Podcasts about xb1

It doesn't matter if you're first to an idea, if you don't execute it well enough, someone else can swoop in and steal your thunder before you even manage to throw your lightning. That's the case with Stampede: Racing, a battle royale kart racer where you start with 60 players and gradually whittle it down to one after reaching select checkpoints during a race. Sound familiar? It should, because it's basically Mario Kart World's Knockout Tour mode (and also way more similar to something like Fall Guys than Fortnite). Now, I don't know if Stampede was actually first to this idea, but I think we can all agree Knockout Tour refined the idea and made it into something that's tons of fun and will last in a way Stampede never was and will never get a chance to be.

Behold the first part of my review of Grounded. It's been a long time coming. I tried playing and streaming the game once before, but got so annoyed with the chat that I rage quit both the game and streaming for years. Fast-forward to now and things are very different, not only did chat never bother me when I streamed the game--you can check out the archive for my entire playthrough if you want--I also had a great time with the game and look forward to playing and seeing more (even though I will never not be scared whenever a spider shows up).

I had a taste for more Star Wars after playing through both Star Wars Jedi games and rewatching most of the movies and shows. I could have played something new, something I never played before, but opted for something I remembered fondly: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. My memory of the game was that it wasn't amazing, but achieved what it set out to do: deliver a satisfying Jedi power fantasy; however, sometimes things are left best as memories and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed is exactly that. Instead of getting the power fantasy I expected, I got a frustrating reality of sadness and disappointment.

Broforce is a lot of fun...until it isn't. What do I mean by this? I don't mean what you probably think--that it's fun for a while and eventually stops being fun--but that it's best enjoyed in small doses instead of large ones. I played Broforce two nights in a row for roughly four hours each night and the same thing happened both nights: after about hour two, I started to get annoyed and frustrated with the game and stopped enjoying it. Long story short, I'd recommend Broforce to most--especially if you have a friend or two to play it with (even though it can get quite hectic)--just make sure you keep your sessions on the shorter side if you don't want to lose your mind.

I've always been a naysayer about Fortnite's move to the battle royale space--I am one of the weirdos who liked Fortnite when it was just Save the World--so take everything I say with a grain of salt, but I always found Realm Royale more fun that Fortnite. It wasn't good enough to pull me away from Apex Legends when I was deep in the battle royale space, but if there was any runner-up for me amongst the crowd, it was Realm Royale, so with that, let's pour one out for this here game that had a good run and is no longer with us. Cheers Realm Royale, you were one of the good ones.

Believe it or not, but this forgotten game was one of the games that inspired Attack the Backlog. I still remember thinking it looked so cool on PlayStation 4, but never getting around to it because I was all-in on Xbox One to start that generation. By the time I got a PlayStation 4, it felt like the moment had passed and I might as well wait for a hopeful Xbox One port. Fast-forward four years and it would finally make its way to Xbox, Switch, and Vita and...I still didn't play it. Now, some seven years later, I've finally scratched Mercenary Kings off my backlog and, sadly, it couldn't help but disappoint with repetitive and tedious missions, weird customization choices, and occasionally frustrating difficulty spikes.

A combination of uninspired gameplay and a completely bonkers handling of its release are just two of the factors that led to MultiVersus wasting a treasure trove of IP; add a poor microtransaction structure and spotty server connectivity on top of that and you've got a recipe for disaster, and a disaster is exactly what MultiVersus was. It's a shame, too, because with better gameplay and a better handling of its great cast of characters, MultiVersus had the potential to be one of the few live service success stories, but alas, a success story it was not.

Gameplay woes and character issues aside, the team over at Naughty Dog pulled off the impossible: they not only made me not hate Abby, they made me like her so much I think she may just be the new best character in the series. Unlike Ellie, Abby actually shows growth and an ability to make her own decisions, whereas Ellie becomes a less interesting character the longer the game goes on, eventually becoming someone I almost, kind of, don't like anymore--the final confrontation is a perfect showcase of the how feelings have changed from the beginning of the playthrough to the end of it. While I still don't think Naughty Dog is the best at gameplay, they prove with The Last of Us Part II that they still know how to make one hell of a story.

