Star Fox Returns, Mixtape Review, Xbox's Gigantic Asterisk

Hey everybody, Ben Hansen from Min Max here. There was a Star Fox emergency right after we recorded this episode of the Min Max Show podcast, and so we jumped in for a live reaction stream with Kyle Hilliard.

G I'm genuinely worried about Nick. Like truly. Like are you?

I don't know. I I might cry. I I I Alright, let's jump in. We don't know what the hell this is. This is as fresh as it can get. Right. OH NO! Oh no, oh no!

I think I I like it. I think I like it.

The weirdest thing about this, other than it just surprise direct, which if this is the new standard for them, planning for podcasts is screwed. But like the weirdest thing is like the leak said new Star Fox game and the visuals are like

I like the idea of like realistic animal pilots, right? Like I think that's fun, but I I just don't I I they they do need to be a little more humanized, I think.

So strange. I'm just sh I'm I'm shaking up because you you guys say stylize and we just got off of the the Mario Galaxy movie and that style is insane. I thought it'd be more like that, but this is yeah this looks like something straight out of Blender. Yeah. Like I I can't get over that. I feel like I've seen well okay, so the thing is and why I'm so shocked on this, because there is a Star Fox fan game called Star Fox uh Event Horizon. And no joke, like I the characters kinda look like this.

Really.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, like this is I haven't played it but I've seen it online like multiple times and it looks pretty fun, but like Like the budget that Nintendo has, I'm like I'm I'm just shocked. I'm like, oh my god, and it's a retelling of sixty-four again. Right. Right.

Right.

Newest thing they showed besides the multiplayer was that final cutscene of Pygma betraying Fox and and Peppy or James and Peppy. So I'm like

So retelling is the wrong word though. I this is this is a r this is This is Star Fox sixty four. Like not not in this sort of flippant like, you know, Zero Mission is just a remake of sixty four because Zero Mission is a different game with different story and different levels. Like Zero. They're remaking Star Fox sixty four, like Pretty straightforwardly, you know.

Yeah, I I think this is more of like a remake of sixty four than Zero is. Like Zero does have like a few new missions, especially because you have the Walker from Star Fox two. So like there is newer content there, but like We didn't see any new vehicles. Like the landmaster there was there, the submarine was there, like no I'm sorry, Nick I met I me

I thought z Zero mission I know it's like a joke to call zero mission.

Zero emission.

Okay.'Cause like I to my memory that was like a completely original game. Like I was there a Cordero.

It you start off in corneria and you end in Venom.

Okay, but I don't yeah, but I g I I guess I I guess I'm just uh to s to see you say that it was a re like a retelling so um confidently, I just never felt that way about zero. But where this is This might as well be called Star Fox sixty four remake. Yeah.

Yeah, like this and I I think this was like the biggest fear. I mean, as a Star Fox fan like myself, I'm like

Ha ha ha.

I I want something new and th that's the thing. I think a lot of fans are gonna be upset too because like I I mean, I I'm a fan of uh Crystal, but she's like not here because I I really thought like after sixty four it was Aventures and they kinda had like a story going from there and then after Aventures it was a soul and Crystal kinda joined the team from there, but it's like yeah.

I yeah, I just th this isn't what I wanted from Star Fox. But, you know, I don't know. I'm not gonna say no to it. I'm curious who made it. I'm sure it's not first party. I think we can almost be certain, right? It's not

I would I would imagine, but it looks like there's not an official site up, I don't think there's info. So Nick, as world's biggest Star Fox fan Where are you at? I worst case scenario, um or is this you're happy to see it back, but you have some complaints or where are you at overall? Again, like I I have some complaints because I think this I don't want to say this was worst case scenario, but like

This

I don't know how long this was in development for, honestly. Like if they're just remaking sixty four again, like It's you know, you can see it as the classic thing of like let the team get the remake under their belt before they try and build something new. They gotta understand the the most popular DNA of Star Fox, which is

Yeah, the um links links awakening to um echoes of wisdom path.

Right. Yeah. Yeah, something like that. Or even, you know, how many times has have they remade Halo now to try and get the Halo team you gotta get it under their under their wings?

But I for who it's for, it's like fans of the Star Fox sixty four and then kids who are coming home from the theater, you know, like who's Star Fox? Here you go. You know, that's who he is. Look like that guy and he sounds different, but that's him.

That's him. All right, sorry for the disjointed nature, but now on to the big show.

Hello everybody and welcome to a new episode of Show, Place About Games, Friends are getting better. I'm Ben Hanson. Thank you for being here. We have Jenna Garcia. Fresh new haircuts looking good.

Thanks. It's funny'cause on a podcast it looks literally the same because I have a black chair so you can't

Trust me, because that camouflage is great. We have Jacob Keller here.

What's your compliment for me, Ben?

Looking I like the one strand of hair that's coming down. It looks thick as a noodle. Thank you.

I also got a haircut semi recently and so it doesn't all swoop back behind my headphones now.

Yeah. Me and Jacob like to get our hair cut at the same time. It's like our special processes.

I fly to LA so we can sit next to each other.

Yeah, so does Jeffum also, but don't ask him about it.

Yeah, uh Kyle uh looks like Wolverine with his fancy haircut over there.

I do wanna find I do wanna find someone who can do a beard trim. I don't wanna go crazy. I'm not going Dan Reichert mode here, but like I do want it to be like longish but trim, you know?

Jeff Cork shaved his beard off. You should become the new Jeff Cork and like grow it way out. Yeah, Jeff Cork is

It's kind of a Santa Claus situation with Jeff Court, but then we put on the overalls and then

Yeah.

We're also joined by special guest Colleef Adams.

from spot on.

What up, what up, what up? How you all doing?

Good.

Good. Welcome, sir. It's honor to have you on the main show here.

Yeah, I'm so happy to be here. It's been a long time coming. I know we've been we've been battling in the back ends of of all the social medias trying to get it make it happen, but it's excited to be to be here rocking with y'all. I love your show.

Yeah, yeah. We had you on Tributower a while back. And it's weird because you basically have met everybody before and worked with everybody before. To me, you're always just the really friendly guy at preview events. And you just seem to be I don't know what your life is like. Is that it? You just get invited to everything for spot on me?

No, I don't get invited to enough stuff actually. I need more things. Give me more things and also pay for my travel because that really helps. I need It helps you to get there if you pay for the travel part. Uh no, but it's it's uh great to get a chance to do all that stuff and you know I'm very lucky. Uh I consider myself very lucky to be.

Yeah. It was nice at like the at like the Battlefield Six event, you got to drop the You know you know, Spawn on Me is actually a Battlefield reference. Like I feel like I extra deserve to be here compared to other people. It's kind of based my entire thing on what Battlefield Two is your jam?

Yeah, yeah, exactly. See, you pulling tidbits already.

Gotcha.

Yeah. It's it's uh definitely a part of the ethos of of the brand and uh yeah, I'm a big, big Battlefield fan, so that's where it came from for sure.

Sure. Where are you at? And we're going to get into the main meat of the show here, but Battlefield Six. I assume you enjoyed it when it launched, where are you at right now? Where do you think it landed in like the the ranking of Battlefields?

I mean I think it's really good. I think they they are still trying to figure out like where does Battlefield six kind of fit in the grand scheme of all shooters, which I think is a much larger question as people are still Trying to figure out. Um but I do think, you know, if you're a battlefield purist, I think a for me at least

Yeah. Well, hey, I'm excited to have you here finally on the big episode of the show because we got so much to talk about. We're going to be talking about mixtape, the hot Release. We're diving in big. We're gonna be talking about Soros a little bit more, a little check-in, see if people are still playing where they're at with that thing overall. Dead as Disco.

Oh my god.

Yeah. Are you really gonna sit down and like watch that extended cut?

Absolutely. I watched the first like 30 minutes or 40 minutes with dinner the other night. Um, it's something I get to chip away at. You know, I get to watch 11 hours.

That is extreme commitment. Thank you. That's if you want the extended version of the backstage patch. But the main version is like fifty minutes long. There's a link in the description. Just go there, click on it, please, and just read some of the nice comments because it it's really heartwarming to like Work so hard on that project, fly all the way to Spain, spend a ridiculous amount of time editing it down, like persona five levels of time to whittle that thing down and to have people.

Finished it. It's never been done.

This one I actually crossed the finish line. No, but just have comments that are like, oh, this is my favorite piece of game games coverage I've ever seen. You know, like if you if you value high effort games coverage where a lot of love and a lot of effort went into this thing, I'd appreciate it if you click that link. Uh checked it out, help share it uh any way you can. The better that does, the more opportunities open.

Uh I love the fact that in the travelogue us breaking things with sledgehammers It there's there's not like an intro to it. It's not like and now we're gonna go do this. It's just kind of like Literally smash cut to smashing things.

Yeah, with a surprise soundtrack, which editing that was kind of interesting. Like, do I reveal this soundtrack and where it's coming from? I think it's more fun to have it at the end of just like, oh wait, that's where that whole thing was coming from. So uh surprises are in store there if you want to check it out.

All of their games, all of their commercially released games. So it's Gods Will Be Watching, Red Strings Club, Essays on Empathy, Cosmic Real Sisterhood, and Many Nights A Whisper. I will DM all of those for you if you jump in before this coming Monday, May eleventh, at the five dollar tier or upgrade your tier. So thanks everybody and thanks to De Construct Team for being super generous with that code giveaway.

Yep.

Okay, Janet, where are you at with mixtape?

I finished it.

Awesome. Kyle, you're early?

I'm throwing rocks on a lake.

Okay, great. Maybe mid. Um and then Kai, you played it at SGF? Awesome. I'm excited to dive into this because like the embargo is not up as of the time we're of recording, and so we have no idea what everybody else thought. Just for a reminder for everybody, this is the

I mean Janet, was it for you? I can't r it definitely was for me. Um and and but I think the concern that I had there was like, is this just a game that demos really well? Because it is like It's just kind of a sequence of music videos. I was like, maybe I'm gonna get the whole game and it won't be as fun as that SGF demo. But drum roll.

