Austin x Vinny, Austin x Alex. Really Austin with anyone, he was the perfect addition, his short-lived era on the site was one of the most insightful spoken, cultural critical and constantly entertaining.
This is the first year I think I kind of stopped the videos like ten or twenty minutes in or skipped around in them a ton, the fun categories being taken out are really a bummer- hottest mess and biggest disappointment were probably the two things I was most excited for. I almost feel like the recap stuff could be done as a podcast across the coasts or off screen honestly idk. Love the crew and the site a lot but this year was kind of nothing.
The guests GOTY lists are stellar though, like always <3
Uncharted 3, incomplete narrative but in terms of set-pieces I don't think anything in the series conceptually matches the airplane one. Replaying it I forgot how much that game perfects the formula, and the threads that tie it together are a just a bit looser than 2 or 4.
Also, Crash Bandicoot: Twinsanity. I won't call it a great game but I would call it the third best Crash game by a long shot, after 2 & Warped. It was brimming with creativity.
I was a huge fan of Austin before he joined Giant Bomb. When he joined it was honestly amazing, like I felt happy for him in a weird way. I love Giant Bomb West but the chemistry in East was unbeatable, like I can't imagine a trio that complimented each other so well and so intelligently. It's super devastating I wonder what he'll go to next.
Todd Howard is the only video game dev whose speaking has actually influenced me - and I'm in a completely different creative field than he.
In terms of games I enjoy Paradox is up there, at this point Crusader Kings 2 is among the games I've played most in my life. Naughty Dog - I've loved all their games since Crash, idk why I aligned like that. Bethesda - Oblivion blew my mind, I just never experienced a world like that one. Bioware has made some of the best games ever to me. And yeah, I agree above Phil Fish is one hell of a dev for making one unbelievable game in his career and then leaving like a fireball.
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