Dropped Frames

We're joined by Rami Ismail today to talk about Olympic speed skating, what's going on with Ashes of Creation and "The Bubble." Guerrilla Games announces a new multiplayer Horizon game, Overwatch returns to its roots and we're excited for Mewgenics! Games this week: Cairn, Nioh 3 and Chilla Art's Umigari!   0:00 - Intro1:00 - Sports!5:00 - Rami is NOT late9:00 - Winter Olympics15:00 - What's happening with Ashes of Creation20:00 - Horizon Hunters Gathering41:10 - Overwatch 2... 1?54:40 - Mewgenics reviews1:00:20 - Cairn1:33:20 - Nioh 31:55:00 - AI game design2:15:40 - The bubble2:35:00 - Extreme fishing2:41:00 - Zeke's indie life2:50:30 - Umigari2:55:00 - Rami is also making a game2:57:10 - Shoutouts  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Highguard released this week to extreme criticism, is it warranted, is there a good game there? The breaking news this week, however, is the sudden mass layoff and shuttering of Ashes of Creation studio Intrepid. Is this a uniquely bad situation or is it another failure in a long list of MMOs failing? Cohh officially announced the game he's working on: Emberville and we get some more info about his and his team's project. Nioh 3 expands into an open world, Cairn is great and more!   0:00 - Intro1:40 - Nerd detection11:10 - Highguard53:20 - Ashes of Creation devs mass layoff1:14:30 - Cohh's Emberville1:39:00 - Nioh 32:06:10 - CD-Rom-a-Thon2:24:00 - The numbers2:28:50 - Cairn2:44:10 - Tainted Grail2:46:20 - Fish Hunters2:56:10 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Back in our day we walked uphill, both ways, through the frozen snow, to bring you a podcast! This week we brace for the big reveal of Highguard happening in just a day, is this the next big thing or will become just another foot note in the long line of multiplayer shooters? XBOX had a developer direct last week and we gush over the new Fable and wonder why Game Freak doesn't make more games that don't look like Pokemon? Games this week: Hytale, MIO: Memories in Orbit, Warframe and more! 0:00 - Intro1:40 - Cold weather4:10 - The most hyped game Highguard launching38:00 - Forza Horizon 645:00 - Kiln50:00 - Beast of Reincarnation1:00:00 - Fable1:14:50 - Deadlock approaching release?1:15:10 - Fallout season 21:22:00 - The Pitt1:24:50 - Yoshi1:26:30 - Ubisoft restructuring 1:30:00 - AI Funny Money1:36:00 - Arknights PayPal1:41:40 - Twitch podcast1:45:10 - 2XKO and Twitch1:50:45 - Preordering Marathon installed Destiny 21:54:50 - Is ARC Raiders fatigue setting in?2:00:00 - Marathon2:04:50 - Dan is in a game!2:08:40 - Nioh 32:17:20 - MIO: Memories in Orbit2:21:00 - Hytale2:28:40 - Abiotic Factor2:29:30 - No Rest For The Wicked2:35:50 - The whale2:38:00 - Warframe2:43:00 - Deus Ex: The Invisible War2:52:50 - Octopath Traveler 02:54:50 - Heavy Metal2:57:20 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first real episode of 2026 is upon us. We chat about all the silly things announced at CES 2026, speedruns at AGDQ 2026, Anthem shutting down. Going over the Reddit AMA with Swen Vincke giving more insight into Divinity and their development process also is StarCraft returning? Games this week are StarRupture, Alchemy Factory, Octopath Traveler 0 and more!   0:00 - Intro3:40 - Where Cheeks Meet7:30 - CES 202618:00 - AGDQ 202630:00 - Anthem shutting down32:10 - Larian Studios AMA1:00:30 - XBOX Developer Direct announced1:02:00 - StarCraft is back?1:08:00 - New Game+ showcase1:22:00 - Rumor: Fallout New Vegas Remaster1:24:00 - Old games have no QOL1:46:50 - StarRupture1:59:10 - Alchemy Factory2:06:50 - League of Legends2:10:30 - Octopath Traver 02:11:40 - Trails in The Sky 12:26:20 - Shoutouts  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

