Hot Button

It's the 1980s. Arcades are all the rage and Pac-Man Fever is sweeping the nation, but how will Japan capitalize on the craze? They go to MIT of course! On this episode of Hot Button, we dive into the development and lawsuits of Ms. Pac-Man, and explore how the sequel to one of the most popular arcade titles ever produced came from one of the most unlikeliest of places.

 NOTE: Due to the recent outbreak of COVID-19 and the quarantine procedures put forth by our state and federal governments, this episode was recorded remotely. Please bear with us as we may have some audio hiccups while we sort this out. Thank you for understanding and enjoy!

It’s time to get sleazy in the Hot Button studio this week as we discuss the origins of one of the dumbest, grossest, and most exploitative titles to ever weasel its way to the mainstream gaming market. A story not just involving strip clubs and fast cars, but also... Nintendo? And Metroid? Find out how a once respected developer almost found their way into a jail cell following the discovery of something that even 4chan will ban you for.

We made it y’all. The final piece of our Tetris saga! Hear the results of every win, loss, deal, lawsuit, and death. No thread left undone. Take our hand as we guide you through it all. From it’s changes over the years, to it’s use in scientific research, to the legacy that it left behind. A legacy that would change the world forever.

The race to finally get Tetris on the NES and Game Boy is on! On part three of our epic saga, we run through deal after deal and try to separate those that wish to team up from those that just want to screw each other over. Who will come out victorious? Only one way to find out.

What happens when 100,000 people try to play a video game at the same time? Fan art? Political struggle? Religion??? Today we take a look at the journey and legacy of the phenomenon Twitch Plays Pokemon! A massive social experiment that ignited an entire culture of lore the likes of which the internet will never forget.

And we’re back with some more Tetris talk! Today we dive deep into the confusing and tangled web of licensing in order to find out just who exactly owned what in the battle to acquire the rights of what would soon become the best selling video game ever made. Nintendo, Atari, Maxwell, Sega. Everyone is here!

Join us for a few short minutes this week, as we give you a quick update about where Hot Button is going in the year 2020, what changes we're making, and what new content we're working on.

Time to kick off 2020 with diving into the history of one of gaming’s biggest phenomenons ever, Tetris! On the first part of our series today, we go back to 1984 Russia and find out just where exactly it all got started along with who was involved in the ensuing battle that would bring Alexey Pajitnov’s groundbreaking title off of just single Soviet computer and onto platforms all over the world.

What happens when online squabbles over a video game get so powerful that they take down the entire internet? Well, that’s a question we don't need to ask since it actually happened! On our last episode of 2019, we cover the Mirai Botnet. A hacking tool invented to hack servers for a small indie game called Minecraft. Join us as we tell you about how small fights over independently run game servers led to billions if not trillions of dollars in corporate damages.

And we’re back with not only one story this week, but three! Join us on our second Microtransactions episode as the team brings a few more interesting small topics to the table. Topics that revolve around war, poop, and even AIDS research. Find out how all these things are connected to video games here and only here!