Top Down Perspective

This week we're talking about our feelings around FBC Firebreak. Sean has also played through Death Stranding 2 and tries out Mindseye. Paul finishes Clair Obscure, Doom The Dark Ages, and Final Fantasy XVI. As for news, Xbox is about to have major layoffs, some Sega sales numbers get leaked, and Marathon was delayed. TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Paul now has his own Switch 2 so he shares his thoughts on that as well as Welcome Tour and Mario Kart World. We run through all the major news from Summer Game Fest including what Sean was able to get his hands on while down in LA. TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Just before the Summer Game Fest weekend, we got together to talk about what we expect and hope to see at the event. Sean also just got his Switch 2 and has been testing that our and playing around with Mario Kart World. TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean returns to tell us about his time in Europe and his new tattoo. He's been playing Doom the Dark Ages, Nightreign, and to a T. News is scarce but we discuss EA canceling their Black Panther game, NSO gets some new N64 updates, and Death Stranding is getting an anime adaptation. TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Nathan joins this week as Claire had a potential previous engagement but shows up as well! Nathan is reaching for the stars in Wario's Woods, looking for a good speedrun time, Claire is playing a variety of cool stuff and is particularly fond of Tactical Breach Wizards and Paul... well, let's just say Paul wishes he was loving Doom: The Dark Ages. In news, Bungie is accused of plagiarism (again!), Xbox adds retro games, Jade Raymond leaves Haven Interactive (the company she made years ago) and Randy Pitchford is saying some stupid stuff...again! TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean is somewhere in the world so it's up to the other two to hold down the fort. Paul has been enjoying the end-game stuff in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and has some thoughts on Doom: The Dark Ages early hours. Claire has been working through Mortal Kombat 1 despite being grossed out by how it's monetized and is working on Drawn To Life for game clearing. In news, Skype is officially dead, EB Games is coming back (for some reason), Sony introduces a new studio called teamLFG and the PS5 is likely going to be more expensive due to tariffs.  TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Paul is officially hooked on Clair Obscur and Sean dives into Blue Prince. News is quite a bummer this week as we talk about the recent layoffs at EA, Polygon, and Giant Bomb. TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Clair Obscur is out and Sean can finally talk about it after weeks of holding his tongue. Claire finishes up both Mortal Kombat 11 and 1. Paul gets into Crime Scene Cleaner and Post Trauma. We start off news about an unannounced and now-cancelled Blade Runner game. We also discuss Devolver Digital's top 10 selling franchises and Outrun might be getting a movie. TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean has played the Nintendo Switch 2 and is here to talk Mario Kart World, Donkey Kong Bananza, and Metroid Prime 4 Beyond. Paul finishes up South of Midnight. In news we discuss the ongoing pre-order situation around the Switch 2, PS5s are getting more expensive again, and Marathon's gameplay reveal. TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean and Jon are back! We begin getting out some of their thoughts on the Nintendo Switch 2 announcements last week and use that to talk about the news that's broken since about the Switch 2's pre-order/tariff debacle. Paul wrapped up Avowed, checked out Castlevania ReVamped and started South of Midnight, which Sean has also been playing as of last week. Jon gets super into Mortal Kombat 11 and does some Logiart Grimoire for his picross fix. TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week Paul is joined by former co-host Nathan for a nostalgia-fueled episode. Nathan's been spending time with Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts and Burnout Paradise Remastered, while Paul checks back in with Avowed. We also dig into a packed news segment: the resolution of the Karl Jobst vs. Billy Mitchell defamation case, the ZeniMax QA team threatening to strike, and layoffs hitting Eidos Montreal. And of course, we cover all the big announcements from the latest Nintendo Direct—especially the updates on the Nintendo Switch 2. From Switch 2 specs and release windows to what the next-gen Nintendo console launch lineup includes, we've discuss it all! TDP is listener funded. Like what you hear? Want to support the show and get ad-free episodes? Head over to https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week Paul is talking about Assassin's Creed Shadows and returns to Avowed. Sean can finally talk about The First Berserker Khazan and where he's stuck (although, at the time of this writing he has beat that stupid boss). In news we run through the recent Nintendo direct...before next week's Nintendo Direct. We also discuss some possible Switch 2 launch plans. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean is here with tales from GDC, including Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Hotel Barcelona. He can also finally talk about Assassin's Creed Shadows. Paul tries out 33 Immortals and plays a ton of Metal Slug. In news we discuss a possible Steam integration coming to Xbox, Ubisoft going after people harassing their devs, and Split Fiction is getting a movie already. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week Jon's talking to us about Sly Cooper 2 and the end of Shinobi. Paul continues with Monster Hunter Wilds and Sean finishes Split Fiction. In news we discuss a possible Xbox handheld coming this year, Niantic being officially sold off, and Xbox announces AI assistance for gamers. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean starts us off by talking about Split Fiction, he also brings up his time with Lost Records. Paul has been playing the other big release this week, Monster Hunter Wilds. In news we discuss Tony Hawks Pro Skater 3+4 finally being officially announced and the Acclaim name is coming back. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week Paul is checking out some Steam Next Fest Demos. Sean tries out Keep Driving. Jon is playing through Shinobi on the PS2. Big news this time is WB Games closing three studios down and cancelling Wonder Woman, we also discuss the many livestreams and game trailers shown. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Jon finishes up Spirit Tracks and Harvey Birdman this week. Paul is playing Castle Crashers and Avowed. Sean talks about Citizen Sleeper 2 and Lost Records. We start news off with the surprising Marvel Rivals layoffs, then we discuss Xbox's new AI program and Niantic looking to sell off Pokemon Go. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

