A relentlessly on topic smorgasbord of hard hitting video game questions as addressed by a panel of experts. Featuring Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, Brandon Sheff...
Brandon Sheffield roams the streets and parties of Tokyo Game Show 2024, interviewing famous developers, spotting soba restaurants affiliated with drift tracks, and espousing the beauty of Neo Geo Pocket sprites. Hosted by Brandon Sheffield, with Christian Whitehead, Paul Veer, Hunter Bridges, Yohan Leclerc, Brad Flick, Dylan Cuthbert, and KC. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.
Chapters:
starting things off with caveats (00:24)
a town called suwa (01:19)
christian whitehead, are you sonic’s step dad? (14:31)
paul veer, tell us about fuga memories of steel (23:13)
hunter bridges, say what you were trying to do with the neo geo pocket emulator (28:43)
yohan leclerc, what do you think about the encroaching AI problem? (35:10)
brad flick, tell us about dialogue editing (40:09)
running into dylan cuthbert on the train (46:59)
the process for getting a business pass at tokyo game show (01:07:59)
kc, what happened to your other chair? (01:10:37)
last day in tokyo (01:13:35)
mission success (01:15:56)
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1:24:46
Ep. 375 - Like a Destiny, with Ed Zitron
Journalist, podcaster, and PR person Ed Zitron joins the panel for the reveal of the Video Game History Museum Library, how to tell when a PR person is lying, and a precise rundown of how fucked video games are. Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Brandon Sheffield, and Ed Zitron. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.
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Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums
SHOW NOTES:
Alien: Romulus (2024)
Aliens (1986)
Alien vs. Predator (2004)
Predator (1987)
Kirby
Toad
Abba-Zabba
Nintendo DS
Birdo
Credit Report (05:01)
1: Aaron Stewart-Ahn asks, have you ever gotten in serious trouble playing a multiplayer game? (05:12)
Star Wars Galaxies
Second Life
EverQuest
Habbo Hotel
2: Frank, tell us about the newly online Video Game History Museum Library (11:01)
The Video Game History Museum Library
Digital Eclipse
What’s Up?
Nintendo Power
Myst
Riven: The Sequel to Myst
OCR
Diehard GameFan
id Software
Atari Jaguar
Game Developer Magazine
Halo series
Official Xbox Magazine
Metroidvania
Sega Genesis
3: Who do you think has the best PR team in video games? (19:52)
Mario
Game Developers Conference
Tokyo Game Show
Bloodborne
4: How fucked are video games? (27:31)
3dfx
Bump mapping
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Bob Dylan
Joker
5: LeFish asks, rank from best to worst: 1080 Snowboarding, Excitebike, F-Zero, Mario Kart, and Wave Race. (34:13)
1080° Snowboarding
Excitebike
F-Zero
Mario Kart
Wave Race
Satellaview
6: What is exactly as satisfying in real life as it is to do in a video game? (37:49)
Ace Attorney series
7: What is the Queens of the Stone Age of Video Games? (40:45)
Queens of the Stone Age
Stoner rock
Hades
Mark Ronson
D.I.C.E. Awards
LIGHTNING ROUND: 21 Questions (43:41)
Recommendations and Outro (55:11):
Ed: Better Offline
Frank: John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando
Brandon: Whatever you gotta do to feel better about things you have Brandon’s permission, Star Trek: Lower Decks
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59:11
Ep. 374 - Cage Rage Gauge, with Aaron Stewart-Ahn
Screenwriter Aaron Stewart-Ahn joins a panel guest hosted by Esper to cover the current definition of “good graphics,” Nicholas Cage’s sublime beauty, and seeing Attack of the Clones on acid.
