The Cat is The Best Character

Wed, May 22, 2024 Year 2, Autumn 21

Al and Kev talk about Homestead Arcana

Timings

00:00:00: Theme Tune
00:00:30: Intro
00:02:41: Feedback
00:05:56: What Have We Been Up To
00:22:36: News
00:49:30: New Games
00:57:20: Homestead Arcana
01:18:39: Outro

Little Known Galaxy
Overthrown

Contact

Al on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheScotBot
Al on Mastodon: https://mastodon.scot/@TheScotBot
Email Us: https://harvestseason.club/contact/

Transcript

(0:00:30) Al: Hello farmers and welcome to another episode of The Harvest Season. My name is Al
(0:00:39) Al: and we’re here today to talk about cottage core games.
(0:00:43) Kev: woooooo
(0:00:44) Al: Kevin’s not distracted by writing something in the show notes at all.
(0:00:47) Kev: Yes
(0:00:50) Kev: Look look, okay, you know, I you see the foghorn leghorn trend on twitter. Oh
(0:00:55) Al: No I have not.
(0:00:56) Kev: Oh my gosh, I thought about doing it for this show
(0:00:59) Kev: but I I I lost uh some of the energy for this weekend, but um, uh, basically
(0:01:04) Kev: People have just been putting foghorn leghorn into anime scenes
(0:01:08) Kev: Or just like images and just a whole rant of him that he would say and it’s been hilarious
(0:01:13) Kev: Like so much
(0:01:14) Al: I think, yeah, I think didn’t is the best option there.
(0:01:15) Kev: um
(0:01:16) Kev: Anyways, I was thought about introing like that, but I didn’t so you’re welcome people
(0:01:28) Al: Transcripts for this episode are available in the show notes and on the website and hopefully
(0:01:33) Al: they’ll be quicker generating from now on because I have a new iPad which is much faster
(0:01:37) Al: than my six-year-old iPad.
(0:01:41) Al: I think I ran Transcriber.
(0:01:44) Al: That’s what that’s what happens when you spend six years between between iPads is you get an insane
(0:01:49) Kev: yep
(0:01:53) Kev: oh wow wow okay that’s that’s good that’s faster
(0:02:03) Al: insane speed increase so this episode we are probably going to talk about homestead arcana
(0:02:06) Kev: we have the technology
(0:02:13) Al: It depends on how you do it.
(0:02:14) Kev: That’s a game.
(0:02:14) Al: It depends on how much kevin has played it.
(0:02:18) Al: I have played it, I have opened the game and I have done stuff in it.
(0:02:23) Al: I have a save file with a character and I have some opinions.
(0:02:24) Kev: Okay. Alright.
(0:02:26) Kev: Good opening, Salvo.
(0:02:28) Kev: Salvo
(0:02:30) Al: So we’re going to talk about that.
(0:02:33) Al: Before that we’ve got a bunch of news including a couple of new games and some exciting news.
(0:02:43) Al: before all of that, and before what we’ve…
(0:02:44) Al: been up to. I want to respond to Johnny. So, was it two episodes ago? Johnny ranted about…
(0:02:51) Al: Yeah, it was in the Rusty’s retirement episode. Johnny ranted about Coral Island. He ranted
(0:02:54) Kev: Uh, yeah, I’m in the middle of it, okay
(0:02:57) Al: about Coral Island, and he said that it’s ridiculous that I’m suggesting that Coral
(0:03:02) Al: Island is the standard for farming games. And what I would like to say is Johnny is
(0:03:07) Al: right in everything that he says, except… except that’s not what I s…
(0:03:09) Kev: He’s right, because wildflowers should be.
(0:03:14) Al: said. I did not say that it’s the standard for farming games, or if I did, I didn’t mean
(0:03:20) Al: it. What I mean is that Coral Island, the farming part of Coral Island, should be the
(0:03:27) Al: standard for farming games going forward. The features that it adds to the genre, that
(0:03:35) Al: is how things should be. That is what I’m trying to say. He’s absolutely right about
(0:03:39) Al: everything else he says about Coral Island. It is definitely unfinished. I have complained
(0:03:43) Al: about this before.
(0:03:44) Kev: Hahaha!
(0:03:44) Al: . I still think it is the best, if not the second best farming game, personally.
(0:03:47) Kev: Well.
(0:03:51) Kev: Well.
(0:03:52) Kev: Hey, good news, though.
(0:03:54) Kev: Being unfinished already IS the standard for ghost games!
(0:03:59) Kev: Hahaha!
(0:04:00) Al: Fair fair. And it is still to see whether 1.1 will finish Coral Island or not. We will
(0:04:01) Kev: Hahaha!
(0:04:08) Al: see the betas coming out in a week, I think.
(0:04:09) Kev: Okay, okay
(0:04:13) Kev: Wait, they’re doing a beta for the 1.1. Oh
(0:04:15) Al: They are, yeah. Yeah.
(0:04:17) Kev: My good. Oh, wow, nothing evokes confidence like saying we’re
(0:04:19) Al: I refuse to play that, though.
(0:04:24) Kev: Beta, we’re doing a beta post launch
(0:04:26) Kev: a
(0:04:28) Al: And obviously, nothing will ever live up to Stardew in its longevity, I don’t think, so.
(0:04:36) Kev: Oh, concern date refuses it for anything else to do. So I know that’s foreshadowing.
(0:04:41) Al: Well, we’re gonna talk about that later. We’ve got we’ve got stuff. We’ve got news on
(0:04:44) Al: stardew. Well, news on stardew who’d have thought it. So that’s, that’s why I wanted
(0:04:50) Al: to wanted to point out, I’ve talked to Johnny about this on slack. Anyway, and he thinks
(0:04:56) Al: that he, I believe he said what I said is fair now that he understands that it’s about
(0:05:01) Al: the farming aspect of things. But I felt it was important to talk about on the podcast
(0:05:02) Kev: We don’t want fair. We want reactionary content.
(0:05:05) Al: as well. Because I don’t think I’ve been on the podcast for like four episodes now. More
(0:05:12) Al: More than that, oh my word, the last episode I was on
(0:05:15) Al: was over a month ago.
(0:05:17) Al: Wild.
(0:05:18) Kev: Wait, was it the one I was on? Was EPUF on last time?
(0:05:21) Al: It was.
(0:05:26) Al: Wow.
(0:05:27) Al: It’s a Cody show now.
(0:05:29) Kev: There, well, you know.
(0:05:30) Al: Cody was on the last four episodes.
(0:05:32) Kev: Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh…
(0:05:34) Kev: Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh…
(0:05:36) Al: No, oh wait, yes.
(0:05:37) Kev: Aww… Yes?
(0:05:39) Al: Wait, have I?
(0:05:39) Kev: Have you? Oh…
(0:05:40) Al: No.
(0:05:41) Kev: Yeah, I was about to make a reference.
(0:05:43) Al: I think it’s on my list to watch.
(0:05:43) Kev: Okay, well you should.
(0:05:44) Al: I can’t remember what…
(0:05:45) Kev: I was just gonna say the fans have voted.
(0:05:47) Kev: Just like Smormu.
(0:05:49) Kev: Um, but, alright.
(0:05:50) Al: No, I’ve not seen it.
(0:05:51) Kev: Heh, I’ll get to watch it. Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh…
(0:05:52) Al: That confirms it.
(0:05:53) Al: I don’t understand the reference, therefore no.
(0:05:55) Al: Right, okay, cool.
(0:05:56) Al: So, blah blah blah, a lot of stuff to talk about.
(0:05:59) Al: Kevin, what have you been up to?
(0:06:02) Kev: Um…
(0:06:04) Kev: Non-video…
(0:06:06) Kev: It’s been a chaotic week for me.
(0:06:08) Kev: Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh…
(0:06:10) Kev: Um, alright.
(0:06:12) Kev: I caught up and finished X-Men 97.
(0:06:14) Kev: Hey, guess what? That game is good.
(0:06:16) Kev: You know what? We should talk about it sometime.
(0:06:17) Al: laughs Imagine that. Foreshadowing! laughs
(0:06:18) Kev: Heh, heh, heh, heh…
(0:06:20) Kev: Just the thought.
(0:06:22) Kev: Heh, heh, heh, heh…
(0:06:24) Kev: X-Men 97, very good.
(0:06:26) Kev: Heh, heh, heh, heh…
(0:06:28) Kev: Let’s all say all that for now.
(0:06:30) Kev: I caught up on
(0:06:32) Kev: Uhh, well yeah, Smiling Friends. It’s very short so probably since the last time I watched it I binged that.
(0:06:39) Kev: Very very funny, very enjoyable. I suggest you go watch it out. It’s Adult Swim, so they’re like 10 minute episodes
(0:06:44) Kev: So you can knock it out real quick
(0:06:45) Al: Yeah, I haven’t seen this one but it was on my list to watch at some point
(0:06:48) Kev: All right, we’ll go do it. Season 2 is ongoing
(0:06:52) Kev: They’re releasing new episodes and very excited for that. Like, one should be this weekend, I think? I don’t know.
(0:07:00) Kev: Outside of that I’ve been doing a lot of
(0:07:02) Kev: my daily grinds because that’s comfort gaming for me, Pokemon Unite.
(0:07:06) Kev: Falinks came out and he’s funny and adorable and as great as I’d hoped.
(0:07:11) Kev: Umm…
(0:07:12) Kev: The game in general is…
(0:07:12) Al: Does he split up and beat people up?
(0:07:15) Kev: Yes! He can!
(0:07:17) Kev: He has two, he has two, uhh…
(0:07:20) Kev: So every Pokemon basically has two, like, branches for their attacks that you can pick.
(0:07:24) Kev: Falinks has either they all stick together and form a big shield, or they all separate and beat up people.
(0:07:29) Kev: And his is united his ultimate move
(0:07:32) Kev: The little guys just start spinning around him just just carouseling around him and beating up anyone. It touches. It’s great
(0:07:40) Kev: Yeah, I love falling sees fantastic little dude or dudes, let’s see Disney speedstorm
(0:07:40) Al: Love it
(0:07:49) Kev: The the Disney racing game the
(0:07:52) Kev: Wreck-it Ralph season is ongoing
(0:07:56) Kev: Boy they’re they’re just getting more
(0:07:58) Kev: Money they want money
(0:08:01) Kev: because
(0:08:02) Kev: They actually split the season into two parts, so you have to buy two passes if you want the premium characters or whatever
(0:08:10) Kev: Heart one was Vanellope. She was like the premium character and I bought it because I like Vanellope. Heart two was Sergeant Calhoun the that lady
(0:08:19) Kev: The from the hero’s duty game or whatever
(0:08:21) Kev: I’m not buying because I don’t care about her that much but the the racetrack from the game and sugar rush is there
(0:08:27) Kev: It’s very fun. I like to beat storm still very fun game
(0:08:32) Kev: Marvel snap continues to be Marvel snap
(0:08:36) Kev: The game’s really big there’s a lot of cards I keep up with it
(0:08:41) Kev: I think for I don’t know for better or for worse, but I still play it
(0:08:42) Al: I think I’ve given up on it.
(0:08:47) Kev: That’s good for you, you know what you’re smart man, yep
(0:08:49) Al: It was a period of time for me, I enjoyed it while it was a period of time, but I think
(0:08:53) Kev: Yep
(0:08:54) Kev: That’s that’s fine. I salute you for that. So those are my daily stuff. Um Ori and the Blind Forest I have
(0:09:02) Kev: I’ve gone through that. Are you familiar with that one now?
(0:09:04) Al: I’m I’m familiar with it, but I’ve not played it and that’s a metroidvania, right?
(0:09:08) Kev: Okay, what yep it is and it
(0:09:11) Al: Yeah, I think I heard you talk about it. I think I heard you talk about it on Rainbow Road radio
(0:09:15) Kev: Yeah, yeah
(0:09:17) Kev: Yeah, you can hear me talk about it there. Well, yeah, I’m just gonna repeat what I said there
(0:09:20) Kev: It’s it is a metroidvania, but unlike say Metroid
(0:09:24) Kev: Dread or other metroids. It’s not so much combat focused. It’s much more
(0:09:29) Kev: Like platforming obstacle focused which
(0:09:32) Al: Yeah.
(0:09:32) Kev: I think I might have a harder time with.
(0:09:33) Al: Oh, interesting.
(0:09:35) Kev: Some of them can feel very challenging because you have to
(0:09:39) Kev: time your jumps, you have to extend jumps, turn in mid-air, you have to bounce off
(0:09:43) Kev: enemies or projectiles. Wild, wild nonsense that they come up with.
(0:09:47) Kev: The game is very pretty and enjoyable. I’m still going through it.
(0:09:51) Kev: There’s that.
(0:09:52) Kev: Speaking of Rainbow Road Radio, the podcast I do with our mutual friend Alex,
