Outer Wilds is a cozy adventure game about the thrill of exploration and the triumph of curiosity. You walk in the footsteps of a long-gone civilization to find your way out of a deadly time loop, ultimately triumphing and being reborn. The game's expansion, Echoes of the Eye, takes a bit of a darker tone. You explore an artificial world haunted by precursors who aren't quite as gone as you've been led to believe. There are some real design missteps here, and we talk about them, but also talk about what makes Outer Wilds in general work for us in spite of them.

Bob Mackey of the Retronauts joins Kaye this week to talk about Majora's Mask, whose pitch is that you only have three days to save the world, but you have as many three days as you want. This is the bleaker and more ambitious sibling to the beloved Ocarina of Time, and it's a standout title in its own right even if it's (wrongly, in our opinion) divisive. The inhabitants of Termina walk daily under a reminder of their pending doom, and Link and his many transformation masks are their only hope against Skull Kid and his mysterious cursed mask. Note: The first version of this episode cut off early. Redownload it to hear the last five minutes or so!

You've seen immersive sims before, but have you ever played one where you sneeze? Skin Deep is a cute, weird, immersive sim with indie sensibilities. Your character doesn't wear shoes, you carry the heads of your enemies around in your inventory, and it all takes place on a spaceship.

Why do we make bad things happen to ourselves? A question for the ages. And the topic for this week's dispatch.

Let's hang out with some sad, scary robots in space in this retro horror throwback.

How many sticks of dynamite do you think it takes to dynamite fish for Cthulhu? Three? Do you think three is enough?

Once again, we choose to forget as we willingly give ourselves Amnesia in this return-to-form for this horror series. Not bad for the fourth entry in the franchise.

It's about to get real. Real Lich.

The 2020 followup to the 2016 mega-hit reboot of DOOM was, like many things in 2020, divisive. It's a fascinating evolution of the DOOM franchise, nevertheless! Get the full episode by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/duckfeedtv

It's like your favorite physical toy! But digital, and you can take it to school! Oh, wait, no, the teacher confiscated that too.

Wait a second... Symphony... Aria... Harmony... those are all music terms! I've solved the code!

Hey folks, this is a quick announcement that's also a bummer. Earlier in the year we'd said that we planned to return to the Portland Retro Gaming Expo. We submitted a proposal for our panel, and waited, and waited, and waited... only to learn just recently that we'd been rejected. Without doing a live panel it doesn't make sense for us to spend the money and time to make an appearance at the show. We apologize sincerely if you'd already made plans to attend... Gary will still be around, and it's still a fun show to attend (even if just to see the Retronauts, who will be doing a panel this year). In the podcast episode attached to this post we talk about what we asked for, and what our plans for live appearances will be. In short, we're looking at attending other shows in other parts of the country. So if you know of any video game expos or conferences, let us know about them, but more importantly, ASK THEM TO BOOK US. Reaching out on social media makes a difference, for real. We are also looking at doing another Duckfest, if that ends up making sense. This is a little rough because obviously we have very normal brains and aren't sensitive to rejection at all. But we soldier on, and are grateful for all of your support, which makes these ups and downs easier to weather. Thanks! Kole

And how does one cut a scene, exactly? With scissors? How preposterous.

We spilled the bowl, and only questions came out. Upcoming Games: July: -Skin Deep -Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 -Cyperpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty -The Talos Principle August: -Metroid: Zero Mission -Split Fiction (with Will Hughes) -Mercenaries: World of Destruction

This one is not for the faint of heart. This sadistic JRPG attempts to portray a dark, humorous world where your resources are constantly at risk of being taken from you.

Boy, I wonder if they're gonna defeat the evil.

Aye, verily it is time for the fourth Quest of the Dragon.

A game so funny it decides to tell you where to laugh.

CRPGs. They're dense, they're chunky. How do I fit myself into one?

Come on, everybody! Zelda to the beat!

Dark Eco. Dark Ico? Dark Yekko?

Depending on how you count it, you've either killed hundreds of people in Burnout Paradise, or no one. Because there are no people anywhere.

Goombas. Zombies. Speed bumps. The enemies that you kill all the time, and a lot of them. Some of them are good! Which ones!?

