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Mobcast

Mobcast 68: Best/Worst In-Game Weapons, Real-Life Wars in Video Games, and More

by Alex Martin in Games627 days ago

A short episode this week — forty minutes of Bitmob’s Shoe and Demian, joined by Area 5′s Matt Chandronait and GameXplain’s Andre Segers. The first topic is a serious one — the treatment of modern warfare in games. Medal of Honor has caught flack for featuring the Taliban, and Six Days in Fallujah was dropped by publisher Konami for daring to deal with a war that isn’t over yet. Next, they talk about what makes games immersive. Although Andre and Matt like cohesive universes and good stories, they spend as much...

Mobcast 67: Halo: Reach, Best Indie-Dev Console, Fall Releases, and More

by Alex Martin in Games634 days ago

Active Time Babble host and freelancer Kat Bailey guests this week, hosted by Shoe, Demian, and Brett. First up, they choose their desert-island games from fall’s lineup. This is an excuse to talk about upcoming games like, Civilization 5, Fallout: New Vegas, Rock Band 3, and Halo Reach. Speaking of Halo Reach, Shoe’s almost as excited for that as he would be for a Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow remake. He tries to enthuse his mostly unenthusiastic guests and reads some responses to his tweet for opinions on Bungie’s last Halo...

Mobcast

Mobcast 66: Nintendo Slipping, Fun Bad Games, Publisher Hype, and More

by Alex Martin in Games641 days ago

Jason and Raychul return to the Mobcast for five topics with Shoe and Brett. First, they talk collectibles. Brett covered his thoughts on Alan Wake’s Thermoses and cardboard cutouts in this article. They elaborate on that by discussing what makes a good collectible. Jason has been playing Disciples III for about a month. Apart from its unique unicorns, he likes nothing about it — so why play it? Raychul suggests he’s invested in the character he’s levelling up, but the more popular theory is that he’s crazy. Summer...

Mobcast

Mobcast 62: Virtual Reality, Living in Game Worlds, Wal-Mart: The Game, and More

by Alex Martin in Games669 days ago

Shoe and Aaron host returning guests Jeff Reitman and Adam McLaughlin. Despite their comedian background, Shoe starts by asking them a question with distinct Ebertian undertones — would they prefer a great movie or a great game? This turns into a discussion of Star Wars and Indiana Jones and the merits of the different media. Adam has the group pitching advergames and Jeff asks which game adverts misrepresented their products the most. Publishers don’t help buyers when their trailers are full of pre-rendered footage. As Shoe points out,...

Mobcast

Mobcast 61: Favorite Turn-Based Strategy Games, Kinect and Move Ideas for Hardcore Gamers, and More

by Alex Martin in Games676 days ago

Jake Kazdal (Haunted Temple Studios) brings a game designer’s perspective to this episode of the Mobcast with Dan Hsu, Demian Linn, and Matt Chandronait. Jake’s topic is favorite turn-based strategy games. His game Skulls of the Shogun is inspired by his pick — Advance Wars. Demian shares his love of the addictive hand-held strategy series. Shoe describes Heroes of Might and Magic 3 as a brightly-colored game that focuses on building, rather than combat. Someone had to mention Civilization, and Matt brings up Civ 4. To wrap up...

Mobcast

Mobcast 59: E3 2010 Wrap-Up

by Alex Martin in Games690 days ago

Although last week’s episode was released after E3, this Mobcast is the true E3 wrap-up with staff members Dan “Shoe” Hsu, Demian Linn, Brett Bates, and Omri Petitte. First, they ask each other about the games they missed. Omri tells the group about Portal 2′s wisecracking sidekick and new environments. Shoe didn’t think much of Rage but liked Vanquish — a Japanese shooter that speeds up the Gears of War formula. Demian also fields some questions about Deus Ex 3. Next, they name some games they saw but aren’t...

Mobcast

Mobcast 58: E3 2010 Special: 3D Gaming, Notable No-Shows, Surprises, and More

by Alex Martin in Games697 days ago

The Mobcast took a week off for some small indie trade show called the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Host Shoe has brought back old friends Shane Bettenhausen (Ignition Entertainment), Mark MacDonald (8-4, Ltd.), and John Ricciardi (also of 8-4) to talk about the show. They start with pleasant surprises, including Twisted Metal and the 3DS line-up in general. Mark talks about Battle Tag — Ubisoft’s laser-tag, not-a-video-game thing — although this may have been sarcasm. Next, they shine a light on some of the under-covered games...

