Episode #31: 2017 Year-in-Review Community Extravaganza

AVoCADo GamesCast

https://ia601507.us.archive.org/4/items/avocadogamescast_ep31/Podcast%2031%20Version%202.mp3

Featuring:
Merve
The Radio Cat
The Kappa
Ben
Otakunomike
Pulprobot
Andy Tuttle
Wolfman Jew
Science is Bad

Editor:
The Kappa

Timestamps:
0:15 – Introductions
1:45 – The Game Awards
8:45 – The YouTube Adpocalypse
20:15 – Patreon Rule Changes
22:20 – Loot Boxes and Microtransactions
34:05 – Visceral Games’ Closure and Multiplayer Shooters
41:15 – Mass Effect: Andromeda
48:40 – The Resurgence of the Japanese Games Industry and PC Ports of Japanese Games
53:40 – The Nintendo Switch
1:05:50 – The Xbox One X and Microsoft’s 2017
1:14:30 – The Super NES Classic Edition
1:16:15 – IGN’s Acquisition of Humble Bundle
1:22:50 – Valve No Longer Making Story-Driven Games
1:30:05 – Ben’s Favourite Games
2:02:20 – Otakunomike’s Favourite Games
2:18:55 – Pulprobot’s Favourite Games
2:45:10 – Andy Tuttle’s Favourite Games
3:13:00 – Wolfman Jew’s Favourite Games
3:41:40 – Science is Bad’s Favourite Games
4:18:30 -The Radio Cat’s Favourite Games
4:29:20 – The Kappa’s Favourite Games
4:42:50 – Merve’s Favourite Games
4:55:25 – The Worst or Most Disappointing Games of the Year
5:22:05 – Surprises of 2017
5:32:30 – Conclusion

Download Link: https://archive.org/details/avocadogamescast_ep31

Podcast header background inspired by SimCity 2000. Spoiler and content warnings after the jump.

Introductions (0:15)

• The games Merve referenced were Horizon Zero Dawn, Night in the Woods, and Super Mario Odyssey. (Sources: PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo on YouTube)
• The Garbage Ape is a character in the Heathcliff comic strip. (Source: Heathcliff Explained)

The Game Awards (1:45)

• Official website for The Game Awards.
• List of winners for the 2017 Game Awards. (Source: The Game Awards official website)
• Josef Fares’s rant at the ceremony. (Source: Kotaku on YouTube)
• Clarification: Female models were bodypainted with art inspired by various games for the 2007 Spike Video Game Awards. (Source: Spike)
• Official teaser trailer for Valve’s Artifact, which has 72000 dislikes compared to 5000 likes. (Source: PlayArtifact on YouTube)
• “It’s better than nothing” was a remark added by Ben Judd when translating and interpreting Mighty No. 9 creator Keiji Inafune’s remarks. (Source: Kotaku)

The YouTube Adpocalypse (8:45)

• Some explanations for the YouTube Adpocalypse. (Source: Out of the Loop subreddit)
• Wikipedia article on Elsagate.
• Please don’t watch Merve’s YouTube channel.
• Article on PewDiePie’s usage of the n-word. (Source: Variety)

Patreon Rule Changes (20:15)

• Patreon proposed fee structure changes. They backed down a few days after we recorded this. (Source: Patreon blog)

Loot Boxes and Microtransactions (22:20)

• Chinese regulators forced Overwatch to reveal loot box probabilities. (Source: Polygon)
• Prior to release, a lot of people considered Star Wars Battlefront II’s microtransaction plans unfair. (Source: Kotaku)
• A video on labour complaints at CD Projekt Red. (Source: YongYea on YouTube)
• Information on Middle-earth: Shadow of War’s loot boxes. (Source: Kotaku)
• Rep. Chris Lee (D) wants to introduce legislation to regulate loot boxes. (Source: Kotaku)

Visceral Games’ Closure and Multiplayer Shooters (34:05)

• News article on EA’s closing of Visceral Games. (Source: Polygon)
• A lengthy investigative piece on what led to Visceral’s closure. (Source: Kotaku)

Mass Effect: Andromeda (41:15)

• Origin store page for Mass Effect: Andromeda.
• The story behind the game’s development. (Source: Kotaku)

The Resurgence of the Japanese Games Industry and PC Ports of Japanese Games (48:40)

• Steam store page for NieR:Automata.
• Steam store page for Nioh.
• Yakuza 0 launch trailer. (Source: Machinima Trailer Vault on YouTube)
• Steam store page for Dragon’s Dogma.

