Player One Podcast

I’m used to having a Thanksgiving with tons of time to play games, but when you have a wife and daughter, game time during the holidays gets cut drastically.

Thank goodness I chose to pick up a PSP GO… I was able to finish Assassin’s Creed Bloodlines, and I started Disgaea, which I had never played before.

We also pulled out the Wii, and played a bit of Wii Sports (not Wii Sports Resort, I never wound up playing that more than a couple of times, then traded it in). Still fun, and demonstrates that (Super Mario Bros Wii aside), our family treats the Wii more like a board game… something to pull out at Thanksgiving, and then put back in its box when you’re done.

And finally, I have been playing Assassin’s Creed II with the small windows of single player time I’ve gotten. It’s so, so much better than the first. Very exciting, very hard to put down.

And so… on to the subject of my post! Monster Hunter. With Ad Hoc party finally out in the US, I’ve decided to download that, and I’m hoping that there are POP community members interested in playing. If you are, please leave a note, and let’s play! I remember going to Japan a few years back and being amazed by how many people were playing… I always wanted to try it.

ethaneinhorn Uncategorized

We’ve been doing this podcast for nearly (just about, almost, approaching) three years now, and each episode has opened with the same thing. A public domain piece of music that’s one of the default tunes in Apple’s Garageband and can often be found used elsewhere, like sports promos on XM Radio or a dance club in the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother (Season 1, in case you’re curious). And though we like the theme song just fine, we picked it because it was the only one that 1UP wasn’t using in any of their podcasts.

So after three years it’s obvious this podcast thing isn’t a fluke and we’d like to, well, freshen things up a bit. That’s where you come into play. Make us a new theme song. Please? We’ll be your best friend and we’ll also give you a prize. Doesn’t have to be anything too crazy, but we need a new way to open the show.

The current tune is 35 seconds long, and we break into it at about the 15-second mark with our intro/banter.

The winner, chosen upon the whims of the hosts of the show, will receive a prize. Right now, we figure that is TWO games of your choice, each with an MSRP of below $70. Plus, fame and possible fortune as we mention how awesome you are on the show. We go out to about 4500 listeners a week so multi-thousands will know how much you rock. If you have a website or something you’d like to promote we could also make sure that gets airtime too.

Any genre. Chiptune, jazz band, human beatbox, accordian, flugelhorn, deathmetal…really anything you can think of.

You can post your submission in our forums. We’ve made a topic just for that purpose. Thank you and good luck! The NEW deadline for entries is Friday, October 30. Get cracking!

Chris Johnston Uncategorized contest, podcast, theme song

So I ended up not doing any blogging like I thought I might at Day 1 of Penny Arcade Expo ‘09. But I did Tweet. ‘Cuz I could do it from my iPhone. And it was pretty easy. In case you don’t follow me on Twitter or abhor social networking of any kind (like Phil), I present to you a blog post of all my tweetings from yesterday.

Gots my media badge, heading over to PAX. See y’all there.

Wandering around PAX. Wearing Noby Noby Boy t-shirt and Adult Swim hoodie. Say hi if ya see me.

Just bought 2 Harmonix t-shirts. Effing awesome.

Just played Halo ODST firefight mode. http://twitpic.com/gfzk6

In line to pick up a Guild Wars 2 art book for my brother.

My most anticipated game of the year, seriously. Harmonix’s booth is awesome too. #PAX http://twitpic.com/ggbpi

Played Ratchet at Sony booth. Game is awesome and kinda cel shaded. Classic Ratchet, hover boots are awesome.

In line for gaming journalism panel. #PAX

Once again this games journalism panel is preachy and pretentious. At least so far.

@exxy keepin’ it real about the games journalism.

@kobunheat re: need for vets – since game journalism doesn’t pay well, need for stability later sometimes could push ppl out.

@kobunheat also, vets are more expensive for outlets to keep on. It’s not necessarily that they don’t love journalism or want to stay.

Turtle power! http://twitpic.com/ggnd9

Time to find some PAX grub, methinks.

Mario and princess peach rocking “Kung Fu Fighting” on LEGO Rock Band. http://twitpic.com/gheu7

“This is like my Woodstock.” #overheardatpax

Split second is really frigging excellent. Can’t wait for Spring 2010 when it’s out. http://twitpic.com/ghmhq

3G is miserable here. iPhone gets no bars most of the time. Switching to EDGE!

Played the RB Beatles Gretsch guitar. Very nice guitar but I like the bulk/heft of the GHWT guitar better.

So that means exactly what you think it means…not gonna get any Beatles RB instruments.

Do print journalists not come to PAX? Good amt. of online folk but doesn’t seem like the last few print pubs have anyone here.

@Grecco sure did. It’s exactly like Rock Band. But the notes on the highway are little LEGO bricks. I’ll buy it.

Gonna check me out some White Knight Chronicles next.

Know what game doesn’t appear to demo too well? White Knight Chronicles. Watching someone else play. Not exciting.

Confirmed. White Knight Chronicles is a bore. Had to skip a half-dozen cutscenes to get to anything, and that was after 5 min of ‘em.

Played Motorstorm PSP, enjoyed it. Tried GT5 PSP and yep, it’s GT. That series just is not for me. Im an arcade racing kinda guy.

Heavy Rain is a game that sure says “fuck” a lot.

Coming in 2011, Halo 3 Damacy. http://twitpic.com/gi3d1

@Grecco activison ain’t here outside of blizzard stuff. shame, as I was looking forward to trying DJ Hero.

—

And that is it! Time for me to go get some coffee and then head back over to PAX.

Check out my tweets from Days 2 and 3 here.

