Bookwarm Games: Recent Episodes
Wesley Schantz
Bookwarm Games plays on the connection between games, books, and life:
O, she's warm! If this be magic, let it be an art Lawful as eating. - The Winter's Tale
You're back! Don't bother yourself with talking now, you look too tired. Mothers understand these things. Eat some [favorite food] and scoot up to bed. - EarthBound
Here you'll find deep dives into video games and books, including a trove of audio for the Video Game Academy, co-hosted with Ben Kozlowski. Get involved at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia
Sorry, no Tom Bombadil here. Well, a brief mention... Moses Norton, aka the Well-Red Mage, joins me to dig into the recent film adaptation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Tolkien, Dune 2, Dragonslayer, and lots of Gamelogica references round out our discussion of the film's visuals, characters, story, and themes. Enjoy!
Gamelogica youtube channel
The Pixels
We're still hoping for a Criterion Collection of video games, but in the meantime, we'll do our part to bring you thoughtful critique and analysis of games' deeper meaning, with a healthy dash of the ridiculous.
https://videogameacademia.org/
Dylan Holmes joins me to discuss his history of storytelling in video games, A Mind Forever Voyaging. Read his book if you're interested in games like FF7, MGS, Deus Ex, and Dear Esther, or in questions about cinematic technique, player choice, power and escapism. Read Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin all the way to the end and you'll find it among her acknowledgments. Plus, it's translated into French as Little Big Stories: Voyage au coeur de la narration (surely not a reference to another great novel, Little, Big, by John Crowley?!)
Read more from Dylan at Nightmare Mode and Augmented Vision. See my review over on ThePixels. The Secret of Monkey Island audio comes from the SCUMM Bar fansite.
Thanks for reading and listening.
We come full circle, as it were, Alex and I, discussing his recently published paper "Popularizing Paradiso: On the Difficulties of Podcasting Dante’s Most Academic Canticle" and his work bridging popular culture with the field of comparative literature.
At long last, Alex and I wander off on another side quest, discussing Miyazaki's recent film, The Boy and the Heron, and its resonances for us with myth and history. (As always, I wish I knew more about the language, like how to translate "How Do You Live?")
Other episodes in this series on the storied Studio Ghibli can be found most readily on Alex's youtube.
Thanks for listening.
Concluding thoughts on the visual novel. Thanks for listening!
More resources at https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
Home stretch!
More at https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
More at https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
Twists!
https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
Onward!
https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
Continuing discussion of the sequel to AI: The Somnium Files.
More on visual novels at https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
The lost audio recovered, continued.
More at https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
The lost audio from last spring recovered at last--mostly--as we discuss the sequel to AI: The Somnium Files, NirvanA Initiative. Thanks for listening and sticking with us.
More resources on visual novels at https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
A conversation with Alyse Knorr, 'achiever' (to cite her Super Mario Bros 3, where I first encountered her work and reviewed it for The Pixels). In which we discuss:
-
Sweetbitter Podcast, with new episodes coming soon about Mary Magdalen and a fourth season in the works
-
Switchback Books, which she edits with her wife
-
Regis University, where she teaches alongside colleagues such as Russ Arnold
-
her poetry, research, and the novel she's writing
-
Annotated Glass and Sappho fragment 31
-
'Bright Star,' Keats, Eliot, Carson's Autobiography of Red; Gilgamesh and Enheduanna
-
'Anatomy Exam'
- Ardor, a book of eco-queer domestic life and love
-
Every Last Thing, a book of tantrums and embarrassed apologies
-
Micaela Tore's MA thesis on Copper Mother
(and around here you'll get a musical interlude from moonbowmusic)
-
Topophilia: Elizabeth Bishop's 'The Map'; Henry Jenkins' 'Complete Freedom of Movement'; Sean Fenty's nostalgia piece in Playing the Past.
-
her new class on Video Games and Meaning: topics, problems, persuasion and social justice: Hair Nah and microaggressions; Oregon Trail and colonialism; Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin; Passage; citizen science; This War of Mine; Papers, Please; Train; Anna Anthropy's Dys4ia, Queers in Love at End of World, and ZZT.
-
Her new novel (agents, check it out), a postapocalyptic story of love and a journey in a world with too much stuff, not enough people
Alyse also recommends Merlin for birdwatching; "The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock," by TS Eliot; "Married," "Alone," "In Dispraise of Poetry," and "Failing and Flying," by Jack Gilbert.
Thank you for reading and listening! from the Video Game Academy
MG Prezioso, PhD candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, joins me to discuss her work on the role of enchantment in promoting literacy for young readers, particularly in the case of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. Her article appears in Children's Literature in Education; for more on Pullman's view of education, see his essays in Daemon Voices and sundry remarks available online. Thanks for listening!
Cross-pollination and housekeeping here at the break at the end of the year, stirring up dust and sending out links to past broadcasts:
First, here's the link to a recent conversation with Evan Minto on Season 3 Episode 3 of His Dark Materials, The Intention Craft.
Then, listen on for one of my semi-monthly discussions from the Middle-earth to EarthBound series on Signum Academy, an introduction to classic JRPGs like Dragon Quest and MOTHER/EarthBound in the light of Tolkien's influence on storytelling.
There's more bookwarm games and gamecool books to come in the new year, starting with a new Video Game Studies module in SPACE.
Happy holidays, and thanks for listening!
Professor Kozlowski spins us a yarn of the high seas. Pirate opportunism, whale physics, development metafiction, and a polyphony of voices and moral gray areas--it's a good game, but is it actually an Assassin's Creed? Well, yeah. It says so on the box.
Along for the ride as Professor Kozlowski weaves together the 2012 PS3 game's disparate threads better than the Ubisoft team does: Patriots and Loyalists; colonizers and oppressed; East coast cities and homesteads; first hour fake-outs and begrudging good riddance to the Desmond stuff. But hey, the naval battles are pretty cool. See also: The Year Project Moon Took Over Ben's Life and Fahrenheit 451
No, not Animal Crossing, and not alternating current. It's Assassin's Creed 2's half-baked follow-up games, and Prof Ben has thoughts about them.
Join the discussion at videogameacademia.org and professorkozlowski.wordpress.com/
Thanks for listening.
