Julius

14:00 BST for us Brits is pretty early for a Nintendo Direct, even if a Mini! Might be a hint at the presence of some games the Japanese audience would be interested in? As that would be 22:00 JST (which still isn't a friendly time I guess, but much better than their typical E3 slot at 17:00 BST/01:00 JST). Either way, keeping expectations firmly in check. Mario + Rabbids 2, probably Persona with all the talk there has been, probably a couple of other ports too? Enter, Stage Right, you damn Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters

Well, somehow we're already at the tail end of June, and officially a few days into summer. The recent heatwave across Europe has been a firm reminder that this is the time of year for most to don the sunscreen and hats before hitting the beach, but for those of us playing games, it's also a time to draw those blinds and curtains, find a way to cool your room by any means necessary, and dig into some more gaming escapades, new or old. This year I've found myself saving my first playthroughs of Super Mario Sunshine and The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker for the summer, because these games undeniably have some of the qualities of a quintessential summer game: sweeping sandy beaches, tall tropical trees, and rolling azure waves. And it got me thinking: what are those quintessential summer games? While I definitely think there's a temptation to lean towards tropical islands, a sandy beach and rolling waves alone a summer game does not make. There's a certain vibe, jolly and frivolous, that I think can capture a summer game, but I also find that more casual adventure games can also hit the spot. And I'm sure we all have that one game we associate with summer which probably has no business being associated with summer, beyond our own personal experiences with the game, whether it be because of an E3 trailer, or even just digging into a horror game for the first time in the dead heat of summer, but I want to hear about those too. For me, one of the first things to come to mind is the Uncharted series. They're the video game definition of a summer blockbuster - a modern recapturing of films like Indiana Jones - sending us off on globetrotting adventures to track down treasures lost to time, all the while firing from the hip, ducking for cover, and lunging for that next ledge. Another type of game I strongly associate with summer is a kart racer. We can jump into specific games - I've made no secret over the years for my fond summer memories of drifting around Shibuya Downtown as Opa-Opa or Billy Hatcher in Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing! - but the pick-up-and-play nature of a good kart racer makes them a perfect type of game to play in the summer for me. Races aren't particularly long, meaning that when you're not having chaotic fun screaming obscenities after going from 1st to 6th at the finish line, you can sneak in an ice lolly (or two) and have a fan blasting cool but recycled air at your face the whole time. N-E, I turn it over to you: what are your quintessential games of summer? And better yet, are there also any gaming memories which immediately jump to mind when you think of playing games in the summer?

Looks like we've got the games for July: Pretty solid looking month!

More rumours have been going around about this upcoming week having a Direct, and apparently it will be more akin to the Direct Mini: Partners Showcases we saw back in 2020, with a focus on third party titles. And from the VGC article: Man, I would love to see the potential mess that is Red Dead Redemption 2 on Switch How would you all feel about it if we do get a third party focused Direct rather than a more traditional E3/June styled Direct? It would make sense to me that the claims of a Direct happening started so early if it's a third party showcase rather than one with Nintendo front and centre (because third parties leak like crazy, but Nintendo is pretty airtight), and though I'd be a bit gutted, it sounds like it might bring the goods on the third party front, at least more so than the 2020 Partners Showcases did. Do I dare starting hoping for the Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters to finally come to Switch/console? Probably not

I wouldn't say it's so much a case of it being scary (well, apart from one particular moment in a hotel basement; screw that hotel basement), but it's very tense and suspenseful throughout. Even going through this second time I would say I was still on edge a bit. Occasionally having to shake your controller as your torch feigns a sudden death certainly contributes to that. What I would say though is that on Normal I was tripping over myself with supplies and the game itself isn't particularly hard, so a lot of the tension comes from the atmosphere and its inhabitants (or lack thereof) a lot of the time, so in that sense I suppose it is creepy. I think if you wanted to turn the difficulty down, turn the brightness up a bit, took it slowly and picked up every last supply you could get your hands on to always be chocked up on ammo/melee weapons, the tension would certainly ease up a bit with the knowledge that you're more than ready for whatever comes, especially if you made sure to keep on top of item crafting and keeping weapons fully loaded. I always end up clutching a shotgun and toeing through areas with it drawn when I'm not sure what to expect, but am expecting something, though that didn't really happen this time around as I knew the general lay of the land already. Another thing I'd mention is that, as I think half of the problem for some is not knowing exactly what's up ahead, you can circumvent this a bit by relying on Listening Mode (R1) to see where enemies are that are making noise in most instances. You can also normally tell something is coming up by supplies suddenly becoming more plentiful. I was also a big fan of clearing out every area before moving on my first time around, but found this second time going through that there are a load of opportunities to just dash through an area. It's just a really good story too, and because it's so gripping I think it can be a good motivator to see the game through. Would love to hear your thoughts if you do get around to trying it out

Seems like we'll be hearing something very soon: I wonder if The Snitch has a Farfetch'd in real life. You know, because of all of the leeks.

