The Crate and Crowbar

Chris, Tom F and Alex revisit Life is Strange, consider time’s cooldown in Touhou Luna Nights, chew noisily on Dota Underlords, and fling themselves over Shape of the World. I’ve activated the four rocks… show me the staircase. Tom’s returned to Life is Strange. Here’s the blog post by Ashly Burch that Tom mentions. Note: [...]

Pip, Chris and Tom F dive into a big pile of E3 nonsense followed by a big pile of questions nonsense, considering the noun-circle ramifications of both. We’re DONE, Octavian! You know what you did! Here’s that Watch Dogs: Legion footage from E3. Also, Phil Savage’s review of the pub from Everybody’s Gone To The [...]

Chris, Tom F and Alex attempt to predict Thursday’s news on Wednesday, again, and mostly fail, again. After that: SteamWorld Quest, Void Bastards, The Outer Wilds! Destiny 2 is going free to play, coming to Steam and Stadia, and getting cross-save functionality. Pricing details for Stadia have been revealed and are entirely contrary to Chris’ [...]

Tom F, Alex and Chris convene last Wednesday to discuss ‘computer games’, including but not limited to Void Bastards, Observation, Druidstone, and Mordhau. I feel compelled to perform my military responsibilities in the modern time. Early access sky MMO Worlds Adrift is shutting down. Here’s Starbase, a computer game. Yep, they called it Modern Warfare. [...]

Alex and the Toms gather to discuss what they have been playing on their personal computers this week. We didn’t record in our usual studio for this one, but the audio quality will return to normal soon! Tom F has been playing Path of Exile. Tom S has been playing Destiny 2 too much. Alex has [...]

Tom F, Chris and Alex convene to chat Total War(hammer), Phantom Doctrine, Mordhau, cakes and more. He’s not the Nerevarine, he’s a very naughty boy. Here’s a man saying thank you for the bullets in PlayerUnarmed Happygrounds. Ultra Ultra, the studio who made Echo, are shutting down. Alex is staying up past his bedtime to [...]

Chris, Tom S and Alex chat a little bit of Sekiro, some Ascension, a smooth slice of The Room, and a dash of Katana ZERO. Plus: meditations on the byzantine pizza meta, Rama Tycoon, the completely predictable fate of action dad, and our rebranding as the internet’s premier cutlery conspiracy resource. We say that we’re [...]

Alex, Tom F and Chris discuss City of Heroes’ surprising fate, EA’s Star Wars doings, Beat Saber, Heaven’s Vault, Risk of Rain 2, and the omega egg. Here’s Cass Marshall’s article about City of Heroes’ secret SCORE server. We’ve played a bit of Beat Saber. Here’s the reveal trailer for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. [...]

Chris, Tom F and Pip catch up on GDC highlights and discuss Darkborn, Anthem woes, Winkeltje, Sekiro, and Totally Accurate Battle Simulator. Plus: an asparagus crime to save print media, meditations on David Boreanaz The Minecraft Man, Monet’s hot nuts, and the art of Blunch. Columbo’s here, and he’s furious about Unreal Tournament. Here’s Tom’s [...]

Alex, Chris and Tom S discuss a brief spate of late-March game announcements before getting into Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. That’s it. It’s mostly Sekiro. We’re very keen to avoid Sekiro spoilers in this episode, but we do talk about themes and mechanics and, in one case, a few details about different environments – but [...]

Chris, Pip and Alex celebrate IGF winners and huff deep on Google’s big ol’ cloud. Plus: a little Call of Duty, a little Devil May Cry, assorted nonsense beyond. Don’t die yet, we haven’t finished the pyramid’s ass. Here’s the IGF & GDCA Awards stream in full – the show begins about 25 minutes in, [...]

Tom F, Chris and Alex chat Dwarf Fortress news, franchise developments, a little Far Cry, Hypnospace Outlaw, Devil May Cry 5, and Baba Is You. Plus: getting whacked with the bollard brush, the half time cutlery switch, the sensesno.cool quadrilogy, how snake feel, a magic leap for mankind, and more. Where’s my fucking money, Paddington? [...]

Chris, Alex and both Toms chat Far Cry: New Dawn, DiRT Rally 2.0, Star Trek Online (?) and then just say the word ‘Dune’ over and over for a while. Plus: don’t talk to me until I’ve got my bow, Ubisoft spade tax, Sir Walter Rally, Alex takes Poland, illicit Terran jambalaya, and so on. [...]

Chris, Tom and Alex discuss Darkest Dungeon II and Ace Combat 7 and make a lot of sad and frustrated noises about Anthem. Plus: Edward Lear zooms on a leper, ejecting your upside-down cousin, when wingmates become wingquaintances, and the terble space crab. Here’s the trailer for Darkest Dungeon II. Chris and Tom have played [...]

Alex, Tom S and Chris discuss Blizzard and then say nice things about Apex Legends, Resident Evil 2, and Devil May Cry 5. Plus: The Fraudulent Rustling of the Horse Boy II: Redeem This, the adventures of Gordon Fremen, middleware war among the stars, and our winter survival tips and tricks. Here’s Jason Schreier’s writeup [...]

In this mini-episode, Chris, Alex and Pip discuss Apex Legends and Dota Auto Chess. Sorry for the shorter episodes lately! We’ve been really busy. Patreon backers should note that they’re not being charged at the moment. Thanks for being backers, though! We very much appreciate it. Chris has been playing that Apex Legends. Pip’s been [...]

Chris and Pip chat about Subnautica: Below Zero, Sunless Skies, and Wargroove. Pip’s been playing Subnautica: Below Zero. Benedict Cumberbatch can’t say ‘penguin’. We’ve both been playing Sunless Skies. Chris is enjoying Wargroove, too. You can hang out with us and our community on our Discord channel. If you have a question for a future episode, [...]

Both Toms join Chris to discuss Resident Evil 2, Battlefleet Gothic Armada II, a bit of Forgotton Anne, and more. Plus: further jazz considerations, the torpedo full of man, robot wars meta considerations, puns, wine, and so on. SteamWorld Quest: it’s been announced! Slay The Spire: it’s out now! We should get around to talking [...]

Chris, Tom F, Alex and perhaps others dramatise assorted games industry dramas, discuss the anti-cheat ramifications of Dean Leaner, and explore death in a variety of warzones. Plus: Destiny 2 in 2019, Fortune-299, Slay The Spire modding, our community GOTY vote and more! In the event that our summation of the Improbable/Unity business didn’t make [...]

The whole gang convenes (sort of) to look back at our games of 2018 while navigating some sort of terrible segue purgatory. As discussed in this episode, the Crate & Crowbar Discord community is currently conducting its own GOTY vote! You can find out more – and cast your votes – right here. Games discussed: [...]

Tom F, Alex and John return to the velvet plinth to discuss the Games Awards announcements, ReCore, Dusk, and Hades. Far Cry: New Dawn has flowers. The Last Campfire is by two folks at Hello Games. Xbox One flagship game ReCore is on PC now and very 7/10. Dusk is a 97/100 game according to Steam [...]

Chris, Tom, Alex and Tom discuss the Epic Games Store, more Artifact, Mutant Year Zero, Just Cause 4, and so on. Here’s the rundown on the Epic Games Store. Everybody has been playing Artifact, but you are not allowed to touch the little imp bottoms, and this is garbage. Tom F is still playing alternative [...]

Tom F and Alex gather around a velvet plinth, sip beer, and discuss vikings and hitmen. Featured: Skin Deep: Brendon Chung’s Die Hard in space. Bad North: defend tiny islands from vikings. Hitman 2 (2018): Tom’s liking it more now, play his Contract. Race for the Galaxy: an empire building card game where the strategies [...]

Chris, Tom F and Alex convene to talk Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus, Artifact, and Hitman 2. Then Chris, Tom F, Alex and Pip convene to talk, er, foxes? Or something. Alex has been playing Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus. Chris has been sinking hours into Artifact. Here’s the guide he wrote, if you’re interested. Tom’s been playing Hitman [...]

Chris, Tom, Tom and Alex talk strategy remake news, Void Bastards, One Hour One Life, Battlefield V, Thronebreaker, Roblox and more. Those crazy kids are remastering Command & Conquer. They’re also remastering Warcraft III, the absolute madmen. Chris has been playing One Hour One Life. Everybody’s excited about Void Bastards. Tom Senior’s been playing Battlefield [...]