Professor Kozlowski returns. Our resident guest lecturer is back with a discussion of Assassin's Creed's splashy sequel, and... it's complicated. After the let-down that was their Prince of Persia reboot, the developers had to go big. So Renaissance Italy, andiamo~! More variety! More da Vinci! More weapons! But. It's kinda. Not as fun.
Join the discussion at videogameacademia.org and professorkozlowski.wordpress.com/
Thanks for listening.
Another guest lecture, after a fashion. Joe and I started a new series on being a dad. Share it with a dad or thoughtful caretaker in your life!
Show notes:
First episode! We share thoughts on news sources, TV at dinnertime and screen time in general; the "Tiger Mom" Amy Chua interview on Honestly with Bari Weiss and what sorts of dads we are; backyard baptisms and letting the kids help build things.
Intro/outro: Wesley and William playing 'Undertale'
Share determination and send us questions: thoughtfuldadpodcast at gmail. Thanks for listening.
Professor Kozlowski lays it down. Everything is permitted? We see your forthcoming book, Cameron Kunzelman of the Game Studies Study Buddies, and raise you one podcast (this one) and one article replete with Dostoevsky references (also forthcoming).
Ante up with Ben's history and dev history; getting to know the open world; crowds in-game and reception in real life; historical realism; Zero Punctuation critiques; conspiracy nonsense (spoilers: maybe we should think twice about giving a Piece of Eden to Al Mualim) and actual philosophy. Assassins vs Templars? Meh. Exploring the tensions between ideas of freedom and order throughout history? Sign us up!
Wait, the rest of the series is actually going to deliver on that, right? Right??
Learn more and join the discussion at videogameacademia.org and professorkozlowski.wordpress.com/
Thanks for listening.
Mild spoilers and theorizing for the end of MOTHER 3. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
You've come a long way...through snowy mountains and volcanoes, sea-beds and islands, back to Saturn Valley. Time for a coffee break. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
On the symbolism of sunflowers and the inclusion of references to EarthBound. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
Theoretical possibilities in the series include beating Belch without Fly Honey and the Pork Trooper without the DCMC Pamphlet, but why would you? Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
We finally play as Lucas again, finding fireworks and rhythms in gift boxes and playing Stone-Sheet-Clippers for the fate of the world. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
We cozy up to the campfire for another Video Game Academy summer playthrough--another game about kids with psychic powers: Psychonauts. This time, we're meeting some characters, running through battlefields of mental baggage and social dynamics, and sticking the landing on some bouncy tightropes. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
In which we discuss Fassad and Salsa's relationship and how it is even worse than Wess and Duster's; with yet more insight into Itoi's fascination with monkeys.Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
Infiltrating the castle? Meeting the princess? What kind of follow-up to EarthBound is this?Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
In the long-awaited sequel to EarthBound, as localized by Tomato et al., we parse some shocking developments and developer choices. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
Teddy in Ellay through Mt Itoi; EVE in her lake, Queen Mary in her memory, and the ending. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
Through the desert to Youngtown; through the swamp to Ellay. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
Spookane and the dentures side quest, with a digression on Nathan for You - Gas Station Rebate. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
Riding the train through Reindeer to Ana in Snowman. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
Lloyd's school and the factories, with a digression on music (Twinkle Elementary and the File Select remix by Ace Waters). Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
Magicant. Apologies for the lost bit of intro on this one. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
At the Zoo, via Canary Village. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
From the opening through Podunk and the graveyard. Audio clips from the soundtrack as preserved at starmen.net; discussion audio hosted by 3rdStrongest. Join the conversation at our humble Video Game Academy. Thanks for listening.
On Ch 38 The Botanic Garden and the Acknowledgments at the end of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. Course page for the full list of episodes and suggested reading. Thanks for listening.
Alex Schmid and I revisit the golden age of the JRPG, with a nod to our oft-collaborating younger selves. https://videogameacademia.org/
Lost audio from the fall. Apologies, all, for the lateness! Video Game Academy is not dead, we've just been on hiatus what with school and everything. https://videogameacademia.org/
We kick back with Ebb Creakknees and stack our coppers, saving up for a new tattoo from Fell. You know, the only one of the Lady's servants who when he walks, like Shakespeare's dark lady of Sonnet 130, treads on the ground. https://videogameacademia.org/ Music from the OST.
We gather down at the Video Game Academy farm for a round-picnic-table discussion of the phenomenal Stardew Valley. For more, see the full almanac over at http://videogameacademia.org/ Music from the OST
We get acquainted with Sigil, meet some friendly denizens and fellow wanderers, and consider some of the factions vying for our services. http://videogameacademia.org/courses/planescape-torment/ Music from the OST
What makes us think this life is real? Well, we spot Bob the skull--I mean Morte--, Willem Dafoe--er, The Nameless One--, and, on the heels of Deionarra the ghost, Corey! And Mike joins us to provide some lore on the background for the OG Planescape: Torment, including World of Darkness and the Outer Planes of D&D. Dusties, zombies, etc. look out! https://videogameacademia.org/courses/planescape-torment/
Discussing ch 36-37 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html
Esteemed listeners, big news. Website tidyings-up and new mascots are on the way. Plus, by popular demand, t-shirt giveaways? https://videogameacademia.org/
It's the Sunday afternoon of the year, and we're setting up plans for the coming semesters. That means a little Planescape: Torment, a smidgeon of Shadowrun: Dragonfall, and maybe some Undertale and Stardew Valley. Help us with our follow-through? We'd love to hear from you. https://videogameacademia.org/2021/08/15/the-sunday-afternoon-of-the-year/
Discussing ch 34-35 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. Course page https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html Music comes from Hilary James and Simon Mayer, "Over the Hills and Far Away"
Discussing ch 32-33 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html
We throw it back to Shakespeare and Chesterton, eschewing the Holy Smokes and helping the Smuggler's friend make it back to the surface. https://videogameacademia.org/courses/deus-ex/ Music from the OST.
Discussing ch 30-31 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman, with a glance towards his novel Galatea. http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html
We wanted orange and it gave us lemon-lime. It's a conspiracy! Discussing the UNATCO HQ and its bizarro alter ego in Battery Park. Videos of Prof Ben's gameplay and more course materials: https://videogameacademia.org/courses/deus-ex/ Music from the OST.
