Scanline Talks

Ok. So we know what characters we're looking for from the gacha. We know what characters we can't get from the gacha. And we know about some truly spectacular dresses, though that's not particularly helpful. There's nothing left but to roll the gacha. Again. And again. And again. ...Hey Kyrie did we want to set like a MAX, or-

This is the latest in the "Numbers" podcast series, where we use math to joke about fighting games.

Granblue Fantasy hits its tenth anniversary this year. For the mega-popular gacha game, what better celebration than a bunch of other products to hook in those who aren't into the gacha? This has inspired Granblue the Animation, the action RPG Granblue Fantasy: Relink, and yes, Granblue Fantasy Versus, and its sequel Rising. As you might expect, these games shine a spotlight on some of the most popular characters in the game, selling you on their appeal.

But, speaking of selling... what if someone were to pick up Granblue today and try to get all the characters included in their copy of Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising? Would it be expensive? Would it even be possible? Well, let's find out. ...Right now? No no no no. This is going to take a whole podcast just to set up all the specifics of the QUESTION. On Part 2 we'll answer it. Or... try to. Let's just say there were some challenges in the process.

This is the latest in the "Numbers" podcast series, where we use math to joke about fighting games.

Scott Pilgrim, huh? I dunno what anyone sees in this guy. Regardless this new Netflix anime follows a new story in the Scott Pilgrim series, commenting on the series impact on culture, reflections on the characters, and a lot of video game and anime references. We bring on Jackie of Ultimate Despair Reprise to gush about this new anime. Spoilers ahead, we watched the whole series for this episode!

Editor's Note: This was supposed to be a request episode (which we will still do!) but some life stuff came up. We hope you enjoy this episode in it's stead. We also accidentally call this Oops All Anime, but hey. You know the drill.

As the holiday season ramps up, we here at Scanline are prepared for a yearly ritual: playing all the games that we feel like we should have an opinion on before we record the Gimmick Awards, our yearly Game of the Year (and more than game) awards. That makes this the last stop of us just chatting normal games before we dizzy ourselves with our obligations as critics. To that end, Jen has been mourning the loss of a rival in F1 2023, Six has been modding Metal Gears on Steam Deck, and Kyrie wanted to see what's so remade about the Super Mario RPG Remake. Plus, we've all got thoughts on the 25th Anniversary Update for Half-Life.

In chronological order, our music is 8bit23 by Koichi Morita, The 23 Enigma by Ian & Ethan Livingstone featuring Julie Seechuk from F1 23, the Steam Deck startup sound, Nuclear by Mike Oldfield from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Calling to the Night by Natasha Farrow with lyrics by Nobuko Toda, composed by Akihiro Honda, and arranged by Norihiko Hibino from Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, In The Garden by Yoko Shimamura from Super Mario RPG Remake, Hazardous Environments by Kelly Bailey from Half-Life, and then a reprise of 8bit23 by Koichi Morita.

You can find us on Cohost and Twitter at @jen-and-aster and @jbu3 for Jen respectively, @KyriePage and @KyrieAPage for Kyrie respectively, and @sixdettmar for Six on both.

The Nintendo 64, PlayStation 1, and Saturn were a pivotal moments for video games. 3D video games had arrived in full force, and the industry has never turned back. But Jennifer, Kyrie, and Six turned back the clock to dive into nearly 50 games that defined the generation, and we decided to sort the best of the best.

Fighting game tournaments are great, and a LOT of work to run. Shoutouts to the tournament organizers, the streamers, the casters, and more that make these tournaments run. But think about this for a moment: if a King of Fighters XV tournament is hard to run, how difficult is it in-universe to get these lunatics with magic powers and demonic possession and GUN ARMS to not only play nice to run a fighting tournament, but also to actually make it a good experience to watch? Seed it for good matches, build around TV primetime, and more?

Probably really easy, right? So Kyrie and Six are gonna just do it.

This is the latest in the "Numbers" podcast series, where we use math to joke about fighting games.

Around here, Bethesda's games are pretty divisive. We can all agree they're deeply flawed games, but to what extent their unique charms prevail against those weaknesses varies person to person. Jen still holds some affection for Skyrim, Six can't stand it, and neither have anything but disdain for Fallout 4. So what's the vibe with Starfield, their latest and most ambitious work? It's... charming. Though neither Jen nor Six has spent a ton of time yet- both around a dozen hours at time of recording- there's enough to want to get together and talk about the experience. And why not have mics on while we're at it.

You can find our hosts on various socials: on Twitter, Jen is @jbu3 and Six is @sixdettmar. On Cohost, Jen is @jen-and-aster, and Six is once again @sixdettmar.

Life moves pretty fast. Despite that, we all found times for a few games that we weren't playing for other podcasts this month, and time enough to sit down to talk about them. This year has seen Jen finally coming to appreciate baseball, and by extension baseball video games in MLB The Show 23. Kyrie has fallen for familiar comforts under friendly names by plugging her friends into Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth. And Six has been playing Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker and frowning at it... and reading the announcement for Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail, and SCREAMING at it.

In chronological order, our music is 8bit23 by Koichi Morita, The Real Thing from MLB The Show 19 by Cook Classics featuring Outasight, Shooting Stars by Bag Raiders, The Handed Down Name from Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth by Yuzo Koshiro, Prelude - Tales from Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker by Masayoshi Soken, and then a reprise of 8bit23 by Koichi Morita.

You can find us on Twitter at @jbu3 for Jen, @KyrieAPage for Kyrie, and @sixdettmar for Six.

They really did get our trust back only to throw it away, huh? After a messy first cours, G-Witch came back strong with the first three episodes of cours 2, and our early check-in was quite positive. It continued strong for a while, but of course, the same production troubles were bubbling beneath the surface, and that strong start began to collapse under the weight of all its problems. Now we come to you to talk about a show that just... didn't do it.

It's Not E3! Barring some stupid revival, it will never be E3 again! And yet game companies are still rushing to show us the Reason for the Season. Summer Games Fest, Future Games Show, PC Gaming Show, Wholesome Direct, Ubisoft Forward, Xbox Games Showcase, PlayStation Showcase, the list goes on... and on... and what does it all mean? Jen, Kyrie and Six sat down to talk about the announcements, the trailers, and the temperature of the industry in the middle of 2023.