The Geek Bravado Ramble

The game industry bombshells keep hitting as on Mar 2nd, prolific game industry vacuum Embracer Group announced they were buying most of Square Enix's western studios and IPs, including Crystal Dynamics, Eidos Montreal, Tomb Raider, Deus Ex and much more. I talk about the sudden announcement, the borderline fire sale price tag, Square Enix's mismanagement and how clueless their statement on what they'll do with the proceeds seem.

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that Elon Musk has made a formal commitment to buy Twitter. While he doesn't own it yet, it's likely he will end up doing so. I have mixed feelings on this to put it mildly, but rather than just give my general take on the matter, I thought I would go through a few key things I'd like to see Twitter improve under Musk's ownership that they have been neglecting for years and that I think could make the service better.

People Makes Games Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDPzZkx0cPs

A video exposé into three indie press darling studios was recently release, showing claims of emotional abuse by those at the top. I talk about how the publisher all these companies share did nothing, whether or not the accusations are as severe as they seem and in particular, how the games press has been near totally silent in discussing issues like this, when they come from studios where they are either friends with or worse still, afraid of those who run them.

Unless you've been living under a rock recently, you've heard about the announcement of Microsoft's colossal deal to purchase Activision-Blizzard, the biggest acquisition ever in gaming and one of the largest in history. I give my thoughts on that but also expound on the idea of the heavy consolidation the game industry is going through right now and how it could impact us as gamers.

Everyone's talking about the Metaverse and NFTs right now and largely, not in a good way. I agree with most of that but there's a bigger, perhaps even more sinister reason behind all the hype for these new fads, one that's not being discussed that much.

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy was announced and came out with some hype but certainly not as much as Square Enix's other Marvel flop in The Avengers. This game breaks from a great many AAA expectations lately and while it's not perfect, it was a very pleasant surprise for me and something I hope more people pick up to show the industry we want these kinds of games.

The Artful Escape is a game that came out of nowhere for me but got my attention because of it's subject matter. What I found was a game that is barely a game but is also one of the coolest experiences I've had this year.

The Artful Escape is on Game Pass for PC and Xbox, PS4 and on Steam for PC.

Most provincial governments in Canada and other places around the world have introduced vaccine passports, requiring you to show proof of double vaccination before you can do things like go to restaurants, bars, theaters and gyms. Some employers are also requiring these now. I hate this and think it shouldn't be necessary but the problem isn't the government, it's the anti-vaxxers who are making this necessary. I make this case for this.

Apple recently announced that starting with iOS 15, user photos will be algorithmically analyzed for child sexual abuse and if found, reported to the authorities. Users cannot opt out of this. Some believe this is a great win for the noble cause of rooting out the sick consumers of this content. I and many others believe this is a massive overreach into user privacy from a company that keeps using it as a key selling point and which ultimately will do very little good.

Cancel culture is alive, well and growing and especially in the gaming industry. Two popular and celebrated figures in the development industry recently got cancelled for very different reasons, neither of which should have happened. I discuss these incidents and how this mob of perpetually (and often purposefully) outraged can't be allowed to continue this way.

It's been roughly a year since Mixer very suddenly shut down. I'm still grinding it out in content creation as are many others but a lot of us are still trying to find our footing again in various ways. I refleft on some of the things other streamers are trying to do, as well as where I am now and where at least my short-term future is.

Many have questioned the relevance of the game industry's big trade show for a number of years now. After being cancelled last year due to the pandemic, this year's all virtual show largely left a bad impression on the general public. While I agree with those sentiments, I think this year's event showed incredible potential for those who look beyong just AAA gaming and in this episode, I talk about why.

Recently, three of the core personalities at Giant Bomb announced on the same day that they were leaving the site, effectively putting it on life support. I gave up on the site a couple of years ago but its impact on gaming media of all kinds is undeniable. In this casual port-mortem, I reflect on that, why I stopped following them and what I hope they are able to achieve in the future.

