Just in time for the Steam Summer Sale, Valve has dropped three lists of the most popular games played on the Steam Deck. These lists are updated in real time and reflect some trends in the industry. This week on the show, we run down the lists and share some of our favorite games on the Steam Deck - including a remaster of a classic: Riven.…

It's Elden Ring and The Shadow of the Erdtree time and with it comes the predictable discussion about difficulty in games. I guess it makes sense that a game about making looping runs through a punishing world gets people fired up, but I still think it's hilarious that people seem to be surprised at how hard these games continue to be. And thanks t…

The definitely NOT E3 window of events is over with one more big set of announcements. This week on the podcast, we discuss some exciting games coming to the Nintendo Switch - THIS YEAR! Show Notes: - Music by Brad SucksBy Experience Points Podcast

Now that the great collapse of the E3 ecosystem is well and truly complete, we're beginning to see saplings spring from the ashes. And it's not just a few; Summer Game Fest and the numerous other publisher-specific, indie, PC, and various thematic conferences have quickly formed a forest and are spreading the video game news over the wind like a de…

This week on the EXP Podcast, in between Sony's announcements and Xbox's big news, we discuss the state of big budget first-party exclusives and what the future of publishing massively expensive games might look like. Show notes: "You can’t make AAA games for just one platform anymore" by Oli Welsh via Polygon Music by Brad Sucks…

I've always lived in areas with municipal water systems, so wells are a bit of a foreign concept. But now that I've played Animal Well, I'm basically an expert. I was surprised by the number of hidden eggs and platforming puzzles, but I guess that's just the miracle of underground waterways. This week we debrief after seeing the credits, but most d…

This week on the EXP Podcast, we record live from our sick bed to discuss recent industry news before getting into some games we've been playing - including Balatro, Children of the Sun, and Minishoot Adventures! Show Notes: - Music by Brad SucksBy Experience Points Podcast

War never changes - the streaming television war, that is! This week we do a deep dive on the new Fallout series. Who knew the post-nuclear wasteland would have so many cameos in it? And are those the jingle of spurs I hear? Looks like The Man with No Name has become The Man with No Nose.

The Wii U, one of the worst selling consoles of all time, is finally shutting down its servers and turning off the lights. Today on the podcast we poor one out for a console ahead of its time, a messy, imperfect, but maybe a little prescient attempt by Nintendo to transform the gaming landscape. Show Notes: - Music by Brad Sucks…

I meant to publish the show earlier, but I thought I could squeeze in a few more hands of Balatro. 48 hours later, I realize two things: that was a mistake and I'm now starving to death. This week, we dip into Balatro, make our stage debut with Princess Peach: Showtime!, and evaluate Red XIII's surreal attempt at acting like a human. Now, just a fe…

Everyone's favorite lovable stoners are coming to Call of Duty, about 50 years too late to be culturally relevant. This week on the podcast, we try to draw a line between interesting and relevant in-game partnerships and the pup-culture goop that is Content with a capital "C". Don't puff, puff, pass on this one! Show Notes: - "Everything is Content…

It's finally Spring again around these parts, which means it's time for one of our favorite annual rituals: the yearly Journey playthrough! For whatever reason, Jorge and I both had cautionary tales of resource scarcity and environmental collapse on the brain (I blame Barrett and the rest of Avalanche) and it just goes to show that you can still ge…

We discuss why Final Fantasy VIII is actually awesome, how the remake is changing the legacy of the franchise, and what's up with the best (and worst) Final Fantasy games. Show Notes: - Music by Brad Sucks - "Final Fantasy is the Best, Area Man Claims," via Polygon

Reports of us rejoining the lifestream have been greatly exaggerated. We're back after being under the weather, but we return having played a bunch of new games. We have Helldivers, Donkey Kong, and more, including 2024 gamiest-game contender Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. While we're only a few hours into what will undoubtedly be an enormous game, there…

Last week the internet was buzzing with Xbox speculations that was quickly deflated by corporate-speech-laden "podcast" from Phil Spencer and his team at Xbox. Yes, some Microsoft games are coming to other consoles, but is that it? What does this, and could this have meant? Join us and Mr. Businessman to discuss the future of Xbox. Show Notes: * Mu…