(0:09:57) Kev: I have, I think like since the last time I’ve been on,
(0:10:00) Kev: I played through a lot of the classic
(0:10:02) Kev: We’ve been doing good the spring time for jump man. That’s what Alex calls it
(0:10:06) Kev: We the original Super Mario Bros. We did the lost level Super Mario Bros 2 and 3 and a world is upcoming
(0:10:13) Kev: So I’ve been going through that getting my fresh course in Mario history. I guess what Mario platformers are good shocker. I know
(0:10:20) Al: Yeah, I really know
(0:10:21) Kev: Lost levels - yeah, go ahead. Oh
(0:10:24) Kev: I was just say lost levels is good, but it’s also really hard to mean
(0:10:30) Al: yeah I really like lost levels um I found too very funny because it’s it’s
(0:10:32) Kev: » Yeah, yeah.
(0:10:42) Al: sure it’s a mario game but it’s not a mario game it’s it’s like a skinner a skinner on top of
(0:10:44) Kev: That is correct
(0:10:48) Al: another game and and it makes it makes it so weird in so many ways right because it’s like
(0:10:49) Kev: That is literally what it is, yes, uh, yes you are right it is
(0:10:56) Kev: Right
(0:10:57) Al: so different to the first one but also so…
(0:11:00) Kev: Yep
(0:11:00) Al: different to everyone since. There’s so much stuff in this game that never happens again.
(0:11:03) Kev: Absolutely
(0:11:08) Kev: Yeah
(0:11:09) Kev: And it’s and what’s really weird is they some things did stick around maybe not like mechanics or whatever
(0:11:14) Kev: But like turnips and shy guys and you know different things like the elements and features floating and all that stuff, right?
(0:11:22) Kev: Like I still kept some of that. So I guess they were happy with what came out, but it is
(0:11:28) Kev: It’s wild like I can’t think of another example where they you know
(0:11:32) Kev: Reskinned a game and they kind of claimed ownership to that and it still stayed but not really
(0:11:38) Kev: wild wild nonsense
(0:11:38) Al: Well the funny thing is as well, it’s a skinner on top of a game, but it’s also the 5th best selling game on the NES ever.
(0:11:45) Al: Like, I don’t think any other skinner box game has ever done that.
(0:11:52) Al: Like, that’s wild.
(0:11:54) Kev: Yeah, it is.
(0:11:55) Kev: I didn’t know that.
(0:11:56) Kev: That’s what, that is wild.
(0:11:57) Kev: Holy moly.
(0:11:58) Al: It’s just so weird.
(0:11:59) Al: “It was critically well received for its design aspects and for differentiating the Super Mario series.”
(0:12:04) Al: That’s because it wasn’t a Mario game!
(0:12:08) Al: It’s a different game!
(0:12:12) Al: I mean, I really like it. It’s fun, but it’s really funny.
(0:12:15) Kev: Maybe, yeah it is.
(0:12:18) Kev: Maybe other things should start doing that more.
(0:12:21) Kev: This is how we’ll save the MCU.
(0:12:22) Al: I put Spider-Man in every film that he has referenced in the MCU. You know that old film’s
(0:12:22) Kev: We’re just gonna copy other movie-
(0:12:24) Kev: -put Spider-Man in it.
(0:12:29) Kev: Oh yeah.
(0:12:30) Kev: Um…
(0:12:32) Kev: Wow, that’s great.
(0:12:42) Kev: Yeah. YEAH. AHHH. He’s been there. That’s why he knows it. He’s been there. Ah, okay.
(0:12:43) Al: alien? That old film’s Star Wars!
(0:12:52) Al: And then just make it self-referential so he has to refer to the fact that he’s in this thing that
(0:12:56) Al: is like a film that he he knows of. Good fun.
(0:13:03) Kev: So that’s all the fun stuff. The unfun stuff. I got laid off this week. WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. Oh,
(0:13:08) Al: Just remember, this is the family friendly episode, no swearing.
(0:13:12) Kev: man. So, I mean, you know. Yes, okay. I will not. But it came out of left field. It was,
(0:13:27) Kev: and I asked them, because of course when you find out you’re losing your job, you know,
(0:13:32) Kev: you’re like, “Is it anything I did?” And they’re very adamant. It was nothing personal about
(0:13:37) Kev: me or my performance or whatever, but they just had to get some jobs.
(0:13:42) Kev: mine happened to be on that list I was laid off last year as well but that
(0:13:57) Kev: was a different scenario because that company was a small startup and basically it collapsed
(0:14:03) Kev: it just failed so the whole company died all employees were laid off at the same time right
(0:14:12) Kev: so it was very sad because I really liked we all really liked that company we liked
(0:14:16) Kev: each other our co-workers and whatnot and at least we were in it together more or less
(0:14:21) Kev: right like we all went out to lunch and just drank our sadness away or whatever
(0:14:25) Kev: um we’re like this is a massive so the company I worked for directly was a large company
(0:14:36) Kev: that’s like headquartered in pencil in pittsburgh different state from where I am and they’re
(0:14:40) Kev: owned by an even bigger company, Amor.
(0:14:42) Kev: The biggest stinger is just, you know, why me over other people who might be working in similar positions to me, right?
(0:14:59) Kev: So like, I can’t help but feel like there is probably some weight of performance issues, but yeah, I mean, I could get into the whole thing.
(0:15:07) Kev: like I don’t think it was my performance but like light work was light and ultimately it all just
(0:15:12) Kev: money right like they felt like they weren’t getting enough money so i’m they’re just gonna
(0:15:16) Kev: get rid of me um
(0:15:19) Al: Yeah it’s one of these things where you need to not overthink these things because it could be
(0:15:23) Al: for any number of reasons. It could just be first in, last first in, first out sort of thing. You
(0:15:24) Kev: Yeah, yeah, yeah, you’re right you’re right
(0:15:27) Al: just never know and it’s not fun, not fun but sometimes stuff like that.
(0:15:31) Kev: Yeah, but c’est la vie, um
(0:15:34) Kev: But the the silver lining bits one
(0:15:36) Kev: I have already been actually I picked up uber as a side hustle just a few weeks ago
(0:15:40) Kev: So I can double down on that now. It’s not the obviously not the same level of salary
(0:15:46) Kev: I was making right but it’s more than unemployment
(0:15:48) Al: Keeps you going.
(0:15:49) Kev: Yep, and and because this company is big they I actually got some severance
(0:15:54) Kev: pay and stuff like that so I have at least a little to keep me going
(0:16:00) Kev: obviously there’s a lot of pressure to find a proper job to get a steady
(0:16:04) Kev: paycheck and whatnot but but yeah that’s that’s just how it is sale of me all
(0:16:10) Kev: right what about you I hope you haven’t been laid off what it what else have
(0:16:12) Al: No, thankfully I’ve not been laid off, I’m still at my terrible job. I’ve not done a
(0:16:14) Kev: you been up to
(0:16:20) Kev: that’s correct
(0:16:23) Al: huge amount of games, I feel like I’ve been procrastinating with gaming in general because
(0:16:29) Al: I didn’t want to play Homestead Arcana and the problem is if I’m procrastinating playing
(0:16:37) Al: a game for the podcast because I’m not enjoying it, the problem then is that I don’t play
(0:16:42) Al: it because I feel guilty when I play different games so I just end up not playing games which
(0:16:44) Kev: I built!
(0:16:46) Kev: Yea!
(0:16:48) Al: is really bad but we’ll get into that we’ll get into that later but what I have done is
(0:16:50) Kev: Yea!
(0:16:52) Kev: Blang!
(0:16:54) Al: I did before I picked up Homestead Arcana because I think we only decided to do this
(0:16:58) Al: two weeks ago, I played Let’s Go Eevee because I hadn’t finished that game so I have now
(0:17:06) Al: played and finished that game, caught a shiny seal in it, oh boy that was a long slog.
(0:17:08) Kev: Okay, yeah
(0:17:13) Al: The game I still really like Let’s Go and I think it is one of the best Pokemon games
(0:17:17) Al: full stop. I understand why some people don’t like certain aspects of it but personally
(0:17:18) Kev: Okay
(0:17:21) Kev: Yeah
(0:17:23) Al: I think it is one of the best in so many ways.
(0:17:26) Kev: Sure sure like I get that like there’s like visually it’s it’s a beautiful beautiful game right absolutely one of the best and
(0:17:35) Kev: There’s it’s very cute
(0:17:38) Kev: It does a lot of things, right?
(0:17:40) Kev: My problem with me is I don’t like the go-catchy
(0:17:42) Kev: So, if that’s the core mechanic, yup
(0:17:44) Al: Yeah. No, I know. That’s and that’s and that’s what I’m saying. And that’s what I’m saying.
(0:17:48) Al: That’s why I think I think that that’s I know that’s why people don’t like it. And I understand
(0:17:52) Kev: Yeah, and to be fair, that’s like a completely subjective thing, right?
(0:17:53) Al: that.
(0:17:56) Kev: Like, I know, like, I think you would maybe fall into this category where a lot of people don’t care much for the battling
(0:18:04) Kev: or just grinding endlessly in the other games, right?
(0:18:04) Al: Yeah, absolutely.
(0:18:08) Kev: So, yeah, that’s completely to taste, but I will say, like, what I see, I think, it is a well-done game.
(0:18:16) Kev: It is very competent, technically, it looks very good, and I didn’t–any discourse on it, I didn’t hear about, like, let’s say Scarlet Violet, any technical issues, glitches, or crap.
(0:18:26) Al: No, no, I think, I think the most of it, so it’s definitely going through a resurgence
(0:18:31) Al: of rose-tinted glasses with people, you know, people who didn’t like it at the time now
(0:18:33) Kev: Okay.
(0:18:35) Al: like it because that’s just the cycle with Pokemon games, right?
(0:18:38) Al: People don’t like it and then they like it because the newer thing is something else
(0:18:41) Al: they don’t like, so they have to compare it to just, oh my word, so it’s just the classic
(0:18:42) Kev: If you thought that was bad, just wait till we drop NOW!
(0:18:48) Al: cycle of Pokemon games but yeah, I think the main thing that people didn’t like was the
(0:18:52) Al: catching and I understand that I it’s not like
(0:18:56) Al: I think it’s amazing but I like that it’s different I did I don’t like catching in
(0:19:01) Al: pokemon games in general I don’t think it’s fun and so doing something different I think is
(0:19:06) Al: exciting and fun in being different in and of itself right the whole yeah and I actually think
(0:19:10) Kev: I am glad they did something different, I will say that.
(0:19:15) Al: that what they did with the legendaries in that game was the best where you have to battle it to
(0:19:19) Al: whittle it down and then once you’ve defeated it then you can catch it I think that’s actually
(0:19:24) Kev: And that is fun.
(0:19:26) Al: and then they ended up doing that later on with raid battles right so now we have the
(0:19:31) Al: raid battles where it’s essentially that is you have to defeat it and then once you’ve
(0:19:34) Al: defeated it you get guaranteed catch that for me is actually the perfect thing defeat a pokemon
(0:19:39) Al: then catch it i’ve never understood oh if you knock the pokemon out you can’t catch it i’m like
(0:19:43) Al: why not it’s just lying there just let me throw a ball at it surely this would be the easiest time
(0:19:44) Kev: You know what? Well said. Well said. I don’t even need a Pokeball, I can just drag it!
(0:19:50) Al: to catch it
(0:19:56) Al: yeah yeah yeah um
(0:19:58) Kev: The clip looks right there! You know, that is an excellent point. Yeah, no, I can see
(0:20:10) Kev: cassette piece you can hear about that on that greenhouse I did
(0:20:14) Kev: it has the mechanic where when you say you’re going to catch on a turn the the
