Axe of the Blood God: An RPG Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Live Action Zelda w/ Alex Stedman Nov 13, 2023

Show notes

This is Miyamoto. It's actually happening. A live action Legend of Zelda is on the way. How much faith do we have in the team behind it? What is our dream casting? And how can we talk about Love Actually instead? All these questions and more will be answered by Kat, Nadia, and special guest Alex Stedman!

For what it's worth I think they missed their chance when Jonathan Taylor Thomas aged out of playing Link in the 90s but no one bothered to ask me. I also think every live action adaptation should end with a Red Hot Chili Peppers drop like the Death Note movies do. Again, no one asked me. Adaptation (2002) is really the only good adaptation anyway. Go watch that.

Also in this Episode:

- One Piece is good

- Disney is bad

- Avatar might be fine?

- Baldur's Gate and Starfield.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intros

44:48 - Random Encounters

1:00:48 - Baldur's Gate Talk Begins

1:21:04 - Baldur's Gate Talk Ends, Starfield Talk Begins

1:32:00 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best! - [Breath of Fire III]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Fairy Fountain (Pause) - [Cadence of Hyrule]

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Star Ocean 2: The Second Story R Review w/ Jada Griffen Nov 06, 2023

Show notes

Did you know Tri-Ace was founded when the members of Wolf Team developing Tales of Phantasia grew tired of Namco's involvement and split off to create their own studio in the middle of development? And then in 2019 the mobile game Star Ocean: Anamnesis featured a crossover event with Tales, bridging the two series after nearly a quarter-century? Anyway this episode is all about the new remake of Star Ocean 2 with special guest Jada Griffen! George Yang is also supposed to be here but the best laid plans of mice and men etc.

Luckily it's still a great discussion about Star Ocean's place in the genre and beyond!

This episode is sponsored by Factor. Head to factormeals.com/axeRPGadventure50 and use promo code axerpgadventure50 for 50% off!

Also in this Episode:

- Thirsty Suitors

- World of Warcraft is prepping for the next 20 years

- USGamer was a really good website!

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intros

04:17 - Main Topic - Star Ocean 2 R

26:00 - Random Encounters

29:04 - The Tavern

59:44 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Gentle Wind - [Baten Kaitos]

Do Your Best! - [Breath of Fire III]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Affinity Love Club - [Soul Hackers]

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The Best SpoOoOky RPGs! Oct 30, 2023

Show notes

"Darkness falls across the land. The midnight hour is close at hand."

Uhhhh Persona vibes much?!

The history of RPGs is inextricably tied to horror and it's the perfect time of year talk about the scariest parts of our favourite games, as well as the RPGs that are straight up capital "H" Horror. Bloodborne, Undertale, Vampire: The Masquerade and more on this hair-raisingly scary episode with your terrifying hosts Bat Scale-y, Blah!-dia Axeford, and BEWARE-ic Vamp Hell-en.

Also in this Episode:

- World of Horror

- Slay the Princess

- Class choices for Baldur's Gate III Co-op

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intros

04:17 - Main Topic - Spooky RPGs

46:08 - Random Encounters

48:16 - The Tavern

1:06:34 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best! - [Breath of Fire III]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Coffin Fetish - [Shadow Hearts]

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Our Favorite RPG Music of 2023, Biggest Surprises, and More Oct 23, 2023

Show notes

It's Letter Tiiiiime! It's Letter Tiiiime!

It's a very special Mailbag episode this week as Kat, Nadia, and Eric answer questions about everything from cheesecake and boss fights to the very future of this podcast! If you want to take part in future mailbag episode,s and get a chance to have your questions answered, check out the Axe of The Blood God Discord by subscribing at patreon.com/bloodgodpod.

Also in this Episode:

- Long Gone Days, Super Mario Wonder, and even more from Baldur's Gate III and Chrono Trigger

- Michael Keaton is great no matter what universe he's in

- Nadia vs Nuns

- Nature is reclaiming Kat's childhood

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intros

56:08 - Random Encounters

58:00 - The Tavern

1:35:44 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best! - [Breath of Fire III]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

The Grand Duchy of Jeuno - [Final Fantasy XI]

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Microsoft and Activision Blizzard w/ Reb Valentine Oct 16, 2023

Show notes

More like Acquisition Blizzard, heh. If you want a guest who can explain the ins-and-outs of the business side of this colossal consolidation of industry titans while also explaining why it's relevant to the culture and future of RPGs, you can't find anyone better than the one and only Reb Valentine. Listen as Kat, Nadia, and Reb discuss exactly what this means and how it will effect us all going forward, for better or worse. And maybe Kat is sort of kinda starting to enjoy some parts of Starfield?

Also in this Episode:

- Call of Duty yaoi

- PS5 Slim

- Our unslakable thirst for expanded universes and endless IP churn is merely an extension of our fear of death

- In Stars and Time seems cool!

- Nadia has played Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth!

