Episode 9: Our Steam Next Fest Highlights for February '24

Indieventure

MP3•Pagina principale dell'episodio

44:09

When a young Eva Kollisch arrives as a refugee in New York in 1940, she finds a community among socialists who share her values and idealism. She soon discovers ‘the cause’ isn’t as idyllic as it seems. Little does she know this is the beginning of a lifelong commitment to activism and her determination to create radical change in ways that include belonging, love and one's full self. In addition to Eva Kollisch’s memoirs Girl in Movement (2000) and The Ground Under My Feet (2014), LBI’s collections include an oral history interview with Eva conducted in 2014 and the papers of Eva’s mother, poet Margarete Kolllisch, which document Eva’s childhood experience on the Kindertransport. Learn more at www.lbi.org/kollisch . Exile is a production of the Leo Baeck Institute , New York | Berlin and Antica Productions . It’s narrated by Mandy Patinkin. Executive Producers include Katrina Onstad, Stuart Coxe, and Bernie Blum. Senior Producer is Debbie Pacheco. Associate Producers are Hailey Choi and Emily Morantz. Research and translation by Isabella Kempf. Sound design and audio mix by Philip Wilson, with help from Cameron McIver. Theme music by Oliver Wickham. Voice acting by Natalia Bushnik. Special thanks to the Kollisch family for the use of Eva’s two memoirs, “Girl in Movement” and “The Ground Under My Feet”, the Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College and their “Voices of Feminism Oral History Project”, and Soundtrack New York.…

circa un anno fa 1:32:15

The Indieventure crew are back and, once again, everyone's a little bit fried. But like, really out of it this time. The vibes reach a new level of unhinged as we attempt to corral ourselves into a semi-sensible discussion of just a few of the many, many lovely indie games demoed at this month's Steam Next Fest: the thrice-annual celebration of mostly-indie games that aren't quite out yet, but are ready for you to take a good look at.

After a quick detour to reminisce about our recent group foray into multiplayer sci-fi horror game Lethal Company, we go in-depth on some of the best things we've played this Next Fest, including Devolver Digital's newly-announced Children of the Sun, as well as Echo Point Nova, Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure, Dead Pets Unleashed, Harold Halibut, Balatro, Roman Sands RE:Build, and Touchstarved. (Rebecca also cheats and wedges in extra shout-outs to Summerhouse and Copycat because she really shouldn't have been handed the keys for this episode.)

This week in hyperfixations, Rebecca wants to put in a good word for gay foodie love story Omurice Next Time, recently released on Steam, itch.io, and GOG. Liam tries to starve the oxygen from his twin obsessions with Stardew Valley and Palworld by listening to the latest album by experimental pop duo Let's Eat Grandma and reading independent gaming blog Aftermath. And Rachel has been watching drag queen and Sims YouTuber Juno Birch revisit the best game in the franchise (The Sims 2, don't @ us) to creatively torture some Sims.

Finally, we also just want to say a big thank-you to everyone who's rated and reviewed our podcast so far! The amount of support and positivity we've received has been super heartwarming and we're very grateful to all of our lovely listeners. For next time, if you have any questions you'd like us to answer, please do drop us an email or a message on socials, as we're planning a listener mailbag episode in the not-too-distant future.

38 episodi

#Video Games #Lifestyle #Indieventure

Indieventure

Episode 9: Our Steam Next Fest Highlights for February '24

Indieventure

published circa un anno fa

MP3•Pagina principale dell'episodio

38 episodi

#Video Games #Lifestyle #Indieventure

Tutti gli episodi

Indieventure

1
EXTRA: From murder to mascots with Kaizen Game Works (Paradise Killer & Promise Mascot Agency) 1:09:49

6 giorni fa1:09:49

1:09:49

Welcome back to Indieventure EXTRA, our bonus series where we interview key members of the games industry. In this episode, Liam sits down with the directors at Kaizen Game Works to chat about their highly anticipated next title: the open-world mascot management crime adventure Promise Mascot Agency. Rachel Noy (Art Director), Oli Clarke Smith (Game Director) and Phil Crabtree (Technical Director) discuss the game's unusual origins, what it's like to work alongside Ikumi Nakamura and the - quite frankly - bizarre story of how the voice of Kazuma Kiryu himself, Takaya Kuroda, came to voice their protagonist. The Kaizen Trio also reflect on (our beloved) Paradise Killer five years after its original release. Enjoy! Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic. Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts.…

Indieventure

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#33. Dark Valentines: Indie horror and the 2020s 1:49:33