John Williams has officially announced his retirement from scoring films. It seems like his final film score could potentially be Indy 5: My question is what the hell this God amongst men eats to still be composing at 90.

Going to give this thread one final bump before Part I probably buries it for all eternity in September, as I've just finished returning to the game for the first time with my Normal+ run. I've been thinking about going back to The Last of Us for a while now, but with Part I on the horizon, I got given the push I needed to go back to Remastered to enjoy it in this form again, as I doubt I'll go back after Part I releases. I'm normally a bit nervous about returning to things I loved the first time through, because it's rare that I enjoy something as much the first time around as I enjoyed The Last of Us on my first playthrough, and returning to things normally has me glancing over things with more of a critical eye. Yeah, to cut to the chase, my thoughts haven't really changed. This game is a freaking masterpiece. I've read through a bit of what I wrote here during my first playthrough and read back through my in-depth thoughts over in the 2020 Gaming Diary thread when I first played it two years ago (did someone throw a clock or something?), and honestly, I just feel like doubling down and then some on pretty much all of my previous thoughts. Opening: perfect. Pacing: perfect. Music: perfect. Survival horror mechanics: perfect. Art design and direction: perfect. Colour palette: perfect. Length: perfect. Infected designs: perfect. Characters: perfect. Writing: perfect. Ending: perfect. Returning to it this evening, I think Silver Lake might be in my top three levels in a video game, maybe even number one. People throw around that Naughty Dog just develop "movies and make them games" and that they are "too linear", and you know what, I can kind of understand feeling that way about Uncharted. But The Last of Us? Not even for a second. I think it's truly in a league of its own compared to the rest of Naughty Dog's offerings, which is saying something considering the quality and ambition of some of their other games. There were also some super subtle lines throughout which experiencing again after Part II felt like either a punch in the gut or a hint of what was to come, and intentional or not, it strengthened the connection between the games for me. Playing through this again knowing that Part I is coming up in September, it was hard to not have the question at the back of my mind of whether or not I really a remake is needed. And you know, I still firmly stand by my previous thoughts and the thoughts of many others on this: it doesn't need it. I mean, just look at some of the images above, Naughty Dog art directed the ever living crap out of this game, and it still shows nearly a decade on! There is the most subtle hint of stylisation to characters which means that, unlike some of its contemporaries, it still remains visually very striking and crisp, and though I'm playing the PS4 remaster of a PS3 game, the other thing striking about it is how little, if any, of the muddyness of most PS3 games translated over to The Last of Us. However, what I will say is that I'm honestly excited to see some of these moments play out again with the visuals of The Last of Us Part II. I'm genuinely a little nervous about how some scenes might not play the exact same way; so much of the story in this game's cutscenes are told through the slightest of changes in expression on a character's face, and while Part I will be closer to the original performances, that doesn't necessarily mean it will translate those expressions better. I will also say that while the game holds up perfectly well, it does feel a little clunky at times, just in terms of general character movement, some animations being triggered having your character sliding from one spot to another, one or two times where characters awkwardly fly about after getting shot, things like that. It's absolutely nothing to really complain about - certainly not something worth remaking the entire game over - but seeing as it exists, it's something I'd like to see Part I address. I'm also really excited to see how it will handle it's AI and potentially things like the dodge mechanic (it was a bit funny when once or twice in this playthrough I found myself tapping circle to try to dodge, and Joel ducking normally meant he did end up dodging ), just smaller things which will bring the game into the discussion of what a AAA game should aspire to be in 2022. This all being said, I do have one nitpick I didn't really get to ponder during my first playthrough, and I think that where this game is at its weakest is when it feels like it's reminding you that it's a video game: in its "boss fights", which are kind of glorified gameplay setpieces. There were only one or two of these in the entire game, but when they happen, it's honestly just a little jarring to go from a game which feels so distinct from the majority of games to "well, you have to use the stealth mechanic now because we've taken your equipment away and don't step on the plates". It's not a real knock against the overall quality of the game, but it's also something I found to be the case in Part II - though, in fairness, that was far, far, far worse than I think it was here, considering the timing of it, it's place in the game, etc. - so maybe I just don't like Naughty Dog's more traditional "boss fight" moments. Some might point at the QTE's for somewhat similar reasons, but honestly, after the first few QTE's are out of the way, you find yourself jamming Square to force a door open or Triangle to lift a garage door or pull a chain without really thinking about it. Oh and also, screw that hotel basement. Again. Lastly, I just want to talk about the game's ending, because I had a bit of a Eureka moment a while back when it comes to the final scene in the game. I was listening to a film podcast a few months ago now where these three or four people in the film industry were, for a change on their podcast, talking about games, and The Last of Us in particular; heck, one of these guys got to interview Neil Druckmann in the build-up to Part II's release. And what I didn't put together before - and can't unsee now - is that apparently one of Neil's favourite films is one of my favourite films, and it shows in The Last of Us. I don't really want to spoil the film for those who haven't seen it, so some spoilerception incoming: the name of the film, and then an explanation on how it's connected. This game is one of my favourites, and to me it is undeniably one of the best, more traditionally cinematic narratives in video games.

