Mario Party, Call of Duty, & New York Comic Con | Game Junction Podcast

Ready for a whirlwind tour through the gaming universe? We kick off with a tantalizing teaser: what does Keywords Studios' acquisition of Certain Affinity mean for the future of Hogwarts Legacy? This episode is ripe with nostalgia as we reminisce about the Halo series and dissect the buzz surrounding a potential Black Ops 2 sequel. All this, while sharing a laugh over a Zelda-themed mug mishap and the quirky world of damaged package deliveries. 

Switching gears, the pop culture realm lights up our discussion with the latest Dragon Ball Z universe updates and the surprises from New York Comic Con. Imagine your favorite Shonen Jump characters jumping out of manga and onto skateboards! Keep your ears perked for insights on Mouse PI for Hire, an Xbox game already setting the gaming community abuzz. We also celebrate the Silent Hill 2 remake's milestone and dive into the enduring charm of Age of Empires 2, exploring how these classics remain vibrant in a modern gaming landscape.

The conversation doesn't stop there. We explore the fascinating world of retro gaming, from the surge in collectible prices to how a new FPGA-based Nintendo 64 clone console might change the game. Marvel movie successes, the evolution of console hardware, and the intriguing journey of gaming mods and cheats keep the discussion lively. 

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Chapters

• 0:00 Gaming News Update and Discussions
• 15:12 Game Updates and Pop-Up Shops
• 22:33 Expanding Gaming Content and Player Base
• 34:35 Marvel Movie Success and R-Rated Films
• 43:33 Gaming Discussions and Physical Media Trends
• 53:28 Exploring Old Animation Studios and Films
• 1:04:18 Analog 3D Pre-Order and Launch
• 1:11:44 Analog N64 Clone Console Features
• 1:19:21 Retro Gaming Nostalgia and Hardware Upgrades"
• 1:30:41 Nintendo Switch Online and Game Demos
• 1:39:13 Kuwait Blocks Black Ops 6 Release
• 1:53:39 Pokemon Leaks and Game Discussions
• 2:01:33 Pokemon Leaks and Source Code Concerns
• 2:11:27 Pokemon Charizard EX Collection Unboxing

Transcript

Brandon Hurles: 0:00

New York City Comic Con and there's a good bit more. There's a couple things for the Call of Duty. We got some retro gaming news for Nintendo as well. So, yeah, it's going to be kind of a jam-packed episode. It's going to be a lot of fun. We've got quite a bit to talk about this week, so I'm excited. We also got some more information on a Switch Online game being added, which is really really cool as well. So we'll go ahead and get started here. We got the first thing here. This is kind of interesting.

Brandon Hurles: 0:30

But Hogwarts Legacy co-developer, certain Affinity becomes the latest Keywords Studios acquisition. So they've been acquired Certain Affinity. They've worked on Halo, they've worked on Hogwarts Legacy. Obviously, microsoft's side studio, it says in a press release published to its website, keywords announced it will be purchasing Certain Affinity for an undisclosed sum, so we don't know the amount. This brings Keywords a staff of 180 individuals across the US, canada and other regions, including from Exodus, which is from Archetype Entertainment, last Expedition with Gala Games and an original FPS project codenamed Loro. So that's kind of interesting.

Brandon Hurles: 1:27

Look, I'll be straight up with you. I didn't like Halo Infinite at all. I didn't like the multiplayer, didn't like the single player. It just was not for me. I haven't really loved a Halo game since the third was the last. I mean, I liked 3, I liked Reach, I liked ODST and that's kind of where the series fell off for me, even though I played all of them. You know, I played 4, 5, infinite. I got on launch, played it on launch, still got the physical for it. So I definitely, you know, I tried Hogwarts Legacy I can't speak on.

Brandon Hurles: 2:03

I've heard good things. I've heard good things. I've heard also some mixed things from people. But I know a lot of people love the game. I just saw somebody post today talking about how much they love the game. I know people definitely love it and there's an audience for that. It could be a good thing.

Brandon Hurles: 2:21

Back in April, certain Affinity laid off 25 employees, which was 10% of its workforce. So I'm thinking this is probably going to be a good move for them. That's what I'm kind of thinking. So I hope for the best with it. Always with an acquisition, definitely hope for the best, hope that everything goes smoothly and nobody loses their jobs when they get acquired, because that tends to happen, as we know. But yeah, I guess we'll kind of see what happens there and on that one, but that is definitely some interesting news for sure. So we've also got. Let's see what else we've got next. We've got so Call of Duty 2025.

Brandon Hurles: 3:15

Reportedly is a Black Ops 2 sequel Set around 2030. So a little interesting, because I'm not I'm assuming that they're counting Black Ops 1. 30. So a little interesting because I'm assuming that they're counting Black Ops 1 being what was Black Ops Cold War, and they're like we're just going to skip remaking Black Ops 1 and just move to Black Ops 2. I don't know what the decision making is there on why they're remaking Black Ops 2 but not 1, like kind of how they did with the modern warfare and kind of reset and start over, like let's remake all the modern warfare. Um, so I'm not yeah, I'm totally confused on why next year's game is going to be a black ops 2 sequel, unless I missed something. Like I said, the last one I'm aware of was Black Ops Cold War. So unless they're counting that which was technically called Black Ops 6. Like everybody you know, wait, am I getting confused? Black Ops 5, sorry. So I guess I don't know, I don't understand.

Mark Trobough: 4:21

Interesting, I guess we're not going to do the skip a year thing if it's coming out next year so not man is swapping it up doing something new, but I guess in the meantime show off the new mug that I got, I guess, technically, last weekend. It's the breath of the wild dude that's kind of sick. You gotta be careful because it's a little hot. But unfortunately it's got the zeta logo on the other side but unfortunately got a little little chip on the handle, but I didn't find that out until I already opened, but hey, it's still good, still looks nice.

Brandon Hurles: 4:53

You can you can mask it, you can hide it gotta get that fixed, man, you gotta repair that, can't leave it like that only had one there come on man. Hey, man, at least collar it in or something I just opened it like like an hour ago did you really?

Brandon Hurles: 5:10

yeah that sucks. Yeah, I don't know. I uh, I got a. I got a package today and there's a. I was worried because it has a screen on it and it had a big giant hole in the box from ups, like just look like somebody just straight punched the box like UPS. It looked like somebody just straight punched the box. That's what it looked like. I was like oh, I swear to God, if this is broken, I'm going to be so angry.

Mark Trobough: 5:34

I mean, it's always a possibility that it happened.

Brandon Hurles: 5:38

So what's your take on this? Like a Dragon pirate, yakuza in Hawaii, stuff, because it looks like we got the date brought Forward a week Because of Monster Hunter Wilds Clashing. They don't want them to clash. Are you going to play this? Because this seems like the. This seems like the Black Flag remake that we never get.

Mark Trobough: 6:03

It feels like they're expanding on the last like a dragon. I don't have it, the name put in front of me, but it was based in Hawaii, the last like a dragon game that they had, if I'm not mistaken oh, you're talking about, well, like a dragon.

Brandon Hurles: 6:21

Is it infinite wealth? Yeah, infinite wealth. That one I did not play, so, yeah, I'm not sure.

Mark Trobough: 6:27

Yeah, I thought it was uh, I played the one that came out in 2020 like a dragon um whatever it's called I can't remember, but I mean I'm still trying to catch up, to catch back up. So obviously we know that limited runs is doing the collector's editions that I want to go and collect, uh, of the, the original reprint runs, so I thought it looks cool. Plus I want the physicals. So I've got the original. What's the original? Eight Yakuza games, yeah, or Yakuza games.

Mark Trobough: 6:57

What are the proper ways to actually say it? Uh, I've got them on steam, but I've only played the first one and I've not gotten that far into it. So I want to, but I want to actually go back and play the older games and slowly kind of catch back up.

Brandon Hurles: 7:10

But that's going to take time. I would and this is, in all seriousness, like you're kind of doing it wrong. If you started there, you really got to start at Shenmue, because that's essentially the transition of Yakuza. Oh, for real, shenmue 1 and 2. And they're just excellent, excellent games from back in the day. These are really old.

Mark Trobough: 7:32

Shenmue 1 and 2. They were on the Sega Dreamcast.

Brandon Hurles: 7:34

I mean people still love those games. But that is 100% the evolution of Yakuza and it's essentially expanding on that universe.

Mark Trobough: 7:45

How much of it is it actually related, though?

Brandon Hurles: 7:50

It's really not, because people tend to have it in its own separate timeline. It kind of is. It's just kind of the evolution. You saw where they were going by Shenmue 2. You skipped Shenmue 3, which was that was. We waited so long for a new Shenmue game. You skipped Shenmue 3, which was that was. We waited so long for a new Shenmue game. It was garbage. Yeah, so I pulled it up.

Mark Trobough: 8:10

Shenmue originally came out in 99. Shenmue 2 came out in 2001. In 2010, you got Shenmue City I don't know if that matters. In 2018, they did the Shenmue 1 and 2 release and then in 2019, shenmue 3 came out.

Brandon Hurles: 8:26

so it was what an 18 year wait. That's 20 years, between the first and the third game. I don't know what city is. I've never heard of that. That must be some mobile crap or something.

Mark Trobough: 8:35

Shenmue City. Oh yeah, mobile phones slash Mobidge.

Brandon Hurles: 8:39

But it was a Japan only, go figure some multiplayer game, social role playing, video game okay, that's new to me.

Mark Trobough: 8:44

I've never heard of that, but it was a Japan only. Go figure, it was some multiplayer game, the social role-playing video game.

Brandon Hurles: 8:48

Okay, that's new to me. I've never heard of that term. Interesting, yeah, I mean we talked about it quite a few times because there's been a lot of news that came up since the beginning of the podcast for this and I'm excited why I didn't play Infinite Wealth. Well, I don't know. I haven't even picked it up yet because there's another 20.

Brandon Hurles: 9:11

What's it called? Like a dragon, um or no, like a dragon, yakuza, like a dragon, and was it that? Uh, let me pull back the one that came out. I played it because it came out.

Mark Trobough: 9:23

Yeah it's yakuza like a dragon, I thought was the one that was like the soft reboot on the title of the series yeah, where it was an rpg and it was.

Brandon Hurles: 9:31

It was really fun, man, I loved it and obviously entirely different than the yakuza formula that we're used to. Way different, not even the same type of game, um, but I loved it and I thought it worked. And so now they've like flip, flopped them like a dragon is yakuza. Yakuza is going to be its own thing, right? I?

Mark Trobough: 9:50

thought they were moving towards like a dragon because it was closer to the original proper japanese title oh, I must have misunderstood now, that's what I thought. So we're getting the like, the like a dragon games. Are the Yakuza games moving forward?

Brandon Hurles: 10:07

so they're flip-flopping releases with the RPG, and then the normal Yakuza formula is that is that what it was?

Mark Trobough: 10:16

it might be. I thought it was just a full on. Just I thought it was just a full on rebrand for what they were moving forward with. I just don't know what.

Brandon Hurles: 10:23

I don't.

Mark Trobough: 10:24

I don't know enough about the stories to to give you like a proper answer on what they were doing infinite wealth was a spin-off sequel, uh, trying to see what type of gates.

Brandon Hurles: 10:34

Yeah, I don't know if it was, uh, because I didn't play it either.

Mark Trobough: 10:37

Forgot that one because itian, yeah, because everything we've gotten is like a dragon, so I'm from understood. That was they were just rebranding to that and those were the title of the games moving forward.

Brandon Hurles: 10:51

Infinite Wealth. It was a turn-based JRPG, but I don't think Isshin was. That was the other one. I didn't play. That one, I think, was like a normal Yakuza game. It was like the Yakuza formula that we're used to, I think, because I think they're doing like alternate releases, where it's like they're going to do the turn-based style and then they're going to do the classic yakuza. You know style of game. Yeah, I, I think that's the case. You're looking at me like I'm an idiot. No, I.

Brandon Hurles: 11:22

I'm not. I don't know if I'm misunderstanding the report that I definitely remember reporting on. Hey, we're going to try to do both styles to keep it going. So it's going to be like a Call of Duty alternate release thing where it's like studios doing this, the studios doing that. That way, you're getting like a game a year.

Mark Trobough: 11:40

Yes, yeah, so starting. So we got Yakuza like a dragon in 2020. Uh, there was some windows game. Then in 21, you had lost judgment. Then it was a remake like a dragon, uh, ishin. Then the like a dragon gaiden, the man who erased his name, which I can't I don't know if it was a spinoff or not. Then it was infinite wealth, wealth, and then the Pirate Yakuza. It's like a dragon. I'm pretty sure is what they're doing moving forward, but apparently they're flip-flopping between spinoffs.

Mark Trobough: 12:15

It's what it looks like. It looks like Infinite Wealth was a mainline game, but the Pirate Yakuza is a spinoff, kind of like Lost Judgment was, and then Pirate Yakuza is a spinoff, kind of like Lost Judgment was. I guess we're getting a mix of mainline spinoffs, maybe more remakes, I don't know.

Brandon Hurles: 12:30

We've gotten more than one a year. I forgot about Lost Judgment. We're getting more than one game a year. That worries me. First of all, that's too much to keep up with. Second of all, anytime that happens, the series ends up deteriorating. Look at Assassin's Creed, call of Duty. I mean crap.

Mark Trobough: 12:50

even Madden it doesn't seem like I mean, it just seems like Western developers. The Eastern developers don't seem to have the immediate same issues with their games, but they still seem to be popular. Just wanted to shout out Mr Goff, he looks like a better skull and bones.

Brandon Hurles: 13:07

Which I would agree with. Yeah, that was kind of my thought as well. Better skull and bones. Yeah, thanks Mr Coffee for coming in here. We're actually live on YouTube this week too, so it's didn't plan on that. He wants the.

Mark Trobough: 13:24

Zelda mug. Oh yeah, we're going to put it over here on Twitch.

Brandon Hurles: 13:34

It's crazy zoom in on you drinking the coffee over there on Twitch.

Mark Trobough: 13:42

I could, it would look weird, though, but yeah, you're way too janky right now. I could, it would look weird though but yeah you're janky right now, but it's crazy how many games we've gotten total as we're trying to go back and count that's too many, man.

Brandon Hurles: 13:55

That's too many. That means one of those years we got two games. That's what?

Mark Trobough: 14:01

five six games. So if you count every mainline spinoff and a remake, since 2005 we've had 25 games total. Some of these may be in like uh or like our spinoffs, like on a phone or like on the playstation portable, but that's every game in the series is 25 we're waiting as long as we are for shin move 3 and then we get a garbage game.

Brandon Hurles: 14:24

Yeah, Because I feel like if you would have played Shenmue you would really have liked it. Like it's one of those games that like sticks with you. It's that type of game. It's got a really, really good story. The problem now and I guess it's fixed for the PC version, but the problem now is the controls. Going back to it, it's got alternate controls and it's got the. It's sort of a mix of um like the alternate controls and tank controls for the character. It's somewhere between that. The controls are rough. Going back to on the dreamcast itself, but I've heard that the pc version uh fixed that because of the remasters, I guess. Yeah, so I guess we want to move on to pick what you want out of that New York Comic Con stuff. I just kind of throw this in here for you because there's some interesting stuff to mention.

Mark Trobough: 15:17

I mean to be fair, like I know there's a lot of DC stuff. I'm kind of like passive, like yeah, it's neat for the most part just a lot. I didn't see any DC stuff.

Brandon Hurles: 15:28

They had a few things.

