#Nintendo #3DS #WiiU #eShop

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Intro & Outro: Run by J+1

#Cyberpunk2077 #HaloInfinite #SteamDeck

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Intro & Outro: Run by J+1

On today's episode: Handheld gaming was originally dominated by a select few. The likes of Nintendo's Game Boy and it's offspring, the Nintendo DS, were the rulers of the gaming-on-the-go scene. Competition from Sony with it's PlayStation Portable and PlayStation Vita, Sega with the Game Gear, and many others could not keep pace with the house of Mario. However, Nintendo's attempt to bridge the gap between handheld and home console became an overnight success, and the Switch continues to be a best seller since it's release in 2017. That got many others thinking of what they could provide in lieu of a Game Boy-style device - either stick with the ability to provide retro gaming in place of what Nintendo had previously done -or- take the ever-expanding PC gaming market and make it even more accessible in an on-the-go package. And that's what we are here to discuss today: The Future of Handheld Gaming.

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On today's episode: Microsoft's announcement to acquire Activision-Blizzard for $69 Billion sent shockwaves through the gaming industry. The powerhouse behind Windows, the Xbox, and Clippy wants to bring in the likes of Arthas, Kerrigan, and Tracer to their broader Xbox Games Studios family. And just the week prior, TakeTwo announced their intent to acquire mobile and web-game studio Zynga for $12 Billion, which had been the record before the Microsoft announcement. With the last few years of big studio purchases and acquisitions by some of the top game companies in the world, this means more and more development and publishing under the control of a select few. How do these acquisitions fit into the broader gaming ecosystem, and what do these types of changes mean for gamers going forward. This week, we talk about Game Company Acquisitions. 

Note: This episode was recorded on 1/28, before the announcement that Sony was purchasing Bungie for $3.6 Billion. 

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Intro & Outro: Run by J+1

On today's episode: COVID-19 and it's variants continue to cause delays to in-person gatherings, and for us in the gaming sphere many a conference and event have moved online. The likes of E3, GDC, PAX, and many others have had to rethink their approach to an event without risking the health and safety of thousands of people. The efforts to move events online was swift, and was not without some compromise, but was also a chance to branch out some offerings that many regular people didn't get to experience unless they made the pilgrimage to the conference center. Because many of the game publishers and developers have found their niche in online events, could we see the days of E3's and GDC's past be just that... in the past. This week, The NPCs ask what the future is for in-person gaming events.

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Intro & Outro: Run by J+1

On today's episode:

NFTs, or Non-Fungible Tokens, has been the latest buzzword and craze across the internet for months. While it seems NFTs have been focused on digital art, it hasn’t stopped others from thinking about what is next in the space of blockchain-backed assets. Konami, Ubisoft, and even GameStop have all announced efforts to join in the NFT space, with Ubisoft suffering some backlash from fans about their attempts to include NFTs in Ghost Recon. Some companies have outright refused to allow NFTs on their platform, namely Valve, due to the concerns of this new market. What does an NFT look like in gaming, and what could it become as this new industry is explored. At the start of 2022, the NPC's have to ask - what the NFT is up with gaming?

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Intro & Outro: Run by J+1

Access to classic video game consoles isn't necessarily hard, but the upkeep of so many different consoles as well as the cost of those consoles and games can be taxing. To solve this, many gamers have turned to emulating those consoles and downloading ROM files of the games they so dearly want to play. However, while the possibility of having every single classic console from the Atari 2600 through the Wii on a single device is there, it doesn't mean that it's legal. If you don't already own the game, then congrats: you have entered the world of piracy. But there is a movement in the video game world to preserve these games via emulation and do it in a legal fashion. But what does emulation actually look like now, and what does it's future hold. Let's talk about that in today's episode: Emulation's Future.

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Intro & Outro: Run by J+1

With so much news we've been covering, have we actually been playing any video games at all? You better f***ing believe it! 

In a long awaited Whadaya' Playin', Kyle & Travis bring the world up to speed on the games they've been playing. Kyle talks about Metroid Dread, Mass Effect, and plenty of others while Travis focuses on FPS games such as PUBG and Splitgate. The NPCs have been playing quite a few games together, focusing their thoughts on Back 4 Blood. 

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Intro Song: Wreak Havoc by Axtasia

Outro Song: Haunt by J+1

On today's episode: 

Electronic waste has become one of the most problematic forms of pollution in the world, with the Americas accounting for 13.1 metric tonnes of e-waste in 2019. The main driver for e-waste generation is the speed at which devices become obsolete, or which a new device surpasses it's predecessor and drives home new value that the previous model didn't. In the world of video games, this is also a serious concern. Attempting to repair your own failed device can be costly and potentially dangerous without some kind of direction or guidance on how to perform the repair. But what if things were to change, and you were given the opportunity to save yourself the money and repair your old Xbox 360 or Nintendo DS with support from the hardware companies? Let's talk about that possibility in this week's episode: Right to Repair in the gaming world.

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Intro & Outro: Run by J+1

On today's episode:

Freemium games, or games that are free but offer pay-to-win options, are all too common in the gaming world. While they originally found more of their home on mobile devices, the idea of the pay-to-win in PC and console video games is expanding and is increasingly becoming the norm. Unlockable skins, guns, characters, you name it... all in the name of either looking better than someone else or getting the upper hand before others can. How has the idea of the pay-to-win scheme affected the likes of gamers everywhere, and what does the market look like for the future? Well, for you to find out, you'll need to pick up some in-podcast currency and buy the next level. Just kidding... but let's talk about the Battle Pass.

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Intro & Outro: Run by J+1