Happy Valentines Day! In this episode of Beyond, the crew takes us on a look back at some of our favorite video game romances. But why stop there? We also took a deep dive into which video game characters are the worst kissers. Fair warning, it gets a bit… messy? You’ll laugh, you’ll cringe, and you will definitely ask why we left out Ebrietas in our list. Jada also talks about her preview of Pacific Drive and reviewing Theatrhythm Final Bar Line… please don’t just how we pronounce that.
00:00:10 - Intro
00:05:43 - Curse of the Licensed Games 
00:27:20 - Romance in Video Games
00:39:39 - The Worst Kissers in Video Games According to Max & Jada
00:52:28 - Pacific Drive Impressions
01:06:27 - Theatrhythm Final Bar Line Review
01:11:43 - The Last of Us: Episode 5 Reactions & Outro

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Our Love/Hate Relationship with Licensed Video Games - Beyond 788

Beyond is IGN’s flagship PlayStation show, the place where we break down all the latest Sony news and announcements, share our impressions on what we’re playing - new and old - but most importantly, celebrate the fun and camaraderie of gaming.

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Entertainment News

Join us as we explore how Naughty Dog created the terrifying Rat King and revisit an interview with director Neil Druckmann and narrative lead Halley Gross.

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Revisiting 'The Last of Us Part 2' - A Podcast Beyond! Special Episode

Once upon a time, video game consoles were defined by their exclusive game lineups… these days, that seems like less of a sure thing, and with the rising cost of game development, it’s not hard to see why. Between a simultaneous PC release making Helldivers 2 PlayStation’s fastest-selling game ever, to Square-Enix aggressively exploring a multi-platform strategy, to Xbox Game Studios games like Sea of Thieves topping PS5 sales charts, it sure looks like more publishers are ditching the idea of keeping their games on just one platform or device. On a semi-related note, back in our day, video game controllers were small enough for little kids to play them, and now they’re too darn big! But really, maybe Nintendo’s on to something by offering teeny-tiny Joycon, but also a Switch Pro Controller. Meanwhile, the DualSense is practically twice the size of the first three generations of DualShock controllers, could there be a market for a smaller controller? Animal Well is, well, a game about animals at the bottom of a well, and that’s all well and good. Little Kitty Big City is the latest adorable indie game that has entirely too much NPC dialogue for its own good, and if you don’t mind reading the Elden Ring manga is easily the funniest interpretation of a FromSoft game this side of Prepare To Try. Podcast Beyond this week is Max Scoville, Brian Altano, Jada Griffin, and Akeem Lawanson.
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Is 2024 The Year AAA Console Exclusives Die? - Beyond 848

Helldivers 2 is a hit, and thanks to its simultaneous PlayStation 5 and PC release, and not only is it the best-selling game of 2024, it’s Sony’s 7th most profitable game in dollar sales, just a couple months since it launched. So, what could go wrong? Well, with Arrowhead Studios’ shooter riding high, some powers-that-be at Sony decided to make the announcement that playing Helldivers 2 on Steam would soon require a PlayStation Network account. Unsurprisingly, the community was not happy about this news, and once again mobilized against a common enemy, though this time, it was unfortunately the game’s Steam reviews. Following this backlash, and the revelation that Helldivers 2 was now made unavailable in 177 territories where PSN isn’t supported, Sony reversed its decision. Live-service games are high risk endeavors to begin with, and Helldivers 2 managed to stake its claim to the time and money of gamers amidst some steep competition. Why mess with it? In other news, Elden Ring is still very good, but you might not be as good as you remember, so it might be prudent to get in fighting shape before Shadow of the Erdtree drops in June. The Fallout Prime Video series is probably better if you know some Fallout lore, but it’s not a requirement, and we discuss the pros and cons of an adaptation that’s directly translating an existing story from another medium, like HBO’s The Last of Us, or one that tells a brand new story in an established universe, like Fallout, and potentially the upcoming Death Stranding movie from A24, as well as the Netflix Horizon series. Most importantly, does Ray-Man wear socks? And how does he eat? We had fun this week, we hope you did too.

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Helldivers 2 Players Waged War on Sony’s PC Plan (And Won!) - Beyond 847

This episode, we’re chatting about Sand Land, the open-world (“sandbox”) action RPG based on the late and great Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama’s manga. While it’s got exploration and melee combat and sidequests, at its core Sand Land is all about its vehicles, which are playable and heavily customizable versions of some of Toriyama’s coolest creations. We reflect on the toyetic kitbashed aspect of the game as well as the charm of cel-shading compared to realistic graphics. Plus, Stellar Blade’s new game plus patch and Fallout 4’s next gen update both dropped, the former jam-packed with bonus costumes and added content, the latter with technical hiccups and confusing issues for PlayStation Plus subscribers. A couple other recent games caught our attention, Another Crab’s Treasure, which swaps the grim and gloomy trappings of your usual soulslike for colorful undersea fun, while still maintaining a solid challenge. Then there’s Botany Manor, which feels like a game full of Resident Evil puzzles without any of the horror stuff, and Nour which is a pretty and colorful food toy game thing where you throw snacks around. This week, it’s just Max Scoville and Brian Altano. Congratulations, you have read this whole episode description!

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Sand Land is a Celebration of Akira Toriyama’s Incredible Machines - Beyond 846

Stellar Blade is finally upon us! The verdict? The long-awaited and surprisingly controversial PS5 exclusive from Shift Up solidly delivers on its promise of a visually stunning action game, though it falls short of greatness in a few other areas. IGN’s reviewer Mitchell Saltzman joins us to have a nice spoiler-free chat about what he loved about the game, and what didn’t blow him away. We break down what makes the combat so satisfying, the awesome boss fights, the many collectibles and costumes, but also some of the frustrations, like wonky platforming, convoluted backtracking, and a nothing-burger cast of characters. This week podcast Beyond is Max Scoville, Brian Altano, Jada Griffin and Mitchell Saltzman.

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Our Love/Hate Relationship with Licensed Video Games - Beyond 788

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