32 episodes

Jim Likes Games is an ongoing audio diary of the many, many role-playing sessions of Jim Crocker, longtime tabletop RPG retailer, curator, author, and community organizer. Each episode will feature a bite-sized breakdown of a recent tabletop role-playing session, including a mercifully succinct plot synopsis, high points of play, and an observation about the game or scenario's design that might help listeners with their own gaming.  
Each regular episode should clock in at 20-30 minutes or so depending on the complexity of the game and the length of the session. Special episodes may run longer.

Jim Likes Games Jim Crocker

    • Leisure
    • 5.0 • 4 Ratings

Jim Likes Games is an ongoing audio diary of the many, many role-playing sessions of Jim Crocker, longtime tabletop RPG retailer, curator, author, and community organizer. Each episode will feature a bite-sized breakdown of a recent tabletop role-playing session, including a mercifully succinct plot synopsis, high points of play, and an observation about the game or scenario's design that might help listeners with their own gaming.  
Each regular episode should clock in at 20-30 minutes or so depending on the complexity of the game and the length of the session. Special episodes may run longer.

    Writers Workshop: Hacking The Between

    Writers Workshop: Hacking The Between

    This is the full audio track of the November 14, 2021 Writer's Workshop for Hacking The Between. 
    The Between (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/360858/The-Between) is a tabletop RPG of Victorian monster hunters by Jason Cordova. It's inspired by media like Penny Dreadful, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and From Hell as well as period literature like HG Wells, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, et al. 
    In this online workshop, Jason lays out the design philosophy that underlies the game, guiding discussion and taking questions from other game designers interested in creating content specifically for The Between as well as those creating new games based on the engine.
    You can join the ongoing design discussion of this game and other Gauntlet Publishing titles on on The Gauntlet Publishing Discord (https://discord.gg/dQ9E3bQX). 

    • 2 hr 44 min
    Trophy Gold Writers Workshop March 2021

    Trophy Gold Writers Workshop March 2021

    This is the audio for a meeting of designers for the Trophy Gold (https://trophyrpg.com/) role-playing game.
    Trophy designer Jesse Ross and Gauntlet Publishing owner Jason Cordova moderated, and offered general advice for creating adventures and hacks of the Trophy Gold system as well as specific feedback on individual projects submitted by some of the designers in attendance.
    My own work will be appearing in both Trophy Dark and Trophy Gold. It's a wonderfully rich system, and Jesse has gone out of his way to make it open to both modification and expansion.

    • 2 hr 42 min
    2021.01.12 Last Fleet Episode One

    2021.01.12 Last Fleet Episode One

    Last Fleet is a tabletop RPG that follows the remnants of humanity as they flee an implacable alien foe. It's a PBTA love letter to Battlestar Galactica.
    We organized and played this game via the Gauntlet Gaming Community (https://www.gauntlet-rpg.com/).
    You can watch the Actual Play video of this session (https://youtu.be/K1LohHAQ07s)on YouTube.
    You can support Jim by subscribing to his YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKlXN2NSPCZ8wVaO4AQakUQ)or buying his gaming writing on projects for Gauntlet Publishing.
    A couple of other podcasts on Anchor that I recommend as inpsirational: Ray Otus' Plundergrounds (https://anchor.fm/plundergrounds), and Judd Karlman's Daydreaming About Dragons (https://anchor.fm/daydreaming-about-dragons). Check them out, they're both wonderfully eclectic, heartfelt, and mercifully concise.

    • 12 min
    Just Played (By Someone Else!) Trophy Dark: Devil, Aim for Me Actual Play

    Just Played (By Someone Else!) Trophy Dark: Devil, Aim for Me Actual Play

    This is another Actual Play special. In this episode, Jason Cordova facilitates a session of the Trophy Dark Weird West incursion Devil, Aim for Me.
    You can find Devil, Aim for Me on itch.io. (https://signalstation.itch.io/devil-aim-for-me)
    The full Kickstarted version of Trophy (Including Trophy Dark, and my own incursion The Flocculent Cathedral) is now available for pre-order. (https://trophy-rpg.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders/280530#)
    Please note this is raw audio pulled from a YouTube video with no post-production editing.  It's a real-life actual play session.

