Maddy and Kirk talk about what they're playing; in Maddy's case, that involves a brand new gaming monitor that makes Outer Wilds look so, so good. She's also playing Madden NFL 20. Meanwhile, Kirk beat Death of the Outsider, started up Wolfenstein: Youngblood and Fire Emblem, and tried Burgle Bros with his tabletop group. We then bring in Kotaku senior reporter Cecilia D'Anastasio (35:06) for discussion about her article, "For Men Who Hate Talking On The Phone, Games Keep Friendships Alive," and also, the importance of gaming etiquette, especially for competitive games. We close out with off-topic discussion (1:11:32) about Veronica Mars... again.

Music pick of the week: “What A Wonderful World” by Sam Cooke

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Episode 180: We've gotten so many interesting listener e-mails about privacy in gaming, we just had to keep talking about it! First, the Splitscreen gang talks about some of the games they're playing including Phoenix Wright, Rage 2, and Destiny. Then they get into the news of the week (28:18) on Minecraft Earth, the God of War documentary, and a major shakeup in Call of Duty-land.

After the news, Kirk, Maddy, and Jason read some listener emails and talk more about advertisers using our data, targeted marketing, and whether the internet is just broken or what. Then it's time for off-topic talk (1:11:55) on Designated Survivor, Lemony Snicket, and much more.

Music pick of the week: “Ageless Beauty” by Stars from their 2004 album Set Yourself On Fire

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Scott Benson and Bethany Hockenberry, two members of the team that made Night In The Woods, are now part of a games studio without any bosses. It's a worker co-op called The Glory Society, and at GDC 2019, Scott and Bethany dropped by the podcast to explain why they prefer bylaws to bosses. In the second half of the episode, longtime Splitscreen guest Matthew Burns came by to talk about his new visual novel about artificial intelligence and also, how cool he thinks SpeedTree is.

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This is it -- after four and a half years and over 300 episodes, the hosts of Kotaku Splitscreen are saying goodbye. The good news? Kirk, Jason, and Maddy are starting a brand new video game podcast that you'll be able to find on their Twitter feeds as soon as this goes live.

Join us for one final episode to reminisce about Kotaku Splitscreen and even talk about some video games.

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Episode 225: Kirk, Jason, and Maddy catch up on some Half-Life Alyx and Persona 5, then dive into Final Fantasy VII Remake (20:50), a wonderful game that the Splitscreen crew still has trouble believing is real. They close things out by talking The Wire, Star Trek Picard, and Community (58:16).

Music pick of the week: John Prine - Spanish Pipedream from John Prine, 1971

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Episode 224: Kirk, Maddy, and Jason talk about some games they've been playing, like Half-Life Alyx and Kentucky Route Zero. Then they get into some news on Mario remasters and Gearbox disasters (26:30), followed by some chill Animal Crossing chat and an email from a listener who works in video game certification. Finally: The Wire! (55:07)

Music pick of the week: “Think About Things” by Daði Freyr (“Daldi - Freyr”)

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Episode 223: Kirk, Jason, and Maddy talk about Persona 5 and Animal Crossing, the cures for everyone's woes, then share some stories from listeners (43:19) about how they're coping with corona. Then they talk about a certain show that Jason's finally watching... (1:09:17)

Music pick: “Tropicalia” by Beck from Mutations, 1998

Maddy's stream this weekend: https://www.twitch.tv/gamers4bernie

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Episode 222: As the coronavirus pandemic upends all of our lives, let Kotaku Splitscreen distract you for a little while with talk of delightful video games. First up, Jason, Kirk, and Maddy talk about Kentucky Route Zero, Persona 5 Royal, and Ori and the Will of the Wisps, then dive into the recent PS5 spec reveal (32:44) and talk about how they're coping with self-isolation. Then it's time for off-topic chat (1:07:25) on The Wire, McMillions, and The Wrecking Crew.

Music pick of the week: “Cabin Essence” by Brian Wilson from Smile, 2004

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Episode 221: Jason, Maddy, and Kirk talk about their adventures in Nioh 2, Black Mesa, and Persona 5 before taking a deep dive into the cancellation of E3 2020 (43:44), an unprecedented move that comes in the wake of the global coronavirus pandemic. What will this mean for the video game industry? Then they get into off-topic (1:05:15) on I Think You Should Leave, Castlevania, and one fantastic episode of Reply All.

Music pick of the week: “Blues Stride” by McCoy Tyner from Infinity, 1995

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Episode 220: Kirk, Jason, and Maddy talk about Kentucky Route Zero, Baldur's Gate 3, and a bit more Kirby before jumping into a few different topics (24:24) including their gamer personalities, a frustrating VentureBeat article about Quantic Dream, and the much-hyped Final Fantasy VII remake demo, which they have LOTS of thoughts about. Finally, off-topic discussion (1:28:38) on Curb Your Enthusiasm and Bojack Horseman.

Music pick of the week: “Get By’ By Talib Kweli from Quality, 2002

Links: Quantic Foundry surveys, Jason's thoughts on Final Fantasy VII Remake, CanardPC on QuanticDream, Kirk and Leigh Alexander on Final Fantasy VII

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