Games of Shame. You know you have them. They sit in your closet, collecting dust: Little Jewels that you always tell yourself you are going to play, but never get around to. Well, that's about to change soldier. You've been drafted to join the Squadron of Shame. Here we paratroop into the bargain bins and rescue the unappreciated games that deserve to be saved. From there we battle through the trenches as a squad. At the end of the day, we take a moment to break down what made the whole experience worth fighting for by sharing war stories, reflections, and cigars. But the fight isn't just on the front of retro games: Any game deemed "fit for duty" by command can be put on the pile. At the end of the day, the reason we fight isn't just to discover new experiences, it's to answer that simple and fundamental question: "Why do we play?" Now suit up. The pile awaits. http://www.squadronofshame.com en-us Copyright 2008 Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:50:00 +0000 Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:50:00 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss info@squadronofshame.com 60 The Squadron of Shame Paratroop into the bargain bins and rescue the unappreciated games that deserve to be saved with the Squadron of Shame. Games of Shame. You know you have them. They sit in your closet, collecting dust: Little Jewels that you always tell yourself you are going to play, but never get around to. Well, that's about to change soldier. You've been drafted to join the Squadron of Shame. Here we paratroop into the bargain bins and rescue the unappreciated games that deserve to be saved. From there we battle through the trenches as a squad. At the end of the day, we take a moment to break down what made the whole experience worth fighting for by sharing war stories, reflections, and cigars. But the fight isn't just on the front of retro games: Any game deemed "fit for duty" by command can be put on the pile. At the end of the day, the reason we fight isn't just to discover new experiences, it's to answer that simple and fundamental question: "Why do we play?" Now suit up. The pile awaits. The Squadron of Shame info@squadronofshame.com No http://www.squadronofshame.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/uncharted.mp3 Neither underappreciated nor overlooked today, Naughty Dog's Uncharted is nevertheless a game which more people need to play, purely for the sheer quality of its writing and gameplay. The Squad take an in-depth look at this spectacular PS3 title and share their thoughts. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Joey "Shinogu" Chiu, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti, George "Regulus" Kokoris, Chris "Papapishu" Person and a special guest appearance from Alex "Roc Jr." Whittington. Podcasts Sun, 25 Oct 2009 01:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad play through Naughty Dog's awesome Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. Neither underappreciated nor overlooked today, Naughty Dog's Uncharted is nevertheless a game which more people need to play, purely for the sheer quality of its writing and gameplay. The Squad take an in-depth look at this spectacular PS3 title and share their thoughts. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Joey "Shinogu" Chiu, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti, George "Regulus" Kokoris, Chris "Papapishu" Person and a special guest appearance from Alex "Roc Jr." Whittington. 02:16:50 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, uncharted, nathan drake, drake, elena, amy hennig, writing, script, screenplay, playstation 3, ps3, sony http://www.squadronofshame.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/pathologic.mp3 The Squad play creepy weird-ass Russian tragic disease-ridden cesspit Pathologic so you don't have to. Along the way, they encounter broken play mechanics, terrible graphics, an appalling translation... and one of the most memorable and compelling artistic visions of recent years. This episode was inspired by Quintin Smith's fabulous three-part article on Pathologic on Rock Paper Shotgun, which can be found at http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2008/04/10/butchering-pathologic-part-1-the-body/. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Chris "Iscariot83" Hernandez and Lynette "Rampantbicycle" Terrill. Podcasts Sun, 4 Oct 2009 21:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad play Pathologic... so you don't have to. The Squad play creepy weird-ass Russian tragic disease-ridden cesspit Pathologic so you don't have to. Along the way, they encounter broken play mechanics, terrible graphics, an appalling translation... and one of the most memorable and compelling artistic visions of recent years. This episode was inspired by Quintin Smith's fabulous three-part article on Pathologic on Rock Paper Shotgun, which can be found at http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2008/04/10/butchering-pathologic-part-1-the-body/. