Co-op Campfire: A Gaming Podcast
Co-op Campfire is a gaming podcast where friends gather to celebrate video games — the ones we’re playing, the ones we love, and the ones that stick with us!
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Co-op Campfire: A Gaming Podcast
Summer Games Fest 2026
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Ryan and James gush about the exciting announcements from this year's Summer Games Fest and surrounding directs in a surprise bonus episode! What were the games that evoked the most hype? What trailers were the most intriguing, or that won us over? We'd love to hear yours, too!
Games Discussed
- Crossfire
- Mr. Records
- Apple Crumble
- Magicians: The Devil's Deal
- Vivarium
- Final Fantasy Resonance
- Screenbound
- Halo: Campaign Evolved
- N+Infinity Times Two
- Spyro: A Realm Beyond
- Castlevania: Belmont's Curse
- Until Dawn 2
- Orbitals
- Big Walk
- Lazy River
- The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time (Remake)
- Threads of Time
- Assassin's Creed 4 Resynced
- Shot One Fighters
- Fire Emblem Fortune's Weave
- Kingdom Hearts IV
- Street Fighter 6
- Xenoblade Genesis
- The Wolf Among Us 2
- Tomb Raider Legacy of Atlantis
- Final Fantasy 7 Revelation
- Virtua Fighter Crossroads
- Tenebris Somnia
- Fable
- Star Wars Galactic Racer
- Mighty Cuphead Adventure
- Star Wars Zero Company
- Signet City
Special Thanks To
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Intro
RyanHello, hello. Welcome to another episode of Co-op Campfire and a very special and timely episode. It is. We just came off of Summer Games Fest. We are recording hours after the Nintendo Direct happened, and James and I are so excited to talk about things.
JamesMy weeb and RPG heart is so full right now. I am so excited to just get into this. There was so much over that week. It was what a year. What a what is Summer Games Fest of all time.
RyanCampers, we wanted to give you our take of Summer Games Fest. So here is a special loosely edited bonus episode of us just gushing. Please enjoy our take on Summer Games Fest 2026.
JamesEnjoy the show.
The Summer Games Fest Favorites Guessing Game Categories
RyanWe don't have 10 hours. We have a couple categories. The categories are get hype. It's the game you're most excited for. Spit take, a game where you just like were so shocked or a moment that happened that you were just like screaming, like, oh my God, so left field.
JamesYou spit your drink out, you know, your monitors covered in Diet Coke or whatever your beverage of choice is, and you just couldn't believe what you just saw.
RyanUh we have Alright, All Bite, which is a game or a trailer that like initially you were like, ah, this is kind of not my thing, but as it went on, you were convinced to try it out. We have How Intriguing, a game where it was just like the most unique concept you saw. Like, not convincing you to buy it necessarily. It doesn't have to be like that, but it was something that you were like, wow, that's very unique kind of game. Uh, we have Those Were the Days, just something that tugs your nostalgia strings a bit. Maybe a game that fills a gap that a previous childhood game filled for you. And finally, best co-op. Just whatever you're excited to play with your friends. That all sound good, James.
JamesWhy does everything am I being scored for this?
RyanLet's save the scoring for the actual minigame.
JamesOkay, perfect. I I like that. I like that better. Let's just focus on the hype for now. Let's just let's just be in the moment here.
RyanWe want to just gush. This this isn't like a strict step one through five thing, but we just want an excuse to talk and gush about stuff. Uh,
Spit Take (Most Surprising)
RyanJames, who wants to go first with the guessing?
JamesI'll take it. Let's go.
RyanAll right. For spit take, I think you are most caught off guard by one of three things.
JamesOh, okay. So you get to you get to select your palette of like, oh, here's my three guesses, and surely one of them will be correct. Give me give me the one thing you thought I was most excited about.
RyanAll right, we're gonna do one and then we'll list the others as conversational stuff.
JamesSure, sure.
RyanOh man, now I gotta lock it down.
JamesLock it in, man. Be confident. You know me. We've known each other for years.
RyanOkay. Persona six reveal teaser.
JamesI'm gonna give you that was an option, but not my number one. That was not the spit drink. And uh, so here, so I'll give you some context. Yes, that was exciting to see. It was crazy to be announced. I just wish, and the frustrating thing with persona trailers is they show almost nothing. There was just the logo this time. So I knew this was kind of like a far guess, but I thought it might. It was number three for me because, like, yes, it is real, it's here, and sometimes that is the excitement of the announcement. Is they have formerly announced, we don't have to speculate. Yes, they have brought it to the forefront. Yes, that was awesome to see. Very surprised it was at the Xbox showcase of all things, but still cool nonetheless to see. Would you like to know what my number one pick was? Yep, hit me. Maybe a little cheating because it's not like a new game, but it was seeing Tifa for Street Fighter season.
RyanI demon! I had that, I had that in there. You even texted me how much left field that was.
JamesAh, this is just such a crazy, like, I it's it's hearkening back to like the Smash Brothers era of reveals for me, where it was a shock reaction. I mean, it was like a freeze frame, and then she uppercut straight. I'm like, I could not believe it. There has been so much discussion, and so much of the FGC, the community has been like begging for her to be in Tekken, which it is what it is. I've Street Fighter has been selling unbelievably well, it's really popular in Japan right now. Final Fantasy has been doing well, so it seemed like obviously it's like a perfect match, no one would be upset at this, but it was just so shocking to even like people have been asking for Tifa in a real fighting game for like a decade, probably even longer. So, like to see it finally happen, to see like completely I mean Tekken got Clive from Final Fantasy 16 and the in one of their earlier seasons, which is cool. That was a that was a very surprising guest inclusion. But Tifa has the legacy seven came out and is one of the most beloved RPGs of all time. So to see Tifa in a fighting game and like one that's doing really well and not just like a weird mobile thing or some gotcha crossover, it's like, no, this is the real deal. She is a street fighter now. I couldn't believe it. It's it's the per if there is ever a character to put in a fighting game like that, usually the fighters in Final Fantasy, you have like Zell from 8, but Tifa is like the golden child. Like, please include her. So glad she finally got her due.
RyanWell, my other guesses were Street Fighter, like I said, uh TMNT The Last Ronin, which I didn't realize was a comic book series. I thought The Last Ronin was like an already existing game and it was like a TMNT crossover, but then I looked more into it. It's actually like its own legit thing.
JamesHonorable mention, I actually had uh so again that trailer had just nothing. So I wish I could see gameplay or even more of like a teaser cinematic, but platinum games, great hands, what a crazy game that is going to be. Obviously, super stoked for that. But the pick for me for spit take number two was uh Xenoblade Genesis coming out next year. Oh wow. Well, when did three come out? Like a couple years ago now? It has been four years since Xenoblade 3, just a little just a little under. It was a July of 2022. Okay, so about time for a new one for a brand for a full-fledged. I mean, you you talk about RPGs that you you just talked about persona, persona. It was like 10 years from Persona 5 to Persona 6.
RyanPersona is a 300-hour game.
JamesAnd Xenoblade is it? Have you tried 100%? No, you know me. That's a big time commitment. It is, but it is also just one of those things that is such uh it's like top of the class RPG for me. This isn't like just because it's a like Nintendo's RPG. I think this is one of the best RPG series ever made. It is just incredibly well done with the story, the characters, everything. I I just was shocked to I honestly. I mean, you've been thinking about it, Ryan. It's a little different, like argument, I guess, but we're still waiting on the next 3D Mario, you know? It's been 10 years since Odyssey.
RyanWell, my only argument for that is that the same team that developed Odyssey developed DK Bonanza, which we just got. So I honestly was not expecting Mario for another four or five years, unless they somehow like split the team or divvied up resources or something. I'm not expecting Mario for a long time.
JamesAnd I guess you're right. Um, I like I'm looking back now at the cadence of releases from like the Xeno series, and the original game came out in 2010. Xenoblade Chronicles X for uh the Wii U came out in 2015, so about five years from there. And I I guess if you want to lump Xenoblade 2 in like a little bit of a different tier, that was 2017, so seven years for like the true numbered sequel, but you know, you had that game in between.
RyanAlso, James, consider the hype of Xenoblade accelerated a lot when Super Smash introduced Shulk. So that might have expedited the need or the desire for Xeno.
JamesAnd Pyra and Mithra, they were DLC fighters in Ultimate as well.
RyanSo there's no device about that at all. Everybody loved that inclusion.
JamesYeah, trust me, over Rex, who that was like the initial teaser, yes, I think people would have definitely been more excited uh with Pyra and Mithra over Rex.
RyanOkay, yep, I'll take that.
JamesSo, James, what was my spit take? I gave you one. I was confident to select one game for your spit take. I actually I have two. I have two, and we'll talk about them. But the one that I confidently like hit enter, didn't even think about it, and that was with the direct factored in today was Wolf Among Us 2.
RyanYep. 100%. I listed that third, but that was probably my like, oh my god, it's still alive moment. Like, thank God, we're out of development hell. There's still hope. Holy crap, they're advertising it again. That was amazing. And then they announced the remaster like right after it. So they know they're really trying to get the hype going again.
JamesGet people caught up, you know, what makes this game special, what makes this such a cool narrative game, and to just like you said, I think there were definitely a lot of announcements this week that's like, oh my god, it's not dead. And that was just really refreshing to see anything on.
