Unoriginal Soundtracks Podcast: Roller Coaster Tycoon Edition

Every other Wednesday I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, songs about world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for random terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and rediscover old classics. Make requests to @USPodcast on Twitter.

PC gamers of a specific age will likely have happy memories of messing with the Roller Coaster Tycoon. It took management sims to the sandbox -- like The Sims was largely a toy for architecture and interior design, it was really about going nuts and creating crazy rides. It's also the subject of this half-hour playlist of great punk, folk, and prog music.

"Free"-to-play: Does the F2P Model Expand Audiences, or Rip Them Off?

It’s about two weeks before the release of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and as a huge Zelda fan I am counting the days. The next week, after paying all of my bills and buying groceries I come to the realization that I cannot afford the $50 price tag of the game right now. Naturally feeling a bit deflated, I try to focus on being satisfied with games I already own and play. I plunge myself into my Steam library and launch my favorite free-to-play game to ease my financial aggravation. It’s at this point an epiphany slaps me across the face. If I were to add up all the money I’ve spent on this “free” game, it would equal almost $100!

Free-to-play games are a lot more expensive than I thought.

Game Review: Rochard (PC)

Daftly mixing clever puzzle elements with a brilliantly voice-acted cast, Rochard is a first-rate downloadable title and easily one of my favorites of the year. Rochard (pronounced Roshard) is the surname of the main character, an asteroid miner working deep space.

Business isn't going well for Rochard and company -- they haven't found anything worthwhile in the mines in quite some time, and the head-honcho isn't too happy. In fact, Rochard's little mining operation is about to be shut down. Of course, a discovery is made, and everything seems to be going well again.

For a moment.

Shuffled #22: Carl Sagan Tribute

Every other Wednesday I share my love of music in an assortment of ways. Shuffled is a podcast whose format is as varied as my tastes in music, so hopefully you won't ever be bored and everyone can find something to enjoy.

Alex is getting a bit of a break from the show, so I am assuming direct control now! I decided to take a break from musician interviews, and seeing that everyone is celebrating what they are thankful for, I made a show centered around one of my heroes - Carl Sagan. 

The Impending Doom of 3D: Can Hollywood Save its Savior?

What seems like quite a long time ago, the talk of the town was that 3D would be the savior of the film industry. The reincarnated effect was going to make the movies fun again, make new and exciting experiences that couldn't be recreated at home and (most importantly) bring in new revenue for studios that had begun to flounder and stagnate. 3D was going to solve all of their problems, forever. Remember?

So what the hell happened?

Unoriginal Soundtracks: Halo Combat Evolved / Anniversary Edition

Every other Wednesday I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, songs about world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for random terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and rediscover old classics. Make requests to @USPodcast on Twitter.

This November is special for fans of purple sci-fi shooters; it's Halo: Combat Evolved's tenth birthday. Microsoft is celebrating by releasing Halo: Anniversary Edition, but I'm celebrating with a playlist of songs about the game that saved Microsoft's console launch.

Book Review: The Indie Cred Test

We are a generation of people trying to be cooler than those around us. This trend goes hand in hand with the excess we live in, so sometimes we get a little out of hand with our, coolness. It can happen to the best of us, we get carried away and start thinking we’re the epitome of cool, the essence of style. All it takes is one moment to show our awesomeness and just one line to display our supreme wittiness. We seek these opportunities to let others know just how cool we are. Yet the ability to poke fun at ourselves also determines our level of cool. And yes, if you can’t laugh at yourself then, who can you laugh at? But at what point does wittiness turn to self-deprecation? I believe The Indie Cred Test is exactly that point.

Cerebral Pop Contest: Win an XLBA or PSN card

We know. Our impromptu hiatus has left you feeling down? Sorry. The staff at Cerebral Pop has been pretty busy lately, but as we speak emails are being sent about getting some more content back on the site. Still, while we've been busy with other hassles of life, our podcasters have been trying their best to keep you entertained, so we think a contest is in order to help give them the thanks they deserve. There are two ways to enter! Here are the details:

Sophist Radio Episode 55: Weird Sex Stuff

After a bit of technical delays, the Sophist Crew assembles to praise, critique, and outright tear down some of this Fall’s videogame offerings. The bad comes first as Harold and Aaron talk of the great disappointment that is the single player campaign of Battlefield 3. James takes some time to highlight a few games that may not normally get the spotlight in such a busy season; Rock of Ages, Drawn 3, and Keyboard Drumset Fucking Werewolf. In traditional Sophist fashion the guys wrap things up with a three-way lovefest over Rocksteady’s Batman Arkham City. Not all is well in Batmanville, though, as James brings up a troubling theme in this otherwise fantastic title.

Shuffled #21: Interview with God & the Devil

Every other Wednesday week I share my love of music in an assortment of ways. Shuffled is a podcast whose format is as varied as my tastes in music, so hopefully you won't ever be bored and everyone can find something to enjoy

.

Matt is back in the hosting chair, which mean a new interview. This week he has an existential discussion with God and the Devil. The three talk about far out things like divine intervention, the meaning of life... Oh wait! Sorry, this is not a religious interview at all. God & the Devil is an Austin, Texas rock band and the subject of this week's episode! There is a lot of blues and spacey music to this episode, so please relax and enjoy the conversation.

Unoriginal Soundtracks Podcast: Batman Arkham City Edition

Every other Wednesday I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, songs about world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for random terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and rediscover old classics. Make requests to @USPodcast on Twitter.

Sneaking past the bigger spoilers, pouncing on bad songs and knocking them unconscious, and with a British accent in your ear throughout -- it's the Batman: Arkham City edition of Unoriginal Soundtracks. Only the best music about one of the best games of 2011.

The October Music Wrap-Up Podcast

The Music Wrap-Up is a monthly summary of my favorite and other notable new releases. Having trouble keeping up with all the new music? Need some music suggestions? Then the Music Wrap-Up is for you. And please support these musicians as that's the reason I'm featuring them in the first place.
With the end of Halloween comes the end of October, and that means it's time for us to look at all the great music that was released over the last month. There may not have been as much as September, but the quality was still there. There was the always-beautiful sounding Feist, the sloppy, garage-rock sound of The Spits, releases from indie darlings Surfer Blood and M83, promising newcomers like Gospel Music and PUJOL, and some heavy hitters like Coldplay and Justice. Plus, Lance Darnell joins me to talk about Pearl Jam's 20th Anniversary and why we should care. Oh, and more. There's always more.