In their most click-bait episode ever, Jalada and Sefran discuss the state of mobile phone games, where they think the industry is going, and some games that perhaps aren't so bad after all.

• 81% of the UK population own a smartphone according to Deloitte.
• "Mobile games hit $34.8B in 2015, taking 85% of all app revenues"
• Super Mario Run from Nintendo.
• Extra Credits channel on YouTube.
• Monument Valley.

Intro music: JACKS – Runaway Fashion Outro music: OC/DC - Rise of the Piggies 

In another case of 'Jalada and Sefran weren't paying attention to the episode timer', this bonus-length episode is all about our favourite video game consoles.

• Nintendo GameBoy
• Sega GameGear
• Nintendo 64
• PlayStation 4
• Joint favourite: Nintendo GameCube
  • In the episode we say that the Wavebird was the first wireless controller. Of course, there were others before it, but it was pretty much the first to use radio-frequency (which was great) instead of infrared (which was terrible).

Intro music: JACKS – Runaway Fashion Outro music: Nostalvania – Seven Pipes to Heaven

Tom ('modest' on Summoner's Rift) joins Jalada and Sefran to talk about MOBAs; what they are, where they came from, and why they're so much fun.

• We touch on League of Legends, Heroes of the Storm, Defense of the Ancients, DOTA 2, and Smite.
  • Feel free to be pedantic and email us to let us know that Aeon of Strife was arguably the first MOBA, not DOTA.
• Faker, arguably the best League of Legends player.
• League of Legends Patch 7.1 notes, an example of just how much can change month to month in a MOBA.
• /r/summonerschool.

Intro & outro music: JACKS – Runaway Fashion. [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="992"] League of Legends finals[/caption]

Jalada and Sefran explain why community management is so important in the development and maintaining of video games, from the perspective of video gamers.

• 7 Days to Die developer blog
• Examples of less-than-ideal pre-launch management: Spore, Fable, No Man's Sky.
• "Deus Ex: Mankind Divided silly preorder scheme scrapped"
• Diablo 3's significant Loot overhaul patch, dubbed 'Loot 2.0'.
• "Final Fantasy 14 killed by Square Enix’s stubbornness, reborn by a new approach"
• Elite Dangerous Galnet News
• id Software's open-sourced game code on GitHub

Intro & outro music: JACKS - Runaway Fashion

Antonia joins us for this episode where we discuss what makes life-sim games appealing, and why Stardew Valley is such a great example of one.

• Steam best sellers of 2016.
• Other examples of life-sims: Animal Crossing, The Sims, Farming Simulator, and of course Euro-Truck Simulator.
• For further information on the reward loop in video game design, read up on 'compulsion loops'.

Intro & outro music: JACKS – Runaway Fashion

Episode seven is a bonus length episode all about board gaming. From traditional co-operative games like Pandemic, to fast-paced social games like One Night Ultimate Werewolf, Jalada and Sefran break into this huge topic with a summary overview of some of the main types of board games, with a selection of ones to try yourself. Links to purchase any of these titles are affiliate links, proceeds go towards Octal FM and our general happiness.

• Standard board games: Pandemic, Catan, Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride
• Minature games: Star Wars: X-Wing, Star Trek Attack Wing, Dice Masters games
• Procedural games: Betrayal at House on the Hill, Dead of Winter, X-Com
• Deck-building games: Ascension, Marvel Legendary, Blood Bowl Team Manager
• Living card games: Game of Thrones Card Game, Netrunner
• Social games: One Night Ultimate Werewolf, Inkognito, Avalon The Resistance, House of Salem

And the reason Sefran sounds different in this episode? Because he's in his new recording studio: [embed]https://twitter.com/octalfm/status/807307563092049920[/embed]  

Jalada and Sefran talk further about what you need to think about when running your own LAN, as well as discussing some of the history of LAN parties and events and the state of the community today. We cover a lot in the show, but there's a lot more to it. Here's some related reading from what we covered, and some bits we didn't:

• Internet cafés.
• Copyparties and Demoparties.
• Revision is one of the largest Demoparties that's still going in southwest Germany. Some demoparties have also morphed into LAN parties & gaming events such as The Gathering and Assembly which are both still going in 2016.
• The Demoscene.
• Some examples of modern demos. Check the file sizes!
• 1999 BBC article about the first Insomnia event.
• "Gaming has left the LAN party behind" by Ben Kuchera for Polygon.
• Dreamhack.
• Multiplay Insomnia Gaming Festival .

Running your own LAN:

• If you need a network switch, remember you need an extra 'uplink' port to your router. Example switches for small LANs: 8 ports for £21, 16 ports for £50*.
• To protect your attendees' equipment you may want to think about providing RCD circuit breakers and surge protection plugs.
• Power supply calculator for calculating average attendee power usage.
• Running a 'LANcache' to save bandwidth and speed up downloads.
• More ideas and information from UKLP (some a little out of date).

If you have any more questions feel free to get in touch and ask, and let us know about your successful LAN party! Intro & outro music: JACKS - Runaway Fashion *Links are affiliate links. Proceeds go towards helping us out.

Jalada and Sefran explain, with examples, some of the aspects of games that work well at LAN parties. We touch on a whole bunch of games in this show, but in particular we highlight:

• Borderlands  and Borderlands 2.
• Heroes of the Storm.
• Towerfall.
• Team Fortress 2.

Other related reading:

• What was GameSpy Arcade?
• Insomnia Gaming Festival.

Intro & outro music: JACKS - Runaway Fashion

Jalada and Sefran chat about six of their favourite genre-defining real-time strategy games. Related reading from the show:

• Real-time strategy on Wikipedia
• Metagaming
• Age of Empires 2
  • How to play it: Try Age of Empires 2 HD, the 2013 remake.
• Homeworld
  • How to play it: Homeworld Remastered is a beautiful remake and comes complete with the sequel and a refined multiplayer experience.
• Rise of Nations
  • How to play it: Pick up Rise of Nations: Extended Edition, the 2014 remake.
• Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War
  • How to play it: It's work getting some of the expansion packs for Dawn of War, so pick up the Master Collection.
• World in Conflict
  • How to play it: World in Conflict multiplayer servers have been shut down but you can still pick the game up complete with expansion from GOG and it still has local multiplayer for your LAN party!
• Populous: The Beginning
  • How to play it: Populous doesn't work well on modern PCs (Sef couldn't get it running) but you can pick it up on GOG.

Intro & outro music: JACKS - Runaway Fashion

In this 'The Best Ever' episode, Jalada and Sefran try to agree on which game in The Elder Scrolls series is the best; Oblivion or Skyrim? Related reading from the show:

• IMDB page for Oblivion
• IMDB page for Skyrim
• Procedural terrain sculpting in Oblivion
• Enemies in Oblivion
• Enemies in Skyrim
• Morrowind speed-run using game breaking spells
• Oblivion AI fail (one video of many out there)
• Horse armor reception back in 2006

Intro & outro music: JACKS - Runaway Fashion