Fresh off the release of BAYONETTA, Platinum Games released another SEGA published 3rd person stylistic action game called VANQUISH. While it doesn’t feat. a sexy witch who turns her clothes into monsters to help you dominate your enemies, it does have Sam who can blast around with propulsion devices attached to his experimental suit.

This would be the first and last game internet fav Shinji Mikami would direct for Platinum Games. If you don’t know Shinji, he is responsible for RESIDENT EVIL and RESIDENT EVIL 4 (pretty good portfolio!). But I love him most for DINO CRISIS even if CAPCOM took that franchise in the backyard and shot it.

VANQUISH is about Sam Gideon who works for DARPA and has been given an experimental suit which can boost around, punch harder, and facilitate weaponry. He is asked to test this suit out after Russian evil-man-theater kid wants to nuke New York City. From there, you fight Russian robots for about 4 hours until you find out this was all a big scheme from OUR OWN GOVERNMENT. Imagine our government being held accountable? Video games really do provide the fantasy.

Mikami wanted this game to be open-world but due to crunch and resources, the games was scaled back. He was also smart enough to build the game off the PS3 architecture so that it would run well on PS3 and Xbox 360. If you were not aware, the PS3 was difficult to develop on and even hard to port over Xbox 360 titles so he started with the problem child.

Much of the game’s design was borrowed from the 70s-80s anime CASSHERN.

Mitch and I also discuss MARATHON and RESIDENT EVIL: REQUIEM amongst other things.

I hope you enjoy!

Hello all!

Welcome to another episode of THE DAMAGE PER PODCAST! This week, Mitch and I tackle one of my favorite series - BAYONETTA!

To pull off a character like Bayonetta without it being regressive is a FINE LINE. I mean, homegirl walks around in a skintight outfit in stilettos that ALSO have guns attached to them while only shedding her clothes to punish demons? Incredible. Empowering, sexy, and badass? What a combo. While it’s obvious BAYONETTA has a male following, she has gone on to inspire cosplayers for years. All hail Bayonetta!

BAYONETTA was one of the first games released by the newly formed studio PLATINUM GAMES. Consisting of CAPCOM royalty including Shinji Makami (RESIDENT EVIL) and Hideki Kamiya (DEVIL MAY CRY), PLATINUM GAMES set out to make creative, original titles in a time where that didn’t seem relegated to just the indie market.

Along with MADWORLD for the Wii, they also shipped BAYONETTA in 2009 on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC with the help of publisher SEGA. The game was met with a universal “this is dope” but like every game we seem to talk about, it didn’t make its financial goal (sold over a cool million initially - it has since sold LOTS more but that didn’t help at the time). Luckily BAYONETTA (the IP) would go on to be acquired by Nintendo and we would get 2 more (and I think way better) direct sequels. I’m still not sure Nintendo was the best purchaser of the brand in terms of an audience but hey, they are great followup games.

Hideki Kamiya who was the creative mind behind BAYONETTA clearly wanted to make a new versions of DEVIL MAY CRY but with what he considers his “ideal woman.” That’s a troubling quote to read as it says more about Kamiya’s psychology than it does about anything else but hey, she IS an icon now. Shout out to Mari Shimazaki for the art design and model creation. She also went on to work for POKEMON so figure that out.

Replaying BAYONETTA after both 2 and 3 have graced us is less stellar than the first time around but there is personality bursting from the seams (literally). I mean licking your middle finger and sticking into the ignition of a motorcycle to get it turn on is by far the best way to sum up this game.

Also can we talk about the soundtrack???

Anyway, enjoy the show! Mitch and I will be tackling VANQUISH next!

Not too long ago I had the pleasure of reviewing HALO: EPITAPH. It was a heady and philosophical HALO novel from the perspective of The Didact in his wanderings between this world and the next. Kelly Gay captured a character beloved for their complex nature and deep lore perfectly and made it a send off to Greg Bear. Bear was responsible for the majority of the Forerunner-lore and EPITAPH was both a goodbye to Bear and the character of The Didact. I honestly can’t recommend it enough if you are familiar with the character.

I was again reached out to by Gallery Books, a publisher at Simon and Schuster, to read HALO: EDGE OF DAWN - the latest book from Kelly Gay in relation to HALO. Not only would I be able to read the book early but I could interview Gay again about the book that follows up her 2022 book, HALO: THE RUBICON PROTOCOL. While EPITAPH was a singular book (even if a capstone to years of Forerunner lore), EDGE OF DAWN not only revisits characters from THE RUBICON PROTOCOL, it directly follows up on the ending of 2021’s HALO INFINITE. Many questions were left at the end of INFINITE about The Harbinger and the state of The Banished after the death of their leader on Zeta Halo. As someone who is invested in the HALO-lore, I was sad that there wasn’t any real continuation of the events on Zeta Halo.

Enter EDGE OF DAWN which also has Gay at the mental-helm of Master Chief for the first time. This IS a Master Chief story and she comfortably gets into his voice. I’ve been used mostly to Troy Denning’s work with MC so it was refreshing to get the perspective of a fresh voice whose stories previously had John 117 in the peripheral.

We find Master Chief, The Weapon (who becomes newly named “Joyuse”) and everyone’s favorite and anxious pilot, Fernando reeling from the battle with The Harbinger. While the credits closed on the game, they are all still stuck on Zeta Halo with The Banished who are in the process of grieving the loss of their leader, Escharum. But guess who is still alive after their beatdown from Master Chief? That’s right - Blademaster Jega ‘Rdomnai. Jega, outside of Atriox, was easily my favorite villain in the 343 Industries era of HALO games. Gay fills in the background on Jega and reflects on his partially robotic transformation which is just BADASS.

Another great addition for fans of Kelly Gay and the HALO books are the characters who return from THE RUBICON PROTOCOL and you get to see them utterly changed from their time on Zeta Halo. These are broken people now and one character had to endure capture with The Harbinger and they are trying to break from their own distorted reality.

If you wanted more from HALO INFINITE’s story and closure on story beats then I highly recommend you check out HALO: EDGE OF DAWN. Also, if you didn’t read THE RUBICON PROTOCOL, I suggest you get to that too as they tie into each other wonderfully. But there’s no reason you can’t just jump into this one either.

Here is my conversation with Kelly:

1. EDGE OF DAWN circles back to THE RUBICON PROTOCOL, a book you wrote in 2022 which gave background on Zeta Halo and the Spartans who arrived before Master Chief. How was it to settle back into Zeta Halo and characters such as Spartan Horvath?

Kelly: It was great to get back to Zeta Halo! It’s one of my favorite settings, and it was nice to be able to add more to the environment, create new characters, and bring in some familiar faces, Horvath in particular.

2. Banished Blademaster Jega ‘Rdomnai is a magnetic villain and rivals that of someone like Atriox. As a fan of his inclusion in HALO INFINITE, I was glad to see you give him much needed screen time. How did you approach this imposing character?

Kelly: I wanted to stick with the same feel he was given in Infinite, sinister, dark, very villain-y, but then to peel back the layers, reveal some of his past, why he is the way he is, and what makes him tick. He’s an outlier, doesn’t conform, and at times he is driven by emotions like rage, revenge, and trauma, so these give him an element of unpredictability, which makes him very appealing to write.

