Posted 6/10/2021

Regardless of the societal context of your upbringing, you probably would agree that the sound of a huge monster chasing you into a small room with no escape sounds terrifying. In this episode of Koalatea Time, bramoala & ChipSkylark discuss Jesse Schell's game design lens of Primality and how it impacts the games we love to play.

Join us as we discuss rhythm games, Rocket League, DOOM, and more!

Posted 5/31/2021

What's better than getting your ass kicked? Getting your ass kicked over and over again!

ChipSkylark and bramoala discuss why fans of the genre find roguelikes so compelling, what makes them difficult, and which roguelikes are ChipSkyark's favorite!

Join us as we discuss Hades, Binding of Isaac, and more!

Posted 5/18/2021

Animations are SO crucial in delivering a satisfying and immersive experience to players. Whether it's making a quadrupedal fantasy monster seem real, or making the 10,000th reload of a gun satisfying, animations play a huge role in taking gaming experiences to the next level!

In this animation-goodness-packed episode of Koalatea Time, ChipSkylark and bramoala sit down with Alex Bing, professional gaming animator at People Can Fly! Alex flexes his decade of badass experience on the K.O. Koala devs (not really, he's a really nice and professional guy) in this week's episode of Koalatea Time!

Join us as we discuss Dauntless, Dota, Moss, Destiny 2, Guilty Gear, and more!

Posted 5/6/2021

Power-ups can create some of the most memorable and exhilarating moments in games! bramoala and ChipSkylark discuss why that is in this episode of Koalatea Time

Join us as we discuss our favorite power-ups from games (Mario, DOOM, Halo, Crash Bandicoot, and more), why we think they're great, and what makes a great power-up!

Posted 4/30/2021

John Garvin (Day's Gone Creative Director) recently said: "if you love a game and want a sequel, you should "buy it at f****** full price" - but is he right? If so, does this mean game sales are bad? How do subscription services like Game Pass play into all this?

bramoala and ChipSkylark discuss these and related topics in this episode of Koalatea Time!

Posted 4/21/2021

Aesthetics, Technology, Story, and Mechanics. Jesse Schell's 4 elements of game design! Are they all truly necessary to make a great game? If so, does one reign supreme or are they all equal?

Join ChipSkylark and bramoala as they discuss these topics in relation to games like Cyberpunk, Halo, Rocket League, Minecraft, What Remains of Edith Finch, and more!

Posted 4/13/2021

Underground game design and esports club? Embodiment of the gaming industry's future? CHICKEN NUGGET DATING SIMS?? That's EGD!

EGD has succeeded in large part because of those who run it; people like CFO/CMO Ben Reuben.

In this episode of Koalatea Time, the ENTIRE K.O. Koala team (yes even Josh!) sits down with Ben to talk EGD, covert game jams, chicken nugget dating sims, and more!

Posted 3/24/2021

Giant bananas, unique games that you can't play anywhere else, good drinks, stadium-like atmosphere for competitive matches - YOU CAN FIND IT ALL AT THE ARCADE!

In this episode of Koalatea Time, ChipSkylark and bramoala talk about arcades, including ChipSkylark's thorough rundown of the best arcade offerings in the Denver metro area! ChipSkylark breaks down his favorite games including Jubeat, Mai Mai, competitive 3rd Strike, and more!

Posted 3/15/2021

NFTs are here, but will they stay? Why do people care so much about them? AND WHAT DO THEY HAVE TO DO WITH LUNCHABLES?

Join bramoala and ChipSkylark for the most candid and off the cuff episode of Koalatea Time yet!

Posted 3/7/2021

Thrust, slide, vault, wall run, double jump, grappling hook, and more! Advanced movement mechanics have left their mark on the FPS mechanic landscape, but is that a good thing? bramoala and ChipSkylark debate this and discuss their favorite movement mechanics in this episode of Koalatea Time!

Join us as we discuss Titanfall, Halo 5, Mirrors Edge, DOOM, Ghostrunner, and more!

