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French indie game studio Guard Crush Games joins us to talk about their 2025 rogue 'em up Absolum which is nominated for Best Indie Game at the Game Awards this week. We speak to Montréal-based devs Cyrille, Léo and Bo about the studio's history and process, working on beat 'em ups using your own engine, getting nominated for Best Indie along with games like Hades II and Silksong as well as more questions about their work (some from our Discord). Follow Guard Crush on Twitter (or "X"), Facebook and Steam and get Absolum on PC and Consoles! Play it in co-op to make Cyrille and the team happy :) MUSIC: 00:00 - The Resistance (Main Theme) by Gareth Coker (Absolum OST) 11:01 - Yeldrim by Gareth Coker ft Rachel Hardy (Absolum OST) 29:31 - Character Select by Yuzo Koshiro (Streets of Rage 4 OST) 47:18 - Azra, Pride of the Sun King by Gareth Coker (Absolum OST) HOSTED & PRODUCED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) ❤️ made possible thanks to our lovely Patrons ❤️

Dev's Games on Steam, itch.io, Tumblr & Patreon | Slaughterneko on Twitch & YouTubeArticle referenced: Solo-Devs and Risk-Takers (An Artistic Exploration of Experimental Tools by Nathalie Lawhead Indie dev, level designer, patron and apologist-to-God Devon Wiersma joins us to discuss their latest release Centauri Dark- as well as life since going full-time indie after the Beans Team games industry'd them. We commiserate on the search for games with better verbs and share thoughts on how we can get this industry and these games to stop being so goshdarn bad lol no for real we're not too cynical it's a really fun chat. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro Music by @catbaux (Toronto, ON)01:49 Reign of the Septims by Jeremy Soule (USA)06:23 Quentin Tarantino on Charlie Rose 04/22/200408:10 Devolver Direct 202020:40, 30:47, 37:42 - Idea by Jenerikku (Chicago) from Bombing!! 2: A Graffiti Paradise38:59 Bill Hader talking to The Script Lab46:43 Imagine by John Lennon (Central Park, various locations) HOSTED & PRODUCED BY: Stephan “RIPS - rest in peace steve” Reilly Support us on Patreon | Join the Discord | Follow on "Twitter" @CanadaGameDevs | Follow on TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Follow on Instagram @canadiangamedevs

Read the Full Episode 240 Show Notes on CanadianGameDevs.com Checkout the Quiver Games Incubator! See the student game Meowmentum David mentioned CANADIAN GAME DEV JOBS | CANADIAN GAME DEV EVENTS This week we're joined by David Boguslavsky (@BOmaniaFTW) Brand & Community Manager at Quiver Games, a "one stop solution to connect with other developers, build up a portfolio, and join people together into dream game dev teams to make amazing games." He tells us about their upcoming Games Incubator (Deadline June 14!) and then joins us for the regular pod to discuss local Vancouver studio Relic Entertainment's turbulent last few years, IGN Entertainment buying everything and the rest of our usual show. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) 00:13 Intro, Events, Jobs! 12:06 'Last Words' by Supergiant Games (San Jose) from Hades OST 12:54 News! 26:34 'The Keeper' by Paul Ruskay (Vancouver, BC) from Homeworld II Remastered 27:02 Wishlist This 36:34 Robots at Midnight The MIX trailer by @FinishLineGames (Toronto, ON) 37:10 Discord Discussion 42:47 Kickstarter Korner 48:02 What We've Been Playing (Hades, Laika: Aged by Blood, Stardew IRL) 53:21 Wrap Up 55:04 Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) CREDITS: HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & (usually) @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "Games Are Horrible Little Devices" Reilly Join the Discord | Follow on "Twitter" @CanadaGameDevs | Follow on TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Follow on Instagram @canadiangamedevs