Please, Jacob, take it away. What do you think?

It rocks, I love it.

Yeah. Janet, are you in the same camp for mixtape overall?

Yeah, like I I had a similar feeling o as Jacob, but mine wasn't so much that I was worried it wouldn't be as fun'cause I felt like the structure was very clear. I also got to preview it a second time in LA where I played like a little bit more, um, but much of the same flavors.

pitch that I have for this game, I don't know if you had similar thoughts, but like it's so smooth it wants you to keep going, it's it's there's no puzzles, there's no roadblocks really. It's just like, hey, go to this next area, go to this next area, click on this, here's a little mini game.

I was thinking of Sayonara Wild Heart.

Yeah, yeah.

I like that poll a little bit more, admittedly, because I feel like that is such a ride, and I think this game is more of a ride than like Edith Finch didn't come to mind because. I I feel like they're two different, but I understand the I the idea of variety. Yes.

And it's it's yeah, and maybe it's taking the place of Edith Finch of and I'd say this with all the love for the genre in the world, uh the least boring walking simulator. Right.

Yeah.

Artsy WarioWare.

Yeah. Bigger like not micro games. These are mini games. I mean it's kind of like a big chunk of thing. They guys even call them mini games. It's kind of like little gameplay vignettes is probably the best way to put it, but like

put on my marketing hat for this stuff too and I think of the like ad as as advertised kind of version of a thing, right? Like it's been very, very consistent in terms of what you had an expectation to get and what you wind up getting at the end of it, right? So I think of how it reminds me so much of so many of the nineties uh movies that I that I grew up on and and early aughts movies that I loved because it hits all of those moments where you I love how you talk about

Yeah, I'm really curious about the the kind of scale of this game behind the scenes because like it has It it has, you know, indie energy and like the artful escape was kind of uh a a much more like, okay, this is like a really cool 2D game about music or whatever. But at the same time, this game feels expensive.

Oh my god.

Oh yeah.

It looks really, really good. Like I think we should not undersell how nice the game looks and it's kind of you know it It is playing in the Life is Strange area of like lots of you know, lots of golden hours, lots of, you know, kind of like big uh western forests or, you know, like Pacific Northwest Forest and whatever, but like They've got the whole variable frame rate thing going on the characters, and then it's just like the environments.

I mean it's on Game Pass I know for sure

Oh, yeah.

It is on Game Pass. Um but like it's cool because A lot of times these kind of single sitting games you can feel the like budget constraints. And this just feels like it's like they wanted to make basically a movie length game. And they did that, and you don't feel them cutting corners anywhere in it.

The thing that I left with this after getting my demo was I this is the first game in a long time that I would love to see plat as a platform. As a as a movie telling, as a storytelling platform.'Cause I was like, Oh Mixed tape I get this I get this version of what this story is. I love the way that they're kind of chronicling this moment in time and i in in in a human's life and this very specific of like oh we're going to college, we're leaving high school doing that thing.

I think too, like Ben to your point about um the finch comparison, I do th I do also see it in the threat of magical realism, which is like part of what really makes this game special. Which again, Life is Strange kinda gets into that but

Right.

So you'll have like the realisticness of like you're at the convenience store getting a slushy, but then like the fantasticalness of like we have to cross a forest. What if we were like just skating and floating through it and having this like magical feeling together? Um Jacobs, your point about the look, I love the um the mixed media approach they have here to certain parts.

it puts you at least this is how I felt I'm curious how you guys did in a position of like role playing as the characters for moments. Because there are a lot of things where another smart thing about the game, they let you leave certain things early if you want to or like you have like a minimum to hit, you know? It's like in the photo booth you have to take the pictures.

Yes, that's the

And it's stuff like that where it's like I think someone can look at that and say, I don't know, you're just hitting a button and then Slushy goes into the thing. It's like, yeah, but it's about like what In what ways are they evoking play? And what does play mean in their video game specifically? And it's something I think the genre is really like cool at exploring and does it in more dynamic ways than I think of a lot of other genres. And it's part of what I think makes this like

Yeah and it's like it's not I thought it was gonna be building towards like big narrative decisions. And it's not that type of game. Don't think of it like that. Like Janet's right. Like you need to be playful if you want to role play it and make like those smaller decisions. But like I my overall sense of this game is enjoying it and just like Jacob mentioned early being blown away by the production values. Even like that photo booth sequence.

You're done.

Best looking tongues, it looks better than my real tongue. They're better at making out than I am too. It's just like it everything looks so much damn better than you expect out this entire game. It's blowing me away.

I wanna heap some praise on the song selection. Yeah. Um which it's like I'm not the biggest uh I d I don't have like a deep music knowledge, but for me it really tread a great line of like, okay. Some some of these songs we've all heard a million times. Some of these songs I've heard once or twice. Yes. And then a lot of the songs had never heard at all. And and you know, for for this kind of thing, I also think it's like it's fun. So

Thank you.

The narrative shtick, which we didn't really say, is that the main character has or like put together a mixtape for this night. She's like, I've got it all planned out. I've decided all, you know, all the songs that are gonna go along with the night. And so as you go through the story, which does take place over kind of one day, With flashbacks.

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

And then and yeah, and then sometimes it's going to have, you know, like here's a Portoise Head song. And sometimes it's gonna be like, Yeah, I've never heard of this guy and now I am going and listening to this album because I think it's so like it it communicates like This was made by people who you know have the same passion for music that the main character does, because I don't think you could come by this playlist.

So like the creative director.

You're talking about not ever learning sort of the financials of it, Jacob, which is probably true, but um and not not to like plug too much, but like in the Soul Frame issue of Game Informer, Charles Hart did a big feature where he interviewed Johnny Galvatron about mixtape ahead of its release and stuff. And I was looking through it, I was like, did we talk about numbers? But one thing that he he does talk about is like

Oh that's so sweet.

And then and then like the other thing is like because she's so obsessed with all these bands Devo, who's like a group that doesn't really like to license out its music very much, were like, Oh wait, so the character in the game is like Devo's the best band of all time. Right. Yeah, like you can go ahead and use that. And it's like Galvatron just talked about like some yeah, that's the director by the way.

Iggy pop song for maybe half the price at this point. But like real quick on the Johnny Galvatron front. First of all, Galvatron, another Transformers reference. So you talk about you got the touch, it's double Transformers there. But then also he was in a band, you know, like he knows making music so intimately. And so when one of the characters Yeah, in this game. They talk about kind of the how I don't know, just

Specify a year. Did I miss that? Did I say what

It's kinda generic nineties.'Cause there are a couple of references where I was like, Did that happen in the nineties? or they have a phrase I'm like, I don't think they would have said that in the nineties, but whatever. It's it's

Yeah, I'm not I'm not nitpicking. I was more just like, Man,'cause there is m there are moments where like, man, I remember this feels like my room. This feels like hanging out with my friends. I was I was still in that era between

And also on the CD front, I love that obviously CDs are a big part of this entire game. And it's almost it's brutal legend-esque uh in how like the manions and stuff are working with CDs, but I love that even on the pause screen it's like a C D in the background and it just has that like C D whirring sound. It's like, Oh my god, it just feels like old games, listening to old CDs, like weird to be nostalgic about just like that basic tech sound coming through this game. Uh do you think

little cynical about it, but not from the characterization and the writing. Yeah. Like I love the writing. I love the characterizations. I I just struggle in general with more passive video game experiences because it's kind of like It's like okay, well I'm watching a cutscene, but I kinda wanna get to the gameplay. And then when I'm in the gameplay I'm like, Well, I'm not really challenged here and like my

I think um if I had I I I uh overall, you know, I had a great time. I think I think there are There are criticisms of the writing, not in that they're annoying teenagers, but sometimes it just feels like it is an adult writing. Yeah.

Yeah.

uh t they they all speak kind of very very you know punk flowery in the same way like all three characters you know it's like there'll be a lot of lines like I want to ride a burning stallion of delinquency. And it's like any of the three characters could have said that. Yes.

Yeah.

Random just like you know, like sort of abstract language that didn't really mean anything.

Yeah.

They're just going to be awesome.

I like it here.

And uh sometimes they will talk in a way that is just kind of this is adults reflecting on teenagerness, you know, where they're like You know, when you're a teen, you don't have a relative scale of how important things are, so everything feels fake. And I'm like, that's a realization I had now. I didn't realize that, you know, when I was like seventeen. But at the same time, it's totally playing in that like John Hughes

So tell me why you hate Dawson's Creek. Because it's literally Dawson's Creek speech in that one.

As they say, it's a language, my favorite subtitle language. But like it it's I It definitely falls into that trap, you know, of just like what does it really mean to be a teenager? It's like how often did you have those conversations as a teenager? Maybe one and a half times kind of.

Loudness, you know, was one that kinda stuck out to me as like

Right, right.

But that is also I I kinda like it's like I think they kind of hit that balance.

It's not a complaint.

Oh, yes, because...

Like I like it. I like I like that sort of Uh retroactive reflecting on being a teenager'cause like that's

Why?

Now.

Also like the earning loudness thing. It is like I love that because it's like that's such a headass, stupid take. That you would have as a teen and be like, No, no, no, it's deep. This this means something to me and it's like, Alright girl, like you know I I think they they balance out the like sometimes weird tone as well by having like I don't know, lines that are like really introspective and s and sweet and interesting. Like I had a screenshot of uh one of them saying

Mm, sure.

Super small stuff, but like that's probably if I had to give a complaint, I think that would probably be my only one and that doesn't occur that often. But there are times where it's like I don't feel the physicality of it as much where it I kind of feel like the Studio is maybe limited on if you're gonna show it in a certain way, how much can you make it have like the

I I'm with you where it's weird to be like critiquing the visuals and the feel. It's like, well, I think some of like the skateboarding tricks look a little too breezy, but it it's also in a game with so many surreal elements and I'm like I I don't really care. I d I almost would prefer if it didn't have the skateboarding tricks, which are optional, so you can just choose not to do that.