RyanI think it helped. We were just talking about that like a couple weeks ago in our uh group chat, too. Or like, I I hope there's a telltale, like hope. Oh, that was it. Our friend was playing The Walking Dead, and we were like, Oh, Wolf Among Us is good too. Oh crap, what's going on with the second one? Ugh, yikes.
JamesShocking, and it comes out next year. That's crazy. I it's one of those things, like I I would have thought if they had even announced it, it still would just be like no release date. Like, here's some more footage, but no, it's like next year.
RyanThat's hype. I didn't catch that. It is next year, yes, 2027. Hell yeah. All right, well, you nailed it, James. Uh, my other one I had listed was Stranger Than Heaven, uh Snoop Dogg Cameo.
JamesYeah, I'd like to do a correction that is actually Tupac for the cameo.
RyanBut Snoop Dogg came out afterwards and was talking about the game.
JamesHe did, yes. So, so I guess, yeah, uh sorry. Snoop Dogg announcing like being there for the announcement, but I know the like Tupac being in the game was a very like hot button topic for a lot of people.
RyanThat's pretty wild too, yeah.
JamesSo very unique inclusion um for that. That was just really kind of a a name drop to appear on the screen for a game, but yeah, Snoop Dogg being there is definitely a fun. I feel like there's always got to be like a fun celebrity cameo or pop-up at the Summer Games Fest. So that was fun to see.
RyanAll right, and then indie wise, the other like spit take moment I had was just I'm just I'm this was more of just like I'm shocked this series is still going. Like, not to say like it's a bad series at all. I just I'm shocked that like it still has that longevity to it. It was a trying six being announced. Trine six. I was just like, oh my god, they're still making these. That's so awesome. And I remember playing this in 2010, like playing the very first one for hours and hours. And it was it's just so refreshing to see trying every now and then of like, oh my god, they're on four, oh now it's five, and then hearing six recently was just so funny. Like, all right, let's go, keep it coming.
JamesThat's awesome. Yeah, I mean, like, if it ain't broke and they're happy making them, then why not? Like, keep keep it coming. That's what I love is like when you get a series that you just keep keep eating, you know, they keep making games for them. So I'm happy to see number six. That's crazy.
RyanGood stuff.
"All Right, I'll Bite..." (Won You Over)
RyanAll right, next category is all right, all bite. Something that when it started, you were like, I probably won't like this, but it eventually came around to it. James, for you, I guess, Crossfire.
JamesI did not select Crossfire, actually. Um, mine was kind of a weird pick, and I'll give you I'll just give you a general pass on this one because I actually had a hard time like truly selecting a game for this, because I maybe I was just kind of caught up in the general hype. There wasn't one that I was like truly. I think maybe if they like had showed more of like the saw game and it was like compelling enough, I could have been maybe swayed on like a 3v1 saw game. But the game to me that kind of stuck out is one that I've had my eye on, but I just I need to keep seeing more of it is uh Tomb Raider Legacy of Atlantis. Oh, okay. So my experience with Tomb Raider is not much. So they they rebooted Tomb Raider in 2014. That was like the much grittier M-rated version of it. Um, that's the one that had like the really crazy death scenes. Um, I don't know if you remember that where she's like sliding down a waterfall and then you know, oh oops, I got impaled. Yeah, it's wild. But um that's been about it. I think I've dabbled in the original trilogy a little bit, and they just don't control very well. They just don't hold up very well in terms of like accessibility to like play and enjoy now. I don't know. I think they were like impressive for the time, but they just don't stand the test of time super well. They're tanky controls. And in a game where you need precision platforming and you're doing puzzles and light combat, it just it's not the best control scheme for those games. But I think that this game being like a reimagining of like that original adventure, it just looks gorgeous. It's always been a series that's intrigued me, but this has kind of been like the more I've seen of this game, I'm definitely willing to like jump in and give it a try.
RyanAnd it looked true to form. There was actually a part where she was like jumping through like a bunch of spears coming out of the ground, and it immediately made me think of like the acrobatic animation from the PS1 trilogy, like that like little flip dive she has, yeah. It looked really elegant, and it was like, okay, they they know what they're doing, they got the formula just right there. Yeah, good pick. That seems like a very interesting one. So you you are you sold on it now, or are you saying you still need to see more?
JamesSo maybe to spoil a little bit of our categories, this is not maybe like a day one buy for me, but I'm definitely I definitely want to play it at some point. I don't know when I'll get to it. That's the problem. When you go through these showcases, you're so excited, but then you start stressing like, what am I gonna fit in?
RyanOh, yeah. That's the worst, the backlog again, man.
JamesThat's where I fear Lara will land, but uh I feel confident Lara Croft, Loracroft, but uh she'll she'll be she'll be on there eventually, but I just don't know in what order.
RyanI could not stop thinking about like if I just followed if I was just like a sheeple and I followed.
SPEAKER_01I don't know where this is going.
RyanBear with me. If I was just a sheeple and I just watched Summer Game Fest and the game awards like year after year, I had no other news of any other games, and I just played like what was fed to me, like if that could fit into my schedule. Because you heard Jeff at the beginning, there's already like 9,400 games released on Steam alone as of this year. It's like, how the hell am I gonna accurately cover any of these?
JamesAnd that was like 2,500 increase from last year. He had the he had the numbers, so like it is nuts to try to even fathom your gaming schedule after. I mean, and and honestly, good because I know Summer Games Fest has been definitely a little iffy in quality. I I mean it's always been a fun show to watch, but there definitely have been like this year, I felt was like a home run kind of year for the announcements and things that they showcased.
RyanYeah, let's make that clear right now. We were both very happy with like everything we saw, uh, or like how, you know, just the general tone and everything of it. It was a very good year.
JamesSo when you have such an amazing show with like, oh man, I'm just eaten today, you know, there's so many good things being announced, and just across every genre you would ever want games that you wouldn't expect to come back, you know, all this stuff. And then it's like, I'm still trying to finish my PS1 RPG from 20 years ago. What am I doing?
RyanHow dare you enjoy a classic game you've never played before? Like you got all this other stuff to play. Yeah, man. It's hard. It's it's it's tough to juggle. That's an episode in itself.
JamesSo I'm gonna take a shot at one of yours, and I could be wrong. I have two picks.
RyanOh, oh, really quick, James. I I just want to say the other guesses I had for you. Sure. Uh, they were both indies. One was called Bad Magpie.
JamesYes, is that the one with the bird? Yeah.
RyanThat was like hopping around. Yeah, and that I got untitled Goose Gabe from like vibes from it and thought you would have to.
James100%. That was really fun to re-watch that trailer, just like double checking stuff for the podcast. But uh I didn't write it down, but I did remember it. So that was uh an honorable mention for sure.
RyanSo there's that one, and then 33 Mortals, a roguelike, uh like multiplayer roguelike, to a to a bigger scale, like more players playing at once. And the gameplay kind of reminded me of Hades, so I thought you would be into that.
JamesI wrote that down for a later category, uh, but I guess it's probably like fine to talk about it here. I'm definitely intrigued. It is such a very fun concept. First of all, I like that you can squat up with like two to four people if you want to like bring your squad in and work with them. Otherwise, they encourage you to just queue up with the 32 other random people and just figure it out. I'm more intrigued. This is what I would want to see more of maybe a demo or a test where like I like the concept of just like you're hopping into a raid party and fighting a boss. That's cool. The con like the game looked cool, the gameplay looked cool, but the roguelike aspect intrigues me. So, like, if we all die as a party, how many of those 32 are hopping right back in? Am I just gonna expect more like are people gonna drop out and rage quit? Are people gonna hop in and fill the party then? How quickly should we expect to like clear the game as a squad, you know, where you are expected to die and lose? That's the part that intrigues me a little bit. But very, very cool concept for sure. That that is one that had my eye. It'll be interesting to see how they attack those game design decisions there. So for you, Ryan, are you ready for me to take a couple shots here? Perhaps go for it. All right, I'm going to take a big swing and go with uh Final Fantasy VII Part Three. I did not have that on there. No. You had talked about even experien like how do I experience Final Fantasy VII and some of those like moments jumping out at you in the gameplay, but I I wasn't sure if that was enough. Because I knew this would not be a game you would normally go for, but I thought the trailer at least intrigued you to look up like how do I complete Final Fantasy VII in a reasonable amount of time.
RyanTo be fair, we did text like afterwards. Uh and we were texting like how long to beat comparatively. So that was that was funny. I wasn't ever not convinced to play it. I I've been feeling this way a long time, ever since they announced the remake. It was just the my immediate impression was like, oh, that feels more up my alley, but I still want to experience the original so I can compare it. So that'll be something to look forward to. Of like, okay, I'll get through the original game, and I don't know, maybe I'll even like the turn-based stuff. It's just not normally my thing. But then I'll get to Final Fantasy re remake. It's remake, rebirth, and then re-revelation. Revelation, yeah. Okay. So remake is the only like not like mystical or magical kind of thing.
JamesYeah, well, it it was a cheeky way to announce it. And again, I I I I will not get on the rant today. Truly, it was the Final Fantasy VII remake. That is how it was like proposed as a project, but I think they realized pretty quickly the scope of what they wanted to do is not going to encompass just one game. So it gets confusing when you add on the other two titles. Like for the loreheads, it all makes sense, it's all fine, but Final Fantasy VII Remake, that is what it is, but it only covers like the intro portion of Final Fantasy VII original.
