Writing On Gamescast

We've got a Big Rig to get to the Big Gig! Your favourite video game podcast is back to talk all things Gene Simmons—his Twitter presence, that time he was meant to play with The Melvins but Spinal Tap happened instead, his weird... vault thing, everything you're here for, right? Oh OK, we also discuss, well, a lot of stuff, including Persona 5 Strikers, Hamish's Rubik's Cube obsession, Nico's DOOM speedrun dominance, Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War and well-intentioned people taking the most depressingly conservative views on the purpose of art as possible, as well as checking in on Nico's progress in Deadly Premonition 2 and Hamish's slog through Twin Peaks' awful second season. We also preview a potentially hilarious new segment coming next week. Thanks for listening! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

New releases are something of a barren wasteland right now, so after of course referencing the Gamestonks drama of the week (which was already old by the time we recorded this) we spend the first huge chunk talking about music again, and mercifully only about a quarter of that is Henry Rollins focused. Hardcore documentaries, Fugazi, the music Nico and Hamish made together, all of it is talked about in the most whiplash inducing way possible. Oh, and Hitman 3 is the Game of the Year already despite one of the most baffling launches of the last decade. Nico stepped into The Witcher 2 too soon after the first game. Destruction Allstars is fucking rubbish. We stumble across a potential sociopath. All this and more on this episode of the Writing on GamesCast!  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Happy New Year! It's all solved! Oh wait. Nothing is coming out, so obviously we talk about Henry Rollins for the first forty minutes (including some fun quotes from Get in the Van). We get to games eventually though! Hitman 3's launch has been awful, The Witcher is a janky masterpiece (and of course we have to be The Defenders of Cyberpunk as always, because it doesn't seem as if anyone's actually played the game before offering their hot takes), Hades should probably have been our game of the year, the later Mortal Kombat stories are really dumb (but are they good dumb?) and Dishonored—a game about a world being ravaged by plague—hits a little different in 2021. Can *you* get behind that? --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Well, this is it. We round out our bumper Game of the Year podcasts by picking our, well, game of the year. Will Bugsnax take it? Not likely. Unless... We both just want to thank you all for listening. This year has been unbelievably tough in so many ways and the holidays are always bad for many, but hopefully this whole thing can give you just a little bit of joy or relaxation for a while. It really means the world to us that you've stuck with us even while things have been as inconsistent as they are. Keep going everybody. See you in 2021! Categories awarded: Best Moment Best Remake/Remaster/Re-release/Update Best Old Game Biggest Disappointment Game of the Year --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Well, it's finally here. Our fifth time into the breach. This year may have been unbearably awful in so many ways but... at least the games were interesting? Either way, here's day one of our insanely long deliberations over the best and worst of 2020, to find out who will be VICTORIOUS. Enjoy and stick around for Day Two coming tomorrow! Categories awarded: Content Creator of the Year Golden Pumpkin Best Looking Best Music Worst Game Best Strand Game Biggest Surprise --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Take a look around you. If things look different, consider that it might be because we're in the NEXT GENERATION, BABY. Sony sent Hamish a PS5, so he goes over his experiences with the hardware (the DualSense and SSD), Demon's Souls, Astro's Playroom and Spider-Man Miles Morales. He also finished Yakuza: Like a Dragon. and has some... mixed thoughts. Nico brought his own next-gen title to the table in the form of the unwitting face of the PS5—Bugsnax—and things get weird and dark. Nico also finally played Deadly Premonition 2 and we struggle to talk about it for fear of spoiling the first game. Call of Duty Black Ops: Cold War is legitimately one of the most fun shooter campaigns in years. Trust in yourself! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

