Next Halo Aiming to Be "Like Fortnite"

<v Speaker 1>Hey, everybody, welcome to Games Mornings with Me Jeff Grub,
<v Speaker 1>your host from GiantBomb dot com. Thank you for tuning in.
<v Speaker 1>In this episode, we're going to be talking about more
<v Speaker 1>Resident Evil rumors and a new extraction shooter that is
<v Speaker 1>actually doing big numbers. It's gonna be a good one
<v Speaker 1>because we have Jason Fonelli on the show. Jason, how
<v Speaker 1>are you doing?
<v Speaker 2>I am doing well after a weekend of being on
<v Speaker 2>dad duty. My wife was out of town for the weekend,
<v Speaker 2>so it was just meeting the girls, hanging out doing
<v Speaker 2>the thing. Yeah, just now that I've gotten two of
<v Speaker 2>the three big reviews out of the way. On Friday,
<v Speaker 2>both my Digimond story Time Stranger and Ghost of Yuota
<v Speaker 2>reviews went up on their respective websites. So Sleep has
<v Speaker 2>been a premium lately. Oh yeah, I can also say
<v Speaker 2>that I am playing the Out of Worlds two for review,
<v Speaker 2>and that's all I can say about that one as well.
<v Speaker 2>We should talk, Yeah, I'd be up later this week.
<v Speaker 2>So yeah, just just doing the freelance heavy release thing
<v Speaker 2>and trying to keep my eyes open at every possible venture.
<v Speaker 2>How about you, Palm.
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I'm leaving on Saturday to go to New Jersey
<v Speaker 1>to get ready for the Bombathon. So this past week
<v Speaker 1>and I had to like take care of both, like, okay,
<v Speaker 1>making sure stuff in life is good as well as
<v Speaker 1>like making sure I'm ready for that trip. I spent
<v Speaker 1>a day making sure I had a USB stick filled
<v Speaker 1>with various video games and various emulation software and stuff
<v Speaker 1>like that. So it was great to like get ready
<v Speaker 1>for that and be like, Okay, now we're on top
<v Speaker 1>of stuff. Once we're there, well, have like a day
<v Speaker 1>of setup and things like that, but it's like that'll
<v Speaker 1>make it that much easier. And it was fun to
<v Speaker 1>like come up with some ideas for some weird stuff
<v Speaker 1>we're gonna be doing in the middle of the night
<v Speaker 1>for the Bombathon. Again, everybody, that's that's next week, so
<v Speaker 1>be ready for it. Twenty four hours Monday Tuesday, five pm.
<v Speaker 1>We start on Monday at five pm, so don't miss
<v Speaker 1>out on that.
<v Speaker 3>Yeah.
<v Speaker 1>That was like like took up my whole Sunday, honestly,
<v Speaker 1>So I kind of put on the hockey game and
<v Speaker 1>just to play there.
<v Speaker 3>Did that and it was a good time. But it
<v Speaker 3>was also like, oh man, I'm glad I did it.
<v Speaker 1>Now I would not have had time to do that
<v Speaker 1>during the week, so yeah, I'm feeling you.
<v Speaker 3>I'm like, oh, almost no time.
<v Speaker 1>And then when I do have a couple of free minutes,
<v Speaker 1>I am playing like four or five different games I
<v Speaker 1>want to get my hands on.
<v Speaker 3>So the busy season continues to be busy.
<v Speaker 1>Did you you get a chance to play keeper at all?
<v Speaker 1>I'm like, I want to get like more people's opinion
<v Speaker 1>on that.
<v Speaker 2>No, that actually is next on my list after I
<v Speaker 2>have nothing to review, which unfortunately I already have code
<v Speaker 2>for my follow up to Outer Worlds too, so I
<v Speaker 2>don't know when that's going to be. But No, that
<v Speaker 2>one very much on my radar because it sounds like
<v Speaker 2>it's double fine weirdness taking on a nonverbal journey, sort
<v Speaker 2>of the c situation, and that that seems very much
<v Speaker 2>like my shit, So I think I'm going to try
<v Speaker 2>and prioritize that. I imagine it's not very long then,
<v Speaker 2>maybe five I have six hours top at most, I
<v Speaker 2>don't know, So yeah, it's definitely on my radar. I
<v Speaker 2>definitely want to try and get that in before the
<v Speaker 2>end of the year, but it keeps getting pushed down
<v Speaker 2>the ever increasing backlog list for to make priority for
<v Speaker 2>games that I'm actually reviewing.
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I'm like, I want to like get people on
<v Speaker 1>here and tell me like, eh, yeah, like here are
<v Speaker 1>my concerns. I played a few hours and I was saying,
<v Speaker 1>I don't I get everything that it's going for in
<v Speaker 1>terms of like the silent storytelling and the beautiful visuals
<v Speaker 1>and all that stuff is super working. I'm just not
<v Speaker 1>enjoying anything I'm doing with this Lighthouse character. Does that change?
<v Speaker 1>Does it improve? Does it get more complicated? And I
<v Speaker 1>kind of need someone to be like yeah, sure or no,
<v Speaker 1>it's okay to let this one go.
<v Speaker 3>Yeah.
<v Speaker 1>I for as much as I enjoy like looking at it,
<v Speaker 1>there's a lot of games I enjoy looking at right
<v Speaker 1>now that are also super engaging for me personally. Something Yeah,
<v Speaker 1>we'll see about Keeper's all right, let's explain ourselves for
<v Speaker 1>Giant Bomb Video Game Defices.
<v Speaker 3>We uh well and backlar he's not a dofics.
<v Speaker 1>And then we're all so independent games media out here
<v Speaker 1>on our own doing our thing with your help. So
<v Speaker 1>go to GiantBomb dot com slash join, become a premium member,
<v Speaker 1>and become a part of that help and ensure that
<v Speaker 1>we can continue doing cool things like thebambaiton next week,
<v Speaker 1>like Game of the Year, stuff like Summer Game Fest,
<v Speaker 1>like GB at Night, and like recently we started doing
<v Speaker 1>this is the run again, where we're putting up the
<v Speaker 1>individual runs as archived on the premium site, so you
<v Speaker 1>can check that out there if you want to catch
<v Speaker 1>it live. It's going to be a free live when
<v Speaker 1>we do the run, of course, so just been some
<v Speaker 1>practice stuff so far. Probably get another one of those
<v Speaker 1>in today, at least I'm gonna try, although I have
<v Speaker 1>a couple.
<v Speaker 3>Things getting in the way, so we'll see.
<v Speaker 1>All right, let's see here as far as this show
<v Speaker 1>goes most weekdays, I Jeff Grubb, will help piece your
<v Speaker 1>gaming life back together. That includes breaking news and maybe
<v Speaker 1>even some of our own original reporting. For all these topics,
<v Speaker 1>I'll get the input of a bona fide expert who
<v Speaker 1>will make me look smart. You are watching live on
<v Speaker 1>twitch Welcome. You can always listen to the show later
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<v Speaker 1>the RSS on giant bomb dot com. You can also
<v Speaker 1>catch the show later with chapters and timestamps on YouTube.
<v Speaker 3>Hello YouTube. All right, we have a lot to.
<v Speaker 1>Get into, so let's start the morning mess with Resident
<v Speaker 1>Evil zero remake rumors yet again.
<v Speaker 3>This is from.
<v Speaker 1>Olie Reynolds at Nintendo Life. Rumors regarding a potential remake
<v Speaker 1>of Resident Evil zero have been simmering for a little
<v Speaker 1>while now, but a new report from mp First via
<v Speaker 1>pure Xbox here has added further fuel to the fire.
<v Speaker 1>The remake is supposedly real and currently operating under the
<v Speaker 1>code name Chamber, which is presumably a blatant reference to
<v Speaker 1>protagonists Rebecca Chambers. Voice and performance capture work had reportedly
<v Speaker 1>begun in twenty twenty four, with Guardians of the Galaxy
<v Speaker 1>actor John McClaren taking on a key role.
<v Speaker 3>McLaren's resume don't get too excited back there.
<v Speaker 1>Jan McLaren's resuming makes reference to a lead role in
<v Speaker 1>Project Chamber, upcoming Triple A video game with Beyond Capture Studios,
<v Speaker 1>which has also worked with Capcom on Resident Evil for
<v Speaker 1>remake and Street Fighter six. Well, not a definitive lead
<v Speaker 1>at this time, it seems possible that McLaren may be
<v Speaker 1>taking on the role of Resident Evil zero's Billy Cohen. Obviously,
<v Speaker 1>like we've heard a bunch of times, Dusculum came out
<v Speaker 1>and was like, and this is the person that is
<v Speaker 1>often involved in capcom rumors, especially Resident Evil rumors, saying yeah,
<v Speaker 1>this is true.
<v Speaker 3>Who knows?
<v Speaker 1>You know, that stuff is always hard to pin down
<v Speaker 1>whether or not they're just jumping on the bandwagon or
<v Speaker 1>actually no. But basically the timing here worked out like
<v Speaker 1>this would be the twenty twenty eight game, and yet
<v Speaker 1>Code Veronica might be the one that still comes out
<v Speaker 1>first in twenty twenty seven. You know, we talked about
<v Speaker 1>these rumors a lot. I think this is starting to solidify.