13 giorni fa1:49:33

1:49:33

It's Valentine's Day(ish, still, shush) and so naturally the Indieventure trio have turned our attention to… horror games! Yes, we're really on-form with our historic refusal to do normal seasonal celebration episodes, as it's recently occurred to us that it's been about a year and a half since we last did a dedicated horror deep dive. And since resident goth-at-heart Rebecca is steering the ship this week, and the only thing she craves more in games than a relatable love story is a good spookening with a side-order of existential dread, this theming makes total sense, trust us. Since our Season Zero horror episode focussed on the stone-cold classics of the indie space, we've decided to make this episode specifically about the cool indie horror games and gaming trends that we feel have emerged in the first half of this decade. (Also, do you ever think about how the 2020s are half over already? Surely that's the scariest thing of all.) We've got it all covered here: liminal space horror, hidden object horror, mascot horror, retro horror, even non-horror games that borrow liberally from the horror aesthetic! Because it's love day and all naturally we touch on the up-and-coming genre that is romantic horror too, which just as naturally leads to a discussion about queer horror. There's also some chat about the indie horror developers whose work is codifying the whole scene for this decade, as well as some of the formerly-indie devs who've broken out into AA and AAA spaces thanks to their earlier work. It's a whistlestop tour but we take in all the hits, and if there's an essential work of indie horror from the past five years you think we've missed, please do let us know – we love a good recommendation! We end as ever with our hyperfixations, and Rachel has been watching all of the various Real Housewives series, and we mean all of them, no city has been spared as long as it has a ready supply of disgustingly filthy rich families willing to entertain and amaze reality TV aficionados with their antics. Liam is still on a roll with hunting down cool recent indie releases following our last episode, this time in the form of Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match 3 To and Rift of the Necrodancer. And Rebecca has some big feelings to share following her recently-completed first-time playthrough of Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony, which means she has now finally finished the whole main story of the franchise (but somehow still has a lot of supplementary materials left to go before she's really done-done). Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget that you can now join our dedicated Discord too!…

Indieventure

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#32. What we've been playing (Citizen Sleeper 2, Nurikabe World, Eternal Strands) 1:53:34

27 giorni fa1:53:34

1:53:34

In this episode, the Indieventure trio ask ourselves a surprisingly complicated question: how do you play video games specifically in January? Do you take the time to go back over some exciting titles from the year before that you still haven't got around to yet, or do you write all that off and start the new year with a blank slate ready to fill up with brand-new releases? Obviously we're all games media types, so our answers are slightly skewed from the norm – listening back, it's only just occurred to me that none of us said "in January I mainly play the games I received for Christmas, of course!" So there's that, but still, the resultant chat should leave you with a pleasant mix of recent and upcoming game recommendations, as well as some drawn from a bit further back. The brand-new indie titles we've been checking out in January 2025 include Cursed Digicam, Eternal Strands, Nurikabe World, The Roottrees Are Dead, and – of course – Citizen Sleeper 2. But we also reach a full five years into the past for a look back on Tangle Tower, and take a peek into the future with the demo for intriguing upcoming game Locator. We end, as always, with our most recent round of hyperfixations. Rebecca has been watching indie horror films again and thinks you should all go and see Presence, which recently got its belated theatrical release after premiering at Sundance a full year ago. Rachel's recent disenchantment with modern cinema has led her to revisit some of the classics from her film school days, which has her feeling enthusiastic about movies again (even as her specific rankings spark some lively debates!). Liam has been reading Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent and does recommend it with some massive caveats, but his actual hyperfixation for a much better time is the dark comedy TV show Search Party. Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget that you can now join our dedicated Discord too!…

Indieventure

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#31. Our most anticipated indie games of 2025 1:48:41

