GRIS is a beautifully animated and colorful game about a girl on a journey through grief. The artwork is absolutely top tier, while the gameplay is presented without challenge or danger making the game extremely accessible.

Do we have to be moved by this game if it to be a success? Is it okay to be kind of empty if it’s beautiful enough?

GRIS is available on Nintendo Switch and Steam. Expect it to take about three hours to complete.

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Laura Nash – @laurajnash
• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Shane Kelly – @8bitShane

After a delay in recording due to Raygan’s daughter being born (what a sorry excuse!) we are back with our Game of the Year episode for 2018! It’s been a great year for short games, so the deliberations were fierce. Join us for the results!

Thank you for supporting the show in 2018. We have an exciting year ahead of us in 2019 and we hope you’ll join us! If you like the show, spread the word, and let us know what short games you’re interested in for 2019!

• 00:00:00: Intro – BOTY 2018
• 00:04:13: A Great Year For Short Games
• 00:05:57: GOTY 2018: Celeste
• 00:15:24: The Rest Of The Top 5
• 00:16:31: Into The Breach
• 00:25:32: Minit
• 00:29:32: Return Of The Obra Dinn
• 00:36:23: Wandersong
• 00:41:18: Personal Picks
• 00:41:43: Shane’s Pick – The Tetris Effect
• 00:44:29: Nate’s Pick – Guacamelee 2
• 00:46:14: Raygan’s Pick – Yoku’s Island Express
• 00:49:49: Laura’s Pick – Gris
• 00:52:12: Best Soundtracks
• 00:57:37: Dirtbag Of The Year
• 00:59:18: VR Game Of The Year
• 01:01:46: Not Short Games Of The Year
• 01:10:55: Looking Forward To 2019
• 01:17:20: Outro

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Laura Nash – @laurajnash
• Shane Kelly – @8bitshane
• Nate Heininger – @natestl

The Obra Dinn was lost at sea along with all its cargo and 60 crew members. Suddenly the ship has reappeared, but what became of the crew? In this intricate mystery deduction game you’ll use a mysterious pocket watch to see the moment of each crew member’s death and try to reconstruct each of their fates.

Return of the Obra Dinn is available for Windows and Mac on Steam, Humble, and GOG for $19.99. Expect it to take around 10 hours to complete, unless you’re some kind of puzzle wizard.

Note: Due to a technical issue Laura’s direct mic recording was lost for this episode. Apologies for the reduced audio quality.

• Return of the Obra Dinn
• Return of the Obra Dinn dev-log On TIGSource
• Lucas Pope on his dithering technique
• Return of the Obra Dinn – Hint / Nudge Guide

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Laura Nash – @laurajnash
• Nate Heininger – @natestl
• Shane Kelly – @8bitshane

The Tetris Effect is the latest music/puzzle/synesthesia experience from legendary game designer Tetsuya Mizuguchi. Shane spends most of this episode mercilessly clowning on me for my Tetris skills while we discuss the benefits playing Tetris in veeeeee arrrrrr.

• Tetris effect – Wikipedia
• Tetsuya Mizuguchi – Wikipedia
• Ecstasy of Order: The Tetris Masters (2011) – IMDb
• The Story of Tetris | Gaming Historian – YouTube
• A conversation with Tetsuya Mizuguchi and more in Episode 112 | Retronauts
• FINAL FANTASY TACTICS: War of the Lions on the App Store
• Etrata, the Silencer (Guilds of Ravnica) – Gatherer – Magic: The Gathering

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Shane Kelly – @8bitshane

IFComp 2018 is nearing its conclusion, so it’s time for a few last games! On this episode we discussed:

• 00:02:09 The Origin of Madame Time by Mathbrush
• 00:12:01 Terminal Interface for Models RCM301-303 by VigiMech Corporation
• 00:26:04 Polish the Glass by Keltie Wright
• 00:33:27 Campfire Tales by Matthew Deline
• 00:36:18 They Will Not Return by John Ayliff
• 00:38:09 smooch.click by Devon Guinn
• 00:43:12 Awake by Soham Sevak
• 00:46:40 Urs by Christopher Hayes and Daniel Talsky

Be sure to vote by the November 15th deadline!

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Shane Kelly – @8bitshane
• Nate Heininger – @natestl

IFComp 2018 is nearly done, and we’re closing the comp talking about some really strong games! This is the first part of a two part episode rounding out our coverage of IFComp 2018. I was going to chat with Laura for a few minutes, but we ended up talking for nearly an hour, so rather than release one massive episode I’m splitting this one in two and releasing the second part (featuring Shane and Nate) early next week.

• 00:00:00 Intro
• 00:04:06 Bogeyman by Elizabeth Smyth
• 00:12:50 Erstwhile By Maddie Fialla and Marijke Perry
• 00:17:50 Within A Circle Of Water And Sand by Romain
• 00:28:41 Grimnoir by ProP
• 00:36:39 Other Notable Games
• 00:38:29 Let’s Explore Geography! Canadian Commodities Trader Simulation Exercise by Carter Sande
• 00:47:20: More Notable Games

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Laura Nash – @laurajnash

And we are back with more IFComp 2018! We discuss nine more of the games on this year’s ballot. Horror, mystery, and extended IFComp in-jokes abound!

