Dunce (Dunce) Revolution

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As it is ordained in the old texts, we have come together in the new year to compare our top ten games of 2025. We have crafted these lists independently, in total seclusion, to ensure that we are provided the purest and freshest lists for your consideration. We were also asked to dunk on a few games this year, because 2025, like in general, was just highs and lows all over the place.

Also, can you believe it's our fourth season/year of this show already!? See everybody, you can do something with...

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We descend into that languid period of the year where the earth lies fallow and we begin to digest and churn what was Geoff Keighley's The Game Awards. The wire acrobatics, the career ending affair with a porcine muppet, and a jilted lover in the form of a man who wants to make spooky games all the way from Japan. Drama!

We keep it tight and tidy by sticking to the following topics:

Disgaea 1 Complete 0:13:39

Skate Story 0:23:34

Octopath Traveler 0 0:30:03

The Game Awards 0:50:00

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Nah, it's actually pretty good, especially if you prefer the Prime series over the "MetroidVania" 2D entries.

We cover a handful of late 2026 titles before dusting off the old crystal ball and telling who will win (or at least should win) at  Geoff Keighley's The Game Awards, brought you in part by that asset flip of a Hell statue he keeps showing off...

Games and topics we churn out factory line style include:

The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy  0:08:02
Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road 0:15:46
Escape The Ma...

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Man, that was a dry and dusty-musty Black Friday/Cyber Monday, with nary a deal to be found. Sort of the slow part of the year in general really. Don't worry though, we aren't talking about Geoff Keighley's the Game Awards...yet.

Nevertheless, Porter has been honing his skills as a superhero coordinator in Dispatch and Buzz has been hitting those leader boards in Megabonk (I mean, he wishes, but top 5% ain't bad (it ain't great either)).

Games we eventually get around to talking about include:

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After an abysmal time with Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, Buzz was saved from the worst ending thanks to the goddess of game release schedules saving the best for last: Dragon Quest  I & II HD-2D Remake!

Porter takes a trip down memory lane for his Halloween by trying out Luigi's Mansion on the Virtual Console, which basically spat on him and called him "poor" (derogatory) at the end of his play through.

We also hype up some Steam samplings that are already hot on the charts, and explore S...

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I guess we're on our disappointment tour, because we didn't exactly enjoy the majority of titles we're talking about this week... (Hold me now / I'm six feet from the edge and I'm thinking / Maybe six feet ain't so far down)

That is to say, games we are excited to talk about include:

Pokemon Legends: Z-A  (0:02:10)
Ghost of Yotei (0:41:56)
Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines 2  (0:49:08)
DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake  (1:20:40)

You know, I'm something of a gamer myself.

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Porter is very excited to tell you about his visit with the Ghost of Japan Christmas Past, that being Ghost of Yotei from Sucker Punch Productions. Even noted hater of fun, Buzz, might pick it up based on his glowing recommendation.

Speaking of someone who never created the world's most famous internet OC, Buzz is visited by the Ghost of Vampire Christmas Yet to Come as he talks up Vampire: the Masquerade (both the TTRPG and original Bloodlines PC game) in heady anticipation of Bloodlines 2! Spoilers from the Ghost of Bad...

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Oh, "Spooky Season" is starting off right, whether you're a basic or a full blown goth, you surely can find something to love.

Games we maybe give a little too much praise to this episode include:

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Did you HAGS? Because we most definitely did not HAGS.

But at the very least we are entering the best part of the year: October. Call me the "Gabaghoul" because...you know it's spooky out... and we have a lot of business to take care of gaming wise...

Games we had mild anxiety over this episode include: 

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We sent Porter to report on Gen Con, the largest tabletop game convention in North America (He went of his own accord). At which, he was able to get the exclusive scoop on gaming celebs, including Matt Mercer and Margaret Weiss (He saw them as part of normal, routine events at the convention). And most importantly, he had a great time doing it (this part is true).

Meanwhile, the isolated and weird lain-pilled NEET hikikomori femcel shut-in Buzz played a bunch of crap piling up on his HDD. He don't go...

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Hey, what can we say except it's really really good?

No, seriously, this is a pretty positive episode overall, a rarity in the Dunce household... just feels nice to play a decent game that's worth your time and money?