Six Days In Fallujah is a tactical first-person shooter set during a very controversial battle during the Iraq war. The game was originally set to release in the late 2000s, before being cancelled by its publisher and subsequently, having its developer go under. Now it's being brought back by a new developer and publisher and is still very controversial. This has escalated to the point where people in the games industry are calling for it to be censored by the government because it will lead to violence. Many of these same people also make violent games. Jack Thompson is back only the calls are now coming from inside the house. I discuss this.

I'd heard of Outriders but not much more than that before trying out its recently released demo. As someone pretty tired of the live service looter shooter genre, this surprised me in some very welcome ways.

Parler, an alternative to Twitter that had a mostly right-wing user base, was recently kicked off Google Play, the Apple App Store and Amazon Web Services in a suspiciously rapid and coordinated fashion. While I have no love for the platform, I think this coordinated assault by big tech companies to stamp out politically competing platforms, citing the same rules they turn a blind eye to the incumbents for breaking sets a very dangerous precedent. The problem is, I don't know how you properly deal with it either. I discuss that and would love to hear what you all think.

It's been happening for a while but especially with recent event, I've seen this growing trend of people online demanding that everyone use whatever platform they have to scream political opinions and that a failure to do so is tantamount to complicity and even somehow, an act of violence. I am sick of this and of entitled people daring to make demands of what I say. I go on a pretty decent rant about this subject.

The Cyberpunk 2077 launch, burning their console partners and now the sudden backtracking on the release of Devotion on GOG has taken CD Projekt Group's formerly stellar reputation straight off a cliff in the last week. In my opinion, it's an unfortunate and unavoidable end of a creative company that's publicly traded. I discuss this theory and why it worries me that so many even smaller developers and publishers seem to be going public these days.

Cyberpunk 2077 has finally launched after numerous delays and while I think it's a great game, it also has a lot of problems and CD Projekt Red's stellar reputation has taken some significant damage. As someone who was incredibly hyped for the game, I believe a lot of those criticisms are warranted but some are also an example of the gaming community whipping itself into a frenzy of hype that could never be matched. I discuss that while also giving my impressions of the game after 25 hours of it streamed for Extra Life.

If you're in the streaming space, you know about the controversy surrounding Alex Hutchison's tweets. In this purposefully late to the party take on the issue, I do take him and his statements to task but also explore the elements of his statements that whether we like it or not, are true.

In the unbridled nightmare that is the American presidency right now, a lot of people have been rightly blamed for contributing to Donald Trump's rise. However, one person in particular, I think has skirted under the radar and arguably, deserves more blame than most. In this unusual podcast, I discuss that and my reasons for it.

In an absolute mic drop worthy bombshell, Microsoft has announced their intention to buy ZeniMax Media, parent company of Bethesda, Arkane, id Software, MachineGames and Tango Gameworks among others. They are also now owners of some of the world's biggest IPs like The Elder Scrolls, DOOM, Wolfenstein, Dishonored and more. The Internet is buzzing about what this means for the future of these beloved series, especially on PlayStation systems. For as big as this deal is, I think the outcome is going to be very different than many gamers think. I go into detail about this and also why further consolidation is something that should concern us.

A new Netflix series on the history of video games came out of nowhere and was a pleasant surprise for a number of different reasons. I offer up my impressions of High Score, from the perspective of someone who is big into the history of the medium. I was pleasantly surprised!

On this somber 19th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, many have been sharing their stories of where they were on that day. I wasn't going to originally but I was in a weird headspace today that ended up in me going for a drive and decided to record my story, which was kind of unique or at least so I think. Never forget.

In my hiatus from streaming, I've been working on my backlog and just got a chance to finish Final Fantasy VII Remake on the PS4. While this ramble review is a while after the release of the game, I think I bring some interesting and largely unique perspectives to the review due to having never finished the original back in the day. This game was quite an emotional ride and I go into detail about why.

Don't listen to this if you haven't watched Snowpiercer Season 1 yet and don't want it spoiled.

I didn't know a TV series based on Snowpiercer was coming until it suddenly appeared on Netflix one day so as a fan of the movie, I wanted to check it out. I liked it well enough, right up until the last episode. I talk about my issues with it and what it means for season 2.