Chris is joined by both Toms to discuss Blizzcon controversy, The Blackout Club, Forza Horizon 4, Return of the Obra Dinn and more. Here’s Diablo Immortal, and Tom S’ article about said game and its attendant controversy. Chris and Tom F have been playing The Blackout Club. Do a cool flip off the time ramp [...]

Tom joins Zack Johnson and Kevin Simmons from Video Games Hot Dog to discuss the games of Fantastic Arcade. Spelunky 2! Noita! Samurai Gunn 2! Additional games besides these! Note: Patreon backers won’t be charged for this episode. Zack and Kevin are from Video Games Hot Dog, also Asymmetric. They have created two forms of [...]

Pip, Chris and Alex discuss the return of Hellgate: London, ponder Return of the Obra Dinn, and go for a wander around Shadow of the Tomb Raider. Hellgate: London! It’s back! But why! Pip’s been playing that Return of the Obra Dinn. Alex has looked at some things and slid down some things in Shadow [...]

Both Toms and Chris dig into this week’s developing Rockstar story and then share stories from Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, because all we’ve done for two weeks is kick people off boats. Here’s that story about the Red Dead 2 working conditions, and subsequent coverage of Rockstar‘s reaction. We recorded this podcast on Tuesday, for reference. [...]

Tom S, Tom F and Chris talk Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, Race for the Galaxy and Distance, and then get distracted by literary theory and swearing. Tom Senior has been kicking his way to friendship in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey. Here is Alice Bell’s excellent article about the same. Tom Francis has been playing Race for the [...]

Chris and Pip embark on another Friday morning podcast, covering the Telltale layoffs and highlights from EGX. Here’s Wesley Yin-Poole’s article for Eurogamer about remembering that people, not companies, create games. Pip’s been enjoying Parkasaurus. Chris’ picks of EGX are Total War: Three Kingdoms, Kine, Yellow Rock Road and Valfaris. Pip’s picks include Small Talk, [...]

Pip, Chris, Tom F and guest John R discuss EGX, Frozen Synapse 2, Megaquarium, Streets of Rogue, advanced noodle techniques, and more. Here’s the Heat Signature Twitter, so you can find out about them sweet updatez. John and Chris have been playing Frozen Synapse 2. Pip’s been playing Megaquarium. Tom’s been playing Streets of Rogue. [...]

Alex, Chris and Tom F discuss game dev authenticity, Industries of Titan, Destiny 2, Dragon Quest XI, and Concrete Jungle. Plus: automatic toilet theory, figuring out how much we actually know about each other, and winning the trust of the shotgun people. Here’s Lindsay Ellis’ video essay about manufactured authenticity on YouTube (and elsewhere.) …and [...]

Pip and Chris discuss MMO woes, Destiny 2’s new expansion, Two Point Hospital and a bit of Graveyard Keeper. Find out more about the V&A’s videogames exhibit right here. Carbine Studios – and their MMO, Wildstar – are shutting down. CCP has been bought by Black Desert Online devs Pearl Abyss. Chris is very much [...]

Chris and Tom S sit down for a chat about Spelunky 2 and Cyberpunk 2077 news, Tom’s highlights from Gamescom, and assorted nonsense. Here’s that Spelunky 2 footage and PlayStation Blog Q&A. We spend a bunch of time with the Cyberpunk 2077 footage. Tom S had a strong first impression of Life is Strange 2. [...]

Chris, Tom F and Pip catch up on a bit of Gamescom news before delivering sizzingly fresh takes on recent hits ‘Spore’ and ‘FTL’. Here’s the trailer for Man of Medan, part of the Dark Pictures anthology. Also, the Life is Strange 2 trailer. Here’s Burrito Tim’s Good Tweet. Pip has returned to Spore, ten [...]

It all goes a bit wrong as Chris, Tom, Tom and Alex return from a week off to talk Red Dead and Doom news, EXAPUNKS, Warframe, Unavowed and Monster Hunter. Plus: Horse Up Displays, 90s FPS ASMR, Resident Evil 2 by The B-52s, why it’s good when the spaceships do it, sensible missiles, the Mamma [...]

