54 Comments
User's avatar
Maggie's avatar

What do we have to do to get more Justin McElroy recipes dropped in the newsletter??

Expand full comment
Jerry's avatar

Yes! More recipes please!

Expand full comment
Troy's avatar

I'm kind of surprised no one mentioned the excellent music, especially since that has a strong connection to Chrono Trigger with them getting Yasunori Mitsuda as a guest composer.

Expand full comment
btone's avatar

I came here to say exactly this, the music absolutely slaps and the battle theme is stuck in my head constantly. Finally the xenoblade 1 guitar solo has been replaced in my brain

Expand full comment
Lou's avatar

I watched a couple hours of Sea of Stars, and I was so distracted by them repeatedly saying they were “sewing” while clearly sitting at a loom 😂

Expand full comment
Flamboyant Jeering's avatar

Those Québécois devs. The localization is much better than it was in The Messenger, but it could still use some work

Expand full comment
Wade's avatar

With a lot of pretty big/widely marketed titles having catastrophic launches (Forspoken, Gollum, Redfall, possibly Atomic Heart), what do you think is the core root of the issue? Is it stakeholders pressuring studios to release early, or something closer to a lack of QA testing?

Expand full comment
Caleb Ackerman's avatar

Oo good question. Would love to hear more on this

Expand full comment
Tony Francis's avatar

Quick question: I'm a new parent (kids approximately 9 month) and have found that my time for video games has become super limited.

Traditionally, I was a very big jrpg/epic rpg player but I have found I don't really get out of these games the same vibe I once did.

Can yall make suggestions on how to balance game time and parenting time? Is there any tips or tricks to recapture that pre-parent gaming feel with the new parent time restrictions?

Expand full comment
Jerry's avatar

My son is 2 and half. Only gaming time is after he goes to bed. The best thing for me and my partner was just being honest and saying that I need some time for my hobby. And that means maybe 1 night a week after he goes down to sleep I can just go play videogames for a couple of hours. This recharges my parenting batteries. Good luck!

Expand full comment
Tony Francis's avatar

Thanks Jerry super helpful

Expand full comment
Cameron's avatar

One of the only ways I could get our first to nap was walking around the house with the baby pouch. This was a drag until I stopped trying to move her out of the pouch and into her crib (almost always waking her) and instead just stood with her in front of the TV while I played. She and I got to snuggle and I got to game. Things like these aren't going to fix your issue altogether, but taking the little victories will help a lot. And remember, it's only temporary!

Expand full comment
Jaconian's avatar

I discovered this too after our kid was born just over three years ago. Since I also work outside the home, my only real down time is either during my lunch breaks, or after our kid goes to bed at night and after my wife and I watch something (if there's something specific we want to watch). So I end up playing the Switch or the Steam Deck from about 11:00 PM until I doze off. Really it's just portable gaming, for me at least.

Expand full comment
DES's avatar

Gotta say I bounced off Sea of Stars pretty hard. Chained Echoes is, I think, a much better example of a game that can be an homage to classic jrpg’s while also innovating. SOS is gorgeous though.

Expand full comment
Michael Bjork's avatar

Guess I finally have to watch The Faculty.

Expand full comment
BubbleStar SpaceBlaster's avatar

Sea of Stars has smitten me like no game has in a very very long time. I love the world they built, the nostalgia with modern mechanisms is such a wonderful experience. I'm reminded of my long summer days playing Golden Sun laying in the grass with a gameboy.

Like Griffin's said about mystery games, I'd take a Sea of Stars once a year from now on.

Expand full comment
Cameron Liner's avatar

I am with Plante. Really excited for Unicorn Overlord. The most JRPG-ass named JRPG ever.

Expand full comment
sander's avatar

The Nintendo Direct got me nostalgic for those old Smash Bros. reveals and the hype around them.

Who, if you could pick anyone, would each of you pick as a newcommer to Smash Bros? What would their moveset be like?

Expand full comment
Flamboyant Jeering's avatar

I’ve been hoping for King Boo since the Smash Ballot in the Smash for Wii U days.

I’d picture him a lighter heavy, like Ridley.

He’d do bonus damage if he hits the opponents back (like Shulk’s side-b) his down-b would plant a trap Boo (like Snake and Isabelle), tether grab opponents with his tongue, his neutral-b would be a charge where the longer you charge, the more regular Boos would encircle King Boo and act a shield/weak projectiles

A guy can dream.

What about you???

Expand full comment
sander's avatar

I honestly love your idea for King Boo. The moveset you've laid out makes so much sense and would be a blast to play as. Really a top pick for another Mario rep.

I've always campaigned for Monster Hunter rep in Smash. I'll shamelessly plug a video I made around my ideas for my dream character: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNm-sjneoN4&ab_channel=backwardslongjump

Expand full comment
Ragsy's avatar

Did any of you ever play Spore back in the day? And did you ever reach the space age phase of the game? For being from 2008, the sheer scale of the galaxy in that game and all it's planets and creatures is absolutely miraculous. No Man's Sky and Starfield may be games with more adult appeal, but Spore might have won that simulated space race first.

Expand full comment
Conor's avatar

Loved spore when it came out but my ADD child brain never made it too far beyond creating creatures

Expand full comment
Luke Davies's avatar

Deeply deeply upset by the netsuite advert. Podcasts are supposed to be a safe space and as a professional netsuite developer this was harmful to me.

The rpg game sounds good though for real.

Expand full comment
Morgan Lynch's avatar

I sent an email reply after the BG3 episode, but you guys always mention commenting so I figured I would try this.

What is your guys thoughts on getting into a series late in its lifecycle? I ask specifically because I've heard so much love for BG3, but I still have DOS2 in my wishlist. I know they're not related but as I only wait for sales (I just started Elden Ring after the summer sale), should I wait for BG3 next year or play DOS2 now? When you guys get into a series late in its cycle, do you go back and play the originals first or jump into the newest version and work your way backwards?

Thanks! Love the show, yours was the first gaming show I got into during lockdown and now it's mostly what I listen to and do on my free time. Thank you for widening my gaming horizons and convincing me to buy a Steam Deck and never looking back.

Expand full comment
Molly's avatar

Dropping in with a rec for Chants of Sennaar, a game about deciphering language, translation and building bonds between cultures. One of the most unique and touching games I’ve played in years.

Expand full comment
Brangus's avatar

When the McElroys played Secret of Mana together back in the day, which characters did they each play?

My two brothers and I had clear choices, wondering if you guys were the same.

Expand full comment
Slibbo's avatar

Am i the asshole? Maybe there's something wrong with me, I REALLY tried to get into sea of stars. I couldnt force myself to do more than 3 hours of it.

Meinwhile im at 80 hours of starfield and i can't wait to be done with work so I can get back to it. The whole ryujinx vs infinity Ltd quest line was incredible. Neon is incredible. I'm not even doing the main story

Expand full comment
Slibbo's avatar

Ryujin autocorrects to ryujinx, yikes lmao

Expand full comment