What I've Been Listening To: May 10-16, 2009

Another week has gone by and I'm falling behind a bit in my podcast listening. Partly because I've been writing a rather long post that I'll publish tomorrow and I usually don't listen to podcasts when I write. I usually compose rough drafts of my posts on the train ride into work and listen to podcasts on the train ride home. Listening to Scott & Randy on The Instance or Van Hemlock & Jon usually is enough to ease my mind away from work so I can enjoy the rest of the day. But tomorrow's post really needs to be posted tomorrow, so I was working under a self-imposed deadline. Ergo, not as much podcast goodness as I wanted.

First Time Listen

Star Wars Galaxies with Yivvits and MrBubble Episodes 108 & 111 (Hosts: Yivvits & MrBubble) - I first heard of Yivvits & MrBubble listening to Dellmon from EQ2's-day talking about his experience on a podcasting panel during SOE's 2008 Fan Faire. I heard they were good and had a loyal following, but never listened to the podcast until yesterday.

Normally I would try to discuss the topics on the show, and I will in the future in this little Sunday feature of mine. But for this first time introduction, I think that would limit the scope of what the podcast is all about. The SWG podcast is about two guys who absolutely love the world created by George Lucas and followed that world from the beginning (Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi) as best demonstrated by MrBubble's 1990 letter that was read on episode 108.

The style of the podcast reminds me of the old radio "morning zoo"-type programming (is it still popular?) in which two hosts use voice and sound drop-ins to enhance the humor of the show. I first listened to episode 111 and I thought it was a little flat, like the hosts were forcing the humor because they needed to put out a show due to problems with being able to post episode 110. So I went back to episode 108 where Yivvits & MrBubble picked up their new 'droid Roger and I heard the show I was expecting.

I'm actually thinking about going back and listening to all the old shows, although that may be a bit ambitious since the archives go back to December 2005. Needless to say, I'm going to make Yivvits & MrBubble a part of my podcast listening rotation.

Old Friends

Shut Up We're Talking #47 (Hosts: Darren Love & Karen) - The guests for episode 47 were Openedge from the Dichotomy of the Gamers Blogosphere and Genda from The Grouchy Gamer. The subjects were the Darkfall vs. Eurogamer review fight and avatars in MMORPGs.

The Instance #144 (Hosts: Scott Johnson & Randy Jordan) - The premier World of Warcraft podcast discussed the business of Chinese gold farming, the upcoming BlizzCon, and possible rewards from the WoW CCG. As always, listen to the end of the show for a humorous look at the previous episode.

Through the Aftermath #10 (Hosts: Shawn Schuster and Jonathan Morris) - The highlight of the show was the interview with Bethesda' Vice-President of Public Relations Pete Hines. For those who have never listened to TTAM before, Bethesda is the maker of the hit post-apocalyptic game Fallout 3. Other topics discussed were movie adaptations of The Road and The Dark Tower series and NBC's Day One series.

No Prisoners, No Mercy #32 (Hosts: Sister Julie and Sister Fran) - The highlight of the podcast was the interview with Giskard. Giskard has become somewhat famous, at least to listeners of NPNM, as Giskard runs the modding website Sister Julie visits as she tried to create Fallout 3 mods. Some of the information from this podcast may be applicable to those using the mission architect feature in City of Heroes, so those players might want to listen to this podcast.

Spouse Aggro #75 (Hosts: Beau and Leala Turkey) - The hosts take their breakfast show to the International House of Pancakes for a evening breakfast. The highlighted topic was about Free Realms, but I think I need to add something about the Spouse Aggro podcast. The reason to listen to the Spouse Aggro podcast is the interplay between Beau and Leala, a real-life married couple. Beau is a bit eccentric, playing every game that comes out while Leala's home game is WoW and she dabbles in some other games. A lot of thinking "outside the box" occurs and provides some thought-provoking podcasts.