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Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums
SHOW NOTES:
Fenrir
Light Cycle
Tron (1982)
Kingdom Hearts II
Tron
Honda Motocompo
Shadows of the Damned
Mandy (2018)
Yaiba Kusanagi CT-3X
Cyberpunk 2077
Keanu Reeves
Arch Motorcycle
Alex Winter
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)
Gran Turismo
Polyphony Digital
Tourist Trophy: The Real Riding Simulator
Road Rash
Sega Saturn
Sony Playstation
3DO
Full Throttle
1: Where are your favorite places to hang out in open world video games? (06:20)
Throne and Liberty
Fallout 76
The First Descendant
World of WarCraft: The Burning Crusade
Honor Hold
Arator the Redeemer
Final Fantasy XIV Online
Ryū ga Gotoku / Like a Dragon / Yakuza universe
Boyhood (2014)
Kamurochō
Shenmue
Slitterhead
2: When is it most obvious that zero research went into a particular video game scene? (15:15)
Starfield
Astral Lounge
Mass Effect series
GoldenEye 007
Far Cry series
Motor Toon Grand Prix
3: Design a video game where the main hero is played by Nicolas Cage. (20:54)
Nicholas Cage
Superman 64
Dead By Daylight
Leon Kennedy
Leatherface
Tekken series
Stanislavski’s system
Mortal Kombat series
Avery Brooks
Shun Di
Virtua Fighter series
John Barrymore
Charlie Chaplin
Buster Keaton
Akuma
M. Bison
4: Design a video game where the main villain is played by Nicolas Cage. (25:16)
Pig (2021)
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
Death Stranding 2 On The Beach
Hideo Kojima
Dan Brown
Weezer
Cats (2019)
Megalopolis (2024)
Kendrick Lamar
Shroud of Turin
Robert De Niro
The Devil’s Advocate (1997)
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Legend (1985)
Tim Curry
Constantine (2005)
5: Spencer asks, what are games biggest strengths as a medium? (30:56)
Street Fighter (1994)
Watchmen
Ultima V: Warriors of Destiny
Indika
‘Sonic the Hedgehog 4’ Gets 2027 Release Date
Call of Duty series
Half-Life 2
6: What do “good graphics” mean in 2025? (38:11)
Super Scaler
Indika
Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy XV
OutRun
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
7: What is the Decemberists of video games? (44:46)
The Decemberists
Colin Meloy
Shrek 2 (2004)
Shoryuken
The Matrix (1999)
The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
Dark Souls series
Bloodborne
Fleetwood Mac
Kate Bush
King’s Field
Devil May Cry series
LIGHTNING ROUND: Name Design – Czech New Wave Classics (49:37)
Credit Report (57:01)
Recommendations and Outro (57:24):
Ash: Dynasty Warriors: Origins, Three Kingdoms
Brandon: And Give My Love to the Swallows (1972), Kin-dza-dza! (1986), exercise
Aaron: Rejection
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1:09:14
Ep. 373 - Switch Boy Advance
Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield assemble to cover the Switch 2, video game console Marxism, and the shocking return of our most controversial segment. Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.
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Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums
SHOW NOTES:
Mount & Blade: Warband
Infinity Nikki
Dropout.tv
Picross series
Frédéric Chopin
Live 105
1: merritt k asks, which 90s platformer mascots do you think will never get a cash-in nostalgia-baiting revival? (03:31)
Awesome Possum Kicks Dr. Machino’s Butt
Greendog: The Beached Surfer Dude!
Boogerman: A Pick and Flick Adventure
Ristar
Wild Woody
Congo: The Movie - Descent into Zinj
Congo (1995)
Tim Curry
Sackboy
Astro Bot
Malice
Whiplash
Shadow of the Colossus
Mario
Pauline
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island
Supper Mario Broth
2: How bout that Switch 2? (09:37)
3DO Is Coming To MiSTer FPGA
Nintendo Switch 2 announcement
The Vergecast
3: What are the characteristics of a Nintendo video game? (16:55)
Metroid series
F-Zero series
OutRun
Daytona USA
Sonic the Hedgehog
Call of Duty series
Steam Deck
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Waluigi
Kirby
Wario
Mario & Luigi: Brothership
Pac-Man
Rent-A-Relic
Frogger
Centipede
4: Improv Zone - MMO Raid (22:48)
Isekai
Elon Musk
Grimes
5: BluntForceMama asks, what is the optimal point in a game’s life cycle (ie, how long after release) to play it? (28:17)
Games that launch at $60, will soon discount $20, and in 10 years be $60 again
Marvel Guardians of the Galaxy
Harvestella
Deadpool
Final Fantasy XV
Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV (2016)
Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV
Final Fantasy Versus XIII: Official HD Gameplay Trailer
Final Fantasy XVI
Ryū ga Gotoku / Like a Dragon / Yakuza universe
Persona series
Metaphor: ReFantazio
6: Which video game fandom has the highest barrier of entry? (34:10)
Kingdom Hearts series
Goofy
World of Warcraft
Touhou Project
ZUN
7: What’s the ratio of great 2D games to great 3D games? (37:29)
Ray tracing
Return of the Obra Dinn
LIGHTNING ROUND: Quester’s Fest (41:00)
Recommendations and Outro (44:12):
Brandon: Lowrider, California Fire Relief Bundle on itch.io
Ash: History of Rome podcast
Frank: don’t be a dumb bad guy, get your cat one of those cat hamster wheels
Jaffe: Mulholland Drive (2001)
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56:58
Ep. 372 - Dracula Jerky, with merritt k
Writer, game designer, and friend of the show merritt k joins the panel to discuss GDQ runs, the Radiohead of video games, and skeleton bone boobs. Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, Brandon Sheffield, and merritt k. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.
