Podquisition 555: The Writer's Salon

We think we got away with it. Games we played this week include: (0:06:00) Bubsy in Claws Encounters of the Furred Kind (0:13:50) Hollow Knight: Silksong (0:28:30) Balatro (0:40:25) Metal Gear Solid Delta --- News things talked about in this episode: (0:49:20) Genki settlement with Nintendo makes them unable to use certain color combinations https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2025/09/nintendo-and-accessory-maker-genki-reach-settlement-in-switch-2-lawsuit (0:54:35) Paradox refunding Vampire Bloodlines 2 premium edition pre-orders https://www.psu.com/news/vampire-the-masquerade-bloodlines-2-begins-issuing-refunds-for-premium-edition-pre-orders/ (0:55:45) Members of fighting game community are dropping EVO after Saudi acquisition https://www.eurogamer.net/fighting-game-players-in-uproar-after-evos-new-saudi-government-owners-calls-to-support-grassroots-events   --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com.

The depth of the wellspring from which this font of wisdom flows has no bottom. Games we played this week include: (0:20:50) Tinderblox (0:25:10) Metal Gear Solid Delta (0:35:40) Abiotic Factor (0:40:20) Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (0:46:40) Shinobi: Art of Vengeance (0:48:00) Dying Light 2 (0:49:55) Kirby and the Forgotten Land + Star Crossed World --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com.

We’ll crack the code on success yet! Games we played this week include: (0:09:35) Telltale’s The Walking Dead (0:24:15) Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound (0:35:20) Raccoin (0:41:55) Dusk (0:44:15) BioShock Infinite (1:00:20) Kill the Brickman --- News things talked about in this episode: (1:00:00) Hollow Knight Silksong developer Team Cherry has been doing just fine https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-08-21/why-silksong-team-cherry-s-sequel-to-hollow-knight-took-so-long-to-make (1:04:00) Paradox backpedaling on paid DLC clans in Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2 https://www.eurogamer.net/good-the-grubby-paid-clan-plan-for-vampire-the-masquerade-bloodlines-2-is-being-adjusted --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com.

Gotta be rid of those rats.   Games we played this week include: (0:11:35) UFO 50 (0:24:25) Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2 (0:42:10) The Torture House (0:46:00) Mafia: The Old Country (0:47:00) Vampire Survivors (0:50:40) Bridge Command --- News things talked about in this episode: (1:00:00) State of Louisiana taking Roblox to court over child safety https://www.eurogamer.net/louisiana-sues-roblox-for-allegedly-choosing-profits-over-child-safety-claiming-its-basically-open-season-for-sex-predators-on-this-app   --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com.

And we’d have gotten away with it too. Games we played this week include: (0:06:05) BioShock (0:19:10) Night Freak (0:22:45) Drag x Drive (0:31:20) Mafia: The Old Country (0:39:00) Calm the Storm (0:40:40) This Game Will End In 205 Clicks (0:42:10) Hop Havoc --- News things talked about in this episode: (0:46:10) Pokémon promo at Japanese McDonald’s canceled after one day due to customer behavior https://www.eurogamer.net/chaotic-pokemon-and-mcdonalds-collaboration-in-japan-ends-early-due-to-shocking-food-waste (0:48:40) Tencent pulls Light of Motiram key art and assets after comparisons to Horizon franchise https://www.eurogamer.net/tencent-quietly-updates-slavish-horizon-clone-light-of-motirams-steam-page (0:51:55) Sony is re-evaluating its live service games strategy https://www.eurogamer.net/after-concord-and-a-string-of-delays-and-cancellations-sony-admits-playstations-live-service-strategy-is-not-entirely-going-smoothly --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com.

A name you can trust Games we played this week include: (0:06:30) Evil Dead: Regeneration (0:12:05) Powerwash Simulator 2 (0:16:30) Adventures of Elliot (0:26:05) Heat: Pedal to the Metal (0:36:20) Bridge Command (0:41:20) Empty Epsilon (0:42:30) Detroit: Become Human (0:57:10) Nubby’s Number Factory (0:58:30) Co-op Kaiju Horror Cooking --- News things talked about in this episode: (1:01:50) Assassin’s Creed Black Flag voice actor didn’t understand phones (1:04:00) Microsoft crows about Game Pass revenues despite massive layoffs https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/29/mastercard-visa-backlash-adult-games-removed-online-stores-steam-itchio-ntwnfb (1:05:40) Raven Software gets its union contract https://www.eurogamer.net/pokemon-stadium-alike-new-game-pokemon-champions-gets-a-2026-release-date-in-new-action-packed-gameplay-trailer (1:06:55) Mastercard claims they have nothing to do with censoring games https://www.videogamer.com/news/after-laying-off-9000-employees-killing-projects-and-closing-studios-microsoft-ceo-says-the-company-is-thriving-as-success-is-not-about-longevity-but-re/ (1:16:25) Indie dev tells players to pirate instead of playing Roblox knock-off https://www.eurogamer.net/peak-developers-would-rather-you-pirate-its-game-than-play-roblox-microtransaction-riddled-ripoff-slop (1:17:35) Nintendo won’t let Japanese speedrun even play their games https://www.eurogamer.net/japans-biggest-charity-speedrunning-event-wont-have-nintendo-games-because-nintendo-couldnt-help-but-nintendo --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com.