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Chris "Iscariot83" Hernandez and Lynette "Rampantbicycle" Terrill. 02:59:50 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, pathologic, disease, Russian, buka, steppes, weird, brown, bad translation, ice-pick lodge, death http://www.squadronofshame.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/homeworld.mp3 It's the Beige and Regulus show! The Squad finally hits up Homeworld with a small but elite force. Homeworld was Relic "Company of Heroes" Entertainment's first game and represented a significant departure from the "traditional" RTS. We discuss the reasons for this at length along with a continuation of our discussion from The Dig about the nature of sci-fi. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mark "Beige" Whiting and George "Regulus" Kokoris. Podcasts Sat, 15 Aug 2009 20:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad get all lonely in space with Relic's Homeworld. It's the Beige and Regulus show! The Squad finally hits up Homeworld with a small but elite force. Homeworld was Relic "Company of Heroes" Entertainment's first game and represented a significant departure from the "traditional" RTS. We discuss the reasons for this at length along with a continuation of our discussion from The Dig about the nature of sci-fi. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mark "Beige" Whiting and George "Regulus" Kokoris. 02:10:00 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, homeworld, RTS, space, loneliness, Yes, The Ladder, Sierra, Relic, Vivendi, space is big, really big http://www.squadronofshame.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/thedig.mp3 The Dig: A beautiful, bizarre adventure with a troubled history. Originally penned to be an episode of Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories, The Dig went through a number of mysterious transformations to become the point-and-click classic it is today. In this episode, we explore the game's history, discuss "sci-fi" vs "shooting aliens with big guns" and celebrate LucasArts' wonderful decision to bring their back catalogue to Steam. Featuring an elite force of Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison and Jeff "CptCarnage" Mossop. Podcasts Wed, 5 Aug 2009 18:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad explore a strange alien world in LucasArts' classic adventure The Dig, newly released on Steam. The Dig: A beautiful, bizarre adventure with a troubled history. Originally penned to be an episode of Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories, The Dig went through a number of mysterious transformations to become the point-and-click classic it is today. In this episode, we explore the game's history, discuss "sci-fi" vs "shooting aliens with big guns" and celebrate LucasArts' wonderful decision to bring their back catalogue to Steam. Featuring an elite force of Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison and Jeff "CptCarnage" Mossop. 01:53:40 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, adventure, RPG, The Dig, LucasArts, Monkey Island, SCUMM, Steven Spielberg, Loom, alien, xenoarchaeology, extraterrestrial, scifi, sci-fi, science fiction http://www.squadronofshame.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/barkley.mp3 If you don't slam with the best, you're just jamming with the rest. That's the mantra the Squad have in mind as they take on Tales of Game's [sic] classic sequel to Genesis b-ball title, "Barkley, Shut Up and Jam". But this is no ordinary sports game sequel. No, this is a post-cyberpocalyptic adventure starring none other than Charles Barkley in the leading role. Hilarity and bizarreness ensues. Featuring the massive all-star cast of Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti, AJ "Ajguy" Minotti, George "Regulus" Kokoris, Michael "MJPilon" Pilon and Chris "Papapishu" Person. Podcasts Fri, 19 Jun 2009 05:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad slam with the best. You know, so they don't have to jam with the rest. If you don't slam with the best, you're just jamming with the rest. That's the mantra the Squad have in mind as they take on Tales of Game's [sic] classic sequel to Genesis b-ball title, "Barkley, Shut Up and Jam". But this is no ordinary sports game sequel. No, this is a post-cyberpocalyptic adventure starring none other than Charles Barkley in the leading role. Hilarity and bizarreness ensues. Featuring the massive all-star cast of Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti, AJ "Ajguy" Minotti, George "Regulus" Kokoris, Michael "MJPilon" Pilon and Chris "Papapishu" Person. 