View the full results here: https://dfgoty.com/results/2025/   The year is over and Cohh finally realizes what JP stands for. The reveal will have you questioning reality! We take a look back at all the games we've played, didn't play, and wish we played to give you the most definitive list of great games that are not all Clair Obscur: Expedition 33! 0:00 - Intro1:40 - John Paul6:00 - Consumer hardware prices soar10:00 - Favorite New Game IP19:40 - Favorite Multiplayer Game26:00 - Favorite Writing35:10 - Favorite Art Style44:40 - Favorite Music57:00 - Favorite Sound Design1:06:00 - Favorite Performance1:15:50 - Favorite Moment in Games1:23:25 - Favorite Feature1:34:10 - Biggest Surprise1:43:40 - Biggest Disappointment1:58:20 - Games We Wished We Played2:12:10 - Most Anticipated Game of 20262:22:30 - Top 3 Games Streamed & Watched2:41:50 - Cohh's Top 10 Games of 2025 (10-4)2:55:00 - Zeke's Top 10 Games of 2025 (10-4)3:11:00 - JP's Top 10 Games of 2025 (10-4)3:23:00 - 3rd favorite game3:30:00 - 2nd favorite game3:38:20 - Favorite game of the year3:47:25 - The Community's Top 103:49:50 - The Dropped Frames GOTY3:53:20 - Shoutouts  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Vote in the community Dropped Frames GOTY here: https://dfgoty.com/   Sodapoppin joins us this week to chat about life after 15 years of streaming and how much streaming has changed in recent years. Then we go over the winners at The Streamer Awards, vote on the winners for The Game Awards happening this week. Then we go deep into Chinese World of Warcraft, running streamer guild OnlyFangs, handling streamer drama and much more!   0:00 - Intro2:20 - Sodapoppin is here5:30 - Growing up with streaming12:00 - The Streamer Awards37:00 - Going over TGA nominees2:03:40 - World of Warcraft China2:39:40 - OnlyFangs2:48:20 - Mana gems3:01:15 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Vote in the community Dropped Frames GOTY here: https://dfgoty.com/   We're joined by Robert 'Roflgator' Overwatch pro and now a titan of VRChat as we learn about the birth and history of TikTok sensation, Marcus, played by VRChat creator Jouffa! We go down memory lane with our favorite Justin.TV moments, learn about all the game updates dropping in December, Tim Sweeney hates disclosing AI, Paradox takes blame over Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines 2, and a new Diablo 4 expansion tease? Games this week include the horror game Total Chaos, Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road and more!   0:00 - Intro1:00 - Vote for your Dropped Frames GOTY!6:00 - Roflgator is here!11:00 - The birth of Marcus19:40 - What's a mute?45:00 - The life of Rob and Marcus51:50 - Going mainstream55:00 - Who owns what?1:06:00 - The oldest Justin.tv memory1:23:30 - Update December1:28:00 - Disclosing AI1:46:10 - Vampire woes1:53:00 - Diablo 4 announcement?1:56:00 - Where Winds Meet2:04:00 - Megabonk dev removes themselves from TGA2:12:50 - Total Chaos2:23:50 - Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road2:46:50 - Kingdom of the Dump2:49:30 - Random Mice2:56:00 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Call of Duty Black Ops 7 released this week, to very little fan fare and a lot of mad players. We take our bets on what games will be nominated at The Game Awards this year. Steam launches a new family of hardware with Steam Machine, the new Steam controller and Steam Frame. There's a Horizon MMO in the works, we give our thoughts on Where Winds Meet & The Last Caretaker as well as our review of Dispatch!   0:00 - Intro5:00 - Bubba8:00 - GOTY so far14:00 - Ubisoft getting bought?20:00 - Call of Duty Black Ops 742:40 - Steam launching new hardware1:02:00 - JP's search history1:09:10 - Will there be a Dispatch season 2?1:18:30 - Escape from Tarkov reviews1:22:20 - Fans try to bring Concord back1:24:30 - Horizon MMO1:32:20 - State of Play1:36:10 - Star Citizen1:47:30 - Aion 2?1:49:00 - ARC Raiders update1:53:00 - Battlefield 61:56:40 - Popular YouTuber Chris Wilson1:59:50 - Where Winds Meet2:35:40 - The Last Caretaker2:43:00 - Dispatch2:54:20 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're