It can be hard to be enthusiastic sometimes Games we played this week include: (0:09:23) Let Them Trade (0:13:40) Empty Epsilon (0:20:35) Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 (0:25:20) Super Mario Party Jamboree TV (0:32:05) Shooty Shooty Robot Invasion --- News things talked about in this episode: (0:37:45) Itch hides anything possibly offensive after threat from card processors https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/itch-io-deindexing-adult-content-to-appease-payments-providers https://itch.io/updates/update-on-nsfw-content (0:45:35) Counter-campaign against card processors https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/29/mastercard-visa-backlash-adult-games-removed-online-stores-steam-itchio-ntwnfb (0:50:00) Xbox introducing restrictions to align with UK’s Online Safety Act https://www.eurogamer.net/xbox-users-will-now-need-to-verify-their-age-in-compliance-with-uks-online-safety-act (0:54:10) Microsoft CEO says the company is thriving https://www.videogamer.com/news/after-laying-off-9000-employees-killing-projects-and-closing-studios-microsoft-ceo-says-the-company-is-thriving-as-success-is-not-about-longevity-but-re/ (0:57:05) Microsoft’s games will stay $70 for now https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/the-outer-worlds-2-will-no-longer-cost-usd80-as-microsoft-backs-away-from-plans-to-follow-nintendos-lead/ --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com. Photo Credit: Nathaniel Watson / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

It’s simply out of our hands. Games we played this week include: (0:12:30) Donkey Kong Bananza (0:33:05) Let Them Trade (0:38:15) Robocop: Rogue City (0:45:15) Frosthaven --- News things talked about in this episode: (0:51:30) Australian group gets payment processors to attack “adult” content on Steam https://archive.ph/AnvVZ https://archive.ph/ycxXs (1:04:20) Roblox to protect kids with AI age detection https://www.eurogamer.net/roblox-introduces-new-safety-features-including-an-ai-to-estimate-a-teenagers-age-through-video-selfies (1:08:30) Pokémon Champions doesn’t look as exploitative as feared https://www.eurogamer.net/pokemon-stadium-alike-new-game-pokemon-champions-gets-a-2026-release-date-in-new-action-packed-gameplay-trailer --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com. Photo Credit: Near Dark Photography https://neardarkphotography.co.uk/

We’re filling the time. Games we played this week include: (0:12:00) Bridge Command (0:22:35) Tamagatchi Paradise (0:30:40) UFO 50 (0:36:45) Patapon 1+2 Replay (0:42:40) Donkey Kong Bananaza (0:47:10) Bendy and the Dark Revival --- News things talked about in this episode: (1:05:25) Buy your DLC in just four easy payments https://www.gamespot.com/articles/now-you-can-buy-in-game-dlc-and-pay-it-off-later/1100-6532906/ (1:10:30) Ubisoft executives found guilty of harassment https://insider-gaming.com/former-ubisoft-executives-found-guilty-and-handed-suspended-sentences/ (1:12:55) King employees laid off in favor of AI tools they helped build https://www.eurogamer.net/candy-crush-developer-king-reportedly-replacing-laid-off-staff-with-ai-tools-they-helped-to-build (1:16:00) Microsoft ad seeking to hire artists uses bad AI art https://www.eurogamer.net/head-of-xbox-graphics-department-puts-out-cringe-worthy-hiring-post-with-ai-graphics   --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com.

We’ve got some thinking to do. Games we played this week include: (0:23:25) Tamagatchi Plaza (0:41:55) Dead Rising Remastered (0:45:45) Death Stranding 2 (0:47:20) Chance’s Lucky Escape (0:49:15) Tiny Turnip (0:50:50) Cyberpunk 2077 --- News things talked about in this episode: (1:05:25) Nintendo confirms everyone’s greatest fear https://www.uniladtech.com/gaming/nintendo-concerning-announcement-switch-affect-40-million-people-689424-20250701 (1:10:30) Two Point Museum will get some DLC https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/two-point-museums-first-dlc-adds-a-fantasy-flourish-to-your-exhibitions-letting-you-display-mimic-chests-a-giant-d20-and-a-chicken-statue-that-turns-people-into-poultry/ (1:12:55) Netherlands suing Sony for perceived monopoly regarding limited access to disc-based games https://www.gamesindustry.biz/sony-faces-dutch-lawsuit-over-artificially-high-playstation-prices (1:16:00) Nintendo in trouble with Brazil over ability to remotely brick Switch 2 consoles https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2025/07/nintendos-ability-to-ban-switch-2-consoles-has-landed-it-in-hot-water (1:18:10) Wheelchair basketball game Drag x Drive likely won’t have local multiplayer https://www.eurogamer.net/nintendos-switch-2-game-drag-x-drive-appears-to-not-support-local-multiplayer   --- Buy official Jimquisition merchandise at https://thejimporium.com Find Laura at LauraKBuzz on Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, and Patreon. All her content goes on https://LauraKBuzz.com, and you can catch Access-Ability on YouTube every Friday. Follow Conrad at ConradZimmerman on Instagram/BlueSky and check out his Patreon (https://patreon.com/fistshark). You can also peruse his anti-capitalist propaganda at https://mercenarycreative.com.