October 2, 2017 Enjoy this bonus episode drawn from the Idle Thumbs Patreon Ruination Online! Each month, we do a livestream where all topics have been posed by high-tier backers of our Patreon campaign: patreon.com/IdleThumbs.

Due to popular demand, we're releasing the audio of that stream to the main podcast feed for easier listening.

We'll be back with a regular episode of Idle Thumbs this very week!

Discussed: virtual reality, augmented reality, being replaced by androids, traveling, candy, the Kit Kat for assholes, moving, choice moist hoistings, bad apartments, inscrutable communication, funny domain names, imposter syndrome, video game sophistication distinctions, Idle Thumbs Patreon postcard update, Kraft products, keeping journals, The West Wing: The Video Game, The Shitty Wizard: The Video Game, inadvertent hoistings by way of generosity

September 7, 2017 You sit down, strap yourself in, and wait for the feels. You turn a knob until the bass integrated into the back of the seat starts to thrum and buzz. "Ah, I can feel that for sure," you say aloud to no one. Your mouth turns down at the side, half a frown, as you look through your options. The hosts said they recorded this a while ago, but you think they might have been too kind. On the screen: A collection of lost games for an 8-bit console. A new video game system called the "Xbox One X." A... new... 2D Sonic the Hedgehog. Suddenly the thrum is not just in your back, but everywhere. The hum unbearable, you swat at your gamer harness, but the five point lock holds you strong. The hum is everything, everywhere. "What year is this?!" you scream out into the night street, before it all goes black.

Discussed: UFO 50, Tacoma, Steve Gaynor's stupid websites, Xbox One X, Xbox One X box (1), Subsurface Circular, StarCraft Remastered, buying a house with the money you saved by not buying avocados and instead saving 20% on flowers you millennial idiot, sugar-free shit-inducing gummy bears, stuff moms hate, tactical gamer chair, Sonic Mania, Sonic depression, deformable terrain, Myth, Sonic the Hedgehog, Pyre, UI polish, game spectator views, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Salty Bet, MUGEN, Deceit (Steam game), Bungie, Battle.net, Japanese video games

Sponsored by: Squarespace one-stop website creator with the offer code THUMBS, ProFlowers flower delivery with the offer code THUMBS

August 31, 2017 Enjoy this bonus episode drawn from our Idle Thumbs Patreon Ruination Online! Each month, we do a livestream where all topics have been posed by high-tier backers of our Patreon campaign: patreon.com/IdleThumbs.

Due to popular demand, we're releasing the audio of that stream to the main podcast feed for easier listening.

We'll be back with a regular episode of Idle Thumbs next week!

Discussed: Thumbs survival instincts, The WIZYs, Nintendo Horsebag, music composition, streaming, tiki drinks, hobbies, anticipated upcoming pop culture, arcade machines, Major Havoc, Marvel Cinematic Universe, being curmudgeons about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, video game trades, shoes

August 3, 2017 They're out there. They're at the gates. You can hear their indistinct scrabbling and inhuman gobbering. scrabbling and It's a strange and hostile world—dinosaurs, self-replicating weird car homunculi, The Thing—but that's why you built your house out of stone, after all. There's nothing to worry about…is there? One of the voices pierces the night and, pressing your ear against the thick walls, you strain to hear.

"Come out, you piece of shit!"

Discussed: West of Loathing, ideal game rating system, Production Line, self-driving car robot capitalist nightmare, The Isle, Rust, fair betting on competitive spectator games, hypothetical The Thing online multiplayer game, Grand Moff Tarkin

Sponsored by: Squarespace, with the offer code "THUMBS" for 10% off

July 24, 2017 Enjoy this bonus episode drawn from our Idle Thumbs Patreon Ruination Online! Each month, we do a livestream where all topics have been posed by high-tier backers of our Patreon campaign: patreon.com/IdleThumbs. This month it's a lightning round: two minutes an answer for maximum efficiency.

Due to popular demand, we're releasing the audio of that stream to the main podcast feed for easier listening.

We'll be back with a regular episode of Idle Thumbs next week!

Discussed: The future of VR headset adoption, indie comic books and adapting comics to other mediums, the origin of the "baboo" sound, making an RPG character sheet for yourself, Legion, vowels, visiting and living through an event from history, the moon, Lord Nelson's final words, what makes for a good ruination question?

A note: One answer on this podcast makes reference to Important If True Episode 24, a podcast which has not yet been released. Whoops! We forgot how our schedule works. Look for that episode on Thursday, July 27 for the answer to Reggie Clark's intriguing question, "If you were really a robot would you want to know?"

July 7, 2017 The game begins and this time, you are him. You look out through the holes in your mask, through the trees, and see the teens scattering across the camp. "They fear you," you think to yourself, gripping your iconic machete tighter, your extra senses already picking up their noise, their movements, their smell. "You are the only hunter in these woods and they fear you." A branch snaps behind you, and you whirl around. A small goblin-like man in a hat and overalls looks at you, bobbing slightly, his face expressionless. The goblin man removes his hat, his gaze never leaving yours, and throws it at your face. You try to scream but there is just blinding light, and then nothing.

Discussed: PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Super Mario Odyssey, Friday the 13th: The Game, the internet as distressing confessional

June 29, 2017 Enjoy this special double-length bonus episode drawn from our Idle Thumbs Patreon Ruination Online! Each month, we do a livestream where all topics have been posed by high-tier backers of our Patreon campaign: patreon.com/IdleThumbs. In order to rejigger the schedule to make a bit more sense, we're packing the Ruinations from both May and June into this episode—which means next month's July Ruination will actually be released in July. Brilliant!

We'll be back with a regular episode of Idle Thumbs next week!