The Nintendo Switch (53:40)

• The first Nintendo Switch presentation. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• Survey results for docked versus handheld mode. (Source: Nintendo Enthusiast)
• Wikipedia article on Operation Rainfall.

The Xbox One X and Microsoft’s 2017 (1:05:50)

• The Xbox One X trailer. (Source: Xbox on YouTube)
• Epic accidentally allowed cross-play between Xbox One and PS4 in Fortnite. (Source: Kotaku)

The Super NES Classic Edition (1:14:30)

• Wikipedia article on Star Fox 2.

IGN’s Acquisition of Humble Bundle (1:16:15)

• News article on the acquisition. (Source: Polygon)
• The Humble Store.
• Information on the Humble Hunie Sakura Bundle. (Source: Indie Game Bundles)
• Steam store page for HuniePop.

Valve No Longer Making Story-Driven Games (1:22:50)

• Marc Laidlaw’s Half-Life 3 plot outline. (Source: Marc Laidlaw’s official website)
• Steam store page for Bridge Constructor Portal.

Ben’s Favourite Games (1:30:05)

• The podcast episode we did on NieR:Automata.
• Steam store page for Hand of Fate 2.
• The Master Hand from Super Smash Bros. (Source: Smashpedia on Wikia)
• Steam store page for Assassin’s Creed Origins.
• The recently-discovered open space in the Great Pyramid of Giza was already in Assassin’s Creed Origins. (Source: Kotaku)
• Desert hallucinations in Assassin’s Creed Origins. (Source: Assassin’s Creed Series on YouTube)
• A scene from New Girl featuring Tran. (Source: New Girl on YouTube)
• Steam store page for For Honor.
• Wikipedia article for Mace: The Dark Age.
• Brûz the Chopper gameplay in Middle-earth: Shadow of War from the Microsoft E3 2017 presser. (Source: PCInvasion PC Gaming on YouTube)
• The Jimquisition’s video on Overwatch porn.

Otakunomike’s Favourite Games (2:02:20)

• Steam store page for Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment.
• Nintendo Switch presentation trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• Steam store page for Total War: Warhammer II.

Pulprobot’s Favourite Games (2:18:55)

SIGNIFICANT SPOILERS FOR PERSONA 5

• Steam store page for Thimbleweed Park.
• The Longest Journey’s rubber ducky puzzle is considered to be one of the most convoluted, most difficult puzzles in adventure games. (Source: Cracked)
• Wikipedia article on Ron Gilbert.
• Launch trailer for Horizon Zero Dawn. (Source: PlayStation on YouTube)
• Launch trailer for Persona 5. (Source: PlayStation EU on YouTube)
• Launch trailer for Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE. (Source: Nintendo UK on YouTube)
• An article on the real-world inspirations behind Persona 5, including Shinzo Abe’s election posters. (Source: USgamer)
• The fifth part of the A.V. Club’s multi-part review of Persona 5, which compares the game’s message to Trumpism. Correction: Though the review draws parallels to American political issues, it doesn’t specifically knock the game for not addressing American political issues directly.

Andy Tuttle’s Favourite Games (2:45:10)

CONTENT WARNING: JOKES ABOUT NUCLEAR WARFARE

• Steam store page for Resident Evil VII: Biohazard.
• Wikipedia article for Luigi’s Mansion.
• Wikipedia article for Pokémon Snap.
• Steam store page for Resident Evil 4.
• Some A.V. Club commenters’ thoughts on Resident Evil.
• Yet again, the Yakuza 0 launch trailer. (Source: Machinima Trailer Vault on YouTube)
• Steam store page for Yooka-Laylee.
• Kotaku’s review of Yooka-Laylee.
• Majima’s breakdancing fighting style is called the Breaker Style. (Source: Yakuza Wiki on Wikia)
• Jim Sterling’s review of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. (Source: The Jimquisition)
• An explanation for how Lady Bird’s perfect Rotten Tomatoes score was ruined. (Source: Quartz)
• The E3 2016 trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• Link waking up in nothing but underwear at the start of the Breath of the Wild. (Source: TetraNinja on YouTube)
• Yet again, the launch trailer for Horizon Zero Dawn. (Source: PlayStation on YouTube)

Wolfman Jew’s Favourite Games (3:13:00)

MILD SPOILERS FOR NIER:AUTOMATA. SIGNIFICANT SPOILERS FOR SUPER MARIO ODYSSEY.