<v Speaker 1>I'm really starting to believe them. I'm also believing the
<v Speaker 1>rumor that is part of this. I think this one
<v Speaker 1>does come from Duscal that Resident Evil five stuff is
<v Speaker 1>not happening at all, Like they don't even have a
<v Speaker 1>plan for what they're going to do or if they're
<v Speaker 1>going to do Resident Evil five.
<v Speaker 3>So all that sounds right to me.
<v Speaker 1>And I would expect to see Code Veronica the year
<v Speaker 1>after next, how about you?
<v Speaker 2>Yeah that Honestly, once the success of Resident Evil two
<v Speaker 2>remake came out in twenty nineteen, I fully expected all
<v Speaker 2>of these older games in that PlayStation GameCube window of
<v Speaker 2>time to get remade at some point right, So you
<v Speaker 2>had RI two, RI three. If Coveronic is happening next,
<v Speaker 2>technically that should be it because people have been asking
<v Speaker 2>for that game for literal decades, I think at this point.
<v Speaker 2>So Zero falling into that as well will be interesting.
<v Speaker 2>Zero has the potential, based on what I remember from
<v Speaker 2>when it originally came out to be the most improved
<v Speaker 2>if you lay all these remakes out of that era.
<v Speaker 2>I remember Zero being very polarizing for the fact that
<v Speaker 2>you switched between characters but the other character was still live.
<v Speaker 2>For lack of a better term, so if you switched
<v Speaker 2>from Rebecca to Billy while she's being attacked by a zombie, first,
<v Speaker 2>why would you do that? And secondly, she'll still die, right,
<v Speaker 2>So I wonder if that will play in at all.
<v Speaker 2>I wonder if that's going to happen. I don't know this,
<v Speaker 2>I like I think, I like that it's happening. I
<v Speaker 2>think I'm with you that I'm starting to believe that
<v Speaker 2>they're going to go through all of these older games
<v Speaker 2>at some point. And it also kind of makes sense
<v Speaker 2>that ARI five has nothing on the table, because.
<v Speaker 3>Yes, that one a little what's the.
<v Speaker 2>Word I'm looking for challenging in a in a in
<v Speaker 2>a general content setting. As much as I would love
<v Speaker 2>to hear Wesker yell Chris in four K at the
<v Speaker 2>end of that game, there are some things in there
<v Speaker 2>that in this current day and age might be seen
<v Speaker 2>as a little touchy. I mean, so they.
<v Speaker 3>Fire a deft hand, for sure, no matter what the.
<v Speaker 2>Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes so there so that
<v Speaker 2>that one, it's gonna takes a light step. Yes, But
<v Speaker 2>Ari zero makes a lot of sense, uh Code Veronica
<v Speaker 2>right before, and if that's the plan makes sense as well,
<v Speaker 2>keeping a they're basically one resident evil a year. Now,
<v Speaker 2>are they not the one come out this year?
<v Speaker 3>Uh? No? But they are on average, they're getting like
<v Speaker 3>they're pretty.
<v Speaker 1>Close to one, like every like sixteen months, right, Yeah,
<v Speaker 1>that sounds right.
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, And that's a good tick for if they have
<v Speaker 2>enough studios working on it that they can keep them
<v Speaker 2>coming out and keep them you know, good like Gary
<v Speaker 2>two was great. Ari three not as good, but still good.
<v Speaker 2>ARI four was incredible. Requiem shaping up to be amazing.
<v Speaker 2>I hope remake and Code Veronica fit into that too,
<v Speaker 2>or zero excuse me, and Code Veronica fit into that too.
<v Speaker 2>Now will they go back to the original game, well
<v Speaker 2>after they already did that in the GameCube era. That
<v Speaker 2>seems to be a weird question too, like do you
<v Speaker 2>remake the remake? Do you completely start from scratch? I
<v Speaker 2>don't know how you would take that one either, But
<v Speaker 2>I like it. I like that they're doing this. I
<v Speaker 2>like that they found a way to balance the classics
<v Speaker 2>with the new games, to find ways to appeal to everyone,
<v Speaker 2>and it just other than as Jane and I were
<v Speaker 2>talking about before the show, other than their live like
<v Speaker 2>panels and their Nintendo Direct style videos, Capcom continues to
<v Speaker 2>crush it. That's like the only weird blemish that their
<v Speaker 2>directs have made no sense and that their panels could
<v Speaker 2>have been an email. Like the New York Comic Con
<v Speaker 2>panel that I specifically went up for just in case,
<v Speaker 2>it was just them playing their demos that are on
<v Speaker 2>the floor, that were on the floor for two hours.
<v Speaker 2>I'm like, all right, guys, really, what are we doing here?
<v Speaker 2>But it was fun whatever. Yep.
<v Speaker 1>Everyone else like treats those things as big deals. In
<v Speaker 1>Capcom's just like we're just we have games to sell.
<v Speaker 1>You say, all right, yeah, we get it, but like,
<v Speaker 1>you know, maybe put a little flavor in here everyone's
<v Speaker 1>paying attention, like we don't care. We have games to
<v Speaker 1>sell you. So yeah, good for Capcom. All right, let's
<v Speaker 1>keep going here. Next Halo game maybe like Fortnite with
<v Speaker 1>live service. There's a lot in this story. Let's let's
<v Speaker 1>go for it. This is from Blair Marnell at game Spot.
<v Speaker 1>Halo fans are eagerly awaiting the Halo World Championships later
<v Speaker 1>this week, where new details about the next Halo game
<v Speaker 1>will be revealed. Now, a new report suggests that there
<v Speaker 1>are actually two Halo games coming in twenty twenty six
<v Speaker 1>for the franchisees twenty fifth anniversary, and one of those
<v Speaker 1>titles may be live service game. According to REVS Gaming,
<v Speaker 1>who has a record here of leaking stuff related to Halo,
<v Speaker 1>Halo Studios is working on a quote live service long
<v Speaker 1>term updating Halo multiplayer game before adding its live service component,
<v Speaker 1>is like Fortnite. The report didn't offer any other specifics
<v Speaker 1>about the gameplay, but went on to add some comments
<v Speaker 1>about the way AI is used in the game's creation.
<v Speaker 3>And we'll get to that in just a second.
<v Speaker 2>Let's get the time.
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, let's we want at a time. So this idea
<v Speaker 3>that it's like Fortnite.
<v Speaker 1>I think what they are saying and what they mean here,
<v Speaker 1>or what that is intended to mean in this day
<v Speaker 1>and age, is that the game will be like one
<v Speaker 1>maybe one map or map that is like constantly updating,
<v Speaker 1>or if it's live service in some other way. It's
<v Speaker 1>going to be a game that feels like it's constantly
<v Speaker 1>changing and has seasons. H And that's what we'll make
<v Speaker 1>it like Fortnite, although I'm sure we'll also have crazy
<v Speaker 1>skins and stuff like that. Does that sound right to you?
<v Speaker 1>I think that's probably what's happening here.
<v Speaker 2>That makes a lot more sense than what than them
<v Speaker 2>just chasing the usual live service gold mine that everybody
<v Speaker 2>else wants to chase. Honestly, when I first read this
<v Speaker 2>headline and I first read this article, when I heard Fortnite,
<v Speaker 2>I thought of building right, and a small part of me,
<v Speaker 2>a very small part of me, was hoping that it
<v Speaker 2>was a standalone forge because that, to me sounds like
<v Speaker 2>it could be fun for Halo fans and non Halo fans.
<v Speaker 2>Like you go in, you build your own multiplayer maps,
<v Speaker 2>be the a four v four or big team battle
<v Speaker 2>or what have you, and then you share them with everybody,
<v Speaker 2>and you take and that's your multiplayer. It's like a
<v Speaker 2>I don't want to say the R word on these waves.
<v Speaker 2>We know how I feel about it, but it's sort
<v Speaker 2>of like that. You build your own maps, you pick
<v Speaker 2>the modes that are eligible on those maps, and then
<v Speaker 2>you set it out. That could work, honestly.
<v Speaker 1>Pride blocks everybody, don't freak out ith no.
<v Speaker 2>But don't like, oh yeah.
<v Speaker 3>Well thanks, welcome to the Showow Jason and hell Telenis
<v Speaker 3>and I.
<v Speaker 2>And that's not even the first. That's like a third
<v Speaker 2>R word I thought of, all right, but yeah, so
<v Speaker 2>make a forge standalone and let people build maps and
<v Speaker 2>play on them. That makes a lot of sense, I think.
<v Speaker 2>But if it's if it's a changing map, which is
<v Speaker 2>kind of what Infinite sort of was, right. It was
<v Speaker 2>one I played the campaign, it was one big map
<v Speaker 2>where all your different objectives were all over the place.
<v Speaker 2>So they kind of have that foundation already sitting there.
<v Speaker 1>So it was unfulfilled potential too, because you know, my
<v Speaker 1>understanding is maybe there was once an intention to do
<v Speaker 1>exactly this with Halo Infinite, but their tools were too cumbersome,
<v Speaker 1>too slow, They couldn't get enough content out fast enough
<v Speaker 1>to really make that whole concept of Halo with a
<v Speaker 1>Fortnite update cadence to actually to actually work. They were
<v Speaker 1>very far away from that actually, So now that they
<v Speaker 1>are switching to Unreal specifically probably to solve this album,
<v Speaker 1>they're like, well, we had all these ideas, all these
<v Speaker 1>intentions to do that with the last Halo. Let's actually
<v Speaker 1>go through with it this time because now we have
<v Speaker 1>the tools to pull it off. I could could I
<v Speaker 1>see that being like their choice of strategy here, whether
<v Speaker 1>or not that's what Halo needs.