Mark Trobough: 15:29

I know we saw some stuff about the some Daima DLC for Dragon Ball Z, kakarot, which was kind of interesting, or apparently we're getting Daima stuff for Kakarot, xenoverse 2, and obviously Sparking Zero. How cool is it? They're still supporting Xenoverse 2 for Kakarot, xenoverse two and obviously a sparking zero.

Brandon Hurles: 15:46

How cool is there still supporting Xenoverse two and Kakarot?

Mark Trobough: 15:50

Especially Xenoverse, two came out a while ago.

Brandon Hurles: 15:53

Like Kakarot is like what? Two, three, years ago. Yeah, that one's just a few years, but the fact are still supporting either, um, especially Kakarot being a just a straight up single player game. Yeah, um, especially catcrop being a just a straight up single player game. Yeah, um, the universe 2. I can't believe they're still supporting that game.

Mark Trobough: 16:10

It must be doing well still. I think it's like I mean, outside of this game it was like a interesting like multiplayer type game. I played the first one a little bit. I didn't get too too far into it, but I know there were people that definitely like those games. But I mean, hey, it's good we're getting more, uh, more support for those games.

Brandon Hurles: 16:23

But I mean, hey, it's good we're getting more support for those games and we even got like little trailers for each thing. It looks like as well. The stylized Daima Goku and Kakarot looks really interesting. I don't know if you saw the little screenshot there of it, but it looks different than Xenoverse 2 and and sparking zero, but it's uh, that's really cool, man. That's cool to see daima. We're only one up. Well, as of this recording, the second episode is out. We haven't watched it yet, but so far everybody loves it. Man, yeah, and I I don't. Really good things and I was.

Mark Trobough: 17:05

I was looking over the trail. Looks like it's gonna be a whole new, at least for the kakarot game, a whole actual zone that you get like a story zone yeah which means they were working on it for a while.

Mark Trobough: 17:14

Obviously, this universe 2 I don't know if it's gonna be more than it looks more just like the character kind of like with what you're getting sparking, sparking zero. But I mean, if you get a whole on like playable dlc, that's, that's pretty dope yeah, what I saw, because I didn't see the universe 2 or sparking zero.

Brandon Hurles: 17:32

I saw the kakarot, yeah, and it's the entire demon realm. So, you, you get a, yeah, whole new zone, whole additional story.

Mark Trobough: 17:40

I guess from my understanding, because that's what it looks like uh, but that's really really cool, I'm.

Brandon Hurles: 17:44

It makes me happy that they're still supporting story. I guess from my understanding, that's what it looks like, but that's really really cool. It makes me happy that they're still supporting Xenoverse 2. I get so excited when I see companies actually support these old games, not just drop it when they have a large player base. Why not support your players?

Mark Trobough: 18:02

No need to drop the game for the hot new thing if the other game still has a solid player base.

Brandon Hurles: 18:09

Yeah, and Xenoverse 2 is different enough from Sparking Zero, I would say significantly, to where it makes sense to still support that game. Sparking Zero is more of your straight-up fighter and Xenoverse 2 is just a little different I don't know how to describe it. It's still a fighting game but there's more to it, so that's cool to see. It did just recently come to, I think within the past like 6 months, come to PS5 and Series X natively. So that's cool, man. What else?

Mark Trobough: 18:45

we got From the Al as far as the New York Comic Con. If you're really into Funko Pops, you got some Deadpool, wolverine Funko Pops coming. Oh man, if that's your cup of tea, it's definitely not mine.

Brandon Hurles: 19:02

I mean, and we also do have to say, as of this recording, we're only like a day into it, so it's still happening this weekend, I think, up until what Sunday. Is that right? Yeah, I would think so. That's how most of these go.

Mark Trobough: 19:17

They run like what, friday, thursday, friday through Sunday usually.

Brandon Hurles: 19:22

Yeah, that's really all the news we got from that through sunday usually, yes, that's really all the news we got from. I mean, the shonen jump, uh, shopify new york pop-up. I thought was kind of interesting. Uh, there's some like bleach stuff, there's some like probably one piece, I don't mean anything, shonen jump branded.

Mark Trobough: 19:38

I mean, I saw it there, but it looked more just like uh advertising some stuff to buy.

Brandon Hurles: 19:42

For the most part, you can buy like collabed manga though like actual, like thick volume manga. It looks like in the shots.

Mark Trobough: 19:51

Uh, there's like naruto skateboards, which oh, those look more like the actual like the actual issues those look like the actual. Like shonen jump, like the like. Hey, this is all the manga that released this week for like shonen jump, that's what those look like.

Brandon Hurles: 20:06

I still have some of my Shonen Jump. That was the greatest thing ever Getting all those new chapters and stuff. I love that, man. That was always fun. So we also got next. We talked about Mouse PI for Hire a few times Last time. We learned about the name. Now we know it's coming to Xbox in 2025, so not just PC, which is good. I think that's, if you're doing the PC sort of route, xbox makes sense too. I mean, you know you can play your Xbox games on PC. I'm really excited for this game because it's just the stylized nature of it is just incredible, like it's. It blows me away every time. I watch a trailer of it and it got shown off again, which we're going to talk about more, but the partner showcase.

Mark Trobough: 21:02

But we got a new trailer for it, which is really cool and I'm watching now it looks looks really good man and I just wanted to shout out because, uh, mr coffee over here on twitch brought it up apparently, uh, limited runs is opening a pop-up shop event in new york city in november. Uh, for I mean, it's a pop-up, it's like a limited time thing. I don't know if I saw hard dates for it, but I thought it's pretty interesting.

Brandon Hurles: 21:25

They're they're working with uh shop the shopify new york well, I wonder why they're collabing with uh, two different brands I'm not sure.

Mark Trobough: 21:35

They limited runs over on their twitter account posted this on the 16th, so two days ago, at least. From where we're live with this. Oh no, sorry, I misread. So, uh, limited run games. Fans can visit shopify's soho location on november 8th and 9th to shop, meet special guests, play games and pick up some awesome event items to take home. So it was in there, I think I.

Mark Trobough: 21:56

Just I I glossed over the first time, so if you're able to make your way to new y on the 8th and the 9th, that's definitely a thing. Fortunately, I'm like I don't know like 2,000 miles away.

Brandon Hurles: 22:09

Oh, no come on.

Mark Trobough: 22:10

I'm closer to LA than I am New York.

Brandon Hurles: 22:13

Oh, that's crazy, man, Really that's crazy. That's a crazy thought, Interesting I didn't want to point out as well too, because we got notification If you subscribe, if you sub over on the Twitch side of things. So for anybody that's listening to the audio, you can sub to our Twitch and you get three months of Discord Nitro for free, which goes above the value of a subscribe for a month. So I mean you get three months Discord Nitro, which is 10 bucks by itself, Got him. You get three months Discord Nitro, which is $10 by itself, Got him. You're a funny guy.

Mark Trobough: 22:50

Some might say a fun guy, oh, oh.

Brandon Hurles: 22:51

God, that's some. Mr Dilly, stuff right there.

Mark Trobough: 22:59

Oh my God Pretty sure that's who I got it from Probably man.

Brandon Hurles: 23:10

he was the best. Uh, I don't even remember where we were at now point. Now you're promoting something, not just doing stupid stuff oh yeah, no, just saying, if you do, because we're only we're four subscribers away from um, our next goal on there on twitch. So I just want to shout that out, uh, and then we'll try to keep things going over there and stuff too. I've got it pulled up over here as well.

Mark Trobough: 23:33

So yeah, but if you uh want to talk about games that are actually able to sell, not because the economy is bad but because they're actually decent games, it does exist. Silent Hill 2 remake has apparently sold a million copies, yeah it's first week.

Brandon Hurles: 23:50

I'm not I'm really not shocked about this. People love Silent Hill. It's got beyond a cult following, I would say at this point, because it got the movies and stuff. So people that aren't gamers even know what it is yeah, I mean, that's great dude, that's great to see.

Brandon Hurles: 24:07

Hopefully this means more silent hill. My hope is that, yes, I love three and four as well, but my hope is that we get a new entry that's not the garbage pt type remake that they tried to do. That was free. Um, when that came out, I I was like, oh God, silent Hill 2 is not going to be good. I was like this is really bad. This is a really bad game. You guys should not have gave us this for free. But no, this is great to see, man. Definitely good for the Silent Hill franchise. For sure, gaming is alive and well.

Mark Trobough: 24:42

Yeah, if you actually make good games, that is.

Brandon Hurles: 24:45

Yeah, like Age of Empires 2, definitive Edition.

Mark Trobough: 24:50

Yeah, this was something small, but I've been getting back into it. As far as the campaigns, I've watched a lot of content online. I watch a lot of T90s. He does a lot of casting and stuff like that Yo shout out T90.

Mark Trobough: 25:03

He, the bro that's into Age of empires 2 de uh probably probably knows about his channel, uh, but no, I I brought this up because it was recently announced we got a new uh mainline dlc, so you've got the main age of empires de. They've got a uh what's it? Return to rome, which brings a lot of the age of empires 1 into the age of empires 2, into the age of empires to a game engine Cause both of those games got definitive additions, but it's still. It still plays different than age of empires too, which is arguably the peak of the age series and I would say RTS as a whole. It's one of the best RTS is of all time.

Mark Trobough: 25:40

I'm glad we got like a definitive edition, like remake from the ground up. But their, their new DLC is called battle for Greece, which, unlike some of their past ones, this is a. It's simply a new way to do like campaigns and scenarios, but it's bringing in three new civilizations in a, what they say, a 21 scenario campaign with a, you know, added naval combat and stuff like that. So they're bringing more support for a game that's technically 25 years old or something like this point. But I believe the DE came out was it around 2020, 2021, something like that.

Mark Trobough: 26:18

It's been out for a few years now, so at least you can play this game in native 4K and it also improved a lot of like the ai, the, as you know it probably does, I think.

Mark Trobough: 26:31

I mean, I think it's one of the few at its core. It's still a a old game. You don't need like a modern hardware to really properly run it, but it just looks nice. They've they've redone a lot of a lot of the the videos and sounds and stuff like that, because actually this, this game's been getting a lot of consistent updates, a lot of the videos and sounds and stuff like that, because actually this game's been getting a lot of consistent updates. A lot of new campaign DLC, just new civs in general and stuff like that.

Brandon Hurles: 26:56

I tried to play. It's one that they did the other. Definitive edition for right.

Mark Trobough: 27:03

So there's one, two, I can't remember what I tried I can't remember if three did.

Mark Trobough: 27:07

I do know age mythology just got a release. I think it just came out or it's about to come out. I can't remember off the top of my head, but age mythology was also getting one as well, because I think that's one of the bigger, more popular ones because, unlike the other three, it introduced the, the, obviously by the name of the mythological side. So you take age one and then just add like the whole myth, uh, mythological creatures. You've got like super powerful characters and stuff like that. That adds a whole new, new twist to it. That I always thought was interesting. But I just think you think of rts like this is like a 25, 30 year old series that's still alive and well and it's great to see I wonder if they'll do age of kings, because that's really the only one that ever captured age of kings was the first official expansion to h2 and by default it's in the de version of it.

Mark Trobough: 27:56

Oh interesting, okay, so I didn't, I didn't, yeah, so technically, you had age of empires 2 and then yeah so yeah, the age of kings was the, I think, the original or the only expansion to the original game back in the day. If I'm not completely mistaken, it's been a long time since.

Brandon Hurles: 28:12

I've played those. Yeah, I mean that sounds like a lot of DLC. It must have a lot of concurrent players for the game. I would assume I can bring it up. It's only PC and Xbox, it's not even on.

Mark Trobough: 28:26

I mean it's, so it's on Steam, you can play it on Xbox, or you can play it on the on PC via the Xbox thing. Whatever you call it, whatever their, their store is, yeah their launcher. Yeah, Like I was trying to try to pull it up, see if I could pull up the number that it's got a fairly healthy player be. Oh, this is not what I want yes, I wanted only on them.

Mark Trobough: 28:56

I wanted steam DB, not not steam. No agent bars to the e. As of right now. It's got 14 735 players live right now 24 hour peak 21 000 and it peaked all time three a little over three and a half years ago, back in 2021, with 38 000 players. So I mean it's it's kept a steady player base. It occasionally, you know, on the, I think on its low peak over, like the last week, it's around eight, nine thousand players, but it, you know it consistently peaks above, you know, 15, 20 000 players.

Mark Trobough: 29:34

So it's got a it's got a solid, solid player base. Maybe not the same when it originally the de version launched, but it's got a very healthy player base, which I think is part and, unlike the original game, this actually has a proper online uh matchmaking system like ranked, unranked and stuff like that, and they're constantly updating the competitive pool to the game. So it's the same game that you love back then, just with more tweaks and a better way to play the multiplayer version, unlike those that actually play the game multiplayer way back when when it originally launched that makes sense, then I mean that's more than I would have thought that you were saying or playing right now yeah, so there's a there's officially.

Mark Trobough: 30:14

From what the this? Oh so I I heard a noise but I didn't say anything, so I don't know if it's it's twitch, just being weird for me. I'll pull it up in a second. But uh, there's. According to steam db, there's officially 14 different dlcs for this game. Uh, some are free, some's graphic, but there's there's like I think most of those are actual like new, new content of the game, like they had like a dlc like lord lord of the west's dawn of dukes, dynasties of India, the Return to Rome, mountain Royals and stuff like that. Just a whole bunch of different stuff. It's just really good content if you're into RTSs.

Brandon Hurles: 30:54

Did you hear something? Because you got an alert on your screen in OBS from something.

Mark Trobough: 31:01

I just heard the noise, Nothing popped up. I was looking around because I don't know what it was.

Brandon Hurles: 31:06

so I miss it a lot when I'm on other screens, but I don't have.

Mark Trobough: 31:11

Normally it at least pops up in the chat, but nothing popped up. So hopefully I'm not missing anything. I know, at least for those that are watching live or, I guess, on the audio. Normally over on OBS have a proper steam for things to display, but with podcasts it's not there to actually pop up. So yeah, yeah for sure, but oh well, small thing, I like to talk age of empires every once in a while. It's one of those old games that I played when I was a really young kid, back in like the early to mid 2000s and stuff like that.

Brandon Hurles: 31:42

I played the crap out of it the only reason I played it was because of you.

Mark Trobough: 31:46

Yeah, because you had the one on the DS.

Brandon Hurles: 31:49

I had the one on the DS, but you were playing it on PC and that's how I really kind of knew about it. That's the only reason I wanted the DS game. I didn't have a PC at the time to play. So the PC stuff, well, well, during that time I didn't have PC at my home, at my grandma's I did, but yeah, I just for some reason. I never, I mean, I played like Doom and all kinds of stuff on PC. I was playing floppy discs, you know way back in the day.

Brandon Hurles: 32:21

I mean, you know, I played big box PC games, going way back because I played during, you know, pretty going way back because I played pretty early on, I would say. For that it was some of my first memories of gaming as a kid was on PC, but for some reason I just never really got into the RTS thing. I liked the DS game, but I think that was probably just because I was trying to maybe really like it. I think it was because you did or something it was also more of a.

Mark Trobough: 32:48

It was also more of like a turn-based version, but, yeah, and there's a lot of good rts's really seemed to peak in like the mid-2000s. Between this, I think there was like a rise of suns or something like that. Um, I had to pull some up because it's been a while since I've yeah, but that's turn base. I was trying to pull up specifically like real time strategy oh, okay. I was trying to pull up a proper list.

