The Insert Credit Show

Our panel of experts discuss AI in game development, how to guide players, and Duke Nukem’s actual, real balls of steel. Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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SHOW NOTES:

Xzibit

Pimp My Ride

Titan Quest

Ep. 430 - Pac-Man 2cular

Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures

Ghost Witch of Netor

Three’s Company

John Ritter

Will Eisner

“I awakened prematurely, and I have found nothing but filth and destruction.”

Pecan pie

Cherry pie

Pumpkin pie

Apple pie

Pizza pie

Nobou Umeatsu

Metaphor: ReFantazio

1: At what point is a production tool considered AI? (08:38)

GenAI

Claude AI

Linux

GrapheneOS

Unreal Engine 5

2: What are the benefits of setting a game in the post-apocalypse? (15:26)

Rage

Pokémon Pokopia

Pokémon Blue Version

Star Wars

Cowboy Bebop

3: What’s the worst answer you’ve ever heard from a video game professional to a question? (20:43)

Naoki Yoshida

Final Fantasy XVI

Final Fantasy XVI has a medieval approach to diversity

PlayStation 3

Gamasutra

Shuhei Yoshida

Ouya

Simon Carless

GameDiscoverCo

4: What video game facts would you put on a Snapple cap? (26:16)

Snapple

Scrapple

Liverwurst

Pong

IGF

Gex series

Dana Carvey

Dana Gould

Viggo Mortensen Broke His Toe In ‘The Two Towers’

Donkey Kong series

K. K. Slider

Shigeru Miyamoto

Sonic the Hedgehog

Yuji Naka

Duke Nukem

Fushigi

5: LeFish asks, what are the best ways of misdirecting players in videogames? (33:49)

Yellow paint

BioShock

Kaizo

Dead Space

The Secret of Monkey Island

Zero Suit Samus

Final Fantasy XV

Cortana

6: What are historically the smallest decisions that have had the largest impact on video games? (40:30)

Magnavox Odyssey

Nolan Bushnell

Video game modding

Game & Watch

D-pad

Wii Sports

Reggie Fils-Aimé

Satoru Iwata

7: What is the realizing you were dehydrated when the water you drink is too good of video games? (45:56)

Artichoke

Super Mario series

Crow Country

Sonic Mania

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II

Shōnen

Steel Ball Run: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure

Hunter x Hunter

YuYu Hakusho

Sega Dreamcast

LIGHTNING ROUND: Letters Delivery (51:26)

Recommendations and Outro (54:52):

Brandon: The videogame inspired by Philip Glass that nobody noticed, Demonschool is on sale (please rate and review), check out the library

Ash: Do whimsical things outside your normal routine,

Frank: Go out and find stuff

Jaffe: Stay indoors

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Necrosoft Games Director and Intrepid Reporter Brandon Sheffield interviews fellow developers and attendees of GDC 2026.

Hosted by Brandon Sheffield, with Brendon Chung, Tony Grayson, Laura Michet, Chris Pruett, Phil Salvador, and Antonio Uribe. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums

SHOW NOTES:

Brandon Sheffield

GDC 2026

Yerba Buena Gardens

1: Antonio Uribe, AKA Fáyer, creator of PancitoMerge and Dig! Dig! Dino!, on baked goods and making a Playdate game (04:14)

Fáyer

PancitoMerge

Arco

Dig! Dig! Dino!

Playdate

The Whiteout

Casual Birder

Fulcrum Defender

Into The Breach

Suika Game

Threes

Harvest Moon series

Stardew Valley

PICO-8

Itch.io

Game Boy Advance

Nintendo DS

Nintendo Switch

2: Phil Salvador, Library Director of Video Game History Foundation, on building a library (21:56)

Phil Salvador

Video Game History Foundation

Chuck E. Cheese

The Secrets of Sega Channel: VGHF recovers over 100 Sega Channel ROMs (and more)

William Volk Papers

Game Developer Magazine

archive.gamehistory.org

NeverDead

MLB SlugFest Rejected Audio

Activision 1994 Expense Report Form

3: Tony Grayson, Director of Antonblast for Summit Sphere, on platformers (36:08)

Tony Grayson

Antonblast

Wario Land series

Pizza Tower

Bonk series

Persona series

Peak

Highguard

2XKO

Fortnite

Apex Legends

Demonschool

Cuphead

It Takes Two

4: Laura Michet, Narrative Director of Blendo Games and writer of Skin Deep, on comedy in video games (50:05)

Laura Michet

Blendo Games

Skin Deep

The Substance (2024)

Riot Forge

Skype

5: Brendon Chung, Creative Director of Skin Deep from Blendo games, on signposting in immersive sims (01:02:03)

Brendon Chung

Skin Deep

Immersive Sim

Repo Man (1984)

System Shock series

Thief series

Deus Ex series

BioShock series

Dishonored Series

Prey series

Deathloop

Brigand: Oaxaca

Die Hard (1988)

Final Fantasy Tactics series

Into the Breach

Phantom Brigade

6: Chris Pruett, Director of Games at Meta, on modern horror games (01:17:35)

Chris Pruett

Robot Invader

Silent Hill f

Resident Evil: Requiem

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake

R.E.P.O.