I was going to do a whole like, parody of the lyrics to the DK Rap here, but that seemed excessive and a little corny. So, just enjoy the episode and stay safe out there.

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We're thinking of a number from 1 to 100 this episode, and we expect you to use your telepathy to intuit the exact numeral. Of course, since you rolled up a test character using the latest Unearthed Arcana from DnDBeyond.com that was all about Psions (now with plenty of fresh sub-classes so all the other character classes can get in on the psychic fun), that should be a piece of cake.

This is also an extra, and we mean EXTRA, long episode, because sometimes when you get Buzz and Will talking about...

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Listen if Nicki Minaj is the Queen of Rap than Hideo Kojima is the king of cra.... no, even though it's a childish rhyme and fits the low-brow vibes of this show, it's not fair or representative of the efforts captured in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach.

While we capture our reactions to having now finished Death Stranding 2 in this episode, it is spoiler free. So, cool those piggies in some tar and join us in our meditations on Norman Reedus UPS delivery simulator part 2.

We also briefly touch...

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Okay, admittedly I was a little behind schedule this week, partly due to needing to install an updated PSU in the PC I use to edit these episodes, but at least I didn't have to date the PSU. Like in that popular new game Date Everything from Sassy Chap Games and published by Team17. Topical! (We do actually cover it in this episode, I am not just referencing newly released games blithely).

I mean, yes, this episode is also actually already "dated" in the temporal sense because we were talking about...

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As the dust finally settles on the vacuous retail Hellscape, some emerge clutching furtively to their Nintendo Switch 2 consoles. They wonder, as they careen around the open world of Mario Kart World Tour, was it worth it? Was any of it worth it?

I mean kinda...sorta depends on how much you like Mario Kart and if you plan on playing a lot of the first party exclusives I guess? But either way you personally slice it, we are talking about the Nintendo Switch 2's launch.

We ponder the...

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If you're lucky enough to have gotten a Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order, you might share in the fan-base's anxiety as big box stores in the US and abroad continue to send cancellation notices for pre-orders (and accidental cancellation notices) just days in advance of the console's big launch. And so, we take a moment to reflect on the more chaotic moments that have brought us to this console release and where we think it might be heading in the coming months.

From there, we pivot to a game that's been helping us...

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That's right, we played a bunch of spooky junk this week, but not before we stop and give Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 its flowers. That game was good all the way through, and is a real contender for game of the year at the almost halfway point of 2025.

After clapping up what is clearly GotY, Porter shares his exploits with Id's latest foray into the Doom franchise with Doom: The Dark Ages. Sort of the Summer Beach Read of games from what I understand.

From there, we turn the dial...

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You guessed it, what with your highly perceptive ability to read and be aware of current releases, that we are talking about the quite excellent Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 from Sandfall Interactive.

But not before we come down from the adrenaline rush that was the Nintendo Switch 2 midnight online preorder blitz that occurred stateside just the other week. It was, in fact, a bit messy (no one would shut up and take our money (yes, that's a timely and not played out reference to a visual meme done poorly in text)).

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We've got a very special episode for our dear listeners, because we are answering YOUR questions. You asked, we answered (to the best of our limited abilities).

We also discuss seeing some of the leads of Dungeons & Dragons, that being Jeremy Crawford and Chris Perkins, departing from the franchise after years of contributions and fan interaction.

And we round out this episode with a victory lap for Will as he recounts some of the best DnD playing that I have seen in literal years as a DM. I mean...

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Much like the spice, we played a melange of games this past week as we continue to nervously refresh our browsers waiting for the pre-order floodgates to open this week.

We kick things off with Schedule 1 (TVGS), a management sim that is taking Steam by storm, even in its early access state, by offering an oddly charming and goofy spin on the Walter White experience (eyebrows, eyebrows, wink, wink, need we say more?).

From there, Buzz reflects on his time as Robocop (Teyon). He got to say "Freeze slimebag!"...

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Dexterity (Stealth) roll: 4

"That's what she said. And you know what I. What was that? Okay, James."