Read the Full Episode 239 Show Notes on CanadianGameDevs.com Checkout Eric on LinkedIn lolol (homer voice "Neeeeeerd") No for real Eric's Discord kept dropping but we power through the pain like Rocky punching the meats. CANADIAN GAME DEV JOBS | CANADIAN GAME DEV EVENTS TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON), 00:13 Intro, Events, Jobs!, 16:11 'Coral Crown' from Hades II OST by Supergiant Games (San Jose), 16:43 News!, 33:36 'Bruising The Fat (Shar Ikal)' by @chefdabu (Montréal, QC) & @simonswerwer (Barcelona), 34:09 Wishlist This, 41:21 Discord Discussion, 1:02:35 'Balatro Main Theme - Funk Fusion Cover' by Dom Palombi (Bridgewater, NJ), 1:03:14 What We've Been Playing (Hades II, should be Gigantic instead of Overwatch 2 lol), 1:13:37 Wrap Up, 1:19:50 'todd and his sweet little lies' by Crowbcat (YouTube), 1:20:27 Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) CREDITS: HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "Give us the Gifs!!" Reilly FIND US: Join the Discord | Follow on "Twitter" @CanadaGameDevs | Follow on TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Follow on Instagram @canadiangamedevs

Read the Full Episode 238 Show Notes on CanadianGameDevs.com sdsadas Checkout Twinolli & Highlighters: Highlighters on Steam | Twinolli on Twitter | Highlighters Composer Tori Roberts on Twitter LINKS: JOBS | EVENTS | Joydrop Unionization Labour Board Case Info TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) 00:13 - Intro 09:27 - Theme from Russian Subway Dogs by @CoinsElectro (Toronto, ON) 09:50 - News! 34:15 - theme from A Knight in the Attic by Neil Quillen 34:40 - Dad Deck Update 36:16 - Wishlist This 44:40 - 'Soba' from Highlighters by @torrybobs 44:53 - Twinolli Interview 56:07 - 'Hasen' from Highlighters by @torrybobs 56:34 - Twinolli Interview Cont'd 1:11:51 - 'Done Tutorial' from Highlighters by @torrybobs 1:12:14 - What We've Been Playing 1:36:22 - Wrap Up 1:38:10 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) CREDITS: HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "Rephan Steilly" Reilly POD MAIN FEED ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta) FIND US: Join the Discord | Follow on "Twitter" @CanadaGameDevs | Follow on TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Follow on Instagram @canadiangamedevs

Award-winning Québécois game developer Kevin aka @dragon_slumber (creator of Tech Support, Arelite Core, Astral Traveler and most recently Aethernaut) joins special guest host Flynn Ringrose for an electrifying discussion of Kevin's recent plays, watches and step away from full time game dev to other work. Checkout Dragon Slumber's Steam catalogue Follow Flynn on LinkedIn (lol) You can also follow Kevin on LinkedIn?! (lolol)

Full show notes are available on our site 3 Joydrop Unionization Labour Board Case Info JOBS | EVENTS TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) 00:13 - Introduction/Events/Jobs 08:37 - 'Player Select' from Streets of Rage 2 by Motohiro Kawashima & Yuzo Koshiro 08:58 - News! 13:43 - 'Battle Music 3' from Baldur's Gate III by Borislav Slavov 14:03 - News Cont'd 21:35 - 'The Vale Two' from The Vale: Shadow of the Crown by Tom Mullins 22:10 - Wishlist This 32:19 - Discord Discussion: Random DM's 34:50 - Steve's Sega Saturn shit 36:36 - Kickstarter Korner 41:01 - 'Tea Party' from Ravenlok by @mikelizolarocha (Ottawa x Toronto) 41:15 - Been Playing (GUNHEAD, Alone in the Dark (2024), more of Steve's Sega Saturn shit, Can Stardew OR Overwatch 2 be stopped?) 48:26 - Wrap Up 49:15 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) CREDITS: HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "Nintendo Entertainment" Reilly POD MAIN FEED ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta) FOLLOW: Join the Discord | Follow on "Twitter" @CanadaGameDevs | Follow on TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Follow on Instagram @canadiangamedevs