Brandon Hurles: 33:21

You wouldn't know more than I do on the RTS front, but I guess Halo to pull up a proper list. You wouldn't even know more than I do on the RTS front, but I like yeah, I guess Halo Wars was considered a RTS right.

Mark Trobough: 33:32

Halo might've been?

Brandon Hurles: 33:33

I'm not sure.

Mark Trobough: 33:34

So some of the games I remember were like home world. Dungeon Keeper is not a game I played, there was. There was one other one. I'm trying to figure out what it was Because it was outside of the Age of Empires, it was Homeworld. There's one other game. It was like Rise of something, but I cannot find the game or what it's called. I'm trying to look for it real quick. Oh, sins of Solar Empire was the other game, rts game that I remember growing up Interesting.

Brandon Hurles: 34:00

Okay, growing up Interesting.

Mark Trobough: 34:05

Okay, and I don't know, I think, do you think MOBA is like the evolution of RTSs or do you think it's just kind of like its own thing, out of curiosity?

Brandon Hurles: 34:16

Well, it kind of seems that way doesn't it Like a splintering from.

Mark Trobough: 34:23

It's a different type of strategy game.

Brandon Hurles: 34:25

It feels like it's kind of taken the place of those games.

Mark Trobough: 34:28

Yeah, because League and Dota are essentially multiplayer online battle arenas type thing.

Brandon Hurles: 34:35

Apparently, we aren't live on YouTube. Oh, we go down. We never went up, apparently Never connected, because I just checked. I was like hold on, why has there been nobody in here? Uh, oh, no, yeah, so that's great, I'm gonna. Uh, we'll keep going. We're recording on your end anyway, so it should be okay. But uh, yeah, end broadcast there and uh, try to do it again.

Mark Trobough: 35:09

Oh, that's never fun.

Brandon Hurles: 35:12

I know, because it just stopped the recording and everything.

Mark Trobough: 35:14

Hey, it's not a bug, it's a feature.

Brandon Hurles: 35:17

Yep, now it's gone to on there anymore. So, yeah, I'll try to do that If you don't mind. Just, we'll just keep it. Keep it going.

Mark Trobough: 35:26

I'm trying to get back up, yeah because I was reading some other things where they they claim it was a originated as a sub-genre of the rts games and kind of became its own actual thing from rts, role-playing, action games kind of like meshed together into one. So that's kind of why I brought that up. What you thought? I've tried league of legends. I can't get to mobis. I'm not a fan of them. I didn't care for it. I'm not.

Mark Trobough: 35:48

I'm not either benefit like the league and dota 2, like are those toxic games? They're very popular on the esports side but my god, are they toxic because I I have friends that play dota 2 and league competitively.

Brandon Hurles: 36:02

Oh my god, it's yeah no, I, they, I, it's one of the things I can't do it. And it's very, very, very popular in korea. I I saw like, um, these league of legends teams, yeah, like the top training in korea and it's like insane like they would do it. They play like 15 hours a day training and every single day, super dedicated to it.

Mark Trobough: 36:26

Yeah, because I guess the League of Legends Is it League or, I think, one of the top. So Faker is the top esport and I believe he plays in Dota 2, if I'm not mistaken, oh no, league of Legends. So he's one of the most popular, not only like league player but like the top, like best well-known, like esports player, because I think league in Worlds is like one of the most profitable esports out there, which is crazy because MOBA's just blew up in popularity.

Brandon Hurles: 37:01

Yeah, it's wild man, Absolutely wild.

Mark Trobough: 37:08

It's just not for me, it's not my job, it's. It's insane, like if anybody's ever watched some of these worlds, like the finals they do the the live lands. It's insane how much money goes into those like like the pre festivities and performances and stuff like that. They got to actually like really popular k-pop amps and stuff uh coming out performance. It's crazy amount of money that goes behind this.

Brandon Hurles: 37:25

It looks amazing, but I don't care for the game itself yeah, just just never could get into it, man myself, I just couldn't.

Mark Trobough: 37:34

But it isn't like definitely, definitely tried but, isn't korea like the home of esports, even back in like the 2000s, before it was still niche yeah oh yeah, even with call of duty, even with call of duty, even with Call of Duty, they have these crazy teams.

Brandon Hurles: 37:46

You'd hear about these stories of these Korean kids. That's what they did all day 12, 15 hours a day Just playing the one single game, getting really good at it.

Mark Trobough: 37:57

And everybody's like, oh, that's not a thing, they're crazy. And then, lo and behold, 20 years later it just blew up in popularity.

Brandon Hurles: 38:05

It's insane. I mean, I remember when I heard the story about the league of legends like korean teams, how they trained and stuff, I was like, oh my gosh, like that they're trying like a sports team.

Mark Trobough: 38:15

That's pretty crazy, like I've all like lived together in, like share houses and stuff like that, and they just that's all they do all day long is play this game train.

Brandon Hurles: 38:23

Yeah, they're not into women, they don't like any of that kind of stuff. They just like League and that's it. That's their life.

Mark Trobough: 38:31

At least for as long as they can be competitive at the game.

Brandon Hurles: 38:34

Well, you can be competitive forever if your heart is really into it.

Mark Trobough: 38:40

I don't know. Eventually, there's going to be some drop-off and you're going to want to do something else. I would imagine.

Brandon Hurles: 38:45

I don't believe that. I think that's a lie.

Mark Trobough: 38:48

You're always some fun. I know we got some news that I saw about Deadpool and Wolverine breaking some more records.

Brandon Hurles: 38:56

I'm just going to let you know. I'm going to try to go live here on YouTube, so it's going to be for our YouTube audience. If I can get it to load here, they're going to have missed everything. I'll have to get the recording from you. That's fine, but go ahead and continue, because it's not loading up for some reason. Come try.

Mark Trobough: 39:18

If you know, you know. But no, deadpool Ruvine Broker Record is the highest grossing R-rated film of all time, with 1.3 billion worldwide in box office, which is insane. There's a lot of good movies that are r-rated. It's crazy. This one took the took the top yeah, that's wild got. My obs is uh, yeah and then also they came out that the this movie also set a record for the highest selling first week for an r-rated film on digital platforms in the us, so that if you don't know that movie is essentially now.

Mark Trobough: 39:51

Once it leaves theaters it goes straight to digital and apparently there there's reports that marvel's working on more r-rated movies. Because this it shows disney and marvel that, hey, r-rated movies can do well and be successful. If you actually give the fans what they want and actually respect the source material that you're actually pulling from. It's also really important.

Brandon Hurles: 40:15

Do you think we'll ever get an R-rated Star Wars film? No, I don't think so either.

Mark Trobough: 40:21

Star Wars has always been a.

Brandon Hurles: 40:23

I think that's a mistake. It's always been been a, I think that's a mistake.

Mark Trobough: 40:24

It's always been family friendly. We've you've had like close to like adult spinoffs, but not, not, not a not a mainline movie have you not watched the holiday special?

Brandon Hurles: 40:34

you're telling me that's family friendly. I have watched the. If you think that's family friendly, you're wild. You need to get checked out because, uh, that is I don't know what you're talking about.

Mark Trobough: 40:47

There is no holiday special in bossing, say.

Brandon Hurles: 40:51

Broadcast failed. Please try again in 10 to 30 seconds. Lovely, oh, it's good. Yeah, you're real kind, but I don't. I don't think this movie succeeded because it was R rated.

Mark Trobough: 41:02

I think it succeeded because it plays into the source of serial and what the audience has been asking for and you've not been delivering on. That's why this movie did well. It gave the audience what they want and it, for the most part, respected its source material and also you pulled from some other IPs that have kind of dropped off.

Brandon Hurles: 41:22

Yeah, and we were already worried, we were kind of checked out of the marvel movies and now this one I'm like, okay, definitely, definitely worth the time, for sure yeah, but like, if that means to me in our making an r-rated movie, that's not the problem.

Brandon Hurles: 41:35

The problem that disney marvel have is you're just making bad movies that is the problem, and one thing I think, too, that goes along with that, and also once also want to say to our YouTube audience I truly apologize. Part of this was missed, so if you do want to watch it, you can go over on the Twitch and watch our POV, or you can listen on the audio platforms. Something happened there where we were live but we weren't live. It was a blank screen, so nothing was there. So I apologize for our YouTube audience Again. Check out the audio platform Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Podchaser, all that fun stuff. So apologies on that, but we're going to move forward where we're at.

Mark Trobough: 42:20

Yeah, and if you're watching this, probably recorded, just a heads up the Deadpool Wolverine will be available to purchase on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray and DVD October 22nd. So if you're not watching this live, hey, you can buy it physical if you don't want to just stream it. So did you watch it? Yet? I watched it in theaters. You did, Okay, yeah, like two or three months ago when it came out.

Brandon Hurles: 42:45

You played it on a video and then something came up, so I didn't know if you actually ever watched it.

Mark Trobough: 42:51

No, yeah, because it brought back one of my favorite scenes with Wesley Snipes as or spoiler. Wesley Snipes as Blade Spoiler.

Brandon Hurles: 43:03

At this point it's already been spoiled.

Mark Trobough: 43:05

If you were going to watch this movie, you already watched it.

Brandon Hurles: 43:07

Sorry, Wow, absolutely rude of you.

Mark Trobough: 43:13

Mr Coffey says he's in the mood for Taco Bell because some of the ads have just played for him. You say that and I want Taco Bell.

Brandon Hurles: 43:22

Yeah, now I do too. I didn't eat dinner. Alright, what do we got next? You say that now I want Taco Bell. Yeah, now I do too.

Mark Trobough: 43:29

I need dinner. All right, what do we got next? Some I don't know what you're going to call it good or bad news. Sony lost a European court case over what they call third party add-ons, so this had to deal with the action replay. So, essentially, a European court came out and ruled that the action replay cheat software essentially doesn't change source code and therefore they can continue to do whatever they want.

Mark Trobough: 43:51

I didn't even know this was going on until I saw this, because this came out a few. No, today, uh, this morning on the 18th. Oh, interesting. So I saw that when I originally thought like, oh, are they gonna? This has to do do with like add ons, like mods or something to the game, and I think this also plays into the mods. But, like you know, if you want to publish cheat software, you can, I'm assuming. Also, if it's like a single player game, not like a server based competitive game, like, why do you care? It's not, not a big issue, and I think this was always an issue. I, why do you care? It's not a big issue. I feel like this was always an issue. I feel like Nintendo had a problem with them back in the day for the DS and stuff like that.

Brandon Hurles: 44:27

Oh yeah, you know they did. They have a problem with everything. Game Shark I saw somebody it was like an in-defense of Nintendo video where they're like, yeah, nintendo acts like this with their IPs, like Disney does, but they're also the company not screwing up every single thing that's going on right now in this generation and doesn't have. Although the PS5 has finally picked up in 2024, it's taken to me I would have told you up until 2023, early that it was unnecessary. Like a PS4 is fine to play. Everything that was coming out PS4 or Xbox One was fine. So I feel like it was just, you know, late. Like you said, up until the beginning of 2023. But I think last year was a banger. This year has been really good for it. I think it's been good.

Mark Trobough: 45:29

But, like my, the big thing for the ps4 to the ps5 that I noticed that the only thing I actually really cared for was, yeah, the slight upgrade in graphical fidelity, but it was really the ssd was the main changer as far as like load times and stuff like that. Like that's like the single biggest that to me, that was like the biggest upgrade over everything else.

Mark Trobough: 45:47

Cpu, gpu, stuff like that. I think the the store, the way we store media and the ability, the speed of like read, write and stuff like that that has like the biggest impact m.2 ssds are just.

Brandon Hurles: 45:59

There's no comparison to a hard drive.

Mark Trobough: 46:01

Yeah, like obviously you need more. You know you have that gradual increasing graphic processing power and stuff like that, and the ram and stuff like that matters. But to me that was the biggest thing because most ps4 games on the ps5 play just fine, even without any kind of proper upscaling or stuff like that. Just putting them on the hardware they still look and play just fine. Because to me it's the gameplay, the experience, the storytelling, not the actual graphical fidelity.

Brandon Hurles: 46:26

I mean to me, hey, I still play, you know, game Boy and NES games. Oh yeah, graphics don't matter to me.

Mark Trobough: 46:33

There's a charm to that pixel animation.

Brandon Hurles: 46:35

There's got to be. Well, I mean, there really is. That's why, you see, you know so many indie companies going that route. Yes, it's also cheaper. There's so many unique games? Yeah, but it's. It shows things like animal well and um shovel knight and and super meat boy and all these, just classics. That are indie games, you know, no, but it just shows that that good gameplay, good story design is all you need.

Mark Trobough: 47:02

You don't need these hundreds of millions of dollars that increase the likelihood of a game flopping to do well. You can spend $10 million on a game and it do fantastic and then you can just make a lot of money because you made a really good game. You maybe you're not not selling as many copies as the next elder schools game. It's going to cost $200 million to make, but you don't. You know you sold like a fraction of it, but you've made so much more money on top of it.

Brandon Hurles: 47:31

It's not the worst financial decision. Yeah, no, I'm with you. I'm with you on that.

Mark Trobough: 47:35

I think we've harped on that in the past before, but yeah, I could go on that forever.

Brandon Hurles: 47:38

But yeah, I mean, I could too, I could too, but yeah, I just, you know, I don't know man, I really don't know what else to say on it.

Mark Trobough: 47:53

Well, it is the season, it is Halloween, it's a Christmas thing, but I keep saying it For those that are fans of Shaun of the Dead, the 20th anniversary 4K steelbook is apparently back in stock on Amazon. I't know it was out of stock.

Brandon Hurles: 48:10

I didn't know this was even a thing.

Mark Trobough: 48:10

There's no way now but you pull it up now they've got. Amazon has like four different ways. I believe they one they're talking about is the limited edition, which is still pre-ordering it, but you can get the anniversary or the 4k blu-ray plus digital version and buy those now for it if you don't care for the actual case. But Shot of the Dead is like a classical comedy Halloween movie, if you ask me.

Brandon Hurles: 48:36

I think we talked about a few times. I'm not a fan at all.

Mark Trobough: 48:40

You just have terrible taste in movies.

Brandon Hurles: 48:42

It's just that it's the same with Hot Fuzz I think was the other movie that was the same thing with a cop movie. I don't like that type of comedy.

Mark Trobough: 48:52

Because it's got Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in a bunch of movies together. I think they're a really good duo.

Brandon Hurles: 48:58

Never cared for either of them as actors Never have. I've watched Shaun of the Dead more than once and absolutely do not like it If you're a fan of that Steel series.

Mark Trobough: 49:09

It's $43 on Amazon and they're pre-ordering as it releases December 3rd Unfortunately in time for Christmas, maybe not Halloween, unless you want to stream it and stuff like that.

Brandon Hurles: 49:19

I've noticed they're printing a lot more Steelbooks for releases. Now it seems like.

Mark Trobough: 49:25

I think it's becoming the new thing Even games. I think it's just a way to incentivize or it's a new way we're approaching physical releases. Yeah, you need more than just the actual copy. You need some form of value to buy a physical. The way they're trying to entice people to buy physical media.

Brandon Hurles: 49:44

I will tell you, as a physical, the way they're trying to entice people to buy physical media. I will tell you, as a physical media guy who stopped collecting movies because it became a problem. I watched the Super Mario Bros movie my 4K Blu-ray of that and I actually have the regular Blu-ray too and I threw them in to look at the difference and I was shocked how much better I just forget how much better 4k Blu-ray looks than even Blu-ray, and it's especially streaming Like it's. It looks so much, so better.