And really that's the energy we are bringing to this episode about everyone's favorite ne'er-do-wells, the Rogue. The class that makes being bad a good thing, especially when the lock picking, pick-pocketing, and peeping on people is done in the context of a dungeon and the folks getting burgled had it coming.

Sarah joins Buzz to recount some of the history of the Thief to Rogue pipeline, while...

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Oh, we're doing some complaining this episode about future toys that we cannot buy yet, but maybe we will be able to, but then again maybe not? Let's just say the uncertainty of, well, everything was already getting to us, but when you take away the shiny bread and circuses, it really gets one to thinking...

Naturally we talk a bit about games we are playing, including Atelier Yumia and Wanderstop, but really we are here to point at that Nintendo Switch 2 price tag, before the tariff increases mind you, and...

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Back-to-back-to-back episodes this week! We are either spoiling you all or Buzz is really behind on editing, and ultimately you decide. Either way, it's a jam-packed episode as we discuss some surprisingly timely games and some surprisingly untimely novels.

We kick things off by laughing along with that Ubisoft Twitter account (I called it what I called it). Then we dive into Atelier Yumia and the Longest Subtitle Known to Man, I mean, Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land  (KOEI TECMO GAMES), which we are both enjoying as n...

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We finally finished grappling hooking our way through Split Fiction (Hazelight Studios, published by EA), and that means we have every right to complain about it. Loudly.

Well, that's not entirely the case, as, surprising to literally no one, Porter enjoyed his overall time with it and Buzz has once again taken any excuse to gripe he can get. Be forewarned, we spoil the majority of the narrative in this episode, with special focus on the last thirty or so minutes of the game.

We also squeeze in a...

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We're discussing everyone's favorite pillar of the explore-socialize-combat holy trinity of D&D (I was referring to combat in case it's not your favorite, and honestly, that's fair).

Of course, combat has been on our players' minds lately, as they are quickly approaching an encounter with a Black Dragon that has the potential to retire a few character sheets depending on how it all shakes out.

We meander all over the place, as is our want, and end up talking about factions and the renown system, tucking the wizard...

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That's right, we played that obscenely popular Split Fiction (Hazelight Studios), but not without some major roadblocks from the always unnecessary EA account system. My personal hill is that no publisher needs their own launcher, account, service, or whatever. What am I already overpaying Sony for if not to enable a smooth multiplayer experience? And now I gotta stop and try to unblock an EA account to play the game I just threw down fifty dollars American for!?

No, it's cool. It's fine. I am over it. I don't need to...

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That's right, we're playing the latest entry in the ever-popular Monster Hunter series, Monster Hunter Wilds! (Well, maybe once the game opens up about 15 hours in...).

Woah, calm down! That was a joke and totally hyperbolic. Also, it's not my fault that Monster Hunter Wilds has a delicious nougat-y center surrounded by a hard candy shell that must be broken down via hours of salivary action before it finally turns the car keys over to you, having finally recognized that you understand the dangers of the open road.

What...

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There's always room for more Yakuza, ahem, I mean Like a Dragon, and that's the whole focus of this episode as Buzz and Porter talk about their time with the recently released "Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii" (Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio/Sega/SEGA of America).

And yeah, it's just a really good game, so if you were looking for about fifty minutes of people really enjoying a video game for a change, then you're in luck. You can also head over to https://www.duncerevolution.com/post/like-a-dragon-pirate-yakuza-in-hawaii-review to...

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It's another one of those episodes were the ghost of Audio Christmas Past, Present, and Future decide to haunt production, but we soldier on anyway. So, yes it was late, but at least it arrived! 

Also, you will hear us talk about Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii as if it is still not out when it is in fact already out by the time you hear this, so just be cool about it. In fact, you're guaranteed zero spoilers this way because we stick to only talking about the d...

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It's another character class centered episodes as we chat about everybody's favorite goody two shoes: the Paladin. Once again, Buzz sits down with a veteran level and current player in his campaign, Will, to chat about the class Will is actively playing. 

But first, we talk a little shop and about the nature of reviews, doing justice to creators vs. being consumer advocates when critiquing a piece of media, and the overall state of the industry lately. If you just want to hear some good old fashioned TTRPG talk, skip to a...