Timestamps:

02:00 - Intros

49:44 - Random Encounters

1:02:40 - The Tavern

1:35:44 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Gentle Wind - [Baten Kaitos]

Do Your Best! - [Breath of Fire III]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Cosmo Canyon - [Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]

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Baldur's Gate III Final Thoughts, For Now Oct 09, 2023

Show notes

Everything has been leading to this. Through the battles, the story beats, and the very very attractive party members, it's time to wrap up the conversation on what may end up being the biggest "game", let alone RPG, of 2023, Baldur's Gate III. Kat has wrapped up her 100+ hour journey and the gang has plenty to say about their personal experiences.

Spoiler Warning: Mango(?)

Also in this Episode:

- Nadia has myriad difficulties with animals

- To save-scum or not to save-scum

- River Dancing through Thordan Unreal

- Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty also exists!

- More Chrono Trigger Report

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intros

51:20 - Baldur's Gate Talk Ends, Random Encounters Begin

55:12 - The Tavern

1:21:50 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Chaotic Dance - [Baten Kaitos]

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The History of Quintet w/ Anthony John Agnello and Scott White Oct 02, 2023

Show notes

Before NieR's depressing side quests, Quintet was giving kids lessons about the uncaring neutrality of the universe back in the 90s! Journey through the morally-grey, bleak worlds of Quintet and its adorable 16-bit veneer with host Nadia Oxford and special guests Anthony John Agnello and Scott White! Terranigma, Illusion of Gaia, ActRaiser, Soul Blazer and more in this retrospective deep dive!

Also in this Episode:

- Sad goats

- The only podcast that has ever talked about Robotrek

- Mysterious disappearances

- Listen real close and you can hear Victor (your old pal from the edit bay) getting more and more frustrated no one is talking about Quintet's best game, Planet Laika

Timestamps:

00:48 - Intros

1:03:12 - The Tavern

1:13:28 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Light and Darkness - [Terranigma]

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Cyberpunk 2.0 w/ Michael Higham Sep 25, 2023

Show notes

We're back in Night City jacking into the firewalls of cyber-brains and scrapping digi-cops or whatever with the new Phantom Liberty expansion! Is this Cyberpunk 2077's redemption arc or would you be better off watching a holo-prog in your cogni-puter? I have no idea what terms they use for things in Cyberpunk but I feel like I must be pretty close. I'm sure there's a drug called like, FRAG or something. Anyway, special guest Michael Higham returns to talk with Eric and Nadia about all that and more!

Also in this Episode:

- Unity keeps falling down stairs

- Microsoft sprung a leak

- Where is P stored?

- Chrono Trigger Update!

Timestamps:

02:16 - Intros

05:36 - Main Topic

56:56 - Random Encounters

1:04:16 - The Tavern

1:29:52 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Gentle Wind - [Baten Kaitos]

Do Your Best! - [Breath of Fire III]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

My Blue Sky - [Sakura Wars]

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Nintendo Direct and State of Play Sep 18, 2023

Show notes

The past week's one-two punch from Nintendo and Sony have us floored by a panoply of RPG announcements and reveals. How will we recover? As we lay there in a stupor all we can do is reflect on the choices that got us here. Someday we'll redouble our efforts and re-enter the fray. But for now, in the interim, we can do naught but ice our wounds and talk for an hour-and-a-half about the incredible games on the horizon. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Unicorn Overlord, SaGa Emerald Beyond, and Eiyuden Chronicle just to name a few!

Also in this Episode:

- If it isn't Paper Mario, you old dog, you. How long has it been? Feels like a Thousand Years!

- Star Ocean: Second Story R. The 'R' stands for 'Really Good So Far'!

- Unity did a big oops

- Starfield, Kat has some notes

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intros

07:20 - Main Topic

27:44 - FF7 Spoiler Warning

44:00 - FF7 Discussion Ends

45:36 - Random Encounters

58:32 - The Tavern

1:30:00 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best! - [Breath of Fire III]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Town of Good Harvest - [Baten Kaitos II]

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Sea of Stars w/ Brenden Groom Sep 11, 2023

Show notes

This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/bloodgod and get on your way to being your best self.

Finally, a throwback RPG inspired by classics like Chrono Trigger! But perhaps Sea of Stars is hiding something truly special? No spoilers this episode but prepare to have your interest piqued by this very special little homage to the JRPG golden age full of twists and turns. Kat, Nadia, and Eric are joined by special guest Brenden Groom of the Pass the Controller podcast to discuss this hidden gem!

Also in this Episode:

- The crew finds more opportunities to throw Golden Sun under the bus!

- I want shorter RPGs with worse graphics and I'm NOT kidding

- The Joy of Fishing

- Eric's Chrono Trigger Report

- Kat's Starfield Report

Timestamps:

02:08 - Intros

07:20 - Main Topic

48:16 - Random Encounters

51:36 - The Tavern

1:27:36 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook