Waypoint Radio

Love 'em or hate 'em, there's a reason so many of us watch Geoff Keighley's awards show every year. In addition to the trailers for some of the biggest games, you can never be quite sure what you're in for. Sometimes it's a trainwreck, and other times it's genuinely moving! This year's watchers included Editor-In-Chief Austin Walker, myself, and Managing Editor Danielle Riendeau. After reacting to Nolan North's decision to get passive aggressive about the voice actors strike and Hideo Kojima's latest Death Stranding trailer, we talk about our time with Final Fantasy XV, Dishonored 2, and make a quick trip to The Question Bucket.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Chances are your 2016 backlog is getting a little intense, but it's about to get even longer, with Square Enix preparing to release their long-anticipated Final Fantasy sequel, Watch Dogs 2 hitting PC, and The Last Guardian hitting next week. Feel free to slow down, video games. We're in this together, though, and that includes Editor-In-Chief Austin Walker, myself, and Managing Editor Danielle Riendeau. On this episode, we discuss experiences with JRPGs, Austin's first hours with Final Fantasy XV, and see what The Question Bucket has in store.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Surviving Thanksgiving is no easy feat. If you’re reading this, you did it! (Hopefully that awkward conversation with the uncle who voted for Trump went okay. Good job.) Give yourself a pat on the back, and know that a reward is on the way: another edition of Waypoint Radio. Editor-In-Chief Austin Walker, myself, and Managing Editor Danielle Riendeau recorded this in advance, so we decided to slap on some gloves and reach into The Question Bucket. If you sent a questions months ago, don’t fret; we start digging into our backlog on today’s episode.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Though our regular Monday episode of Waypoint Radio went live last night, we recorded a special bonus podcast, as well, where we break down today’s big investigation into Sleeping Dogs 2. If you missed our story on the now-abandoned plans for a sequel to one of gaming’s cult classics, read up on it before listening to a discussion between myself, Editor-In-Chief Austin Walker, and Managing Editor Danielle Riendeau.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As we prepare for having a few days off later this week, you'll have to forgive us for delivering the podcast later than usual! Thankfully, though, it means you'll have access to an hour of the group dipping into The Question Bucket on Friday, as everyone nurses their food hangovers. But on today's episode, Editor-In-Chief Austin Walker, myself, and Managing Editor Danielle Riendeau discussed our experiences as Emily Kaldwin in Dishonored 2, why two Nintendo fan games have disappeared from the nominations for this year's The Game Awards, and use The Question Bucket to talk about how the three of us ended up being full-time games writers.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The world still turns, the sun still rises, and we’re still podcasting. In fact, games are so busy right now that we’re having to push discussions back because there’s just so much going on. If you’re looking for us to dig into Dishonored 2, that’ll have to wait until Monday (sorry!), but on this week’s podcast, editor-in-chief Austin Walker, myself, and Managing Editor Danielle Riendeau​ discuss how we became active participants in the Frog Fractions 2 ARG (we think, anyway), using Pokémon​ Sun and Moon to relax, and, of course, something brand-new from The Question Bucket.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

With gaming’s fall season in full swing, the Waypoint crew has more than enough to play (and talk about). And though Waypoint’s tastes usually skew towards smaller, more personal games, we’re pleasantly surprised by how interesting some of gaming’s biggest releases are. In addition to myself, Waypoint Editor-in-Chief Austin Walker and managing editor Danielle Riendeau huddled around the warm of a microphone to discuss Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, Watch Dogs 2, a tiny bit of Dishonored 2, and the politically-aware platformer Even the Ocean.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Though the election of Donald Trump doesn’t have an immediate effect on what we’re doing here at Waypoint, it got us thinking about our mission statement. Editor-in-chief Austin Walker, myself, and managing editor Danielle Riendeau hopped in the podcast bunker to discuss this and more.  ​In addition to Trump, we talk about Dishonored 2, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, and Nintendo's recently released NES Classic. Oh, right! We also have a podcast name: Waypoint Radio. It took us a while to settle on a name, but after several weeks of podcasting, we’re finally there. You don’t have to worry about the podcast feed changing with the new name—it’ll download in the same place it always has.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hey everyone. Editor-in-chief Austin Walker, here. Just wanted to share with you an editorial I wrote in the wake of last night's US general election. This isn't a full episode, but I'd appreciate a listen, regardless. Looking forward to talking to y'all as part of our normal schedule on Friday.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

​Take a deep breath, everyone. One way or another, this election is almost over, which is why myself, Waypoint EIC Austin Walker, and Managing Editor Danielle Riendeau​ spent the opening minutes of this week’s Monday podcast breathlessly talking about this…   https://twitter.com/MrLukeJohnston/status/795609403789635584   ...before we avoided talking about any of the “real” announcements at this weekend’s BlizzCon—a Diablo remake coming to Diablo 3, the formal announcement of hacker character Sombra for Overwatch—and mulled what Blizzard’s decision to embrace regional eSports teams, ala the NFL or NBA, for Overwatch means. (You can read more details over here.)  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The podcast has been silent for the past week, thanks to the launch of Waypoint, but we're back! We're resuming our twice weekly episodes starting today, and that means I'm joined by both EIC Austin Walker and managing editor Danielle Riendeau to kickstart your weekend. On today's episode, Austin and Patrick embrace Titanfall 2's campaign with a warm hug and lament how many people probably won't play it, while Danielle eulogizes the Wii U. (It had been reported the Wii U was ending production soon, but that might not be the case yet.) We also dive into Bethesda's recent decision to limit early access to games for the press, and, of course, put our hands into The Question Bucket.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In less than a week, Waypoint will be kicking off a ridiculous 72-hour livestream to celebrate the launch of our new website. Before we get there, though, it’s time for a podcast, this time with the added bonus of managing editor (and talented writer) Danielle Riendeau. On today’s podcast, Danielle explains why she’s fallen hard for Mafia III, Austin dives deep into board gaming’s past, and I celebrated being able to beat a boss in Dark Souls 3. Go me! We also ventured into The Question Bucket to mull gaming’s relationship with the writing process.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