We are back this week catching up on Sony's latest State of Play, which featured not one but TWO Hideo Kojima announcements. 2024 really is starting strong! Join as we discuss Judas, Sonic, and Kojima's amazing fashion-sense. Show Notes: - Music by Brad SucksBy Experience Points

Watch out, that pikachu is driving a tank and it looks disgruntled! But perhaps not as disgruntled as Nintendo and the Pokemon Company's lawyers must be right about now. Yes, it's time to talk about Palworld. Part catching monsters and putting them in your pocket, part hitting trees and crafting gear, and all the rage on the Internet - Palworld has…

It feels like we just caught our breath from the game release whirlwind of 2023, but there's no time to delay. 2024 is here and it's bringing a pretty unique list of games with it. This week, we talk about some of our most anticipated games and make some predictions about the unknown unknowns lurking out there.…

Our GOTY-cast is out, but before we leave 2023 behind we need to spotlight some of the great games that almost made our lists. It was a fantastic year for games, so be sure to try some of these games soon before you move on to the hot new thing! Show Notes: - Music by Brad Sucks

We made it! 2023 is over, which means it's time to talk about our top games of the year. Every year we challenge ourselves to embrace brevity and pick our top three. 2023's landslide of great games made this an even more fun challenge than usual, as did the ongoing meta game of trying to predict if our picks will overlap. Next week we'll talk about…

The most prestigious and important video game awards ceremony is back again. From the best doofus', to awards in elegance, to the best waifu/husbandu, we are once again celebrating the end of the year with the Gamey Awards! Show Notes: Music by Brad Sucks

Just in time for the end of the year, we reach the end of another story: Alan Wake II! This week we debrief on a game created by and for humanities nerds. Nothing like contemplating the death of the author while rocking out to Norse mythology inspired heavy metal!

We're head to Vice City, where the sun is shining, drugs are plentiful, and you might get eaten by an alligator. Also, we retroactively predict the Game Awards winners. Show Notes: Intro from the Grand Theft Auto VI trailer Outro by Brad SucksBy Experience Points Podcast

This week we emerge from our holiday haze and talk about the ways in which some large publishers are trying to foster a fuzzy feeling by appealing to a sense "the good old days" of established games and franchises. This kind of packaged nostalgia is clearly popular; just ask the people paying actual currency to play the original version of World of…

Do you feel that tingle of excitement? No, not that weird green dude. It's Nintendo's latest announcement that Legend of Zelda is getting a big screen adaptation and it's... live action!? This week on the podcast, we foretell both the bright and dark future this announcement portends. Also, what storyline should the Zelda movie focus on? Who knows,…

2023's absolute deluge of games continues this week and we hanging on for dear life! This week we web sling our way around Spider-Man 2, piece together the mystery of Alan Wake 2, welcome a special end-credit guest in Lies of P, and conclude our trip in Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

We also knew all the mushrooms would catch up to Mario. This week on the podcast, we take a wonder seed trip into Super Mario Bros. Wonder! Show Notes: Intro from the Super Mario Bros. Wonder launch trailer Music by Brad Sucks

This week we talk about a game all about language and a game completely devoid of the written word! Chants of Sennaar and Cocoon are in the rotation this week and both games have impressed us. While they're quite different, both of them drop you right into a world without much explicit hand holding, so we have a good time unpacking the various myst…

This week on the podcast, we leap into Sony's cloud gaming news and marvel at the lengths Baldur's Gate 3 players will go for the perfect run. Show Notes: - Music by By Brad Sucks

Rumors abound this week as we all collectively start to piece together clues about the Switch's successor. I'm going to out on a limb and say that there will be a Mario game and a convoluted friend request system - maybe together?! On top of that, Jorge and I do some strategizing about how to introduce turn-based RPGs to the next generation. Suffic…

It's a debacle at Unity, some surprising DLC news, the high cost of games, and a step into the closet with Hideo Kojima! Show Notes: - Music by Brad Sucks

Even after a busy spring and summer, video games refuse to take a break and just chill. There's just so much to play and it can get distracting. Maybe that's what happened over there at Microsoft - someone was so distracted trying to master their mech in Armored Core that they forgot to properly secure all the links in their public court filings. T…

This week on the EXP Podcast, we ask whether great games like Baldur's Gate 3 or Tears of the Kingdom should raise the standards for what we expect out of games or if doing so sets the bar too high. Show Notes: Music by Brad SucksBy Jorge Albor

After several months of traversing the gloom, scarfing down endura carrots, and harvesting dragon scales, both Jorge and I have seen credits in Tears of the Kingdom. I won't even pretend to say we've "finished" it, as there are more korok seeds in this game than there are grains of sand of beach. Regardless, we do a deep dive on both the late game …

Mer-people, a strange dog (?), and more on this week's games discussion!

