Player 2's Podcasts

Oh, how the sets of ten keep on rolling by. With no surprise travel happening this time, we recorded this one on a normal timeframe and hasn't (knock on wood) missed any stories about XBoxes suddenly costing 20% more or some nonsense. Rather, we're looking back at the wow factor that shifting generations can bring. Or, at least, used to bring. It doesn't happen a whole lot these days. But just think about how closely Unreal followed Quake 2, or how big the jump from MGS to MGS2 was (and, again, how swift it was besides). With Hewso in charge, we also talk some games, too. Mecha, generic fantasy names, and very French-Otaku RPGs, specifically. Proof, perhaps, that as cool as next level whizz-bang is, it isn't really everything. Although it would be nice if Expedition 33 would support HDR... or at least load up properly without it. Games: Mechwarrior 5 Clans: GBFS, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Blades of Fire Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Aqua Wave by Paul Hadame Cast Tim Henderson Matt Hewson Rob Caporetto

Recorded early so that Tim could go traipsing halfway around the world, it only made sense that we focus in on the rise and rise of portable gaming. Afterall, how much big news could possibly drop if we put a show in the can a couple of weeks earlier than usual? Quite a bit, apparently, but caught in the time vortex as well it's not like Hewso knows any better. Dude's just chillin' in the corner playing XCom 2 on his ROG Ally... Well, mostly. We still have more (and less) recent games that we've been playing, and one (or both) would really benefit from a good old-fashioned mouse. Games: Tempest Rising, Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Slavic Roots by djpretzel Cast Tim Henderson Matt Hewson

Money-money-money, money-money-money... moooneeeey! Y'all hear that? That's the sound of everything being too damn expensive! Seriously, it's getting to the point where Tim is contemplating sending eggs to the U.S. for profit to fix what buying a PS5 Pro did to his savings. Never mind that those consoles have just gone up in price in Australia. Tim isn't in charge this time around, though. In this case, it's all Rob. Well, Rob with Renee and Tim in the guest chairs. As you might expect, they spend some time-sharing concern about the growing cost of the hobby and the kind of larger damage that this could do, if not _inevitabl_y do. Games: Life is Strange: Double Exposure, I, Robot Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Dream of Green by Wiesty, The OC Jazz Collective Cast Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto Renee O'flynn

Ahoy! What's this? A new Nintendo console, you say? Everybody knows about it and is already talking about it, you say? Well... would it really hurt to let an additional four people into your eardrums to reflect on the floodgates of Switch 2 opening up and rambling on about what the near future for this console may bring. Unsurprisingly, this is a bit of a long one. The four people in question? Tim is in charge, with Hewso, Renee and Rob in tow. Of course, it can't all be Nintendo takes, and we've been playing some games that you could go and buy right now, too! Which games, exactly? You'll just have to listen to find out. Or... err, scroll down on the site post and check the info. We've probably put it there, too. Games: The Darkest Files, Breakout Beyond, Assassin's Creed Shadows Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Shredding the Rainbow by Andy Gillion Cast Renee O'flynn Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto Matt Hewson

Ah! Those were the days! Nothing sucked then: games worked out of the box, everybody got along and shovelware wasn't a thing. Or… maybe not? Surprisingly, resident retro-head Rob Caporetto heads up an episode of the PixelCast that is largely about pondering just how much rose tint we've all had applied to our glasses. He's joined by Renee and Tim as they waver back and forth, occasionally falling into fondly remembered trends of their own, but this episode still comes out as a snap-to-reality kick-in-the-teeth that hopefully won't have a dental bill attached. That shit's expensive. Games: Order 13, Look Outside, Another Crab's Treasure Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Verdensrommit by a faRk Cast Renee O'flynn Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

Recorded fresh on Mar10 day, the 155th Player 2 PixelCast is all about trying to whittle down a list of Switch games. Specifically, the ten games we feel that are the most quintessential to Nintendo's mega-success story. Does the crew include the games you most think should be there? Probably. Do they include every game you want to be put there? Almost certainly not. Blame Tim, then. We put him in charge of this one. He's joined by Rob and Hewso who are far less to blame for any mistakes, but will happily take credit for any insightful deep cuts to the true wonder days of the system. Games: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, Star of Providence, Aspire: Ina's Tale Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Chill Waves by a Tune in with Chewie Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

So many things have happened this year, at once shocking and not-at-all surprising. Planes landing upside down? Yeah, that just about checks out at this point. It's a handy time to be helming a site that's primary purpose is reporting on and writing about videogames.  But even that is a quagmire when it comes to predicting things. Nonetheless, Matt, Tim and Shaun spend this episode giving it a red-hot go anyway. Will they miraculously call out the key events in gaming for 2025? Probably not. But also, who's going to bother digging this out a year from now to prove it? Games: Elden Ring Nightreign, Monster Hunter Wilds, Returnal Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Heroes by a lot of ppl o_O Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Shaun Nicholls