• Steam store page for NieR:Automata.
• Steam store page for Dangonronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls.
• Trailer for Super Mario Odyssey. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• An article about a nostalgic Easter egg in Super Mario Odyssey. This link contains spoilers. (Source: Polygon)
• The Year of Luigi was one of Nintendo’s promotional campaigns in 2013. (Source: Nintendo Wiki on Wikia)
• Yet again, the E3 2016 trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• The Avocado’s year-end nominations for the best video games of 2017.
• Wolfman Jew’s article on level design in Breath of the Wild. (Source: Source Gaming)

Science is Bad’s Favourite Games (3:41:40)

MILD SPOILERS FOR THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: BREATH OF THE WILD

• Steam store page for What Remains of Edith Finch.
• Steam store page for SOMA.
• An analysis of the cannery sequence in What Remains of Edith Finch. (Source: Super Bunnyhop on YouTube)
• An Edward Gorey alphabet book. (Source: Brain Pickings)
• The Burrow was the Weasleys’ home in the Harry Potter series. (Source: Harry Potter Wiki on Wikia)
• Yet again, the E3 2016 trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• Steam store page for Antichamber.
• Yet again, the Steam store page for NieR:Automata.
• The NieR:Automata soundtrack. (Source: iTunes)
• Steam store page for Thomas Was Alone.

The Radio Cat’s Favourite Games (4:18:30)

SIGNIFICANT SPOILERS FOR SUPER MARIO ODYSSEY. MILD SPOILERS FOR THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: BREATH OF THE WILD.

• Yet again, a trailer for Super Mario Odyssey. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• Wiki article on New Donk City. (Source: Super Mario Wiki on Wikia)
• Yet again, the launch trailer for Persona 5. (Source: PlayStation EU on YouTube)’
• The Persona 5 song with the “You’ll never see it coming” lyric is called “Last Surprise.” (Source: xPervertedkida on YouTube)
• The Persona 5 song that plays at night at the café is called “Beneath the Mask.” (Source: Megami Tensei Wiki on Wikia)
• One more time, because we haven’t shared it enough, the E3 2016 trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)

The Kappa’s Favourite Games (4:29:20)

• Steam store page for Planet Coaster.
• A Halo Pelican dropship model in the Steam Workshop for Planet Coaster.
• Confirmation: Frontier Developments is indeed making Jurassic World Evolution. (Source: The game’s official website)
• Steam store page for Cuphead.
• Steam store page for Assassin’s Creed Origins.
• Steam store page for Far Cry.

Merve’s Favourite Games (4:42:50)

MILD SPOILERS FOR L.A. NOIRE

• Steam store page for Tokyo Dark.
• Steam store page for Life Is Strange.
• Steam store page for Prey.
• Steam store page for Tacoma.
• Merve’s thoughts on Tacoma and diversity. (Source: Refrigerator Rants)
• Steam store page for SpellForce 3.
• Yet again, the Steam store page for NieR:Automata.
• Yet again, our podcast episode about NieR:Automata.

The Worst or Most Disappointing Games of the Year (4:55:25)

• Steam store page for Middle-earth: Shadow of War.
• Steam store page for Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III.
• Steam store page for ARK: Survival Evolved.
• Steam store page for DayZ.
• Steam store page for Conan Exiles.
• Trailer for Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp. (Source: Nintendo Mobile on YouTube)
• Origin store page for Star Wars Battlefront II.
• Steam store page for Yooka-Laylee.
• Steam store page for Poi.
• Steam store page for Stay! Stay! Democratic People’s Republic of Korea!
• Steam store page for Go! Go! Nippon! ~My First Trip to Japan~.
• Lifeinvader is the Facebook parody in Grand Theft Auto V. (Source: GTA Wiki on Wikia)
• DEVGRU-P Publishing’s “about” page, which indicates that they don’t publish yaoi.

Surprises of 2017 (5:22:05)

• Steam store page for Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege.
• Polygon article on Madden NFL ‘18’s Longshot mode.
• Official game trailer for Metroid: Samus Returns. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• Teaser trailer for Metroid Prime 4. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• Character page for the Ice Climbers. (Source: Smashpedia on Wikia)
• Trailer for the Breath of the Wild DLC, The Champions’ Ballad. (Source: Nintendo on YouTube)
• Nintendo didn’t delay any games in 2017. (Source: Kotaku)
• Golf Story release trailer. (Source: SideBarGames on YouTube)
• Confirmation: Kairosoft is Japanese, not Australian. (Source: Wikipedia)
• Steam store page for Late Shift.

Conclusion (5:32:30)

• The Avocado, our community’s website.
• Wikipedia article on the Zune.