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(It's not just a potentially randy joke in the title, it's also a Nosferatu (2024) reference....in fact let's say it was a Nosferatu reference first in case this isn't allowed or something, and any other interpretation wasn't our intent all along. Smoooooth.)

No, but obviously we are discussing Warhorse Studio's "Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2" (published by Deep Silver), the sequel in what is now a series of Late Medieval action RPGs with some deeply immersive elements. To be completely at the Renaissance Fair about it, we get a little more critical in...

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So, to keep it brief, Porter played Mahjong IRL with some middle aged ladies in his neighborhood and he couldn't get enough of it. So then he went home and booted up Yakuza Kiwami to continue to playing the Microsoft Solitaire equivalent of Mahjong. And now he might actually finish Yakuza Kiwami (and it's about time).

But first we start off with something slightly newer:  Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector (Jump Over the Age, 2024), a fresh take on cyberpunk, resource management, and most of all, dice rolls.

And for no g...

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If you couldn't tell by the episode title, Buzz is somewhat excited to have received the latest Nippon Ichi Software SRPG "Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero" early. In fact, not even some weird cold symptoms could keep him from mouth-breathing his way through some early impressions.

Meanwhile, Porter shares his experiences with the surprise drop that was Ninja Gaiden 2: Black from Koei Tecmo. And since we let him get away with honestly too much on this podcast, Porter also shares his recommendation for the comic series "Die" (2018-2021, Image Comics). No...

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Will joins the party again as we swap old stories of our time around the table fighting everyone's favorite vampire, Count Strahd von Zarovich. We deftly work our way from Ravenloft's humble origins in 1983 to the more contemporary Curse of Strahd module from 2016 and its revisions since.

Spoilers for both the Curse of Strahd and Vecna: Eve of Ruin modules for D&D 5e (2014). We don't delve too heavily into plot spoilers, but if you plan to play through this module as a player, you might want to save this episode...

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Board game talk on your video game podcast!? Blasphemy!

No, daddy chill, because Final Girl is, like, just that good. For real, for real.

Anyway... We do spend a good first chunk of this episode talking about the excellent and modular board game "Final Girl" from Van Ryder Games. From the innovative dual cover peel-off design of the boxes to the mix-and-match game play of killers and settings, it's quickly becoming one of the best things we have played so far this year. (And I don't mean that as...

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We were on one this episode, so please, take multiple seats and listen to us ramble about nothing and be excessively catty. February, if you could hurry up and deliver some games to play, that would be great.

I suppose some highlights include us discussing the joys of playing old Pokemon games using Nuzlocke rules, some lighthearted dunking on the Nintendo Switch, and tutorials for how to be extra chatty in Marvel Rivals.

For legal reasons:

This is a parody podcast featuring a parody episode that is...

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It's time for us to put out our definitive and empirically curated list of the top ten best games of the year 2024. It's absolutely mental how original we are, because I have never seen any other show, regardless of medium, utilize this easy to generate content format.

Buzz and Porter played the most games this year (lol, get a life nerds), so they were chosen to craft their top ten lists in complete secrecy from one another. Oddly enough, there is just as much crossover as not, which leads to normal...

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The Dunce (Dunce) Dungeon team is back to roll investigation on the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide, an updated core rule-book for Dungeons and Dragons 5e. 

Yes, we think it's weird that it's coming out this much later than the PHB. Yes, we think it's weird that the 2024 MM won't come out until 2025. Yes, we think it's weird that they did it in this order when the MM is arguably the most mechanically critical book for encounters.

We also meander through a variety of side-topics, as is our way, including THACO, M...

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Well, we meant it when we said we gotta go fast, because we saw Sonic the Hedgehog 3 opening day/night (depending on how you frame it) and it was pretty, pretty, pretty good! (And apparently audience meta scores, critic aggregate scores, and the box office would all agree with that take.)

We play the Hero story first on this episode by avoiding all spoilers right until about the 20 minute mark, after that, it's all systems go on spoilers. You've been warned.

Anyway, have a happy, safe, and restorative holiday...

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We are starting to really drag on at the end of the year, but at least we collectively survived the blast zone of the Geoff Keighley's the Game Awards.

