Remap Radio

The Remap crew is back from PAX East and eager to talk about games! Unfortunately, the haunting presence of AI continues to rear its ugly head in the gaming industry. On a lighter note, did you know that Rob had never seen Wii Shop Wednesday? Wild right?Discussed: 1:23 - I am Jesus, AI50:30 - Playstation prices be crazy 1:15:52 - Slay the Spire 2, Life is Strange 1:36:03 - iRacing Arcade 1:46:52 - Screamer2:05:52 - Super Meatboy 3D 2:18:14 - Mailbag See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Every day is a fresh horror in the world of games, but no matter what happens to the “industry,” the art isn’t going away. Where does one find hope? Patrick went shopping for hope at PAX East and came way inspired after chatting with a series of interesting developers, including El Paso, Elsewhere director (and Hellraiser voice actor!!) Xalavier Nelson Jr., Paranormal Activity: Threshold designer Brian Clarke (also responsible for the excellent The Mortuary Assistant), and more. Plus, in a lovely twist, Patrick was able to chat with several developers working on video games who are active parts of the Remap community, too. If that’s not hope, what is?Interviews: 3:26 - Xalavier Nelson Jr.28:16 - Paranormal Activity48:57 - Croak1:01:40 - Barty's Adventure1:18:32 - The Secret of Crystal MountainSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A trip to PAX East means we’re not that far from Rob’s extremely normal house! Patrick and Chia hopped in a car to inspect the fabled grounds for themselves, before they piled into Rob’s office to chat about spotting Charlie Kirk t-shirts at on the show floor, a bunch of neat games Chia and Patrick played, and a long recounting of an excellent recent game of John Company.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week the Remap Crew is out at PAX East (come to the meetup 5 PM on Saturday, at the Birch Bar at the Westin Seaport!) which means a quick and dirty episode with just Rob, Janet, and Chia. Despite being down several members and trying to make this pod editable in a timely fashion since we're all traveling, we've still managed to make an over two hour pod filled with the latest news, games, and home decor discussions.Discussed:2:15 - Epic Games Lays Off 1000 Workers22:15 - Crimsom Dessert Walks Back Use of AI Assets42:52 - The nVidia DLSS 5 Debacle Redux59:44 - Nacon has 4 studios file for bankruptcy1:03:41 - Janet's Move1:06:19 - Rob's New Entertainment Console1:26:55 - Pokopia1:36:55 - Slay the Spire 21:39:34 - Marathon1:46:54 - The Question Bucket2:39:51 - Outro and AnnouncementsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Max “Hella” Caulfield may have the ability to manipulate time and space, but despite her superpowers, it’s more than likely that this week’s release of Life Is Strange: Reunion signals the end of Life Is Strange. Patrick recently had a chance to chat with actor Hannah Tell, who’s played Max since the very beginning, about what it means to bring this story to a conclusion. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Welcome back to Worth Reading, where Patrick chats with people doing interesting writing, reporting, and criticism in the world of video games. This week, Patrick’s talking with longtime video game reporter Keza MacDonald, who is currently the games editor at The Guardian and, despite being a parent to several children, also the author of a new book about Nintendo. Is Nintendo a technology company? Why is “play” so important to the company’s longevity?Make sure to check out Keza’s book, Super Nintendo: The Game-Changing Company That Unlocked the Power of Play, which is available wherever books are sold https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/753986/super-nintendo-by-keza-macdonald/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Where else to begin this week’s episode of Remap Radio than with the massive backlash to Nvidia’s big DLSS 5 announcement? Join Patrick, Chia, Rob, and Janet as they slop their way through a rare moment of unified horror on the internet. Plus, Patrick’s been playing Crimson “The Everything Game” Desert, Chia’s spent extended time with Pragmata, Janet’s already very deep into a Slay the Spire 2 rabbit hole, and more.Links: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-for-heart-emergency-abroad https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/ubisoft-ends-game-development-at-tom-clancy-studio-red-storm-resulting-in-105-job-losses/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dTTfjBAFzcDiscussed:4:02 - Ubisoft Shutters Game Development at Tom Clancy studio16:35 - The DLSS 5 Debacle1:33:25 - Subnautica 2 Wrongful Termination Suit1:39:05 - Crimson Desert2:04:19 - Slay the Spire 22:27:38 - Minishoot Adventures2:29:30 - Pragmata2:44:42 - MarathonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Rob sits down with Duncan Fyfe to discuss his piece on the lore and world building of Bethesda's The Elder Scrolls: Morrowind and the tension that can form between developers and fans when there's competing visions on what a game's narrative and lore focus "should" be. They also discuss the shift in Bethesda's games to start including more and more incentives to keep players in the game that exist outside of their authored narratives, the way the specter generative AI looms over this shift to expansiveness, and what it could mean for the future of Bethesda.