We thank System of a Down for their service in what happened this week. Hamish has played through a whole bunch of Yakuza: Like a Dragon and it completely rules. Nico gives us his D&D Minute, and he also finished Mafia: Definitive Edition so we talk about that game at length for the third or fourth time in a row. Watch Dogs Legion is inadvertently the most dystopian game ever made. Descenders is a really chill game and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 just got an update that changes things up in ways we didn't expect. Just wait 'til the don hears about dis! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Wawaweewa! There's a new Borat film out and one half of the cast has seen it because what the heck else is there to do in 2020! We also discuss why D&D is fun! Mobster accents in Mafia: Definitive Edition now that Nico has played it! Could Amnesia: Rebirth be in with a chance to win the prestigious Golden Pumpkin award? The conclusion to the Tomato Way trilogy! VR is the only way to play Star Wars Squadrons! Our best/worst fast food rankings! Why we're anticipating Yakuza 7 and Cyberpunk 2077! All this and more on this week's edition of the Writing on GamesCast! Dziękuję! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

The COVID Gamers are back to report on Big League Politics! No one's wearing masks! People are throwing fireworks at each other! But more importantly, just what the hell is Genshin Impact and why is it anime Breath of the Wild?!  Also discussed: Mafia Definitive Edition is some of the best crime fiction games have to offer. Nico is predictably in love with Baldur's Gate 3. Spelunky 2 seems like an incredibly well-made game that both of us dislike playing. Hades is the remedy to all of Spelunky 2's problems. Trackmania 2020 has a bunch of new tracks and it gives us a chance to go off about how terrible that game's UI still is. We have an idea for a Jackass-themed podcast that might actually be really great. All this and more on this week's episode of the Writing on GamesCast!  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

We had way too many games left from last week that we forgot to talk about, so we needed to get at you again with another episode that thankfully didn't take four months to release. We talk Lynchian awkwardness before getting into the PS5 reveal/Bethesda Microsoft stuff. Online people are anti-art weirdos who remind us of Tipper Gore. We spend a good hour or so trying to talk about Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2 but it's so perfect that we end up discussing basically the entire Tony Hawk franchise. Trackmania should be the biggest game on the planet but it's too much of a confusing mess and that's partially why it's great. Freedom Fighters is what would happen if you gave Mario a gun. Super Mario 3D All-Stars gives Mario a water gun which is kinda close. Flight Simulator turns into The Witness once you descend below those clouds. Thanks for listening to these Late-twenties Skateboarders for another week! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

So, um, hey! We're back after perhaps the lengthiest break we've ever had—hooray for protracted moves between apartments and enduring mental trauma! After a brief look back at the last few months (and of course the obligatory hour of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure talk), we chill out a little bit to get back into the swing of things. Holy moly, a lot of games came out while we were away, huh? Hamish wonders why Marvel's Avengers isn't just the simple cinematic brawler it clearly wants to be (and talks about that Captain America costume). Nico convinces Hamish to get into Rainbow Six Siege in 2020. Fast and Furious Crossroads is utterly, bafflingly bad. Because Hamish decided to finish it after all these years, we finally get to talk at length about why Deadly Premonition is just legitimately one of the best games ever made (it's so good that Hamish gets hiccups, sorry). We discuss your favourite game you haven't heard of yet, Bad Guys at School. Oh, and we make brief mention of The Last of Us Part 2, as if that gam

You Can (Not) Redo. We recorded an episode a couple of weeks ago but the files got all funky so we had to ditch it, meaning that it's been two months since we recorded a podcast. But who knows what time even is anymore, right? In that spirit we spend a while talking about the state of things in this wild new world, then take an hour and a half to discuss how wild the Fast and Furious franchise is, as well as Hamish's foray into the world of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. We talk about games for a bit... but not the ones you might expect. Elon Musk vs Grimes' mum? Yare yare daze. The return of Bitbusters and the Big TIme Tommie Minute. This podcast has got it all!  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Well, it's a very weird time right now for everyone. We tried to make this a chill-ass podcast to counter all of that, but we couldn't help chatting a bit about it at the start. Somehow it always comes back to Henry Rollins though. With all that out the way, we get to discuss why Dreams can be a nightmare, why Nioh 2 can be a nightmare (even though that isn't quite as snappy as the Dreams/nightmare bit), a surprising experience with GeForce Now,  the worst level in Halo: Combat Evolved and how good Divinity Original Sin 2 still is. We see the return of both the Big Time Tommie Minute and Bitbusters to get you through these trying times, as well as a lengthy discussion about supermarket sandwiches. Ya-coo-WHO-sa zero. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

