After a hiatus due to vacations and general life stuff, Nick, Chessa, and Jason reunite for the seventy-fourth episode of PixlTalk. We kick things off with a bit of conversation on the Zelda symphony and segue into what we're all playing. The bulk of the cast is dedicated to the various announcements at Gamescom 2012, primarily Sony's news.

If you want to hear about the Sony "cross" blitz, New Super Mario Bros. 2, Wii U, and more, click the download link to the right and enjoy!

The original (well, sort of) crew of PixlTalk is back this week as they reclaim the podcast that has been under the loving care of our previous two crews for the past few months. Coming back into the show we wanted to do something new and fresh that would shake up the original format and keep things moving at a steady rate.

The new show is broken down into segments, which include What's in the News, The Rant, and a Retro Spotlight, among many others, and the list of segment ideas keeps growing! Each week the crew, consisting of Nick and Chessa DiMola, Jason Ross, and Joaquim Mira will be choosing from a handful of these new topics in the hopes of keeping it interesting and (more honestly) to prevent us from hopelessly wandering off-topic into mindless banter...we make no promises on keeping it together at the end, however. Just a warning.

This week we start off with four segments, What are You Playing, What's in the News, Retro Spotlight, and a bit of Trivia. We explore the 3DS XL reveal, Halo 4's staggering memory requirement, discuss A Link to the Past, and even get to hear Jason being attacked by his cat.

Please let us know what you think about the show and the new format, and leave us ideas for new segments if you happen to have them. Also, don't forget to check out the brand new podcasts from the previous PixlTalk crews, Push Start to Continue and Nerds Without Pants (debuting tomorrow!).

It’s the end of the Tri-Force as we know it! That’s right, this is the final PixlTalk hosted by Julian, Rob, and Patrick. Stay tuned at the end of the episode for the official announcement of our new show, Nerds Without Pants.

We don’t leave you on a sour note, though. We talk about sooo many games, including Lollipop Chainsaw, Ghost Recon Future Soldier, Apple Jack 2, and Julian’s reaction to  the Mass Effect 3 ending, three months late.

Then we move into the sequel to the Popcast! In that episode, we talked about pop culture properties we’d like to see turned into games. This time around, we talk about  games we’d like to see move into other forms of media. Just like Professor Zoom, the Reverse Flash, we present you with the Reverse Popcast. Julian and Rob have some sensible ideas when compared to the insanity that Patrick comes up with, considering that his ideas are harmful to children, adults, the elderly, and stunted monkeys. Also: Statham Sightings(tm)!

We’ve had a blast bringing you our version of PixlTalk. Look forward to the new incarnation of the show, and come back for the first episode of our new PixlBit podcast: Nerds Without Pants.

The Tri-Force is dead. Long live Nerds Without Pants!

Featured Music:

Joan Jett and the Blackhearts-Cherry Bomb

The Dickies: Banana Splits (Kick-Ass film version)

E3 has come and gone and it’s time to focus on what’s really important, the games. This week we have a casual discussion covering what we’ve been playing and what we hope to play in the near future. We also delve off to discuss how 2013 is shaping up to be one of the craziest years ever for game releases, and the ludicrous notion that unfinished games receive awards at E3.

As always we hope you enjoy and let us know what you think in the comments below.

Hey, it's Rob. Since Julian is still in a state of orgasmic coma from his Vegas shenanigans, I'll be spearheading this podcast. It's like Omar Bradley handing the keys over to George Patton for the invasion of Normandy, but f**k it, my body is ready.

We talk about our impressions of E3, and Julian explains exactly what his issue was with the show. We discuss our interest and confusion over the Wii U as well as other games that excite us going forward. After that we talk about what we've been playing which leads into stories of amateur surgery, Julian's stance on zombies, comics, and then we round it out with Julian spilling the beans on his wild and wacky trip to Vegas. Oh, and I make tons of awkward passes at Patrick.

Featured Music:

The Lonely Island featuring Justin Timberlake: D*ck In A Box

The Lonely Island: Lazy Sunday

A lot of people are down on this year’s E3, but were the games really that bad? We think not. In fact, all of us are in agreement that the games looked fabulous this year. So why was E3 so bland? Find out on this special of edition of PixlTalk: E3 Post Mortem.

At this point, we've nearly reached the end of our E3 journey. Without being on the show floor to get our hands on the games, we've all just been spectating and deriving as much information as we can from those who are experiencing the show first hand. With another disappointing showing from Nintendo and a general lack of new items at the show, the conference is wearing on this crew's optimism.

Come listen in on a discussion that goes beyond the bounds of E3, addressing some of the root industry-wide issues that could really be improved.

Nintendo revealed some of their Wii U plans and gave us an idea of where they're looking to take their business in the coming months, but they were seemingly holding back. Find out what Nick, Chessa, and Jason thought of the conference, E3 thus far, and the potential challenges of Nintendo's new system when it launches later this year.

Check back tomorrow for further thoughts on the show.

The various members of PixlBit have come together to recap the news from the day and give their impressions of the various conferences. For this E3, we've split off into three groups, one to cover each of the big three companies.

For tonight, the Microsoft crew consisting of Esteban, Joaquim, JD, and Angelo met to talk over the press conference and the EA and Ubisoft shows. At roughly 35:14 the Sony crew, consisting of Esteban, JD, and Patrick kick off their conversation around the same shows, swapping the Sony conference in for the Microsoft one. Finally, the Nintendo crew featuring Nick, Chessa, Jason, and Joaquim discuss the EA and Ubisoft conferences as well as the Nintendo Direct from Sunday and their predictions for tomorrow's conference. Check out their portion of the show starting at 1:15:10.

Check back tomorrow for more from the various crews and some new members of the staff!

You ever feel like part of you was missing? Well that’s how we felt here at PixlTalk without our cohort Jesse ‘the Jammer’ Miller, but it’s all good now … because he’s back! Alright maybe we’re being a bit dramatic, but it’s good to have him back with the Hell Block Heroes. He couldn’t have picked a better time; its pre E3 week and you know what that means – strap in everyone – we’re heading to speculation station!

Ok grab a drink and get cozy because this one is a doozy. Since we are talking about E3, we thought it would be appropriate to mirror their schedule. That means Microsoft is first – What the heck are these guys going to show this year? We have a few ideas, but ultimately their presentation is up for grabs. One thing is for certain though we can likely expect more awkward Kinect demonstrations, I can hardly wait. Next is Sony, between developments with the PSN, cross platforming from the PS3 to the Vita, and a slew of new games it should be an interesting conference. Finally there’s the one we’ve all be waiting for Nintendo. Nintendo has a lot to prove this year, good or bad. We’ll undoubtedly see a solid collection of new titles for the 3DS, but what everyone is really interested in is the Wii-U. It’s time for Nintendo to finally reveal the curtain and show us what this baby can do. You’ll hear our current thoughts on the Wii-U, the new console generation as a whole, and what games we expect Nintendo to showcase.

Sure we’ve covered the big 3, but it’s not over yet. In addition to talking about what we expect to see at the conferences, we also share what games were most excited to see, after all we are fans too. Yes, it’s going to be a great E3, and possibly the last E3 that is game centric for some time to come.

How do you think we did? Were we on point with our predications? Or, did we fail miserably? What about you? What games are you most excited to see? What or who do you think will steal this year’s E3? Let us know in the comments below.