6 weeks fa1:48:41

1:48:41

Happy New Year, Indieventurers! It's 2025 and there are so many flavours of existential dread tied up in that particular statement that we have no choice but to distract ourselves for at least a couple of hours a day with lovely video games – or (we hope you make this choice, at least) with podcasts about video games! While there's a lot of uncertainty ahead, one thing we can be reasonably sure of is that there are some absolute bangers due to make their debut on the indie gaming scene this year – although as ever, we 100% support devs who put their own wellbeing first, which is why there's absolutely no hard feelings if any of the games on this list get pushed into 2026 and beyond. Settle in as we rhapsodise on the upcoming merits of Blue Prince, Citizen Sleeper 2, Demonschool, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, Metropolis 1998, Monster Prom 4: Monster Con, Morsels, Paralives (complete with bonus chat about fellow upcoming indie life sims Vivaland and Alterlife), Promise Mascot Agency, Skate Story, Strange Antiquities, Streets of Rogue 2, Tiny Bookshop, and Wanderstop. Because it's our first episode after our long Christmas break, everyone brought along a double helping of hyperfixations this week! Rebecca recommends going into zombie horror-comedy movie One Cut of the Dead knowing as little as possible, and going into Waterstone's book of the year Butter by Asako Yuzuki knowing a bit more than what's printed on the cover. Rachel is, naturally, hooked on The Traitors Season 3 (but not The Traitors Australia Season 2, thankyouverymuch) and the second season of Severance. Liam recommends checking out indie rocker Blondshell if you haven't already, and also thinks that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle might be the greatest triple-A game in years – which draws out a surprising consensus across the whole group. Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget that you can now join our dedicated Discord too!…

Indieventure

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EXTRA: The reality of covering indie games with Reviews Editor Ed Thorn 1:31:57

8 weeks fa1:31:57

1:31:57

This episode of Indieventure Extra is a long-awaited reunion between Liam and Ed Thorn, reviews editor at PC-focused website Rock Paper Shotgun (we've never heard of it). Ed discusses his history with games, how he became a games journalist and the challenges of balancing indie game coverage alongside more financially stable AAA content. The pair also chat about what makes a good video game review, Ed reveals his favourite indie from 2024, and there is a 5-minute section where the phrase "Beast Mode" is uttered about 45 times. It makes sense in context. Sort of . You can find Ed's good words over at Rock Paper Shotgun . Here are the Redfall and Sonic Frontiers videos mentioned in the episode. Inventory Space only lasted two episodes, but it's still worth a watch. Enjoy! Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic. Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts.…

Indieventure

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#30. The Best Indie Games Of 2024 2:12:31

10 weeks fa2:12:31

2:12:31

As 2024 draws to an end, the Indieventure trio return to discuss their favourite indie games of the last 12 months. That's right, folks, it's time for our annual Game Of The Year episode! We won't spoil which games we chat about here in the description (you can find that over on our website if you're the type of person who hunts around the house looking for their Christmas presents in mid-November like a wrong 'un) but what we can say is that although we each brought along a personal list of our five favourites, we only ended up discussing 13 due to a couple of overlaps. As always we end with our hyperfixations. Liam's been playing the MySims-inspired city builder Go-Go Town! Rebecca has been rethinking her relationship with attention, and is doing something every day that makes her happy (we have no choice but to stan). Meanwhile, Rachel was put on the spot and decided to dream about the upcoming (when we recorded, anyway) open-world fashion adventure Infinity Nikki. A reminder! After this episode, we're taking a short break to drink a few buckets of gravy and have a nice long nap, but we'll be back on the 23rd of January 2025 with our usual nonsense. Thanks once again for all your support this year, we hope you have a lovely Christmas, happy holidays, or a peaceful winter break! Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget that you can join our dedicated Discord too!…

Indieventure

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#29. Was 2024 a great year for indie games? 2:12:10

12 weeks fa2:12:10

2:12:10

Christmas is almost upon us, and before we ring in the New Year with our GOTY picks, it's time for us here at the Indieventure podcast to pour ourselves a generous glug of mulled wine and reflect on the year as a whole as it pertains to indie games. Has it been a good year for indies? How did it stack up against previous years – especially the wall-to-wall hit machine that was 2023? And, putting personal preferences aside (because we'll be digging into that in-depth in our next episode, don't worry) what have been the biggest indie games of the year? Naturally expect Balatro, 1000xRESIST, Hades 2, and Pacific Drive to get a lot of airtime in this one, as well as Silksong (still conspicuous in its absence as we head into 2025). We also look back over our most-anticipated games from the start of the year, checking in with what came out, what got delayed, and what landed unexpectedly (or not) from a list that included Anger Foot, Creepshow, Crow Country, Demonschool, Europa, Loco Motive, Lost Records, The Mermaid Mask (née The Mermaid's Tongue), Rise of the Golden Idol, Sucker for Love 2, Synergy, Thank Goodness You're Here!, and Tiny Bookshop. And then – just in case you thought we were going to be if anything a bit too sensible in this one – an old friend returns to deliver a self-indulgent quiz! There's really no point in outlining the premise here, just trust us when we say that it has to be heard to be believed. We end, as always, with our current hyperfixations! Rebecca has been defying gravity thanks to the Wicked movie, Rachel has been reading a stack of queer fiction (specifically Julia Armfield's Salt Slow, Eliza Clark's She's Always Hungry and Rachel Yoder's Nightbitch), while Liam has turned his attention to the skies - and the places it leads - with Mark Vanhoenacker's Imagine A City. Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic. Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget that you can now join our dedicated Discord too!…