<v Speaker 3>I mean, who knows.
<v Speaker 1>It's like you told me a month ago to like
<v Speaker 1>three months ago, hey, can it another extraction shooter ever work?
<v Speaker 1>And we're about to get to another story here that
<v Speaker 1>says absolutely it can. You just have to have the
<v Speaker 1>right combination of factors and and Marathon does it for
<v Speaker 1>some reason, but our graters seems to Yeah, again, we're.
<v Speaker 3>Getting ahead of ourselves a little bit. Let's let's hit
<v Speaker 3>this other thing.
<v Speaker 1>The generative AI is apparently woven into every aspect of development,
<v Speaker 1>such as.
<v Speaker 3>Enemy AI and terrain generation.
<v Speaker 1>I think what they're mostly doing is that and that
<v Speaker 1>and then touching up the work with human hands. Also
<v Speaker 1>developers are expected to meet similar or quicker deadlines, and
<v Speaker 1>the only means to do so is through the use
<v Speaker 1>of AI, whether that's mundane tasks like scheduling things or
<v Speaker 1>writing emails, all the way up to actual game development.
<v Speaker 1>So there's there's a lot in here. Jess Corden came out,
<v Speaker 1>it's like they're not really using generative AI for art
<v Speaker 1>or whatever, but they're probably using it to like answer
<v Speaker 1>emails or something like that.
<v Speaker 3>I don't know.
<v Speaker 1>I would imagine that Microsoft's gung ho nature about AI
<v Speaker 1>probably has led to some tools being investigated, specifically for
<v Speaker 1>a franchise like Halo that they are trying to keep around,
<v Speaker 1>but also probably trying to make a little bit cheaper
<v Speaker 1>than they've ever made before. And I think they think
<v Speaker 1>AI is the realistic answer to that. I'm people are
<v Speaker 1>are people do not like this news. This popped off
<v Speaker 1>and this had a lot of backlash Jason and I
<v Speaker 1>think rightfully so, because we just we've seen it so
<v Speaker 1>many times now when something is AI. If I see
<v Speaker 1>an AI video on YouTube, it really is always filled
<v Speaker 1>with mistakes. It sounds generic, it's bad. Is that is
<v Speaker 1>that what we should be expecting from a game? Like
<v Speaker 1>Halo going for because they're trying to make it on
<v Speaker 1>the cheap. With AI, I don't know, what do you think.
<v Speaker 2>Any other company, I would say, give them the benefit
<v Speaker 2>of the doubt and let's see what this reveal looks like.
<v Speaker 2>But with a company who has been pushing co pilot
<v Speaker 2>in all of its apps. Yeah, with a company, the
<v Speaker 2>company that tries to find synergy with all of its
<v Speaker 2>brands to the point where people were shocked to see
<v Speaker 2>teams on a handheld that recently came out. That one
<v Speaker 2>of the funniest controversies I think I've seen a very
<v Speaker 2>long time. If you didn't expect that I have a
<v Speaker 2>bridge to sell you, I am worried. I am worried
<v Speaker 2>because that initial teaser that came out there's a couple
<v Speaker 2>of screens. There were already people saying this looks like
<v Speaker 2>in it could be AI generated, and now hearing this
<v Speaker 2>the week before these reveals are supposed to happen, I'm worried.
<v Speaker 2>I want to be wrong. I hope I'm wrong when
<v Speaker 2>it comes out. I hope it's just something that was
<v Speaker 2>blown out of proportion, or as somebody pointed out in chat,
<v Speaker 2>maybe they are misinterpreting speed Tree to be a possibility
<v Speaker 2>even though that's something completely different, right, And that's why
<v Speaker 2>Jazz comes out and says, what's not as bad as
<v Speaker 2>you think it is. It's open and out of proportion,
<v Speaker 2>what have you. But I really want this to be good.
<v Speaker 2>I want Halo to get the as the article mentions,
<v Speaker 2>the Elder strolls Oblivion remaster treatment, where it's just a
<v Speaker 2>completely remade game and it's everything that we loved before,
<v Speaker 2>but with so much more and so much That's what
<v Speaker 2>I want. I don't want gender of AI anywhere near this.
<v Speaker 2>And the more closer we get, the more reports that
<v Speaker 2>come out debunked or not, or supposedly debunked or not,
<v Speaker 2>I'm afraid.
<v Speaker 3>Yeah.
<v Speaker 1>I mean, I like Jazz did come out and like
<v Speaker 1>say that this is not really the fear that people
<v Speaker 1>had was not really justified here. But I want to
<v Speaker 1>be clear that I think if a developer at Halo
<v Speaker 1>Studios came to Microsoft said I did developed a tool
<v Speaker 1>to do a lot of this work with AI, Microsoft
<v Speaker 1>would not say no to that. Of course, they would
<v Speaker 1>absolutely not say no to that. So what is like,
<v Speaker 1>are we saying that the only thing really holding this
<v Speaker 1>back is the developers don't want to do it, and
<v Speaker 1>I think that's probably likely.
<v Speaker 3>Uh, that's probably likely.
<v Speaker 1>But I don't think it's a guarantee either. So yeah,
<v Speaker 1>I just abridged to sell you. Yeah, that sort of
<v Speaker 1>thing again. Like, I think it's inevitable in certain cases
<v Speaker 1>that it's going to creep into games in more and
<v Speaker 1>more obvious ways, and if that blows back on them,
<v Speaker 1>well we'll find out.
<v Speaker 3>Yeah.
<v Speaker 1>Uh, all right, let's uh, let's let's take a quick break.
<v Speaker 1>We got plenty more to get into. But we are
<v Speaker 1>gonna go to a sponsor. If you want to skip
<v Speaker 1>out on these, you go to giant bomb dot com
<v Speaker 1>slash Joint become a premium member. It gets you a
<v Speaker 1>AD free version of the video show, ad free version
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<v Speaker 1>In the meantime, we'll be right back. All right, we're back.
<v Speaker 1>It's Game Mess Mornings, Jason Bonelli, Jeff Grubb, We're still
<v Speaker 1>doing the thing. Let's talk about Arc Raiders. Our Raiders
<v Speaker 1>servers tests put up some huge numbers on Steam. This
<v Speaker 1>is from Haley Williams at game spot Embark Studios Server
<v Speaker 1>Slam playtest for Arc Radors was a runaway success, with
<v Speaker 1>the extraction shooter putting up some huge player numbers on
<v Speaker 1>Steam ahead of its official release. The play test peaked
<v Speaker 1>at one hundred and eighty nine six hundred sixty eight
<v Speaker 1>concurrent players and stayed in the top ten most played
<v Speaker 1>Steam games all weekend. The weekend's open playtest was designed
<v Speaker 1>as a stress test for the game servers ahead of
<v Speaker 1>its official release on October thirtieth, and it looks like
<v Speaker 1>the studio got what it.
<v Speaker 3>Was looking for.
<v Speaker 1>The test involved just one map, the Damn Battleground, and
<v Speaker 1>allowed players to try out the game's progression, crafting and
<v Speaker 1>quest mechanics. Arc Raiders is being developed by Embark Studios.
<v Speaker 1>Blah blah blah. Let's due out like next week something
<v Speaker 1>like that. It's forty yeah, the thirtieth. There we go,
<v Speaker 1>and it's forty dollars, so not a free to play game,
<v Speaker 1>but still, you know, neither was Battlefield six, and it
<v Speaker 1>had a similar sort of response, a similar you know,
<v Speaker 1>I think that was bigger, but this was this one
<v Speaker 1>came out of nowhere for a lot of people, I think,
<v Speaker 1>although it's been building them for a few years now,
<v Speaker 1>so seeing this is an indication that it really is
<v Speaker 1>going to be another big hit, And to me, it's like,
<v Speaker 1>I do feel confused, Jason, Like, Okay, so we're not
<v Speaker 1>exactly against extraction shooters in general, which obviously we are not,
<v Speaker 1>because there are a ton of people playing those games,
<v Speaker 1>especially you know, some of the ones that have been
<v Speaker 1>in that space for.
<v Speaker 3>A long time now.
<v Speaker 1>But I did think they're like there would always be
<v Speaker 1>a struggle for any new one of these, but somehow
<v Speaker 1>Arc Raiders has the magic sauce.
<v Speaker 3>Do you have any idea what is happening here?
<v Speaker 1>Why people are giving this one a chance where they
<v Speaker 1>seem to be a lot more skeptical of Marathon.
<v Speaker 2>I'm genuinely curious if the finals has anything to do
<v Speaker 2>with it, right, because the Bark Studios makes the Finals,
<v Speaker 2>and I'm sure they've been advertising or putting little things
<v Speaker 2>for the players who are still playing the finals to
<v Speaker 2>this day. That does a decent I'm not going to
<v Speaker 2>say it's humongous, but a decent following even now it's
<v Speaker 2>been out for a couple of years, and I'm wondering
<v Speaker 2>if a lot of these people are just people who
<v Speaker 2>trust them with the finals and are saying, all right,
<v Speaker 2>let's see what else you got right? The name Patrick
<v Speaker 2>Soderland does hold some weight for people who have been
<v Speaker 2>playing for a very long time. Former Battlefield executive as well.