Alex, Tom S, Chris and Marsh (!) convene to discuss many Metroidvanias, Yakuza 0, console games (!), when to move on, Six Ages, and so on. Marsh! Has been playing Chasm. Chris has been catching up with Dead Cells. Alex’s Castlevania of the moment is La-Mulana 2. Here is Goro Majima’s introduction from Yakuza 0, [...]

Chris, Tom S and Alex take several trips back to 2016, including but not limited to No Man’s Sky, StarCraft II, DOOM and Battlefield 1. We’ve all been playing No Man’s Sky‘s NEXT update. Alex has been teaching valuable lessons in StarCraft II. Tom’s been revisiting the best of 2016 in DOOM. Chris is happily [...]

Chris, Alex and both Toms celebrate the 5th anniversary of the podcast with gin and a digression to The David Cage. Plus: more Mooncrash, Yoku’s Island Express, Warhammer 40K: Gladius, and Objects In Space. That’s for my nan! And her house! Tom F’s further explorations of Prey: Mooncrash reveal a few rough edges. Alex has [...]

Chris and Pip discuss The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit, The Sims 4: Seasons, and lots more. This is definitely episode 246, and not, as Chris says, episode 247. Pip’s been playing these videogames: The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit The Sims 4: Seasons Cognizer Dr Frank’s Build A Boyfriend Ashi: Lake Of Light You [...]

Chris, Tom F and Alex consider the lovely Prey: Mooncrash, big Fortnite murders, a bit of Six Ages and why late capitalism is cool, actually. Here’s a Polygon article about the Fortite murder story, including videos and facts. We’ve all be playing Prey: Mooncrash, which we like a lot. The video that Tom mentions isthis [...]

Chris, Tom, Tom and Alex contend with Guilty Gear Xrd, Lumines Remastered, Sword With Sauce, Jurassic World: Evolution, a bit of Vamypr, and get in deep with Big Scorsese. Tom S has been watching, and sometimes playing, Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-. Tom S and Alex have been playing Hackmud, which is weird for Chris. Alex [...]

Pip and the Toms discuss a surprising amount of news, most of it Steamy, then share thoughts on Jurassic World Evolution, Cryptark, Fortnite, and Assassin’s Creed: Origins. Chris has been hard at work on the wordy side of hackmud 2.0, which is going live next week and will be 25% off when you read this. [...]

In which Chris, Alex and Pip promise to avoid overanalysing E3, and to focus on the things we’re excited about, and then do exactly the opposite. John Shuttleworth’s I Can’t Back To Savoury Now, the soundtrack to this year’s E3, and indeed every year’s E3. From Bethesda: Fallout 76 (don’t forget to look up the [...]

Chris, Tom F and John R chat Far: Lone Sails, Dicey Dungeons, Totally Accurate Battlegrounds and a bit of Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. Plus: the secret handshakes shared by the kin of the brood-sergeant, top chuffin’, the Haddaway collab we’ve been waiting for, our hottest takes of 2013, an endless sense of Bluth, the [...]

Pip, Chris and Alex consider the pre-E3 videogame news wasteland, revisit City of Brass, clean up House Flipper, and consider Idle Champions and the specific anxieties of the clicker genre. Plus: tragedy as volcanic death comes to Emmerdale. Here’s the trailer for Fallout 76, and Kotaku’s article about what it actually is, maybe. Here’s the [...]

Chris, Pip, Tom S and Alex dig deep to yield icy cold takes on Call of Duty: Blops Four, ‘Bio-Shock’, A Quiet Sleep, and assorted nonsense. Plus: the importance of Little Boots on the ground, the medium’s most lootable subcultures, whether it was or wasn’t all yellow, whether two Ayn Rands do indeed make an [...]

Chris, Pip, Tom F and – for one night only – Marsh (!) discuss Atomic Heart, more Far Cryin’, more Spire Slayin’, SpyParty, Murderous Pursuits, and City of Brass. Also: feeling nothing about sunsets, playing with orbs, holding for a moment in the hope position, the struggle of games to be effectively didactic, the history [...]

Chris and Tom S discuss Red Dead Redemption 2, new Tomb Raider, the state of triple-A development in general, dogs again, and videogame Millibands. The Red Dead Redemption 2 trailer – a splash? Of musky cowboy… water? Destiny 2: Warmind – Chris will play it, because he’s already bought it. Tom was left cold by [...]