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PODCAST

Idle Thumbs

Idle Thumbs is an independent podcast network whose podcasts span comedy, pop culture and entertainment, video games, and TV.

leisure

All Episodes

01:06:20

Three Moves Ahead 630 - Two Point Museum

Idle Thumbs ·

2025/03/17

Len, Mike, and Luke dust off their Indy hats and take a close look at Two Point Museum. We discuss how it's such a great fit for the formula Two Point Studios built over their previous two games, how you make a museum game without presenting a tacit endorsement of grave robbing, and why crime never pays.

en

01:05:07

Three Moves Ahead 629 - RTS Shoutcasting and...

Idle Thumbs ·

2025/02/27

This week, Len sits down with Philip "BeoMulf" Mulford, a professional RTS esports caster. We discuss how you get that gig, how you develop the skills for it, and how it compares to traditional sportscasting. We also dig in a bit to the recent 0.3.0 patch for Stormgate and how the first big graphical refresh, automated control groups, and fully rebindable hotkeys change the experience.NOTE: We found out after the show was recorded that Philip will be handling the main stream for the CHOC

en

01:21:27

Three Moves Ahead 628 - Sid Meier's Civilization 7

Idle Thumbs ·

2025/02/15

Three Moves Ahead 628 - Sid Meier's Civilization 7 by Idle Thumbs

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01:09:33

Three Moves Ahead 627 - Look Ahead to 2025

Idle Thumbs ·

2025/01/27

Len, Mike, and Nerium gaze down the road ahead at the most interesting and promising strategy games coming out (we hope) in 2025, from the heavy-hitters to some indie oddities.Games Discussed: Civilization 7, Kaiserpunk, Two Point Museum, Tempest Rising, Alliance of the Sacred Suns, Europa Universalis 5, Beyond These Stars, City Tales - Medieval Era, Demonschool, Falling Frontier, Dino Lords, Kingmakers, Menace, Slay the Spire 2

en

01:03:16

Three Moves Ahead 626 - 2024 Wrap-Up

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/12/31

Len, Mike, and Sin gather 'round to sing the praises of our favorite strategy and tactics games of the year, as well as trying to identify the ever-elusive narrative throughline.

en

01:22:20

Three Moves Ahead 625 - Caves of Qud

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/12/27

Len, Jon, and Mike are joined by Freehold Games' Brian Bucklew and Jason Grinblat to discuss Caves of Qud. In a world where rogue"lites" and rogue-adjacents have blown up, what is the niche of a true, traditional roguelike? We also dig into the procedural generation of its post-multiple-apocalypses world and dreamlike writing style.

en

01:21:47

Three Moves Ahead 624 - What Else Are We Playing:...

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/11/30

Len is joined by Nerium Strom, Mike Williams, and Sin Vega for a round-table of What Else Are We Playing? From weird surreal horror to Factorio and Cities: Skylines 2, it's a chill chat for a chilly month on our production calendar.

en

03:06:23

Designer Notes 86: Anton Strenger

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/11/03

In this episode, Soren interviews Anton Strenger, best known for his work on Civilization 5, Civilization 6, and Beyond Earth. They discuss how he ended up paying Carnegie Mellon so that he could work at Firaxis, why there aren’t many Great People after 1900, and whether Civilization has secretly become a live-service game. This episode was recorded on October 22, 2023.Games discussed: ESPN Extreme Games, Quest for Glory 4, Pokemon series, Suikoden II, Alpha Centauri, Civilization series, Old

en

01:14:44

Three Moves Ahead 623 - Frostpunk 2

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/10/13

Len is joined by Father Lorris and Sin Vega to discuss Frostpunk 2, the long-awaited sequel to the quintessential survival city-builder. We discuss where it hits and where it misses, with a particular focus on the strengths of the original that it fails to recapture by zooming out further.

en

02:30:32

Designer Notes 85: Zach Barth - Part 2

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/09/29

In this episode, Soren interviews independent game developer Zach Barth, best known for his puzzle games, including SpaceChem, Infinifactory, Shenzhen I/O, and Opus Magnum. They discuss why he made a game about assembly language, how he guaranteed that Fortune’s Foundation is winnable, and whether he knows how to make fun games. This episode was recorded on September 11, 2023.Games discussed: Infinifactory, TIS-100, Counter-Strike, Ricochet, Zortex, Alien Swarm, Shenzhen I/O, Zachtronics Solitaire

en

01:15:38

Three Moves Ahead 622 - Tactical Breach Wizards

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/09/25

Len and Rowan are joined by games writer Kris Lorischild to discuss Tactical Breach Wizards. We discuss how rare it is for a game to be this funny on purposes, as opposed to from the chaotic intersection of procedural systems, how it creates rewarding tactical puzzles with simple ingredients, and... Metal Gear?!