The world feels like it's on fire right now. For those reasons and more, I'm personally in a really bad place. This podcast is mostly talking about my own struggles, though I am not unempathetic to the greater madness so many more are dealing with too. I just talk about this struggle for a while because I think it's important for more of us to be open about our struggles so that others know they aren't alone. As always, I am here if anyone needs an ear.

During the COVID-19 crisis, the previously to say the least, divisive leader of my province has been getting a lot of credit for how he's been "leading" through the outbreak and many of his previous detractors are suddenly changing their minds on him. However, much like Rudy Guilliani after 9/11, none of this is based in reality but more just the fact that he happened to be here during a difficult time. I talk about this and why it's a terrible reason to suddenly up your opinion on terrible leaders.

Epic Games has now announced that in addition to making a big push into the digital distribution space, they are now getting into publishing games from other developers. Similar to how they launched the Epic Games Store, they are starting with a bang, offering full funding and creative control to 3 prominent studios, with apparently more to come. I talk about this model, how I'd have a hard time saying no if I was a developer and also how this is completely unsustainable long-term, despite what some short-sighted "developers" think.

Thank you to my small audience for being there for 100 episodes! Here's to many more!

COVID-19 is currently sending society and the economy into a tailspin with no end in sight. Meanwhile, it's become taboo to talk about the country whose lacking regulations and rampant corruption has resulted in not only this pandemic but multiple others. Those whose self-worth is wrapped up in being offended on behalf of others are calling criticizing China racist, failing to understand that one can criticize the state and policies that allowed this to happen without it being attack on the Chinese people themselves. I talk about that with more than a little personal frustation.

I finally played through the entirety of the new entry in Dontnod Entertainment's narrative adventure game series. As a fan of the first Life Is Strange and especially of intermediate series Before the Storm, I had high hopes for this series. Find out why many of those hopes were dashed and why it makes me concerned for future Dontnod titles.

As per the title, there will be a clearly deliniated spoiler section at the end.

And yes, I know I said 2019 yet again. I'll join this decade at some point. :)

It's no secret that being an indie game developer is really tough right now and the chances of your game just being profitable, much less a hit is far from a guarantee. However, for all the hand wringing we see about the indie game space and especially, the increasing trend of devs blaming their potential customers for their failures, I think a lot of developers approach the selling and promotion of their games with a naive mindset that quality is all you need to make a game sell. I discuss this and how just being good at making games is only one part of the equation of getting people to buy them.

If you follow a lot of streamers or content creators on social media, you've likely seen a lot of them posting what I call "Streamer PSAs", unsolicited advice for other content creators, often stated in a very authoritative manner. While I'm aware of the irony, I offer both a perspective on these PSAs, why you shouldn't take them as seriously as some think you should and why at the end of the day, luck is the biggest factor in finding large-scale success in the online content world.

The current drama involving the royal family has become big news, bigger than many more important things happening in the world. On top of that, there's a chance Canadian taxpayers may be footing a good chunk of billing should Megan and Harry choose to move to Canada, which is rumoured. I rant about the royal family's relevance, the real motivations behind the separation and the news media's focus on this celebrity gossip over real things of importance.

The latest Star Wars movie is out and is a critical flop and likely headed to be a commercial one as well. This is only the latest in an increasing line of beloved franchises that JJ Abrams has shepherded into ruin with their most hardcore (and theoretically valuable) fanbases. I talk about my theory as to why he keeps getting these opportunities and why Hollywood needs to keep him in his lane, for the good of everyone.

P.S. I know I got a couple of the new movie names wrong. No need to correct me. :)

An unfortunately common tactic used in doing business with people now is to try to devalue their work and make them feel they hold less worth than that they are in order to get a deal out of them. This can even be true in situations where no money is involved. Having recently had to battle with a client trying this with me, I've come to realize just how important it is to fight for what you believe you are worth and not to crack on that resolve even once. I relate the story and expand on my reasoning.

