Digitally Uploaded

It's September already! We recorded this episode well in advance for scheduling reasons, and so some of the things we say in here will be out of date... but we still have a good laugh, despite not knowing what has happened over the last six weeks. So this week we kick off by looking at the big games releasing in September. Then we chat about games that "get worse" over time. Finally, we have a good laugh examining where our limits are as to what we'd play on the train. Thanks as always for tuning in, and do let us know your own thoughts about any and all of these topics!

This month's podcast is a simple one: we rank all the JRPGs! Yep, that's right, we go through all the major series, old and new, and class them according to the tiers we think they belong to. We assume some people are going to yell at us over our picks! We also list out all the big games happening in August. It's yet another month where you better get those batteries charged, because there's a lot to play. Let us know your own JRPG rankings, and we'll see you next month!

Something old and something new for discussion in this month's podcast! We kick things off as we always do with a look at all the games releasing in July. If you're a fan of Japanese games - and JRPGs in particular - steel yourself because the month is going to be intense. From there we talk about Final Fantasy XVI in-depth. What were the themes that we found most poignant about it, what has disappointed us in how the conversation around the game has gone, and what do we think (and hope) this masterpiece means for Japanese games, JRPGs, and blockbusters in general? Finally, to wrap a loaded podcast off, we chat about retro games, and ask the question "do they age? Should they be compared to the games that get released today, or if not how to we judge their ongoing value to the industry?" As always let us know your own thoughts in the comments, and thanks for tuning in to our humble little podcast!

Welcome to the June 2023 edition of the Digitally Uploaded podcast! As usual we've got a great show for you planned. We start by chatting through all the big releases in June. It's dominated by one particular game, but there's a lot of other interesting stuff coming too! Then we talk about sequels - what makes a good sequel? Should it be a direct continuation of its predecessor, or something totally different? And is it okay to reuse elements, such as the same in-game world? Finally, we talk about narrative accessibility. With games becoming increasingly large and dense, what can and should developers do to make sure they're bringing audiences on the journey with them? Thanks as always for tuning in, and have a great month of gaming ahead!

Hello everyone, and welcome to the bumper podcast we have for you for May! In addition to talking through all the big games coming out this month (it's dominated by one game in particular... can you guess what game?), we also chat through two big topics: Firstly, with Final Fantasy XVI just on the horizon (and the Pixel Remasters just out on console), we ask ourselves what were our favourite moments of the series, from its early days right through to the most modern releases. Then, in light of the horrible releases of Redfall and Forspoken this year, we also ask: while AAA-grade remakes are doing just fine (consider Resident Evil 4), why are the big publishers struggling so much to have original ideas? Enjoy the banter, and we'll be back next month!

This month on the Digitally Uploaded podcast, we grapple with the thorniest of issues currently plaguing video games: The role that AI is increasingly playing in the "creative" side of development. In short, it's a problem. Potentially, a very big problem. Then, to be more positive, we talk about excellent writing in games. What are some of the games over the years that have really stood out to us as examples of just purely good writing? All that, plus our usual wrap of the most interesting-looking games coming out this month. Kick back and enjoy the two-hour show... and thanks as always for tuning in!

This month on the Digitally Uploaded podcast, we have a bumper episode where we talk through the GB and GBA games that we'd love to see on Switch. How do games from that era hold up, or are they just for the nostalgic, and will we get the full breadth of creativity that was released for those consoles? Then, in honour of the release of Wo Long, Koei Tecmo's latest Soulslike, we chat about that genre again. Specifically, we ask the question: what helps a Soulslike from a developer other than FromSoftware stand out? What does FromSoftware do that so many other developers struggle with? Enjoy our two-hour podcast, let us know what you think, and we'll be back next month for more!

Welcome to the February episode of the podcast! As always, we've got a cracking episode for you this month. We start out by discussing the games of the month as always. Then we move on to our favourite snacks & drinks while gaming, before capping things off with a chat about game music in symphonies; what works and what do we prefer to have as part of the gaming experience? As always let us know your own thoughts, and have a great month in gaming!

We are back for another year! The January episode of the Digitally Uploaded podcast is a big, two-hour special, and we have a special guest on this week! We start the episode by talking about the big game releases in January (and there are some surprises to look forward to!), and then we each pick our three big games of the last year that stood out to us as highlights. From there we have a chat with Lachlan, of Lached Up Games. He recently released his latest game, My Mad Scientist Roommate Turned Me Into Her Personal Robotic Battle Maiden?!?, and we chat with him about that game, the Australian game dev scene, and plenty more. Thanks as always for tuning in, and we'll see you at the next one!

Welcome everyone to the last podcast of 2022, and we have a bumper 2-hour special for your listening pleasure. First of all, we talk about the last wave of games to land in the year (there's more than you think!), and then we chat about the challenges of open-world games, and taking formerly linear adventures and moving them into those open spaces. Finally, we talk about the two approaches to characterisation - named characters (where player choice over character creation might be limited) vs. character creation (where the developer has no idea what kind of character you're controlling). What are the pros and cons of both, and which do you prefer? We hope you all have a wonderful holiday season. The Digitally Uploaded podcast has really taken off this year, and we love having you all as listeners. See you in 2023!

Welcome to the month's podcast, everyone! As always we've got a great show to share with you this month. We kick things off by discussing all the big releases happening in November (there's a lot). Then we chat about sequels, and specifically, what is the best approach to take. Should a sequel assume that players have played the previous titles, or should each sequel be self-contained? Finally, we get a bit nostalgic this month, and each pick three game properties that have been put on ice, and we'd just love to see them back. What would you pick? Thanks as always for tuning into our show!

We've got another big, 2-hour episode of the podcast for your listening pleasure this month! In addition to our usual wrap of all the games coming out this month, we chat about a lack of understanding about how games get made and published. This is of course in response to the GTA VI leaks from a few weeks ago, but it does seem to be a timeless topic - why do people not better learn about how games are made? And then we also chat about a favourite genre of ours at DDNet - the rhythm game genre! What are its strengths and weaknesses as a genre, and how awesome is this new tuba-playing rhythm game that is doing the rounds right now? Thanks as always for tuning in everyone and let us know your own thoughts on this episode's topics!

Welcome to another massive episode of the DDNet podcast! This month we kick things off with a look at all the big releases happening (it is a lot!) as usual... then we talk about handhelds. With competition heating up to bring Steam handhelds to market, will we even need consoles and PCs soon? From there we talk about endlessly updating games. Is it a good thing that games are updated now and previous versions of those games are purged from existence? We would argue that that's not so cut-and-dry. Thanks as always for tuning in, and do let us know your own thoughts on these subjects!

A couple of us on the podcast made the terrible mistake of watching the new Resident Evil television series recently. It really was a mistake - don't do it to yourselves - but in watching that we realised that there was a good discussion in there about what motivates these TV/film adaptations of video games, and why are they rarely any good? In addition, we chat about the ongoing discourse around short games. Stray really did kick off a new round of that, but on the podcast, we take a broader video on the topic, and try and define the role that length has in video games versus the role that it should have. Naturally, we also lay out all the big game releases for the month ahead, and it's going to be a big one... though whether there's much there that will be truly essential while we're all still working through Xenoblade Chronicles 3 remains to be seen. Thanks as always for tuning in, everyone!

This month on the Digitally Uploaded podcast, we discuss what the next 12 months look like for the major console publishers. Now that their mid-year streams and shows have ended, what do we think will happen in the next few months... Then we discuss this concept of the "blockbuster" JRPG. In a genre that's so often niche and unassuming... do we even need those big-ticket JRPGs, designed for all audiences? Finally, of course, we discuss all the big games coming out this month... speaking of JRPGs, it's going to be a big one. Thanks as always for tuning in!

Hello listeners! We've got a cracking good podcast this month, with Ryan Brown of Super Rare Games jumping on to talk about his amazing Mixtape project, where he collects together some of the best indie titles from itch.io and other places, and gives you a chance to own amazing artistry and creativity in a physical format. We also talk about the game series that we can't ever get enough of (Warriors/Musou and Mario Bros. rank highly, unsurprisingly), and as always we run through the big upcoming games for the month... fair warning to your backlogs, there are a lot of them. Kick back, tune in and enjoy!

The news yesterday that Square Enix was selling off its western development studios to help fund a move into blockchain gaming, NFTs and other such things makes this podcast all the more pertinent. We actually recorded it before that news broke, but we actually talk about how terrible NFTs will be to the video game industry going forwards. Elsewhere, we list off the massive number of May game releases you should be looking forward to, and chat about video game narratives that would be absolutely impossible to achieve in other media; just how can video games shape themselves as a unique storytelling medium. Thanks as always for tuning in and we'll see you next month!

This month on the Digitally Uploaded podcast, we chat about Stranger of Paradise - Square Enix and Koei Tecmo's new action JRPG that is turning heads and amusing people... but is also one of the smartest games that you'll play all year and highlights some important developments in video games as an art form. Then, we chat about the game canon. What makes a game "canon"? Is it just that it's the most fun game? That it sells well? Or are there other qualities that elevate the great and entertaining to the masterpieces of the form? And of course we chat about the big game releases of the month. April is a quieter month than the first quarter of the year, but there are still some gems to look forward to!

Howdy peeps, and welcome to the March edition of the Digitally Uploaded podcast! We've got some great stuff to chat through this month so kick back and enjoy the 2-hour ride! First, we run through all the stuff releasing in the month ahead (it's a staggering line-up of games). Then we talk about Elden Ring - a game that is surely going to be turning heads for many years to come (and with good reason). Finally, we talk about spoiler culture, and just how much our obsession with spoilers is letting the art form down. Enjoy the show, let us know what you think, and we'll see you next month for more!

Welcome to the February edition of the Digitally Uploaded podcast! This month we have one thing on our minds: Pokémon! With the first brand new Pokémon title in quite some time - Arceus - landing on our doorsteps, we've been playing it like mad because this is an absolute return to form for the series. And so we have focused the podcast on this topic. Not only do we chat about Arceus itself, but how Game Freak is managing the property, our own history with Pokémon, and what we might see from the series going forwards. Finally, Happy Lunar New Year! It's the year of the Tiger and we hope it's a good one for all our friends that celebrate this wonderful day in many Asian calendars.