🎵 Haken are back with In a Fever Dream, their first new release since Fauna — and Austin and Steven have some complicated feelings about it. The five-track EP hit digital on July 17, 2026, with CD and vinyl following September 18.We go track by track through In a Fever Dream, Delirium, Eclipsed by You, Bleeding Sky and Lotus, and dig into why this one is such an odd entry in the Haken catalog. The harsh vocals Ross Jennings leans all the way into are Austin's least favorite part of the EP and Steve's favorite. The songwriting sits closer to straight 4/4 than the odd time signatures that got both of them into the band. And with Charlie Griffiths and Conner Green gone, Richard Henshall is carrying the guitars alone while Bryan Beller and Adam "Nolly" Getgood split bass duties, with George Lever co-producing.It's still Haken, and we're still excited for whatever the next full studio album is. We just wanted more prog.Stick around for both of our scores and the official Simply Nerdy score at the end.Like and subscribe if you enjoy our content — it helps us keep making more!#simplynerdy #simply #nerdy #Haken #InAFeverDream #ProgressiveRock #ProgressiveMetal #ProgRock #EPReview #MusicReview#simplynerdyTIMESTAMPS0:00 Intro0:51 First Impressions2:18 The Five Tracks3:36 Steve's Take4:28 Where's the Prog?6:14 Losing Charlie and Conner7:24 No Two Haken Albums Sound Alike9:29 Scores11:08 Track by Track12:04 Still Excited for What's Next14:04 OutroDISCORDhttps://discord.gg/FXRc6YybYyMERCHhttps://streamlabs.com/sl_id_c0621c25-2d8e-3423-8f25-1e43a0ccd929/merchPATREONhttps://www.patreon.com/SimplyNerdy

🎮 Diablo 4 finally has an ending — and after 25 years with this franchise, we think Lord of Hatred sticks the landing. Jack and Alex are the two lifelong Blizzard fans on the panel, so they sat down for a full review of Diablo 4 and the DLC that closes out the saga: spoiler-free thoughts and scores first, then a full spoiler discussion.We start with a Diablo lore primer — angels, demons, and the three Prime Evils — because Mephisto being the Lord of Hatred is the whole point of this one. Then the spoiler-free verdict: whether the story holds up, whether the gameplay still feels like Diablo, and the big one for new players — you do not need to play Diablo 1, 2, or 3 first. Diablo 4 introduces its own cast, and Tyrael is about the only recurring face you'd want context for.After the scores we go full spoilers on the Mephisto fight, which Jack calls the best boss fight in the franchise bar none — the memories he turns against you, the cathedral scene where you genuinely cannot save anyone, and the one-shot mechanic where he goes kaiju-sized and swallows you whole. We also get into the Lilith cinematic that hits way harder than a Diablo cutscene has any right to, the soundtrack from Ted Reedy, Leo Kaliski and Ryan Amon, where the series goes next now that the hatred arc is closed, and an ending that — for once in Diablo — is actually hopeful.Stick around for both scores and the official Simply Nerdy score.Want the full story of how Blizzard lost the Diablo fanbase in the first place? We split that out into its own video: "Why We Walked Away From Diablo 3 | 25 Years of Diablo"Like and subscribe if you enjoy our content — it helps us keep making more!#simplynerdy #simply #nerdy #Diablo4 #LordOfHatred #Diablo #Blizzard #Mephisto #GameReview #DiabloIVTIMESTAMPS0:00 Intro1:26 Diablo Lore 101: Angels, Demons, and the Prime Evils5:21 Spoiler-Free: Lord of Hatred8:03 Do You Need to Play the Older Games?12:40 The Scores17:07 SPOILERS: The Mephisto Fight26:01 Lilith's Redemption and That Cinematic27:49 The Soundtrack31:18 What's Next for Diablo?34:01 The Ending38:47 Wrap-UpDISCORDhttps://discord.gg/FXRc6YybYyMERCHhttps://streamlabs.com/sl_id_c0621c25-2d8e-3423-8f25-1e43a0ccd929/merchPATREONhttps://www.patreon.com/SimplyNerdy

🎮 Diablo 3 is where Blizzard lost us. Jack and Alex both started on Diablo 2 in the early 2000s, and before reviewing Diablo 4 they went back 25 years to tell the whole story: how Blizzard lost the Diablo fanbase, and how it slowly earned it back.We get into what Diablo 2 actually was for us: a year straight of one character, and PKing — duelling strangers and stealing gold that was completely worthless, purely as a declaration of "I'm better." Then Diablo 3 arrived, and it went wrong in almost every way it could. Taking the day off work and not being able to play at all because it was always-online and the servers were down. The real-money auction house, one of the only decisions Blizzard has ever publicly reversed. Director Jay Wilson, and the forum post that turned the game's own line — "betrayal can never be forgiven" — back on him. Cutting PvP, which was the entire endgame for us and everyone we played with. And the rainbow: fans genuinely angry that a screenshot had a subtle rainbow in a waterfall.Then the turn. Reaper of Souls brought a new director, killed the auction house, and gave the series Malthael — the first genuinely angelic villain Diablo had done. We also cover Real ID, the other time players pushed Blizzard hard enough to make them back down.If you want our verdict on where all of this ended up, the full Diablo 4 and Lord of Hatred review is here: "Is Diablo 4 Worth Playing in 2026? | Lord of Hatred Review"Like and subscribe if you enjoy our content — it helps us keep making more!#simplynerdy #simply #nerdy #Diablo3 #Diablo2 #Diablo #Blizzard #ReaperOfSouls #GamingHistory #Diablo4TIMESTAMPS0:00 20 Years on Diablo1:17 PKing: The Wild West of Diablo 22:36 Diablo 1, and Blizzard at Their Peak3:25 Diablo 3's Always-Online Disaster5:05 The Real-Money Auction House5:45 Jay Wilson and the Death of PvP8:31 The Rainbow Controversy9:33 Why We Walked Away from Diablo 310:39 Reaper of Souls: Blizzard Backs Down13:30 Malthael, and What Diablo 3 Got RightDISCORDhttps://discord.gg/FXRc6YybYyMERCHhttps://streamlabs.com/sl_id_c0621c25-2d8e-3423-8f25-1e43a0ccd929/merchPATREONhttps://www.patreon.com/SimplyNerdy