RyanYeah, and it's cute how they all start with Re, to be fair. Anyway, good guess. Uh, what actually convinced me was Crossfire.
JamesReally? Okay.
RyanThat was the biggest one of like, oh, it's it's another army game. Okay, we're getting back into this. But then they started talking about like the story of it, and was like, okay, well, this is an interesting dynamic. And then they established it's like a guy who is uh shoot, what's the word?
JamesDouble crossing.
RyanYeah, like he's double crossing his original team to work with this other woman to take down like his team, is is the gist I got. And then they were talking about like the co-op gameplay and the the technical side of it. It was like the dynamic, it was like adaptive cover, and it was just like the the the environment looked really cool, or it looked really detailed and it didn't. Looks so like, oh, this is how I go through here, like a linear path. But the character they were showing off how the character was like squatting and then kind of like leaning against the rocks and stuff like that.
JamesThere's some stealth takedowns and like bringing people up. Like, yeah, it doesn't feel like um there is even a spot where there's like a cool like stealth camo suit that somebody was implementing while you're attacking from like a higher angle. Yeah. The thing that like I love Gears of War and I will always love that original trilogy. Uh, but as you start to replay those games, it becomes kind of weird when the environments include just random blocks like kind of peppered throughout and like cinder blocks or like a truck that just doesn't feel like re I obviously it's a a fantasy setting for like a shooter where it's like a fantastical, this is not like realistic, but it doesn't feel believable as an environment that you would like actually fight in where this looks like just an actual battlefield that you would like be handling and just cool ways to approach it. So I see exactly what you're saying there.
RyanYeah, you literally took the words out of my mouth. I was I was thinking Gears of War that entire time of like, wow, that I remember I never even played it, but I remember how not clunky, but kind of you know, like snappy, I guess it felt. Like, oh, I'm I'm close to this this cover. It's I'm gonna like foop like onto it. Where this one felt like, oh, I'm squatting and now I'm kind of leaning, and it just felt a bit more like smooth. Fluid, fluid, better, yes, thank you. That yeah, that was my biggest like immediate uh dismissal, but now I'm convinced like that looked really cool. Okay. Some other the some other shout-outs were Mr. Records was an in the game. Yeah, it's just like that looks so cute. Like he plays this old guy, and it they were talking about like, oh, it's a music-based game, and it's I think what hooked me was when they said it's about his whole life, it was like moments from his life. So they're integrating the story into the gameplay, which was like really cool. And then Apple Crumble, which is like who's gonna murder grandma? That just looks hilarious.
JamesYeah, I I actually I didn't write it down for a category, but Mr. Records jumped out at me just like that rhythm, rhythm fever, rhythm heaven style kind of game. Uh, but I like that there was more story aspect to it. I like the cool uh the stages were like vinyls that were in a shop and you had to like find recommendations for people. It just felt like a nice way to approach that kind of game to make it fresh. That was really fun.
RyanYeah, that's actually a great that's a great point. It's like a good back and forth of you get a break from like constantly doing the music. There's like another little side to the game. Yeah, lots lots of stuff that convinced me this year personally. I don't know how you feel, James.
JamesYeah, I mean, uh really strong showing all around from Indies and Triple A. Like just every like there were so many different games that caught my eye for different reasons.
How Intriguing! (Most Unique)
RyanAll right, our next category is How Intriguing. Something again that like just caught your eye of like, wow, that's really unique, or doesn't even have to be unique, just like, oh my gosh, they're doing that.
JamesThat's that's really cool. Now, Ryan, before you get take your guess, would you like to guess? I have two, I have two I wrote down for this. Would you like to guess my triple A or my indie? And if it helps and if it affects your decision, I confidently wrote the indie first. Indie is screen bound. No. It was uh I'm gonna I'm gonna fudge this name so bad. Tenebre Somnia. Uh, do you remember seeing that game?
RyanWhat was that? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Hold on.
JamesOh, he's pulling out the notebook. He's fever, he's feverishly pulling out the notebook. Dude, I wrote so many notes. The ravings of a madman over there.
RyanYeah, because I wrote down pixel plus live action. But I thought this game would be too scary for you to play alone. And you didn't like scary games.
JamesIt might be. Okay, here's my rule. And so, first of all, shout out to Cybot Studios. They were uh the devs that were, I don't know, devs are publisher, but they were kind of bringing the game to light. And it was funny how they talked about it because yes, so this almost looks like a DOS game, like an early PC horror game, and it looks like straight out of Resident Evil, almost like crow country gameplay, just in that realm of like my bread and butter. I love this stuff.
RyanClock tower too.
JamesYes. Here's what I love, Ryan. I love horror games where I do have the capability to fight back. I cannot just be running and running.
RyanThey gave you a shotgun in the trailer.
JamesThey have a handgun, they show them like mixing bullets and stuff. Now, obviously, when you when you optimize these games and you like know what to do, most of the times you can just run and you know where the threats are. But I love that fresh experience of like a new horror experience, and it feels rewarding when you do the resource management and you're solving the puzzles, and like everything comes together where you're always fighting, but it doesn't feel uber stressful, just enough. It's it's got enough push. But yes, that is the big hook with this game, and what they were I gosh, I wrote this down.
RyanUm James is now furiously oh, he's got he's got sticky notes, man.
JamesOh yeah, uh so they had um this was a live they they mentioned live action cutscenes and a movie from a professional production crew and a like professional special FX team, none of which were named directly, but they were showing like the cast and they were like setting up the scenes, and it's really crazy where you'll like find a really creepy moment in the game, and it'll just cut to this live action thing, and it's just such a cool blend of like this avant-garde horror film that is also simultaneously existing next to this, just what looks to be a rock solid horror game. So that was like I wasn't expecting it. This was in the day of the dev showcase, and I was like, that is like way up the list. That is like very intriguing concept for me.
RyanThat is insane. You know what? Like the the discussion around pixel art too and of why it's valuable is because it it makes you imagine like what it could actually look like, and it gives you that freedom of imagination. And this game is kind of funny, it it almost answers that like right away for you. They had like a a moment where you're like, Oh, I peek through this hole, and then I see this image of like a human, and then it just immediately immediately clips to like a realistic human. So it almost like answer it gives you the opportunity to imagine, but then it immediately answers the question of like, oh, this is what it actually looks like.
JamesIt's really capturing the spirit of the original Resident Evil, where they actually did splice in those live action moments. One of the most famous things in all of Resident Evil is that first head turn from the zombie right at the beginning when you find out like what's going on, and like even the goofy FMV things that they did that were definitely campy at the time, but like that's what I love is that they like they have the vision and it really it makes you kind of on edge because you don't know when you're gonna get this raw, just real life thing in your game. But I love this. I this trailer absolutely sold me. I need to see nothing else, I will be there day one for this.
RyanI'm so pissed because if I remember there was a gun in there, I would have picked that. But I I thought of you the whole time, like I think James would really like this, but it's just too scary.
JamesI probably will be, but the the the main character did have a revolver, that's enough for me.
RyanMan, noted for future ones.
JamesDo you want to guess the triple A one?
RyanYeah, I thought it was a Final Fantasy Resonance.
JamesYes, I I think had I re had I like went through the list again. Um, I'll talk quickly on it, but I'll give you what my other answers as well. So Final Fantasy Resonance was interesting because at first I was really afraid. I I recognized the character names, and I'm like, I've played this before. I know I have that I've seen this, and it was there was a mobile game called Final Fantasy Brave X Fious, and that shut down last year, and you know how much I hate mobile games. I do not need to go on this rant again. We're positive here at the campfire tonight, but gave that game a try. It had mobile game trappings I hated, and I just uninstalled and never played it again. And this game, and from what I have read up a little bit on, has like this is a real deal RPG. It's just based on the story of the mobile game, so it's adapting the mobile game, but it's like from the ground up, this is a brand new RPG, it's not taking any systems from the mobile game, it's not like, oh, here's the free version that you pay $50 for, and we're just like, no, it is like literally just a new Final Fantasy RPG with this mobile game story, so that saved me from being like meh on it.
RyanPhew, all right, good deal. And question has a Final Fantasy game to this point uh taken the style of that HD 2.5 that was dubbed an Octopath Traveler all those years ago. Has that ever been on a Final Fantasy game?
JamesNot on an official Final Fantasy, true Final Fantasy product, which is interesting, and they did mention that like in the um not the trailer, but I think some of the promotional material and stuff. Like if you go on the website and look up like Square Enix's blurb about the game, they mentioned that that this is like the first true HD 2D Final Fantasy project.
RyanInteresting. So they're using that too as a reason. I just thought that was so monumental because like when Octopath Traveler came out, I was like, oh, that's like RPG Square Enix RPG 101. Like, they've gotta apply it to Final Fantasy sometime, and it's been almost 10 years and we finally got it.
JamesThey've used it for Dragon Quest, but they have not used it for Final Fantasy. So exciting to see that. I think it's an interesting project. It really feels like Fire Emblem Engage, all of your favorites are here, but as the the so I don't know how I'll I I honestly didn't play enough of the story to have an opinion on it. So but I'm excited to hear that like my my I I know there's like a weird SpongeBob mobile game on the Switch, but you buy like this they literally call it the fun version where it's like you basically buy all the microtransactions out of the way and you just play the mobile game with no restraints. But like I was really worried it was gonna be that, but it is not, so two thumbs up for me.