Wow, a Resident Evil 4 remake. What will they think of next? Unlock the full version of this episode by becoming a member of our Patreon at patreon.com/duckfeedtv

Back when Fromsoft used to experiment in the B-tier game mines, they made a bizarre Real Time card battle game. That game is Lost Kingdoms, and this is our Summer JRPG. Sometimes life takes you to unexpected places. Unlock the full episode at patreon.com/duckfeedtv

A SUPER PAINTER NAMED ANDREAS

Yeah! Fuck yeah! Take that, you shit demon! Hahahahaha! Blood and guts! Hahahahaha! Ahem. This game did something to me.

7 out of 10. Quite a remarkable number really. Not big enough to be 8, not small enough to be 6, definitely too large to be 5, but if could be 9 if you squint in a certain light.

Nobody saw Bowser's Fury coming. What could have been just a little extra something to sweeten the pot on another port from the Wii U ended up being a fully-featured and inventive 3D Mario game. It's snack-sized and packed with new ideas, chief among them being the Fury Bowser kaiju fights. But also classic course-based Mario challenges set in an open world. We dig it, and we think you'll dig it too. This is a preview of a premium episode! To hear the full version, become a member over at our Patreon. (http://patreon.com/duckfeedtv)

There once was a Bard from Nantucket Who Whom... Look, I didn't write the limmerick. Get off my ass.

Wow, maybe Capitalism is bad, actually? In this gorgeously present point-and-click adventure game, you must solve the mystery of who murdered hope.

When? Why? How? What? All this and more on this week's Questions Only WOFF.

In this spiritual successor to Until Dawn, we see if old.... DOGS can learn new tricks. Get it? Dogs? Because it's about werewolves.

It's a sexy time travel mystery. Oh, no, apparently it's just a time travel mystery.

In this spin-off of a spin-off, C&C assumes the Allies are victorious in C&C Red Alert 2, which is why Yuri is out for Revenge. Use your units and strategic wits to outsmart the enemy, and as a reward you will get to see some of the silliest cutscenes ever made.

It's a soulslike. It's moe. It's a moe soulslike.

What makes a Good Level? You know, with capital letters?

It turns out we can only play on Medium graphics settings. Is there any meat on these memetic bones? Find out on this week's WOFF where the boys contemplate the nature of a crysis. Get the unlocked version of this episode and many more by subscribing to our Patreon. (https://www.patreon.com/duckfeedtv)

You might be surprised, but this game is mostly about sneaking around and killing people.

Fulfilling every child's dream of having an empty island filled with ticket arcade machines and robots you can shoot fireworks at.

Well, Cuphead and his pal Mug Man, they like to roll the dice. By chance, they came 'pon the Devil's game, and gosh, they paid the price. This immacutely aesthetic as fuck run-n-gun shooter iinspired by 30s pre-Disney animation is a sight to behold. But is it a good game? Mostly yes!

I just know I'm going to need those full heal elixirs for the end boss. Right?

It's time to sort of rocks and make friends with some big fish. I wonder what Bladderfish taste like. This is a preview of February's premium episode. Hear the whole thing by backing us at the $5+ tier at patreon.com/duckfeedtv, and also get access to every premium WOFF! we've done!

A different interpretation of translating a tabletop-lite system into a video game context. Story-heavy, mechanics driven by a sense of struggle, but not overwhelming despair. Build a new life yourself and those you meet and remember who your allies are.

There's an angel named Lucah, and a tortured dream world. This is an emotional and heartfelt project that relies on you wanting to finish the game multiple times to see the full story. The structure's a bit poison, but come and check out the neat things it does do. It's an interesting one!

We found a few more doors to check. The Last Door returns with a few more episodes to show off it's unique lo-fi adventure game style. While we're still fans, the second game doesn't work for us quite as much as the first. Still lots of cool stuff to talk about though!

What Remains of Edith Finch? made people things, and the boys take their action figures and make them fight to decide if they like Indie Games or AAA Games better.

Hades is one of our most-requested games of all time. It struck a chord with tons of people when it released, drawing in gamers who had never given action roguelikes a chance before. With its snappy combat and charismatic takes on the Greek gods, it's hard to blame people for loving it. But how does it stand up to other roguelites, a diverse field with tons of heavy hitters? This week's highlighted project is "Clarion", an upcoming novel by author Nina Dunnic. Check out her work at ninadunic.com (http://ninadunic.com)! This is a preview of January's premium episode. Hear the whole thing by backing us at the $5+ tier at patreon.com/duckfeedtv, and also get access to every premium WOFF! we've done!

Thank you Abe! It's time to circle strafe the Monstrous Manual with Heretic! This Doom Clone has a lot of subtle improvements that make it more than just Doom with Wands. Listen in to find out more!