Unlike some of the games I've recently played for The Last Call, Dauntless had a good run, launching in beta in May 2018 and lasting until May 2025. That's seven good years. Well, as someone who didn't regularly play it, I can't say they were good years with any kind of authority, but as someone who played it near launch and near death, it was a fine time. Ultimately, I think it never found a way to get out from under Monster Hunter's shadow, so it was only a matter of time until it died. To all the players who will miss it now that it's gone, I hope you're able to remember all the good times you had as you try a find a new game to play with your lads.

This was a long time coming. I've talked about wanting to play The Last of Us Part II for years now, but the mood was never quite right. After luckily stumbling into a 30th Anniversary PlayStation 5 Pro, I said The Last of Us Part II would be the game to break my new console's cherry. Fast-forward six months later and that time has finally come (insert eyebrow raising here). This episode covers a little over half of the game's story and this shouldn't need to be said, but expect heavy spoilers. With all that out of the way, give this episode a listen to see if I think The Last of Us Part II is a significant improvement over its predecessor, or just more of the same.

Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles is one of the few games I've not completed for Attack the Backlog. The reason is twofold. First, it's structured in such a way that you can just play whatever level you want in whatever order you want and actually "beating" the game feels inconsequential. Second, and more importantly, it's just an incredibly frustrating game. That said, however, there's so much potential in a game like Jedi Power Battles, which reminds one of games like Gauntlet Dark Legacy and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, that I'd love to see either a proper remake or a brand new game in the series. Sadly, I doubt that will ever happen, but I'll continue hoping because if you lose hope with Star Wars, what do you have left?

Or it could just be that LEGO games are no longer for me. (It's probably a little bit of both.) What I thought was going to be a nice chill time and a return to a game formula I remembered loving, quickly turned into a sad realization: maybe I've grown out of LEGO games. The constant need to change characters in order to interact with this and that, and having to randomly smash bricks until you find the ones you're looking for, frustrated me more than I expected in my old age--it's surprising how often I got stuck, unsure of what I needed to do in order to progress. My only hope is not Obi-Wan Kenobi, but that maybe LEGO Batman is just a bad LEGO game and the next time I return to the series will have a more favorable outcome. Until then, I'll just be left with a sour taste in mouth.

If Road Redemption was a pleasant surprise, Road Rage was a crashing disappointment. It didn't help that I played Road Rage immediately after playing Road Redemption, but where Road Redemption found a few elements to focus on and refine, Road Rage went the other route and tried doing too much. I can see a version of Road Rage that's good, but the Road Rage we have fails on all fronts and only manages to frustrate and bore instead of giving players anything to enjoy.

For a game with drift in the title, the drifting in KartRider: Drift felt terrible. That could be excused if everything else was good to great, but that wasn't the case. Sure, there's a lot of content there, from a large cast of drivers to a decent selection of tracks, but none of that mattered when the game wasn't fun to play, and when you're in a crowded genre full of some very big hitters, you need to be more than fine to stand out. Unfortunately for KartRider: Drift, that never happened. Now KartRider: Drift is dead in all forms except on PC in Korea and Taiwan, so let's toast to it one last time in this here episode of The Last Call. Anyway, that's it and that's all folks. You can get an even more in-depth discussion by listening to the podcast and, if you're feeling extra generous, you can become a patron to show your support for the site, the podcasts, the streaming, the videos, the art, and everything in between--and you'll get a few nice bonuses while you're at it. Thank you for taking the time out of your day to consume any of the content I make and thank you for being a fan. I can't begin to express how much I appreciate each and every one of you. Cheers. Email: atb[at]pixelatedsausage[dot]com - Twitter: @PXSausage Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | YouTube | RSS | Facebook | Twitter

This was a surprise. Early this year I wasn't sure what to play and wasn't quite ready for anything too big, so I perused my various libraries and picked out a few games that caught my eye. Road Redemption was one of those games. As someone who grew up with Road Rash and loved every iteration of it up to and including Road Rash 3D, any game that looks like Road Rash is going to get my attention. That said, I wasn't expecting much from Road Redemption based on the visuals, but as soon as I started playing, I fell in love. It may not be the prettiest game out there and it's rough around the edges, but it's great where it counts: it's just a lot of fun to play.