RyanYay! But that was not your pick.
JamesYeah, so my sneaky pick, and maybe one you didn't think you you didn't think would be intriguing for me just based on my game genres I enjoy, but I put Virtua Fighter Crossroads.
RyanGod I needed to start going with my gut. Did you I yeah, I thought that would be something you would buy, not like be like, oh, that's interesting. Like, I thought you're you're a fighter guy. I thought you would get this.
JamesYes, so but it's it's tough. So it's like Virtua Fighter is not a series I've really had experience with, and it it has been sort of a weird like history for Virtual Fighter where they just really haven't released a new game in a long time. It just kind of fell off a little bit, still competitive in small circles and you know, following Japan, but not like to the level of like your Tekken's, your Street Fighters, etc. So this is like Virtual Fighter's big comeback, it's been teased. We've seen like a little bit of uh promotional stuff for it, but not like raw gameplay. This is from the guys that are the uh this is from RGG Studio, so this is the uh like a dragon and yakuza devs, so interesting for them to kind of take the mantle. The genre shift there, and that's what I love. And this is honestly something that I I'm I promise I'm not trying to live my life of pitching games to you, but what I loved about this pitch for this game is that they really sold it for like non-fighting game people, like they detailed the whole story mode as like a big open world questing adventure, and there's moments where it feels like a brawler where you have people coming from like both sides, it's very cinematic, like the story was at the forefront, and it did a cute thing that I liked and kind of Street Fighter 6 did a little bit, where it's like taking the past characters and incorporating them into the story, but you're playing as a new cast, so it's like easy to jump in. The fans can appreciate, like, oh my gosh, it's Pi, she's here. Whoa! But it was such an interesting angle because they really they didn't even do like a big demo of like, here's what a multiplayer game will look like, here is what your normal competitive, like UI and all like they didn't do that, yeah. Very little fighting gameplay, they sold it to like non-fighting game people, and it intrigued me because like that looked like a really beautiful story mode that like I just would enjoy playing as a game, not even factoring in a fighting game or the the the fact that it's a virtual fighter game. I'm just like this looks like a great single player game with fighting game elements, but then they also have kind of teased or proposed, like, yes, this does have a like proper fighting game mechanic or whatever. So I don't know, maybe that'll be a fun one to try out for you know, maybe to have you even just try it to see if that like sticks with you or if it's like accessible to someone that doesn't play fighting games all that much.
RyanJames, I'm gonna need to see your uh most recent pay stub. Is Papa Jeff uh signing your paychecks? Because you you just bumped that up into my alright, I'll bite category.
JamesOh yes! Yes, working on my sales pitches, man. I'm on to you, buddy.
RyanYou're infiltrating this cozy campfire.
JamesDoing doing good, doing good.
RyanHe's always gone during Summer Games Fest and Game Awards. I just I don't get it.
JamesWell, I guess it's my turn to guess for you. I had so the funny thing is I put screen bound for you. And I know you've seen is I know you've seen this game plenty of times before.
RyanYeah, that's that's why I didn't I'll I'll say that right now. Because I've been excited for this. So I'm not like I wasn't like, oh, this is new and intriguing, but great pick because I I'm very excited for that one.
JamesWhat a unique concept. I loved this trailer especially to show like the hub area and like her computer and just kind of like the story aspect to it. I really appreciated that this time. That's that's like what more than just a concept. This got bumped up for me because of that trailer.
RyanOh, nice. What do you think about the top-down? Because I know that sold me even more so for it. Like to clarify, like they advertised it like it's a 2D platformer combined with like a 3D platformer, but then they also revealed in this trailer of a like top-down Zelda-esque gameplay with the 3D still around it, which looked really cool.
JamesAnd not to not to die, because we could be talking for hours about every single aspect of all these games, but that's the so the the 2D aspect is the main character. She holds like basically a Game Boy, and you put, and that's what they introduced in this trailer were cartridges. So the one that they had been kind of promoting. So you move around in the 3D environment, she's holding the Game Boy, which has a 2D game playing on it, and they both meld together basically for the platforming. The first cartridge that they had really shown in all the promotional stuff is just like your Mario style 2D platformer, but then cartridge number two on her computer is like a top-down Zelda or like an old school RPG. And I just love that the the introduction of different genres to incorporate melding with like the 3D stuff is just so cool.
RyanYeah, and that has potential. If they think of another idea, they can add DLC later, like to add another kind of genre combination.
JamesAbsolutely. So so if it wasn't screen bound, what was your indie rep for this?
RyanMy indie rep was I don't know, now that I'm thinking about it, this might not be entirely accurate, but I did pick vivarium. Okay. I think like the the 90s anime aesthetic just kept growing on me. And maybe even before that, it kind of feels more like 80s. Uh, it just kept growing on me. And then at the end, I realized that, or they reveal like, oh, you're in this little little like is that what they call it? Like a vivarium? Is that the actual term for it? Or is it like a plant? You know, those little like glass a terrarium. Yeah, a terrarium. Yeah, like she's like literally in a terrarium, yeah. Which is just like, oh, I see. This is this is like a little, you're you're playing as like a little person, I guess. I don't know, like a secret world of Arieti kind of situation.
JamesThat's a good way to explain it. I was kind of like, what is this game reminding me of? And I think that's like the perfect poll for that.
RyanBut it just looked cozy, and you know, I was just texting you today, James, of like I'm getting burnt out on Souls Lakes, and I I've been playing Mina the Hollower, and I'm kind of scared that that's gonna burn me out further, because I've been looking forward to this game. I backed it at a very high tier years and years ago, and I I'm not really feeling like the urge to play it because it's it's so hard, and I kinda I think I just need something like easy and cool right now. So maybe that's why Vivarium spoke to me. It just felt like a very cozy, enjoy the artwork, like my favorite style of artwork kind of game, but it just looked beautiful.
JamesWhat a brutal gauntlet you've endured of Silksong into Mina timeline.
RyanI haven't even beaten Silksong. That's the frustrating part. I'm I've there's like cutscenes that I want to see so badly I can't get past this fing part. It's so I don't want to go back to it. I've I've logged like 60 hours.
JamesWe're gonna cozy up, grab your martial riot. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's a great game. I love it. It's a great fucking game. I fucking love this game. So I'm gonna I'm gonna take a shot, and I could be wrong. Maybe this is in the wrong spot, but I want to say the intriguing triple A for you was Fable.
RyanOoh, James, I don't think we've ever really talked about Fable. That is like one of my core. Like, when I first got an Xbox, Fable was my second game. I replayed that thing like five times at least.
JamesOkay, Ryan, can you hold, please? Sure. Give me one sec. And this this may help. This this may help with some context here. So I'm trying to remember, I try to remember what group chat this is in, honestly. I think this okay. Quote, Ryan, this was at 8 49 p.m. Upon watching the Xbox direct. Quote, Fables got me wanting to buy an Xbox now, end quote.
SPEAKER_01What am I supposed to what what what how is that not intriguing?
RyanOh, I get your perspective. I just don't think we've ever talked about how much I love Fable already.
JamesSo is that the trilogy or is that just the first game, the like the true nostalgia? I played a lot of two.
RyanYes, I do remember that. Uh I I played a lot of one. Uh, two, I did get a playthrough in and it was great. Uh three I never played. I heard it kind of fell off around then. But dude, Chicken Chaser, like Fable One, I I have so I I used to listen to the soundtrack to that in high school. Like that, I love, love, love Fable. So hearing the news of Fable the past few years has been exhilarating. And I only said I want to buy an Xbox because I'm pretty sure that's Xbox exclusive. I hope I'm wrong.
JamesI'd be shocked if it's not on some kind of online platform. Let's check. Maybe Steam. Yep. Steam saves the day.
RyanOh, thank god.
JamesNice try, Microsoft. No Xbox for me.
RyanThere we go.
JamesBut that's uh now that we have the Steam page up, February 23rd next year.
RyanHoly crap, that's huge.
JamesAnd honestly, you know what? We've talked a lot about games that we're stressed about even fitting in our schedule. Ryan, you've got like the rest of the year and some change before you get to Fable. So take a breather, take it, put a pin in it, add it to the wish list, you'll get to Fable. It doesn't it's not like right around the corner in a good way. I can't wait.
RyanSo, yeah, unfortunately, good guess. Uh, I think if you had the background to how much I already loved Fable, I mean, I was intrigued for sure, but I'm for sure gonna buy that. That this is I'll I'll I'll at least tell you right now, it's not my uh actually, I should just shut up. You might put something together for later guests. Okay, all right. What I actually put for this category was Gen Atlas and Magician's Devils game. Okay, okay, yeah. The magic-based gameplay and just the demonic like theming of everything, like you against the devil. It didn't feel like as intense as like a doom level scenario where it's just like blood and gore and like it's all about killing. But mainly the point was like the magic-based gameplay looks awesome. I've never seen a game like incorporate the magic theme, like standard like magician kind of thing. Like you saw him like whipping out his wand and like twirling it around and being all sleight of hand with it. It looks so fun.
