Achievement Oriented
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts / SoundCloud / Stitcher / RSS
The Ringer’s Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion discuss the newest video game releases and host guests from the industry and other media outlets.
June 30
The Ascent of ‘Rocket League’ and a Comeback for ‘Crash Bandicoot’
Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion briefly discuss Nintendo’s SNES Classic (1:12), and then are joined by their colleague (and fellow ‘Rocket League’ enthusiast) Rob Harvilla for a conversation with Psyonix Studios’ Corey Davis, the design director for ‘Rocket League,’ about the game’s origins (3:23), the secret to its satisfying gameplay and controls (9:28), its advantages and rapid rise to prominence as an esport (14:23), its pursuit of cross-platform play (25:15), and what’s in store for its future as its second anniversary approaches (31:26). Then Ben and Jason bring on another colleague, Kate Knibbs, to mark the release of the remastered ‘Crash Bandicoot’ trilogy by recounting childhood memories of the series (40:40).
June 23
‘Arms,’ Animating Sex Scenes, and Long Loading Times
Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion discuss their impressions of Nintendo’s new Switch brawler, Arms (1:10), the pros and cons of motion controls and the Pro Controller (2:42), and the game’s esports future (7:50). Then they bring on Kotaku’s Nathan Grayson to talk about E3 impressions (9:15), why it’s so difficult to do video game sex scenes (and why the ones in The Witcher succeed) (14:19), why more powerful hardware hasn’t shortened long loading times (35:30), why loot boxes are bad, and Overwatch (47:20).
June 16
Esports Roundup and a World-Size Sim
Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion talk to Compete’s Eric Van Allen about Nintendo’s surprising new esports acumen with Splatoon 2, Arms, and Pokkén Tournament (2:07), esports franchising and the future of competitive Overwatch and League of Legends (4:33), the difficulty of producing a comprehensible esports broadcast (9:09), the high ceiling of Rocket League (13:27), esports on college campuses (16:50), and esports in VR (20:00). Then they bring on Richard Knol, the lone developer of planet-size sailing simulator Sailaway (24:30), to explain how he accurately modeled Earth’s oceans with real-time (26:19), real-world weather (28:10), how he’s trying to satisfy sailing experts without making his sim inaccessible (36:05), and why water is such a challenge for game-makers (33:34).
June 14
All of Our E3 Reactions [Bonus Episode]
Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion digest the week’s biggest news and announcements out of E3, discussing the notable trends, highlights — including Nintendo, Ubisoft, co-op and multiplayer, pirates, and long-awaited sequels and reboots — and lowlights like Xbox One X, the developments they’re still skeptical about, and the evolution of their own video game greed.
June 9
How a Good Game Goes Bad
Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion talk to Kotaku news editor Jason Schreier about why developers divulge details about troubled projects to reporters (2:55), Schreier’s exposé of the problems plaguing Bioware’s development of the disappointing Mass Effect: Andromeda (8:28), the downsides of the gaming industry’s reliance on Metacritic (29:25), how game engines such as EA’s Frostbite can both help and hinder development (40:29), the potential for (and obstacles blocking) a fully fledged “Netflix for games” (44:15), the dubious appeal of backward compatibility (47:44), and what to look forward to (and how to stay sane) during E3 (51:10).
June 2
‘The Walking Dead,’ ‘Rime,’ and Casting Characters
Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion talk about the Switch as a mobile experience (2:20) and Ben’s impressions of The Walking Dead: A New Frontier (4:30), and Rime (9:33). Then they listen to an excerpt from Ben’s conversation with Rime creative director Raúl Rubio (18:08). Lastly, they talk to longtime video game casting/performance director Tom Keegan about his experience casting actors for series such as Battlefield, Call of Duty, and Wolfenstein (31:19), whether it makes sense for game studios to cast famous film actors (42:50), how motion capture has changed the acting and casting process (54:16), and which actors he thinks should play prominent roles in upcoming movie adaptations of video games (55:56).
May 26
Doug Liman, Jonathan Allen, and ‘Dota’
Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion speak to director Doug Liman about the influence of video games on his movies Swingers, The Bourne Identity, and Edge of Tomorrow (2:44), the narrative differences between video games and movies (8:57), how to tell stories in VR (13:38), and his latest projects, The Wall and Invisible (16:17). Then they bring on college football star and NFL first-round draft pick Jonathan Allen to talk about his taste in video games (24:21), his plans to build a gaming PC (25:40), how he fits gaming into his football schedule (28:09), and his two big complaints about games (37:17). Lastly, they ask Ars Technica senior gaming editor Kyle Orland about a court case involving Valve and Blizzard that will decide who owns the rights to the mega-popular Dota series (39:44).
May 19
‘Prey’, the Business of Gaming, the Future of E-sports, and Expert Glitchers
Ben Lindbergh and Jason Concepcion pine for VR rigs and talk to their colleague Justin Charity about Arkane Studios’ first-person shooter, Prey (4:20), how the pace of a playthrough affects the player’s impressions (6:05), and whether a disappointing ending can spoil a game (11:05). Then they ask Wall Street Journal reporter Sarah E. Needleman about covering the gaming industry from a business perspective (16:28), the future of e-sports (25:25), and the major trends she’s tracking (30:23). Lastly, they bring on Destiny glitcher “Dj” to discuss his two-year journey to Atheon’s throne room in the Vault of Glass (32:59), what inspires him to explore beyond the boundaries of games (34:23), and what he’s looking forward to in Destiny 2 (45:48).
