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Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click here to join the free Discord server or connect with the show on Bluesky and Instagram! (Note: This episode contains discussion of sexual assault.) "I'm so sorry I failed you, Buddy. I miss you so much." The Lisa series returns to Pixel Project Radio as we discuss Lisa the Joyful, the Kickstarter goal-turned-sequel to Austin Jorgen's cult hit Lisa the Painful. Joyful picks up as Buddy, Olathe's last living woman/girl. After the wake of Brad's self-satisfying redemptive warpath, she finally knows autonomy. Aaron (Super Pod Network) joins to discuss whether Joyful is able to ask the uncomfortable, meaningful questions that Painful asked of the players...or whether it lives meekly in the shadow of its older sibling. This, a brief look at the insane music, discussions on character depiction, and more. Hope you love the show today. Please enjoy! Referenced Links Original Kickstarter eeeeeYUHH HUH "'Sup, Holmes?" with Austin Jorgensen Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Choices and Divergences | Chrono Cross Analysis (Ep. 174) (00:07:08) Viper Manor (00:33:06) Escape to Guldove (00:48:09) Saving Kid and the Hunt for the Frozen Flame (01:11:41) Confrontation (01:16:48) The Utility of the Silent Protagonist (01:35:05) The Search for Self (02:01:00) Parting the Dead Sea (02:07:55) The Nature of Time (02:39:16) Wrapping Up Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click here to join the free Discord server or connect with the show on Bluesky and Instagram! "“We…No..Everyone worked to save the planet’s future for nothing…It’s all because of you! You killed it! You…! So many lives were supposed to be saved…how could you do such a thing?! It’s all your fault that the world is going to end up like this, Serge! Murderer!" The analysis of Chrono Cross continues! Co-host Chris (Retrograde Amnesia podcast) joins once more as the game begins to show contrasts—contrasts with its established tone, and contrasts to the ideals established by its predecessor, Chrono Trigger. Why struggle against fate? Is the universe fixed? Musings on determinism, a Zelbess mini-musical analysis, Fargo smokin' stogies, and much more. Hope you love the show today. Please enjoy! Referenced Links: Chrono Cross's beautiful pre-rendered backgrounds How the greatest Japanese RPGs of the ‘90s came to the West The Chrono Compendium Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Intro (00:08:52) Development (00:21:36) Visuals: Those Beautiful Backgrounds (00:38:05) A Battle System Refresh (01:04:00) Mitsuda: Still Great, Maybe Greater? (01:15:16) Story Discussion: Return to the Sea (01:28:13) Another World (01:49:24) Termina (01:52:52) 3 Weirdos and Viper Manor (01:59:00) Wrapping Up Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click here to join the free Discord server or connect with the show on Bluesky and Instagram! "Nobody can take anything away from him. Nor can anyone give anything to him." This week begins a look at Chrono Cross, the Playstation 1 follow-up to the critically acclaimed and fan-beloved Chrono Trigger. While sharing a namesake and a creative team, there is far more about Chrono Cross that differs from its older sibling than there is that makes them alike. Co-host Chris (Retrograde Amnesia podcast) joins the show to mull over what works—and more importantly why. Chrono Cross takes a lot of risks in its battle system, its cast of colorful weirdos, and, especially, its narrative identity...and that is where this conversation begins. Join us for the first of three episodes exploring this wonderful and weird JRPG gem. Hope you love the show today. Please enjoy! Referenced Links: Chrono Cross's beautiful pre-rendered backgrounds How the greatest Japanese RPGs of the ‘90s came to the West Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click here to join the free Discord server or connect with the show on Bluesky and Instagram! "Legend tells of an ancient artifact that can grant a woman's wish..." Fighting Game February comes to a close with Skullgirls, the indie fighter—excuse me, the handdrawn indie fighter, put some respect where it's due—that takes inspiration from fighting games, comics, and old-school movies alike. Mikey Tabletop (0-2 Heroes Podcast) joins as co-host to talk about why this game deserves more love than it gets. Between the gorgeous animation, the attention paid to competitive mechanics, and a soundtrack that's closer to "good jazz" than most games get (you too, New Vegas, sorry), it's easy to gush over Skullgirls. It's not all pleasantries though, as this game has been in the spotlight many a time for reasons less than admirable. All of this and more, to bring February to a close. Hope you love the show today. Enjoy! Skullgirls Origins story mode Skullgirls canonical(ish) timeline Insaneintherain YouTube channel Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Introduction (00:09:12) Development History (00:21:01) Visuals and Art Style (00:37:21) Mechanics (01:03:12) Music and Sound (01:21:50) Story, TV Ads, and Stuck on the PS3 (01:36:15) Wrapping Up Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click here to join the free Discord server or connect with the show on Bluesky and Instagram! Hey, all! Pixel Project Radio here! To break up Fighting Game February, Rick and Bill (Gaming and Collecting; 3DO Experience; Geek Addicts) jump into the 3D Kingdom of Dotnia in 3D Dot Game Heroes! This game—with credits from Fromsoft and Atlus!