01:59:14 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, adventure, RPG, parody, weeaboo, goon, Charles Barkley, slamming, jamming, Space Jam, b-ball, basketball, JRPG, Japanese http://www.squadronofshame.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/indy.mp3 The Squad take a trip back in time to the golden era of point and click adventures and educate Beige on the wonders of Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis - to many, one of LucasArts' finest games and certainly one of the best Indy games of all time. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Jeff "Feenwäger" Parsons, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti and introducing Ed "Roth Dog" Padgett. We were scheduled to be joined by Pishu but he'd like it to be known that his cable company are bottom-feeding algae eaters from the depths of Hell. PS. Pete 4 Sophia 4EVA. Podcasts Sun, 10 May 2009 23:45:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad help one Dr. Indiana Jones search for the lost city of Atlantis. The Squad take a trip back in time to the golden era of point and click adventures and educate Beige on the wonders of Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis - to many, one of LucasArts' finest games and certainly one of the best Indy games of all time. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Jeff "Feenwäger" Parsons, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti and introducing Ed "Roth Dog" Padgett. We were scheduled to be joined by Pishu but he'd like it to be known that his cable company are bottom-feeding algae eaters from the depths of Hell. PS. Pete 4 Sophia 4EVA. 01:46:40 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, LucasArts, indy, Indiana Jones, sophia, adventure, point-and-click, SCUMM, SCUMMVM, talkie, CD-ROM, VGA, Doug Lee, Harrison Ford http://www.squadronofshame.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/c64.mp3 The Squad jump back in time to re-educate one of the Exploding Minotti brothers on the art of loading games from cassette and playing wiffleball for an hour while you waited for Jumpman to load, the original Red Ring of Death and some of our most fondly-remembered old games. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Jeff "Feenwäger" Parsons and AJ "Ajguy" Minotti as resident young 'un. This episode features the following music from the High Voltage Sid Collection, available at http://www.hvsc.c64.org/ : Zybex Theme (Adam Gilmore), Commando Theme (Rob Hubbard), Bubble Dizzy (Chris Lightfoot), Vixen (Jason C. Brooke), Bionic Commando (Unknown composer), After Burner (Adam Gilmore), Magnum PI (just for Beige), Gerry the Germ (Rob Hubbard), Golden Axe (Jeroen Tel/Maniacs of Noise), C606 (Alex B), I Died Defending the Mothership (Uneksija), Alternate Reality (Atari version by Gary Gilbertson), Archon (Tommy Dunbar), Archon II (Tommy Dunbar), I'll Be With You! (Gregfeel), Spy vs Spy II (Nick Scarim), Commodore 64 (Jeff), M.U.L.E. (Roy Glover), Selections from Winter Games - Hot Dog, Biathlon, Free Skating, Figure Skating, Ski Jump, Speed Skating, Bobsleigh (Epyx), Like Reyn (Yaemon), Far Beyond (Carl Pritchett), Zzap Crack Intro (Unknown Artist), Dark Princess (Havoc), The Corporation (Adam Gilmore) Podcasts Wed, 22 Apr 2009 18:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad jump back to the 1980s to explore the world of the Commodore 64 and re-educate those among us who weren't around for it the first time. The Squad jump back in time to re-educate one of the Exploding Minotti brothers on the art of loading games from cassette and playing wiffleball for an hour while you waited for Jumpman to load, the original Red Ring of Death and some of our most fondly-remembered old games. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Jeff "Feenwäger" Parsons and AJ "Ajguy" Minotti as resident young 'un. This episode features the following music from the High Voltage Sid Collection, available at http://www.hvsc.c64.org/ : Zybex Theme (Adam Gilmore), Commando Theme (Rob Hubbard), Bubble Dizzy (Chris Lightfoot), Vixen (Jason C. Brooke), Bionic Commando (Unknown composer), After Burner (Adam Gilmore), Magnum PI (just for Beige), Gerry the Germ (Rob Hubbard), Golden Axe (Jeroen Tel/Maniacs of Noise), C606 (Alex B), I Died Defending the Mothership (Uneksija), Alternate Reality (Atari version by Gary Gilbertson), Archon (Tommy Dunbar), Archon II (Tommy Dunbar), I'll Be With You! (Gregfeel), Spy vs Spy II (Nick Scarim), Commodore 64 (Jeff), M.U.L.E. (Roy Glover), Selections from Winter Games - Hot Dog, Biathlon, Free Skating, Figure Skating, Ski Jump, Speed Skating, Bobsleigh (Epyx), Like Reyn (Yaemon), Far Beyond (Carl Pritchett), Zzap Crack Intro (Unknown Artist), Dark Princess (Havoc), The Corporation (Adam Gilmore) 02:01:15 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, commodore, c64, 8-bit, SID, POKEY, PEEK, POKE, RUN, LOAD, BASIC, assembly language, tapes, cassettes, 1980s, 80s, Atari, Page 6, GTIA, ANTIC, Alternate Reality, Jumpman, Winter Games, Epyx, HERO, MULE, EA, SAM http://www.squadronofshame.