Indieventure

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EXTRA: Chatting about PlayStation indies with Oscar Taylor-Kent 1:17:34

13 weeks fa1:17:34

1:17:34

It’s time for another Indieventure EXTRA, our bonus series where we interview key members of the games industry. We’re pretty PC-focused on Indieventure so in this episode, Rachel has a chat with Oscar Taylor-Kent about PlayStation indies. Oscar is the Games Editor at GamesRadar+ and previous editor of PLAY Magazine and Official PlayStation Magazine so he’s the perfect person to discuss this topic with. Have a listen if you’d like to hear us both take a trip down memory lane and have a gab about Sony’s history with indie games. You can find Oscar and his work on Twitter , BlueSky , and his GamesRadar+ profile. Enjoy~ Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic. Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts.…

Indieventure

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#28. Does games media change your relationship with gaming? 2:00:58

14 weeks fa2:00:58

2:00:58

Like it or not, 2024 is almost over, and Indieventure is closing out the year with a trilogy of episodes looking back on our recent experiences of the games industry. We're saving the more targeted analysis of the year in games and of course our big GOTY reveal for the two episodes due out in December, but today we're starting out with a more general question: how has working in games media impacted our experiences of gaming as a hobby? What starts out as a light-hearted "day in the life of a games journalist" chat quickly turns into a group therapy session where we go into a fairly serious examination of the realities of working in games media in the 2020s, both good and bad. This is less a chat about specific games and more an overview of games media trends both visible and invisible to the audience, so if you've ever wanted to hear some inside baseball delivered from the Indieventure trio's perspective, here's your chance. We promise the mood gets lighter over the rest of the holiday season episodes, but we're glad we got all this off our chests! This episode also includes our final pre-GOTY "what we've been playing" round-up, in which Rachel gives a spoiler-free overview of Rise of the Golden Idol; Rebecca catches up on the long-awaited full release of Phoenix Springs; and despite spending much of the past month on another continent, Liam has somehow put another 10 hours into Factorio following the launch of the Space Age expansion. Last but not least, our hyperfixations for this episode see Liam geeking out over the Half-Life 2: 20th Anniversary Documentary , Rebecca enjoying "Somewhere Beyond the Sea" by TJ Klune (the sequel to a Season Zero hyperfixation, "The House in the Cerulean Sea"), and Rachel discovering an amazing TV channel called Mech+ which appears to only show reruns of Robot Wars and it turns out we're all very here for that. Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts, and don't forget that you can now join our dedicated Discord too!…

Indieventure

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#27. Our Fantasy Indie Console Draft Picks 2:02:17

16 weeks fa2:02:17

2:02:17

Time for one more bit of silly fun before we settle down to the serious business of 2024 GOTY picks? We certainly think so, as in this week's Indieventure episode, we're doing an indie game draft! That's right, three people who clearly know nothing about sports have nevertheless kitbashed the idea of fantasy football together with something we're actually interested in, and have designed our dream indie gaming consoles following a curious set of rules that Liam explains very well in the episode and so I won't repeat here, even though I do remember and understand them, honest. Due to the dramatic and intense nature of the game we're playing today, characterised as it is by shocking betrayals and twists nobody could ever see coming, I'm going to strongly recommend you don't read the show notes until you've listened to the episode. Does anyone even actually do that? Well, here's your chance to go in without spoilers. Seriously, go listen. Are you back? OK, good. So, since you've heard it now, you know that you, dear listener, have a chance to vote in our poll to determine the winner of the inaugural Indieventure draft slash console sales pitch! We'll have a poll up on socials for a week after the episode goes live because that's all Xitter will allow; but if you still want to take part after that, you can do so over at our lovely and still almost-brand-new Indieventure Discord , where the poll will be live for a whole fortnight and where you can also chat with some really cool and nice fellow listeners. As a reminder, then, the final console drafts were as follows: The MegaWatt Voyager, pitched by Rachel, and containing Paradise Killer, Kentucky Route Zero, Vampire Survivors, Hades, Cult of the Lamb, Hollow Knight, Loop Hero, Disco Elysium, Minecraft, and Undertale The Empathy Machine, pitched by Rebecca, which includes Heaven's Vault, Firewatch, Stardew Valley, Project Zomboid, Untitled Goose Game, Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, Wedding Witch, Dredge, PowerWash Simulator, and Strange Horticulture The Indiescovery, not confusingly at all pitched by Liam, pre-loaded with Return of the Obra Dinn, What Remains of Edith Finch, Balatro, Rimworld, Deep Rock Galactic, Hotline Miami, Slay the Spire, Journey, Satisfactory, and Hypnospace Outlaw It's all down to you now, listeners, to let us know whose dream machine you think has the best launch line-up and/or who made the most compelling case for their pitch! The poll is open for two weeks, so I'm sure we'll be reacting to the results in a couple of episodes' time. Now, we had so much fun recording this episode that two hours just flew by before we knew it, and so we've elected to skip What We've Been Playing this week because frankly if you've made it this far into all the madness then you've probably listened to us natter enough. That being said, it wouldn't be an episode of Indieventure without a quick run-down of our current hyperfixations, so hang around for just a few extra minutes if you want to hear us enthuse about the TV series Agatha All Along (Rebecca), the novel Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (Liam), and the recently-released indie game Neva (Rachel). Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts, and don't forget that you can now join our dedicated Discord too!…