Five Nights at Freddy’s series

Mouthwashing

7: Brandon Sheffield, Writer and Director of Demonschool, on AI and being home from GDC (01:29:00)

Tripuzz

Stahlfeder: Tekkō Hikūdan

AirGrave

Santos

Patrick Miller

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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Our heroes convene to discuss the changes at Microsoft and Sony, the liberation of Cookie’s Bustle, and the Year of the Horse.

Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums

SHOW NOTES:

Sunsoft

Plastic Man

Catwoman

Ragman

Sandman

Sgt. Rock

Sega Genesis

Game Boy Color

Batman Returns (1992)

Michelle Pfeiffer

“I love you! Don’t reject me!”

Mega Max X

Maverick

Jaeger

Guns N’ Roses

1: What does the landscape of console gaming look like now and in the future? (03:58)

Asha Sharma named EVP and CEO, Microsoft Gaming

Sony Has Reportedly Returned to Console Exclusivity

MindsEye developer announces more job cuts while alleging ‘corporate sabotage’

Highguard

Overwatch

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

Pokémon Pokopia

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

Mat Piscatella

2: When in a video game would you prefer to play as yourself, versus a character with a distinct personality? (12:45)

White Men Can’t Jump (1992)

White Men Can’t Jump

Atari Jaguar

Elena

Dark Souls series

Nathan Drake

3: If you had to lock in video game aesthetics forever, would that point be right now, or another time? (17:36)

Final Fantasy XII

Final Fantasy XIII

Yakuza series

The bread scene

Vagina Bones

Steam Next Fest

Street Fighter III

Scott Pilgrim EX

4: What was the endgame for the Cookie’s Bustle patent troll? (23:59)

We’ve freed Cookie’s Bustle from copyright hell. Here’s how.

Cookie’s Bustle

Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures

Mr. Boop

Chiitan

4chan

Mr. Bones

5: Frank, talk about the weird NextFest experience you had (32:03)

Steam Next Fest

Fester’s Quest

HowLongToBeat.com

230 games came out the first week of 2026: An Investigation. (Jenna Stoeber’s video)

Apple Arcade

Steam Deck

6: The AV Club’s Catherine Masters asks: Happy year of the horse! What does a AAA horse game on the level of Forza or God of War look like? (41:34)

The Patreon.com/insertcredit Gacha Machine

Forza series

God of War series

Turbo

MLB The Show series

Red Dead Redemption II

The Mane Quest

The Legend of Khiimori

Horses of Hoofprint Bay

Shadow of the Colossus

Tina Belcher

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

7: The AV Club’s Catherine Masters asks, what would the Pink Pony Club be like as a place in a game? (48:52)

Pink Pony Club

Chappell Roan

Gwent: The Witcher Card Game

Crazy Horse Too

LIGHTNING ROUND: Year of the Horse - Mane Six (54:56)

Twilight Sparkle

Fluttershy

Rarity

Applejack

Rainbow Dash

Pinkie Pie

Recommendations and Outro (01:01:06):

Brandon: The second Kekko Kamen movie, Riverbend (1989): 6K Restoration Kickstarter, The Caller (1987), don’t overexert yourself while exercising

Ash: Touch grass, move your body, look at the sky

Jaffe: Go to physical therapy

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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The panel reviews Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures, deeming it the most British Japanese game ever, and potentially the future of video games. Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, and Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

Watch episodes with full video on YouTube

Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums

SHOW NOTES:

Mortal Kombat series

“Look! Look!”

Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures

Blinky

Pac-Man (TV series)

The Ghost Witch of Netor

Sue

Will Smith

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

Monkey Island series

1: Why is this game like this? (06:16)

The Cutting Room Floor - Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures (Genesis)

MobyGames

Marvel Land

Namco

Pac-Attack

Pac-in-Time

Yakuza series

The Honeymooners

I Think You Should Leave “Eggman Game” sketch

Red Dead Redemption

Super Princess Peach

Garry’s Mod

Freddi Fish series

Putt-Putt series

Sesame Street licensees

Sonic the Hedgehog: Spinball

The Experience Share

Pokemon series

Tomb Raider series

Age of Empires series

Tekken series

Kingdom Hearts

2: If you had to live in a house shaped like a video game character, who would it be? (38:53)

Super Mario Bros. 2

X-Men 2: Clone Wars

Steve

Slime

Baba Is You

Kirby

Kim Kardashian

3: What other video game sequels take such a big swing they deserve the subtitle “the New Adventures?” (41:08)

Sonic the Hedgehog: Spinball

Overwatch 2

Valis series

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link

Batman

Final Fantasy VI

Tōru Iwatani

4: Spencer Gifts asks, should Zelda style game be called adventure games or should point and click games be called adventure games? (46:56)

Legend of Zelda series

Adventure

Colossal Cave Adventure

Book Off

Uncharted series

God Hand

Hey You, Pikachu!