The dreaded stealth training sequence, famed first mission, and general milieu of Deus Ex: Revision. Midway through Liberty Island, Steve's neighbor must have hacked us (that is, I forgot to refresh the recording tab) so we lost a few minutes there of Prof Ben laying out what's at stake in the interlocking character creation/progression and moral choice systems and the headless Statue of Liberty. Still, not bad for a first foray into the FPS CRPG darkness. More course info and twitch streams coming soon at https://videogameacademia.org/courses/deus-ex/ Music from the OST.
On ch 28-29 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman, with apologies for the delay and recommendations for further listening:
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2021/07/signum-academy-discussions-on-pullman.html
There's short discussions of Pullman's Fairy Tales from The Brothers Grimm, Clockwork, The Scarecrow and his Servant, and The Firework-Maker's Daughter
Welcome back, it's summer again and we have much to discuss. If you'd like to get honest feedback on original work, read books with us, or suggest a future game, visit https://videogameacademia.org/
Another look at RPG history from Gamemaker's Toolkit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJiwn8iXqOI
Time for the final showdown with the evil AI du jour. Three personalities and nanomachines galore MAIK may have, but with feelings and friendship we can prevail--feelings like disappointment, annoyance, regret... but also relief at World's End Club being over. Music from the OST. Visit us at https://videogameacademia.org/
We come up to the mid-game twists and turns and stop just shy of the obligatory bad end. Apologies for the delay posting this episode, but camping last week was a lot of fun. Provided the rolling blackouts here in Spokane hold off another day or two, we'll be back on schedule. Visit us at https://videogameacademia.org/ for more. Music from the OST. Edit: The Ezra Klein interview mentioned is with Brian Christian.
We discuss the long-lost EarthBound script files recovered and analyzed by The Video Game History Foundation: https://gamehistory.org/earthbound-script-files/. Then, as we make our way to Osaka in World's End Club, there's a twist you may or may not have seen coming a mile away. https://videogameacademia.org/
We chat summer plans and run through the first hour or so of World's End Club. Music from the OST. For more on visual novels: https://videogameacademia.org/courses/video-game-studies/intro-to-visual-novels/
Here we are at the end(s) of NieR: Automata. If it's a bit too abstract to understand at this time, if it feels like carrying the weight of the world, we're here for you. The Video Game Academy: we get that being alive is pretty much a constant stream of embarrassment. Music comes from the OST. https://videogameacademia.org/
We discuss the meat box and soul box, sand worms and cannibal machines; or in other words, the mind-body problem, Hegel, Nietzsche, and Pascal. For more un-compressed conversation, see https://videogameacademia.org/ or tune into https://www.twitch.tv/3rdstrongest Music comes from the OST. Thanks for listening.
Could it be we're at the start of yet a third game? It's hard to tell with all that static and visual distortion, but we're soldiering on. The Operator says we're doing great. For more, check out our twitch channel at https://www.twitch.tv/3rdstrongest and read more from the grimoires housed at https://videogameacademia.org/ Music comes from the OST. Thanks for listening, and let us know what we should play next!
Content warning: we discuss the possible meaning of the four-letter word uttered by Adam in asterisks. On the hologram forms glimpsed towards the end of the second game, however, we maintain (mostly) a dignified silence. Music comes from the OST. Join us on Tuesdays at https://www.twitch.tv/3rdstrongest
For more on this course and others see http://videogameacademia.org/
Thanks for listening
Like the head of Emil bounding away through the abandoned shopping mall, we've punted the remainder of Nine S' story into next week. This gives us a chance to cast an eye over the pop-cultural landscape and generally catch up. Music comes from the OST. Join us on Tuesdays at https://www.twitch.tv/3rdstrongest
For more on this course and others see http://videogameacademia.org/
Thanks for listening
We cover the first half or so of the game once more with some assists from 9S. Music comes from the hacking sequence. Our data suggests that mankind gained great intelligence from consuming fruit. For more insights, see https://videogameacademia.org/
We start our Video Game Academy spring read: The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Along those lines, we share some of the ideas that have been possessing us lately, mainly to do with health and wealth, and reflect on the games we've been playing aside from NieR: Automata. Visit videogameacademia.org for more about the reading group and the vanishingly rare GameCube title Lost Kingdoms, FromSoftware's little known precursor to their Souls series.
We investigate scientist-Adam and sympathize with mecha-dragon-Eve, drop in on the torchlit factory for a revival meeting, and reach the first main ending of NieR: Automata. Visit videogameacademia.org for more on this course and others. Thanks for listening! (Music from the OST)
We cross swords with a renegade android, disturb the Forest Kingdom, and launch missiles at the ancient super-goliath out at sea. Visit videogameacademia.org for more on this course and others. Thanks for listening! (Music from the OST)
We introduce an occasional new format this time, Burns and Apologies, with the Professor roasting the puntastic 2019 Spike Chunsoft visual novel while 3rdStrongest defends it. After the back-and-forth, we mend fences with a little curricular development and discuss the options for learning programming through games, along with some memorable teaching technologies of the past. Music comes from AI: The Somnium Files OST. Reminisce and dialogue with us at https://videogameacademia.org/
We frolic after sisters, stamps, chips, and fangirls on a few side-quests and swoop in to save the city. Then, way underground, we make a discovery about the aliens and their offspring. But wait, you gotta tell us, how do you make children? These are the deep questions we like to ask at the Video Game Academy. Music comes from the OST, audio hiccups from the internet. Thanks for listening.
We're off to the amusement park beyond the sewers, then the machine village beyond that. Humans sure are strange creatures... Hey, listener, people who know us well usually call us "Video Game Academy -s," so... Music this time comes from the OST. Thanks for listening.
After a short review of Cybertext, by Espen Aarseth, we traverse the desert and discover the apartment-dwellers' secret. That secret proceeds to kick us in the face. Join the discussion, watch the playthrough, or find a torn book or two, plus other crafting/reading material, at videogameacademia.org. Music this time comes from the OST. Thanks for listening.
We explore the spaceship Bunker, then touch down quite a ways from the Resistance Camp and run through the city ruins. Join the discussion, watch the playthrough, or find a torn book or two, plus other crafting material, at videogameacademia.org. Music this time comes from the OST. Thanks for listening.
