Fire Escape Cast #114 – August 25, 2025

Hosts: Mike Mahardy, Dan Ryckert, Mary Kish

Episode Overview

This episode of Fire Escape Cast sees hosts Mike, Dan, and Mary engage in their quintessential blend of playful ribbing, nostalgic dives into animation and games, and insightful conversations about the latest games and pop culture phenomena. The trio covers everything from recent horror movies and found footage marketing, to game remakes, tower defense obsessions, cozy chill games, and even the quirks of Dan's dad. They also field some listener emails and share their favorite non-gaming podcasts.

Table of Contents

1. Opening Banter & Animated Nostalgia — [00:40–27:00]
2. Movies, Theater Experiences & 'Alien Earth' — [04:49–44:45]
3. Game Chat – Metal Gear Solid Delta & Game Genres — [50:38–61:25]
4. Cozy Games Segment — [61:25–78:49]
5. Tower Defense Obsession: Tower Dominion — [67:22–79:55]
6. Recent Updates to Peak & Social Co-op Games — [80:19–88:09]
7. Other Games: Weird Switch Sports, Zelda Replays, Time Flies, Make Room — [88:15–108:49]
8. Email Bag: Podcasts, Game Mechanics Masterpieces — [110:22–132:07]
9. Sign-Offs & What’s Next — [132:16–End]

Opening Banter & Animated Nostalgia

00:40–27:00

• The cast kicks off with signature banter, gentle jabs at the "bad boy" moniker, and making fun of fellow games media personalities' quirks, especially Mike Minotti ("He does strike me as like a serial narcissist." — Mike, 01:11).
• Dan confesses to never listening to colleagues' podcasts and Mary jokes about being scared of musical theater fans.
• Classic Animation Rabbit Hole: What starts as a bit about stealing podcast intros rapidly turns into a prolonged discussion on the moral alignments and nature of classic cartoon characters:
  • Wile E. Coyote vs. Roadrunner: Dan roots for the Coyote, viewing him as a sympathetic survivor; Mary and Mike take Roadrunner's side ("If either of you tried to eat me, I'd absolutely embarrass you publicly..." — Mary, 20:57).
  • The gang reminisces about other Looney Tunes archetypes—Tom & Jerry, Sylvester & Tweety, Elmer Fudd, Speedy Gonzales, etc.—and critiques their recurring "hunting" tropes.
• Nostalgia Lane: They share which networks and shows shaped them: Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Invader Zim (Mary was a “Gir kid, had the backpack and everything”), Rocket Power, Hey Arnold, Johnny Bravo, and the cultural marker of being a "Nickelodeon kid."

Memorable Quote:

"I loved all those shows. Nickelodeon was channel 34 for me. Same number as Shaquille O'Neal." — Mike [27:10]

Movies, Theater Experiences & 'Alien Earth'

04:49–44:45

Moviegoing in 2025

• Weapons (new horror movie): Mike and Mary recommend seeing it blind; Dan will see it soon.
• Value of shared theater experiences: Mary highlights why horror and comedy especially benefit from audience reactions.
• Bad Theater Memories: All share war stories from working at or attending theaters with messy audiences (children and Harry Potter fans cited as worst offenders).

Notable Segment:

• Dan reviews an absolutely terrible Amazon Prime movie starring Ice Cube (a pandemic-era "War of the Worlds" where “it’s an hour and a half of Ice Cube reacting to things on a Zoom call”). The trio joyfully eviscerates its product placement and technical absurdity. Ice Cube's laughably bad hacking: “Right-clicking on Google Maps and being like, hack camera, and it hacks the camera...” — Dan, [11:02]
• The group riff on found footage as a genre, effusively praising The Blair Witch Project era for its "could only happen then" marketing.

Discussion Point:

• Games and marketing that blur reality—mention of EA's “Majestic” (2001) and Hellblade’s fake "permadeath" scare. Dan appreciates when developers "lie well" for gameplay's sake, like RE4's difficulty or Coyote Time in platformers.