Watch episodes with full video on YouTube
Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums
SHOW NOTES:
alexjaffe.bsky.social
frankcifaldi.bsky.social
adashtra.bsky.social
brandon.insertcredit.com
merrittk.com
mastodon.social
dril
1: If you had to design and perform a gimmicky GDQ speedrun, what would it be? (05:13)
Games Done Quick
New Super Mario Bros. Wii While Playing Piano by Wes in 41:20 - Awesome Games Done Quick 2025
Bucephalus
Elden Ring
Peanut Butter the Dog
Gyromite
Ken Griffey Jr Presents Major League Baseball
Ken Griffey Jr. Presents MLB by Peanut Butter the Dog & JSR_ in 29:48 - Summer Games Done Quick 2024
Elden Ring on Saxophone by Dr. Doot in 29:22 - Awesome Games Done Quick 2025
ALF
Sonic & Knuckles
Star Control 3
2: What are the popular games within the monsterfucking community? (12:03)
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Werehog
Wolf
Werewolf
Knuckles the Echidna
Shadow the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024)
Baldurs Gate III
Undertale
Sans Undertale
Frank Quitely
Thanos
Death
I Love You Colonel Sanders
Lady Dimitrescu
Resident Evil: Village
3: What tricks do video games do to convince players that they’re much bigger than they actually are? (18:39)
Banjo-Kazooie
Persona series
Demonschool
Resident Evil series
Final Fantasy VII
Ryū ga Gotoku / Like a Dragon / Yakuza universe
The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask
Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love (In Several Wrong Places)
Dwarf Fortress
Bashi Bazook: Morphoid Masher
4: The Annual Public Domain Adaptation Game - Popeye (24:57)
Popeye, Tintin among works entering U.S. public domain in 2025
Popeye
Donkey Kong
Popeye
Olive Oyl
Mickey Mouse
Gasoline Alley
Steve Urkel
Steamboat Willie
Sea Power
Cat Power
Paul Atredies
Blondie
Dagwood Bumstead
Nancy
Fritzi Ritz
Jaws (1975)
Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime
Fleischer Studios
Paramount Pictures
Superman
5: a small rabite’s mom asks, why are there so many deserts in video games? Every time I see you playing one of these things you’re in a desert. (31:22)
Gulf War
Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty
6: What is the Radiohead of video games? (35:26)
Radiohead
Blue Bottle Coffee
Ico
Shadow of the Colossus
Katamari Damacy
Can You Pet the Dog?
Tomb Radier
Fumito Ueda
LIGHTNING ROUND: GameFAQ&As - Draskula (39:31)
Credit Report (44:57)
Recommendations and Outro (45:30):
merritt: Fledgling Manor
Frank: Drac’s Night Out
Brandon: Send recommendations for movies about killin nazis, listen to Malice Mizer if you want to feel like a dracula
Ash: Interview with the Vampire, make more games about killing klan members
This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.
Subscribe: RSS, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more!
A relentlessly on topic smorgasbord of hard hitting video game questions as addressed by a panel of experts. Featuring Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, Brandon Sheffield, and a rotating group of special guests. Hosted by Alex Jaffe. Edited by Esper Quinn. Original music by Kurt Feldman.