We discuss the opening sequence of NieR: Automata and eye some of the game's paradoxes. Additional audio this time comes from the first boss battle, taken from a video embedded in Jennifer Smith's medium article "A Beautiful Song - The Adaptive Music of NieR: Automata." Join the discussion, watch the playthrough, or find a torn book or two, plus other crafting material, at videogameacademia.org. Thanks for listening.
Steve, Wes, Quorey, and Ben (asynchronously, but thank goodness for time travel) respond to the new Majora's Mask title from Boss Fight Books.
Music clipped from the Keaton Quiz.
We invite you to join us for future discussions.
Steve takes the lead opening our investigation of the visual novel form. See the course page for more resources.
We invite you to join us for future discussions.
Music this time comes from two productions of Maeterlinck's Blue Bird, the first a clip of incidental music from the 1909 Theatre Royal run (performed by Fiona Cox and recorded in 2006), the second from a 1980 anime.
On ch 24-25 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman.
Please see the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
Ben, Steve, and I bid farewell to a perfidious year and discuss what we've been playing to help us make it through.
We invite you to join us for future discussions.
EarthBound music comes courtesy of the trove at starmen.net.
Remembering the lives and work of Millicent Lenz, Antonia Syson, and William Gray.
Please see the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
On ch 22-23 of Pullman's The Amber Spyglass. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
Sarah and Steph, The Video Game Academy's resident AC experts, are here to discuss the unfolding phenomenon. We invite you to join us for future discussions, wishing you happy holidays!
We delve once more into the strange afterlife of The Hex, seeking some unifying understanding among its multiple mysteries, and are punished for our hubris. Forgive us.
On Walk, Lionel's magnum opus, and its references to each of the previous game segments in The Hex. See the course page for more info and join us for future discussions.
Apologies for the audio gaps on this one. At about the ten minute mark, Craigbot, our discord recording device, decided to go for a walk. Maybe he had a date on the dating simulator. All that gets lost there is a bit of summarizing: how we get from the bar, via the backroom armory and Vicious Galaxy, to the Gameworks HQ. Fortunately, Ben came through with the backup audio from that point. See the course page for more info and join us for future discussions.
Ben, Steve, and I tactically survive our way through the mods and hallucinations of Wasteworld. See the course page for more info and join us for future discussions. It's gonna get weird.
We glitch our way through Secrets of Legendaria with the apparently un-renameable Chandrelle and her sidekick, Lazarus. Lots more interesting names, references, and study topics await on the course page, and you can also join us for future discussions.
Ben and I follow the barkeep's orders and fight our way through the memories of Bryce the cook. See the course page for more info and join us for future discussions.
Ben, Steven, and Craigbot join me for our introductory discussion of The Hex. This is Daniel Mullins' follow-up to Pony Island, and it's equally if not more bizarre. So we start with some leftovers and secrets and connections there, before getting into the murder-mystery frame and the Super Weasel Kid memory sequence. See the course page for more info and join us for future discussions.
Ben and I outfox a daemon, escape the arcade, and maybe beat the game...? See the course page for more info and join us for future discussions. Up next: The Hex.
Ben and I hack ourselves some wings and revisit Baphomet for another glimpse in Pony Island's Adventure Mode. See the course page for more info and join us for future discussions.
Ben and I launch into a new semester at the Video Game Academy focusing on the work of Daniel Mullins, starting with Pony Island. See the course page for more info and join us for future discussions.
On ch 20-21 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
On ch 18-19 of Philip Pullman's The Amber Spyglass. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
Ben and I scale Kefka's Tower and take on the final boss before addressing the end credits. Thanks for listening! Join the conversation at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia
Ben and I unlock Gau's makeover, rescue Relm from her possessed painting, and set Locke free from his past
Ben and I follow the birds to Cyan on Mt Zozo, meet Gau and Shadow in the Cave on the Veldt, and scoop up Mog and Umaro in Narshe
Ben and I take on the Floating Continent and accompany Celes over the cliff and upon the raft
Ben and I parley with the Empire and sail to Thamasa, helping Strago save Relm from the burning house--and being saved by Shadow
Ben and I double back for Mog, then dungeon-crawl to the threshold of the Espers and sealing of the gate
Ben (and William) and I discuss the World of the Espers and the first round of airship exploration
Ben and I make our way through Kohlingen, Jidoor, and Zozo after Terra, with flashbacks for Edgar, Sabin, and Locke.
Ben and I discuss Locke and Terra's quests, regrouping with Celes and the rest in Narshe to defend the Esper from Kefka.
Ben and I discuss Final Fantasy VI, from Figaro Cave to the Returners Hideout.
Join us at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia
Ben and I discuss the opening of Final Fantasy VI, up to the escape from (of?) Figaro Castle.
Join us at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia
Ben and I discuss the ending of Little Inferno.
Join us for more at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia
Ben and I discuss more Little Inferno, catalogs 3-5 and Sugar Plumps.
Get involved at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia
Ben and I discuss Little Inferno, from the opening through the second catalog.
Join us at https://www.patreon.com/videogameacademia
on ch 16-17 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
On ch 14-15 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
On ch 12-13 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman. See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
Touching on the immram journeys by water and the alchemical gardens and forges of The Book of Dust, Kris Swank, also of Signum U, graciously shares some of her theories with us! Read more at Mythlore:
"The Child's Voyage and the Immram Tradition in Lewis, Tolkien, and Pullman"
and beyond: John Granger on Alchemy in Harry Potter and an intro to Francois Beroalde
See the course page to learn more and ask questions. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.
One last look at the classic JRPG and its relevance today, closing out this series of Bookwarm Games. Thanks again to Jason, media studies maestro and fellow reader. I'm hoping to be back soon with a third installment under the Bookwarm Games banner; see https://videogameacademia.wordpress.com/ for more studies of classic games meanwhile.
Many thanks to independent scholar Kat Sas, who joins me to discuss JK Rowling and Philip Pullman in the context of the impression of depth lent to modern fantasy by JRR Tolkien.
On ch 10-11 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html
On ch 8-9 of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman.