Indieventure

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#26. Trick or Treat: AAAventure Halloween Special 1:45:31

18 weeks fa1:45:31

1:45:31

Happy Halloween Indieventure listeners! With the serendipitous launch of this episode on the spookiest day of the year, we couldn't resist the opportunity to peer into a parallel universe and imagine what life would be like if we became the thing we fear the most: yet another podcast dedicated to the biggest games everyone's already talking about. That's right: it's time for AAAventure (pronounced as scream -venture, with an apology in advance to headphone users). But horror mother Rebecca is at the helm and because she can't just be normal ever, there's a bit more to today's discussion than a dry recounting of our favourite AAA games. No, instead the three wyrd sisters (yes, Liam counts) of Indieventure are collaborating on building a Frankensteinian monster of a AAA game by stitching together all the tropes that we love most about big-budget blockbusters. Fear not, though, because we're also brewing a handy banishing potion out of all the most cursed items we've found in indie games, just in case things get out of hand. Of course, it being Halloween means that there are officially only two months left of 2024, so it's time for another update on what we've all been playing ahead of those all-important GOTY picks. Rachel has been enjoying unique dialogue puzzler Great God Grove, Rebecca has also been getting her word on in typing-based action-RPG Cryptmaster, and Liam has come to the conclusion that UFO 50 might be deserving of about 50 GOTY noms all by itself. And, even though it's been a weird episode, we end with the familiarity of hyperfixations. Rachel's is a bit melancholy: PLAY magazine, a print outlet she's written for extensively, was officially shuttered this month, so she's been reflecting on the good times. Liam chooses to highlight Party House, one of the games that make up UFO 50, as really something special. And Rebecca's been working on her review of Life is Strange: Double Exposure, which naturally has brought up a lot of feelings for our resident LIS fanatic. Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury, and it's a testament to his talents that it still sounds great even though we've messed with it a bit for this episode as part of the whole spooky goof. You can find Ollie on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts, and can now join our brand-new Discord !…

Indieventure

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Episode 25: Happy 1st Birthday, Indieventure! 2:08:07

20 weeks fa2:08:07

2:08:07

Believe it or not it's been one whole trip around the sun since we released the first ever episode of Indieventure! And to celebrate, we've opened up the mailbag once again to answer your listener questions. Ever wondered how we find out about exciting upcoming indies to talk about on the podcast, or which indie video game we'd most like to see get the tabletop treatment? Maybe you're curious as to our respective favourite games on the late lamented indie machine that was the Nintendo 3DS — or want to hear us go off-topic once more while we debate which Ace Attorney case would make the best stand-alone game? All this and more will be revealed, including an incredibly cursed final question that must be heard to be believed. This episode isn't really about any games in particular… don't worry though, here's a handy summary of the titles we touch on for all my list goblins out there! This episode is an opportunity to fill your earholes with some lovely (or not) discussions of Against the Storm, Boyfriend Dungeon, Braid, Citizen Sleeper, Control, Dredge, Gunman Clive, Harold Halibut, The Missing: JJ Macfield and the Island of Memories, Monster Prom, Paradise Killer, A Park Full of Cats, Peggle, Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One, Severed, Slice & Dice, Steamworld Heist, Still Wakes the Deep, Stray Cats in Cozy Town, ValiDate: Struggling Singles in Your Area, and Wilmot's Warehouse. And, in this episode's pre-GOTY round-up of what we've been playing lately, we take a trip down false-memory lane with UFO 50, an 8-bit console that never was; discuss whether inventive perspective-flipped dating sim The Crush House is being held back by a broken in-game economy; and reach a surprising consensus on recent body horror streaming hit Mouthwashing. We end as ever with our latest round of hyperfixations! Rebecca has been reading Jacqueline Wilson's Think Again, Rachel has a new reality TV obsession in The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, and Liam has gone further down the Resident Evil rabbit hole than even he ever expected to get with The Mercenaries 3D. Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts.…