(0:20:25) Kev: target monster will not die right otherwise it can die normally but if
(0:20:30) Kev: you’re saying I’m going to catch you this turn it will not die which I think
(0:20:33) Kev: is a clever way of solving that problem
(0:20:34) Al: Fine, I’ll play cassette beasts already. My word. I just need to find some time to do
(0:20:38) Kev: it’s
(0:20:42) Al: that. I will do it. All right. Goodness me. We need to have like a bunch of episodes in
(0:20:48) Al: a row that are not game specific game based so I can just play a game without feeling
(0:20:53) Al: guilty about not playing a farming game. So I’ve also done there was a bunch of Pokemon
(0:20:54) Kev: Heh heh heh heh heh heh
(0:21:01) Al: violent events that I’ve done which I’m still enjoying lots of sh-
(0:21:04) Al: is in the outbreaks and the I like the raids blah blah it’s fine you don’t need to comment on it
(0:21:10) Kev: I’m not, I’m not.
(0:21:11) Al: um and um I’ve also picked
(0:21:14) Kev: I will say I salute them for keeping the game going.
(0:21:19) Al: yeah yeah and they’ve not recycled anything other than like one one seven star raid they’ve recycled
(0:21:25) Al: they keep bringing out new ones which is pretty impressive we’re you know we’re what 18 months out
(0:21:25) Kev: So yeah that is impressive, I salute them for that.
(0:21:30) Kev: Yeah that is impressive, almost two years, yeah.
(0:21:31) Al: So, uh, almost.
(0:21:35) Al: Stretching it a lot there almost two years. Yeah. That’s why I said 18 months. That’s why I said 18 months Kevin. Oh
(0:21:36) Kev: A year and a half!
(0:21:38) Kev: Year and a half.
(0:21:40) Kev: Look, the next six months will fly by, just you wait.
(0:21:45) Al: Sure sure and then in six months, I will say it’s been two years, but I won’t say it’s almost two and a half years
(0:21:49) Kev: Okay.
(0:21:50) Kev: Now mathematically, if you round, if you’re…
(0:21:51) Al: Will I?
(0:21:55) Kev: Five, you round up to the nearest ten.
(0:21:58) Kev: Alright.
(0:21:58) Al: And I’ve just recently picked up Farm RPG which I don’t want to say too much about it
(0:22:04) Kev: What is Farm RPGA?
(0:22:05) Kev: Tell me, I don’t remember.
(0:22:08) Kev: Oh, oh, is there another time you’d like to talk about it?
(0:22:08) Al: just now but basically it’s a text-based farming game on mobile so I don’t want to talk much
(0:22:15) Kev: Oh, okay.
(0:22:21) Al: more about it but it’s a thing that may well be mentioned in the future.
(0:22:26) Kev: Yeah, okay.
(0:22:28) Al: He says looking at the list of upcoming episodes right next to the show notes all right cool
(0:22:38) Al: should we talk about some news because apparently we’re 25 minutes in and we’ve already done
(0:22:41) Kev: Already, wow, okay.
(0:22:41) Al: an over an over an hour long greenhouse so the first few bits of news are pretty quick
(0:22:48) Al: so first of all we got fabled them 1.0 is out now there we go done it is it is still
(0:22:52) Kev: Yes! And it was on sale. I don’t know if it still is, but I bought it. It was on sale. Yes!
(0:22:57) Al: on sale.
(0:22:59) Kev: Uh, yes, for 1.0. Yes, I bought it, I installed it, I haven’t played it,
(0:23:03) Kev: but it’s there ready for me to fire. Uh, yeah, I did. Yes.
(0:23:12) Kev: James! This is the village builder. Alright, well.
(0:23:14) Al: if no one else has covered it by the time i’m done with stars drop vagabond I will do that
(0:23:20) Al: but that’s a month away uh next we have fields of mistra um their early access is coming out on the
(0:23:28) Al: 5th of august I i this so this this was the one that when it was first announced it was like all
(0:23:30) Kev: Okay, let me see.
(0:23:31) Kev: Hold on.
(0:23:33) Kev: I don’t remember this one.
(0:23:37) Al: these high quality graphics and then the the first game they showed they showed it was like pixel art
(0:23:43) Al: and were like “I was not expecting pix-
(0:23:44) Al: al art” based on all of the images you’ve already put out. It says it’s RPG so presumably there’s
(0:23:55) Al: more of a story to it but other than that it just looks like it’s just another Stardew type thing.
(0:24:02) Kev: I’m looking at it. It’s Stardew-y. Their aesthetic is different. Like, even from the base art,
(0:24:02) Al: so yeah I don’t know maybe I’ll play
(0:24:14) Kev: like they’re trying to invoke 90s-ish anime Sailor Moon-looking stuff. I think it’s coming
(0:24:20) Kev: across pretty well in pixel art. It is cute. I think it might have a little more personality
(0:24:28) Kev: than Stardew, just art-wise.
(0:24:32) Kev: I like how there’s 12 marriage candidates and two of them are in shadow.
(0:24:40) Al: Yeah, I mean, nothing about it looks bad.
(0:24:42) Al: It’s just, nothing makes me go, “I need to play this.”
(0:24:44) Kev: Yeah, I get that for sure.
(0:24:48) Kev: It does feel like a lot of inspiration from 90s RPGs, like Final Fantasy and stuff like that.
(0:24:56) Kev: Just a lot of the animations and things like that.
(0:24:58) Kev: the like when they pick up the end of an item that.
(0:25:02) Kev: do a little V with their fingers and it’s cute I will say the game looks cute
(0:25:07) Kev: all right I don’t see any huge mechanics that make it’s screams that stand out
(0:25:13) Kev: from Stardew but it’s a looks like a pretty nice stardew-esque a stardew
(0:25:19) Kev: light you can’t we’re gonna coin that sir what is the difference between a
(0:25:24) Al: called farming game stop it i’ll ban you from the podcast research story have their 0.8 update which
(0:25:24) Kev: stardew light and a stardew light
(0:25:36) Al: i’m pretty sure is out now they’ve not actually said it’s out now but i’m pretty sure it’s out now
(0:25:42) Al: let’s go with this out now um uh they’ve added more farm buildings um and the ability to build
(0:25:51) Al: to move and demolish them.
(0:25:54) Al: Barns, sheds, fun times, and lots of other small stuff. Lots of quality of life features,
(0:26:02) Al: lots of new content, new creatures, blah, blah, blah. Looks like they’re getting close to 1.0
(0:26:08) Al: if they’re at 0.8. It’s about a year it’s been in early access so far, I think. Yeah, February 20th.
(0:26:22) Al: what do I look like someone who plays a game pre 1.0 come on
(0:26:30) Al: uh speaking of updates my time at sandrock the 1.3 update is coming 28th of may
(0:26:36) Al: and they’re also releasing a monster whisperer dlc which includes new pets
(0:26:42) Kev: - Okay.
(0:26:45) Al: with a new pet training and battle related content so you’re gonna get your pet
(0:26:51) Kev: Oh, sick! A game where animal creatures fight each other? I, I, I, okay.
(0:26:56) Al: It’s the ‘Might I’m a Sandrock’ Pokemon update!
(0:27:01) Kev: This has, this idea has potential.
(0:27:05) Kev: It’s like a lizard with a pumpkin on its back. Oh my goodness. Okay.
(0:27:09) Kev: Um, these, some of these animals are really cute. I can’t wait. Literal dog fighting in this one.
(0:27:16) Kev: Um… Oh! I was just shooting, Chris.
(0:27:16) Al: Yeah I’m still not gonna play it. Moonlight Peaks have announced that they are going to be published
(0:27:24) Al: by Exceed which is a part of Marvelous so that’s cool that’s all that’s that’s all the news about
(0:27:28) Kev: Yep, that’s
(0:27:32) Kev: What is this one I know I don’t remember this one is the vampire life
(0:27:34) Al: that one uh yeah the vampire one you’re a vampire or there are vampires I can’t remember yeah no
(0:27:42) Kev: Okay
(0:27:44) Kev: Says you are a vampire just live the vampire life in a magical town
(0:27:44) Al: I know you’re the vampire.
(0:27:46) Al: Yeah, it’s got that chibi art style.
(0:27:52) Kev: The supernatural dating are you excited boy that that’s that’s an Animal Crossing
(0:27:58) Kev: Style that’s what that is
(0:28:02) Al: Werewolves, witches, and mermaids
(0:28:03) Kev: It feels
(0:28:05) Kev: Yeah, it looks cute for somebody who’s big fan of lean a little horror
(0:28:16) Al: I’ll probably I’ll probably play it at some point look it’s not about how skated they
(0:28:20) Kev: How scary are the werewolves?
(0:28:27) Al: are is it for you it’s about how good-looking they are and are they voiced by Ray Chase?
(0:28:29) Kev: Well, you… you… what do you think about that? Well, you got me there. You got me there.
(0:28:36) Kev: Well, you got me there. You got me there.
(0:28:43) Al: If you want Kevin to like something, put Reaching
(0:28:46) Al: in it. Traveller’s Rest have announced that they are going to work on a Switch version
(0:28:55) Al: after their roadmap is finished. So I think that means probably in many years to come.
(0:29:00) Kev: Oh my goodness, that sounds correct!
(0:29:07) Al: Like there is no way that they get their roadmap done before next year and if they’re not even
(0:29:16) Al: the Switch version until after their whole roadmap is finished, it’s going to be 2027
(0:29:20) Kev: Oh, Switch 2 will be out.
(0:29:22) Al: before that comes out. Oh for years! Switch 2 will be two years old by then!
(0:29:23) Kev: Switch…
(0:29:24) Kev: Switch 3!
(0:29:28) Kev: Oh yeah…
(0:29:30) Kev: When was the last time a game finished a road match?
(0:29:33) Al: Oh well that’s the thing yeah. Stardew maybe? Maybe not.
(0:29:42) Al: speaking of switch coming to switch is gardenwood
(0:29:46) Al: have announced that they’ll be releasing on switch and xbox and playstation
(0:29:51) Al: they didn’t say when but the way that it’s worded makes it sound like
(0:29:56) Al: probably the same time as the steam version comes out
(0:29:58) Kev: You’d hope so, but it’s vague enough, maybe not.
(0:30:03) Al: yeah yeah don’t hold me to that don’t hold them to that
(0:30:07) Al: but it’s coming out at the end of this year so I feel like at this point in time saying that
(0:30:13) Al: makes the there’s the implicate
(0:30:16) Al: the implication is there I think and hopefully they’ve thought that through
(0:30:20) Al: and they’ve realized that that would be the implication so therefore that’s what
(0:30:23) Al: they’re saying rather than not realizing that would be the implication
(0:30:27) Al: I feel like if you’re if you’re if you’re at this point where you’re six
(0:30:30) Al: months away from releasing and you don’t and you say oh we’re also coming to
(0:30:34) Al: console and you don’t say after the switch steam release I feel like you’re
(0:30:40) Al: just asking for people to be a no
(0:30:42) Kev: That is correct
(0:30:43) Kev: cuz gamers man, I’m looking through the pictures here because I can remember what the game is first like
(0:30:49) Kev: First of all, there’s some very cute animals in here. Look at this bunny. It’s just like a dust cloud with ears
(0:30:55) Kev: And bees and there’s like little rocks with eyes. It’s very cute. I just feel so bad about this name
(0:30:59) Al: The bees are very fat.
(0:31:01) Kev: garden which life like it’s
(0:31:02) Al: I know.
(0:31:04) Al: It’s so generic.
(0:31:04) Kev: Madlibs
(0:31:05) Kev: Madlibs of generic cottage
(0:31:08) Al: That’s a good point.
(0:31:09) Al: It’s totally like they’ve just taken genres and shoved them together to make the name.
(0:31:12) Kev: - Yup, yup.
(0:31:14) Al: Let’s see, it’s a life sim but it’s growing things in your garden and you’re a witch.
(0:31:20) Kev: Uh… laughs You can build friendships with the townsfolk. laughs You know what I would like to imagine? I’d like to imagine myself playing south.
(0:31:20) Al: There you go, name sorted.
(0:31:31) Al: Imagine that. Southfield. This might be the game I’m most excited for.
(0:31:43) Kev: It feels like the most unique thing in this space of gaming in a while
