The final part of a series of video interviews I conducted while my wife and children were away in Japan. Two days before they returned, I talked to Die Gute Fabrik’s Doug Wilson, some dude who made some game called Johann Sebastian Joust.

Warning, this video contains A MYSTERIOUS SPECIAL GUEST IN THE BACKGROUND. Who is it?

Topics covered:

  • The challenge of selling Ramiro Corbetta’s Hokra
  • Likewise, Joust
  • Playing Joust on the move
  • Spielplatz
  • The board game Space Alert
  • I playtest Mysterious Special Guest’s work-in-progress game
  • I suck up to Doug by telling him the other interviewees were just sucking up to me
  • I am really fucking tired
  • ASTONISHING REVELATION: The Little Harbour Master’s name
  • Sorry about picture quality, Doug asked do you want the light on and I said no because I was really fucking tired and wasn’t thinking
  • The final Schafer vs Hofmeier deathmatch

Much thanks to Doug and his flatmates for letting me stay overnight. Even greater thanks to Doug for travelling back to Copenhagen from the US one day early just so we could meet.

Competition

I will send one of them much-coveted Electron Dance badges to the first person who figures out the game teased in the final ten seconds of the video. Neither Gregg B nor the game developer in question is allowed to participate! Sshhh, you two.

Post your answer in the comments. First correct answer wins.

I suspect this challenge is pretty hard, but I’m happy to be proved wrong.

Relevant Links

Music

Previous Episodes

A follow-up podcast will be posted next month.

Download my FREE eBook on the collapse of indie game prices an accessible and comprehensive explanation of what has happened to the market.

Sign up for the monthly Electron Dance Newsletter and follow on Twitter!

26 thoughts on “Cat’s Away Chronicles V

  1. Hello Rat! I’m afraid not. I suspect we’d both look a lot more terrified in that case.

  2. Oh, now I *know* I’ve heard that noise before. Damn, what *is* that?

    Another great video discussion/interview and I’m sad that it’s the end of the series. But what is this? The Cat Returns with the promise of more? Oho…

    P.S. You’re welcome!

  3. Just to keep things on the level, Phil Carlisle just suggested it was Journey on Twitter and I told him no. It’s obvious innit, because Journey isn’t a PC game.

    Hey Shaun, thanks. There are two spinoffs from the series – one is the podcast and the other is… the answer to my high-stakes competition.

  4. Wow, great dialogue on the tension between technological innovation and accessibility. Nice way to close out the series.

  5. Thanks Alex. Sorry I haven’t swung by your place recently (actually I have been reading), I’ve been working hammer and tongues on these videos and also keeping the normal flow of articles going. Without warning, I’ll end up spitting out lots of comments out in one go and you won’t know what to do with me.

  6. I appreciate that you finished the series off consistently. You did mention how draining the video-making process has been. I personally enjoyed them all. More than that though, I think the videos were important (in spite of low views) because of the people on the other end. This’ll be a nice little tribute/record for each of them.

    I have no idea the game.

    Be careful letting kids skip rocks next to each other. Last time we were at the butte, my nephew (who is… impatient) let loose a good, big one right into his cousins face. Still, it didn’t leave a scar (surprisingly), and she got him back later, so it turned out well in the end.

  7. That was a great closer to a great series. Best of 2012*. I might’ve liked footage of you destroying your hands during Hokra, but then again your Waldo video has already shown me your tired+intense side. Rest is well-deserved, sir.

    Was that game the new SCP one?

    *Sorry Dark Knight Rises, you just didn’t address Schafer vs. Hofmeier enough.

  8. @mwm I always intended to finish what I started – unlike that Armageddon Empires tips series which is still missing its concluding part. I actually enjoy making videos but it’s doing them to schedule which tends to be draining. And the fact that they’re simply not that popular (a relative term) means I should focus on writing. But as mentioned there’s going to be a small spinoff video (plus a podcast) sometime next month. It is unlikely, however, that I will make a video for Eurogamer Expo 2012 like I did last year.

