Stay ConnectedConstantly Calibrating is a weekly topical podcast that focuses on the wide world of nerd/geek culture; Delving into both recent news stories, as well as discussions, debates and interviews related to what’s happening in our assorted fields (Gaming/Tech/Life).
A little bit of things, a fair amount of words, and a whole lot of stuff!
E3 2017 is officially over, which, as stated on this week's episode, is absolutely glorious! The week-long event is a cornerstone event of the gaming industry, but an exhausting one to say the least. Even sitting at home and "simply" co-streaming the show and podcasting is draining on the soul and the haunches. But never fear, as this week's episode is full of pep, energy, and insight into the event, and a bit of stirring up controversy with Anthem, but more on that in a minute.
From a burgeoning focus on multiplatform gaming to a multitude of odd surprises, E3 2017 made a splash this year. Whether that splash was a triumphant cannonball, or bellyflop accompanied by a wet fart is still yet to be decided. The team at Constantly Calibrating, however, can at least say that the show provided plenty to discuss.
That's why you're listening to or watching our podcast, presumably.
There is also the suddenly growing concern among BioWare "fans" that the newly announced game Anthem ruined Mass Effect Andromeda. This is dumb and we're going to explain why, and try not to hurt your feelings on the subject. Mostly.
All that, and a host muting his mic in everything except Skype, on this week's Constantly Calibrating Podcast!
E3 2017 has come and gone, and with it we have been left somehow with more questions than previous years: What does the future of multiplatform look like? When is Kingdom Hearts 3 releasing? Who greenlit that EA Play event? Why does Sony insist on focusing on a bored crowd, versus the actual games they're displaying? No, Seriously, when is Kingdom Hearts 3 going to relase? These are the questions we intended on asking this week, or among the ones at least. That was until some last minute illnesses and appointments laid out half of our team, as well stable of guest hosts.
So instead, you're getting two parts to our E3 2017 coverage. Next week will be the originally planned "Bring Your Own Topic (BYOT)" show, while this week...this week is something entirely different.
At Constantly Calibrating we have an issue with keeping up with traditions; this goes doubly so for our own. Every year we mold, redistribute, and change the very nature of how we work. It's not really a planned thing in our nature, but the cost of spending five years trying to figure out our place. As such, traditions become challenging to keep.
That is until now, as we're bringing back the 2016 "Looks Pretty" Awards and pushing them forward into E3 2017. The Looks Pretties is our version of a "most anticipated" event. They're virtual (soon physical) awards we give for games that simply look awesome, neat, or yes, pretty. They're the games that E3 or other events left us with a strong desire for, but may honestly even fade before the next event. It's a shifting, swirling world of desires and interests, that even two days after recording we may not entirely agree with. It's about being in the moment, and in the moment, we have our award show.
Let us know what you think deserves your own Looks Pretty Award, and even feel free to tell us off if we somehow got it wrong.
E3 is upon us. Starting this coming weekend the gaming industry will sweep over Los Angeles like a plague; those left in its wake will be either destroyed or majority investors in an up-and-coming indie game on Kickstarter. But never fear! As our team of Brad & Josh are joined by the magnificent; the wonderful; the hero from somewhere in Texas or Twitch or wherever; that's right, we're talking about Superblake! The man known as Superblake has come to our aid in our time of need to figure out what may arise starting on Saturday.
But wait, there is oh so much more entertainment to be had, as Justin has returned from the land of Kinda Funny Live 3. That's right, the Lord of the Best Friends, Greg Miller, has returned Justin to our world. Justin sat down with Josh to discuss his captivity and wonderment, alongside a healthy dose of Stockholm Syndrome. You can listen or watch that specifically at 42:30 or 34:00, respectively.
Well, it appears we've covered much of our tale of heroism, destruction, and hyperbole. Let us know your thoughts on this episode in the comments. Also, please join us this weekend & upcoming week on our Twitch Affiliated channel for live coverage of E3. More details below, or at the following location.
The time of Phoenix Comicon 2017 and possibly Phoenix Comicon as a whole has come to an end. OK, the last part is a bit of hyperbole, but after all of the drama and controversies of the last few months collided in a fireball of heat and even more controversies, it's hard not to think that for a moment. No, Phoenix Comicon will continue on, but perhaps this year will be the change that brings it back to greatness again. Or it'll be just another wet fart on the roadmap that is convention season. Either way, Josh had a great time and more stories to tell you can possibly imagine! Seriously, no on could get him to shut his damn mouth, but the stories were pretty interesting and his takes quite hot (four days ago).
Join as the team covers Phoenix Comicon 2017, drawls on about the ridiculous nature of pyramid schemes multi-leveled marketing plans, wonders along with Brad's streaming setup plans, and bids a brief adieu to Justin as he departs for Kinda Funny Live 3.
All that and a bunch more on this week's fun-enforced episode of the Constantly Calibrating Podcast.
For months Brad has been shouting in the Constantly Calibrating Slack, demanding our team take another look at Destiny. Destiny, the game that once, twice, or even thrice burned out members. We all (we being Josh & Ryan) decided to just ignore him and eventually the "Brad Overhyper 3000" would cool off and let us go back to work.
He didn't. He only got louder.
So loud in fact, that he contacted a friend of his, Destiny uber-fan DietColaFTW. He and Brad hatched a plan to smother Josh & Ryan in all the shiny goodness of what Destiny is, and what Destiny 2 could be. Well, either to do that or simply have DietColaFTW on an episode of the podcast to discuss Destiny 2. After much persuading, the date was set and above and below you'll find that show. Frankly, it's a really good show with a slew of information both on Destiny 2, as well as why members of our team departed the original game.