JamesThe best comparison I even have, and it's not a good one, is like Oblivion or like Elder Scrolls, when you could technically dual wield magic and kind of do like some natural. Now, granted, that's not as tight of a action game that this game is presented to be. So it's definitely a lot clunkier to try to like utilize it in a real-time setting. But this, yeah, I think that's a kind of surprise it hasn't been like a concept before this. Like it seems like a really cool, like, you know, I I guess maybe just trying to land on the right style or like mechanics, but yeah, like just an FPS but with magic is just really sweet.
RyanI was actually thinking like it felt more like Bioshock in the sense of you're flipping between your plasmids and like the guns and stuff. So I wonder like what your main weapon will be in this.
JamesOr just like a little magic missile, something pretty basic or something, and then you can like charge up other spells. It's a cool concept. I definitely see where that one was a was a cool, intriguing one for you.
RyanAlright,
Those Were The Days... (Brought the Most Nostalgia)
Ryannext category is the old for the days. Just something that tugged at our heart strings and maybe our our inner child's. Uh James, I I think this one's Castlevania for you.
JamesYes, and I I'm gonna give you no. Look at this. Just give me something. Oh, come on. Look at this. How could you not see that? So for for the viewers at home, I'm wearing a mugman shirt. Cuphead. Fuck Cubhead. Fuck, fake fan. Fake fan. Oh my god. Oh my gosh, my sister has the mugman shirt. I'm wearing my cuphead shirt. And Cubhead announced very surprisingly that one, they were working on a new proper Cuphead game, but as a sort of side spin-off, we had Mighty Cub Head Advanced, or was it Adventure? I think Adventure.
RyanAre you a big Cuphead fan, James?
JamesYeah, it's a great game. I would that that to me is like one of those indie games that was like Shovel Knight. It was like held up on a pedestal and it delivered. It sold, it like really executed its concept just so well. And it has such a fun style that I think has been imitated a lot. Uh, we've seen games come out recently like Mouse PI for hire, which do look wonderful. Don't get me wrong, but I still think that Cuphead stands on its own of like what they were able to accomplish with that old timey animation style and like the actual techniques they use to make it happen.
RyanYeah, so authentic, which is such a breath of fresh air, especially in today's climate.
JamesAnd it is Mighty Cuphead Adventure. And I think what just it brought me back to like playing at my grandma's when we had our NES hooked up and just playing Mario, playing all of these like platformers and stuff when I'd be there on the weekends. And I think what helped sell that was that they actually are releasing a master system compatible cartridge. So you can play this game on a Sega Master System if you own one. And that was just such a fun, like they didn't need to do this, but just it really just brought me back at just this very specific moment in time. And and you know, I I it looks like a very fun, you know, that's how Cuphead is, you know, it's just a side-scrolling shoot-em-up, but looks awesome. And that's that specifically spoke to me in that pocket of time. But yes, shout outs to Castlevania Belmont's curse. That is a day one purchase. No notes, just give it to me.
RyanThat's fun. I never knew that about you. And honestly, I had doubts about Castlevania because I didn't know if you had that much of a tie to it as a child versus like when we were in high school and starting to get into like angry video game nerd and like learning the NES history a bit more.
JamesThe worst part is the the game I have the most, I guess, technically childhood nostalgia for is Castlevania II, Simon's Curse, which is the clunky one. That's the one that tried to do all the RPG mechanics and the nighttime system and just terrible night to have a curse. Horrible game as a child to try and like piece together. Like, even if it was a game like Castlevania 1, just a good, honest to God side scroller, hard as nails. At least I would understand that concept and get farther than I ever did in Castlevania 2. Because like trying to without a guide, I mean, we had some of those little Nintendo Power, even like they used to have a book. I don't remember what it's called, I'd have to look it up, but it was like it was sort of like a strategy guide compendium, but it only gave you like up to level three, you know, it wasn't like a complete guide for Zelda 1, but it would get you the first two dungeons, and so but it had it for like 80 different games. So I remember having some information on Castlevania 2. I remember there was that really stupid obscure thing where you have to hold the red gem, kneel down at the very edge of the map, and then you get whisked away in a tornado, like it detailed stuff like that, but then it's not like here's how to literally kill Dracula, like whatever, you know. So I wouldn't only get so far. But I love Castlevania, is one of my favorite series of all time, like just Konami series, especially, and in very good hands. This is with uh Evil Empire. So they assisted on Dead Cells DLC and they kind of helped take the reins. That was actually they had a Castlevania expansion.
RyanYeah, that was huge.
JamesYeah, yeah, yeah. So I like this looks amazing. It the art looks great, it looks just like everything I would want out of a Castlevania game. So honorable mention because you didn't know my specific childhood days being spent at my grandma's.
RyanI was sort of on base with you having Castlevania experience, but yeah, the real the real childhood was the grandma's. That's awesome. I love that. Uh I'll be honest, I didn't really have a good indie pick for you uh for childhood stuff.
JamesSo I kind of I kind of put so here's the thing. If we want to get technical, right? Mighty Cuphead Adventure, I mean, I would classify them as an indie studio.
RyanThat's yeah, that's true. That's true.
JamesAnd and technically, I mean Castlevania, I would say that would be an indie game. This is published by Konami, so it probably has funding and support from them, but it is basically being developed by an indie studio, just given the graces of Konami, is kind of how I look at it. But you know, it still is a major franchise, it's a pre-existing franchise, so yeah.
RyanSo, okay, so we covered indie technically. So, what was your well wait? So it wasn't it wasn't Castlevania, was it I don't know why I put Spyro down there because you just recently played Spyro.
JamesThat is I put it for Spyro because nothing else. Did you really? Yeah, yeah.
RyanWhy do I keep doubting my fucking guesses?
JamesWell, no, no, no, no, Ryan, Ryan, we're gonna bring it all back. We're gonna bring it all back. You were correct that I didn't play it until the reignited trilogy. I just genuinely didn't have a great answer for this outside of Indy's honestly, because it was Castlevania and Mighty Cuphead that really spoke to me for this category. But I thought it was worth shouting out that a brand new Spyro game in 2027 is crazy, and I never thought it would happen. This is after the Spyro Reignited trilogy sold like hotcakes, and they would still not green light a sequel or a new game for Toys for Bob, the developer. They were with Activision, and I don't think I need really any notes about being partnered with Activision. Yeah, I think they actually moved some of those devs onto like the Call of Duty team, like not great. So they split and I believe are independent publishers now. Um, and that was the chance they needed to just make a new game, and they had all the tools and expertise. And like while I didn't grow up with it, I'm super happy it exists, and I will play it. I have a spyro tattoo. I loved the reignited trilogy. Excited to see like more like this is this is a dream come true for so many people, and I'm so happy to see that like actually come to fruition.
RyanMan, thank you to the reignited trilogy and like Crash also lighting a fire under there of getting those remakes going and getting some excitement for it. It feels like we're in the 90s again. This this trillion was like a those were the days kind of category.
JamesSo couldn't have put it better myself. So for you, Ryan, Ryan, Ryan. That's me. Uh okay.
RyanSo I don't think you're gonna get my indie unless you have somehow played this flash game before, and that is my hint.
JamesThe flash game? I'm gonna skip on the indie. We're gonna go to triple A first. I have two. I want to hear your original put there. My confident guess, and then I have I picked up on this in another episode guess. So my guess is Halo campaign evolved. Fuck. Okay.
RyanNo, no, no, you're right. But like I'm trying to look deep into my heart. I had another option on here, and I need to solidify. And I don't want to just like dick you out of an answer here, but being correct. But I think you are right. This is the Halo remake. Put a pause on that. I'm gonna also say Star Wars Galactic Racer. Okay, you nailed them both, so you win either way. Yes. Yes, my sister would always beat me. I mentioned that in the previous episode. Yep, she would always whip my butt on there. There was a stiff competition, so lots of happy memories there. It's so cool to see the series evolve into burnout devs, too. Like, that's sick. I've never really played through a burnout game, but anytime I got my hands on it, it was always like so exciting. Love that stuff. And then, of course, Halo remake. I I never need an excuse to play through the campaign again. And it's just gonna be so glorious to see what they do with uh the the original campaign and then the freaking three new missions making it more worth it for the remake. Yes, applause. That's huge. Uh so Sgt. Johnson coming back. Was that like the same voice actor too? Or did they?
JamesBig question that I don't know.
RyanUm it is not David Scully, the iconic original voice actor for Sgt. Johnson, was replaced by Corey Krueger. They are both amazing. I I love me some David Scully. Corey, you're you're knocking it out of the park right away. I think you got I think you got Sgt. Johnson's cadence and mannerisms just right, and I can't wait to hear you more there.
JamesLike, I know Halo is a special series for you, especially. I mean, not just for the co-op and the multiplayer that we played through together in high school and beyond, but just those campaigns are special, and I'm glad that they're really giving it like it already exists on the Master Chief collection. Wonderful product, great way to play it. You can play slightly remastered visuals or the classics, but this is like full polish, full upgrade. I love that there is the there are the new missions. Like, that's a great hook to just hop right back in and just experience new content.
RyanOne of them looked like a spaceship kind of thing, which is gonna be cool for the system to explore there.
JamesIt's pretty budget. I mean, I know this is just a campaign, but like 50 bucks, sure. I another great excuse, you know. Just and you can always replay it with all the skulls or some of the like go achievement hunting for some of those harder, you know, if you really want to like extend the gameplay, but heck, I'd play through that. That's a great price point for it.