We've assembled together once again to discuss video games. Paul continues with Ender Lilies and Sean gets into Avowed. During news we discuss the latest Sony State of Play, Astro Bot is getting more stages, and what is going on with WB Games. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Everyone is busy but Sean returns from overseas to talk about some games. He's been playing (and not talking) about Avowed, so instead he brings up Lonely Mountain Snow Riders and Rift of the Necrodancer. In news he talks about the previous Xbox Developer Direct, more Nintendo Switch 2 patents popping up, and Iron Galaxy having major layoffs. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

The Switch 2 is finally real and we spend most of this show running through that trailer and talking about everything we noticed and have heard about the new console. Jon's also nearing the end of Mario & Luigi Brothership and begins The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. Sean is getting ready for a trip. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

It's time to celebrate the video games of 2024! We're joined once again by original TDPer Nathan Rohr to run down our favorite and least favorite games that came out last year. We've got new categories to enjoy too! And, of course, the results of our Community GotY survey were collected and shared as we go along. Last but not least, we check in on the predictions we made last year to see how accurate we were and set some new ones as we look to 2025. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

We're back from the holiday break and talking about what we got up to and the games we played. Paul enjoyed Thank Goodness You're Here and Indika. Sean is playing through Monument Valley 3 and Arco. During news we discuss the Black Myth Wukong devs complaining about the Series S, Ubisoft is back with more NFTs, and Tango Gameworks got its name back. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean is back from last week's Game Awards with tales of the event. We also run through all the announcements and winners of the show and see how our predictions compared. In terms of what we've been playing, Paul is deep into Marvel Rivals and Path of Exile 2 while Sean continues with Indiana Jones. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week starts off with a big discussion about Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. We also chat about Infinity Nikki and Marvel Rivals. In news we talk about the PlayStation 30th Anniversary themes that were sent to everyone's PS5 as well as all the troubles Ubisoft faced last week. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week Sean is playing/watching Tetris Forever, Paul tries out Metaphor ReFantazio, and Jon continues with Mario & Luigi Brothership. News is full of PlayStation updates, including an announcement of a years-away handheld and the 30th anniversary website is launched, we also discuss a leaked Steam controller mockup. Community GotY form: https://forms.gle/86tUkwxUtE8yYNW29 Episode 738 TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week Sean is trying out Lego Horizon Adventures while Jon is playing Super Mario Party Jamboree and Mario and Luigi Brothership. In news we chat about cloud streaming getting added to the PlayStation Portal, Xbox beginning to let you cloud stream games outside of Game Pass, and we run through all The Game Awards nominees and make our own predictions on the winners. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective Episode 373

This week we get an amazing submission to Jon's PO box that we share during the question segment! Jon checks out Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, Paul is playing some gacha game whose name escapes me, and Sean tries out Overwatch Classic, Neva, and The Plucky Squire. News includes discussions on the Game Awards' nominees being announced next week, Xbox confirms a future handheld device, and there's a new white Steam Deck OLED. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective Episode 736

