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Sacred Symbols, Episode 173: Mouse and Runeboard (Video)

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Sacred Symbols, Episode 173: Mouse and Runeboard

If you listen to this show (and we know that you do), you would have known months ago that God of War was coming to PC, because we told you it was. Well, if you didn't believe us, it is indeed true: 2018's God of War is indeed PC-bound, and it has some players in their feelings... and not in a good way. Is it time for PlayStation's audience to embrace the inevitable? Or will stragglers hold on for dear life as the industry moves past console exclusivity above all else? Meanwhile, the upcoming...

Battle of the Bastards Part 1 - Lockmort's Edit

The battle has only just begun.

Defining Duke, Episode 42: Xbox's 20th Anniversary Event + Game Pass Growth Struggles (Video)

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Defining Duke, Episode 42: Xbox's 20th Anniversary Event + Game Pass Growth Struggles

It's a stacked week for the Dukes! Getting right into it, Xbox has announced an event to celebrate their 20th anniversary. While there won't be new game announcements, there are many alternative routes to be taken. Beyond familiar backwards compatible speculation is a chance to spotlight Halo Infinite's campaign yet again. Outside of this, there are many guesses as to what can be shown to us in November. While there is much good news to celebrate, on the surface it may seem like some bad news...

Defining Duke Ultimate, Episode 38: Does Xbox Miscommunicate Too Often?

Xbox has upped its transparency since the beginning of the Series Generation. From there, we have seen multiple faux pas from them failing to set or even meet expectations. What this has led to is the removal of magic from announced showcases, baffling decisions, and at times very angry fans. With the recent Fable debacle in the rear view mirror, let's look at some standout moments in Xbox's very recent history and see if they are communicating well with fans.

Defining Duke Ultimate, Episode 38: Does Xbox Miscommunicate Too Often? (Video)

Sacred Symbols+, Episode 130: Techland, Dying Light, and Something Uniquely Polish (Video)

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Sacred Symbols+, Episode 130: Techland, Dying Light, and Something Uniquely Polish

In 2015, an open world zombie game called Dying Light came to PlayStation 4, and as unassuming as it seemed at first, it would go on to become one of the console's best AAA third-party experiences, full-stop. Better yet, in early 2022, its long-awaited sequel finally -- finally! -- launches on PS4 and PS5. As a big fan of Dying Light, I (Colin) have always wanted to talk to someone at Techland about their studio, projects, culture, and success, and I've found my man: Bartosz Kulon. Kulon was ...

KnockBack, Episode 193: Ghostbusters (Video)

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KnockBack, Episode 193: Ghostbusters

While it's true that we ain't afraid of no ghosts, it's also true that we're not very fond of them, either. They are, after all, undead apparitions that seem to play by their own set of rules, and, well, it's time that they were busted. Thus, we queued up 1984's classic comedy Ghostbusters to draw some inspiration. With lots of brilliant minds involved -- Ivan Reitman, Bill Murray, Dan Akroyd, and others -- you'd think Ghostbusters would be a runaway hit. And for many audiences, it certainly ...

Sacred Symbols+, Episode 129: Racing Toward Excellence

When you do a video game podcast, chances are you're not going to do every release, every series, every genre its due justice. It's just the way it works out; we're only three guys with three distinct gaming tastes. But there's no denying that, when it comes to Sacred Symbols, our Gran Turismo coverage is unacceptably lacking, considering it's not only a first party game, but arguably Sony's most popular IP, ever (it's certainly the best-selling). Thus, today's episode of + is the first ...

Sacred Symbols+, Episode 129: Racing Toward Excellence (Video)

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Sacred Symbols, Episode 172: Anti-Crunch (Video)

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0:25:06

1:01:51

1:25:46

Sacred Symbols, Episode 172: Anti-Crunch

Square Enix-owned studio Eidos is running a little experiment on behalf of the industry-at-large: Its teams are now working four days a week, for 32 hours, with Fridays off. In a line of work absolutely demanding of your time, that a AAA publisher and well-respected studio are taking the initiative to do things differently is an awesome sign, though it's unclear if such a life/work balance is even possible if you want to create truly great games. Naturally, we discuss. Also: Sony has qui...

