In-Game Chat
Summary: In-Game Chat is a weekly radio show and podcast that covers video gaming and the games industry. We play games of every type on nearly every platform. We review what games we can and conduct interviews with talent, technicians, and management from the creative side of gaming whenever we\'re able. We offer strong opinions and we\'re suckers for hype, but we check facts, ask questions and we\'re wrong a lot. We broadcast live every Saturday from the heart of the American south, and we\'re pretty sure we don\'t have accents.
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The games we love and enjoy leave a mark. And sometimes, the people involved in making those games do as well. And when we lose those people, we lose a friend. Lance Reddick may be known to you by many other characters he’s played in television and film, but for me, he was a character […]
Is this near the third time in a row that I’ve brought up Suicide Squad? Because it got delayed this week. And as much as I wish it was to retool and throw out all that live service game garbage, that will sadly not change at all. Apparently it’s for polish, but you can only […]
That new Suicide Squad game is possibly going to live up to its name. I mean, that kind of game hasn’t had much luck recently and given most of the response to it we’ve seen, it’s nearly DOA. I’ve ranted and raved about this before in previous shows and show posts, but the same can […]
Where do we go from here? There may come a time when you ask me what I’ve been playing and I will NOT say Destiny. I don’t know what the plans are for that game once they wrap it all up sometime next year, but part of me doesn’t care. Part of me thinks that […]
Apparently lately my time in gaming keeps reminding me of old lines from…things. Last week was Alan Moore and this week is Emerson. It’s not the destination, it’s the journey. This was how I felt after finally completing God Of War Ragnarok. You see, I’m often left wondering after I finish a game like that […]
Thereâs that old line from âThe Killing Jokeâ – âAll it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy.â Itâs been a long time since Iâve let a game get under my skin, but in the wrong ways. The kind that frustrates you to no end or justâ¦changes your whole attitude. Marvel Snap is doing that currently and Iâve been trying my hardest to find out what triggers the change and how I can better respond to it or eliminate it altogether. The first option, obviously, is to stop playing the game. However, I really enjoy this game, so Iâd like to find a better solution. So far, just muting the other player is actually doing a great job at keeping me calm. Or at least brings down the anger level of wanting to chuck my very expensive phone across the room. I donât like feeling that way, and nearly 99% of games that I play will not have that effect on me. But I can tell Marvel Snap is doing that and it reminds me that Iâve been there before. I canât remember what game it might have been but this isnât a new sensation for me. Itâs a horrible feeling and sort of makes me reevaluate not only the game Iâm playing but my emotions in general. Is there a game you absolutely avoid because you know how itâll make you feel? Iâm sure we all have at least one. Be it a feeling of anger, or sadness, or anxiety, frustration – some games are meant to elicit an emotion of some kind. But then thereâs the games thatâ¦I donât know, they change your state of being or mind. A completely different person emerges. This isnât only with games, of course. It can be with anything competitive or not even that, really. Speaking of bad days, Ubisoftâ¦it has been 3,434 (bad) days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, BBC radio drama, or VR exclusive) was released.
I was never too keen on Marvelâs Avengers. I had interest in it when it was announced, but the more I was shown it, the less I cared. It didnât look bad, really, although given what weâve seen, it probably could have looked better, but it never had a chance. It was a GaaS out of the gate, and a bad one at that. I never played it, but you couldnât find an article, review, message board post, anything that wasnât calling it out as a bad game. Or, if they werenât, they had hopes of it either getting better or felt they could look past the flaws. But the flaws piled on, some corrected, some overcorrected, but by that time the damage was done and the player fall off was very real. And now, theyâre ending support for the game only three years after release. Something deemed a âgame as a serviceâ doesnât do that. The âserviceâ part of that means it goes on and on until, as I said earlier, the players stop playing. And they have. Be it from bugs, or maybe even the lack of consistent updates and content – either way, itâs toast and probably really never had a chance to be anything else. I donât blame the developers. This is all on SquareEnix – the publisher. They wanted money after the game was bought and turned it into something it never should have been. I really hope Warner Brothers is paying attention here. The Suicide Squad game set to release later this year (also, seemingly, as a GaaS), could live up to its namesake if they donât nail it. Oh well, at least Splinter Cell will never be a GaaS – cause it has been 3,427 days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, BBC radio drama, or VR exclusive) was released.