And it's like,

Yeah. Whatever.

Yeah, and it's like if you don't like the skateboarding, you do it like three times. You know. If you don't like the sliding, it's in one platforming sequence. So it's like nothing nothing is a problem that sticks around.

Ralph. Because the sliding and the platforming felt pretty decent, but the other slide where you're like third person didn't feel as good. Yeah. Sorry, I had to get the sliding's really important to me, so I had to make that distinction.

Throughout the entire game as like just blown away by the production values. And then it's like in the back after a couple shots from like, why does this not look as good? Is like is it missing a filter on a different framework? Like some shots just look like impeccable. Like this isn't even a video game. This is unbelievable. And then a couple of them like,

Contractors question mark?

But they not that many listed in the credits.

Right. Either it's either these are true magicians uh who worked on this for a very, very long time, or there's just a lot of people that aren't listening to the credits'cause It it reminded me even of like Uncharted Four, the big chase sequence where you're going down the hill. You know? Like it felt like that at times like this is so much effort to make this. Like that's not enough. And this is like a small team. It's like how the hell did they make all this?

And that zoom in, zoom outness of it is so charming as well, where again, this is where I keep going back to the pacing of it being so good, where it's like there are times where it's like I'm flying through the entire city, I've seen everything these kids have ever seen in their life. And then I'm in a video store. And it's like and that that feels so good to go between those like differentiated environments and for them to each like have their own offerings is really nice.

I never really got a good handle on how long this game has been in development too, because I f keep forgetting you know, they came off of Artful Escape, which was fantastic. And then, you know, how were they were they doing some of this in tandem? Was some of this, you know, in the mi in in the mix literally while they were doing something else?

Artful Escape came out in twenty twenty one.

Yeah.

Um and I remember I mean, we saw an advertisement for this like a while ago. Yeah. But like Not that long. I uh you know. If with with the s length of video game production nowadays, I hear five years and I'm like, damn, they did all this in five years.

Right.

And it does bring back to like the idea of what Anna Purna has been doing, right? Like I I as a person who, you know, when you talk about like studios or publishers who can't miss at this point, Anna Purna for me is one of those crews of just like they curate such a fantastic portfolio. across the board for me where I'm just like, damn, like how did you pull this?

I hear you were I mean there were the big layoffs and people leaving a while ago and this is one of those games I was kind of in the pipeline so I am worried about what Annaprena's gonna look like over the next Five years, but definitely like in the beginning, as like you're skateboarding down the hill, listening to Devo, and like the characters are snapping their fingers with the beat, and then it says

Uh-huh. Yeah, I mean, like... Most of the staff remained.

That was a big one.

Yeah, they had a huge bit of of like labor drama with them. But even outside of that, it's like not to say like I feel the opposite of Anna Purna because I don't I love like when I see Anna Purna my like ears do perk up because I do like a lot of their games.

They have a they have a type of game that you kinda know it when you see it but it's kinda

But then they publish a bunch of other games as well, but then it's like, Oh, I kinda forgot that was you then that maybe that's for the best, like I don't know.

But I also give them a lot of credit because I think like yes, all the turnover was was not great and there was some conversation between the the big mothership and the games layer of it, which was the reason why the kind of split happened but I think The thing that I give them so much credit for is in a space where it feels like we are consistently talking about the sameness of games at this point, they are consistently trying new sh-

Yeah.

And they're consistently trying to add new things to the portfolio that feel different. Even if they don't hit in the same ways for each one of us in in various parts of it, I c have to give them credit for trying to add new things to the space.

For sure. And zooming into the developers here in particular, like it is so comforting And exciting to play a game and within the first ten minutes you just have this feeling of like, this game can do anything. It is so abstract sometimes with its presentation. It is just so thrilling to be like, I have no idea what it's gonna show me. I know this game is going to take some weird big swings and that's like the best feeling.

I'm not sure. It might be. Yeah. It it might be. I'm kind of dead. Where it's Uh so we gotta talk about Sales Party on the side. I don't are we doing early access for the tweet?

We gotta

If everyone it's that I don't get too in the weeds. If I'm putting Slay Spider 2, no, Slay Spider 2 is better than probably any game that's coming out this year. So but ignoring Slay Spire 2.

Up there, like tied against like Pragmata and oddly enough, Dogpile that came out in December. I really like that game a lot. And I think that game is super sick. But this is this is really high up there and it's definitely like An absolute must play for narrative fans. Um it's just it's just a delight to play. They execute really well. Um and yeah, I I was very pleased in especially in in this space, I think it's very easy to

Yep, absolutely. It's uh out on everything. And to answer your question, Jacob, I believe it's twenty dollars.

It's I think twenty bucks. Okay. Which is a great price for this. Yeah.

For sure. Mixtape, name of that game. There we go. Um, do you remember everybody how Stacy in the game, uh, she always has headphones on? Yeah. Bunch of like clunky nineties headphones that just probably sounded like garbage. You know what Stacy Rockford needs? Well, a lot in her life, but specifically, uh Raycon, baby.

Blush Violet.

Okay, correct. That's the obvious choice. Uh but here's the kicker as they point out. Raycon delivers the same premium audio quality as the big brands, but at half the price. And you add in over three million happy customers and a thirty-day happiness guarantee, there's zero reason to overpay. Kyle, have you ever had a happiness guarantee in your life?

No, never.

That's what a Raycon can help you with, buddy. That's right. The everyday earbuds classic are the perfect addition to your everyday routine. Go to buyraycon.com slash minmax to get fifteen percent off. That's buyraycon.com slash minmax, fifteen percent off.

I'm probably towards the back half of the game I'm probably put in a good thirty hours or so'cause I keep dying. It is extremely good. It is a very good game. Shout out to Rahu Coolie, who is just one of the dopest folks on the on the planet. Uh both in real life and in game. Uh and it it

Maybe not his character.

No not his character.

Maybe not like a character.

It is very one note in in the game. It is it is very, you know, holly. Is that a lot?

Right.

Good impression.

It's it's almost it's almost uh resident no I'm sorry. Uh yeah, uh What are you buying? It's almost that

Ha ha!

That's how he gets in the zone like every time.

What are you buying? Uh it's a little bit of that. Um but I am in love with this game. Oh I think this game is stunning. I I'm a huge House Mark fan. I think they continue to make some of the most fun games, even though it is super frustrating if you are not you know, have the dexterity to be able to kind of play those games in those ways. But

Yeah, yeah.

So many games that should be featuring the feature set of this controller and the way you do all the haptics in it and all that stuff. And that moment when you start to play this game and you figure out the half pull versus the full pull on the trigger, because I, you know, I'm a I'm a weirdo who likes I play a lot of shooters on on my PlayStation and I'm constantly having the, you know, the

Yeah. It is weird to have like Implemented well it feels like there's a whole new button on the controller, even though it's just like

Well it's funny because like it and returnal are like the only games that I can that come to mind that even take advantage of that in sort of a Yeah, I can't really think of anyone else though.

Well there are other games that do it, but they don't actually f fully feature it, right? It's like If you do a half pull like, oh, it'll it'll stop you from doing a thing, right? They they add different variations of like, oh, here's what it feels like when your gun jams, but not what the difference is when you actually are pulling the trigger and feeling what that tension is.

Yeah. I mean it's been a couple weeks since we talked about it. And am I painting with too broad of a brush to say Kyle, you heated up on it and Jacob, you cooled on it? Is is that my thousand foot Is that where we're at overall?

I don't know if I heated up. I thought I was pretty consistent.

You're hot, dude. I mean you got the plat.

I know. I was I was very proud of myself. I don't usually I don't really I I I only go after like trophies and achievements if I'm just like excited to have an excuse to keep playing the game. Yeah. Right? And this was one where I was like, I don't wanna put this down yet. Like so I yeah, I went after the I got the platinum.

of error.

For me right now.

Yeah. Jacob, I mean, I I don't know if I'm judging too much, but you're just kind of like, I don't know, I haven't really thought about it since beating it. It was kind of your take, right?

I I I I'm I'm letting comparison be the thief of joy a little bit in that I keep thinking about the things I like in Returnal more. Um but uh but I do think I it's we talked a little last time we talked about this about how it kind of is and isn't a roguelike. Um, you know, and like I think that the game has kind of been a lot of the design directions that they moved in made it

What does that mean? I mean, I remember even with a kernel, it's like, okay, this chunk, this chunk. It kind of felt like I could feel the level editor and be like, okay, now this environment, now this environment.

Yeah. Y you're right. This doesn't feel like there's a level editor. It just feels like it's the same It it just feels it just feels like the same kind of path through the level every time. And in in Returnal, it was incentivized to move around within the levels. Um, you know, you would kind of get maybe you'd save health somewhere and then you would go back and get it later.

Right.

No, it's not. The the Holosseeker was like making like platholes that were shooting lasers out of them. You know, it's just like this game has like It kind of has like it has like three types of rifles and three types of pistols and three types of shotguns. And it's like they get a lot of variety out of that, but it doesn't it doesn't feel kind of as cool and as alien. And so it's just kind of like comparing

To return, I'm totally with you in that, like the soros ends in so I'm not gonna spoil anything, obviously, but I feel like I I know what happened in Soros at this point, if that makes sense, right? Like I don't really question what happened. Um and I know the interpersonal relationships of the characters. It's very opaque. It's it's not like it doesn't spell it out, but like I've spent a lot of time with the game at this point, so I know what happened. And it's like, okay, that happened.

Source'cause like if you flash back to the last podcast, you're like you're like, oh, it's awesome. Obviously you should play it.