There has been a lot of talk over the past year or so that this current console generation (and era in gaming in general) has been somewhat disappointing. While it's true that there have been some stellar games post-pandemic, and even some all-timers (Elden Ring, Tears of the Kingdom, Baldur's Gate 3), it's hard to feel that the cadence of quality has dropped. Is it largely in out rose-coloured imaginations, though? One can never fully discount the possibility... Over the past few years, the PixelCast has done the odd episode looking back at classic years in gaming past, and with this episode we have reached maybe out last. So, please join Tim, Rob and Renee as they mentally return to 2017 and discover that (spoilers) it really was as good as they remembered. Games: Utopia Must Fall, Urban Myth Dissolution Center, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Beautiful Rise by Roe TaKa Cast Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn

By a small act of mercy, our first episode for 2025 squeaked out mere hours before Nintendo caved and dropped a svelte video showing off (what we mostly already knew about) the Switch 2 at long last. It would have landed earlier, and Matt now has a second arsehole as punishment. We did mention in that episode that the leaks were very clearly legit, and that held up nicely... and has allowed the PixelCast crew to spend the second show doing the more enjoyable thing that is speculating about the stuff that hasn't been leaked. The crew in question? Well, we put Rob back in charge for this one, and Tim's here like a bad smell that has gotten into the bathroom grout, but we are also joined by one David Smith. Specifically, the one who was in charge of the Australian wing of Kotaku before that lovely little place was put out to pasture. Not the random on who wrote a review trashing one of the Tokyo Xtreme Racer games. That guy's probably a dick. Games: Tokyo Xtreme Racer (early access), Space Marine 2, Monument Valley 3 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Smell the Steamy Flowers by Reuben Spiers, Gamer of the Winds Cast Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson David Smith

Excuse me. What's that. Look... my clock is obfuscated by a half empty bottle of rum that I stole from Hewso when he wasn't at home. No, he doesn't know how I got in. No, he didn't even know that I was there. Yes, mentioning it here where he can see it is probably a mistake. No, I don't know what the date or time. Did you not hear me about the clock! Well... yup... it sure is 2025. Great start to the year. Let's pretend it didn't happen. At least for a bit. As such, Tim leads two fellow podcasters -- Rob and Renee -- on a trip to talk about their favourite games of 2024. And even then the rules are loose. We can look forwards from the next episode... Games: Minishoot Adventures, VED, Mouthwashing Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: How Mant Heavens are There? by Wiesty, XPRTNovice Cast Renee O'flynn Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson

Sleigh bells ring, carolers sing and the village is festive and bright But deep in our heart, we know that won't last and we are all due for a fright When the season arrives, it comes with surprise, and not a welcome one at that The old cranky bastard storms through our lives while wearing that bloody red hat He has shown up tonight, to put up a fight and end our Christmas cheer He is not here for cookies; he is not here for toys; and he is certainly not here for beer He has joined us to make sure there's no joy anymore and everyone goes home with a frown Sadistic Santa rocks up to mess everything up and scare folks right out of town So remember to hide and keep your wishes inside so they can't be twisted and torn Because Santa wants nothing more than to knock down your door and ruin your Christmas morn I really, really do not understand how we manage to pull one of these off at the end of each year. Do you, dear readers and listeners, know just how bad games can actually get? Have you ever dared tip a toe into the ewaste that litters the Switch eshop, some of the more questionable games that Steam at least does a somewhat better job of burying? That Alone in the Dark release that disappointed you at the front end of the year? That thing's an absolute masterpiece when put next to the kinds of things that Sadistic Santa delivers year in, year out to the fools who keep on reappearing on this episode of the show. Games: ... you're gonna have to listen to find out Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Cast Matthew Hewson

And so another year draws to a close and the PixelCast crew huddles together around their… microphones… that are plugged into computers in different cities and even countries. And, honestly, only Tim is somewhere that could be described as cold right now. He's not alone, of course – Rob and Hewso are also present to bring the heat. Or possibly be attacked by it. Good ‘ol Aussie Christmas, hey? In any case, we're here for one last (regular) show to chat about the games that we've playing, and to take a moment to realised that games that are cribbing off of mobile and TV recognition are actually… mostly kind of good these days? Gee, though, I wonder which game could possibly have inspired this. Games: Once Alive, Ace Combat 7, Indiana Jones and The Great Videogame Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Merry Little Christmas by Dale North Cast Matthew Hewson Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson

Ever set yourself up for a BBQ only to realise that your meat isn't really all that well seasoned and... wait... I'm being told that this is, in fact, not what this episode. No, this one is about that time I was led to believe that Grand Theft Auto 3 was a revolutionary gaming experience in a truly immersive world when what it actually delivered was garbage combat that made the already uninteresting missions worse, as well as an open world that may have just been built out of cardboard boxes filled with trigger-reactive events that made no sense and a story with the odd moment of overt sexism. The only thing that could have made it much worse was that remote-control helicopter mission from Vice City. What an absolute turd of a game. Ahem. Anyway. This episode of the PixelCast is kind of like a second half of a Hewso two-parter. Whereas last time we looked at games we liked in spite of a less-than-enthusiastic reception, this time things got flipped. This one is about popular shit that we actively loathe. Games: Xenotilt, Two Point Museum, Ascending Inferno Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Guile's Theme Goes with Metal by Shinray Cast Matthew Hewson Rob Caporetto Shaun Nicholls

