Vidjagame Apocalypse

There's an argument to be made for videogame graphics being TOO detailed when that detail starts to include rendered, clearly visible buttholes on little dogs, giant pigs, and other things we won't mention here. But we WILL mention them in the show, as Tony Wilson of Framework joins us to talk about five games that didn't hide their shame, after which we'll get into Weird West, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, Breath of the Wild 2 getting delayed, and the lesser-known games you'd adapt as TV shows.

The reappearance of a certain recurring deceiver in Elden Ring inspired this week's Top 5, in which we take a look at some of gaming's most prolific, remorseless, and - inevitably - successful liars ever to repeately pull a metaphorical football away from our digital Charlie Brown at the last second. Then we'll get into Ghostwire: Tokyo, A Plague Tale coming to TV, and your favorite Final Fantasy himbos.

Usually, games based on a popular media franchises let you embody the main characters from movies, TV shows, or books. This week, though, we'll rope in Brendan "The Crawl" Hesse for a look at five games that cast you as some new nobody who just gets to hang out with the heroes. Then we'll talk about Stranger Of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin, Tunic, Paradise Killer, ID@Xbox, somehow more Elden Ring, and the longest amounts of time you've invested in getting an achievement or trophy.

WWE 2K22 launches this week, inspiring us to take a look at the way wrestling matches have been represented in non-"sports entertainment" games over the years. Then we'll dig into Gran Turismo 7, lots more Elden Ring, Sony's State of Play, and your feelings on cryptic vs. straightforward games.

Elden Ring is here, and we can't shut up about it! But before we start being unable to shut up, let's grab Tony Wilson of Framework for a look at five of our favorite open worlds created by Japanese developers. Then we'll talk about GRID Legends, Martha is Dead, Destiny 2 The Witch Queen, Shadow Warrior 3, rumors of Amiico's premature demise, and the games you got the furthest in without actually finishing them.

Some plot twists are just too good to keep under wraps for long, whether because of a game's popularity, loose-lipped fans, or sequels that build their lore on formerly secret knowledge. This week, Larry Charles joins us for a look at five once-shocking plot twists that have become too broadly known to even be considered spoilers anymore; we're talking "I am your father!"-level, here (but you'll get warnings and timestamps anyway, just in case). Then we'll get into Horizon: Forbidden West, Perfect Tides, Final Fantasy VI Pixel Remaster, the Street Fighter 6 reveal, and the 3DS and Wii U exclusives you think people should grab before they disappear.

Horizon: Forbidden West is out! To celebrate, we've invited Anthony Abatte to help us take a look at five games set in post-apocalyptic futures where swords, sorcery, and monsters reign supreme. Then we'll talk about King of Fighters XV, Infernax, Nintendo's move to shutter its 3DS and Wii U shops in 2023, and the game characters you'd like to play old versions of.

Sifu is out this week, and its grow-old-instead-of-dying mechanic inspired us to pull together a top 5 about other games where your character grows up and gets old, with special guest Mike Williams of Fanbyte. Then it's on to Dying Light 2, OlliOlli World, news from the latest Nintendo Direct, and the videogame tunes that get stuck in your heads, unbidden.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus has us thinking about isekai stories – where a hero is unexpectedly dropped into another world or time period, and struggles to get back – so with PNB’s TL Foster on board, let’s talk about five of our favorites. Then we’ll talk a whole bunch more about Pokémon Legends: Arceus and why it’s getting love even from Pokémon haters, plus Bloodborne PSX, more game-industry acquisitions, Mina the Hollower, and the series you’d want to see go open-world.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is out this week, and while it's not quite an open-world game, there was a point when a lot of people thought it was going to be - so with Leif Johnson on board, let's take a look at five series that ditched linearity for an open-world approach. Then we'll shift gears to talk about Windjammers 2, more news from the Microsoft-Activision merger, and some of the dream projects you'd like to see after it happens.

Rainbow Six Extraction is out this week, pitting three players against the creepy mutant Archaeans - and we had so much fun playing it as a trio that we decided to talk about five of our favorite videogame trios (as a trio, naturally) in the first half of the show. Then it's time to talk about our experience with Extraction, Microsoft buying Activision, and the ways you like to combine fitness and gaming.

January is the time for new-year's resolutions - and what resolution is more popular, more strenuous, and more quickly abandoned than the one to get in shape? This week, we grab PNB's Robert Beach for a look at five games that make exercise more fun, after which we'll jump into Gar Cry 6's Pagan: Control DLC, Take-Two's Zynga acquisition, in-person E3's cancellation (again), and the games you're looking forward to most this year.

Another new year begins, as we shake off the holiday cobwebs and get back up to speed with a look ahead at five games we're especially excited to get our hands on in the next 12 months. Will all of them see the light of day? Finding out is part of the fun! With that done, we'll pay tribute to departed icon John Madden, speculate about PSVR2, and hear which 2021 games were your personal GOTYs.

Our two-part countdown of 2021's best games concludes this week with our five favorite games of the year, with help from special guests Micah Seff; Steve Guntli and Woody Ciskowski of Wii Universe; Kat Bailey of IGN and Axe of the Blood God; Leif Johnson; Jorge Albor of Experience Points; Tony Wilson of Framework; and Greg Moore. Which games captivated us enough to merit almost two hours of chatter? Start listening and find out!

It's time once again to look back on another great year for games and pick our favorites, and this year we're breaking from tradition: Instead of one gargantuan show to mark the end of the year, we're splitting our top 10 across a more digestible two episodes, with this week's show covering entries 10 through 6. But don't fret - we're still going big on these, with a rotating lineup of guest hosts including Brendan Hesse, Steve Guntli, Woody Ciskowski, John Brandon, Anthony Abatte, Jorge Albor, and Tony Wilson. And come back next week, when we'll tear through 5 through 1!

2021 is drawing to a close(!), and all things considered it's been a pretty great year for videogames. Before we begin our annual GOTY countdown next week, let's invite Tony Wilson of Framework for a look at five of our favorite downloadable expansions this year, after which we'll dig into the Game Awards, some big Assassin's Creed news, and the most expensive gaming accessories you've ever bought.

December is here and the snow is upon (some of) us, so this week, we're taking a look at games that let us step back from the action, take a deep breath, and nail someone real good with a snowball. Then we'll get into early impressions of Halo Infinite, jump belatedly into Solar Ash, get excited for Dr. Dre in GTA Online, and hear your thoughts on whether PlayStation Plus and Games with Gold should stick around.

When is the end not the end? When a hinky-looking credits sequence is interrupted to let you know the game's not over yet. This week, PNB's TL Foster rejoins us to talk about five times games faked us out with false endings, after which we'll (finally!) talk about Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, get excited for an anti-scalper-bot bill, and hear who you'd want to purchase Sega (were it ever for sale).

Happy Black Friday, everybody! With Thanksgiving on our minds this week, we dedicated this week's Top 5 to cooking minigames in bigger, non-cooking-themed games, after which we'll wonder at the possibilities of WB's MultiVersus, delve into a few highly topical game deals, and look at the villains you'd like to play as.

With this week’s release of the Vaas: Insanity DLC for Far Cry 6, we welcome first-time guest Doug Trein of Basileus Games for a look at five other sequels and expansions that let us embody one of a game’s villains, even if just for a little while. Then we’ll move on to Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy, Halo: Infinite multiplayer, the last batch of backwards-compatible Xbox games, and your favorite videogame liars.