Nothing I said last podcast do I disagree with now, but I do just think it to me it functions more as a linear game that I played through and am done with than a roguelike. Um and it's just it's just kind of an expectation setting thing of like, Kyle, you said you played eighty hours of this. Like, I played twenty hours and I got the true ending and like I have not had

Do you feel like that with Returnal anyway?'Cause I like that's the same thing for Returnal with me. Like games like this, I don't really find a real reason to go back. After the story's done, I'm not trying to hundred percent them or try to find some new permutation. Like if there is a new game plus that adds some new weaponry to a thing, then I may go back to it. But like games like this in this genre currently

Because Returnal was more of a roguelike in that you only had two, even though there were six. Worlds, you only had two starting points, and so you were kind of doing like runs more, and you'd be like, Oh, this is. You know, like I'm gonna pick up all the kind of corruption seeds that that emphasize my melee combat here. And this you're just kind of playing one level at a time in a way that

I I I didn't really think about that until you shared that part because now thinking back on my time with it, the fact that you have this very specific level select in the beginning of your runs changes that a lot.'Cause I think when I think of the repa replayability part. It's less about me getting better at those specific runs or finding something specific that I need to do in those parts. It's more about can I level my weapons up? The ones that I have found in light.

And I think just in terms of like taste, right? Video game taste and what you like. I think that's why Soros is has clicked for me so strongly is'cause like there's a lot of stuff I don't like about roguelikes or roguelikes. Like in general. And like Soros like Let's me bypass those things that annoy me. Like I like having a level select because I don't like having to play a slightly different

Yeah, yeah. Aaron Powell Awesome. Well I'm glad people out there are digging it. I always am curious to you know see the conversations of the Minbax Discord about it and stuff like that. It seems like a fascinating one. I definitely want to.

It's the rare game that when they sh have DLC, right, like I'll be there immediately. Like I just want

excuse me. I will be too to be quick. And I I hope they put in that endless tower earlier rather than later because that's what I want to be do like I do just wanna be running and shootin'. You know, because that's that's what they got so perfect with.

I wonder if they could.

Asked them about DLC and they said. We're just talking about sorrows right now.

So I don't know

Продолжение следует...

Uh I wonder if they are gonna dabble with the co op like returnal where they eventually added co op, right, in D L C or was that just an update? I'm trying to remember but

Yeah, it was it was just a kind of uh the they introduced the Endless Tower and the co op at the same time. Okay.

Cool. Yeah, that'd be fun. They they could go so many directions with this. Um just like Didis Disco can go so many directions. A game that is now out in early access. I think we talked about it a little bit before. This is The easiest pitch is

Yes, I was actually kind of confused because they sent out a code and they were like, Here's your review code and it's like doesn't have like a lot of the levels. Like you look at the level screen and it's like a bunch of them are locked off and they're like I I I I don't know, not done yet, maybe, or maybe they're gonna be something else. But like It it still kind of feels like an extended proof of concept at this point. Um

Which it is.

You know in terms of what the Well yeah, but it's it's not like they have four levels here and you're kind of like, Oh, so those four levels are done? And the answer is like Mm, kinda. Um, you know, where it's it's kind of a boss rush in that each level that you play is you'll be fighting you'll fight a number of enemies and then the boss will just show up and then you have a boss fight. And that's that's how all four levels work. And

Yep, yep. Has anybody else been playing it?

Yeah, I it is one of my favorite experiences I've had this year.

Oh.

Like I agree with everything you say. Everything everything is c completely on point. But I remember getting I've seen a lot of it on social and I was like, All right, any game where you can add your own music to a thing I'm immediately like, I want to see what that's about.

Did you any did you put in any custom song?

Not yet, but I have but it made me think of all the the the songs that I wanna add to this game and try to make it actually match, right? Like There are some dope, really fast paced hip hop songs that I wanna see how that feels when you're putting it into the game and how the game reacts to it. Yeah. But it brought up all those things of like early amplitude uh of getting those g those songs into a

I've been playing my own music while playing games for years. And let me tell you, when I do it people are throwing stones'cause The OST. And I'm like, I don't know. Have you played Claire Obscure while listening to Muse? I have, and it was really, really good.

Interesting.

I think we'll probably listen to Muse while making

Yeah.

Exact come on, exactly. Show me absolutions in the soundtracks of that game, please.

The one asterisk I'll put on the adding your own music thing is uh in its current implementation, you also have to manually add the song's beats per minute, which is not something that you can easily look up.

Here's the thing that I thought about when you said that part, that was the part that I actually had a little bit of trouble with when you were talking about hitting on beat. I mean I I have rhythm. But like the the the thing that's in that mix of like genre based it changes so much of like oh I'm playing this rock song or this heavy metal song.

Uh Jacob, you realize what we need to do. What that? I'm sorry that we've come to this, but just like you did in uh Beat Saber, we need to upload the entire Shrek audio track for the entire film and make it new show plus if you playing Dennis Disco for all of Shrek style.

A lot.

I feel like I feel like we should do the remember the the rap song that someone made about Min Max? We should put that in. That would be easy. We could do do that tomorrow.

Oh my god.

I'm just gonna do it as a get a load of this, but I feel like I'm plugging a lot this episode. But on Game Informer's Instagram account, you can find a Charles Hart lunch song.

Right, right, right.

I was thinking about his silk songs for this. Was did that ever get made? Did he ever make those silk songs? I don't remember.

Uh no, it was a new show plus that somehow it had silksong in the title and people didn't vote for it, which was pretty damning. Okay, yeah, for sure the the min max rap. I'm sure there are actually a couple that the community have made, but I that's such a good point. Uh

Send me those, Ben. I'll Okay.

Awesome. I think New Show Plus for Shrek, I think, would be a fun thing to get in the poll of like We can rip all the audio from Shrek somewhere.

You can put it on YouTube.

Uh would it flag that.

For Beatsaber. Yeah, I don't think you can just play all the audio from a movie.

Yeah, I guess I only get flags when you're going to do it.

you just can't monetize

All star.

D just that let alone the rest of them.

Is it funnier if we cut out all the music and it's just a dialogue from Shrek that you're punching to

Yeah.

I thought I had seen I was like, did someone already do this idea of putting the Shrek like movie dialogue? Like in the but what I what I rem am seeing was it was someone modded in Shrek into Dead as Disco and then did I'm a Believer like you can find

Of course. Okay.

Yeah. Yeah, they also I've seen like Kim Kitsuragi from Disco Elysium modded in and then they're like doing like the rave song from disco, which is also very funny.

That's a good idea. And they're self-publishing here. But Dennisco is twenty bucks on Steam. If you want to check it out in early access, uh I can't wait to to see them keep cooking. Because it's like it's like seafood. Like if you see the right clip from this game, you'll be convinced that this is the greatest game ever made. You know? Like it can really work wonders on you.

Yeah, I got a l um a Lakers it's funny'cause it's a Lakers thing, but it it's made to look like a baseball jersey. And of course the overlay probably cuts off most of the logo, but

No, it's

Just for the just for the vibes. When else can I wear this on Min Max?

It just

One over time?

It makes it like a Chief Justice, but you know what? We need your verdict, Janet, because you got to play this thing as well. How are you feeling about NBA the Run?

Re it was really f freaking fun. And I really hope this game is as fun as it was when I was playing it for the um I think it was like a like a closed public beta where it wasn't hard to get into but you didn't need to like get into.

A certain time for multiplayer testing, yeah.

Yeah, for the multiplayer testing and I did I did like two games solo. Um first game was really bad because I didn't know any of the controls and I said, Okay, let me let me get let me get my hands on the sticks a little bit and know where how to do my tricks and how to do a little more defensively. Uh then I played one solo and then I played uh uh the rest with Isaiah, um, who also is a huge NBA Street uh fan and like a fan of like NFL Street and all of that.

Something to that effect.

It's something like that. And it has like kind of a glittery, like glowy look to it. But I didn't really, and maybe that's just because I only spent like 40 minutes with it. I didn't get as much of a sense. of it and what it meant and it didn't feel as grandiose. So I kinda feel like you kinda either gotta go more game breakery or make it more distinctly your thing. Because you kinda it kinda just feels like you did a worse game breaker. And that's not a great feeling.

This game is really good. It hits all those NBA Street uh uh NBA Jam vibes in a good way. Uh they did a really good thing in terms of the cultural kind of piece of it. If you're a big fan of Uh cucumber slice DJ Cucumber Slice Babito. Uh uh he is he is the commentator for the game. Which is something that again if you're an NBA Street fan, if you're a a a hoop fan, in that way you have a automatic just like, Oh crap, they got him. That's amazing that they did that thing.

This is like a premium, right?

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Do we know anything about the pricing model?

No pricing yet'cause they haven't said anything,'cause they're still a little bit early. But I think it goes back to that conversation of like, this is gonna be an easy pickup, hard to master kind of games. And I think that's great for for what a NBA game has right now'cause there's a lot of controllers. Controller bits that are happening in that game that that are a lot.

Yeah. If they don't handle the monetization right, like that can kill the game. Like it doesn't matter how fun your game is, like if it feels crummy to get like the in game currency, if it feels limited, if it you know, I know that I believe they're only going online only right now. Like I do think they need a local mo that would go a long way. Like

Yep, you never you never know for sure. Yeah, that was like the the Sabre Interactive stuff, even like WWE two K Battlegrounds. Like I'm a fan of any like arcadey take on sports, and I feel like

Mario in there?

I want I want the Yeti and the Alien. Like the Alien was great at three pointers and the Yeti was just like the greatest defensive character of all time. Like I hope that they have weird stuff like that in there. Yeah, I want Steamboat Willie in there. Is it too much to ask?

I'm down for them to get a little weird with it. Like I don't have anything against that. I mean, we're already arcadey, so that would be cool. Um, it'd be I mean, they have the MBA license, so like I don't know if they'd ever get like the WMBA license or

That'll be fun.

How cookie. I think something that's worth mentioning though that I think is cool about the lineup is they do um NBA stars But like through eras as well. So they have like current LeBron and like rookie LeBron. And those are like two separate like players that you can have. Like I think that stuff's really fun. You could you know, um I love to

Yeah.

Субтитры сделал DimaTorzok

Yeah.

It's also Goku.