Mark Trobough: 50:16

Is Blu-ray native uh 10 AP, or is it uh 1440? It's 10 AP. Okay, yeah, Then you're doubling the pixels.

Brandon Hurles: 50:24

It should look better at that point, I mean it just it looks so much better and it especially if you compare it to streaming. So I want to show one of the things I got. Okay, hopefully this works because, uh, little background thing there it's gonna be really hard to show just a little bit.

Brandon Hurles: 50:46

It is a Bluetooth CD radio player with a screen, but it has HDMI in and composite in as well as an auxiliary in port, which allows me to also have another option of way to put like retro games on there and play them on this screen. So I got some shorts coming on this. I want to hook up both the PS five, but then I'm also going to hook up like the NES or something. The fact that this has an HDMI port and AV ports is crazy, is crazy to me. Any boombox player like it's made by awa, which is a pretty or um, how do you say the company's name? They make phones uh, they're big in like china, oh, it's a, it's at huawei or something like that well, yeah, uh yeah, you know what I'm talking about.

Brandon Hurles: 51:43

I might be getting a little bit wrong. Yeah, that might not sound cool. It'll be cool when I show PS5 playing on a boombox. Really really neat. He said if you're interested, it's on HSN right now. That's where I got it from Cornetto Trilogy I. I might pick that up. Not sure what that one is. I haven't heard of that before. But yeah, it's on HSN. If you want to check it out, dude, totally worth it. 1080p LCD screen on that, and it's a Bluetooth speaker too as well, and a CD player.

Mark Trobough: 52:22

You would bring back the boom boxes of the beach, the giant boxes of the beach, the giant box like the size of your chest you, just you know 1980, bring it back the 80s this baby is going to sit somewhere up here.

Brandon Hurles: 52:33

What it's going to be is, like my testing thing, so to test systems and stuff like that. Just a quick plug-in stuff like that. Um plus, if I like, legitimately wanted to, I've got my systems right here. Hdmi, I can plug it in and play on. You know why not? It's better than playing on like a bigger screen, right?

Mark Trobough: 52:55

oh, no, yeah, 100 it's always better, but both speaking of the 80s and steel series, there you're getting another steel series release coming out from a 1982 movie that I've not actually seen, but I'm sure somebody has the Last Unicorn, an American animated film from 1982. You can pre-order the 4K Steelbook edition, due out in November, through Amazon and Walmart. I believe the release date is November 12th, but you can pre-order now.

Brandon Hurles: 53:28

I am shooketh that you have not watched the Last Unicorn. I never heard of it. So if you liked the Hobbit movie and the Lord of the Rings animated movie, you'll like the Last Unicorn. It's not like the same animation style, yeah it very much is, and I mean it's set in, like you know, a fantastical sort of universe like that. Uh, it's really, really good man, it's worth. The watch still holds up.

Mark Trobough: 53:52

I know that I watched it, I think, once in 2020 again, so a few years ago yeah, I know they did advertise some good uh voice acting from uh alan arkin, jeff Bridges, mia Farrow, angela Lansbury and Christopher Lee All voice actor in this film.

Brandon Hurles: 54:11

Angelina Jolie.

Mark Trobough: 54:14

Angela Lansbury. Oh, I was gonna say, she's not much, much older.

Brandon Hurles: 54:19

She was uh she's born, she's born she's born at 25.

Mark Trobough: 54:24

She passed away in 2022 at the age of 95 like an old, older, older actor gotcha yeah, it's really good.

Brandon Hurles: 54:31

It says it's a 4k transfer of the 35 millimeter film, which is good, so it's direct from the film. Dolby Vision yeah, it's got all the goods to it, so it's got the work done. It's got the real remaster done to it. It's straight from that Film negative yeah, this is from the. I have some of that grain which I love, film grain.

Mark Trobough: 54:54

Oh, yeah, it's just adds to the flavor of old films. But I mean it was brought to you from production companies, big heavy hitters like uh rankin, bass productions, top craft and itc films.

Brandon Hurles: 55:08

What those are the.

Mark Trobough: 55:11

Those are the production companies I've never. I'm pretty sure none of which still exists today or yeah'm pretty sure they all went out of business or they got bought out probably. It's crazy looking at some of these old films. These are probably decent studios back in the day that don't even exist anymore. It's crazy.

Brandon Hurles: 55:28

Are you sure none of those studios exist anymore? I have a hard time believing that I can pull it up. It's a pretty successful film, I want to say it's definitely a cult following.

Mark Trobough: 55:41

Rankin-bass Animated Entertainment, formerly Videocraft International, was founded in 1960 and went defunct in 1987 with a company and then some partnership ended in 2001,. But the company doesn't exist anymore. Uh, top craft, which is a animated studio, uh, founded in 1972, uh over in japan, went defunct in 1985, but it says it's successor bankruptcy hit this one. But it says it's successor is studio ghibli and pacific animated corporation. Makes sense, so it's studio ghibli and then a disney company. So it looks like it went bankruptcy and then it kind of was bought out by other other companies, right, uh?

Brandon Hurles: 56:31

but this they.

Mark Trobough: 56:32

They did say this. One worked on films such as the hobbit return of the king. So talk about the animation style.

Brandon Hurles: 56:38

That's funny, it just gives me. I thought of it the same way as I thought of those films when I watched those, because I watched those way before the movies came out and stuff. I had the Hobbit on VHS as a kid, so originally I watched the animated film, then read the book. Don't care about the movies for the hobbit, but uh, lord of the rings, same deal. Watch the animated movies first and went to the book, then saw fellowship and from there you know.

Mark Trobough: 57:13

So, yeah, good stuff so this is an old company probably nobody knows of, so it did collaborative work for those two movies and the last unicorn. But, funny enough, actual productions that this studio worked on really well known film Nausicaa, the Valley of the Wind, was like one of their main films they actually worked on.

Brandon Hurles: 57:32

Such a good, such a good movie.

Mark Trobough: 57:33

Yeah, and then I was looking through some of the more collaborative work. They worked on a Mazinger z uh, what's it looping? The third part, two, there was one. I can see that one more. Oh uh, thundercats and the smurfs on uh that makes. So it worked on the looked at the first season for both of those shows, like right at the end of its before, the company kind of went defunct so there's like good info.

Brandon Hurles: 57:58

That all makes sense. I can see all of that where you know you could see this sort of evolution from all of that yeah, and then because these are probably decent studios. Just, you know, bad luck hit them you should really watch this, like I do legitimately recommend, like it still holds up. I watched it a few years ago and it's really good man, it's really good. It's not often that I can recommend just a regular animated film to go check out, but this is one.

Mark Trobough: 58:27

If you haven't watched it, it's so good man yeah, and I guess the last one, the ITC Entertainment, which was founded in 54. It went defunct in 98. They say it folded into Polygram Television, which became essentially bought out by Comcast. You know it's a universal company. So oh, wow.

Brandon Hurles: 58:45

Okay, so none of them exist. I was wrong, yeah.

Mark Trobough: 58:49

Interesting. You know, when you go down some random rabbit holes, it's.

Brandon Hurles: 58:52

None of those studios are around anymore. Well, one got technically bought out, but but it's crazy.

Mark Trobough: 58:58

Look at some of these like studios you've never heard of and you're like wow, they've worked on some really well-known films and tv shows. Some of these old animation studios, oh yeah yeah it's, it's crazy a lot more small studios too. Just a ton of small studios before they all got bought out right before the turn of the century, exactly yeah now you've got like a handful of them exactly.

Brandon Hurles: 59:21

Yeah, there used to be a ton of them, a ton of small studios, a lot of, I mean even just like sort of mom and pop studios doing like a family. You know, I've seen the background of some of the people that do some of this animation stuff and then also people that work on prop crafts. So, like any of the people that do some of this animation stuff and then also people that work on um prop crafts, uh, so like any of the prop stuff, like these prop companies where they source out for everything uh, nothing's in-house, usually for these films.

Mark Trobough: 59:50

Um, it's very interesting for sure I mean, I probably just goes to show how hard it is to run a film studio or an animation studio like it's, you know you can make a lot of good films and still go under.

Brandon Hurles: 1:00:02

It's not as much as I want to say. You know, obviously, indie films and, like I went to film school and everything, um, it's not the same as indie games. Indie games are more to me are accessible. They can be put out everywhere. They can be broadcast on all platforms everywhere. Indie films, you might only be able to see it at Sundance Festival or it's only streaming on this one app, that's like Shudder or something weird that Netflix wouldn't take it, hulu wouldn't take it, stuff like that. I think indie films would be more successful when take it hulu and take it you know, stuff like that and it's like I think it's. It's just way more. I think indie films would be more successful if they were more accessible for people and it's like, yeah, most of them don't get a physical format. Um, you know what? Where do you watch these movies? Besides, like a festival, where do you watch them?

Mark Trobough: 1:00:54

yeah, because I think the other thing is like you can maybe put a lot less up front on indie film. You could just be a one-person studio and just work on your spare time. But a film requires a lot more people just by its nature. You just can't do one person and you know a lot. A lot of upfront budget and stuff like that because you have a limited time it has to come out. So just a lot more room for, for error. With films to games, just by the nature of the medium, there's more hands-on.

Brandon Hurles: 1:01:20

There has to be more hands-on. By nature it requires more than one person. Unlike indie games, there's been tons of really good ones that have came out that are developed by one person. So you can do that you can be all fully hands-on with the game Wasn't Minecraft.

Mark Trobough: 1:01:36

With Notch did it start as one man and then became like a small team in the original days, before he eventually cashed out big with Microsoft.

Brandon Hurles: 1:01:45

Fez started with one person. Super Meat Boy, I believe, is one person. Yeah, it's crazy man. There's been quite a few games. I could be wrong on this one, but I think Animal Well may have even been, which is the most recent successful one One-person game. Mr Coffee said back in the day you can have a theatrical bomb but still make profit on VHS release. Yeah, garbage Pail Kids, the movie I mean, let's be real here, like that was one of the worst movies of all time but it still made some money. It made at least at least a little bit of money because I had the vhs, I mean.

Mark Trobough: 1:02:28

so it's still something isn't that the origin of cult classic films, films that on launch did not do well, but but they've got really popular. You know, years, or like a decade, after the after release.

Brandon Hurles: 1:02:40

Howard the ducks, the other big one that like absolutely bonds, but it's a cult classic. And I will say this I like Howard the duck, I like the movie garbage bill kids. I like movies that are so bad, they're good. But garbage bill kids and I, I watched movies that are so bad, they're good, but garbage pail kids and I I watched it as a kid man. It's horrible, it's just not. It's not so bad, it's good to me. Uh, there are some defenders of a guy just posted about the other day. Um, because I collected the cards as a kid. I don't know if you ever had any of the cards, but like they're just, they're wild man and and that movie was. You watch the trailer for the Garbage Pail Kids movie? Oh, my god, you'll be terrified.

Mark Trobough: 1:03:21

Yeah, they look so bad, it's scary, Like it's crazy. You think of cult classic films that bombed early, Since some of these became really popular you think of, like Scott Pilgrim vs the World Lost Money at the box office. Yeah, isn't that crazy. The shawshank redemption barely broke. Even at the box office it's considered one of the best films of all time.

Brandon Hurles: 1:03:43

That's wild yeah, that's I. Movies like that are like evergreen titles where they'll always sell some way, whether it's on a digital platform or physical media like it'll. They'll always be able to sell. That you know what I mean. Yeah, at least for the span of since that's been out. It's the same thing with the Green Mile Movies like that, where I say you might find it a $5. But it's always going to sell.

Mark Trobough: 1:04:11

Talk about another film. I didn't realize this one bombed so bad, but it was like a staple of my childhood. The Iron Giant had a box office budget of 70 million. It only brought in a little over 23 million dollars. Wow, I'm surprised I've saw.

Brandon Hurles: 1:04:24

It's such a good movie, it's so good. I mean they earned it on cartoon network even yeah, like there's a lot.

Mark Trobough: 1:04:31

Like you know, fight club. I think fight club made made money, made 20, 30 million, but that's not. You know, when it comes to to movies it's not a lot of money, but that's a cult classic yeah, oh yeah.

Brandon Hurles: 1:04:42

Yeah, it is um, I would say differently than like garbage fail kids or harold the duck, but yeah, I mean some, some cult classics that you might say.

Brandon Hurles: 1:04:50

It didn't perform well, may have still made money, but it didn't make as make as much as they wanted beetlejuice would have been one and you just saw how much did the second Beetlejuice make, like some crazy number of money, I'm not sure Some crazy number, I think I know everything I heard about it was pretty positive. I didn't hear anything negative. I haven't watched it. I just straight up said you know I didn't To me Beetleju people, just I loved it as a kid but didn't hold up for me so I just haven't watched this one.

Mark Trobough: 1:05:21

Yeah, because the one that just came out, the this year, was budgeted for 100 million, but it made like 400, some million dollars, like it definitely made a lot of money, that's crazy.

Brandon Hurles: 1:05:31

That's at the box office like actual theaters. Yeah, yeah, it's not on streaming, it just came out a couple weeks ago. That's crazy. You're telling me theaters are completely dead. You're full of crap. 400 million. It opened like three weeks ago.

Mark Trobough: 1:05:55

I think a little bit more than that. It's just crazy and these are like it's movies aren't dead. Hollywood, just for like a better part of a decade, put out bad movies. No, nobody wanted to go watch your crap. I do think there's a. There's people want to go to the theaters, like I prefer to go watch a movie in theater. It's just different, popcorn tastes better, the environment's great. But like for the longest time there was just no incentive to even want to go because, like these movies are meh, they're bad. I just don't, I don't really care.

Brandon Hurles: 1:06:25

I'm sure streaming played into it a little bit you know, just not that long ago, when I saw the super mario movie, that was the first one where I was like, oh, I miss this experience, because when that came out, you know we're still dealing with COVID stuff, so it was like you know, it was around that time. I was like, man, I miss this experience. I actually love this. Like yeah, this is how I love to watch movies.

Mark Trobough: 1:06:51

Like I think it was probably a mixture of bad or just subpar movies. Streaming was new, so it was like a new, neat thing, but eventually you have that nostalgia for wanting to go back to the theaters.

Brandon Hurles: 1:07:01

It's not even, it's not nostalgia for me, it's just I. I like theaters.

Mark Trobough: 1:07:05

I mean, I just enjoy the experience because recently, especially since we started the game generation podcast, I've been going more recently, but before, like the last few years, I went more, more or less a decade and just never went to the theaters because outside of a handful of movies, there's just nothing worth watching.

Brandon Hurles: 1:07:20

Yeah, no, I'm with you, I hadn't gone. I think the last thing I saw before the Super Mario Bros movie in the theater was Infinity War, which I didn't see. I knew people that did?

Mark Trobough: 1:07:34

I didn't care, I didn't care to go. I was like I was missing half the DC movies. I had lost interest in. Dc, not DC, but Marvel, by then DC as well.

Brandon Hurles: 1:07:45

That's where it peaked, and then it fell off. After that, what do you mean? That was the best movie.

Mark Trobough: 1:07:51

I didn't care to go and see a lot of those movies. I was never a big Marvel comic book guy to begin with. So it was kind of like a I'm glad y'all having good movies.

Brandon Hurles: 1:08:01

I'm like, yeah, whatever what about the x-men manga I sent you today? That's getting remastered. Would you read that maybe? I guess we'll see it's.

