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339: Liminal Spaces, with Alex Sun
Main Topic: Liminal Spaces Liminal spaces have been a source of fascination on the internet for several years now. Like much of the analogue horror movement, they are defined more by an aesthetic than any specific subject matter or tropes. But for all their vagueness, they have found their way into fanfic, short films, video games, and now, with the forthcoming Backrooms movie, onto the big screen. So what makes a space liminal? Why are they so uncanny? What are some of the best uses we’ve seen in media? And how might we use them in our own games? We touched upon this topic when we discussed analogue horror with Holly from RPG Reanimators in episode 314. Our Guest Host This episode we’re delighted to welcome Alex Sun to the Good Friends! Alex is a scenario author and co-host for RPG Reanimators, a podcast that first dissects scenarios into their base components and then reanimates them with new ideas. The podcast also offers tips and resources for GMs and players alike. You can also find him on actual plays as both a player and gamemaster on the Into the Darkness channel and the RPG Reanimators YouTube channel. Links Things we mention in this episode include: “The Meat Trade” on Into the Darkness Liminality in anthropology Uncanny valley Kenopsia The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows Anechoic chamber Original 4chan Backrooms post Kane Parsons Backrooms (2026) The Lovecraft Investigations House of Leaves by Mark Z Danielewski Survival horror Dreamcore The Poolrooms Masks of Nyarlathotep “The Colour Out of Space” by HP Lovecraft “Death to the Daleks” from Doctor Who Byzantium (2012) The Langoliers Everywhere at the End of Time by The Caretaker Silent Hill LSD: Dream Emulator Yume Nikki RPG Maker Doom Duke Nukem 3D Rise of the Triad Windows 95 3D Maze screensaver No Players Online “Educement” from The Blasphemous Tome issue 10 Skinamarink (2022) Heck (2020) The Shining (1980) Lost Highway (1997) Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett Creep (2004) Creep (2014) Death Line (1972) Vivarium (2019) INLAND EMPIRE (2006) Twin Peaks The Matrix series The Lost Room Reddit post about how Lego set background art is liminal Dave Made a Maze (2017) Backrooms wiki SCP Foundation archive SCP 3008 – Infinite Ikea Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix There is No Antimemetics Division by QNTM Kane Parsons interview with Smosh Backrooms shorts from Kane Parsons Magnum Innominandum Cthulhu Dark Ages The Great White Space by Basil Copper “The Night Floors” from Impossible Landscapes “Signal to Noise” by Colin Richards Miskatonic Repository episode Roadside Picnic by Arkady Strugatsky and Boris Strugatsky Lost “Hellhole” by Alex Sun Winchester Mystery House “Penetralia” from Mansions of Madness volume 2 “Dreams in the Witch House” by HP Lovecraft “The Call of Cthulhu” by HP Lovecraft “The Whisperer in Darkness” by HP Lovecraft “The Hounds of Tindalos” by Frank Belknap Long Carcosa News A Weekend With Good Friends returns! GM signups for A Weekend With Good Friends have now closed, but player signups will open very soon. A Weekend With Good Friends is, of course, the online gaming convention organised by our lovely listeners, hosted on The Good Friends of Jackson Elias Discord server. We shall be recording live episodes of the Good Friends during the convention, with Ross Bryant on the 12th of June and Zach Reeves on the 13th. See the panels page for more details. Key dates for the convention are: GM signups: 29th April – 13th May 2026 — GM signups Player signups: 21st May – 4th June 2026 A Weekend With Good Friends: Friday 12th June – Sunday 14th June 2026 Matt at Chaosium Con and UK Games Expo If you catch sight of a loud Hawaiian shirt at either Chaosium Con or UK Games Expo over the next month, there is a good chance it may be wrapped around Matt. Please say hi to him or the shirt if you do.
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
http://blasphemoustomes.com/
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