While some people felt salty about who won what (like calm down Black Myth Wukong dev, you still won awards...), we thoroughly enjoyed the sweet music on offer and not so secretly wish it were the Game Concert instead. Plus those Muppets made fun of the host like people on the internet have been doing for a literal decade now, and I...

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Breaking news!

Marvel Rivals isn't a completely fee-to-pay microtransaction-laden mess at launch, and is instead mildly consumer conscious and fairly stable despite a large player base on opening weekend!?

All right, pick that jaw back up off the floor. In all seriousness, it turns out Marvel Rivals is actually a competently made hero team-based pvp shooter that manages to capture the spirit of other entries in the genre without being weighed down by greed. That's honestly saying a lot in current year argument. So, yeah, we shower a lot...

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It was Thanksgiving this past week in the US of A, and that means we spent time avoiding forming meaningful relationships with people in our immediate vicinity to instead hang out online in video games. And boy do we have something special for you, because we managed to play not just one, but two multiplayer Steam games this week. I'll take my prize now please.

We kick things off with Sons of the Forest, an engaging but maybe too demanding game for two newbies to drop into it the way we...

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It's absolutely mental how many awards Sonic X Shadow Generations was nominated for at Geoff Keighley's the Game Awards, which is of course something we take really seriously. Like, and this is not an exaggeration at all, our personal self-esteem rests on whether or not this upcoming three hour streaming event agrees exactly with our opinions. So, please, say a little prayer for us.

Also, we have a big milestone accomplishment to share: Buzz sat through the Wade Whipple mini-series (with special limited guest appearances by Knuckles the Echidna) and he...

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If you thought for one minute this episode wasn't going to be about the Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, then you were just fooling yourself. The good news is that Fools at level 20 can immediately jump to the Sage class. That's a mid-tier joke you might get if you've also played Dragon Quest 3.

We weren't supposed to talk about Geoff Keighley's The Game Awards' nominations yet, because of course we have to pad out content after the November releases dry up. And of course we couldn't help ourselves. No Shadow...

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There's always a joker in the pack, and the joker is me.

Or at least, that's what my inner circle would have you believe after I doled out the simoleons for the PS5 Pro, a mid-generation upgrade to the Sony PS5 home console entertainment system. While not a revolutionary upgrade, we have had fun revisiting titles with the latest enhancements.

After comparing our frames per second, we turn to a different kind of FPS as Porter shares his thoughts on Activison's Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. We also think...

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"Time Marches On, And The Age Of A New King Draws Nearer..." or a new president, as we vent our U.S. election eve anxieties by discussing the excellent Metaphor: ReFantazio - developed by Atlus/Studio Zero and published by Sega.

We have a "poggers" time (Thanks Chuck!) as we entertain ourselves with some of the worst presidential candidate impersonations ever, complaining about Dragon Age: The Veilguard (née Dreadwolf), and thinking about how no matter what happens over the next few days, at least we will probably still get to p...

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We are so smart, clever, and witty that we played a horror game near Halloween, because it was released the month before Halloween, and now we can talk about it on Halloween. Now THIS is podcasting!

Obviously we are discussing the artistic genius of Shadow Generations...Is what I tried to make happen, but instead we are actually discussing the Silent Hill 2 2024 remake developed by Bloober Team and published by Konami.

Join us as we praise everything but the combat in what turns out to be a very deftly...

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Buzz is joined by special guest Porter to talk about Team Asobi and Japan Studio's "Astro Bot." And when we say talk, we mean praise heavily. I mean, have you played it? It's really good. Maybe even Game of the Year good...

We inevitably talk about Yakuza (you know the drill by now), but there was an RGG summit just the other day so it's actually timely for once. Although we recorded this episode AHEAD of that commercial broadcast, and no, we didn't predict Pirates in Hawaii, but we'll take it...

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(Go West) Life is peaceful there
(Go West) In the open air
(Go West) Where the skies are blue
(Go West) This is what we’re gonna do

Thank Goodness You're Here!

...is an excellent game that Buzz and special guest Porter both played but is also not the focus of this episode. That would just be a solid hour of praise for what is clearly game of the year 2024.

Instead, in an oddly timely move, we discuss Game Science's global release of "Black My...