RyanSo do you think they'll take that engine and run with it for Halo 2 and 3?
JamesI think there could be a smelly corporate answer of let's see how this sells, but I think why not, right? I mean, that just seems like you've already got the tools and you've got the build for it. And if this is received well, shoot. I mean, I think people would love to replay those games, especially three. I mean, three is one of my favorite multiplayer campaigns ever. If not ever, it's just so good.
RyanYeah, talk about replayability. That's honestly like when people are like, oh, I haven't played Halo before, and then we start up a campaign. I'm just waiting to get to three. That's just such a good one. All right, those indeed were the days, and that was that category.
Best Co-op (Not Just at the Campfire)
RyanWe are going to move on to best co-op. James, I think I'm wrong on this one, but I I'm gonna try to convince you to change your answer. Okay. For the triple A, it is Until Dawn 2.
JamesOkay, I'm gonna be honest, I'm gonna give you that one and just say you got it, because I actually didn't have one for best co-op, like for triple A. It really I had two indie answers, but yes, I forgot that the stow the Sony state of play was a little bit before Summer Games Fest proper. And yeah, Until Dawn uh getting a sequel was really surprising to me. I was not expecting it. I know that the remake kind of left some things open-ended or tweaked some of the ending, but like this is standalone, it's a new cast, it's a new scenario, it's just such a fun game to play with your friends. You just literally make a movie night out of it, and it is super accessible. Uh, they've been doing a great job. Now, this is not developed by Super Massive Games, but these games in the genre have been doing a good job of like, hey, if you want easy buttons, if you want easy inputs for your jump scare sections or your action segments, whatever. You can turn it on easy mode, you can tweak it for certain people in the room to have easier inputs. And some people, if they want to play on harder, they can. I just love this stuff. It is like the perfect way to just like have a laugh and watch your friends die and just make crazy decisions. So I'm definitely excited for this one.
RyanYeah, you've been uh you've been trying to convince us to like have you've already had like a friend group of you guys playing until dawn, but we've been texting recently of like, oh, we gotta expand the group and like play this new Until Dawn playthrough. Or what is it? It's not it's not until dawn, obviously. It's not out yet. What's the um what's the one you've got?
JamesIt is a directive 8020, so it's a part of the it's a part of the dark pictures anthology. So that's like the sub-series from the the Until Dawn devs proper. Uh, you know, more short story horror, five to six hour game. You know, they just release a few of them, like a like one every other year or so.
RyanWell, yeah, talk about a movie night. If if we uh met during like lunch, we can have a three-hour session and break and then finish the game.
JamesSounds like a plan to me and put it on the schedule.
RyanOh boy. All right, so until done too. Uh thank God you had an empty slot. For the Indies orbitals.
JamesYou got it. Easy answer. Easy. I I waffled putting uh 33 Immortals on there, but when I when I sat down and thought about it, I'm like, what experience is gonna stick with me? What game do I have a gut feeling that I'm going to remember? And that's no shame to 33 Immortals like co-op gameplay. I just think of like I value the story-driven experiences, you know. This is I can see the the co-op puzzle solving together, screwing around in the little side mini games, the art style's gorgeous. I love that retro anime aesthetic that is like coupled with the 3D environments. I just I literally have seen so much on this game, and every time I'm just like, I just I'm ready.
RyanYeah, seeing so much, like when the Switch 2 came out and we had like one of our first directs, I think they showed it. And then the last main direct, not the Star Fox direct, they showed it again, and now they finally revealed the release date today. And we we've just every time it's come up, we've been like, God, I cannot wait for orbitals. It looks so beautiful.
JamesGod, can I just Uno reverse card and say that this was yours as well? Yes. For the indie. Yeah. Let's just let's just save the game aspect and be like, yep, we're both here for orbitals 100%.
RyanI had two others listed, but orbitals is number one for sure.
JamesWhat were the other ones you had listed?
RyanMy other two were big walk, because that felt direct peak energy.
JamesPeak two, as you called it in the chat.
RyanIt felt it felt peak energy in the sense of like we're walking and uh we're just like traveling together and solving stuff in a more chill way. And then the other one was Lazy River, which also had peak energy of the chaos that ensues when you're climbing the mountain, trying to like make this insane like acrobatic jump or whatever. But Lazy River looked so freaking hilarious. Did you remember this one?
JamesYeah, I did. I was just jumping out. I I don't want to derail this. Do you know who uh developed is developing Big Walk?
RyanNo.
JamesHouse House. Do you know what they developed?
RyanNo.
JamesUntitled Goose Game. Oh my god, that's right. They're very fit for the job. Oh my god, that's gonna be so goofy. No, Lazy River looks so fun too. That was that was one that jumped out to me, but Orbitals has just been one that you and I have been like locked in on since that initial reveal, and it has not ever slipped slipped up or disappointed in any demonstration. So all of these games, I can't I genuinely will play all of these games for co-op, and I am super excited for all of them. But uh, those are some good shout-outs for sure.
RyanI think Lazy River is gonna be a fun one for like a three and up kind of thing, like we've been doing for Peak, but it it feels like you can add even more people. Yeah. And it's just it's just so goofy and fun, and you can just see the humor in it that they've poured into this game right away. For such a simple concept, too.
JamesAnd that's the thing is like I think you can sell a simple concept for, you know, we joke about like the friend slop title that's kind of been emerging as of the past like three, four years, but friend slop or multiplayer, you know, fun co-op games, like the concept can be simple, but it's like, can you make it fun with your friends? Can you bring the laughs? Is it something that can like chaos ensues and that's sustainable? Like, I think that's what makes those games elevate above the rest.
RyanAnd you know what else it it also reminded me of Left 4 Dead a little bit. Take me back, literally shooting the zombies, but with like a spray gun, and then trying to manage building your own raft, like your own base, which could be as crappy or as amazing as you could like you could be done in by like making your boat top heavy. Yeah, just tip over, yeah. Yeah, like you could just screw yourself right away in that sense, which is so funny. But yeah, I was definitely getting like Left 4 Dead vibes and remembering how much fun co-op was then.
JamesCan we just boot up Left 4 Dead some weekend? I'd let's do it. Inject it into my veins, man. I miss that game so much. So, what was my uh triple A? I think I just went kind of easy mode and said Halo again because I just know how like cool that campaign is for you is like a co-op experience and to re-experience it again with like that fresh coat of paint.
RyanI will give that to you. You know, you you convinced me to change my answer.
JamesOh, I can I so first of all, wait, did I I what if I convinced you on this episode? Virtua Fighter, crossover, crossroads?
RyanYeah, well, this one I think I was like in the early stages of just like filling out blanks in these in these categories, and I felt like I couldn't repeat answers. I I had crossfire in here for what it's worth. Like that felt like a good co-op, but I think I was just more intrigued by that, truthfully. If if we're speaking like from your reasoning, that makes more sense. Like, I would love to replay this with you if we both bought the remake.
JamesLike, let's go for it. Imagine a weekend, I'm gonna come over, we're gonna have Mountain Dew at the ready, we're just gonna have snacks, and we're just gonna sit like just imagine the scenario. We're gonna sit down next to each other and just play this on the couch co-op together. I'm in. I'm all in bro, let's do it. Crossfire, I'm sure, is gonna be an amazing multiplayer experience. I really loved what they were doing with like the verticality, the fluidity of the environments and the movement, but like this is gonna be like a special sit-down experience for us.
Ryan25 years of Xbox. We were there when it started. We're celebrating that. Heck yeah. Alright,
GET HYPE!! (Most Exciting Announcement)
Ryanspeaking of excitement, let's get into the final category. Get hype. James, you were most excited for. I got three answers written. I'm just trying to commit to one. I'm gonna guess Kingdom Hearts 4.
JamesI'm gonna give you this one. I didn't write it down, and I'll only say this because there's no date on it. That's like the same thing with Persona 6. I have trained myself, I've been a Kingdom Hearts fan long enough to understand. While that was incredible, first of all, at the Nintendo showcase, out of nowhere, actually new genuine Kingdom Hearts 4 trailer, literally unbelievable.
RyanThis might have been spit take territory instead, which is hard to like decipher between the two.
JamesYes, and of course, I don't need to say, I mean, you see the Sora tattoo. I mean, like, I I I love Kingdom Hearts and I will be there. This is like I'm taking PTO kind of territory of like I'm taking the weekend for this game. The problem is I've I know this song and dance, and I'm saying if I'm being optimistic, if I'm being the most optimistic James can possibly be, uh 2028 is a stretch. Just saying. So yes, I assume. Super hyped to see Kingdom Hearts 4, but at the same time, I just have to understand it's it's still gonna be a while. Where, like, honestly, a lot of the games they previewed early 2027 or even just 2027 is like that's great, that's like just a year, and that's fine. I've got plenty to play now. Yeah, yeah. Fire Emblem comes out this this fall, that's perfect.
RyanSo that was my other guess. Are you actually more excited for Fire Emblem then?
JamesThat's option number three for me if you can actually believe it.
RyanOkay, okay.
JamesThis this is a sneaky pick, but I'm gonna Gears of War?
RyanNo, like considering your history, I thought you would be excited, but then earlier you were like you mentioned Gears of War in a way where it was like, uh, maybe he's not as excited.