Man, the curation of the new PS Plus kind of blows. Don't feel like there's much visibility on the huge number of games available, and the filters suck too (who the hell is only going to want to filter by genre for most of these groups of games, Jim Ryan? Who?!), so hopefully that improves sooner rather than later. I'm shocked that there's no 'The Best of PlayStation' section to house all of the first party titles, I feel like the majority that's the selling point? Being subscribed is already coming in handy, though. I normally jump on with my friends on Fridays after work, but as one of us has been jumping on GT7 during these sessions (when none of the rest of us are in the mood and kind of have to do our own thing because of that), Fridays have become my "chill or just try something" day for games while I talk to my mates in the background. I'd been thinking about picking up Tetris Effect - Connected for a while, and with me now needing a game to chill out to, it seems like a game that would tick all the boxes for me. I didn't see it in the sale, so thought I'd check it's price and potentially just give in, but it's in the new PS Plus games catalogue, so that's a win I've also downloaded Toy Story to give it a spin when I'm in the mood and make my younger self proud, excited to revisit it but a little nervous about how clunky it'll probably feel!

Yes, as far as I'm aware it is. I've had a little look around to see if anyone's mentioned anything about it no longer coming pre-installed, but can't see anything of the like Man, you've just reminded me of how much I hope we get a successor/sequel sooner rather than later...

