Best Game Dev Field Guide Podcasts (2025)

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Bonus Episode 25. Min/Max Cory Interview 1:03:17

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16d ago1:03:17

1:03:17

In this episode Zackavelli discusses strategies for steam success and de risking game dev with professional min/maxer Cory DarbyCory on the Jonas Tyroller Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWidan8ggGoBecome a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/2C8eTsUFollow Zack…

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Andrea Kitta, "The Kiss of Death: Contagion, Contamination, and Folklore" (Utah State UP, 2019) 1:09:41

5m ago1:09:41

1:09:41

Disease is a social issue and not just a medical one. This is the central tenet underlying The Kiss of Death: Contagion, Contamination, and Folklore (Utah State University Press 2019) by Andrea Kitta, Associate Professor in the English department at East Carolina University, examines the discourses and metaphors of contagion and contamination in ve…

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Jessica Campbell, "The Brontës and the Fairy Tale" (Ohio UP, 2024) 55:34

6d ago55:34

55:34

The Brontës and the Fairy Tale (Ohio UP, 2024) by Dr. Jessica Campbell is the first comprehensive study devoted to the role of fairy tales and folklore in the work of Charlotte, Emily, Anne, and Branwell Brontë. It intervenes in debates on genre, literary realism, the history of the fairy tale, and the position of women in the Victorian period. Bui…

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John Blair, "Killing the Dead: Vampire Epidemics from Mesopotamia to the New World" (Princeton UP, 2025) 51:29

7d ago51:29

51:29

Killing the Dead: Vampire Epidemics from Mesopotamia to the New World (Princeton UP, 2025) by Professor John Blair provides the first in-depth, global account of one of the world’s most widespread yet misunderstood forms of mass hysteria—the vampire epidemic. In a spellbinding narrative, Dr. Blair takes readers from ancient Mesopotamia to present-d…

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Matthias Egeler, "Elves and Fairies: A Short History of the Otherworld" (Yale UP, 2025) 42:59

1M ago42:59

42:59

Originating in Norse and Celtic mythologies, elves and fairies are a firmly established part of Western popular culture. Since the days of the Vikings and Arthurian legend, these sprites have undergone huge transformations. From J. R. R. Tolkien’s warlike elves, based on medieval legend, to little flower fairies whose charms even Sir Arthur Conan D…

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Fiona J. Mackenzie, "The Cadence of a Song: The Life of Margaret Fay Shaw" (Birlinn, 2025) 46:08

2M ago46:08

46:08

The American-born folklorist and musician Margaret Fay Shaw’s passion for the Hebrides led her to the island of South Uist in 1929 and then to Canna in 1935 as the wife of the eminent folklorist John Lorne Campbell. Her extraordinary work in documenting and preserving traditional Gaelic songs and customs remains a vital resource for understanding H…

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Stuart McHardy, "Scotland's Sacred Goddess: Hidden in Plain Sight" (Luath, 2025) 27:30

2M ago27:30

27:30

In Scotland’s Sacred Goddess: Hidden in Plain Sight (Luath Press, 2025), Stuart McHardy delves into the rich tapestry of pre-Christian Scottish beliefs, uncovering the enduring presence of ancient mythologies in today’s landscape. Long before the arrival of Christian monks, the Scots revered a pantheon of deities, with the Cailleach Goddess at its …

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Eleanor Conlon and Martin Vaux, "The Three Ravens Folk Tales: New Tellings of Half-forgotten Stories from England's 39 Historic Counties" (The History Press, 2025) 52:29

2M ago52:29

52:29

Do you know the legends of the giants who ruled England before the first human kings? What about the demon dog Black Shuck who terrorized sixteenth-century Norfolk? Or the many times the Devil has tried to get his way before being outwitted by everyday people? England’s historic counties are overflowing with folklore, and this collection of 39 stor…

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Spike Bucklow, "The Year: An Ecology of the Zodiac" (Reaktion Books, 2025) 42:48

2M ago42:48

42:48

Spike Bucklow joins Jana Byars to talk about The Year: An Ecology of the Zodiac (Reaktion, 2025). This delightful book defies genre. It is a journey through nature’s yearly cycle, blending science, history and poetic reflection.The Year takes us on a journey exploring how nature transforms across twelve months, each chapter focusing on a specific m…

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EP. 098 Enemy Design Across Genres 35:15

2M ago35:15

35:15

In this episode Zackavelli talks about the Enemy Design basics and lessons from across a spectrum of genresSkip to Body of Episode: 8:04Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/2C8eTsUFollow Zackavelli on Twitter @_Zackavelli_Twitch: www.twitch.tv/zackavelli_Intro m…