Ever liked a game that the whole rest of the world just seemed to turn its back on? Well, not to worry – we've got your back. Well, unless the game was Loadstar: The Legend of Tully Bodine. That game just plain sucks. But in all seriousness, this episode is about celebrating the games that we loved despite not having managed to uphold the greatest reputation in the wider world. Hewso is in charge of this one, possibly entirely because of a desire to defend the (PC release of) the Saint's Row reboot. He's not alone, though – Jess and Renee are along for the road, as is Tim. And, heaven knows, that guy's taste may be completely in line with what everyone else thinks is good in some alternate timeline somewhere out there… Games: I Am Future, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Shadow Hunter by Error 47 Cast Matthew Hewson Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn Jess Zammit

With PAX Australia now firmly in the rearview mirror for 2024, we thought that we might take a moment to consider what it is that actually keeps on drawing us to conventions, year in, year out. Both our panel members and the conventions themselves have changed somewhat notably over the years, and we are painfully aware that it's not the '90s any longer. As perhaps the only Player 2 regular to have never actually attended PAX, it makes perfect (or no) sense that Tim has been put in charge of this one. Thankfully, Steve and Rob were both there earlier this year and are on board to keep the whole thing on track. Games: Mechwarrior 5: Clans, Sonic x Shadow Generations, 1000xResist Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: The Sound of Speed by OceansAndrew, Scaredsim Cast Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson Stephen del Prado

For some reason, Hewso thought it might be a good idea to invite a bunch of freaks and weirdos into his hotel room while PAX was going on in Melbourne. Fine choice of city; questionable choice of behaviour. In any case, this is an unusual episode in the sense that it doesn't follow the exact format of 90% of our shows, but it's also usual in the sense that Matt basically always does something like this around this time of the year. The only real difference is that there wasn't anywhere on the show floor itself to do it this year. Is that meaningful? You tell me. You're not the one paying for any holes in Matt's wall… Games: ** Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: **Walk on Water by Housethegrate Cast Matt Hewson Jess Zammit Stephen del Prado

With the way things are going in the world, getting stuck on a deserted tropical island or some unmapped alpine mountain my almost seem desirable. It'd probably hurt your gaming a bit, though. That said, imagination can be a fun thing to flex, and so we set some rules to discuss our desert island top 5 titles. This proved to be a pretty fun experiment, as the crossover between our absolutely most treasured games and those we would keep access to turned out to be pretty thin. We put Shaun in charge of this one with Tim sitting in reserve. Oh, and Hewso's back! Dude was just off travelling around Greece and Istanbul while the rest of us sat at home and slaved dai in, day out over our keyboards. Bastard. Games: GoW: Ragnarök (PC), Neo: The World Ends with You, DBZ: Sparking! ZERO Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Full Mast by Preenus Cast Tim Henderson Shaun Nicholls Matt Hewson

Who knows, by the time this is published and you're listening to it everything that there could possibly be to know about what we'll simply call the 'Switch 2' may have been leaked and everyone has already moved on to Microsoft officially announcing some kind of XBox handheld or branded partnership with other handheld gaming PCs. It's hard to keep pace with the speed of console news right now. Which is why, perhaps, Tim, Rob and Shaun foolishly decided to try and look into the next decade instead. What will the PS6 (which has already been in the news before the dust even settled over the PS5 Pro sticker-shock) be like? Will XBox continue as we know it? What gaming trends will survive, die, and emerge? Honestly, we don't know, but it is kind of fun to guess sometimes. Games: Star Wars: Outlaws, Dead Rising: DR, UFO 50 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Distorted Forest by Rockos Cast Tim Henderson Shaun Nicholls Rob Caporetto

Big fish, little fish, cardboard box! Big fish, little fish, cardboard box! Ahem. Sorry. To strain this into a truly tortured metaphor, some games are big, some are little, and for a sizable part of the 90s they mostly came in cardboard boxes. Nintendo didn't give that shit up until the Gamecube. Anyway, with the world going (rightly) nuts over Astro Bot, an apparently smaller game that has become a GotY frontrunner, we thought it might be a good time to look at the industry's weird obsession with the epic, overstuffed adventure and compare the pros and cons of huge games and more contained ones. Rob's in charge, so you can blame all the times the topic wanders down a side street on him. You shouldn't blame Renee. And you certainly shouldn't blame Tim. No, absolutely not. Not at all. Games: Farewell North, Astro Bot, Wild Bastards Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Celestial Winds from the East by MkVaff Cast Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn

Nein, Geoffory! Nein, nein, nein! We don't need any more of these stage shows! Yes, your dress sneakers are lovely (and, I hope, comfortable), but it's just been a couple of months since we last did this and we don't always need multiple drinks after dessert. Nonetheless, the Keighly opening light extravaganza of trailers and flashing lights has successfully invaded Cologne, Germany, and with it a whole new swag-sack of announcements to unpack. Or, rather, something like a modest lunchbox, but it still got stretched out a lot. This may all sound overtly negative, but Tim, Matt and Rob did all find some things of interest to talk about and look forward too. Well, Matt and Rob did, at least. Tim was in full cranky-boy mode. Probably because he had put down FF7: Rebirth for a couple of hours to play some superhero thing instead. Games: Age of Mythology: Retold, Castaway, Spiderman 2 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Baba Yetu (piano) by Modest One   Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

At the beginning of this century, Shenmue was listed in the (honestly pretty corrupt) Guinness Book of World Records as the most expensive videogame ever developed, with its protracted development cost sitting at around $80 million. Fast forward to the current generation, and Spiderman 2 is sitting at an eye-watering $300 million, over three times what its predecessor cost to develop. Is it any wonder, then, that some development talent is looking back towards the early-mid '00s and the trend of what we now refer to as 'Double A' games? Hewso certainly thinks that this is happening, and he's managed to drag Jess, Renee and (eventually) Tim along to discuss the apparent re-birth (or at least, re-nourishment) of this particular budget-category. Also, they talk about some other games and stuff while Tim was figuring out a flatpack bed frame, because this is a gaming podcast and all that. Games: We Are Not Alone, Capes, Star Wars: Outlaws Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Rain in Winter by The Vodou Queen, ZackParrish, Emunator   Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Renee O'Flynn Jess Zammit

After looking at the flakey ashes left by our previous episodes, people's dreams fluttering and dissolving in the air as the literal value of their words dissipates before our very eyes, we figured we needed to shift gears and try and find something at least a little greener to focus on for this one. Where did we land, exactly?  To put it very simply, we landed on the rise and rise of PC gaming. Tim's back in charge here, sweating his way through a Northern Hemisphere summer that he claims panelists Renee and Hewso simply can't appreciate. Apparently they could same of the current Aussie winter, but at least a hard-working gaming PC will generate some heat on the side. Not that that really came up – rather, this one became a mixture of reminiscing and reluctantly admitting that the way many PC game things work these days is probably for the better. Well, except for the bit were we're still waiting for something to come along and top the original Dues Ex. Games: The First Descendant, Tavern Keeper (demo), FF7: Rebirth Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Neonature by nervous_testpilot Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Renee O'Flynn

TBD

It's a two-man show this week. But take heart, because it's the finest two men as Tim and Hewso take to the recording chairs to ensure that the fortnightly podcast goodness remains delivered on time! Okay... so maybe only one of the finest men; it's up to you, dear listener, to decide which as they talk about games like it's the mid '00s! We're still in a bit of a slow season, so we dug into a bag of topics and came up with asking ourselves about Metroidvania games in general. What, exactly, is the appeal? Have they actually been quietly infleuncing game design since the gaming stone age? Why have they exploded over the past decade or so? All of these questions will be semi-answered in this, the 137th episode of Player 2's Pixelcast! Games: Beyond Good & Evil, Psychonauts 2 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Title/Menu by Metroid Metal Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson

Hyyyyyype Traaaaaaaiiiiiiiiin! Somehow, it happened! Amid all of the disappointment and despair in the industry, we got a Summer (Winter) season of announcements and updates that actually got us a bit excited. 2025 is actually looking kind of badarse now. And that was before Metroid Prime 4 went and got shown in between the time when this episode was recorded and when this post was getting typed. Nobody but Hewso could be the captain for this one, and captain he did. Join him, Tim, Rob and Shaun as they spend way too long trying to cover everything while still somehow overlooking Gears of War. It's probably just as well that this fortnight's episode gets right to the topic from the get-go, Games: Not today - too much goin' on! Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: The Edgerunner with Blazing Hair by Treyt Cast Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson Matt Hewson Shaun Nicholls

Do you feel it? That summer heat? All of that there scorching excitement layered in sunshine as a Bubble O' Bill melts its way down the paddlepop stick offering your hand short cool reliefe that will soon become a sticky annoyance? No? Yeah... calander events should probably stop using actual seasons in their titles. Summer Game Fest only happens in summer for half of the planet. That's what this episode is about, though. Tim's got everyone in to record early so he can go off galanvanting around... Australia, actually. Guess everyone on the cast is going to be cold when you hear this. The 'everyone' in question here consists of Renee and Rob, and together they all do a likely poor job at anticipating what this season of games reveals is likely to bring us. Games: Wizardry Remake; Cozy Caravan; Horizon Chase 2 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Honour, Pride, Green Tea by Tuberz McGee Cast Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn

You see, this Shaun fellow loves himself some kung fu. Tim, on the other hand, only knows what he has seen in a handful of movies, and so thought it fit to shove him into a pond because the master types in those movies aren't exactually… nurturing tutors. That is to say that Shaun is in charge on this one! He's joined by Nick, Renee and Tim as they talk about a few games they've played over the past week or two, and then look even further back and mull over some gaming fads of past and present. At least, they eventually do, once they stop talking about rhythm games. Games: Little Kitty, Big City; Harvest Island; Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Honour, Pride, Green Tea by Tuberz McGee Cast Shaun Nicholls Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn Nick Getley

