Let's summon our shadows and take a deep dive into Persona, the wonderful series about high school students fighting their inner demons — literally. With Persona 5 coming to multiple platforms this week and Personas 3 and 4 on the way, the Triple Click gang talks about what makes the series so special, teenage drama and all. Plus: Jason discovers a surprise Game of the Year contender!

One More Thing: 

Kirk: Star Wars: Andor

Maddy: Hocus Pocus 1 + 2

Jason: The Case of the Golden Idol

Links:

Featuring tracks from Persona 4 and 5 by Shoji Meguro and the first three variants of the Star Wars: Andor theme by Nicholas Britell

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What is it about cancelled games that make them so intriguing? What are the most heartbreaking video game cancellations? And what the heck just happened to Google Stadia? Jason, Maddy, and Kirk take a trip into the world of cancelled games, from Star Wars 1313 to Bully 2.

One More Thing: 

Kirk: The Tommyknockers

Maddy: Street Fighter 6 beta

Jason: Cabin Fever (Michael Smith, Jonathan Franklin)

Links:

Kirk’s 2015 story about No One Lives Forever: https://kotaku.com/the-sad-story-behind-a-dead-pc-game-that-cant-come-back-1688358811

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Jason, Kirk, and Maddy grab their rubber chickens with pulleys in the middle and jump into Return to Monkey Island, the lovely new game from the original creators of the classic adventure game series. They talk about the game's charming humor, how it modernizes the point-and-click interface, and what it's like to play a "legasequel" with so much baggage. Really: this game is wonderful!

One More Thing: 

Kirk: The Big Chill (1983)

Maddy: Bayonetta (2009)

Jason: Fairy Tale (Stephen King)

Links:

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Kirk, Maddy, and Jason have an obsession: handheld gaming. This week, the gang talks about the Steam Deck, the Nintendo Switch, and how portable machines change the way games are played. From "together alone" gaming with significant others to late-night Switch sessions while feeding a baby, handheld game systems are just the best.

One More Thing: 

Kirk: Trombone Champ (Holy Wow Studios)

Maddy: Rap Sh!t (HBO Max TV show)

Jason: The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero

Links:

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It's one of the biggest leaks in video game history: Over the weekend, a hacker released dozens of video clips from Rockstar's unreleased (and technically unannounced) game Grand Theft Auto VI. Jason, Maddy, and Kirk talk about the leak, the nature of reporting on situations like this, and the morality of leaks in general. Plus: the story of TheRealInsider, an insider who was not, in fact, real.

One More Thing: 

Kirk: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Maddy: The Zachtronics Solitaire Collection

Jason: Return to Monkey Island

Links:

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Kirk, Maddy, and Jason grab their passports and get ready for a trip to Arztotska, the setting of Lucas Pope's brilliant 2013 game Papers, Please, which just came out for phones. They talk about the game's brilliant design, the moral questions it poses, and what it's ultimately trying to say. Who would've thought that being a border inspector could be so fun?

One More Thing: 

Kirk: The Rehearsal

Maddy: Not Okay (2022)

Jason: Long snappers

Links:

The famous “Aaron Burr” Milk commercial from 1993: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znGJf1ZKnTU

The Papers, Please theme by Lucas Pope

Caitlin Dickenson’s 2022 Atlantic expose on the U.S. child separation policy: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/09/trump-administration-family-separation-policy-immigration/670604/

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Jason, Maddy, and Kirk pull out their reading glasses for the very first Triple Read! This week, they discuss the brilliant novel Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, a decades-sprawling book about the epic journey of a boy and a girl from childhood friends to hit video game developers. The gang dives into the book's themes, its twists and turns, and all the fictional video games that make Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow such a joy to read. Plus: a tribute to our dear friend Mike Fahey.

One More Thing: 

Kirk: Immortality 

Maddy: Nope (2022)

Jason: Who is Maud Dixon? By Alexandra Andrews

Links:

In memory of Mike Fahey: https://kotaku.com/mike-fahey-kotaku-eulogy-obituary-senior-reporter-1849501728

A GoFundMe for Mike’s family: https://www.gofundme.com/f/fahey-family-fund

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Who would our dream interview be? What's a "game as a service"? And have you ever played a video game at the wrong time? This week we open up the listener mailbag and take some of YOUR questions on all sorts of topics. Plus: why Kirk and Maddy are replaying the same games over and over and over and...

One More Thing: 

Kirk: Persona 5 Royal

Maddy: Assassin’s Creed Origins

Jason: The Rehearsal

Links:

Featuring excerpts from “Crossing the Hill” by Hitoshi Sakimoto from FF Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, and “The Ideal and the Real” by Shoji Megoro from Persona 5 Royal

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Kirk, Maddy, and Jason put on their Lamb Pope hats and check out Cult of the Lamb, a new video game that's part Hades, part Animal Crossing, and 100% gruesome animal cult. They talk about scooping up poop, sacrificing their followers and why Cult of the Lamb should've maybe been a little more like a real cult.

One More Thing: 

Kirk: Paper Girls 

Maddy: A League of Their Own (TV series)

Jason: Daredevil (2015 show)

Links:

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This week, the Triple Click gang dives into the world of superhero video games. What makes for a good (and bad) superhero game? Why are Batman and Spider-Man such good protagonists for games? And hey, come to think of it, aren't all video games pretty much about superheroes? Plus: a special surprise!

One More Thing: 

Kirk: Alone

Maddy: MultiVersus

Jason: Better Call Saul

Links:

Tom Bissell on Batman: Arkham City: https://grantland.com/features/batman-arkham-city/

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