Author Archives: Shane

Podcast Episode 9: Siege of Avellone!

Podcast for Episode 9 of the Shane Plays radio show from 7/25/2015:
Siege of Avellone!

Highlights: Interview with game designer, writer and illustrator Chris Avellone.

Shane Plays airs on Saturdays at 1 PM Central on 96.5 FM The Answer in Little Rock. It can also be heard online at http://965fmtheanswer.com and on the Tune In Radio app and iHeart Radio apps.

Like what you hear?
Support Shane Plays Radio on Patreon!
https://www.patreon.com/shaneplays

Shane Plays Radio is on iTunes!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/shane-plays/id1000406569

Podcast Episode Direct Download
http://traffic.libsyn.com/shaneplays/SHANE_PLAYS_7-25-15.mp3

Listen Here:

SHOW NOTES

INTERVIEW: Chris Avellone, game designer, writer and illustrator

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Avellone

Twitter: @ChrisAvellone

Beamdog announce Baldur’s Gate: Siege of Dragonspear, with Chris Avellone onboard
http://www.rpgcodex.net/forums/index.php?threads/beamdog-announce-baldurs-gate-siege-of-dragonspear-with-chris-avellone-onboard.101204/

Baldur’s Gate: Siege of Dragonspear
http://www.siegeofdragonspear.com/

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 just got a huge update 10 years later
http://www.polygon.com/2015/7/21/9011569/star-wars-knights-of-the-old-republic-2-steam-update

NEWS / TIDBITS

Happy 48th Birthday Vin! Vin Diesel’s Dungeons & Dragons Birthday Cake a Critical Hit
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/141684-Vin-Diesel-Given-Epic-Dungeons-Dragon-Birthday-Cake

Amiga’s 30th Anniversary! With Photo Gallery
https://shaneplays.com/happy-30th-birthday-amiga/

One Ancient Commodore Amiga Runs the Heat and AC for 19 Public Schools
The 30-year-old computer has been running day and night for decades
http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/infrastructure/a16010/30-year-old-computer-runs-school-heat/

SDCC: First Trailer for Animated “Vixen” Arrives, Set in Flash / Arrow World
http://www.comicbookresources.com/article/sdcc-first-trailer-for-animated-vixen-arrives-set-in-flasharrow-world

NEXT WEEK

My review of the new DCU animated movie Justice League: Gods & Monsters

Joe and Hannah Williams of Whalenought Studios talking about their RPG Serpent in the Staglands!

Check out my Let’s Play series of Serpent in the Staglands on YouTube!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlNkQuTXnH2_ra2iHguweeIxPG8lzZkGQ

Let’s Play Serpent in the Staglands #6

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Exploring Lumen Targ, fighting in cellars, debating internally on whether to rob graves, and trying to talk to a fox… all in this exciting episode!

Join Shane as he plays through a hardcore computer RPG that has the mechanics and style of a 90s CRPG, and that’s just dripping with beautiful atmosphere!

Thanks for watching!

About Serpent in the Staglands:

A true role-playing adventure.

A campaign within the world of Vol, a fully realized setting inspired by the late bronze age in a Transylvanian landscape, with unique politics, races and gods steeped in history. Featuring a chosen party of five, you role-play Necholai, a minor god of a celestial body who descends to the Staglands for a moonlit festival only to find the way home blocked and immortality slipping away. Seeking answers and aid, you take on a mortal body and the guise of a traveling Spicer. This isn’t a story of good and evil, saving the world or being a hero, it’s about intrigue and your adventure of survival in a harsh land.

Buy on GOG:
https://www.gog.com/game/serpent_in_the_staglands?pp=6a3236f5f213960de5c415fd15c6d1cb5a46d04e

Buy on Steam:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/335120/

Happy 30th Birthday, Amiga! (with photo gallery)

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Other computers can’t hold a candle…

First released on an unsuspecting public on July 23, 1985, the Amiga 1000 brought the fondly remembered Commodore Amiga line of computers to the masses, and in many cases their first experience with a multitasking graphical user interface (GUI), vibrant colors and rich sound in a personal computer. Already known for the PET, VIC-20 and Commodore 64 line of personal computers, the Amiga took things to an extremely next level for both Commodore and personal computers in general.

Per Wikipedia:

“The Commodore Amiga 1000, also known as the A1000 and originally simply as the Amiga, was the first personal computer release by Commodore International in the Amiga line. It combined the powerful 16/32-bit Motorola 68000 CPU with one of the most advanced graphics and sound systems in its class, and ran a preemptive multitasking operating system that fit into 512 KB of memory.”

