BOND is BACK (for better or worse)

Gears of War is back with a bang! The Coalition’s latest entry, Gears of War: E-Day, looks to turn back the clock with a prequel depicting how Emergence Day went down. Long-time players will be treated to the Marcus and Dom combination that shot this franchise to popularity on the XBOX 360. Apps and Adkins both dived in to see if there is magic still left in this franchise. Adkins takes it a step further, passing judgement on recent remaster Gears of War Reloaded and utilises XBOX’s Backwards Compatibility programme to go through Gears of War: Judgement for the first time.Control Resonant is the latest entry by Remedy. With a change of design, protagonist and combat they rolled the dice and Apps renders his verdict on whether they stick the landing.Jeff gives us the lowdown with Game Freak’s Beast of Reincarnation. The studio most famous for their Pokémon games take the unusual step to develop a game outside of Nintendo’s stewardship to showcase their talents.Logan returns to report back on Epic Game Store freebie, Botanicula and Adkins closes out the episode with thoughts on Florence.Timestamps:00:00:00 Gears of War: E-Day01:22:36 Gears of War Reloaded01:28:46 Gears of War: Judgement01:40:05 Botaniclua 01:59:10 Beasts of Reincarnation 02:29:52 Control Resonant03:39:08 Florence

With PlayStation stepping on rake after rake after rake, their PR and Branding has taken a hit inside the enthusiast community. Marvel’s Wolverine was supposed to be an opportunity for them to say “All of that doesn’t matter, we make great games!”. Well, that didn’t go to plan either. Comparing their previous tentpole titles, the critical response for Wolverine can only be chalked up as a disappointment. But that’s the critics, what do we think? Adkins stayed the course a powered his way to a Platinum Trophy. Armed with this has the demise of Insomniac and PlayStation’s First Party Studios been greatly exaggerated? It’s been an impossible year to keep up with new releases and September might have been the hardest. Apps didn’t have The Blood of Dawnwalker on his roadmap, but a spontaneous purchase sucked him into a world of Witchcraft and Vampires. Obvious comparisons are being made with the classic The Witcher 3, but does Dawnwalker come with enough new ideas to stop it being listed as a pale imitation?After making his debut on Bonus Stage, marketing extraordinaire Jeff Carter returns to share his two playthroughs of Cronos: The New Dawn. Does Bloober’s new IP and follow up to Silent Hill 2 hit the same heights?Day 1 Game Pass drop, Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is the third entry into the Plague Tale franchise. This prequel opts for a new setting and drastically overhauls the focus of game. Stealth is gone, now its combat! Apps investigates to see how these changes land and how it stacks up to previous entries.Big Walk came outta nowhere for many gamers. This co-op only, adventure puzzler forces friends to communicate and work together to solve the mysteries of the unique island. Not exactly the strongpoint for the Dimp crew, but Logan, Paper & Apps gave it a go! Timestamps00:00:00 Marvel’s Wolverine00:46:08 The Blood of Dawnwalker01:57:47 Cronos: The New Dawn02:47:31 Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy03:35:39 Big Walk

In this special "Bonus Stage" edition of Idle Game Chat, Apps is joined by marketing and brand expert Jeff Carter to dive deep into the state of the "Big Three": Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo.With nearly 30 years of experience in branding, Jeff offers a unique consumer-first perspective on how these gaming giants navigate a fractured digital landscape, the rise of AI, and the ever-changing relationship with influencers.The conversation covers:- PlayStation's "Top-Down" Strategy: Analysing the recent backlash over their all-digital future and whether the "hubris of the market leader" is starting to show.- Xbox's Underdog Identity: Discussing Microsoft's pivot toward "Software as a Service," the dilution of the Xbox brand, and whether their "gamer-friendly" approach can win back fans.- Nintendo's Different Game: Why Nintendo remains immune to the console wars by playing on nostalgia and cross-generational appeal.- The Cost of the Future: Exploring the potential breaking point for console pricing and how the economy is shaping the next generation of hardware.A big thanks to Jeff for making the time for us!