Iâm currently somewhere around 30 hours into God Of War. Iâve been playing it on and off since just a week after its release in November. Earlier this week, I felt like I hit a pretty crucial story point with, what seemed like a pretty crucial boss fight. When things like that tend to happen, and this far into a game, it feels like maybe weâre about to hit our stride and start to focus on moving the story forward to an ending. God Of War had other plans. Here I am thinking that MAYBE Iâm close to an ending here but thenâ¦THENâ¦the world opens up again. I go on this side quest thing and there is this gigantic area for me to explore. Let me say again, 30 hours into a game and they justâ¦opened it up more. Not only did they do that, they threw in a mechanic to change aspects of the new area. And when changing those aspects, they threw new puzzles at me. These puzzles, when solved, ADDED ANOTHER LAYER of this new massive area. Itâs like a gaming clown car or something. This game never stops going. Iâd been in areas before that were quite large to explore but here I am again, what feels like late in the game (but maybe thatâs because I spend so much time exploring everything), and they justâ¦give you more. I donât know why that feels like some sort of novel concept. I canât say that all games should do this, but given this and I think Elden Ring does the same sort of thing, itâs a wonder more donât. I get it takes time and effort to make all of that, but it was amazing to see this area open up to me and my sudden realization that I could go explore it. As though I had conditioned myself to think it was all set dressing. Itâs the background of where you are playing and while itâs massive, you only have a small space to explore. God Of War devs said nope – if you build it then let the player explore it. Now if only Ubisoft could build a new Splinter Cell for me to explore. Itâs been 3,420 days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, BBC radio drama, or VR exclusive) was released.
Welcome to season 17! Weâve been away for two weeks and, on my end, there isnât a whole lot to show for it. Still, we do try to pick our best games of last year, even though weâ¦well, I, havenât really had a lot of variety there. Still, as a spoiler, here were my three picks: God Of War Ragnarok. Iâm still playing this game and making my way through it. Iâm slow with these kinds of games as I take my time and secure every little thing I can on the path to the boss, feeling as though Iâll lose the ambition to go back once the game is complete. None of that actually matters though because it keeps me entertained. By that I mean the game keeps pushing me forward, even with the distractions. Overall, when Iâm finished, Iâm sure I could find a few points of where the game drags, but, currently playing in the moment, I canât find those points. The story is easily holding its own and nothing, so far, feels like a waste or something thrown on to lengthen the game. Again, retrospect may prove otherwise but Iâm enjoying every moment of the game. Vampire Survivors. This would probably be my game of the year. Itâs cheap, itâs fun, and the loot/replay loop is fantastic. Then again, it was developed by one person who used to make casino games. They know a thing or two about getting you hooked and keeping you there. And this game does it flawlessly. Itâs not the prettiest looking game out there and this proves the point that looks and story arenât everything. Gameplay can come in and trump them all. Spend the five bucks. Itâs worth it. Marvel Snap. I never thought a card game would ever hook me but this one has. Itâs absolutely free to play and there is some monetization there, itâs completely your choice to spend money. I havenât spent a dime and if you think it means youâre missing out, Iâve won far more games with the base cards than I have lost. You donât win the game by spending money. And thatâs the best thing I could probably say about it. Still, itâs free, takes maybe less than 3 minutes to play a match, and you can play it anywhere on your phone or PC. Itâs currently still in âearly accessâ with a full release pending for the middle of this year so thereâs tons of potential here and room for improvement. And you canât beat free. Maybe one day I can add a Splinter Cell game to a list like above, but until then we wait. Ubisoft, itâs been 3,413 days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, BBC radio drama, or VR exclusive) was released.
The final show of the year is always kind of hard to write about and, sometimes, given whatever may be going on, just as difficult to find a subject to focus on. We had a good year and a good run of episodes and we canât thank you enough for being there with us. You have been and will always remain to be our reason for doing this. When youâre done then weâre done. We appreciate the year youâve given us. The feedback, the phone calls, the emails, likes, shares, comments, and contributions. It all means a great deal to everyone involved with the show. We canât wait to see you in the new year and we look forward to everything on the horizon from 2023. Even without a new Splinter Cell release. Thanks again for listening for all these years. We absolutely cannot do this without you. In the meantime, the clock keeps ticking. Ubisoft, itâs been 3,399 days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, BBC radio drama, or VR exclusive) was released.
Given how the night started off with the game awards, I wasnât hopeful for Elden Ring. God Of War was just raking in the wins right from the start and the more they pulled in the more I felt like the momentum of a recent release would carry the game to a sweep – or close to one. That isnât how it actually turned out, however, and the big Game Of The Year award going to Elden Ring seemed, I donât know, fitting. I canât really make a comparison as I havenât played Elden Ring. My only factors of thinking it would take home the big prize was the reach it had and the popularity it gained. Now, I have no clue if those were factors in how it was selected, but that was my criteria, for whatever reason. I wonât complain too much about the awards presentation themselves. My complaints from previous years pretty much still stand. Stop steamrolling through awards. Give the devs (not the publishers) their time for recognition. Cut back on reveals. Oh, and maybe cut back on categories as well. And as a recent addition to the complaints – beef up security. Weâve got one more show left to go before we say goodbye for the year. Join us next week for our Christmas show – whatever that entails. In the meantime, Ubisoft, itâs been 3,392 days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, BBC radio drama, or VR exclusive) was released.