Time to party like it's 1988! This episode, we return to Kamurocho and travel to Sotenbori to witness the origins of notorious yakuza Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Majima. Join us as we discuss unexpected twists, incredible substories, and how watching two scantily-clad ladies wrestle is more frustrating than it is titillating.Note: The music track at the start of the episode is “Try to have some fun for me !!”, composed by Saori Yoshida & Mayumi Koizumi for the Ryu ga Gotoku Zero/Yakuza 0 Original Soundtrack. We in no way have or claim ownership of this music.u/Zielth's Yakuza 0/Kiwami Hierarchy Tree: https://www.reddit.com/r/yakuzagames/comments/13fbw1h/yakuza_0_yakuza_1_kiwami_1_hierarchy_tree/u/AdministrativeSong88's Nishitani Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/yakuzagames/comments/151vm2h/nishitani_is_the_best/Email us at: dcellmedia@gmail.com

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League isn't a bad game, it's just a bad Arkham game. If you asked anyone what they wanted out of a sequel to Batman: Arkham Knight, I doubt a single person would say, "I want a co-op, live service Suicide Squad game," but that's what we got: a perfectly fine cooperative shooter with enough cutscenes to rival the runtime of The Return of the King: Extended Edition and four playable characters who feel mostly the same outside of unique traversal mechanics. But I guess it could have been worse; it could have been Gotham Knights instead.

It's unoriginal to blame negativity towards Batman: Arkham Knight on the batmobile, but hear me out. While most (all?) complained about the batmobile from a direct gameplay standpoint--how it felt and the repetitive missions--my complaint is an indirect one: I think the batmobile ruined Arkham Knight by forcing Rocksteady to change the way other aspects of the game controlled in order to accommodate the batmobile controls. It may seem like a small complaint to most and something I should've have "just gotten used to," but I never got used to the small changes in how Arkham Knight controlled and that ultimately ruined the game for me.

As my full Arkham playthrough continues, we find ourselves at a new low with the game most people forget even exists: Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate, the downloadable side-scrolling Metroidvania that's 90% tedious, 10% interesting. In many ways it feels like a bonus little side story to Arkham Origins and not an essential entry, so it's easy to see why it's often forgotten about; though, the fact it isn't that great of a game (probably) doesn't help either. It's biggest crime, however, is its desire to stay too true to the Arkham formula, instead of trying to find an identity of its own.

I thought I played Batman: Arkham Origins when it originally came out. I was wrong. When I booted up the game on my Xbox 360, all I had was a 5% completed save file from 11 years ago to the day, so what I thought was going to be another Second Run was actually an Attack the Backlog. I don't know if it's because it was all new to me or if it's just a better game (or maybe a little of both), but I had a significantly better time with Arkham Origins than I did with Arkham City. Arkham Origins takes what Arkham City did and simplifies and focuses it, delivering an overall more satisfying experience for someone like me who isn't a Batman super fan. It may not reach the heights of Arkham Asylum, but it's a worthy addition to the Arkham saga and should be treated on an equal footing with the Rocksteady-developed Arkham games.

I always preferred Batman: Arkham Asylum to Batman: Arkham City, but the gap this time was much larger and I have to assume it's at least partially due to the time gap between playthroughs being so small this time around; I just think playing these games back to back does Arkham City no favors. That said, and regardless of how time affected my feelings, I still think Arkham City is a worse game in almost every way, going for quantity over quality (except when it comes to the main storyline, which is actually shorter than Arkham Asylum's). It is by no means bad, man, but unlike its older brother, it's no "greatest game of all time" contender.

It's been a while since I've replayed a game, since I put out an episode of Second Runs, but when I decided it was finally time to play Batman: Arkham Knight, I knew what needed to be done first: replay every Arkham game that came before (and play the ones I never played for the first time). That brings us here, with me revisiting Batman: Arkham Asylum for not the second time, but the third time--which I only learned after booting up the remastered version and seeing a 72% completion save in front of me. Long story short: Arkham Asylum is not only a great Batman game, but one of the greatest games of all time, and if you want the long story long, check out this episode and enjoy.