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Janet's at GDC and the crew is joined by games critic, let's player extraordinaire, former Waypoint contributor (and recent Remap contributor) and longtime friend of the show Dia Lacina to talk Project Helix, the wild and increasingly expensive world of Fortnite V-Bucks, the state of New York suing Valve, Star Trek, and more. We talk about seven video games this episode.. seven! That's a lot! Links: Project Helix, V-Bucks price increase to help pay the bills, New York sues Valve, Jeff Kaplan on his exit from Blizzard, Dia's Star Trek: Voyager - Across the Unknown reviewDiscussed:1:19:30 - Star Trek: Voyager - Across the Unknown (and general Star Trek discussion)1:52:44 - Pokémon Pokopia2:13:45 - Marathon2:14:55 - Slay the Spire II2:17:06 - Minishoot' Adventures2:18:14 - Super Battle Golf2:25:57 - 1348 Ex VotoSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Welcome back to Worth Reading, where Patrick has a 30-minute chat with people doing interesting writing, reporting, and criticism in the world of video games. This week, Patrick’s talking with investigate journalist Jack Ryan about his excellent (but distressing) piece in Aftermath about the way casinos, crypto, and AI are junking up your favorite web sites. Make sure to read Jack’s piece at Aftermath, entitled “The Secretive Company Filling Video Game Sites With Gambling And AI” https://aftermath.site/gameshub-clickout-media-seo-gambling-ai/Link to Jack's Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/continuemagazine/continue-a-defiant-new-videogames-magazineSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join Patrick, Janet, Chia, and Danika for Remap Radio, where it’s time for another upsetting trip into the world of “Hey, why did this live service game fail?” with Highguard and “Hey, it really feels like AI is rotting things?” with the news that a video game website was caught publishing an AI-written Resident Evil 9: Requiem review. We’ve also been playing video games, of course, with Janet and Patrick having finished Resident Evil 9, almost everyone dipping their toes into Marathon, and Patrick doing all the grind work in Pokémon Pokopia for his nine-year-old child. Links: Highguard is shutting down this month, Metacritic Removes Resident Evil 9 Review From Fake AI WriterDiscussed:8:13 - Highguard shutting down34:28 - Metacritic removes AI review of RE91:03:18 - Marathon1:36:17 - Resident Evil 92:07:16 - Pokémon Pokopia2:22:53 - Question BucketSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When Adam Stjärnljus and Klas Eriksson met in middle school, little did they know they’d become close friends and decades later decide to chase a wild dream of making a video game together. They were not video game developers, but for years, they toiled away at what would eventually become the cinematic platformer Planet of Lana. A few years later, the sequel is here, and Patrick recently spoke with Stjärnljus and Eriksson about their journey to this moment.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

With Rob’s power out, it’s time for the rest of Remap Radio to come together and…well, do some really questionable Mario impressions, for starters. Join Patrick, Chia, Danika, and Janet as they react to the ongoing leadership saga at Xbox, Discord punting on scanning your face, and more. Plus, we’ve got a long segment on the excellent Resident Evil 9: Requiem, thoughts on where Yapyap sits against other friendslop games, and ponder what Janet’s 20 hours with Sons of Sparta says about how she spends her time. Oh, and we answer a few questions, too.Links: Easy Mode Mod for Love EternalDiscussed:6:22 - Bluepoint Shuts Down, XBOX Leadership change 36:24 - Discord Postpones Age Verification53:09 - Resident Evil 9 Requiem 1:27:28 - Structural Spoiler for RE 91:36:50 - Marathon1:42:35 - YapYap1:53:00 - God of War: Sons of Sparta2:03:26 - Question BucketSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

One of 2026’s early standouts is Cairn, a moving and challenging game about slowly scaling a towering mountain, about the sacrifices one makes along the way and in pursuit of even attempting such a journey. Patrick’s been especially taken by Cairn, prompting him to chat with The Game Bakers co-founder and CEO Audrey Leprince about the studio’s three-year journey to develop Cairn and what it makes for a game to have, as the French put it, supplément d’âme.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Patrick has decided to reinvent his old column celebrating good writing about video games, this time in podcast form! Worth Reading is a new reoccurring segment at Remap with a simple pitch: 30 minutes of conversation using a piece of interesting games writing as a launching point. This week, Patrick is happily joined by writer and editor Nicole Clark to discuss her piece for the new publication Mothership, entitled “Hornet’s compassion is the heart of Silksong."Make sure to read "Hornet’s compassion is the heart of Silksong" at Mothership: https://www.mothership.blog/hollow-knight-silksong-hornet-compassion/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Last Friday, news broke that much of the senior leadership that’s been steering Xbox for the past decade and more have departed the company. Phil Spencer? Retired. Sarah Bond? Gone. Instead, one of the members of that group, Matt Booty, has ascended alongside a new Xbox CEO that comes from Microsoft’s—wait for it—AI division. Rob and Patrick spent a few minutes (okay, an hour!) trying to untangle what this all means.