The Community Spotlight 2023.07.29

Welcome to the latest edition of the Giant Bomb Community Spotlight! I, @zombiepie, am once again honored to be your host as we look back at the best community creations from the previous week.

If it seemed like the site content was light, that's because Jeff Grubb was on vacation. It should be noted that this was the first vacation Grubb has taken since joining Giant Bomb.

People have been asking for a thread with every possible Twitter alternative the staff are using. Here's the first draft. If you know of others to add, drop a comment with links! For example, I don't use Mastodon and could use help with link to confirmed staff accounts.

Speaking of which, if you are looking for Twitter alternatives to the Giant Bomb Community Twitter account, which provides daily updates about cool community content and site updates, I have created a Tumblr, cohost, and bsky version of the account that provides the same updates that I do on Twitter. If you are on those platforms, please follow these accounts and like some of the posts I am sharing so I know which social media platforms to prioritize in the future. Also, feel free to ask me questions about Giant Bomb and life on Tumblr and cohost.

An update dropped for Premium Videos and you shouldn't require a workaround anymore. However, it seems that is not the case for everyone. If you still can't watch videos on the site, drop a comment here! As disappointing as it might seem to file another ticket in the same thread, progress is being made and more people are seeing the issues with the video player disappear.

Finally, Jeff Grubb guested on the Kit & Krysta Podcast to talk about what he's been hearing about Nintendo's future plans for gaming and the possibility of a Switch console revision.

Tweets

Activities

The GB Album Club 034 - Clairvoyant by The Contortionist (By: @unclejam23)

Clairvoyant by The Contortionist is the latest pick by the Giant Bomb Album of the Week Club! If you have anything to say about this progressive metal album or want to join the fun, click the link above!

Unsanctioned Unofficial Game Pass Game Club Voting Thread For Cycle Starting July 31, 2023

Ravenlok Is The 15th Selection Of Year 2 Of The UUGPGC! Finish By July 31, 2023! Mark All Spoilers!(By: @bigsocrates)

The latest round of voting for the Game Pass Game Club is up and here are the nominees! Remember, you can vote for two games after you click the link to the first thread! Ravenlok by developer Cococucumber is the 15th selection of Year 2 of the Giant Bomb Game Pass Game Club! If you have any non-spoiler gameplay impressions of the game, feel free to share them in the first thread linked above!

Art

Giant Bomb x Heathcliff - The Logo

Giant Bomb x Heathcliff - The Cum Store (By: @kone)

So here's the backstory to these comic panels. There are a few people in the Giant Bomb Discord that continue to post Heathcliff comics and Kone continues to respond by converting them into Giant Bomb comics. The only other thing I will say is the Cum Store comic is disgusting and is Heathcliff blasphemy.

Mad Magazine's Man Of The Year (By: @ethers_elixirs)

Based on a request relayed during Blight Club by BatGrubb, evie mae on Twitter made this mock up of Mad Magazine's Man of the Year award!

Blogs

A Small Behind The Scenes Blog (By: @pauljeremiah)

Here's a fun behind the scenes blog from pauljeremiah! He recently reviewed Segagaga, but wanted to share pictures of the physical copy of the game he owns. If you like retro game collection or retro gaming, give this a read!

Pikmin 4: The Dandori Decade (By: @jeremyf)

It's been over a decade since the last Pikmin game and jeremyf writes on Giant Bomb if Pikmin 4 does enough to keep the series relevant with new Pikmin types and mechanics and has enough legs to keep fans going for ten years.

All 3DO Games (Kinda) In Order: 1994 (Part 02) (By: @borgmaster)

After an extended hiatus, borgmaster makes a valiant return and this week revives his blog series wherein he attempts to play every single game that released on the 3DO! If you want to learn all about titles like Soccer Kid, John Madden Football, Shock Wave and more this is the blog for you!

Indie Game of the Week 330: Darq + 64 in 64: Episode 32 (By: @mento)

First, Mento has a new episode of their "Indie Game of the Week" feature and this one is all about Darq, an adventure game about being stuck in a lucid nightmare. Does the game properly execute on its concept? Read to find out!

Mento also has a new episode of their 64 in 64 blog series for all of you N64 fans out there in the Giant Bomb community. This week they tackled Fushigi no Dungeon: Fuurai no Shiren 2 AND Ready 2 Rumble Boxing.

I'm A Little Bummed That Ubisoft Has Apparently Canceled The Sequel To Immortals: Fenyx Rising. Variety In Games Is Good +

After Platinuming The Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Collection Klonoa 1 Holds Up Well But Klonoa 2 Seems Overrated (By: @bigsocrates)

bigsocrates has an essay on why the cancellation of an Immortals: Fenyx Rising sequel speaks to how hard it is for a new game to become an established franchise these days. Give it a read and spread the word!

bigsocrates also decided to pick up Klonoa: Phantasy Reverie Series to give Klonoa: Door to Phantomile and Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil a shot, and they share on their latest blog on Giant Bomb why they loved the first game and were disappointed with the second one.

