Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Giant Bomb Community Spotlight and I, @zombiepie, am honored to be your host this week as we look back on the best user-created offerings from the last week! For many of you, this was a week wherein you enjoyed the fruits of Summer Games Done Quick 2020, and hopefully the event's digital-only format has left you as impressed as its pre-pandemic format. Speaking of which, the site-related housekeeping has a lot of information about the staff and their plans for the site moving forward. In short, there will be fewer solo streams and more premium content from now on. Likewise, the "Lockdown" title is being dropped as the staff and site adjust to what many would call "the new normal." But with that in mind, let's jump into the housekeeping!
- In case there are any of you that missed it, Jeff wrote an exhaustive post on Tumblr about the site's future plans with streaming and premium content moving forward during the pandemic. Give it a read and see what the staff are planning!
- Vinny continues to post updates on the site about upcoming videos and live streams. Like Jeff's post on Tumblr, Giant Bomb East plans to slow down the number of solo livestreams in favor of more Quick Looks, collaborative streams, and premium features. But it's also worth reading Vinny's thread to learn more about the backroom technical stuff about Giant Bomb's video archiving process. His detailed post on the time he put into trying to "save" the audio quality of the Microsoft Flight Sim Quick Look is simply AMAZING!
- Director of engineering and host of the Giant Devcast, Will Carle, celebrated their birthday earlier this week. Wish them a "happy birthday" if you haven't already.
- The author of the user-created Apple TV Giantbomb app, GB Fan, just launched a major update! Read all about it using the link and feel free to report new bugs and suggestions for the next update!
Tweets
The third time's the charm. @alex_navarro was finally able to gold star a @johntdrake song.
— Brad Lynch (@MarinoV1) August 20, 2020
He's 693 songs deep and still going over at https://t.co/w3cukEQeMT
Stats: https://t.co/nIEkeK5wY6
Today is fantastic day in @giantbomb history :D pic.twitter.com/ETxbEOhY1T
— TheDutchSlayer🏝 (@TheDutchSlayer) August 20, 2020
The Lost Levels in a nutshell. @giantbomb@bradshoemaker@VinnyCaravella@jeffgerstmann@unastrike#mario#lostlevelspic.twitter.com/bO6q3ajbWM
— Jea;rum (@jea_rum) August 20, 2020
You put your mac 'n' cheese on a plate? What is wrong with you!?
— Giant Bomb Out of Context (@giantbomb_ooc) August 18, 2020
- Dan Ryckert, 2019
10 years ago today, a box of Twinkies was delivered to the @giantbomb office. A legendarily large box.https://t.co/YK4caH9x85
— Brad Lynch (@MarinoV1) August 18, 2020
Clips
Giant Bombcast “Historical Gamer” Bit Played On A “Historical” 1975 Zenith B&W TV (By: Aspect Retro)
HOLY CRAP! Over on YouTube, Aspect Retro found a way to output Giant Bomb's "Historical Gamer" segment from the Giant Bombcast on a 1975 Black and White Zenith TV! Bravo to whoever made this possible!
Learning to Fly With Flight Simulators (By: Cloth Map)
This is just a handy video for those that enjoyed Drew's return on the site with the Microsoft Flight Simulator Quick Look. During the QL, Vinny and Drew mention a video involving Drew playing X-Plane. Here's that video in case you were curious.
Art
Alex x Sheppard Face Time Mashup (By: @J_ViperMIA)
Over on Twitter, J_ViperMIA used some technological wizardry to combine Alex's face with Commander Sheppard using the face Time App. If this ends up giving you nightmares, I have no regrets.
Community Activities
Summer Games Wiki'd Quick 2020 (By: @mento)
Calling everyone enjoying Summer Games Done Quick 2020! Here's a link to Giant Bomb's official community discussion thread for the event! Share your favorite speedruns thus far and which streams you cannot wait to watch!
Blogs
Might and Magic X - The End (Part 4) (By: @valorianendymion)
Whelp, ValorianEndymion finally did it! They finished their retrospective blog series on Might and Magic! This final episode is all about Might and Magic X and their conflicted feelings about it being the "end note" of the franchise.
LEGO Super Mario (By: @ry_ry)
Ry_Ry bought a unit of LEGO Super Mario! Read their first impressions of the "starter set" on Giant Bomb and find out if they plan on buying more Mario LEGO as they come out!