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html
The author of the invaluable Xenogears and Xenosaga Study Guide, AC, and I talk once more about the mirroring of Xenosaga and the unfinished large-scale story sketched in Perfect Works. Here's hoping that he, and Takahashi, find time to complete their respective projects!
Patrick Holleman, author of the Game Design Forum and Reverse Design book series, joins me for a discussion of game studies and Xenogears. See his rockin' collabs with Resonant Arc on Xenogears, Becoming Whole, and FFVII's Deeper Meaning. For a distillation of some of his research, check out the Game Design Extracts.
On the end of Xenogears. And then...
Xenogears OST
Creid arranged album
20th Anniversary Concert
On Xenogears final gameplay chapter, First and Last, where I sat (figuratively) for twenty years playing cards, slaying dragons, looking at Christmas trees, and crafting Mermaid Rings, before finally beating the game a few weeks ago in preparation for this podcast :)
The hosts of the brilliant Retrograde Amnesia podcast join me to share some of the highlights of their chapter-by-chapter inspection of Xenogears. We ponder the cast from Citan to Big Joe, muse upon influences from gnosticism to anime--and our discussion here only hints at the super muchacho information to be found in their own comprehensive offerings on patreon. Thanks again, amigos!
We refer to The Gnostic Gospels, by Elaine Pagels, and to The Great Mother, by Erich Neumann. For more notes and recommended reading, see the Bookwarm course page.
On Xenogears' Anima Relics and the counterparts coming together here: the Elements, Ramsus, Hammer, and Cain
Leanna, aka Musical33, mod on the HDM Fandom Wiki, joins me once again, this time for a joyous discussion of season one of the new series. Spoilers abound!
https://hisdarkmaterials.fandom.com/f
On ch 3 Scavengers and ch 4 Ama and the Bats, of The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman
with "The Knight's Tomb," by Coleridge and "She lay as if at play," by Dickinson
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2020/02/gamecool-books-amber-spyglass.html
The Gamecool Books podcast turns to The Amber Spyglass, the concluding volume in His Dark Materials, by Philip Pullman. Long-form discussions of the intertextual goodness branching out from the book in all directions, and of the depiction of consciousness at its heart, will be posted on a weekly-or-so basis, along with conversations with other fans and scholars. This page will also be updated with recommended additional reading to accompany our deep dive into Pullman's work. I welcome any questions or comments. Enjoy!
This episode covers Ch 1 The Enchanted Sleeper and Ch 2 Balthamos and Baruch.
Recommended Reading:
Blake, America A Prophecy
Rilke, The Third Elegy
Ashbery, The Ecclesiast
Blake, The Little Girl Lost
Job 4
"The Man Who Walked with God: Philip Pullman's Metatron, the Biblical Enoch, and the Apocrypha," John Haydn Baker. In Critical Perspectives on Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials, Barfield and Cox ed.
In which we range over the contexts for game- and god-talk, with genial insights from my guest Moses Norton and some great audience input--many thanks to the Well-Red Mage for hosting my writing, cross-releasing this episode (with augmented audio) on his podcast, and letting me host him on this show!
https://thewellredmage.com/
and see his Chrono Trigger dissertation
Gabriel joins me to discuss the massive, rich, and challenging new book, The Secret Commonwealth, the second volume of Philip Pullman's Book of Dust.
After this interlude, I'll be picking up with The Amber Spyglass shortly!
Thanks for listening.
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/gamecool-books-subtle-knife-by-philip.html
On Solaris, where we're head over heels, and on to the end of Disc 1 of Xenogears. If anyone knows what Citan's sword is saying with his elemental attacks, please teach me that sophistry or poetry or whatever it might be!
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
On ch 15: Bloodmoss, concluding The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman. With reference to The Journey of the Magi, by TS Eliot, and to the wrestling passage in Gen 32:24 more: https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/gamecool-books-subtle-knife-by-philip.html
On Xenogears' destroy the gate generator missions: the omnigear in the Mausoleum, the Republic of Aveh, tag-team battles on Babel Tower and Ft. Jasper, and Emeralda in Sargasso
With thanks to the Retrograde Amnesia podcast for a kind shout-out, and to Karnegal at the Let's Play Archive
Opening a discussion with the Argentine scholar Guillermo Lariguet on the philosophical context for Pullman's trilogy. This conversation was recorded piecemeal and built up from transmissions from Guillermo via whatsapp, with my responses.
"A Brief Examination of the Literary Trilogy by Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials" essay (in Spanish) on academia.edu and Erasmus online review:
https://www.academia.edu/37331615/UN_BREVE_EXAMEN_FILOS%C3%93FICO_DE_LA_TRILOG%C3%8DA_LITERARIA_DE_PHILIP_PULLMAN_LA_MATERIA_OSCURA
https://www.icala.org.ar/erasmus/Archivo/2018/2018-1/erasmus-20-1-2018-00.pdf
On Ch 13 Æsahættr, in The Subtle Knife, by Philip Pullman.
Word study: Fandom, wiktionary, Skaldic poetry; Waking of Angantyr; Icelandic dictionary
And while you're looking that up, maybe you want to check out this band's Self-titled album
On ch 12: Screen Language, in Philip Pullman's The Subtle Knife
On Everett and his Many Worlds: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/hugh-everett-biography/
Augustine on Angels: http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p1s2c1p5.htm
On The Subtle Knife and Philip Pullman's epic tendencies. Many thanks to Faith Acker, lecturer and preceptor at Signum University, for joining me!
See more about her course, The Life and Times of the English Epic: https://signumuniversity.org/catalog/the-life-and-times-of-the-english-epic/
And our conversation celebrating the release of The Secret Commonwealth, with Kris Swank and Gabriel Schenk, as part of Signum's annual fundraising campaign: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZV47M-0EZI
On Xenogears' central chapters, from Zeboim to Shevat via Babel Tower, and what awaits you there
On the simulacra and ekphrases of Xenogears' first half or so, continuing where our first talk left off.