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/eternaldarkness.mp3 The Squad explore the deep darkness of Silicon Knights' classic survival horror adventure Eternal Darkness. Along the way we may or may not go a little bit insane, but it's nothing you can't handle with a little NEROKATH SANTAK XEL'LOTATH on your side... Do not adjust your media player. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti. Podcasts Tue, 24 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad stand peering deep into that darkness, wondering, fearing, doubting. The Squad explore the deep darkness of Silicon Knights' classic survival horror adventure Eternal Darkness. Along the way we may or may not go a little bit insane, but it's nothing you can't handle with a little NEROKATH SANTAK XEL'LOTATH on your side... Do not adjust your media player. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti. 01:42:28 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, Eternal Darkness, Silicon Knights, Denis Dyack, Too Human, adventure, survival horror, sanity, music, insane, weird, Nintendo, Gamecube http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/gamemusic.mp3 The Squad take a break from missions for a discussion on game music from early 8-bit days to modern orchestral classics and more leftfield, experimental work. We're joined by veteran composer Chris Tilton of Mercenaries and Black fame for an expert perspective! Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Tom "sinfony" Haley, Chris "Papapishu" Person and special guest Chris Tilton. Podcasts Mon, 9 Mar 2009 10:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad explore the world of video game music with an expert perspective from composer Chris Tilton. The Squad take a break from missions for a discussion on game music from early 8-bit days to modern orchestral classics and more leftfield, experimental work. We're joined by veteran composer Chris Tilton of Mercenaries and Black fame for an expert perspective! Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Tom "sinfony" Haley, Chris "Papapishu" Person and special guest Chris Tilton. 01:56:02 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, Steve Purcell, Sam and Max, Lucasarts, Travellers Tales, adventure, point and click, Sierra, music, orchestral, Mass Effect, katamari, flower, uematsu, final fantasy, resident evil, electronic, midi, iMuse http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/samnmax.mp3 The Squad put on their trilbies and hit the road with Sam and Max, taking in the fun and hijinks of both Sam and Max Hit The Road and the more recent Sam and Max Season One series of episodic games from Telltale Games. Along the way we explore our Personal Piles of Shame, have the inevitable "evolution/devolution of the adventure game" discussion and Pishu shares his number 1 tip for great sex. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Chris "Papapishu" Person and special guest appearance from Jenn "Jenn" Frank. Podcasts Sat, 7 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad explores the wonderful world of Sam and Max. The Squad put on their trilbies and hit the road with Sam and Max, taking in the fun and hijinks of both Sam and Max Hit The Road and the more recent Sam and Max Season One series of episodic games from Telltale Games. Along the way we explore our Personal Piles of Shame, have the inevitable "evolution/devolution of the adventure game" discussion and Pishu shares his number 1 tip for great sex. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Chris "Papapishu" Person and special guest appearance from Jenn "Jenn" Frank. 01:52:45 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame, Steve Purcell, Sam and Max, Lucasarts, Travellers Tales, adventure, point and click, Sierra http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/noshame.mp3 In the first episode of 2009 we take off our Shame-tinted spectacles and delve into the murky waters of No Shame. We discuss, among other things, games that everyone else loves that we hate, games that everyone else loves that we love, our "Ugly Girlfriend" games and the usual banter. Pishu also shares his best story yet as an out-take. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mark "Beige" Whiting, AJ "Ajguy" Minotti, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Jeff "Feenwäger" Parsons. Warning: Contains light-hearted filth. Podcasts Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No In this episode we have little to no Shame whatsoever. Join us for a rollicking (and faintly filthy) good time. In the first episode of 2009 we take off our Shame-tinted spectacles and delve into the murky waters of No Shame. We discuss, among other things, games that everyone else loves that we hate, games that everyone else loves that we love, our "Ugly Girlfriend" games and the usual banter. Pishu also shares his best story yet as an out-take. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mark "Beige" Whiting, AJ "Ajguy" Minotti, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Jeff "Feenwäger" Parsons. Warning: Contains light-hearted filth. 01:55:40 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/retrospectacular.mp3 In this, our 2008 Retro-Spectacular, the Squad looks back at the good times and bad from 2008 and inaugurates the annual Shameys ceremony. (Apologies for the sound quality on Pete... his midichlorians were interfering with Skype, or something). Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, George "Regulus" Kokoris, AJ "Ajguy" Minotti and Michael "Tolkoto" Minotti. Music credits: Nullsleep - Midnight Glances (nullsleep.com), Alex Esquivel - Mountain Breaker (http://www.ocremix.org) and Club Kukeiha/goat - Castlevania 3 Stained Glass Filth (http://www.ocremix.org). Podcasts Sun, 14 Dec 2008 18:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No As 2008 draws to a close, the Squad take a look back at Shame over the past year. In this, our 2008 Retro-Spectacular, the Squad looks back at the good times and bad from 2008 and inaugurates the annual Shameys ceremony. (Apologies for the sound quality on Pete... his midichlorians were interfering with Skype, or something). Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, George "Regulus" Kokoris, AJ "Ajguy" Minotti and Michael "Tolkoto" Minotti. Music credits: Nullsleep - Midnight Glances (nullsleep.com), Alex Esquivel - Mountain Breaker (http://www.ocremix.org) and Club Kukeiha/goat - Castlevania 3 Stained Glass Filth (http://www.ocremix.org). 01:49:54 games, underappreciated, underdogs, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/lostwinds.mp3 In our second side mission we discuss LostWinds, a platformer well worth playing but far too short for a main mission. Almost as short, in fact, as this description. Featuring Chris "Papapishu" Person, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti, David "Swordguy" Winn and George "Regulus" Kokoris, with a special guest appearance by Rasputin's nether regions. Podcasts Wed, 2 Dec 2008 18:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad take on the quirky and extremely short platformer LostWinds. In our second side mission we discuss LostWinds, a platformer well worth playing but far too short for a main mission. Almost as short, in fact, as this description. Featuring Chris "Papapishu" Person, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti, David "Swordguy" Winn and George "Regulus" Kokoris, with a special guest appearance by Rasputin's nether regions. 00:47:37 games, underappreciated, underdogs, LostWinds, Frontier, David Braben, Wii, platformer, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/fallout.mp3 In the wake of Bethesda's recent release of Fallout 3, the Squad delve back into their back catalogue of missions for a retrospective exploration of the Fallout series as a whole. Also featuring our usual Personal Piles of Shame and Squad Recommends segments. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Chris "Iscariot83" Hernandez, Mat "Krypter" Krepicz and Chris "Papapishu" Person. Podcasts Sun, 30 Nov 2008 18:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad revisit the Fallout series following Bethesda's recent release of Fallout 3. In the wake of Bethesda's recent release of Fallout 3, the Squad delve back into their back catalogue of missions for a retrospective exploration of the Fallout series as a whole. Also featuring our usual Personal Piles of Shame and Squad Recommends segments. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Chris "Iscariot83" Hernandez, Mat "Krypter" Krepicz and Chris "Papapishu" Person. 02:05:00 games, underappreciated, underdogs, Black Isle, Interplay, Fallout, Baldur's Gate, Planescape Torment, RPG, isolation, post-apocalyptic, nuclear, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/republiccommando.mp3 Welcome back! Apologies for the hiatus but a certain Jedi had to go and get himself married. It's back to business as usual now though as the Squad dive into one of the finest Star Wars games in (relatively) recent years. Tolkoto also reveals his worryingly comprehensive knowledge of Muppet Babies lore. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti and AJ "Ajguy" Minotti with Bowley on spoons and text chat. Podcasts Sun, 16 Nov 2008 18:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad return after a break for Jedi to get married with a look at Star Wars: Republic Commando. Welcome back! Apologies for the hiatus but a certain Jedi had to go and get himself married. It's back to business as usual now though as the Squad dive into one of the finest Star Wars games in (relatively) recent years. Tolkoto also reveals his worryingly comprehensive knowledge of Muppet Babies lore. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti and AJ "Ajguy" Minotti with Bowley on spoons and text chat. 01:54:52 games, underappreciated, underdogs, Lucasarts, Halo, star wars, New Zealand, jango fett, delta squad, shooter, FPS, co-op, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/yakuza.mp3 The Squad descend into the Tokyo underworld for the game that many call Japan's answer to GTA. Along the way, we run into some of the foulest-mouthed Japanese people you will ever encounter, suffer the indignity of "Kancho" and stomp on a few faces. Apologies for the crappy sound quality in places on this episode - Skype was trying desperately to let us down on this one but fortunately the Squad fought bravely on to bring you another great show for your entertainment. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, introducing Nick "A.I_Impaired" Bawden and Christopher "Bowley" Bowley on spoons and sarcastic text comments. Balls. Podcasts Sun, 5 Oct 2008 18:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad enter the Tokyo underworld for a trip into the world of Yakuza. The Squad descend into the Tokyo underworld for the game that many call Japan's answer to GTA. Along the way, we run into some of the foulest-mouthed Japanese people you will ever encounter, suffer the indignity of "Kancho" and stomp on a few faces. Apologies for the crappy sound quality in places on this episode - Skype was trying desperately to let us down on this one but fortunately the Squad fought bravely on to bring you another great show for your entertainment. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, introducing Nick "A.I_Impaired" Bawden and Christopher "Bowley" Bowley on spoons and sarcastic text comments. Balls. 01:50:02 games, underappreciated, underdogs, Sega, dragon, GTA, Grand Theft Auto, crime, organized crime, mafia, yakuza, Ryu, Kazuma, Japan, Haruka, Shenmue, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/persona3.mp3 It's the first of our irregular special side-mission podcasts today as we explore the world of teenagers pointing guns at their heads, the tarot and giant penises riding chariots. Yes, you read that correctly. Persona 3 is an incredibly long game - too long, perhaps, for a Squad main mission, so those of us who have played, finished (or "almost" finished) it decided to get together for a chat and a chin-stroke. This podcast also features Beige and Pishu's report from PAX 08, our regular Personal Piles of Shame section and selections from the soundtrack of the game. Featuring: Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison. Podcasts Sun, 21 Sep 2008 16:30:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad launches their first "black-op" side mission by tackling the lengthy and wonderful Persona 3. It's the first of our irregular special side-mission podcasts today as we explore the world of teenagers pointing guns at their heads, the tarot and giant penises riding chariots. Yes, you read that correctly. Persona 3 is an incredibly long game - too long, perhaps, for a Squad main mission, so those of us who have played, finished (or "almost" finished) it decided to get together for a chat and a chin-stroke. This podcast also features Beige and Pishu's report from PAX 08, our regular Personal Piles of Shame section and selections from the soundtrack of the game. Featuring: Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison. 02:26:46 games, underappreciated, underdogs, Atlus, Konami, tarot, Persona 3, Evoker, Japan, Mara, penis-on-a-chariot, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/okami.mp3 It's a bumper value show this week as Iscariot83 and sinfony join some of the regular SquadCasters to discuss Clover Studios' "Zelda-with-a-wolf" masterpiece of sumi-e style artwork, Okami. Along the way we inevitably get sidetracked down various dark alleys, including the nature of good and evil, Eastern vs Western game design philosophy and Pishu's eye-opening (and mildly terrifying) discussion of games as a modern-day replacement for ritual. Featuring the ChrisFest '08 triumvirate of Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Chris "Iscariot83" Hernandez and Chris "Papapishu" Person, along with Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Tom "sinfony" Haley, Mark "Beige" Whiting and George "Regulus" Kokoris. Podcasts Wed, 13 Aug 2008 20:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad finally play through the lengthy and beautiful Okami. It's a bumper value show this week as Iscariot83 and sinfony join some of the regular SquadCasters to discuss Clover Studios' "Zelda-with-a-wolf" masterpiece of sumi-e style artwork, Okami. Along the way we inevitably get sidetracked down various dark alleys, including the nature of good and evil, Eastern vs Western game design philosophy and Pishu's eye-opening (and mildly terrifying) discussion of games as a modern-day replacement for ritual. Featuring the ChrisFest '08 triumvirate of Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Chris "Iscariot83" Hernandez and Chris "Papapishu" Person, along with Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Tom "sinfony" Haley, Mark "Beige" Whiting and George "Regulus" Kokoris. 02:07:16 games, underappreciated, underdogs, Capcom, Okami, Clover Studios, wolf, Amaterasu, Issun, Japan, folklore, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/starcontrol2.mp3 Our second retrospective mission sees the *campers* head out to the *starfish* to explore the *chocolate* in Star Control II. Along the way, we discuss *smells*, enjoy the *sauce* and pull a Captain Kirk on the Syreen. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti and Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison. Podcasts Sat, 2 Aug 2008 18:00:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad revisit one of their earliest missions, Star Control II. Our second retrospective mission sees the *campers* head out to the *starfish* to explore the *chocolate* in Star Control II. Along the way, we discuss *smells*, enjoy the *sauce* and pull a Captain Kirk on the Syreen. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti and Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison. 01:57:16 games, underappreciated, underdogs, Toys for Bob, Star Control II, ur-quan, open source, frungy, spathi, zoqfotpik, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/beyondgoodevil.mp3 Our first retrospective mission sees us returning to the unique charms of Michel Ancel's classic "Beyond Good and Evil", which we first tackled as a Squad way back in 2006. Along the way we have difficulty describing genre-busting gameplay, attempt to determine exactly why BGE sank almost without trace first time around... and as a special bonus, Pishu shares with us his winning formula for successful video game heroines. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, A.J. "Ajguy" Minotti, George "LordRegulus" Kokoris and Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison. Podcasts Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:44:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No A trip into the strange and wonderful world of Beyond Good and Evil. Our first retrospective mission sees us returning to the unique charms of Michel Ancel's classic "Beyond Good and Evil", which we first tackled as a Squad way back in 2006. Along the way we have difficulty describing genre-busting gameplay, attempt to determine exactly why BGE sank almost without trace first time around... and as a special bonus, Pishu shares with us his winning formula for successful video game heroines. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, A.J. "Ajguy" Minotti, George "LordRegulus" Kokoris and Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison. 01:40:14 games, underappreciated, underdogs, Michel Ancel, Beyond Good and Evil, Ubisoft, Ubi, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/Silent%20Hill%202.mp3 A break from the "underappreciated" tradition this time as the Squad tackle the fog-covered world of Silent Hill 2 and its wonderfully personal story of protagonist James Sunderland's struggle to come to terms with his wife's death. Along the way we run into broken play mechanics, get juice boxes stuck where they don't belong and get anally violated by Pyramid Head but somehow both we and Silent Hill 2 survive the experience. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti. Contains some strong language and mature themes. Podcasts Wed, 18 Jun 2008 20:42:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad tackle the fog-covered world of Silent Hill 2. A break from the "underappreciated" tradition this time as the Squad tackle the fog-covered world of Silent Hill 2 and its wonderfully personal story of protagonist James Sunderland's struggle to come to terms with his wife's death. Along the way we run into broken play mechanics, get juice boxes stuck where they don't belong and get anally violated by Pyramid Head but somehow both we and Silent Hill 2 survive the experience. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti. Contains some strong language and mature themes. 02:33:51 games, underappreciated, underdogs, konami, Silent Hill, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/Grim%20Fandango.mp3 In this episode we discuss arguably LucasArts' last hurrah, the beautiful and stylish Grim Fandango. Leading players on a four-year journey through an Art Deco-cum-Film Noir-cum-50s Mexico interpretation of the Land of the Dead, players take on the role of Manny Calavera as he attempts to uncover a web of corruption and lies as he makes his way towards his own eternal rest. Featuring Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry Jedi" Davison, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Jeff "Feenwager" Parsons and Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti. Contains some strong language. Podcasts Wed, 28 May 2008 18:36:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad explore LucasArts' last hurrah, the Art-Deco/Film Noir/50s Mexico-inspired Grim Fandango. In this episode we discuss arguably LucasArts' last hurrah, the beautiful and stylish Grim Fandango. Leading players on a four-year journey through an Art Deco-cum-Film Noir-cum-50s Mexico interpretation of the Land of the Dead, players take on the role of Manny Calavera as he attempts to uncover a web of corruption and lies as he makes his way towards his own eternal rest. Featuring Mark "Beige" Whiting, Pete "Angry Jedi" Davison, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Jeff "Feenwager" Parsons and Mike "Tolkoto" Minotti. Contains some strong language. 01:55:02 games, underappreciated, underdogs, lucasarts, Grim Fandango, muertos, Day of the Dead, calavera, manny, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/Another%20World.mp3 In this second episode, the Squadron delve into Eric Chahi's seminal action-adventure Another World some 18 years after its initial release on the Commodore Amiga and Atari ST. Along the way we discuss the art of telling a story in a manner that only games can, the similarities between Lester Knight Chaykin and Gordon Freeman and a whole host of other stuff, including Papapishu somehow managing to slip in yet another Neverhood reference. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Pete "Angry Jedi" Davison, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Jeff "Feenwager" Parsons and SUPER SECRET SPECIAL GUEST. Contains some strong language. Podcasts Mon, 19 May 2008 20:36:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad explore Eric Chahi's seminal action-adventure Another World. In this second episode, the Squadron delve into Eric Chahi's seminal action-adventure Another World some 18 years after its initial release on the Commodore Amiga and Atari ST. Along the way we discuss the art of telling a story in a manner that only games can, the similarities between Lester Knight Chaykin and Gordon Freeman and a whole host of other stuff, including Papapishu somehow managing to slip in yet another Neverhood reference. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Pete "Angry Jedi" Davison, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Chris "Papapishu" Person, Jeff "Feenwager" Parsons and SUPER SECRET SPECIAL GUEST. Contains some strong language. 01:23:54 games, underappreciated, underdogs, Another World, Delphine Software, Eric Chahi, rotoscoping, polygon, Atari, Amiga, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame http://squadronofshame-club.1up.com http://www.squadronofshame.com/files/squadcasts/MP3/The%20Shivah%201.mp3 In this inaugural episode of the Squadron of Shame SquadCast, we explore Dave Gilbert's rabbinical adventure game "The Shivah" and discuss the issues surrounding it, including the question of religion's place in games, and its presentation by developers and writers. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Michael "Tolkoto" Minotti, AJ "Ajguy" Minotti, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison. Contains some strong language. Podcasts Thu, 01 May 2008 23:01:00 +0000 The Squadron of Shame No The Squad explore Dave Gilbert's rabbinical adventure game The Shivah. In this inaugural episode of the Squadron of Shame SquadCast, we explore Dave Gilbert's rabbinical adventure game "The Shivah" and discuss the issues surrounding it, including the question of religion's place in games, and its presentation by developers and writers. Featuring Chris "RocGaude" Whittington, Mark "Beige" Whiting, Michael "Tolkoto" Minotti, AJ "Ajguy" Minotti, Chris "Papapishu" Person and Pete "Angry_Jedi" Davison. Contains some strong language. 01:45:19 games, underappreciated, underdogs, shivah, jew, jewish, rabbi, adventure, lucasarts, point and click, sierra, king's quest, 1up.com, 1up, Squadron of Shame, Pile of Shame