Episode Six: Big Ideas

Great episode, as usual. I remember reading about that Jonah guy in Rolling Stone 10 years ago. He seems like the exact same lazy (and kinda creepy) attention whore he was back then. And that interview went the same way., with the Jonah whipping it out, then asking the interviewer what he was gonna tell his friends. If it were me, I’d probably tell ‘em I just saw the worlds ‘biggest’ loser.

DUDE!!!I hope you run a reprint of the poster, I was trapped at work all night and couldn’t order one. Either way, you’re the realest mothafucka on Erf!!!

great work again! you were (obviously) missed these past months.

thanks for the work

i think you need staff to help you to make some sort of deadline.

i imagine working all by yourself is hard.

also maybe have a way to monetize the project a bit more? maybe have ads running at the beginning of the podcast?

or maybe have the segments come out differently. instead of the hour long segments, shorter more focused bits?

love the podcast, really wanna see it succeed, would donate but in college.

Awesome, I’ve been waiting for this for a while. Going to savour listening to it.

You need to do larger print runs of the posters, super disappointed that they’re sold out when I checked in this morning :/

Great episode. Now I’m really curious to know how the hell some of those strange pitch excerpts fit into a larger game idea.

Amazing episode! very happy that I was in time for the poster! its nice that the show is free but I’d definitely subscribe if this was a paid podcast.

awesome work

the first part of this episode is something beautifully done that all our bleary-eyed, over-encouraged, over-congratulated children (and 20-somethings) need to hear.

You could get more episodes out if you had a much less heavily-edited show, without lengthy musical sequences, but I’m sure you know that already.

Blown away by the new episode, Robert. I actually like how episodes of ALWW are so few and far between. Most of the weekly gaming related podcasts I listen to become derivative and stale after awhile, whereas each new episode of ALWW and the content therein is original and refreshing. Thanks!

I would also like to request a reprint on the latest phenomenal poster!

@Michael
Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait until the 3rd edition of the Help! (Ep 5 posters) have been printed and delivered.

Btw, for the 2nd edition of Big Ideas, what color would you prefer instead of orange?

I feel bad for this Jonah dude. What are the practical consequences of having such a freakishly large penis? Constant discomfort of the nether region in any pants that aren’t at least 2 sizes too big. And he’s definitely not going to be able to hide a stiffy. He claims to be able to fuck a different person every night, but the only people I see doing that are the empty kind who have been screwed to the point of having a gaping hole that can accommodate. It would be too painful for anyone else.

QQ My idea no make it…

Not sure I enjoyed the content. Just felt out of place. Oh well. Still love the show.

Thanks for the interview, Robert. Sorry I scared you with my penis. :p

Oh, and RC Collins – fuck you.

Such an awesome episode. I think this might be your best yet. I did think the segment on Jonah was a little creepy, but also funny. Regardless keep it up! I almost wish you had some sort of subscription based service. I’d totally give you $10 or $20 a year to be guaranteed a certain number of episodes. Please keep doing what you do, and make more music!

Frank lantz is a good man. He forged Jonathan blow’s signature on my copy of sneak king after Jonathan refused, while mr. Blow was watching.

Please consider releasing a b-side with some of the unedited game pitches. Some of us put some thought into those, and this may be the only light of day they’ll see.

@Treeman – that’s a great idea. I was interested to hear the (probably) dozens of ideas, esp. in a less-edited b-side ep.

Also, Robert, thanks for putting all this together. I like how even after 6 episodes, the definition of what the show IS is still taking shape. Really love the podcast, and I’m a huge fan of I Come to Shanghai. Glad I paid for that download, and really looking forward to the new podcasts and album.

This podcast still exists?!

Thanks for the great podcast, yet again.

I really hope you still call in or something to a few (even one?) podcasts, or at least get ‘on the air’ a little more often then ALWW episodes. Always enjoy hearing your viewpoint. I guess lately the only other possibility has been RFM… My point still stands though! At the very least, a going away visit to RFM?

Are we going to be able to read any of your work anywhere?

Anyways, thanks again for the podcast, all the best with your big move.

Its finally here!

Your podcasts give me joy that worries me simply because it shows just how much of a nerd i am… and it also showed me that there is so much more to being a gamer then just twiddling thumbsicks

Yes!!!!!!!! I was looking forward to this episode for MONTHS!

The Tetris mix gave me chills. Awesome episode Robert and good luck with your move.

I think it was Robert’s goal to make people see the tragedy that is Jonah Falcon’s life…

I can understand why you dislike the segment Gert, I was also disliking him in the first 5 minutes. But after hearing the full story I can say that Robert put a very emotional and tragic story in his podcast. Falcon is an example of American fame and it’s up- and down-sides. He did everything to promote himself, even sell pictures of his penis. But nobody cared about the REAL Falcon, the Falcon BENEATH all the penis-talk.

Falcon is just another person that wants to be noticed, he likes to hear something about his penis but in reality he just wants to be loved for who he is and not what length his penis is.

Very tragic story. And funny in a way…

I hated the Jonah section at first, but the more I listened, the more I loved it’s inclusion. Well done, Robert.

So why is all the great music so damed superimposed over all the great interviews? This bothers me. Shoudn’t the music be working as an amplifier for all the stories you tell? Now it is just loud. Didn’t liked this one at all. Is there some kind of inside-joke I miss? Why is that?