We touch on C.S. Lewis' "On Stories," which Pullman cites approvingly more than once: https://gutenberg.ca/ebooks/lewiscs-onstories/lewiscs-onstories-00-h.html
Here's some information about the wall Gabriel mentioned, dividing rich and poor parts of Oxford: http://www.bbc.co.uk/oxford/content/articles/2009/03/26/cutteslowe_feature.shtml
It's very close to the Hornbeam trees (Sunderland Avenue: https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2368292)
This is the cemetery described by Pullman in The Subtle Knife: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolvercote_Cemetery
This is Gabriel's flash fiction piece, chosen as one of five competition winners by Philip Pullman: https://gabrielschenk.com/writing/home/
More information on the Jewish cemetery and the Botanical Gardens: https://www.oxfordjewishheritage.co.uk/projects/botanic-gardens-first-jewish-cemetery
More images from the books and the "How to Read the Alethiometer" promotional poster can be found on the HDM Fandom.
On everything from Ramsus' underwater attack and help from Billy, the young priest, to the encounter with the green-haired girl in the ruins of Zeboim; Xenogears' theological arguments begin to take shape.
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
Building on our first discussion, we explore more of the characters' and creators' motivations in this misunderstood masterpiece.
AC runs the Xenogears and Xenosaga Study Guide page: http://xenogearsxenosagastudyguide.blogspot.com/
On Xenogears' chapters 23-28: Secret Weapon, Escape Ignas, Adrift at Sea, Men of the Sea, Friends Again, and Betrayal. Thanks for listening!
On Ch 7: The Rolls-Royce, in The Subtle Knife, by Philip Pullman, and with reference to The White Mercedes and The Collectors--
https://www.amazon.com/Collectors-Materials-Story-Kindle-Single-ebook/dp/B0138OGO72
On Xenogears Battling Champ, Gear Dock Raid, and Night Purge chapters.
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
Author of numerous essays, book chapters, and reviews on Philip Pullman and his work, Dr Wood is Director of Undergraduate Studies for the English Department at Kansas State University, and co-editor of The Lion and The Unicorn, an academic journal focused on literature for children.
https://www.k-state.edu/english/people/wood.html
https://www.press.jhu.edu/journals/lion-and-unicorn
Baptized into the Kislev prison, with some detective work in the sewers and on the heights, and battling in the arena.
Local super-genius and fellow Xeno-phile Jason joins me to discuss 90's nostalgia and dissonant aesthetics. Another conversation which will certainly be continued in a future episode!
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
On ch 5: Airmail Paper, of The Subtle Knife, by Philip Pullman
http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/gamecool-books-subtle-knife-by-philip.html
On Nisan's angelic statuary and unfinished painting; the disastrous coup attempt; and The One Who is Torn Apart: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miOizLxOD4E
http://xenogearsxenosagastudyguide.blogspot.com/p/xenogears.html
http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
Much obliged to Jason King for taking the time to chat with me about religion and human nature, Dust and destiny. He teaches at St Vincent College (including some Pullman in his course "Aliens, Monsters, Heroes, and Jesus" :) and is coauthor, with Donna Freitas, on the excellent Killing the Imposter God: Philip Pullman's Spiritual Imagination in His Dark Materials.
https://www.stvincent.edu/about/directory-staff/jason-king
https://www.amazon.com/Killing-Imposter-God-Spiritual-Imagination/dp/0787982377
Big Joe knows. On the Aveh hide-and-seek, waterworks, tournament, and Margie's rescue arc.
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
On Ch 4: Trepanning, in The Subtle Knife, by Philip Pullman
Keats' Letter on Negative Capability
On the search for Citan through the dunes, encounter with Grahf, Fei's dream of his father and Citan's communique with the Emperor, the pirate prince Bart, exploring the cavern, Ol' Man Bal, and the night raid on the hideout. A nice, friendly interlude, basically, before we go rescue Margie.
http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
On ch 3: A Children's World, in The Subtle Knife, by Philip Pullman.
Blake, Little Girl Lost and Little Girl Found
See the Charles Brown interview at http://web.archive.org/web/20050422032936/http://www.avnet.co.uk/amaranth/Critic/ivpullman.htm
Much obliged to A.C., curator of the remarkable Xenogears and Xenosaga Study Guide pages.
Check them out: http://xenogearsxenosagastudyguide.blogspot.com/
More reading: http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
Graciously joined by the media and religious commentator Tony Watkins, author of Dark Matter: Shedding Light on Philip Pullman's Trilogy (aka A Thinking Fan's Guide). His website includes the transcript of a remarkable interview with Pullman.
On Fei's exile, his meeting with Elly, through following Citan out into the desert beyond Dazil. Featuring: Big Joe! See http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
On ch 2: Among the Witches, of Philip Pullman's The Subtle Knife. More at https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/gamecool-books-subtle-knife-by-philip.html
On ch 1-3 of Xenogears. Readings and more info: http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
First in the Xenogears series of Bookwarm Games discussions, on the project overview and Xenogears' cinematic intro, the Prologue.
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2019/05/bookwarm-games-xenogears.html
Recorded live 4/30/19, addressing questions about raw spirits, Dust, and daemons, and doing a little analysis of da Vinci's Lady with an Ermine. Thanks to everyone who participated in this discussion series, and special thanks to live questioners: Steph, Mom, and Dad. I think I quadrupled my viewership from the concluding video on EarthBound :)
For more info: https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2018/10/gamecool-books-golden-compass-by-philip.html
Broadcasted live on Twitch -- Watch live at https://www.twitch.tv/bookwarmgames
On ch 23: The Bridge to the Stars, of Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass
Thank you for listening! Consult the course page for more on the concluding Q and A episode, and for links to readings and other materials: https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2018/10/gamecool-books-golden-compass-by-philip.html
On ch 21: Lord Asriel's Welcome, in The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman
Tony Watkins' interview with Pullman: http://www.tonywatkins.co.uk/media/literature/interview-with-philip-pullman-from-2004/
For the final conversation episode of the Golden Compass series, I'm joined by Leanna, aka Musical33, a Bureaucrat (editor and moderator) on the His Dark Materials Fandom page. Check it out: https://hdm.fandom.com/f We talk about the fan community, the world of online role playing, and adaptations past, present, and imaginary of Pullman's work.
News: the series-concluding Q&A session will be Tuesday 30, 7:30 pm Eastern, live on twitch, so send in questions and comments!
Musical themes include the Cliff Ghasts, Santelia, the Watchtower, and Mortal Combat!
