Dr. Bonnie “Bo” Ruberg is Pioneering Queer Game Studies

Dr. Bonnie “Bo” Ruberg is Pioneering Queer Game Studies

When I started my MFA program in the fall of 2018, my Introduction to Graduate Studies course assigned a conference paper on a topic of our choice. I used this opportunity to dive into my latest video game obsession at the time, Undertale, and the way it portrays gender roles and nonbinary identities. Despite the dearth of peer-reviewed papers, I managed to find an article at the Journal of Transformative Works and Cultures (the people who run Archive of Our Own) that floored me, a piece by a Professor Bonnie “Bo” Ruberg examining how Undertale fans have “straight-washed” the game rather than confront its overtly queer themes. That paper was everything I needed it to be and more, opening up the field of queer games study to me.

Imagine my glee when I was asked to actually talk to the person who wrote that paper. (more…)

It Was Inevitable: An Interview with Tarn Adams on Dwarf Fortress

It Was Inevitable: An Interview with Tarn Adams on Dwarf Fortress

Dwarf Fortress has established itself as a focus of cult admiration. Though Dwarf Fortress may not be immediately recognizable to the mainstream gaming community, it is a long-standing pillar in PC gaming and its steady popularity among enthusiasts has earned it a place in gaming history. (more…)

Tasting Home: An Interview With Meowfia Games

Tasting Home: An Interview With Meowfia Games

The visibility of Filipino gamers and developers alike has been growing, and Meowfia Games is one of many collectives emerging in this recent surge.

Meowfia Games has already been in the local limelight in anticipation of their upcoming game, Taste of Home, where you play as an aspiring chef trying to cook regional dishes from around the Philippines. Their most recent release, Turtle Tale, puts you in the role of a volunteer working for a conservation effort aiming to save endangered sea turtles.

They were able to provide some time with us to discuss their current projects and other insights. (more…)

Four Indie Game Studios to Watch Out For in 2020

Four Indie Game Studios to Watch Out For in 2020

PAX West 2018 was filled with developers from all walks of life, and unfortunately, I only had time to interview a few of them. Those that I did interview, however, absolutely blew me away with the diversity of their experience and the quality of their art. (more…)

Get In the Robot!: An Interview With Lancer’s Massif Press

Get In the Robot!: An Interview With Lancer’s Massif Press

Featuring a mixture of military science fiction and fantasy, Lancer is a mech tabletop roleplaying game that takes place in a vast galaxy and is as much about the robots as it is about the people who pilot them. Whether seeking to advance private interests or go rogue, players can work with or against each other as they fly their way through the unfathomable reaches of the stars.

Massif Press, Lancer’s publisher, is made up of Tom Parkinson-Morgan and Miguel Lopez. I had the chance to discuss with them the game’s influences, challenges, and its growing community. (more…)

Socialism Isn’t a Dirty Word: An Interview with The Glory Society

Socialism Isn’t a Dirty Word: An Interview with The Glory Society

On March 4, 2019, three creatorstwo of the creators of independent video game Night in the Woods, Scott Benson and Bethany Hockenberry, along with prolific artist/musician Wren Farrenannounced rather suddenly that they’d established The Glory Society, a new worker cooperative video game studio. They announced, among other things, that they’re working on “A cool game. Or two.” As a midwest/rust belt socialist and queer gamer, I was ecstatic about the news. So I asked them a bunch of questions, and they graciously answered. (more…)