If you play something in the comp you think we should cover, please let us know! We’re @_shortgame on Twitter, or you can use the contact form at our website.

Games covered in this episode:

• 00:03:32 En Garde by Jack Welch
• 00:14:57 Re: Dragon by Jack Welch
• 00:23:18 The Forgotten Tavern by Peter M.J. Gross
• 00:29:59 They Will Not Return by John Ayliff
• 00:35:23 DEVOTIONALIA by G. Grimoire
• 00:40:20 Cannery Vale by Keanhid Connor
• 00:55:36 And You May Find Yourself by VPC
• 01:02:31 Erstwhile by Maddie Fialla and Marijke Perry
• 01:07:36 I. A. G. Alpha by Serhii Mozhaiskyi

Other Links

• Crystal Warrior Kesha by Porpentine
• Ooblets
• The Haunting of Hill House (TV series) – Wikipedia
• Cats Washi Tape Wide 38mm x 7m Aimez le Style Cat | Etsy

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Laura Nash – @laurajnash
• Shane Kelly – @8bitshane

The leaves are changing, folks are putting up Halloween decorations… that’s right it’s IFComp season once again. Long time listeners to this show already know how passionate we are about the Interactive Fiction Competition. Now in its 23rd year, it’s the biggest event in interactive fiction and one of the highlights of our year. We’ve been covering IFComp annually since 2015. If you’re new to interactive fiction or IFComp check out some of our past coverage here.

This year the are 78 games vying for your attention and votes. We’ll be spending the next several episodes playing hand picked (and randomly picked) games, and sharing our thoughts.

If you play something in the comp you think we should cover, please let us know! We’re @_shortgame on Twitter, or you can use the contact form at our website.

Games discussed in this episode

• 00:08:39 Alias The Magpie by J. J. Guest
• 00:08:39 Animalia by Ian Michael Waddell
• 00:30:37 Dead Man’s Fiesta by Ed Sibley
• 00:36:10 LETS ROB A BANK by Bethany Nolan
• 00:40:42 Junior Arithmancer by Mike Spivey
• 00:48:24 Railways of Love by Provodnik Games
• 00:56:24 + = x by Chandler Groover

Other stuff:

• Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
• A Study in Scarlet Women (Lady Sherlock, #1) by Sherry Thomas
• Machine of Death – Wikipedia
• Analogue Super NT

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Laura Nash – @laurajnash
• Shane Kelly – @8bitshane
• Nate Heininger – @natestl

In Wandersong you play as a bard, and interact with almost everything through a fun and expressive singing mechanic. You’ll do a LOT of singing. Turns out there is no problem that can’t be solved through song, even the end of the world.

Wandersong came along at the right time. Its sweetness and positivity never felt cloying, and despite its story sometimes going to some dark places it felt like just the shot of hope it turned out we needed. We fell in love with this charming game and its vibrant cast of characters.

Get Wandersong on Nintendo Switch or PC/Mac via Steam or the Humble Store. It costs $20 and will take you about 10 hours to complete.

Links for this episode:

• Wandersong, a musical adventure game!
• Nintendo Switch
• The Humble Store
• Steam
• Music | A Shell in the Pit
• Wandersong Dev Favorites on Spotify

What’s making us happy this week?

Segment starts at [00:53:06]

• Laura: Victoria & Albert Museum · Videogames: Design/Play/Disrupt
• Mid-September Link Assortment | Emily Short’s Interactive Storytelling
• Raygan: Dril Official “Mr. Ten Years” Anniversary Collection
• wint (@dril) | Twitter
• Shane: Shane’s cute baby and also Destiny 2: Forsaken

Upcoming episodes:

• IFComp 2018! Check out our previous coverage here.
• Arcade games on Switch? Do you have a favorite? Let us know!

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Raygan Kelly – @raygank
• Laura Nash – @laurajnash
• Shane Kelly – @8bitshane

After years in development and what seems like decades on the Short Game upcoming games spreadsheet, solo developer Ben Esposito has finally released Donut County. We loved playing as as a hole in the ground in this odd story driven physics puzzle game. Just the right length, and with a ton of charm, this game was made for our podcast.

Donut County is currently available on Steam and GOG for Windows and Mac, as well as on PS4 and iOS.

What’s making us happy this week?

• Shane: Magic the Gathering
• Laura: On The Grid
• Nate: Lola is walking, and Nate is scooting

You can follow our show on Twitter at @_shortgame

Like the show? Support us by writing a review on iTunes!

Your hosts this week were:

• Laura Nash – @laurajnash
• Shane Kelly – @8bitshane
• Nate Heininger – @natestl