Pop quiz: do you know the various subscription tiers for your game platforms? And more importantly: do you know which ones you're automatically being charged for every month? Well here's a hint: it's not Xbox Live Gold, that one's riding off into the sunset. This week, we play that exact game and quiz each other about what each major console platfo…

This week on the EXP Podcast, we revisit some of video games' best, and worst, endings - from the multicolored conclusion to Mass Effect 3 (and Elding Ring) to the touching conclusion to some great narrative games like Life is Strange. Show Notes: - "The Video Game Endings We'll Never Forget, For Better Or Worse," from Kotaku and Music by Brad Suck…

Hello! Remove that gloom effect, because we're back from the depths after a few weeks. Well it's not really the depths, it's just that Jorge and his family acquired a new little korok and were doing some much needed bonding. We ease back in by catching up on what's been going on in Hyrule and what's been going on over at Nintendo. Apparently Mario …

It's time to hit the street with Street Fighter 6!

This week we talk about the recent PlayStation Showcase. But first, stick with me for second here, gang: what if I took a dual sense and chopped it in half...wait, no let me finish...and then stuck a big screen in the middle and then Tears of the Kingdom Ultra Hand-style just mashed all of it together! We call it Project Q and it's going to revolut…

Grab your bugs, horns, and fire peppers because this week on the EXP Podcast, we're brewing a love elixir for Zelda! Show Notes: - Music by Brad Sucks

It's a big week around these parts! And when I say parts, I also mean the various pieces of scrap wood and ancient tech I'm using to fashion a crude over boat. Yes, it's time to talk about The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom! We debrief on our initial few hours in the game and talk about how it fits int he broader open-world landscape. Spoile…

This week on the podcast, we explore a galaxy far, far, away in Jedi Survivor, wonder why the Jedi Council is training an army of child soldiers, and briefly discuss some classic Nintendo wildness. Oh, and see you on the other side of Breath of the Wild 2! Show Notes: - Music by Brad SucksBy Jorge Albor

This week, Scott ventures out into the theater and reports back on the latest cinematic adventure. That's right, it's the The Super Mario Bros. Movie! Seeing is how it's based on a Japanese game franchise and created by Illumination's French studio, can I call this a foreign film? In any case, and despite a distinct lack of John Leguizamo, there is…

700 hundred official episodes is no small feat! We are celebrating the accomplishment by hosting the first ever Gamey Awards Tournament of Champions! It's time to settle once and for all who the best Waifu/Husbandu is. Why is Inciniroar a genuine contender? And what is the gameyest game? A special thanks to our small family of listeners, especially…

When playing a cross-play multiplayer game, what do you do when the an entire platform's worth of players gets left behind? Well, if you're playing Rogue Company, maybe you rejoice? This week we use the recent end of Switch support on a cross-play multiplayer game to talk about the ongoing search for your preferred video game community. What's the …

This week on the podcast, we bask on the sandy shores of Tchia, a darling little Breath of the Wild homage, trudge back into Resident Evil 4, and touch on a couple more games that are actually pretty damn great as well! Show Notes: - Music from the Tchia OST

Bad news: you have to live in a brutal post-apocalyptic zombie hellscape. Good news: The Internet's latest crush, Pedro Pascal, is your companion and protector! This week we talk about HBO's The Last of Us. Roughly ten years after the first game's release, we revisit the game's bleak world and see how it fares in the world of prestige television.…

It's time again for the yearly Journey replay ritual, in which we wander the sands of Thatgamecompany's magnum opus and maybe even join some strange new wanderers! Show notes: - Music by Brad Sucks & the Journey OST

We've got some pretty hefty games on the horizon this spring, so we're spending the last few weeks of winter doing a bit of a sampler. We have a wide variety to talk about this week, ranging from the manic Hi-Fi Rush to the meditative Season. And then we throw some survival horror in the middle there for good measure!…