The GamesIndustry.biz Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Games of the generation Nov 23, 2020

Show notes

This week, we have a special bumper-length podcast as the team takes a look back at the previous generation of consoles.

With Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 now on shelves around the world, we reflect on the seven years of games and innovations offered by their forebears.

Rather than just focusing on our favourite games (although we do discuss this as well), we take a broader approach by offering our takes on the most important and impactful games of the last generation.

We also share our biggest disappointments, from individual titles to key studios and even entire trends.

As always, you can get more news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz.

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The Five Games of... Mikael Kasurinen Nov 19, 2020

Show notes

The Five Games Of is a special series of The GamesIndustry.biz Podcast which explores the evolution of the video games business through the career of prominent developers, executives and more.

This time, we explore five games from Mikael Kasurinen of Remedy Entertainment, who most recently served as game director for last year's acclaimed new IP Control.

In addition to this game, we talk about his work on Max Payne 2, Alan Wake, Quantum Break and the Battlefield 4 campaign.

The conversation touches on the expectations for sequels, the role of single-player in first-person shooters, experiments with the crossover between television and games, and the various attempts to explore an episodic structure for games.

Title music by Julian Villareal

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EA must reconsider its FIFA goals | Podcast Nov 16, 2020

Show notes

The latest episode of our podcast is available to download now, and somehow, we're not talking about next-gen consoles.

Instead, FIFA is on the mind, following yet another lawsuit filed complaining of Ultimate Team loot boxes, and news of a new FIFA spend tracking tool allowing players to limit how many matches they play or how much money they can spend in the game.

In response to that, Brendan has published an editorial exploring EA's refusal to admit its games dabble in gambling while it simultaneously struggles to make its game acceptable to potental regulators. It's this editorial that Brendan, Matt, Chris, and Rebekah unpack, alongside discussion of the FIFA franchise's steadily dwindling approval from critics and players alike.

As always, you can get more news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz.

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The Game Developer's Playlist: Metal Gear Solid 5 with Jeffery Thompson Jr Nov 12, 2020

Show notes

In this special bonus episode of The Game Developer's Playlist, we take a look at Hideo Kojima's final outing with Metal Gear Solid.

Brendan takes over hosting duties from Rebekah as he's joined by Jeffery Thompson Jr to talk about the mix of gritty stealth and goofy balloon extractions, with horror elements and more poignant messaging all woven into the mix.

Thompson Jr is one of the founder of Polish start-up Epoch Media, currently part of the ReactorX Polish accelerator program.

He shares the impact Metal Gear Sold 5: The Phantom Pain had on his career, as well as the inspiration he has drawn for upcoming steal action game Pensions.

Title music by Julian Villareal.

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First impressions of PS5 and Xbox Series X/S Nov 09, 2020

Show notes

Chris, Brendan and James are on hand to share their early impressions of the new consoles.

Having recieved a mix of PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S units, the team has had a couple of weeks to get to grips with them, so what do we think of the next generaiton?

We discuss the most interesting features, from both a user and business perspective, as well as touching on performance, visuals, loading times and more.

We also look at the new devices through the lens of each platform holder's strategy and how they set Sony and Microsoft up for the years to come.

As always, you can get more news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz.

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The Game Developer's Playlist: Full Throttle with Chandana Ekanayake Nov 05, 2020

Show notes

This special series of The GamesIndustry.biz Podcast talks to developers about the titles that influenced their careers.

This time, we have Chandana 'Eka' Ekanayake, co-founder of Falcon Age studio Outerloop Games, here to discuss how 1995 biker adventure game Full Throttle inspired him to join the games industry..

Ekanayake discusses how the film-like elements of the game spurred his interest in joining in the industry, and the ways in which the game's pacing and visual techniques are still examples of how games embrace and iterate on storytelling techniques used in movies.

Game Developer's Playlist is an extension of a series we run on the site called Why I Love, in which developers explore their favorite games. You can find these articles here.

Title music by Julian Villareal.

The weekly news show will be back on Monday, and you can get more news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz.

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Black representation in games Nov 02, 2020

Show notes

On the latest GamesIndustry.biz Podcast, Rebekah and Marie are joined by USGamer's Mike Williams, as well as three special guests: freelance writer Aaron Lee, I Need Diverse Games founder Tanya DePass, and Melanin Gamers founder Annabel Ashalley-Anthony.

Mike, Aaron, Tanya, and Annabel discuss being Black in the games industry, from issues of representation in games themselves to representation in the workplace, and the barriers facing Black professionals who wish to both enter and thrive in games.

As a springboard for the discussion, the group referenced two recent articles: one on lifting the barriers faced by Black professionals in the games industry by Marie, and another specifically focused on representation in the UK games business by Aaron, both including interviews and insight from a number of Black professionals around the industry.

You can find Marie's article here: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-10-27-lifting-the-barriers-for-black-professionals-in-the-games-industry

And Aaron's here: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-10-22-we-need-a-real-shift-in-the-tide-black-professionals-talk-representation-in-the-uk-games-business

As always, you can find more news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz.

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Breaking out of the Xbox Oct 26, 2020

Show notes

This week, three members of the team -- Matt, Marie, and Rebekah -- chat with Digital Foundry's John Linneman about the impending next generation of consoles, especially the Xbox Series X.

With just a few weeks remaining before the launch of both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles, we reflect on the marketing and announcement cycles of both over the last year, as well as do a bit of deep-diving into what the hardware improvements of the Xbox Series X and S will mean for average users.

We also dip into pricing, both hardware and software, as well as the recent addition and subsequent removal of unskippable ads in NBA 2K21 and UFC 4.

One note: this episode was recorded on Friday, October 23, and in the episode we mention that Destruction All-Stars is a PlayStation 5 launch title. Shortly before we published the episode, Sony announced the game was being delayed to February, and thus is no longer a launch title.

As always, you can find more news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz.

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The Five Games Of... Guha Bala Oct 23, 2020

Show notes

The Five Games Of is a special spin-off series of The GamesIndustry.biz Podcast that charts the evolution of the industry through the careers and games of prominent developers and more.

This month's guest is Guha Bala, co-founder and president of Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit developer Velan Studios, perhaps best known for the work he and his team accomplished at Vicarious Visions -- another studio he co-founded.

Bala's career stretches back as far as 1996 point-and-click adventure Synnergist and cover a variety of often experimental play patterns, such as instrument-based rhythm action games and toys-to-life.

Join us as well look at the rise of fall of dedicated gaming handhelds, plastic guitars, toys-to-life, augmented reality and more.

The weekly news show will be back on Monday, and you can get more news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz.

Title music by Juilan Villareal.

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Xbox's GameStop deal: lifeline or table scraps? Oct 20, 2020

Show notes

Matt, Brendan, Chris and James gather behind their mics to discuss the biggest stories of the past week.

Our main discussion for this episode is the partnership between Microsoft and GameStop, which offers the retailer a share of all digital revenues generated by users of Xbox Series consoles the retail chain has sold.

We debate whether this is a way for the platform holder to sustain a valuable retail partner or an attempt to seem charitable as it pushes its digital ecosystem.

Continuing the Xbox theme, we discuss the day one launch line-up for Series X and S, which features 31 titles but no next-gen exclusives.

As always, you can find more news, insight and analysis into the world behind video games at www.gamesindustry.biz.

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