The Outer Worlds is the new RPG from Obsidian. A combination of Fallout and Firefly, many are calling it the proper single player RPG players have been needing for years and many are calling it a Game of the Year contender. As I recorded this, I was the majority of the way through the game and while it's not bad by any means, it doesn't take any risks or innovate in any of the ways it should have. I go into detail with these impressions.

Google's promised new revolution in cloud gaming, Stadia, launched to founder backers yesterday and releases widely to the public today. With a few exceptions, the launch seems to have been a mess at best and seems to indicate a product that was shipped when it was nowhere ready to. I discuss this, plus what problems Google thinks Stadia is actually solving and whether they needed solving to begin with.

Recently, a sequel to the cult classic Norse hack n' slash RUNE was released to mixed reception. The next day, its developer Human Head Studios announced they were closing their doors, despite taking an Epic exclusivity bribe for the game and it apparently selling better than they thought. This has left both players and their pseudo publisher wondering what kind of support the title will receive. The whole saga is very strange and I talk about that and why this kind of thing further erodes the already razor thin trust gamers have in the industry.

In what should come as a surprise to no one, Don Cherry said something controversial and ignorant. However, this time he did it in the era of cancel culture and something he previously would have gotten away with has now resulted in him being fired from the iconic Coach's Corner role he's held for several decades. While I think Don Cherry is often an ignorant blowhard who needs to keep his political nonsense of out of his hockey, I also think this reaction was overblown and more than a little hypocritical.

The new private equity owners of the former Gawker group of web site have made some major changes to the user experience on their sites but more importantly, have laid off some writers and warned others to stay in their lanes and keep politics out of sites that aren't supposed to be for that. These writers are losing their minds but I think it's about time and will hopefully (but likely not) teach them a lesson they should have learned years ago. I talk about what this could mean for these sites and others that operate in a similar way.

Joker is not only an atypical superhero movie, it's not a superhero movie at all. Despite all the manufactured outrage about it, I think it's not only a brilliant movie but one of the most brilliant ones I've seen in a long time. Not everyone agrees though and the discussion has been fascinating. I keep things spoiler-free until a clearly marked segment near the end but if you've seen the film, I'd love to know what you think about it as a whole and particularly, the parts discussed in that segment.

Another minor panic about the future of the Mixer platform seems to be going through the community again and this was amplified by the surprise and rapid-fire announcements that both founders of the platform will be leaving Microsoft. I talk about not only why people shouldn't be worrying so much but also why the departure of the founders is probably a good thing.

Blizzard recently banned a competitive Chinese Hearthstone player and withheld substantial prize money because he spoke out in support of Hong Kong protesters during a live broadcast. The Internet has exploded in response to this, more so than I would have expected. I offer my take on the events and in particular, how this shows the incredibly hypocrisy of a company that espouses progressive values on one hand but sides with a dictatorship on the other, all in the interests of shareholders instead of principals.

Late in the evening of September 18, photos surfaced of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in a brownface costume at a social function. This has caused no end of outrage from the press, general public and his opponents in out ongoing federal election campaign. While I agree what he did was wrong, I also think it's ridiculous to hold something that someone did in the distant past against them today, especially when they've demonstrated that they've improved as a person. I detail that opinion.

A new entry in one of my favourite series in one of my favourite arcadey genres is upon us. The River City series dates all the way back to the NES and has passed through many developers over its history, which is longer than many realize. The latest entry comes from the renowned devlopers WayForward and I went into it with high expectations. I talk about my first couple of horus with the game and whether those expectations have been met.

Intro song is We're the Rivber City Girls, performed by Nathan Sharp and Christina Vee.

Another documentary has his Netflix and despite it's title, it isn't one about the factories in China that make almost everything we buy now, it's about a Chinese company trying to setup a factory in the US. American Factory details this process with a surprising amount of access and shows the cultural and business issues that come from Chinese and American values colliding and why this trend growing should worry people.

