Episode Details

"What sort of a game is that—eh?" [DYIN]

While it's customary for us to utter "the game's afoot!" at the end of each episode, in this case it's more appropriate to say it as we commence.

We're joined by Dave Neale, researcher in play and psychology, writer and game designer. Dave is responsible for the the game Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective: The Baker Street Irregulars.

In our wide-ranging conversation, we talk about the series of Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective games, how one goes about creating a game, the difference between playing games as a child and as an adult, the common psychology behind storytelling and game design, and much more.

We have a special announcement about our Patreon/Paypal supporter community and we discuss what's ahead.

You'll want to see if you can test your knowledge with the Canonical Couplet: we give you two lines of poetry that describe one of stories, and you name it. The winner will receive a copy of the game Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective: The Baker Street Irregulars. Entries are due by 11:59 pm EDT on December 14, 2020.

Information on sponsors, links, and notes available below.

Please do consider becoming a Patron of the Arts. Your support helps us to ensure we can keep doing what we do, covering file hosting costs, production, and this year, transcription services. All Patreon supporters will receive a special outtakes episode at the end of the season. Download [Save As] | File size 39.2 MB, 1:18:46 Sponsors Wessex Press is the premiere publisher of books about Sherlock Holmes, including the Sherlock Holmes Reference Library and scholarly work like The Annotated White Company, edited by Roy Pilot and Doug Elliott. MX Publishing features Mrs. Hudson Goes to Ireland by Susan Knight. This and hundreds of other titles are available. Dan Andriacco's delightful pair of Sebastian McCabe and Jeff Cody are back and have a full lineup of stories. Check them out at DanAndriacco.com. Would you care to advertise with us? You can find more information here. Let's chat! Links

• This episode: ihose.co/ihose205
• Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective: The Baker Street Irregulars
• Dave Neale's website
• Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective from Space Cowboys - including free downloads
• The full range of Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective games from Amazon
• Previous episodes mentioned:
  • Episode 54: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes (with Maria Konnikova)

Many more links, articles and images are available in our Flipboard magazine at