Full show notes on our website 3 Joydrop Unionization Ontario Labour Board Case Info! CANADIAN GAME DEV JOBS | CANADIAN GAME DEV EVENTS NEWS: Montréal: Sea Of Stars Gets Surprise Co-op Mode To Celebrate 5 Million Players Montréal & Toronto: Behaviour Interactive snaps up Fly Studio Vancouver & int’l: Tails Noir Developer Eggnut Closes WISHLIST THIS: Goeland by @MaartiGames in Montreal, QC. Releasing TBD, Wishlist on Steam; ctrl.alt.DEAL by @OnlyByMidnight in Edmonton, AB. Releasing TBD, Wishlist on Steam - (Listen to our 2020 interview with the team); Engineered To Purpose by Confidence Roll Games by @ConRollGamesETP in the GTA. Releasing March 26, 2024 - Wishlist on Steam. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Producer's Note 00:14 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) 00:27 - Introduction & Events 07:13 - 'Battle On!' from Sea of Stars by @ericsabotage  07:45 - News! 18:14 - Wishlist This 29:15 - 'Drums and Stuff' by @WesMcClintock (Toronto, ON) 32:23 - Been Playing (Spider-Man 2, Deep Rock Survivor, Helldivers 2) 43:14 - 'A Cup Of Liber-Tea' from Helldivers 2 by @WilbertRoget  43:43 - Been Playing (Hotline Miami PS5 BUGGED?!?, FFVII Rebirth) 53:18 - Wrap Up, Winner Gagnez! 59:02 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) CREDITS: HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "pls unionize quebec" Reilly Join the Discord | Follow on "Twitter" @CanadaGameDevs | Follow on TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Follow on Instagram @canadiangamedevs

See the Winners of our 2023 Community Awards Poll Here! We reveal the winners and runner-ups for our '23 Community Awards, go over some exciting Toronto indie game dev news and cap off with a long conversation about good (?!) microtransactions and lax technical standards in recent AAA games- and why Spider-Man 2 didn't give us the immediate fatigue Ragnarok did. CANADIAN GAME DEV JOBS | CANADIAN GAME DEV EVENTS CANADIAN GAMING NEWS: Toronto, ON: friend-of-the-site indie dev Devon Taking Beta Sing-ups for Upcoming FPS (closes Feb 16!) Toronto, ON: DrinkBox Gives First Teaser of Future Project (very bottom of post, concept art) WISHLIST THIS: Captain Soda by @Poe_Flower in BC. Releasing 2024, demo available, Wishlist on Steam on Steam; Spring in Summer by @LORENINEstudios in Canada. Releasing TBD, demo available, Wishlist on Steam; DEEP DOWN by Devil Studios in Montréal, QC. Releasing TBD, Wishlist on Steam. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Producer's Note (sorry its late) 00:45 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) 00:15 - '23 Community Awards Poll Winners Revealed/Discussed (apologies for Stephan's bad audio through most of it) 10:07 - 'The Shroud of the Deep' from the Darkest Dungeon II OST by @chatwood (Vancouver, BC) 18:41 - 'Another Year' from Dwarf Fortress OST by @simonswerwer (Barcelona) 19:20 - Wishlist This (these? lol) 31:10 - Spring in Summer Trailer song by @LORENINE (Canada) 31:46 - Sports Talk 37:08 - Stephan finished Spider-Man 2  44:18 - you get next gen Hotline Miami free?! 47:33 - more like Pokemon Scar-bleh 49:14 - Bridge Theme from Final Fantasy 49:40 - Steve Enjoys Final Fantasy 54:38 - "Get Helldivers" begs Steve 01:01:01 - Wrap & Credits 01:02:11 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) CREDITS: HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "Solidarity is Forever" Reilly PODCAST ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta) Join the Discord | Follow on "Twitter" @CanadaGameDevs | Follow on TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Follow on Instagram @canadiangamedevs

Vote in our Community Awards Poll This week thousands more game developers join Stephan in the "terminated by evil, stupid people" camp as layoffs hit tons of studios all over Canada and the world. We discuss Sonic as well. Sonic supports Unionizing your Workplace! FULL SHOW NOTES HERE (more job resources here)! CANADIAN GAME DEV JOBS | CANADIAN GAME DEV EVENTS HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "f*#king Unionize" Reilly PODCAST ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta) SOCIALS: Join the CanadianGameDevs' Discord! | Formerly Twitter @CanadaGameDevs | TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Instagram @canadiangamedevs! CREDITS: 00:00 - Producer's Note (sorry its late), 00:26 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON), 00:38 - Events, GOTY Nominees, 18:29 -  'Morning Dove' by Sam Webster & Nick Bausbaum from Rift of the Necrodancer OST (Vancouver, BC), 18:48 - News! such sad, sad news…, 39:36 - Celeste: Fragments of the Mountain OST (Vancouver, BC), 40:06 - Wishlist This, 51:41 - What We've Been Playing, 56:15 - 'Stardust Speedway Zone Act 1' from Sonic Mania OST, 56:40 - What We've Been Playing Cont'd, 01:11:31 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON)