joined by Super Meat Boy co-developer and Binding of Isaac creator Edmund McMillen this week to chat about his upcoming tactics roguelike cat game - Mewgenics and his very storied indie dev career that spans over 2 decades! In the news: GTA6 is delayed again, Dispatch sells 1 million copies in 10 days, mass Square Enix layoffs and is Steam a monopoly? We end the show locking in our GOTY categories for the year so lookout for the upcoming community vote! 0:00 - Intro1:00 - Cohh's addiction5:40 - Indie dev Edmund McMillen is here!7:00 - Edmund's first game: Gish21:40 - Binding of Isaac30:00 - Indie Game - The Movie37:30 - Mewgenics and the art of poop1:23:50 - GTA6 is delayed amidst union busting1:31:50 - Kingdom Come devs take shots at Obsidian1:37:00 - Dispatch sold 1 mil copies in 10 days1:44:10 - Game execs believe Steam has a monopoly on PC gaming1:52:40 - Funny numbers2:03:20 - Square Enix fires lots of employees2:09:20 - WoW Midnight - Housing MTX2:12:45 - The Mass Effect TV Show2:14:10 - Arc Raiders selling a ton/AI talk2:41:15 - Escape from Tarkov 1.0 approaching2:43:10 - Locking in our GOTY categories2:53:00 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're joined by Brandon Adler and Matt Singh from Obsidian Entertainment to chat about the evolution of the Obsidian RPG and where the studio goes from here. In the news: Amazon shutters Amazon Games Studio and ending the MMORPG New Worlds after a 15 years attempt at dethroning Steam to shift to AI. Is Twitch on the chopping block as well? A remake of Halo CE was announced for Playstation (and XBOX.) We try to understand Digimon, Arc Raiders is fun, Path of Exile drops a peak league, we glaze Dispatch and more!   0:00 - Intro1:20 - Halloween10:00 - New World gets shuttered16:00 - Amazon trying to compete with Steam32:00 - Halo: Campaign Evolved37:50 - Ball x Pit42:20 - 20k bot47:50 - Digimon Story: Time Stranger1:00:25 - Obsidian interview1:01:00 - Outer Wilds 2 or The Outer Worlds 2?1:16:00 - Flaws1:34:20 - Difficulty1:58:00 - Trails in the Sky FC2:05:40 - Arc Raiders2:13:10 - Silksong2:24:00 - Path of Exile 12:26:40 - Dispatch2:30:10 - Keeper2:34:00 - Ire: A Prologue2:39:30 - November releases2:41:20 - Tormented Souls 22:45:50 - RV There Yet2:56:20 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're joined by actor Amelia Tyler this week to chat about airplane food, convention plague, therapy, the state of the industry, AI and of course all the amazing games she has contributed her voice too such as: Baldur's Gate 3, Warframe and recently: Hades 2! We also get into our early impressions of Outer Worlds 2, Dispatch and a whole lot of demos!   0:00 - Intro1:20 - Diva Zeke2:30 - Twitchcon10:20 - Amelia Tyler is in your ears14:10 - PAX Australia18:00 - Plane trips22:00 - Getting into character32:50 - The narrator39:40 - Hades 252:00 - Sight reading scripts1:10:20 - Experimental Psychology1:21:30 - Life-changing advice1:25:50 - Favorite performances1:31:50 - Warframe1:40:30 - State of the industry1:55:00 - AI voice acting2:13:40 - Hades 2 again2:19:50 - Outer Worlds 22:31:30 - Dispatch2:45:50 - Demo listSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are we witnessing the end of XBOX as hardware? All signs are point to yes as retailers continue to stop stocking the console. EA officially goes private, what does that mean for the studios under their umbrella? Megabonk sells over 1 mil, World of Warcraft Midnight set to change how raids work moving forward and living in the AI hell dimension. We then glaze Hades 2 and Ghost of Yotei and brace for another stacked month of video games! 