Discussed: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Far Cry 2, terrible entertainment things, the use of unlimited newfound wealth, classic Idle Thumbs songs, global nuclear war, ghosts in mansions in video games, ancient Idle Thumbs podcast memes, hypothetical game remakes, autobiography titles, Something True podcast, best meals, spicy meals, our child selves, making podcasts, the etymology of "robot", dreaming, board games, comfort food, Idle Thumbs Patreon postcards, game development, Spelunky, the Great Games, the purpose of robots, video game art, internet micro-celebrity,

Not Discussed: Richard Linklater's "Everybody Wants Some!!"

Wizard Jam 5 has concluded! Wizard Jam is the Idle Thumbs community game jam, and the latest one has just concluded. Head over to the Wizard Jam 5 itch.io page or the Wizard Jam 5 forum to browse all the entries and catch up on their development. Congrats to all the participants!

June 2, 2017 There are only two kinds of people in the world, you tell yourself while looking out into the void of space, and well, maybe you'd rather be the other kind. The water ventilator broke down again, and no one's around to fix it. The whole base is going to flood with bile and fumes, and nobody cares. A guy teleported right into the middle of work the other day, just yelling at his wife or someone about a cup of water like she was there in the room, yelling about whether you could hear him, then he looked right at you and disappeared. No matter what you do, your fabricator just makes dart guns. Face it, you're not a duplican, you're a duplicant.

Discussed: Prey, Oxygen Not Included, Star Trek Bridge Crew, A Dark Room, The Ensign

Wizard Jam 5 starting right now! Wizard Jam is the Idle Thumbs community game jam. It's a two week long non-competitive game making event with a great group of people organizing and participating. If you're interested in trying your hand at making a game, joining a team, or just following along, visit the Wizard Jam 5 forum. The jam starts June 2nd!

May 26, 2017 Enjoy this bonus episode drawn from our Idle Thumbs Patreon Ruination Online! Each month, we do a livestream where all topics have been posed by high-tier backers of our Patreon campaign: patreon.com/IdleThumbs. This month it's a lightning round: two minutes an answer for maximum efficiency.

Due to popular demand, we're releasing the audio of that stream to the main podcast feed for easier listening.

We'll be back with a regular episode of Idle Thumbs next week!

Discussed: The future of VR headset adoption, indie comic books and adapting comics to other mediums, the origin of the "baboo" sound, making an RPG character sheet for yourself, Legion, vowels, visiting and living through an event from history, the moon, Lord Nelson's final words, what makes for a good ruination question?

Wizard Jam 5 is coming up! Wizard Jam is the Idle Thumbs community game jam. It's a two week long non-competitive game jam with a great group of people organizing and participating. If you're interested in trying your hand at making a game, joining a team, or just following along, visit the Wizard Jam 5 forum. The jam starts June 2nd!

May 5, 2017 As the old saying goes, "When the Chris is away, Jake and Nick will play... the demo to Prey."

"Specifically," the saying goes on, "the demo of the 2017 version of Prey, not the previous Prey or its demo, or the other two demos for unreleased Prey games." The saying is unpopular and fails to convey how good the Prey 2017 demo is. We're joined by James Spafford to talk about exploring creepy old houses, the experience of skiing down a hill with no one else around, and, yeah, some more Zelda.

Discussed: What Remains of Edith Finch, Prey (2017) Demo, Steep, The Legend of Zelda, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

April 6, 2017 "Now boarding all rows, all groups." Lemore was running late. Stepping up to the gate, he presented a creased boarding pass. The crisp sound of denial emanated from the machine. "I'm sorry, Mr. Macklemore, but this is telling me you've already boarded." Fist clenched, Lemore stared down the tunnel in disbelief. "It's Lemore," he said under his breath in a defeated tone. "Professor Mack Lemore." But it was no use. Once again, he'd been had.

Discussed: Horizon: Zero Dawn, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Dark Souls, Sonic/Mario ROM hack, Trespasser: The Lost World - Jurassic Park, identity fraud

March 30, 2017 All three Thumbs are still playing the new Zelda, and still having just as much of a blast. And some readers have a variety of Trespasser reactions to follow up Nick's recent playthrough. Plus: Jake gets confused about his own life.

Discussed: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Fallout 4: Sim Settlements, Trespasser

March 24, 2017 It's a week of ambition, both realized and failed. All three hosts continue their journeys through The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, but Nick Breckon goes the extra mile by slogging through the entirety of the oft-maligned Trespasser: The Lost World. There, he discovers moments of brilliance years ahead of their time, and also a lot of broken dinosaur animations.

Discussed: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Trespasser: The Lost World - Jurassic Park

March 15, 2017 An old man sits in the dark, alone, waiting for a hero to arrive. The old man has lived a full life; he has seen things you wouldn't believe, but the world has changed around him, without him. "Were you able to get the files to download? I bought the game but nothing showed up," he says to no one in particular. "I was having a lot of trouble." He continues to wait for help.

Discussed: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Mac shareware, ResEdit, Nintendo Switch, Bloodborne, choose-your-own-adventure books, Wasteland, Fatal Frame 2, old man complaints about technology

March 15, 2017 Enjoy this bonus episode drawn from our Idle Thumbs Patreon Ruination Online! Each month, we do a livestream where all topics have been posed by high-tier backers of our Patreon campaign: patreon.com/IdleThumbs

Due to popular demand, we're releasing the audio of that stream to the main podcast feed for easier listening.

Discussed: The hype cycle, making movies, death robots, music listening habits, World of Warcraft and missing the boat, The Legend of Zelda series, Jake Rodkin, robot overlords, infinite money, cyberpunk, dumb Star Wars names, Jurassic World, Firewatch, Twin Peaks, board games, video podcasts, the moon, pets