Indieventure

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Episode 24: The best free indie games money can't buy 1:56:03

22 weeks fa1:56:03

1:56:03

The last quarter of 2024 is somehow already upon us, and while it's definitely too early to be putting up the Christmas decorations ( bombastically side-eyeing my local pub there), it is the time of year when many of us stop buying so much stuff for ourselves so we can write wish lists, and/or start saving up our hobby money to spend on the people we love instead. Which makes this a totally seasonally appropriate episode and not an excuse for Rebecca to launch a thorough examination into one of her many special interests: free-to-play games. The free-to-play model has quite a few negative connotations associated with it, not entirely unfairly; but the Indieventure gang are here to make the case that to dismiss all F2P titles is to ignore the wide range of what's on offer in the space, especially amongst indie games. To that end, prepare for a big old chat about our favourite free indies, including Battle For Polytopia; Butterfly Soup; Doki Doki Literature Club; If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers; Indigo Park; Interview with the Whisperer; Lily's Well; Marie's Room; Max Gentlemen; Our Life: Beginnings & Always; Pineapple On Pizza; Samsara Room (by Rusty Lake); Simulacra: Pipe Dreams; Slice and Dice; Start Again: A Prologue (prototype prequel to In Stars & Time and not technically free it turns out, but very cheap and just generally germane to the conversation); South Scrimshaw; Sucker for Love: Prelude; Supermarket Simulator: Prologue; and the mobile port of Vampire Survivors. Two things of note here: one, this is maybe the first time we've dedicated significant podcast chat to the subject of indie mobile games specifically; and two, everyone who feels like we're constantly trying to bankrupt them with wishlistable titles, rejoice! This episode doesn't need to cost you a penny. Unless, that is, you decide to keep listening to our new temporary segment! With GOTY voting rapidly approaching, we've decided that it's not enough to check in with what we've all been playing every couple of months, and instead we're going to start updating you on all the cool stuff we've been checking out in every episode. Rachel and Liam have both had their professional reviewer hats on to check out The Plucky Squire and Shogun Showdown, respectively; while Rebecca — fashionably late after several months dedicated to playing hefty AAA games for her day job — has finally arrived at Thank Goodness You're Here, which turns out to be brilliant! Who knew?! As ever, we end on hyperfixations — and would you believe it, we've all been playing some video games? Rebecca has finally completed her three-year-long mission to play all 10 visual novels in that iconic series about gay lawyers, having just wrapped up the recently-released Ace Attorney Investigations Collection. Liam keeps the Capcom hype train chugging along with his love for another of their latest game preservation projects, the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. And you'll be pleased to know that we're all being very on-brand, because Rachel has been playing Frostpunk 2, which may be one of the very few city building simulators out there to actually narratively justify getting a sequel. Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic . Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts.…

Indieventure

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EXTRA: The power of scope, sustainability, and intent with Strange Scaffold's Xalavier Nelson Jr. 1:08:25

23 weeks fa1:08:25

1:08:25

Welcome back to Indieventure EXTRA, our bonus series where we interview key members of the games industry. In this episode, Liam was joined by Xalavier Nelson Jr., the creative director at Strange Scaffold, an indie studio responsible for hits like El Paso, Elsewhere, Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator and An Airport for Aliens Currently Run by Dogs. Joining the industry as a journalist at age 12, this BAFTA-nominated creator has worked on over 100 games over the last eight years. Xalavier spoke to us about scope, sustainability and the power of intent. You can find Xalavier on Twitter as well as TikTok, or you can find out more about his work over at the Strange Scaffold website . Enjoy! Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic. Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts.…

Indieventure

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Episode 23: Indieventure Jukebox: our favourite indie game soundtracks 2:17:26

24 weeks fa2:17:26