Chris Johnston Uncategorized PAX, penny arcade expo, tweets, twitter

Welp we have a little bit of a delay for Episode 146. It’ll be out late Monday evening instead of the usual Sunday night/Monday morning thing.

Chris Johnston Uncategorized

I work in the same office as one-time PSM editor Stephen Frost. He’s about as hardcore a Sony fan as I’ve ever met – but to his credit, he never talks down the other systems. He simply makes it clear that his favorite systems have always had the word “PlayStation” in their name.

We stood in line together outside of the (now closed) Sony PlayStation store at the Metreon in San Francisco to buy our PS3s. The wait was more than 48 hours…. that’s right, two nights sleeping outside like a bum, just to get our hands on the new machine. I bought it with Resistance, and after all the hype and waiting, found myself underwhelmed. The graphics of Resistance paled in comparison to Gears of War, there was no in game XMB, and all of my friends were on Xbox 360. Adding insult to injury, third party games tended to run more smoothly on Microsoft’s box.

Which meant… since launch, if I’ve had a choice, I have always purchased the 360 version. But now, things are changing.

First off, Sony has almost entirely fixed my issues with how their online service works. I can now access the dashboard at any time, and it’s easier to jump into my friends’ games.

Second, the first party games are really connecting for me. I was really impressed with Killzone 2 (still pushing through it), and I LOVE Infamous… that’s the type of game that I’m thinking of when I’m not playing it. And to top it off, I thought the most exciting game of the E3 show – by far – was Uncharted 2. I can’t wait.

Finally, the third-party games are really starting to show some juice. I just pre-ordered Ghostbusters and Batman Arkham Asylum on PS3 (gotta play as the Joker).

Finally, the PSN store rules. FFVII on PS3 and PSP? Awesome. Truly innovative games like Flower and Fat Princess? Kick Ass.

I still have an affection for Xbox 360, but I’m really starting to like living in PlayStation land.

ethaneinhorn Uncategorized

This week! We talk about Tomcat Alley, full-motion video games, Patapon 2, digital downloads, Stewy’s 360 repair problems, Grand Theft Auto Chinatown Wars sales, and what one game CJ will finish this year. Plus Outrun Online Arcade, Galaga Legions, Killzone 2, Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure and Noby Noby Boy.

Plus, in the NEXT episode we’re doing Ys Book I & II for our Game Club. You can find all the information here.

Thanks for listening! Don’t forget to visit our new web site at www.playeronepodcast.com. You can leave us a voicemail by calling 713-893-8069 or you can send a comment via MP3 to our email address, playeronepodcast@gmail.com. Don’t forget to join our forums if you haven’t already!

Running time: 1:15:27

This week’s links:
CJ’s Twitter
Giuseppe Contelli What-Ifs on Twitter
Kotaku: 6-year-old buys porn-infested PSP from Wal-Mart

Direct download: 04_20_09-Episode130.mp3

Chris Johnston Episodes, Uncategorized episode, podcast

It’s a live episode straight from San Francisco with regulars CJ, Phil and Greg Ford plus Shane Bettenhausen and another mystery guest who pops in halfway through. This week we chat about GDC, Nintendo and what we’ve been playing, which includes Punch-Out, Excitebots, Batman Arkham Asylum, Terminator Salvation, Henry Hatsworth, Noby Noby Boy and much more. You’ll just have to listen and find out.

Plus, in an upcoming episode we’re doing Ys Book I & II for our Game Club. You can find all the information here.

Thanks for listening! Don’t forget to visit our new web site at www.playeronepodcast.com. You can leave us a voicemail by calling 713-893-8069 or you can send a comment via MP3 to our email address, playeronepodcast@gmail.com. Don’t forget to join our forums if you haven’t already!

Running time: 1:37:18
Direct download: 03_30_09-Episode127a.mp3

This week’s links:

FF to 2:45 for the bitch slapping

Ghostbusters/Pac-Man shirt

Once Upon Atari

Chris Johnston Episodes, Uncategorized episode, podcast

UPDATE: Been over a week now. My repair request is still in line to be processed.

Greg Sewart Uncategorized rrod, xbox

Quick update here on a Sunday night. There’ll be a slight delay on episode 125. I’ll be uploading it tomorrow night instead. Sorry, was traveling this weekend and haven’t had a chance to edit this week’s show.

Chris Johnston Uncategorized delay, episode

Greg Ford and I went to see “Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li” on Friday.

The good news: it isn’t boring. That was my greatest fear walking in – that this would be sullen and dull, in the same way that DOOM was (same director, by the way). No, this one keeps your interest throughout. The martial arts sequences aren’t mind-blowing, but they do the job, and Kristen Kruek is credible as Chun-Li… she can play tough, and I think she rivals Jessica Alba as the hottest actress working today. 

But the real jewel is Chris Klein, playing Guile’s buddy Charlie Nash (first game appearance: Street Fighter Alpha). He delivers an outrageous performance, easily out-hamming John Turturro in “Transformers”. Every line of his is cringe inducing, and the film is actually better for it – he turns the film into a legitimate guilty pleasure. The best part is that you really don’t know if Chris Klein is deliberately chewing up the scenery, or if he really thinks he’s passing as a grizzled street cop. 

In the pantheon of video game movies, I’d say it sits above anything Uwe Boll, Double Dragon, and Super Mario Bros, and below the original Street Fighter: The Movie, Mortal Kombat, and Tomb Raider. So take that as you will. As a fan of the games looking for some disposable entertainment, I was suitably amused. And yes, Chun-Li performs her signature Spinning Bird Kick.

ethaneinhorn Uncategorized