0:00 - Intro2:30 - Race cars12:55 - XBOX raises prices42:50 - EA goes private55:50 - Megabonk sells 1 million copies59:00 - World of Warcraft removes combat mods1:27:20 - The Age of Lies1:33:50 - Hades 21:40:00 - Ghost of Yotei2:29:00 - October games2:35:10 - Baby Steps2:51:20 - Housekeeping/ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cohh teaches us about the wonderful history of childhood memes and slang this week so lock-in before we dive into all the Tokyo Game Show news that dropped over the week! Including the PC GAMER showcase, the Playstation State of Play where Yakuza Kiwami 3 and a reveal of Wolverine were shown respectively. Twitch unveils live rewinding of streams that is paywalled, Kai Cenat reaches 1 million Twitch subs. We bonk in Megabonk, Silent Hill f and Hades 2 and so much more! 0:00 - Intro 31:00 - Kermit5:20 - 6 715:30 - Sumo Wrestling17:00 - PC GAMER Tokyo Direct26:10 - State of Play38:40 - New Borderlands 4 character47:40 - Deus Ex Remastered1:00:50 - Yakuza Kiwami 31:05:30 - The Kojima Gold Card1:08:20 - Overdose Knock1:11:30 - Doug Bowser leaves Nintendo1:13:00 - EA being bought by Saudi Arabia1:21:00 - Subnautica 21:22:50 - Live Twitch Rewind1:24:40 - Kai Cenat hits 1 million subs1:39:10 - Megabonk1:51:21 - Cloverpit1:57:00 - Hades 22:12:50 - Silent Hill f2:44:40 - Arkheron2:48:00 - Baby Steps2:57:00 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you remember the 21st night of September? Because we do on this very packed episode! Unfortunately the state of the world is encroaching on everything and everyone and that includes video games as payment processors have changed their guidelines to vaguely singling out adult content on Steam and other storefronts. Counter-Strike 2 found a way to get passed gambling laws, and Valve apologizes to an indie dev studio. We love Borderlands 4 despite itself. Our thoughts on Dying Light 2, Megabonk, No, I am Not Human, and a spoiler review of Cronos!   0:00 - Intro1:00 - 21st of September9:00 - Convergence19:00 - Let's Build a Dungeon26:00 - Payment processors attack on video games37:00 - Counter-Strike 2 circumvents gambling laws43:00 - Steam apologizes to a dev studio50:00 - Borderlands 41:15:00 - Easy mode?1:22:20 - XBOX raises prices again1:30:40 - Krafton vs Subnautica update1:32:40 - Paradox changes Bloodlines 2 DLC1:35:20 - Dying Light 2: The Beast1:54:20 - Megabonk2:08:20 - Jump Space2:10:10 - Valve update2:16:30 - No, I Am Not Human2:26:10 - Eclipsium2:33:50 - Cronos (+spoilers)2:48:40 - Dead Reset2:54:50 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cohh is out this week so we bring on Bruce Greene and Anthony Kongphan to talk about the horrors of Ditto. JP's unnatural love of karaoke, our disdain for Nintendo gameplay patents, the difficulty of Silksong. Then we get into our time with Borderlands 4. Is it too much of the same thing?    0:00 - Intro1:20 - Mr. Brightside3:10 - Karaoke8:30 - Beards13:00 - Physical media17:25 - Nintendo Direct30:00 - Ditto40:20 - Nintendo US patent.48:50 - Is Silksong hard?1:00:20 - Hades 2 1.01:09:40 - Silent Hill f1:17:00 - Battlefield 61:27:00 - Borderlands 42:14:40 - 2XKO closed beta2:35:20 - Waterpark Simulator2:39:00 - Cronos2:43:40 - The Lightkeeper2:50:40 - Casebook 18992:52:50 - Gloomy eyes3:00:00 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're joined by recent Vtuber convert Dodger this week to get into the nitty gritty of vtubing debuts and the tech and work that goes into setting it all up. Then we get into the megaton game of 2025: Hollow Knight: Silksong and Cohh's speedrun! We explore the darkness of Hell is Us, why Deadlock might be okay for beginners. How to start Path of Exile 2, our thoughts on Cronos and more!    0:00 - Intro1:00 - Controversy8:00 - Homework13:10 - Vtuber debut17:00 - The tech30:00 - Dodger's vtuber model inspiration54:00 - Hollow Knight: Silksong1:27:10 - Hell is Us1:45:40 - Deadlock1:59:20 - Path of Exile 22:19:50 - Cronos: The New Dawn2:38:50 - Daemon x Machina: Titanic Scion2:47:15 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're joined by FGC legend Justin Wong this week to chat about competing at EVO, upcoming fighting games, and becoming Him. We check our Silksong hype, Path of Exile 2 returns in a huge way, Shinobi is a home for fighting game players and the surprisingly hype Geoguesser World Championship. 