Although I have more of a personal connection with the Amiga 500 (which several of my friends owned and was the first computer model I ever bought for myself as an adult) the Amiga 1000 is where it all started! My two initial memories of the first Amiga I saw at a friend’s house are these:

One, I remember being absolutely blown away with how good the game he was playing looked (wish I could remember the game)
Two, the hard plastic 3.5″ floppy disks were fascinating to me

So wonderful at the time

Commodore as a company is long gone yet myself and many, many others still have a strong personal attachment to the Amiga, and it contributed far more to the personal computer revolution (as did Commodore computers in general) than is usually given credit.

Apple was by no means living in a vacuum and in many cases Commodore design and technology flat kicked their butt. Egos and mismanagement, not quality of product, led to Commodore’s demise.

To celebrate three decades of Amiga goodness, enjoy these videos and photo gallery…

Photo Gallery

Let’s Play Serpent in the Staglands #5

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This episode: More combat (starting to get a handle on it), our first underground exploration and a town with the promise of vendors.

Join Shane as he plays through a hardcore computer RPG that has the mechanics and style of a 90s CRPG, and that’s just dripping with beautiful atmosphere!

Thanks for watching!

About Serpent in the Staglands:

A true role-playing adventure.

Buy on GOG:
https://www.gog.com/game/serpent_in_the_staglands?pp=6a3236f5f213960de5c415fd15c6d1cb5a46d04e

Buy on Steam:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/335120/

Let’s Plays Serpent in the Staglands #4

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This episode: Learning the ropes of combat and the magic system. Beat downs aplenty from foxes, wolves and lizards. In the midst of it all, a cursed child. Hey, it’s the Staglands.

Join Shane as he plays through a hardcore computer RPG that has the mechanics and style of a 90s CRPG, and that’s just dripping with beautiful atmosphere!

Thanks for watching!

About Serpent in the Staglands:

A true role-playing adventure.

Buy on GOG:
https://www.gog.com/game/serpent_in_the_staglands?pp=6a3236f5f213960de5c415fd15c6d1cb5a46d04e

Buy on Steam:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/335120/

Let’s Plays Serpent in the Staglands #3

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This episode: more exploration and party recruitment, plus receiving our first beat down from charging crap — er, crop — goblins. Venturing into the big wide world of Vol is imminent.

Join Shane as he plays through a hardcore computer RPG that has the mechanics and style of a 90s CRPG, and that’s just dripping with beautiful atmosphere!

Thanks for watching!

About Serpent in the Staglands:

A true role-playing adventure.

Buy on GOG:
https://www.gog.com/game/serpent_in_the_staglands?pp=6a3236f5f213960de5c415fd15c6d1cb5a46d04e

Buy on Steam:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/335120/

Podcast Episode 8: Arvan my Eleron!

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Podcast for Episode 8 of the Shane Plays radio show from 7/18/2015:
Arvan my Eleron!

Highlights: San Diego Comic-Con news; interview with professor, fantasy author, podcaster and Twitch personality Gregory A. Wilson AKA “Arvan Eleron”.

Shane Plays airs on Saturdays at 1 PM Central on 96.5 FM The Answer in Little Rock. It can also be heard online at http://965fmtheanswer.com and on the Tune In Radio app and iHeart Radio apps.

Like what you hear?
Support Shane Plays Radio on Patreon!
https://www.patreon.com/shaneplays

Shane Plays Radio is on iTunes!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/shane-plays/id1000406569

Podcast Episode Direct Download
http://traffic.libsyn.com/shaneplays/SHANE_PLAYS_7-18-15_podcast.mp3

Listen Here:

SHOW NOTES

INTERVIEW: Gregory A. Wilson AKA “Arvan Eleron”, professor, fantasy author, podcaster and Twitch personality

Website: http://www.gregoryawilson.com/

Twitch: http://www.twitch.tv/arvaneleron

Twitter: @gregoryawilson

NEWS

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata passed away July 11, 2015
4000 attend a 2 day funeral service
Fans Remember Nintendo President Iwata at Funeral
http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2015/07/17/fans-remember-nintendo-president-iwata-at-funeral/

“On my business card, I am a corporate president. In my mind, I am a game developer. But in my heart, I am a gamer.”
-Satoru Iwata in his keynote speech at GDC 2005

Berkeley Breathed returning to “Bloom County” for the first time in 25 years
http://www.comicbookresources.com/article/berkeley-breathed-returning-to-bloom-county-for-first-time-in-25-years

Ant-Man is out! Reviews?
Rotten Tomatoes: 78%
Metacritic: 65%

PlayStation CPU Powering Probe Travelling Towards Pluto
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/playstation-cpu-powering-probe-travelling-towards-/1100-6428896/
More info on CPU itself:
MIPS goes to Pluto
http://blog.imgtec.com/mips-processors/mips-goes-to-pluto

