Tales from the Backlog

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What is Final Fantasy if not divisive? Arguably no game in the series is more divisive than Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix, 2009). I didn't like it when I played it back then, but I've since spoken to a lot of people that really love it, which activated my "I need to see what they like about it" brain worm. So here we are! I'm also glad to have brought Jenny Windom back on board for the discussion. As always, no spoilers for a while- enjoy!

Guest info: Jenny Windom (she/her)

Check out Geeks and Grounds https://www.geeksandgrounds.com/

Check out Wholesome Games https://wholesomegames.com/

Listen to The Indie Council https://theindiecouncil.carrd.co/

Follow on Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/kimchica.bsky.social

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Podcast Start

0:15 Introductions

6:50 Our Histories with FF13 and the Series

12:46 Top-Level Thoughts

21:30 World and Story Setup

29:48 Characters, Pacing and Hallways

44:12 Paradigm System and Combat

53:13 Side Quests and Crystarium

1:05:35 Art and World Design

1:16:08 Music

1:26:43 Who Should Play FF13?

1:31:40 Geeks & Grounds and all of Jenny's Work

1:37:30 Spoiler Wall and Patron Thank-Yous

1:39:42 Spoilers- Fang, Vanille and Backstory

1:50:40 Spoilers- Vanille & Sazh, Anger, Hope & Snow

2:19:25 Spoilers- Lightning, Fate, Duty and Free Will

2:41:03 Spoilers- Ending and Backstory

Music used in the episode is credited to Masashi Hamauzu unless otherwise noted. Tracks used: The Promise, Defiers of Fate, Blinded By Light, The Archylte Steppe, Saber's Edge, The Sunleth Waterscape, Lightning's Theme, Desperate Struggle, Battle Results

Check out Dave on NOLANerdcast https://www.youtube.com/@NOLAnerdcast

Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson

Discord, Socials and more- https://linktr.ee/talesfromthebacklog

Five whole years of Tales from the Backlog! Here's a mailbag episode to celebrate, and I really appreciate everyone who wrote in questions on Discord and Patreon!

Guest info: Matt aka Stormageddon (they/them)

Check out all of Matt's work https://djstormageddon.com/

Follow on Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/djstormageddon.com

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Podcast Start

0:21 Introductions

2:51 Recapping Five Years

9:53 Balancing Playing for "Work" vs "Fun"

13:17 Dropping Games I Don't Enjoy?

19:01 Organizing and Juggling Podcast Work

24:40 Working Through Self-Doubt

28:50 Has My Relationship With Gaming Changed?

31:48 Games I Want on the Show But "Can't"

34:00 Most Memorable Games on the Show

36:20 Episodes I'd Approach Differently

38:00 Pleasant or Unpleasant Surprises

40:58 How Do I Pick Guests?

43:42 I'm Not Sick of This or Burnt Out Yet?

46:20 Things I've Learned

49:16 Books that Influenced Our Approach

53:14 Keeping Track of Progress in Multiple Games

54:41 What Have I Learned from Guests?

56:50 Have I Gained an Appreciation for a Genre?

1:00:45 What Year Have I Covered Most?

1:02:46 Games I Love That Wouldn't Make Good Episodes?

1:05:29 Advice for Our Past Podcasting Selves

1:09:40 Patron Thank-You Break

1:11:31 Keaton's Alien Zoo Question

1:15:06 Reigniting Passion for Gaming

1:21:12 Easiest or Hardest Difficulty Curse

1:23:11 Backlog Games We'll Never Play

1:25:50 Non-Gaming Lightning Round

1:52:12 Matt's Work on "Fun" and Games & Reignite

Music used in the episode:

Dance Party! (Bayonetta 3 OST- Masahiro Aoki)

The Hideout (808 Mix) (Hi-Fi RUSH OST- Shuichi Kobori)

Goal (Astro Bot OST - Kenneth C. M. Young)

Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson

Discord, Socials and more- https://linktr.ee/talesfromthebacklog

I somehow missed Alan Wake along the way. I remember playing the AWE DLC in Control, watching Alan's face superimposed on the screen, thinking "who the hell is this guyOHH Yeah okay they did those games too". I knew I'd need to play Alan Wake at some point, and here we are. This game is not good, but it's a hell of a lot of fun to talk about. Hope you enjoy the discussion! As always, no spoilers for a while- enjoy!

Guest info: Nick Coffman (he/him)

Check out GG Tribune https://ggtribune.com/

Check out Hollywood Time$ https://www.hwoodtimes.com/

Listen to Stand N' Watch https://www.hwoodtimes.com/podcasts

Follow on Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/nickcoffman.com

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Podcast Start

0:18 Introductions

4:30 Our Histories with Alan Wake and Remedy

7:58 Top-Level Thoughts About Alan Wake

12:57 Story Setup and Alan the Writer

21:01 Stephen King and Art Come to Life

29:24 Twin Peaks and Presentation

38:58 Gameplay and Combat

58:49 Metanarrative Fiction and the Creative Process

1:03:16 Sound and Music

1:08:28 Miscellaneous Thoughts

1:12:46 Who Should Play Alan Wake?