Don't get me wrong, I love some of those too! The Hall of Greats in particular was a highlight (well, other than the times Isla would get salty, and then there was that whole Final Fantasy VII ordeal...) and Box Peek was great too, but as you go onto say, I just don't think it's what they should be centred around. The Gen That Was also deserves a mention, and personally, I was a big fan of Tabletop Escapades, a lot of dumb stupid fun moments listening to that! I still feel sorry for Kyle when it comes to Box Peek - the show absolutely deserved more attention - but it's a bit of a catch-22 in that he wouldn't have the opportunity if not for the stability Easy Allies supporters afforded him, but at the same time, it was doomed to fail from the start in terms of viewership because 1) the Allies have talked at length before about how the algorithm hates them, and 2) good luck getting the algorithm to now promote a show about paper cutouts for a gaming channel. In fact, I think a big part of the algorithm "hating them" might be exactly to do with them not having any real focus. New projects require energy and passion, but I think confidence in knowing that you have stability can be a huge part of it when living in a place like LA. It's difficult because you do need to offer Patrons exclusives, but at the same time, when you're a personality based gaming news company, locking things behind paywalls such as Trash Babies and a few other shows almost makes it feel like there are weird levels of exclusivity to the community, and it doesn't really grab you when some of their publicly shared stuff can be hit and miss. I guess for me it's that they stream, because..? Oh, because it was successful for the group at GameTrailers in helping them found Easy Allies and getting that core group on a platform and building this community from that. It's honestly been really weird to watch from the sidelines as they promise more streams and so much of the feedback I've seen (so might not be totally representative) is that they don't want them. I want to be clear here, there have absolutely been some streams I've loved and a few highlights channels are well worth checking out for the Allies, but for a company where all of them - with no exception - state that it's frustrating sometimes that their reaction videos do so well considering they have so little effort put into them compared to some of their other work, that's exactly what you're trying to capitalise on with a stream! There's no problem with that, but I think it's things like failing to reconcile and recognise that which just shows this lack of direction. I think they could have got by on one or two group streams a week, Easy Livin' and anniversary events once a year, the occasional fundraiser if required, and ad-hoc streams elsewhere depending on workload. Yep, for me Kyle's that one creative but quirky guy that has consistently great ideas which stand out enough to be great hooks for them as a business and for us as fans. I know his bits aren't for everyone, but things like Hall of Greats just simply wouldn't exist if not for him, and no offence to Blood or Jones, but I think Kyle was by far and away the best at starting a conversation on the podcast: he would set up the conversation, step back, watch where the conversation went, when it petered out he'd know to move on, he'd pay attention to who was contributing and knew the right buttons to press to get anyone on the quiet side to speak up, and so on, and I think his passion for gaming news shone through (he's said it before but he'd be checking on this stuff anyways, so research wasn't really research). And his back and forth with Jones was just top tier, it's why I think he's best as a secondary moderator because he'll say it himself, sometimes he can't shut himself up, and that helps to keep the energy levels up and is a good way to draw other panelists into the conversation. On the other hand, while Jones definitely improved as a host of the podcast as time went on during his stint, there were times where he would be on the verge of asking a question, give his thoughts, and then open it up to the panel, which I found just didn't work as well. Honestly, I think they needed a Community Manager when they made the move to the studio. That was the point at which they sized up, that was the time to strike, and I'm sure they regret not having done so at the time, but hindsight is 20/20 and all that jazz. They made it clear that Gabby isn't going to be a personality in the same way the others are, even if she will be present for the occasional stream. I just think it was a case of terrible timing with her coming in just as Ben's leaving, though in fairness it was a pretty snap decision from Ben by the sound of things (I think his wife got her new job offer on Friday? Though maybe it's been in the works in the background for a little while now). Yeah, definitely. Like you say, the lack of focus is what's got them into this position, and I think for me the telling sign was that I wasn't really ever clear on what they wanted beyond getting their own studio. Did they want Easy Allies to be the next GameTrailers/IGN/what have you? It's different for everyone I guess, but I think most people need goals to aim for just to keep them in check, and then scale up or down accordingly. It's felt like they've been in a weird limbo state since moving to the studio, but then again, that feeling could just be down to the dreadful timing. Still a shame in my eyes that Kyle didn't go onto create a Final Bosman successor until he left the Allies. That was something a lot of the audience had been begging for ever since Easy Allies started, and could have been a great hook for them in the same way Final Bosman was for GT. Yeah, that's one hell of an unfortunate truth which just seems to permeate everything gaming from top to bottom: whether you're a developer or a reviewer, there's always going to be someone with more hunger who is younger on their way up. I think, tangentially, it relates to momentum. Twitch streamers don't rise to the top overnight, but there's a snowball effect whereby most start streaming for a few hours a day, and as their popularity soars and they earn more, they can quit their day jobs and go full-time with streaming, and I think it also has a psychological effect for followers and subscribers -- who doesn't want to be involved in whatever the new hotness is? I'm not suggesting the Allies lacked hunger when they started, but they started from a great place that not many successful streamers get to: they had a built-in audience and a successful Patreon which already meant they were full-time on what they wanted to do. Problem with a built-in audience is simply that it can be tough to attract new audiences, because it's almost like they're already walled off - it's not that it can't be overcome, but it takes a lot of work. I remember it definitely took me a while to get up to speed on the Allies when I first started watching them, and I've since gone back and listened to GT Time, and let me tell you, it was like my Third Eye opened just connecting all the dots from their past to the present. Absolutely agree on the potential for a job in gaming to be draining, I mean with the Allies it's reviews (high pressure), streaming (high pressure), it just creates a messy work-life balance which can be difficult to maneuver. Hell, I get drained from games sometimes and I only play them, keep up with the news, and talk to you rowdy lot on here, but I know my eyes would be burning into the back of my skull if I had to stare at a screen as long as some of the Allies must do. I think it's been a trend we've seen over the last few years that traditional gaming journalism has been dying a pretty sudden death, but it's not like it hasn't been building towards this. I think you're right, as well as the age of those involved, there's also definitely a generational gap where most people my age and younger are tuning into streams much more (the best way I've heard it phrased recently is that Twitch is the new YouTube and YouTube is the new cable). I don't even necessarily think it's so much a time thing anymore (for streaming viewers and creators), so much as what greater distraction can there than to form a parasocial relationship with a person/people you can instantly access through your phone, and likewise the reverse for that person/those people and the feedback loop they get from chat? It can be dangerous, and it can be scary, but I look around and I can't say I'm surprised Getting back to the Allies though, one last thing I want to bring up (or back up) was the discussion Ben had with Kyle and Damiani on Episode 100 of Frame Trap, when during the Hottake they talked about how they felt about EZA and what they could improve (below is linked to the Hottake). I've gone back to this every time an Ally has left or big changes have been made, but I think it was clear even when this episode of Frame Trap went up that there was a creative tension over the direction they were taking. I think Damiani nailed it square on the head here, he pretty much says what we have been by talking about regrouping, nuking their content from orbit and going forward with the main podcast and Frame Trap at the core. Also interesting and pretty telling I think, just with us talking about lacking direction, to hear Ben say they didn't have any expectations going into launching EZA and that they all sort of fell back into their old roles.

Wasn't expecting it to go live at midnight, but here we are! What's everyone looking to download and play first?

There was precisely a metric butt ton of news today as Yoshi-P's interviews for the game have been published: Square Enix, PlayStation Blog, IGN, and Game Informer, amongst others. For a handy thread which summaries the key points: AI-driven party members kind of sucks, but it wasn't totally unexpected. Larger zones over an open world and a trailer in the Fall though? Sign me the hell up

