4Player Podcast

Inspired by 'The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles,' Brad entices the group this week with the Dance of Sedu... *ahem* Deduction. Chris Davis talks up 'Chernobylite' (the next game from the developers of Get Even) and Nolan revisits the delightful world of 'Overcooked: All You Can Eat' to talk about the new Birthday Party expansion. We also discuss our time with 'Grounded' from last week which obviously devolves into a nostalgic discussion about 'Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.' Oh... and WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON WITH BLUE BOX?

It's been an odd week to say the least. Aside from catching up on games talked about in week's past, Nick has been involved in a comedy of errors involving his PC. On top of that, Chris Davis did the impossible and FINISHED Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey! With that in mind, we opened up questions this week to the community at large and spent the bulk of the show addressing everything from difficult cheese questions to the pronunciation of places in the UK to the latest Blue Box conspiracy theories!

The first segment this week is dominated by games developed by Nintendo or rooted in a deep appreciation of classic Nintendo game design. Nick and Nolan talk up Death's Door which feels heavily inspired by classic Zelda but with a modern spin. Brad is replaying Metroid Fusion in preparation for the release of Metroid Dread and Nolan is playing The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword for the first time thanks to the release of the HD remaster. In the news, we debate the approach EA is taking to the re-launch of the Dead Space series after the announcement of a remake at EA Play.

Nolan hosts the show this week since Nick has fallen victim to the perils of being middle-aged. As they say though, the show must go on. Brad delivers his impressions of Monster Hunter Stories 2 (much to the dismay of Chris Davis) and the indie strategy RPG, Wildermyth. Krispy is finally far enough to deliver some juicy impressions of Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers now that he's had some time with the expansion with the community! Of course, this episode was recorded mere hours after the announcement of the Valve Steam Deck so we deliver our first impressions of this bonkers announcement.

Leave it to Nolan to make a game about flipping houses (House Flipper) sound super compelling! Additionally, Brad has a "new" game for fans of Slay the Spire called Griftlands, Nick gives an update on his progress in Returnal, and Chris Davis talks about his secret love of Photography... and why New Pokemon Snap doesn't quite capitalize on that concept in 2021. Of course, Nintendo dropped big (and unexpected?) news this week with the announcement of the new Switch OLED model so we cover our thoughts on that.

Do you like Metroidvanias? We do! This week, Brad returns to talk about a "gemmie" that you won't want to miss called 'Astalon: Tears of the Earth.' On that same front, Nick played all the way through 'Blasphemous' and highly recommends it. We also talk about 'Mario Golf: Super Rush' for the Switch and the demo for the upcoming 'Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin!' In the second segment, David joined the group to answer questions and talk about the latest rumors involving Konami, Bloober Team, and Silent Hill.

Not only are we rocking shiny new recording equipment (courtesy of our Patreon & Twitch supporters) but there is a LOT to talk about in this post E3 2021 world. Nick finally has a chance to talk at length about what he thinks of Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart and Nolan has found his latest obsession in the form of Industries of Titan. Krispy surprises the group this week with a fantastic discussion about the potential behind an exciting early access gem called Phantom Abyss. Of course, Steam Next Fest recently ended so Nick and Chris Davis plug a few of their favorite demos from the event such as SABLE, They Always Run, Road 96, and more!

For obvious reasons, 2021 may be remembered as the strangest year for both E3 and for the industry in general. Now that the first all-digital E3 has come and gone, we sat down to talk about the big news and glaring omissions from this year's bizarre showing. Despite all the weirdness, there is still a ton to be excited about including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2, Metroid Dread, Starfield, and more. This episode includes an extensive recap but it's not comprehensive. We recommend checking out the E3 Recap website to see everything discussed on this episode and more!

It's hard to believe but after nearly two years, E3 is upon us. While the show is going full digital this year due to the Pandemic, the industry is bracing itself for announcement season nonetheless. In this episode we take a stab at predicting what we may or may not see at the various presentations from publishers like Microsoft, Nintendo, Ubisoft, Capcom, and more! We also respond to some predictions and dream announcements from the community!

This week, Biomutant fails to deliver the experience we were hoping for but it's not all bad. Brad delivers an update on the Monster Hunter Rise 3.0 update and elsewhere in the industry, it begins to feel like E3 season despite the obvious caveats that go hand-in-hand with the event this year. We talk about the rumored Souls-like Final Fantasy spin-off from Team Ninja and we give our impressions of the big Dying Light 2 and Horizon: Forbidden West reveals that dropped this week!

What's old is new again in 2021! Nolan is deep into the 1.0 release of Subnautica: Below Zero and loving this follow-up to one of our favorite games of 2018! Nick and Chris talk about their time with Mass Effect: Legendary Edition before it inevitably veers into the great Mass Effect debate of 2007. Brad delivers his final thoughts on Resident Evil Village and the group spends a surprising amount of time talking about theme park rides.

Nick is joined by community guests, TheDrunkenMerchant and GonzoLewd, to talk about the 2nd Revival Club game of the year, Final Fantasy XII! While the series has a long and storied history, this entry is often overlooked or excluded during discussions about the series despite being chock full of inspired (but flawed) ideas and being heavily influenced by the growing popularity of MMOs in the early 2000's. There is even some discussion about what influences, if any, this game might have on the upcoming release of Final Fantasy XVI.

Resident Evil has long been a celebrated franchise here at 4Player in one way or another so this week, we spend a considerable amount of time discussing our thoughts on Resident Evil Village. On top of that, we challenge ourselves to avoid mentioning previous games in the franchise with varying degrees of success. Nolan continued his journey into Zelda's celebrated past by playing The Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap for the first time and in the second segment, we revisit some of our favorite in-store demos from our youth and answer some fun hypotheticals courtesy of our Patreon and Twitch supporter questions.

On Brad's birthday episode, we talk about our time with Returnal; a fun and demanding Rogue-Like that just might be one of the biggest arguments for going in on a PS5 this early. Chris Davis "prepared a statement" about Yakuza 7 and Nolan delivers his final thoughts on It Takes Two now that he and Bernadette finished it. We also pour one out for the talent that is departing Giant Bomb this week and in the news, we skim the surface of the big Epic vs. Apple lawsuit.

David returns this week to talk about his more recent (misunderstood) obsession, Balan Wonderworld. Nick talks the new remake of Nier Replicant and Brad introduces a cool new indie-tactics game called Tenderfoot Tactics. Of course, Brad gushes over the new Monster Hunter Rise 2.0 update and we briefly revisit Resident Evil Village to about the new Castle demo that dropped this week.

After week-off to hunt monsters together, we have a ton to catch up on! The first big demo for Resident Evil Village has dropped and resulted in some mixed feelings within the group. Brad played a really creative indie game called 'Before Your Eyes' which you control by blinking and Nolan has been enjoying more time with the shockingly long 'It Takes Two!' In the community segment, we answer questions and tackle the big rumors regarding Sony, Days Gone 2, and a remake of The Last of Us! For more information regarding the 'Days Gone' Anniversary Stream, please visit 4PlayerNetwork.com!

This week, we unintentionally butcher Donald Glover's name. Ed joins the fray with his first appearance since getting his hands on a Playstation 5. He shares some thoughts on the first few launch titles he played and then talks at length about his time with Outriders; a game that has become a major topic of conversation lately. Nick talks Narita Boy, Nolan is split on It Takes Two for an unexpected reason, and Chris Davis has prepared a statement... about Days Gone. We also talk a little more about Monster Hunter Rise and tackle some big news in the community questions segment thanks to a big announcement concerning E3.

This week marks what might be the first major release of the year, 'Monster Hunter Rise.' While we take our first deep dive into this follow-up to Monster Hunter World, that conversation is almost overshadowed by an unexpected analysis of Nick's Letterbox history... Brad and Krispy delivery another Final Fantasy XIV update (including Heavensward) and Nick once again emphasizes the quality of indie-horror gem, Mundaun, which he finished since last week. We also take a brief detour to remember the Xbox 360 launch title, King Kong.

Get ready for another journey of discovery. David joins us this week to talk about Mary Skelter 2; another grid-based dungeon crawler about "blood maidens" who... lick things? Brad is enjoying Bravely Default 2 despite the fact that he's about to drop it like a bad habit for Monster Hunter Rise. Nolan gives another Valheim update and Nick is loving Mundaun; an indie folk-horror game that was made in either Sweden or Switzerland (he cannot remember).

In an interesting turn of events, Nick is playing through Lust from Beyond; an adults-only game that feels like a strange combination of Amnesia and Eyes Wide Shut. Krispy has uncovered the full potential of Monster Hunter World and has found himself obsessing over the new found depths while playing the Iceborne expansion. Nick also discusses the new demo for an exciting new indie horror game with a lo-fi style called Chasing Static. Of course, we also delve into community questions and answer the age-old question of: Which is worse, undivided public urinals or the dreaded trough...

Do you like intense debates about the quality of the Final Fantasy XIV? Do you like hearing Nolan school the group on the proper way to thrive in open-world survival games? Do you like Nick's blatant disregard for important video game history? Well boy do I have a podcast for you! Brad and Krispy take a deep dive into the world's most popular MMO. While the group "played" Valheim last week, Nolan is building castles and raising wolves now so.... Oh yeah, Nick 100-percented Bowser's Fury and considers it one of his favorite 3D Mario games and he skipped the original Half Life in favor of the fan-made remake, Black Mesa!

After an act of god forced us to skip the show last week, we play catch-up this week. David joins the fray again to talk with Brad about Ys IX: Monstrum Nox, Nick and Brad share differing opinions on Little Nightmares II, and Brad speaks to why he is cautiously optimistic for Project Triangle Strategy after playing the demo. On top of all that, there has been an abundance of news worth discussing including the cancellation of Anthem and the future of Konami IP.

On this episode of the Revival Club, Nick is joined by Castlevania super-fan, Brad Simons, and community guest, Ferakin, to dig into what makes Symphony of the Night such a classic. We examine it's wealth of secrets and discuss how its rough edges and imperfections actually make it even better. Brad also conveniently reminds us that this episode started as a Double Feature so we also talk some about Rondo of Blood, the impact it had on the series, and how it paved the way for Symphony of the Night.

This week, we forgo our usual itinerary in favor of breaking down a bunch of game demos from the recent Steam Games Festival. Brad shows up with an unexpected theme (Have you heard of Slay the Spire?) and Chris Davis played a Star Fox clone about Cats (Whisker Squadron)... Despite his best efforts, Nick was unable to avoid the cliche of liking f***ed up s*** and played 'Lust from Beyond' -- a Survival Horror game about infiltrating a demonic sex cult. Of course, this is just a small taste. We talked about a bunch of games, many of which you should keep on your radar in the coming year(s).

We're off to the races. Nick discusses his mixed feelings on the next big game from Bloober Team, The Medium; a game that has been oddly positioned as one of the year's big Microsoft exclusives. Nolan and Brad talk about their time with the demo for a cool new Rogue-like called Loop Hero. Of course, with a new Monster Hunter game on the horizon, Brad went back to try Monster Hunter Stories in an attempt to quench his unquenchable thirst for more Monster Hunter. Oh yeah... KoToR might be coming back.

As the new year starts to kick into gear, David joins us to talk about Hitman 3; a game that continues to deliver unparalleled freedom to the player for better or worse. We also delve into two major demos from Capcom that hit in the past week. Monster Hunter Rise delivers a fun and meaty demo that fails to consider series newbies while Resident Evil Village teases atmosphere and little else.

The past year has been anything but normal but we press on as usual with our annual awards show. Unlike in years past, we are eliminating runner-ups and honorable mentions in favor of a coordinated effort that eliminates any overlap between our choices. That means more games are honored in each category! In part 5, we discuss the following categories: Biggest Surprise Biggest Disappointment The Asterisk Award Biggest Regret The Number 11 Award This episode includes a short sample from Nick's favorite soundtrack of the year: The Last of Us: Part II

The past year has been anything but normal but we press on as usual with our annual awards show. Unlike in years past, we are eliminating runner-ups and honorable mentions in favor of a coordinated effort that eliminates any overlap between our choices. That means more games are honored in each category! In part 4, we discuss the following categories: Best Ensemble Cast Best New Character Best Enemy Design Best Boss Fight Best Moment This episode includes a short sample from Ed's favorite soundtrack of the year: Ghost of Tsushima

The past year has been anything but normal but we press on as usual with our annual awards show. Unlike in years past, we are eliminating runner-ups and honorable mentions in favor of a coordinated effort that eliminates any overlap between our choices. That means more games are honored in each category! In part 3, we discuss the following categories: Best Debut Best Looking Game Best World / Level Design Best Storytelling This episode includes a short sample from Krispy's favorite soundtrack of the year: Kentucky Route Zero

The past year has been anything but normal but we press on as usual with our annual awards show. Unlike in years past, we are eliminating runner-ups and honorable mentions in favor of a coordinated effort that eliminates any overlap between our choices. That means more games are honored in each category! In part 2, we discuss the following categories: Best Multiplayer Experience Best Comfort Food Most Out of our Comfort Zone Best Game Nobody Played This episode includes a short sample from Nolan's favorite soundtrack of the year: Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout

The past year has been anything but normal but we press on as usual with our annual awards show. Unlike in years past, we are eliminating runner-ups and honorable mentions in favor of a coordinated effort that eliminates any overlap between our choices. That means more games are honored in each category! In part 1, we discuss the following categories: Best New Gameplay Experience Best Sequel Best Game Feel Most Addictive This episode includes a short sample from Brad's favorite soundtrack of the year: Creaks Part 2 will be available on Tuesday, January 19th.