3. EDGE OF DAWN is also the first time you tackled writing Master Chief as a character (correct me if I’m wrong). I find even the idea of trying to write Master Chief incredibly daunting as his character is a mix of player expectation and many, many novels of background lore. How did you get inside that character and did you consult with Troy Denning or any of his work?

Kelly: I didn’t find it hard to get into the Master Chief’s head as I had a wealth of information to draw from. The books, games, cut scenes, and other media really give a ton of insight into his character. And the set-up that was done in Infinite with Chief, Cortana, and Joy’s character was a very nice launching point that allowed me to dive deeper into ideas already laid out. While I didn’t personally consult with any authors, I did pour over all the books, game dialogues, and media again, making notes, drawing from aspects of the Chief that I felt were going to play a role in EDGE OF DAWN or elements that I could exploit more in terms of his state of mind then and now.

4. Another 2 characters I was happy to see get added “screentime,” were Fernando Esparza and Weapon (or now Joy). They mirror Master Chief with their grounded struggles such as Esparza and his family and Joy with her comparison to Cortana. Master Chief can be action prone and goal oriented and not one to wallow in his “purpose.” Esparza, in particular, gives an added element of risk and danger as he cannot shrug off blaster fire from The Banished. I guess my comment or sorta-question is wondering if Esparza and later on another character (I won’t spoil) kept the story from going into “guns blazing” every page-territory.

Kelly: Yes, definitely, and that’s kind of the point with this book as it didn’t need to solely be an all guns blazing addition. It’s not always possible to explore deeper story elements in a game, there just isn’t time, so EDGE OF DAWN is really the perfect vehicle for Chief, Joy, and Esparza to further establish their relationship and grow their trust in each other. There is a lot happening as they go from place to place on Zeta Halo, dealing the Banished a heavy blow, launching a rescue mission, fighting, being hunted, fighting some more, learning about the past, and so on, but there is a good balance between those things where the characters can have these deeper, personal moments, and moments where they can lean on each other and build a stronger bond.

5. Your last book, HALO EPITAPH, was a heady and philosophical walk with The Didact as he, at the end of his “life.” wrestles with all he has done. I love that book but I also love swinging back into dropping bombs on The Banished. I think folks not familiar with the books don’t realize that video game related novels can be many things and not just “pew pew pew.” Does this give you freedom as a writer to approach the stories with the lens you feel would be appropriate?

Kelly: Yes, absolutely. Because real life isn’t all action, all the time, even in war time settings and mission-oriented scenarios. I like to approach the writing and the characters with as much realism as possible. There is down time, there are moments of reflection, and these moments are super important because they can really build relatability and growth. It’s awesome that the Halo universe is expanded to allow for novels and other media to exist. As a fan, I love to delve into the kind of side quests and deeper storytelling that books and other media provide.

8. Are there any games you’re playing or books you are reading at the moment that you are enjoying?

Kelly: I am currently in a deep obsession with WHERE WINDS MEET. It’s a ginormous open world, solo and online, RPG set in an ancient Chinese wuxia/Xiania style environment. I’ve been a big fan of the same style TV c-dramas for a while now and playing the game is like being plopped down into one of these dramas and you can just run around and do All Kinds of Stuff—it’s so cool.

7. What is next for you? HALO or otherwise!

Kelly: Nothing! :D I’m enjoying the holidays and the time off. I’m sure something will loom on the horizon, though…

You can get HALO: EDGE OF DAWN at your local bookstore or wherever books are sold from Gallery Books. You can also check out Kelly Gay’s website HERE.

Hello all,

Back at it with another podcast this month about a game that blew my mind in 2012 and all these years later, it still blows my mind.

There is nothing quite like ASURA’S WRATH - it’s a game, an anime, and all around rage simulator. You watch it more than you play it and clocking in at about 6 hours, it strikes prefect balance. The game also sections itself out into episodes with breaks and catch-up vignettes. It’s refreshing to this day with great pacing and characters who you are invested in even with all the silly over-the-top anime tropes.

ASURA’S WRATH was a Gamefly rental for me back in 2012 and I went in blind. Artistically, it looked like a game I would vibe with. But little did I know I would take part in absolute cinema - a game where a fight has a sword go through a moon and for the titular character Asura has to stop the sword with his HANDS. Outrageous.

But as beloved as the game was by folks who did play it, it didn’t sell well. A tale as old as time, I know. Capcom, who published it, didn’t see the need to expand on this formula and Cyberconnect 2, the developers, went back to making games for NARUTO and DRAGONBALL.

There are a couple of smoking guns here. It was hard to sell a $60 game that was over in 6 hours and didn’t require that much playtime from the player. It was also an original IP and public awareness on WHAT this game entailed felt muddy. Was it a brawler? sorta. Was it an area fighter? sorta. Was it an interactive anime? sorta. It failed to find a wide market instead it rocket-punched its way to niche.

The other issue was the DLC. The REAL ENDNG could be unlocked if you payed more money for the other episodes. Yay! That’s what consumers want to hear. I’ve heard there was development issues getting the game done in time but with Capcom at the wheel in 2012 one can assume they were interfering.

Many reviewers at the time agreed that this might’ve flourished as a digital purchase where you could buy chapters at a clip. It would’ve been a better format. And then later follow up with a physical release of EVERYTHING included.

As such, ASURA’S WRATH is now relegated to popping up on HIDDEN GEM lists and WHY DIDN’T ANYONE TELL ME ABOUT…videos. As long as it keeps finding an audience, I can’t be mad but I wish my boy Asura wasn’t done so dirty.

I watched this fun video on YouTube which I’ll post below and in the comment section, there was a great summation of the game that I found so sidesplitting hilarious, I’ll share with you.

Let me get this straight. Asura got framed for murdering the emperor, his wife got murdered and his daughter got kidnapped, then he got sent to hell for 12,000 years just because he wasn’t ok with the deities using his only child, and then he climbed back out so casually out of hell, punched a planet-sized person’s finger so hard he exploded, got killed again for another 500 years, crushed an old guy in his escape shuttle, spent time with baddies in a hot spring and fought his master on the moon, whose katana can go through the planet, got so angry over a little girl’s death he pulled his devil trigger so hard that he destroyed a bunch of spaceships and slashed the queer Shakespeare in half, while his voice actor screamed so hard that he started coughing blood(thank you for your sacrifice,) teamed up with the intentionally blind guy to break into the planet sized man that is actually a machine and proceed to flip Zeus with nunchucks like Two-face’s coin and kills him with a DBZ blast, killed the lava earth kraken who used the earth as his crab shell, and killed the devil lookin dude in control who copied Asura’s giant arms, then payed DLC to watch a spider kill the simp woman and possessed his daughter to become god, who I originally thought was a woman, then Kratos but more powerful became the size of the planet, flies to the center of the universe as his wife and victims cheer him on, and “god” wipes out reality and fights Asura in the void and turns into a freak, then Asura got his daughter back and he punched the fraud god so hard he fades out of existence, and somehow all of this inspires Mortal Kombat before Mortal Kombat. Why would he do all of this? They made his daughter cry.