It wasnât my biggest haul of games over the holiday weekend but it was enough. Though I suppose at this point getting the deals is the easy part. It’s finding the time to play them – thatâs the tricky one. I probably pulled in about 10 news games or so over the weekend, but Iâve only really been playing Ragnarok. And given what was told to me in the chat room during this episode as far as where I was in the game, Iâll be playing that for a good while this month. Itâs the only game of the year contender Iâve played all year. Thatâs almost literally speaking given the nominees for that category in this yearâs game awards. So, sure, it has my vote, I guess. Speaking of, Iâll try my best to not fall into rant territory when we discuss the results of those awards next week. We watch it for one reason, and sadly, it isnât the awards. Hell, this year weâre watching it for another reason and thatâs bribery (steam deck giveaway). In the meantime, Ubisoft, itâs been 3,385 days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, BBC radio drama, or VR exclusive) was released.
A show so nice weâre playing it twice. Actually, we do this every year around this time. Mainly because what weâre talking about in this episode will still apply come next weekend. Itâs Black Friday week, so weâre all about the deals. So long as they are console related. The PC folks among us take a backseat on the deals, sadly. I mean, we get some PC deals from a few places but digital retailers donât advertise ahead of time as to what kind of discounts weâll see. Hopefully a few of these on the consoles line up on PC, but it rarely happens. If youâre looking for the Black Friday spreadsheet of deals, you can find it on our Facebook page or in our Discord. Weâll likely throw out a tweet about it soon, as well. I always talk about how fast games get a discount after being released and I think Sonic Frontiers takes home the gold this year for only being out about a week and already getting a fifty percent slash, but there are plenty of other discounts out there. However you go about getting your video game deals, we hope you have a great holiday and get the games you want at the price you want! Weâll be back in two weeks! The original Splinter Cell game is free right now on Ubisoftâs store in celebration for like 20 years since it first released. Weâre almost at HALF that since the last Splinter Cell released. In fact, itâs been 3,371 days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, or VR exclusive) was released.
Itâs either A or B. Two choices. Sure, there will be more choices, of course, but itâs really down to just two. Elden Ring or God Of War Ragnarok. Those are your Game Of The Year contenders, and I havenât played either of them. Yet. Ragnarok is only a matter of time for me. Elden Ringâ¦is likely something Iâll never play. Itâs just not my cup of tea when it comes to gaming. That isnât to say itâs bad. I just donât drift towards those types of games, but I easily tip my hat to what it has been able to pull off. And, in fact, I think itâll win more Games Of The Year than it loses. But I could be wrong, as Josh pointed out in this episode, God Of War has the advantage of being fresh of mind for folks. Again, I haven’t played either of them, but Elden Ring pulled off a lot. The sales are phenomenal and I know that isnât a factor, but it likely has some effect just given the sheer number of people whoâve played the game. So, yes, Ragnarok has the fresh of mind advantage, Elden Ring has the longevity factor. The game has been out longer and had enough time for a massive amount of people to have played it. Thereâs also the benefit of being multi-platform. Ragnarok is stuck on the PS4/PS5. For now. My case for Elden Ring is not only the sales numbers but the reviews were nothing but glowing and this game opened a lot of doors for a lot of people. Strictly speaking, games who never ventured into such a genre did so with Elden Ring. Bottle. Lightening. Captured. Was it George RR Martin who pulled them in? Maybe. Was it the promotion of the game? Maybe. Was it the developer? Sure, but that audience was already built in from their previous games. Like I said, it all came together in such a way that I donât think anyone expected what actually happened. Successful, sure, but THIS kind of success – it surprised a lot of people. Thatâs not to take away from God Of War Ragnarok. I think both titles are worthy of the recognition, but, oddly enough, I give the edge to Elden Ring. A game Iâll never play. But watch Forza Horizon 5 take home the trophy. Did you know thereâs almost been a decade of Games Of The Years given out since Splinter Cell Blacklist released? Ubisoft, itâs been 3,364 days since a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, or VR exclusive) was released.
Iâm not sure weâve ever had a peripheral cost more than the console it was made for. Now, sure, I can imagine going back to the NES days with the Power Glove/Pad/Gun/Etc, those would cost more given the console had already been out for a while. But the PSVR2 coming out next year will cost $50 more than the console you have to have to use it with. I mean, youâve spent over a thousand dollars and still havenât bought any games to play with the system or the VR. We havenât really seen any sort of reviews yet for the device so Iâm sure somewhere in all of it you can find a reason for $550. I was going to just recommend the Quest 2 and call it a day, but I can imagine for that amount of money youâll be getting something significantly better. On paper, itâs already there. And the few previews we do have say itâs pretty amazing. But, just like the console it was built for, the library will keep it alive. Or kill it. I poked around with the first VR headset Sony did and just a year or so ago it went back to the store for credit. For me, too much was involved, especially compared to something like the Quest, where I can just put it on and play. The VR attached to the console meant I needed a camera and a ton of connections. It was far less than what I needed for the HTC Vive or original Oculus, but it was still an effort to get it all connected and then get it all out of the way when I was done playing. The Quest 2 has spoiled me, in that regard. And maybe the PSVR2 would do that as well with just the quality, but itâll need more games than what’s on offer to keep me invested. And also a price cut too. Meanwhileâ¦Ubisoft, itâs been 3,357 days for a new Splinter Cell game (non-animated series or guest spot in another game franchise, remake, or VR exclusive).