Hell has finally frozen over! Halo has landed on PlayStation with a remake of the original Halo called, Halo: Campaign Evolved. To many XBOX green bloods this will have been a bitter blow in the console wars. The blue blood PlayStation fans will claim the spoils of this battle and get to experience one of the most influence games of all time. It’s not without controversy, visual tweaks, game play mechanics and even bonus missions have been added, how does this all hold up? We sent Biff to investigate! It’s remake heaven for Biff as he also renders his verdict on Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced. One of the most beloved entries into Ubisoft’s long running franchise can Biff tolerate the trappings of Creed to enjoy pirate paradise?Pokémon Pokopia has new life injected into it with Part 1 of its Expansion Pass in the form of Bubbly Basin. Apps returns to his beloved Pokopia to see exploring the ocean floor goes down in Pokémon.Undoubtedly the crown jewel in the XBOX stable, Forza Horizon, drops it’s 6th entry with a trip to Japan. A location that has been at the top of fans lists for years, including our very own Adkins. He gets behind the wheel to see how Playground Games have evolved the franchise.With Control Resonant just around the corner, Apps returns to Alan Wake 2 for some unfinished business in the form of a Platinum Trophy, New Game + (dubbed The Final Draft) and the Expansion Pass. Does a return to the Dark Place hit the same as 2023?Our permeant Japan dweller, Evan, joins Apps to talk through Neva: Complete Edition in a rare UNCHAINED SPOILER FILLED chat! If you have not played BEWARE!Timestamps:00:00:00 Halo: Campaign Evolved00:20:57 Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced00:35:10 Pokémon Pokopia Expansion Pass Part 1: Bubbly Basin01:00:55 Forza Horizon 601:43:21 Alan Wake 202:26:55 Neva: Complete Edition (UNCHAINED SPOILER CHAT)

One of the highest rated and beloved games of the decade, Baldur’s Gate 3 has avoided the eye of Dimp, until now! Apps plunged well over 100hrs into this instant classic and returns with all the gossip. Whilst primarily designed around PC, Apps rolled the dice and went to his trusty PS5 Pro…how does the game translate to a console controller?Also in the episode, Adkins comes back with OlliOlli World! The third entry into the OlliOlli franchise is Roll7’s most ambitious attempt yet!  Logan finally gets round to Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, with DLC announced Apps checks the box for Mafia: The Old Country, Logan closes the episode with Epic Game Store freebie, Botany Manor.Timestamps00:00:00 Baldur’s Gate 301:20:55 Valiant Hearts: Coming Home01:54:18 OlliOlli World02:16:29 Mafia: The Old Country03:36:08 Botany Manor

Biff headlines another edition of Idle Game Chat to return with his verdict on Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight. A seasoned veteran of the Arkham Trilogy (and Origins) and various transmedia Batman products, Biff dives into the good and bad of this latest Lego game.PlayStation announced that from 2028 Physical Games will be no more. As Dimp’s most proficient Physical Game trader, Biff goes in on this proposed change.From Pony Island to The Hex and now to Inscryption, Daniel Mullins has quite the portfolio of indie titles. Inscryption is the final stop on Apps’ Daniel Mullins Games tour and it’s high critical acclaim sets expectations high.Over two years after first starting, Adkins is finally able to put the second part of the Final Fantasy VII Remake to bed. Rebirth is a gigantic game and Adkins explored it from head to toe and is ready to share his thoughts.Dimp’s resident Resident Evil expert, Adcock closes out the episode with a full spoiler review of Resident Evil Requiem. Dubbed as an “Unchained” review, Apps joins in as they dissect Requiem piece by piece. The do also share thoughts on other entries in the series, so beware…this is a full SPOILER discussion.Timestamps:00:00:00 Lego Batman:00:29:18 PlayStation KILL Physical Games!00:45:55 Iscryption01:41:25 Final Fantast VII Rebirth02:45:57 Resident Evil Requiem UNCHAINED (Game & Series SPOILERS)YouTube Link: https://youtu.be/PeHnoNXxrOg

IO Interactive return with 007 First Light a single player, narrative driven action-adventure game looking to shine. Biff and Apps were both impressed with the review reception that they dived in and are now ready to render their verdicts. Is it really a licence to thrill?Adkins returns to run through a bunch of Nintendo Switch Online titles. Star Fox and Super Mario Land are the highlights!Pragmata was another surprise package of 2026. The long-delayed game finally landed in April to rave review. Apps takes aim and this sci-fi shooting/hacking hybrid. Is it really The Last of Us in space?A Rogue-Lite/Rouge-Like double bill! Adkins powered through the original Hades and Housemarque’s Returnal. Very different games, utilising similar design frameworks. Who comes out on top?Assassin’s Creed Mirage promised to turn back the clock and bring the nostalgia of the original Assassin’s Creed games back to a modern audience. Apps returns to the franchise after being burnt out by Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s long post release support. Is a more stealth focussed Assassin’s Creed game welcome or should it have been left in the past?Timestamps:00:00:00 007 First Light00:53:45 A bundle of Nintendo Switch Online games!01:23:13 Pragmata02:34:14 Hades vs. Returnal03:13:10 Assassin’s Creed MirageYouTube Link: https://youtu.be/zSRmkAare20

