There are seven billion people on this planet, and despite the internet shrinking this pale blue dot smaller than ever before, there are few experiences which truly unite us. However, one thing to which all of us can relate is the love of a pet, and 2014 puzzle platformer Never Alone (also known as Kisima Inŋitchuŋa) by Upper One Games highlighted exactly how important it can be.

Never Alone is based on the Inupiaq tale Kunuuksaayuka, and blends together puzzles, platform hopping, and atmospheric storytelling in a short but powerful adventure. In it, you play as an Inupiaq girl, Nuna, accompanied by her arctic fox as she wanders through the Alaskan tundra. The developers, Upper One Games, were the first video game company owned and run by indigenous people of the USA, a notable point that was much discussed at the time of the game’s release.

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(Content Warning: Detailed Discussions of Mental Health, Detailed Mentions of Alec Holowka’s passing, Crunch, Depression, Over-working)

It’s another podcast episode! Today, Emily sits down with Chris to talk about the somber topic of Mental Health, Toxic Masculinity from a men’s health perspective, and tragic events that have taken place in the public eye of the industry over the past few years.

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In today’s episode, RE:BIND sits down with Breogán Hackett, one of the lead organizers for the Haunted PS1 Disc and the respective game jams!

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Last year we indulged in the macabre joy of Sacrifices Must Be Made, a rough gem prototype from Pony Island Creator Daniel Mullins that we came across while scouring game jam entries.

Part Darkest Dungeon, Part Hand Of Fate, the original prototype was built around a simple yet addicting head-to-head card battle game that I’ve been unable to satiate my cravings for outside of the deeply riveting Phantom Rose. This time however, Inscryption is going to have a lot more going for it than just the core formula, revisiting the concept with new features and a narrative driven focus.

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Disclaimer: Catherine Brinegar is a contributor to the Haunted PS1 Demo Disk, with a game in the collection.

The demo disk. A forgotten byproduct of a simpler era where consoles lacked one distinct feature we now take for granted; namely, internet connections. Magazines were the marketing avenue de jour for promoting upcoming releases, and what better way to instil hype for these games than collecting them into a little disk of demos packed in the magazine? A revolutionary way to boost subscriptions and games sales all in one tidy package

As we moved into the modern era of consoles that could always be online, demo disks became unnecessary since the demo could just be downloaded. Online journalism slowly killed the gaming magazines of the day, further paving the way for utilizing the internet as the means of distributing information. Demos too have slowly fizzled away, as games become far more complex and intricate than a demo could reasonably convey.

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Hark, HARK! Hear Ye Hear Ye, it’s the pilot episode of the RE:BIND Podcast!

Within, we discuss The Magic Circle, The Space Between, and many more works as we discuss Chris Franklin’s career, the evolution of the indie game scene in recent years, and the changing demographics of video essays.

Errant Signal can be found on Youtube.

As well as Twitter, and Patreon!

And remember, without your support, this show couldn’t be possible.

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(Content Warning: discussions of anxiety, mental health)

It’s difficult to find games that address anxiety in a way that isn’t demoralizing, dehumanizing, or both.

‘Just, Bearly‘ avoids many tropes of the shy awkward protagonist narrative, instead approaching it with an earnest humility that passionately demonstrates the ways strangers intimidate us, without being overly resentful, resorting to dehumanizing story beats, or ascribing ulterior motives to everyone around our hero.

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