Love is a many-numbered thing… In a Skip-flavoured special, Sam brings on friend of the show Middlethought (@middlethought.bsky.social, bowserblr) to discuss the oft-overlooked Art Style series! On this tour of the gallery, we also cover the splintered history of Love-de-Lic, the twilight years of the GBA, and how it all ties into Nintendo’s early download experiments through the DSi and 3DS eras. There are plenty of side-passages and tangents, but it all fits together like all great puzzles should. Spread the happiness!

Find us at: https://gamertime.online/

Main topics:

00:02:44: Gaming Fortnight #1 - Middlethought
00:08:47: Gaming Fortnight #2 - Sam
00:21:02: History of Skip Ltd. - Pt. 1

00:48:40: Bit Generations (GBA)

Boundish, Soundvoyager

01:16:40: History of Skip Ltd. - Pt. 2

01:36:00: Art Style (DSiWare / WiiWare)

PiCTOBiTS, Aquia, Precipice, Base 10 / Code
Boxlife, Zengage, Digidrive
Cubelo, Orbient

02:06:16: History of Skip Ltd - Pt. 3

Final Days and Spiritual Successors

Also mentioned:

Phantom Spark, Replicube (see also: Parking Garage Rally Circuit, Jellycar), Breakout Beyond, The Talos Principle Remastered
StreetPass Mii Plaza Games (via NetPass), Nintendo Switch 2 Speculation, Donkey Kong Bananza
Love-de-Lic (Moon: Remix RPG Adventure, L.O.L.: Lack of Love); Punchline (Rule of Rose, Chulip); Vanpool (Freshly-Picked Tingle’s Rosy Rupeeland, Dillon’s Dead-Heat Breakers); Pullblox, Splash or Crash, Freakyforms; Doshin the Giant, Cubivore, Custom-Robo, Animal Crossing
Mother 3, Rhythm Tengoku, WarioWare: Twisted!, Mario Party Advance; Rotohex
Captain Rainbow, Disaster: Day of Crisis, Rhythm Heaven Fever, “Project Rainfall”
UFO 50, Q-Games, Shin’en Multimedia, Glow Artisan
Bit.Trip series; Snowpack Park, Chibi-Robo: Photo Finder, Zip-Lash; Ko-Robo, Tetrachroma, Mixolumia, Lumines, Meteos

Music used:

Curator Event - Chibi Robo: Photo Finder
Salesbunny Introduction - StreetPass Mii Plaza
Rank 5 - Art Style: Code
the flow - Bit Generations: Soundvoyager
Devil World II - Art Style: PiCTOBiTS
After All - Soundodger

Further reading:

“Unearthing Bit Generations: Nintendo's Long Lost Coffee Table Games” - Eurogamer (Edward Hawkes, 2022): https://www.eurogamer.net/unearthing-bit-generations-nintendos-long-lost-coffee-table-games
“A good looking man explains his love for Captain Rainbow” - Destructoid (Jonathan Holmes, 2011): https://www.destructoid.com/a-good-looking-man-explains-his-love-for-captain-rainbow/
“Lovedelic Life” (Ashley Day, 2008~2014): https://lovedelicgames.wordpress.com/

Episode 033 - Art, Code, Love (ft. @middlethought)