This week we highlight a range of games and events, including the very first Wholesome Direct! We’ll also discuss the socialist-infused beat-’em-up Tonight We Riot and the conversation card game Signs of the Sojourner.
Our livestreams on Twitch cover a range of different games: some fun and light-hearted, others darker and more thought-provoking. This week’s schedule covers the whole spectrum.
If you’re not already, make sure to follow Intelligame on Twitch to get notifications when we go live. All stream times listed below are Pacific Time.
Tuesday, May 26th
Wholesome Direct Watch Party! (Wholesome Games) – 9:30a
The crew at Wholesome Games highlight games that tell human stories: they’re compassionate, sometimes heavy, but often very different from what people expect of video games. Their first Wholesome Direct showcase airs tomorrow on YouTube, where they’ll highlight a range of various upcoming games with wholesome aesthetics. Watch the event on YouTube or join us on stream as we show the program live!
Special Bonus: You might recognize the hosts of Wholesome Direct…it’s IGC Curator Jenny Windom and me!
Signs of the Sojourner (Echodog Games) – 10:45a-12p
Quality conversations can be difficult to keep up, but they help us build connections with others. In Signs of the Sojourner, we’ll talk with others using a card game system, building our deck to try and make meaningful conversations with others. It’s an interesting take on a narrative-centric role-playing game, one with a lot of diversity and charm.
Review key provided by Echodog Games.
Minecraft Dungeons (XBox Game Studio/Mojang) – 12:15-2:15p
Minecraft’s known all over the world for its massive worlds and creativity. The newest game for the franchise is a bit more straight-forward: a loot-based dungeon crawler. This game’s not about building, it’s about bashing baddies and grabbing gear. We’ll check this out for a couple hours on its release day and talk about its plot and game design.
Review key provided by Microsoft.
Rakuen (Laura Shigihara) – 2:15-4:15p
Rakuen follows the story of a boy who lives in a hospital as he helps others who’ve arrived there. It’s a game that focuses on story, with puzzles to solve but no combat. With a deep, heartfelt story, I’m excited to spend time with this title and hear its soundtrack.
Wednesday, May 27th
Fire Escape (iNK Stories) – 2-4:00p
Fire Escape is a murder mystery that takes place in real-time. Over the course of three 20-minute episodes, we’ll explore a gentrifying New York City neighborhood and listen in to various conversations. Created by the same team that made 1979 Revolution: Black Friday, this game is sure to combine engaging mystery with social discussion.
Review key provided by iNK Stories.
LudoNarraCon 2020 Demos – 4-5:45p
LudoNarraCon took place at the end of last month, highlighting over 40 games with narrative at their cores. An entirely online event hosted on Steam, the conference aired exclusive panels, and each game features unique streaming content. Though the conference is over, the panels are available on YouTube, and there are still plenty of great demos out there to explore. We’ll pick one or two of them in the stream and explore some great indie games.
Tonight We Riot (Pixelpushers Union 512/Means Interactive) – 6-8:30p
Tonight We Riot takes the retro arcade brawler and turns up the social commentary to 11. Set in a dystopian near-future, players take the role of workers fighting in the streets to stage a socialist revolution on an 8-bit stage. Though the game plays with parody and satire, the setting somehow still feels close to home. We’ll go through the game and discuss its themes and more.
Caution: contains graphic cartoon violence.
Review key provided by Pixelpushers Union 512.
Friday, May 29th
Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix) – 10a-4:30p
We’re moving our Thursday stream to Friday this week! Final Fantasy XIII is my favorite in the franchise, originally released in 2010. We’ve been playing it for the past couple weeks, following the party as they fight against the forces pushing them towards destroying their homeworld. Today we continue our long-play series, taking on side quests to try and toughen up Lightning and Co. for the challenges to come.
Check back to this page for links to the stream archives as they become available. You can see all our streams live on Twitch at twitch.tv/intelligameus.