<v Speaker 2>Who is at mbark. I just I wonder if word
<v Speaker 2>of mouth or if the fact that it's been teased
<v Speaker 2>now two years. I think it's been since its first
<v Speaker 2>initial reveal, and they've been hyping it up for that long.
<v Speaker 2>It seems like they figured out the formula here. Whatever
<v Speaker 2>that formula is, we're still trying to piece together. Maybe
<v Speaker 2>it's the fact that this now also too. It's one map, right,
<v Speaker 2>the damn Battleground, which is a great name from in
<v Speaker 2>any degree because if you're mad, that damn battleground. So
<v Speaker 2>let's see what happens on Thursday or a week from
<v Speaker 2>Thursday when it actually launches. Right, If there's server issues,
<v Speaker 2>if there's if that's much, If this many people show
<v Speaker 2>up and stay, I think that is the biggest factor.
<v Speaker 2>Even if two hundred thousand people sign in the first
<v Speaker 2>day and ten percent of them hang on for a month,
<v Speaker 2>I think that's successful. You have you get something you
<v Speaker 2>can build on, and you can gradually bring the people
<v Speaker 2>who are in and out back once in a while.
<v Speaker 2>For an event here and there or something like that.
<v Speaker 2>They're looking to build that foundation, I think, and this
<v Speaker 2>seems like they're in the right direction, because almost two
<v Speaker 2>hundred thousand concurrent players nothing to sneeze at in this
<v Speaker 2>day and age for any game whatsoever. I think it's
<v Speaker 2>more long devity that is the challenge once the game launches,
<v Speaker 2>and it's going to require, unfortunately, a near spotless launch.
<v Speaker 2>So if when they add all the other things, when
<v Speaker 2>they completely open the servers, if they're able to avoid
<v Speaker 2>timeouts and lag and stuff like that, keep things streamlined
<v Speaker 2>and let people play it as it's envisioned, we could
<v Speaker 2>be looking at another big hit here.
<v Speaker 3>Yep.
<v Speaker 1>And I do think it's as simple as some people
<v Speaker 1>in chap pointed out, like, oh, what's the difference between
<v Speaker 1>this marathon or a handful of other ones? It's this
<v Speaker 1>game just seems good. It's it's fun to play. They
<v Speaker 1>got the loop right. It has a strong visual style
<v Speaker 1>as well as a like just a grasp on what
<v Speaker 1>it's trying to make the player feel. And people are
<v Speaker 1>gonna know really quickly whether this game is for them
<v Speaker 1>or not. But it probably is winning over more people
<v Speaker 1>that thought I don't like these kinds of games, it's like, well,
<v Speaker 1>well you know what sometimes I do when it's just
<v Speaker 1>this fun the entire time. So yeah, I think our
<v Speaker 1>Graders is going to have a pretty it's going to
<v Speaker 1>pop off, and then you're right. I mean the longevity thing,
<v Speaker 1>trying to keep these things going for years and years
<v Speaker 1>and years, obviously, that's the.
<v Speaker 2>Goal, you know.
<v Speaker 1>I hope that when a studio, a publisher, and an
<v Speaker 1>investment firm whatever takes on this sort of game with
<v Speaker 1>live service potential. I really hope Fortnite isn't like the expectation.
<v Speaker 1>I hope it is like, Okay, maybe we settle in
<v Speaker 1>at ten thousand concurrent players on Steam, like, let's build
<v Speaker 1>a business around that. And you absolutely can build a
<v Speaker 1>business around that. You just have to kind of know
<v Speaker 1>beforehand and kind of keep things, you know. But Embark
<v Speaker 1>is a big studio. That's the thing they need to be,
<v Speaker 1>actually be big. I remember when they got started, before
<v Speaker 1>the finals was even mentioned, and it was just Arc Raiders,
<v Speaker 1>like something like two hundred and fifty people right out
<v Speaker 1>of the gate they had hired, and it's like, oh,
<v Speaker 1>that's a massive studio. So now they do seem like
<v Speaker 1>they have the potential to make something like Arc Raiders
<v Speaker 1>that could be on the top of Steam in the top,
<v Speaker 1>you know, twenty of Steam for years and years. But yeah,
<v Speaker 1>they'll have to maintain that and that that'll come down
<v Speaker 1>to what you said, kind of a spotless thing where
<v Speaker 1>it's like everything goes right and they don't drive people
<v Speaker 1>away because there are.
<v Speaker 3>More options than ever. And that's the thing.
<v Speaker 1>As we get new options like Battlefield six, it's not
<v Speaker 1>like Fortnite's going away or even Apex Legends. All these
<v Speaker 1>other things continue just to hum in the background as
<v Speaker 1>things where like, oh, when you do get frustrated with
<v Speaker 1>your new current game, these other ones are going to
<v Speaker 1>be waiting the wings to take you back, and it's like,
<v Speaker 1>oh were these were these just flavors.
<v Speaker 3>Of the month.
<v Speaker 1>That's a possibility as well, and we'll kind of see
<v Speaker 1>how that plays out.
<v Speaker 2>And it's equally true in this case with the forty
<v Speaker 2>dollars entry fee, right, nothing wrong with charging a premium
<v Speaker 2>for your game, nothing wrong with that at all, but
<v Speaker 2>it just puts more of the onus on you to
<v Speaker 2>make sure that that game is running spotless when you launch,
<v Speaker 2>because say, hypothetically you have a group of four friends
<v Speaker 2>who play shooters all the time. One of them takes
<v Speaker 2>the dive and tries to experiment with arc Raaders, just
<v Speaker 2>to see what's going on. If that game is running
<v Speaker 2>flawlessly and he's having a ton of fun, he goes back.
<v Speaker 2>He get three more sales. If it's not, If it's
<v Speaker 2>having issues, he goes back and says either wait or no,
<v Speaker 2>and then those three guys never buy in. So I
<v Speaker 2>think having this server slam makes sense. If they can
<v Speaker 2>get to that amount of players on day one and
<v Speaker 2>things are running as flawlessly or as good as they
<v Speaker 2>were in this test, clearly, yeah, I think they're they
<v Speaker 2>have a formula here. Let's see if it plays out.
<v Speaker 3>Yep, yep.
<v Speaker 1>And Chet's pointing out that, as with all these studios,
<v Speaker 1>now that this ONEI for some stuff, and of course
<v Speaker 1>they are of course they are two hundred and fifty people,
<v Speaker 1>but you know, not two hundred and fifty one to
<v Speaker 1>do that last job.
<v Speaker 3>Let's just get ai. Okay, let's continue on here.
<v Speaker 1>Donkey Kong Binanza will feature monthly in game events with DLC.
<v Speaker 3>This is from my Nintendo News.
<v Speaker 1>Starting October twenty eighth, Donkey Kong Bananza will feature monthly
<v Speaker 1>in game events on Nintendo Switch To. Players who own
<v Speaker 1>the paid DLC DK Island plus Emerald Rush and have
<v Speaker 1>finished the main game story can participate in limited time
<v Speaker 1>events to earn exclusive in game statues. During each event period,
<v Speaker 1>players can tackle a special Emerald Rush challenge that shakes
<v Speaker 1>up the usual formula by setting some fixed conditions, such
<v Speaker 1>as the Emerald perks they can obtain from fossils and
<v Speaker 1>Banandium gyms. When selecting an Emerald perk from the three choices,
<v Speaker 1>the options percented to players will remain the same during
<v Speaker 1>each run. The specifics of this are are fine. You know,
<v Speaker 1>I have been meaning to try out Emerald Rush.
<v Speaker 3>I still have not.
<v Speaker 1>I downloaded iout that DLC. I'm more like wondering, like,
<v Speaker 1>is this Nintendo's new strategy for a slightly longer term
<v Speaker 1>engagement because last generation, Jason I would describe it as
<v Speaker 1>let's hold back some content, let's hold back some some
<v Speaker 1>stuff and put it out over and like that. I
<v Speaker 1>think the sports games were the guiltiest of like taking
<v Speaker 1>advantage and kind of not understanding the strategy to the
<v Speaker 1>point where it's like we kind of just won a
<v Speaker 1>lot of these characters early on, we're not and people
<v Speaker 1>are not necessarily going to come back to check it
<v Speaker 1>out because oh, now I can finally finally play as
<v Speaker 1>Daisy and Strikers. They're going to be a little frustrated
<v Speaker 1>and just put the game away because they couldn't play
<v Speaker 1>as Daisy right away.
<v Speaker 3>And you know, Nintendo did it over and over again.
<v Speaker 1>I think they thought this, this is something that does
<v Speaker 1>make it feel like a longer term value. It reduces
<v Speaker 1>the likelihood that people will turn in their game or
<v Speaker 1>you know, sell it on the secondhand market or something
<v Speaker 1>like that.
<v Speaker 3>And I don't think it ever, I don't think it
<v Speaker 3>ever worked.