Welcome, everyone, to a brand new show: The Last Call. (I technically called it Attack the Backlog because I recorded this episode before coming up with the new name, but every episode forward will be correctly branded). What is The Last Call? It's really quite simple: The Last Call is a show all about games that have received their final papers, their death sentence, the final nail in the coffin, however you want to phrase it, and are not long for this world; this can be due to being delisted, having their servers shut down, or any other finality in between. This inaugural episode is all about Hood: Outlaws & Legends, a PvPvE heist game that feels more like a mode in a full game than a full game on its own. The real question, though, is will Hood: Outlaws & Legends be remembered for everything it did, or forgotten for everything it didn't.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor was good...until it wasn't. That's not entirely true. It never got bad, per se, it just went on and on for way too long, wearing out its welcome multiple times over. The real kicker, though--the thing that made me go from liking Survivor to (kind of) hating it--is the story--one specific aspect in particular. I won't spoil anything in this text description, but the same can't be said about this episode, so if you don't want to be spoiled, avoid this until you've played the game yourself. All I'll say is, when one character turned out to be bad, I wasn't surprised; however, when something else happened, you better believe I was surprised (and not in a good way).

Press X Join the Press X Discord: https://discord.gg/MAXtvmv2rw  Topics: Nintendo Switch 2 Direct will be at 9:00 a.m. ET, 6:00 a.m. PT on April 2 https://x.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1887139391266558216 Nintendo fiscal results https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2025/250204_4e.pdf Total Switch sales are now at 150.86 million, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe at 67.35 million units New game sales totals: Super Mario Party Jamboree: 6.17 million units, Echoes of Wisdom: 3.91 million units, Mario & Luigi: Brothership 1.84 million units (see image below) Nintendo says it's making preparations for Switch 2 resellers https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/nintendo-says-its-making-preparations-for-switch-2-resellers/  Nintendo will no longer accept foreign credit cards & PayPal accounts on the Japanese eShop on March 25 https://mynintendonews.com/2025/01/30/japan-nintendo-will-soon-no-longer-accept-foreign-credit-cards-paypal-accounts/ Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket surpasses $500M in just 22 days more than Pokémon GO https://www.pocketgamer.biz/pokmon-trading-card-game-pocket-rockets-past-500m/ Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny remaster comes to Switch in 2025 (and PS4, XB1, Steam) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvgPwh_oIXg Electronic Arts CEO says EA Sports FC and Madden ‘could find real energy' on Switch 2 https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/electronic-arts-ceo-says-ea-sports-fc-and-madden-could-find-real-energy-on-switch-2/ EA execs suggest Dragon Age: The Veilguard may have sold better as a live-service game https://www.eurogamer.net/ea-suggests-dragon-age-the-veilguard-might-have-sold-better-if-it-was-live-service-so-what-does-this-mean-for-mass-effect-5 Sackboy Dev Sumo Digital Cancels New IP to Focus on Game Production for Partners https://www.sumogroupltd.com/news/2025/sumo-group-update/ Mat Piscatella: “Final Fantasy VII Rebirth had a fantastic Steam launch” https://bsky.app/profile/matpiscatella.bsky.social/post/3lhc3xrqq7k2z The VGHF Library opens in early access https://gamehistory.org/vghf-library-launch/ Questions from Discord:  Brasop: Do you have any gaming goals for 2025? I dropped out of PlayStation gaming for a while with the PS4 but was fortunate enough to pick up a PS5 for Xmas, so I'm looking forward to deep-diving back into the PS library.

Thanks in large part to my Star Wars rewatch journey of 2025, but also because I overall enjoyed my time with Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, I returned to Cal Kestis and his adventures in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. While a lot of things are the same, there are key differences that make Survivor feel like its own game, including much larger and open areas, fast travel (thank god), and a better and more interesting cast of characters, as well as just a fleshing out the characters we met in Fallen Order. We'll see if Survivor manages to top Fallen Order when all is said and done, but, for now, so far so good.

