DGC Ep 426: Fez (part two)

DGC Ep 426: Fez (part two)

Author: Brett Douville and Tim Longo April 16, 2025 Duration: 1:14:05

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Fez. We talk about its platforming and how it fits to taste, game style, and rule escalation. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played:
More cubes!

Issues covered: platforming feelings and taste, inspirations and how they play out here, additional move set, floaty physics, a mental game with mostly generous platforming, a game that takes place in your head rather than in your fingers, seeking high highs, sloppiness and guiding the player, no longer seeing the whole world but only the tells, the pleasure of figuring things out, checking out the achievements, how many people get everything, the craft of the game, wanting to feel capable, finding a solution that was not the intended solution, dominated by the puzzle side, those moments where you give a big "no way," extending a simple idea and iterating on it for a fleshed-out game, iterating ideas, a chain of implication, not making the leaps of logic too large, ladders that line up and teach you how to think about the world, not knowing whether you can do a thing yet, not wanting to diminish the revelations, puzzles games Brett hasn't finished and why, editorial from the publisher and Key Performance Indicators, finding a tribe for your indie game, side games, smaller and more cohesive teams, a choose-your-own-email, having an experience, leaving endings open.

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: Hollow Knight, Indie Game: The Movie, Phil Fish, Nintendo, Mario (series), Little Big Planet, Guacamelee, Super Mario Galaxy, Demons's Souls, Dark Souls, Kena: Bridge of Spirits, Tomb Raider (2013), The Matrix, Deep Thoughts/Jack Handey, MYST, Pierre de Fermat, Megaman, Resident Evil, The Witness, Braid, The Talos Principle, Obduction, Cyan Worlds, Super Meat Boy, Fallout, X-COM, mysterydip, Mass Effect, Wolfenstein: The New Order, Twin Peaks, Half-Life, While We're Young, Noah Baumbach, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia. 

Next time:
More Fez!

Note:
Amusingly, though I did not call out the actresses, Naomi Watts and Amanda Seyfried appear in While We're Young, and both also appeared in Twin Peaks: The Return

Twitch: timlongojr
Discord
DevGameClub@gmail.com


Dev Game Club is a conversation between two working game developers who have been there. Each week, hosts Brett Douville and Tim Longo pick a classic video game from the past-often a title that shaped design thinking or introduced a new technical standard-and break it down from their professional perspective. Their discussions go beyond nostalgia, examining how these older titles functioned, why certain creative decisions were made, and what lasting impact they left on the industry. You’ll hear specific analysis of game mechanics, narrative structure, and technical achievements, all filtered through decades of hands-on development experience. The goal isn’t just to reminisce but to extract tangible lessons that are still relevant for creators and deeply interesting for passionate players today. They invite you to play the game in question alongside them, then settle in for a detailed, insider’s post-mortem. This podcast offers a unique blend of critical appreciation and practical insight, treating video game history as a living textbook. It’s for anyone who loves games and wants to understand the craft behind them on a deeper level. New episodes release regularly, diving into a different influential game from the archives.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Dev Game Club
Podcast Episodes
DGC Ep 431: Dear Esther/Walking Simulators (part two) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:10:28
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on walking simulators with 2012's Dear Esther, played here in a 2017 "Landmark Edition" but based on a 2007 Source mod for Half-Life 2. We of course set th…
DGC Ep 430: Gone Home/Walking Simulators (part one) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:17:19
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we start a new series of explorations on the walking simulator, beginning with Gone Home. We set the game in its time, talk about possible real world experiences, and dive into i…
DGC Ep 429: Fez (part four) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:21:54
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on Fez. We talk about getting to New Game +, some favorite puzzles or mechanics, and then turn to our takeaways. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games…
Discord Game Club Ep 8 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:44:04
Tim had some unscheduled travel come up this week and so we were unable to work around that and instead reach into the Discord Game Club interview archive. This time around, BioStats and Calamity Nolan interview Michael…
DGC Ep 428: Fez (part three) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:54
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 2012's Fez, looking at coming back to a puzzle game and perception in its many forms, among other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and…
DGC Ep 427: Interstate '76 Interview with Sean Vesce and Zack Norman [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:45
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we return with a bonus interview for our series on Interstate '76. We talk about shipping the game's predecessor, pulling together, and making something new. Dev Game Club looks…
DGC Ep 425: Fez (part one) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:26
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series of series on the independent games of the last couple of decades, starting with 2012's Fez. We set the game in its time, talk a bit about its precedents and…
DGC Ep 424: Interstate '76 (part three) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:22
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we sadly conclude our series on Interstate '76. Poor Tim could not really play the game at all, so we're going to have to let this one go, but we'll still talk about a few things…
DGC Ep 423: Interstate '76 (part two) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:08
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 1997's Interstate '76. We talk about physics again, mission design, input, and other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays throug…
DGC Ep 422: Interstate '76 (part one) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:05:00
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on 1997's Interstate '76. We set the game a bit in its time, talk about Activision (almost as an afterthought), and then start getting into the characters a…