Earlier this month, I unexpectedly had to put a lot of my streams and other content on hold because I was so burned out. I originally thought it was because of work and other stresses but after some research, it appears to be not so much because of that but because I've started to become dependent on my ADHD medication. I talk about what that experience has been like and what I'm doing to try to overcome it and still figure out how to treat this disorder.

I've now devoted several episodes to (rightly) addressing a lot of the problems with the Epic Games Store and it's general anti-consumer stance. Many have equated this to me just hating it because it's not Steam. That couldn't be further from the truth and for as much as I use Steam, the service and the company behind it have a lot of problems of their own. I devote longer than I thought I would to talking about those and what Valve should do to improve on them.

A big bombshell was dropped in the streaming world today when it was announced that Ninja, one of the biggest streamers in the world, is leaving Twitch to exclusively join Mixer. No one saw this coming and while most people are generally welcome and positive on the idea, some people do have some worries, myself included. I discuss the cons but largely pros of him joining the Mixer fold.

A new documentary about the Cambridge Analytica/Facebook scandal recently came out on Netflix. While I do recommend reading up a bit on how the scandal happened before watching it, I think it does a good job of showcasing what happened and more importantly, the amoral, opportunistic nature of nearly everyone involved, even those who now claim to be on the side of good. I give my impressions.

Every time I see a Reddit or Twitter thread bemoaning the modern state of video games, it's always talking about AAA titles like they're the only games that exist. Almost without fail, every time I try to point out the entire world of creative, inexpensive, consumer friendly indie games that are out there, I get downvoted or some other kind of push back from these same people. In a true ramble with no preparation, I expand on why this might be and what we can maybe do about it.

The new AMD Ryzen 3000 line of CPUs has had a lot of hype behind it and based on reviews from its July 7th launch, it hasn't disappointed. However, fewer are talking about the obscene prices the accompanying motherboards have. As someone who was planning to build a new rig soon, this has taken a lot of the wind out of my sails and I think it's mostly because of the greed of the motherboard makers. I talk about why and why I think this will probably be short lived.

In the time I've been making YouTube videos and streaming, the term "influencer" to describe someone who makes content and "networking" to describe the act of community building, have both become common parlance. I really dislike the origins of these words and how they're being utilized and offer some thoughts on that.

Another year of E3 has come and gone and to my great surprise, a lot of people are calling it a disappointment. I talk about that, why I think E3's relevance is returning as we enter the age of the "influencer" and how this year's theme is definitely subscription services and what that means for the gaming public going forward.

I recorded this podcast around a week before publishing it because I wasn't sure if I wanted to put it out there but I've decided to. I suffer from Major Depressive Disorder and recently, had a major relapse due to a combination of stresses. I try (with I think, limited success) to describe what it's like to live through an episode like this, in the hopes that it can maybe help you recognize it in your own or someone you know.

You are not alone. If you ever need to talk to someone, you can talk to me.

In the last while, I've taken it upon myself to remove some negativity from social media that was negatively impacting my mood and overall mental health. However, this week I realized that I was still getting a lot of that negative influence from other places I hasn't considered before. I go into what I mean by that, why removing it has been of benefit to me and why it might be for you as well.

Bandai Namco Entertainment is a really interesting company. They're one of the original developers and publishers in video games and are very successful. Yet in recent years, I've noticed that despite this and being a public company, they've been doing the kinds of things most of the AAA publishing industry isn't: Investing in smaller titles, interesting titles, not milking safe franchises to death and generally, treating consumers with much more respect than we're used to. I think that's something to be admired and applauded and go into why.

B392

The fire at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris was a terrible tragedy and though it's only a couple of days since it happened, wealthy people and corporations from around the world have already committed over a billion dollars to help fund its reconstruction. While this is noble and to be applauded in its own way, no one seems to be asking why these entities are committing so much to restoring what's ultimately just a building, when there are so many more causes that need financial support and could have impacts for our entire species. In this less energetic episode, I go into that.

I had a chance to play the latest entry in Nintendo's series of casual, artful platformers with my lady friend this weekend. We had a great time and it even convinced her to go out and buy her own Switch! While Yoshi's Crafted World is still an excellent (if very easy) and gorgeous platformer, it's not my favourite of the three Nintendo has put out so far and has some failings that some might find frustrating. I give some impressions based on our time with it.