No, literally, but I was like I it's so funny playing with two LeBrons on the court'cause I was like, okay I was like Oh, I I called the other one fake LeBron'cause it was an Isaiah. I said I said fake LeBron got it. Okay, you got like I was like shout casting our own match and like it it was so fun. I definitely think, you know, not to be cliche, but like it's always more fun when you're squatted with people that you know just because

Anywhere near this thing.

No. Don't worry, I don't think it's going to be tempted. Yeah, it's like w just the little things get me excited about it of like they said that they're going to have forty-eight player custom tournaments. Like private tournaments you're going to invite people. And they were talking a big game about that.

Basically,

Yeah. But they were talking a big game about like their their crossplay too. But they're basically like, you know the best fighting games?

D uh is it Mike Tyson?

Michael Jordan.

In a jersey and he's like, This game too, watch out.

That would be cool. No, it I always love that idea of like I think it's even in like the intro cinematic. It's like Michael Jordan like Hey, you wanna come to my court? Watch out, buddy. And it's it is so fun to basically have the Mike Tyson equivalent, except it's Michael Jordan in NBA Street. It's like all right, the final boss will be Michael Jordan. Good luck. It's so fun.

Funny though if it was like Tiger Woods or something. Just like someone from a different field of sports, you know.

Best right.

Exactly the kind of anecdotes that these non sports people would

I think we understand.

Yeah.

Well, this is how y'all feel when I talk about these rogue games that it's like I don't know what's going on. I just I just sit I just sit out at this point. I'm like, you know, I'm not playing it.

Oh dude and if Lower Bunny's in this?

I'm I'm so ravenous for this game that like I cannot help a Bexy dev this game when I'm playing.'Cause I've played a lot of these too, where it's like Like from MBA playgrounds, I think they had like the three point shoot contest and stuff. I'm like, you guys should do that. Hey, if you need if you need another thing to make, here's like another id idea that would be like super fun. But um yeah, I'm I'm excited and I'm afraid.

That's fair.

I'm ready to be hurt again. That's how I felt leaving NBA the run.

Yeah.

Yeah. I had so many games this day these days too I'm just like, man, that was really good. Please, please, please keep going.

Yep, yep, yep. I'll stay out. Janet! Being Chicago's number one fan, did you ever play the Michael Jordan game, the Michael Jordan Chaos in the Windy City on Super Nintendo?

No, is it a is it a basketball?

No, it's not a good one.

Oh my god, really? It's not? Oh my god.

It's a platform. Yes, Amy Hedig from Naughty Dog. She was like the creative.

How why haven't I played this?

Yeah.

Just the box artists.

Gotta play Barkby, shut up.

You said this is a platform? That's right.

Yeah. You're like throwing basketballs to hurt enemies and stuff?

To also plug um like I just started doing a uh platformer show with Patrick Klepik over on Remap Radio. Yeah. I'm sending this to him immediately saying how do we get this in the

Ciao. Yeah.

I guarantee.

He's bright man.

Yeah, yeah, he's he's in the suburbs of Chicago himself, so yeah, he's uh I'm sure he's familiar. But yeah, no, I have not played this. But I'm I'm I'll search in my retro game store now. I'm in there all the time, I will take a look.

It's it's at least a box you should have on your shelf. Um just like the Xbox on your shelf. Everybody needs one at home to feel You try to make some transition.

You could have one unplugged sitting there.

I guess. It's been in a weird spot for oh, I don't know, fifteen years or so. And I feel like every week it just gets stranger. Obviously we talked about it a little bit uh ago with Phil Spencer and their left there's the big uh shakeup. Asha Sharma is now leading the entire division, and I just wanted to unpack it a little bit'cause I think it's Fascinating. Uh if you're into video game messaging, like they are

Positive headlines or is it more just tracking everything they're trying to do?

I think I think some of them are positive. Like the the one in particular that got me. There's there's a couple, right. But They had a big wave there's a couple so there's a they had a big wave of promotions, you know, Asha Sharma kinda like re you know, uh sunsetting some people, elevating certain people to next box, all that stuff. And so at the same time that was happening.

legitimate conversation to have like in an email. Like I don't know, that's not that like that an executive thinks something costs too much is like not like

It makes her look smart and cool to say the thing that everyone has been complaining of. I feel like the the real question here is what is a headline and who are writing these? Because No unearned disrespect to something like Wario sixty four, but it's like That's not a news outlet. You know? And so it's like Wario sixty four posts the story that all Xbox employees are getting an at Xbox email address.

Right.

Who gives a Why would any of us care about that? How does that affect anything at all? But it's just kind of like in the same time that you see like Oh, Carnival Games for the Wii U is on sale for thirty dollars. It's just like any email that is received is like blasted out and because we have uh d you know, uh decimated the video game journalism industry.

I mean I think that happens at like major outlets as well. And that's not to shade any major outlets running with like things that are like the Well I think I mean I feel like

Like look at the gameformer.com right now, like what the

Here's kind of my thing.

Copilot.

'Cause I like yeah, like I the thing is part of the Like I do think the email thing is like not worth Do like if I was in a newsroom I would say like let's not write'cause that happens all the time behind the scenes on news as well, where it's like you pick up stories as a writer and say, Hey, do you wanna write an article on this? And sometimes we say no and sometimes we say yes and whatever.

Microsoft Gaming Dexter.

Yes. But part of the benefit of tracking this stuff that seems like who gives a hell? Like who gives you know, I can't swear here, so like, you know, who cares? Is also to have like a timeline to link back to on things. Like I think Kyle to your point, like I don't think all these outlets are like

I guess.

Decided as an outline that you're covering it.

And and and I think the way that you're approaching this in in a very smart way is like a journalist. you know, where you where you are taking messaging from the company and contextualizing that within the knowledge that you already have of the industry and what's happening and whatever. And I think that's that's what I'm feeling is missing often in these stories is

Yeah, but I'm going from like news versus features though too. And like while I think there obviously is some news that is like this is like Capital J journalism, like you have done like reporting, you have like a multitude of sources, you're a private like I think there are tiers to like how

It doesn't have to be fluff. You know, I'm saying you can you can record that they had a Wii everything is an Xbox campaign without writing a fluff article. Yeah. Like you you

I don't know. Like I get what you mean. Like I think we this is one of those classic things that I talk about all the time in my family where it sounds like we're arguing, but we do agree. But yeah, like I think it's good to flesh this stuff out though because it is like Not all news is created equal, right? And not all writers have the same skill, and not all editors have the same skill of them. You know, so yes, I'm doing a whacker for

For sure. Yeah, I know that the reason that it's happening is because people are being paid twenty dollars an article on thegamer.com. to write these articles. Like I I understand the purposes. It's just it's just a disappointing place for the field to be. It's a larger

I also feel like this is a conversation that is kind of on the like Xbox hate train, which I'm not saying that like there shouldn't be a train for that. I'm a hater though for everybody like equally and I do feel like some people

I'm not racist, I hate everyone equal.

I mean no, I mean gen genuinely, I think there are people that are dogging this like Why are we writing about the Xbox startup? And if it was PlayStation, they wouldn't say sh about it. And Ben, you can bleep that out. That's F in fact. And I know it. And the truth is, like, something that pisses me off about this industry is I do feel like in the critical space,

Right into Dunk City, right, James?

Legitimately like, oh, now that you know everyone's gonna agree. Like everyone's gonna agree with your take. So like now you feel like oh, it's easy to be brave and like dunk on the company that thirty people already dunked on and I'm not saying that doesn't mean you should be shouldn't be critical just'cause other people are critical. But it is telling when it's like, I don't think you would have saved this if it was Nintendo.

You're right.

No, you're totally right. The reason I'm kind of cynical about this is I just I see the PR machinations behind all of this stuff. You know, like they just want as many headlines to be like,

Yeah.

There's so much to go instead of just kind of this like it's a thin veneer of we're servicing the fans if the core of the planet is still like we're pushing in an unhealthy direction.

This is a genuine question. Yes. When you say I want Xbox fans to be happy, why?

Uh'cause I would like everybody on planet Earth to be happy. And like there's Xbox games that I'm looking forward to like No? What are you talking about? I mean there's stuff like Forza Horizon Six, like I can't wait to dive into Fort's Horizon Six. There's so many games that like

I guess it's just weird framing to me to be like, hey, I want Forza Horizon 6 to be good. You know, like that sounds but it's like the I want Xbox fans to be happy weirdly feels like it it is feeding into this idea of like Well we need to treat every company as like a place that has good things and bad things and what where I'm like, I don't know, if your company doesn't deserve like w wha an Xbox fan is not a protected class.

Become a different fan.

Right.

Kind of what you're saying. Like they they don't th like you don't have to be you don't have to commit to being an Xbox fan and being happy. It's like if they're if they're annoying you and they're doing stuff against what you want from video games, go be a fan of something else.

Kai, I hear I hear you and I see you. But I I think it's better of that the Xbox fans being happy is downstream from I would love Xbox to be in a healthy, great place overall for some real competition. That that's

I mean that's the big zoom out, right? It's like I want good games on Xbox, you know? I

A a new halo that is fun.

Yeah, sorry, Kyle, you're about to explode.

What was an old Halo that was fun?

Do you think we wanna make these the downfall of Xbox side tangents every couple of months? I don't know, they keep falling. Like it's not like and that's just kind of the state of things, you know? Um but yeah, it is It is morbidly fascinating to see yes uh unfold. But it's it's um I mean they may attempt, but they have a

And we pulled Call of Duty out of it, you know?

It's like yeah. Yeah, it's like okay, you you know, like you're not you're not really gonna get back there. It's like, you know

Yeah, you haven't seen the leaked memo?

Yeah, where she says that Borderlands is cool or whatever gamers want to hear.

It's kind of I I hate to trigger people listening about this'cause I know y what what happens in your personal life has you know, that's between you and your personal life, but it's like it's kinda given like your man cheated and now he's like, Oh, but he picked me up from work? It's like He kinda did some materials like yesterday though, girl. I don't know, like You like it, I love it.