Defining Duke, Episode 41: Avowed Gameplay + Story Details Leak ft. Ryan McCaffrey (Video)

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0:00:54

0:26:46

Defining Duke, Episode 41: Avowed Gameplay + Story Details Leak ft. Ryan McCaffrey

It's a big week for the Dukes! One of Xbox's most significant acquisitions in the last half decade is Obsidian Entertainment. They are an extremely talented studio that has been consistently worked over by every publisher they have worked alongside in some way, shape, or form and now with Microsoft's pockets backing them up they will aim to make a big splash with Avowed. While it has long been described as "Obsidian's Skyrim," we were never 100% sure... until now. Joining us to discuss a rece...

Defining Duke Ultimate, Episode 37: Our Wishlist For Xbox Backwards Compatibility

Rumors are looming about how Xbox plans to celebrate its 20th anniversary. To the Dukes, the obvious way is to provide a new batch of backwards compatible titles across both Xbox 360 and the Original Xbox to celebrate the history of the platform. With that is a long, long list of games that we could pick from. We have our selections at the ready. Some niche, some highly demanded, some poorly reviewed. Will they make the cut if we ever see an addition to the library? Time will tell.

...

Sacred Symbols+, Episode 128: The Legality and Morality of Emulation (Video)

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Sacred Symbols+, Episode 128: The Legality and Morality of Emulation

The gaming industry recently erupted over a story written on Kotaku all about Nintendo's newest Switch title, Metroid Dread, and how... well... great it looked and played on an emulator. And it's that word -- emulation -- that gets to the heart of today's episode of Sacred Symbols+. Emulation is as old as gaming, and the sad reality is that many people pirate even contemporary, readily-available games in addition to the rarer, older, or inaccessible fare of the past that can be far more ...

KnockBack, Episode 192: Fight Club (Video)

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KnockBack, Episode 192: Fight Club

While it's true that the first rule of Fight Club is not to talk about Fight Club, we felt like a two hour podcast of silence wouldn't be very enticing. Thus, we're willing to break the sacred code to present to you a discussion all about David Fincher's 1999 film based upon Chuck Palahniuk's 1996 novel. The story revolves around an unnamed man played by Edward Norton who encounters a man named Tyler Durden, played by Brad Pitt. The result is an introspective, Generation X-infused movie ...

Sacred Symbols+, Episode 127: PixelJunk Remembrance

Those of you who have been gaming on PlayStation since the early PS3 era will certainly remember Q-Games' PixelJunk franchise. The hallmark of the PixelJunk series of downloadable offerings -- available on PS3, PS4, Vita, and even PSP -- was that they were all different (except for direct sequels, of course). One's a racer. Another's a shooter. The next is a tower defense game. Heck, one of them is even an offbeat music visualizer. However, Q-Games' relationship with Sony seemed to sour with ...

Sacred Symbols+, Episode 127: PixelJunk Remembrance (Video)

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Sacred Symbols, Episode 171: A Strategy For A New Era (Video)

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Timestamps to skip ads:

0:01:22

0:27:31

1:02:11

1:19:49

Sacred Symbols, Episode 171: A Strategy For A New Era

It's not 1995 anymore, or 2000, or 2006, or even 2013. During those years -- when PSone through PS4 launched in the west -- PlayStation's success revolved around what it itself can do. Its own system, its own studios, its own architecture. But in 2021? Things are changing. Sony's recent acquisition of Nixxes was all of the evidence you needed of the shifting sands, but recent interviews from ex-PlayStation CEO Shawn Layden and current PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan are incredibly illuminating when ...

Defining Duke, Episode 40: Xbox Makes Big Announcements In Japan

At the Tokyo Game Show, Xbox unveiled quite a bit ranging from exciting additions to Game Pass in the form of AI: The Somnium Files and Scarlet Nexus to Cloud Gaming finally being available in many more areas around the world. The question we're left with is, is this enough? Has Xbox ceased its half measures in Japan and are finally taking it seriously? Cog and Matty debate. There has also been much movement on the PC front from Capcom's public commitment to Epic taking a page out of the Play...

Defining Duke, Episode 40: Xbox Makes Big Announcements In Japan (Video)

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0:00:58

0:29:08

Defining Duke Ultimate, Episode 36: Taking Flight (Video)

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Defining Duke Ultimate, Episode 36: Taking Flight

We have spent two weekends with Halo Infinite and in the latest flight we were able to see yet another new map alongside Big Team Battle. Matty and Cog join up to discuss all things Halo Infinite and if the campaign concerns can be nullified at this point with such a mechanically sound product.