Yeah, I've got to agree with you here. I think they found themselves stuck between shifting poles, holding onto the past in the form of 5-10 minute reviews (and to be clear, I love their reviews, but they got a fraction of the attention I think they deserved and ultimately take up too much of their time and energy), and struggling to make it as streaming personalities. Hell, even things like retrospectives are a thing if the past now and in-depth deep dive documentaries are the route that form of discussion has taken, because any old Joe Schmoe can take the time to read a few wikis and cobble something together. I think what they've really struggled with is making use of their industry pedigree, it's what they have over 99% of the creators on Twitch and they rarely tap into it. They had a team of nine there, and I feel like they could have created something so much greater than what's ended up being a but of a scattershot approach; pretty much all of them have a good chunk of their time taken up by writing reviews and appearing on shows. The main podcast and Frame Trap aside, I think there's been space and time to cut their content down and free people up for a long time now; no offence to the guys, but while Damiani does a great job of bringing guests in for Friend Code - far, far, far more than the main podcast and Frame Trap - a harsh truth is that they simply didn't need a Nintendo-focused podcast when they already have a place to discuss the news and place to discuss playing games. Have the main podcast, Frame Trap, and reviews as your core (and you don't need to review everything -- you have Frame Trap!) and I think you're golden to be perfectly honest. For example, something I think would have been great for them: Frame Trap has a Hottake every episode asking questions which are on all of our minds, and we get focused discussion on those topics when we don't really get it anywhere else from people in the industry. How did that not become it's own thing? Don't make it like Opinion Yell, but just a few guests who have read up on and are going to dive into difficult conversations that the audience has all the time. Open worlds, difficulty in games, accessibility, E3, developer issues (how many developers do they know, and how many have been invited on at any time to EZA? It's nuts!), things like that. I think they just got stuck in that mentality of the old ways, where having more produced shows was seen as the goal and, like you said, seeing what stuck. I get having fun - I absolutely do - but I think it's different compared to when they were at GameTrailers: while there's room for risk that people have provided to you, spreading yourself too thin is going beyond taking a risk in my eyes. Secure the bag first and foremost, because at the end of the day, that's literally what's keeping the lights on. Sometimes I think back to what Kyle said in his leaving Q&A with Ben Hanson and, while I don't want to suggest they were lazing around or too built in their ways, the way Jones talked about the company (he called the others his employees more than once after EZA started, not sure if that was just him forgetting or gave us a bit of insight into how they all kind of saw things) wanting to take on feedback and then never really taking it on or driving the company forwards always gave me the impression he took his foot off the gas just a tiny bit, and that was more than enough, and similarly I think Blood has been a big factor in them more or less being a GameTrailers 2.0 and sticking so vehemently to regular reviews. Isla is very creative, but sometimes I think without a focus and clear direction she loses her way a bit, sinks a lot of time into time-consuming projects like Mysterious Monsters and Trash Babies, then gets frustrated when they don't do as well as she probably hoped. Ultimately, I just think everything else ended up being a distraction: we're all here for the games, and I think they lost sight of that in some of their projects. I think having a core and then something like a Hottake spin-off show where they can actually show off their personalities and perspectives even more would've been great for them, especially considering that it's their personalities shining through in reactions which has done so much for them in the past. It was impossible for them to know but the timing of getting into the studio was absolutely abysmal. I agree, though. Peak Easy Allies for me was just nine people in a garage. It wasn't sustainable, but that vibe just helped carry so much of their personality. Wonderfully said, and absolutely agree; imagine my experience with them mirrors yours to some extent. I hit a very rough spot in 2017 where I was having having a lot of trouble getting to sleep, and it was absolutely dreadful; I get a pit in my stomach just thinking about it. Having Frame Trap and the main podcast on in the background was often the thing to calm me down and actually get some rest. Yeah, that hurt to learn. I remember I was pretty restless one night and tuned into the below stream live as it started, and the opening minute or two when he says it is just absolutely gutting Like you and @killthenet say, he's lost a lot of family in recent years too. I hate to try to equate what you put out to what you should get in return - if only life were so simple - but MY GOODNESS has one of the most positive and high energy people I know exists out there in the world just been dealt one of the absolute worst hands these last few years. I've seen people start to complain he's streaming too much and I'm just sitting here asking, are you freaking kidding me? He's doing what most of us would do in the same situation and trying to distract himself from what's been going on EDIT: also just realised that this week's Frame Trap is probably the final one, and I've already watched it

