Logo and banner by Jennifer Sparks.
Three Moves Ahead is the official podcast of Flash of Steel and the leading strategy game themed podcast on the internet. Your host, Troy Goodfellow, is joined every week by a panel of knowledgeable gamers with strong opinions on strategy and wargames. The regular panelists are:
Tom Chick: Freelance writer, SciFi Channel Game Blogger at Fidgit and proprietor of Quarter To Three, one of the best game discussion forums on the net.
Bruce Geryk: Former freelance writer, and former wargame columnist for Computer Gaming World/Games for Windows Magazine and Games Domain (pre-Yahoo). Tom and Bruce are probably best known for their long running Tom vs Bruce series in CGW/GfW.
Julian Murdoch: Freelance Writer and co-manager of Gamers With Jobs, home of the best gaming panel discussion online.
Rob Zacny: Freelance writer and blogger, who becomes a semi-regular panelist starting with a great pinch-hit appearance in Episode 42.
Episode 1 — Troy, Tom, Bruce and Julian are joined by Vic Davis. (Deleted for the moment due to poor recording quality. I promise we’ll have Vic back, or I’ll find a way to clean it up.)
Episode 2 — Troy, Tom, Bruce and Julian talk about Halo Wars, Sins of A Solar Empire and a little bit on Empire: Total War.
Episode 3 — Empire Total War and the trouble with dual track game design.
Episode 4 — John Hawkins from KE Studios drops by to talk about War Plan Pacific and unveils his next game idea.
Episode 5 — Defining strategy and avoiding ‘fun’
Episode 6 — Demigod
Episode 7 — Collectible Card Games
Episode 8 — Symmetry
Episode 9 — Brad Wardell, Stardock Games
Episode 10 — Multiplayer
Episode 11 — Tower Defense and Defensive gaming
Episode 12 — Diplomacy and other stuff
Episode 13 — Tom vs Bruce vs Troy vs Julian
Episode 14 — Maps and game design
Episode 15 — Paradox at E3
Episode 16 — The Sims
Episode 17 — Manuals and documentation
Episode 18 — How Healthy is your franchise?
Episode 19 — The first half of 2009 and looking forward
Episode 20 — The Snowball Effect
Episode 21 — Soren Johnson
Episode 22 — Sports sims, Blood Bowl and Bill Abner
Episode 23 — Designing historical conflict, how war changes games
Episode 24 — East India Company and trading sims.
Episode 25 — World War 2 and Hearts of Iron 3
Episode 26 — City builders
Episode 27 — Mark Walker and Lock N Load
Episode 28 — In the Navy
Episode 29 — Getting Started
Episode 30 — RPGs and strategy gaming
Episode 31 — Majesty 2
Episode 32 — PBEM, Section 8
Episode 33 — board games, complexity, reviving Dominions 3
Episode 34 — EndWar with special guest Michael de Plater
Episode 35 — Brutal Legend
Episode 36 — Panzer General, Tropico and sundries
Episode 37 — Chris Park talks AI War: Fleet Command
Episode 38 — We talk expansion packs and DLC
Episode 39 — Bob Smith and Armada 2526
Episode 40 — Listener Question Show
Episode 41 — Vic Davis and Solium Infernum
Episode 42 — Epic Fails in strategy gaming
Episode 43 — Console strategy gaming
Episode 44 — Religion as a strategy game mechanic
Episode 45 — Year in Review
Episode 46 — Europa Universalis 3 and Heir to the Throne
Episode 47 — Looking forward to 2010
Episode 48 — The Gaming Gender Gap
Episode 49 — Story Telling
Episode 50 — Governments and Detail
Episode 51 — Science and Technology
Episode 52 — Sins of a Solar Empire: Diplomacy
Episode 53 — One Year Anniversary
Episode 54 — Introversion
Episode 55 — Starcraft 2 beta and Napoleon Total War
Episode 56 — Civ 5, Sid Meier and Farmville
Episode 57 — Supreme Commander 2 and Command & Conquer 4
Episode 58 — PAX East
Episode 59 — Distant Worlds
Episode 60 — Achtung Panzer
Episode 61 — Imperialism
Episode 62 — Norb Timpko and Jim Weaver on Gettysburg: Scourge of War
Episode 63 — Frozen Synapse
Episode 64 — Forgotten Fronts
Episode 65 — Tutorials
Episode 66 — The SimTex Legacy
Episode 67 — RPG at Rabbitcon
Episode 68 — Selling Strategy Games
Episode 69 — Jon Shafer at E3
Episode 70 — E3, Risk and 1C’s Lineup
Episode 71 — Disciples 3, HoMM and the like with Bill Abner
Episode 72 — Technological Innovation with Loyd Case
Episode 73 — Formative Gaming Experiences with Jenn Cutter
Episode 74 — Freedom Force with Ken Levine
Episode 75 — Strategy Syllabus
Episode 76 — Modding with Soren Johnson and Derek Paxton
Episode 77 — Starcraft 2 with Chris Remo
Episode 78 — Forgettable Games, Memorable Ideas
Episode 79 — Victoria 2
Episode 80 — Question time
Woo Hoo!
Looks like a great cast.
Long overdue!
Three Moves Ahead | Games Revu // Mar 16, 2009 at 6:44 am
[...] I will listen to it for a long time. Idle Thumbs and A Life Well Wasted are recent examples, and Three Moves Ahead can now be added to that list. Only three episodes are released so far, but they all deal with the [...]
Is there a URL for an RSS feed of the podcasts?
The RSS feed is:
http://threemovesahead.libsyn.com/rss
Concerning Dawn of War 2 in Episode 10 and Tom’s match against a high ranked player, the matchmaking uses a system called “Trueskill” which tries to gauge your ability by initially matching you up against opponents of varying proficiency rather than just every fresh-eyed new player. Ideally once Trueskill finds your niche then matches can be consistently challenging but within your realm of capability. I hope this bit of information finds its way onto the podcast. If you take requests then please make readermail a feature!
Joseph:
Maybe we can do a reader mail episode every now and then.
When’s 18 coming out? You guys have gotten me hooked on my Tuesday fix. Now I apparently get worried enough to post something when that doesn’t happen.
Strange. But I do enjoy the podcast!
Strategy Games of the Half Year – 2009 Edition // Jun 29, 2009 at 9:53 am
[...] Three Moves Ahead [...]
Tom versus Bruce Online // Aug 14, 2009 at 7:12 pm
[...] Three Moves Ahead [...]
Hi guys,
I just recently found out about TMA and I’m enjoying listening to you guys.
As a two-year podcasting veteran, I have to urge you to keep improving the sound quality. The most annoying and easiest to fix issue I’ve noticed is that there are all sorts of microphone-handling noises in some episodes that really make you sound bad.
Keep up the great content, and maybe point out topics discussed which are for veterans vs. newbies.
Thanks!
Nostalgia is going to the Blogs! « Cake-Pie // Oct 5, 2009 at 8:58 pm
[...] his site at http://www.flashofsteel.com and if you’re a strategy gamer you can listen to his podcast Three Moves Ahead with actor Tom Chick who was Oscar’s boyfriend in The Office (he does other stuff, too, or so [...]
The Claw | // Nov 26, 2009 at 6:42 am
[...] guys from the Three Moves Ahead podcast, hosted on the FlashofSteel.com website have been using the games Play By EMail (PBEM) [...]
You guys should try and get brad from stardock on here to discuss elemental. As strategy gamers you ought to be able to grill him.
Sushi:
We want to have Brad on, soon.
Episode 73,
I disapprove pf your wish to bomb Keflavík, considering I live so close to that place.