The Quest For The Worst Adventure Game Puzzles - Full Throttle (i.e., Am I In Trouble For Not Liking This Enough?) (By: @zombiepie)

Moderator ZombiePie has a new edition of their adventure game blog series on Giant Bomb and this episode looks at every puzzle in Full Throttle! Read why they think the game is deceptively tricky and also not the all-timer some consider it!

My History With Kingdom Hearts (By: @uppercaseccc)

Uppercaseccc penned a new blog about their long and complicated relationship with the Kingdom Hearts franchise! Read why they haven't always hated the story and what they are hoping to see in Kingdom Hearts IV!

Gunner Witches From Other Dimensions Part 2 of 3 “Mimicking” Shane Black (By: @infantpipoc)

infantpipoc's retrospective on the Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha movie franchise and its impact and legacy on the Magical Girl anime genre continues with a blog about Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha the Movie 2nd A’s!

The New Xbox Home Screen Sucks (By: @brian_)

The Xbox Series X|S just got a new home screen and brian_ shares why they aren't a fan and why they think putting the burden on users to make it better is a disappointing industry trend.

Moosey's Return to Hyrule: Part 3 (By: @mooseymcman)

It's time for part three of MooseyMcMan's four part series looking at the story, design, and mechanics of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom! Give it a read and feel free to share if you had similar experiences.

Discussion Threads

Jeff Jeff's Bizarre: Should The Crew Try Out One Piece Live Action? (By: @topcyclist)

Here's a fun thread on the Giant Bomb forums! Would you be interested in seeing Jeff Jeff's Bizarre Adventure cover Netflix's One Piece adaptation? Would you be interested in listening to a deep dive in live action anime by Jan, Bakalar, Lucy, and Tamoor?

Major FF14 News! Dawntrail Official; Two New Classes; Coming To Xbox; Fall Guys Crossover; Free Trial Goes To Stormblood (By: @zombiepie)

Hey Final Fantasy XIV Online fans! What was your favorite thing announced during the latest FF14 fan fest? Are you excited for Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail? What do you think the next two jobs will be? And how about that Fall Guys crossover?

PlayStation 5 Surpasses 40 Million In Sales (By: @pauljeremiah)

Sony has announced that the PlayStation 5 has exceeded 40 million units in sales. Does that milestone surprise you? For those that own a PS5, are you currently satisfied with your purchase?

What Sort Of Games With Photo-Realistic Graphics You Love To See On The Switch's Successor? (By: @gtxforza)

In the event we see a Nintendo Switch revision or entirely new console, what are your expectations in terms of its graphical fidelity? Do you expect 1080p at 30 FPS or does even that seem like wild dreaming?

Lists

My Ranking of Nintendo Franchises (By: @majormitch)

majormitch returns to Giant Bomb to create a list ranking every single Nintendo franchise from best to worst! See how your favorite Nintendo IPs fared on their list and don't forget to consider making your own list when you have time!

Bummers of 2023 (By: @heart1lly)

Heart1lly already feel comfortable putting five games on their 2023 list of "Biggest Disappointments" and you can read what they are by clicking the link below! Also, if there are 2023 games that you are not a fan of, consider making your own list

User Reviews

@losttenshi_04's Needy Streamer Overload review extensively covers why they think the game's twists are certainly shocking, but the manner in which it criticizes its own audience isn't as moving or effective as they wanted.

@sbc515's Doom 3, Doom (2016), and Doom Eternal reviews wrapped up a mini-series of reviews wherein they explored the three attempts to "modernize" Doom! And before you ask, they are indeed a defender of Doom 3.

@pauljeremiah's reviews for The Messenger, Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode On, Metal Gear Ac!d 2, and Retro Game Challenge reviews were an absolute delight this week and if you have the time please reward their efforts with a supportive comment!

@yyninja's ROBOTICS;NOTES DaSH review unfortunately shares why the game captures none of the charm of the original and represents a new all-time low for 5pb.'s Science Adventure franchise.

Wiki Of The Week

Pikmin (Wiki of the Week)

Pikmin 4 (Call For Help!)

To commemorate the release of Pikmin 4, this edition of the Giant Bomb Wiki of the Week is for the very first Pikmin game! Click the link and learn almost all there is to know about the game, its development, and many mechanics!

Also, to any Pikmin fanatics out there on the internet that might see this, Giant Bomb's wiki NEEDS YOUR HELP! The current wiki page for Pikmin 4 has virtually nothing on it and more screenshots would be greatly appreciated!