Watched Part VI of Obi-Wan Kenobi this morning, and again just. Definitely enjoyed it a bit more the second time around. Overall, I can't help but be left feeling a little disappointed and underwhelmed by the show, even if it had some great moments, particularly concentrated in its latter episodes; Part V was pretty easily my favourite episode of the show. It did the most for the key characters in terms of growth and confrontation, but being so late in the show, we don't get to spend too much time with the development that spins out of the episode - this hurt a lot of the characters, but especially Reva, who didn't really get a chance to come to the forefront properly until the latter stages of the show. As a result, I found Part VI to essentially be us just trying to wrap everything up as neatly and as briskly as we could. I think I'll need to sit down at some point and watch the whole thing through again in a single sitting, because I think the pacing of the show for a weekly show was just incredibly off, and I imagine that's a hold-over from the initial plan to have the Kenobi project be a film. And, honestly, I do think this could have been a film, because in the end it felt to me more like a film stretched out to be a miniseries but with the budget of a TV show. Yes, there are some great looking shots, and some great set pieces, but as I've been saying since before it aired and will double down on now: this should have been shot on location, and with a bigger budget to boot. Deborah Chow directed some great episodes of The Mandalorian but I just don't think she was a great fit here, and good lord, they really need to give the shaky cam a rest, as it turned some potentially interesting action sequences into a bright and flashy blur. I've been rambling on this whole time about the show's music, and I stand by every word. I think it's got the weakest OST overall for me of all of the major Star Wars projects since Disney bought Lucasfilm, with only Obi-Wan's Theme and Vader's Theme (which, still, just wasn't the Imperial March; they could have kept the theme but used it in tandem with the Imperial March, in my opinion) the real standouts. It's such a shame, because musically, this was the project after The Force Awakens that really should have aimed to bring it, which mirrors my comments about production values before. I think this should be yet another warning that trailers can be deceiving, and the music used in trailers especially so. I genuinely think there's some evidence here that things didn't go smoothly behind-the-scenes in terms of the music, but I'll save putting that tinfoil hat on for another day. I'm very much on the fence about whether or not I want a second season of the show. There's stuff they could do and explore, and while I'm over the moon that we got to see Hayden and Ewan back these past six episodes, some stories are just better left untold. And I think what comes next is one of them.

Ben Moore is leaving Easy Allies at the start of July, it's just been announced during tonight's group stream his wife got an opportunity to move on to a better job back in Iowa, and she'll be taking that opportunity and Ben with her, no hidden beef or anything like that. From the Easy Allies Patreon: Kyle, Brandon, and now Ben leaving in the space of just 2 short years (hell, Brandon's and Ben's official final days are just 2 months apart!) -- in case the writing wasn't on the wall for Easy Allies before, I think it certainly is now. Even after the funding drive a few months ago, they're still far short of their $40k/month goal to comfortably tick along, though I suppose Ben leaving might alleviate things for them a bit financially. I also can't help but wonder if the dream gaming journalist goal of living in LA to cover E3, and E3 now being pretty much buried, has played a factor? I don't know if it's just me, but over COVID I think Ben lost a bit of his wide-eyed love for games - I'm not saying he isn't still passionate, because boy is he, but I think out of all the Allies, he's the one I think has noticeably become a bit more jaded over the last couple of years. I think it's a natural reaction, to be honest, and I feel the same way, I think he's just seemed a little burnt out I guess is the best way to explain it? He seems like a smart, deeply empathetic and genuine guy, and is easily the best reviewer of the Allies in my eyes, so I hope he continues to work in games journalism, but ultimately just gets some space if that's what he needs; it's been a whirlwind of a two years for everyone, but throw in working from home and being on Zoom all day (also applies to a lot of people, sure, but then I guess they're also gaming a lot and don't really get to rest from it if needed), E3 all but going under for a games journalist living in LA and not one, but two, of your close friends/colleagues leaving your company, as well as your company steadily and consistently sliding from its peak? I can't really blame him. After Bosman and Jones left, the Ben/Brad/Huber dynamic on Frame Trap and in reaction streams was all that really kept me going. They're the only set of Allies who I think have truly continued to click since Bosman and Jones left, and "The Boys" just weren't capitalised on nearly enough outside of Frame Trap. To speak about Ben for a moment, his wealth of gaming knowledge, his thoughtful approach to discussion, and wonderful writing really makes him stand out in this day and age when so many traditional reviews and impressions feel so emotionless and boilerplate. All of the Allies are passionate about games, but Ben, to me, has been the one to best convey that passion, which in turn just makes him fun to watch and listen to. Frame Trap has been my favourite gaming podcast - period - for years now. I still go back and frequently throw on old episodes in the background when for some ambient noise when my apartment is a little too quiet for my liking. It tries to tackle some bigger questions but just focuses all of its energy on people talking about games, which I feel is frustratingly uncommon these days, at least coming from those in the industry. I honestly don't know where to look for another podcast at this point -- my gaming podcasts list has shortened year on year since I joined up here and started getting into games, and now my favourite one - and the only one I keep up-to-date with - is going away. Lastly, though, let's go out on a high: one of the greatest drunk tweets of all time -- Truly one of the Greats. Wish him all the best, but this sucks.