Remember how clever design decisions or visual tricks just blew your mind as a kid? Maybe you do, but in our case, these things are things that we actually only come to appreciate years after the fact. That's what this episode of Player 2's PixelCast is about: finally giving some due to games (and gaming-related things) that did cool or innovative things that we played back in our school days that we just kind of took for granted, actually. Tim's in charge of this one, and he's joined by the likes of Rob and Matt. Bring in a topic about remembering when you were are a kid and of course you're going to attract the retro guy! Oh, and they've been playing some newer stuff, of course. That gets covered, too. Games: Lunar Lander Beyond, Phantom Fury, Tears of the Kingdom Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: The Sound of Speed by OceansAndrew, Scaredsim Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

It's all about that ookie-ookie waku-waku feeling as this latest PixelCast episode brings the fresh beats! Or maybe not, but there is some talk about music. Soundtracks, specifically. This is more a jukebox kind of a thing than it is about carefully composed scores. You know, good old radio-friendly tunes. We suspect that this is because Hewso wants to talk about the music in Brutal Legend. Or maybe that sequence in Alan Wake 2. It certainly has nothing to do with Tim and Jet Set Radio. No, really - he's not in charge this time! It's Hewso! It's been a while, but he's steering the ship again. Speaking of long absences, Shaun joins them as well! Games: Capes, Stellar Blade, Immortals of Avium Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: 4 Chords by The Axis of Awesome Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Shaun Nicholls

Remember Demo 1? First of all, if you're too young to remember Demo 1, please grow old very fast and die. Now, for those of us who are starting to find the odd white hair... remember Demo 1? Those demo discs that came with the original PlayStation seemed so special at the time - as did those cover mount discs that sold official tie-in magazines to us for several years! Then demos seemed to mostly go away and die. At least, until fairly recently. This episode sees Tim joined by a truly rounded crew, with Renee, Sarah, Ken and Rob all jumping in to talk about the re-emergence of the playable demo as a thing that a lot of bigger games seem to be getting on board with again. With this year alone having treated us to tasters of FF7 Rebirth, Unicorn Overlord, Princess Peach, Sand Land, Stellar Blade and PoP: The Lost Crown already, it seems that this more hands-on form of promotion is making a comeback! Games: Doronko Wanko, Dragon's Dogma 2 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Memories of a Master by Captain Hogan Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn Sarah Ellen Rob Caporetto

Things were simpler when we recorded the first ever PixelCast. Well, aside from how we kind of started at episode three for reasons that aren't worth going into here. In any case, the Rocksteady superhero game was surprisingly excellent, Microsoft seemed to have finally figured out the console market, and indie games were real goddamn indie games. And now? Look at how messy all of that has gotten in the years that have passed since! With Ken steering a ship manned by Tim and Renee, this fortnight's PixelCast braves the waves of trying to figure out just how do we even define an indie game in the current era. It was obviously going to be a messy and complicated topic of discussion going in and yet, somehow, they still failed to properly anticipate just how messy it would ultimately get. Games: Omega Crafter, Alone in the Dark, Helldivers 2 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Tomorrow's Starting by Michael Hudak Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn

In the interest of fun things such as, um, feeling very, very old, we decided to look back at another classic year in gaming for this episode. The year in question 2007? Many of us were underway in our careers, or at least moving out of home already at that point! How the hell could this already be considered retro!? Is Mario Galaxy somehow as old today as Super Mario Land was when Galaxy released? Surely that can't be right… … Sadly, it is, and Tim, Rob and Hewso spend this episode mulling over this grim reality while trying to cheer themselves up by simply recalling how electric the year 2007 felt for new game releases. They also talk games, or, at least, game-related media. It's a bit of an odd duck, this episode. Games: Last Epoch, Llamasoft: The Jeff Minter Story (kind of a game), Tetris (not actually the game) Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Gusty Garden, But it Sounds Like T-Square by WillRock, PROTO.DOME Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

We're 128! 128 bits!? Is this the episode of the Dreamcast and PS2!? Were either of those consoles truly 128 bit machines? The answer to those questions is no. Also, that answer doesn't really matter. We're here to chat RPG's today; specifically, we're supposed to be here to talk about what exactly makes a JRPG and if that genre label is even relevant today, but we kind of distracted and were probably lucky not to end up trying to answer questions like 'what even is game?' Ken's in charge of this one, and he does his darndest to keep Tim and Renee in check. Sometimes he even succeeds! At least he kept Tim from going too heavy on the whole there is too much Sephiroth in FF7 Remake thing. Games: Outcast: A New Beginning, Splatoon 3: Side Order, Rogue Trader Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: A Deus ex Harpa by DrakeSword Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