Marvel's Spiderman in 2020 (By: @theoracleofgame)
theoracleofgame finally got around to playing Marvel's Spider-Man and shares on their latest blog on how super hero games really need to get away from the "super hero helps to establish a city-wide surveillance system" ASAP.
Trashes to Ashes - Part Three (By: @danielkempster)
danielkempster shares part three of their role-playing journey through the Career mode of Cricket 19 on Giant Bomb! See if they starting to seem like they are ready for the big leagues!
Playing Kingdom Hearts For the First Time in 2020: Why Did I Do This To Myself? (By: @banefirelord)
BaneFireLord decided to play OG Kingdom Hearts for the first time in the year of our Lord, 2020. Read why they deeply regretted the decision but cannot stop thinking about the game.
Just One More Run... (By: @laughingman)
laughingman uses their latest blog on the site to share the games that always manage to make them say "Just one more run..." Read what they mean by clicking the link above!
Indie Game of the Week 184: Night in the Woods (By: @mento)
First, Mento has a new episode of their "Indie Game of the Week" blog series and this episode looks at Night in the Woods! Read why they understand the game's appeal, but also have little desire to see the game through to its end.
What's the Greatest Video Game: Speed Devils (By: @imunbeatable80)
imunbeatable80 continues their retrospective on the games of their childhood on the site by revisiting Speed Devils! Read where they "scientifically" rank the Dreamcast racing game!
Warframe Nightwave Series 3 - The Glass Maker (Guide)[UPDATED FOR PART 4!] (By: @rapid)
Resident Warframe expert, Rapid, posted an update to the Glass Maker guide in response to fourth part of the questline going live recently! Give it a read if you need help in finishing the mission!
Discussion & Threads
Flight Simulator Discussion Thread (By: @fear_the_booboo)
Have any of you given Microsoft Flight Simulator a try? Have you been impressed or disappointed by the game's world map, gameplay, and graphics? For me, I think the game is my current 2020 GOTY front-runner.
Spiritfarer Discussion Thread (By: @ntm)
Spiritfarer from Thunder Lotus Games came out earlier this week and here's a link to the community discussion thread about the game? Have you given the charming indie boat management sim a try?
Sony Announces Ghost Of Tsushima: Legends, Free 4-Player Co-op Multiplayer Add-on Coming This Fall (By: @nodima)
Sony announced a free 4-player co-op multiplayer add-on to Ghost of Tsushima coming this fall. What's your initial reaction to this announcement? The community seems split between excitement and anemia.
Which Games Interested You In Nintendo's Indie Showcase? Or Have You Already Played And Liked? (By: @aktane)
Here's a fun poll on the forums: what from Nintendo's Indie Showcase are you most excited to buy and play? Is it a port of a PC game or an upcoming new game?
Trailmakers: Banjo-Kazooie Nuts N' Bolts-like Now On Game Pass (By: @ak1mbo)
After rediscovering the game through Game Pass, several users are calling Trailmakers on game Pass a great game for people who loved Banjo-Kazooie Nuts N' Bolts! What do you think? Is it a one for one swap, or does the comparison sell either game too short?
Black Myth Wukong Gameplay Trailer Out (By: @rebel_scum)
A new gameplay trailer released for Black Myth: Wu Kong and the community is still talking about it! Give the trailer a view and share your initial impressions of the monkey-based action game.
The Wrestling Game Thread: Battlegrounds' Roster REVEALED! 2K19 Servers Active Until Fall '21! (By: @shiftygism)
The Wrestling Game Community wants YOU to join their discussion about Battlegrounds' recently revealed roster and the news that WWE 2K19 servers remaining active until 2021!
Oculus Will Require An Facebook Account For New Products (By: @onemanarmyy)
It was recently announced Oculus will require a Facebook account for new products! Most of the community seems fairly negative about the announcement, but what are your thoughts? Feel free to share them using the link.
Lists
Ranking of '90s Platforming Mascots (By: @splitterguy)
Splitterguy had a go at "ranking" video game mascots from the 1990s.
Their two grading criteria were:
1. Be as '90s as possible.
2. Be quality.
SIGINT’s Ranking of Metal Gears (By: @sigint)
SIGINT is a newcomer to the Metal Gear Solid franchise, but is quickly coming around to it and Kojima's inherent wackiness. Check out their latest list to see which games from the series have impressed them the most!
User Reviews
- @capt_blakhelm finally got around to playing Resident Evil 2 (2019) and uses their review of the game to share why they consider it a is a "solid" return to survival horror form for the Resident Evil franchise.
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