What could be more fitting than inviting utter chaos on our 666th episode (HAIL SATAN) of the show? David joins us this week and brings the crew count up to 6! We dive deep into Immortals: Fenyx Rising to talk about why it's not as great as Breath of the Wild and why that doesn't really matter. Nolan and Chris Davis share their experience with the Back 4 Blood Alpha which brings Left 4 Dead back into relevancy in 2021. Nick talks about his introduction to modern Hitman and why he now feels more optimistic about IO Interactive making a James Bond game. Disclaimer - I hope it goes without saying but... we do not worship Satan.

It's finally here. The end of 2020. It's been a wreck of a year for the most part despite being quite good for the world of video games. But what better way to put it behind us than to look to the future. Working closely with out community in Discord, we put together a comprehensive list of games slated for release in 2021 (and beyond) that you might want to keep an eye on. In fact, the list is over 140 games long! However, we each kick things off with our personal Top 3!

2020 May be almost over but it's still willing to claim one more victim. Cyberpunk 2077 has unfortunately had a somewhat... disastrous launch (the game was pulled from digital storefronts just moments before this recording). Despite all that, we have sunk up to 30 hours into a game that is, for all intents and purposes, incomplete. Nick recommends Tell Me Why from the creators of Life is Strange and Brad has found a lot to enjoy in Ubisoft's Immortals: Fenyx Rising. Disclaimer: Due to an unforseen audio hiccup, the audio in the 1st segment may not sound as clean. Chris Davis's audio is garbled at the very beginning and a tad uneven due to some post production edits that needed to be made. Additionally, we ended up having to rip the audio from Twitch for the 1st segment so some of the Subscriber notification sounds may have found there way into the audio. We apologize for the dip in quality this week.

4Player OG David returns to the hot seat this week and with him comes his unique brand of chaos... and impressions of a bizarre but intriguing game called 'Zanki Zero.' Nick and Nolan take a deeper dive into Assassin's Creed Valhalla to try and pinpont what makes this game more enjoyable than it's predecessors. Brad expounds upon why Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity might be worth your time and Chris Davis goes full Chris Davis on Project Wingman (a love letter to Ace Combat). Viewer questions also goes to some truly unexpected places. You have been warned.

This week's episode is jam packed full of new games to talk about; It's an absolute Playstation 5 bonanza! Now that the system has been out for a week, we take a closer look at Bugsnax (obviously), Sackboy: A Big Adventure and Spider-Man Miles Morales. Nick and Nolan share their EARLY impressions of Assassin's Creed Valhalla which is clearly going to be another divisive monster of a game. Nolan surprises with The Pathless and Chris Davis is already almost through the remake of Demon's Souls. We also discuss the exciting news that IO Interactive is making a James Bond game and a BIG leak from Capcom.

Even amidst the mess that is 2020, there are glimmers of hope. The next generation of console gaming has started and we have our first hands-on impressions of the Playstation 5. Nolan talks about his time with Yakuza: Like a Dragon and Nick shares tales of his time with Visage; a game that both terrifies and captivates. Furthermore, Krispy and Nick take a deeper dive into Ghost of Tsushima Legends now that it has been out for a few weeks.

After taking a week off of podcasting to play Phasmophobia together, we finally have a chance to talk at length about what makes the game such a hit. Brad and Nick talk about the latest entry in The Dark Pictures anthology, Little Hope, and Nolan surprises us with an inspired indie survival game with adorable husky dogs called The Red Lantern. Nick also delivers his impressions of Watch Dogs Legion which doesn't revolutionize the genre but certainly takes a stab at some interesting mechanical ideas.

Try as we might, we couldn't resist the pull of Genshin Impact. We take our first look at this Gacha sensation to see how it really compares to (and differentiates itself from) Breath of the Wild. Kris gives us his thoughts on Ghost of Tsushima Legends, the new muiltiplayer update that launched this week, and Nick discusses the scare tactics of Amnesia Rebirth.

In this (long overdue) episode of the Revival Club, we dig into the underdog of Rockstar's catalog: Bully. Released in 2006, this game established a cult following over the years thanks to it's charm, humor, and departure from Rockstar's standard M-rated subject matter. Together, with two community guests (Finding 404 & MrGreenTos), we discuss what makes this game special and why it remains one of Rockstar's biggest IPs this side of Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption.