Astronomy Daily - The Podcast: S04E25In this episode of Astronomy Daily, host Anna dives into a thrilling array of recent developments in space exploration and astronomy. From unprecedented volcanic activity on Jupiter's moon Io to a newly discovered asteroid with potential Earth impact risk, this episode is filled with compelling stories that highlight the dynamic nature of our universe.Highlights:- Volcanic Activity on Io: Discover the groundbreaking findings from NASA's Juno mission, revealing the most powerful volcanic event ever recorded in our solar system on Jupiter's moon Io, with a hotspot larger than Earth's Lake Superior and an astonishing power output exceeding 80 trillion watts.- SpaceX Astronaut Rescue Mission: Learn about Elon Musk's controversial announcement regarding a potential rescue mission for NASA astronauts stranded aboard the International Space Station, and the implications of switching their return vehicle from Boeing's Starliner to SpaceX's Dragon capsule.- Super Earth Discovery: Explore the intriguing characteristics of the newly discovered super Earth, HD 20794D, which experiences extreme seasonal changes as it orbits in and out of its star's habitable zone, providing a unique opportunity for future atmospheric studies.- European Space Conference Highlights: Get an overview of the ambitious plans announced at the 17th European Space Conference, including new satellite missions for climate monitoring and preparations for a return to Venus.- Boom Supersonic's Milestone: Celebrate the historic achievement of Boom Supersonic's XB1 test aircraft, which became the first civil aircraft to break the sound barrier over the continental United States, paving the way for a new era of supersonic passenger travel.- Potential Asteroid Threat: Stay informed about asteroid 2024 YR4, which poses a 1 in 83 chance of colliding with Earth in December 2032, and learn about ongoing monitoring efforts to assess its trajectory and potential impact risk.For more cosmic updates, visit our website at astronomydaily.io. Join our community on social media by searching for #AstroDailyPod on Facebook, X, YouTubeMusic, Tumblr, and TikTok. Share your thoughts and connect with fellow space enthusiasts. Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.Thank you for tuning in. This is Anna signing off. Until next time, keep looking up and stay curious about the wonders of our universe.00:00 - Astronomy Daily brings you the latest in space and astronomy news00:50 - SpaceX's astronaut rescue mission announcement03:20 - Juno's groundbreaking volcanic discovery on Io06:15 - Super Earth HD 20794D's extreme seasonal changes09:30 - Highlights from the European Space Conference12:20 - Boom Supersonic achieves historic milestone15:00 - Potential threat from asteroid 2024 YR4✍️ Episode ReferencesNASA[NASA](https://www.nasa.gov)Juno Mission[Juno](https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/juno/main/index.html)Boom Supersonic[Boom Supersonic](https://boomsupersonic.com)European Space Agency[ESA](https://www.esa.int)Astronomy Daily[Astronomy Daily](http://www.astronomydaily.io)Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/astronomy-daily--5648921/support.

Surprising no one, my opinion of Hi-Fi Rush didn't change since the last episode; if anything, it got worse. I still think it's a very pretty game, but at no point did I enjoy playing it. The worst part, though, is how disappointing the soundtrack is; in a game all about integrating music and gameplay, more is rightfully expected and Tango Gameworks failed to deliver and great and memorable soundtrack, forever keeping Hi-Fi Rush in a meadow of mediocrity.

Hi-Fi Rush is soooo pretty. Everything about it from an artistic standpoint is some of the best I've seen in a video game in years. That's why it pains me to say the rest of the game disappoints; from the music selection to the gameplay and everything in between, everything else in Hi-Fi Rush fails to reach the same heights as the art and animation. Things could change since I'm only halfway through, but I'm not expecting much despite hoping for the opposite.

I am happy to report that Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order gets better and better as it goes on, from eventually adding a double jump to introducing some of the coolest set pieces I've played in years. While Fallen Order may be rough around the edges--though not as rough as this episode or last--the core is as strong as any Force user and I couldn't be more excited to play Survivor in hopes it only builds from here--spoilers: I won't be waiting long to see if it does.

This episode is a bit rough around the edges as the new format for Attack the Backlog is just around the corner (after all the Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Hi-Fi Rush episodes are out), but even so, it's still a solid time. Having played six hours of Fallen Order so far, I find myself enjoying the game, but not without issue. It feels good, looks good, and runs good enough, but the story so far is not quite there and some of the enemies are more annoying than challenging, but we're still early on in the game, so here's to hoping it only gets better from here and goes from "kinda strong" to simply..."strong."

This one is 100% my fault. If I paid any attention, I would have known what kind of game Exoprimal was--a team-based action game about completing the same objectives over and over again until you get so good you can do them in your sleep--but I didn't pay attention; instead, I let myself become disappointed by the game not meeting my uninformed expectations, so that's on me. That said, even after I accepted what the game is, it still failed to grab me in a way that kept me wanting to see more, a "more" people say exists, but I'll never know since I got more than my fix after hitting hour six.

It's not entirely me, but my overall meh-ness on Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales is partially due to my being burnt out on Spider-Man games. It doesn't help that Miles Morales is just another Spider-Man game, for better and worse, but I can't deny my blame in this outcome. While I was genuinely excited to play Miles Morales, it's clear my heart was trying to trick my brain into thinking things would be different this time--they weren't--so when I realized Miles Morales was just morales of the same, it was game over. It's not (all) you, Miles Morales, it's (mostly) me.

