Jay Tholen (Drops The Clown) returns for a unique take on late 1990s web design. You play as an enforce for the titular Hypnospace, taking down content and policing a Geocities nightmare.
It's an authentic, intriguing game of detective work, and I quite like it!
2019-03-26 20:28:52 +0000 UTC View Post
So, let's talk about the Epic Store. Controversial, hated, and rich enough to power through its ongoing controversies. For now, at least.
Epic's dive into PC game distribution has earned it the ire of many, and while it offers a better deal for developers than Steam, it's got to seriously address its end-user problems if it wants lasting success.
2019-03-25 14:36:01 +0000 UTC View Post
The movie boys become series boys to look at Hi-Score Girl, a Netflix original anime. ANIME BOYS!
2019-03-22 22:22:20 +0000 UTC View Post
One of us watched Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich. It was... an experience.
Also, lost voices, Stadia, The Division 2, and much more!
2019-03-21 15:28:50 +0000 UTC View Post
The Division 2 is one of those unique games that I keep playing, and even enjoying, despite being very bored by it. It's compelling in its tedium.
Deeply flayed, and suffering under the weight of its own "live service" requirements, The Division 2 can be quite fun, but the loot fatigue sets in quick.
2019-03-19 15:18:36 +0000 UTC View Post
Ubisoft would have you believe that The Division 2 makes no political statements while it exploits political imagery for marketing purposes.
In another case of the game industry wanting it both ways, games claim to be apolitical but are more than happy to talk about governments, terrorists, and civil unrest.
It's dishonest and it's craven. Even a game desperately trying ...
2019-03-18 13:33:24 +0000 UTC View Post
One of us is remarkably under the weather but we're still bringing you hot chat. Let's discuss a bit of the ol' coke, more DMC5, and other things!
2019-03-14 15:05:44 +0000 UTC View Post
Steam seems incapable of helping itself. Off the back of yet another deeply unpleasant game controversy, and with Epic Games snapping its heels, Steam needs to change but remains staunchly averse to the idea.
The association between Steam and utter trash has gotten so bad that politicians are starting to take notice. Meanwhile, Epic offers a generous revenue split, actual curation, ...
2019-03-11 14:33:54 +0000 UTC View Post
Another long form editorial from your ol' pal Jim Sterling. I wrote about Capcom's recent renaissance, a comeback in terms of creativity, commercial success, and critical acclaim.
It's nice to say nice things for a change!
Terrible Metal Gear Solid fanfic should never get this far.
Somehow, Square Enix attached its name to this shambles of a game. A stealth game that desperately wishes Hideo Kojima were involved, this broken, boring, utterly annoying game is totally CAUTION THE ENEMY IS APPROACHING!
2019-03-08 14:33:13 +0000 UTC View Post
Devil May Cry 5 is very, very, very good. Also other things!
2019-03-07 15:29:08 +0000 UTC View Post
Devil May Cry 5 is the consummate "return to form" package, Capcom's unapologetic comeback for Dante, Nero, and a mysterious Adam Driver lookalike called V. Sidestepping the DmC reboot, this is the Devil May Cry fans know and love.
Not a step has been lost. DMCV is everything fans want, and everything the rest of the world needs.
2019-03-06 16:02:08 +0000 UTC View Post
We used to do these as videos, but it's better as simply audio, I reckon. Here's the State of Sterling, a little update podcasty thing in which I let you know what's happening, what's being worked on, and why I'm bloody annoyed. Enjoy!
2019-03-05 16:03:58 +0000 UTC View Post
February was ridiculous. Anthem, Apex Legends, Metro Exodus, Far Cry New Dawn, and Crackdown 3 all going head to head, and all of them demanding a silly amount of time.
The game industry is an uncoordinated mess of market saturation and nonexistent long-term planning. The industry wide adoption of "live services" with long content "roadmaps" is already at breaking point.
THQ Nordic held an AMA this week. THQ Nordic apologized for the AMA about an hour later. If you've not heard why, prepare yourself for a wild ride!
This isn't the first apology a game publisher has had to make for social engagement gone horribly wrong. Why does it keep happening? Well, that "social" word may have something to do with it.
Whether companies are employing e...
2019-02-28 19:21:33 +0000 UTC View Post
The UK hits of 1999 and beyond take center stage on this videogame podcast about videogames.