Mark Trobough: 1:08:12

I don't know how you remastered manga I mean, manga is just the Japanese version of comics, it's getting a Japanese and English remaster.

Brandon Hurles: 1:08:21

I sent you the link. It doesn't make sense, but it's being remastered. That's what it said In Japan and America, so I don't know.

Mark Trobough: 1:08:32

Definitely worth checking out.

Brandon Hurles: 1:08:35

Yeah.

Brandon Hurles: 1:08:36

So next we got Super Mario Party Jamboree launched yesterday. Got my copy here. I don't know yet if Mark is getting it. We may stream it. But what I want to do is, like the Mario Kart that we talked about, this right here would be perfect.

Brandon Hurles: 1:08:50

Obviously, it's hard to show the blur there, but I did get to spend about an hour and a half with the game and I played mostly just a single player, didn't even do a board, didn't even play a board yet, and it was great. I mean, it has enough extra stuff there that really makes the game worth it. And I was like okay, I get it. You've got like four different online modes for games that aren't even the Mario Party boards, like these are separate games themselves. 't even the Mario Party boards, these are separate games themselves. I get it. I get what they're doing with it. It makes sense Offering way more than just a couple of Monopoly boards.

Brandon Hurles: 1:09:29

Essentially, you've got seven boards. You've got 112 minigames. It's also got some. You can off-tour it if you want to, but some Joy-Con based ones, so some motion stuff. If you want to do those For me in the mode that I played, it gave me an option. But there's two online modes. You got the Koopathon and the Bowser Kaboom Squad, which is what I played online twice super addictive. I think you're going to love this game, mark. I really do. I think you'll love it and I think this will be a great community game. So I was like you know what this makes sense. These are the type of games to get community and to play. That makes sense, sense.

Mark Trobough: 1:10:18

So that's how I felt about it yeah, I mean I don't have the game, I haven't played it, I don't have a whole lot to say, but it's obviously seen the trailers and it looks like a fun game. That's all I've got to say about it it's really good.

Brandon Hurles: 1:10:33

I think you'd enjoy it alright. So, moving on to the big news, we got one of the big boys here, so we got the price and info on the Analog 3D, which I've been waiting on Ever since they announced this. Everybody's been not patiently waiting. I see it in the analog groups all the time, I feel like almost every other day.

Brandon Hurles: 1:10:57

You know what's going on with analog 3D Is it coming, blah, blah, blah. So the info we got is it comes out just a few days or the pre-order comes out just a few days before this recording we are recording on the 18th of October. It goes up for pre-order October 21st for $250, which I think is very. They priced it well. If you ask me, they priced that well In comparison to what other companies have done and things like that and what this is. I think this. I'm shocked that they didn't go for the $400 because it will sell out, no matter what. This is going to sell out, then sell out again when they offer it in another version and then sell out, no matter what this is going to sell out. Then sell out again when they offer in another version and then sell out again. This is going to keep selling out over and over. This can be very hard for people to get.

Brandon Hurles: 1:11:47

Every analog product is the same way. And then we got two colorways black and white. Straight black, just straight white. Um, but yeah, it says uh, it touts as the first true nintendo 64 clone console. So it's an fpga console. This plays the same way your 64 would play. Obviously has hdmi built into it. Uh, it is native 4k, uh, so it's like doing a true upscale of the games. It says analog says a sleek little device which features a custom controller by 8bitdo which, praise the lord, baby Jesus got a custom controller for the 64.

Brandon Hurles: 1:12:30

Thank goodness, it's a little rough with the old one it's a little rough, but you'll be able to play all 100% of your Nintendo 64 games, so complete compatibility. The old one it's a little rough, but you'll be able to play all 100% of your Nintendo 64 games, so complete compatibility. It will be region free so you can do imports. And yeah, it says the biggest selling point is its ability to easily play N64 games in 4K via HDMI Boon. Given the messy nature of N64 emulation, which is a problem, it's designed with a bespoke, purpose-built 4K upscaler that offers a faithful, lag-free way to re-experience N64. And it looks like the 8-bit DOH controller looks pretty good to me.

Mark Trobough: 1:13:13

Yeah, it does. I mean this just looks like a Be able to properly play this if you don't have room or you don't just don't have a old school CRT monitor or just an old 64, but you're still able to come across games and stuff like that, even if like a recreation cartridge. Just the inability to come back and play your old games because the old hardware it's just, it's aging and starting to have problems, and stuff like that if you don't go back and refurbish a lot of it. Plus, to me the price tag seems more reasonable because maybe I'm wrong. Obviously they want to make money, but it just seems to be a more affordable price tag because they want more people to be able to access it and actually play the game.

Brandon Hurles: 1:13:53

I mean considering it's analog and the company is, you know, it's like the. It's the popular retro gaming. It's the it's the most popular because the analog pocket and like I've got I mean look, I've got two of those guys myself phenomenal products. I mean just, I can't. Even when I first played the analog pocket it was like otherworldly. The screen is so good. I'm like this looks so good. This looks better than the emulation on the Switch playing those games like NES, famicom. I compared them side by side. I was like this is so good, man. But one of the big things for this system, if you grab it is I can't recommend enough the EverDrive 64x7. Play every single game FPGA exactly the way the cart would play on this one cart. So if you invest in this, you don't even have to buy any of the library. One cart. You'll never have to remove it. That's the way 100% I will play it. I won't even remove the cart once I put it in. There'll be no reason to.

Mark Trobough: 1:15:03

Yeah, so they did some of the other features they kind of came out and talked about. Obviously it's the variable refresh rate with the original display modes, the CRT, the PVM. Do note, the controller is sold separately, so it's $40. It's not egregious but they did say as far as that. It's compatible with the analog 3d switch, windows, android d input and s input modes, vibration support with the analog 3d and switch, turbo function and the hall effect joysticks. I mean just the fact that you can use your old 64 style controller, which you obviously see the actual front plate on the front. I think it just adds that much more authenticity. So you can buy this not by the controller, just use your old 64 controllers and if you want to play it that way, which I think is amazing, yeah, exactly, and I mean like there's plenty of companies offering like newer corded versions of the 64 controller.

Mark Trobough: 1:16:02

Because I mean.

Brandon Hurles: 1:16:02

I have a hold on the actual hard plastic.

Mark Trobough: 1:16:05

The centerpiece has not aged the best. Yeah, yeah, well are you talking about the stick? Yeah, it had problems back in the day.

Brandon Hurles: 1:16:15

Yeah, it's notorious for that problem.

Mark Trobough: 1:16:17

yeah, they have to get replaced all the time and I picked up so many 64s in the past, like six, seven years where there's been problems with the controllers stuff but just like the, the amount of uh compatibility as far as the type of control you want to use and the fact that you can still use the old school controller, I think it's amazing you don't don't have to use their new controller for it unless you really want to.

Brandon Hurles: 1:16:38

Exactly, yeah, and, like I am sure, I'm 99.9% sure you'll be able to use the Retro Fighters controllers, which is very similar to this.

Mark Trobough: 1:16:49

What kind of the 64 version is very similar. What kind of controller does that use? Like input does it use?

Brandon Hurles: 1:16:55

It has Bluetooth and Bluetooth, and what's the other wireless uh, 2.4 gig, uh, I can't remember. It has both of the wireless inputs, though. Yes, that's how I wanted to double check on here, because I said it supports both wireless and wired gaming.

Mark Trobough: 1:17:14

No, yeah, because it's got bluetooth classic and le as far as the some of the features it has, um, so I assume as long as you can, you know, pair your bluetooth controller with it, it'll work.

Brandon Hurles: 1:17:26

Yep, I'm not an expert on it and wireless options for like the retro fighters controllers, for instance, which is the route I would go um the 8-bit dough I'll definitely grab one to check it out, but I love what Retro Fighters has done with the controllers. It's the same concept, it just works better.

Mark Trobough: 1:17:46

It just works.

Brandon Hurles: 1:17:47

There's a nostalgia for that controller somewhat, but in reality it just doesn't hold up well, probably every controller out there ever made. It's one of the ones that people are like. I have no nostalgia for this at all. I hated this controller. How do you hold the controller?

Mark Trobough: 1:18:09

The N64 from the games. The controller is just so iconic for it. I don't know how you can play those games and not use the actual controller if the option is available.

Brandon Hurles: 1:18:18

The good thing is that, since this is Bluetooth bluetooth you can also use the new nintendo switch online controllers because of bluetooth as well.

Mark Trobough: 1:18:25

So I mean, yeah, it's just the. The game mixture between the gamecube and the 64 was such a huge part of like my childhood, like I've got so many good memories with the.

Brandon Hurles: 1:18:34

You know that, like the five, six, eight games I actually had, on those I I think that you like, of any console that they were to do, I feel like this is the one where, like this screams mark to me, like I, I feel like you should I mean, this is just a great way to go get your money back times three. When this goes, I mean I can promise you it will be a thousand dollars, one hundred percent. This will be a thousand dollars on ebay, right after those pre-orders yeah, I'll be.

Mark Trobough: 1:19:02

I mean be looking for but just the ability to go back and properly play the peak barman games which is on the 64, going a little bit into the, into the gamecube but the old open world bar to me that's. That's what barman is and I absolutely love it. I don't I don't care for, for modern.

Brandon Hurles: 1:19:16

Barman, I will say Barman Jetters, I like a little more in the GameCube.

Mark Trobough: 1:19:21

The second attack is Barman peaked with the second attack. I don't care what anybody else says, that's the best Barman game that's ever existed. It's great.

Brandon Hurles: 1:19:29

It's also like a $200 game, which is why I recommend this cart, that loose cart. Look up how much it is right now, mark. It's like $200 for the loose cart of Second Attack, which is crazy. That's why I use Everdrives. That is exactly the reason why I am not paying those retro game prices Screw that Let me pull it up. There's absolutely no way. I'm just not doing it. I will go all Everdrive and I'm good with that.

Mark Trobough: 1:20:00

I mean at this point it might be a good reason to get into the Everdrive yeah.

Brandon Hurles: 1:20:04

The best, probably the best wrestling game of all time. If you ask me, I'm not even a wrestling guy and I love WCW.

Mark Trobough: 1:20:13

I mean, oh my god, you can get the Barman 64 on eBay, the second attack manual. Only Someone's trying to sell it for $170. You see what I'm saying, but yeah, you're looking at right around $200 for just the game.

Brandon Hurles: 1:20:27

Nuts Absolutely insane. And I mean you just want to go back and revisit your childhood with some of these people or just go back to a game you really liked and it's like rebuying it. I'm just go back to a game you really liked and it's like rebuying it. To me, there's absolutely zero reason for you not to just grab an EverDrive If you were to get the full library of every game put out in all regions.

Mark Trobough: 1:20:50

I see different levels of complete in box from anywhere from $600 to $1,500. I think the condition of the box probably goes into some of that to like $1,500. And I think I think that the condition I like the box probably goes into some of that, but it's crazy.

Brandon Hurles: 1:21:03

The box is worth more than the cart, I saw someone selling just the box for like a thousand dollars yeah.

Mark Trobough: 1:21:07

No game.

Brandon Hurles: 1:21:08

It's one of the hardest besides clay fighter sculptors cut. If you look that one up, that's nuts but it's also a good game.

Mark Trobough: 1:21:16

That's the most expensive.

Brandon Hurles: 1:21:18

It's a really good game. It's a really good game that did not sell at all, which is the reason why it's so much money.

Mark Trobough: 1:21:25

I feel like. Would you consider this, then, like a cult classic, or am I just nostalgic for a game that I played as a kid?

Brandon Hurles: 1:21:32

No, this would be the definition Didn't sell at all Flopped, and that be the definition didn't sell at all flopped.

Mark Trobough: 1:21:40

Um, and that's why it's where someone, any game that flopped like that always ends up being worth money because to me, like barman, peaked with barman 64, which is really easy to come across. But the second attack just added, added on to the game narratively rose good too yeah so many good barman games on the 64, like it was yeah well, I guess not just the 64 was on like the playstation as well, but like just that. That era, like the late 90s, early 2000s, to me is just peak barman yeah would.

Brandon Hurles: 1:22:06

Let me ask you would you like? Because they haven't tackled anything, but so they've done nintendo systems. So they've done the se, Sega Genesis, which you can't buy these systems anymore, by the way. They stopped producing them, so the Sega Genesis, NES, Super Nintendo versions of the consoles are way sold out a long time ago. They're not doing them anymore. They originally started with doing Neo Geo like console-ized Neo Geo. Mvss, I believe, is what it was. It was the very first thing that they did and it was before the company caught on. Yet People hadn't. You know they were a new brand, but would you like to see them tackle PlayStation or Xbox, since they're getting close to that era? I mean they're just one generation.

Mark Trobough: 1:22:52

I mean they're essentially in and they're in the with the 64s around PlayStation 1 era.

Brandon Hurles: 1:22:58

Yeah well, yeah, they're in the 64s around Playstation 1 era. Xbox would be the Xbox PS2 era. Would you like to see them tackle?

Mark Trobough: 1:23:05

because essentially, I would, but to be fair, they should be able to do PS2 as well.

Brandon Hurles: 1:23:11

The.

Mark Trobough: 1:23:11

PS2 sold so well, I feel like you wouldn't have the hardest time finding a PS2. Maybe one that's not that actually functions, but it was so you don't have a hard time finding a PS2. Maybe one that's not that actually functions, but it was so. No, you don't have a hard time. There's so many consoles out there for that game, I mean with all the other features.

Brandon Hurles: 1:23:25

So if you were to get look at it this way, you would have to pay to get your PS1 modded for HDMI and your PS2 modded for HDMI. You're well over 200 bucks just there just doing that right. So this is an hdmi based console that upscales to 4k, offers a new controller and has all the the os support and you can play all the regions and and yes, complete compatibility with the full library. So this is a new. This will last way longer than your ps1 or ps2 will. If you get it today. This is still going to be working in 30 years. You know it's still going to be good.

Brandon Hurles: 1:24:06

Um, do you think it makes sense in that realm? Because you got to think about all the mods. You have that done these consoles if you want to play them on your modern tv or you have to invest in a retro tank, which is not cheap. I have one sitting right here. You know I love it, but it's not cheap to invest. You also got to get all the component cables if you want to have, you know, full RGB and get your, you know all that stuff. So you got to invest a lot to get these running on modern hardware, unless you use a crappy, horrible converter that I do not recommend. That looks like ass, just looks terrible. It's not meant it's mixing video signals. It's not meant to do that. Would you think it would make sense in that realm? Yeah, I do. I think so too, and if they did PlayStation, I feel like it could be ps1 and ps2, because it's backwards compatible.

Mark Trobough: 1:25:03

I think they should go up because I think the ps2 just has a a better library go after that game than the xbox, because the xbox had a good library but without the xbox was really known the original one, from what I remember and I might be wrong, but but Halo made the original Xbox. That's what that was.

Brandon Hurles: 1:25:24

It did. But there was also time splitters. It was a really big time for that which I got mine sitting right down here to play online. I've got it hooked up, ethernet and everything can play and you can still play all these games online on the xbox now, since insignia brought servers back up, um, but yeah, I mean there were games from that time that were pretty. You know, unreal tournament was really big, yeah um, but I also think it's it's.

Mark Trobough: 1:25:51

It's still funny, though, because as much as, like, everyone talks about the ps2 xbox and the gamecube was terrible like the xbox, didn't? It sold less than 3 million more copies than the gamecube did.

Brandon Hurles: 1:26:06

Yeah it sold like what about?