Star Wars Zero Company
JamesFour words, Ryan. It is Star Wars Zero Company. Really? That trumped everything for you. That trumped uh, I mean, I we could have a conversation about fire. So so Fire Emblem for sure. Obviously, I think it was just like I've we've kind of seen Fire Emblem a little bit, and this just helped solidify this so it wasn't as like maybe a surprise. I think I was expecting Fire, I was expecting Fire Emblem today when we were watching the direct. Like, we're gonna get the release date. I'm already sold on it, just give me more. Star Wars Zero Company, yes, please. Did you know that was gonna be there? I did not know it was gonna be there, and they have teased this game before, like the briefest teaser trailer announcement trailer, but I just can't wait, man. I love XCOM so much, and this is again just strategy game James here. This is literally from like Foraxis alum that helped create this. Is from I believe the studio name is BitReactor. Uh, so they're like X respawn devs for Titanfall and Pharaxis. I'm like, just I don't need to see like this. Is literally everything I want. I love Star Wars. We just had a whole conversation about Star Wars destroying my Xbox 360. How could I possibly be upset at this series? I love Star Wars, I love XCOM. It's peanut butter and jelly. This is such a cool game. This is such this is like I couldn't possibly imagine a cooler Star Wars game to fall into my lap. And I'm like, I just can't wait to play it.
RyanIt is up your alley 100%. And you know, like I just said it's hard to decipher between this and Spit Take, but the lack of knowing it was gonna show up, along with your love for what was presented, I think has a huge factor into this category of like how excited we get. So yeah, I know you love XCOM, but I man, to have it go straight to the top, that that all makes sense.
JamesAnd maybe it's just it's like XCOM is one of those games I have replayed so many times. It is a game that is designed to be replayed. You can make your runs harder, you can tweak settings, it's like super customizable. When I think about games that I've replayed, I I don't know. I guess this was like maybe the spicier get hype pick where Fire Emblem was the safer pick. I'm I'm day one for Fortune Sweeve. I will be there. That might be a PTO day. I'm I'm just I'm in. Say less. I can't wait to play it. But Zero Company was like, this is like a dr, this is a Star Wars game that maybe wouldn't have happened. I don't know. Like Fire Emblem will continue. We will see more Fire Emblem games. I will be there all the time for them. But this was such a shock, and just like to see more of this game and it looking so good, and just like, I'm in, I'm in.
RyanThat's a good point, too, of it even existing. Because anytime they announce a Star Wars game, you got to remember how many have been canceled.
JamesYeah.
RyanAnd you're just like, oh god, I hope this idea sees it through development, plus you know, Disney owning them, they could just nip the bud right away.
JamesSometimes you think about you brainstorm games in your head where it's like, hey, what if I had this game developed by these people or in this style? It's like this is that game for me. Even though Star Wars isn't like the tippy top franchise of like all time for me, it's up there, and I just I can't wait to play it.
RyanYay. Well, happy for you, man. It looks amazing. I I was interested in buying that as well. Like it it looks really cool. And we're out of the rebel area, finally. We're god damn, back to the clones, baby. Uh, I'm glad the games can at least explore this, like Knights of the Old Republic, like way back before the Empire and stuff. Like, but even just stepping into the Clone Wars a little bit, they have like the Clone Wars series to justify like people are interested in that, but god damn, I'm so glad it's out of the Empire era.
JamesI mean, I can't think of the last time. I mean, what there was Star Wars Republic Commando on like the original Xbox, like the squad shooter. I'm like, it's been so long since I've had like a dedicated clone game or like clone era game, and that's just that's that's great.
RyanThat or Bounty Hunter, which is technically pre-clone era. Yes, yes. That was my personal favorite, just get more Django, badass.
Castlevania: Belmont's Curse
RyanAll right, so that was your triple A. Uh, my guess for your indie was Shock One Fighters, a fighting game roguelike.
JamesI wrote it down. I just Castlevania, like to see them do something with Castlevania, that's what I wrote down. We had talked about this, uh, where it kind of reminds me of when Capcom in the mid-2010s, you know, like 2011, 2012, was outsourcing some of their games to indie developers, western developers. However, I feel like that was handled poorly, like maybe wrong fit developers or time and budget constraints, and just it was a mess. It was not handled well on Capcom's end, not necessarily what the devs had to work with. But this is the kind of stuff, and I like it is such a crazy resurgence for Konami. I mean, I feel like not just a few years ago, we we were memeing about there's no silent hill, it's just a pachinko machine, you know? And it was just like seriously, they were talking about getting out of game development entirely, and now all of a sudden, we're handing off one of our golden retro franchises to just indies that can handle this stuff, and it looks so good. And I have full faith that this is like the right fit, the right devs to handle this project. I see, you know, I know they have announced this game before, but like I can't wait to play it, man. It's like Castlevania is a real thing again, it's not just an anime series, it's not some weird 3D action game. It's like, no, this is truly like they they selected the devs to do a Metroidvania, Castlevania, just that's it. Like it looks great. I don't know what else I need to say. We've been eating pretty good with this genre.
RyanWe had Metroid Dread, we had the new Prince of Persia game that's like amazing. It's plays just like a Metroidvania, and now we literally have Castlevania Metroidvania game. And yeah, the gameplay speaks for itself, it looks stunning.
JamesIf you said day one bye, uh even amongst all these indies, like truly, I think this is the one that I'm like day one, I will be there for my goat Castlevania.
RyanGood stuff, man.
The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time Remake
JamesAll right, Ryan. I think I have a pretty easy answer for you um for the triple A space, and it might be a green tunic wearing hero with uh a read-in. You you you you're not telling me that wasn't a hype moment for you, James.
RyanIt was a hype moment. It's a very close call between that and Fable. Oh my gosh. Oh I am telling you, dude, Fable was like me growing up from Zelda a little bit. The Xbox era to me was me going into my like my teen phase, like my adolescence a little bit, like getting into more mature games. I played the shit out of Fable, and that felt like a more mature yet still hilarious Zelda kind of game for me.
JamesI'll give that a pass because they're I'm really trying not to dick you over here.
RyanNo, no, no.
JamesBeing genuine. I'm trying to defend your like they didn't really show much of Zelda. We know it exists, and that's about it. They kind of did like the hype teaser and didn't really show anything. So the project exists, and that is maybe the hype and the hype, all the hype you need.
RyanAnd I and I'm gonna be honest, I'm not sure if I'm sold on the graphics from that little snippet we saw. I I've been telling you, I would love my dream would be like the studio Ghibli art style, like they just lean into this beautiful colored world. I didn't think we were ever gonna get that. That was a Hail Mary. So seeing this the sort of Star Fox-esque, like up up in graphic fidelity, like realistic fidelity, and putting it on Zelda was not my like top choice. However, I don't know if we have confirmed like who's working on this project or not, but my new hope is that it's Ember Labs who made Kana the Bridge of Spirits. Yeah, and you know what they did before that?
JamesThe Majora's Mask short.
RyanYes, they treat the IP so well, and my dream now is that there was some under-the-table deal with them to get involved with a remake of Ocarina of Time. I love the style of Kana. If we see more and it actually fits Zelda, like I'm totally all in for that. I just need to see more.
JamesSo they announced earlier the developers for the Star Fox remake proper, or that was like public today. I don't think they have had any, like, I don't know if this is like one of the Nintendo development cores or if this is outsourced in any way or like assisted. Um, I know Grezo did the like it's it's actually funny. There's a uh I've seen some tweets, like just a number of them. It's not like one account, but people have been pointing out that like we're in the rotation of like we have the original Ocarina of Time and Star Fox existing, and then the 3DS remasters, and now we're on the Switch 2, we're the same exact now. We're getting the remakes. Yep. It's just like the cycle has hit the correct point. What is it? The uh the Zelda scale has been achieved. And and to be fair, like I'm gonna give I'm not defending the trailer, like it did what it had to do to tease the game. Yeah, I'm gonna buy it day one, of course. Project is real, it has been announced. However, they picked like the worst showcase to even like I'm confident once we get to the overworld, even just Kokery Forest, anything, literally anything other than the the dark, dank bedroom of Link sleeping face down, dank, you know, his dank tree. Like she literally nothing, like you can see almost nothing in this trailer to really showcase anything. So once Link steps outside of that bedroom and he he climbs down the little treehouse ladder. I'm convinced that this game will convince you on the graphics, but I do agree there's a little bit of hesitation just from the lack of anything that they showed.
RyanI'm with you there. Get outside, show me Kakiri Forest, show me those beautiful greens, show me those little yellow and white fairies that are like flying around, like show me all those little particle effects, show me the characters, like and get out into the field just for a just step out there, please. Just show us, just give us a glimpse.
JamesThis might just be theorycrafting a little outside of the scope of like our discussion on Summer Games Fest week, but uh do you think there's gonna be voice acting?
RyanYeah, that's a good point. I saw that brought up earlier, and yeah, that would be a I mean they've been experimenting with it with uh I mean not experimented anymore, they've been successfully delivering it with Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. So I don't see any reason why we can't continue that trend here.
JamesWill Link be voiced?
RyanPlease, God, no.
JamesNo, no, no. You're about to see him in live action speak, so that's already gonna be jarring enough. We don't need we need to ease into that. Maybe this is the first game. It's a remake. We've already seen the story before. Now we're just trying it out. He's he's got some things. Don't talk. Shut up. Okay, all right.