Per Gematsu, the game will be releasing on 15th September 2022 in Japan, with The Sleeping Hero and the Guiding Ally Offline expansion delayed from Fall 2022 to Spring 2023. Still no word on a Western release, but this wouldn't be the time or place for it

Well there's your problem! There's no E3 this year, didn't you hear? Eh, we've had Directs before which had a "focus" on a game, and the game still ended up with its own Direct. Didn't this happen before with Xenoblade Chronicles 2? It's 20 minutes long and focused on a niche and not exactly mechanically simple game, I can absolutely see the benefit of them having a Direct focused on this prior to a more general Direct, as in that Direct they can then go "go watch last week's/month's Direct for more details, oh also just a reminder that it's out at the end of the month" sort of deal. It saves all of us complaining about Xenoblade taking up 15-20 minutes of a 40 minute Direct, that's for sure Anyways, I'm inclined to agree with @killthenet. No idea if one is happening next week on the 29th as rumoured, but I'd be very surprised if we didn't get a Direct before this game launched, and so next week on the 29th is as likely as a number of other dates in that period when a more general Direct could drop. It could just as likely not happen, but I don't think this is a sign one way or the other. For a company which seems hell-bent on being increasingly unpredictable, illogical, and the Kings of Left Field, I don't think any level of logic can be applied to predict their next move with much accuracy beyond vague and general sweeping statements I do wonder who they're aiming at with a dedicated Direct here though, I feel like a lot of those buying the game are going to steer clear/know what to expect anyways?

Well...not quite what we were hoping for, but not exactly unexpected? Seems like we've seen so little of this considering that it's out at the end of next month. UK stream link:

Late last night I found myself in the mood for The Last of Us, I know Part I is just around the corner, but I've been in the mood to go back for a while, so lazily got to downloading the digital PS+ version of the game instead of throwing my disc in. Wait the 20 minutes for it to download, then boot it up; I figure I'll play Normal+ to pick up a couple of trophies to mark this playthrough, and just because I was looking for a chill time. Well, for some silly reason, the option to start a New Game+ playthrough wasn't there, only the option to start a New Game. Double- and then triple-checked that my save from my last playthrough was actually downloaded from the PS+ cloud - it was - but noticed that if I viewed the product in the PS+ Store, it would treat the PS+ and disc versions of the game separately. Waited the 10 minutes to install the disc version, and what do you know, I can start a New Game+ on that version. Just...WHY IS THIS A THING?! (this is a rhetorical question, I imagine it's an SKU thing, but still: WHY IS THIS A THING?!) To make it even better, it was late when I started the game, but boy does that disc drive love to sing, even when I cleaned it just a few weeks ago, and even with just a PS4 game I actually had to put the volume up pretty loud to compensate for this, so feel sorry for the nightmares that the click-clack of Clickers will now be giving my neighbours the next few nights! Is this the start of my transition to digital story, I wonder? Omori is still not up on the PlayStation Store, and the game's Twitter has been radio silent since Friday. I'm sure that a good sign

I don't have an Xbox so can't comment there, but even on the Switch yesterday it wasn't up until later on in the day; I know as I checked a few times because I was curious about the pricing, but it was still only available to wishlist based on its previous reveal(s). It's pretty bizarre that it's still not up on the PlayStation Store. Their Twitter asked for a bit of patience a day ago... ...but it's still not anywhere to be seen, despite, like you said, already being up on the Switch and for Xbox. Still undecided on what platform I'll play this on, and got a game or two to finish up before I get around to it, but it's been very bizarre to see this go from an underground Japanese indie darling that everyone was praising to getting barely any coverage here in the West the last few months, and now having these launch issues Either way, still very excited to get stuck in when I'm ready to! Heard that it's a heavy game, so might be one I need to mentally prep for

Thanks for sharing that @BowserBasher, hope you don't mind but I'll quote a bit of the article as they've got some juicy stuff in there to discuss! And also steal their image, just because it's a helpful visual They go on to explain that obviously none of this is 100% confirmed, but it's been corroborated with their sources, and the dates are more estimates than anything. But still, potential news is news, and it's fun to discuss! I'm actually surprised they'd seemingly go with a Kyoshi movie first? I guess I can understand them wanting to hit three eras and doing so in chronological order, and I suppose Kyoshi is a bit on the darker side of things from what I've heard than what we've had before, so it could be a good way to set the tone? Of the three I suppose it's also the one that they've got the most room to expand on in terms of on-screen presence (still haven't read those Kyoshi novels, so I still need to get around to that! But I do wonder if that will have much overlap, if any?) while not being a 100% new character and era. I'm 1000% onboard either way though! I feel like they could maybe also kind of make up for Nick's completely abhorrent handling of Korra and Asami's same-sex relationship to some extent here too. Zuko is the one I thought we'd get a focus on first, just as a sequel to the end of ATLA I thought that would be the one they came out of the gate with. I know not everyone is keen to see a story already told be retold, but adapting The Search just makes way too much sense to me. They could tell other stories in that era post-ATLA I suppose, but if you skip over The Search and have a movie based on Zuko...well, that would certainly be an odd choice, at least to me, I feel like providing answers to the lingering questions from the end of ATLA to a wider audience - especially if a movie is centred around Zuko - is essential before moving onto other stories in that era, you know? Especially other stories involving him. Honestly though, I think I might be most excited by the idea of Korra returning. LoK was hamstrung to hell by Nickelodeon before, so getting some Korra and Asami stuff where they're not having to do the thing that also happened with Adventure Time (what the hell were these dopey higher-ups thinking in the mid-2010's, seriously?) where they're tiptoeing around stuff a lot and getting in trouble for it would be nice. We never got to see what the state of the Fire Nation was really like from them inside in LoK other than through their presence (or lack thereof) during issues of politics and war outside of the Fire Nation, so sign me the hell up for that! Curious what everyone else's thoughts on that are There's been a lot going on with the Netflix show as of late which has kind of passed me by. To go over some of the recent stuff, there have been leaked set photos going around from inside their volume (the massive LED walls and set used for live-action Star Wars, they actually got a Guinness World Record because theirs is currently the biggest! They've also been filming on location too, apparently doing what's best for each individual scene, so that's exciting to hear) and honestly, they look insanely good; Amber Midthunder (an Indigenous Sioux actress) has been cast as Yue; C.S. Lee has been cast as Roku; and, well, shooting wrapped on the show yesterday. I don't feel like a Q1 2023 release is out of the question for the show? There was also confirmation that the first season will be 8 one-hour episodes, meaning it'll be roughly as long as the animated season 1 of ATLA, and reports are saying the show will have a budget of $120 million for its first season, or $15 million per episode. For context, this puts its budget in excess of shows like The Mandalorian. At this point, do I think the Netflix show is needed? Still probably not. Will I watch it? You're damn right I will