This is from user hottopichotsauce who we will give all the credit to.

We are taking a break this month for the holidays and will return at the end of January to talk about an absolute banger from Platinum Games. Stay Tuned!

Hello all!

Welcome to another edition of DAMAGE PER PODCAST! This month we are making it just under the wire for a SPOOOKY episode where we tackle Supermassive’s 2022 game, THE QUARRY. Supermassive made a name for themselves in 2015 when they partnered with Sony to create UNTIL DAWN which blew up in popularity as a streamer game and a party-game.

After several releases with their Dark Pictures Anthology, they circled back with a big investor (2K) to make THE QUARRY - a werewolf terrorizing a summer camp adventure with shockingly sympathetic characters (except for 1, maybe) and choices that MATTER.

As someone who never played any of their titles (but always wanted to!), I feel bad that I never checked out their previous work. Shout out to Mitch for choosing this one for October! I am looking forward to their next release (2026 supposedly!).

Enjoy the episode as we talk about THE QUARRY but also Gamepass, Nintendo, and Atlanta!

Thank you so much for listening :)

Hello all,

Quick note: Sorry for swapping Ninja Theory and Team Ninja several times in the podcast. Ninja Theory are the developers!

This month, Mitch and I went back in time to 2007 when video games were embracing GRAPHICS and SCALE. Unfortunately for the PS3, it was a struggle for most of the software in the early days. And HEAVENLY SWORD is no exception!

Ninja Theory was tasked with an ambitious project to create a cinematic 3rd person action game in the vein of GOD OF WAR. To their credit, Tameem and company pulled it off..mostly. When the game came out about a half a year after the release of the PS3 console, it showed off the capability of Sony’s ability to throw dozens of enemies on screen at once and also the integration of motion capture. The problem were and still are the awful frame rates and screen tearing. The inclusion of motion controls also was a silly choice but hey, you can turn those off!

But AT THE TIME, HEAVENLY SWORD was remarkable and I loved it because it did show what the PS3 COULD do. Plus, the game is badass! All these years later, I still enjoy the hell out of it even if performance can ruin momentum.

The big takeaway for me all these years later is the motion capture technology. If you remember Mitch and I revisiting ENSLAVED: ODYSSEY TO THE WEST, Serkis was an important part of that game’s charm and quality. With HEAVENLY SWORD, this is Ninja Theory’s first collab with WETA and their motion capture team. Serkis steals the show as Bohan but all the villains cheese it up so much that you can’t wait to see them on screen again.

Here is some footage of those motion capture sessions:

HEAVENLY SWORD moved about 1.5 million units and while that’s pretty good in 2007 for a video game, it failed to make back its budget. A sequel was planned but after a couple of false-starts, never got off the ground. There is a great Reddit post when early concept art for the sequel and you can look at that HERE.

Enjoy the show and share your HEAVENLY SWORD memories!

Getting over a bug but not sick enough to spend money on games.

Come hang with me while I yap about my haul.

Have a great weekend!

Thinking of trying this new form of GUYS GUESS WHAT I’M INTO RN. Video is a format I am drawn to but can never quite figure out so let’s see what happens here.

In this post I’ll chat the BRUTE FOCE: BETRAYALS novel by Dean Weasly Smith. An enjoyable action romp for the first 100 pages but I hope for more of a plot to show up.

I started randomly playing CRYSIS 2 which is beautiful for a Xbox 360 game. I missed out on CRYSIS 2 and 3 so I plan on checking them out whilst kicking cars across Manhattan.

Lastly, wooooooooo the HEAVENLY SWORD film - I still don’t know who thought it was a good idea. I mean, it looks OK and it’s not GARBAGE by any means but its existence so many years after the PS3 game’s launch is perplexing.

Anyway, let me know what you think of this format!

Hello all!

We are here this episode to talk about our buddy Max again. As we finish up our Remedy-developed run of games, we end on a high note (though Remedy never truly misses except that one military shooter that we are going to ignore).

Mitch and I returned to MAX PAYNE 2 to find an even more enjoyable experience some 23 years later since we both last played it. Reflecting on what makes MAX PAYNE stand the test of time is that it built on what made MAX PAYNE great and didn’t get lost in the sauce of pressures of a follow up.

MAX PAYNE 2 shows the jump in writing and level design (even if the levels repeat locations several times) that would make its way over to ALAN WAKE which would be their next venture. And honestly, I’m amazed that they were able to pull this game off in a 2 year development window.

And the game just oozes charm to this day. Lots of the ambient dialogue is a joy to overhear and encourages the player to sit still and listen. One such example is in the police office. Listen in this video:

The Havok physics engine also made for some HAHAHA HOLY SHIT THAT’S FUNNY moments when bodies cartwheel around after getting hit with a grenade. Stuff like this has been filtered out of game development for various boring reasons and I just miss it!

I also recently posted about the manual art of MAX PAYNE 2 and how wonderful it is - you can read about that HERE.

And make sure to listen to our other podcasts on MAX!

MAX PAYNE 1 and MAX PAYNE 3

And please enjoy more Sam Lake!

Next month we are tackling a Ninja Theory game we have been meaning to revisit, HEAVENLY SWORD. We are turning those fuck-awful Sixaxis controls off, though. We are not ANIMALS.

Thanks for listing and we hope you enjoy the show!

We all know that physical game collecting is a sad, depressed version of its younger self these days. Lacking manuals, heft and overall personality, we are left with chasing our nostalgia more than anything. Hell, sometimes the games are not even in the case! Sometimes you get a code, a key card or 40mbs of data on a disc. Every possibility except the entire game on the disc/cartridge!

These are less than exciting times for us collectors but we still do it and are surpirsed with bells and whistles every so often.

Mitch and I are preparing for our podcast on MAX PAYNE 2 this week and so I was spending time with the OG Xbox case and reading through it. I do this with older games on my shelf to relive the moments of a man 20 years removed from when they originally held the game.

I thought it would be fun to scan in the art from the box and the manual as a way to highlight how beautiful it all once was. I can hear Linkin Park playing on my radio now…

Anyway, enjoy!

PS - I wish you could smell the manual!

In 2001, I was 13 years old and Max Payne’s grimace in marketing material for the game MAX PAYNE looked badass and the Xbox? It looked even more badass. MARIO KART? Hell no I wanted man in leather coat dive into rooms and shoot people game.

It would take about a year for me to secure an Xbox on my birthday and for a while, I had SEGA GT, JET SET RADIO FUTURE and HALO. I already had a job working retail in a local pharmacy so I was getting my own money and eager to spend it on games for my shiny new system. All it took was for me to go to GameStop and for a disaffected employee to sell me an M rated game way before I was able to do so. Thank you, bad employee!

I was already familiar with the mechanics of the game because I had played the demo on one of those Xbox Magazine Demo Discs. What good times. Did you know those magazines were only like $8?? And you got all that content?? Anyway, I had played the subway level and was in love with the “bullet time” function and the ability to dive around like a total lunatic. As a fan of THE MATRIX at a young age, this game clicked with me. But to play the entire game? What a rush. To this day I don’t know how I was able to complete the game on the hardest difficulty. I wouldn’t be able to do that now!