We're back after a couple of months off! We've been real busy questioning the humanity of DMV drones and kicking people. In amongst that, though, we have found some time to play some games here and there! To that end, we've got thoughts on the Final Fantasy VII remake demo, Street Fighter V Championship Edition, Kentucky Route Zero, World of Horror, Halo and everyone's favourite game, EA Game Face. Rockbusters returns, the old British version of Toonami is discussed, and we try to make sense of the career trajectory of Beans from Even Stevens. There is no reason... to fight. (also there may be some points later on where the audio falls slightly out of sync—technical problems on our end. Should hopefully still be listenable, and we'll try our best to make sure it's fixed for next week. Thanks for listening!) --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Happy new year! We're back for a whole new decade of chatting shite. After a little while of figuring out how exactly to podcast again, we realise we've barely played anything since Game of the Year. Nico got back into Dark Souls 2 for some strange reason and, predictably, has hated every minute of it. Some thoughts on Thronebreaker, finally. Nico got his own Oculus Quest and, similarly to Hamish, has had his perspective on games shift dramatically. Nico reveals the Bitbusters answers he set up over a month ago, we answer your burning questions, and discuss terrible metalcore singers electrocuting themselves on stage. Anyone else #genesimmonschallenge! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Time to wrap this up. Our deliberations into the best, worst and... oldest of 2019 concludes with almost five hours of goofs, gaffs, guests and games. Will Death Stranding make top 10? You decide! No wait, we decide! Our guests decide!  A massive thank you to to all of you for sticking with us over another year of inconsistent release schedules. We really appreciate it a whole lot. We'll be back in 2020 bigger than ever. Take it eas'. Categories awarded: Best Moment Best Remake/Remaster/Re-release/Update Best Old Game Biggest Disappointment (Mafia 3 Blue Ribbon of Shame) Game of the Year --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

Well, we're here. Time to subject ourselves to this endurance test once more. Here is over four-and-a-half hours of us talking about the best and worst we played this year. For an idea of how this goes, this is, by some margin, the longest/most heated Best Looking discussion we've ever had (it's all in good fun though). Enjoy, and stick around for day two! Categories Awarded: Golden Pumpkin Best Looking Best Music Worst Game Best Strand Game Biggest Surprise --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

It's finally here—the StrandCast! That's right, we needed a month away just to deal with the momentous release of Death Stranding—a game that Nico inexplicably loves and Hamish gets exhausted even thinking about at this stage. We also talk Nico's venture to Vegas, how Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is... fine, why Pokemon might be bad now, as well as how the Oculus Quest is starting to reshape how Hamish looks at games (while looking like a cartoon doofus in Superhot VR). As always, we have Bitbusters (now with fabulous, furious prizes), the Big Time Tommie Minute, Goin' Postal and your questions! Next up—maaaybe Game of the Year?! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

This is the third episode in a row (I think) where we talk for half an hour about a game we haven't played yet (Death Stranding). After a debrief on Nico's first viewing of the entire John Wick franchise and a discussion on how Henry Rollins might not be that great, we talk about how Modern Warfare's campaign might be as dumb as The Quiet Man. The Outer Worlds is so good we don't have much to say about it. Going Postal returns as do Nico's regerts about starting the segment. This answer's to last episodes Bitbusters legitimately break Hamish to the point that it might be the hardest he's laughed on the podcast. And because we didn't play many games, we have a bumper edition of your questions! OS for life, take it eas'. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support

People are playing Death Stranding now. We're not, but that won't stop us talking about it. Nico goes to Galaxy's Edge and has a measured opinion on new Star Wars. Everything John Wick Hex does is understandable, but that doesn't make it fun to play. Introducing Nico's second new feature in as many weeks, Goin' Postal. This means he has to play Postal 4 every week, which is a fate worse than death. A Short Hike is tiny Breath of the Wild and might honestly be in both of our game of the year lists. And yes, we announce the answers to Bitbusters, give you the Big Time Tommie Minute you've all been waiting for, and envision the most expensive game of Pong ever made. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writingongamescast/support