The Firmware Update

The biggest event on the gaming calendar has come and gone, and you'd better believe Joe & Malcolm have things to say about it!

Talking Points: The games of E3 2021!

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

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Two months after promising not to take so long between episodes, Joe & Malcolm are back on the saddle. They've been playing some video games, though!

Talking Points: Joe re-enters the workforce; MLB The Show 21 breaks ground as the first PlayStation-developed game to show up on Xbox consoles; Outriders delivers the run-and-gun action and cringe-worthy dialogue we've come to love from People Can Fly; Marvel's Avengers gets a mighty upgrade on PS5; It Takes Two is a co-op only adventure that's as bittersweet as it is inventive; Resident Evil 8: Village delivers the goods; Resident Evil 9: Six??

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

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Joe & Malcolm are back to talk about what they've been playing since their game of the year show, but before that a few news tidbits dropped that are well worth talking about. Hop in and hang out, why don't ya?

Talking Points: Getting stepped on by the supremely tall vampire lady in Resident Evil 8: Village; Final Fantasy VII Remake comes to PS5 with some upgrades and new story content in tow; Marvel's Avengers disassembling; EA pulls the plug on Anthem 2.0; Destiny 2 keeps its hooks in Malcolm; Joe finally plumbs the depths of Hades; Malcolm's time in the substantial Outriders demo; the restored glory of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered; the long awaited PS5 release of Yakuza: Like a Dragon; no one to play Destruction AllStars with.

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

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It's that special time of the year where Joe & Malcolm talk about the best games of 2020, and wouldn't you know it -- one of the worst years of our lifetimes was also jam-packed with quality video games! The traditional tournament format to declare a definitive game of the year is cast aside, and the guys instead present ordered lists of their personal favorite games. It's a good time! Get in here!

Talking Points: The very best games of 2020!

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

Write in to the show: [email protected]

Get a free month and audiobook on us: http://audibletrial.com/FirmwareUpdate

Talking Points: Adventures in reselling old consoles; navigating the PS5's shiny new UI; dipping our toes in backwards compatibility; the not-so-straightforward process of upgrading certain PS4 games to PS5; the glory of the DualSense controller; the sheer delight of exploring Astro's Playroom; Destiny 2's Beyond Light expansion keeps its hooks in Malcolm; Yakuza: Like a Dragon's seamless transition to a new protagonist and gameplay genre; Bluepoint Games outdo themselves with the Demon's Souls remake; Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales is the latest step in the young hero's mainstream takeover; Joe samples Assassin's Creed: Valhalla and Watch Dogs: Legion on Xbox Series X.

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

Write in to the show: [email protected]

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Joe & Malcolm have their next-gen consoles all preordered, so now it's time for them to play the waiting game. Obviously that means playing other, actual video games in the meantime. Come hear about 'em!

Talking Points: Malcolm hits the big four-oh; preorder woes; Microsoft just ups and buys Bethesda, as a treat; Peter Parker, transformed; PSN trophies get an overhaul; Yakuza: Like a Dragon is out on everything but PS5; Genshin Impact takes the world by storm; plugging away at Destiny 2; Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning casts its spell; the curious case of Super Mario 3D All-Stars; Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 is the remake all classic games deserve; getting chummy with Maneater.

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

Write in to the show: [email protected]

Get a free month and audiobook on us: http://audibletrial.com/FirmwareUpdate

The sprint towards the next generation is on, as Sony has finally revealed the price and date for the upcoming PlayStation 5. Prices! Release dates! Bombshell game reveals! Preorder fiascos!

Talking Points: Final Fantasy XVI?!; Miles Morales pulls it together; Hogwarts Legacy poofs into existence; Resident Evil 8: Village looks spooktacular; Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War cribs from Furious 7; loopy for Deathloop; Devil May 5 Special Edition revs up on PS5; Oddworld: Soulstorm is the latest in a long-running series we've never played; Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach brings our nieces and nephews into the next generation; Demon's Souls sees a mammoth overhaul on PS5; the PlayStation 5 is officially priced and dated; adventures in preordering; Kratos brings Ragnarok down on God of War.

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

Write in to the show: [email protected]

Get a free month and audiobook on us: http://audibletrial.com/FirmwareUpdate

Joe & Malcolm join the rest of the world in mourning the tragic loss of Chadwick Boseman, whose iconic turn as Black Panther meant so much to so many people. Rest in power, king.

They soldier on to talk about the games they've played in August, including the return of a classic franchise and an absolutely infectious new battle royale. Come on in, the water's fine!

Talking Points: Rest in Power, Chadwick Boseman; Joe scores a platinum in Ghost of Tsushima; creepy crawly Carrion; Battletoads makes a worthwhile comeback; the trials and tribulations of a Destiny 2 raid; the overnight phenomenon that is Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout.

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

Write in to the show: [email protected]

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So now that we've spent several hours catching up on 2018 and 2019, Joe & Malcolm get together to...spend several hours catching up on 2020! We've relaunched with a new monthly format, but we did that in the middle of a good year for games, so with this we're all up to speed. Come on in and have a listen, will ya?

Talking Points: Touching on Crystal Dynamics's upcoming Avengers game; lessons learned from The Friends of Ringo Ishikawa; Persona 5 Royal improves on an all-time classic; Malcolm finds a mobile game worth a damn; Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a game for our times; the redemption of Destiny 2; Streets of Rage 4 is a worthy successor; the knee-buckling beauty of Ghost of Tsushima; Final Fantasy VII Remake is the game it needed to be; a house divided by The Last of Us Part II.

Programming Note: The discussions for Final Fantasy VII Remake and The Last of Us Part II are filled to the brim with spoilers! Here are the timestamps for each conversation if you want to skip and come back to them later:

Final Fantasy VII Remake: 1h 49m

The Last of Us Part II: 2h 20m 23s

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

Write in to the show: [email protected]

Get a free month and audiobook on us: http://audibletrial.com/FirmwareUpdate

OK, then! We fell way behind our 2018 Game of the Year show and tried to get things going in May 2019. We haven't recorded a regular episode of the show since and find ourselves smack dab in the year 2020, two GOTY shows behind.

The solution? Adopting a new monthly format, baby! Going forward, news will take a backseat in favor of talking about the games we've played over the past few weeks. For now, though, we each talk about our own personal favorite games of 2018 and 2019 to offer some kind of Game of the Year content, dang it.

Oh, and the world as we knew it a year ago is upside down, and there's a whole new PlayStation coming. It's a big episode.

Talking Points: Where the damn hell have we been?!; disturbing allegations rock different parts of the entertainment industry; our favorite games of 2018; our favorite games of 2019; the PlayStation 5 is finally revealed.

Hosts: Malcolm Spinedi (@PSMalc), Joe Garcia (@Wons23)

Write in to the show: [email protected]

Get a free month and audiobook on us: http://audibletrial.com/FirmwareUpdate