Scholars At Play

Scholars At Play
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Society & Culture

Scholars At Play is a podcast dedicated to the critical discussion of video games and their place in society and the academy.

  1. 2PT - 004 - All Scrims and Set-Pieces (Kentucky Route Zero)

    12/03/2025

    2PT - 004 - All Scrims and Set-Pieces (Kentucky Route Zero)

    A feed drop from Derek' new pod, 2 Player Theory. Check it out below: https://twoplayertheory.podbean.com/

    1h 44m
  2. 2PT - 002 - Isabelle Is a Bell (Animal Crossing: New Horizons)

    07/09/2025

    2PT - 002 - Isabelle Is a Bell (Animal Crossing: New Horizons)

    Subscribe to Two Player Theory! https://twoplayertheory.podbean.com/

    1h 26m
  3. Two Player Theory - 001 - Whose Tears? Whose Kingdom? (Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom)

    04/18/2024

    Two Player Theory - 001 - Whose Tears? Whose Kingdom? (Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom)

    Feed Drop!! In this new podcast, Derek, Zach, and friends talk through games and media, together. Subscribe to Two Player Theory Podbean: https://www.podbean.com/pu/pbblog-n3ieq-11a3b2e Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0e6LX1a3MmR7nJkza5Pi49?si=1e7648dd3ca74a92 In this first episode, we talk about Zelda's newest open-world game, Tears of the Kingdom, and what it's themes and narrative mean for us, right now.

    1h 1m
  4. Episode 17 - Simulator Games

    06/28/2021

    Episode 17 - Simulator Games

    Derek and Kyle sit down to talk about Derek's recently-completed dissertation "The Work of Nonfiction: Simulator Games in Germany." Derek talks about the history of simulator games, the specific simulators he studies, and what we can learn from games all about machines and work. Timestamps 0:00 - Intro 4:11 - Theory, text, and context in research 8:30 - Origins of the project and how it developed, brief history of simulator games 20:12 - Theories and methods of the project 37:33 - Examples of popular simulator games from the mid-2000s 45:05 - How do these "newer" simulator games break from or continue in the tradition of older simulator games? 58:11 - How do simulator games respond to contemporary transformations of work in the 21st century, and why did the simulator game genre become popular in German-speaking contexts? 1:17:50 - The limits of critique/suspicion in research, and a brief discussion about how gender and class under-gird simulator game realism.

    1h 26m

  5. 10/22/2020

    Feed Drop: Dodging Hollow - Ep 1

    Subscribe to Dodging Hollow on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/dodging-hollow Edited intro music is "Day Bird" by Broke for Free, Creative Commons by attribution. Check out their music here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Broke_For_Free/Directionless_EP

    41 min
  6. WIYS 15 May 2020 - Animal Crossing, Final Fantasy, and Print n' Plays

    06/08/2020

    WIYS 15 May 2020 - Animal Crossing, Final Fantasy, and Print n' Plays

    The scholars may be physically distant, but that won't stop them from talking about all their quarantine gaming! Join us for an EXTRA long "What's In You System" where we talk about how our gaming has changed during the ongoing pandemic. ----------- Games Discussed: Final Fantasy Tactics, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Animal Crossing, Link Between Worlds, Euro Truck Simulator 2, Deep Space D6 ----------- Hosts: Derek Price: twitter.com/digital_derek Terrell Taylor: twitter.com/BlackSocrates Kyle Romero: twitter.com/E_Kyle_Romero ----------- Contact: email: scholarsatplaypodcast@gmail.com twitter: twitter.com/ScholarsAtPlay ----------- Music: "We Can Do It" by Visager (twitter.com/visagermusic)

    1h 49m
  7. Episode 16 - Bloodborne and the Politics of Failure

    12/31/2019

    Episode 16 - Bloodborne and the Politics of Failure

    -------------- Terrell leads Kyle and Derek on an exploration of the politics of failure and FromSoftware's Bloodborne (2015). They reflect on their own experiences with this challenging game and discuss how the game intersects with narratives of success and failure from different perspectives. Is the imperative to "git gud," common among hardcore fans of FromSoftware's games, an exclusionary, bootstrapping narrative all about personal success, or can we imagine a different politics (of success or failure) arising from FromSoftware's "harsh but fair" design paradigm? You'll have to listen to find out! -------------- Objects Discussed Game - Bloodborne (FromSoftware, 2015) Texts - Hudson - "In Bloodborne's brutal world, I found myself" (2015, Offworld.com) - Juul - "The Art of Failure: An Essay on the Pain of Playing Video Games" (2013, MIT Press) - "The Arts of Failure: Jack Halberstam in Conversation with Jesper Juul Moderated by Bonnie Ruberg" (2017, in: Queer Game Studies) -------------- Hosts Terrell Taylor - twitter.com/blacksocrates Derek Price - twitter.com/digital_derek Kyle Romero - twitter.com/E_Kyle_Romero -------------- Contact us! E-mail: scholarsatplaypodcast@gmail.com Twitter: twitter.com/ScholarsAtPlay scholarsatplay.net -------------- Special thanks: Visager (twitter.com/visagermusic) for the use of their song "We Can Do It," and our Distinguished Colleague Patreon supporters, including: Carol R. -------------- Support us on Patreon! patreon.com/scholarsatplay

    1h 22m
  8. Episode 15 - Teaching History with Games (Live at "Learning at Play")

    11/20/2019

    Episode 15 - Teaching History with Games (Live at "Learning at Play")

    -------------- Derek, Kyle, Curtis, and Sabeen have a conversation about the opportunities and challenges in using digital games to teach history. This episode was recorded live at "Learning at Play," a 1-day symposium on games for learning and social change which took place at Vanderbilt on 8 November 2019. For more on the event, see: https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/play/ -------------- Objects Discussed Games - Assassin’s Creed 2 (Ubisoft Montreal, 2009) - Attentat 1942 (Charles University, 2017) Texts - Gilbert - “‘Assassin’s Creed reminds us that history is human experience’: Students’ senses of empathy while playing a narrative video game” (2019, in: Theory & Research in Social Education) Objects Mentioned: - Komel: "ORIENTALISM IN ASSASSIN’S CREED: SELF-ORIENTALIZING THE ASSASSINS FROM FORERUNNERS OF MODERN TERRORISM INTO OCCIDENTALIZED HEROES" (2014) - Sisler: "Digital Arabs: Representation in Video Games" (2008) - Sisler: "Contested Memories of War in Czechoslovakia 38-89: Assassination: Designing a Serious Game on Contemporary History" (2016) -------------- Hosts Derek Price - twitter.com/digital_derek Kyle Romero - twitter.com/E_Kyle_Romero Curtis Maughan Sabeen Ahmed -------------- Contact us! E-mail: scholarsatplaypodcast@gmail.com Twitter: twitter.com/ScholarsAtPlay scholarsatplay.net -------------- Special thanks: Visager (twitter.com/visagermusic) for the use of their song "We Can Do It," and our Distinguished Colleague Patreon supporters, including: Carol R. -------------- Support us on Patreon! patreon.com/scholarsatplay

    52 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

Scholars At Play is a podcast dedicated to the critical discussion of video games and their place in society and the academy.

Information

  • Creator
    Scholars At Play
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2025
  • Episodes
    31
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © All rights reserved
  • Show Website
    Scholars At Play