The Master Miyazaki Will Direct a CG Animated Film
http://ow.ly/PxYPW

Report: Batman PC fix won’t hit until September at the earliest
http://www.polygon.com/2015/7/16/8976373/report-batman-pc-fix-wont-hit-until-september-at-the-earliest

SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON NEWS

Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Comic-Con 2015 Reel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTNJ51ghzdY

Batman vs. Superman SDCC Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WWzgGyAH6Y

Deadpool Trailer

X-Men Apocolypse Trailer

SDCC: Batman The Killing Joke coming as DCU animated movie
http://hushcomics.com/2015/07/11/sdcc-2015-batmans-the-killing-joke-to-get-dcu-animated-treatment/
Also:
-“Batman: Bad Blood” — An original Batman story that features the introduction of Batwoman to the new line of animated films.
-“Justice League vs. Titans” — Another original story and the first of the DC Universe Original Movies to feature the Teen Titans.

Comic-Con reacts to Supergirl pilot: ‘I’m absolutely speechless’
http://www.ew.com/article/2015/07/09/supergirl-comic-con

Fear The Walking Dead SDDC Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDxew5SguVw

The Walking Dead Season 6 Trailer
https://youtu.be/Va1UPrFXHKA

NEXT WEEK

Game designer Chris Avellone of Fallout 2, Planescape: Torment, Star Warks Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, Fallout: New Vegas, Wasteland 2 and more!

Let’s Play Serpent in the Staglands #2

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This episode: Initial environment exploration, UI familiarization and the kind a sorta accidental beatdown of an innocent acolyte.

Join Shane as he plays through a hardcore computer RPG that has the mechanics and style of a 90s CRPG, and that’s just dripping with beautiful atmosphere!

Thanks for watching!

About Serpent in the Staglands:

A true role-playing adventure.

Buy on GOG:
https://www.gog.com/game/serpent_in_the_staglands?pp=6a3236f5f213960de5c415fd15c6d1cb5a46d04e

Buy on Steam:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/335120/

Let’s Play Serpent in the Staglands #1

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This episode: intro and character creation.

Join Shane as he plays through a hardcore computer RPG that has the mechanics and style of a 90s CRPG, and that’s just dripping with beautiful atmosphere!

Thanks for watching!

About Serpent in the Staglands:

A true role-playing adventure.

Buy on GOG:
https://www.gog.com/game/serpent_in_the_staglands?pp=6a3236f5f213960de5c415fd15c6d1cb5a46d04e

Buy on Steam:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/335120/

Podcast Episode 7: Perkins & Dragons!

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Here’s the podcast for Episode 7 of the Shane Plays radio show from 7/11/2015:
Perkins & Dragons!

Highlights: Chris Perkins, Dungeons & Dragons Story Manager & Dungeon Master Extraordinaire.

Shane Plays airs on Saturdays at 1 PM Central on 96.5 FM The Answer in Little Rock. It can also be heard online at http://965fmtheanswer.com and on the Tune In Radio app and iHeart Radio apps.

Like what you hear?
Support Shane Plays Radio on Patreon!
https://www.patreon.com/shaneplays

Shane Plays Radio is on iTunes!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/shane-plays/id1000406569

Podcast Episode Direct Download
http://traffic.libsyn.com/shaneplays/SHANE_PLAYS_7-11-15_podcast.mp3

Listen Here:

SHOW NOTES

INTERVIEW: CHRIS PERKINS

The Dungeon Mastah!

New York Times bestselling writer, D&D storyteller, Dungeon Master, and proud owner of a Chiweenie named Milo.

-How Chris got into D&D as a profession
-The cool things he does for D&D other than being the coolest and highest profile Dungeon Master around
-His favorite moment as a DM
-Chris’s responses to questions submitted by redditors
-His favorite D&D setting
-His favorite D&D edition
-And more…

Twitter: @ChrisPerkinsDnD
https://twitter.com/chrisperkinsdnd

Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Perkins_(game_designer)

“The Dungeon Master Experience” article archive on Wizards of the Coast:
http://archive.wizards.com/DnD/Archive.aspx?category=all&subcategory=dmexperience

D&D NEWS

ENnies Voting is still going
http://www.enworld.org/forum/content.php?2728-The-ENnies-Voting-Booth-Is-Live!#.VaBRBPlViko

Video: How to check the balance of your D20 (Twenty sider)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VI3N4Qg-JZM

How Dungeons & Dragons Informed ‘Fast And The Furious’
http://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2015/06/29/how-dungeons-dragons-informed-fast-and-the-furious/

NEXT WEEK:

Gregory Wilson AKA “Arvan Eleron”, professor, fantasy author, and Twitch personality.