Triple Click

How should video game consoles differentiate themselves without exclusives? Do games make us more or less lonely? And are RPGs popular because they feel like jobs? This week, Maddy, Jason, and Kirk open up the listener mailbag and take some of your (excellent) questions. Plus: three killer new games that are out this week!

One More Thing:

Kirk: Sunderfolk (PC, Consoles, Switch)

Maddy: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

Jason: The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy

LINKS:

Triple Click LIVE in Portland, July 11: https://albertarosetheatre.com/event/triple-click-live/alberta-rose-theatre/portland-oregon/

“All Work and No Play” by Sam Adler-Bell for Dissent, 2021: https://www.dissentmagazine.org/article/all-work-and-no-play/

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Blue Prince is out, and people are definitely having a normal one. Maddy, Jason, and Kirk talk about some of the initial player reactions to the highest-reviewed game of 2025, and how sentiment has changed since the first day or two. They talk about the pros and cons of RNG, when the game clicked for each of them, and what they've been seeing over the last week.

One More Thing:

Kirk: Oscars Watch Game Reimagined/The Godfather

Maddy: Hail Satan? (2019)

Jason: Lunar: Remastered Collection

LINKS:

Kirk on Blue Prince: https://kirkhamilton.substack.com/p/theme-and-theme-and-variations

Triple Click LIVE in Portland, July 11: https://albertarosetheatre.com/event/triple-click-live/alberta-rose-theatre/portland-oregon/

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Blue Prince is the best-reviewed game of 2025 so far... but does it live up to the hype? Yes, yes it does. Jason, Maddy, and Kirk talk about the game's unique genre-blending design, the appeal of the puzzles, the story hidden underneath it all, and much, much more. Plus: a very special announcement!

One More Thing:

Kirk: Slough House Books 5-8 (Mick Harron)

Maddy: Inside Out 1 + 2

Jason: Switch 2 + tariffs

LINKS:

Kirk’s essay about about Blue Prince and repetition: https://kirkhamilton.substack.com/p/theme-and-theme-and-variations

Blue Prince music excerpts by Trigg & Gusset

Triple Click LIVE in Portland, July 11: https://albertarosetheatre.com/event/triple-click-live/alberta-rose-theatre/portland-oregon/

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Thanks to yesterday's Nintendo Direct, we now know a lot more about the Nintendo Switch 2, from the price (high!) to the release date (soon!) to the fact that omg they showed Silksong for three seconds and said it's coming in 2025, which means it MUST come out this year since when has a console maker ever been wrong about when Silksong is coming out???

Also they announced a bunch of other Switch 2-related stuff, and Jason actually attended the press event and played the thing, and Maddy spent all day directing coverage of it, so they got on a zoom call with Kirk to talk about all of it. And then they both went to sleep and Kirk stayed up to edit the episode and write this episode description.

One More Thing:

Kirk: The Princess Bride (William Goldman)

Maddy: The Residence (Netflix)

Jason: Saga Frontier 2 

LINKS:

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There's a new Assassin's Creed out, and there's lots to discuss. Kirk, Maddy, and Jason talk about the structure of Assassin's Creed Shadows, the balance between protagonists Naoe and Yasuke, how the game might impact Ubisoft's future, and much more.

One More Thing:

Kirk: Search Engine with Ira Glass

Maddy: Heretic (2024)

Jason: Vantage Point (Sara Sligar)

LINKS:

Featuring excerpts from the AC Shadows soundtrack composed by The Flight and TEKE::TEKE

Shogun’s subtitles: https://www.polygon.com/24124644/star-wars-shogun-influence-subtitle-font

Polygon’s Heretic interviews: https://www.polygon.com/horror/476433/heretic-ending-explained-by-directorsHeretic’s directors unpack its ambiguous ending

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If the Triple Click gang worked in the video game industry, what would they each do? What's it like to pitch a game? And should Steam bring back its Greenlight process to help slow down the barrage of new games every year? This week, it's time for some burning questions!

One More Thing:

Kirk: Notifications

Maddy: We Are Lady Parts 

Jason: Dead Money (Jakob Kerr)

LINKS:

“The Writer Will Do Something” by Matthew Seiji Burns and Tom Bissell: https://matthewseiji.itch.io/twwds

Arydia: The Paths We Dare Tread https://faroffgames.com/pages/arydia

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Video games: they're cool! There are a lot of new games out, so let's talk about them. Games discussed this week: Wanderstop, Expelled, Split Fiction, Rise of the Golden Idol DLC, Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist, Lost Records: Bloom and Rage

One More Thing:

Kirk: Reacher (Prime Video)

Maddy: Paradise (Hulu)

Jason: The Corrections (Jonathan Franzen)

LINKS:

Analysis of duplicated host introductions using spectral analysis: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EQmbU451Ob5rmqKUDAdwAjuSysx7oEvW/view?usp=sharing

“The Guilt of the Video Game Millionares” by Simon Parkin for The New Yorker, 2014 https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/the-guilt-of-the-video-game-millionaires

Featuring an excerpt from the Wanderstop theme by C418

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Kirk, Maddy, and Jason grab their Palicoes and pull out their dual blades for a monster hunt extraordinaire. This week, the gang is talking about Capcom's latest Monster Hunter. They talk about the appeal of the core gameplay loop, the thrill of the combat, and the approachability compared to previous entries.

One More Thing:

Kirk: The Murderbot Diaries (Martha Wells)

Maddy: The Contestant (2023)

Jason: Suikoden I&II HD Remaster Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars

LINKS:

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What's with the video game industry? Over the last three years, tens of thousands of jobs have been cut, dozens of studios were shut down and countless projects got canceled. Kirk, Jason, and Maddy break down why and how this is all happening, from flattened console growth to the rise of Fortnite and other Black Hole games like it.

One More Thing:

Kirk: The Pitt (Max)

Maddy: Moonlight Internet Hosting Tool

Jason: This is the Tom Green Documentary (Amazon Prime)

LINKS:

Matthew Ball’s presentation on the state of the video game industry: https://www.matthewball.co/all/stateofvideogaming2025

Chris Hayes on Know Your Enemy talking about attention and his new book The Siren’s Call: https://www.dissentmagazine.org/blog/know-your-enemy-pay-attention/

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The gang takes a deep dive into Obsidian's latest roleplaying game, Avowed. They talk about the crunchy combat, the ramifications of story decisions, and why the exploration works so well. Plus: SNL turns 50!

One More Thing:

Kirk: Ladies and Gentlemen…. 50 Years of SNL Music (Peacock)

Maddy: Priscilla (2023)

Jason: Lisa Jewell

LINKS:

Featuring “Avowed” by Venus Theory and Justin E. Bell

Hbomberguy’s “Fallout New Vegas is Genuis, Here’s Why”: ​​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzF7aHxk4Y4

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