Here's the latest Matt Chat episode, this time on the Tandy CoCo classic Dungeons of Daggorath. Enjoy, and let me know if you played this game back in the day. Love to hear more about its critical reception among Tandy CoCo owners.

As I was playing Dungeons of Daggorath again this morning, I was struck by how much clever audio can enhance a game, more than making up for simplistic graphics and the like. I think we have a tendency to strongly underestimate the power of sound for suggesting certain emotions and sensations.

I've often been struck at how central maps are to gaming. I say "gaming" there instead of "videogames," because we all know that maps are also critical in tabletop games such as wargames, role-playing, and of course boardgames like Risk.

This week's episode is dedicated to Lori Ann Cole's Quest for Glory. One of a few truly successful "hybrid" adventure/RPGs, QFG is widely admired even today, with a huge fanbase and plenty of homebrew remakes and patches to enhance the experience on modern computers. Check it out and let me know what you think!

This week I interview R.A. "Ray" Montgomery, author and publisher of the famous Choose Your Own Adventure series. If you haven't ever read one of these books, I strongly suggest you get your butt to the local bookshop and pick up a few--they're still very fun today (and they've been updated and re-published by the author's own publishing company). In the video, Ray talks about the origin of the series, what makes them so fun, and also shares some moving personal history involving the loss of his amazing son (who also penned some of the books).

Lately, I've been doing lots of reading and have been trying to work my head around some ontological questions as they apply to videogames and virtual worlds.

I've been doing lots of research lately for a new book and came across a passage from the designers of Facade, a fascinating "game" that for many shows the way to the future of gaming.

It seems that outside the hardcore gaming community, many people still think of games as simple pastimes; casual activities with little redeeming value. Relatively few I've talked to consider it a legitimate hobby or craft.

Here's the latest episode, this time on Rogue.

Lots of good comments coming in already suggesting great roguelikes. You should also check out our earlier article/bonus chapter The History of Rogue: Have @ You, You Deadly Zs. I point you specifically to the comments on that article, many of which come from the original developers! Amazing stuff.