With the current console generation finally getting its engine properly warmed up, we couldn't help but stand back and realise that – damn, the PS5 and Xbox Series machines are over three years old already! Last generation, following the same timeframe, the PS4 Pro was out already! So, yeah… things feel like they're moving slowly, so we decided to look back and see if a sense of technical leaps used to be more frequent or not (spoiler: they were). Tim's back in charge for this one, with Ken and Rob… also playing demos on the side! Everyone was playing demos! So come one, come all, and check out our thoughts on a mix of Steam Next Fest drops, and that tiny demo of that tiny Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth thing. Games: Blue Sky Aces, Space Trucker, Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Sounds of Liberty by CarboHydroM, Scaredsim Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

Gurgle Somehow, we're already a whole month into 2024 and, despite living in a time of timid publishers being unwilling to gamble on many new ideas, wherein both Last of Us titles have been remastered for PS5 before we've even received a whisper of any new project that Naughty Dog may be working on, there still be a bunch of old properties that a few of us are left wondering why their shambling corpses haven't been reanimated in the interest of being able to sell a thing to a pre-existing audience. Hewso is back on the cast and fully in charge here. He's even joined by three extra panelists by way of Ken, Rob and Tim. Of course, everyone had been playing the odd game here and there, so there's a good chunk of time up front dedicated to that. Or, specifically, how great those Like a Dragon (Yakuza) games can be. Games: Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Counter Strike 2, Project Wingman, GoW: Ragnarök Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Legend in the Making by Sbeast Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Matthew Hewson Rob Caporetto

A new year! A new podcast! This is a long one, too – after chewing his way through Starfield for th efinal quarter of 2023, it seems that Ken has found something that he is actually excited about in the form of a free-to-play title, of all things. Suffice to say, his enthusiasm here is actually a bit infectious! He's not even the one steering the ship, here! That was Tim! Or, at least, that's what he was supposed to be doing. They're joined by Renee as well and together all three people recoil in horror at the realization that it's 2024! Dude, 1994 wasn't all that long ago! Who the hell is giving Donkey Kong Country permission to turn thirty? Being the first of the year, though, this episode isn't about looking back – it's about looking forward. And that's what we do during the second half as the stuff that we're excited to play as the year moves along becomes the focus. Games: House Flipper 2, The Finals, The Cub Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Lunatic Moon by Juan Medrano, zircon Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn

The Player 2 PixelCast 124 – Sadistic Santa Will. Not. Die. Gather round boys and girls, let me bend your ear For it is time to give you a warning, a warning you must hear When Christmas comes to your place, forget the gifts and toys For an evil presence lurks about, filled with malicious ploys You see this devil in red takes joy in crushing all your fun By swapping all your lovely gifts with things worth less than dung Instead of shiny electronic joy unwrapped on Christmas day You get a pile of broken code, a game that won't even play So when you hear those sleigh bells ring Be sure to prepare yourself for the sting Of a visit from that cranky bloke Who sees evil as a giant joke. Ignore my warning if you dare, But know Sadistic Santa just doesn't care He is here to crush your soul With terrible games instead of lumps of coal What? Just because 2023 turned out to be a great year for (playing) games, did you think that Sinister Santa may have a change of heart? It doesn't matter that this was a year that saw a sequel that absolutely blew Breath of the Wild out of the water, A D&D game that took the world by storm and a quirky horror title bring an all-singing, all-dancing musical number into our hearts. There is still plenty (and we do mean plenty) of trash out there, and somebody has to spread it around so that it doesn't just grow into one insufferable pile. So, congrats to Jess, Renee, Tom and Jason for forgetting to staple their stockings shut. Games: ... probably best left a mystery Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Cast Matthew Hewson Renee O'flynn Jason Hawkins Jess Zammit Tom Koch

Another year, another white hair added to the beard. 2023 has been a peculiar ride, a unique mountain-valley-mountain-valley landscape of ups and downs within the world of games. It may well go down as simultaneously the best year to be playing them and the worst year to be making them.  This leaves us feeling a little bittersweet about celebrating what we enjoyed playing over the course of the year. Ultimately, though, it still seemed better than trying to find games that sucked to talk about, and so Tim, Rob and Renee all plug in their mics to share for one last time this year what they've been playing over the past week or two, as well as what they consider to be their favourite games of the year. A fun part about just keeping it personal is that these things follow less of an expected format... so, uh - sorry for anyone who might be hanging out for talk of Baldur's Gate 3? Games: Robocop: Rogue City, Meow Tower, The Artful Escape Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Anthem of Misguided Youth by Ben Briggs Cast Rob Caporetto Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn

And all at once, every news anchor and talk show host said that we're nearly at the end of 2023 and can you possibly believe it. Time is meaningless, but we're all somehow one year older and there have simply been far too many interesting games released this year for any single person to play. All of which kind of brings us nicely around to this, the one hundred and twenty-second episode of The Player 2 PixelCast. Ken is in charge of this one, and he uses the chance to explain a part of the problem by talking about how he's almost 100 hours into Starfield, but still only halfway through the main quests. He also asks his co-pilots, Tim and Renee, about not just what they have been playing recently, but also what they simply haven't managed to find time and/or money for over the course of this year. Did we mention that a lot of good-looking stuff has been released in 2023? Games: Go-Go Town, Metroid Prime: Remastered, Starfield Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Camrade by Diggi Dis Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn

With Alan Wake 2 not only proving to be a much more out-there, creatively risqué outing than the 2010 game it follows on from, we decided that it was perhaps time to take a moment to express some appreciation for those moments when games get weird. Also, we spoke about horror stuff last episode, so that's off of the table. This discussion ends up spanning a good number of games and bounces quite liberally between the bizarre being used for legitimate expression and stuff that is kind of nuts in the more simple name of whimsy and fun. Tim is in charge again, mostly in the name of setting the structure back in order, but also a little bit in order to allow Hewso to force some terrible games on a few unfortunate P2 writers closer to Christmas. Speaking of Hewso, he's here too, as are Ken and Rob. Games: Like a Dragon: TMWEHN, Berserk: Recharged, Nier Replicant Remake Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Ancient Dreams by DJ Mystix, Sabivee Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Matthew Hewson Rob Caporetto

It's getting darker, the air is cooling down and… wait. This is Australia? Well, in that case the air is getting warmer and time has fragmented into a half a billion different zones. In general, though, it's not seasonally spooky at all, but since the Northern Hemisphere apparently gets to decide when festive things happen for the rest of us, it is nonetheless time to delve into horror games and look at what does and doesn't work for us with them. The us in this case sees a return of Tim to the host chair, with Renee and Jason providing immediate support. Ken shows up a bit later, too. Just in time, one could so, to become a little disturbed by just how gleefully excited Jason can become about some pretty macabre stuff. Games: Slay the Princess, Hot Wheels Unleashed 2, My Little Universe Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Static Aversion by Children of the Monkey Machine, Steve Pordon Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Jason Hawkins Renee O'flynn

It is that time of the year again folks, time to join the Player 2 crew on the PAX floor to talk about all of the goodies they ran across while fighting off the infamous PAX Pox. There are Bears in Space, Combat Wombats and Italian Plumbers with Elephantits, it is a veritable zoo of fun. Matt hosts this massive cast of P2 favourites including Jenn, Renee, Stephen, Matto and Jess and all of them go through the highs and lows of the annual fiesta that is PAX. Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: The Land of Fayth by RoeTaKa   Cast Matthew Hewson Stephen del Prado Jess Zammit Renee O'flynn Matto Phillips Jenn Christodoulou

This episode represents a scheme that has been a long time coming.  Hewso nicks off to Italy for an overdue vacation, making sure that Tim absolutely be present for each and every episode. Then, upon his return, Ken declares to good holiday games might make a fabulous topic for the next episode! Also, Hewso can only record on a night when Tim can't make it – effectively removing his ability to make this an episode dedicated to Christmas NiGHTS into Dreams. So, yeah, no Tim this week, but we do one better by offering up Ken, Hewso and Stephen! They have an interesting slew of games to talk about before some topic stuff that likely delves into the wild variety of powerful-but-portable devices that Hewso seems to be in possession on. And no Sega Saturns. Games: Starfield, Cyberpunk 2077 (ver 2.0), Witchfire Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: The Land of Fayth by RoeTaKa Cast Ken Lee Matthew Hewson Stephen del Prado

What a year this is turning out to be; certainly a unique one for the annals of gaming. Here we have a year that may be setting a new kind of benchmark for cross-generation viability, where things that feel truly new and shiny are still not as regular as we've been conditioned to expect, but at the same time we have seen an absolutely massive swathe of meaty, single-player experience arrive with eerie alignment. Octopath, Zelda, Final Fantasy, Baulder's Gate, Starfield... is 2023 the year of the big, epic adventure? That's the question we set out to answer on this episode. Well, it's the question that Tim and Steve set out to answer, at least. They actually arrive at an answer pretty quickly, so things turn more to focus on exactly what's up with that. Good thing they've been playing som recent releases as well. Games: Gunbrella, Immortals of Aveum Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Strife by Pixels and Paradiddles Cast Stephen del Prado Tim Henderson

Let's get this out of the way right now: Geoff Keighly needs up his security game (but otherwise he handled the incident as well as can be expected) and Sony's streaming-only handheld thing is a bit cheaper than feared, but still seems a bit silly. There. Done. We can get to focusing on some actual games now. Afterall, it is called Gamescom, and it also just happens to be what the crew is discussing this here episode. The crew in question is led by Ken this week, with Renee and Tim filling the extra chairs. It's a good show for games, too - not only were there plenty to talk about after the break, the the crew brought with them a weird and wacky suite of things they've been playing that may well be entirely unfamiliar to most listeners! Exciting (we hope)!   Games: Black Skylands, Dinkum, Embracelet Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Incantation by djpretzel Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Renee O'flynn