Joining me from Wales, Dr Maggie Parke coordinates the Mythgard Institute's new programming and teaches on Signum University. Her work delves into fan communities, adaptation across media, and engagement between the two.
https://signumuniversity.org/directory/maggie-parke/
http://maggieparke.com/
Musical themes for the imaginary video game adaptation:
Ceiling Space
MnTi
The Fearsome Tartars
Cloud-pine
Dr Lauren Shohet discusses her work interpreting Milton, poet of Providence and defender of free speech, as well as teaching Pullman in the academy. A professor of English at Villanova, she has published on Renaissance literature, primarily Shakespeare and Milton, as well as articles and books considering Renaissance connections to His Dark Materials.
Her website is http://laurenshohet.com/
Also I share some news on Pullman's knighthood and a release date for the next novel, then musical themes for the imaginary video game adaptation:
Samoyed Hunters
Bolvangar Lights
Sister Clara
Daemon Cages
Course page:
https://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2018/10/gamecool-books-golden-compass-by-philip.html
Joining me to discuss Philip Pullman's work is Dr. Marek Oziewicz, the Sidney and Marguerite Henry Professor of Children's and Young Adult Literature at the University of Minnesota. He's written extensively on the representation of justice in and through storytelling. His One World, One People won the Mythopoeic Scholarship award in 2010; his recent work has traced the connections between literature and scientific research on consciousness.
Marek's page on UMN: http://www.cehd.umn.edu/ci/people/Oziewicz.html
Papers available on academia.edu: https://umn.academia.edu/MarekOziewicz
Musical themes for the imaginary video game:
Tiny Plants in the Arctic
Fencing
Tunguska Campaign
On ch 13: Fencing, in Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass, and "On the Marionette Theatre," by von Kleist.
A long-awaited conversation with Kevin Hensler, PhD candidate in Religion at Temple University. We talk about Pullman's materialist theology, Lyra's destiny, and world-building. Spoilers abound!
Kevin's page on Temple U: https://liberalarts.temple.edu/academics/departments/religion/hensler-kevin
Musical themes:
Jerry, the able seaman
Trollesund
The Consul
The Bear
Witches (adapted from 'The Flowers of Lapland,' whistled by Dr Kalmenius in Clockwork)
Where's your balloon?
On ch 11 Armor, in Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass, with some drive-by remarks on His Dark Materials Illuminated, edited by Millicent Lenz and Carole Scott
Featuring Mark Vernon, who incorporates narrative into his work as a psychotherapist, and insights from his practice into his work as an author.
He's been hosting the video of this conversation over on his website for weeks, but better late than never I thought I'd post the audio and video of it, too, along with more musical themes from the imaginary video game adaptation following the conversation, and an exciting announcement for the new year!
Mark's website: http://www.markvernon.com/
Mark's review of The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2010/apr/02/philip-pullman-jesus-myth
Understand Humanism, by Mark Vernon, with a foreword by Philip Pullman: https://www.amazon.com/Understand-Humanism-Teach-Yourself-General/dp/1444103504
Tracklist:
John Faa
Farder Coram
The Zaal and the Eel Market
Spy-flies
On chapter 7: John Faa
The course page for this series on The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman can be found here: http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2018/10/gamecool-books-golden-compass-by-philip.html
Talking with Signum University Preceptor and Oxford University D. Phil. Gabriel Schenk about Pullman's Oxford and ch 6: The Cocktail Party.
Many thanks to Gabriel for his time and insights!
His page on Signum U: https://signumuniversity.org/directory/gabriel-schenk/
On ch 5: The Cocktail Party, of the Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman
Course page: http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2018/10/gamecool-books-golden-compass-by-philip.html?m=1
A discussion with celebrated author and scholar Verlyn Flieger, in which we do some serious thinking about The Golden Compass and its mythological and literary contexts.
Verlyn's page on Signum University: https://signumuniversity.org/directory/verlyn-flieger/
Verlyn's website: http://mythus.com/
In lieu of recess this week there's a brief news segment and another music playlist for the imaginary video game, featuring: The Master and Catacombs Tony Makarios The Lady with the Golden Monkey / Magisterium Ma Costa The Zeppelin The Alethiometer
On Chapter 4 of The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman: The Alethiometer.
Recommended Reading: The Golden Compass Chapter 4: The Alethiometer
The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, by William Blake http://www.blakearchive.org/copy/mhh.d?descId=mhh.d.illbk.01
Pullman's illustrations for the chapter headings http://www.philip-pullman.com/Illustrations.php#
In which we discuss ch 3 of The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman, Lyra's Jordan, and imagine how it might look as a video game.
(Errata: It's not the Sheldon Building where Lyra's Oxford opens, but the Lodge Tower. But I think the same sort of point could be made.)
Recommended Reading: The Golden Compass Chapter 3: Lyra's Jordan Songs of Innocence and Experience, by William Blake http://www.blakearchive.org/copy/songsie.r?descId=songsie.r.illbk.01 Map of Lyra's Oxford https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/hdm/images/b/bd/Lyra%27s_Oxford_map.png/revision/latest?cb=20170723102043
Course page: http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2018/10/gamecool-books-golden-compass-by-philip.html
I'm joined by Sparrow Alden, Hestia of the Hearth on the Signum U forums, college instructor and preceptor, and youth pastor, to discuss The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman. We touch on the story's attractions--Lyra's character and her relationship to Pan--as well as its dangers--the way it represents an end to childhood no one would want to undergo.
Sparrow's page on Signum University: https://signumuniversity.org/directory/sparrow-alden/ Sparrow's blog: https://wordsthatyouweresaying.blog/
After our talk, I've added some updates about the project, including words of encouragement from my friend Patrick, news about publishing some of my EarthBound work weekly on thewellredmage.com and borrowing from brianbrock.com some potential music for the imaginary game adaptation, and offering a few samples of musical themes of my own devising. Enjoy!
Check back in a few weeks for my next conversation episode, which will be with the renowned Tolkien scholar, Verlyn Flieger!
The lantern slides of Lord Asriel counter the poisoned wine of the Master. Enmeshed in the political tension between the two, we hear about Dust, the Northern Lights, the Grumman expedition, the Magisterium, panserbjorne, and the alethiometer, which foretells of an adventure for Lyra. After the discussion of chapter 2 and its coda, we have a recess including Pan's first transformation and Lyra's first chance to explore the college grounds, albeit by night.