Rejoice, it's yet another podcast on the Epic Games Store! Well, kind of. With the announcement that Borderlands 3 will be a 6 month exclusive, a number of people have been review bombing the previous Borderlands games on Steam, as they also did with previous entries in the Metro series. Conversely, a number of people have also decided to take up arms in defense of Epic, attacking and slandering those who speak up against it and painting them all as entitled whiners, including people like myself who have been trying to have real debate and backing up my boycott of the Epic Games Store with facts. They're both wrong and stupid and doing far more harm to gaming than anything Epic is doing and I take both to task.

Crackdown 3 finally released recently on the Xbox One, PC and on Xbox Game Pass. This new iteration was announced near the Xbox One launch and has had a very long and troubled development, with multiple developer changes and huge, repeated delays. Now that it's out, it's getting pretty mixed reviews. WereTiger and I have been playing a lot of it in co-op and despite some of its rough technical and design edges, we've been having a blast. I give a bunch of my impressions of the game and how I don't think it's worth it at full price but on a discount or especially with Game Pass, it's great, dumb fun.

PAX East 2019 has come and gone and even though it was only my second PAX (after South from this year, which I have other episodes on), it was an experience unique both for myself and probably for many others. I had the privilege of not only going with a huge contingent of incredible community members from theSHED but I also got an Exhibitor badge by helping theSHED work the booth for our partners at Overtone. I talked to a ton of new, amazing indie developers as part of my new Developer Relations Envoy role and met so many good friends in person. It was a weekend unlike any other and truly a first couple of PAX experiences unlike any other and that I'll never forget. I talk about that and why what so many thought of as work for me, didn't feel like it at all.

My library of photos taken from the weekend: https://photos.app.goo.gl/yPVcd2iP97f3SoLa9

Another gallery with photos from myself and other members of theSHED: https://www.theshedteam.com/theshedcommunity/communities/theshedhub/albums/1585-paxeast2019

Have just finished Metro: Exodus, I got to thinking about the many games over the years that hardcore players fondly remember and that were made in former Soviet states. Games from these developers are very distinctive, both technically and in their design and this is often reflective of the harsh conditions and upbringings they endured under both Communist rule and the transition from that. I talk about some of these more famous developers and how their unique experiences also make for some very unique art.

Noclip documentary on CD Projekt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNZkTk5gLuo

GVMERS documentaries on the Metro series and 4A Games: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVX_ojm9zPq7jU3gcaH9DogEK2EPVDjbl

I officially turned 40 the day I recorded this podcast. Many people make a big deal out of these milestone birthdays and I suppose I am too since I'm recording a podcast about it. Truthfully though, I've always thought that your age is just a number and it's how you feel and your mindset that truly determines your age. I ramble for a while about that.

Yesterday, Google entered the game distribution ring by announcing Stadia, a new all-streaming based gaming service. It aims to differentiate itself by utilizing new technologies and Google's goliath-like cloud computing presence. Many have been extolling the virtues of an all-cloud based gaming service, of which there are many. However, I don't think Google has yet revealed a solution for the myriad problems that such a service still offers, especially in an age of dying Net Neutrality and greedy ISPs. I talk about these.

My lady friend and I had Formula 1: Drive to Survive come up in Netflix recommendations and as both of us like cars and I had a new 4K OLED TV to break in, we checked it out. Aside from being an audio-visual jaw dropper, it's overall a pretty well made documentary series that gave me a new perspective on Formula 1, especially the motivations of the teams who don't generally reside at the top and who don't have the most money. I'm not going to start watching Formula 1 on the regular or anything but I appreciate it a lot more now, even though there was probably a bit of inflated drama at times. I give my impressions of it and why I think it's worth checking out.

