We tried to do something new by having all of us record our audio on Audacity. However, it fell through. We're going to try it again next week in an effort to improve the listener experience, so don't lose hope.
0:01:30 Viewer Questions
Adonisus's podcast is here, for those who are curious.
"Do you think that an AO game has any commercial viability?"
Honestly, there is a small, but potential market for an AO game. As much as I dislike Hatred, as an example, I believe that it can do well.
Retailers will not waste their time with AO games, for two reasons. First, there is not a big enough market. Secondly, they tend to present a family-friendly environment, which those games tend to detract from.
That said, I imagine with all the publicity, sales from the designers website will, while no where near as good as a dedicated retail store, will likely be enough to make a profit. In that sense, it could be commercially viable in those terms.
So, while it is not a big market, it does exist.
"What do you guys think of the news that Marvel intends to reboot their universe after the Secret Wars event?"
I am glad Chris is here to answer this question, because he knows so much more about comics than I do.
In general though, I am of the attitude that I am okay with whatever changes a developer wants to do, so long as the character can still be recognized as the character. We can only determine how good and bad changes are after they've been implemented.
If you wish to send us Viewer Questions, please e-mail us at thetexturepop@gmail.com.
0:17:13 Gaming News
The Elder Scrolls Online goes Buy-To-Play
I think this will attract more people to the game, since the barrier of entry is lessened. However, I feel that the next logical step is truly Free-To-Play, and this won't produce enough revenue to not go in this direction.
The game is still fundamentally flawed, and the initial bad taste it left in the mouth of many players is still there. They could do well, but it needs to reclaim a lot of its lost good will.
In a broader sense, I am not convinced that subscription is the way to go for specific games anymore. For $15 a month, I could get either a Netflix or a GameFly account. Those are just significantly more robust forms of entertainment.
Sega's reduction in staff, and renewed focus on mobile
It's actually how much I won't notice a change in my gaming at all. Aside from ATLUS, Sega does not interest me with the games it releases.
AOL is shutting down Joystiq
The way it was handled is pretty fucked up, if you ask me. I hope the staff bounces back from that.
Gaming journalism has accelerated in these past years. It used to take years for a publication to shut down, but now shut downs happen all the time.
0:34:00 Tyler played Dragon Age: Inquisition (because his save file was lost)
I feel bad, because I would be pissed off if all of my saves and data just vanished like that. Defeated by a power surge.
We then go into a somewhat random conversation about save features in remakes.
Then we discuss Dragon Age 2 and Origins, because of course we do.
0:46:55 Tyler played a bit of Call Of Duty: Black Ops 2.
He beat his old record in zombies. I can't really say if that's good or bad, because I'm terrible at those kinds of games.
0:48:10 Garrett installed a 2TB HDD in his computer.
It's a lot of memory. Even better, he has Windows 7 now, instead of Windows 8.
0:50:04 We talk about the Nationwide Super Bowl commercial.
In hindsight (since I watched it after the podcast), I can see why people reacted as strongly as they did. However, that's the entire point of the commercial. I actually thought it was really good.
0:51:50 Garrett played League of Legends
With a new season, the rankings reset, so Garrett needs to get good again.
0:52:55 Garrett talks about his game design class with Tyler.
The more I hear about GameMaker, the less I would ever want to use. I mostly just want to do the coding myself, so that I have more control over the final product.
Coding isn't as hard a people make it out to be. It mostly just takes practice, like any other discipline.
0:59:50 Garrett tried out to be a voice-actor in an animated video for the Zoophobia web-comic.
'nuff said.
1:02:30 Sam tried the new and improved Warframe
Apparently it is a lot different than it was before.
1:05:00 Sam
It's again hard to comment on this without spoiling it, so we can't get into a big conversation.
1:07:00 Sam bought and played a bit of Dying Light
I initially was not terribly interested in getting Dying Light at first. Having seen a lot of it, I kinda want to get a copy of it now. It looks really interesting, and I'm a completely sucker for parkour-esque exploration in video games.
1:13:45 Sam played Forza Horizon 2.
Yeah. Racing games.... It is really hard to talk about them.
Also, talking about the show in the middle of recording.
1:19:25 Sam played Life is Strange: Episode 1
I do want to play this game, I really do. However, after playing all of those Telltale games, I am burnt out on the episodic model. I just want to wait for all the episodes to come out before I invest.
If Dontnod releases episodes 2 through 5 in a timely manner, I might change my mind. Until then, I am keeping my wallet guarded. It's also hard to talk about it because, like any episodic game, we cannot determine its quality until after every episode has been released.
That said, what I have heard about Life is Strange is promising. It is also really interesting to note how rare it is for games to take place in the modern world, without any sort of catastrophe or twist. It's just our world.
Sam's article on the game is here.
1:29:55 I finished Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls
I don't have much more to add here in the shownotes. In the coming weeks, I will release an article on my experiences with the game.
But it's worth talking about the challenges of moving an inherently PC game to a console. It's easier said than done.
1:38:25 I played and beat the first Bayonetta
I suck at this genre, but I loved playing the game. It's nice to play something that doesn't take itself too seriously. On top of that, it's very visually appealing.
1:42:45 I just finished Dead Space 2.
Like with Diablo 3, my article for it is coming. But the conversation we had on it was a good one.
In general though, it is a significantly, noticeably better game than Dead Space 3, to the point where I actively wonder what the hell happened between the two games.
1:52:40 I went with some friends to see The Imitation Game.
As a Computer Science major, this was a very interesting movie because it was basically a biopic of the guy who invented my entire discipline.
On top of that, it's a very good dramatic movie. This is one of the most unknown, yet interesting people in recent human history. I had a great time and would easily recommend a lot of fun watching it.
1:56:26 Chris did not play Assassin's Creed 3, and instead played Assassin's Creed: Liberation HD.
Aveline is such a good character, and the game is so much better paced. It really should have been the one Ubisoft focused more on. Definitely get it over Assassin's Creed 3, as it's much better in almost every way, especially with the stuff they added to the original Vita version.
There are ideas in Liberation, like Aveline's multiple disguises, that deserve to be revisited in other games in the franchise. There's a lot that mechanic could be used for. I'm also not kidding when I say that Aveline is the most interesting protagonist in the Assassin's Creed franchise. Her background is interesting and I wish she was used more frequently.
I also find it amusing that Chris is having a bit of a "Season of Assassin's Creed" in a way that I had my "Season of ATLUS" a few months back. It's good that he's taking a hiatus for now.
2:15:45 Wrapping Up
My inFamous: Second Son article is here.
Sam's Life is Strange article is here.
Sam's videos are here and here.
Interactive Friction is still a thing. A new episode went up.
Adonisus's podcast is, once again, here.
There's also The Texture Pop e-mail and twitter.
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