Waypoint Radio

In this bonus episode Austin Walker interviews Ben Makuch, host of Motherboard's new podcast "Cyber", about cyber security, why we always seem caught off guard by each new cyber threat, and what responsibilities large companies like Facebook have in keeping people safe on the internet, followed by the first full episode of "Cyber."  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

What, if anything, does a sequel owe its predecessors? While didn't realize it at the time, that's the question we chewed on during this nearly two-hour long episode of Waypoint Radio. Some games, like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate​, try to satisfy long time fan and newcomer alike. Others, like ​Fallout 76​, eject much of what made the series what it was in favor of new experimentation. Which one of these tactics is right? Or is the truth... somewhere in the middle?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

​This week's Waypoint Radio is about the anxieties surrounding commercial art and the way they can often overshadow art's cultural value, and how the latter often has more to do with personal meaning and artistic goals than performance in "the marketplace". Our first point of entry to this topic comes via an article by Liz Ryerson, over at the New and Improved Deorbital, called "There Are Not 'Too Many Games': What The Indiepocalypse Panic Ignores​​". Then we look at a gorgeous personal essay over at Unwinnable by Amanda Hudgins, "The Kentucky State Fair​", which ends up providing a way of considering one way of practicing what Ryerson is alluding to. More importantly, it's a story about the place you come from, and the ways you work and experiences can be a gulf between you and the people that you care about.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

For this week, we have an unusually music-centered episode as the gang welcomes Noisey's Colin Joyce to talk about Lil Peep's posthumous Come Over When You're Sober, Pt. 2. What does it imply about the what Peep's creative direction might have been, and do the circumstances, assumptions, and compromises around its production complicate its place in Peep's body of work? And then Rob has been listening to Let England Shake as the world observes the centennial of the end of World War I. What does PJ Harvey's Great War-themed album tell us about the nature of the war's remembrance, and how it ties into the self-conception of the British Empire and Commonwealth? And if Harvey's album suggests the insularity and self-deception that was shaken by the horrors and scope of the First World War, is she entirely in on the joke?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Most horror franchises don’t survive the transition to a sequel, let alone a third movie. We were pleasantly surprised by the action-y, Punisher-esque turn of The Purge: Anarchy, but there were enough red flags to have us deeply concerned about where The Purge would go with its third entry, Election Year, a movie centered around protecting a bizarre Hillary Clinton stand-in, who promises to save the country, from her political opponents. Austin, Patrick, Danielle, Natalie, and Rob dive gathered around to dive into Election Year, and hope for better things from the final entry, The First Purge. (Spoiler: That one’s a much better movie.)  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The holidays are upon us, which means new video games are dropping fast and furious. That makes it the perfect time to spend a long time talking about...Vampyr? Rob spent the weekend with one of Patrick's favorites from earlier this year, much to his delight. In an episode that was supposed to be "short," Rob and Patrick join Austin to spend nearly two hours also discussing Tetris Effect, how every human being is actually connected, The Gardens Between, the many ways to creatively kill in Hitman 2, ​and what it's like to cheer for a good football team after years of despair. Oh, and we react to the absolutely wild Detective Pikachu trailer in real-time.Discussed: Vampyr, Tetris Effect, Skin Deep, Hitman 2, Detective Pikachu, Syndicate, Payday 2(I left in the team's entire live reaction to the Detective Pikachu trailer so if you'd like to watch along just hit play on the trailer when Patrick does his countdown! - Cado)  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

​With the 200th episode of Waypoint Radio behind us, we turn back to our roots: The Question Bucket. Join Austin, Rob, Natalie, and Patrick as they answer your questions about all of the most important topics: Being disappointed by your favorite series. How to grit your teeth and send your creative work into the uncaring void of the internet. Peanut Butter.We promised you that Sim City article from Ian Bogost, but we couldn't find it.Discussed: Peanut Butter, Europa Universalis IV, Victoria II, Sim City, Real Lives 2019, Spent, Red Dead Redemption 2, Bridge, Dance Dance Revolution, Picross, Solitaire, Spelunky, Binding of Issac, Dark Souls, Hearthstone, Netrunner, Legend of the Five Rings, Magic: The Gathering, Slay the Spire, XCOM 2, Subterfuge, Battlefield, F.E.A.R, Destiny, Diablo Immortal, Paper Mario Franchise, Deus Ex: Invisible War, Galak-Z Variant S, Fantasy Life, The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, The Elder Scrolls: Morrowind, The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, The Heir to the Empire Trilogy, Total War: Medieval,