Episode 735 Sean attempts to put a solo show together, having never set up the livestream before. Then he has to figure out how to patch Paul in when he joins shortly later. It goes about as well as you'd expect. Paul's been playing Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Sean talks about his time with Black Ops 6, Alan Wake 2's Lake House DLC, and reviewing the PS5 Pro. In news we discuss Take Two selling off Private Division, Nintendo confirming that the Switch 2 will be backwards compatible, and a Mass Effect series is in the works. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Happy Halloween! This week Paul dives into the Monster Hunter Wilds beta, Shadows of the Damned Remastered, and Mouthwashing. Sean can finally talk about Dragon Age: The Veilguard and his thoughts on Double Exposure's ending. He's also allowed to show off the PlayStation 5 Pro's box. Jon continues with Control. Nintendo randomly launches a mobile music app, we learn the fate of Concord's future, and Call of Duty is selling well for Microsoft. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Jon's back to talk to us about The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom and Super Mario Party Jamboree. Paul's Nikoderiko and Alan Wake 2's Lake House DLC. Sean talks about the first two Life is Strange: Double Exposure episodes and brings some show and tell. During news we talk about no story DLC for Spider-Man 2, Nintendo's mystery game gets leaked, and the Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown team gets disbanded. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Paul's here to talk all about the Silent Hill 2 Remake while Sean finally gets to dive deep in conversation about Metaphor: ReFantazio. We have two weeks worth of news to get through including Nintendo's Alarmo, the Xbox Partner Showcase, Ubisoft possibly being sold, and 343 changing its name to Halo Studios. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

It's another big update on the movies and show we're watching. As for games, Paul is deep into UFO 50 and begins a Silent Hill replay in anticipation of the upcoming release. Sean continues with Echoes of Wisdom. In news we get a report on what happened with Annapurna, the 30th Anniversary PlayStation lineup went on sale to interesting effect, and we learn more about Tango's fate. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

There's a new Zelda out, Echoes of Wisdom, and Sean has been playing it. He also tries out Metaphor: ReFantazio and Prince of Perisa: The Lost Crown: Mask of Darkness. Jon is playing UFO 50, Dead Rising Deluxe Edition and the TMNT: Shredder's Revenge DLC. Paul calls in from his phone and it's a goofy time. We start news off with a rundown of the PlayStation State of Play, Ubisoft pulls out of Tokyo Game Show, and Assassin's Creed Shadows gets delayed to 2025. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Episode 729 Paul wraps up Space Marine 2 and dives into the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. Sean gets his platinum in Astro Bot, starts up Star War Outlaws, and can finally talk about his Dragon Age The Veilguard preview. We begin news with the possible Switch 2 images, we also discuss the 30th anniversary collection from PlayStation, and Nintendo is suing Palworld. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean has played the PlayStation 5 Pro! He's also checking out Tactical Breach Wizard, Jon is playing more Ys, and Paul continues with Space Marine 2. They're all loving Astro Bot. In other news, Xbox has another massive layoff, Annapurna Interactive might be no more, and Flappy Bird is coming back from the dead. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean is back from Europe with many tales of his time at this year's Gamescom in Germany. He played games like The First Berserker: Khazan and Life is Strange: Double Exposure, while also checking out Pepper Grinder and Astro Bot outside of the show. Paul continues with Black Myth: Wukong and World of Warcraft: The War Within. News is packed this week as we dive into the recent Nintendo Direct, layoffs hit Rocksteady, and Concord is being shutdown after just 11 days. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean is in Europe covering Gamescom this week, which leaves Paul and Jon to discuss a whole bunch of old games! Jon has been playing through the Ys games, especially Ys: The Oath in Felghana while Paul has been relearning how to play games on a leverless arcade pad (a hitbox controller). He's also been checking out the new DBZ moba Dragon Ball Project Multi and a small indie game called Blacksmith Who Kong or something. In news, we rundown everything shown at Gamescom Opening Night Live, Ubisoft lays off the Division Heartland studio, China has a lot of concurrent players, FFXVI comes out on PC soon and Wilmot's Warehouse gets a sequel. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

