Author: Emma Kidwell

Emma is a level 10 Bard in Dungeons & Dragons and also writes sometimes.
Lost Ember
News

Give Lost Ember all your money so you can play as a good boy

A gentle breeze rustles the tall grass that surrounds you, causing the blades to sway back and forth lazily to the soft rhythm of the wind. Up ahead lies a dirt path, leading to an unknown destination whose name was lost to time long ago. You’re curled up on a patch of soil near a bank of water, taking a short break from exploring the environment. The ripples created by the wind roll slowly toward you, splashing at your paws. You catch a glimpse of your resting form in the reflection—distorted, but beautiful. Your coat is thick and long, and…
Really Bad Chess
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Really Bad Chess is bad in all the right ways

You’re taking a walk in Central Park. The sun is shining down on you, a stark contrast to the cool autumn wind that tickles the back of your neck. It’s a reminder that change is coming. As you stroll past the row of chess tables, you see two elderly men hunched over and glaring at each other with an intensity that startles you. As you approach, you notice that there are chess pieces sprawled everywhere. The two men look exhausted. You walk closer to see that the board is full of Queens. Nothing but Queens. One of the old men shakes…
The Monster Inside Me
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Find out how terrible you are in The Monster Inside Me

Ana and Jakob are hunched over and bickering by the fire, as usual. You try and ignore them and throw some crumpled up newspaper into the pit. The fire laps up the paper, hungry for more. As you stare into the flames, their arguing becomes harder to to tune out. Everyone is tired and hungry and stressed. It was a miracle you found this place untouched and managed to keep it fortified to ward off the curious. Just as you were about to shout at your friends, a scream is heard from outside. The three of you freeze. “What was…
News

Are relationships worth it or not? Find out in The Door

Your fingers hover above the keyboard, hesitating to type out a response to the enthusiastic bubble that pops onto the screen, asking about your day. It’s tiring, trying to keep up the charade. When did the shift occur? At what point did communicating become a chore as opposed to a treat? A lazy response is sent before you remove yourself, choosing instead to look at the framed photo of him on your desk. He wasn’t allowed to smile when the photograph was taken—regulations said so. The computer pings softly and your eyes dart back to the desktop. /// The Door…
News

Screw you Destiny, I will hug all of your dogs

This is an open letter to Lord Saladin—more like Lord Sala-didn’t think I was going to complain about your dumb dog rules, eh? Joke’s on you. You’re tired. Lord Saladin looms over you while recanting old tales of the Iron Lords. The push against The Fallen was long and gruesome. You made it out alive with only a few dings in your gear, signifying that the battle was a modest success. Expectations of relaxing after the raid were thrown out the window as soon as you saw the wolf-man himself, awaiting your return. In your head, you think: Lord Sala-didn’t know…
We All End Up Alone
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We All End Up Alone is an upcoming game about battling cancer

It’s late. You’re sitting on the couch staring at the TV. The phone rings. You glance away from the dim screen over at the clock hanging on the wall. You reach over to grab the phone and hold it up to your ear. “Hey, Em.” The voice on the other end sounds tired. “He has cancer. It’s … terminal.” You close your eyes as the words, sinister and cruel, plague your thoughts. Terminal Cancer. “I need you to tell your brothers for me.” You hang up and sink further into the couch. The feet of the analog clock continue their…
Dog Opera
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Please give a round of apaws for David Kanaga’s dog opera videogame

Have you ever been to the dog opera before? Well, you simply must go! If you haven’t, David Kanaga has you covered. Co-creator of Proteus (2013) and Panoramical (2015), Kanaga will be showing off the Oik OS Book during the Fantastic Arcade from September 26-29th in Austin TX. According to the information provided by the Fantastic Arcade website, Kanaga’s game “is a dog opera computer game for Mac OS and Windows. It is the first book of a planned series about getting the household in order.” an interesting display of four-legged friends The Fantastic Arcade curates a selection of independent games from…
News

Celebrate National Dog Day with The Release of Undertale’s Soundtrack on Vinyl

Did you know that today is #NationalDogDay? Of course you do. Who could possibly forget the one day a year we celebrate all good boys everywhere? A case can be made that the indie game Undertale is most loved for its dogs and in order to commemorate such a pawsitively great occasion, retailer IAm8Bit is releasing a 2xLP vinyl soundtrack for the massively popular RPG Undertale. The collection was released on August 26th at 10:00 am PDT. Undertale has been praised for everything from its charming RPG elements to the memorable characters—and who could fur-get the chiptune score composed by…
The Rock and The Rock
News

Here’s a dating sim about The Rock falling in love with a boulder

“What the hell did I just play?” I pause the game after it’s finished and lean back in my chair, utterly confused. The Rock and The Rock promised five minutes of entertainment and it certainly delivered, although it’s taking longer to process what exactly took place. Created by Kevin Roark Jr., The Rock and The Rock is labeled as a small game/interactive film aimed at telling the story of the inevitable and natural attraction of two rocks. You’re given the option of switching back and forth between the perspective of former WWE wrestler and well-loved actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson,…