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Philip Carr-Gomm, "A Brief History of Nakedness" (Reaktion, 2010) 32:12

3M ago32:12

32:12

Philip Carr-Gomm joins Jana Byars to talk about A Brief History of Nakedness (Reaktion, 2010) on the occasion of its newest paperback edition. From the naked sages of India to modern-day witches and Christian nudists, from Lady Godiva to Lady Gaga, Carr-Comm writes a survey of the touching, sometimes tragic, and often bizarre story of our relations…

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Matthew R. Sparks and Olivia Sizemore, "Haint Country: Dark Folktales from the Hills and Hollers" (UP of Kentucky, 2024) 42:20

3M ago42:20

42:20

Matthew Sparks and Oliva Sizemore join Jana Byars for a fun, chilling, and thoughtful discussion about about Haint Country: Dark Tales from the Hills and Hollers (University Press of Kentucky, 2024). The hills of the Appalachia region hold secrets—dark, deep, varied, and mysterious. These secrets are often told in the form of eerie, thrilling, and …

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Dom Ford, "Mytholudics: Games and Myth" (de Gruyter, 2025) 56:10

3M ago56:10

56:10

Dom Ford joins Jana Byars to talk about Mytholudics: Game and Myth (DeGruyter Brill, 2025). Games create worlds made of many different elements, but also of rules, systems and structures for how we act in them. So how can we make sense of them? Mytholudics: Games and Myth lays out an approach to understanding games using theories from myth and folk…

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Isabel Toral and Beatrice Gruendler, "An Unruly Classic: Kalīla and Dimna and Its Syriac, Arabic, and Early Persian Versions" (Brill, 2024) 1:05:02

3M ago1:05:02

1:05:02

The collection of wisdom fables known as Kalila and Dimna began its long literary life in Sanskrit more than two millennia ago, and was subsequently translated to numerous languages. But it is the Arabic version, adapted from Middle Persian by the eighth-century scholar Ibn al-Muqaffa, that has left the most substantial literary footprint. A founda…

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EP. 097 Backend Systems For Games 36:09

4M ago36:09

36:09

In this episode Zackavelli talks about backend systems for games and why you should consider the features it can support.SPONSOR:Please check out the link below to support AccelByte in paying for this free educational content.Unlimited Development Trial: https://accelbyte.io/promoSkip to Body of Episode: 6:13Join the discord and talk with the commu…

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Jasper Waugh-Quasebarth, "Finding the Singing Spruce: Musical Instrument Makers and Appalachia's Mountain Forests" (West Virginia UP, 2023) 1:08:24

4M ago1:08:24

1:08:24

2023 Weatherford Award Finalist, Nonfiction How can the craft of musical instrument making help reconnect people to place and reenchant work in Appalachia? How does the sonic search for musical tone change relationships with trees and forests? Following three craftspeople in the mountain forests of Appalachia through their processes of making instr…

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Kirstie Macleod, "The Red Dress: Conversations in Stitch" (Quickthorn, 2025) 30:31

4M ago30:31

30:31

The Red Dress: Conversations in Stitch (Quickthorn, 2025), shares the deeper story of The Red Dress, its embroiderers and Kirstie Macleod's own story whilst opening up the wider issues the garment prompts for its audiences through thematic essays by individuals involved in the greater project on subjects such as empowerment, finding voice, feminism…

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Ep. 096 Tips To Avoid Your Game Feeling Cheap 36:36

5M ago36:36

36:36

In this episode Zackavelli talks about how to avoid your game looking and feeling cheap.GDFG X Minifantasy Bundlehttps://itch.io/s/154689/-gdfg-x-minifantasy-bundle?c=wwr9by8cufSkip to Body of Episode: 6:50Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/2C8eTsUFollow Zacka…

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Introducing The Critical Edition of the Works of C. G. Jung 15:33

5M ago15:33

15:33

"Princeton University Press is thrilled to share news of a major new initiative: the publication of The Critical Edition of the Works of C. G. Jung. As the longtime publisher of the Collected Works of C. G. Jung in North America, PUP is honored to be global publisher of the Critical Edition, having recently secured world language rights and the sup…

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Korshi Dosoo and Markéta Preininger, "Papyri Copticae Magicae: Coptic Magical Texts, Volume 1: Formularies" (de Gruyter, 2023) 1:25:50