<v Speaker 1>I think it was mostly just kind of a frustrating
<v Speaker 1>thing and didn't make the games feel all that much
<v Speaker 1>more valuable valuable. This feels different, This feels like, you know,
<v Speaker 1>I don't think this is some huge, awesome, amazing, mind
<v Speaker 1>blowing new thing, but as an alternative to holding back content,
<v Speaker 1>the idea of making the games feel a little bit
<v Speaker 1>more alive, making it feel connected to other players, like, oh,
<v Speaker 1>we're all going to be doing the same run and
<v Speaker 1>the same thing. I think that's pretty cool, except for
<v Speaker 1>where it seems like it is just locked down to
<v Speaker 1>people who bought the DLC. It's like, Okay, that's you know,
<v Speaker 1>this is kind the kind of thing where I wanted
<v Speaker 1>to feel vibrant and alive and like everyone has the
<v Speaker 1>chance to do this, And I don't think that DLC
<v Speaker 1>was all that successful. But maybe that's just me like
<v Speaker 1>reading into this incorrectly.
<v Speaker 2>What do you think, Jason, Well, I think they got
<v Speaker 2>at least two sales from schlubs who buy everything and
<v Speaker 2>then don't play it, So that's they got.
<v Speaker 3>At least that, Yes, But.
<v Speaker 2>The problem is it's it's giving live service vibes, but
<v Speaker 2>with a marked expiration point. And with that, I mean
<v Speaker 2>you're going for statues. There's only so many characters you
<v Speaker 2>can make statues of. There's only so many maps in
<v Speaker 2>the game that you could keep doing these on before
<v Speaker 2>people start to get tired of it. DK Island is fine.
<v Speaker 2>That's a brand new one for Emerald Rush map, and
<v Speaker 2>you can do Emerald rushes on every other layer in
<v Speaker 2>the game, but there's only so many layers, right, get
<v Speaker 2>you know what? You know what I'm getting from it?
<v Speaker 2>Spirits from Smash Brothers Ultimate, where every once in a
<v Speaker 2>while they would put new spirits in with new Spirit
<v Speaker 2>challenges and you would get that spirit for the spirit
<v Speaker 2>modes that nobody played except for me. And after a
<v Speaker 2>while they just hit an endpoint where they were like,
<v Speaker 2>we're done, no more spirits, and then they revived it
<v Speaker 2>randomly for like a year, and then it went away
<v Speaker 2>again and now it's gone. So if it's something like
<v Speaker 2>that where every month there's like, hey, here's a theme thing,
<v Speaker 2>or like hey this we're doing this one's all about
<v Speaker 2>Donkey Kong Country three. Here's your kidd E Kong statue.
<v Speaker 2>Everyone rushes to buy it because that's the best one. Right,
<v Speaker 2>I'm kidding, to your God, I'm kidding, just just just
<v Speaker 2>to get it, just to be clear. But I like
<v Speaker 2>the approach. I don't mind the approach. It's if it's
<v Speaker 2>them dipping their toe into Live Service while being very
<v Speaker 2>much Nintendo. This is Nintendo Live Service, this weird ass
<v Speaker 2>company that we all love doing weird things again, and
<v Speaker 2>we'll say how how long it lasts. I give it
<v Speaker 2>a year. I think a year from the DLC's launch, sorry,
<v Speaker 2>from this first event until October twenty eighth of next
<v Speaker 2>year this time next year, and then it'll be done.
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, And I think you're right, and I think that
<v Speaker 1>I think the spirits you know connection is correct.
<v Speaker 3>I also think people point out reminds me of Salmon Run.
<v Speaker 1>Someone said, it's like, oh, yeah, they've done multiplayer games before,
<v Speaker 1>games that have online components, things where people are already
<v Speaker 1>going to be spending a lot a lot of time.
<v Speaker 1>They're like, add this in there as a little extra
<v Speaker 1>pepperin on top. And I hope that they did like
<v Speaker 1>to say, Okay, let's take this concept and apply it
<v Speaker 1>to our single player games. And this feels like a
<v Speaker 1>half step, because you're right, it does have an obvious
<v Speaker 1>like end point where they kind of can't or they
<v Speaker 1>would just have to start recycling things again, and it
<v Speaker 1>will it will be inherently less exciting as opposed to
<v Speaker 1>like there are there are single player games that have
<v Speaker 1>made this model work where and I think of Hitman
<v Speaker 1>where it's like, oh, they have you know, elusive targets
<v Speaker 1>and they have you know, sort of a playground where
<v Speaker 1>players can create their own stuff, and the developers can
<v Speaker 1>surface that and say, hey, here's a cool collection of
<v Speaker 1>things that are based on a theme. Go ahead and
<v Speaker 1>try that. And it's like, well, obviously that game is
<v Speaker 1>made with that concept in mind, and they've it sort
<v Speaker 1>of like feeds into itself and they can do more
<v Speaker 1>now that they have more community content or or they
<v Speaker 1>can do are justified doing more of their own development
<v Speaker 1>because they have this live service thing that they can
<v Speaker 1>apply it to. And Donkey Kong does not feel made
<v Speaker 1>for this in any real way. No wonder if Nintendo
<v Speaker 1>will sort of maybe begin building their games in a
<v Speaker 1>slightly different way so that they can cater if that's
<v Speaker 1>if it's that important to them, because it it doesn't
<v Speaker 1>feel that important. It feels like the kind of thing
<v Speaker 1>they're like, let's just slap us on there as something
<v Speaker 1>we can point to, that to the continued value of
<v Speaker 1>this game, so it can kind of stay in people's minds.
<v Speaker 3>And that's about as serious as I think they're taking it.
<v Speaker 3>What do you say?
<v Speaker 2>Somebody in chat makes a great point too. They got
<v Speaker 2>it right with Splatfests. That's the best they've done so far.
<v Speaker 2>And this seems like player games. Absolutely, Yeah, this seems
<v Speaker 2>like a half step right. This seems like them trying
<v Speaker 2>to do the same thing for a single player game,
<v Speaker 2>and as a first attempt, it's you know, rough around
<v Speaker 2>the end, yes, which we expected I don't hate it.
<v Speaker 2>I think I understand where they're going from. Do I
<v Speaker 2>think it has the longevity of a Splatfest or a
<v Speaker 2>Salmon Run? No, absolutely not. But you know it's it's
<v Speaker 2>it's Nintendo experimenting, and then they'll try something new, maybe
<v Speaker 2>they'll perfect it by the time the three D Mario
<v Speaker 2>comes out, and Bonanza was always going to be the
<v Speaker 2>testing ground for the next Mario three D adventure from
<v Speaker 2>that studio in every facet in this case, it's destruction
<v Speaker 2>and this live service not live service thing, and then
<v Speaker 2>whatever Mario wants to do, we'll see the end results
<v Speaker 2>of those experiments.
<v Speaker 3>Yep, exactly.
<v Speaker 1>All right, let's continue on Final Fantasy seven Remake Part
<v Speaker 1>three will tighten its story because players quote have too
<v Speaker 1>much to do. This is from Darren bon Thus at
<v Speaker 1>Game Spot. Final Fantasy seven Remake Part three co director
<v Speaker 1>Naoki Hamagucci has responded to criticism about the pacing of
<v Speaker 1>the first two games in the trilogy. Addressing fan complaints
<v Speaker 1>of complaints of certain sections in Final Fantasy seven Rebirth
<v Speaker 1>being too long, Hamagucci said that the development team was
<v Speaker 1>striking a balance with regard to overall pacing for the
<v Speaker 1>upcoming three quel. While Hamagucci felt these segments were as
<v Speaker 1>long as they needed to be for the game, he
<v Speaker 1>did acknowledge that modern day Final Fantasy fans are currently
<v Speaker 1>spoiled for choices when it comes to video games regarding
<v Speaker 1>time management in certain sections sections, especially in Final Fantasy
<v Speaker 1>seven Rebirth, I honestly don't believe that they were longer
<v Speaker 1>than necessary, Hamagucci said to screen Rant. I feel like
<v Speaker 1>nowadays players just have too much to do and too
<v Speaker 1>much to play, so they often feel the urge that
<v Speaker 1>something has to be concluded quickly. As we work on
<v Speaker 1>the conclusion to the trilogy, we are striking a balance
<v Speaker 1>on how story arcs are told and spread out and
<v Speaker 1>spread out so as to ensure that the game feels
<v Speaker 1>a bit more concise.
<v Speaker 3>I think that's the that's that.
<v Speaker 1>Outward pressure of stuff like TikTok and ensure you have
<v Speaker 1>other games and maybe they want to get back to
<v Speaker 1>Final Fantasy fourteen. Do you think this is this is
<v Speaker 1>something developers do need to be mindful for and mindful of,
<v Speaker 1>and do you think they're making the right choice here?
<v Speaker 2>I think that the collective attention span is something that
<v Speaker 2>is worth considering. But I also think at the same
<v Speaker 2>time that there are people who will appreciate a more long,
<v Speaker 2>a longer approach. I do agree. I loved Rebirth. I
<v Speaker 2>am a rebirth apologist. But here's the problem. I loved
<v Speaker 2>playing it. I now appreciate it even more after having
<v Speaker 2>now beat it and watched multiple watched multiple video essays,
<v Speaker 2>digging into the plot and the story and things that
<v Speaker 2>may not be as obvious that maybe should have been. Now. Granted,
<v Speaker 2>it is the middle game of a trilogy. It is
<v Speaker 2>the Empire strikes back, so there are things in this
<v Speaker 2>game that are not going to make sense until you
<v Speaker 2>roll credits. In game three, we're kind of seeing that
<v Speaker 2>play out, I think. Do I agree that the third
<v Speaker 2>game needs to be more concise? Ab so fucking lutely
<v Speaker 2>that as much as I enjoy it, it took me,
<v Speaker 2>no joke, eleven months to finally sit down and get
<v Speaker 2>through the whole thing, and Christmas Break was when I
<v Speaker 2>did the majority of that. I think that, and also too,
<v Speaker 2>I don't know. Actually they're only at the end of
<v Speaker 2>disc one, aren't they, or just after the end of
<v Speaker 2>disc one in the original game. Oh boy, they have
<v Speaker 2>a lot more story to tell, don't they uh, But
<v Speaker 2>I really think I like the idea of the I
<v Speaker 2>think the main story can be more concise. You can
<v Speaker 2>add all the extra stuff you want. I also think too,
<v Speaker 2>that they're going to be benefit from the fact that
<v Speaker 2>most of the technical part of Part three, if I
<v Speaker 2>had to guess, was rebirth. They're just building on. They
<v Speaker 2>don't have to build for a new console anymore. They don't.
<v Speaker 2>They don't have that hurdle anymore. So they have a
<v Speaker 2>lot of the technical stuff and a lot of the
<v Speaker 2>art and all that stuff already there. Now they just
<v Speaker 2>have to tinker with what's there, add whatever they feel
<v Speaker 2>needs to be added. Like I think Gold Saucer is
<v Speaker 2>going to be very similar in the third game if
<v Speaker 2>it comes back. I think that the Queen's Blood is
<v Speaker 2>going to be very similar. You don't have to build
<v Speaker 2>those again. You can add to them, but they're already there,
<v Speaker 2>and now they can focus on the core story and maybe,
<v Speaker 2>like if they do a snowboarding thing, since that was
<v Speaker 2>in the original game, one or two mini games here
<v Speaker 2>or there. Majority are there. I think once Part three
<v Speaker 2>is out, part two will be more I don't want
<v Speaker 2>to say more appreciated. I think the people who like it,
<v Speaker 2>really like it. It'll make more sense why they went
<v Speaker 2>this way, and I am willing to wait for that.
<v Speaker 2>I understand the shortcomings, I understand the misgivings. I do
<v Speaker 2>think Part three's main story would do to be maybe
<v Speaker 2>ten chapters instead of eighteen, perhaps something like that. But
<v Speaker 2>I definitely agree the players have too much to do,
<v Speaker 2>and that mostly applies to outside of video games. But yeah,
<v Speaker 2>tighten that up so I can spend sixty hours instead
<v Speaker 2>of eighty and I'll be a happy guy.
<v Speaker 3>Yeah.
<v Speaker 1>Part of me feels like this is the kind of
<v Speaker 1>thing where I think he's like internalizing justifications for doing
<v Speaker 1>something that they probably think they should do. Anyway, It's
<v Speaker 1>tough because it's not like it's a universal criticism that
<v Speaker 1>the last game had too many sidequests. A lot of
<v Speaker 1>people really loved everything that they were doing in the
<v Speaker 1>game and love the length and was like, hey, this
<v Speaker 1>is all kind of just oh that's gonna that's a
<v Speaker 1>clean read show on there you go.
<v Speaker 3>Love the length.
<v Speaker 1>People were like, you know, I like spending time in
<v Speaker 1>this world, and this gives me a lot of reasons
<v Speaker 1>to do that. And then of course there were some
<v Speaker 1>people like, oh, this game is going on and on
<v Speaker 1>and on, so it's like there's a conversation there and
<v Speaker 1>I think that they're like, well, we did just do
<v Speaker 1>like the really long one. We do have an opportunity
<v Speaker 1>to like do something different with this next one. And
<v Speaker 1>at the same time, people do have a lot to
<v Speaker 1>do with their time. I think it's like they already
<v Speaker 1>were going to do this, and that provides just another
<v Speaker 1>sort of like straw on the camel's back to convince
<v Speaker 1>them that they're making the right choice of doing something
<v Speaker 1>slightly more edited, slightly more concise this time around, and
<v Speaker 1>I you know, the second game will continue to be there.
<v Speaker 1>That's the thing with this trilogy now is it's going
<v Speaker 1>to be like the Final Fantasy seven for a very
<v Speaker 1>long time, because that's just the way games are going
<v Speaker 1>to work. Now we're ten years from now, it's not
<v Speaker 1>going to feel out of date in any real way.
<v Speaker 3>So I think having like building.
<v Speaker 1>A sort of playlist style thing where I went to
<v Speaker 1>a GDC talk once where it was when a Platinum's
<v Speaker 1>designers being like, I'd make level design the way like
<v Speaker 1>you make a a mixtape, where it's like you want
<v Speaker 1>to come in strong, then you want to get stronger,
<v Speaker 1>and then here's the.
<v Speaker 3>Cool off track. Here's the cool off level.
<v Speaker 1>And I think like there's something to be said for
<v Speaker 1>being like, we know there's three games in this trilogy.
<v Speaker 1>We had we did something with the first one. The
<v Speaker 1>second one went in a different way and offered a
<v Speaker 1>lot more in this other direction. Now, let's like pull
<v Speaker 1>things back down and sort of pull people's focus towards this,
<v Speaker 1>like what we want them to feel very specifically about
<v Speaker 1>this story. And to me, that sounds like a really
<v Speaker 1>strong like design and like directorial like vision. And I
<v Speaker 1>think that's probably the real motivating thing here. And I
<v Speaker 1>really think there's a strong chance they'll like bring this
<v Speaker 1>home in a really good way because they are being
<v Speaker 1>mindful of these things, even if they are being like,
<v Speaker 1>oh it's because of TikTok or other games, And I
<v Speaker 1>really don't think that's what's going to happen here. We
<v Speaker 1>still don't really have a good idea of when this
<v Speaker 1>is coming out, right, dude, Like, do you have your
<v Speaker 1>finger on that pulse at all?
<v Speaker 2>I have a guess, I don't know if it's right
<v Speaker 2>or not. I think first reveal is coming at the
<v Speaker 2>Akilles in December, and I think that they're going to
<v Speaker 2>be same time frame. February is when the Rebirth came out,
<v Speaker 2>but twenty seven. And the reason for that is there
<v Speaker 2>were what four years between Remake and Rebirth, and that
<v Speaker 2>was with the changing of developers from cyber connect to
<v Speaker 2>to Square Internal and all that stuff. They then took
<v Speaker 2>the Remake foundation and built Rebirth, and now they have
<v Speaker 2>less to build I think from Rebirth and cert part three.
<v Speaker 2>R word here Reunion is my guess, by the way,
<v Speaker 2>And now twenty twenty seven again, February March April is
<v Speaker 2>where I think it will happen. You'll reveal it at Achilles,
<v Speaker 2>You'll have a whole year of marketing, and then press
<v Speaker 2>again at the Achilles in twenty twenty six and then off
<v Speaker 2>you go.
<v Speaker 1>That sounds right, yep, thirtieth anniversary. That makes sense. Yeah,
<v Speaker 1>all right, then let's keep going here. Xbox president reconfirms
<v Speaker 1>next gen Xbox hardware is in development. This is from
<v Speaker 1>Van Campbell at GameSpot. Next gen Xbox hardware is currently
<v Speaker 1>in the works behind closed doors. At Microsoft. Xbox president
<v Speaker 1>Sarah Bond has reconfirmed that the company has new consoles
<v Speaker 1>internally in the pipeline. Days after the launch of the
<v Speaker 1>rog Xbox Ally and the Xbox ally X, created in
<v Speaker 1>collaboration with Asus. Speaking with Variety, Bond left no doubt
<v Speaker 1>about Xbox's hardware plans. We are one hundred percent looking
<v Speaker 1>at making things in the future. We have our next
<v Speaker 1>gen hardware and development, said Bond. We've been looking at prototyping, designing.
<v Speaker 1>We have a partnership we've announced with AMD around it,
<v Speaker 1>so that is coming. And of course it's coming. Like
<v Speaker 1>they've they've already made plans, they've already put like deals
<v Speaker 1>into place, things where it's like they're going to have
<v Speaker 1>to have deliverables in a handful of years. And you know,
<v Speaker 1>the people making those choices now are going to be
<v Speaker 1>on the hook for making sure they can actually sell
<v Speaker 1>this hardware once it's here. So they need people to
<v Speaker 1>like feel good about it and be like, no, we
<v Speaker 1>have a strong future. I like, I think one will
<v Speaker 1>come out, and I do think the people that are
<v Speaker 1>responsible for Xbox in this moment are serious about that.
<v Speaker 3>I just don't know how like steady their footing is.
<v Speaker 1>I don't know how sure the floor is underneath them
<v Speaker 1>where it's like, oh, sati in Adella comes and knocks
<v Speaker 1>that out like anything could happen, including this next Xbox
<v Speaker 1>actually never does come out, but maybe more likely it
<v Speaker 1>comes out in a very reduced and minimal way that
<v Speaker 1>is almost almost just feels like, oh, another PC came out.
<v Speaker 3>Are those fears founded? Do you think?
<v Speaker 2>Absolutely? Because they have done nothing to give you any
<v Speaker 2>confidence whatsoever, especially with the most recent release. That and
<v Speaker 2>the problem isn't the tech right. The ally X, by
<v Speaker 2>all accounts, is a with the exception of poor Dan
<v Speaker 2>Reichert's video of trying to get the keyboard to come up.
<v Speaker 1>That happens to me on the original acis rog Xbox
<v Speaker 1>or I'll say not the Xbox one Windows is terrible,
<v Speaker 1>continues to be terrible, but go ahead.
<v Speaker 2>Listen quick aside, Ever since the Lax came out, my
<v Speaker 2>legion go s has worked so much better, Like the
<v Speaker 2>keyboard comes up every time. I don't know how they
<v Speaker 2>did that, but anyway, I think price is the biggest
<v Speaker 2>issue here. You can put all the tech in the
<v Speaker 2>wall in this thing, but where are you going to
<v Speaker 2>launch it now with all of the costs increase that
<v Speaker 2>you've done, the handheld comes out of the thousand bucks
<v Speaker 2>at this at this point, you released an Xbox fridge.
<v Speaker 2>At the price you're gonna want to charge for this thing,
<v Speaker 2>it better be an Xbox and a fridge. You better
<v Speaker 2>have some told storage in there for me to put
<v Speaker 2>some soda or some beer or whatever while I'm playing
<v Speaker 2>this console. Because we're looking at We're got to be
<v Speaker 2>looking at eleven hundred and twelve hundred dollars right, and
<v Speaker 2>both companies. Both companies want to release in twenty twenty seven.
<v Speaker 2>Last I checked, tariff Man is still in office in
<v Speaker 2>twenty twenty seven, so I don't think these these current
<v Speaker 2>issues will be going away.
<v Speaker 3>They will be yep, so we'll just keep getting worse.
<v Speaker 2>What are you doing? What you need to delay both companies?
<v Speaker 2>Both companies need to delay their new consoles and just
<v Speaker 2>treadwater until whatever happens next twenty twenty eight, twenty twenty nine,
<v Speaker 2>whatever that looks like. Because these the tariffs are not
<v Speaker 2>going away. So these these price increases are not going
<v Speaker 2>away anytime soon, which means any new products, as the
<v Speaker 2>ally X proved, are going to be more expensive because
<v Speaker 2>they're new, and just continue to price out the people
<v Speaker 2>who want to play the games the most. I think
<v Speaker 2>it was you and Matt Pittscatella had it back and
<v Speaker 2>forth either on here or on Blue Sky or something
<v Speaker 2>like that about how the reason the prices are going
<v Speaker 2>up is because the people with the most disposable income
<v Speaker 2>have more disposable income than the.
<v Speaker 3>People are going to want to spending.
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, the top ten percent of earners, so that's two
<v Speaker 1>hundred and fifty thousand dollars per family. That's the only
<v Speaker 1>people actually spending money. But they are spending money. So
<v Speaker 1>when the economy looks good on those average numbers, it's
<v Speaker 1>good because that group of that ten percent of people
<v Speaker 1>and everyone else is just grape and buy and not
<v Speaker 1>spending money because they don't have.
<v Speaker 2>Anything exactly exactly. And I think that that is just
<v Speaker 2>a ticking time bomb for game consoles in particular, especially
<v Speaker 2>brand new ones. If they come out and say, you thought,
<v Speaker 2>remember when we all thought five hundred and ninety nine
<v Speaker 2>US dollars was hysterical. We memed that bastard all the
<v Speaker 2>way to Hell and back, and now we are praying
<v Speaker 2>to hear those numbers that would be wild.
<v Speaker 3>Let me ask you something.
<v Speaker 1>Do you think that there are any games at Microsoft
<v Speaker 1>or even Sony being developed today that are being developed
<v Speaker 1>to be exclusive for the PS six or the next
<v Speaker 1>Xbox God.
<v Speaker 2>I hope not. Do. I think there are yes.
<v Speaker 3>I think they're maybe should be not.
<v Speaker 2>I don't think it should be either, but I think
<v Speaker 2>there are I think the concept concepting or beginning stages,
<v Speaker 2>because we're two years out from where they would want
<v Speaker 2>to launch it right November of twenty twenty is when
<v Speaker 2>the last consoles came out, and were approaching two years
<v Speaker 2>away from twenty twenty seven when they want to come out,
<v Speaker 2>So there has to be something going on with whatever
<v Speaker 2>that tech looks like. I don't think there should be. Again,
<v Speaker 2>I think they should be focusing on maybe I don't
<v Speaker 2>want to say a pro too, because what does that
<v Speaker 2>price look like? It's there is a It's just every
<v Speaker 2>every angle you look at this new hardware is a
<v Speaker 2>bad idea. You should be focusing on software and getting
<v Speaker 2>the software sales up and making people want to buy
<v Speaker 2>what's already here and play the good games that are there,
<v Speaker 2>which in Xbox this case, they've already pivoted to their
<v Speaker 2>strategy being everything's an Xbox. So have they already shot
<v Speaker 2>themselves in the foot and they're just waiting to bleed out.
<v Speaker 2>I don't know, it's a weird.
<v Speaker 3>I don't hate to.
<v Speaker 2>Be this way. I hate to be this way about Xbox,
<v Speaker 2>I really do. There was a three sixty era Xbox
<v Speaker 2>one era that was my go to console when PlayStation
<v Speaker 2>three was floundering and PlayStation four was. I'd made the comeback,
<v Speaker 2>but the two of them in my house at least
<v Speaker 2>were on equal footing. I played both equally. I made
<v Speaker 2>sure to play both equally. Like some franchise I only
<v Speaker 2>played on Xbox some franchisees I only played on PlayStation
<v Speaker 2>on purpose. So I used both consoles. And now Xbox
<v Speaker 2>has beaten me into submission. I don't care, yep. Just whatever,
<v Speaker 2>whatever I get it for, I get it for.
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, they were like making interesting choices a few years ago,
<v Speaker 1>and it's like, okay, they're they're you know, trying to
<v Speaker 1>disrupt the industry with game pass or whatever. Here, let's
<v Speaker 1>pay attention. It's at least worth paying attention to. It's
<v Speaker 1>interesting to talk about on a show like this, and
<v Speaker 1>it's say, ah, now I'm feeling like, oh, it was
<v Speaker 1>all bullshit. It was all just bullshit, and uh, and
<v Speaker 1>of course it was because you know, just it's Microsoft,
<v Speaker 1>so of course it was all right, So let's let's
<v Speaker 1>finish up the show with a handful more stories. Here,
<v Speaker 1>semu Lou confirms the Sleeping Dogs movie script is done.
<v Speaker 1>This is from Alex Hopley, a game reactor. What a
<v Speaker 1>roller coaster for the Sleeping Dogs movie. Basically, you know
<v Speaker 1>all the story is Seamulu posted a pick sure of
<v Speaker 1>himself on social media with his Sleepy Dog I think
<v Speaker 1>holding the Sleepy Dog's movie script. So that was fun
<v Speaker 1>to see. Always good to see the Sleepy Dogs get
<v Speaker 1>a reference there. I with him like attached to this,
<v Speaker 1>that this is the kind of thing that does get
<v Speaker 1>a movie made these days if a star like pushes
<v Speaker 1>it through, Like we saw what happened with Tron ares right,
<v Speaker 1>that movie shouldn't have been made, but but Jared le
<v Speaker 1>Leto little whatever got attaches like I really want to
<v Speaker 1>see my sink my teeth into this role, and everyone
<v Speaker 1>knows about Morbius, and yet they still got it through
<v Speaker 1>because he was pushing for it. I think Seemulu can
<v Speaker 1>probably do the same thing here with this with this movie,
<v Speaker 1>so I think it's likely we actually do end up
<v Speaker 1>getting this, whether it's good, whether it's kind of another
<v Speaker 1>you know more slop added to Amazon Prime Video.
<v Speaker 3>I don't know, but I'll be interested to check it out.
<v Speaker 3>What do you think?
<v Speaker 2>I I hope it's good. The way he's been pushing
<v Speaker 2>for it. I would hate for a cool guy like
<v Speaker 2>Simu Here to have any not that his reputation would
<v Speaker 2>be torn, but people would be like, what the hell
<v Speaker 2>were you pushing this for? If this game was now
<v Speaker 2>Sleeping Dogs Sleeper Hit. People who played it absolutely loved
<v Speaker 2>it so and I think there are plenty of places
<v Speaker 2>in video games where you could pull a movie script
<v Speaker 2>from that. People played the game and didn't really and
<v Speaker 2>we're into it, but it was like an under the
<v Speaker 2>radar had or a cold hit and then lights the
<v Speaker 2>movie world on fire, and this could be one of them.
<v Speaker 2>He seems to be very confident in it, and I
<v Speaker 2>trust his judgment, but now he needs a director, he
<v Speaker 2>needs to put the budget together, and now all the
<v Speaker 2>bean counter stuff has to happen, and that's where things
<v Speaker 2>can get tripped up. So power to you, pal. I
<v Speaker 2>would love to see more video game movies. I would
<v Speaker 2>love to see more video game movies based on franchises
<v Speaker 2>that don't really see the light of day. Anymore. If
<v Speaker 2>this also results in this game coming back to a
<v Speaker 2>new audience, maybe distance yourself from Grand Theft Auto six
<v Speaker 2>just because they're very similar. But I, you know, good
<v Speaker 2>for him. I hope it works out for him. That's
<v Speaker 2>that's my thing.
<v Speaker 1>YEP, I'm with you, and it's I think that video
<v Speaker 1>games right now could to be like the hot property
<v Speaker 1>bucket that Hollywood is pulling from, and I think that
<v Speaker 1>will benefit this project specifically. How much longer that lasts,
<v Speaker 1>we'll see, but for now it seems to be the
<v Speaker 1>case that you know is our next story here as well.