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We decided to take the "Reading is Fundamental" feat and dive into R.A. Salvatore's "Homeland," the first book in the Legend of Drizzt series (some would argue it's the 4th and they are wrong *cough* Sarah *cough*).

When we do eventually get around to talking about the book, we cover the first two chapters of the novel and stand there, I mean dumbfounded, mouth agape at just how evil those Drow really are. Content warning for things like slavery, faceless wizards, baby sacrifices, big spiders, fratricide, dismemberment, and deadly espionage...

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The latest round of video game commercials has come to a close with the Summer Game Fest (seriously, why not games plural?). Despite the heat dome reminding us how cooked our goose really is, we manage to temper our expectations for the showings from this year's vitamin E3 supplement.

But beyond arguing about games we might not see until 2026, highlights of this episode include:

Buzz realizes how much he missed out on Alan Wake II last year.

Another sign of the apocalypse arrives with Sarah having managed...

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It's a Hadozee, sorry, a doozy of a dungeon crawl, as we discuss that sensitive subject of race (soon to be species) in D&D.

With One D&D updates starting to crest over the horizon (or  "2024 Revision to 5th Edition,"? I genuinely don't know how they are marketing this anymore...and I think the MM comes out in 2025 anyway...), the ways in which we generate our player characters and NPCs will be updated, including that important first step of choosing a race.

We also look back at all t...

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As the legendary Ellen Greene once sang
"
01010111 01101000 01100101 01110010 01100101 00100000 01110010 01100101 01101100 01100001 01110100 01101001 01101111 01101110 01110011 01101000 01101001 01110000 01110011 00100000 01100001 01110010 01100101 00100000 01101110 01101111 00101101 01100111 01101111 00100001"

Which I reference because we kick off this very special episode talking about our future overlords: computers!

And then we get right back into what we assume our five listeners really came here for, us being petty.

Video games? Yes, we talk about those too I suppose. 

We play amateur anthropologist as we marvel at how Shenmue crawled out of the primordial pond to allow Yakuza to grow a vertebrae and complex digestive system. And speaking o...

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Join us from the opposite end of the dungeon experience as we put on our lich-hats and talk through the finer points of setting up your lair in expectation of pesky would-be adventurers. Frankly, we just think liches are cool and will take any excuse to talk about them.

We also get sidetracked by some of those other big DnD topics, including our thoughts on how stale alignments are at this point in the game, Curse of Strahd (the best module?), and NBC's Community sitcom not making that one episode with...

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Sarah and Buzz take a gander at their first 35 hours with Capcom's Dragon's Dogma 2, the unexpected, but oft wished for, sequel to the cult classic Dragon's Dogma.

As it turns out we love/loathe this title and predict it will/won't be taking GotY. It's an incredible/lackluster experience, and one that is absolutely brimming with ingenuity/time-wasting faff.  (Don't worry, we have many more positives than negatives (I counted), we just aren't sure if the game is the result of madness or brilliance, then again, why not both?)
 
Pa...

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Or at least that's what we are calling the hit game Balatro going forward. Apparently it was the term used for professional jokers or jesters that entertained wealthy folks in ancient Rome. The more you know!

Aside from addicting deck builders, Sarah really wants to talk about Delicious in Dungeon, and since it's a great show and we need a second season like yesterday already, we allow it!

Elsewhere, we check in with Will as he tenders tokens timidly towards tawdry trinkets at the Gold Saucer in Final Fantasy...

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Where the kisses are hers and hers and his - Final Fantasy VII!

As if any of us could escape the gravity well that has been Final Fantasy VII Rebirth over the past two weeks...so of course we are going to cover more of it and its many, many mini-games.

Buzz somehow managed to sink something like 95 hours into Rebirth before switching gears for some Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen ahead of the sequel's release this week.

Meanwhile, Sarah decided to try that Outcast - A New...

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Take a deep breath of that fresh Grasslands air as we step out into the wide open world that is Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. We unpack the massive first two chapters in this episode as we climb radio towers, collect trading cards, and get frustrated at Chadley and Mai's incessant nattering.

Try to keep Kalm, as we keep it spoiler free this episode and limit break our plot discussion to chapters 1 and 2 (with minor nods to the overall content of the original Final Fantasy VII).

