Ep. 388 - Big Heads, Big Hearts

The panel mourns the loss of two titans of video game journalism, considers the future of games reporting, and imagines a horse covered in human skin. Hosted by Alex Jaffe, with Frank Cifaldi, Ash Parrish, Brandon Sheffield. Edited by Esper Quinn, original music by Kurt Feldman.

SHOW NOTES:

• Andor
• The Mandalorian
• DMC DeLorean
• Marcus Aurelius
• Mark Antony

1: Let us begin by mourning the losses of game journalism (02:42)

• Polygon sold to Valnet, editorial staff hit with layoffs
• Michael McWhertor
• Fandom Blows Up Giant Bomb
• Was the Media’s Big “Pivot to Video” All Based on a Lie?
• 8-4
• Shane Bettenhausen
• Jeremy Parish
• Tencent lays off nearly all of staff at its gaming site Fanbyte
• Kotaku
• The Verge
• Valnet Blues: How Online Porn Pioneer Hassan Youssef Built a Digital Media ‘Sweatshop’
• 1Up
• Digg
• Gamergate (harrassment campaign)
• Simon Carless
• GameDiscoverCo
• Substack
• Fortnite
• Roblox
• Stephen Totilo

2: DIDDY WATCH: What does it mean that Cranky and Rambi are in Donkey Kong Bananza? (24:58)

• Diddy Kong
• Donkey Kong Bananza
• Cranky Kong
• Rambi the Rhino
• The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)
• Scrooge McDuck
• Diddy Kong Racing
• Super Smash Brothers series
• Waluigi
• Shigeru Miyamoto

3: Brian David Gilbert asks, if your typical fashion had stat boosters attached to it, what would they be and why? (29:25)

• Summer Game Fest
• Sonic
• Mario

4: How do you convince people to buy horse armor in 2025? (39:18)

• The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Remastered
• Horse armor
• Limited Run Games
• The Elder Scrolls VI
• NFTs
• Fallout series

5: How would each of you specifically design a video game for the other two panelists? (44:01)

• Elena
• Monster Maker
• TurboGrafx-16

LIGHTNING ROUND: GameFAQ&As - ? (47:03)

Recommendations and Outro (53:28):

• Brandon: Eine Kleine Beng-beng Musik by dis.placed, The Seventh Curse (1986), Promise Mascot Agency
• Ash: Aftermath, Remap, VGBees, support journalism
• Frank: Enjoy, support, and share smart media
• Jaffe: DC Action News

This week’s Insert Credit Show is brought to you by patrons like you. Thank you.

Subscribe: RSS, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more!