Cover image of Shall We Play a Game?

Shall We Play a Game?

A short (honest!) podcast about video games. Hosted by New York Times contributing critic Chris Suellentrop and former NPR Baghdad bureau chief JJ Sutherland.

Ranked #1

Podcast cover

Former Obama and Clinton speechwriter Jon Lovett: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

Former Obama and Clinton speechwriter Jon Lovett: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

Screenwriter and former political speechwriter Jon Lovett, who created the NBC sitcom “1600 Penn,” talks about whether H... Read more

19 Oct 2016

39mins

Ranked #2

Podcast cover

‘Stardew Valley’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Stardew Valley’ - Shall We Play a Game?

JJ couldn’t get his PlayStation 4 to work in Zurich (really). So we played “Stardew Valley” instead of “Bound.” NEXT WEE... Read more

16 Sep 2016

17mins

Ranked #3

Podcast cover

The Ringer’s Jason Concepcion: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

The Ringer’s Jason Concepcion: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

Jason Concepcion, a staff writer for The Ringer, talks about why JJ and Chris misunderstood “Overwatch,” taking a cathod... Read more

12 Nov 2016

46mins

Ranked #4

Podcast cover

‘Inside’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Inside’ - Shall We Play a Game?

Playdead’s “Inside” rouses us from our summer video-game torpor. A spoiler-free review, followed (at 18:22) by a very sp... Read more

27 Jul 2016

36mins

Most Popular Podcasts

Ranked #5

Podcast cover

‘Skyrim,’ ‘Gears of War 4’ & ‘Civilization VI’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Skyrim,’ ‘Gears of War 4’ & ‘Civilization VI’ - Shall We Play a Game?

Spending 300 hours of your life on “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim,” staying awake until 3 a.m. playing “Civilization VI” a... Read more

29 Oct 2016

39mins

Ranked #6

Podcast cover

‘Pokémon Go’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Pokémon Go’ - Shall We Play a Game?

Everyone’s playing it. But is it any good? NEXT WEEK, WE HOPE: “Lucky’s Tale” and the Oculus Rift. Maybe “Inside.” SHOW ... Read more

15 Jul 2016

39mins

Ranked #7

Podcast cover

More ‘No Man’s Sky’ - Shall We Play a Game?

More ‘No Man’s Sky’ - Shall We Play a Game?

We’re still playing Hello Games’ universe simulator/plutonium shooter/alien-language puzzler. NEXT WEEK, WE HOPE: “Kentu... Read more

17 Aug 2016

28mins

Ranked #8

Podcast cover

‘Warcraft’ & ‘World of Warcraft’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Warcraft’ & ‘World of Warcraft’ - Shall We Play a Game?

A review of “Warcraft,” the movie, plus an interview with Daniel Lisi, the author of “World of Warcraft,” the book, from... Read more

17 Jun 2016

44mins

Ranked #9

Podcast cover

‘Super Mario Run’ & ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Super Mario Run’ & ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ - Shall We Play a Game?

Is Mario’s first iPhone game–and JJ’s first Mario game (!!!)–brilliant, despicable, or both? Plus, our apparently annual... Read more

17 Dec 2016

49mins

Ranked #10

Podcast cover

New Statesman deputy editor Helen Lewis: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

New Statesman deputy editor Helen Lewis: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

An interview with a British political journalist that isn’t about Brexit: Helen Lewis, the deputy editor of the New Stat... Read more

28 Jun 2016

56mins

Ranked #11

Podcast cover

More ‘Super Mario Run,’ ‘I Expect You To Die’ & Oculus Touch - Shall We Play a Game?

More ‘Super Mario Run,’ ‘I Expect You To Die’ & Oculus Touch - Shall We Play a Game?

What happens when a podcast rant about Nintendo turns into a New York Times op-ed. Plus, comparing PlayStation Move and ... Read more

23 Dec 2016

30mins

Ranked #12

Podcast cover

Virginia Heffernan: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

Virginia Heffernan: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

Virginia Heffernan, the author of “Magic and Loss: The Internet as Art” and a former TV critic for the New York Times, t... Read more

7 Jul 2016

54mins

Ranked #13

Podcast cover

PlayStation VR - Shall We Play a Game?

PlayStation VR - Shall We Play a Game?

Impressions after a week with Sony’s new virtual-reality headset. (Correction: Apparently Oculus Connect is going on rig... Read more

5 Oct 2016

40mins

Ranked #14

Podcast cover

Summer School with NYU’s Frank Lantz - Shall We Play a Game?

Summer School with NYU’s Frank Lantz - Shall We Play a Game?

Frank Lantz, the designer of “Drop7” and the director of the New York University department of game design, talks about ... Read more

23 Jun 2016

48mins

Ranked #15

Podcast cover

‘Typeshift’ designer Zach Gage - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Typeshift’ designer Zach Gage - Shall We Play a Game?

Zach Gage, the designer of mobile games like “SpellTower,” “Really Bad Chess,” “Sage Solitaire,” and 2017’s “Typeshift,”... Read more

24 Aug 2017

18mins

Ranked #16

Podcast cover

Oculus Rift & Gabriel Winslow-Yost: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

Oculus Rift & Gabriel Winslow-Yost: What I Play - Shall We Play a Game?

We pre-ordered Rifts in February. They’re both finally here. We talk about “Lucky’s Tale” and compare the hardware to th... Read more

22 Jul 2016

47mins

Ranked #17

Podcast cover

‘Abzû’ & ‘No Man’s Sky’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Abzû’ & ‘No Man’s Sky’ - Shall We Play a Game?

Do you want to serenely explore an underwater video game world for two hours, or serenely explore an outer-space video g... Read more

10 Aug 2016

38mins

Ranked #18

Podcast cover

‘Edith Finch’ director Ian Dallas on ‘What Remains of Edith Finch’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Edith Finch’ director Ian Dallas on ‘What Remains of Edith Finch’ - Shall We Play a Game?

Ian Dallas, the creative director of Giant Sparrow, talks about whether Molly starved to death, how he wrote a headline ... Read more

16 Aug 2017

1hr 34mins

Ranked #19

Podcast cover

‘Dishonored 2’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘Dishonored 2’ - Shall We Play a Game?

Emily or Corvo? High chaos or low chaos? Xbox One S or PlayStation 4 Pro? Unmentioned in the podcast: You can sing “Corv... Read more

19 Nov 2016

39mins

Ranked #20

Podcast cover

‘The Last Guardian’ - Shall We Play a Game?

‘The Last Guardian’ - Shall We Play a Game?

“Confounding and transcendent” or infuriating? NEXT WEEK, WE HOPE: “Super Mario Run” SHOW NOTES: The Ringer’s “Last Guar... Read more

12 Dec 2016

20mins

“Podium: AI tools for podcasters. Generate show notes, transcripts, highlight clips, and more with AI. Try it today at https://podium.page”