The Perfect Game Review Doesn't Exist
Summary
Host Chris Plant interviews games critic Chris Donlin to explore the purpose and power of video game criticism. They discuss how text-based reviews allow readers to experience other perspectives and why the "impossibility" of reviewing complex games keeps the art form fresh. Donlin also shares how his background in describing game mechanics helped him articulate symptoms of multiple sclerosis to his doctor, illustrating how critical thinking enhances our understanding of both digital worlds and our own aging bodies.
Topics discussed
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Intro: The value of critical thinking in games
Episode intro: The impossible art of a review
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Guest intro: Chris Donlin and his awards
Why we read reviews: Perspective and self-reflection
Early memories: Magazine reviews and Edge
The L.A. Noir review and finding a voice
Reviewing with empathy and personal risk
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Text vs. video: The power of written criticism
The L.A. Noir essay: Family history and description
Living with MS: Writing 'The Unmapped Mind'
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Describing symptoms: MS and game mechanics
Takahashi's T: Disability and accidental insight
Discovery in art: Melville, Spielberg, and intent
Games that enrich: Short Hike and Grow Home
Outro: Patreon bonus and listener questions
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