podcast

Life may be busy but that hasn’t stopped us here at DoFuss, so here for your entertainment is the latest show. If you have been counting (and I don’t know why you would have been) you may have noticed this is the thirtieth show since we rebooted last year, which makes it as old as us, kind of.

With E3 coverage drawing to a close Darren and I dedicated this show to looking back on the announcements that caught our shared eye. Of course Move, Kinect and 3DS dominated discussion but we also indulge in some of the games that stood out to us, such as the beautiful Journey and Lost in Shadow. And we like Pierce Brosnan.

Enjoy and check back later this month for the second anniversary of the DoFuss Show.

The DoFuss Show – Some thoughts on E3 and Pierce Brosnan. [ 59:00 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

It has been a long week, in no way helped by the fact that we had to record this show twice thanks to technical problems. Fortunately the dry run meant that even with my general exhaustion we were able to keep the show mostly on track, and when we didn’t it was at least funny.

We kick off as always with ‘Heaven and Hell’ (featuring the World Cup) before the ever-present ‘What Have You Been Playing?’ For a change this show Darren has been indulging in games that could technically be called current, though while Portal ‘Mac’ has technically just been released it might be pushing it to call it new. I on the other hand have been playing the very current Alan Wake, which I have been gushing about online for some time, so I take this opportunity to redress some of the balance.

After this it is on to news. E3 kicked off the day we recorded with the Microsoft Kinect event (yes, I call it the Kinetic during the show, but I am sure that was their plan) so we do touch on the show a little bit in news, as well as some other headlines that caught my eye.

Finally we rap up with a feature on in game collectables. A topic inspired by Alan Wake, a game that manages to undermine its own narrative by poor implementation of in game pick ups.

I hope you enjoy the show, leave any comments or feedback below or drop us a mail.

The DoFuss Show – 29 out of 100. [ 1:09:54 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Welcome one and all to your fortnightly bit of gaming audio delight from the DoFuss (Darren and I). With the stale whiff of the weekend’s alcohol still lingering on our breath Darren and myself embark on a quick foray into the world of gaming news and issues to see what we can find.

Gaming news and talk of what we have been playing sits as ever at the front of the show, but this time the feature topping our metaphorical cake is whether playing online games could make us better people. This is an idea put forward by Jane McGonigal, a designer at the Institute for the Future, during her talk at TED in February. While it may seem like a bizarre idea, much of what she said got me thinking that there maybe something to it, as did looking at her online games (including Evoke, pictured) that have been designed to harness the power of the game playing public for good.

Regular listeners may notice the lack of Darren’s Old Games, feel free to let him know your displeasure in the comments below (he does promise it will be back next time).

Enjoy the show!

The DoFuss Show – Productively Doing Nothing. [ 1:03:51 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Darren and I are back again, and just in the nick of time to fulfil our twice-monthly commitment, although we both still seem dead set on declaring that the show is weekly. We aren’t, and I will leave it for you to decide if that is a good or a bad thing.

This show’s unintentional theme is cultural divides. With me returning to the UK later this year Darren decided to prepare me for re-entry with terrifying snippets from the British tabloid ‘The Sun’. While this is an apt reintroduction to the state of my home nation, I cannot help but feel there is a veiled message from Darren to stay in the land of sushi and fun that is Japan, rather than heading back to the doom and bombed out Woolworths that now seems to be the hallmark of my home nation.

Beyond this new ‘scare Alex off coming back to the UK’ segment we hit all of our usual topics. Heaven and Hell see Android phones and Word Press taking pride of place in discussion. This is swiftly followed by some games we have been playing (Jump Ultimate All Stars, Final Fight and Super Street Fighter 4) and a few highlights of news from the last two weeks. To top off all this game discussion we visit the topic of game design and how Japanese and Western methods inform each other, or not, and the results of such collaborations.

Also of course there is Darren’s Old Games, which I am determined to rebrand as ‘Darren’s Good Old Games’. This week he imparts his vast array of Mario knowledge.

If you enjoy the show, have an idea for features, or just want to scare me off my return to England, please let us know. See you in two weeks.

The DoFuss Show – Trying To Bridge Cultural Divides. [ 1:14:40 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download