Alien Earth on Hulu [32:01–44:45]

Mary's Recap:

• Alien Earth's premise involves cyborgs, AI robots, and hybrids (human consciousness in robot bodies), all coexisting. The main plot revolves around hybrid kids in adult bodies entering an "alien universe" to save a sibling — creating an interesting tension between childlike behavior and adult robot bodies.
• Praises the show's unpredictability ("Each episode, I have found a new thing to be scared of because we don't know what it is"), but warns of a Hulu algorithm fail when she mindlessly watched a totally unrelated sci-fi film for 45 minutes believing it was the next episode.
  • "The algorithm got your ass." — Mike, [41:33]

Game Chat – Metal Gear Solid Delta & Game Genres

50:38–61:25

Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater Hands-On

• Dan played through (nearly) the entire game at an event—calls it a true remake of Kojima’s classic, with one-to-one presentation, cutscenes, and improved controls.
• Quality of life upgrades: instant camo swaps, on-the-fly codecs, stealth improvements ("L1 is kind of the sneaky button").
• He hopes Konami sticks purely to remakes and doesn’t pursue new non-Kojima stories.
  • “The story’s done-done-done. Even by the end of Kojima’s time there, I was like, do we really need to fill in this gap?”
• Mary floats the idea of “Metal Gear in a new universe with new characters,” but Dan and Mike agree the Kojima-created cast is what makes Metal Gear special.

Cozy Games Segment

61:25–78:49

1. Is This Seat Taken? [61:25–67:08]

   • Mary: "A quintessential cozy game" from Wholesome Games. Players solve logic puzzles by seating quirky characters with diverse wants (window seats, sitting near friends, avoiding “stinky people”).
   • Couch game—perfect for relaxing with another show on, no time pressure. Visual, happy feedback when puzzles are solved.
   • "Ideal Steam Deck game or Switch... a notch or two above Unpacking in complexity." — Dan, [65:57]

2. Make Room [102:19–108:49]

   • Similar to Unpacking, but more about interior decorating for specific requests (e.g., "I want a cat paradise"). Visual-based interface can be a little limiting. Free play mode lets you make your dream room ("mine would have a bed surrounded by solar floodlights...").
   • Mary: "I've been on a bit of a cozy game kick... I think Time Flies is my favorite of these."

3. Time Flies [99:22–102:13]

   • A minimalist, explorative "bucket list as a fly" puzzle game. Each death/life encourages optimizing your path; a bit like a Tony Hawk 2-minute run.
   • "It's one of those fun games, almost like a WarioWare type thing. You'll just die in a funny way or something pops up and it's unexpected…" — Dan, [101:02]

Tower Defense Obsession: Tower Dominion

67:22–79:55

Mike introduces Tower Dominion — a new, deeply satisfying, roguelite tower defense game:

• Roguelite elements: Randomized terrain, tower "cards," upgrades, perks.
• Comparisons: “It’s like if Balatro and Plants vs Zombies had a baby.”
• Three factions, multiple unlockable "generals," map-building with Tetris-style tiles, per-tower strategic perks, and upgradable base defenses.
• Despite extremely ugly art (actual quote: “These characters look like shit” — Dan, [78:42]), the game plays incredibly well.
• Mouse/keyboard is best, but Steam Deck verified; Dan immediately downloads it for plane rides.

Recent Updates to Peak & Social Co-op Games

80:19–88:09

• Mary spotlights a major Peak update: a new desert/sand level with tornadoes, monsters, and wacky items (like a cannon to launch friends). The devs’ cheeky attitude and willingness to hotfix bugs gets praised.
• Emergent chaos: Adds procedural variety, but sometimes creates impossible situations (e.g., fire on a non-reachable tree). Demand for private lobbies/building codes acknowledged.
• Mary recounts the "first time" seeing an enemy in Peak (“giant skeleton chasing you if you leave the group behind!”).