—was released to general favorability in 2009 but never made a notable impression. Perhaps this is why it's marooned on the PS3 and the PS3 only to this day! This is a very special game, and in this episode Rick and Bill break down why it deserves far more love than it gets: the infectious music, the self-referential and -parodic writing, the gorgeous marriage of 2D and 3D, and more. 3D Dot Game Heroes does so much right. It deserves more recognition—and we're gonna tell you about it! Hope you love the show today. Enjoy! Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Fighters, Vipers, and Cars. Oh My! | Fighters Megamix (Ep. 170) (00:11:24) Development (00:23:10) Game Modes and Characters (00:44:33) Visuals: VF3 > FV (00:55:13) Burnin' Music (01:05:22) Gameplay (01:18:47) Wrapping Up Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click here to join the free Discord server or connect with the show on Bluesky and Instagram! "Fighting Festival" is a worse name...but not inaccurate. This week is all about the Sega crossover bringing together Virtua Fighter and Fighting Vipers (as well as a few other surprises): Fighters Megamix! Co-host Chris (Retro Hangover podcast) joins to PKG throughout this mashup that's either a marketing ploy or a good time, depending on who you ask. It brought the Virtua Fighter engine, it brought some (at the time) not-yet-released moves from VF 3, it brought the armor and stage destruction mechanics of Fighting Vipers...and it brought Sonic the Fighters and Daytona USA into the ring, too. This is a game that means so much to me (Rick) and immediately takes me back to being a wee lad playing the first console I ever owned. We hope you love the show today. Enjoy! Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Intro/What This Podcast Is (00:10:13) Story and Lore (00:19:37) Development (00:26:26) Music (00:38:20) Visuals and Art Style (00:47:27) Mechanics (01:19:28) Wrapping Up Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click here to join the free Discord server or connect with the show on Bluesky and Instagram! "Fighting February" has begun! We're trying something a little different this year and doing three fighting games this month. This episode features Under Night Inbirth, an anime fighter with combo-heavy gameplay and a supernatural-esque lore. Co-host and fighting game aficionado Raging Demon (Kommand List podcast) joins to parse out what makes this fighter so unique—and so criminally underrated. The insane story, the GRD system, the absolutely killer soundtrack...all this and more on this week's episode. Hope you love the show today. Enjoy! Rooflemonger's Beginner Guide (Under Night II) Nihongogamer's 10 Under Night Tips Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Introduction to the Podcast (00:04:07) Personal Histories and Community Forum (00:12:42) Development and Design Philosophy (00:30:51) Mechanics (01:01:41) Music and Sound (01:17:27) Lore and Story (01:58:32) Wrapping Up Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click the following to join our free Discord server, or connect with us on Bluesky, Instagram, and TikTok! "No cost too great. No mind to think. No will to break. No voice to cry suffering. Born of God and Void." We're finally doing it: might be pretty late to the party, but today we're talking all about Hollow Knight, the metroidvania that had — and arguably still has — the gaming world rapt since 2017. Co-host Doug (Nostalgium Arcanum, Playing by Ear) joins the show to look into just what makes this game work...and what makes it work so impeccably well. Hollow Knight is rich with thematic strands, lurid visuals, affecting music, and enough lore to make even the most dedicated Wiki editor blush. Hope you love the show today. Enjoy! Kotaku interview w/ Kirk Hamilton  Team Cherry AMA  Larkin Interview  Full game script c/o mossbag Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also join our free Discord server, or connect with us on Bluesky, Instagram, and TikTok! Hey folks! Please enjoy this bonus episode from the Patreon vaults. This episode was recorded and released in January of 2025. Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for a fantastic year. Creating this podcast and bringing fiction off of the page/screen brings me a lot of meaning. Here's to 2026! Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also join our free Discord server, or connect with us on Bluesky, Instagram, and TikTok! Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also click the following to join our free Discord server, or connect with us on Bluesky, Instagram, and TikTok! "A future is not given to you. It is something you must take for yourself." The NieR Automata analysis concludes! Joined by Dave (Tales from the Backlog), we talk through the final three endings of the game in detail. One of the game's main themes — that of a Will to live, a meaning to life to stave off what has been variously called "The Absurd," "Nihilism," and more — is on full display as we see more characters than not grapple with it. Between what the game presents and the supplemental lore canon, there's loads to talk about. Hope you love the show today. Enjoy! Smash Interview with Yoko Taro Interview with Yoko Taro and Yosuke Saito Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Intro Discussion (00:15:26) Adam and Eve (00:26:17) The Forest Kingdom (00:35:44) Mecha-Kaiju (00:40:38) The Copied City (00:53:03) Become as Gods (01:04:44) flowers for m[a]chines (01:34:34) Route B (02:07:28) Adam Captures 9S (02:25:08) Revelations (Replicant Spoilers) (02:43:28) or not to [b]e Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also join our free Discord server, or connect with us on Bluesky, Instagram, and TikTok! "And we need a God worth dying for." The NieR Automata analysis continues! Joined by Dave (Tales from the Backlog) once again, we proceed through the ending of route A and through the entirety of route B. The view from 9S's perspective unearths new information not yet known to 2B...or to most of the YoRHa troops. How will 9S temper the friction between his loyalty — indeed, his "essence" — with an earth-shattering revelation? Further conversations on existentialism, Simone de Beauvoir, the importance of perspective, and more. Hope you love the show today. Enjoy! Smash Interview with Yoko Taro Interview with Yoko Taro and Yosuke Saito Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Intro/What This Podcast Is (00:02:25) Personal Histories (00:13:08) Development (00:31:59) Visual Design (00:38:37) Mechanics (00:51:48) Music and Sound (01:00:28) Story Analysis: Let's Kill God (01:26:18) Resistance Camp (01:39:07) This Cannot Continue (02:03:16) Pascal's Village (02:24:23) Aliens' Return Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also join our free Discord server, or connect with us on Bluesky, Instagram, and TikTok! "Stop calling me ma'am." The analysis on NieR Automata begins! Rick is joined by Dave (Tales from the Backlog) to take an in-depth look at this marriage of Platinum Games's circumfluent battle style and Yoko Taro's philosophically-tinged narratives. NieR Automata is a game with two ideas at its core: existentialism (existence precedes essence); and the all-too-human penchant for "othering" those who are not in our in-group, often due to unwillingness to shift perspective. This episode covers up to learning the fate of the makers of the machines. Hope you love the show today. Enjoy! Interview with Yoko Taro Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Intro/What This Podcast Is (00:02:06) Personal Histories and Initial Thoughts (00:12:10) Development (00:16:02) Visuals (00:26:58) Sound Design (00:40:40) Narrative Discussion (01:30:22) Ending Discussion Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also join our free Discord server, or connect with us on Bluesky, Instagram, and TikTok! An oppressive system breeds a need to break free. Rick is joined by Kate and Emily (No Small Games) to take a deeper look into Playdead's INSIDE, a horror-tinged puzzle-platformer released in 2016. Draped in an opaque narrative, INSIDE demands discussion from players—with the game and with each other—to parse out intent and impact. Between the three hosts themes of control, systemic oppression, free will vs determinism, and autonomy are explored, both in terms of gameplay and a suggested narrative. Hope you love the show today. Enjoy! LINK: INSIDE's Audio in a Human Skull Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!

(00:00:00) Intro, Abby and Lev Discussion (00:22:46) Day 3A (00:29:29) Through Seraphites and Snipers (00:39:31) Casualties of War (00:46:41) WLF Standoff (00:52:15) The Pyre of Haven (00:57:55) They'll Pay (01:17:10) Epilogue: Throwing It All Away (01:46:49) Final Confrontation Please consider supporting the show on Patreon! You can also join our free Discord server, or connect with us on Bluesky, Instagram, and TikTok! "If somehow the Lord gave me a second chance at that moment...I'd do it all over again." The analysis of The Last of Us Part 2 concludes—and what an ending; a disgrace to some, near-perfect for others, infamous to all. At what point does one become truly irredeemable, forced to bear their scars with no path to forgiveness? Rick and Jon explore this idea at length, discussing the final confrontation at the theater recontextualized, the epilogue and whether or not it is out of place, and the controversy over the end. Hope you love the show today! Thank you for listening! Want to reach out to PPR? Send your questions, comments, and recommendations to [email protected]! And as ever, any ratings and/or reviews left on your platform of choice are greatly appreciated!