I slept with yesterday was weirdly the IDF.

Yeah, there's kind of like another line of questions that sort of pop up there where yeah, there yeah, there's there is there is that too, yeah.

I'm sorry, Ka, I feel like you've been ready to pop for fifteen minutes. What about you like?

I I I love all of the the the banter'cause it's it's all it's all right. Like like none of it is wrong. My my like the

I like you on this podcast. When he's saying he agrees with me, like I feel like he's making good.

I mean I mean I mean Jen is on point. Pretty much all the time. Pretty much.

Sorry, say it again, you had it out and I was kidding, go ahead.

Can we get that clean?

I know, right? Uh but Jacob kind of kind of pointed out when he was talking to to Ben about that thing. I want all fans to be smarter. That's my full form. That's my full baseline part of this conversation is 90% of the conversations that are happening on social are stupid. They don't make any sense. Even if you like, I do think that the kind of flood the market moment that we're having from Xbox is smart, right? I don't think it's

I am rare.

Who to where they were going for what they needed to do as a company that said during the FTC trials that we are literally in last place in comparison to everyone else. You have to go bold, you have to go big and you have to try to figure out smart ways. to galvanize the the P N L of that company, right? Going into mobile, which they're continued which they're gonna do again, which Asha reconfirmed during a during the last conversation piece that she talked about, which was a thing that

How

How right now we're seeing what happens when you are actually given the baton to go as opposed to getting uh discussions chopped off at the legs. Right? Yes. There was a moment in which Phil Spencer and Sarah Bond were doing the things that were a lack.

Yes. And and I think what's fascinating as they position Project Helix, like The messaging is, you know, game file Totillo had an interview with them, right? Where again it was like, uh I don't know, maybe we would want console exclusives again. Like everything like Janet mentioned again was kind of like waffling, like a little corporate speak for we don't know what the plans are. Stay tuned, we will have results later. But like

Always been so opposite of what they're doing. Like that's this is one of their problems. Like you in before it was like the three talking heads where it's like every head was saying something different. And it's like, What's your direction? And I'm like, I don't think you know.

Activate Can they achieve it? Because I still have a billion questions about how they're gonna put Steam.

But that's kind of what I mean. Like I think they're like, I'm down for whatever'cause I'm gonna see what I'm able to pull off and then I'm gonna kinda retroactively say like I felt like they couldn't get exclusives. When they realized the exclusive thing wasn't working out, they're like, Oh, let's buy a bunch of stuff and get exclusives. None of that stuff worked out. The stuff that came out sucked. They were like, you know what? Actually.

with you on that part. I think right now we're seeing two things happen. We're seeing a distancing from the old guard that was there before, which is a very public version of that, which they have to do. I don't think it's good. I don't I think it I think it I think it adds a layer of chaff to this whole thing that that isn't necessarily great because it winds up putting Asha Shamra in a really weird position, right, where

All of this time.

All of this niceness that's happening, again, there was some grossness that happened when she first got into the role. All of this niceness is gonna turn. And it's gonna wind up being the same thing we saw before because the internet is the internet. It does what it does. where they find that one nugget and they turn on you and then that's gonna be another n you know, nick on the armor of the Xbox brand when again the loyalty to the brand

Taking Call of Duty out, which is a big component there. I mean the biggest game in the world.

Exactly. So again, like the maneuvering from the fandom is one aspect that is extremely frustrating. I am less frustrated with the messaging that's happening because right now they are throwing spaghetti at the wall.

Yes.

It's okay to throw spaghetti at the wall. But you have to have an understanding that like once you do that All of that changes on a fly, and you have to be consistent about what that messaging is in a space where Microsoft and Xbox have not been consistent over the past couple of years. And that's where they're trying to land. They're trying to land in a space of consistency.

On the on the parasocial front, this is just like a little thing that I'm fascinated by on the Asha Sharma thing. I'm sure she's a lovely person. But it just killed me because it got like a press release about like, oh, the Xbox fan fest.

I mean if you ask most folks the I mean I've had this conversation with folks as well, is like, you know, I think Playstation needs a person too. Yeah. Right? Like I I would much rather have that person that you are able to kind of

And then you can say, Phil Spencer, it was your call to destroy the lies of Arcane Austin, you know, and tango and it's like, yeah, I who knows.

Right. Like it's gonna be that moment again.

Right.

Actually heard that Joe Biden came up with the This Is an Xbox campaign, which in retrospect was just foolish of that old man.

I mean look, he was he was on his meds.

Ha ha ha ha ha.

All right.

Yeah, moratorium. How when's the next time we're gonna have this conversation?

Next week.

Next week.

It depends how crazy the next thing is and how quick it's

Cảm ơn các bạn đã theo dõi và hẹn gặp lại.

I think if it's like if it's not that crazy, it's like let's just let it fly.

Live.

Well the the startup the startup video will be different in in probably now. That the the Xbox video is gonna be the the new start up for the the console. That's it, we'll talk about it. And everybody lost their crap. I'm like, all right, yo.

Ha ha.

Uh Kyle, do you know how this whole thing operates, Mr. Hilliard?

Some executive uh sharing a link to their Twitter account?

Yeah, that's right.

Oh I'm sorry, they're X account.

Our biggest play is for Asha Sharma to share a link on her cool X account for patreon.com slash minmax with you.

Please know.

We need the X users. We need the

Please jump on in everybody, find a chair that's ready for you if you're so inclined. And if you want to help support Independent Games Media, find something that's doable for you. Again, if you're a brand new supporter and you jump in before this coming Monday, I will DM you personally on Patreon with Steam codes for every deconstruct team game. Check out the description of this.

Yeah.

Shane G retin. They said, When, if ever, have you stopped playing a game because it was too easy? Boringly so. Personally I stopped playing Nino Kuni two a few hours in mainly because of this, but I still didn't care for it much after they patched in difficulty mode, so there were likely other reasons. In other games I've loved the early challenge, but lost interest once I got over the hump of it.

I don't know.

Yeah, I don't relate to this but I want to hear from other people about it.

I mean pr I've never been able to play a Lego game for more than an hour.

Yeah, that's a good example.

It does not it just does not click with me. I am excited for Batman though. Like there's a lot of their that looks interesting and I'm gonna give that a real shot, but like That it's just too

Yeah. Even though it eventually

This one was not different, turns out.

Yeah. It eventually got there, but I always have it for like Kirby games. But like the back third of Kirby games are generally interesting, you know, like Forgotten Lands. It's like, all right, the final boss is actually kinda hard, but for sure the first half of Kirby it's always like what am I doing?

This is...

Oh.

You're having fun back. In the lovely world.

I get there eventually, but at the beginning I think I'm just kinda going through the motions a little bit. Sorry.

I just play sweaty games.

Okay. Just smart. Yeah.

Oh so you don't have the pro because you never pick up an easy enough game.

That's what the psychological.

For what?

Ha ha ha ha!

Do you do the same thing?'Cause I was thinking'cause things you thumps this up, I was like, what's

I just kind of wanted I wanted to hear the answers. I mean Kirby is also of like I I haven't played that many Kirby games, but I put down uh The what's the switch one? Forgotten Forgotten Land. And it was like it was like in theory I was enjoying that game, but it just wasn't like I didn't feel a desire to go back to it. I think it was because it was just so like frictionless. Yep. I was just kinda like, yep, and here I go, doing the thing that I know I'm supposed to do.

I am curious about Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, Janet. We'll see how how that feels. You know.

I'm like worried quote unquote. Like I'm not really worried if if I don't like Yoshi, I'm gonna be okay. Like I'm gonna

Stay up at night. If I don't like this Yoshi game, when's the next one coming? Like s another six years? It's like I don't wanna wait for another good one. I'm I hope it's good.

Yeah. Look, uh you know, Bob on Battlefield is not a hard level, but like I never get bored playing that because just the the fun you can have with Mario's movement. You know, it's like you can just triple jump and dive through that whole level and then it doesn't feel easy because you're still like having fun doing stuff. Yeah. And and so that's where sometimes it's like, look, they the game can be easy, but as long as it lets me kind of like

but it doesn't feel dynamic.

To me the challenge of Kirby comes in with like the exploration for the additional like collectibles. Like I think those are games that are sort of designed to be yeah, it's easy as hell, but if you want more out of it, both from challenge but also like engagement. That's where the extra juice is. But it's not a good thing.

I guess it's just like ex exploration isn't inherently challenging. It's just looking in more corners. You know, and then sometimes there will be like a level there that it's like

Is that not a challenge of the eye though?

No, it's a challenge of my patience.

Sometimes I

But sometimes that's like the biggest challenge of all though.

But there you go. That's I mean that's why Lego games challenge Kyle.

Yeah. Actually it was too hard for Kyle to finish. He couldn't get through it.

Kirby's an interesting example to me because every Kirby feels like a great first game for like a kid until like the last third. Or or maybe even sometimes just the final boss where it's like, Okay, yeah, do you have fun? You've learned how to play a video game now? Okay, here you go. This is the challenge. Have fun.

Yeah.

Uh Skyfellowship writes in uh oh to answer your question though, Shane. Yeah, it's like Elden Ring was too easy for me. Uh Skyfellowship writes in they said following the chaos I finished it. Look at the achievements. I finished it.

Because in the then the pre orders become premium too.

But uh no, but he's he's asking or they're asking like why can't you pre-order before the tech is made so they know how many to make? But then it's like'cause'cause I don't trust it. You know, it's like I I probably I would not have bought a steam controller site unseen. I got excited about it because

Or I I don't think they should do that, um, you know, of like wait to start production until they know how many people wanna order it. I just think it wouldn't work, even though I agree, as someone who didn't get a Steam controller, uh that the current system sucks. And I I wish there was something like that.

I didn't get one either and I was I was not interested and then it was really I just felt like I was missing out. Like when everyone else was rushing about it and I was like, oh I hear that kinda feels like a Dreamcast controller. I kinda wanna hold one now, but then it was too late.

Yeah.