Other Games: Weird Switch Sports, Zelda Replays, Time Flies, Make Room

88:15–108:49

• Drag X Drive (Switch, Nintendo): Nintendo’s strange wheelchair basketball sports game with frustrating controls (“you have to constantly be rubbing these things against your thighs”), poor multiplayer implementation, and lack of personality. Mike: “I don’t like knees.” Mary: “I love shins.”
• Breath of the Wild (Switch 2): Dan replays BOTW, confirms his preference for it over Tears of the Kingdom, appreciating its more focused, survivalist, exploration-driven approach. The group agrees not every game needs every mechanic.
  • “I do think I can say definitively, I think this is the best game ever made.” — Dan, [98:46]
• Chill Games: Mary devotes downtime to cozy, low-stress games, citing Time Flies and Is This Seat Taken? as soothing standouts.
• Pikmin 4: All agree Pikmin 4 is an underrated, nearly GOTY-level cozy game.

Email Bag: Podcasts, Game Mechanics Masterpieces

[110:22–132:07]

What Non-Gaming Podcasts Do You Listen To? [111:04–119:12]

• Dan: Deadlock (wrestling, old matches with deep in-jokes)
• Mike: Welcome to Night Vale (fictional, surreal radio drama), wine podcasts for study (Into the Glass, GuildSomm), I'll Drink to That, and YouTube shorts dissecting movies.
• Mary: Mysteries like S Town, Serial, and the finance call-in Jill on Money
  • Wine podcast name improv:
    • “Watch Me Cabernet!” — Dan
    • "Pinot Gratio" — Mary
    • "Got Soms" — Mike
    • "The Merlot Down" — Dan

What Game Best Exemplifies Its Core Mechanics? [123:05–132:07]

• Dan: Soul Calibur is the perfect fighting game; Tony Hawk for skating; Gears of War for cover mechanics and horde mode.
• Mary: Left 4 Dead 2 for co-op mechanics, especially special infected; Super Meat Boy for time-based leaderboards.
• Mike: Resident Evil 4 for inventory management; They Are Billions for RTS turtling; Trials Evolution for leaderboards and ghost racing.
• Minecraft and Stardew Valley for crafting/terraforming.
• All agree Titanfall 2 arguably nails first-person movement and wall-running.

Memorable Quotes:

“These characters look like shit...” — Dan, on Tower Dominion [78:42]

“I so resent both of you for making me the adult in the room.” — Mike, [109:00]

"I had Gir T-shirts. I had a backpack. I had Ger stuff. Like, I was that little freak, and I think I was annoying. So, like, your theory is accurate." — Mary, [27:41]

Sign-Offs & What’s Next

132:16–End

• Mike plugs upcoming co-op campaigns (Total War: Warhammer 3 with Nextlander, RE4 Remake on YouTube).
• Mary and Dan promote their channels and ongoing series (Mary: weekly streaming Peak, Dan: Giant Bomb's Blight Club).
• Usual sign-off chaos: the trio hurl inside jokes, roast each other, and riff on who really is in charge.
• Mary attempts to trademark the new exit phrase: "Check it!" [137:41]

[Notable Timestamps]

• How to ruin a theater: [08:05–08:28]
• Dan’s dad’s Family Guy pelvic thrust routine: [46:11–47:03]
• Peak’s new sand/desert level and emergent chaos: [80:19–84:40]
• Metal Gear Solid: Delta analysis: [50:38–58:01]
• Tower Dominion review: [67:22–79:55]
• Debate over Animal vs Human morals in Looney Tunes: [19:25–31:45]

Episode Takeaways

• This episode shines brightest in its conversational chemistry, veering from fondly-remembered ‘90s toons into deep dives on why specific game mechanics work, layering in personal anecdotes and comedic asides.
• Key recs: Weapons (movie, go blind), Alien Earth (give it a shot if you’re into sci-fi, but beware streaming platform shenans), Tower Dominion (ignore the looks, enjoy the obsession), Is This Seat Taken? (perfect cozy background game), Time Flies (uniquely funny micro-puzzle adventure).
• The hosts’ mixture of honest critical takes — and willingness to roast everything from Nintendo oddities to algorithm fails — cements Fire Escape as a haven for listeners who love both games and the culture (and chaos) that surrounds them.

Subscribe, write in, and don’t forget – it’s never just a podcast: it’s a hangout.
"Check it!" – Mary Kish [137:41]