    @Nicolau Do you mean the “Slender Man” or the more recent “Slender”? Actually, it doesn’t make any difference, they’re both wrong!

    @BeamSplashX: Thank you. I wished I taken footage at ITU but I didn’t think our visit was going to be that interesting (neither did Doug as you can tell) – so I left the camcorder behind. I was going to insert the result of the deathmatch into the end of the video (3 Schafer, 2 Hofmeier) but there was simply so much going on at the end of the video I decided against it.

    And no, it’s not the new SCP game!

    Not that I think this is going to help much, but as a number of guesses are in the horror category, I will reveal that it’s not a horror game.

  9. It seemed a little obvious that it wasn’t a horror game, based on your’s and Gregg’s reactions. Gregg is non-chalant, pleasant, willing to look away to something on the computer screen. He even gives a chuckle before moving along. HM is simply absorbed in the game, so it takes at least a little bit of concentration.

    Then… this freaky violinish-sound pops up. HM is a little disconcerted, glancing at Gregg to say “dude, you see this right?” Gregg does see this, but he can’t tell what the’s seeing. This object is beyond easy comprehension.

    So, this segment of the game can be described: There’s a dull humming noise, and a cute/misapropriated/funny object. This object somehow triggers or is related to another object that is complex enough to leave the both of you dumbfounded, which is signalled by a short, creepy, musical cue.

    Three guesses: They made a sequel to LSD dream simulator. Halo 4. Hide and Scare (it’s not exactly a horror game…).

  10. I *swear* I didn’t know they’d be playing Hokra on a big screen when we ambled by ITU. That was so, so perfect. Sometimes I feel like I’m living in the Truman Show.

    … Joel if you were just an actor in my reality television show you’d tell me, right? Right?!

    (P.S. Or maybe *you’re* the star of the show and this post is an ironic joke directed at your viewers).

  11. @mwm: Interesting analysis. Just after where the video stops, Gregg announces what we’re looking at. Although thinking about it, it isn’t that great a clue. If no one figures out the answer by tomorrow, I will post a hint. I think it will be strong enough to break the mystery. In other words, all of your three guesses are wrong! The game came out last year and is by an indie developer of some renown.

    @Doug: You’re all extras hired to make my show look good. I should’ve brought my camera to ITU, aaaaagh why why. Then again I took practically zero footage of our walk along Stadsgraven and I had it on me that time.

  12. @HM No apologies necessary. I understand you’re a hard-working family man with a real job. I’m just a bored, twenty-something humanities graduate with too many opinions and too much time on my hands.

    I’m definitely not trying to guilt-trip you by swooping in with a sly, complimentary comment every now and then. Wouldn’t dream of it.

  13. Here is your hint.

    No one seems to have picked up on the fact that Gregg and I are looking at two screens.

  14. Yay! Congratulations Pat, it is Terry Cavanagh’s “At A Distance”. We’re doing a total spoilered discussion of it come end of August.

    Pat – if you just send your address details to my mail address hm at electrondance dot com, I will send you one of my last few Electron Dance badges in the snail mail!

  15. Sorry this is such a bloody late comment. A cracking end to a cracking series. I’ll miss these videos (even if I do take my time to watch them) and I missed Kai’s ‘Electron Dance!’ at the beginning of this one. Your kids are adorable by the way.

    I really, really want to play Joust. And Space Alert sounded fun. And Underground. And I’d totally forgotten about Nidhogg. And I wish we’d tried 0space as well when you were over. I’ll put them on the To Play With Joel Next Time list.

  16. Thanks Gregg. As you know there’s a video featuring as part of next week’s article (which, er, I haven’t even started editing yet) but other than that no idea when I’ll next produce something. I’m trying to stay well away from video production for a while.

    I would’ve loved to play Nidhogg with you, Gregg, I think that would have been hilarious. Just a shame it is not publicly available.

  17. I can’t fault you for staying well away from video if it’s taking up so much time for such a nominal ‘return’. It’s a shame but I know how busy you are with with all your wordsmithing.

    *notes Nidhogg down alongside Stephenson’s Place*

Comments are closed.