(0:31:49) Al: I don’t play many early access games but I feel like I might need to play
(0:31:54) Kev: They had a demo which felt like it could have been an early access game because it was so big you couldn’t save
(0:32:01) Al: - Well, that’s the thing.
(0:32:02) Al: Well, that’s the thing.
(0:32:03) Al: ‘Cause I listened to you and Johnny
(0:32:04) Al: talking about “Southfield”.
(0:32:06) Al: Was it you that played it or was it Johnny that played it?
(0:32:06) Kev: I played it.
(0:32:08) Al: You played it.
(0:32:09) Al: I heard you talking about it on that demos episode.
(0:32:11) Kev: Yeah. Yeah.
(0:32:12) Al: And based on that, yeah,
(0:32:14) Al: I just feel like this early access feels like
(0:32:18) Kev: I- I can easily see that I- I feel strongly that will be.
(0:32:23) Kev: Um, well, o-
(0:32:24) Al: which is, and I feel like this piece of news actually encourages me more about that, that
(0:32:30) Al: they actually care about how it works, is they’ve said that the multiplayer is not coming to early
(0:32:34) Al: access at launch. I’ll just read out their quote. “Southfield was originally conceived as a single
(0:32:40) Al: player experience, but as soon as we started playtesting the game, people told us they would
(0:32:44) Al: love to share this island with friends. We agree, and that’s why multiplayer has become part of our
(0:32:48) Al: roadmap for a while. However, multiplayer engineering is one of the most complex things
(0:32:53) Al: things to pull off at a relative rate.
(0:32:54) Al: small development team meaning we’ve had to make some pretty tough decisions and one of those is to
(0:32:58) Al: not include multiplayer early access launch so I feel like the fact that they realize that
(0:33:04) Al: means that well one I suspect they’re probably pretty close to early access
(0:33:08) Kev: Yup. Well I mean heck, I agree. I mean like for a game to release a pre-early access demo like that
(0:33:10) Al: and two it means that they want they want the early access to be
(0:33:19) Kev: and to be that solid like I think they care a lot. Not only that, they say they want to leave early
(0:33:25) Kev: access in 2025 right? Which is pretty close. So yeah the early access should be dropping pretty
(0:33:32) Kev: soon I imagine. You know what? Like I think it’s cool they want to do multiplayer, I get that.
(0:33:38) Kev: I’d be uh… I’d be okay if they dropped the 1.0 without multiplayer because I just…
(0:33:45) Al: - Yeah, I think I understand that.
(0:33:47) Al: I think I also understand why they would want
(0:33:49) Al: to get it in for 1.0, but yeah, honestly,
(0:33:53) Al: I would say make that the last thing you add.
(0:33:56) Al: If you want it to be in 1.0, make it the 1.0,
(0:33:59) Al: like add it in right at the end, like make it,
(0:34:01) Al: this is the, like, ‘cause that I think becomes
(0:34:04) Al: a really big thing to bring people back.
(0:34:06) Al: ‘Cause like we’ve talked about this before
(0:34:07) Al: where the problem with early access
(0:34:10) Al: is you’re splitting out your release into multiple releases.
(0:34:14) Kev: Right.
(0:34:14) Al: So there’s less like.
(0:34:15) Al: The reason for people to come back, but I think I think if you if you have something
(0:34:22) Al: like multiplayer, I think multiplayer is big enough that if you have that as the 1.0 feet,
(0:34:27) Al: the big 1.0 feature that brings people back who have previously played it.
(0:34:32) Kev: Yep, okay
(0:34:34) Al: But we’ll see, but they’ve also said there’s going to be a few features that were coming
(0:34:38) Al: later in early access that they’ve moved to the early access launch.
(0:34:43) Al: They say to compensate, but I’m like, I don’t think.
(0:34:45) Al: You need to compensate for that.
(0:34:46) Kev: No, they really don’t
(0:34:46) Al: I don’t think anybody care.
(0:34:48) Al: Like some people, some people care, but like it’s early access.
(0:34:50) Al: What are you going to do?
(0:34:51) Kev: Yeah, and like I can’t stress how much of a game it feels like there is plenty in there
(0:35:00) Al: every time they post something about this game I’m more excited for it like the different crops like
(0:35:06) Kev: I mean, that’s the core concept of the game, absolutely ridiculous and it’s great.
(0:35:06) Al: there’s one that you can eat that makes you go on fire and stuff like that it’s just absolutely.
(0:35:20) Kev: I love being a gun drop guy.
(0:35:24) Kev: Stay wibbly, flop in the Southfield team, that’s how they sign off, I like that.
(0:35:26) Al: Yeah well that’s the thing they’re doing everything right right they’re doing things well they’re
(0:35:32) Kev: They are doing it.
(0:35:34) Al: doing some different things while still adding to like the stuff that we like so I am I’m
(0:35:42) Al: all for in for this. Speaking of doing everything right Stardew Valley we have an article with
(0:35:54) Al: an interview with…
(0:35:56) Al: concerned ape about stardew valley and I just want to pick out
(0:35:59) Kev: We learned where the CONCERNED comes from!
(0:36:04) Al: I want to pick out just a couple things couple quotes from this article to talk about
(0:36:09) Al: so the first one is they say barone that’s concerned ape it’s called eric barone barone
(0:36:15) Al: now works with the team on stardew valley’s more technical aspects and he wanted 1.6 to focus on
(0:36:20) Al: technical tweets and tweaks and nothing more side note I remember him saying about that when he
(0:36:26) Al: was coming he was like it’s mostly going to be stuff for mods and that’s how that turned out
(0:36:31) Kev: Uh-huh. Thank you!
(0:36:33) Al: the quote continues but then he began to dread what fans might think if he didn’t go all out on
(0:36:38) Al: yet another update i’m a little bit sad about this I have like mixed feelings on this I think
(0:36:43) Al: the way that this is worded makes it sound like he felt he couldn’t do an update that
(0:36:47) Al: didn’t include a bunch of new content and I think that’s sad
(0:36:50) Kev: - Yeah. I mean, I just think like,
(0:36:53) Kev: so I think that’s pretty much the case
(0:36:56) Kev: and I’m starting to get the feeling concerned ape
(0:36:58) Kev: is like very, well, I mean, not just starting,
(0:37:01) Kev: like I think it’s been apparent.
(0:37:02) Kev: He’s a very perfectionist-esque person, right?
(0:37:07) Kev: Where he’s, or he puts a lot of pressure on himself,
(0:37:10) Kev: let’s say, right?
(0:37:11) Kev: He’s very demanding of himself and his work, right?
(0:37:14) Kev: Like I think the other example I can point to
(0:37:17) Kev: is Sakurai in Smash Bros, right?
(0:37:21) Kev: You went to insane levels to make those games amazing.
(0:37:24) Kev: And they’re incredible, don’t get me wrong.
(0:37:25) Kev: But like, I don’t know if you heard,
(0:37:27) Kev: at one point Sakurai went into the office
(0:37:31) Kev: with an IV drip because he was feeling sick,
(0:37:33) Al: yeah I yeah I suspect that concern date probably has a healthier work-life balance
(0:37:33) Kev: but he still wanted to work.
(0:37:39) Al: is is what I would say
(0:37:39) Kev: Hopefully, hopefully, right?
(0:37:42) Kev: That’s, I just don’t want to go to that, of course.
(0:37:43) Kev: Right? Like that’s the extreme.
(0:37:45) Kev: I hope he doesn’t get to that point.
(0:37:45) Al: yeah yeah nobody should ever get to that point if you if you find yourself on an ivy drip in work
(0:37:53) Al: that’s the point to say you’ve gone too far right you probably should have you’ve probably gone too
(0:37:58) Al: far a couple years earlier right this isn’t the point where you’ve gone too far but this is the
(0:38:03) Al: point to realize that you’ve gone too far because that’s ridiculous so I think then there’s another
(0:38:08) Al: quote later on from concerned ape and he says once I open once I reopen the book on stardew
(0:38:15) Al: I always have a hard time closing it again because I always want to add more things make it better
(0:38:21) Al: make it cooler make people happy it’s exciting every single thing i’m adding i’m thinking about
(0:38:26) Al: how people are going to play this and talk about it and love it it’s going to be part of their
(0:38:31) Al: expedience. It could make a memory that they might…
(0:38:34) Al: That’s a special thing. It’s hard for me to not want to do that.
(0:38:38) Al: So when I read the first bit, I was like, “Oh, I really hope he’s not doing this because he feels he has to.”
(0:38:43) Al: Then I read the second bit and went, “No, he does have to. His brain won’t let him stop.”
(0:38:47) Kev: Yep
(0:38:51) Kev: Yep, right and like again our Sakurai the thing that Sakurai example is an extreme example
(0:38:57) Kev: But I think it’s the same sort of like mental route right where it has to be
(0:39:03) Kev: Exactly how they want it to be or whatever
(0:39:06) Kev: And that can be a dangerous road. So, you know, I just hope he’s taking care of himself. That’s the main thing, right?
(0:39:12) Kev: Like clearly he’s finding success. He’s making money. So, you know, I’m not worried about that
(0:39:20) Al: yeah there’s there’s another there’s other bits in the article which i’ll post um you know because
(0:39:26) Al: people might find it interesting um but uh one other thing just quickly is that he there’s a
(0:39:33) Al: hint that maybe there could be another update coming um that would have input from the team
(0:39:40) Al: that he’s created around uh around stardew because it’s it’s now not just him working on it he’s got
(0:39:46) Al: more people doing it, but he kind of debates, he
(0:39:50) Al: basically debates whether he could actually do that or not because like could he actually
(0:39:56) Al: let people do it without then getting involved himself and he’s you know trying to you know be
(0:40:02) Kev: I’m going to say, “No, he can’t.”
(0:40:03) Al: like oh yeah there is there is there was one point i’d remember this at the time nearly two years ago
(0:40:12) Al: now there was a tweet from him replying to someone so much of his news is just like posting random
(0:40:18) Kev: three word tweets
(0:40:18) Al: replies to people on Twitter.
(0:40:20) Al: So someone asked him two years ago, June 2022, “Will Stars You Get Future Updates?”
(0:40:28) Al: And he replies and says “1.6, yes, but it’s mostly a modding focused update,
(0:40:33) Al: makes modders lives easier. There will be some new content but it won’t be huge.”
(0:40:36) Kev: Things that aged poorly
(0:40:39) Al: And then he says “1.6, who knows? 1.7, who knows?”
(0:40:46) Al: So yeah, I think that I really hope.
(0:40:50) Al: he does it because he likes it and because he wants to not because he feels like he needs to and
(0:40:54) Kev: Like, I’m sure he likes it, like, these aren’t mutually exclusive, right?
(0:41:00) Al: you’re you’re you’re right I just I don’t I want him I yeah I know I that’s just my point
(0:41:06) Kev: Yeah, I know I get it, right?
(0:41:06) Al: I i don’t want him to feel like he has to because he has given us enough I don’t care what other
(0:41:11) Al: people say he has given us enough in this game right like if he wants to do more do it absolutely
(0:41:14) Kev: Absolutely, like, well, here’s the thing, I don’t think anyone will ever say that he hasn’t given us enough in Stardew.
(0:41:20) Al: because people require it oh no there will be some people because some people
