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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 15, 2024
Thursday Feb 15, 2024
TCW Podcast Episode 204 - Exploring the Mass Effect
In part one of a two-part exploration of the original Mass Effect trilogy, the game emerges as a synthesis of diverse influences from literary books, video games, art styles, TV shows, and movies. Drawing heavily from Bablyon 5 and the TV series 24, the main framework of Mass Effect reflects a blend of narrative inspirations. The art style, inspired by luminaries such as architect Santiago Calatrava, futurist Syd Mead, and John Harris, contributes to the game's visually captivating universe. The initial year of development was dedicated to crafting a compelling hard sci-fi universe. A key goal was to imbue the game with cinematic qualities and broaden its audience appeal, challenging the conventions of RPGs at the time. The innovative use of a dialog wheel, featuring concise words to convey dialog choices, coupled with full voice acting for both player characters and the main protagonist, marked significant strides in the gaming landscape.
KOTR in 3 Minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTCSPo7ZuSE
SCTV YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFb0L4MQziTjEsJKTbFgm8Q
The Wild Life - Rick Moranis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mM9qvLYeI8
Rick Moranis - SNL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzeyvaj1FiM
"The Final Hours of Mass Effect 3": https://me3finalhours.com/#:~:text=Q%3A%20What%20is%20the%20Final,creative%20process%20behind%20the%20games.
The Complete Deus Ex Retrospective: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yD54ndTFVU
StarFlight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foX2Mn1TIzk
Hard VS Soft Sci-Fi - What do they mean?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsbm2YDhItM
The Physics of Space Battles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFOuxAx-dkc
The Truth About Space War: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Xs3mGhQGxM
Syd Mead - Visual Futurism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuMIrHlAf2Q
Mr Spock Attempts Mind Meld with V'ger: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qpO47Iskac
Santiago Calatrava: https://calatrava.com/
Santiago Calatrava: A selection of projects from all around the world: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEjJXEwicuA
Babylon 5 - Everything You Didn't Know: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50xmPWmLUko
John Harris - Beyond the Horizon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTuZlYJOw-Q
Book Notes Mass - The Art of John Harris: https://adamrowe.substack.com/p/book-notes-mass-the-art-of-john-harris
24's Jack Bauer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKKTkTMAJBw
Mass Effect 2006 E3 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCvCvqbn4qY
Mass Effect 1 - Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BT5HhrIQfrY
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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