. Also it was ADOBE I saw him do it he stabbed Flash Player right in the heart when he wasn’t looking please you have to believe me PLEASE

While Dominick suffers during his costly Spring Term, he has no reason not to do the show! So sit back, grab a and listen to him ramble about the show developments he expects, the games he may cover in the future, and whatever insane things he finds mildly amusing to talk about.

After selling the show to an evil character, Dominick is broke out of luck on this episode. There’s only one more thing he can do: go through every single episode and rank them based on how sick they were. Will he find a way to get the show back before it becomes an oil tycoon wasteland…?

What inspired this complete upheaval of nerds? What allowed Gary Gygax, creator of Dungeons and Dragons, to start this trend of fantasy roleplaying, and gave the road for DMs to create their own worlds? Co-host of ACwD Daniel and I explore that on this episode!

This is an interview with the amazing composer for the Venba soundtrack, AlphaSomething! In this interview, Alpha describes the process that went into creating its Tamil-rooted music. We also discuss diegesis, and how creating a narritive in the music connects us to the worlds that we create.

Dominick is proud to invite the creator of Windowkill onto Independent Incidentals! In this interview, torcado describes his journey in games development, and how Windowkill began as a unique Ludum Dare submission.

The ULTRAKILL episode will come soon! Unfortunately, this version of Dominick is outdated. You might need to update his BIOS, or just force him to drink more water… Instead, enjoy a fun little diatribe of my week, the Australian psychedelic rock scene, and the introduction to a new member of the show!