Stay ConnectedWhat’s good, Internet? Join Waypoint’s Rob Zacny, Patrick Klepek, Renata Price, Natalie Watson, and Ricardo Contreras two times a week, as they break down the biggest stories in video games, talk about their favorite media, and unfairly compare everything to Dark Souls.
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Gita Jackson is back on the pod to join Patrick, Ren, and Cado on their long adventure into the depths of everything Elden Ring. We talk about Elden Ring's immense reach compared to other FromSoft titles, moments of dubious boss balancing in the late game, and that ever present cycle of difficulty and accessibility discourse that we return to with each new iteration of the Souls formula, and the ways we all approach difficulty differently in isolation and within community.
Discussed: Elden Ring 8:23, Mechanical Spoilers for a boss fight and a specific area quirk 33:23 - 46:24
Steve Saylor on accessibility and Elden Ring youtu.be/FOQFu7OKJ5o
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Patrick, Renata, and Cado all saw a movie this weekend, but first they have to talk about what Cado spend 23 hours doing over the weekend. That's right, it's Raid Time in Destiny and Cado went full gremlin mode. After that, we get into Matt Reeves' The Batman, discussing how surprisingly funny it is, it's issues with character motivations, and how much it really loves cops.
Discussed: Destiny 2 Raid 3:06, Raid Encounter 1 Spoilers 7:36 - 14:02, The Batman 36:43, Outro 1:58:39
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The crew have been having some computer issues, where for some reason or another their computers won't sleep correctly. I think they should probably stop giving them coffee right before bed, but apparently it has something to do with rogue usb devices. Patrick, Ren and Cado then continue their talk of Elden Ring, and consider where different people can find the Role Playing in a RPG video game. After the break, Rob takes us on a journey of discovery in Gran Turismo 7, where the cars are beautiful and Rob's Racing Wheel driving is not.
Discussed: Elden Ring 19:54, Elden Ring Quest Spoilers 45:02 - 46:31, Gran Turismo 7 51:13, Announcements and Outro 1:24:22
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Ren and Cado have introduced the world of the Wired to the Waypoint crew. They discuss Serial Experiments Lain on today's pod, a late 90's anime that is surprisingly precinct about the malleability of information in online contexts and the formation of identity in a hyper-connected world. After the break, Rob's been considering the supply chain, and how we've ended up where we are now (spoiler: it's capitalistic greed!) Then, finally, after being wrongly cast aside last podcast, Patrick is here with his impressions on his time so far with the Steam Deck.
Discussed: Serial Experiments Lain 1:53, The Supply Chain 38:28, Steam Deck 1:10:16
Planet Money Podcast - Of Boats and Boxes, American Prospect - How We Broke the Supply Chain
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We open this pod with a short discussion on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the reactions from a few developers that are headquartered in and nearby the affected regions. Then, Ren and Patrick have awoken as Tarnished and seek a better horse in Elden Ring. Ren's enjoying her time but wishes some of From Soft's design ethos was more evident in the open world (and that damn horse), and not just in specific (spectacular) moments. After the break, Cado is exploring a different kind of fucked up swamp in Destiny 2: The Witch Queen, the latest expansion which adds a bevy of new mechanics and a more engaging campaign than past Destiny 2 dlcs. Rob's been checking out Grid Legends, an racing game with delightfully charming FMV storyline, and the racing is ok too.
Discussed: Ukraine 0:44, Elden Ring 6:40, Small quest spoilers 32:42 - 34:09, Destiny 2: The Witch Queen 57:06, Grid Legends 1:27:53, Outro and Announcements 1:53:37
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Patrick interviews Dimitri Pascaluta, writer and host for theScore Esports. They chat about Dimitri's Counter Strike skins, how the CS skin market has exploded during the pandemic, and how that left him with a collection worth about "a down payment on a house."
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You can thank new Waypoint crew Ren for that title, btw. Rob and Ren have been streaming Total War: Warhammer 3 over on our channel and experiencing all sorts of foul taints, like the foul taint of a hard counter faction setting up shop right next to you, or the taint of realizing the game was trying to get you to not have to fight them right away once you've already spent most of your stream fighting them. Cado's been dealing with the foul taint of corporations in Citizen Sleeper, a node-based RPG set on a space station in a future where people rent their minds to corporations to pay off debts, with strong indie TTRPG roots and great worldbuilding. After the break, Patrick makes the hard decisions in Infernax, a 2D pixel art metroidvania with story branching choices. Then the crew dive into the Question Bucket for more Branded Jeep mayhem.
Discussed: 0:55 Total War: Warhammer 3 0:55, Citizen Sleeper 41:07, Infernax 1:00:23, The Question Bucket 1:11:16, Outro and Announcements 1:29:17
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We have special guest Matthew Gault on pod today to talk about Horizon: Forbidden West. He and Patrick have both put time into it, but they're both starting to experience fatigue around this particular open world design philosophy. If what you've wanted is a prettier, bigger Horizon: Zero Dawn though, this game seems made for you. After the break, Cado puts the end cap on Pokemon Legends: Arceus, confirming his suspicions that the narrative doesn't satisfyingly address the conflict between colonizers and indigenous people that they've based their story on. Then there's a quick dive into the question bucket for some deliberations over being a "Rob Zacny type," accidental boat purchases, and video game branded jeeps.
Discussed: Horizon: Forbidden West 12:53, Pokemon Legends Arceus 1:10:38, Spoilers for final mission in Arceus 1:14:24 - 1:16:22, The Question Bucket 1:27:10
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Our brand new gen-z correspondent Renata Price is on the show today to tell us that gamers age 15-25 did Not like the Nintendo Direct. However, us 30 somethings were hootin' and hollerin' about the various remakes and something called "mouthful mode." Patrick and Cado have both checked in on new MMO du jour Lost Ark, a South Korean produced MMO that's been making waves in its home country for a few years now. After the break, Rob takes us on a journey through his medieval monarch machinations as he checks outthe new Crusader Kings III Expansion: The Royal Court. Then we answer some questions and really get deep into the ergonomics of bath sitting.
Discussed: The Nintendo Direct 0:48, Lost Ark 29:13, Vampire Survivors 40:26, Crusader Kings III 50:11, Outro and Announcements 1:29:50
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Patrick and Rob are having heating issues, and are absolutely not going to commit any crimes at all to fix them. Patrick's been checking out Bloodborne PSX, a game that controls too well to have ever actually been on the PS1. Speaking of controls, Patrick and Cado check in with King's Field IV, and find that after some cough cough controller rewiring cough cough, there's a lot of Souls DNA in this PS2 game, more than they'd assume without Miyazaki at the company. Then Rob, Patrick, and Cado put Back 4 Blood to bed after finishing the finale finale on stream last week. Then a quick dive in the Question Bucket is followed by a hefty discussion of this week's NFL controversy.
Discussed: Bloodborne Demake and Kings Field IV 29:02, Back 4 Blood 48:18, The Question Bucket 1:16:17, NFL Talk 1:45:25, Outro and Announcements 2:05:41
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