This week, Rob has convinced Austin to watch one of his favorite screwball comedies, ​My Man Godfrey​. This may been a poor choice! (Or the best choice - Cado)​But the main focus in this episode is politics! You want election takes? We got 'em! But first, we need to explore some of the context and history of this political moment by taking a look at McKay Coppins' profile of Newt Gingrich and the brand of politics and the anxieties he represents.Discussed: The Man Who Broke Politics (article at The Atlantic), 2018 election results, My Man Godfrey (Criterion Collection)  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Episode 200 of Waypoint Radio is here! And we worked hard to ensure that it is the quintessential episode. No special guests or new segments or live bands, no, this puppy is stuffed to the brim with the games we've been playing. Austin and Rob have both Red Dead Redemption 2 updates and a sort of Subterfuge post-mortem. Danielle has further thoughts on Call of Cthulhu and a very fun, very 90s-tastic racing game in Grip: Combat Racing. Natalie has her hands full with Dark Souls and Red Dead. And Austin has an extra-special robot game to share with all you replicants out there.Discussed: Subterfuge, Red Dead Redemption 2, Grip: Combat Racing, Dark Souls, Call of Cthulhu, Inhuman Conditions: A Game of Cops and Robots  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Content warning for discussion of racism in horror games and movies, and a mention of rape in horror movies at 1:10:00-1:11:00.H.P. Lovecraft, the author so well-known for his works of horror, his writings on monsters and madness and cosmic horror, was a radically, horrifically racist person, even for his time. So, how do we deal with that, when his influence is all over the horror genre, indirectly through popular tropes and immediately, in games inspired directly from his work, like this week’s Call of Cthulhu? Why are these tropes so enduring, and where do they come from? And how to we wrestle with works that we may enjoy, even if they come from this lineage? Danielle, Natalie, Rob, and Patrick sit down to discuss the new game, cosmic horror tropes, and Lovecraft’s influence in games.Discussed: Call of Cthulhu, Bloodborne, works of H.P. Lovecraft.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

​In the second (and final) part of our Red Dead Redemption playthrough for Waypoint 101, we—ugh—survive the extremely long Mexico section of the game, and revisit the still-memorable finale and epilogue. Red Dead Redemption is a game that's aged weirdly in the eight years since its release, as Austin, Patrick, Natalie, and Rob discover over the nearly two hours spent picking apart the game's conclusion. Some things work, a lot of things don't, and much has changed since 2010. We also sneak in some talk about Undead Nightmare, the game's celebrated horror expansion.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We have a monster-sized episode this week, as we've all been extremely on our bullshit. Rob was stunned by Jez Butterworth's The Ferryman, a powerful family tragedy set in Northern Ireland in the 1980s. Patrick's troubled by the swiftly evolving dystopia typified by this Planet Money episode on China's experiment in giving citizens "social credit scores". Danielle has been thinking about sexuality and kink as explored in Clive Barker's Hellbound: Hellraiser 2. And Natalie has been watching Laid-Back Camp and thinking about the ways it depicts the relationship between self and nature, and how it relates to the historically troubled concept of the sublime. And then [CW: Arachnaphobia] there is an outtake from a conversation from our first attempt at starting the show, in which Natalie talks about various bugs invading her home, urban legends around rats and toilets, and lots and lots of spiders.Discussed: Jez Butterworth's The Ferryman, Planet Money, Hellbound: Hellraiser 2, Laid -

This week on Waypoint Radio: Austin and Rob are still living Subterfuge, Danielle is getting in to the Halloween spirit with some spooky indie horror games, and just about everyone is finally playing Red Dead Redemption 2. The team then dips into the question bucket to discuss the impulse to monetize or professionalize our hobbies, Danielle and Patrick make a quick and dirty list of their top 5 platformers, and we return to the Dishcourse to ask "What makes a good sandwich, contents or bread?"Discussed: Subterfuge, Stay, Paratopic, Red Dead Redemption 2, Mega Man 2, Super Mario 3D World, Donkey Kong Country 2, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Banjo Kazooie, Mark of the Ninja, Super Meat Boy, Braid  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

