Never Free To Play

Episode Description:

Final Fantasy abounds as Karch ends his Journey and Jason takes his first step, but first news. The Paper Mario: The Origami King announcement shadow drops to much surprise and hopeful expectations. A real look at Ghost of Tsushima gameplay leads Jason to wonder if this open world is just a ghost town. Next gen “arrives” with an Unreal 5 demo on PS5. Can YOU count the triangles?! Jason gives a brief rundown of what he’s dabbled in and then we dive into the heart of the episode: All things FF7, and spoilers abound. Karch rambles through his thoughts about the remake at large, the ending, and what it means. No bet this week, but I think we all know this episode ends.

Episode Description

Put your pants on and hold onto your butts, Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 + 2 remaster is in the house. Join us as we reminisce and get hyped about a long awaited return to form for this beloved franchise. Then stick around as we (mostly Karch) trashes on Xbox, Playstation, and Bethesda for less than optimal marketing as we limp ever towards next-gen. Karch talks about what he’s been playing, but it’s crickets from Jason so we’re forced to make him eat his vegetables and choose a game to commit to finishing before The Last of Us 2 arrives. We end with a round of our favorite game: “Is the Greg the Worst?”. Happy Birthday to Karch, he’s getting so old.

Episode DescriptionHappy Cinco de Mayo! We clear the air about some Last of Us II misconceptions but it’s not long before Jason censor’s Karch for speaking the truth. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is announced with an awesome trailer and release window. Summer plans begin to solidify as Nintendo cancels a planned June Direct, but then, Geoff Keighly to the rescue with the “Summer Game Fest” event. Jason recounts ring theory as a griseled Yakuza and Karch has a surprisingly good time with Indivisible. Corporate birthday gifts got us feeling ENTITLED and ANGRY, but we don’t care. Finally, listener mail forces us to dig up some obscure favorites from years past. Let’s make some mischief. 

Episode Description:

The big 1-0! The boys celebrate (but not really) with double digits. Triple digits are just around the corner. News is light and slightly depressing with more release date shuffles for Sony’s big releases. Naughty Dog turns out to be leakier than our Sea of Thieves ship as pivotal moments are released by disgruntled employees. Karch says Nvidia wrong, but Jason sets him straight. Xbox raises our hopes only to burn us with the fine print with Red Dead Redemption 2 coming to game pass on consoles. Games We Played is up next with Jason’s early impressions on Arkham Asylum and Karch’s strange journey through Goat Simulator. Then it’s off to our first GAMING GRIPE OF THE WEEK. This week, Nintendo’s (and the industry’s) continued inability to give us easy access to their classic titles. Wrap it up with some listener questions (more fiery opinions).

Intro - 00:00:50

Housekeeping - 00:04:26

Corrections - 00:08:26

Jason Schreier leaving Kotaku - 00:10:14

Super Mario Maker 2 Final Major Update - 00:15:32

Death Stranding PC Delayed - 00:26:06

March NPD - 00:30:02

What we played: Sea of Thieves - 00:40:10

What we played: Final Fantasy 7 Remake - 00:50:54

What we played: Hatoful Boyfriend - 01:00:58

Listener Questions - 01:09:30

Greg is the worst - 01:37:58

Episode Description

Karch brings the energy today with the help of Chameleon Organic Cold Brew Coffee (no sponsorship, yet). Kicking off with big news about news: Jason Schreier leaves Kotaku for big green Bloomberg pastures. Nintendo puts more points into the Ninja class as the shadow drops continue with a meaty Super Mario Maker 2 update. Death Stranding for PC is delayed a month while Ghost of Tsushima remains in place (fingers crossed). Then a little trip into NERD land with NERD statistics about March’s best selling games of which Karch was a key player with his single purchase of Animal Crossing: New Horizons. We recount our romantic tales as pirates in Sea of Thieves and Karch learns a valuable lesson about pigeons and love in Hatoful Boyfriend. Listener questions bring about some good conversation about remake wishes and mind-blowing gameplay mechanics. Finally, Karch gets a nasty, nasty surprise. Burpin’ or sleepin’, we are Never Free to Play!

* Intro - 00:00:34 * Housekeeping - 00:04:32* (Start of news) Ghost of Tsushima not delayed? - 00:07:26*  Google Stadia Pro Free Trial - 00:15:48* Resident Evil 4: Remake Announced - 00:21:38* ESRB Randomized Randomized In-game purchases - 00:28:57* PlayStation Play at Home - 00:34:10* Quarantine Gaming - 00:37:46* Final Fantasy VII Remake - 00:41:54* What we wish we were playing - 01:15:13* Listener Questions - 01:17:34 * Greg is the worst - 01:27:30

Episode DescriptionIt was a light news week in the world of video games, but the duo manages to make their opinions on Resident Evil’s endless (amazing) remakes and ESRB lootbox warnings known. Karch patiently waits for his moment to gush about the long awaited Final Fantasy 7 Remake while Jason reminds us why PC gaming is for dorks with hardware troubles. Jason is a good sport while Karch sings the praises of the first 10 hours FF7. Also, FF7 is out and it’s really good but that may have already come up. Records are broken as listener mail doubles compared to last week with more thought provoking questions about the nature of privacy, security, and that sweet sweet eyeball candy we call state of the art graphics. Jason and Karch reveal a new game that Karch loses. Find out his punishment, and whether he hates it….or loves it. 

