jimquisition

The Spin-off Doctors: Blubberella

Oh this one's bad. This one should be tried for war crimes. This is Uwe Boll's most hateful, humiliating, pathetic film ever. This is Blubberella, and it is for those who do not fear Hell. 

The Addictive Cost Of Predatory Videogame Monetization (The Jimquisition)

Aggressive monetization tactics have undoubtedly lowered the quality for many so-called "AAA" games. The shameless number of microtransactions and loot boxes have made them grinding and shallow "services" instead of complete videogames. 

When we talk about the impact microtransactions and loot boxes have on players, however, we often argue in abstract terms. Not today. Today we look ...

Podquisition 238: Surprise Mechanics

Obviously we discuss EA trying to rebrand loot boxes as "surprise mechanics" because OBVIOUSLY!

Also, Crash Team Racing, Bloodstained, Hollow Knight, Fallout 4, and The Sinking City! 

The Sinking City - The Worst Game I've Ever... Liked? (Jimpressions)

The Sinking City revels in its Lovecraft inspirations and tries its very best to put you in the shoes of a detective without holding any hands. It's got a nice moody atmosphere, some great writing, and a heartfelt charm to it.

It's also absolute rubbish, and I cannot recommend it. I like it. In fact I've grown remarkably fond of it. It's one of the worst games I've ever actually enjoyed...

Stadia, Subscriptions, And The Death Of Game Ownership (The Jimquisition)

For longer than I've been covering games, publishers have dreamed of an all-digital future where they have complete control of the market. The cloud, and hardware like Google Stadia, bring their dream closer than ever to reality. 

There are multiple issues to discuss here. Streaming gameplay is interesting, but let's face it - the potential for subscription fees is what really excite...

Asking Sterling (A Patreodcast) #16

This month's questions all finally answered! We chat about crashes, prawns, and old stuff. Enjoy! 

Judgment - Ass Catchem (Jimpressions)

Judgment is Yakuza with a hardboiled twist, which unfortunately means the addition of tailing missions and lockpicking minigames. When it's not doing that, however, it's brilliant as always. 

With all the usual punching, nightlife, and bizarre side missions, Judgment continues Sega and RGG's winning streak. More faults than usual, but nonetheless fun as heck! 

Podquisition 237: HBO's Roomful Of Dicks

Bloodstained: Ritual Of The Night - CastleMania (Jimpressions)

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night has, amazingly, lived completely up to expectations. It's the Castlevania game we knew we needed, but Konami didn't want us to have. 

Koji Igarashi isn't trying to hide the fact that Bloodstained is a Castlevania game in all but name, and he doesn't have to. It's a heartfelt, authentic, beautiful MetroidVania game and I am so very happy with it. ...

Winners & Losers E3 2019 (The Jimquisition)

E3 2019 has been and gone, so it's time for our annual awards of arbitrary recognition! Who did good, who came away sore? Let's find out! 

From hecklers to Final Fantasy to Bethesda being Bethesda, we got the lot here! We got the LOT! 

Cadence Of Hyrule - Rupee Rhythms (Jimpressions)

Cadence of Hyrule marries The Legend of Zelda with Crypt of the Necrodancer. The results are quite charming indeed.

I can't actually play it very well... at all... but I am enjoying it nonetheless! 

Layers Of Fear 2 - Layers Of... Oh Dear (Jimpressions)

I really want the Layers of Fear series to be good, but Layers of Fear 2 pretty much wallows in the same mediocrity its predecessor barely kept its head above. 

Though they've added tangible threats and a little more variety of gameplay, this sequel feels more like a retread through a bargain basement, severely outdated horror structure. The genre needs a shakeup, and this ain't it.&...

Podquisition 236: The Electrical Entertaining Exposition

In a bumper edition of the show we talk about all the highs and lows of E3 2019. From Final Fantasy VII to Cyberpunk to Bethesda's whole mess. 

A Post-Nuclear Post-Mortem Of Fallout 76 (The Jimquisition)

Fallout 76 is a cautionary tale for an industry that exercises no caution whatsoever. A wake-up call for an industry that remains asleep at the wheel. 

Bethesda's broken, unfinished, poorly received foray into the "live service" arena has been a neverending carnival of humiliating nonsense. A fine example of what happens when you play to none of your strengths for the sake of ill-got...

Asking Sterling (A Patreodcast) #15

I get myself out of a grumpy mood by answering more of your delightful questions. And the person who keeps asking for certain measurements is not the person I thought it was. But hey, keep on keeping on!

We talk about E3, old TV shows, mental health, the usual guff! Enjoy! 