    • 2 hr 46 min
    Brindlewood Bay Writer's Workshop

    Brindlewood Bay Writer's Workshop

    This is another departure form the standard format: it's a design workshop for Brindlewood Bay. If you're not familiar with it, think Murder She Wrote meets The Shadow Over Innsmouth. It's got a really innovative and elegant system for presenting mysteries that can carry over into other genres outside the cozy/horror base setting.
    This is a discussion /Q & A with folks interested in writing hacks and variants for the game. It's facilitated by Brindlewood Bay designer Jason Cordova. 
    As with other 'special episodes' of Just Played,  I haven't done any editing, so there may be variable sound quality and there's a couple of breaks you'll need to jump over. Other than that, though, there's lots of in-the-weeds discussion of game design and genre/setting. I've got a very nascent idea for a game based around retired superheroes in the vein of The Boys, Powers, and Astro City: Tarnished Angel that I discuss.
    You can purchase the Brindlewood Bay core game (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/307416/Brindlewood-Bay), and the first expansion, Nephews in Peril (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/332372/Nephews-in-Peril-New-Mysteries-for-Brindlewood-Bay), via Drive-Thru RPG.
    Enjoy, and let me know if this sort of thing is something you'd like more of!

    • 2 hr 33 min
    Just Played (by someone else): Kieron Gillen runs DIE for his comic industry friends!

    Just Played (by someone else): Kieron Gillen runs DIE for his comic industry friends!

    PLEASE NOTE: This is a departure from my usual (hah!) format, but these are crazy times. This is an audio presentation of a full session of a full AP Session. If listeners enjoy these, I'll post more as the opportunity arises and folks give me permission (including for my own games). In any event, big thanks to Kieron for giving permission to covert it to audio and present it. Go buy his comics, they're great!
    Accompanying the Image comic book series DIE, writer Kieron Gillen has developed a whole role-playing system to let people re-create their own DIE experience at home.  
    Or, relevantly, on a streaming panel at a virtual con.  
    Kieron Gillen runs a one-off highly-meta con-set game for a comics all star cast of players, for your amusement and horror.   
    The Die Beta rules are available from the DIE site (https://diecomic.com/rpg/) or itch.io (https://kierongillen.itch.io/die-beta).
    The game was played with safety tools, including Lines & Veils and the X-Card (https://www.gauntlet-rpg.com/tools-of-the-table.html).   
    Starring: Kieron Gillen, Marguerite Bennett, Chip Zdarsky, Ed Brubaker, Emma Vieceli, Matt Fraction  
    Support Thought Bubble with a donation via paypal here: https://bit.ly/3ptz7Wc (https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqa1dEOVAxRTFpY3ppMHlmVERvcmVFcEhXank3Z3xBQ3Jtc0ttRzY2X1hQeEYyNFYyS3hjTmVtZ0p1SnRvZTVqZk5RWG90a2hUV1hLZm5MNGxWclgzYzRnSWZnUW9WUFpJc0VmOGRlYWNTX25yLWZscXRFdUZvRWV2clVfeUM5a1RPV2VVNGN5UmF4VkRPeV9wRXFQZw%3D%3D&q=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2F3ptz7Wc&v=Zm8-Ut8pvek)
    The video was filmed exclusively for Thought Bubble Digital Comic Con 2020! Find out all about the Yorkshire Comic Art Festival here: thoughtbubblefestival.com.
    Audio presented by permission from Kieron Gillen, I DO NOT OWN it.

    • 2 hr 31 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
4 Ratings

4 Ratings

grchunt ,

Great Stuff!

There are few people in the gaming world who know more about indie gaming than Jim Crocker. He does a great job of explaining the key elements of each game, telling a story of what he’s just played, giving the listener an insider’s perspective that always helps me decide whether or not I want to give the game a try.

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