Tales from the Backlog - Episodes Tagged with “Puzzle”

216: Isles of Sea and Sky (with Jesse Guarascia)

Dave Jackson — Wed, 27 May 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson
Discord, Socials and more- https://linktr.ee/talesfromthebacklog

Join Dave and special guest Jesse Guarascia (noclip, noclip_2 and more) as they strengthen their block-pushing muscles for a deep dive into Isles of Sea and Sky (Cicada Games, 2024). They discuss its rich world full of secrets, why Sokoban-style puzzles feel like a great foundation for weird narratives or layers of secrets, whether the open-ended design works well, and much more. As always, no spoilers for a while.

Guest info: Jesse Guarascia (he/him)

Check out noclip https://www.youtube.com/@NoclipDocs
And check out noclip2 https://www.youtube.com/@Noclip2
And Blowback! https://blowback.show/
Follow on Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/jesseguarascia.com

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Title
0:22 Introductions
6:16 Our Histories with Isles of Sea and Sky
11:26 Top-Level Thoughts
18:38 Game Setup and Open Structure
29:19 Puzzle Design
40:40 Sokoban as a Base Layer for Building Secrets
53:15 Visual Design
1:00:00 Music and Sound
1:03:32 Who Should Play?
1:08:28 Jesse's Work at NoClip and More
1:16:53 Spoiler Wall and Patron Thank-Yous
1:19:17 Spoiler Section

Music used in the episode is credited to Craig Collver. Tracks used: Isles of Sea and Sky, Ancient Island, Stoney Cliffs, Tidal Reef, From Sea to Sky

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

209: Chants of Sennaar (with Travis Colenutt - Left Behind Game Club)

Dave Jackson — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson
Discord, Socials and more- https://linktr.ee/talesfromthebacklog

Join Dave and guest Travis Colenutt on their language-learning journey up the tower in Chants of Sennaar (Rundisc, Focus Entertainment, 2023). What do our languages say about our culture, and how can learning another language change the way we see the world? All of this and more in the discussion!

Guest info: Travis Colenutt (he/him)

Check out Left Behind Game Club https://leftbehindgame.club/
Follow on Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/traviscolenutt.bsky.social

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Title Card
0:21 Introductions
4:53 Why Did We Play Chants of Sennaar?
9:50 Top-Level Thoughts About Chants of Sennaar
16:06 Story and Language Learning Setup
28:00 Using Language to Make Progress
33:40 Learning About Culture Via Languages
39:04 Making Connections Via Languages
48:02 Stealth In My Puzzle Game?
53:58 Visuals, Music and Sound
1:08:31 Do We Recommend?
1:11:17 Left Behind Game Club
1:15:10 Spoiler Wall & Patron Thank-Yous
1:17:34 Spoilers- The Devotees & Warriors
1:40:05 Spoilers- The Bards & Alchemists
1:55:32 Spoilers- The Anchorites & Ending

Music used in the episode is credited to Thomas Brunet. Tracks used: The Call, Out of the Cavern and into the Light, Catch Me!, Envers, Bonds Reforged

Catch Dave on Nostalgium Arcanum talking about Rocky https://nostalgiumarcanum.fireside.fm/

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

205: Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective (with Steve aka Blinkoom)

Dave Jackson — Wed, 04 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0500

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson
Discord, Socials and more- https://linktr.ee/talesfromthebacklog

I always tend to take note when a game from previous generations gets a remaster and the general consensus is "hell yeah, finally!", which just so happened to be the case when Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective (Capcom, 2010) got the HD treatment in 2023. The DS is a real blind spot for me, as are the works of ShuTakumi, so this has been on my backlog list for a while now. Listen in to find out how my guest and I felt about it!

Guest info: Steve aka Blinkoom (he/him)

Check out IndieQuest podcast https://polymedianetwork.com/indiequest
Check out Polykill podcast https://polymedianetwork.com/podcast
Check out Steve's YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@Blinkoom
Follow Steve on Twitch https://www.twitch.tv/blinkoom

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Title Card
0:21 Introductions
5:37 Our Histories with Ghost Trick
9:20 Top-Level Thoughts About Ghost Trick
13:26 Story Setup
19:11 Ghost Tricks and Puzzles
37:16 Where Does the Charm Come From?
49:35 Handheld Console Pacing
55:09 Closing Thoughts and Recommendations
1:01:10 Steve's Work
1:04:54 Spoiler Wall and Patron Thank-Yous
1:06:38 Spoilers- Favorite Levels/Puzzles
1:22:50 Spoilers- More Story Thoughts
1:34:15 Spoilers- Big Mysteries and Reveals
1:43:21 Spoilers- Ending

Music used in the episode is credited to Masakazu Sugimori. Tracks used: Ghost Trick, Prologue, Cabanela, Lynn ~ A Targeted Redhead, 4 Minutes Before Death, The Last Desperate Struggle, Epilogue ~ The End of the "Night"

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