Clock Tower & The Witcher 3

LocoRoco & Star Renegades

Flawed genius is the accidental theme of this week, with the delightful gibberish of LocoRoco and the incomprehensible strategy of Star Renegades. What We're Playing 01:00 Mark: Code RAPID (HitBreak) 15:27 Caitlin: The Séance of Blake Manor (Spooky Doorway, 2025) 25:14 GOOF: LocoRoco (PSP, Japan Studio, 2006) 42:16 Feature Game: Star Renegades (Massive Damage, 2020) SHOUT 1:12:52 Mark: Beitong Pangu 1:15:03 Caitlin: Valheim 1.0 (Iron Gate AB) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Lufia II & Deathloop

Note: even though we are discussing "Rise of the Sinistrals" and "Deathloop" we are not entering a goth phase. What We're Playing 01:07 Caitlin: Ravenswatch (Passtech Games, 2023) 05:52 Caitlin: Final Fantasy IX (Square, 2000) 13:58 Mark: Minishoot' Adventures (SoulGame Studio, 2024) 21:59 GOOF: Lufia 2: Rise of the Sinistals (SNES, Neverland, 1996) 38:22 Feature Game: Deathloop (Arkane Lyon, 2021) SHOUT 1:01:17 Caitlin: Fields of Mistria (NPC Studio) 1:02:00 Mark: The Takeover 2 (Pelikan13) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Half-Minute Hero & Final Fantasy XVI

WE ARE BACK and thirstier than ever! We debate issues of male beauty across Half-Minute Hero and Final Fantasy XVI--the former showing JRPGs distilled to their essence, the latter showing JRPGs evolved past recognition. What We're Playing 01:28 Mark: Sakura Wars--Saturn (Sega S2 R&D, 1996) 16:45 Caitlin: Abiotic Factor (Deep Field Games, 2025) 28:06 GOOF: Half-Minute Hero (Opus, 2009) 40:47 Feature Game: Artis Impact (Square Enix Creative Business Unit III, 2023) SHOUT 1:03:06 Mark: Virtua Fighter Crossroads (RGG Studio) 1:04:24 Caitlin: God of War Laufey (Santa Monica Studio) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Season 1 in Review

We look back on our collected experiences together, dear digital friends, as we crown our Game of the Year before an unfortunate (and hopefully brief) pause. What We're Playing 01:39 Caitlin: Miscellaneous catchup 02:38 Caitlin: Dogpile (Studio Folly, Toot Games, & Foot, 2025) 11:17 Mark: Terminator 2D: No Fate (Bitmap Bureau, 2025) Season 1 in Review Special Categories 18:34 Thanks for Introducing Me 33:04 SHOUTS that Panned Out 37:48 "I Didn't Think I Liked that Genre" 42:28 Our New Backlog 48:18 Our New Digital Best Friend 53:35 Host-Specific Categories 58:41 Biggest Disappointments 1:03:22 Biggest Pleasant Surprises 1:08:16 A GOAT that Holds Up 1:12:56 AMBFAD Shrugs 1:16:10 Game of the Year 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Change Air Blade & Lost Records: Bloom & Rage

One of Mark's obscure arcade favorites is Change Air Blade, a bizarre little shooter/fighter hybrid. Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is our latest narrative-focused diversion. Also, Caitlin has conquered Metaphor: ReFantazio! Let her achievement spur greater and greater successes. What We're Playing 00:53 Mark: Demonschool (Necrosoft Games, 2025) 13:34 Caitlin: Metaphor: ReFantazio (Studio Zero, 2024) 16:48 Caitlin: Guild Wars Reforged (ArenaNet, 2025) 25:07 GOOF: Change Air Blade (Sammy, 1999) 33:46 Feature Game: Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (Don't Nod Montréal, 2025) SHOUT 1:03:11 Mark: ROMEO IS A DEAD MAN (Grasshopper) 1:06:06 Caitlin: Human Fall Flat 2 (No Brakes Games) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]