I was excited to finally play Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales as I was deep into my MCU (and live-action Spider-Man) rewatch, but that excitement quickly disappeared as I remembered exactly why I liked but didn't love Marvel's Spider-Man: it was just another Spider-Man game. This shouldn't come as a surprise, but Miles Morales is yet another Spider-Man game, for better or worse. There's nothing wrong with this, but it's clear at this point I'm just not much of a Spider-Man game fan anymore. Maybe one day I'll see the light again, but one thing's for sure, Miles Morales will not be the game to do it.

You may be asking yourself, "Why on earth did you decide to play Riders Republic of all the thousands of games you own?" The answer is simple: I love Downhill Domination and I'm always looking for games that scratch that itch; first there was Descenders and now there's Riders Republic. Let's not kid ourselves here, Riders Republic is no Downhill Domination, but it does scratch that itch--the mountain biking events specifically--and sometimes a bit of scratching is good enough, even if the itch comes back immediately after stopping. If only Sony would remake Downhill Domination and turn me back into the PlayStation fanboy I once was...

The hell of my own making is finally over. After seven longs nights of streaming and over twenty hours of playing, my story with golf has ended and I can finally move on with my life. I don't say this lightly, but I genuinely believe like I wasted my time playing this game; not in the playing it all part, but in the playing it to completion when I should have said "no more" way sooner. If I can take away anything positive from this bit of backlogging, it should be this: Attack the Backlog is about attacking my backlog, not finishing it, so when a game isn't clicking, move on. Will I follow this advice in the future, or keep on keeping on? Only time will tell, but all signs point to my dumb ass keeping on like I always do.

Things have taken a turn for the worse. While I was indifferent last episode, I am indifferent no more. I hate this game. I hate everything about it--okay, that's a bit of a stretch, but I really don't like a lot of it. What I thought was going to be a pleasant surprise is instead and wave of sand in my eyes (from hitting a lot of balls out of the bunker). Both the golfing and the story disappoint and boy oh boy is there a lot of the latter and not enough of the former, but who's really to blame? Is it my fault for expecting a more even split, or is it the developer's fault for making the game the way it is? You can come to your own conclusions, but I'll split the blame and call it a day...except this isn't the end of my journey; nay, there's still one more episode until we can say, "Golf Story...good day!"

I didn't know what to play after Kena: Bridge of Spirits. I perused the various short lists I created and, when I got to my Switch, one game popped out at me: Golf Story. I had always been interested in Golf Story ever since it first came out to overall glowing reviews, but me and the Switch haven't had the best relationship, so, like many Switch games, I never got around to playing it. Fast-forward to now and things have finally changed. It shouldn't be a surprise, but there is a lot of story in Golf Story and the quality of that story is a, "Your mileage will vary," affair, but there's golf to be played as well and, if you want to know how I feel about either or both (so far), you best listen to this here first episode in my playthrough of Golf Story for the Nintendo Switch.

Things got a little rocky at the end. An annoying boss followed by another annoying boss almost soured the whole experience. Thankfully, the good of Kena greatly outweighs what little bad is there, so not much love was lost. There are things to nitpick and little ways they could have improved this or that, but what's there is a solid experience that doesn't overstay its welcome and leaves me excited to see what Ember Lab does next. If you want a fun adventure with a well-told story and beautiful art, you'll get that and more with Kena: Bridge of Spirits.

Kena: Bridge if Spirits is a game I've been wanting to play ever since it was announced. I was so excited for it, I bought it on PlayStation 4. But as we all know, there is only so much time and we can only play one game at a time, so Kena ended up where 99% of my games end up: the backlog. Then, when I had the time and had the desire, a curveball appeared: Kena was announced for Xbox. "What?" I somehow got it into my head that Kena was a console exclusive. I was wrong. So with this news I waited, waited for the Xbox release to finally arrive and, well, here we are; was it worth the wait? Watch or listen to find out. (It's not like the title gives the answer away or anything...)