This is the only podcast that I archive on the chance it would ever go away. Thanks so much for hitting a segment of gamers that is sadly so misrepresented and ignored. Another fantastic episode and patiently waiting for the next one.

Great episode so far (I’m about 2/3 through). As always, this is one of the best podcasts I listen to.

One thought: I think I missed the introduction of the professor. There may not have been an introduction, or it may have been low-key. Either way, it’d be nice if you made it clearer who you were talking to.

Other than that, no complaints. Don’t feel bad about the infrequency of new episodes. We know you’re busy.

That dude on the last section came off as a total douche. So what if you have a big dick? Have fun jerking off just like the rest of us.

Glad to see you;re still doing the show! I have to agree with RC Collins on this episode though, it felt a little out of focus and, at some points, completely off topic. Thats only in comparison to your other work though, and I still donated of course, so keep on doing what you do because your podcast is one of a kind and worth the wait!

Thanks for the podcast. Hank Rogers seems like a really interesting guy.

If anyone wants to know more about Tetris and it’s crazy licensing saga, there is a fascinating documentary by the BBC called Tetris: From Russia with Love. You can find it somewhere on youtube I think.

Wow, finally a new episode, always looking forward to these, and well worth the wait. The first 5 mins of music and cuts were wonderful, the interviews with the Tetris and Pacmanhattan guys very interesting… and the last guy… just a bit sad, made me cringe

“I like radio that makes you uncomfortable, and comfort is kinda what gamers want most.”

So i guess you deleted my comment because you where uncomfortabl with my opinion.

I’ll refrase it. Jonah Falcon is a sad person.
There, is that more comfortable to you Robert?

If you delete my comment at least have the nerve to confront me about my opinion.
Censorship is a lazy way to counter those who do not share/support your opinions.

@Gert You’re free to give your opinion. Just try to keep the hate to a manageable level. Jonah is a human being.

I’ll third Treeman’s motion for a B-sides release. @Gert, why the confrontation? This is someone’s labor of love. Do you really want to pour negativity into the site? Just go with it.

I’ll fourth that. B-side !!!

I love how Gert thinks he knows me without ever having met me. Well, I think he’s an insecure douche just from two comments in a blog. Is that valid?

Well Jonah i am indeed quite harsh. But when you go public you’ll get comments and the way you came forth wasn’t really something to be proud of.

I found the penis talk to be rather vulgar.
It’s like a girl saying how cute she is and how many people stare at her every day.
That’s not very admirable.
I’d rather hear you talk about your writing.
Be interesting as a person.

Few people like to hear someone else brag.

http://o.imm.io/MOa.jpg

Great show again. Every time I listen to these I think to myself “why hasn’t this been pitched to NPR yet?” If you haven’t tried that, I wish you would.

On another note, Good luck on the move! I love the band (I bought the songs as soon as they were released and love most of them) and I hope to see you do some concerts in the Atlanta area. Or, Georgia Tech, where I go to school.

I’m disturbed by how you handled the Falcon segment, Robert. I suppose since he’s been on Howard Stern (twice!), Falcon must be comfortable with being scrutinized like this, but this is tantamount to a hatchet job, albeit a “sympathetic” one.

It’s a credit to your producing skills that you can make such a pitiful portrait of somebody… but why? Why enable this, why encourage it, why put a life like this up for scrutiny?

I’m kind of depressed now.

Oh, and Jonah… there’s a difference between writer’s block and laziness.

What’s with all this contempt toward Jonah Falcon?

I personally enjoy Robert’s loose interpretation of “video games and the people who love them.” The Falcon segment didn’t seem out of place within this context and ended up being very interesting, as well as… eye-opening.

Maybe everyone’s just upset about their own pee-pees…

I hate to say it but personally I think this is your worst episode to date

Intro was way too long and flat out boring.
First segment had nothing to do with games at all.
Second segment wasn’t bad, though I thought he was full of shit at the end.
And the final segment… was just plain stupid. Might have been fine if you’d just thrown in a couple minutes, but 15 minutes for some deadbeat that happens to have a big penis? Give me a break.

Just sharing my opinion! I do respect that it was enormous amount of work, and appreciate that you take the time to do it. Hope I enjoy the next one more!

This is probably the last thing you want to hear from a fan after all the time you spent making this, but I just gotta say it. This episode was way over-produced. It was fifteen minutes of substance stretched out by a ton of unnecessary music and sonic shenanigans. I didn’t think the episode had very interesting stories (save Tetris dude) and the drawn out synth wails and drum machine loops after every sentence only made things worse.

Whatever the intention was, the Falcon segment was a hatchet job. I don’t know how some one is supposed to listen to that and not feel utter contempt for the guy. If your presentation of Falcon is accurate, then the segment should have been scrapped; his story only serves to condemn him, and continue the cycle of false hope that keeps him from living his life.

I thought the Falcon segment was ok. To be honest, I felt Robert’s approach to it was slightly satirical, and since Mr Falcon himself does not seem to have an issue with it, I do not get all the fuss. I liked all the interviews, was not such a big fan of the intro TBH but I guess it got the point across. Eagerly awaiting more.

A Life Well Wasted Episode 7: Trolls, Rage, and the Internet Hate Machine

I personally loved this episode. While it was not as game-centric as the previous episodes, all 3 segments exposed a unique individual story that were tied together with the episode theme. Wicked space music too.