Erik from Imaginary Game Studios joins Ben in HIS virtual studio this week to chat about all manner of things—his experiences as a sports writer, his love of literature, his creative process, and of course his philosophy of game design.  After discussing what’s "under construction" in the world of Rogue Climber, what games they have been playing, and their odd experiences in Chicago (which in itself is a thematically appropriate path), they dive in to the topic at hand… the word circuitous!  They follow the conversation through the unique topography of books, movies, games, and cultural references to its destination where Ben asks Erik to share his advice on creating, developing, and prototyping a video game concept. *** 00:00:21 - Many spreadsheets, Ed’s Excel love, freaks at the coffee shop, and a Magic 8-Ball 00:03:39 - Pro bono, what Christian and Erik learned at PAX, and the Roblox generation00:05:50 - Rogue Climber ancillary stuff, the correct direction, about seven, and what is janky?00:08:32 - Eighty or weighty, the Tron level, a cardboard cutout, and Millennial gamers are soft00:10:57 - Erik platinums Black Myth: Wukong, the Cyberpunk 2077 caveat, and a good segue 00:14:00 - Writing the sports news, Ben’s question about quality, and SlavicPunk: Oldtimer00:16:33 - A film noir soundtrack, amazingly crafted world, and the banal hacking mini game 00:18:45 - Dragonage and Blueski, pocket experiences, broken English, and an annoying boss 00:22:55 - Small font, Red Square Games’ next title, bad translations, and finding drug crumbs00:26:45 - Erik’s Chicago story, a dead pigeon, absorbance, and the emcee of the spelling bee00:33:10 - The nature of the creative process, in inches or graphs, and the perils of efficiency   00:35:48 - Two types of fiction, Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian, and Gene Wolfe books00:40:22 - John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, “The Hobbit” LP, and a well kept secret about babies00:43:25 - Rock & Rule, Ralph Bakshi’s Wizards, the Washington Bullets, Joust, and Zardoz00:46:16 - A talking point itinerary for next time, and Ben’s favorite commercial fiction authors 00:48:15 - American Psycho, three if you’re keeping score, Bono as Satan, and the message00:50:59 - Swimming up the waterfall, getting it all out of your head, and evaluation at the end00:53:10 - Being creative for yourself, figuring out where to start, and creating the prototype00:58:59 - Catch the vibe, the next word, gorilla arms, crushing heads, and strategic saving01:01:30 - Agreement about NieR: Automata, three times, no connection, and the same river01:03:06 - Erik’s words of wisdom, something unique, planning, and make no assumptions  *** Follow Two Vague on…Our website: https://www.twovaguepodcast.comOn Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/two_vague_podcastOn YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@twovaguepodcastOn Substack: https://substack.com/@twovaguepodcastOn Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/twovaguepodcast.com For show appearance and other inquiries, contact us at: twovaguepodcast@gmail.com-AND- …for all of your PRI and 2VP merch check out the Partly Robot Industries store at TEEPUBLIC!https://www.teepublic.com/user/partly-robot-industries References, Links, and Tags Check out SlavicPunk: Oldtimer on Steam…https://store.steampowered.com/app/1820140/SlavicPunk_Oldtimer/ Follow all of the shenanigans going on at Imaginary Game Studios…On their website: https://www.imaginarygamestudios.com/On their Discord: https://discord.gg/YyDD7ECtdJOn their YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@caxtnovaImaginary Game Studios GAMES on Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2673440/Rogue_Climber/  <—- WISHLIST ME NOW!!!
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