The title says it all. While Destiny 2 may have been a great game at launch and may still be great for those who went along for the ride these last seven years, it is not great for new players. If you're coming to Destiny 2 fresh--or in my case, after not playing for somewhere between six and seven years--you will be met with the same opening tutorial that was there from day one, but everything after that is a confusing mess of, "What should I do next? What's that thing there? What are all these menus?" and so on. There may be worse examples out there, but Destiny 2 is easily one of the worst games at onboarding new players I've played in years, maybe ever.

"Oh how I wish this was a 'regular' game," Marc said, enjoying their time in Disney Speedstorm. "Why did this have to be one of the most free-to-play games I've ever played?" 'Tis a tale as old as time. The tale of a game getting in its own way by forcing a bunch of nonsense down your throat when all you want to do is pay once--excluding future DLC, of course--and play forever (or until you get bored and want something new to play). If Disney Speedstorm was such a game, I'd wholeheartedly recommend it; however, as it is, I can only say give it a shot, I guess, since it's free (and actually really good when you're playing), but just know you won't be able to avoid the excessive free-to-play trappings that make up the skeleton, muscles, and skin of Disney Speedstorm.

This whole week has been a painful blur, starting with a scary injury I'm still recovering from--a scary injury that could have been much worse--and ending with this episode of Attack the Backlog about THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake. In some ways I feel lucky for picking this game before the injury happened because it was easy and short enough to still manage an episode in my compromised state, but, at the same time, that means I had to play THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake. You can probably already tell how I feel about the game, but if you really want to know, I guess you'll have to check out the show.

Well, I thought I had more time left than was actually the case. With only an hour and a half left to complete the story, I couldn't just stand and say that was enough for the final episode of this backlog attack. Being the considerate person I am, I went ahead and spent an additional hour and a half going after collectibles and completing every side race and side quest I found during my exploration. It was miserable. You're welcome.

Nothing like a random Seinfeld reference to start off a new Attack the Backlog series. As evident by the title, this new series is all about LEGO 2K Drive--aka LEGO Forza Horizon (even though there are LEGO expansions for Forza Horizon so it's kind of already been done, but also not, but also yes, and now I've gone cross-eyed, to make another random reference). I could keep fooling around, but I know you're all dying to find out what I think of LEGO 2K Drive, so without further ado...

I made a bit of a mistake committing to make this week's episode the last episode, "forcing" myself to play the game for almost 13 hours. This led to pushing through frustrating times when a break would have been welcome and a need of crunching when it came to recording, editing, and posting this here episode. Did this commitment completely ruin my experience? Not at all; however, I do think it soured it a bit more than it would have been normally. That said, in spite of some bloat, poor boss fights, a bad ending, and a few console-related issues, I still had a great time with System Shock; it just ended up as more of an 8 great than a 9 great.

You know that feeling when you push a button and accidentally kill millions of people on Earth, so you don't push the button until you know you won't accidentally kill millions of people on Earth and then you forget about the button you didn't push but can push now if only you remembered the button was there just waiting to be pushed? You know, a regular Saturday night... That's this week's episode in a nutshell. There's also a giant spider mech, super boots, and skulls in diving suit helmets, but who's counting, eh...

Unlike The Ascent, there were no 180s this week with System Shock; I'm still loving the game. Sure, it's not perfect--Cyberspace continues to frustrate and annoy, and combat in general hasn't changed all that much--but the story, world-building, and general sense of discovery and tension are all excellent, keeping me invested and engaged in this world I'm bummed to leave when I have to eat or sleep. You know it's a good sign when you want to keep playing when you call it a night.

It's been a long time coming, but I've finally started my adventure in the world of System Shock, a game I've been wanting to play ever since I played (and adored) BioShock--yes, I know System Shock 2 is the one most mention when talking about BioShock, but how could I play 2 before 1? As the title gives away, I'm currently loving my time with System Shock and can't wait to play more; and if you want to play along, this episode covers only the Medical Bay--which likely won't take you anywhere near as long as me to get through--so if that sounds like fun, feel free to pile up in the backseat for the ride.

Our journey with the The Ascent continues (and ends) this week with disappointment. The issues that showed their face at the end of last week were all over the place this week, with difficulty spikes galore and a story that continued to bore. What used to be mostly fun was frustrating and irritating to the bum. Butt it's okay because it's all over now; though, I can't help but feel a little sad--can't you tell from my frown? Weird rhyming aside, if you want to know my exact thoughts and specifics (and why I'd no longer recommend checking out The Ascent), give the episode a watch or listen.