Did you get one Kyle?

No, I I tried really hard.

Yeah.

It was in the morning meeting that some of the right it was on Monday. Some of the some people here at Min Max were like Leo was like trying to get one and I was like, Oh, is that today? And then it became It was one of those things I was like, I wasn't really interested in this, but now this back half of my day where I wasn't able to get it, now I'm upset about it.

I know. Stupid. Uh Malcolm Holliday writes in, they say, Hey man Max, what video game title would make a good name for a pizza topping slash style? So we're looking at like i is the idea of like you're looking at a menu of pizza options and this is like the name of a game is the name of the pizza variant that you're choosing, that type of thing? Do you think

Yeah.

Brutal legend.

Brutal. Um I I think I got a real winner. Super hot.

I also had super hot. Yeah, that's good. I got a real winner too. What about the name of the game, Pineapple on Pizza? Exactly.

Remains of Edith Stinch. That's a great

The badass elephant?

Okay, Kyle, uh would you assume that you're getting elephant meat on there? Or what does that mean to you if you're

pizza's called Dembo the

I'm intrigued. I don't know what this is. Really big slices of pepperoni? Maybe that's what I'm saying.

If you go that route, you gotta have the pizza. If it's just called Big Red One, like the Call of Duty game? That's like sauce on top.

It's gotta be called Call of Duty Cole in Big Rom.

Yeah, the Call of Duty is

Parentheses P S two.

Eat all of this.

I don't know, do you want colons next to your pizza?

Yeah, you know, I guess that's messy.

It'll end up there anyway.

No very good Um let's see if it's like the Buffalo uh chicken pizza, it could be called Wing Commander

Huh?

Okay, that's cute.

Janet, I feel like are you ready to bounce?

No, I'm looking at my backlog looking at

Okay, okay.

I am thinking hard and I'm coming up with n very little I'm just like none of these games look tasty to me.

Okay, what about this? What about like extra? What if it's like just mushrooms and sun dried tomatoes and then it's Super Mario sunshine. Would that be the good the good round?

Does that work?

But I feel like this in the spirit of the question, in my mind, this has to be something where like all the other names are normal and this can still live. It can't just be like it's a video game themed pizza shop.

I agree.

Yeah, I'd I'd order Slay the Spire'cause if I see Slay the Spire I give them money. Like that's how it's been always. But like

Yeah, it's coming up with there are a lot of bad ones. Uh you know, it's like, oh, carrion, perfect vermin, cocoon, you know, lots of things you wouldn't want to get on a pizza.

Yeah. If there's just a pizza that was just called inside what does that mean? Okay, it genuinely if they just have the name of the pizza, I feel like it could work without any context. Peepastrello, like the yo-yo game, was like that that feels like something with like some good spicy pepper.

It does sound like yeah, it's like this is just something I don't know where I'd

That would be a start.

Yeah. And then be like, Oh, I guess this is tasty, I don't know.

Right. Extra olives. I don't exactly know what it is.

Oh, no. I'm out on the aisle.

I'm with you. I am with ya. Uh well there we go.

Yeah.

The Popeye video game, there's just like extra spinach on there. Yeah, everyone's a good idea. Um, let's see. The Juan One writes in, they say, Hey crew, any updated thoughts on Marathon?

Uh

PS one game as well as well.

Kyle, I would just play that for the first time like a week ago. Get out of my head, man. I don't like that.

It doesn't allow.

Yeah.

It so it holds us surprisingly well, but I think you do need to be a little broken on the inside. Like if you like platformers, you'll be like, this is really fascinating. And if you don't be like, wow.

I want to go to

Childhood trauma.

Yeah.

Is that what gives the platform more something well, that's a whole other thing I have to ask Patrick about on the podcast.

Please do. Uh no, but like seeing people like Jeff Gersman be like, this is a game of the year, this rules, like there is a there is a group that is like all in on marathon, you know, Austin Walker and stuff that's like I love hearing their enthusiasm for it. I and where are you at, Kyle, overall on on Marathon here?

Marathon feels so many different versions of fun for me because it is sweaty. It is beautiful. I think it's amazing in terms of its art design. I think the moment to moment m uh uh gameplay um uh experiences that you have within that space, especially if you're playing with a well coordinated team.

Yeah. Jacob do you think there's any chance you'd go back to Marathon? I know you're are you still in the camp of lightly curious after everything you've played, but not do diving in?

It there there's no chance that I go back, but it's not because I wasn't enjoying it. It's just because like it I I I feel like it's like, you know, playing playing a multiplayer game that's kind of endless is so hard uh when when you want to kind of like keep up with interesting games that are coming out and whatever.

Food.

You know, it's it's like the the the punishingness of that genre just feels like it would be accentuated. So I still like I've loved reading people talk about it. I think the game seems like it has a really cool community. I like how much people like it, but it's it's just like it's past the point now where I could go back.

Here's a really quick add uh add on to that, really quickly. I this is going to be the most interesting version of a wipe for an extraction shoe.

Yeah.

Once they do the whole we're gonna reset your basically, you know, some of your faction stuff and all of those things. The things that people have literally been grinding for since the since launch. That's when we'll see the biggest either uh continuation of people staying or the biggest drop-off of people leaving that game. And I don't know how they're gonna handle it because I don't know how you handle that well.

Yeah,'cause I've been watching people generally have not been happy with how Arc Raiders has been doing They're kind of wipes. Um because they kind of are like, Oh, you can keep some stuff into the next one if you, you know, build up enough money or whatever. Uh and so yeah, I'm curious how how the reception to Marathon will be. Yeah.

Do it. Uh by the way, Backstage Past watching us live, they're killing it. I can't let it go. Obviously for the pizza names, Pizza Tower. How do we not say pizza tower for the name of a pizza? If that's on a menu, I would like to order a tower of pizzas. Yeah, just keep stacking it. Yeah, it's like the the multi layer things if you just order all of them.

I am very young.

No no the game. That they're the movie and the game are both directed by Martins, isn't that fun? Anyway, so Martin Hollis writes in, they say, Dear Min Max, does any animal just confuse you? Uh I both do and don't understand how camels exist. Yeah, camels are good. They're weird. The water's in their back. Is that what's going on there? That's pretty weird.

The one for me is like uh people talk about um unicorns as like a fantasy creature. Right. It's like how could that possibly exist? But then it's like giraffes are like right there. Like giraffes like seem like some of those alien creatures on earth, you know? Yeah. I took this d I took this uh question a different way and I was gonna say my cat Mona Oh, yeah. Like s just like completely unpredictable and yeah. So

Exactly.

So yeah, Mona. Uh her full name is Mona Persona, of course.

Yeah.

I fear that is just a cat though. Like you know what I mean? Like that's all cats in a lot of ways. Yeah, but they're fun. They're fun little like complex creatures. Little buddies that scream.

I... I've got I I think about often like traveling uh you know like birds and stuff or like a bird can like fly over an ocean. Yes. Um but the w but what really what I started thinking about and I was just like how is this possible? is like butterflies that migrate. Where it's like a monarch butterfly travels thousands of miles and you look at a butterfly and you're like, I get how a bird could just kinda like set its wings and like soar for a while.

A butterfly?

Possible, and it's like you're so small you can't hold any nutrients, you would have to just be like refueling constantly, and you're going. Thousands of miles.

And you keep setting off all those tsunamis.

Yeah, exactly. Stop hurting Ashton Kutcher. But yeah, I think it's like I feel like if you ate A butterfly, it'd be like six calories. So like how can it fly thousands of miles if that's all it can contain in its body? Yeah, that's a good one. I was regaling Jacob with this, but like flamingos are a big one for me. The the basic idea of like you know at the Minnesota Zoo, they have a little placard with facts about flamingos and they're like scientists can't figure out why they stand on one leg.

What?

Scientist, come on, chop chop. Come up with something. Well, they're pink because they eat stuff that makes them pink. And everyone's like, Cool, yeah, got it. I'm like, Wait, wh what other animal does that apply for? Where the food you eat makes you a color?

What are you talking?

Talking about that's absurd.

Dolphins probably, right? They're probably eating shrimp out there, right?

It's like if I eat this food

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, but people say that, but it's not like you're turning violet violet. Like it's weird.

That's true.

That's all right.

Yeah.

Crush Violet. Uh Sergio writes in and they say, Hey everybody, do you understand the game industry more or less since joining Min Max? Um also are you clear on what you want to do within it? That second one is kind of a meatier one. And you're having a moment of just like what do I want from my career right now? And I don't know if you've turned a leaf on that.

Yeah, I mean I think as a person who's worked at a couple of studios and a couple of games and does this for not not for a living, but um but

Do you feel like you have the the in? Are are you on the road to doing more of that?

Why that's why you see me at so many shows. I'm networking my ass off to try to figure out who are the fo and again, a lot of this time'cause I'm currently unemployed, but it's like the conversations that I've been having have been a lot of

Yeah. I I struggle a lot with this and I'm doing good overall, but I do have those moments just like, Yeah, what what am I doing? Is it just like I I love Min Max and I love this stuff so much. And it's super fun and always challenging. Uh too challenging sometimes. But then i think about it's like fifteen years from now am I doing this? And it's like I guess best case scenario, yes. Just doing like a more interesting version of this if in Mexico can continue to

Well I mean you make I mean the thing I love about Minbax is like you do really smart work. Like in a s in a in a in a space that doesn't like smart work anymore. Like that part is hard. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like that that's the the crux of so many folks who are trying to do this really well is trying to surface really good stories, really good games for for their audiences and be able to connect with them in in really in really tangible ways.

Yeah. Where you said, like, Oh, I'd like someday to be like a video game expert, an MPR can call me up for a quote, like that type of thing. Like you want to reliably just kinda get to is that kind of Is that weird to be like I want MPR to call me more?