A rumour came out of left field today that Sony might be buying Take-Two Interactive Software, parent company of 2K Games and more importantly, Rockstar Games. At time of recording, the rumour had been said to be likely inaccurate but nonetheless, I thought it would be fun to talk about the potential of a world where Sony owns all the Take-Two properties but especially, Grand Theft Auto. Many are already hand wringing that this means all of their properties will forever be imprisoned in the PlayStation walled garden but I actually think this is a very different move in response to something Sony didn't see coming.

Valve recently pulled a disgusting game a out rape from Steam before release, after a large scale condemnation. The problem is, it had been listed for some time prior to this and has many people talking about their wildly inconsistent (and poorly stated) policy on curation. While I agree with their decision to pull this game, their policies (or lack thereof), could lead to some dangerous slippery slopes. I discuss what Valve not only needs to do to rectify this but also how their famously unique corporate culture may be a major contributor to this issue.

The Hoeg Law video referenced in the episode: https://youtu.be/KVbFGrw5CkY

A scandal has rocked Canadian politics this week, involving a very large and powerful engineering company in the country, a bribery scandal and alleged political interference from the top echelons of our federal government. This is far from the first scandal involving this company and given trends so far, probably won't be the last. I talk about how while I understand the reasoning behind the government wanting to potentially give this company a pass the rest of us wouldn't get, I also think a company like this might only learn if it's allowed to fail, even if that comes with some pain.

THQ Nordic PR did a really stupid thing yesterday: They decided to host an AMA on 8chan. Shortly after announcing this, the Internet Outrage Brigade came down hard on them, the AMA was cancelled and the rep apologized by name, claiming he didn't know what 8chan was before agreeing to this. A large number of people are not accepting of this apology and are calling for the guy to be driven out of the industry and for a boycott of THQ Nordic products going forward. The whole thing is stupid and damaging to the industry and I rant about why.

Thanks to my friend Real Caustic being awesome, I was recently given a chance to upgrade to an SLI video card setup for free. It was so frustrating and useless, that I actually gave it back. Along the way, I also discovered that for all its bling and trendiness right now, RGB is probably worst of the worst implemented technologies in PC gaming right now. I walk through my utter befuddlement at all this.

Earlier this week, EA and Respawn Entertainment launched a new battle royale game called Apex Legends, completely out of nowhere and to everyone's surprise. It's a game set in the Titanfall universe, except it doesn't have titans or Titanfall's advanced infantry movement. Also, it's free to play.

I was as cynical as you are but as someone who doesn't care for battle royale games, after just a few matches, this might not only be a battle royale game I put time into, it might be one of the best ones made to date. I talk about my initial impressions after only a few matches and just how talented Respawn truly is to be able to pull this off.

You've probably heard of the recent ad from Gillette that attempted to counter traditional stereotypes about masculinity and invited men to improve themselves, in an attempt to sell overpriced razors. Like many, I am very much not a fan of the ad or the message it sends. However, I believe there's a deeper meaning behind it that is getting lost in the massive amounts of Internet slapfights spawned because of it, something that I believe was the intent of the ad all along. I talk about this theory and why everyone arguing about this (including me) is giving Gillette exactly what they want.

The day after I post this, I'm heading to PAX South, which will not only be my first PAX but my first gaming show in my new role as Developer Relations Envoy for theSHED. A very short time ago, this would have been a terrifying prospect for me. Now, it's something that I'm incredibly excited about and my normal anxieties are barely there. I talk about why this is and how much it's changed my outlook on things.

There will hopefully be daily podcasts from the show, stay tuned!

Episode referenced on going caffeine free: https://anchor.fm/geekbravado/episodes/Episode-4-09122018-Going-Caffeine-Free-for-ADHD-e2nr5p

Happy New Year!

Another crazy year is in the books and as I like to do around this time, I wanted to talk about games from the past year that I really enjoyed and that I think you might as well. I used to do a top 10 list but couldn't this year as I didn't get to play everything that might have been a contender but nonetheless, I was able to play some incredible stuff that I wanted to share it with people so they could maybe discover something new. This list isn't ordered but everything on it is something I think is very special. I hope you enjoy and make sure to tell me what games you loved as well!

