IFComp 2026 2: Community Recommendations!

This week we're playing Minishoot' Adventures (yes, that apostrophe is not a typo.) What happens when you cross top-down Zelda with a twin-stick shooter, but also you're a slidey lil' spaceship? Listen and find out. (00:00) - Minishoot Adventures (41:59) - What's been making me happy: Raygan - Magical Athletes (45:32) - Happy Shane: Devices (48:39) - Happy Nate: Custom Settlers of Catan (53:25) - Outro

Spooky season is upon us, and we've got a round table of seasonal suggestions for those short-on-time-big-on-vibes!In addition to macabre mysteries, pumpkin patches, interactive fiction scares, and faves from our back catalog, we dig into identity crises, 2026 horror movies, and why Nate is a nightmare for haunted house workers.Visit our Discord for the full list of Halloween appropriate games from our last 460 episodes. (That's a scary big number.)

We're back with our 2nd IFComp Episode, this time focusing on community picks from our discord! The Short Game is listener supported on Patreon. Check out the Patreon and links to join our discord at www.shortgame.fm.

The Short Game kicks off its 2026 IFComp coverage with a new three-episode format, along with a brief chat about custom IF engines and the comp's new AI rules.0:00 - Intro and IFComp Basics5:00 - How We Are Covering IFComp This Year10:54 - 9 Days in a Van with Your 3 Best Friends by Nathan Leigh25:55 - Sidetrack: Custom Engines, AI, and IFComp29:41 - Forensic Necromancy: A Murder in Nineveh by Daniel M. Stelzer45:10 - Ryan Veeder's Agatha Christie's The Murder on the Orient Express57:39 - Wrap Up (00:00) - Intro and IFComp Basics (05:00) - How we are covering IFComp this year (10:54) - 9 Days in a Van with your 3 Best Friends by Nathan Leigh (25:54) - Sidetrack about custom engines, AI, and IFComp (29:41) - Forensic Necromancy: A Murder in Nineveh by Daniel M. Stelzer (45:10) - Ryan Veeder's Agatha Christie's the Murder on the Orient Express by Ryan Veeder (57:39) - Wrap Up

Shane and Laura played The Incident at Galley House, Evil Trout's remake of William Rous's TypeHelp. Before the spoiler break they discuss the game's deduction interface and some gameplay highlights, then they had so much to talk about they needed TWO spoiler breaks: one for "what's going on", and one for Act III's shift into **************************. (00:00) - The Incident at Galley House (00:05) - Intro (01:16) - Elevator Pitch (04:34) - Development History (22:20) - Spoiler Break & Patreon (22:30) - Story Discussion (44:14) - Act 3: Modern Timeline (01:04:41) - Outro

This week, Nate, Laura, and Shane play Pizza Possum — a chaotic arcade game that's stealthy and snackable. We talk about the gorgeous Italian countryside, dog cops, difficulty spikes, and the little bits of polish and shine that make this one sing. Plus possum stories, pizza tales, and a literary return of What's Making Me Happy.(00:00) - Pizza Possum (01:55) - Pizza Possum Background (04:08) - The Basics (10:03) - This game didn't have to go this hard (on the polish) (14:33) - The little details (20:33) - Replayability (23:44) - Have I told you guys about when a possum got in my house? (26:43) - More possum stories! (27:49) - We've discussed possums, let's discuss pizza (33:16) - What's Been Making Us Happy (Besides Pizza) (41:42) - Outro

We return to you with our extended coverage of indie phenomenon Deltarune, now in it's 5th episode.

This week, Shane and Laura talk about some Short, and Not So Short Games.(00:00) - Grab Bag: Short Games and Not-So-Short Games (00:06) - Intro (00:58) - Hermit and Pig (07:59) - Little Guardsman (10:02) - Split Fiction (12:51) - Dispatch and Hugo Video Game Nominees (18:11) - Map Map (22:45) - Dorfromantik (26:02) - The 7th Guest Remake (32:48) - Fallout: New Vegas (33:40) - Death Stranding 2 (35:06) - Sky Rogue (38:00) - Minish Cap (39:30) - Outro

Think you're good at chess? That might not be helpful in this troll bridge troll chess game made by a solo dev. Nate & Laura break down why this game is fun, frustrating, and worth your time (~2 hours), even if it doesn't always feel like it. The Short Game is listener supported on Patreon. Visit our patreon at https://www.patreon.com/theshortgame, and join our Discord for free at: https://discord.gg/XrwERANCAlso, play Nate's daily word puzzle game at: https://crossonym.com/

Turns out if someone hands us a haunted CD-ROM, we are playing it.  This week, Laura once again tricks the whole podcast into playing solitaire, only this time it's *Forbidden*.  OooooOOooooOOO.Forbidden Solitaire was made by Grey Alien Games and Night Signal Entertainment, and should take about 4-7 hours depending on your solitaire prowess. (00:00) - Forbidden Solitaire (39:38) - Spoiler Break