Also, we chat about Anthem, and probably some other stuff.
2019-02-28 13:54:28 +0000 UTC View Post
Another editorial from yours truly today. I've written about the Unreward System, a way in which "AAA" videogames manipulate gameplay rewards to make their monetization more appealing.
Hope you enjoy it!
2019-02-27 15:37:42 +0000 UTC View Post
This is a little off topic, but I know a few of you will likely be fans of my old podcast work, particularly The Dismal Jesters. If you're interested in a unique podcast of comedy showbiz lies, then Boston's Favorite Son may be for you.
It may or may not contain film pitches for Willem Dafoe.
2019-02-26 23:09:19 +0000 UTC View Post
Anthem is out after months of unenthusiastic quasi-anticipation, and it's all anybody's talking about. Or rather, it would be if it had been good.
Instead, people are focused on everything surrounding Anthem. Controversies, speculations, debates, all of the circus around the game is more interesting than the game itself.
So anyway, let's add our own Anthem hot take, shall we?&...
2019-02-25 16:03:50 +0000 UTC View Post
Anthem is boring trash. Sorry, but at least Mass Effect Andromeda with funny in its awfulness. Sort of.
BioWare's attempt to milk the "live service" cash cow is repetitive, bland, and too focused on lore over plot. Uninspired lore from a vapid world. Anthem wears its desperation to be like Destiny on its sleeve, and it's not a good look at all.
2019-02-23 15:28:02 +0000 UTC View Post
New dawn, old gameplay! Far Cry New Dawn is perfectly acceptable entertainment. If you liked Far Cry, and want more Far Cry, then New Dawn is more Far Cry.
It pays lip service to its apocalyptic premise, but it's still got plenty of Far Cry for you to enjoy. If indeed you want more Far Cry!
2019-02-21 18:44:24 +0000 UTC View Post
This week's quite game heavy. We talk about the latest Fallout 76 hilarity, we talk about Gav's experience with Anthem, we chat Metro Exodus, Far Cry, and more. Wow, games!
2019-02-21 13:32:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Time for yet more questions that you asked and I answered. This went on quite a bit, but hopefully you like hearing it with your heads. Enjoy!
2019-02-19 19:19:20 +0000 UTC View Post
Activision Blizzard let go of nearly 800 employees for short term financial gain. At the same time, CEO Bobby Kotick boasted of record revenues for the company.
The company's value has halved and profits are down, all while more money than ever flows through it. In any sensible world, Kotick would take the hit as leader of the publisher. He passed the buck.
Executives ha...
2019-02-18 14:08:18 +0000 UTC View Post
Sorry friends, but Crackdown 3 isn't very good. It is, in fact, a bit toss.
Failing to move the series forward in any significant way, Crackdown 3 is in a crowded open world market surrounded by highly superior games... some of which came out last generation.
Crackdown 3 is an old, tired, slapdash waste of time.
2019-02-17 15:37:01 +0000 UTC View Post
It saddens me to say that I had no fun whatsoever playing Metro Exodus, and as a Metro fan who was seriously looking forward to this, it breaks my heart.
It feels stodgy, sluggish, and it's bloody annoying to boot. Since it's not functionally too different from previous games, I can only content it's everything around the gameplay highlighting how slow it is.
2019-02-16 14:46:46 +0000 UTC View Post
The more I've played Apex Legends, the more impressed I've been. Despite EA being EA, Respawn has made not just a great game, but a very successful one. Almost as if games with F2P style economies should have been F2P to begin with.
Anyway, with its excellent ping system and fun combat, Apex has had me pretty bloody gripped.
2019-02-15 15:37:19 +0000 UTC View Post
What a blessed union we make on this podcast.
2019-02-15 01:02:07 +0000 UTC View Post
I'm getting back into long-form writing after a long time away, at least while my headspace is open to the idea. I decided to write in detail about Apex Legends' success and how it rescued EA, something we discussed on this week's Jimquisition but didn't do a deep dive for.
Hope you enjoy!
Videogame publishers are greedy, exploitative predators for which no amount of money will ever be enough. While we know and loathe this, it is also by design that they are the way they are.
Layoffs, cutbacks, excessive monetization, it's all part of a system built on unsustainable, short-sighted growth. Now we're in the endgame, where we find out there IS no endgame.
But let's start...
2019-02-11 15:55:17 +0000 UTC View Post