Mark Trobough: 1:26:07

2.25 more million copies, like they sold essentially the same because the ps2 sold like 155 million, just blew them out the water that one's.

Brandon Hurles: 1:26:15

it's like the the switch, trying to outsell that, which I still think that it will, I think, if they keep doing that by the end of its life it probably will catch it, Even with the slowing sales. You know they're going for that goal, they want to have that goal. And Nintendo? I mean, let's be real, Nintendo deserves that goal with their input in video game history.

Mark Trobough: 1:26:38

It doesn't mean I still can't be impatient because they still haven't told us anything.

Brandon Hurles: 1:26:41

PS2 got FIFA 14. That's crazy.

Mark Trobough: 1:26:45

Why was?

Brandon Hurles: 1:26:45

that FIFA 14. I believe it was the last game that came out for the PS2.

Mark Trobough: 1:26:52

Let's search the last PS2 game. So the last PS2 game was Pro Evolution Soccer 2014,. The last PS2 game was Pro Evolution Soccer 2014,.

Brandon Hurles: 1:26:58

The last official game and it released in the.

Mark Trobough: 1:27:00

UK on the 8th of November 2013. And repairs for the system in Japan officially ended the 7th of September 2018. They sold, they made so many they could repair that until 2018. It's crazy, that's insane, that's's nuts. So the ps2 essentially support ended in 2018. If you consider the, the japan version of it, but you talk about a system that launched in 2000, this system had a life of 18 years.

Brandon Hurles: 1:27:31

Technically, if you go via, the japan market insane, and I mean like to be real. We know why. It sold the way it did at first versus the 64 because it was a cheaper dvd player movies. Yeah, you can watch your movies, you can play. You play your cds too, because I because you talk about.

Mark Trobough: 1:27:50

I saw a short a few days ago where it's kind of like uh, well, you've got a dvd player for I don't know 150 or you've got this PS2 for $150. Like, well, I just want to play, yeah. But this, will you know, it plays movies, plays games, you can do all this fun stuff with it and they're like, oh, this is really cool. Terrible description of what the actual short was.

Brandon Hurles: 1:28:07

But you know, if you have an imagination you can kind of get what they're getting across, that it's at the price in some instances probably cheaper, more affordable and you could just do so much more Probably helped it sell so well. Yeah, the PS2 sales are insane. Every time I think about it, it's just absolutely crazy how it lasted until Pro Evolution Soccer 14 on the PS2. When did the PS4 launch? Didn't it launch in 2015? Or?

Mark Trobough: 1:28:43

2014? Sorry, sorry, I'm sorry, didn't it launch, like so the ps4, let me? Let me pull it up real quick. So the ps4 launch. Yeah, the people are launched. In 2013, the ps4 was out before the ps2 got its last game. That's crazy. Yeah, that's nuts. Let me pull it up real quick, like that. I want to verify when the PS5 launched. I think it was 2020. It launched 2020.

Mark Trobough: 1:29:09

Yeah so just look at it this way, at the very least for Japan. In Japan, the PS2 stopped getting like support for like repairs two years before the PS5 launched. That is insane Dude. That is crazy Like that. It literally had a lifespan, realistically of, like you know, three, what? What? Three generations of?

Brandon Hurles: 1:29:32

consoles and also has the biggest library of games too.

Mark Trobough: 1:29:35

It got a library. Essentially it got games for the entire life cycle, the ps3 yeah maybe not to the same degree, but it was still getting games in in certain regions.

Brandon Hurles: 1:29:45

It's, it's insane and you know the pro evolution soccer 2014 was like a 2008 game that just kept being scaled over.

Mark Trobough: 1:29:53

Legacy edition and of course it's a sports game. It's, it's cheaper, but it's like it's just, it's insane that it was even getting support that long.

Brandon Hurles: 1:30:00

But I know why they were doing it. The install base was just that big.

Mark Trobough: 1:30:03

Huge and it was easy to develop for.

Brandon Hurles: 1:30:05

It was so easy to do. Yeah, it was so easy to do. They were just changing up the roster every year. Yeah, for all those games, For, like, the last eight years of the game.

Mark Trobough: 1:30:14

No other hardware will have a life, a lifespan that long again, even the switch. Selling the selling as much isn't gonna last as long nintendo's probably not even gonna support it as long no way.

Brandon Hurles: 1:30:28

Then I mean look, you're already seeing the 3ds support. They're not doing repairs anymore. Um, they're gonna stop selling the adapters. They're selling them out right now. They're going to stop selling the adapters. They're selling them out right now. They're $499 on sale right now, the 3DS adapters.

Mark Trobough: 1:30:41

I mean maybe the PS4 probably could have a decent lifespan. I can see that Just because the PS5, with how expensive it is, and outside the SSD it's kind of negligible in a lot of ways. The base PS5, as far as the upgrade, I could see the ps4 having to have it, maybe not as long but it lasting through the whole ps5 I could see it too, and with the ps4 pro, the comparison from ps4 pro to ps5 is is not a huge jump.

Mark Trobough: 1:31:11

No, plus um hardware wise, and you know yeah, I know because mr coffee was talking about. You know the switch and I guess I I agree if the the switch 2 has proper backwards compatibility with with the original switch. Yeah, the switch itself could probably have a fairly long lifespan because it has a large install base, unlike the ps2. Though the third party support isn't as widespread and prevalent, it's really nintendo that's going to probably determine how long that console's supported for first party.

Brandon Hurles: 1:31:41

Yeah, and I did want to shout out. Matt Longsix Gaming popped in and said nice haircut, At least somebody noticed.

Mark Trobough: 1:31:52

Oh yeah, I saw that. I just didn't say anything during the podcast. I think it looks pretty good. I need to get a haircut too. Yours is better than mine was. I thought I just didn't say anything during the podcast.

Brandon Hurles: 1:31:59

I think it looks pretty good. I need to get a haircut too, so You're just better than mine was, I guess.

Mark Trobough: 1:32:05

It's long for me, I need I need a haircut.

Brandon Hurles: 1:32:07

It is kind of long for you, but I mean talking about the N64,.

Mark Trobough: 1:32:12

Uh got a new game coming to the NSO. That's a 64 game.

Brandon Hurles: 1:32:18

Yeah, coming to the NSO, that's a 64 game.

Mark Trobough: 1:32:19

Yeah, I was surprised to see this. Yeah, so you got Banjo-Tooie. Did we already get Banjo-Kazooie? Yeah, Banjo-Kazooie came in 2022, but now we're getting to the other game of it. Maybe you want to play it on NSO. Maybe you want to wait and play it on the Alhog 64.

Brandon Hurles: 1:32:40

It's going to play better there.

Mark Trobough: 1:32:41

It's not going to be emulation, so but I mean it's good to see them continuing to support Nintendo Switch Online. Hopefully they this is a lateral to whatever the switch is we don't have to do what we did with the with the Wii and start from scratch, because that was really frustrating. But I mean, given enough time, then Nintendo switch online. Regardless of what you want to say about some of their online game server support, there's enough games that the $20 a year that you're paying everyone wants to complain about is worth the money at this point.

Brandon Hurles: 1:33:09

Yeah, and to be fair, it's $20 compared to like a year the 60 you're paying for everything else, so you're paying for everything else, so you're paying more. I mean, xbox game pass just rose to 20 a month, so I mean, obviously, the comparison there is a little hard when you have like 100 games versus like 40 games or something. Yeah, and it, you know, plays a lot better than the online rotates I mean I think the 20 a year, it's not that much.

Mark Trobough: 1:33:36

and the amount of old games you can play that for the most part run just fine. On it You're not going to see, you know, performance problems. I think it's worth the money at this point.

Brandon Hurles: 1:33:44

I've been paying for it since it came out, so me too, and then like things like this like you got the, the Hyrule Edition, switch Lite gives you three months for free. This packs with three months for free so you can stack it onto your subscription that you have now. So that's kind of cool that they're doing that. They want to get more people in there and probably for investors, I'm sure.

Mark Trobough: 1:34:04

Yeah, but the three months at the very least gives you time to you know, explore, play games, see if you actually like the, the service.

Brandon Hurles: 1:34:10

Yeah, and then I mean, enough people were, a lot of people were doing it for Splatoon and Smash Bros and stuff like that. But yeah, you get the NSO stuff well, plus expansion pack, because you do have to pay more for the expansion pack I forgot. So play 64 and stuff you do have to pay extra. Which, I will say, is the only thing where I'm like okay, we're just getting one more 64 game, Paying extra to get 64?. We're getting one more 64 game paying extra to get 64. We're getting one more game to be fair.

Brandon Hurles: 1:34:43

I don't know how much to see this by itself.

Mark Trobough: 1:34:46

I assume they've got a small team. I know the chemics came out and said it's it's got like widescreen support and stuff like that. I don't know how much they're they're putting to work to make sure these emulations. I've played a handful of them. I haven't really noticed that big performance issue. They this they're putting to work to make sure these emulations. I've played a handful of them. I haven't really noticed that big performance issue. They're mostly single player games and they play fairly well via the service, so I've not had any major issues with them.

Brandon Hurles: 1:35:07

I've played some of them online Works good, I mean, there's no problems with it at all.

Mark Trobough: 1:35:12

It's worth the price tag. That's what I'll say.

Brandon Hurles: 1:35:15

Yeah, no, I agree with you 100%. I think people complain about it. It's just another thing to complain about, if you ask me, versus all the other services and you know people that pay for all of them I do some months. There was a gap there for like four months. For the first time I wasn't paying for Game Pass Xbox I did renew it to do Gears of War but just versus the cost of those services. Yeah, come on, it's worth it to me at this point. And if this does all transfer over and they continue building this with new hardware, they'll be able to run GameCube. Should be easily at that point.

Mark Trobough: 1:35:57

I would love, for love to bring the GameCube library. I just wonder did they bring the Barman games over on the 64 yet, or are we still waiting?

Brandon Hurles: 1:36:05

on those potentially.

Mark Trobough: 1:36:07

Barman 64, right, I don't know. I don't know if they did, or not we can check.

Brandon Hurles: 1:36:13

I have to look on the actual Not 100% sure if they did or not. To be honest with you, I did want to also let everybody know, because I downloaded it. Mark, hopefully you downloaded it. Check it out too. It's like six hours long, but the Ys X Nordics demo is out now and you can play it. I know it's on Switch, I think the demo demos out on everything. But this is one of those JRPG series that we've talked about a lot but you haven't played yet. Yeah, and this is a great. I mean, you get like six hours of demo. You get enough of the game to see if you want to buy it and play it, and I pre-ordered the collector's edition. I'm super excited for it. One of my most hyped games right now that's coming out next that I'm like super excited about, um, but do you think you'll?

Mark Trobough: 1:37:05

you'll check that out uh, I mean, it's on my list, I just don't know when I'll get around to actually doing it. I, my game log keeps backing up because I I showed you last week picked up another three more games for the switch and that just adds to my backlog across the board. So, uh, but I didn't, I didn't, I didn't want to say problem have, though, yeah, the bomb man games aren't on the nso obviously it was big when they brought jet force gemini, which is a huge game and I remember playing. Yeah, but like I would love for those, and there's a bunch of games on the gamecube, I would love to come over as well. But I would love for those, and there's a bunch of games on the GameCube, I would love to come over as well, Trying to show Blurring out oh it's inappropriate.

Mark Trobough: 1:37:43

You can't see.

Brandon Hurles: 1:37:44

I know, kind of driving me nuts actually, but no, definitely that's a great way to check it out. It's like six hours in length and it transfers over. I love when the demos transfer over now. I love when they do that, because it's like if you invest time in a JRPG and it's like we're giving you like six hours for this demo, please transfer over, because I don't want to start over again. I think that is so cool, man. I'm really excited to see if you do check that one out, though, because I feel like you'll really like it. I feel like you'll really like it.

Mark Trobough: 1:38:19

I feel like you'll ride up your alley.

Brandon Hurles: 1:38:21

Yeah, and I did want to bring up too that we both got Metaphor. I very briefly I mean less than two hours, and some of it was talking during the stream played it just the opening. Essentially. I don't feel like I've even gotten past the opening part.

Mark Trobough: 1:38:41

I mean, you played more than me. I bought it on Steam, I downloaded it, but because this was the week this is live, it was like the last term for my classes right now Between work and that I just have had no time to hop in and play it.

Brandon Hurles: 1:38:54

So I mean, hopefully I get it. Yeah, and the other thing is, this is one of those ones where you can put well over 100 hours into, because it's very persona and SMTS.

Mark Trobough: 1:39:04

Like yeah, it's going to be a big investment, Like it's probably going to take me a while to just play it in general, yeah, it's going to be a long game, so I can see this.

Brandon Hurles: 1:39:13

My worry is that there's so many JRPGs coming out, so many. We just had the last Mana game that I haven't even started yet. I haven't even started that yet.

Mark Trobough: 1:39:23

If you want to talk about games that I just bought that have a time sync with them. I did get around to buying the Unicorn Overlord for the Switch.

Mark Trobough: 1:39:32

After you picked it up, the Final Fantasy was it 1 through 6 collection? I haven't even unwrapped it yet, man. Oh well, it was like the last copy. So it was like the display that I ended up getting. Oh okay, new game, just the display. And then I hate that they didn't have a proper cover. But I've been looking for this game forever, the Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition. I played the other one, but not the original one that I wanted. The case sucks, but it has the game. I might get around to it eventually, just so it doesn't look like crap on the shelf with that gray bar.

Brandon Hurles: 1:40:07

I wanted the game and it wasn't too bad. I got a decent sale. That's great. It's really good. They bring in all the 3DS extras from the.

Mark Trobough: 1:40:19

But I do know with it being a Warriors game. It's a long game. There's a lot of content to the game, which is good, but it also means it would take a while to beat.

Brandon Hurles: 1:40:29

You have three versions. The 3DS version added another, oh God, Because I played it on Wii U and played it on 3DS and played it on Switch and the 3DS I had no lie over 200 hours Somewhere around like 215-ish in it. So much content, Unreal, I mean just unreal. You could play the game forever, it felt like. So yeah, it's definitely one of those long-term games where if you really want to get through it, you've got to invest some time. I guess did you want to.

Mark Trobough: 1:41:07

No, yeah, keep moving on.

Brandon Hurles: 1:41:10

I was going to say we got the Kuwait. They blocked Call of Duty Black Ops 6's release and Activision cancelled all the pre-orders and offers refunds. I'm not sure where Kuwait is.

Mark Trobough: 1:41:26

Kuwait is just south of Iraq, okay, so Just think of for those. I don't want to get into it, but Kuwait was the country that Saddam incited in Iraq in the first Gulf War in the early 90s. So it's like directly south, right next to the whatever that body of water is. Yeah, arabian Sea, no, I mean it's connected to the greater Indian Ocean and stuff like that. I just can't remember the actual sea that it's connected to, but it just gives you an idea of where it is geographically in the world.

Brandon Hurles: 1:41:59

It's not a large country Pretty close to Hargis Lake yeah whatever. Now, what's your thoughts on this? Though Country entirely blocking a game, Because this doesn't happen every day?

Mark Trobough: 1:42:16

No, I'd have to say something didn't get approved. You're dealing with other countries that have different laws and stuff like that. So, like the problem is, they didn't come out and tell us why it got blocked, so you can only speculate. Was there something that didn't? Did the game just not get approved through other, whatever source it was supposed to? Yes, or something in the game they didn't like that. They want them to remove or censor or something like that. It's really hard to know. I do. You know what Black Ops 6 is supposed to be about? Like the actual?

