DGC Ep 430: Gone Home/Walking Simulators (part one)

DGC Ep 430: Gone Home/Walking Simulators (part one)

Author: Brett Douville and Tim Longo May 28, 2025 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 its restraint and storytelling. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played:
All of Gone Home

Issues covered: walking simulator coverage, the wave of indies and another wave, career changes, Fullbright's early history, leaving the big industry, the value of focus, location-based entertainments and shows, focusing on one thing, having constraints vs not, setting your own constraints, the spooky atmosphere but having restraint, imposing expectations from video games, visiting a previously unknown house, the Ouija board, a literal red hair-ing, stripping out all the video game-isms for interactivity, few mechanics, simple systems and using their few mechanics and verbs, experience-forward, Brett quizzes Tim, narrative richness, the ordering of collectible reading, leveraging non-linear storytelling, using period-appropriate communication, games that make Tim cry, the 90s of it all, letters vs email, waste paper baskets, a visual language and the use of consistency. 

Games, people, and influences mentioned or discussed: Death Stranding, Dear Esther, Firewatch, BioShock Infinite, Batman: Arkham Origins, GTA V, Tomb Raider (2013), Dead Rising 3, Dead Space 3, LoZ: A Link Between Worlds, The Last of Us, Beyond: Two Souls, AC IV: Black Flag, Rayman Legends, Splinter Cell: Blacklist, Battlefield IV, Payday 2, Outlast, Antichamber, The Stanley Parable, Papers Please, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, Starbreeze, Josef Fares, Hazelight Studios, It Takes Two, LucasArts, Clair Obscure: Expedition 33, Blue Prince, Animal Well, Balatro, 343 Studios, BioStats, Calamity Nolan, Tacoma, Indie Game: The Movie, Minerva's Den, Bioshock, Kate Craig, Carl Lumbly, 2K Marin, Hangar 13, Fallout: New Vegas, Morrowind, Sleep No More, Macbeth, Antenna Theater, Meow Wolf, George RR Martin, Control, Imagineering, Disney, Fez, X-Files, Resident Evil, Amnesia, Life Is Strange, Leaves of Grass, Hollow Knight, Pulp Fiction, Final Fantasy IX, Shadow of the Colossus, The Last of Us 2, Alien, Kirk Hamilton, Aaron Evers, Mark Garcia. 

Next time:
Dear Esther (2012)

Links:
Why Is Gone Home A Game?

Twitch: timlongojr https://twitch.tv/timlongojr
Discord https://t.co/h7jnG9J9lz
DevGameClub@gmail.com mailto://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 448: Deadly Premonition (part three) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:15:12
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 2010's Deadly Premonition. We dig into the game further, particularly talking about how its open world works for us as opposed to the repetitive tasks o…
DGC Ep 447: Deadly Premonition (part two) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:10:52
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 2010's Deadly Premonition. We revisit the Twin Peaks of it all, and then discuss some of the more mechanical aspects of the game, particularly the profi…
DGC Ep 446: Deadly Premonition (part one) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:10:46
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on 2010's Deadly Premonition. We first set the game in its time, and talk a bit about Japanese creators breaking out and establishing more auteurist inclina…
DGC Ep 445: Portal Bonus Interview with Erik Wolpaw [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:17:57
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we add to our series on Portal by interviewing Erik Wolpaw. We talk about his pre-Portal career, burnout, and success on small teams and large. Dev Game Club looks at classic vid…
DGC Ep 444: Portal (part two) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:25:57
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on Portal. We talk about the ending part of the game, the increasing difficulty, the cake, and the boss and declare ourselves Still Alive. Dev Game Club lo…
DGC Ep 443: Portal (part one) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:54
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we kick off a short series on 2007's Portal. We talk about the year it came out, a bit about Valve and the Orange Box, before talking about the game's development history and the…
Discord Game Club Ep. 11 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:11:04
Tim is traveling this week, so we are reaching into the Discord Game Club interview archive. This time around, BioStats and Calamity Nolan interview one... Brett Douville, who happens to also co-host Dev Game Club and is…
DGC Ep 442: Papers, Please/Cart Life (part three) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:22:05
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on a pair of empathy games, Papers, Please and Cart Life. We spend some more time with Melanie and her coffee hut before turning to our takeaways, shared b…
Discord Game Club Ep. 10 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:00:47
It's again the doldrums of summer this week, so we are reaching into the Discord Game Club interview archive. This time around, BioStats and Calamity Nolan interview one Timothy Longo, who happens to also co-host Dev Gam…
DGC Ep 441: Papers, Please/Cart Life (part two) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:34
Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on empathy games, returning to discuss a little more about Papers, Please before digging into Cart Life a bit. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games a…