We have a combo episode for you this week centered around the amazing game StarVaders. In the introduction segment, Ben describes his game experiences to Norah and answers her questions. Spoiler alert: by the end of the conversation she is sold, so now she just needs to get a Steam Deck. In the second segment, Ben showers the StarVaders game designer Eddie with praise before getting into a fascinating discussion about a sandwich-centric philosophical debate on video game design and the odd assortment of definitions for the topic word. *** Pre-show discussion and review of StarVaders with Norah 00:00:20 - Norah’s trailer impressions, additional research, and previous deck-builder games  00:02:44 - Jumping the gun on describing game mechanics, and various trailer approaches  00:04:52 - StarVaders according to the Pengonauts website, and more details the game loop 00:06:54 - Mech types, an introduction to DOOM, junk cards, and a tremendous variety 00:10:23 - Norah’s question, the mysterious Overseer, level boss diversity, and the true ending 00:12:46 - The “grid,” Ben describes some boss encounters, Norah’s brain, and satisfaction 00:16:09 - Joystick Ventures, only on Steam for now, like playing chess, and LocalThunk teaser  Interview with Eddie, creator of StarVaders and all-around good guy 00:19:11 - Introducing game dev Eddie Kai, Ben loves StarVaders, and thanking LocalThunk 00:21:01 - Some Rogue Climber talk, unlocking the beach DLC, and getting great reviews 00:24:54 - On to the definition, sunbathing, not a baseball guy, and a couple of two-plankers 00:26:43 - Skis on ice, no memory of old media, packet of cards or narcotics, and decoration  00:28:25 - Old-timey verbs, origin mysteries, and a fictitious deli honors Eddie’s gaming legacy 00:31:40 - A sandwich called “The Burger,” rogue-like, defining a game, and playing burgers 00:35:48 - Definitions of food items, a Portal into game design, and the narrative condiments  00:38:41 - Dead authors, Ben’s burger discussion equivalent, and preferred genres of media 00:43:03 - Card collection and tabletop games, and Monopoly—deck builder or engine builder 00:47:01 - Extreme specificity, differences in instructional approaches, and being a blacksmith 00:49:54 - Art or product, traditional card games, the Star Wars bread, and changing rules 00:54:14 - Chopsticks, floating nausea malls, baseball haircuts, and Eddie’s final thoughts 00:56:49 - Literally, Parks and Recreation, Ben’s final thoughts, studio names, and Pengo  *** Follow Two Vague on… Our website: https://www.twovaguepodcast.com On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/two_vague_podcast On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@twovaguepodcast On Substack: https://twovaguepodcast.substack.com/ On Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/twovaguepodcast.com For show appearance and other inquiries, contact us at: twovaguepodcast@gmail.com -AND-  …for all of your PRI and 2VP merch check out the Partly Robot Industries store at TEEPUBLIC! https://www.teepublic.com/user/partly-robot-industries *** References, Links, and Tags Check out Pengonauts’ official page and StarVaders on Steam https://pengonauts.com/ https://star-vaders.com/ https://store.steampowered.com/app/2097570/StarVaders/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgEh9mWKrdo #Podbean #DIYPodcast #ApplePodcast #VideoGames #Trivia #Comedy #Talkshow #2VP #TwoVaguePodcast #PodernFamily #InterviewShow #GamersofThreads #Gamer #PartlyRobot #PartlyRobotIndustries #TeePublic #StarVaders #Pengonauts