6M ago1:25:50

1:25:50

Papyri Copticae Magicae: Coptic Magical Texts, Volume 1: Formularies (de Gruyter, 2023) offers an accessible repository of edited Coptic magical texts. The book is a careful and thorough edition and philological study of thirty-seven distinct Coptic manuscripts, covering a wide range of magical applications—from love spells, to curses, to exorcisms…

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Dagrún Ósk Jónsdóttir, "Ghosts, Trolls, and the Hidden People: An Anthology of Icelandic Folk Legends" (Reaktion, 2025) 47:44

6M ago47:44

47:44

Dagrún Ósk Jónsdóttir joins Jana Byars to talk about her new book, Ghosts, Trolls, and Hidden People: An Anthology of Icelandic Folk Legends (Reaktion, 2025). This unique and enchanting book opens the door to a captivating world of Icelandic folk legends. The six chapters of this anthology are each based on a different setting: farm, wilderness, da…

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Ep. 095 3C's Game Design Framework 34:00

6M ago34:00

34:00

In this episode Zackavelli talks about the 3C's Game Design FrameworkSkip to Body of Episode: 6:15Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/2C8eTsUFollow Zackavelli on Twitter @_Zackavelli_Twitch: www.twitch.tv/zackavelli_Intro music by: AvarenOutro remix by: Mugamoo…

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James B. Haile III, "The Dark Delight of Being Strange: Black Stories of Freedom" (Columbia UP, 2024) 1:15:30

6M ago1:15:30

1:15:30

An ambitious genre-crossing exploration of Black speculative imagination, The Dark Delight of Being Strange: Black Stories of Freedom (Columbia University Press 2024) combines fiction, historical accounts, and philosophical prose to unveil the extraordinary and the surreal in everyday Black life. In a series of stories and essays, James B. Haile, I…

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Ep. 094 Genre Study: ARPG 47:35

7M ago47:35

47:35

In this episode Zackavelli talks about the best genre ever, ARPGsSkip to Body of Episode: 6:23Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/2C8eTsUFollow Zackavelli on Twitter @_Zackavelli_Twitch: www.twitch.tv/zackavelli_Intro music by: AvarenOutro remix by: Mugamoomoo…

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Nicholas Jubber, "Monsterland: A Journey Around the World’s Dark Imagination" (Scribe, 2025) 38:58

7M ago38:58

38:58

Monsters, in all their terrifying glory, have preoccupied humans since we began telling stories. But where did these stories come from? In Monsterland: A Journey Around the World’s Dark Imagination (Scribe, 2025), award-winning author Nicholas Jubber goes on a journey to discover more about the monsters we’ve invented, lurking in the dark and the w…

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Christian Sheppard, "The Ancient Wisdom of Baseball: Lessons for Life from Homer's Odyssey to the World Series" (Greenleaf, 2025) 58:28

7M ago58:28

58:28

Who are you, how are you supposed to live, and what about happiness? Answers to age-old questions are offered in classic myths about heroes, gods, and monsters, and at the ballgame. In The Ancient Wisdom of Baseball (Greenleaf, 2025), author Christian Sheppard interweaves Homer’s epics with glorious stories from the green fields of America’s pastim…

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Liz William, "Rough Music: Folk Customs, Transgression and Alternative Britain" (Reaktion, 2025) 38:28

8M ago38:28

38:28

Rough Music: Folk Customs, Transgression and Alternative Britain (Reaktion, 2025) by Liz Williams explores transgression and shame in British folklore and customs from ancient Britain to the present day. From Bonfire Night to Wassail, Morris dancing, Mari Lwyd and Twelfth Night, along with events like street football and the Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Ro…

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Jennifer L. Freeman Marshall, "Ain't I an Anthropologist: Zora Neale Hurston Beyond the Literary Icon" (U Illinois Press, 2023) 1:12:43

8M ago1:12:43

1:12:43

Iconic as a novelist and popular cultural figure, Zora Neale Hurston remains underappreciated as an anthropologist. Is it inevitable that Hurston's literary authority should eclipse her anthropological authority? If not, what socio-cultural and institutional values and processes shape the different ways we read her work? Jennifer L. Freeman Marshal…

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Daemons, Tantra, and Cultural Exchange with David Gordon White 1:00:16

8M ago1:00:16

1:00:16

In this episode, Dr. Pierce Salguero sits down with David Gordon White, a distinguished indologist and scholar of Tantra. Our conversation focuses on David’s most recent project tracing the transregional histories of spirits, gods, demons, and their associated rituals across Eurasia. Along the way, we dive into an intellectual conversation about do…

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Ep. 093 Useful Math Concepts For Game Devs 35:19