The Borderlands movie is out and Sean is mad about it. He also played through Ghost Trick Remastered and started up 1000X Resist. Jon is enjoying Time is Honey. Paul checks out Kitsune Tails and dives back into Super Mario Land 2. We finally have some good news this week since Tango has been revived, what's going on with Deadlock?, and Nicolas Cage is going to play Madden. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Who knows where Paul is? (He does show up a bit into the show and has been playing Earth Defense Force 6). Jon is quite disappointed with Nintendo World Championship NES Edition. Sean plays through Thank Goodness You're Here and tries out Valorant on console and the Omni One VR treadmill. In news we discuss Game Informer being aggressively shut down, the Borderlands movie apparently sucks, and Jedi Survivor is coming out for old consoles. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Paul is deep into Marvel Rivals' beta this week while Sean wraps up The Great Ace Attorney. In news we discuss Activision's skill-based matching making study, Bungie goes through another massive round of layoffs, and The Behemoth details its roadmap. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Jon joins us near the end to chat about Chained Together. Paul's playing through Kunitsu-Gami and Flintlock. Sean dives into the Marvel Rivals beta. News is a mixed bag of new video game unions, more layoffs, and EVO 2024! TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

The Concord Beta is out this week and Paul and Sean are checking that out. Sean also tries out Magical Delicacy and Dungeons of Hinterberg. Jon continues with Dead Rising. In news we discuss the FTC coming back for Microsoft, the Halo TV series has been cancelled, and Nintendo releasing a joy-con charger at a very odd time. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Games this week include Space Marine and Suicide Squad, played by Paul. Metroid Prime 3 is being played by Jon. Sean plays through Case of the Golden Idol as well as Skate Story and Neva's demos. We start news off with the recent Game Pass price increase/tier stuff, followed by PlayStation announcing it will be at TGS, and Nintendo teasing a weird horror game. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

It's free to play week around here as Sean and Paul are playing Zenless Zone Zero and The Last Descendant. Paul also finally dives into Erdtree. As for news, we're chatting about Nintendo's use of AI in the future, the Horizon Zero Dawn shown seemingly canceled, and Capcom is officially working on the next mainline Resident Evil. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week Paul is nearing the end of Nine Souls while trying to get his computer ready for Elden Ring. Sean is nearing the end of Shadow of the Erdtree. In news we chat about a new Street Fighter movie possibly happening, the Xbox Keystone patent gets revealed, and Xbox Cloud Gaming is coming to Amazon Fire TV devices. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

It's time to run down everything we saw during Summer Game Fest. Sean also gives us a look at what it's like to be there on the show floor and everything he got up to (including some fun swag). We also deep dive into Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week, the guys are biding their time. Paul checks out an early look at 33 Immortals, the previously known "Bloodborne Kart" and continues Nine Sols while Sean is pushing people around in Humanity and loads up Octopath Traveller II with no real intentions on ever finishing it. Maybe most importantly, he's begun Stellar Blade again and is getting good at parrying. Not much in news this week as Summer Game Fest begins soon and we are just preparing for the onslaught with some early info on the proceedings and the possible future of The Last of Us TV show. --- TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

The boys have wrapped up Hellblade 2 this week and are also discussing Little Kitty Big City. Paul has also been playing Nine Sols and XDefiant. We start news off with a rundown of Sony's State of Play, then we chat about Redfall's final update, and Call of Duty coming to Game Pass. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

Sean is back from his Magical European Extravaganza™ and has played basically all the games you want to hear about... from Animal Well to Hades II with some Lorelai and the Laser Eyes and even some Senua's Saga: Hellblade II. Actually, Paul also has been playing Hellblade II now that he finished Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and ran through Crow Country. Not much news, so we get Sean's thoughts on the big stuff from last week quickly for the most part.  --- TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

We're back after a week off and it might have been the most news filled week outside of an E3! Before we spend an hour talking news, Paul updates us on his Stellar Blade thoughts and progress back in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. He also played a game his friends made (link will be below). Jon has been playing all the games, starting with Animal Well, moving to Crow Country and finally Little Kitty, Big City. The Helldivers 2 debacle, Microsoft kills Tango Gameworks, Nintendo announces Switch successor announcement and the top sold Pokemon games are among a few of a GIANT NEWS WEEK. Come hear all about it! Power Surge: https://atomicbox.itch.io/powersurge --- TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective

This week Paul is trying out The Rogue Prince of Persia before it's Early Access launch, he's also playing Steller Blade. Sean continues with Sand Land and starts SteamWorld Heist in anticipation of the upcoming sequel. In news we talk about the recent Xbox livestream, more Switch 2 rumors, and TakeTwo closing down some of its studios. TDP is listener funded. Enjoy the show? Want an ad-free experience? Consider supporting it at https://www.patreon.com/topdownperspective