Furthermore, it also serves as the return of co-host Justin, long thought lost inside a board game or perhaps a really large department store. Maybe he was just registered to the wrong email address.
So join us as we explore what Destiny 2 could be, what we want to see it become, and what it would take our team to come back!
Oh, we also became Twitch Affilliates and have sponsors on the podcast again.
So....sign off.
After many years and countless eons of discussion, finally the time hath come for us to have Lauren Walsh, druid artist from the stars, on the Constantly Calibrating Podcast. Our team has known Lauren for arguably longer than there has been a podcast, but the timing of appearances was just never right. We also forgot to actually ask her at any point, which may have been a major deciding factor. But never fear, for Lauren Walsh made her triumphant appearance from within her glorious, and oddly witch-like studio.
So, with that in mind, allow us to entertain you with tales of her friendship with Brad & Ryan, stories of getting into the World of Warcraft, a journey into discovering that art school is crap and learning to art is best done on your own, and some flowing thoughts on the fact that you should frelling pay artists for their frelling work!!
That being said, it's a good show. It's a lovely show. It's a show you an take home to your parents when you're ready to settle down. We'll be here, waiting for you.
Make sure to subscribe and follow at the below locations, and leave a review if you feel so inclined. It would help us to continue growing and bringing in more awesome guests.
With Justin still sidelined from the podcast, the team was in search of someone to help out on the show. Then, as if the Internet just knew, Cutwright was deposited before them. The man of legend and recent Twitch Affiliate messaged Josh one night with a proposal, a simple proposal: "Hey, when am I coming on the podcast again?"
This is that podcast, and this is that episode.An episode wherein the team mostly just carried over leftover topics from the week before.
Of course, this worked to everyone's benefit, as what better person to discuss being a Twitch Affiliate with, than a person who recently achieved that status. Furthermore, there's nothing like discussing the therapeutic nature of Dungeons & Dragons -- and similar RPG-styled games -- than with someone who apparently secretly studied psychology once upon a time.
All of this, plus some shameless and shameful self-promotion on what critics are calling "the best episode of Constantly Calibrating this season."*
Join us, you'll like it.
*This its technically true, as Josh & Ryan are both critics and Brad is very critical.
We've all had those embarrassing gaming moments. You're playing a game for hours on end, and suddenly you do something really stupid, then boom, embarrassment. Or maybe, just maybe something out of the ordinary happens without your input. Perhaps you inexplicably pop an erection while playing Rampage World Tour on the N64 when you're 12 years old. Hey, we've all be there, and it's nothing to be ashamed about; you were young and your body was confused due to hormones.
There's nothing to be ashamed about, which is why we've gathered you all here for our embarrassing gaming moments show. Perhaps this is the first time we're doing this, or perhaps we're 224 episodes in and have lost grip on reality. Whatever the case may be, we're here to commiserate with you on the moments of embarrassment we all face in gaming.
So, join us for a fun-filled episode; one with minimal toddler interruptions. Don't worry, it's not all embarrassing, as members of our team look at the new Nintendo 2DS XL and try to figure out why it exists. There's also plenty of other disparate and random topics, plus a wee bit of betting on the side.
On Constantly Calibrating we abide by a simple rule: keep the show going, no matter what. So, when Josh's toddler decides to go nuclear on his diaper 30 seconds after the stream goes live, we keep going. When said child wanders into the room with thoughts on the current political climate, we keep going. When secret businesses are uncovered related to our guests, we...well you see how this works. So, don't be surprised if in this Star Wars fueled episode it takes a fair bit to get to that wonderful war of the stars. It takes a bit to get to The Last Jedi, but when we do...we derail and move onto other Star Wars topics.
Don't forget to check out the fan film we review towards the end, Star Wars: The Force and the Fury, as it's a delightful romp through a section of the Star Wars universe.
And don't go looking in that never before discussed Constantly Calibrating rulebook for that never discussed simple rule. Such things are not for the likes of you!
Enjoy!
With April drawing to a middle, we have reached the end of this month's not-so-series of interviews. Last week we brought you the fun-filled look at Yacht Club Games, and the making of Shovel Knight. On this week's edition, we're bringing you a look at the world of VR and a brief gander at Australian game development, as we're talking to Justine Colla. Our topics for the night included what got her into gaming, the growth and progress of VR, and whether that platform is niche or here to stay.
Justine, formerly of Atla VR and now at Suprise Attack Games, isn't just a game developer and marketer; no sir! If you've checked out her Twitter page recently, you would know she is totally secretly a huuuuuuge wrestling mark. (We mean that from a place of love, as half of our podcast team identifies with that lifestyle as well.) She's not just into wrestling and WWE content, but is also an accomplished wrestling fan artist with a following knowing her as the "cruiserweight mom".
While this episode started off a little slowly -- Skype had large delays with the Arizona to Australia connection -- it shaped up to be one of our favorite chats so far in 2017. Give it a watch, give it a listen, and then make sure to swing by our iTunes page and drop off a review. We'll love you forever if you did.
You can find more out about Justine Colla on her website or Twitter, and can support her wrestling fan art habits on her storefront or her super awesome Patreon. Tell her we sent you, because we want her to come back again for more chats.
Seriously, Josh had a dream Monday night where she helped relaunch ConCal Armbar! with him and Ryan. It was a really great dream from what we've heard.
Our TOPPODCAST Picks 