Popping MAX PAYNE in again and playing those opening levels still brings me back to that moment in my life. A simpler and quieter time when video games were comically violent and time wasn’t something I needed to keep my eye on all the time. I didn’t have obligations eating away at my free time. Sigh.

Anyway, Mitch and I have decided to rewind time and tackle Remedy’s earlier series, MAX PAYNE. We are no strangers to our noir-soaked hero as we previously podcasted about MAX PAYNE 3 which you can listen to HERE.

MAX PAYNE was the work of a young team embracing 3D technology - to make 3rd person action games like TOMB RAIDER but with good controls. The tank-like controls of Lara were frustrating even in those early days for players no matter how great the game was.

While they shot for a 1999 release year, the game was pushed back until 2001 which made it seem like they ripped off THE MATRIX with the “bullet time” mechanic. The game was in development with that idea before the movie arrived but instead of fighting comparisons, Remedy embraced them.

Obviously MAX PAYNE was a success on PC and the home console market. The sad thing is we never saw the Dreamcast edition get released as the console was shut down as MAX PAYNE was about to be released. All we have left is like 240p video quality of that build:

MAX PAYNE laid down the framework of what we would see later on from Remedy as well in terms of building their own game engine (MAXFX for this and later NORTHLIGHT) and just storytelling devices. The meta TV shows to the surreal Lynch-like dream sequences, this is still what you see in games like ALAN WAKE 2.

Enjoy the new episode and let us know what you think! We will be tackling MAX PAYNE 2 next and even though that’s a short game, you can see where Sam Lake’s writing style began to grow.

*taps mic* ahem

We are back! Hello all!

Mitch and I have returned to discuss the wildest, weirdest and greatest(?) game Remedy has blessed us with. Part survival horror and part lightbulb swap puzzle game, Alan Wake 2 keeps you in the dark and guessing until the very end.

The other great thing is that no matter how many euros they dump into a game (a total of about 70 million), Remedy keeps their identity and humor through the whole thing. It is also the most expensive product to come out of Finland, officially. Let’s see what Control 2 costs!

The road to Alan Wake 2 is long as Remedy started working on this bad boi since completing the first Alan Wake. Along the way, their ideas were turned into Quantum Break and a side adventure with Control but over a decade of ideas culminated in this ambitious 2023 project.

The surprise for me was Saga Anderson whose sections in the game I ended up enjoying more than Alan’s. In fact, can we just get a Saga and Alex game next?

The game ties perfectly into Control and opens up the world even more.

Next month, we will be discussing MAX PAYNE from 2001!! There is lots to discuss in terms of seeing those early seeds planted for the Remedy-style.

If you need to catch up on any of the Remedy games, I have linked below.

Alan Wake

Quantum Break

Control

Also, Mitch and I both loved the new Final Destination and Mitch wrote up a great article on it but specifically on the GOAT, Tony Todd.

Anyway, talk soon!

Hello all!

Getting ahead of the Switch 2 Direct dropping tomorrow to give your ears our chit chat on Remedy’s 2019 game, Control.

But a Switch 2 presentation is pretty exciting, y’all! I mean, we have to be excited about SOMETHING in these trying times.

Control arrived after Remedy broke off from Microsoft following Quantum Break. Chasing that perfect mix of narrative and player freedom and tying directly into their other IP, Alan Wake, Control was snagged by 505 Games for publishing rights. 505 Games, a prolific publisher, gave Remedy room to make the game they wanted without intense expectations of selling an entire new console. The industry learned so much about what not to do with that Xbox One launch!

While Quantum Break is a great game and one I have learned to appreciate more with time, it was a controlled player experience and heavy on the narrative. Remedy wanted to allow the player to explore a realm on their time. Taking inspiration from Dark Souls and Metroid/Castlevania, they created a game that rewarded the player for exploration and revisiting previous areas. Also, the game is challenging and if you are not paying attention, it will bully you!

Mechanics aside, the story follows Jesse Fayden who has finally tracked down where her brother could be located. It leads her to an unassuming building in New York that is owned by the F.B.C. or Federal Bureau of Control. The FBC is like the boogeymen who go out to stop paranormal events and find “objects of power” which are everyday objects that distort reality. Jesse and her brother Dylan experienced an event as children and he was taken away. Now she can confront those who kidnapped Dylan.

Of course, when she gets there, it turns out there has been a breach in the building and “the hiss” has taken over by possessing staff and messing with the fabric of reality. This framework ties directly into Alan Wake and sets up events that we will get to in Alan Wake 2. It’s truly a rewarding experience.

I’ll can it on story STUFF because the game is still rather recent and where the game ends up was just a joy that I can’t ruin for others.

The miraculous thing about the development of Control is that it was done in 2 years and on a budget for 20 millions euros which is rather modest for a AAA title. Looking at the game you would think it cost more than that but partly that’s due to the enhancements made over the years with updates and ray tracing - I can’t remember the look of the game at launch. It also helps that Remedy has an in-house game engine with Northlight which allows them to have intimate knowledge on how to get the best out of their code.

One of the cool things I found is the inspiration for The Oldest House which is a building in NYC on 33 Thomas St. Look how spooky and cool!

Big Brutalist arch vibes in the game and there is even a post over on Polygon about this with a video. Here is a quote I pulled below and you can also read the article HERE.

A core part of Remedy’s design philosophy is that it should feel like the player has an effect on the world. The Oldest House does that by being made of beautiful, reactive concrete. Concrete is inextricable from Brutalist architecture. You can learn more about that in this great episode of 99% Invisible, which was created with input from the guy who literally wrote the book on concrete.

Anyway, concrete dictates how Control responds to player input. When Jesse Faden hovers and then slams into the ground, you get an impact crater. Bullets leave scars and fill the air with dust. I can rip out a gnarly chunk of wall and throw it, or use it as a shield. If I throw furniture it can explode on impact because concrete is really hard.

We get returning actors to the Remedy world - the late and great James McCaffrey returns as The Director and Dylan is played by Sean Durrie who played Nick in Quantum Break.

The show stealer is Courtney Hope who was also in Quantum Break at Beth and she plays a believably cool and collected Jesse Fayden. She got her inspiration from horror icons such as Vera Famiga from The Conjuring - here is a snippet from an interview she did over at Bloody Disgusting.

I love Vera Farmiga (in The Conjuring). She was very strong. She was calm. There’s something about her that I really enjoy. I did think about her quite often because when she is put up to a task or she’s’ put in front of a demon, there’s a calmness about her. It’s almost like you can feel her heart racing through the screen. But, if you were to listen to her speak, she sounds calm. She did a good job of having her heart race and being nervous, because you’re confronted with something that’s fearful or the circumstances are so high that if you fail it could be a catastrophe. That’s something that I really focused on… Women are portrayed in a multitude of ways in horror films, and there’s so many and it was like which one do I want to be? What is this story? Is this a broken woman that’s coming through and finding something through this? Well, yes. But, I also had to remember that Jesse’s from the streets and she’s not necessarily brittle, but overcomes that. I sort of pulled from a lot of different horror movie females and then found my own as Jesse. The biggest thing for me was reliving her own horror. Losing her brother at such a young age. And losing her parents and that reality of that horror before she even hit the Oldest House. It was kind of compounded.

