Chatterbox Video Game Radio

Ara's learning a whole new game these days, so saddle up and get ready for a story. Also, freshen up on the current state of politics, World of Warcraft, and PlayStation Home (Beta).

Alon's concerned about game marketing in the digital age, Ara makes a cooking game sound fun, and they both complain about Hell Yeah!!

Alon upgraded his MacBook Pro with a Samsung 830 SSD, Ara listened to some student game pitches and officially unveiled his new Epic Mickey game, we talk a bit more about digital resale, and the Wii U release plans hurt Alon's soul.

OK, this time we really talk about the demos we've been playing. Ara loves stacking blocks in Art of Balance Touch (not Art of Touch), Alon likes Mark of the Ninja. They also cover Rock Band Blitz and how it differs from your ordinary music rythm game.

We've been playing a lot of demos, so that's what we're talking about, along with digital distribution and a revolutionary new system we developed on the fly to make digital more acceptable to the masses AND more lucrative for publishers.

Outland is free to PlayStation Plus members right now, and it's really good. Ara had another life-defining moment with Gran Turismo 5. We don't know Luke Plunkett, but Alon's decided he's a bit of a moron.

Ara's back and has stories to tell. For his return, we discuss Japanese taste for the female form as well as the current trends we see carrying over into the next generation of hardware.

The Last Story's marketing credits its famous designer but still doesn't sell well. American gamers can't handle failure. New Super Mario Bros. 2 hasn't proven interesting to all Mario fans.

Tim describes Super Smashed Bros., an old game of his, available at TwinSkyGames.com. By the way, it's genius... you really should go play it. Friend, Justin, comes on the show in defense of the modern-day cinematic gaming experience and to divulge the secrets of Sword Quest.

Tim treats us to a story about Paperboy, we fantasize about a perfect list of good design elements, and we talk (again) about modern games exchanging gameplay for cinema.

Tim's with us again. We give you a look inside his gaming manor while chatting about game branding and localization, game dev jam sessions, why you're more nostalgic for easy games, and the apparent fact that Japanese gamers actually enjoy frustration.

Tim Winsky cohosts. He describes the subtleties that made The Legend of Zelda II and Bubble Bobble two of the greatest games of their time.

Ara's very excited about finding a cheap game. Very excited. We spend most of the show talking about Ouya and freemium game design.

Milk, PSN, and Spelunky

Alon and Ara try to enjoy Steel Battalion, they're thrilled by a recent law passed in the EU but scared of the inevitable pre-emptive backlash in the US, and they hear an argument for Diablo 3's persistent internet connection.

Why we don't like Dragon's Dogma, what we think game designers should do after realizing most people won't make it to the end of their entire games, and how we feel about DRM in a game we've never played.

Ara continues his efforts to become the world's fastest virtual driver. While not playing GT Academy, he and Alon visited Dave and Buster's. One game was particularly awesome, even if it did break their hands. They also concern themselves with the devolving nature of gameplay in arcade games.

E3 wrapup - How were the press conferences, how awesome is the Wii U, will boobs entice you to play a game, what defines the gaming experience??? All these questions, and maybe some answers, await you. Also, how Alon almost died.

Eric, Molly, Cory, and Alon go over what they've learned at E3 so far. Mostly, that there's nothing impressive at the show and that everything Ubisoft puts out looks the same. There's also concern that Nintendo has destroyed the dreams of the younger generation by allowing the Wii to suck too much.

We Journey into discussion of artistic games that fail to offer artistic experiences. We also lend an opinion of Trials Evolution, EA's move to help indie devs, and the inevitable fate of 38 Studios.