With new hardware just a few weeks away, Sony has finally pulled back the curtain on it's new Playstation 5 UX (User Experience). We extract what we can from the virtual tour but there are still many questions left unanswered. In impressions, Brad talks about his time with 'Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time' and Ed introduces 'Wildfire,' a game that harkens back to 'Mark of the Ninja.' Nick also discusses his new found love of 'Mortal Shell,' the latest (and perhaps truest) love-letter to the original Dark Souls on the market.

We never would have guessed that EA would manage to crank out not one, but TWO impressive Star Wars games in a row. Krispy returns to the fold this week to talk about 'Star Wars Squadrons' and how it has managed to surprise and delight against the odds. The group also dives even deeper into 'Hades', Nick highlights 'Lost in Vivo' courtesy of Carlos' recommendation, and Chris Davis revisits '13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim' now that he has sunk a considerable amount of time into it. In the 2nd segment, it's been a slow news week so we use that extra air time to catch up on supporter questions.

October has arrived but before we dive into a slew of horror games, we take a closer look at 3 recent releases spanning 3 very different genres. Brad gives us his initial impressions of a visual novel and the latest game from Vanillaware, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. Nolan finally has his hands on Spelunky 2 and Nick played through Mafia: Definitive Edition, a ground-up remake of the original. We discuss the sudden announcement of Luna, Amazon's new Stadia competitor and we have some fun trying to decide which fictional post-apocalypse we would prefer to be stuck in.

Nearly 20 years later, Super Mario Sunshine has returned as part of the Super Mario 3D All Stars Collection to remind us that the famous plumber has a dark side. Luckily, Ed joins us this week to ensure us that Super Mario Galaxy is still a delight and to gush over Hades, the latest game from Supergiant, with Brad. But despite all that, Brad assures the group that the best platformer on the market right now is the remake of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 & 2. Oh... and Microsoft bought Zenimax for $7.5 Billion! We hash out what that means for the industry and for big franchises like Elder Scrolls and Fallout.

With only two months remaining until the launch of next-gen hardware, we take a deep dive into the launch strategies and lineups for both Microsoft and Sony. Of course, with that comes the unexpected chaos that unfolded around the pre-orders of the Playstation 5. We each bring a game to the table this week as well including our first look at Among Us, Spellbreak, and Terminator: Resistance. Nick chimes in on Paper Mario: The Origami King and Brad brings an indie gem called There is No Game: Wrong Dimension.

With Y2K Month at an end, we finally have a chance to talk about some of the big games and announcements that took place in August. Nolan gives us the rundown on Fall Guys, Brad pimps Wasteland 3, and we take a closer look at an exciting indie title called Undermine! In the news, we share our thoughts on the Suicide Squad and Gotham Knights news plus the big announcements from Nintendo on Mario's 35th anniversary!

It may be the end of Y2K Month but we still have a ton of nostalgia lined up. In our final episode of the month devoted to the games of the year 2000, we all find something to be excited about. Between the five of us, we revisit The Misadventures of Tron Bonne, Parasite Eve 2, Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force, Dino Crisis 2, and more! Brad even found a new passion for Valkyrie Profile and a new found appreciation for The Legend of Dragoon!

With very little in the way of new releases to focus on in August, we have turned our eyes to the games that came out in the year 2000! All month long, we are playing and discussing nothing but games celebrating their 20th anniversary in the year of our lord, 2020. On this episode, we gush over Metal Gear: Ghost Babel, the original Deus Ex, and Perfect Dark! Brad hate-plays Shenmue and visits a classic entry in the Tales series, Tales of Eternia! There's also a healthy dose of Paper Mario in there for good measure.

After weeks of intense discourse and controversy surrounding the release of 'The Last of Us: Part II,' the time has finally come for us to dive deep into spoiler-territory. We dedicated this entire episode to dissecting the biggest game of the year. There is a ton to discuss and we do our best to cover it all. We bridge the gap between both games and deliver our personal insights into the themes, characters, and events that make this game so impactful.

It is rare that all 5 of us both play and enjoy a game on this podcast but that is exactly what happened with Ghost of Tsushima. The discussion that ensues is chaotic and unpredictable, but enthusiastic! Nolan and Brad are a bit torn however after their first few hours with Paper Mario: The Origami King. In the 2nd segment, we deliver our reactions to the big Xbox Games Showcase which included the first reveal of Halo Infinite gameplay and the return of Fable!