🎬 The Odyssey is finally here — and Christopher Nolan's take on Homer got the whole crew talking. This is our full review of The Odyssey: spoiler-free thoughts and our scores first, then a full spoiler discussion for everyone who's already seen it.

We get into the practical effects Nolan pulled off — the Cyclops is a 60-foot puppet, and those giants aren't CGI — plus the performances that caught us off guard: John Leguizamo as Eumaeus, Anne Hathaway's Penelope, and the Argus scene that nearly broke us. We also dig into how the movie adapts Homer, from Calypso to Scylla to the Underworld, and Jack makes the case that the Trojan horse is Nolan doing Oppenheimer all over again — the weapon that ends an age.

And yes, we talk about the backlash. Between the casting discourse and the "it's bombing" posts, a lot of people decided how they felt about this movie before seeing it, so we go through what the box office actually says.

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#simplynerdy #simply #nerdy #TheOdyssey #ChristopherNolan #MattDamon #Homer #MovieReview #TomHolland #AnneHathaway

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Intro

1:13 Spoiler-Free Review

12:21 Scores

13:36 Spoiler Discussion: Monsters & Mythology

15:53 Standout Performances

19:15 Casting & the Controversy

23:01 Adapting Homer: Calypso, Scylla & the Underworld

29:16 The Trojan Horse & the Oppenheimer Parallel

34:06 The Final Fight & Archery Nitpicks

36:55 Haters, Bots & Box Office Records

44:17 The Elon Musk AI Odyssey

46:56 Favorite Characters & Wrap-Up

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🎮 Physical vs. digital games just stopped being a debate and started being a deadline. In one week, Sony announced it's ending disc production and Xbox revealed its biggest restructure ever — so the crew sat down to ask the real question: is the all-digital future they're pushing us toward one we actually want? We break down both bombshells and get into what matters to us as players — game ownership, preservation, resale, pricing, and whether Nintendo is the last line of defense.

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#simplynerdy #simply #nerdy #playstation #xbox #digitalgames #physicalgames #ps5 #nintendo #consolegamingDISCORD

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🎮 Steven, Lakez, and Stelf sit down to review Doom: The Dark Ages – Revelations DLC! The combat, the music, the lore, the visuals — id Software pulled out all the stops on this one. Is this peak Doom? The crew breaks it all down, plus their thoughts on the id Software layoffs and what it means for the future of the franchise.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Spoiler-Free Review

23:46 - Spoiler Discussion

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🎮 Steven, Anthony, Austin, Lakes, and Stelf sit down to review the Star Fox remaster on Nintendo Switch 2! The visuals are stunning, the orchestral soundtrack is incredible, and the gameplay still holds up — but did the shift from comic flair to realism cost it something? The crew dives into the graphics, the music, the co-op mode, the voice acting debate, and whether nostalgia helps or hurts this one.

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#simplynerdy #simply #nerdy #starfox #starfox64 #nintendo #switch2 #remake #remaster #gamingDISCORD

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🎮 Steven, Austin, and Lakez break down the incredible Nintendo Direct — and oh man, was it a big one! The crew dives deep into the reveals, with a special focus on the announcement that has the entire internet buzzing: the Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time remake. Is this the most hyped Nintendo announcement in years? We think so.

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🎮 It’s the one-year anniversary of the Nintendo Switch 2, and the Simply Nerdy crew is celebrating by asking the big question — which console had the better first year? Steven, Austin, Anthony, Stelf, and David break down the numbers, the games, the third party support, and the retro libraries to see which launch year comes out on top. The Switch had the kill shots. The Switch 2 had the volume. But which one actually wins?

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - intro

01:06 - units sold

03:39 - year one games

07:55 - nintendo switch 2 editions

11:45 - third-party support

16:58 - available classic games

18:58 - the blockbusters

20:51 - discussion

38:24 - outro

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📚 Sanderson can't stop, won't stop! Steven and Austin break down the huge news that Brandon Sanderson's Skyward is getting a TV adaptation from Tomorrow Studios — the team behind Netflix's One Piece. We're talking what this means for the Cytoverse, whether it should be live action or animated, and how this fits into the growing wave of Sanderson adaptations hitting the screen.

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#simplynerdy #simply #nerdy #brandonsanderson #skyward #cytoverse #cosmere #netflix #tvadaptation #sandersonDISCORD

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