Gay for Play: A Video Game Podcast - Ep. 12: Doki Doki Dream Daddies (Dating Sims w/ Carlos-Zenen Trujillo)

Ep. 12: Doki Doki Dream Daddies (Dating Sims w/ Carlos-Zenen Trujillo)

Explicit content warning

02/18/21 • 88 min

Gay for Play: A Video Game Podcast

You feeling the love in the air? It's probs because THIS week, we’re joined by playwright, actor, and self-identifying weeb Carlos-Zenen Trujillo (they/them) to dive deep into the world of DATING SIMULATORS! A game genre we've *flirted* with multiple times on the show before that we've now decided to go steady with for a whole episode. We take a look at why these simple, innocuous visual novels resonate so deeply with queer gamers like us, and how the genre has evolved from its heteronormative, trope-y roots into games that are more inclusive, queer-centric and simply a joy to play!
We mostly discuss the genre as a whole, but we also take a close look at two dating sims in particular that subvert & redefine the genre: Dan Salvato's twisted Doki Doki Literature Club, and The Game Grumps' queer smash hit, Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator.
PLUS, in our culture corners, we talk about everything from teen films based on classic literature, K-pop, the Britney Spears doc, Rebecca Black's comeback-era, and so much more!
We hope you fall deeply in love with the 2D anime character of your dreams, or at least enjoy us talking about ours!

Find our guest Carlos on Twitter @caroluscubanus and Instagram @carlosdeservesadrink
Catch them in Seattle Shakespeare's Romeo y Julieta by Ana María Campoy, touring virtually this spring!
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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod

Instagram: @GayForPlayPod
EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!
Eric Solis:
Instagram @eric_of_the_sun
Twitter @eric_of_the_sun
Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)
MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Doki Doki Literature Club!" by Dan Salvato
"Dream Daddy" Performed by Baths, Written by Will Wiesenfield
'Poems Are Forever" by Shoji
***SUPPORT BLACK & QUEER GAME DEVELOPERS***
Check out ValiDate: Struggling Singles in Your Area an upcoming romantic visual novel featuring a cast of BIPOC protagonists. Donate to their Ko-Fi to support them directly!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod

Instagram: @GayForPlayPod
EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!
Eric Solis:
Instagram @eric_of_the_sun
Twitter @eric_of_the_sun
Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76

Previous Episode

Ep. 11: "We Love A Himbo Redemption Arc" (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword w/ Hannah Berg)

Hey! Listen! This week, we are joined by actress, gamer, and delightful friend of the pod Hannah Berg (she/her) as we cover our first (but certainly not our last) Legend of Zelda game on G4P!
We’re talking 2011’s The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword for the Nintendo Wii!
Despite its reputation as the “black sheep” of 3D Zelda games, we discuss our fondness for it as we reflect on how it still succeeds as one of the most charming and character-driven Zelda adventures, with a gorgeous art style and incredible puzzle & enemy design to boot.
We obvi talk about our crushes on Link, Zelda, and the other denizens of Skyloft, reflect on motion-control woes, unpack our complicated feelings about queer-coded villains, and plead for Nintendo to give us a remaster for this game’s 10th anniversary!

All that and more on another adventurous episode of Gay for Play!

Find our guest Hannah on Instagram @hannahlberg and Twitter @hannahlberg!
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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod

Instagram: @GayForPlayPod
EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!
Eric Solis:
Instagram @eric_of_the_sun
Twitter @eric_of_the_sun
Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)
MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Ballad of the Goddess" by Hajime Wakai, Takeshi Hama
"Skyloft" by Shiho Fujii
"Romance in the Air" by Takeshi Hama

Next Episode

Ep. 13: "Hey Kitty Girl, It's Your 3D World!" (Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury)

Hey all you cool cats and kittens! It’s just us (Super Mario) bros this week, coming at y’all with a super Nintendo-centric episode. We’re sharing our thoughts on last week’s Nintendo Direct announcements, talking about Animal Crossing theatre-making, and then warp-piping right into our game of the week:
SUPER MARIO 3D WORLD + BOWSER’S FURY!
This latest Mario outing on the Switch is a polished-up port of the underappreciated Wii U game of the same name, packaged in with BOWSER’S FURY, an all new open-world Mario adventure utilizing 3D World’s engine.
Not too much gay stuff to talk about in this one, but we simply love the red plumber man and all of his fun platforming adventures & wanted to dedicate some time to talk about him! Plus naturally we find some queer/queer-adjacent things to talk about. (Mario IS, after all, a bear...)
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"CABIN 12 - An (Animal Crossing) Summer Camp Jubilee" by Aurelia Grierson (friend of the pod!) is streaming March 7th & 12th as part of the Fresno Rogue Festival. Get your tickets here!
To learn more about the show, check out our write-up in BroadwayWorld!
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FOLLOW GAY FOR PLAY!

Twitter: @GayForPlayPod
Instagram: @GayForPlayPod
EMAIL US at [email protected]

FIND US!
Eric Solis:
Instagram @eric_of_the_sun
Twitter @eric_of_the_sun
Laurence Turner-Cordova:
Instagram @afroman76
Twitter @afroman76

Intro and outro music by Connor Marsh (@connorjmarshmallow)
Show art by Nick Adams (@stickartams)
MUSIC THIS WEEK:
"Scamper Shores" by Daisuke Matsuoka, James Phillipsen
"Lake Lapcat" by Daisuke Matsuoka, James Phillipsen