Steve adds an obscene amount of demos to his Steam Deck (Dad Deck), we talk about everything Canadian coming up in gaming in 2024 to distract from Stephan's recent termination at the hands of a true coward. Steve's also going to have a baby, so if you want to help us with the site sometime this year reach out lol onward! -> 3 Nominate your favourite Canadian games in our '23 Community Awards polls right here 3 - FULL SHOW NOTES HERE! CANADIAN GAME DEV JOBS | CANADIAN GAME DEV EVENTS  WISHLIST THIS: 1. Elemental Survivors by @SamobeeGames in BC, Canada. In Early Access till Feb - Aug ‘24, Wishlist on Steam. 2. Lil' Guardsman by @PlayHilltop in Toronto, ON. Launching 23 Jan, 2024, Wishlist on Steam. 3. Fowl Damage by @moltanem2000 and @rednexusgames in Victoria, BC. Launching TBD, Wishlist on Steam. EPISODE CREDITS: MUSIC USED: - 57sec - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) - 11min28sec - The Power from Baldur's Gate 3 OST - 27min29sec - Sailor of Bogs from Sea of Stars OST - 42min42sec - Sovereign Syndicate Menu Music - 1hr02min52sec - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "f*#king Unionize" Reilly PODCAST ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta) SOCIALS: Join the CanadianGameDevs' Discord! | Formerly Twitter @CanadaGameDevs | TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Instagram @canadiangamedevs!

-> Nominate your favourite Canadian games in our '23 Community Awards polls right here - FULL SHOW NOTES HERE! OVERVIEW: After a (ginormous) hiatus, Steve and Stephan are BACK to discuss some Canadian Games Industry news from the past few months but just catch up and talk about games and big game thoughts, man. We're also launching our 2023 Community Awards polls- same as last year there's a week to nominate and another week to vote on the top nominees. Nominate your favourite Canadian games here 3 CANADIAN GAME DEV JOBS | CANADIAN GAME DEV EVENTS  WISHLIST THIS: 1. Pony Island 2: Panda Circus developed and published by Daniel Mullins Games (@DMullinGames) in Vancouver, BC. Releasing 2025/6, Wishlist on Steam 2. Blood Running developed and published by Dead Unicorn (@DeadUnicornInc) in Calgary, AB. Releasing TBD 2024, Wishlist on Steam 3. The Unknown developed and published by Triple Tap Games (@TripleTapGames1) in Canada. Releasing March 4, 2024, Wishlist on Steam EPISODE CREDITS: MUSIC USED: 00:00 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) 07:39 - 'Good Time' by @alpha_something (Toronto, ON) feat. Chetpet Gaana Prabha from Venba 09:09 - theme song from Podcast Beyond (can't find credits anywhere, man...) 36:40 - 'Wunderschonenburg' by @AShellinthePit (Vancouver, BC) from The Last Hero of Nostalgia 45:07 - 'Middle Kingdom' by @JonahSenzel (USA) from Pony Island 2: Panda Circus 01:04:35 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (London, ON) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "f*#king Unionize" Reilly PODCAST ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta) SOCIALS: Join the CanadianGameDevs' Discord | Follow us on Twitter @CanadaGameDevs | Follow us on our hot new TikTok @canadiangamedevs | We also share to Instagram!