Playing through Control and reading the interview with Remedy in regards to their Control spin-off Firebreak, I am now looking forward to the multiplayer shooter. I was worried it would be more of what we are seeing in the market but 1.) Remedy is publishing and developing the game and 2.) they are not making this a live-service game where you need to check in every day for fear of missing out. They are making this game for busy people!

Remedy bought back the rights to the Control IP from 505 Games for 17 million euros so they are clearly moving forward with independence post Alan Wake 2 and that makes me happy!

Enjoy the podcast and let me know your Control thoughts!

Here is a great video of Remedy discussing the game and its influences.

Hello all,

In 2016, Microsoft published QUANTUM BREAK which was the next project from developer Remedy. After the ho-hum financial success of ALAN WAKE, MS told Remedy that they didn’t want an ALAN WAKE sequel (which is what Remedy had started work on) but a brand new IP to launch with the Xbox One. Oh, the Xbox One.

Keeping the time altering mechanics planned for the next ALAN WAKE, the team also meshed combat elements seen in MAX PAYNE 1 & 2. The gunplay and mobility of the character reflected that more of Max than Alan but also brought in time-powers while providing a strong narrative.

You might have blocked it from your memory now but Microsoft was adamant about TV melding with Xbox and forcing everyone with an ALWAYS ONLINE console. With this mindset, Remedy created live action episodes featuring the actors from the game IRL (all of whom are amazing - Shawn Ashmore, Lance Reddick, Dominic Monaghan…) that would play between Acts. The episodes would stream live form a server…these days you have to download the episode pack because thankfully Microsoft thought to preserve them. They are truly awesome to watch - reminds me of the JJ Abrams era of TV.

When I first played this game, I fell off it because it just felt like “a lot.” I still think it is - it’s like a Kojima-lite game where narrative is equal (or more) to the gameplay. You spend a good amount of time reading and watching which is just not for everyone. I feel bad for giving on up it about halfway because boy, oh, boy did I love playing QUANTUM BREAK in 2025.

Yes, it’s bloated and the performance is kinda whack at times but zipping around the combat areas and fucking with the enemies is hella fun. I also think the story, which feels baffling for 4 Acts, rounds out in a satisfying way in the end. I was so pleased with the ending, I immediately started a new game so I could make the different choices at the “junctions.”

The Junctions are parts in the game where the antagonist (Paul Serene played by Little Finger from GOT) has to choose binary choices that affect dialogue and if certain side characters live or die. While the overall story is not changed, it is awesome how certain areas feel different when you have Nick the Taxi Driver instead of Amy - the protester.

Also, can we appreciate that there about 100 people who made this game? Even for 2016, that seems like a small crew for such a big budget title.

I was under the impression the game did not sell well seeing is how Microsoft never talks about QUANTUM BREAK but sales were quite good for it (better than ALAN WAKE’s initial sales) and the IP is still active. The game leaves off for a sequel but I could also see a remaster in the future.

I had a chance to read MOST of the book, QUANTUM BREAK ZERO STATE and it’s…interesting. It was written by one of the Remedy-guys and offers different scenarios to what we see in the game. One particular moment involves Jack going back to his childhood home to find Will’s research equipment. There is also scenes with Hatch in the Monarch building. It’s a cool book but I didn’t feel compelled to write anything about it.

As for a connection to ALAN WAKE - well, it’s obvious they exist in the same universe. There are copies of Alan’s books about, you see Alan get interviewed on TV, and episodes of NIGHT SPRINGS play as well. But that’s about all we get. Still!

Anyway, enjoy this trip to 2016 with and myself and let me know what you think/thought about QB.

Don’t worry, folks! I did not forget about my pledge to read all the Animorphs books! After a (extended) holiday hiatus, we are back on track to discuss the weirdest yet most endearing series from the late-90s marketed to children who had no idea the stranglehold it would have on their psyche.

Book 7 of the mainline Animorphs series is called The Stranger and we are back in the POV of Rachel, Jake’s cousin. After the hospital conspiracy in book 6, we take a more grounded and less conspiratorial premise with The Stranger until…

We start with Rachel and Cassie at the circus. As the pair witness the animal abuse and cruelty happening around them, they decide they are going to give the elephant trainer trauma about it. The trainer uses the electric cattle prods on the elephants which enrages the Animorphing pair. 

Rachel morphs into an elephant in order to teach the trainer a lesson and we get another disgusting scene:

People say I’m pretty. I don’t know and I really don’t care. But I’ll tell you one thing - no one who has ever seen me morph into an elephant ever used the word “pretty” to describe it. 

I felt the thickening of my legs and arms. 

I watched as my skin grew leathery and gray as mud. 

I felt a sudden sprouting of my trunk as my nose and upper lip seemed to explode outward. 

“Pinocchio, eat your heart out,” Cassie whispered. 

I felt the teeth in the front of my mouth run together, and then begin to grow and grow into long, spear-length tusks. It’s a creepy sensation, by the way. Not painful, but definitely creepy.

Rachel proceeds to wrap her trunk around the abusive animal trainer and lift them off the ground. Using “thought-speak,” Rachel threatens them to start treating the animals right. Absolute badassery.

The team discovers that there is a portal in the changing room at THE GAP (good lord) where Controllers are going to charge their slug overlords in the Yeerk Pool. While the Animorphs plan for a recon mission, Rachel is dealing with the divorce of her parents. The fundamental Millennial moment of divorced parents plays out on the page which, I think, is a great way to have the discussion. I assume lots of children in divorced households would read books to get away from what was bothering them at home and here was a safe space for the characters to talk about it. The problem Rachel faces, though, is she has to choose between her mother and father. Her mother will stay in the town where Rachel grew up but her father is moving thousands of miles away and if she chooses him, she will leave her mother and the Animorphs behind.

But who cares about that right now? It’s time for the gang to morph into cockroaches in the dressing room of THE GAP and have a meltdown as they watch their bodies contort in the mirrors. 

“AHHHHH” I cried, startled by the nauseating sight of the skin of my back melting into two huge, hard, brown wings. 

Cassie was too far gone to say “shh,” but she held one of her hands up to what was left of her lips. Just then her extra legs came popping out of her stomach, and I think I would have yelped again except that I no longer had a mouth. 

I heard a slurping sound as the last of my bones dissolved and I sagged into my exoskeleton.

If you thought Ax and Marco’s mom were surprises, boy oh boy, now we get to meet The Ellimist. 

As the recon mission goes sideways and as our heroes are about to be eaten by a Taxxon, time stands still and the team is back in human form while Taxxons and Controllers are frozen in time. The group is approached by The Ellimist who states that humanity is doomed and the only way to save it is for these outstanding children and their families to go with him. He wants to save an “endangered” race. Tobias has also appeared here in his human form for the first time since being stuck as a bird. 

The team declines the offer.The Ellimist unfreezes time and they are back, except Tobias, in the mouth of a Taxxon where the team is swallowed. This allows for a gory moment where they demorph inside the Taxxon making it EXPLODE. Sheesh. How gross. 

