EXP Podcast #696: Return to Journey Ritual

Just back from the dry cleaner

It's time again for the yearly Journey replay ritual, in which we wander the sands of Thatgamecompany's magnum opus and think on the slow inexorable passage of time. Ain't the human condition grand!?

This time though, we are even joined by an interesting new wanderer.

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Music by Brad Sucks

EXP Podcast #695: Grab Bag Season

Just thinking about the end of the world

We've got some pretty hefty games on the horizon this spring, so we're spending the last few weeks of winter doing a bit of a sampler.  We have a wide variety to talk about this week, ranging from the manic Hi-Fi Rush to the meditative Season.  And then we throw some survival horror in the middle there for good measure!

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Run time: 33 min 39 sec

- Music by Brad Sucks

EXP Podcast #694: Back to the Bad

Same feeling Piranha, buddy.

This week on the podcast, we revisit some games that not only didn't age well, but maybe were never good to begin with.

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Run time: 37 min 40 sec

- "Post-Cringe: Forspoken and the Self-Sabotage of the Smirking Protagonist," by Austin Walker, via Clockwork Worlds

- Music by Brad Sucks

EXP Podcast #693: Cringing at the Camera

Contemplating the next zinger.

I've long since abandoned trying to be cool, which is hopefully a good defense mechanism against being "cringe."  But Marvel, Star Wars, and now Forspoken seem to have something to prove when it comes to how their characters approach the worlds in which they live.  People pick up on this and often labeling it as cringey dialog; hackneyed tries at being witty or sarcastic.  But what's really behind our negative reactions to these try-hards?  This week we use an article by Austin Walker to explore whether the audience-facing winks we see so often are actually a defense mechanism; one that lets writers try to mock their own work before anyone else can beat them to it.

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Run time: 37 min 40 sec

- "Post-Cringe: Forspoken and the Self-Sabotage of the Smirking Protagonist," by Austin Walker, via Clockwork Worlds

- Music by Brad Sucks

EXP Podcast #692 - Dead Space Remake & FF7 Holidays

Close talkers are the worst!

This week we re-board the Ishimura to take a violent and viscera-filled visit to the Dead Space Remake. Is it one of the best horror games of all time? Absolutely! We also make a brief pit stop to check in on a new holiday in Japan: Final Fantasy 7 Day!

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Run time: 45 min 14 sec

- Music by Brad Sucks

EXP Podcast #691: God of War Ragnarök Debrief

The very last "bring your kid to work day?"

After a very long, Gamey and GOTY-filled Fimbulwinter, we're finally looping back to one of our favorite games of 2022: God of War Ragnarök!  We discussed it in a few previous shows, but this time we go fully into spoilers and geek out over everyone's Greek lout.

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Run time: 45 min 14 sec

- Music by Brad Sucks

EXP Podcast #690: The Year Ahead 2023

GOTY?

The year is well under way and there is going to be an absolute glut of games dropping this year. With barely any lulls in major releases, we are looking ahead at our most anticipated games of 2023 and some of the games we might play... if they come out this year!

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Music by Brad Sucks

EXP Podcast #689: 2022 Game of Year Leftovers

If anyone knows about leftovers, it's Kirby.

I'm still totally fine with people saying "Happy New Year" at this point in the year, so you better believe I'm still good with game of the year discussions!  This week we wrap up the season with some of the best games that didn't quite make our top 3 this year.  And you know what, I won't even judge you for the Christmas tree I still see in the corner over there.

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Run time: 37 min 40 sec

- Music by Brad Sucks

EXP Podcast #688: 2022 Games of the Year

Me at the beginning of 2022 vs me at the end.

Before we put 2022 behind us, it's time to share our favorite games of the year. That's right, it's the GOTY cast! This was a truly great year for such a wide variety of games, in part due to the dearth of Triple-A games taking up all our time. Stay tuned next week for the last of 2022 leftovers!

- Here's the show's stand-alone feed
- Listen to the podcast in your browser by clicking here, right-click and select "save as link" to download the show in MP3 format, or click play below.

 

Show Notes:

- Music by Brad Sucks