We got the episode number correct this time around, which we'll put down as a pretty strong opening. This is appropriate, as Tim, Ken and Rob spent the latter half of this particular episode picking out some games that really do put their best foot forwards and talking about what it is that makes their opening moments stand out in a sea of tens of thousands of videogames. Among other things, we learn that Rob hasn't experience with the opening moments of Saints Row 3 or 4! Madness! What may seem like madness, but really isn't, is that our crew makes it to the end of the cast without so much as a mention of The Last of Us or Bioshock. Those have been discussed to death already, and it turns out that there are plenty of other examples that deserve a slither of the spotlight. Games: Rise of the Triad: Ludicrous Edition, Final Fantasy 16 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: The Orchestra is a Lie by Dummy Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

Four people! Count, 'em! Four! We've filled all of the chairs for this one and space got so tight that fighting almost broke out! We say almost, of course, because Adam actually took charge of this one and, frankly, he is kind of jacked in a way that the other three simply aren't. The other three in question would be Tim, Ken, and newcomer Renee. But Adam was put in charge, and so the fighting theme kind of continued with a topic that would meander around fighting games and what makes their varying systems click with and / or repel different players. In other words, if our episodes had names, this one would be called 'what is the best fighting game, and why is it Virtua Fighter 5?'. Games: Wall World, Final Fantast 14, Katamari Damacy: Reroll Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Incantation by djpretzel Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson Adam Rorke Renee O'flynn

Welcome, one and all, to the Tim & Ken show! A strange and wonderful even that only ever really happens... well, okay, it happens fairly regularly: a couple of times a year or so. All the same, you should consider yourself blessed, dear listener! And not just because Ken has gone back on his 'only engage with newer stuff' motto, but also because he and Tim are out here ranking all of Nintendo's biggest (and mid-sized-est) franchises so that you can know what's truly hot shit and what's mostly lukewarm. It should be noted that neither Tim nor Ken are the most ardent of Nintendo fans and also, as the opening line suggests, there's nobody around to put the foot down and keep things in check for this list that will soon become a highly-official piece of Player 2 lore and identity. Games: Pikmin 4 (demo), Black Mesa Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: The Swaggin' Dragon by ToxicxEternity Cast Ken Lee Tim Henderson

Remember when Nvidia revealed the 4000 series of RTX graphics cards and we all thought that the current consoles had been squashed into the ground before they have even been given a proper chance to flex their muscles? Yeah, that was a thing. And to be fair, the 4090 is an absolute monster… but that word also factors into the price and even its physical size. Maybe crypto bullshit started it, but at this point, in the year 2023, it really feels like PC gaming has been shooting itself in its foot. Like, a lot. You might almost think it's trying to sever each individual toe. And so, the state of PC gaming is what Ken, Tim and Hewso are talking about this time around. Only one of the three has an up-to-date rig, mind, which in a way highlights a way in which PC gaming is better than it was in the 90s, but boy is he still not getting the best experience possible. The Last of Us is still torturing poor Hewso and his $4000 PC. Meanwhile, Ken is off playing less-demanding indies and Tim is parked in front of his PlayStation in the room where the AC is. Games: Final Fantasy 16, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, Blacktail Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Morning Jazz by AJ DiSpirito Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Ken Lee

Prepare yourselves for a podcast experience so long, so epic, so majestic that it… runs for as long as movies did back in the 1990s. You guys remember when it was normal for movies to run under two hours? No? Well, get off of my goddamn lawn! Um… what we mean to say is that this one is a little long. Not_ too_ long, but still well clear of an hour. The reason for this? Well, Tim, Rob and Hewso are here to reflect that everything that landed in the splash zone of Summer Game(s) Fest, and that, it turned out, was quite a lot of stuff. Starting with Sony's middling showcase and going right through Ubisoft actually having stuff to show again and beyond. Oh, and games. They talk about games, too. Even some pretty big ones, this time around. Games: Final Fantasy 16 demo, Aliens: Dark Descent, Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: SeeDs of Pandora by Jorito, Chromatic Apparatus, Juan Medrano, Sirenstar Cast Matt Hewson Tim Henderson Rob Caporetto

Can you feel the summer heat yet? No? Well, I guess you're in Australia or some other part of the southern hemisphere, then. That makes sense, we suppose, seeing as our site is based in this world of topsy-turvy seasons. Tim's off drinking IPAs in America or something, though, so he's left this one to the editorial guys. Presumably we can trust them more than him, surely? Certainly, the recording didn't refuse to import properly and cause this one to finish a couple of minutes before it was supposed to... Hewso is in charge, of course, with Steve and Paul bringing the support and, quite frankly, ludicrous guesses? Guesses about what, you might ask? Well, we tested our luck at predicting Sony's PlayStation Showcase last time (and may be to blame for it being a bit average, as we hoped too hard for something new and cool), so we're all in on everything else this time? Make sense? No? Cool. Games: LotR: Gollum, Lego 2K Drive, Street Fighter 6 Theme Music: Visitors from Dreams by Mathieu Stempell Dma-Sc Break Music: Raven's Dream by The Good Ice Cast Matt Hewson Paul James Stephen del Prado