Mobcast

Mobcast 57: E3 Predictions, 2D Gaming, and the Importance of Online Communities

by Alex Martin in Games711 days ago

Jay Frechette (Community Manager at Visceral Games) guests on the show this week and gives a brief update of what he’s been doing since leaving Area 5 before he, Shoe, Demian, and Brett dive into their first topic. Demian starts by asking the table for their thoughts on microtransactions, which turn out to be mostly negative. Madden 11 charges for opponents statistics and Modern Warfare 2′s expensive maps segregate online players. Next, they talk about whether 2D games are viable at full price. Brett wants stylish, unique games and,...

Mobcast

Mobcast 56: Crackdown 2, Multiplayer Memories, and Where to Set the Next Open-World Game

by Alex Martin in Games717 days ago

Destructoid and GamePro freelancer Ben PerLee debuts on the Mobcast, alongside hosts Shoe, Aaron, and Brett. The episode goes up a day late because of Memorial Day. Coincidentally similar to an article on Bitmob from earlier in the week, their first topic is locations for open-world games. The crew suggest settings ranging from pre-colonial North America to the Moon. With Red Dead Redemption still fresh in their minds, they discuss what made the Old West a fun sandbox. Shoe manages to mention Splinter Cell again, as their next topic is multiplayer...

Mobcast

Mobcast 53: Fighting-Game Spectacular

by Alex Martin in Games737 days ago

It’s a fighting game special this week and in the four corners of the podcast are Bitmob Co-Founder Dan Hsu, Capcom Senior Community Manager Seth Killian, Playstation Community and Social Network Manager Sid Shuman, and Game Videos Executive Producer Richard Li. There’s plenty of nostalgia for leaking quarters at the arcade this episode, which starts with Shoe’s request for the table’s favorite games and characters. Moving to the present though, Richard talks about how the internet has allowed players unprecedented access...

Mobcast

Mobcast 52: The Mobcastiversary

by Alex Martin in Games746 days ago

The Mobcast is a year old, and with this anniversary comes a warning of the coming apocalypse. Wait, what? Apparently there is only one year — 52 more episodes of the Mobcast — until the end of the world. We don’t know the agent of our destruction, but we do know that aliens will reveal themselves and abduct select humans at this time. This week, regular hosts Shoe and Demian, along with former 1UP cohorts Crispin Boyer and Michael Donahoe plan for the end times. They have only one year to eliminate games from their piles of...

Mobcast

Mobcast 51: Ethics, Microtransactions, and Franchises Cut Short

by Alex Martin in Games753 days ago

Matt Chandronait makes his fifth Mobcast appearance, meaning he’s now tying with Raychul Moore for the favorite guest title. Regular hosts Shoe, Demian, and Brett join him for a quick hour-long podcast. The four start by answering a hypothetical question: which dead series would they like a new sequel for, and which living series would they erase from history for the privilege? They somehow manage to wish for Beyond Good & Evil and Splinter Cell sequels, both of which are still alive. But what would a Mobcast be without Shoe bringing...

Mobcast

Mobcast 50: Birthdays, Frustrating Experiences, and the Best Game Ever

by Alex Martin in Games760 days ago

It’s the 50th episode of the Mobcast and regular hosts Shoe, Demian, and Brett are joined by special guest Seanbaby (Cracked and formerly of 1UP and EGM). They talk about the games they expect to be playing 50 years in the future, the most frustrating, and the greatest moments in games. Next, the crew reminisces about gaming-related birthday memories. Brett had some cool parties in his childhood, Shoe talks about his most thoughtful gift, but poor Demian had to wait until graduating from college before he was given his first console. Seanbaby...

Mobcast

Mobcast Episode 49

by Jon Cole in Games767 days ago

This week’s Mobcast keeps it close with a mostly Bitmob crew, welcoming returning guest “girlfriend Raychul” back for another episode.  Right off the bat, 3DS conversation stirs some debate, with Raychul making the bold statement that she’s glad Nintendo lead the 3D charge considering they know how to implement new technologies best.  Aaron doesn’t take this sitting down, however, arguing that Nintendo knows how to sell hardware but doesn’t know very much at all about using motion controls well on the Wii, for...

Mobcast

Mobcast Episode 48

by Jon Cole in Games774 days ago

Dan Hsu returns to the hosting seat this week, welcoming ex-Crispy Gamer Kyle Orland and ex-Blizzard “tastemaker” Keith Lee into the studio along with Bitmobber Demian Linn.  Being a huge Blizzard fan, Demian takes on the first topic, primarily asking Keith how Blizzard so often enjoys massive success.  Design and user experience lead the pack of strong attributes that rope in many more users than games that use far more complex interfaces on the surface. Rhythm games seem to have tired out hardcore gamers at this point, especially...

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    Episode 092 - PTW ahoy!
    Games, tech, and the usual, for the last time. Hello Podcast Thing Weekly.

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