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I can say with considerable confidence that today’s episode is our biggest and best yet, weighing in at a groan-inducing (but quality-packed!) two hours and 10 minutes. Our time at PAX Prime last week yielded sweet fruit in the form of five new game developer interviews, and each one is a treat. First, indie developer Matt Gilgenbach discusses how his new PSN-exclusive “reverse shooter” Retro/Grade changed his life; from there, we shift to Snapshot, the charming PS3 and PS Vita platform puzzler that enables players to manipulate their environment through photographs. Then Drinkbox Studios’ Chris Harvey and Graham Smith discuss their plans for cross-controller support on their upcoming PS3 and PS Vita adventure Guacamelee, while Hitman: Absolution Game Director Tore Blystad shares the secrets of the game’s newly announced Contracts multiplayer mode.

Finally, we launch into a sprawling discussion on The Walking Dead – Episode 3 with a literal mob of Telltale game designers: Jake Rodkin, Sean Vanaman, Harrison Pink, and Eric Parsons describe the challenges of episodic game creation, the most-loved characters in the game, and how they’ve managed to stay true to Robert Kirkman’s relentlessly grim vision. It’s a fascinating listen and one of my favorite interview segments of the year.

We’ve also got a special guest in the studio: Brad Douglas, who comes to us by way of Sony Computer Entertainment Japan. In addition to be being a big gamer, Brad explains Japanese gaming culture and how he ended up in the role of publisher relations in this week’s Origin Story segment. Of course, today’s show features the usual niceties, from next week’s PlayStation Store game lineup to an avalanche of Player Queries™ and tips to a vexing new Mystery Theme. There’s even a farm-fresh new PSN Gem of the Week! Listen in and let us know what you think.

Stuff We Talked About

The Walking Dead – Episode 3
Hitman: Absolution
Snapshot
Retro/Grade
Guacamelee
Double Dragon Neon
Rock Band Blitz
Treasure Park
Pinball Arcade – Monster Bash table
PS Vita Cross Controller
Hatsune Miku

The Cast

• Sid Shuman – PlayStation Social Media Manager
• Jeff Rubenstein – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Manager
• Nick Suttner – PlayStation Sr. Product Evaluator

[Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.]

• Thanks to Cory Schmitz for our beautiful logo and Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. Special thanks to Astro Gaming headsets for providing audio gear.

I’m proud to announce that Snapshot, our 2D puzzle platformer, is coming to PS Vita and PS3 (with cross-platform saves) this fall. In Snapshot, you control a robot named Pic. Pic carries a high-tech camera that can “capture” and remove objects and parts of the environment. You can then paste the picture back into the world causing all the objects to come tumbling back out. If you’re looking for a new puzzle game with a twist, keep reading!

The game begins with Pic powering on for the first time in a dusty abandoned laboratory. Uncertain about his purpose and why he was built, he wanders into the forest that surrounds the laboratory. This is where you’ll first start to use your camera to take photographs of objects. The first chapter of the game will hit you with a series of puzzles involving moving objects around within the levels, and it’s easier than you think. If you want to reposition a box, simply snap a photo to capture it, then paste the picture back into the world and watch the box fall back out of it.

As you progress through Snapshot you’ll use the camera in new and interesting ways, like taking photographs of light and using it to interact with physics. Your camera even captures an object’s momentum. This, combined with the ability to rotate photographs as you paste them, leads to more complex and interesting gameplay. For example, if a snowball is falling when you snap a photo, the snowball will hurl upwards if you paste that photograph back into the world upside-down. You can even use this to take photographs of enemy projectiles and aim them right back at them!

Snapshot is the first game developed by our small indie studio, Retro Affect. The sounds of Snapshot are created by the amazing Jordan Fehr, and the incredible music is composed by Wil Whitlark. Leave any comments or questions you may have in the comments below and I hope to bring you more Snapshot related news both here and at our official site as we get closer to our PSN launch later this year!