Lifeline

Seaman

The Sims

Little Computer People

Haunting Starring Polterguy

Lemmings

Shadow Labyrinth

5: Let’s talk about the hot girl in Pac-Man 2. (52:56)

The Ghost Witch of Netor

Pac ’n Roll

Pac-in-Time

Pac-Land

Demona

Ms. Pac-Man

Pac-Mom

Dexter’s Mom

Mike Pence

6: Let’s talk about the arcade segments stapled onto this game. (58:17)

The Lion King

Mr. Bones

7: Is this a good game? (01:03:37)

Indika

Uncharted series

Keita Takahashi

LIGHTNING ROUND: Name Design - The New Adventures (01:13:21)

Credit Report (01:21:06)

Recommendations and Outro (01:22:45):

Frank: Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures

Brandon: The Feminine Complex, Corpse Mania (1981), Total Recall 2070, donate to Trans Continental Pipeline

Ash: Read Aftermath, pay for journalism, take a walk in the sun

Jaffe: Share your interests with people

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

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Ash Parrish hosts the blackest episode of Insert Credit yet, with an all-star panel of former guests and contributors. Hosted by Ash Parrish, with Topher Florence, Vanessa B, and Pro Kesadia. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

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Discuss this episode in the Insert Credit Forums

SHOW NOTES:

“My brothers and sisters of the United States of America, tonight we, the free people of the resistance, ask you to become one of us”

Curling

Funky Kong

Figure Skating

Sonic Adventure

Balatro

Snowboarding

1: Is there still a place for live service games right now? (05:01)

Highguard

Overwatch

Overwatch 2 drops the 2 and goes back to being Overwatch

Highguard Is Yet Another Symptom – And Victim – Of A Rapidly Decaying Internet

Marvel Rivals

Helldivers II

2XKO

Riot Spent A Decade Developing A Fighting Game Then Laid Off Around 80 Developers Less Than One Month After Release

Fortnite

Disney Speedstorm

Concord

Emma Frost

Cloak and Dagger

Taskmaster

Runaways

Silk

Anya Corazon

League of Legends

Arcane

Killmonger Cut

2: Who should be the next Nintendo character to get hit with the baby ray? (13:46)

Mario Tennis Aces

Baby Waluigi

Baby Wario

Babality

Baby Rosalina

Mario Kart World

Toad

Yoshi

Bowser Jr.

Bowser

Pauline

Donkey Kong Bananza

Samus

Link

Ganondorf

E. Honda

Dr. Mario

Space Warlord Baby Trading Simulator

3: If you were taking up the mantle of MF Doom, what cartoons would you use in your skits? (17:42)

MF Doom

Johnny Quest

Fantastic Four

Static Shock

The Pirates of Dark Water

Mummies Alive!

Reboot

Transformers: Beast Wars

Cheetor

Dinobot

Optimus Primal

Silverbolt

4: Who is the “I would have voted for Obama for a third time” of video games? (20:51)

Ken Levine

BioShock

Abbott Elementary

Jacob

Neil Druckmann

Geoff Keighley

Todd Howard

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

Grace Walker

Super Spesh

Insert Credit Quick Break: Brenton Woodrow’s Marathon (25:35)

5: Alex Jaffe asks, which 21st century video games would be best for a 1980’s DiC-style cartoon? (26:52)

DIC Entertainment

The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!

Captain N: The Game Master

Splatoon

SpongeBob SquarePants

Kirby

Kirby: Right Back at Ya!

King Dedede

Avatar: the Last Airbender

Among Us

Among Us Show

Elijah Wood

Minions

Castle Crashers

Alien Hominid

6: Brandon Sheffield asks, why is the Sega Genesis for black people? (31:51)

Sega Genesis

Super Nintendo Entertainment System

Sonic the Hedgehog series

Michael Jackson

Sonic 1 Music: Spring Yard Zone

Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker

Comix Zone

Sony PlayStation

Microsoft Xbox

Tekken series

Street Fighter Alpha 3

Virtua Fighter series

Sega Dreamcast

Power Stone series

ToeJam and Earl series

LIGHTNING ROUND: Cookout (38:09)

Recommendations and Outro (52:50):

Vanessa: twitch.tv/pleasantlytwstd, Relooted

Ash: Review the games you like

Pro_Kesadia: twitch.tv/pro_kesadia, Romeo Is A Dead Man

Topher: topherflorence.bsky.social, make some bundt bread

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by Brenton Woodrow’s Marathon and patrons like you. Thank you.

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