More info and schedule: http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2018/10/gamecool-books-golden-compass-by-philip.html
Recommended reading: The Golden Compass Chapter 2: The Idea of North Genesis 1-3, KJV "Miss Goddard's Grave," an essay by Pullman
Links: https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Compass-Dark-Materials-Book/dp/B0000W6SPE https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+1%3A1-13&version=KJV http://www.philip-pullman.com/cm-content/pdf/miss_goddards_grave.pdf
The Golden Compass series of Bookwarm Games begins! From an overview of the project, we open the discussion with Philip Pullman's relationship to Milton, Blake, CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien; set out the dominant themes of the relationship between Lyra and her daemon, and of innocence and experience; consider how these are reflected in the opening of the story and the reader's experience of it. Then to enrich that experience, we start to develop an imaginary video game adaptation! Send in contributions, ideas, questions here or through http://newschoolnotes.blogspot.com/2018/10/gamecool-books-golden-compass-by-philip.html
Recommended reading/listening: The Golden Compass, Chapter One: The Decanter of Tokay Books I-II of Paradise Lost, with Pullman's Introduction "I have a feeling this all belongs to me," Pullman's biographical sketch
Links: https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Compass-Dark-Materials-Book/dp/B0000W6SPE https://books.google.com/books?id=Lv-oVbPpc7cC&pg=PT7&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=4#v=onepage&q&f=false https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Q1gMZR61fOdr_NK--LwmZMo6zHpmIB0qXb2YsZ0g3oc/edit?usp=sharing
Concluding the series on EarthBound by considering the Apple of Enlightenment, prophecy, and time travel, with readings from Genesis 3, Kant, and Itoi
Through the Cave of the Past to the final battle with Giygas and Pokey, reading aloud from them, from the game's letters and lyrics, and from Augustine, who knows something about prayer
A homecoming reminiscent of Frodo's and Odysseus', famous Saturnisms, and riding meteorites to the past
A ping-pong game of thoughts on EarthBound: courage, wisdom, friendship, travel and time-travel. We also touch on FF Tactics, myth and history, and archaeology-love
With Ness in Magicant and the Sea of Eden where he beats his Nightmare and hears his own voice, with Jung on dreams and the shadow
A talk with my friend Pat about Where the Wild Things Are and rites of passage, the limits of EarthBound and FF8, and what country music has to do with The American Patrick Corporation
We get the final note and hear the whole melody, with some amateur musicology and some Alcibiades I
From the Library to the Lost Underworld, with glances at Stages on Life's Way, Casey at the Bat, and Sirens of Titan
Through Deep Darkness and Stonehenge, meeting the one outgoing Tenda, rescuing friends and strangers, loving your enemies, with an excerpt from Conrad's luminous Heart of Darkness
Defeating the Kraken, visiting Scaraba, and dancing in front of the Sphinx, we descend voluntarily to recover the Hawk Eye, quoting from Peterson's Maps of Meaning, about which more can be found on The History of Western Thought page on facebook
Visiting brother Elliot last week made me think I'd better have Mom and Dad on the show! I caught them before dinnertime to discuss Sunday board games, passing the baton, and World Cup predictions. (Please bear with the audio crashing around the midway point.)
On Spoon and Fork's war, the father of all things (Heraclitus), the Pyramids and Sphinx (Black Athena, Phaedrus, Origins and History of Consciousness), and the Your Sanctuary spots through Magnet Hill and Pink Cloud. But the second half of the recording is all a Museum Day, and can be safely skipped
Summers (with a brief stopover in Winters), Stoics, Epictetus and Boethius, and Magic cake
Mr Schmid (on anchor and on facebook: search his name and/or The History of Western Thought) and I discuss play and competition, science and magic, and IQ in EarthBound and here at home. Apologies for a couple of audio outages due to psychic attacks.
Everdred's haiku and Welcome to Moonside--examining Bogost's Play Anything and Huizinga's Homo Ludens, with a brief detour through postmodernism as characterized in McGilchrist's Master and His Emissary before we're rescued from the Clumsy Robot by the Runaway Five
Venturing across the bridge with Jacques Maritain and Heidegger, Hart Crane and Walt Whitman, amassing the fragments of the fourfold in Fourside.
My friend Steve and I discuss speedruns, Blockbuster, game reviews, embodied memories of EarthBound and FF7, and virtual novels
Dusty Dunes Desert, its caves and sesame seeds, and St-Exupery's deserts in Wind, Sand, and Stars and The Little Prince
Saturn Valley, with its ladders, recalls Dante, Bosch, Chaucer, Goya. Look up the art and the coffee break! For more along these lines, check out Olsen's Signum U and Mythgard, Mazzotta's Yale Open Course on Dante, and the Alexander Schmid podcast.
Some questions and comments from a listener, Alexander Schmid. Welcome to Threed. The circus and the cemetery.
Full disclosure: we're getting married! We discuss games like Animal Crossing, Starbound and Stardew Valley, Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and the games cats play. These are two of our cats.
Twoson and Happy Happy Village, the cat and the cult, playing by yourself and being played with by Montaigne's cat
English poets and Easter readings; stars, ideals, projections; hints about a future series on Philip Pullman.
Moving from philosophy of language towards an ethics of discourse, touching on quests and play in works such as Zelda: Majora's Mask, Undertale, and Ready Player One
more here: https://watchmanzeke33.wordpress.com/ and see the youtube description of this episode for more links: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zEsXQBN51Q
On the library, the arcade, town hall and the police station, with reference to Ikiru and The Death of Ivan Ilych and a digression on the word chortle
The true third-strongest episode of Bookwarm Games.
With three individuals in Onett, Lier X. Agerate, the trumpet-player, and Frank, we listen to the Largo from Dvorak’s New World. And in Legends of Localization by Clyde Mandelin, we get a bio and interview on Giygas from the creator of EarthBound, Shigesato Itoi.
On rules of the game; Ness' home and family; the sound stone and Proust's petite madeleine (pardon my French). Digression on a word: nostalgia.
Introductories and remarks on Buzz Buzz in EarthBound and Buzz, buzz in Hamlet. See the course page to learn more. Thanks for listening, sharing, or lending your support.