Posted 3/1/2021

"ONE OF THE THINGS THAT REALLY GETS JASON JONES'S (BUNGIE LEAD DESIGNER) GOAT IS THAT THERE IS STILL ONE PERSON WHO CAN MAKE A CONTRIBUTION THAT'S OUTSIZED, AND THAT'S MARTY O'DONNELL, THE COMPOSER." - "In search of the Heart of Bungie", Polygon, 2013

Game soundtracks often affect the experience of playing game in a disproportionately powerful way. They often provide emotional coloring that's difficult to replicate without them.

In this week's episode of Koalatea Time bramoala and ChipSkylark discuss their favorite game soundtracks and why they enjoy them so much! Join us as we discuss the soundtracks of Halo, Sayanora Wildhearts, Minecraft, Undertale, Hades, Bastion, The Pathless, and more!

Posted 2/20/2021

With the recent controversy surrounding asses in the Mass Effect remaster, bramoala and ChipSkylark discuss how much creative license remasters and remakes should have, whether remakes should be made at all, what their favorite remasters of all time are, and more!

Join us as we discuss Mass Effect, Halo, Bioshock, Demon Souls, and more!

Posted 2/12/2021

With the recent news that Stadia Games Entertainment has closed all of their internal studios, bramoala and ChipSkylark muse on how difficult it is to make good video games. Join them as they discuss the challenges and risks of making things fun in this week's episode of Koalatea Time!

Posted 2/2/2021

Gabe Newell and his team at Valve are working on an OpenBCI headset that will control your brain, give you tentacles, and make you sleep like a rock. bramoala and ChipSkylark discuss wtf we should all think of this in this week's episode of Koalatea Time!

Posted 1/25/2021

Photorealism. Simulator mechanics. Hyper-accurate audio replication. Realism in games can provide some of the most immersive experiences in gaming for many, but do they detract from the experience as well?

bramoala and ChipSkylark discuss how chasing realism affects games, whether they like realism in games or not, WHY THE HECK DO PEOPLE PLAY FARM SIMULATOR, and more!

Join us this week as they discuss Flight Simulator, Farming Simulators, Escape from Tarkov, Cyberpunk, and more!

Posted 1/24/2021

You navigate to a game's listing on your platform's store. You see the screenshots, the trailer starts to play, your eyes look for a price, you're in the last mile. In this week's episode of Koalatea Time, bramoala and ChipSkylark discuss the last things that close out a commitment to a gaming experience for a person.

They discuss what games have had the strongest last mile for them, and which games have blown a sale in the last mile as well. Join us as we discuss Gris, Ori and the Blind Forest, COD Cold War, Cyberpunk, and more!

Posted 1/12/2021

"Atom: The smallest complete unit of play, in the sense that the players feel they've "really played" some of the game (e.g., two possessions in football, or one level in Donkey Kong)"

George Skaff Elias; Richard Garfield; K. Robert Gutschera; Eric Zimmerman; Peter Whitley. Characteristics of Games

In this week's episode of Koalatea Time, ChipSkylark and bramoala discuss how the length of atoms in various games can impact the enjoyment of said games for various kinds of players. Join us in this interesting game design romp as we discuss Halo, Rocket League, Minecraft, Cyberpunk, Chess, RPGs, and more!

Posted 1/3/2021

It's been a crazy year one for the K.O. Koala fam! bramoala and ChipSkylar talk about how the past year has been, including the ride from 0 to 17K followers, progress on the upcoming K.O. Koala game, and plans for the new year! Join us as well talk all things K.O. Koala in this week's episode of Koalatea Time!

Posted 12/31/2020

While 2020 might have had more than its fair share of downers, it didn't prevent 2020 from being an absolute banger of a year for new games.

bramoala and ChipSkylark talk about their favorite gaming experiences this year in this week's episode! Did we think Fall Guys and Among Us topped the list? DID THEY EVEN MAKE OUR LIST AT ALL? How cool was Sayanora Wild Hearts? Find out all that and more in this week's episode of Koalatea Time!