Brandon Hurles: 1:42:45

I legitimately don't. I have no idea what the story is on them. I've just seen, just seen the beta multiplayer. I don't know where it's at um okay.

Mark Trobough: 1:42:56

So they say it's uh, uh, set in the early 1990s period of transition about people, uh, you know, into the cold war single power. So I'm assuming this has to deal with something to do with the first gulf war, which kuwait was invaded in. So they may not like the way certain things were portrayed. If I had to guess, uh, just based off of the, the, the description and stuff like that, just because you think of the early 90s, the gulf war is like the biggest, you know, geopolitical issue, that that went around and stuff like that. So, yeah, that's that's got to be. Why then, yeah, just just taking a look at that, I I assume it takes place of at that. With that in mind, okay, maybe there's something they didn't like, or they want to take more time to actually go in through and make sure they like what everything is in there I don't think they're going to take any more time.

Brandon Hurles: 1:43:44

They, I mean, cancel pre-orders and refunded everybody.

Mark Trobough: 1:43:48

I think it's or they just may block it out right, or they have to wait long. I mean, who knows?

Brandon Hurles: 1:43:55

I will say, just looking at images of this game, it looks phenomenal graphically. I hope so. Yeah, it looks pretty incredible.

Mark Trobough: 1:44:05

Yeah, because this game comes out on the 25th, so it comes out next Friday.

Brandon Hurles: 1:44:11

Yeah, I mean, it looks really really good. This is the closest just based on these screenshots I'm looking at right now the closest interpretation of a movie that I have seen yet. So whether that'll pan out when you see the actual gameplay or not I'm not sure, but it looks really good. So this got some money invested into what it's called.

Mark Trobough: 1:44:34

Yeah, it does look like they've got some maps that look like they have some African or Middle East. You know inspiration from some of the stuff. You know, obviously, some stuff like you know, old Cold War stuff at the end Going back to the 1990s. But if you're thinking 1990s, like I assume that it had, that's the only thing that makes sense is it deals with something during the Gulf War that Kuwait didn't like or didn't approve of or they want changed.

Brandon Hurles: 1:44:59

Yeah, and then I did want to say Mr Coffee said I forgot the metaphor came out on PS4 as well, so I got to pick that up. Yeah, it came out on PS4. Ps4's still getting a lot of support.

Mark Trobough: 1:45:10

I think it will for a few years to come. You know big install base and you know a lot of games have just been in development for you know ps5 is backwards compatible with the ps4 so I assume there's some crossover with how the hardware works. I think it'll be a while before games hard cut off on the ps4 and who knows, it might be 2035 before just dance stops its support for support for the PS4, right Cause the last game to come out on the we was just dance 2020.

Brandon Hurles: 1:45:38

Yeah, same thing. You're not crazy, is?

Mark Trobough: 1:45:41

these games.

Brandon Hurles: 1:45:43

I bought it. It was. It was listen, get, get this. It was five. It went down to $5 at Walmart. I had that game for no less than a year and it went up to like $100 because it was the last game to be released, for the Wii Became like a $100 game and I bought it for $5. I was like it's the old Wii game $5, I'll buy that $100 next year.

Mark Trobough: 1:46:08

Yeah, how crazy is that? It absolutely is. I'm sorry. I saw something on IGN site and I have to say it because it was commented by the commenter matter83. It's like that's a shame. They will just need to be patient and have Kuwait terrible pun.

Brandon Hurles: 1:46:29

But I thought it was funny, I had to shout it out. That's definitely funny. So we've also got the God of War TV series. Apparently it's just gonna hit a reset button, like a lot of other things do. The showrunner and producers departed ways with the studio, so that's not good news.

Mark Trobough: 1:46:50

Did they leave because they wanted to? They're working on this. Sounds like there might have been a dispute.

Brandon Hurles: 1:46:56

Yeah, it sounds like something was going on here, because it's a little weird for showrunner and the producers to all To both step away.

Mark Trobough: 1:47:06

That's not a good sign. That just means you go back from. Whatever work was done is gone.

Brandon Hurles: 1:47:17

I will say, when they announced this, I was already worried because it seems like that they should be able to do this, but I feel like this has to have a high budget to be as well probably.

Mark Trobough: 1:47:29

Yeah, because they say it was originally announced in an early yeah, because it started early development back in 2022. So you're talking probably a good two years of pre-production, just down the drain yeah, which, I mean, is a lot in itself. So now you're probably looking at another another TV series, another two to four, probably another three, four years before this comes out now realistically yeah, it's got to.

Brandon Hurles: 1:47:51

I mean, if this?

Mark Trobough: 1:47:52

is a full reset.

Brandon Hurles: 1:47:54

Yeah, you have to.

Mark Trobough: 1:47:54

Completely gotta be the case rehire people, rewrite a whole new script. Figure what you're doing, you know, build the set production, hire people, hire actors and stuff like that film it, edit it in time, like that's just not going to happen fast and if it does say this comes out next year, that would be not a good sign, ideally, if they rush something out.

Brandon Hurles: 1:48:12

No, it wouldn't, Definitely wouldn't. I assume, like you said, it's going to be a good three, four years.

Mark Trobough: 1:48:18

Here's a bet Do we get the TV show or another God of War game at this point?

Brandon Hurles: 1:48:25

God of War game. I feel like they're probably, I'm sure, before Ragnarok was even done, they were working on the next game and they always are.

Mark Trobough: 1:48:34

At least the pre-production is working.

Brandon Hurles: 1:48:35

They're getting scripts and you know, storyboards put together yeah, it's such a, it's such a massive selling series now that it didn't used to be that way. God of War was big but it wasn't like that big of a series. It had a lot of entries in the series but I never felt like that big of a series. It had a lot of entries in the series but I never felt like it was like a massive where, like other people I knew were talking about it, you know, everybody was pretty hyped about it. I never heard that for the other games. I never heard like the super, the super hype for God of War. Until God of War, the one before Ragnarok, that God of War game, I think it's just God of War. Until God of War, the one before Ragnarok, that God of War game, I think it's just God of War. Yeah, yeah, it's not a remake but it's such a different game from 1, 2, and 3.

Brandon Hurles: 1:49:21

So different.

Mark Trobough: 1:49:21

Very different games.

Brandon Hurles: 1:49:23

Yeah, very different games, very cinematic too, very, very story-heavy. They all had story, but it was much more story-based.

Mark Trobough: 1:49:34

As long as we don't have Christopher Judge come out and, you know, do another 10 minute speech about what's going on, it would be good, never going to forget that it went on forever oh god yeah, I remember every time we talk God of War.

Brandon Hurles: 1:49:47

I'm going to remember that absolutely ridiculous, so we also had the Xbox partner preview. I remember that. Absolutely ridiculous, so we also had the Xbox partner preview happened just as of this recording, I believe, yesterday. So there were some games shown a little. It seemed a little disappointing. There's a couple here that I wanted to bring up that, a couple we already knew about. But I wanted to bring up that Phasmophobia is being brought over from PC. I played that on PC on my laptop in 2020, I think 2021, something like that. It was very popular. That one being brought over is pretty cool. But they also showed the new footage for Mouse PI, for Hire, which obviously I'm very excited about. They showed more footage for Like a Dragon Pirate, yakuza in Hawaii, but the only other ones that really stood out to me, I mean they showed Animal.

Brandon Hurles: 1:50:51

Well, I don't know if there's been more attitude or it just didn't have an Xbox release before, I'm not sure, but this was an indie game we were just talking about earlier, where I, you know I said it was a really high rated indie game. That was one developer. This was developed by one person, um, so that's interesting, but the one that a couple, I guess stood out to me Subnautica 2. I really thought that first game was pretty fun. For what it was it wasn't like groundbreaking or amazing, but for what it was I paid 20 bucks for it. I enjoyed it. So it's cool to see that that's getting a sequel. But Wu-Tang Fallen Feathers stood out to me.

Brandon Hurles: 1:51:33

And then a game called Eden's Zero.

Mark Trobough: 1:51:36

So I guess Eden's Zero looks like a game based off of Fairytale and Ravemaster, so it's got that look from it. I didn't know fully what to expect from the game when I saw it, other than it's hey, it it's both, if I can actually speak properly. It's based off, you know, the, the manga that he worked on, both fairytale and rave master, so you see the actual animation in his style, but it's its own thing. So I don't know exactly what we're getting for the story, uh, but also with the uh pull it up right, the the wu-chang looks like another uh, blacksmith wukong-esque style game, maybe because this is another chinese game made by a chinese developer. So now you're getting, uh, conflicting game styles from, you know, the west and the east and they look contrastingly very different.

Mark Trobough: 1:52:28

Yeah, yeah not a proper sentence, but they're very contrasting as far as what the developers want out of a game is what it looks like yeah, absolutely I'm with you.

Brandon Hurles: 1:52:40

I feel the same way, hopefully it comes to PC.

Mark Trobough: 1:52:45

What is it I said? Hopefully both of them come to PC yeah, eden Zero.

Brandon Hurles: 1:52:51

I was interested because I love Raymaster and I like Fairytale a good bit. I've watched quite a bit of it, but I was a big Raymaster guy, so the style I just like the stylized look. I don't really know what to expect of the game, though, because watching the trailer I was like I don't know exactly what type of game this is. You would think JRPG, but it says it's a new anime space adventure and that's it.

Mark Trobough: 1:53:18

I mean, it looks like a, it looks like a game that's made those anime games. So you don't know really what you're going to get out of. It Could be good, it could be bad, it could be good.

Brandon Hurles: 1:53:27

It could be bad and one of those deals, but I am interested to see what happens of it and obviously the the other couple like dragon mouse, pi for hire, definitely excited about that. Have you played phasmophobia? Since I was a pc, only game I've got like an hour in the game I only played it because I knew people that were pretty much.

Mark Trobough: 1:53:50

I was like it's kind of fun to mess with your friends, but the game itself I didn't.

Brandon Hurles: 1:53:53

I wasn't like super into yeah, I was asked to play it. Like, actually, they bought the copy, they wanted me to play it. That bad because I just I hadn't played anything on my gaming laptop. I just couldn't, couldn't do it, man, I just I don't know what it was, but this was the like one of like five games I ever played on it and it was fine. I can see why it's being brought over to Xbox, though. It'll make sense there, yeah, and then also, did you see the Blindfire Light them Up game?

Mark Trobough: 1:54:29

I didn't know what to think of the game. To be honest, I was kind of like like middle of the road. It just feels like a if. To me it felt like another generic shooter with like a maybe a neat little twist. But I know what to think about it from the limited amount of gameplay we actually saw yeah, it's.

Brandon Hurles: 1:54:44

It's interesting. It's supposed to be an fps with no lights, so there's there's no light in the game, so it's a little dark but like I don't know, the shooters are like a dime a dozen at these days, so I don't know this game could take off or it could just flop terribly yeah, I'm curious. It's an online multiplayer game, so it's one of those where it's like, uh, more than likely, I probably won't care but it's.

Mark Trobough: 1:55:08

It's gonna live and die based off of its online competitiveness. At the end of the day, yeah, for sure.

Brandon Hurles: 1:55:17

And then I did want to say that the Eternal Strands game actually does look pretty neat too, like pretty interesting Something that I would probably check out. To be honest with you, it looks kind of cool. It's really stylized. It's just got that I don't know how to compare like sort of the art style. It looks neat though.

Mark Trobough: 1:55:36

I'd like to see more of it, yeah, before I make a decision, but I mean to me for the most part out of like. I like two or three games. It kind of came off as like a meh presentation it looks like it has the style.

Brandon Hurles: 1:55:48

Gameplay is Black Myth Wukong.

Mark Trobough: 1:55:50

It looks like that yeah, like it took inspiration from it. Obviously, I don't know how much it did.

Brandon Hurles: 1:55:56

It took inspiration from it, though, unless it just started development.

Mark Trobough: 1:56:02

Or they were in communications with the other studio and stuff like that. Sharing ideas is always a possibility.

Brandon Hurles: 1:56:08

But yeah, it's a third-person action-adventure game, so it looks kind of neat. But the other games that we didn't talk about are fbc, firebreak, chronos, the new dawn, mistfall, hunter, um wheel world, the lake house, and yeah, that's it mentioned all the other ones, so ones that didn't really stick out to me all too much.

Brandon Hurles: 1:56:31

Yeah, that was pretty disappointing, I gotta say, for where Xbox is at right now. That is unfortunate. That's how I felt about it. I felt like that's pretty lacking to me. I like Xbox. All right, take it away with this last topic we got.

Mark Trobough: 1:56:51

Mark, I mean it's nothing big. Obviously we're a lot of news around Nintendo, obviously with the leaks from the Pokemon CA as well, as you know, waiting on the Switch 2 announcement we never talked about any of that, by the way.

Brandon Hurles: 1:57:04

We didn't. It just happened this week so much to talk about.

Mark Trobough: 1:57:11

I have to pull that up specifically about the leak itself. But this one, this one deals with the actual leak. So we know, like three pokemon they're going to be in the game, two of which because they're bringing back the mega evolutions from that generation, which was both the uh, what's it? It's x, yeah, no, it's x and y, as well as the or s games, which had mega evolution. So it's a Stunfisk Fisk, which is a terrible Pokemon, if you ask me, but the Mega Zygarde and Mega Zoraro or Zerara I butchered the butcher that name terribly as like two Pokemon with Mega Evolutions.

Brandon Hurles: 1:57:49

I think it's Zoroar. I might be right, as like two Pokemon with mega evolutions, I think it's Zoroar Zoroar.

Mark Trobough: 1:57:51

I might be right. I know, we know. Zygarde is the legendary slash mythical. I can't remember exactly which one it is in that game, but Zoroar is also getting a mega evolution.

Brandon Hurles: 1:58:01

The thing about Zygarde he never got any story, beat Nothing.

Mark Trobough: 1:58:06

I think it was no explanation of him or anything.

Brandon Hurles: 1:58:09

You were able to get him through an event.

Mark Trobough: 1:58:13

Yeah, but didn't they expand the lore and sun and moon, that generation a little bit more in the anime?

Brandon Hurles: 1:58:17

I can't remember the games gave me any more lore.

Mark Trobough: 1:58:19

I thought I thought zygarde was to some degree in that game as well. I can't remember. It's been so long since I played the games and yeah, now I can't remember either I know I didn't care for for sun and moon and ultra sun, ultra moon. I didn't. I didn't care for Sun and Moon and Ultra Sun, ultra Moon. I didn't really care for the games all that much, but I thought they were fine. For what?

Brandon Hurles: 1:58:35

they were nothing crazy, but I mean, I played through both the base games and Ultra. I mean, well, I guess you're right, because Zygarde cores and sells. So, yeah, it looks like there are five different cores that you can find. I guess you're right, because Zygarde cores and sells. So, yeah, it looks like there are five different cores that you can find across the Alola region and they are signified by red sparkles. Yeah, you can find his cores and, I guess, find Zygarde.

Brandon Hurles: 1:59:04

I don't know if that means that he played a role in the story, though I mean that itself could have expanded upon a bit, but I do know for sure. Cerebinet, uh, there was an article I read a while ago where it's talking about zygarde was like the only pokemon that never really got a full explanation, except for the anime. The anime expanded upon the whole thing, but if you didn't watch anime and you only played the games, you wouldn't know at all. So the anime went pretty in-depth with Zygarde, from my understanding, but the games did not, and that anime at the time was meant to be a direct tie-in the Sun and Moon to the games. So it was one of the few series that was supposed to tie straight into the games.

