Dog Days of Summer Update from listener Marco– From National Geographic.com “For many, the “dog days,” evoke those summer days that are so devastatingly hot that even dogs would lie around on the asphalt, panting. But originally, the phrase had nothing to do with dogs, or even with the lazy days of summer. Instead, the dog days refer to Sirius, the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major, which means “big dog” in Latin and is said to represent one of Orion’s hunting dogs.
Bargain Bin:
Feather looks like the coziest.
Jay’s Picks: Spiritfarer – $9.89 (67% off $29.99) Feather – $3.89 (61% off $9.99)
✉️ MAILBAG: Pete from NY wrote to us about his love for his Ice Blue Gameboy, Pokemon Red, and disdain for being fooled into buying a Rollercoaster Tycoon knock-off for the PC on vacation. Thank you for being far out, Pete!
Say “No” or nothing as Nancy in Negative Nancy. Cathartic.
Hang out with a dog in a hat and get your Lynch fix in Kentucky Route Zero.
Reality TV Picks of the Week: Old Enough! (Netflix) Baggage (GSN) You Live in What? (HGTV)
You Live in What?😦 (Baggage)
Episode 11! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Games that reward you for playing on your birthday:
It’s nice to feel loved and respected by your friends and neighbors.
Games that reward you for playing on your birthday: Animal Crossing, Pokemon (X&Y and beyond), Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons, The Legendary Starfy
Starfy and co. on your birthday in The Legendary Starfy.
Other games that acknowledge your birthday: Metal Gear Solid, Death Stranding, Tomodachi Life, Kirby: Squeak Squad, Wii Fit, Final Fantasy, Fire Emblem, FIFA, Gran Turismo 5, Genshin Impact.
Overcooked has a birthday party skin, and there is a sandbox game called Happy Birthdays!
Jay’s Picks: Inside – $1.99 (90% off $19.99– matches previous low) Gibbon: Beyond the Trees – $10.04 (33% off $14.99– lowest price ever) Card Shark – $16.99 (15% off $19.99 – lowest price ever, releases June 2)
Em’s Picks: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 – $32.99 (18% off of $39.99) Donut County (hurl me into a dumpster)– $3.79 (71% off $12.99 – matches previous low) Jackbox Party Pack 7 – $19.49 each (35% off $29.99, also Jackbox Party Pack 5 $17.99)
Nadiya getting a coveted Paul Hollywood handshake on the most wholesome show of all time, The Great British Bake Off.
Stardew Valley for the Newly Minted Farmer:
Welcome to Stardew Valley!!
Tips and Tricks from your friends (Em and Jay):
– Use the wiki when needed
– Townie cutscenes – what you say matters and has positive/negative consequences to your relationship
– Go to your inventory to pause the game
– Time moves in increments of ten “minutes” (7 seconds in real time for each ten minute interval) – there is no end, so you have all the time to do whatever (fish, garbage cans, date the whole town. Am I in purgatory?)
– The tree button in inventory will show you what you need in the community center, the button underneath “organizes” your inventory, “add to existing stack” combines like items from your bag to your chest inventory
– Be aware of your energy/health and the time (start making your way back to the farm at 1 am, 12 if you are far away)
– You don’t need to find a life partner (or date all of pelican town immediately – you have time to do that later), but going to festivals or events ensures that you talk to everyone on a given day. If you do well/win at the seasonal event, you’ll also gain popularity points with everyone
– Upgrade your tools when you can (but you will be without them while Clint upgrades them)
– Look for the “worm” spots – seeds, artifacts, clay, books for the library
– Check the calendar in the town for birthdays – give townies their most loved gifts
– Practice fishing as much as you can, it will get easier (your fishing bar will increase with skill)
– Keep a few of every item in a chest
– Pet your pet every day! ❤️
– Don’t rush things, this game lasts as long as you want it to
– Upgrade backpack ASAP at Pierre’s General Store
– Don’t be afraid to go to bed earlier or eat
– Get in the habit of watching tv everyday (Livin’ off the Land, Welwick, Weather, Fortune)
– Build chests (50 wood) as soon as possible
– Joja is evil and if you like Joja, you are evil
– Go right and up and then loop around for the egg festival (suck it Abigail!)