It's not it's not the highest aspiration, but I'm just kind of like what is a sustainable way of doing this of just kind of being someone who knows a lot about video games. And I do think it's just kind of like broadening so you're a subject matter expert in a way that extends beyond just people who listen to video game podcasts.

being

known as someone who can write well and or talk well about games. There will be a need for that. You know, I don't know what the format will be, but hopefully just being in enough people's heads. that you're a person that they think of when the next version of expertise on video games is needed. Yeah. You know, that's that's kind of the most secure version of this I can think of.

How often do you think about or crave in your heart and soul like I hope I hit two million subs on YouTube.'Cause being at what like one point five was it one point five right now, roughly for you. Yeah. It's it's every time I see like a big YouTube channel I always look at it and be like, Jacob Geller crushes them, you know.

I was like how many of these fit into one Jacob Geller you two should be?

But do you have

Of that internally, I'm just like, I'll feel so freaking happy if I hit two million subs. No. Good. Yeah. Me neither. No.

I just I was like more than one.

Crazy.

You know, it's like w one one is the final like like one million is the finish line of that race. Yeah. Like

You're a new game plus now.

And it's like guess what? Subscribers don't subscribers are not meaningful on YouTube. Like sorry to sorry to like burst the bubble, but like it doesn't I know Ben you want the B D E of like having a hundred thousand subscribers so like people will answer your emails and I you know, that is reasonable.

No.

And so it's just kind of like Have have my views continued going up as my subscribers counts have gone up? No, not at all. Every video SIS essa I know, their views are going down. And we're trying to figure out why. And it's like, is it just that people aren't interested in this format anymore? Yeah.

Yeah, yeah. Couldn't you? So you're saying Min Max can have your half a million? Like we can have that bonus? Yeah.

I'll just you know, we can draw up a you know, contract, I'll transfer it to Google.

Kyle, uh do you know what you want from the industry?

Uh I don't think I thumbed up this question'cause I am not prepared to sort of analyzing too deeply. But I don't know, it's a tough question because like I I like being sort of a a games journalist. I like being a writer, a game informer. I I really enjoy that. It's it's a dream job and continues to be a dream job. I also enjoyed my time between, you know, working w with Thorium on Undermine and stuff like that. And like I I enjoyed that and um

Yeah, that's sweet.

Yeah, I'm kind of like in a similar boat. I mean I think for the the first part of the question, have you learned more since joining Min Max? Yes, God, I hope so. Like it's yeah, years have passed, so I think

Yeah.

Uh well hey, speaking of very busy, uh Ka, I know you gotta run, but thank you for joining us for the long haul here, sir.

Always dope. Thank you so much for having me. I I I love I mean I love the show and I love all the work you all do. Uh but it's always really fun to be able to see it actually in real time and be a part of it and be a part of the

Yeah.

So thank you so much for having me. It's this is a really fun time. I would love to do it again.

Yeah. Yeah, spawn on me. If people had to go one place, where should they go to to follow you more?

Uh you can check us out actually on all podcast platforms. We're on Spotify, we're on Apple Podcasts, uh YouTube uh as well. So please go check us out because we we also need some views to go check out some of the dope stuff that we're that we're doing over there. We have a a good episode coming up. Very soon we're gonna be having on uh famous uh uh uh talker, Jay Muse.

Awesome. All right, uh, this is confusing. Uh we transitioned by having people clap. So if you want to give us one clap and you're out of here, sir. But thanks for joining us. Next question. Uh Mike R writes and they say any chance in the world we can have Haley De Boom as one of the chords. We would love nothing more. Um her job makes it a little tricky. It's always a a balancing act. She's a very important, influential person, and so just like how

Yeah.

All right, I'm gonna guess Minnesota for number one.

Utah is on neither list.

Oh really?

Um I yeah, I wanna guess those bottom ten to be like what have we never Yeah.

And here's a here's a spoiler we have mentioned

Minnesota's number one, right? Like just to be clear.

Just what do you think number two is?

North Carolina.

Oh, you would think so. That's number nine.

Uh New York or California.

York. Why are we talking about New York so much? Isn't that weird?

Spider Man.

Oh, it is kind of the main character, if you ask me, in Spider-Man. Okay, yeah. So least favorite states, the least number of mentions. Technically we have mentioned them all, which is surprising. You think there'd be one that's at the end?

Um except for like

Utah's in the middle, I said. Like it's neither it's neither least nor top.

Ga get Utah out of your head. He's trying to get it into the top ten by just saying it more.

Utah, Utah, Utah.

Uh is like uh Idaho. In the bonds of

No it's not. Apparently that's also a

But what are the what are the numbers? Do you have the numbers for the bottom ten? Is it like

Two mentions. The least number is five mentions, which it seems impossible that we've mentioned the state five times, but I looked it up and it is absolutely true.

Nebraska.

Um

South Dakota.

No, no, no.

Missouri.

Apparently we've all mentioned those a decent amount.

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona. I'm just going alphabetically.

Alabama is the second least favorite at seven mentions of Alabama. Sorry, Alabama I know. How would Alabama ever come up other than the Alabama Slam?

Wow.

Ha ha ha!

There's half in there.

Did someone go to school in Alabama?'Cause I know like the people that went to school there

They're weird.

They are.

They're doing a lot, I feel

Well,

The least, of course, is drum roll, please. New Hampshire? Two? Five times we mentioned New Hampshire. And I looked at like YouTube analytics for the last episode of the podcast. Uh there are there were twenty nine people in New Hampshire watching the last episode of the podcast. So I'd like to apologize to at least those twenty nine people uh that we mentioned your state so little.

Yeah.

W yeah, where's South Carolina on the list?

No, Kyle, apparently we never talk about your upbringing.

start to say it, I just yell north. So then it counts for me.

Everyone and everyone always just assumes I'm from North Carolina. I don't know why that was so consistent. Everyone's like, You're from North Carolina, right? I'm like, Nope.

Well really, Kyle, you're from the state which was number five on our least favourites.

Sounds about right. Carolina also.

No, I'm not saying no, hang on. You're not picking up where I'm going. You're not from South Carolina.

I'm from Rhode Island.

Thank you. Number five, Rhode Island of course. So uh top ten least favorite, going from most popular to least popular. Oklahoma, Virginia, North Dakota, Indiana, Arkansas, Rhode Island, Delaware, West Virginia, Alabama were tied. And then New Hampshire. There you go, everybody. Uh okay, what do y'all like for a question of the week?

I like it's pretty hard hitting.

Yeah, career one was not messed up.

I like Jarl's animals, even though I didn't have an animal.

I like animals. I like the pizza. We've certainly never gotten that before.

It was cute, yeah. We're always in the pocket of big food though for these questions. Too obvious to pick the pizza one.

Yeah.

I kinda like the animals because it's like a giraffe, but then also Kyle's cat.

Cảm ơn các bạn đã theo dõi.

I agree. The mind of a cat is unknowable.

Uh congratulations, Martin Hollis. You just won the prize thanks to iMateBit. That is the Monument Valley three vinyl soundtrack. And now it's time for something that we love to call get a little.

God we're rocking out to that jungle like it's a frickin' mixtape sequence, you guys. Um hey, get a lot of this. Uh Ben Reeves, friend of the show, former coworker at Game Informer, he just released a game on Itch uh called Standard Operating Procedure, which is like uh a a text-based, you know

Um get a load of this. I learned something about the uh cinema classic Shrek Two the other day. Um and and look i i if

So if people like plugged it back in, that's kind of fun to try to No that's that

That's the weirdest thing. I was looking as like surely someone has put my best friend on the accidentally in love sequence, but I can't find it. Weird.

That the other weird element is that is that song, the Count and Crow song, has snuck into my daughter's algorithm recently. So she's been like listening to the side. And she's not a Shrek fan or anything.

Not a chicken yet. This is the gateway drug.

Not a Shrek fan period actually, I think, for her.

Really?

I think so.

Well, you know, I can't agree with you on everything. Um get a load of this. Uh I feel like this is maybe known but I ran to some people that haven't seen this before, so I'll share it. Um Kodak a while ago dropped um a product called the Kodak. Charmera, which is a keychain digital camera. It's super tiny. I finally got my hands on one. They're like twenty or thirty bucks, I forget how much.

I keep reading this as Kodak Chimera.

Yeah.

I that yeah, it is hard not to read Chimera. Which I wish that was also coming up more'cause that's just fun.

Box element into different colors or something.

something? Yeah, they're just different colors. Like the one I have is like red, the other one is like they have like a clear one, a blue one, or like a secret one. It's just kind of another fun thing. I and I funnily enough I picked it up in person.

That's good.

Hey, uh get a little this for the cat in my house that I do understand, Nami. I had to buy her some medication online, and there were thirty-five different flavor options.

Yeah.

For my cat's medicine.

That's bad.

bad and I can't for the life of me figure out why and I will never I'm not gonna like well taste that obviously Nami loves banana

I wanna know like how cats ta like I wanna taste what they're tasting'cause my cat also had um when he had some medicine, one of his was bacon flavored and I feel like he was into that bacon flavor. And it's like I always ask like

Yeah. It's like given the amount of time that my cat spends licking this, I think his favorite flavor is New Yorker magazine. Also cats just love licking paper. Really?

Weird element.

Pretty good about that.

Is the vet, which is very casually, was like, uh and of course get marshmallow. I was like why?

Down to that.

I love that so much.

They have, like,

Yeah.

Yeah.

It's like one of those things that's just eating at my brain of like why are there so many flavours there shouldn't be why is

Who's testing them? These are okay, we're gonna use a stone our territory.

in there shared and they said, Hey, that Burger King in Puerto Rico that Ben went to at the launch of Modern Warfare three, it's all Star Wars up and they shared an Instagram video and it is like for the Blockbuster launch of Mandalorian and Grogu, they there's just this one Burger King, and we made a YouTube short about it, you can find it, where they just like

Long episode.

Yeah. There we go. Jacob, you got something to say, buddy?

Walling episode.

Loot up that Xbox and play some exclusives, Jacob?

There we go. Alright, there we go everybody. We'll be back next week with a new episode. Thanks so much everybody. Be good have fun. Let's go.