Background music consists of selections from the Star Control: Origins original soundtrack.

In a surprise announcement on January 10, Bungie announced that they are ending mutually ending what was supposed to be a 10 year publishing partnership with Activision for the Destiny franchise. Many erroneously assume they Bungie was actually owned by Activision, when in fact they just had an exclusive publishing arrangement. They have announced that they will be self-publishing Destiny going foward, something their recent $100M investment from Chinese giant NetEase is sure to help with. I talk about what this could mean for the studio, the future of Destiny and also, why I think more than a bit of the Destiny situation can be laid at the hands of Bungie themselves.

NOTE: I mistakenly said that it was Tencent that invested in Bungie. NetEase is a different company, not associated with Tencent, though still not pillars of integrity.

On January 1, 2019, Ontario introduced significantly harsher penalties for distracted driving. However, they for some reason decided that only "using your phone" and certain derivatives of that should qualify for these penalties, which similarly dangerous actions should not. As someone who does believe in getting tough on this issue, I question this double standard and also, ask the open question of whether increased penalties alone are really the solution to it.

Twitch is currently facing heavy backlash from a lot of their creators and viewers because they are running pre-roll ads for Ninja's New Year's Eve stream on other channels, including other partners. I talk about why I think this is a bad look and a short-sighted plan by a company becoming more and more out of touch with its creators but also how this may very well become more common in the future and why those of us not on Twitch, should be vigilant.

The article about Justin Wong I reference during the episode: https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/former-twitch-executive-explains-why-the-ninja-pre-roll-situation-will-keep-happening-267678

Today, I awoke to an unexpected new controversy involving the discovery that a partnered Mixer streamer is apparently, a convicted sexual predator, one that has served their time but is on a registry. Several other prominent Mixer streamers (including at least one partner) have been calling for Mixer to terminate the partnership and ban the streamer. The platform has been accused of sweeping the issue under the rug and some of those not calling for this person's immediate banning have come dangerously close to being accused of defending pedophiles.

I talk about my perspective on this issue, as someone who has no interest in defending the accused but who also believes that this issue should be handled by proper channels, not out in public and that when a person has done their time, perhaps that should carry more weight than it does.

This is the audio version of a YouTube vlog that can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOuJ9j2dvbM. I talk a about the year that was and what my content plans are for 2019, including Mixer, YouTube, this podcast and some other things. This is a bit long but that's because there's a lot to talk about. Check below for time indexes so that you can skip topics that don't interest you and please let me know your feedback.

0:00 - Introduction

1:48 - Personal Year In Review

4:55 - Content Plan Overview

6:54 - Mixer and Why I'm Staying There (Link Below)

11:17 - New Podcast (Link Below)

13:14 - Mixer Changes & New Indie Show with theSHED

19:01 - YouTube Changes

29:02 - New Content Creator Technical Community

32:04 - Conclusion

My podcast episode on eliminating caffeine: https://anchor.fm/geekbravado/episodes/Episode-4-09122018-Going-Caffeine-Free-for-ADHD-e2nr5p

Follow me on Mixer at https://mixer.com/PXAbstraction for multiple variety streams a week.

Check out theSHED Team: https://theshedteam.com

Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/PXAbstraction

Join my Discord: http://discord.pxa.ca

Check out Overtone: http://overtone.pxa.ca

A few major AAA game releases have failed pretty hard this year. As a result, many commentators and forum posters are hand-wringing about this being a sign of another impending video game crash, something we haven't seen since the 80s but which is regularly prophecised. This is nonsense in my opinion and one need only look at the rest of the AAA industry in 2018 to see why. I go into detail about this and why these failures can in some ways, be a good thing.

Facebook has had a near non-stop wave of scandals in 2018 and a growing number of poeple are telling people to quit the site. At the same time, a lot of these discussions inevitably turn to people going "Well you use Google and they're just as bad!" As someone who uses Google daily and quit Facebook in 2010, I disagree with this. I go into detail about why and also why despite my claims that Google isn't the same, also understand that they are no saint of a company either.