8M ago35:19

35:19

In this episode Zackavelli talks about 4 simple math concepts that can help with game devs in various situations.Skip to Body of Episode: 6:40Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/2C8eTsUFollow Zackavelli on Twitter @_Zackavelli_Twitch: www.twitch.tv/zackavelli_I…

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Audun Kjus et al., "Adventures in the Play-Ritual Continuum" (Utah State UP, 2024) 49:07

9M ago49:07

49:07

Audun Kjus joins Jana Byars to talk about Adventures in the Play-Ritual Continuum (Utah State Press, 2025), eds. Audun Kjus, Jakob Löfgren, Cliona O’Carroll, Simon Poole & Ida Tolgensbakk. Utah State Press, 2025). The junctions between play and ritual are many and complex. Play is for fun and joy, but it also demands a total commitment and serious …

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Ann Schmiesing, "The Brothers Grimm: A Biography" (Yale UP, 2024) 49:42

9M ago49:42

49:42

Ann Schmiesing, Ph.D. is Professor of German and Scandinavian Studies at the University of Colorado-Boulder, with research interests spanning 18th and 19th-century German and Norwegian literature and culture. In our interview we discuss her new book, The Brothers Grimm: A Biography (Yale UP, 2024), their first biography in over half a century. We t…

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Ep. 092 Stealth Mechanics Overview 36:56

9M ago36:56

36:56

In this episode Zackavelli talks about tips for designing stealth mechanics and takeaways that can be learned from that for overall design.Skip to Body of Episode: 6:15Wishlist Baba Yaga:https://store.steampowered.com/app/3154620/Baba_Yaga/Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Li…

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Sara Burdorff, "Maternity, Monstrosity, and Heroic (Im)mortality from Homer to Shakespeare" (Amsterdam UP, 2025) 37:13

9M ago37:13

37:13

Sara Burdorff joins Jana Byars to talk about her new book, Maternity, Monstrosity and Heroic (Im)mortality from Homer to Shakespeare (Amsterdam University Press, 2025). This work uses an adaptation of monster theory to rethink the foundations of epic-heroic immortality. Rather than focusing on a specific monster or monsters, the author identifies t…

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Ep. 091 Managing Motivation For Game Dev 46:05

10M ago46:05

46:05

In this episode Zackavelli talks about managing motivation as a project resource, similar to money or time.Skip to Body of Episode: 7:23Try the demo for my game Mirror Throne:store.steampowered.com/app/2520490/M…Auto_Battler/Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/…

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Veronica Strang, "Water Beings: From Nature Worship to the Environmental Crisis" (Reaktion, 2023) 37:06

11M ago37:06

37:06

Jana Byars talks to Veronica Strang about her new book Water Beings: From Nature Worship to the Environmental Crisis (Reaktion, 2023). Looking to the vast human history of water worship, a crucial study of our broken relationship with all things aquatic—and how we might mend it. Early human relationships with water were expressed through beliefs in…

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A. L. McClanan, "Griffinology: The Griffin's Place in Myth, History and Art" (Reaktion, 2024) 44:28

11M ago44:28

44:28

A. L. McClanan's Griffinology: The Griffin's Place in Myth, History and Art (Reaktion, 2024) is a fascinating exploration of the mythical creature's many depictions in human culture. Drawing on a wealth of historical and literary sources, this book shows how the griffin has captured the imagination of people for over 5,000 years, representing power…

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Ep. 090 Game Engine Overview Part 2 (2024 Update) 39:08

11M ago39:08

39:08

In this episode Zackavelli gives an update on what is the "Best" game engine in 2024.Skip to Body of Episode: 7:54Try the demo for my game Mirror Throne:store.steampowered.com/app/2520490/M…Auto_Battler/Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/2C8eTsUFollow Zackavel…

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Ibn al-Muqaffaʿs "Kalīlah and Dimnah: Fables of Virtue and Vice" 1:13:51

11M ago1:13:51

1:13:51

Kalīlah and Dimnah: Fables of Virtue and Vice by Ibn al-Muqaffaʿ, translated by Michael Fishbein and James E. Montgomery, with a foreword by Marina Warner (Library of Arabic Literature, NYU Press, 2022), is a vibrant new rendition of a literary classic that has captivated readers for centuries. Rooted in ancient Indian storytelling and adapted into…

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Vaughn Scribner, "Merpeople: A Human History" (Reaktion Books, 2020) 48:00