1:21:34 Nick's Writing and Podcasts

1:27:50 Spoiler Wall and Patron Thank-Yous

1:30:05 Spoilers- What Happens

1:43:46 Spoilers- Art, Artists and Creativity

2:01:17 Spoilers- The Signal & The Writer

2:09:51 Spoilers- More Noteworthy Stuff

Music used in the episode is credited to Petri Alanko unless otherwise noted. Tracks used: Main Menu, Welcome to Bright Falls, Generic Battle 15, Children of the Elder Gods (Poets of the Fall), Manuscript, War (Poets of the Fall), Tom the Diver

Check out Dave on Geeks & Grounds discussing Look Outside: https://geeksandgrounds.com

Check out Dave on Date With Us discussing Doki Doki Literature Club: https://datewith.us

Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson

Discord, Socials and more- https://linktr.ee/talesfromthebacklog

Longtime listeners of the show will agree with me here when I say- I never thought this day would come. Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (Capcom, 2017) always seemed like it would be too scary for me, and I would never play it as a result. But, I said the same thing about Resident Evil 4, so here we are. Not only did I play Resident Evil 7, I had my eyes open enough of the time to remember stuff and bring it to the podcast! I hope you enjoy the discussion I had with Baron Jones of LV1 Gaming. As always, no spoilers for a while- enjoy!

Guest info: Baron Jones (he/him)

Check out LV1 Gaming https://lv1gaming.com/

Check their YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@LV1Gaming20

Follow on Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/baronj67

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Episode Start

0:19 Intros

4:02 Our Histories with Resident Evil

9:52 Top-Level Thoughts

18:09 Story Setup and Meet the Bakers

31:56 Ethan, Disempowerment and Tension

43:06 First-Person Perspective and Presentation

50:20 A Stressful, Uneven Ride

58:27 Boss Fights and Flowers for Level Design

1:08:14 Who Should Play?

1:10:34 LV1 Gaming

1:17:16 Spoiler Walls and Patron Thank-Yous

1:19:03 Spoilers- Jack's Domain

1:35:54 Spoilers- Marguerite's Domain

1:44:35 Spoilers- Lucas' Domain

1:50:34 Spoilers- The Boat House, The Choice & The Story Shift

2:09:28 Spoilers- Ending Sequence

Music used in the episode is credited to Akiyuki Morimoto, Satoshi Hori, Miwako Chinone, Brian D'Olivera and Cris Velasco. Tracks used: Go Tell Aunt Rhody, A Loving Message, Welcome to the Family, Safe Room, Garage, The Choice- Love

Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson

Discord, Socials and more- https://linktr.ee/talesfromthebacklog

For some, the halcyon days of PC gaming involved D&D-based RPGs with unwieldy UI and gauntlet-shaped mouse cursors, and that is precisely what SKALD: Against the Black Priory (High North Studios, Raw Fury, 2024) is calling back to with its mix of sword-and-sorcery fantasy and cosmic/Lovecraftian horror. It's well-worth your time if you're nostalgic or even curious about that era of RPGs, while not being nearly as obtuse or and without relying on advance knowledge of early D&D systems. This episode's guest, Phil Morgan, has an extensive history with that bygone era of CRPGs, even appearing on this podcast to discuss the original Baldur's Gate, so we had a great conversation here. As always, no spoilers for a while- enjoy!

Guest info: Phil Morgan (he/him)

Listen to Deleted Saves https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/deleted-saves/

Check out Phil's art: https://philmorganart.com

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Podcast Start

0:18 Introductions

6:02 Our Histories with SKALD and Its Inspirations

10:11 Top-Level Thoughts about SKALD

18:15 Story Setup

22:13 Pixel Art and Writing

30:43 Subverting D&D Tropes

37:29 Role-Playing

48:38 Combat

56:54 Controller vs Mouse/Keyboard

1:04:54 Music and Sound

1:09:35 Closing Thoughts and Who Should Play?

1:13:48 Deleted Saves and Westland

1:18:37 Spoiler Wall and Patron Thank-Yous

1:23:08 Spoilers- Early Game Quests

1:38:27 Spoilers- Horryn

1:47:37 Spoilers- Firgol

1:57:06 Spoilers- The Story Expands

2:07:04 Spoilers- Ending Sequence and Thoughts

Music used in the episode is credited to Surt R. Tracks used: Against the Black Priory, The Curse of Knowledge, Sellsword's Honor, Horryn's Plight, Shores of Idra, Tomes Bound in Skin, Bane of the Starstrider

Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures