Tales from the Backlog - Episodes Tagged with “Annapurna Interactive”

188: Outer Wilds: Echoes of the Eye (with Rick Firestone)

Dave Jackson — Wed, 22 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0400

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As I said way back in The Outer Wilds episode, I respect the hell out of that game and think it's a miracle, but I didn't love it as much as others, and I kind of wish I could Eternal Sunshine that game out of my mind and try again. But as it turns out, the Echoes of the Eye expansion gave me just that chance. Did lightning strike twice? Did the game that "you can only truly play once" work again? Listen in and find out.

Guest info: Rick Firestone (he/him)

Check out Pixel Project Radio https://linktr.ee/pixelprojectradio
Follow Rick on Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/pixelprojectradio.bsky.social

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Title Card
0:23 Introductions
6:08 Thoughts About Outer Wilds
9:11 Thoughts About Echoes of the Eye
24:14 Pixel Project Radio Podcast
26:42 SPOILER WALL and Patron Thank-Yous
28:40 Spoiler Section- Initial Discoveries
48:05 Spoiler Section- A New World to Explore
1:24:00 Spoiler Section- Story Analysis and Endings

Music used in the episode is credited to Andrew Prahlow. Tracks used: The River, River's End, Elegy for the Rings, Echoes of the Eye, Departure

Check out Dave on Retro Hangover's King of Games '99 series: https://linktr.ee/retrohangover
Check out Dave on The Tiny Game Chronicles: https://tinyurl.com/m5jhfat9

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Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures

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167: Lorelei and the Laser Eyes (with Jesse Guarascia)

Dave Jackson — Wed, 28 May 2025 00:00:00 -0400

What if Resident Evil 1 was just puzzles? What if it was also about eccentric artists and how they view their art and the creative process vs how their work is perceived? Lorelei and the Laser Eyes (Simogo, 2024) is that game! Tune in to find out how we felt about it!

Guest Info: Jesse Guarascia

Find Jesse's work on Noclip's YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@NoclipDocs
Support Noclip on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/cw/noclip
Check out Blowback https://blowback.show/
Follow on BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/jesseguarascia.com

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Title Card
0:35 Intros/Personal Histories/Opening Thoughts
15:10 Story Setup/Story Themes
34:40 Puzzles
51:23 Presentation
1:09:11 Closing Thoughts/Recommendations/Guest Plugs
1:18:49 SPOILER WALL/Patron Thank-Yous
1:21:12 Spoiler Section

Music used in the episode is credited to Linea Olsson, Daniel Olsén and Jonathan Eng. You can purchase the soundtrack here. Tracks used:

Titles (Linea Olsson, Daniel Olsén)
Art (Linea Olsson, Daniel Olsén)
Mind Game (Linea Olsson, Daniel Olsén)
Quiz Club (Daniel Olsén)
The Black Arts Coffee Club (Linea Olsson, Daniel Olsén, Jonathan Eng)
Interrogation (Daniel Olsén, Jonathan Eng)
The Last Dream (Linea Olsson, Daniel Olsén)
How It Ends (Linea Olsson, Daniel Olsén)

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Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://www.instagram.com/jackallencaricatures/ and his other pages

Listen to A Top 3 Podcast on Apple, Spotify and [other podcast platforms](atop3podcast.fireside.fm)!

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126: Cocoon (with Brenden Groom - Pass the Controller)

Dave Jackson — Wed, 24 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0400

Every now and then, I want to take a break from story-focused games and just play a puzzle-ass puzzle game. Geometric Interactive's Cocoon was just what the doctor ordered, from that perspective. But Cocoon's world hinted at a deeper story, one that seems inaccessible yet present, and that left me with a feeling of want, despite how great the puzzle experience was. Listen to the episode for more! And also a big shoutout to patron Matt aka Stormageddon for submitting this game into the poll it ended up winning! Thanks Matt!

Joining me for the discussion about Cocoon is Brenden Groom from Pass the Controller. Pass the Controller is a great spot for chat about what's going on in the world of video games and other nerd culture, as well as interesting cocktail mixes to pair with your favorite games. You can check them out at their website!

TIMESTAMPS
Intros/Personal Histories/Opening Thoughts 1:53
Story Setup/Puzzle Gameplay 11:16
Visuals/Music 37:14
Closing Thoughts/Recommendations/Housekeeping 48:14
SPOILER WALL 58:42

Music used in the episode is credited to Jakob Schmid. You can purchase the soundtrack on Steam to support the artist! Tracks used in the episode: Signal, Cosmic Mystery, A Dance in Phases, Leviathan, Journey II, Spheres

Check out friend of the show Flora Merigold's written review of Cocoon on Epilogue Gaming!
Listen to Dave's appearance on Retro Hangover's [King of Games 1996](linktr.ee/retrohangover)!

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Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://www.instagram.com/jackallencaricatures/ and his other pages

Listen to A Top 3 Podcast on Apple, Spotify and [other podcast platforms](atop3podcast.fireside.fm)!

Support Tales from the Backlog

40: Outer Wilds (with Keith Gasper - The Main Quest)

Dave Jackson — Wed, 24 Aug 2022 00:00:00 -0400

Some games are fun to explore, some games create worlds that amaze you, some games tell stories you'll never forget...and some games do all of the above. Mobius Digital's 2019 space exploration sim Outer Wilds certainly qualifies. But was it all love all the time? Joining me to discuss it all is the great Keith Gasper from The Main Quest podcast!

TIMESTAMPS
Intro/Personal Histories/Opening Thoughts 1:08
Setting/Story Setup 23:08
Gameplay/Music/Sound Design 41:07
Final Thoughts/Housekeeping 1:04:00
SPOILER WALL 1:17:00

Noclip documentary about the making of Outer Wilds

The Main Quest is Keith's personal journey to revisit and replay every game from his childhood through early adulthood, and you can find the podcast and all social media links by clicking here!

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Social Media:
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Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://www.instagram.com/jackallencaricatures/ and his other pages

Listen to A Top 3 Podcast on Apple, Spotify and [other podcast platforms](atop3podcast.fireside.fm)!

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12: Florence (with Heather Siddiqui and Nick Greenberg)

Dave Jackson — Mon, 10 Jan 2022 00:00:00 -0500

In the 3rd edition of the Lazy Sunday series focusing on short indie games, Dave is joined by Heather Siddiqui and Nick Greenberg to discuss the 2018 interactive visual novel by Mountains, Florence. Florence is a very short game that packs a huge emotional punch, brilliantly conveying emotions via color, music and simple gameplay mechanics.

TIMESTAMPS: Intro 0:00, Florence 10:50, Spoiler Section 41:50

Listen to A Top 3 Podcast on Apple, Spotify and [other podcast platforms](atop3podcast.fireside.fm)!

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