– Purple Pig (hippo?) Cart is clutch
– When you are ready: sprinklers, sprinklers, sprinklers (quality and up)
– Complete those bundles in the community center
– More advanced- Greenhouse! (This should be your goal in the community center as a new farmer)
Pig? Hippo? Great hat, regardless.
Linus, a friend who shares your interests (digging through garbage cans to the dismay of Pelican Townies)
Fun fact! if you have a horse, he can sell ice cream to you at the ice cream stand, no matter the season. Your horse can also wear a hat. 🐴🍦
Catch episode 9 on Spotify or 🍏 Podcasts for all of our beginner Stardew Valley tips and tricks!
Like Em and Jay. Pictured: The Last Campfire, also a false sense of cozy security before we talk about some very un-chill games.
Jay’s Picks: Hades (not cozy)- $16.24 (35% off $24.99– matches previous low) Alien: Isolation (NOT cozy)- $17.49 (50% off $34.99– matches previous low) The Last Campfire (cozy) – $5.99 (60% off $14.99 – not far from previous low)
Jay’s Picks: Down in Bermuda – $1.99 (90% off $19.99) (matches previous low) Here Be Dragons – $5.39 (70% off $17.99) (matches previous low) Inside – $2.99 (85% off $19.99)
Your robot companion (family member?), Million, in Norco.
Time for puzzles!! Jay’s brief history: 2300 BC: labyrinth drawings were popular around the world, particularly in Ancient Greece and Egypt. These kinds of images hold religious and spiritual significance in ancient cultures. This has nothing to do with the movie labyrinth with David Bowie.
2250BC: The first tactile puzzle came some 500 years after the first labyrinth drawings, dating back to a whopping 2550-2250 BC. Appearing initially in the Indus Valley and Mohenjo-Daro, one of the first known human civilizations – there appeared dexterity puzzle of sorts, similar to the famous “Pigs in the Clover” puzzle. This seems the first physical manifestation of the labyrinths popular in Ancient Greece and Egypt. They had indoor plumbing and puzzles, so count me in.
What time is it? Adventure Time? Time to get ill? Closing time? Nope! Time for everyone’s least favorite topic! Daylight Savings Time! We talk games to play all day with that extra hour. Bargains, farming sims, and the games we’ve been enjoying this week!
Bargain Bin:
Jay’s Picks: Cozy Grove **(30% off) – $10.49 (reg. 14.99) – sale ended, but mobile game also available/goes on sale regularly. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy (50% off) – $14.99 (reg. 29.99) (we love a bargain bin bundle! – matches previous low) – Shout out to friends/listeners Gretchen and Ian who bonded over this game! ❤️
Em’s Picks: The Stillness of the Wind (80% off) – $2.59 (reg. 12.99) (lowest price ever!) Summer in Mara** (60% off) – $9.99 – (reg. 24.99) (matches previous low)
Daylight Savings Time! Common myth: It is for farming and farmers. It is not. It’s about capitalism and bug collecting. Benjamin Franklin wanted people to capitalize on more daylight and burn less candles. In New Zealand in 1895, entomologist George Hudson wanted more daylight for bug collecting and inspecting (sounds familiar). It’s actually a myth that it’s for farmers, they lobbied hard against it (like my mother every year on social media). It’s supposedly for things like energy saving during wartime/energy crises but many call it “daylight slaving time.” Time is money. But! It’s time to burn daylight with our favorite farming sims.
✉️ Mailbag! ✉️ Thank you to friend and listener Pete! After episode 4 (Strong Female Protagonist/Women’s History Month), Pete sent in the tip about Roberta Williams! There are so many influential and talented women in the gaming industry, but Roberta Williams is a pioneer. Some highlights about Williams: influential female game designer, instrumental in pioneering the graphic adventure which is definitely the building block for our cozy, chill games today (also point and clicks!) She is the “queen of adventure games.” She has won the Industry Icon Award (2014) and the Pioneer Award – Game Developers Choice Awards (2020). Games she designed to check out: Kings Quest series, Phantasmagoria, Laura Bow, and more! The Secret (TBA) with husband developer Ken Williams – Keep an eye out for their new game!
Last but not least, shout out to Skatune Network. I mentioned Ska Shores (Animal Crossing covers on vinyl) and it is everything I hoped and dreamed it would be.
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Friends Are Far Out! 