<v Speaker 1>Sony's Horizon Zero Down movie to begin filming in twenty
<v Speaker 1>twenty six, targeting targeting a twenty twenty seven release. This
<v Speaker 1>is a PlayStation Productions had a sad Kisselbash basically confirm
<v Speaker 1>this publicly. Hey, yeah, I think this was one supposed
<v Speaker 1>to be a TV show with one of the streamers,
<v Speaker 1>and then that really wasn't working out. They couldn't get
<v Speaker 1>the scripts right, is what people reportedly told me. I
<v Speaker 1>always say that I don't follow the internal workings of
<v Speaker 1>Hollywood or television production, so I do not have the
<v Speaker 1>same ability to suss out what is real and what's
<v Speaker 1>not real. I'll just say, yeah, people told me that
<v Speaker 1>the scripts were a problem for that show. It sounds
<v Speaker 1>like that by shifting it over to a film, they've
<v Speaker 1>been able to narrow it down and get something on paper.
<v Speaker 2>Here.
<v Speaker 1>Do you think this one actually comes out? I think
<v Speaker 1>at this point I'm still fifty to fifty on it.
<v Speaker 2>I think it does because the impetus for it wanting
<v Speaker 2>to come out, or the people who want it to
<v Speaker 2>come out. The people who are driving for it are
<v Speaker 2>the bean counters. The hard parts are right now, You've
<v Speaker 2>got to find the creatives who want to make it,
<v Speaker 2>and that seems, in my opinion, to be a little easier.
<v Speaker 2>I do think that this came out because of the
<v Speaker 2>lawsuit against ten Cent. We're just we have another video
<v Speaker 2>game related lawsuit that's just giving us all these extra headlines,
<v Speaker 2>just like Epic and Apple did. And I find that fascinating.
<v Speaker 2>But I am more, like I said, I am more
<v Speaker 2>confident in this one than I am in Sleeping Dogs,
<v Speaker 2>just because of where the drive is coming from. Now.
<v Speaker 2>I will say that there is a recent example of
<v Speaker 2>a feature film being made out of the skeleton of
<v Speaker 2>a failed TV series, and it is not a good comparison.
<v Speaker 2>That's Mowana too, so I hope they can at least
<v Speaker 2>avoid those pitfalls and the movie comes out and is
<v Speaker 2>you know, good and well received by the people who
<v Speaker 2>want it otherwise. Of the four that they are listed here,
<v Speaker 2>so the last of Us is getting has already been
<v Speaker 2>adapted from PlayStation productions for the TV show. Ghost of
<v Speaker 2>Sushima and God of War are next, and then Horizon.
<v Speaker 2>Of the three that are still coming, I am most
<v Speaker 2>confident in Ghost of Susherman because I think Samurai, you
<v Speaker 2>just make yours making a Kirosyl film at that point.
<v Speaker 2>God of War maybe, and now Horizon just because of this,
<v Speaker 2>I don't know about that.
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, yeah, apparently this was it was like always going
<v Speaker 1>to be both a TV show and a movie, is
<v Speaker 1>what Michael O'Leary and Chat was saying. It's okay, So
<v Speaker 1>maybe this was always on a different track separate from that.
<v Speaker 1>But I wouldn't be surprised if the effect of one
<v Speaker 1>production maybe affecting the others is something that actually happened here.
<v Speaker 3>I don't know TV shows becoming movies.
<v Speaker 1>There's a great Mystery Science Theater three thousand episode called
<v Speaker 1>Rioting with Death and it was this it's a movie.
<v Speaker 1>It was a failed TV show where they had the
<v Speaker 1>pilot and like one episode filmed and and they might
<v Speaker 1>add more than that, but the movie is just two
<v Speaker 1>episodes smushed together. And it's so obvious to tell when
<v Speaker 1>it like stopped being the pilot where he was like
<v Speaker 1>trucking a volatile substance that was like hanging from ropes
<v Speaker 1>in the back of a truck across the country, to
<v Speaker 1>another episode that was just about racing a car, and
<v Speaker 1>it was like, Okay, very very good job here, everybody,
<v Speaker 1>we could tell what's going on.
<v Speaker 3>Go watch that, everybody. I'm sure it's on YouTube. It's
<v Speaker 3>a great episode. All right.
<v Speaker 1>I think that does it for the headlines, Jason, we
<v Speaker 1>should start getting into wrapping up the show. Of course,
<v Speaker 1>there is no poll question from last week, but we
<v Speaker 1>do have a new poll question. Yes, are you interested
<v Speaker 1>in one of these those DS style handle the emulary devices?
<v Speaker 1>I certainly am. I just I'm kind of waiting for
<v Speaker 1>things to settle down. And at the same time, Jason,
<v Speaker 1>a few years back, when I was like looking at
<v Speaker 1>this and like, what's a good way to play my
<v Speaker 1>DS games and my three DS games and it turned
<v Speaker 1>out the answer to that was a three DS. You
<v Speaker 1>just get a real, real three DS and you go
<v Speaker 1>to three ds hack website and you go to town
<v Speaker 1>on that thing, and you can play both your three
<v Speaker 1>DS and your DS games, and you just do the
<v Speaker 1>thing on the three DS where you hold down the
<v Speaker 1>button when you're starting it to start it in DS
<v Speaker 1>mode so that the resolutions correct. And when you do that,
<v Speaker 1>it's like, oh, this is a perfect experience for that sales.
<v Speaker 1>So I'm gonna make sure when I get one it's
<v Speaker 1>at least as good as using my three DS, because
<v Speaker 1>otherwise what am I doing here?
<v Speaker 3>But yeah, I'm definitely curious.
<v Speaker 1>All right, we'll get the results of that poll and
<v Speaker 1>talk about it on Game Mess Mornings on Wednesday. Speaking
<v Speaker 1>of Giant Bomb, though, tomorrow's the Giant Bomb Cast. We
<v Speaker 1>got some fun stuff happening later today, Mega Man, I
<v Speaker 1>think we're going to try to do seventh guest.
<v Speaker 2>Things are moving.
<v Speaker 1>Around a little bit, but we'll let you all know
<v Speaker 1>what's happening very soon once we have our schedule. In
<v Speaker 1>the meantime, though, Jason Fonelli, why don't you tell people
<v Speaker 1>where they can find you on the internet? What you
<v Speaker 1>have going on and all of that good stuff.
<v Speaker 2>Jakesfinelli dot Com on Blue Sky, Big Man, Finelle, everywhere
<v Speaker 2>else that you can find me again, just heads down
<v Speaker 2>on the Outer World's to review. As I mentioned earlier,
<v Speaker 2>I am reviewing that for Rolling Stone, so that'll go
<v Speaker 2>up at embargo time, which I don't know if I'm
<v Speaker 2>allowed to say so, I'm not going to but soon soon.
<v Speaker 2>That is my biggest project in the moment. But always
<v Speaker 2>writing news at GameSpot as I can. Just trying to
<v Speaker 2>get through to the end of the year. Get that
<v Speaker 2>nice holiday break. We're almost there. There's a light at
<v Speaker 2>the end of the tunnel, but it's there. Get to
<v Speaker 2>the Game Awards. That'll be the big news, last news
<v Speaker 2>thing of the year, and then we'll start twenty twenty
<v Speaker 2>six off fresh. Yeah. Just live in the dream man
<v Speaker 2>one day at a time and listen. I am so
<v Speaker 2>excited for this bombiton next week, you freaks for twenty
<v Speaker 2>four hours. It's gonna be wild, haven't I don't know anything.
<v Speaker 2>Don't ask me what they're doing. All I know is
<v Speaker 2>I don't need to know, because twenty four hours of
<v Speaker 2>these goobers. I imagine there will be costumes. I imagine
<v Speaker 2>there will be bad games. I imagine there will be
<v Speaker 2>good games. And I imagine that Dan Ryker will yell
<v Speaker 2>at one point for no reason other than just to
<v Speaker 2>hear himself talk because he sometimes he gets loud. I
<v Speaker 2>do it too. I completely understand. But no, that's it.
<v Speaker 2>And finally, if you're playing the seventh guest, I hope
<v Speaker 2>you like chess. That's all I'm going to say.
<v Speaker 1>We've been through it for a few weeks now, We've
<v Speaker 1>had multiple chess things, and it's like it's not even
<v Speaker 1>like there's that game very bad Chess.
<v Speaker 3>It's not even as good as that.
<v Speaker 1>It's like far away from very bad Chess or whatever
<v Speaker 1>they say, very yeah, very bad chest.
<v Speaker 3>It's like, oh man, this is rough stuff.
<v Speaker 1>But yeah, look I like that game's vibes and of
<v Speaker 1>course the technology some disappointing puzzles for that one, and
<v Speaker 1>yet we still have a good time everyone.
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, all right, let's wrap it up.
<v Speaker 1>Jason, thank you so much for hanging out with me
<v Speaker 1>with me today and talk about video games.
<v Speaker 3>Man, I really appreciate it.
<v Speaker 2>Always a pleasure, my friend. Talk to you very soon.
<v Speaker 3>Thank you all for watching and listening. You are the
<v Speaker 3>best audience in gaming.
<v Speaker 1>Until next time, have a good one, take care of
<v Speaker 1>yourself and goodbye
<v Speaker 3>B T b T b T