en

02:39:31

Designer Notes 84: Zach Barth - Part 1

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/08/31

In this episode, Soren interviews independent game developer Zach Barth, best known for his puzzle games, including SpaceChem, Infinifactory, Shenzhen I/O, and Opus Magnum. They discuss why he never originally wanted to make money on his games, why puzzle games are terrible, and whether he has ever played Minecraft. This episode was recorded on September 11, 2023.Games discussed: Duke Nukem, Star Wars: Empire at War, Civilization III, SpaceChem, Infiniminer, Minecraft, The Codex of Alchemical

en

01:06:51

Three Moves Ahead 621 - The Return of MicroProse

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/08/30

Len is joined this week by David Lagettie, CEO of the resurrected MicroProse. We share some of our own MicropProse memories, and discuss what makes a MicroProse game, as well as why David chose this brand to bring back from oblivion.

en

00:30:56

Three Moves Ahead 620 - Fined by the Pope (EU5...

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/08/24

This is a free preview of this month's Patreon episode. Check out the extended version at Patreon.com/3ma!Len, Lambert, and FatherLorris continue their ongoing beef with the Holy See while discussing Europa Universalis 5 dev diaries primarily focused on warfare. We're not even doing jokes about how long these are anymore. That's so early 2024. It's just expected at this point. This is our lives now.

en

01:22:59

Three Moves Ahead 619 - Total War: Pharaoh Dynasties

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/08/18

Len is joined by Aftermath's Luke Plunkett and Dr. Bret Devereaux to discuss Total War: Pharaoh's expansive Dynasties glow-up. We dig into the sources that are and aren't available for Bronze Age warfare, how the latest historical Total War feels now with all the bells and whistles, and whether or not Creative Assembly's grand apology tour might be a sign of things to come, or just a one-off PR move.

en

01:29:50

Three Moves Ahead 618 - Workers & Resources 1.0

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/07/20

Len and Jon are joined by Sin Vega and Well There's Your Problem's Justin Roczniak (donoteat01) to revisit Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic for its 1.0 release. We discuss what's changed and been added since we last checked it out in Early Access, why it's so captivating, and who it's actually for.

en

00:32:51

Three Moves Ahead 617 - Down the Well (EU5 Megacast 4...

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/06/30

This is a free preview of this month's Patreon episode. Check out the extended version at Patreon.com/3ma!Len, Lambert, and Lorris get in and out of this month's deluge of dev diaries in a downright snappy three hours, despite nitpicking EU5's depiction of the British Isles for long enough to kill a non-map gamer. Please be cautious when listening to our nonsense around partners, small children, and the psychologically healthy. They may be unprepared for exposure to our level of pedantry and

en

01:30:08

Three Moves Ahead 616 - The Future of Anbennar and EU5

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/06/21

Len, Lorris, and Lambert sat down with JayBean, the creator of the popular Anbennar fantasy total conversion mods for Europa Universalis 4, Crusader Kings 3, and Victoria 3. We asked him what he's most excited about from what we've seen of EU5 so far, what changes he might make to the mod with these new systems, and how Paradox Tinto can better support the modding community.

en

01:11:46

Three Moves Ahead 615 - Homeworld 3

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/06/15

Len, Luke, and Ian warp in to discuss Homeworld 3, a space strategy sequel more than two decades in the making. We discuss its use of space terrain, the more intimate storytelling in the campaign, the co-op Wargames mode, and what it has and hasn't preserved from its pantheonic predecessors.

en

01:54:05

Designer Notes 83: Mitch Lasky - Part 2

Idle Thumbs ·

2024/06/06

In this episode, Soren interviews noted game investor Mitch Lasky, best known for his work as a venture capitalist at Benchmark, as the CEO of JAMDAT, and as an executive at Activision and Electronic Arts. They discuss how the industry’s business models have always affected design, why he was wrong about the Halloween pack ruining League of Legends, and why the litigation leaks are better than GDC. This episode was recorded on October 23, 2023.Games discussed: League of Legends, Hearthstone,

en

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