Podquisition 235: Judgment

Early thoughts on Judgment, mockery of Todd Howard's nonsense, and Gav doing lovely singing. Also, we promise The Thrills will not be performing. 

Fear & Fury: How The Rockstar Sausage Is Made (The Jimquisition)

In a special investigative Jimquisition, we collect horror stories from former Rockstar Games employees who worked under a brutal boot heel. 

Allegations of abuse, exploitation, and ritual indignity showcase how a company uses terror and anger to create some of the most critically acclaimed games of all time. 

In particular, former VP of Product Development, Jeronimo Barre...

Asking Sterling Question Time

Hey gang! It's the beginning of the month, which means it's time for some Asking Sterling questions wot you can ask and wot I can answer! Fire away. Ask about whatever's on your minds and I shall career and care for and sit on those questions until they hatch into answer chickens.

Or something. 

Void Bastards - The Most British Intergalactic Roguelike FPS Ever (Jimpressions)

Void Bastards has a great name, a great look, and often great gameplay... when it's not being really annoying. 

For the most part it's fun and rewarding, and the British accents are employed to great effect. But when it tries to screw with the player, it really bloody screws. 

State Of Sterling 5/31/2019 (A Patreodcast)

Been a while since I gave you an update on all things Sterling, so here's another podcast of stuff and news! We talk about some current and upcoming improvements to The Jimquisition, some budget and audience stuff, I chat about Gotham for no reason, and lots of other stuff.

Thanks as always, seriously, for your continued and support and patronage and content sharing and all the good stu...

Podquisition Episode 234: The Baby Is A Ghost Modem

The gang checks out that hot new Death Stranding trailer. Also, we discuss Kingdoms of Amalur, Lapis x Labyrinth, and Pokemon watching you sleep. 

PSA: Official Captions On The Jimquisition

Hi gang, just a quick announcement today. The latest Jimquisition (Game Journalism of Thrones) now has official captions for those who need or want them. Apologies it took this long. Going forward they'll be added to each new episode within a day of release.

Eventually I'd like them on everything, of course. For now I can make sure they're on the main show. Thanks and love! 

Where Did All The BioShocks Go?

In a new written article, I look at the current success of major single-player games like Sekiro and Resident Evil 2, examine the response from their publishers, and discuss the fact we haven't had a new BioShock game all generation. 

Note: I gotta fix it so the new site plays well with Patreon. That poorly blown up JimQ logo whenever I link articles is horrible. 

Game Journalism Of Thrones (The Jimquisition)

When Game of Thrones was airing, every Monday morning made videogame websites look like HBO fansites. In the wake of the finale, game journalists couldn't wait to throw their hot takes up. 

Game journalism will gladly talk about non-game topics if the requisite "link juice" is in place. I've made jokes about it and upset people in doing so, but I want to seriously talk about it. ...

Lapis x Labyrinth - Big Money, Big Prizes, I Love It! (Jimpressions)

Lapis x Labyrinth is a sheer joy to play. Rarely does one find a game so hellbent on encouraging and rewarding the player with endlessly positive audiovisual feedback. 

All the thrill of a casino with none of the evil, this NIS hackyslashy fun fest is well worth checking out. 

Podquisition 233: Game Of Thrones Is Exactly Like Street Fighter The Movie

Game of Thrones and Street Fighter: The Movie have a lot in common.

Also, Rage 2, Team Sonic Racing, A Plague Tale, and more!

You can listen/download directly here and get the RSS feed h...

Team Sonic Racing - Team Sonic Basically Acceptable (Jimpressions)

Team Sonic Racing is fine. It's a decent enough racer and that's it, really. The team mechanics are okay, the tracks are okay, everything is okay. 

Except the matchmaking. And the pointlessly long results screens. 

Asking Sterling (A Patreodcast) #14

Your questions, my answers! That's exactly how a Q&A podcast works! Today we talk about TV show theme tunes, sci-fi horror, and mid-tier games! 

Quiet Riot: A Cult Of Silence (The Jimquisition)

There's a culture of silence in the game industry, which pairs "nicely" with the unquestioning loyalty some companies expect from their workers. 

In the wake of Riot employees staging a walkout to protest suppressive forced arbitration, let's look at how abuse festers in an industry where the targets can't speak up. 

A Plague Tale: Innocence - Heartwarming And Horrifying (Jimpressions)

A Plague Tale: Innocence is the best game I've played this year. Easily the best. 

A stealth game with puzzle elements and a hearty dose of horror, A Plague Tale may turn heads with its killer rat swarms, but the real star is the great writing and character portrayals. 

This is something special.