After their botched recon mission and ending up meeting another new alien, the team disbands and Rachel deals with her unraveling home life. 

The group is then approached by The Ellimist a 2nd time and he’s like Y’ALL I CAN’T CHANGE THE FUTURE WITH ANY SPECIFIC DETAILS BUT MAYBE THIS TRIPPY FUTURE VISION WILL MAKE YOU THINK OF SOMETHING.

With that The Ellimist shows the gang the future of humanity and its destruction. 

I wanted to sound tough, Like I wasn’t impressed. That was a lie. Worms larger than a grown man were crawling through holes in the mall. Skeletons lay across desks in the shattered ruins of our school, and clutched the wheels of rusted cars. 

The air felt strange. The why was no longer the sky of earth. The trees were dying.

In this vision, we also see that Visser Three is now Visser One and Rachel has become a subservient controller working as his right-hand person. Rachel smartly in this vision sees that the EGS Tower is still fully functional and untouched by the end of the world here. They are then pulled back and The Ellimist congratulates Rachel on her observation skills. 

We are then treated to a full out raid by the Animorphs as they head to the top EGS Tower (in current day). The artwork on the inside of the book’s jacket depicts this scene of the team riding the elevator up in full transformations. 

At the top of the building, on the final floor, the team discovers a Kandrona. This is an artificial sun that replicates the one on the Yeerks homeworld - it allows them to live offworld. Rachel barrels the Kandrona out the window with in her elephant morph.

Delaying the Yeerks and Visser Three once again, the Animorphs save humanity…for now. 

To come full circle, Rachel decides to stay with her mother and with her friends. She says goodbye to her father and understands her work here is not over. 

Hello all!

Mitch and I are taking a dive into the Remedy-verse for the first part of the year. Our first target is Alan Wake, the 2010 survival horror shine-flashlight-at-everything simulator that captured the imagination for fans of Twin Peaks and Stephen King. While sales were initially slow for Alan Wake, word-of-mouth propelled this into a modest financial success for not only Remedy but also the publisher Microsoft.

After the release of Max Payne 2 in 2003, Remedy needed to collect themselves after the crunch of putting out 2 of the greatest and violent action games in the early 00s. Remedy Writer/Producer/Everything Man Sam Lake, after going to school for screenwriting, set out to lean into those meta-narrative threads that started to show up in their work. Moving away from glorified violence, Remedy began development of an open world survival horror game where the player would have to scavenge during the day and defend at night. An early look of the game was shown off to publishers and Microsoft purchased it. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) due to pressure to release a game, Remedy had to scale back the scope of what would become Alan Wake. Choosing to focus on the writer who has to write himself a new ending, the game reflected the development of the game. The struggles Alan faces are similar to those Sam Lake and team must’ve felt as they moved away from straight forward action to a love letter to Twin Peaks.

Alan Wake showcases the beginnings of Remedy’s focus for the next several games. That is ambitious narrative design and unique combat. Max Payne had bullet time (the slow down cinematic shoot while diving mechanic) and by the time Remedy gets to Quantum Break, they play with that formula to a crazy degree. Remedy, as we will see, learns from their failures with each game and sets out to correct the trajectory but also fuck with it just a litte more.

All of this examination excites me for Alan Wake 2 which is the only game of theirs I haven’t played yet. Playing their works back to back will help me appreciate their formula and also help me figure out what Remedy wants to say about storytelling.

Playing the remaster of Alan Wake all these years later made me realize how much of a stamp Remedy has on their storytelling - it also made me realize how much they improved. Alan Wake is a certified classic filled with spooky and vibe-y moments that make me feel nostalgic. Their initial case to make an open world game is apparent in several parts of the game too - especially when you have to run around these open areas (or drive) and explore random buildings looking for manuscript pages. The game falters in its repetitive combat and cheap off-camera attacks. After playing Control, it’s clear Remedy was able to find that balance but we will get there!

I hope you enjoy the podcast! Here are some clips of Sam Lake being Sam Lake.

Hello all,

We are back after an unplanned December break with our first podcast of 2025.

This week Mitch and I talk about the most recent Gears title to be developed. In 2020, The Coalition and Splash Damage shipped a refreshing take on the Gears’ formula with a tactics game. It’s a genre that ended up as a natural fit for the vibe of Gears and one I hope they pursue.

Gears Tactics is a great concept and so-so execution. The “so-so” part shows itself in the pacing in the back half of the game where the player is inundated with long and pointless side missions. It bogs down the experience.

With that said, it’s a great tactics game pulling a few trick from X-COM (the overwatch mechanic). The story is paint by numbers but we get to see Gabe Diaz (Kait Diaz’s father) and Reyna when they are young. We also get to see Chairman Prescott try to be a war criminal for the 80th time as well.

As I mentioned in my ULTIMATE Gears Ranking Post - I feel the same way about Gears Tactics as I did Halo Wars. Where I am loving what they are bringing to the table and I think it’s a natural fit for the series. Halo Wars would evolve to Halo Wars 2 which fixed my issues and delivered a better story. I hope that will end up being the case here if they make another Gears Tactics but time will tell.

In the podcast I mention the Polygon article that had photos of the development team working on the game in board game form. The grid system that would be abandoned in the final product can be seen as well as stat cards for enemies. I would totally place a Gears Board Game!

Here are photos of that:

As always, I hope you enjoy the show! Later this month we start our Remedy-verse deep dive starting with Alan Wake (Remastered Edition). Time to get spooky in the winter, y’all!

Here’s hating on The Witcher 3 (I do not support this hate but I stand by my man.)

If you have been following the plot of this Substack for the last year, you know that I (and Mitch via the podcast) have been revisiting the Gears of War series. I have read all but 2 of the novels and replayed the games. This has resulted in posts, podcasts and an interview with Karen Traviss. It’s been a joy to examine the older games with more context, development history and nostalgia. When we had to tackle the newer entries again, boy, were the warts larger. The one good thing to come out of the new regime for the Gears-franchise is Gears Tactics (even if it suffers from pacing issues). 

Now that I have fully injected the series in my brain for the last year, I thought it would be worth it to rank the series in order of favorite to least favorite. I don’t think this is a list to rock the boat and I feel that other lists would be similar but hey, where else can I get my thoughts down? 

GEARS OF WAR 2 (2008) 5 out of 5 Chainsaw Lancers

What an absolute masterpiece. Even all of these years later (many years later), I’m impressed with the scope, moment to moment gameplay and over the top setpieces. The game barely lets the player get comfortable in any level before throwing them into the next scenario. Whether it’s cutting your way out of a giant-ass worm or being in the center of Jacinto as it sinks, Gears of War 2 is a marvel of video game development. Gears of War and Halo are franchises with similar trajectories as IPs and the comparison will come up again - but Gears of War 2 did exactly what Halo 2 did. These sequels elevated the gameplay of their predecessors and expanded on the lore established. Each allowed for the set up of a third game with high stakes and dramatic outcomes for their main characters. 