* Corrections: 00:04:04* Start of News: 00:05:34* PS5 Dual Sense Controller: 00:11:33* Inside Xbox: 00:18:43* The Last of Us Part 2 Delayed: 00:49:43* Payday 2: 01:00:33* Bravely Default 2 Demo: 01:03:06* Animal Crossing Easter Event: 01:06:21* Jackbox Games via Steam Remote Play: 01:10:58* Call of Duty Warzone: 01:13:25* Half Life: Alyx:  01:21:04* What we wish we were playing: 01:28:26* Listener Questions: 01:31:34* Greg is the worst: 01:48:06

Big news all around and yet Jason remains...unimpressed.  We start with IGN's answer to what should have been E3 with some impressive participants (Square, SEGA) along with some straw grabs (Twitter lol what?). E3 officially announces it will have no digital presence to replace the cancelled 2020 event, causing Karch to worry about his former favorite time of the year. Playstation reveals their more comfortable looking controller but everyone just whines about the color. Microsoft follows "Safer at home" protocol with Inside Xbox receiving a resounding "meh" as Project xCloud remains a vapor on the wind. Phil Spencer announces acquisition and subsequent cancellation of popular battle royale Fornite. Lastly we bemoan the biggest pandemic set back yet: Last of Us II delayed until further notice.  On to personal experiences, Karch offers to carry Jason like Sam carried Frodo as the latter's legs are too tired to stand in VR. Karch's butt hurts from too much sitting at his computer for MtG: Arena. Sean offers up another deep-dive question as we discuss past and future design trends in the larger gaming space. Open worlds as far as the eye can see, and they're full of bees!

Housekeeping: 00:02:36 

Corrections: 00:03:36 

News: 00:05:44 

What We're Playing: 00:28:10 

Listener Questions: 00:59:26  

Greg is the worst: 01:12:28 

NFTP is officially a YouTube sensation, assuming the criteria is simply being sensational and on YouTube. News is Nintendo heavy, but we start with more ragging on Valve/Steam for never putting out Half-Life 3 and giving lame excuses. Switches are flying off shelves but nothing's coming to replace them anytime soon. Meanwhile, Jason and Karch launch a math podcast to find out how rich they'll be as early switch adopters. Mario turns 35 soon and the rumors are hot and heavy. A welcomed Nintendo Direct Mini drops from the sky and we thumb through our favorite announcements. Jason brags about how little he played Call of Duty: Warzone while Karch sells his watch for some Magic cards. Sean asks a loaded question and the red flags of communism come out. Stay a while, and listen comrade! 

Housekeeping: 00:02:36 

Corrections: 00:03:36 

News: 00:05:44 

What We're Playing: 00:28:10 

Listener Questions: 00:59:26  

Greg is the worst: 01:12:28 

NFTP is officially a YouTube sensation, assuming the criteria is simply being sensational and on YouTube. News is Nintendo heavy, but we start with more ragging on Valve/Steam for never putting out Half-Life 3 and giving lame excuses. Switches are flying off shelves but nothing's coming to replace them anytime soon. Meanwhile, Jason and Karch launch a math podcast to find out how rich they'll be as early switch adopters. Mario turns 35 soon and the rumors are hot and heavy. A welcomed Nintendo Direct Mini drops from the sky and we thumb through our favorite announcements. Jason brags about how little he played Call of Duty: Warzone while Karch sells his watch for some Magic cards. Sean asks a loaded question and the red flags of communism come out. Stay a while, and listen comrade! 

What's even real anymore? Jason and Karch bend the limits of truth, perception and reality on week two of quarantine life. But first, Karch brags about his new promotion to community manager. Then news, where we dunk on Playstation 5 before coming back to it like a bad relationship. Gamestop pushes the limits of human decency, and even Karch begins to wonder if they should stick around. Resident VR expert Jason gives his spoiler-free impressions on the long awaited Half-Life: Alyx and the whimsical Budget Cuts. Karch bids farewell to Ori as he moves to a deserted island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons where he discovers his wife was a real gamer all along. Then, suddenly, a wild listener appears and with it, our first listener question. Finally, we extend the olive branch of peace to Greg. Will he take it?