Games of Note

Games of Note: #5 - X-Men: Children of the Atom (1994)Surprise! we're not dead (yet)! In this episode we discuss X‑Men: Children of the Atom, Capcom 1v1 fighter, driven largely by artist Katsuya Akitomo, and Marvel’s desire to expand its footprint in the early ’90s. Developed by key members of the Street Fighter II team on the CPS‑2 arcade board, the game embraced mutant abilities with super jumps, air combos, multi‑tiered stages, and a more explosive style than Capcom’s previous fighters, all under close visual supervision from Marvel. Released in arcades between 1994 and 1995, it received mixed results in Japan but strong enthusiasm from Marvel and Capcom USA, later seeing several home ports of varying quality. More importantly, it laid the foundation for the entire Marvel vs. Capcom series and helped popularise the modern crossover fighter, influencing how franchises, fanbases, and IP mash‑ups are approached across games and entertainment today.Show NotesKotaku's detailed oral history of the game: Link Check out some of the sprites via Fighters Generation: Link Detailed move sets of each character in the game: LinkAbout Games of NoteGames of Note is a video game podcast hosted by game designer Will Luton & biz dev consultant Wayne Emanuel, where we discuss not if a game is good or bad, but the impact it had on the culture and business of video games.Follow us:⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠RSS⁠⁠⁠⁠ Contact Us:Email: [email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠⁠ |⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube Shorts⁠⁠

In our first ever 'Side Note', we discuss a number of video games that were directly affected by 9/11 and the Iraq War, titles that were delayed, altered, or cancelled in response to the events. Show NotesMicrosoft Flight Simulator 2002 - VATSIM group statement condemning people from recreating 9/11 within the games: LinkTony Hawk Pro Skater 3 - Animation of the character attempting to press a detonator as you approach them remains intact 2:40 (pause at 2:44): LinkAbout Games of NoteGames of Note is a video game podcast hosted by game designer Will Luton & biz dev consultant Wayne Emanuel, where we discuss not if a game is good or bad, but the impact it had on the culture and business of video games.Follow us:Spotify | Apple Podcasts | RSS Contact Us:Email: [email protected] |TikTok | YouTube Shorts

Games of Note: #4 - Dear Esther (2012)In this episode, we dive into Dear Esther, the pioneering 2008 Half-Life 2 mod turned 2012 standalone title, often hailed as the first “walking simulator.” Forgoing combat, puzzles, and win-loss mechanics, it invites players on a solitary, poetic stroll across a mist-shrouded Hebridean island, exploring themes of loss and bereavement. We discuss its roots in thechineseroom’s early research mods, unpack the debates over its legitimacy as a “game,” and celebrate how its success reshaped the indie scene and proved games could be profound, emotionally driven art.Show NotesAntlion Soccer (Source/Half-Life 2) - a football mod but instead of a ball you use the gravity gun from Half-Life 2 to push the Antlion enemies into a goal: LinkKorsakovia (Source/Half-Life 2) - a survival horror with a similar approach as Dear Esther with ambiguous story telling: Link Conscientious Objector (idTech4/ DOOM3) - a DOOM3 mod of the opening levels but your shotgun bullets are replaced with rubber bullets due to it being cheaper for the UAC: LinkDr Pinchbek paper on this mod called ‘Conscientious Objector: Pacifism, Politics and Abusing the Player in Doom 3’: LinkPCGamer interview with Dr Pinchbek: LinkDr Pinchbek summary of the project from his blog: LinkAbout Games of NoteGames of Note is a video game podcast hosted by game designer Will Luton & biz dev consultant Wayne Emanuel, where we discuss not if a game is good or bad, but the impact it had on the culture and business of video games.Follow us:⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠RSS⁠⁠⁠ Contact Us:Email: [email protected]⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠ |⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠YouTube Shorts⁠⁠

We discuss how FarmVille became one of the most iconic and widely played social games of all time, introducing timer-based mechanics, shared worlds, and cooperative play to the masses. Reaching 300 million total players and over $1 billion in revenue, it peaked at 35 million daily users in March 2010, marking the rise of “appointment gaming” and drawing in a casual audience far beyond the traditional core gamer demographic, we chat about Farmville's rise & fall.Show NotesArticle discussing FarmVille as a clone: LinkMedium interviews Amitt Mahajan: LinkBlog post by Kostadis Roussos discussing firewalls potentially affecting FarmVille's performance: LinkSlush interview with Mark Pincus: LinkAbout Games of NoteGames of Note is a video game podcast hosted by game designer Will Luton & biz dev consultant Wayne Emanuel, where we discuss not if a game is good or bad, but the impact it had on the culture and business of video games.Follow us:⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠RSS⁠⁠ Contact Us:Email: [email protected]⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠ |⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠YouTube Shorts⁠

Games of Note: #2 - Castlevania: Symphony of the NightReleased on March 20, 1997, initially for the PlayStation and later for the Sega Saturn, this game, despite only selling 700,000 copies in the US and Japan, became a sleeper hit and cult classic, often topping “greatest games of all time” lists thanks to its clever design solutions and its role as the blueprint for future Castlevania titles (Igavanias) and the wider Metroidvania boom in indie games.About Games of NoteGames of Note is a video game podcast hosted by game designer Will Luton & biz dev consultant Wayne Emanuel, where we discuss not if a game is good or bad, but the impact it had on the culture and business of video games.Follow us:⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠RSS⁠⁠ Contact Us:Email: [email protected]⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠ |⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠YouTube Shorts⁠

In our first episode, Will and Wayne dive into Shenmue — Yu Suzuki's overly ambitious Full Reactive Eyes Entertainment RPG, released for the SEGA Dreamcast in 1999 (Japan).Shenmue was a groundbreaking title that redefined RPGs and adventure games with innovative mechanics like a dynamic day-night cycle and fully scheduled NPCs. However, its unprecedented production budget brought sky-high expectations that it didn't unfortunately meet. We explore the game's origins, mechanics, and lasting legacy.P.S - Some background audio made its way into the recording — we're still fine-tuning our setup, so apologies for any unexpected sounds that came through!Show NotesProject Berkley Trailer: LinkShenmue Dojo interviews Yu Suzuki: LinkPolygon interviews Yu Suzuki: LinkAbout Games of NoteGames of Note is a video game podcast hosted by game designer Will Luton & biz dev consultant Wayne Emanuel, where we discuss not if a game is good or bad, but the impact it had on the culture and business of video games.Follow us:⁠Spotify⁠ | ⁠Apple Podcasts⁠ | ⁠RSS⁠ Contact Us:Email: [email protected]⁠Bluesky⁠ |⁠TikTok⁠ | ⁠YouTube Shorts

Welcome to the Games of Note podcast!This is just an introductory episode where we briefly discuss the purpose of the podcast, our backgrounds and what games/genres we dig (and a few we don't).Games of Note is a video game podcast hosted by game designer Will Luton & biz dev consultant Wayne Emanuel, where we discuss not if a game is good or bad, but the impact it had on the culture and business of video games. You can find all of our episodes below:Podcast Directory | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSSWe're always eager to hear your thoughts on this episode or the podcast in general. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to reach out to us through any of the following channels:Email | Discord | Bluesky | TikTokGames of Note SocialsEmail: [email protected]: https://discord.gg/U4jdGEXwBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/gamesofnote.bsky.socialTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@gamesofnote Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.