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The games we love reveal something true about who we are, and about the world that made them. They Create Worlds is a podcast about the people, technology, and forces that built the video game industry.
Through video game history, the show looks at how culture, business, and technology shaped what we play, tracing the choices and circumstances that led to the games so many people around the world enjoy.
Each episode digs into where games came from, who made them, and why they were made the way they were. Business decisions, technological shifts, and creative choices all shaped what ended up on screen, and the show covers all of it together, not just one piece in isolation.
Hosted by Alex Smith and Jeffrey Daum, They Create Worlds grew out of long conversations about the strange corners of the industry and the patterns that only show up when you look across companies, platforms, and decades. That conversational feel remains, built on careful research, clear structure and editing that makes even the deepest topics easy to listen to.
History turns out to be less settled than it looks. New documents surface, memories conflict, and the clean stories about why things happened the way they did rarely survive contact with the evidence. The show digs into all of that, following the creative and business forces that pushed and pulled on each other, and uncovering the human stories that lie beneath the games so many people around the world enjoy.
New episodes are released twice a month.
Episodes
Thursday Feb 01, 2024
Thursday Feb 01, 2024
TCW Podcast Episode 203 - Alone In The Dark
Despite appearing outdated by today's standards, Alone in the Dark remains a highly influential game in the survival horror genre. Numerous franchises, including Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and Eternal Darkness, either cite or incorporate tropes popularized by Alone in the Dark. Spearheaded by Frédérick Raynal, the game drew inspiration from Giallo films and Alfred Hitchcock's suspenseful works. It pioneered the use of 3D models in a pre-rendered environment with fixed camera angles, a technique later adopted as a staple on the first Sony PlayStation. Despite its significant success, Raynal departed Infogrames due to a lack of recognition, inadequate compensation, and the directive to create a new game with the same engine within a year. Subsequently, he founded his own company, Adeline Software.
Content Warning: The movies and genres referenced may not be suitable for some audiences.
Can You Hack Your Eyes to See Upside Down: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Euwp4C6Wt8A
Dawn of the Dead (1978) Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_EviQj5tvA
The Amityville Horror: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iwa120o7m7k
No Film School - Giallo Firm: https://nofilmschool.com/giallo-film-genre-explained
Horror Press - Horror 101 - Giallo: https://horrorpress.com/misc/5539/horror-101-what-is-giallo-and-why-does-it-matter/
Dario Argento: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dario_Argento
Mario Bava: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario_Bava
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UztVF1nJTBo
Suspiria: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPs2ExUL_bc
Alfred Hitchcock: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock
Top 10 Alfred Hitchcock Movies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVoVdKOLP04
10 Things You Don't Know About Alfred Hitchcock: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9BS9SJxbxc
12 Common Camera Angles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlNviMsi0K0
Popcorn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ea5-eFU3oA
Drakken: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5RlWuY3gXU
TCW 064 - The Rise and Fall of Infogrames Part 1: http://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/rise-and-fall-of-infogrames-part-1/
TCW 065 - The Rise and Fall of Infogrames Part 2: http://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/the-rise-and-fall-of-infogrames-part-2/
Star Glider 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sg3uQM83dl8
Alpha Waves (DOS): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9qAtVwSIV8
PBS Monstrum - The Origins of the Zombie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIGmsxBMnjA
Shadow of the Comet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Dwukeu8alE
The Case of Charles Dexter Ward: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Va7WZT1lVsc
44 Lovecraftian Monsters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDPqZUja9wU
Alone in the Dark - Artwork - Goomba Stomp: https://goombastomp.com/in-retrospect-the-original-alone-in-the-dark/
Alone in the Dark - Retrospective, Analysis and Critique: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51YNZV5QAFc
New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!
TCW Email: feedback@theycreateworlds.com
Twitter: @tcwpodcast
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds
Alex's Video Game History Blog: http://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com
Alex's book, published Dec 2019, is available at CRC Press and at major on-line retailers: http://bit.ly/TCWBOOK1
Intro Music: Josh Woodward - Airplane Mode - Music - "Airplane Mode" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/AirplaneMode
Outro Music: RolemMusic - Bacterial Love: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rolemusic/Pop_Singles_Compilation_2014/01_rolemusic_-_bacterial_love
Copyright: Attribution: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
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