The Future of Throne of Games

So, like I said last week, there's no show this week. However, there is some pretty big news, and changes are a-comin'.

Starting next week, Throne of Games is joining my other broadcast media home, Starmen.Net's Radio PSI. What does this mean for us?

• We'll be starting an hour earlier (6pm CT)
• We'll run for a set three hours
• We'll be on the Radio PSI TwitchTV channel

Additionally, we won't be using Twitch's built-in chat pane — that thing kinda sucks. Instead, we'll be in the channel #radiopsi on irc.thinstack.net. If you don't have an IRC client, you can use Thinstack's browser-based client here.

Watch for the intro posts for our next two games, and we'll return next week!

Freelancer: Session 6 now on YouTube

So, earlier in the week, John had told me I still had a good chunk of Freelancer left to go. So color me surprised when my initial instincts were correct, and that was, in fact, the final battle of the campaign story. The game was beaten within the first half-hour of the show...though I didn't realize it until a bit later.

As a result, this session is, once again, a whole lot of flying around, not really accomplishing much. Though, at the end of the session, I did go and seek one of the game's wreckages, the Flint — so if you dig secret/hidden things in games, well, this is a secret/hidden thing.

Next week, we're taking a break, but look for us to return on October 6th for some special Halloween spooky-time programming! That week, Brendan and Mabry will be joining for Alan Wake (which will give me more time to get Overseer working). The following week, John will begin his run of Amnesia: The Dark Descent.

So please join us in October, and in the meantime, if you missed it live, please enjoy the ending of Freelancer.

Part 1
Part 2

Freelancer playlist

Freelancer: Session 6

I mentioned the possibility of it last week, and we are, indeed, continuing with Freelancer again this week. John tells me we might not be quite so near the end as I'd thought, but with some luck, we might be able to finish it this week. (I hope so, at least; it'd make scheduling so much easier.)

As always, we begin the game at 7:00pm CT. I'm thinking I'll reduce the duration of the pregame, too — I mean, there's rarely any benefit to starting a whole 15 minutes early. So look for us to begin streaming around 6:55pm or so.

Freelancer: Session 5 now on YouTube

Due to flying solo and going in tired (not to mention just not being that good at the game in the first place), I decided to call it a little early tonight. Made it as far as the Nomads' Dyson sphere, but couldn't push any further than that. I'll leave that for John on our next session. In the meantime, this session is now on YouTube in two parts.

I know I announced in the stream that Freelancer would continue in two weeks, like it usually does, but given that I've got other stuff going on the 29th, and I still haven't gotten Overseer working quite right, I think I might do Freelancer two weeks in a row again, so we can clear that game and get everybody to a fresh start for October.

As I think has been mentioned previously, John is going to be playing Amnesia: The Dark Descent, which he has never played before; should prove entertaining. For the other week, I'm thinking I might bring out Alan Wake. It was in the queue anyway, would be great for Halloween, and gives me more time to find a solution for playing Overseer on here.

Part 1
Part 2

Freelancer playlist

Freelancer: Session 5

Saturday rolls around again, meaning it's time for another episode of Throne of Games! We return to Freelancer this week, picking up at a rather intense moment, as we pursue the escaping noble who has the artifact we need.

John has warned me he'll be a little late this week; hopefully, that doesn't mean the first hour or so of the show will be me dying a lot.

As usual, the pregame begins at 6:45pm CT, with the game beginning at 7:00.

Overseer Failure

Most disappointingly, Tex Murphy: Overseer froze every couple minutes as I was playing, preventing me from getting any appreciable measure of the game played. I fear if some solution is not found, I may have to pass on playing this game on here. That would not make me happy.

But, for the sake of posterity -- mostly to record our introduction of the drinking game, as well as the creation of Brendan's concoction, and our quick playthrough of VVVVVV to fill the time -- the episode is now on YouTube in three parts.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

The Tex Murphy Drinking Game

We're playing this tonight! Here's the rules so you can play along at home:

1. When Tex drinks, you drink.
2. When an item is used in an improbable way, you drink.
3. When the game of chess is referenced, you drink.
4. When the future is surprisingly similar to the 1990's, you drink.
5. When Tex is an idiot with women, you drink.
6. When Tex is knocked out, you finish your drink and pour a new one.

Happy drinking!

Tex Murphy: Overseer: Session 1

Hey, I've been going nonstop since about 6 this morning, and only now have I had the chance to post this reminder!

We start Tex Murphy: Overseer at 7pm -- that's a little less than an hour away -- with a preshow at 6:45pm. And, for once, there will be significant things happening in the preshow, so tune in early and don't miss a thing!

Tex Murphy: Overseer

My father, Carl Linsky, died a week ago. The police think it's suicide; I believe they're wrong. My father wasn't suicidal, and I'll pay you to prove it.

A scant few days after the events of The Pandora Directive, Tex Murphy has another hot date with the girl of his dreams, Chelsee Bando. But before things get too serious, Chelsee has some questions for Tex, leading him to recount — and the player to relive — his first big case, and his introduction to his ex-wife, Sylvia.

Half-sequel, half-remake, the meat of the story retells the events of Mean Streets, hitting all the high points, though some of the details have changed — Det. Steve Clements becoming Det. Eve Clements, for example. With a less-campy feel and a much tighter script (not to mention removing the horrible transportation and the frustrating action sequences), Overseer is a better remake than most games, or even movies, get.

Join Mark, Daniel, Brendan and Mabry for Tex Murphy: Overseer, alternating Saturday nights at 7pm CT, beginning September 8th.

Freelancer: Session 4 now on YouTube

Continuing the trend of forgetting things yesterday, I forgot to put the show up on YouTube last night after we finished. Go me! But now it's there; links are at the bottom of the post.

I know last time, I said I'd do some grinding for money between then and now so I could avoid taking the entire episode flying about accomplishing not a whole lot. Unfortunately, I was not able to do that. But! We've found a solution. John, who's played this game many times before, took over piloting during jobbing, and got it done much more quickly than I did. I took back over for story missions — save for the one I when I was eating. I think this setup will work pretty well, though! Expect to see John at the helm more next time.

Next week, we begin Tex Murphy: Overseer. Freelancer continues September 15th.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Freelancer playlist

Freelancer: Session 4

Augh, I forgot to post in time! The preshow's already started, game will be starting in a little over five minutes over on our TwitchTV channel!