(0:41:24) Kev: Well, okay, well, yeah, you’re right. Okay, well, okay, the vast majority of people, right, the general, like, of course, there’s always exceptions and outliers, but I think the general discourse, I’ve never heard anyone say otherwise about Stardew.
(0:41:27) Al: there’s always some stupid people
(0:41:40) Kev: But, I think the bigger problem is going to be his own inner voice.
(0:41:44) Al: Let’s see if Haunted Chocolates of the Year ever actually releases.
(0:41:44) Kev: That’s my concern.
(0:41:46) Kev: But, we’ll see.
(0:41:46) Kev: Just don’t…
(0:41:48) Kev: Stay tuned for our “Concerned About Concern Day” segments.
(0:41:58) Al: So our last piece of news before, we’ve got a couple of new games, but the last piece
(0:42:01) Al: of news before that is some news about Phoenix Labs, which is the developer of Faefarm and
(0:42:08) Al: Dauntless.
(0:42:09) Al: They’ve announced that they’ve cancelled all of their projects, except…
(0:42:14) Al: I don’t think we have… over a hundred people is the kind of number I’ve seen from sources
(0:42:19) Kev: How many are we talking?
(0:42:22) Kev: Ooooh, that’s a lot.
(0:42:29) Al: but I don’t think we have any concrete numbers.
(0:42:34) Al: But yeah this is interesting on multiple levels.
(0:42:36) Al: So one, interesting that they’re like “oh the only two things that we’re going to continue
(0:42:41) Al: doing our Dauntless and Fae Farm.
(0:42:44) Al: Right, okay, I didn’t realize Fae Farm was successful.
(0:42:49) Al: Two, their statement talks about them being live service games.
(0:42:54) Al: I don’t think Fae Farm’s a live service game.
(0:42:58) Al: Like they have updates that they’re doing but that’s not what live service is, right?
(0:43:09) Al: And obviously it’s really sad that a bunch of people have been laid off.
(0:43:12) Al: Obviously it goes with.
(0:43:14) Al: I don’t know what to say but I need to say it anyway.
(0:43:15) Kev: yeah so uh clearly right like should I say my piece okay this yeah I mean like obviously i
(0:43:21) Al: Yeah, go for it.
(0:43:25) Kev: feel bad for them right and like yeah yeah like I i of course I get it get into all that like it’s
(0:43:26) Al: Anti-Capitalism rant.
(0:43:28) Al: Anti-Capitalism rant.
(0:43:33) Kev: I just want to share the like I forgot to mention earlier so when I got laid off this earlier this
(0:43:39) Kev: week um first of all it came out of left field I didn’t get a two weeks notice just then in there
(0:43:45) Kev: you an extra two weeks of pay but working out right now and obviously like that sucked in like
(0:43:51) Kev: even just trying to process that that moment right um but the really sucky part came uh
(0:43:58) Kev: came just a bit later so it was around lunch time when they called me in and they they let me know
(0:44:03) Kev: or whatever and gave me paperwork yada yada and so I went the first thing I did was just go out
(0:44:07) Kev: because I hadn’t had lunch yet I went to go out grab a sandwich and kind of process my own thoughts
(0:44:12) Kev: at that moment, right? So then I went back in…
(0:44:15) Kev: to the office and started going around talking to some of the people I was
(0:44:20) Kev: friends with and such and just letting people know and getting phone contact
(0:44:24) Kev: numbers and things like that, right? But then this is what killed me, like as I
(0:44:31) Kev: was sitting at my desk after sitting down getting ready to pack up my stuff
(0:44:35) Kev: the guy who fired me who was in charge that he comes up to me and he says okay
(0:44:41) Kev: I need you to leave the building like right now like my god
(0:44:45) Kev: Goodness like I didn’t respond at that moment. I was just I was still such in shock, but I think I just like okay
(0:44:50) Kev: Wow the the
(0:44:53) Kev: insensitivity of that right and just
(0:44:56) Kev: Well, it feels so bad and this this again
(0:44:59) Kev: This is a very big company so clearly Phoenix Games or whatever this thing is called
(0:45:04) Kev: fairly large for having being able a Phoenix Labs being able to fire hundreds of people right like I’m sure they weren’t very
(0:45:13) Kev: sensitive about those layoffs either.
(0:45:15) Kev: I’m guessing they aren’t, but…
(0:45:15) Al: No, you can’t you can’t be when there’s that many people you’re laying off like not not
(0:45:19) Kev: Exactly, right?
(0:45:21) Al: if you’re going to do it like that right like it’s just not possible. And apparently some
(0:45:22) Kev: Right, exactly, right.
(0:45:24) Kev: And so that’s just…
(0:45:26) Al: some people were laid off like apparently according to one of insider they were planning
(0:45:32) Al: on announcing one of their games in three weeks and so there’s a bunch of people who
(0:45:37) Al: have been for the last couple of months crunching to be excited to announce this game and then
(0:45:43) Kev: Oh yeah, lovely, oh I get that too, right? Before I was fired, like, I had some proj-
(0:45:51) Kev: I- that morning of, like, of course I was dealing with a project and talking with people and
(0:45:55) Kev: everything’s normal and then all of a sudden, bam, like, wow, that’s- so, like, I will try to
(0:46:02) Kev: be sympathetic to a business and say, okay, maybe there’s points where you have to lay a person off,
(0:46:06) Kev: right? Like, sure, right? Like, you know, playing within the messed up system or whatever.
(0:46:12) Al: In theory.
(0:46:13) Kev: In theory. In the- okay, you know what, you’re very much right, in theory, right?
(0:46:17) Kev: But, like, still, just, I wish it could be handled with a little more humanity, right?
(0:46:23) Kev: And that’s the part, like, I think people, like, it’s not just a company thing, it’s a person
(0:46:27) Kev: thing, like, there are people who could handle- you can- there are people who can make decisions
(0:46:32) Kev: to handle that better. So, uh, it’s- it’s just the worst and I feel so bad for these- these people
(0:46:37) Kev: being collapsed. And, of course, you know, this is game industry, which has been pur-
(0:46:43) Kev: horrendous this year, the massive amount of layoffs. Thousands and thousands of employees
(0:46:48) Kev: across the board just getting laid off in all sorts of companies. Um, not a great time for the
(0:46:54) Kev: games industry. Um, uh, but anyways, oh yeah, like, just some more sentiments I had on the thought,
(0:47:00) Kev: but going back to this particular thing about Phoenix Labs, the fact that they say to keep-
(0:47:06) Kev: that they’re just going to keep those two games, I don’t think they were doing that well. Like,
(0:47:10) Kev: been up the edition.
(0:47:10) Al: Well, looking at the list of games they’ve actually released, they’re the only two they’ve
(0:47:13) Kev: Oh, yep.
(0:47:15) Kev: Oh, yeah
(0:47:16) Al: released.
(0:47:17) Al: So like that screams to me massive financial problems in the company.
(0:47:23) Al: If they have two games and they’ve cancelled every other game that they haven’t released.
(0:47:29) Kev: - Yep.
(0:47:31) Al: Like that just screams to me something is seriously wrong in the company and it makes
(0:47:34) Kev: Absolutely, right?
(0:47:36) Al: me say it sounds like they were in this is all just me assuming things
(0:47:40) Al: and getting things with based on other information I think the what’s happened
(0:47:42) Kev: Armchair CEO is us here right now.
(0:47:47) Al: here is there’s not profitable right which is pretty standard for a lot of
(0:47:52) Al: companies and you know they’re only 10 years old only not profitable and they
(0:47:52) Kev: Sure.
(0:47:58) Al: were looking for another round of investment money and they couldn’t get
(0:48:02) Al: it and therefore they ran out of money that is my theory
(0:48:02) Kev: Ahh, yup, that sounds very plausible, absolutely.
(0:48:10) Kev: And I made the joke earlier about how well now they’re going to make Vaefarm into live service, but now thinking about it, no, I think that’s actually what’s going to happen.
(0:48:17) Kev: They probably designed it not with live service and scope, but now they’re going to force it in there.
(0:48:23) Al: Well it’s I mean the thing about that is that’s really hard to do because if people don’t want the live service thing they just don’t update.
(0:48:24) Kev: Oh yeah. Yup. Ugh.
(0:48:30) Al: Oh no what are you gonna do? Force me to update? You can’t. You know?
(0:48:32) Kev: But, but, wait, they should have put in their posts, but phoenixes always rise from the ashes.
(0:48:46) Al: Yeah well I guess we’ll we’ll see we’ll see what continues what happens with them and whether the
(0:48:55) Al: next dlc because there’s still an upcoming dlc for fae farm let’s see if it happens
(0:49:01) Kev: Oh, well my condolences, people who were laid off, I’m with you.
(0:49:07) Kev: At least, like I said, there’s a little kinship when you’re fired off with multiple people
(0:49:13) Kev: at once.
(0:49:14) Kev: I was one of like two people that I know that were fired, so yeah.
(0:49:20) Kev: But yeah, not great.
(0:49:24) Al: No.
(0:49:26) Al: Not great.
(0:49:26) Kev: You know what is?
(0:49:26) Al: Well.
(0:49:27) Kev: I don’t know if this is great.
(0:49:28) Al: Well, I see, so we’ve got two new games.
(0:49:29) Kev: Is this next thing great?
(0:49:34) Al: The first one is Little Known Galaxy.
(0:49:38) Kev: Very cute name
(0:49:38) Al: This is releasing…
(0:49:40) Al: This will be already out when the episode comes out.
(0:49:42) Al: It releases in two days as we’re recording, 20th of May.
(0:49:48) Al: It’s a space farming game.
(0:49:49) Al: I don’t know what else to say.
(0:49:52) Kev: okay but this one actually looks cute unlike lonely outpost or whatever
(0:49:58) Al: yeah so my problem is that yeah this looks good but I’m all in on already on playing
(0:50:06) Al: Starstruck Vagabond and so maybe that’s me saturated with space farming game for just now.
(0:50:12) Kev: Yeah, that’s fair like that’s that’s that would be - that’s very specific and that’d be too much right
(0:50:19) Kev: Yeah, so I I agree
(0:50:20) Al: Especially as they’re releasing the same week. How are the chances? So unfortunate.
(0:50:23) Kev: Yeah, and then there’s that right
(0:50:27) Kev: Yeah
(0:50:29) Kev: Yeah, and you know I get similar vibes from them well like just I don’t know I get it I get it
(0:50:35) Al: well so starstruck agron technically isn’t a farming game it’s a it’s a delivery game
(0:50:42) Al: but I think let’s be honest the the mechanics are going to be very similar right like so just
(0:50:50) Al: because it’s technically not farming doesn’t mean it’s not you know but I guess i’ll do i’ll do my
(0:50:58) Al: usual of the reading out the the blurb joins space alliance as a new captain in training
(0:51:05) Al: work with your crew to solve the mysteries of an ancient relic found on the gray planet little
(0:51:11) Al: known galaxy is a cozy single-player rpg stop using the word cozy in your game description
(0:51:16) Al: cozy single-player rpg space adventure full of friendly characters exploration crafting and
(0:51:22) Al: farming it looks cute that you know that’s
(0:51:23) Kev: So, it looks cute.
(0:51:28) Kev: One thing I will say, like, I’m positive they won’t do it, but like, I think there was an
(0:51:35) Kev: opportunity here to play more of the captain/manager of the ship, right?
(0:51:40) Kev: Like assign people to farm and stuff like that, I think that would be cool.
(0:51:44) Kev: I don’t think that’s gonna happen in this game, but it’s just a thought, and that would
(0:51:48) Kev: be, you know, in this specific setting it would work really well, right?
(0:51:53) Kev: Here’s a ship and you’re in command of the ship, so tell how to run the ship and all that.
