Wednesday, October 29, 2014

EXP Podcast #300: Jumping Around

Jumping Destiny's Hellmouth via VG24/7
This week on the EXP Podcast, Scott and I get up out of our seats and jump around! It's time to dissect the art and design of the perfect jump.

Oh! One other thing we forgot. The EXP Podcast has reached 300 episodes! Thanks to each and every one of you that have listened to the show over the years and jumped into this crazy experiment with us. We appreciate each and every one of you and look forward to filling your ear holes with more of "serious but not humorless" chatter.

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by left-clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.






Show Notes:

- Runtime: 40 mins 43 secs
- Music by Brad Sucks

5 comments:

  1. Thanks for 300 episodes!

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  2. Thanks for listening!

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  3. Grats on 300! I've been listening since early days, thanks for turning me onto so many meaningful and interesting games.

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  4. Comments!


    I'm going to jump from thought to thought:


    Trampolines! I jumped on a trampoline last year. It was a lot of fun. The experience of video game jumping has a similar, virtual, appeal.


    Ocarina of Time was one of the most jarring lack of jumps, I encountered. I really thought I would be able to jump. I often felt stuck to the ground.


    'implied verticality' I like that observation. I also think that it's interesting that in games 3rd person is very helpful for platforming. But I think that's because there is no periferal vision in an FPS game, and no ability to make quick looks with your eyes.


    Morrowind: I didn't play it, but my buddies always jumped and jumped and increased their jumping ability until they could jump on top of houses.


    Super Meat Boy has some great Mario correction, but some interesting mass/trajectory physics, and most imporantly: Meat Boy can stop on a dime! I feel like Meat Boy really refined the 2d mario jump to a finer level than I thought possible.


    Castlevania had one of those 'uncontrolled' jumps. When you jump, you're committed, and many deaths come from being hit mid-jump.


    Mirror's Edge - body in motion - definitely, good call.


    Jumping as inherently exploratory in games. Also a good point.


    This might be sort of absurd, but what if an fps had the guns have a kick, which could cause a bad landing if you fire while jumping. The idea being that you can't jump, aim, fire and land. Somewhere in the process you lose balance. Not reality, but some form of magic realism.


    VVVVVV - I'm glad you mentioned this game.


    Yes, the jump certainly has a long and storied history in games. Thanks for bringing up the discussion. It is interesting, I wonder if it is a lack of creativity that keeps the jumping mechanic in games sometimes. Or the precedent and fear of backlash when jumps are removed.


    Congrats on 300 episodes!

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  5. Thanks as always for listening! I remember having the same feeling when I first played The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. Pretty big mental shift, but one I am glad to have made.

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