0:00 - Intro1:00 - Football season6:00 - Smack talk11:30 - Sub sandwiches & fast food16:30 - Oh yeah, Justin Wong is here31:00 - Marvel Tokon/2XKO/Invincible VS58:30 - Are hiding inputs useful?1:05:10 - Sony sells EVO1:09:20 - EVO prestige 1:20:30 - Is it better to be good at a game or good at reading players?1:24:30 - EVO Moment 371:32:00 - Street Fighter 61:36:30 - Lucy in Guilty Gear Strive1:38:00 - Shinobi: Art of Vengeance1:42:30 - Silksong hype check1:49:10 - Path of Exile 2: The Third Edict2:21:40 - Geoguesser World Championship2:40:30 - VOID/BREAKER2:42:40 - TheHunter - Call of the Wild3:00:00 - Shoutouts    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We remove the clown shoes after 7 years of waiting: Silksong has a release date! Just in time for 20% of Twitch's viewership poofs out of existence as Twitch has finally started combating viewbotting! How will this affect streams and sponsors in the future on the streaming platform? Tariffs hit Playstation 5 in the US. Vampire the Masquerade: The Ship of Theseus. Pete Parsons leaves Bungie in his very cool car after firing numerous employees.Path of Exile 2 returns in a big way, ERPers turn on Final Fantasy XIV and much more!   0:00 - Intro1:00 - Condensed3:00 - Viewbotters16:45 - Silksong finally has a release date28:30 - The PlayStation 5 price increases31:15 - Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines 247:00 - Helldivers 2 x Halo ODST48:10 - Pete Parsons leaves Bungie50:00 - Path of Exile 2 The Third Edict1:10:20 - Final Fantasy XIV bans mods1:18:00 - World of Warcraft Midnight1:23:40 - Deadlock gets a big update1:30:00 - Hosting1:38:30 - Whispers From The Star1:52:00 - Loving an AI2:06:30 - VOID/BREAKER2:14:30 - Morrowind2:24:55 - Gods, Death & Reapers2:41:40 - Herdling2:48:15 - Dead Wire2:50:30 - We finish games here2:57:00 - Supraworld3:03:00 - ShoutoutsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're all in on Battlefield 6 this week as the first beta weekend launched. Is Battlefield back? Titan Quest 2 gaining traction, Diablo 4 lead Rod Fergusson leaves Blizzard, Bungie losing independence, Square Enix MMOs on the downtrend. Zeke suffers through Mind's Eye, watching the EVO finals and we learn new zoomer slang and baseball!  0:00 - Intro1:00 - Up all night3:25 - Start diggin' in yo butt twin6:00 - Baseball16:00 - Titan Quest 2 sold 300k in 72 hours16:50 - Rod Fergusson leaves Blizzard/Microsoft24:10 - Bungie dissolving into Sony30:00 - Battlefield 61:20:10 - Square Enix MMO division1:34:10 - EVO 20251:45:40 - Mind's Eye2:01:10 - Mafia: The Old Country2:23:10 - Abiotic Factor2:38:00 - THE RPG2:43:50 - Shoutouts  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're joined by Washington Post's game journalist Gene Park this week to chat about the state of games journalism in 2025 and how Mind's Eye is the experience of the year.  We also go over the surprise THQ showcase that revealed Darksiders 4 and shadowdropped the early access of Titan Quest 2. Then we get into our time with Grounded 2, Abiotic Factor 1.0, Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound and... Shenmue?   0:00 - Intro1:00 - Hair Bleach7:00 - Gene Park is here18:00 - Journalism in 202537:20 - Gene's favorite interview1:05:00 - What is clickbait?1:07:00 - Going to gaming events1:11:00 - Maintaining integrity1:20:50 - Gene has platinumed Mind's Eye1:53:50 - Visa/Mastercard/Porn2:05:00 - Music2:08:50 - Nintendo sales2:10:20 - Bioshock 4 dead?2:12:30 - Top people working at WB2:17:40 - THQ showcase - Titan Quest 2/Darksider 42:29:50 - Grounded 22:35:00 - Abiotic Factor2:40:00 - Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound2:42:30 - Shinobi Demo2:44:50 - Shenmue2:49:45 - The Drifter2:52:45 - Lucy joins Guilty Gear Strive/EVO 20252:58:30 - Shoutouts/Tokon breaking news    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.