Crimson Desert is the most talked about Game of 2026. It’s insane scope, coupled with deep combat and incredible graphics surely make it a candidate as one of the highest scoring games of the year. Well, that is not the case, so we sent Adkins to find out what is really going on under the hood.From Knockout Kings, to Ready to Rumble to Fight Night, boxing games were once a staple of a gamers diet. However, as the sport spluttered and MMA rose to prominence, they seemed to fall by the wayside. In 2024, enter Undisputed and their attempt to bring back a Boxing video game. Biff decided to step into the ring and report back on what to expect.  Mixtape fired out the blocks as one of the highest rated games of the year. Critics cited its incredible soundtrack and emotional narrative as a potential new watermark. As time went on, the scores corrected themselves and Mixtape was snarled up in some controversy. Adkins cuts through all the noise to deliver the final verdict.With GTA VI closing in, Paper decided it was time to catch up on a gap in his Rockstar Games shame list. Paper rewarded himself with Red Dead Redemption 2. Seen as one of the greatest games of all time, this 2018 release is still being spoken about today. Paper continues that with his view on this classic. If you weren’t into Mario Kart World, chances are you were looking at Donkey Kong Bananza as your most anticipated Switch 2 game of 2026. It took a bit of time but Adkins finally got time to blast through this ambitious platformer.Timestamps:00:00:00 Crimson Desert01:02:24 Undisputed01:45:36 Mixtape02:10:40 Red Dead Redemption 203:19:54 Donkey Kong Bananza

Cozy Game has caught fire and blindsided both Adkins and Apps. Where does Pokémon Pokopia rank in the Cozy Game list and does it have potential to be one of the best Pokémon games in the franchise?Paper loves an obscure indie game and nothing says obscure indie game more than Coffee Talk. Set in a fantasy version of Seattle, Coffee Talk lets you take the role of a barista as they listen to laundry list of problems the shops various customers have. With a vast range of colourful characters and problems to try and solve, does Coffee Talk hit the heights of some of Paper’s favourite obscure Indie Games?With Saros just around the corner it was time for Apps to dive into Returnal. Housemarque’s attempt to transition their tight combat into a Third Person Perspective was met to critical acclaim. Returnal’s brutal Roguelite (or is it a Roguelike?) mechanics certainly filtered people but did their commitment to their vision ultimately hurt the game overall?Hall’s traditional return to the podcast is for our rebranded Game of the Year chat, now called, Gaming’s Best. With the qualifying criteria open to Early Access, ongoing games, games releasing on new platform and much more, will it be the usual suspects who make the grade or the same old slop?Timestamps:00:00:00 Pokémon Pokopia01:07:34 Coffee Talk01:37:46 Returnal02:49:04 Gaming's Best 2025

Resident Evil Requiem has arrived! The 9th mainline entry into the Resident Evil franchise dropped to critical acclaim. Apps and Adkins tip toed their way through Requiem and report back on their findings. Is it the perfect blend of Resident Evil 7 and Resident Evil 4 or does it come out as bad as T-Virus mutation?After giving Skate Story a good kicking, Evan returns to put Sword of the Sea through the mill. Giant Squid dropped Sword of the Sea in 2025 and was supercharged by being a Day 1 release on PlayStation Plus Extra. The Pathless is highly rated by Evan, so Sword of the Sea has a lot to live up to.Stray, the game where you are a cat reappears via Paper on Nintendo Switch 2. The 2022 indie darling picked up awards from both The Game Awards and GDC. Cat lover Paper weighs on where this stands and what to expect out of Stray in 2026.Adkins caps the episode of with Star Wars Outlaws. In classic Adkins fashion, the game was started when it released in 2024, but soon ended up of the Adkins Backburner. Two years on and multiple patches later, Adkins returns with unfinished business.Timestamps:00:00:00 Resident Evil Requiem01:45:06 Sword of the Sea02:43:07 Stray03:28:31 Star Wars Outlaws