(0:51:58) Kev: That would be really fun, but oh yes, that’s just in the Dream Games.
(0:52:01) Kev: Hey, at least there’s no romance that I can see.
(0:52:02) Al: There is romance. “Build a friendship date and marry one of the ten singles aboard the
(0:52:04) Kev: Oh, gosh darn it.
(0:52:09) Al: ship, each one with a unique backstory.” But can you marry someone that is an android,
(0:52:10) Kev: Where, what? No.
(0:52:12) Kev: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
(0:52:23) Al: an alien or a genetic clone? Yes, yes you can. What do they mean by a genetic clone?
(0:52:29) Al: they mean a clone of you? Because that’s weird.
(0:52:30) Kev: Oh, oh, okay. Well, well, well, if you want that question answered, Al, there’s a show
(0:52:33) Al: And do they mean a clone of some random person? Because if that’s so, what what does that matter?
(0:52:39) Al: Like, I’m just, I’m so confused as to why that would matter if it’s not a clone of you.
(0:52:46) Kev: called X-Men 97 that can answer that for you. Okay, okay.
(0:52:50) Al: Well, right. But if Scott had always had always married Madeleine, it wouldn’t have mattered that
(0:52:53) Kev: Yeah, yeah. Oh, true.
(0:52:57) Al: she was a clone, because he would have known that. Right. But that was the whole point is that he
(0:53:00) Kev: True, true. Yeah, true.
(0:53:03) Al: married her. Or did he? Because if she was created after they got married,
(0:53:06) Kev: Oh, oh, oh. Yeah. Ah, sick.
(0:53:11) Al: technically he married both of them. Clone logic.
(0:53:15) Kev: Well, they won’t lean into that, but boy, I’d be on board if they did that. If they
(0:53:23) Kev: went on board with the weirdness, you know what, if they were all in, like when you marry
(0:53:23) Al: I don’t, I, I don’t think it’s, I don’t think it’s gonna lean into the weirdness, Kevin.
(0:53:29) Kev: in Android like…
(0:53:30) Kev: Oh yeah, yeah, I’d be down
(0:53:35) Kev: It’s not very cozy, isn’t it?
(0:53:36) Al: Sorry. It’s not. It’s not. Not at all. And the other game, now this one I am very excited
(0:53:39) Kev: I love you.
(0:53:46) Al: about. This is Overthrone. It’s not a huge amount of information on this game, because
(0:53:51) Al: all just on twitter and tiktok
(0:53:53) Al: they don’t have a steam page up or not but this is calling itself a city builder but it’s like
(0:53:58) Al: third person so it’s not like a management style game but so I guess yeah but the the thing about
(0:54:00) Kev: Wow, that is a link!
(0:54:02) Kev: I’m sorry, I looked at the video, and that, like, Breath of the Wild, that’s linked.
(0:54:12) Al: this is you can pick up and throw everything in the game anything in the game so examples are you
(0:54:16) Kev: That is a fun mechanic
(0:54:20) Al: can like, you know, pick up and move your buildings to wherever you want.
(0:54:23) Al: But then you can also like, you can throw things at buildings to like, add them to the inventories,
(0:54:28) Al: you don’t have to like, go in and add it there. You’ve got like a sawmill, you can throw wood at
(0:54:33) Al: the sawmill to turn it into planks. You can throw trees at the sawmill to turn it into planks. You
(0:54:39) Al: can throw the sawmill at a tree. You can just pick up a throw, you can, you can do like a Goku run,
(0:54:43) Kev: Oh, you know, that’s pretty dope.
(0:54:50) Al: like a really super fast run, while…
(0:54:53) Al: holding a sawmill, hitting all the trees and turning them all into wood.
(0:54:58) Kev: Oh my gosh, he’s literally running across water!
(0:55:02) Al: You can run across water, you can spin really fast with your sword and take off like a helicopter.
(0:55:10) Kev: Um… I do…
(0:55:11) Al: This is somehow doing everything that Southfield is doing but differently,
(0:55:22) Kev: Yeah, it’s… yeah, so it’s physics-ish based, right? Like, but it’s… it’s a little more structured, clearly.
(0:55:22) Al: But in the same sort of.
(0:55:23) Al: Cool way, that I like.
(0:55:31) Kev: Southfield is all about being goofy and silly and crazy and bouncy.
(0:55:34) Kev: Here, you’re like, you’re clearly trying to accomplish… accomplish stuff, um…
(0:55:39) Kev: It’s… it’s not a wacky world, it’s a nice little fantasy world or whatever, but…
(0:55:44) Kev: the… the physics-based portion of it still makes it feel dynamic because, you know, the… this…
(0:55:50) Kev: …in the little space of the gaming world.
(0:55:52) Kev: It’s very saturated with similar mechanics, so I still appreciate it.
(0:55:56) Kev: I admire their chutzpah for just putting Link from Breath of the Wild in here.
(0:56:04) Kev: Oh my goodness.
(0:56:06) Al: Yeah, I like the look of this. I’m definitely going to keep an eye on this. I have no information.
(0:56:10) Kev: Oh, you can grab a person and throw them!
(0:56:12) Kev: I don’t know where you’re taking them, but…
(0:56:12) Al: Yeah, you can pick up and throw everything. They’re calling it so they’ve decided the
(0:56:18) Al: genre name is Bingo Bongo City Builder. Not sure why. But so it also sounds like based
(0:56:28) Al: on what they’re saying in one of the tweets that there might be multiple different people
(0:56:31) Al: you play as as you go through the game but look i’m ex-
(0:56:36) Kev: You can have farmers, like you can control or manage farmers it looks like.
(0:56:42) Kev: The world looks fun, like the thing that looks Minecraft-esque in it’s design, like it’s
(0:56:49) Kev: big and there’s a lot to explore and I’m down for this, yeah, I’m down for this.
(0:56:51) Al: Oh yeah, I see what you mean about the farmers.
(0:56:55) Al: Yeah, I’m, yeah, I am very interested in this. It looks like it’s quite early in its cycle
(0:57:02) Al: but it’s still looking really nice already. So here’s hoping is a lot to do.
(0:57:10) Kev: I hope it comes out and we can play it.
(0:57:15) Al: Anyway, that’s all the news on the new games and that’s a lot of stuff.
(0:57:21) Al: So we’re now going to talk about Homestead Arcana.
(0:57:25) Kev: Yay. [laughs]
(0:57:29) Al: Wow, Kevin, it sounds like you love this game. So well, okay, let’s just hold that. Hold it there.
(0:57:29) Kev: Uh.
(0:57:36) Al: Hold it there. So I guess an interest to this game. And how would you describe this? So it’s
(0:57:46) Al: an RPG-esque farming game where the focus is very much not on the farming.
(0:57:54) Al: You are a… what was the term that I can’t… it’s not… it’s like a… what’s the term they
(0:58:01) Al: use for you? It’s not witch or wizard. It’s like… no, it’s… I’m sure there’s another term they use.
(0:58:02) Kev: Bitch, aren’t you?
(0:58:07) Kev: Homesteader?
(0:58:12) Al: oh it does say which on the thing okay never mind fine I thought there was a different
(0:58:15) Al: anyway your job is that you are sent to an area that has this like thing called miasma which is
(0:58:22) Al: like this wispy dark evil thing and you need to evil fog that’s like fog that’s a good way of
(0:58:29) Al: describing it and the your job is to get rid of it and you do that through farming and through
(0:58:37) Al: a bunch of other stuff and you go into it and you try and clear it we’ll get into the mechanics of
(0:58:41) Al: of that later. Is that fair introduction to how this game works?
(0:58:45) Al: So before we get into the mechanics I want to talk about the graphics and the audio. I really
(0:58:54) Al: like how this game looks.
(0:58:56) Kev: I was jokingly doing a mildly enthused day earlier, but that is a big part of what attracted
(0:59:05) Kev: me to it. Like, the game looks nice, right? The trailers look nice. It’s a very nice presentation.
(0:59:12) Kev: It’s full 3D, right? It’s not grid-based farming or whatever. Visually, it’s a different presentation
(0:59:20) Kev: from a lot of your other standard farming or cottagecore games or whatever.
(0:59:26) Kev: And, well, I feel like I’m going to dive into the mechanics, but I wish it could keep up with it
(0:59:33) Kev: because it feels like a lot of work into it. But just, I don’t know, the scope isn’t as big as I would have hoped.
(0:59:38) Kev: It is interesting that there’s almost no characters, right?
(0:59:43) Al: Two characters. There’s your cat, oh you found a third one. From what I’ve found so far there’s
(0:59:46) Kev: I found a third one. I found a third one. They found a third one.
(0:59:52) Al: your cat and there’s like a shopkeeper. That’s it. And generic enemies that you don’t actually
(0:59:54) Kev: Yep, and yourself, right?
(1:00:01) Al: encounter because there’s no combat in this game. There’s running and hiding, that is
(1:00:03) Kev: Yeah, no, they just hit you you yeah
(1:00:07) Kev: Yep
(1:00:08) Al: the combat in this game.
(1:00:09) Kev: Avoiding. Yep. Um, there are letters and and you can and stuff you can learn that way. But yeah, it’s
(1:00:16) Kev: It’s interesting how it’s very solo almost right? You have your cat huckleberry. That’s your main thing
(1:00:20) Al: Yeah, I feel like there’s a space for that. Not everything needs to be character based.
(1:00:24) Kev: Absolutely
(1:00:28) Kev: Right
(1:00:28) Al: Stories can be good without other characters and games can be good without really in-depth
(1:00:33) Al: stories and etc, etc. But that’s not what this is.
(1:00:40) Al: Okay so let’s get into the mechanics then. Let’s talk about the farming because I feel
(1:00:44) Al: like the farming is the most different from other farming games and I feel like, in my
(1:00:48) Kev: Right
(1:00:51) Al: they had some interesting ideas for this.
(1:00:54) Kev: Absolutely, that’s kind of the that’s kind of the game in a nutshell for me. They have a lot of interesting ideas, but
(1:01:00) Al: Interesting ideas, yeah.
(1:01:01) Kev: They didn’t go all the way with it, right?
(1:01:03) Kev: so
(1:01:04) Al: Yeah, yeah. So I guess the way to describe this is you instead of, so normal farming game,
(1:01:10) Al: you have a seed, you plant the seed, you water the seed, it grows, right? And that’s it. That’s
(1:01:15) Al: the most you have with, you might fertilize it, right? But that’s basically it. That’s all you do.
(1:01:20) Al: Very simplified. In this case you plant a seed. First of all, the plants are immortal. You can
(1:01:30) Al: kill them I think but if you don’t kill them, there are no seasons so they never, yeah okay,
(1:01:34) Kev: You don’t even kill them, they get sick, they can get better.
(1:01:37) Al: they recover can’t they? Yeah so like they’re basically immortal, they never die. But that
(1:01:43) Al: does mean you also have a very few crops like this is not a plant a hundred things and harvest.
(1:01:46) Kev: Yup, nope, it is plant, one tomato plant, and that’s all you need, because you will
(1:01:51) Al: This is a, yeah.
(1:01:55) Kev: get X number of tomatoes from it every day.
(1:01:58) Al: Every single day, which I like. I like that. I like the consistency of that. Once you’ve got
(1:02:03) Al: a plant and it is and you’ve got it to the point where it’s producing fruit, you get it every day.
(1:02:08) Al: I quite like that. But the interesting thing is they have a way to use your magic to
(1:02:14) Al: increase its speed and change how it grows.
(1:02:16) Kev: yep the growth speed yeah so yeah you just call it channeling and it’s just
(1:02:23) Kev: this little magic thing you do collect a bunch of magic thoughts and put it it’s
(1:02:28) Kev: very nothing mechanic you’re like you just you don’t have to do much but it it
(1:02:34) Kev: is the fact that it’s optional and speeds up the growth I think is fun