Mark Trobough: 1:59:54

But along with what this kind of came out of, the leaks as a whole, which mainly looks like Game Freak, it was included the fact that the I believe it was the source code for HeartGold, soulsilver, black and White 2, along with the Switch internal code name, which is called Ounces internally what the system was called. Some of the leaks. I feel like the source code for some Pokemon games would be far more damaging in the future.

Brandon Hurles: 2:00:21

That's, yeah, that's pretty insane, because that just means you can just recreate those games.

Mark Trobough: 2:00:26

Yeah, yeah, that's crazy, that's absurd, which is a great generation heart, gold, tool, silver remakes of gen 2 and then the gen 5 games. It's like some of like the best generation of games right there, of remake and you know, is it bad for us. I mean, considering how old these games actually are and you can't actually actively buy these games legally outside of third party or getting them illegally, I don't think it would be that damaging unless they're planning on another re-release down the road which it's like what are you doing, guys?

Brandon Hurles: 2:01:02

because we haven't single mainline Pokemon game on Switch online yet what are they doing? I don't know.

Mark Trobough: 2:01:09

I don't think they want to, they just want to they want to sell it to you when they want you to buy it, which is so frustrating.

Brandon Hurles: 2:01:16

Yeah, that is very frustrating. I mean, what was the news that you sent me about the Pokemon Bank stuff?

Mark Trobough: 2:01:23

Oh, let me pull that. Actually it was via the Pokemon Home. I can pull up my phone real quick because it was announced I don't know. Know this is based off.

Brandon Hurles: 2:01:33

The leaks quickly say that allegedly even the source code for both pokemon legends za and the unannounced gen 10 games apparently leaked. That would that'd be far more damaging.

Mark Trobough: 2:01:44

Yeah, I didn't see that that actually would be damaging. These are games that are currently being in, not even out, yeah all I can say is you better keep it hush, hush, because nintendo finds out where it is. You better believe you will be hit with the full force of their, of their lawyers like there's no bigger than the there's um, there's no way yeah.

Mark Trobough: 2:02:05

No, there's no way they're going to be able to come out and actually do anything with that source code without them coming down on the immediately hard any kind of leak, any type of reproduction like if you have it, that's great, you better be no trace. You better be sitting on that and be quiet about it, because there's just no way nintendo would let that fly and they rightfully so, and they would 100 win any kind of legal battle oh yeah, for sure.

Brandon Hurles: 2:02:30

I mean, when you're talking about the games that aren't even out, like to me that's like yeah, that's crazy, that's not good. I don't agree with that. Um games aren't even out to be sold yet, so I don't agree with any like current console generation, sort of emulation stuff, Like I think that's it's just to me I don't, I don't like it. Uh, especially games aren't aren't even out, so if that, if that's the case, it's crazy.

Mark Trobough: 2:02:59

Yeah, so this uh for the what I told you I I took a. I shared a little bit about it over on the anime junction cast. If you have Pokemon Home under the news section, you can get a free Pokemon. If you finish your Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, pokedex you get a shiny version of what's the Pokemon's name at. Where's it at? It's the musical Pokemon, from which.

Brandon Hurles: 2:03:30

Oh, is it the green one? I'm in here.

Mark Trobough: 2:03:36

I don't know what the shiny looks like, but it's like the green they say you can now receive a special pokemon as mystery gifts for completing game pokedexes in the mobile device version of pokemon home, uh, the first featured games are pokemon, scarlet and violet. If you complete the palladia pokedex, uh, kita, kitakami pokedex and blueberry pokedex, you receive shiny um uh, melota, melota. Essentially sorry, I'm a lot of yeah, but a lot I don't know. I, for whatever reason, I just didn't read it and I was like where's the pokemon name at? Uh?

Brandon Hurles: 2:04:09

um, I know those. Does this incentivize you to want to complete those?

Mark Trobough: 2:04:13

I mean I need to complete them to complete my living decks, but I mean it's because I think this is the first time this Pokemon specifically you can actually get as a shiny. There's no other way before this to get this Pokemon shiny in game, from what I understand at least from what I read.

Mark Trobough: 2:04:29

So it's good and they said they're planning on doing this later down the road. So a lot of people that have living Dex's already for older games hey, you're just going to get a free Pokemon, but it to some degree incentivizes you to go back and play old games, complete old Pokedex's, but, like I don't pretty sure as of right now the legal games you can't complete every single Pokedex with this. You're going to need access to older games on the Switch to be able to do this, if you didn't already play them on the DS and then transfer them to Pokemon Home, which is kind of what I did.

Brandon Hurles: 2:04:59

Which sounds like a headache of a process and something I just would not want to do the living decks for me it's going to be a hard.

Mark Trobough: 2:05:07

No, I just Because the idea is you have to capture every single, at the very least every single Pokemon, every single evolution, and it's in the Pokemon homes. You have at least one of the entire national decks, which more or less requires you to play every single generation of Pokemon, including trade, evolutions and everything. Multiple versions, yeah, all the mythical, all the legendaries, some of which are easier or harder to come by, especially the legendaries and the mythicals.

Brandon Hurles: 2:05:34

Some are only events.

Mark Trobough: 2:05:35

Yeah, like if it's a Pokemon that's locked behind an event. It's kind of hard.

Brandon Hurles: 2:05:39

I still have sealed packs of GameStop cards for Sun and Moon, like promo cards where you would scratch it off and enter the code. I've still got a few sealed packs. They're useless now but people still collect them. They sell for like $10 a card or something on eBay, but there's sealed packs of them. I've got, I think, three of them. Yeah, interesting.

Mark Trobough: 2:06:04

I mean just having them would be like a neat little collector's thing. Yeah, it's pretty cool.

Brandon Hurles: 2:06:09

But I think that's all we've got.

Mark Trobough: 2:06:11

I guess I had a question because Mr Coffee brought it up Can you use source code to crack a game? To leak it early, I would assume. So I mean as much as I know about the IT general. I'm not an expert when it comes to code and cracking and stuff like that, I just have a general understanding of how a lot of stuff works.

Brandon Hurles: 2:06:30

So I don't know, great question.

Mark Trobough: 2:06:34

I've never actually looked into cracking games and stuff like that and leaking it out, so it would work.

Brandon Hurles: 2:06:37

I would assume that there's a way to, but I don't know. I don't know, just having the source codes enough. And obviously, if you're going to scan the source code, find all the info within it.

Mark Trobough: 2:06:50

I'm sure a lot of this stuff somebody can do something with it. As far as content in the game, you can probably find the source code. Obviously the game's not done so you can't actually play the completed game off of it. They probably have every DLC, a lot of the stuff that's going to be in the games in that source code. To dig through and start leaking stuff out as far as probably spoiler stuff would be a problem.

Brandon Hurles: 2:07:09

They've got AI digging through that right now or it's already done.

Mark Trobough: 2:07:14

I mean as far as being on social media. Be careful what you see and, hopefully, people are cautious to not spread along potential spoilers for these games. Though, to be fair, with the Legends ZA, I assume you probably have an idea what the story's going to be, because you already knew what the story was in those games with the mega evolution and stuff like that, so you assume it's going to expand upon to some degree with that. We just don't know what exactly they're going to do.

Brandon Hurles: 2:07:40

I will say I'm very excited for the game. I love Pokemon legends. I thought I thought it was a blast.

Mark Trobough: 2:07:44

I didn't care for X and Y. But I mean, the story seems kind of interesting, so I guess we'll see where they want to go with, uh, with the, with the legends version of it why it's not great.

Brandon Hurles: 2:07:54

It's so weird that we never got a z version, but um, we thought, for sure that was going to happen that.

Mark Trobough: 2:07:59

I think that was the no. It was the gen 5 where they stopped the third versions of the game they made. They made it sequel games at the time.

Brandon Hurles: 2:08:07

I remember there's just murmur going around that we were getting a pokemon z, like it was expected. I remember following following the timeline of like events that were, you know, supposed to, um, be pokemon z, and I think I could be wrong, but I think a pokemon z was being developed before they. But it got crap.

Mark Trobough: 2:08:28

Yeah, because yeah because they also did it in gen. They did what they did with gen 5 and gen 7, just not to the same degree. With sun and moon, the problem is ultra sun, ultra moon it's essentially the same game with extra content. So there's quite literally don't do the mistake I did there's no reason to get and play sun and moon. Just get the ultra versions of it, because if you want to collect like a living dex, you have to play ultra sun and ultra moon, and the story is pretty much the same.

Brandon Hurles: 2:08:55

It's, it's it I don't know why I did it that way. Any pokemon games so frustrating it's like. It's like the upgraded version pretty much everybody's the same thing. Just go with all, just don't make the mistake.

Mark Trobough: 2:09:08

I have them. I bought them all because I didn't know beforehand and I'm like, oh, so for like a handful of pokemon, I gotta replay through this game another two times.

Brandon Hurles: 2:09:16

Uh, no, thank you if you don't even really like the location I think is the weirdest of any, where it's supposed to be like hawaii yeah, I think it's based off hawaii islands it's, it's. It's a little different and then you got like the taller executors and it's just frustrating.

Mark Trobough: 2:09:30

That's like I'm essentially having to play my Pokedex and I have to play through the same game four times. It's frustrating that are at the very end of Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. That's why I haven't gone back and done it.

Brandon Hurles: 2:09:42

Yeah, no, I get it. They're definitely not my favorites, but I thought they were fine for what they were. Alright, is there anything else that you have for this week, mark?

Mark Trobough: 2:09:54

You got some stuff to share, though, some pickups, if you want to share that before we head out. Yeah, yeah, I already shared my two.

Mark Trobough: 2:10:01

Yeah, so I guess I shared some of the games. I got two other pickups that I don't think I actually shared on social media but I figured I'd throw it out here, and both of these I picked up at uh gamestop. So this one I know brand new about it. It's a godzilla puzzle. Yeah, it's a thousand piece puzzle that I saw. It's like a recreation of the old uh, one of the uh.

Mark Trobough: 2:10:21

All right, yeah, it was a it's a recreation of the uh yeah, the godzilla, mothra and king gadora giant monsters all out attack is the recreation poster that this is kind of based off of.

Brandon Hurles: 2:10:34

Yeah, I think it looks really cool.

Mark Trobough: 2:10:36

I think they made it. Yeah, this came out, I think, originally in like 2022 is what it looks like for like the copyright, but I just I saw it, I was like, oh, it's like 15 bucks, why not pick it up?

Brandon Hurles: 2:10:44

Because we got Godzilla followers. Now, we did have some minor Godzilla news actually for this week, didn't we?

Mark Trobough: 2:10:52

Oh, yes In, I completely forgot about this. I was thinking about it, I was reading about it earlier today during lunch. Starting November 1st in select theaters, godzilla Minus One's coming back to theaters with some extra added content. Don't know how much. I think it said maybe another 15 minutes more of footage, but it's essentially getting a re-release in in theaters in the us to some degree.

Brandon Hurles: 2:11:16

Obviously, check, check your local theaters I believe it's supposed to start november 1st I will say this I still haven't got to watch it in black and white, so, which is the way I wanted to watch it to begin with.

Mark Trobough: 2:11:27

Oh, the minus color, I think, is far better. It's still the only way I've actually watched the movie.

Brandon Hurles: 2:11:32

I'm basing this just on you. I want to watch it.

Mark Trobough: 2:11:36

I really want to watch it. It's very good. I'm still waiting on my pre-order to get delivered. I'm still waiting on mine too, that pre-order when it first came out.

Brandon Hurles: 2:11:45

But outside of that, because we were talking about Pokemon.

Mark Trobough: 2:11:47

I don't know how new this was, but it's the first time I saw it. I usually go on to my GameStop like once a month. Yeah, as I hit my mic because this box is huge, oh people getting this. This was the Charizard EX Super Premium Collection. It has three promo cards which is the Charizard EX, a Charmeleon and a Charmander version, as well as 10 booster packs which I believe are they're based off. Scarlet yeah, they're all Scarlet and Violet, but I think they're different packs of the version of.

Mark Trobough: 2:12:21

Scarlet and Violet, as well as the actual, the reason you would get this, which is the actual Charizard stand. So if you I think it was around 50 bucks when I bought this If you go off the price of just the actual booster packs, essentially it's like an extra $10, and you get the Charizard, it's like what the price would have come out compared to how much the? Booster packs actually get sold and it's nothing major, but I need to do an actual unboxing video for this. I think it just was a cool little stand.

Brandon Hurles: 2:12:48

I was going to say I think that's selling out places and I'm pretty sure that that is hard to find. Already when I picked it up at GameStop, they had quite a few and they were still on there when I picked it up, but I don't know how new.

Mark Trobough: 2:13:00

They just got them. When I picked it up a week ago I believe it was on the 12th, but I don't know when it actually got released but I was like that looks pretty cool. Don't know when it actually got released, but I was like that looks pretty cool. Nice little stand just to buy it, but you get some pokemon cards.

Brandon Hurles: 2:13:15

You know it's one, yeah, and the copy said wow, that is uh, that is really really cool. That's something I would want to get, so I might have to look in the to get in that.

Mark Trobough: 2:13:21

Yeah, I don't know where they sell it. I just knew it was at my local game stop when I picked it up last week and it was about 50 bucks, so it wasn't. It wasn't terrible, all things considered, for actually what you're getting out of the box.

Brandon Hurles: 2:13:31

Yeah, I'll definitely have to check that out. But yeah, I do need to.

Mark Trobough: 2:13:35

So I'm going to try to record a video this weekend and hopefully get that up on one of the channels. That'd be an easy one to do too. Yeah, but I need to actually do it. But I thought it was cool.

Brandon Hurles: 2:13:45

I did want to say, on Wednesday we'll have a new video dropping on the GameJunk channel, which is on the PSVR 2, where I'm discussing some of the stuff where I think that kind of sits in 2024 kind of my thoughts on it while I've had it since it's been out, and stuff like that. If you want to give us a follow on any of the audio platforms, we're on Spotify, apple Podcast, youtube Music we're on all of them, 25 plus platforms. We also got now the Anime Junction Cast, which is also on audio platforms and you can find that as well on YouTube and that is on youtubecom slash at the junction network. You can find the video version there and then the audio version on what platforms?

Mark Trobough: 2:14:34

I believe it's all of the major ones. Let me pull it up that I know for a fact apple podcast for sure.

Mark Trobough: 2:14:41

Um, those are the ones I think I saw yeah, so you can get it on, uh, spotify, amazon music, music, uh, samsung podcast, podcast, indexed listen notes, rsscom, uh, apple podcast, pandora, iheart radio and deezer, um, cool, the ones I know for for a fact it's on, uh, it's all audio only on those. Obviously we were talking about needing to get the video versions up on spotify itself, uh, but we're working on that. It's only the first episode right now, but this weekend I actually have a lot of time to actually go back through and actually move them all to audio and try to get them all properly uploaded here the next week or two week or so. So it's caught up. We're the actual podcast, is that cool?

Brandon Hurles: 2:15:24

yeah, that sounds good. So, like I said, yeah, video drop in wednesday, then probably a video from you on the charizard unboxing. Don't know where location will be for that one yet, but we appreciate everybody watching live. Of course, we're live every Friday at 8 pm Eastern Standard Time. You can find us on YouTube and, again, we're on all the audio platforms. So we will see you all later. Hope everyone has a great week and we'll be back Appreciate it. See you all later. Hope everyone has a great week and we'll be back Appreciate it. See you all later. Peace.