LBR Podcast Network

This week in esports HotS team Naventic faces accusations of not paying their players on time. In the world of League, Team Liquid scoops up a few players from the recently disbanded Immortals. PUBG results are in from IEM Oakland and against all odds, one of the under dogs took the prize for first. A familiar face takes the SFV North American champion title and lastly, Riot announces the four newcomers to the NALCS.

We had a chance to talk at length to Arnie Roth, the conductor of the Final Fantasy inspired symphony concert Distant Worlds. He shared with us all kinds of insights into the genre of video game symphonies, what goes into choosing the music they play and even what makes Nobuo Uetmatsu's music so astounding.

Soken recently did an interview about his history and work with Square Enix and Final Fantasy XIV, including how he came to possess the world record for most songs composed in an MMORPG. Yosheep also did an interview which was laden with hypocritical responses. The LBR crew breaks down both interviews.

A little over a week ago Robbie and Nate attended a charity event to benefit Anxiety Gaming. Nate shares some realizations he’s made since then and how mental health is an important issue, not just in gaming but all around. Other headlines include; Russia claiming proof of USA involved in ISIS using a video game screenshot, a Heroes of the Storm esports team not paying their players and Nintendo in talks to make another Mario movie.

Anyone even slightly interested in esports knows Faker, one of the best e-athletes on the scene. How many people know Lee Sang-hyeok? Or that they're the same person. The Checkpoint Hosts talk about the necessity of how esports athletes brand themselves and if it's good for the industry or not.

This week in gaming Call of Duty World War II suffers major launch issues. In the wake of shedding one game studio, EA buys up another. Plus, Niantic announces it's next game since Pokemon GO in a Harry Potter themed AR game. Lastly, PUBG see's some big updates that shaking up the way people play the game.

This week in esports the Dallas Fuel sign a major multi-year investment deal with a huge fast food chain. Plus the entire industry mourns the lost of Team Liquid's former coach Dennis 'InternetHulk" Hawelka. Infamous FGC player Wolfkrone finds a sponsor in Circa Esports. In addition, FaZe Clan acquired Gorilla Core Esports in order to compete at a major tournament.

After 29 grueling days of bashing heads against keyboards a world first has finally been achieved – we’ll discuss their achievement and help you get to know that fine group of adventurers! Plus, Playstation Universe did an interview with Yoshi-P that revealed some interesting tidbits for future content.

With Blizzcon come and gone, the hosts talk about the news that broke for all the biggest games. Chris’ isn’t impressed with what Hearthstone is offering and Kali wants to return to Azeroth to throw his support behind the Horde. Other headlines include; Amazon creating a new department for retro gaming, EA turning a beloved franchise into games as a service and Niantic talks about their new game and the future of old ones.

NBC featured a piece that shone a light on the all too real connection that some circles of Gamer Culture have to organizations like the Alt Right. The Checkpoint crew talk about the implications, the history of gamer culture and what has to change.