VICE Gaming became Waypoint in a week of huge gaming news, with Rockstar dropping the first trailer for their long-anticipated Red Dead Redemption sequel, Nintendo providing details on their next piece of hardware, and voice actors officially going on strike. What a week!   To break it all down, we invited other members of the Waypoint crew into the podcast bunker, including publisher Joel Fowler and social editor Danika Harrod. Besides the news, we  explain why it’s so hard to build a website. Fonts? Logos? Bad ideas for names? Bazinga?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It’s not often that video game news breaks over the weekend, but with Rockstar teasing a new Red Dead Redemption game and reports some of the most high-profile voice actors in games may be going on strike in the future, there’s plenty to discuss in VICE Gaming’s New Podcast.   Over the course of an hour, Austin and I go over the missed storytelling opportunities in Gears of War 4, wonder what tempted Austin into playing The Elder Scrolls Online for several hours this weekend, and answer a listener question about the constant delays for big-budget games.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

With the VICE Gaming team hurriedly working behind-the-scenes on a bunch of secret stuff, stuff you’ll learn about soon, we still found time to record another Friday podcast. And in a surprise twist, someone found a table Austin Walker to record on this week. When you’ve got a nice table to put your laptop and microphone on, you know it’s gonna be a good podcast. This week, Austin and Patrick consider what Gears of War 4 might suggest about the future of Xbox hardware, use Mafia III to consider how open worlds can help (and hurt) storytelling, wonder why Oculus has put Palmer Luckey into hiding, and turn to The Question Bucket to discuss whether gaming fans (and media) spend too much time on topics like representation.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It's Monday, which means that VICE Gaming's Patrick Klepek and Austin Walker are back in the bunker and ready to talk about video games. While Austin dives headfirst into the (unfortunately shaky) virtual worlds of PlayStation VR, Patrick finds himself trapped in the violent void of Thumper, where driving rhythm and cosmic horror collide. Their only means of escape is a reader question: How should developers tackle race and identity in games?  Games discussed: Batman Arkham VR, Job Simulator, Wayward Sky, Thumper, Mafia III, Watch Dogs    See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

From Deus Ex to Dishonored, Harvey Smith has worked on some deeply influential video games. As he jets across the world to promote Dishonored 2’s release on November 11, Smith stopped by VICE Gaming’s New Podcast to chat with us. With October in full swing, we kick things off by discussing how horror has influenced his approach to game design, before drilling down into the process of making a sequel. Smith hasn’t worked on back-to-back sequels since Deus Ex: Invisible War, a game that wasn’t exactly well-received back in 2003. Fortunately, Dishonored 2’s looking really promising.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Another Monday, another podcast. Austin Walker hunkered into the bunker for an hour of conversation about the perils of tweeting at brands, my decision to cancel a PlayStation VR pre-order, and if Twitch is the MySpace or Facebook of streaming. We also reached out into the The Question Bucket, which had us thinking about why people give you weird looks for using handhelds in public, and if VR could cause another "violent game" scare with the public. You can listen to the new podcast through the embedded player below: Alternatively, you can also subscribe on iTunes, Google Play, and

We promised another episode of VICE Gaming’s still-untitled new gaming podcast, and here it is! As the weekend approaches, we spent an hour discussing Austin Walker’s interview with the senior writer on Mafia III about race, reports that No Man’s Sky has been reported to a European advertising authority for misleading marketing, and introduce The Question Bucket. Interaction with you is a big part of this new podcast, so make sure to send any questions you have for us to gaming@vice.com with the header “Questions.” (Without the quotes!) We can’t guarantee we’ll answer all of your questions, but rest assured, we’ll be taking a look at them. See you on Monday!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Welcome to the newest podcast by VICE Gaming, co-hosted by Austin Walker and Patrick Klepek! The plan is to record on Monday and Friday mornings, so we can track and discuss the full week of gaming, without worry that we’re going to miss a major story. We’d love to stream each episode, allowing people to tune in and submit questions, but we’re still working out the tech to make that happen. Stay tuned! Podcast gods willing, that could happen this Friday. What we don’t have is reader questions, but you can solve that right now. Each episode, we’ll choose one excellent, insightful question to be the focus of an episode-ending segment. You can submit potential topics to gaming@vice.com with the email header “Questions.” But wait, doesn’t VICE Gaming already have a podcast? That’s true! Our UK editor, Mike Diver, has been hosting a monthly podcast for a while, but as VICE Gaming grows, so will our library of podcasts....  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.