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s time to take The Warden’s Oath and listen to a new episode of Remap Radio, as Patrick, Janet, Chia, Rob, and Danika break down the wild ups and downs of the latest confused live service game, Highguard. We also sigh in the direction of a video game publication pivoting to AI, then sigh in the direction of Mewgenics, a game that Patrick quite liked before its designer decided to publicly step in it over and over. Elsewhere, we chat about a few other games, including Love Eternal and the mysterious Titanium Court, and then answer several of your questions.Discussed:0:54 - Highguard Dev Lays Off Large Percentage of Staff36:45 - The Escapist Pivots to AI50:26 - AI is Causing a Ram Shortage1:08:20 - Mewgenics1:41:57 - Titanium Court1:53:29 - God of War: Sons of Sparta1:56:55 - Love Eternal2:15:12 - The Question BucketSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Platformers are not a genre exactly known for their storytelling prowess, but Love Eternal, described as a “psychological horror platformer,” is trying to be different. It’s also one of the hardest platformers in a minute. Why is Love Eternal putting so much effort into a story many players might not experience? Patrick talked with Love Eternal designer Toby Alden to find out.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s a return to normalcy on Remap Radio, as we finally wave goodbye to 2025. Join Janet, Rob, Patrick, Chia, and Danika as they sort through reactionary “protect the children” changes coming to Discord, prompting a wide ranging discussion about the state of the modern internet. We also worry about the future of Remedy, talk through the final games on Danika’s game of the year list, and have plenty of (new!) games to talk about, including Cairn, Reanimal, and more! Micropose Links:https://store.steampowered.com/app/1347560/Let_Bions_Be_Bygones/https://store.steampowered.com/app/2393730/Legendary_Pilots/https://store.steampowered.com/app/1428520/Mech_Engineer/Discussed: 1:09 - Discord announces new ID verification29:46 Remedy has a new CEO54:46 - Danika's Top 3 Games of 2025 55:37 - Danika's 31:10:59 - Danika's 2 1:26:04 - Danika's 11:31:09 - YAPYAP1:37:40 - Cairn1:51:17 - Strategos 2:04:08 - Reanimal2:15:11 - Outro and AnnouncementsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Super Bowl has happened, and for a rare moment goodness prevailed, as the New England Patriots were not just beaten—they were humiliated. Patrick and Rob cannot help but clap like seals, even if the game itself wasn’t that great. Plus, we chat about the sweaty amount of AI commercials during the Big Game, the coolness of the Olympic “Gold Zone,” and how Rob’s continued interest in mediocre Chicago Bulls roster constructions has hit a logical end.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Between the success of Super Meat Boy and Binding of Isaac, you might assume designer Edmund McMillen is feeling confident going into the release of his latest game, the tactics-focused Mewgenics. But it turns out self esteem issues, insecurity, and hoping people like what you’ve made is not a feeling that ever goes away, no matter how many people buy your games.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We did it. We finished recording game of the year podcasts! Wait, well, almost. Mostly. So, uh, Danika got sick at the last second, which means it’s Patrick, Rob, Janet, and Chia rotating through their final favorites from 2025. Don’t worry, it happened quickly: only four hours! Remap Radio reverts to a normal format next week, though we’ll still talk through Danika’s final games. P.S. We are now including image references in our podcast descriptions when appropriate.Discussed:Janet's 3 5:01Chia's 3 48:09Rob's 3 1:09:24Patrick's 3 1:36:17Janet's 2 1:37:10Chia's 2 1:37:30Rob's 2 2:08:01Patrick's 2 2:23:52Janet's 1 2:41:46Chia's 1 3:03:58Rob's 1 3:05:10Patrick's 1 3:24:54See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In January, Patrick was contacted by a developer with a unique request. They were applying for a Visa application that would have a better chance of approval if there were articles (or podcasts) about their work. Patrick hopped on a call with designers Luke Li and Cindy Fan of BROKENCIGS to talk about their journey from China to the US, why they’re taking a unique route to try and stay here, and why New York spoke to them.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Support organizers in Minnesota at: http://standwithminnesota.comThe fun never ends!(?) Danika, Janet, Chia, Rob, and Patrick are back to continue their slow inevitable march down everyone's game of the year lists! Will the crew finish before January is over? Did Patrick finish all the games on his list? Will Rob survive the winter without heating oil? All of these questions will be answered on this week's podcast! Next week: The GOTY Finale!(?)Images:Rob's Gauge: https://bsky.app/profile/robzacny.bsky.social/post/3mdbh55prhc2lThe Frighteners: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_FrightenersDiscussed:Danika's 5 - 4:26Janet's 5 - 4:45Chia's 5 - 5:05Rob's 5 - 40:03Patrick's 5 - 1:02:49Danika's 4 - 1:36:03Janet's 4 - 1:36:22Chia's 4 - 1:56:46Rob's 4 - 2:18:28.Patrick's 4 - 2:18:56See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.