Listen to our podcast here -

GEARS OF WAR 3 (2011) 4 out of 5 Chainsaw Lancer

I’ll be honest, when I first played Gears of War 3 years ago, I did not click with it. I was confused with the game’s setup, cinematic approach (slower moments and character development), and death of a main character. It wasn’t until reading the books by Karen Traviss in the last year that I appreciated the writing and direction of 3. I still don’t think it’s my favorite game to PLAY but it has become my 2nd favorite game due to the way it ties the whole story together. If you read the novels, you would know WHY the game starts on a ship and WHY Anya is JACKED now. You would also have been informed on Marcus’ and Dom’s relationship as well as their childhoods. Those books added to the experience and Traviss’ oversight on the story of Gears of War 3 tied those novels in brilliantly. I know we would’ve wanted more Gears if it stopped here but boy, if they just stopped here, what an incredible constrained multimedia project this would’ve been. But alas, money needs to beget money and we have had a complicated relationship with the series ever since. 

Listen to our podcast here:

GEARS OF WAR (2006) 4 out of 5 Chainsaw Lancers

Cliffy B’s masterpiece that started it all. What started as an idea in the Unreal franchise moved over to a tech demo (sorta) for the Unreal Engine 3 and the soon to arrive Xbox 360. Throwing chainsaws on guns and an underground creature invasion, Cliff ended up with a gothic horror shooting game that changed 3rd person shooters forever. Introducing the cover mechanic as a do-or-die part of the experience, almost every similar game for YEARS used the same approach to gun fights (including Grand Theft Auto 4). I played the Ultimate Edition of Gears of War (a remastered version, I guess) recently and was again pleasantly surprised. Epic Games got a ton right immediately - just firing on all cylinders. A world with lore that is shown not told, a main character with history with other characters presented, and pick up and play enjoyable gameplay. It’s a lot to ask for in video games to get all these things right so quickly (especially in 2006). It’s straightforward and is a tight 10 hour campaign that leaves you wanting to see more and outside of the last boss (I hate that train section), has few faults. Gears of War 2 and 3 added variety and larger scope but Gears of War was an excellent foundation. 

GEARS TACTICS (2020) 3 out of 5 Chainsaw Lancers

I played the first hour of Gears Tactics when it came out and said, “this is cool - I’ll come back to it.” It took me about 5 years to circle back to Gears Tactics and yeah, it is pretty great. Focusing on Gabe Diaz, the father of Kait Diaz (main character in Gears 4 and 5), and how he got caught up in a greater COG conspiracy and met Reyna Torres (Kait’s mom). The shift from over-the-shoulder cover shooter to a top down tactics game is fluid and works well for this universe. Using teammates to take down a Brumak in phases was satisfying because of how long it takes and the strategy you need to employ. Unfortunately, the game begins to drag when filler missions take up your time. These missions feel randomly generated, they lack narrative need and are a time sink. That said, Tactics is an excellent proof of concept for other games like this in the franchise. I felt the same way about Halo Wars and then they knocked it out of the park with Halo Wars 2. The cool thing I found out is that Gears Tactics was first a board game idea on a grid with character cards (think Dungeons and Dragons adjacent). And the story elements are lacking in material - it just feels like they pivoted to make a game and didn’t have enough time. But if a Gears Tactics 2 is ever announced, ur boy it gonna be playing on Day 1. 

GEARS 5 (2019) 3 out of 5 Chainsaw Lancers 

When Gears 5 arrived on Gamepass in 2019, I was excited to play it. Gears 4, which we will get to, was disappointing but I was sure Gears 5 would correct the sins of the previous entry. I was right…to an extent. The shakeup of the gameplay The Coalition introduced was refreshing - the hub world nature of Acts 3 and 4 and the mobility of the skiff was a blast. The areas felt a tad empty but the optional objectives that gave Jack upgrades were well worth it to seek out. It didn’t feel like filler. The problem was the story and Acts 2 and 3 are the strongest. When we get to the sand-area of Act 4, the story devolves into GET BIG LASER AGAIN. The final Act lacks imagination and the confrontation with Reyna is anticlimactic. I forgive Gears 5 for its sins more so than other Gears-fans but on returning to it this past Fall, its issues were increasingly apparent. I think that’s because I have focused on this series so intensely that it was easier for me years ago to enjoy Gears 5 passively. But I do like this game and I do think The Coalition tried to listen to what we didn’t like about Gears 4. Mixed results, for sure! 

GEARS 4 (2016) 2 out of 5 Chainsaw Lancers

Gears 4 is what happens when you take a Gears-game and strip out all of its excellent set pieces, engaging characters and memorable environments. Like the Halo series when 343 took over for Bungie, The Coalition had big shoes to fill from Epic and Cliffy B. This transition would have changes but I guess we all hoped it wouldn’t be changes so…uninventive. The addition of quirky dialogue where characters have a quip every 5 minutes made the shift in tone feel disingenuous and patronizing. Sure, Gears could be funny but not in the way the writers now wanted which felt like a Marvel-film or Uncharted. On top of that, Gears 4 has the worst opening Act of the series. A complete drag for the player as you move through a COG shelter. There are hints of great world building in the background like the rebuilding of New Ephyra, the need for children to be born/protected and how important crops are (my goddamn tomatoes!). Baird creating robots to be police, Anya and Marcus having a kid, and a new Prime Minister are ingredients for decent Gears-lore. But boy, they dropped the ball with JD - what a weiner. How do 2 amazingly badass people create such a loser for a kid? 

Listen to our podcast here:

GEARS JUDGEMENT (2013) 2 out of 5 Chainsaw Lancers

I will say this about Gears Judgement - it’s the best looking Gears game on the 360. The amount of color that does pop with this late console cycle title was great for the series at the time. But… I hate that I dislike Judgement. The developer behind the title, People Can Fly, is a studio I like and I am fond of their other projects (Painkiller and Bulletstorm) but this game is such an uninspired mess. The gameplay shifted from a narrative focus and set pieces to essentially a single player horde mode. The player must complete “rooms” of enemies before continuing. It works for a game like Painkiller but here, it feels like half a Gears-game. I could see it being more enjoyable with the co-op campaign but even still. 

Listen to our podcast here:

That’s it! I can put Gears of War to rest for a bit (unless I write up any of the remaining books). I am excited for the next release of E-Day whenever that arrives. I think fans are excited to go back to the series’ roots and hopefully that gothic vibe. We shall see! It’s been wonderful to learn almost everything about the series in the last year. If you made it this far, thank you! 

Hello all!

Gears of Fall continues for and myself with GEARS 5! The first first entry where the “OF WAR” was dropped from the title. Why? Creative-heads said that fans shortened the title when talking about it so…they just took it out. Silly reason because people shortened things all the time when writing and speaking so like…

Gears 5 arrived in 2019 and The Coalition had lots to make up for with how Gears of War 4 ended and specifically, the introduction of JD Phoenix. Once again, as I have stated, how Anya and Marcus created this child considering how badass both of them are, is beyond me.

The other fight Gears 5 had is that this was going to be a big Gamepass release for Xbox so there was pressure to make this game approachable for a wide audience and would be, in theory, many folks’ first Gears-game.

In many ways, I think The Coalition makes up for 4 by developing a better game with Gears 5 (hold on, though). They realized the JD problem and lack of “epic moments.” and they tried to course correct…for about half the game.

When you get to Act 2 which is easily the strongest section of the game, the gameplay opens up and the “good” parts of the story take center stage. Once you acquire the skiff, you can explore around an arctic tundra doing side missions that reward you for your curiosity. Meanwhile, the story behind Kait’s origins is revealed and the overall Gears-lore is expanded on.

But then…

Act 3, while also fun to run around the desert area, drops the bigger story to focus on the Hammer of Dawn relaunch (once again). Paduk makes an appearance and it’s great to get those old Cog vs. UIR hatreds bubbling in the background but it’s forgotten to wrap up the game’s runtime.

Once Act 4 get around, the game drops anything interesting - JD, who was vilified earlier in the game, is just back on the team cracking jokes. Kait’s story morphs into a a retelling of Queen Myrrah from the first trilogy, and there is a silly boss fight.

I think the thing that bums me out about Gears 5 is all the potential I see and the great moments that are pushed aside in order to make the game simpler. When I first played Gears 5 back when it was released, I enjoyed it and I think that’s in part due to how lame Gears of War 4 is. After spending time reading the books and carefully revisiting the original games, the shine and shimmer is lost. The cracks are more noticeable.

Enjoy this episode!

There is a great interview with Rod Fergusson you can read HERE about Gears 5. Rod has since left The Coalition and now is with Blizzard - which is still part of the Microsoft family.

Next month, and I will be playing Gears Tactics which is bascially a first time play for me. I’m excited because I’ve heard great things!

Have a great Turkey Week and thank you for listening/reading!

Hello all!

Just wanted to thank you all for listening to Damage Per Podcast. We just hit 2k downloads on Substack alone (I don’t check other hosting sites analytics because…lazy). I am so grateful!

I started this podcast as an experiment without a focus but after a few months, I set my sights on going back to older games (mostly) and revisiting them or finally cleaning up my/our backlog.

I have also been blessed with a great co-host! This podcast wouldn’t be what it is without my partner-in-crime, . I assumed this would mostly be me talking into a mic with rotating friends but Mitch and I clicked and to keep it simple, we kept going.

Right now we are finishing up the last of the Gears games. I am excited to say that the first several months of next year will be focused on Remedy’s catalog. Mitch and I plan on taking looking at Alan Wake 1&2, Control and Quantum Break.

Here are our top 5 podcast episodes from this year by number of downloads - descending order (CLICK THE HEADERS TO BE LINKED)

Episode 16: Dante’s Inferno but 14 Years Later (AKA 9 CIRCLES OF CUCK)

We do find the main attraction to be all of the hubbub around the game and not the actual game itself. I think the art direction is killer - some of the best, nauseating depictions of hell’s circles I’ve seen. The gameplay is familiar to a fault but fun and just when you think it might overstay its welcome, the credits roll. 

Speaking of credits - why do we see Dante’s dong at the end of the game? There was so much…body stuff in the game but boy, did they go for it. 

Primed for a sequel that never happened, Dante’s Inferno lived on as a big ??? for everyone. Sequel development was a ghost story with tidbits popping up on LinkedIn but ultimately left in the dirt to die. Jonathan Knight, the game’s director, left the weird world of triple-A gaming after this and now works for the New York Times and their game division (crosswords and all that). 

Visceral Games, who developed Dante’s Inferno (and Dead Space) would go on to be relegated to the Battlefield mines and eventually would be shut down (even after EA said they would keep their jobs). But the creepy babies in both Dante’s Inferno and Dead Space certainly make sense.

Episode 15: Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 (AKA SENUA IS BIG MAD NOW)

Hellblade 2 was released at the end of May 2024 and was met with a “meh” and I’m (and I guess “we”) are confused. The game is a remarkable vehicle for storytelling, mood, location and moments that made me NAUSEOUS.

Listen, I get if the game is just not for you and even calling it a “game” is up for debate. But if you liked the first there is zero reason you would hate the 2nd entry. It has more Senua! ABSOLUTE GIRLBOSS!

Tameem over at Ninja Theory claimed that he didn’t want these games to be “fun” but compelling and I think that is exactly where they land. Hellblade(s)offer a unique and nuanced look at mental illness with gameplay that pushes the player into uncomfortable territory.

Episode 10: Castlevania Lords of Shadow but 14 Years Later (where my boi Alucard at?)

This week Mitch and I talk about one weird-ass game - Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. Developed by Mercury Steam and published by Konami in 2010, Lords of Shadow was meant to reboot the Castlevania franchise. In terms of sales, it sure did but in terms of legacy? It’s an odd one. I think LOS is a game that’s more fascinating to talk about than play but I did have a fun time playing through it.

LOS made enough money and was only a 60 person development project so Konami green-lit a sequel. LOS 2 would arrive in a couple of years and not sell as well. It also didn’t have as many favorable reviews causing Komani to kick Mercury Steam to the curb. Luckily, Nintendo picked up MS and now they work on the Metroid games. Win/win? IDK!

Episode 19: SPOOOKY Time w/Blair Witch (2019) VIDJO JAME

This week Mitch and I take on Bloober Team’s Blair Witch game that, upon internet searching, caused GRIEF for horror fans. Mitch and I don’t see it because we both enjoyed our time with Ellis and Bullet as they lose their minds in Burkittsville, MD.

Recently, Bloober put out the remake for Silent Hill 2 (which Mitch adores btw) and one could see how they were inching their way towards a Silent Hill-esque project.

I love the Bloober story. They are a small Eastern European game studio that put out horror games that had a little jank but clearly there was love for the horror genre behind it. And now? Well, they got that big paycheck and they are working on a brand new game that was revealed in the Xbox Showcase this month. It is titled Chronos: The New Dawn

Tackling the Blair Witch IP is not an easy task because what IS Blair Witch as a property? It’s really about getting lost in the woods where time shifts and a bit of lore built in. As Mitch states in the podcast, there really isn’t a reason (story-wise) a sequel needed to be made but due to the $$ it brought it, it’s a well that IP owners go back to. Lionsgate is currently holding Blair Witch for ransom.

Episode 17: Castlevania Lords of Shadow 2 but 10 Years Later (AKA WTF GUYS)

Taking criticism from the first game, Mercury Steam tried to differentiate itself from the “God of War Clone” comparison and added stealth segments that grind the game’s pacing to a halt. The fact that Dracula is capable of taking down massive bosses but can’t take out thicc guards is beyond me. Sneaking around as a rat? I’m the Prince of Darkness!

Even with those horrible moments aside, the 2nd game fails to deliver after the first amazing hour of gameplay. It puts its best foot forward with the intro sequence and then we take control of Dracula in the modern city. I had visions of Blood Omen 2 where we would be able to run around the city and feast on innocent folks. But no, we are thrown into bland corridors and parking garages.

I was ok with the game until the end when I was getting frustrated with the pacing. It took its toll on me.

With that said, there are great set pieces such as the Puppet Master boss sequence. It makes zero sense why we are fighting him but it was memorable so that’s something!

Even though Lords of Shadow 2 did OK with sales, Konami shut it all down. Dave Cox, the producer, was let go and he went on to work at 505 Games.

Mercury Steam, the developer, was contracted by Nintendo and ended up making Metroid Dread. Good endings for everyone!

Thank you for listening!