RyanI'm gonna mute every time he talks if if they do that.
Fable
RyanBut yeah, like so that's that's Ocarina. That's the only reason, really. It's just again, Fable has been. I thought that series was dead. And to have it even announced years and years ago is just like that. Was my most excited moment back then. Seeing the the trailer, I don't know, a year ago, I think, where we got like a proper first look and the character, like the characters were there a little more and explaining the story. This time we meet the it was like a twist like antagonist in the trailer, like slow reveal of like you realize who you're talking to. That was cool, and then at the fucking end, they show Jack of Blades, the antagonist from the first game. What the hell is going on with this story? That immediately shot me back 25 years ago, dude.
JamesThat first game, yeah. That's awesome, man. It was amazing, and happy to the new Xbox regime, but also happy that you don't have to buy an Xbox to play this.
SPEAKER_01Thank God.
JamesHello, Steve.
SPEAKER_01Woo!
JamesThank you, Papa Gabe. All right,
Threads of Time
Jamesso the last thing I have for you, and I'm gonna be bad friend. I didn't know what to put for you for an indie because I feel like you're such a champion of indies that just so many things spoke to you this week. There were a lot of really good developer showcases that it was hard to pick just one for you. I feel like I'm almost about to hijack this section because I even wanted to shout shout out one more that didn't fit into any of this. Sure, let's shout out as many as we can, they deserve it. So I had Threads of Time. That game, holy crap. You did it, doesn't that look amazing? Was that actually one you wrote down? Yeah, dude. I've been following that game for years. Yes, good picks. Oh my gosh, I can't I oh my gosh, and you know, again, number one Chrono Trigger hater, when they directly referenced it as like an inspiration.
RyanYeah, dude. This is even closer to Chrono Trigger than Sea of Stars was. I I put Sea of Stars and Threads on the same tier of like, oh, I look I heard about this early on, it looks great. I can't wait to play it. And Threads of Time, I it feels like, at least from the trailers and the concept, it feels a little more faithful to, or it feels more like a direct spiritual successor to Chrono Trigger, or it takes more from it, but they also listed other inspirations too.
JamesI mean, they listed the classic turn-based stuff Final Fantasy, but especially the concept of things you can do in past or present or future to like affect certain outcomes. I love the animation that is kind of like blending in cutscenes. It looks gorgeous, it looks on par with like an HD 2D project, and they've even mentioned that they've had they've sort of contracted help from just JRPG fans uh just everywhere, but also that they've had like talent from like Japanese developers and people that have worked on like some of these original projects. I'm I'm gonna be completely honest, Ryan. I had not been following this game, I had not seen it before today's showcase, genuinely. No kidding. This blew me away. I could not believe what I saw, and I was like, I need this game, dude. This looks so good. So I'm glad I got one. That's great.
RyanI'm gonna be so conflicted because it's gonna be so satisfying seeing you love this game, but then but not love Chrono Trigger.
JamesThe confusion continues. I'm really enjoying Chrono Cross for what it's worth.
RyanLet's just move on.
JamesIt's the battle system, I think. I don't know.
RyanYou start like spiraling the more we bring this up. Like, what could it possibly be?
JamesI'm losing hair, I'm scratching my head, I'm bleeding on my forehead. I'm just like, why don't I like this game? I had one more quick game. I just wanted to like there wasn't much to see, so I didn't have a lot to say, but uh Signet City. Did you see a trailer for that, Ryan? Or it was maybe really just more of an announcement. No, I totally missed this. I I won't the the trailer is not you can't really glean anything from the story, but it's more of the developer. So this is from Jump Over the Age, who developed Citizen Sleeper. Have you played Citizen Sleeper, Ryan? I haven't, but I know that's like a top-tier indie game. I loved that first game. It is just such a it's really just a good read. It's a perfect example of just feeling like you're living in a world, but you're just reading a novel, and it's just getting you feel like you're living in this very particular place trying to survive and get to know people and solve tasks. And there's enough of like a gamey element to make it a game and not just literally a book, but it felt like a choose your own adventure, puzzle solving, and like you really built your character. And I just it was so well written, it really stuck out to me. It had such a good style that just seeing a new project, I'm like, wish list, please. Not much to see on it, but that was one that I was excited to see once I saw from the makers of I was like, Oh, oh my god, and that's where you're always better with like the devs and than I am. That's really cool. If you are like ever in the mood to like, I just need to like sit down and read, and I don't want to do scroll, I would recommend that like wholeheartedly, because that's a game that isn't even super intensive, it just makes you make decisions and there's like some probability, but it's so minimal, it's just a great story to get lost into. So definitely add that to your list if you're ever curious about that game.
Assassins Creed 4 Resynced
JamesAny other uh games that you wanted to shout out? Triple A and D anything fun moments?
RyanUh, my only other one I had listed for a possible triple A guess was uh Assassin's Creed 4 Resync. Shout out to my best friend. He loves pirates and he loves Assassin's Creed, and he has been pounding his head against his desk trying to get me to play this particular game. I'm glad I'm not the only one. Okay. I'm stuck on AC3. I like to play my games chronologically, and I'm stuck on Assassin's Creed 3 in the middle because I just got frustrated at one part. So maybe I will try to pick it up for the fourth time and get through it because I want to play this. It looks awesome.
JamesThe good news is, and I can speak from experience because I have played the original and it is excellent, and I am excited for the remake. Four is a great entry point because it it does kind of like the hey, if you've been a part of the whole series thus far, yes, the background story is continuing, but you are playing from a brand new perspective environment, everything. So you can just hop in and start fresh there, and just if you need to catch up on a couple quick lore things, think you'd be fine.
RyanYeah, because the first five games kind of wrap up the original story arc, correct?
JamesYes, like the threats at large and some of the like background conspiracy stuff is still kind of, you know, like the looming threat over current and future games or whatever. But Desmond's arc is complete after Assassin's Creed 3.
RyanGotcha.
JamesIt's hard because I I feel like all I do on this podcast half the time is try to pressure you to just play more games, and that's like now you're getting it. Now we're finally episoded five. He's finally starting to pick it up.
RyanHe's realizing.
JamesBut like my pitch is that if you only have time to like realistically fit one Assassin's Creed game into your schedule, I would highly recommend four. It is such an improvement over three. I think it would genuinely bring you joy rather than like nothing is worse than a game where you're like stressing to finish it out of obligation.
RyanUh yeah.
JamesIt's awful. It's awful because you know in your heart when I'm playing Chrono Trigger and I keep hearing it's one of the greatest games of all time, which is okay, bad example. But you know what?
RyanNo, no, you're right. Because now it's like a double, I'm being a hypocrite now, pressuring you to play Chrono Trigger by guilt. So I think we're both learning stuff today about ourselves.
JamesBut genuinely, if you're if you're like if that trailer sold you and was exciting to watch and kind of brought back some like fonder memories of Assassin's Creed rather than three's frustrations, ride that wave.
RyanI I think like just being an Assassin's Creed purist, I heard that Assassin's Creed 4 was so heavily praised, but mainly because of the like ship battles. And I'm not dogging that, they look amazing, but I always wondered if that compromised any of the actual like root Assassin's Creed stuff. From our recent conversation, I think you assued me of those fears that it actually like the whole game is just like pretty solid.
JamesYeah, it's a great rebound from three, you know. Unfortunately, with a lot of the issues that it had for story and gameplay purposes, that I still think there are higher highs in games like two and its trilogy of games, but like it's a great entry, it's a great return to form, and it feels authentic for the time period. And I that's something I always liked about the Assassin's Creed games, is it you can always dog on it for the true historical accuracy, but like it feels inspired for like the setting that it's in, and I feel like the toolkit that you get for the life of a pirate is appropriate, and just because you have access to guns and like blunder buses and stuff, that doesn't mean combat is easy, it just recontextualizes it in a different way. That's like still feels Assassin's Creed, you just have a fun new toolkit and cool pirate stuff, and it's all very good.
RyanAlright, I'm in. That's uh game number three. You've sold.
JamesI'm doing great today. Tell Jeff to cash in your bonus. My commission is excellent by the end of just this episode alone. Who knows what I'll fish next episode, Ryan? You better be ready.
Outro
JamesGosh, Ryan, I don't know what else we even have. I felt like we really just talked about everything. There was so much.
RyanYeah, there was so much, and it was all awesome. I'm so excited, and uh, it's gonna be a good year for gaming, buddy.
JamesYou know, it's a great year for gaming, and it was a great show when we intended to include this as a part of another episode, and we ended up just having enough to talk about for a full episode, and I felt like we could have talked for another hour if we really wanted to.
RyanGosh, yeah, that was us trying to hold ourselves back, but it's it's really par for the course of how our conversations usually go.
JamesWell, campers, hope you all enjoyed. We would love to hear from you. You can always send us fan mail through that fan mail link in the show description notes. Also, feel free to comment on Blue Sky, send us a message. What were you excited to see at Summer Games Fest? Did you have a spit drink moment for any of these announcements or any games that stuck out to you? We'd love to hear about them.
RyanYes, please send that in. Alright, campers, we will see you next week for our regularly scheduled episode. Spoilers, it will be Father's Day themed. So if you have any stories as well about your dads and gaming, please send those in. We would love to read about those as well.
JamesStay cozy, fathers.
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