New Digital Foundry video on the footage we saw at the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase: Might as well also throw that footage in here while I'm here too:

I mean, we've known that since Remake released It's a tricky one for me, and I don't have the nostalgia some have for VII seeing as I only played it for the first time 5 years ago (it's already been that long?!), but a remake of something of the scale of the original Final Fantasy VII just isn't feasible in one game with today's audience expectations for AAA titles, so splitting the title up makes sense. Once you do that it's still a case of paring the game back compared to the original for a modern day effort, and I think you end up with 4-5 titles off the back of that if being faithful was the route they went, meaning the remake naturally needs to make the experience more linear anyways for story structure and flow, but also just for the scale to be suitable. That means needing to build out characters more, adding more to do, and so on, so very quickly the game just can't be a traditional remake. I think another aspect to think about too is that the original VII kind of saves going off the rails for its final third (where, personally, I think it becomes a bit weaker than the preceding two thirds of the game, but that's besides the point) whereas everything else I've seen in terms of Compilation stuff - I've watched Advent Children, seen quite a few cutscene and gameplay snippets of Crisis Core and Dirge of Cerberus - and I think it's that final third of the original game going off the rails which set the tone going forwards. That Remake ended up falling in line with that isn't all that surprising to me? It's ending absolutely caught me off guard a bit, and I wasn't a fan immediately at the time, but it grew on me as I took more time to think about it. If there's any problem I have with the Remake project, it's that Ever Crisis didn't release before Remake. I played original VII prior to release and I was caught out by the sudden mania towards the end of the game, which was certainly hinted at, but they went nuts with it and that's what caught me out; how many went into Remake completely unaware that it wasn't just a more fleshed out remake? Anyways, I think the move they made was bold, which deserves credit, and at least they clearly have a plan for it. In an age of crossovers and multiverses, heavy nostalgia plays, especially with a fanbase as devout as Final Fantasy's and VII's specifically, I don't think it's all that surprising that VII's Remake project looks to be the first in the gaming space to really attempt something of that scale and with the history and characters to try it. Going in a different direction to the original means that while they can revisit similar beats, they're not beholden to them, and with that expectation set now, they have more flexibility to tell their story and can capitalise on new ideas too. I think some will make an argument that the original game will always be there, but I'd argue that this simply isn't a faithful retelling of VII's story. They've changed enough to where we don't know exactly what's going to happen, the original is now more of a reference for structure and the main beats (or has been so far) and they are now basically doing a post-mortem and subversion on their own work from 25 years ago. I think that in and of itself is pretty fascinating (though fascination =/= actually pulling that off successfully). Kazushige Nojima is cited as the lead writer for Remake, mainly because he's frequently credited first and is the one seen writing supplementary material for Remake outside of the game. Don't forget that Nomura didn't know that he was directing the game until the announcement trailer was shown internally, and there are four writers and two other directors alongside him, as well as Kitase to report to, so I don't think one person can be held accountable; if anything, I think it just goes back to wanting (and having) to try new things with current technical limitations meaning a true remake of the original game with AAA production values isn't feasible. No doubt he had some level of signoff as one of the directors and would have been heavily involved in figuring this thing out, and I do think he set the tone for what the project ended up being with his previous work on Kingdom Hearts and Advent Children, but heading in that direction and having that tone wasn't strictly his decision. EDIT: to add and just to make it clear, I don't think Remake is flawless, and I don't want to seem like I'm blindly defending it; I enjoyed it a lot, but if you didn't, I can understand the frustration. This post is more me trying to say that I can see why they went the direction they went in, not that that's necessarily the right or best direction to have gone in.