12M ago48:00

48:00

Vaughn Scribner joins Jana Byars on the occasion of the paperback edition of Merpeople: A Human History (Reaktion, 2024) People have been fascinated by merpeople and merfolk since ancient times. From the sirens of Homer’s Odyssey to Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid and the film Splash, myths, stories, and legends of half-human, half-fis…

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Sharonah Esther Fredrick, "An Unholy Rebellion, Killing the Gods: Political Ideology and Insurrection in the Mayan Popul Vuh and the Andean Huarochiri Manuscript" (U Nebraska Press, 2024) 56:58

1y ago56:58

56:58

An Unholy Rebellion, Killing the Gods: Political Ideology and Insurrection in the Mayan Popul Vuh and the Andean Huarochiri Manuscript (University of Nebraska Press, 2024) is the first comprehensive comparison of two of the greatest epics of the Indigenous peoples of Latin America: the Popul Vuh of the Quiché Maya of Guatemala and the Huarochiri Ma…

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Ep. 089 Genre Study: Idle Games 42:58

1y ago42:58

42:58

In this episode Zackavelli takes a look at the genre of idle gamesMath of idle games article:https://blog.kongregate.com/the-math-of-idle-games-part-i/Skip to Body of Episode: 8:33Try the demo for my game Mirror Throne:store.steampowered.com/app/2520490/M…Auto_Battler/Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community…

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Erika Engelhaupt, "Go to Hell: A Traveler's Guide to Earth's Most Otherworldly Destinations" (National Geographic, 2024) 53:58

1y ago53:58

53:58

With Go to Hell: A Traveler's Guide to Earth's Most Otherworldly Destinations (National Geographic, 2024) by Erika Engelhaupt, you can go to hell and back with the help of this one-of-a-kind illustrated travel guide to real-life underworld destinations around the globe. Full of intrigue, lore, and plenty of brimstone and fire, each of the 54 destin…

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Cami D. Agan, "Cities and Strongholds of Middle-earth: Essays on the Habitations of Tolkien's Legendarium" (Mythopoeic Press, 2024) 38:10

1y ago38:10

38:10

The 13 essays collected in Cities and Strongholds of Middle-earth: Essays on the Habitations of Tolkien's Legendarium (Mythopoeic Press, 2024) foreground processes of making and constructing Arda -- either within the Secondary world or for readers/viewers -- and thus continually assert that the habitations form a vital part of the tales within that…

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Game Dev Game Show || Ep.1 || Guest: Mike Geig 1:16:58

1y ago1:16:58

1:16:58

This is a audio only version of the first test episode of the Game Dev Game Show.See the video recording here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxdiE19BPl0You can watch GDGS Live on Twitch here: https://www.twitch.tv/zackavelli_Music by MugamoomooBy Zackavelli

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Ep. 088 Negotiating Game Design With Teammates 38:01

1y ago38:01

38:01

In this episode Zackavelli talks about negotiating your design ideas with others.Skip to Body of Episode: 5:01Try the demo for my game Mirror Throne:store.steampowered.com/app/2520490/M…Auto_Battler/Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/GDFGJoin the discord and talk with the community about making video games! Link: discord.gg/2C8eTsUFollow Zackavelli o…

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Jason Ramsey, "Reckoning with Change in Yucatán: Histories of Care and Threat on a Former Hacienda" (Routledge, 2023) 1:32:40

1y ago1:32:40

1:32:40

A perpetual tension exists between history and change, which is an issue long explored by historians and social scientists. Reckoning with Change in Yucatán: Histories of Care and Threat on a Former Hacienda (Routledge, 2023) engages with how best to look upon and respond to change, arguing that this debate is an important arena for negotiating loc…

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Greg Eghigian, "After the Flying Saucers Came: A Global History of the UFO Phenomenon" (Oxford UP, 2024) 59:45

1y ago59:45

59:45

Roswell, 1947. Washington, DC, 1952. Quarouble, 1954. New Hampshire, 1961. Pascagoula, 1973. Petrozavodsk, 1977. Copley Woods, 1983. Explore how sightings of UFOs and aliens seized the world's attention and discover what the fascination with flying saucers and extraterrestrial visitors says about our changing views on science, technology, and the p…

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David Zeitlyn, "Mambila Divination: Framing Questions, Constructing Answers" (Routledge, 2021) 1:03:12

1y ago1:03:12

1:03:12

Professor David Zeitlyn’s book offers a major contribution to the study and analysis of divination, based on continuing fieldwork with the Mambila in Cameroon. It seeks to return attention to the details of divinatory practice, using the questions asked and life histories to help understand the perspective of the clients rather than that of the div…