And now to leave...

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Welcome back adventurers for another exciting dive into the Dunce dungeon. Sarah was unexpectedly stuck on another plane of existence, so that leaves Buzz and Will to reminisce about previous TTRPG experiences and the struggles of finding a solid group to actually play with.

We get a little meta this episode, as we talk about the importance of a good session 0, how the best DM/GMs operate, and what can make or break a player's experience at the table.

Of course, we also manage to chat about Final Fantasy...

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We tune in for the latest Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase and express our sincere gratitude to Nintendo for bringing us a boatload of trailers and release dates...for software we can look forward to on other platforms. (Like, if they are doing an upgraded re-release of SMTV, why wouldn't I get it on current gen hardware?)

Then, do your best impression of the Frizz and shout "Seat belts everyone!", as Buzz takes us for a spin with "Pacific Drive" from Ironwood Studios and Kepler Interactive. It turns out survival mechanics are...

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It's the episode that almost wasn't! Not to be too dramatic about it, but we were plagued with audio issues during both our recording and editing. Find it in your heart to give us a bit of a break on this one.

As for the actual content of the episode, Buzz seems to rant incessantly about Persona 3 Reload, which is a darn good remake but could have included a bit more of the lessons learned form P3P (we promise Sarah was interjecting with thoughts and questions during this...

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Grab a torch and your explorer's pack and join us in kicking off our new sub-series (spin-off, mini-series?) Dunce (Dunce) Dungeon!

We leave the dice in their box to do a bit of table talk about various Dungeons & Dragons elements. We wanted something iconic for this episode, and since Buzz had to spin up a Wizard for another campaign recently, it only felt right to start with the character class that claims mastery over the arcane.

Take a short rest while we talk about disintegrating your fellow party members...

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If I could turn back time / If I could find a way ... for us to have less audio issues this episode. Despite being plagued by recording troubles, we manage to scrape together two whole thirds of an episode just for you!

Even though Sarah's audio is lost to TIME, Buzz and Will manage to finally pick apart what the phrase "Pokemon with guns" really means as they look into the recent Palworld early access content.

Then we flip the hourglass over as we delve into another entry in the...

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We take serious Umbreon with the two latest Pokemon DLCs on the Switch. As it turns out, sometimes putting content behind a paywall can be a Gastly affair, especially when that content is a bit Trubbish when compared to other games in the series.

On the Plusle side, we at least get to take a trip to the Platinum Corner and talk about Yakuza 6: The Song of Life. And we didn't even have to master a mahjong minigame this time.

Games we natter about this episode include Pokemon: Scarlet...

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In another completely original episode format, we sit down and look ahead at the old dusty trail of gaming in 2024. While Q1 looks to be chock full of big titles to satisfy the RPG appetite, what does the rest of the roadmap have in store?

Even though our futures remain shrouded in mystery, we manage to drum up some titles we are looking forward to and temper our expectations for some new console announcements.

Games we imagine will be great include: Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Persona 3 Reload, Final...

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We've got a real web-head on our hands in this episode, as Buzz is joined by Porter to explore the tangled web that was Marvel's Spider-Man 2. Actually, it' s not all that tangled, but rather a delicately woven and generally outstanding game if you haven't played it yet.

We also start thinking with portals as we discuss our hands-on experience with Sony's PlayStation Portal. You had better hope your home WiFi is up for the challenge.

Games we lament in this episode include: Marvel's Spider-Man 2, Crisis Core - Final...

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Co-hosts were asked to prepare a top ten for the games they played in 2023, and not only did they cheat on some of their answers, but they only managed to scrounge up a measly five entries! In a year as packed as 2023 no less!

Worry not though, Buzz not only came with ten solid entries, and the most accurate takes out of the lot, but he even had some honorable mentions, so perhaps the universe really does work to balance itself out.

By the way, Buzz wrote this description...

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Join us as we enter the denoument of the 2023 Game Awards and try to wade through the awkwardness that is celebrity culture presenting awards to people in the entertainment technology industry.

In this episode, we'll show you fun and new positions to help you get over the fact they gave more time to the No Man's Sky guy than they did the developers actually winning awards, all the while paying homage to the one true icon of video games: Gonzo.

And while we lay a few flowers on the...

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In this star-studded, red carpet of an episode we dive headfirst into the categories for the 2023 Game Awards... and somehow find a way to give every award to Baldur's Gate 3. I mean, have you played it? It's like really, really good.

Join us in asking this year's smash hits "Who are you wearing?" as we barely contain our excitement to watch a bunch of commercials and "ironically" shout "Take my money!" (ugh)

Games we stew over include Baldur's Gate 3, Resident Evil 4, Alan Wake II, Spider-Man II, Super Mario Bros...

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It's just like Christmas in July, but for people who were too lazy to edit their episode in October. 

Sarah kicks us off with some discussion about cozy and indie horror games.  Meanwhile, Buzz wants pictures of Spider-Man refusing to salute the Wakandan embassy on his desk right now! And Will recounts how someone else playing Resident Evil on the PSOne landed him his very own SNES.

But fret not about timeliness, as we were a bit precognitive and decided to talk about the fragile nature of "owning" a pi...

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Two thirds of the dunces attempt a serious tone and try to appeal to a more mature audience as they get gritty with Final Fantasy XVI.

No, but seriously, Buzz and Will do a deep dive on their initial impressions of Final Fantasy XVI on the PS5, including their thoughts on the overall gameplay, the shift in genre from RPG to Action-RPG, and how well the game manages to convey its heavier subject matter.

The dunces try to avoid major spoilers but be warned that plot points up to...

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In this absolutely "eikonic" episode, the dunces recount tales of daring and damnation in Diablo IV! However, it's really just Buzz wondering what the heck Will and his partner are doing in the town's hub all the time.

Buzz and Will also "summon" up the energy to discuss the demo for the highly anticipated Final Fantasy XVI, which in turn leaves Sarah a bit shook up. I mean, honestly, one hundred and twenty US dollars for a dog plush toy! And it doesn't come out until January 2024! (Take my money indeed...)<...

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Everybody wants to Hyrule the world in this episode. The dunces chat about the Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and try to determine if it's a mad world or another classic entry in the series.

 While some are head over heels, others may need to seek pale shelter as the arduous task of comparing Tears of the Kingdom to Breath of the Wild is undertaken in what some might call earnest...maybe?

So, shout, shout, let it all out, as we tell you the mechanics we could d...

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We already knew Buzz liked Nippon Ichi Software, but it turns out he really "stans" them after they help resolve a midnight smartphone shopping mishap. And because we love a theme, he also takes us on a deep dive down the well that is the "Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk" ahead of its anticipated sequel.

While all that's going on, Will makes a return to "Borderlands 3" in a multiplayer campaign, but can't quite gel with the humor.

And of course, Sarah holds her co-hosts captive and forces them...

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In an unbelievably serendipitous turn of events, one of the two video games Sarah has finished in the last decade has become a major hit television show. So yeah, we are going to talk about those flour zombies.

Meanwhile, Buzz muses on the footwear worn by the ladies of One Piece Odyssey, while Will approaches TV Tropes levels of JRPG trope overload in Chained Echoes.

We also discuss the latest Persona 3 Portable and Persona 4 Golden ports, Monster Hunter Rise launching on other consoles, Fire Emblem Engage(ment rings), and...

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Buzz realizes he somehow managed to get five platinum trophies in the span of four days and needs to take a long, hard look at his life. Meanwhile, Will recounts the fun of goofy Victorian murder mysteries, and Sarah finally takes the plunge on PlayStation Plus Extra.

And we talk about Final Fantasy VII. Like, a lot.

Games we chat about include: The Case of the Golden Idol, Resident Evil Village, Sonic Frontiers, One Piece Pirate Warriors 4, Tinykin, and Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion.

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Using an incredibly original format, our dunces start at the end by looking back at the year that was. 

In this episode, we feel deeply called out and seen by the year-end gaming reports telling us just how many hours we poured into our favorite hobby.  We also try to rank our top five games of the past year, but do we succeed?

Games discussed include: Vampire Survivors, Elden Ring (duh), God of War Ragnarok, Horizon Forbidden West, Splatoon 3, Endling: Extinction is Forever, Pokemon,  and a slew of board gam...