(1:02:38) Kev: right and that they that right right absolutely right even if you do it too
(1:02:40) Al: Yeah, and that you can muck it up as well because otherwise you would just do it all and it would you know because you’d be disadvantaged if you didn’t.
(1:02:46) Kev: much
(1:02:51) Kev: right right absolutely right yeah you could spam it but if they think they
(1:02:55) Kev: call blight the the plant will get sick and not produce fruit for a while it
(1:02:59) Kev: will recover eventually but I like said it think it’s a very interesting idea I
(1:03:06) Kev: know I wish they at least to where I am in the game like I haven’t found more
(1:03:10) Kev: magic mechanics for the farming I wish they could go a little further but
(1:03:16) Kev: at least on paper I think it’s cool they’re being different right just one
(1:03:20) Kev: plant of each kind more or less you you can plant multiple if you’d like to you
(1:03:23) Kev: can find a few different seeds but just making that the focus instead of huge
(1:03:26) Al: Yeah yeah it’s interesting but it needed more work to make it like replayable and you know
(1:03:29) Kev: fields
(1:03:36) Kev: Yep.
(1:03:39) Kev: Yep.
(1:03:40) Al: nobody is going to sink 100 hours into this game like nobody is.
(1:03:43) Kev: Nope.
(1:03:46) Kev: Yeah, so, like…
(1:03:47) Al: Like even though so looking on steam like all the people even that are positively reviewing it
(1:03:52) Al: they have like 20 hours 30 hours and that’s not a
(1:03:57) Al: like not all games need to be long but farming games people put a lot of time into those games
(1:03:59) Kev: Yep
(1:04:03) Kev: Right, right
(1:04:04) Al: and so if you’ve got your most excited people have put in 20 hours that’s not saying
(1:04:09) Kev: Yep
(1:04:10) Kev: Well, okay, like
(1:04:13) Kev: I’m going to yeah
(1:04:15) Kev: the problem is the core loop right because I’m gonna jump ahead to the miasma thing right because
(1:04:18) Al: yeah let’s do it let’s go let’s go for it yeah because it’s probably not something interesting
(1:04:21) Kev: the
(1:04:25) Kev: Yeah, I mean, no, they’re just, they exist, yep.
(1:04:25) Al: to say about crafting and cooking really are they they exist that’s fine they’re done right cool
(1:04:31) Al: let’s go on to the unique thing then miasma surprise it’s a roguelite
(1:04:33) Kev: Yeah, I’ll let you say, go ahead, I’ll say your thing.
(1:04:39) Kev: Once again, [LAUGH] what, hm.
(1:04:43) Al: I will I know before I mean it’s a funny funny joke haha al played another
(1:04:49) Al: but what I will say is that although I don’t like this game overall I like some of what it does i
(1:04:56) Al: don’t like it overall I think it did the the good thing with the rogue light that cult of the lamb
(1:05:04) Al: did as well which is where your runs you you only lose what you got on the run so you don’t have to
(1:05:10) Kev: Yep. Yep.
(1:05:12) Al: restart anything it’s like if you die on your run that’s fine you’re back at the place with all the
(1:05:18) Al: things that you had before your run and that’s fine there are consequences but the consequences
(1:05:24) Al: are only for that run and that’s what I really like I don’t like when it’s like the whole game
(1:05:28) Al: is the run right I like having this little area that i’m building up and it’s like yeah sure
(1:05:33) Al: you’ve got that in like hades but it’s not really right all you’re doing is you’re building up your
(1:05:36) Kev: Yeah, yeah, I get it. No, Hades is just a bunch more about each run.
(1:05:38) Al: own abilities for the run you know exactly exactly so that’s what I like about so actually I don’t
(1:05:45) Al: like this game but it’s not because of the rogue light aspect because I…
(1:05:48) Al: …actually they did it roughly well.
(1:05:52) Kev: Furthermore, it’s not even randomly generated stuff, it’s one area that is set, and you’re
(1:06:00) Al: Yeah, exactly. So you don’t feel like you’re missing out on something. If you fail out on a
(1:06:01) Kev: just trying to get farther and farther into it every time you go in.
(1:06:08) Al: run, that’s fine. You’re going to do that exact same run again later and fix it.
(1:06:10) Kev: Yep, yep, and it’s called runs because, again, it’s dangerous, evil, spooky, miasma, fog.
(1:06:18) Kev: You have a limited amount of time before you start taking damage,
(1:06:22) Kev: because you do have health and stamina in this game, and so the fog itself is a threat. There
(1:06:27) Kev: are also enemies in there, like we mentioned, you can’t really fight them, at least up to
(1:06:33) Kev: what we’ve seen. So the question is, how do you avoid them? Okay, well, there you go.
(1:06:36) Al: No, I double check that is there definitely isn’t it’s not just it’s not just what they’re
(1:06:41) Kev: Well, there you go. So the question is, how are you avoiding them or evading them or whatever,
(1:06:46) Kev: right? And so this is where the core loop becomes. One of the big parts of jumping into the miasma
(1:06:54) Kev: is to find resources that have been left in the wasteland or whatever, right? Finding new seeds
(1:07:00) Kev: or items or potions or recipes or whatever. You bring them back to your home base, and then you
(1:07:06) Kev: You’ll work on gathering the resources you need from your farming or whatever.
(1:07:10) Kev: For example, you’ll get a potion that will help you pass this new obstacle, and it’s kind of like that cycle over and over, where you’re just trying to get further into the miasma, to find new resources to bring back, to gear yourself up better, and so on and so forth.
(1:07:29) Kev: Now, I should say, I reached a point where I cleared the first, I’ll call it a map, they call it the canyon area, and I actually cleared it and got rid of the miasma from that area.
(1:07:41) Kev: Permanently, so I can now just hang out there and the land is normal, and that opens up a little bit more stuff for you, but the second area they call the forest, I think, it’s the same idea, where you’re going in, there’s new obstacles, new threats, and you’re just trying to gather the resources, come back, and so on and so forth, right?
(1:08:02) Kev: And this is, I think, the heart of the problem. It’s hard to feel like you’re really working for anything, if that makes sense?
(1:08:10) Al: Yeah.
(1:08:10) Kev: Like, even your home base, you’re not making this huge farm, like you can, you can buy stuff, decorations and whatnot, but one, they’re not really encouraging you to do so, and two, it’s kind of expensive and hard to do so, I personally think so.
(1:08:24) Al: I think that’s the thing right like it’s merging farming games with kind of RPGs and not really
(1:08:24) Kev: - I think so.
(1:08:33) Al: doing either of them well and it’s kind of like taking the meh bits of both and smooshing
(1:08:38) Al: them together and funnily enough you end up with a big pile of meh.
(1:08:42) Kev: Yeah, yeah, unfortunately, um, it’s a shame. I really wanted to like this game, like I said, it looked very nice, the presentation, right?
(1:08:52) Kev: They even got, yeah, they even got some solid voice acting in there.
(1:08:52) Al: You’ve been wanting to cover this for months.
(1:08:57) Kev: Um, like, honestly, one of the biggest things that got me, they got Yuri Lowenthal to voice the cat, and Yuri Lowenthal is a big, big name.
(1:09:02) Al: And the cat is actually, I quite like him. This is the thing, I don’t think every game needs to
(1:09:11) Al: be character driven but it honestly feels like that’s the thing they’re doing best so lean into
(1:09:15) Al: that. Make more characters, make more character driven stories in this. Expand the farming a
(1:09:16) Kev: Yeah.
(1:09:21) Al: little bit and you’ve got a completely different game that would probably be much more fun to play.
(1:09:26) Kev: Yeah, yeah, you’re right. I think yeah
(1:09:28) Al: It’s not a million miles away from being a good game.
(1:09:31) Kev: No, no, it’s not right like they just I feel like it’s a problem of scope that they’re not expanding in the areas
(1:09:37) Kev: They need to like you said, right? Like if you could focus on building up a big farmer house or whatever, right?
(1:09:43) Kev: That’d be more interesting a goal to aim right? They try to have this plot and lore and backstory and stuff
(1:09:51) Kev: but if they got more characters were voiced and whatnot like huckleberry the cat that
(1:09:56) Kev: Would make it a lot more engaging instead of just reading stuff
(1:10:00) Kev: Like I said, I did find a third character. So that’s interesting
(1:10:06) Kev: But it’s it’s it’s still not enough to sustain the game
(1:10:11) Kev: They need to do a lot more of what they have they have the ingredients there we just needs more
(1:10:17) Kev: Um…
(1:10:18) Al: Yeah it doesn’t it doesn’t I think it’s in because it doesn’t need more characters it doesn’t need a
(1:10:23) Al: bigger story it doesn’t need more farming but it needs one of them it needs more of something
(1:10:28) Kev: Right, right. It needs more of something right? Yeah, it doesn’t have to be all of these because that’s that’s a lot of game
(1:10:34) Kev: But just one thing to expand like for me
(1:10:37) Kev: I think if you could expand on building up your farm and how you want it to look like and all that
(1:10:42) Kev: I think that would be a lot more engaging
(1:10:45) Kev: But it’s it’s just so hard, especially again with the core loop just kind of being
(1:10:51) Kev: Repetitive and go into the miasma and get stuff come out
(1:10:54) Kev: Stued up and whatnot, right? Like it’s it’s it’s
(1:10:58) Kev: It’s unfortunate that like that’s the only way to progress or or that’s the only real objective you feel like you have and it’s hard to feel
(1:11:06) Kev: like you’re
(1:11:08) Kev: you know you’re just like wondering like why am I doing this right like I’m you don’t feel very motivated let’s say
(1:11:14) Kev: to to accomplish it like they tell you why but it’s
(1:11:18) Kev: I don’t know it’s it’s it’s hard to feel very
(1:11:24) Kev: very
(1:11:24) Al: Telling you why is not the same as having a good reason.
(1:11:26) Kev: the eggs
(1:11:28) Kev: Thank you. That’s that’s an excellent way of putting it. Yes, absolutely, right. Um, so yeah, that that’s
(1:11:34) Kev: That’s the unfortunate part. Um
(1:11:37) Kev: like all that
(1:11:39) Kev: All in all it’s a very straightforward game. I’d say right like I feel like we’ve already covered most of it. Um, because
(1:11:44) Al: Yeah, well, that’s part of the problem. Right?
(1:11:45) Kev: Yeah, yeah, right
(1:11:50) Al: Because like, this is the thing, like I had four things on my list, farming, crafting, cooking,
(1:11:54) Al: miasma. And then as we got to the end of farming and went to go on to the next bit,
(1:12:00) Al: you were talking about going on to miasma. I was like, yeah,
(1:12:02) Al: because there’s nothing to talk about with crafting and cooking.
(1:12:04) Kev: I mean, it’s just oh, oh, there is one thing I want to talk about that I like, just a minor-esque thing, the inventory!
(1:12:06) Al: It is what it is exactly what you expect.
(1:12:10) Al: Oh, go for it.
(1:12:14) Kev: It is not just the list, it’s not just the bag, it’s
(1:12:18) Kev: I think they call it the, I think Resident Evil 4 did it first, the
(1:12:23) Kev: attache case, where basically you have, like, the items and you have to fit them in a grid, like, physically.
(1:12:28) Kev: They take up X number of blocks in your grid.
(1:12:30) Al: Yeah I’m glad you like it. I personally don’t like those things because it’s like I actually
