Madden 11 kicks-off the show this week as Jeff has put a bit more time into it. He has also been playing some Dragon Quest 9 which he isn’t completely loving. Garnett has a few comments on Arc Rise Fantasia as the group moves on to discuss the simple, yet interesting indie title, Minecraft. Similar to LOVE, it is being funded by early purchasers who also get in on a lead-up-to-launch beta. Brian also spends more time on StarCraft 2, and it feels like it should be given a break for a while.
The Warning is full of insightful discussions this week, starting with a return to the issue of female lead characters in games. Garnett tries to play the “If I am going to look at a character’s butt for 60+ hours” argument, but Brian and Jeff quickly shoot it down. The group also touches on the social stigma of being a gamer and the line between frustration and fun in difficult games.
The news closes the show with a lot of smaller topics since the show was recorded before some of the bigger announcements of the week..
Covered games and news: Madden 11, Dragon Quest 9, Arc Rise Fantasia, Minecraft, StarCraft 2, gender characters, comfortability as a gamer, line between frustration and enjoyment, news
Before Garnett and Brian head to Texas for QuakeCon, they sit down with Jeff to record this week’s show. It’s a broad swath of gaming in Whatcha’ Been Playin? ranging from more Madden and Starcraft 2 to Arc Rise Fantasia and even Minecraft. Your thoughts from our conversation last week about the viability of female characters leads the Warning before the subject turns to the line between fun, engaging game design and frustrating compulsion to beat a game. And in the front page there’s news of new Borderlands DLC and the celebrity voice cast in Fallout New Vegas. Due to travel we recorded early this week but we’ll have Jeff’s reaction to Bioshock Infinite and look at July’s sales figures next week.
Whatcha’ Been Playin: Start: 00:00:00 End: 00:30:37
Whatcha’ Been Playin and Cannata-ford a New Game: Start: 00:31:40 End: 01:03:29
The Warning: Start: 01:04:38 End: 01:36:58
Music Break featuring “Quid Pro Quo” by Civicminded Start: 01:36:58 End: 01:40:14
The Front Page: Start: 01:40:14 End: 02:12:19
Runtime – 2:12:19
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