During our charity stream last week, Austin and Rob were sucked into participating a game of Subterfuge, a "simple" mobile strategy game built on alliances, betrayal, and taking over your life. It’s even invaded our podcast. Despite this, Patrick, Austin, Rob, Danielle, and Natalie ​found a way to discuss Fallout 76’s beta, Black Ops 4, Return of the Obra Dinn, Call of Cthulhu, Soul Calibur 6, and Unexplored. We’ll have thoughts on Red Dead Redemption 2 next week, as we only got access to the game a day before it came out.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Patrick, Austin, Danielle, Natalie, and Rob gather to discuss the second film in The Purge series, The Purge: Anarchy, as part of a deep dive into the entire series. Warning: Spoilers abound. Warning: Rob is upset about how people employ tactics. Warning: This movie needed more Michael K. Williams.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this episode of Waypoint Radio: Austin, Natalie, Patrick, and Rob sit down to discuss the new article by Jason Schreier on Rockstar's crunch culture. They dive deep on what the new info out of Rockstar says about working conditions there, worker's rights in the gaming industry as a whole, and how they hope this new conversation can help bolster real change across the industry.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It's Wednesday and that means Waypoints, where the site's staff and friends will bring something to share with each other and with you: a TV show, art exhibit, movie, album, or other thing from the universe of pop culture. to discuss, dissect, and enjoy.This week, Patrick brings us an article that delves into Instagram's harassment problem, Rob revisits 'Looper' to find something less hard sci-fi, more crime movie, and Danielle is getting into the fall spirit by watching 'Haunting of Hill House,' a beautiful blend of very scary horror and family drama.Discussed: Instagram Has a Massive Harassment Problem by Taylor Lorenz, Looper (Rian Johnson, 2012), Haunting of Hill House' (Netflix)  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Content Warning: short discussion on statue genitalia from 45:30 - 46:40It's Waypoint Radio 195! Or something very much like it! Danielle, Patrick, and Rob are excited about video games! Rob's been playing Oxenfree, Danielle is still playing Assassin's Creed Odyssey, and Patrick has discovered the future of gaming with Astro Bot, and it's virtual reality (or "VR" for short). But before they get into that, the gang just has to read this one Vulture article about the making of Red Dead Redemption 2 and offer a few measured observations. Are 100-hour work weeks good? Should writers offer some context and address some of the criticism faced by the high-profile creators they covers?We also get ready for our streaming marathon for The Florence Project and interview Development & Research Director Amalia Luxardo about the organization's work on the immigrant detention crisis.Discussed: Astro Bot, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, and Oxenfree  See acast.com/pri

On Waypoint Radio 194, Danielle, Rob, and Patrick talk about games where a major character was enough to pull them through some questionable gameplay. We start in on Assassin's Creed Odyssey giving Danielle some serious Xena: Warrior Princess vibes, talk through some good horror games that maybe ran a little long (like Soma and Alien: Isolation), and discuss Rob's time with the Gabriel Knight series. We have a horror corner, a Lucy Lawless Appreciation Moment AND a bonus dad corner this week, and a brief (and funky) dip into the question bucket to round things out.Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Soma, Mass Effect, Dragon Age Origins, Assassin's Creed Origins, Alien: Isolation, Everyone's Gone to the Rapture, Gabriel Knight series, Thimbleweed Park, Deadly Premonition, D4, Remedy games, Alan Wake, Frozen Synapse 2, Xena: Warrior Princess.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Content Warning for discussion of sexual violence and racist language, and spoilers for the first half of Red Dead RedemptionWith Red Dead Redemption 2 right around the corner, the Waypoint crew: Natalie, Patrick, Rob, Austin, and Danielle (with Cado on production!) saddled up to revisit the first open-world game in the series, 2010's Red Dead Redemption. Here in our first episode of a two-part podcast, we played up until protagonist John Marston's journey to Mexico, and friends, what a journey it is.We dive deep into one of Rockstar's least subtle intros, into the finicky mechanics, the one-note characters, the beautiful skyboxes and moments that work—as well as the elements that just plain don't.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.