(1:12:32) Kev: I kind of like it. It’s kind of cute.
(1:12:34) Kev: It’s different. I liked it.
(1:12:38) Kev: And they have a button to auto-sort it for you.
(1:12:40) Kev: Uh…
(1:12:42) Kev: Uh.
(1:12:47) Al: want I think that games like this nowadays should probably be much less restrictive in
(1:12:54) Al: these things not more restrictive. Like I still get frustrated that in Stardew there’s
(1:13:00) Al: still a maximum number like you get you start off with what is it eight and you can get
(1:13:07) Al: a maximum of 24 things like it’s bizarre that I can have everything in the game in Stardew
(1:13:14) Al: but I can still have a maximum of 24 different items. It’s just bizarre to me like I think
(1:13:16) Kev: Hahaha, you know, that’s a good point. Yeah
(1:13:23) Al: I can kind of see how it would be interesting for people who like like rogue lights and
(1:13:27) Al: stuff like that right because that’s the thing is like when you’re out on a
(1:13:30) Al: run you have to decide between these things but it’s just I don’t play games
(1:13:35) Kev: Well, yeah, I mean that’s the problem of the game, right?
(1:13:38) Al: for realism right I play games for other reasons like each to their own
(1:13:42) Kev: Sure
(1:13:44) Kev: Look I just like it cuz my Tetris brain likes it. I like Tetris
(1:13:49) Al: just play Tetris then don’t bring your Tetris into other games
(1:13:56) Kev: Well, okay. That was really quick. I think we’re done. I didn’t think we’d be done that fast. But yeah, there’s not much here, is there?
(1:13:59) Al: anything else
(1:14:01) Al: this game no we’re done
(1:14:04) Al: there we are yeah I mean I think who is there anybody you think you can
(1:14:12) Kev: Like I not I guess
(1:14:16) Kev: Someone who really wants a different kind of farming game because I will say it is different, right?
(1:14:22) Kev: it’s not your stardew clone like just to see if you like the ideas but like I it’s
(1:14:28) Kev: It’s I don’t know it didn’t get to its hooks
(1:14:32) Al: yeah well that’s an interesting point right because as as we like we are I certainly and
(1:14:38) Al: I think you’re kind of you’re similar in most cases I am very strong that a game’s worth is
(1:14:43) Al: not based on how many hours I put into it it’s about the fun that I get out of that and so i
(1:14:45) Kev: Oh, absolutely. Yeah, no, I mean, we talked about Princess Peach.
(1:14:48) Al: would say that we’re well exactly exactly and so nobody’s going to put in 100 hours into this game
(1:14:54) Al: but that doesn’t mean you won’t have fun in the 10 hours or 20 hours that you put into it
(1:15:01) Al: And if you like the idea of
(1:15:02) Al: a different kind of farming and you like the idea of a small amount of exploration
(1:15:10) Al: in trying to you know get rid of you know figure out the story and get rid of what you need to get
(1:15:16) Al: rid of and you want to you know support developers that are making different kinds of farming games
(1:15:25) Al: it’s not an expensive game like it might be worth it just for that.
(1:15:27) Kev: I was about to say that we got it for five bucks on sale, right, or USD, I got it for five bucks USD, and it’s worth that, absolutely.
(1:15:36) Kev: Um, I, uh, like, and I admire them for doing something different, um, also, it’s not a poorly made game, like, I think it runs well, it looks good, everything is very compelling, I didn’t experience any bugs or crashes or anything like that, so, you know, I respect them for that.
(1:15:54) Al: Yeah, it’s not bad. It’s just limited in scope. And it doesn’t take its interesting ideas to its actual conclusions.
(1:15:57) Kev: Yep, that’s a problem.
(1:16:06) Kev: So, who knows? I honestly don’t expect we’ll see any big updates, but maybe one day.
(1:16:12) Al: No, and it’s been out for over a year now. And it hasn’t had an update in that entire time.
(1:16:21) Al: That’s not true, there was one update a month ago.
(1:16:24) Al: We’re not far off a year since the last update, so I don’t think there’s anything coming for it.
(1:16:32) Al: It is what it is, this game is what it is.
(1:16:35) Al: Alright, well, thank you for joining me to talk about Homestead Arcana, now you can stop bugging me about playing this game.
(1:16:41) Al: And you can move on to, you can instead move on to bugging me about fabledom.
(1:16:46) Kev: Not a fabled um
(1:16:48) Kev: Yep, but I have hi-ho. I have hot well. I had high hopes about this one didn’t I so and
(1:16:54) Al: It feels dangerous to do. Laughter
(1:16:56) Kev: But hey hey look all right spoilers the real the real thing maybe I’m working on getting Yuri
(1:17:02) Kev: I’m seeing if I can get him to look our way. Yeah, you do know are you I think I’ve told you’re familiar with some of his
(1:17:06) Al: I recognize the name but I can’t remember I feel like you’ve talked to me oh he was in big hero six
(1:17:17) Al: and and apparently he was he was in spider-man across the spider-verse and art
(1:17:18) Kev: He probably was, I don’t remember.
(1:17:22) Kev: Yeah, he is Spider-Man! He’s the voice of Peter!
(1:17:25) Al: oh he is right he’s he’s yeah he’s peter b parker
(1:17:29) Kev: He’s frickin’ Spider-Man!
(1:17:31) Kev: He’s also Sasuke from Naruto, one of like, the biggest animes ever, so…
(1:17:32) Al: um
(1:17:35) Kev: There you go. Okay.
(1:17:37) Kev: Anyways…
(1:17:37) Al: Oh, he’s in the game as well. He’s in the he does he does the the oh wait oh no he is right he is
(1:17:44) Al: the one in the games and he plays the one in the games in across the spider verse so he’s not yeah
(1:17:48) Kev: you go, exactly. Yeah, yeah he is, I know which character too.
(1:17:51) Al: he’s in a cassette beast as well and he is in the bad batch and being at a three there’s a lot of
(1:18:03) Al: things.
(1:18:03) Kev: He is in a lot of things, Al.
(1:18:06) Kev: Okay, he is so big.
(1:18:07) Al: My word. He’s an arcane…
(1:18:09) Kev: There’s, um, the TALES series, which is a very big RPG series in Japan.
(1:18:13) Kev: P-A-L-E-S, um, TALES series.
(1:18:16) Kev: They named a character after him, because he’s that big.
(1:18:19) Al: Oh, that’s funny. Yeah. He’s in Bugsnax, Rune Factory 5, Crash Bandicoot 4, Genshin Impact,
(1:18:21) Kev: A protagonist! Like, one of their main characters after him.
(1:18:24) Kev: Wild, wild stuff. Great character.
(1:18:34) Al: a lot a lot of things, a lot of animated things and a lot of games. Persona 5. Right,
(1:18:40) Al: great. Thank you, Kevin. Where can people find you on the internet?
(1:18:44) Kev: Find me at Koopa Prez on Twitter if you want to see my personal, at SpryderSquared if you want to see my art account, or, more importantly, find me at Rainbow Road Radio, the podcast, uh, Mario-centric podcast I do with our mutual friend, Al, uh, Alex, excuse me, um, yep, no, wrong Al, um, uh, yep, uh, we, we do a lot of Mario things, like I said, we’re playing a lot of the classics right now, uh, last episode we did, oh boy, you learned about,
(1:18:57) Al: Nope, wrong name beginning with Al.
(1:19:14) Kev: learned about rap, and hip-hop, and Mario, these things tied together,
(1:19:18) Al: That was such a wild section. I had the realization that they were all real the moment you had
(1:19:22) Kev: it was, yeah, yeah, yeah, right?
(1:19:26) Al: the realization as well. We were both. I was like, oh, they’re all going to be real, aren’t
(1:19:32) Al: they? And then you said it. It was like, that’s perfect.
(1:19:33) Kev: Yeah, and it, what hit me was, like, Alex is talented, but I don’t think he’s a hip-hop writer
(1:19:40) Kev: like this.
(1:19:42) Al: Well my assumption is that he would use an AI thing to do it because that would be like
(1:19:45) Kev: or that, yeah, but
(1:19:46) Al: the most, the most
(1:19:48) Al: realistic thing you could do, but anyway, yeah, it’s very funny.
(1:19:49) Kev: yeah, anyways
(1:19:51) Kev: so yeah, go listen to that, that was
(1:19:53) Kev: that was wild, right?
(1:19:55) Kev: we have lots of wild rides over there
(1:19:57) Kev: in mario world land
(1:19:59) Kev: what about you Al, where are people on you?
(1:20:01) Al: Oh, you can find me here on this podcast because I’m back.
(1:20:06) Al: I didn’t expect to be off for four episodes, it just that’s how it happened.
(1:20:10) Kev: And then you’ll be off until we’re both back on again!
(1:20:14) Kev: No, that’s not true. Yeah, you’re in the next one. No.
(1:20:15) Al: No, I’m currently signed up for the next four episodes.
(1:20:22) Al: You can also find me on mastodon.scott and twitter at thescottbot.
(1:20:27) Al: You can find the podcast on tumblr and on twitter at THSPOD.
(1:20:31) Al: You can find all the information about the podcast including feedback,
(1:20:34) Al: form and links at harvestseason.club, our lovely website.
(1:20:40) Al: One of the links you can find there is to our Patreon,
(1:20:42) Al: where you can subscribe and give me money to keep the podcast going.
(1:20:47) Kev: In exchange, we’ll give you access to a secret society club called the Greenhouse where you
(1:20:54) Al: Yeah, we just did two episodes about Eurovision.
(1:20:55) Kev: can listen to us talk about things that aren’t farming games or cottagecore.
(1:21:03) Al: So if you want me and Cody’s opinions on this year’s Eurovision, you can get that there.
(1:21:06) Kev: question. I haven’t listened to the Eurovision episode. So was the stuff already happening by
(1:21:12) Kev: then? And by the stuff, I mean, the crazy stuff that happened, or was that before?
(1:21:16) Al: We, we, we, we talk about that in the second Eurovision episode. The first Eurovision episode,
(1:21:26) Al: we mostly stay away from any controversies, but there were too many controversies by the
(1:21:30) Al: time we recorded our second episode that I was like, we cannot avoid this. And the next
(1:21:30) Kev: I was about to say that, yeah.
(1:21:36) Kev: Okay, we’re going to avoid controversy, so, people sing!
(1:21:43) Al: episode that’ll be coming out in a few days is…
(1:21:46) Al: an X-Men ‘97 episode with me and Kevin. So we’ve now finished the series because it just finished.
(1:21:55) Al: So we talk about that and I mean it’s not close, it’s close to the length of this episode so
(1:22:02) Kev: It’s it was a good show. Shocker. I like it.
(1:22:04) Al: you’re getting pretty good bang for your buck in that one.
(1:22:08) Al: Yeah we have things to say about a season that we both enjoyed. Imagine that.
(1:22:14) Al: Yeah, I think that’s everything then.
(1:22:16) Al: Thank you Kevin for joining me.
(1:22:19) Al: Thank you listeners for listening, and until next time, have a good harvest.
(1:22:22) Kev: harvest there I did it okay
(1:22:22) Theme Tune: The Harvest Season is created by Al McKinley with support from our Patrons including our
(1:22:34) Theme Tune: pro farmers Kevin, Stuart and Alisa.
(1:22:38) Theme Tune: Our art is done by Micah the Brave and our music is done by Nick Burgess.
(1:22:42) Theme Tune: Feel free to visit our website harvestseason.club for show notes and links to things we discussed
(1:22:48) Theme Tune: in this episode.
(1:22:51) Theme Tune: you
(1:22:58) Al: Right fantastic. Any questions?
(1:23:04) Kev: No, none related to this show.
(1:23:08) Al: All right let’s see how quickly we can get through this insane amount of news.
(1:23:15) Al: And let’s see what we have to talk about Homestead Arcana. I have definitely played it I promise.

The Harvest Season

The Cat is The Best Character

Timings

Links

Contact

Transcript