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE! Follow our guest and patron Jake VanderHeide (@VanderheideJake) 3 CanadianGameDevs' Discord | Twitter @CanadaGameDevs | TikTok @canadiangamedevs | Instagram @canadiangamedevs MUSIC USED: 00:11 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) 24:39 - 'King of the Spill' by @TeeLopes (NYC) 40:11 - South of Midnight announcement trailer by @CompulsionGames (Montréal, QC) 1:05:05 - The Outlast Trials menu theme by @TheRedBarrels (Montréal, QC) 1:55:28 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (Halifax, NS) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "about to drive 2000km at once" Reilly PODCAST ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta)

Join the CanadianGameDevs' Discord | Follow us on Twitter @CanadaGameDevs | Follow us on our hot new TikTok @canadiangamedevs | We also share to Instagram OVERVIEW: In Stephan's last ever episode recorded from Halifax (probably) we go over Mighty DOOM's chart topping launch, big indie launches from Newfoundland to Victoria Island and more Canadian gaming news and wishlists. Steve gives his thoughts (so far) on Canadian indies Hill Agency:PURITYdecay, Fire Station and Super Animal Royale then Stephan breaks down his current GOTY DREDGE. SEE UPCOMING CANADIAN GAMING EVENTS! CANADIAN GAMING NEWS: Halifax, NS: Mighty DOOM Most Downloaded Game on iOS and Play Store in the US (and the 6th worldwide) Halifax, NS: A Little to the Left: Cupboards & Drawers DLC Announced for Switch Kitchener, ON: Mayhem in Single Valley Launches on Consoles Newfoundland: Ayre Flies Onto PlayStation and Xbox Vancouver, BC: Rift of the Necrodancer Announced for Switch Victoria, BC: Sky Haven: AR Merge Adventure Launches on Google Play in Canada WISHLIST THIS: Chaotic Era (@chaotic_era) by BOBBY TECHNOLOGY INC. (which is Gabriel O'Flaherty-Chan & Kevin Donnelly) from Toronto, ON. (Last wishlisted Jan 25/2019 for Summer 2020 iOS Beta). Now you can buy it in Early Access on itch.io. “Chaotic Era is an atmospheric strategy game inspired by classic science fiction, following a stranded human crew on an alien planet.” Omega Strikers (@PlayOmega) by Odyssey Interactive (@OdysseyStudio) in Waterloo, ON. Releasing April 27th, 2023 for Steam, phones, and consoles. “Smash opponents off the arena and score goals in this lightning-fast 3v3 free-to-play game. Squad up with friends to sling slimes, toss tofu, and rocket boost to victory.” Rogue Station by Quint Studio (@QuintStudioGame) in Canada. In Early Access until 2024, Get it on Steam. “This "space station builder simulation roguelite" puts you in charge of a space station. Fight off enemy ships, fleets and rival stations to dominate your corner of space. Build and upgrade your station, hire and manage your crew. Survive as long as you can.” MUSIC USED: 00:00:00 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) 00:07:31 - Mighty DOOM theme by @JoshLRichardson (Halifax, NS) 00:24:53 - Mayhem in Single Valley by @FluxscopicLtd (Kitchener, ON) 00:37:30 - Rogue Station steam trailer by @QuintStudioGame (Canada) 00:49:01- Tetris Theme (Korobeiniki) composed by @andrew_skeet (London, UK) & performed by @philharmonia (London, UK) 01:08:52 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (Halifax, NS) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "about to drive 2000km at once" Reilly PODCAST ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta)

FULL EPISODE NOTES HERE! - Join the CanadianGameDevs' Discord - Follow us on Twitter @CanadaGameDevs - Follow us on our hot new TikTok @canadiangamedevs - We also share to Instagram SEE UPCOMING CANADIAN GAMING EVENTS! SEE CANADIAN GAMING NEWS! MUSIC USED: - 00:00 - Intro Music by @jakebutineau (Toronto, ON) - 02:24 - 'Echo Generation (Main Theme)' by @itsPusher (Toronto, ON) - 35:10 - 'Backpack' by @hollett_samuel (Toronto, ON) - 45:52 - announcement trailer for Anvil Empires scored and sound designed by @romdiprisco (Toronto, ON) - 1:05:00 - Outro Music by @Composingdan (Toronto, ON) HOSTED BY: @StephanReilly (Halifax, NS) & @StephenLCrane (Owen Sound, ON) PRODUCED BY: Stephan "Guitar Picker" Reilly PODCAST ART BY: @Poltergust234! (Ko-fi - Alberta)