1UP.com - 1UP Radio

Oddcast is 50 years -- er, episodes old! In our old age, we've grown senile, and can't remember what was said, revealed, or otherwise shouted across the airwaves this week. For all we know, we've murdered Chris, and he'll never be heard from again, except as a ghost, like in that one movie. Well, we're at least pretty sure this episode also includes Dog Football.

It's the return of the traditional Games, Dammit! crew! Since Frank Cifaldi rejoins Scooter, Matt, and Jeremy in the studio and we all talk about Fallout: New Vegas' Dead Money DLC, Swarm, our musings about CES and Nintendo World, and the PSP2 (along with its "feel-y nipples"). Questions-wise, we tackle topics such as handholding in games, horseriding in Red Dead Redemption versus sailing in Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, a special boardgame from Brenda Braithwaite, M-rated sports games, and way too many voicemails about Elevator Action. Frank gives a special shoutout to the excellent video series Chrontendo, and we even conduct a live conversation with special guest/Oddcast contributor BallsRog. Enjoy!

Live in Tokyo, do you? And you attended Nintendo's recent 3DS event? ...So you know everything there is to know about the upcoming glasses-free 3D handheld? Fine then, don't listen to this podcast. The rest of us will tune in to hear the 8-4 crew's full report on Nintendo World 2011, including first-hand impressions of playable games like Kid Icarus, Pilotwings, Resident Evil, etc. and thoughts on the launch lineup, bundled software, battery life, stage shows, ceiling Miyamoto, glory holes -- even the friggin' Virtual Boy fer cryin' out loud.

Dabbling in a brief bout of necromancy, Jeremy Parish grabs Frank Cifaldi, Scott Sharkey, and Chris Kohler to do a year-end roundup for 1971, '76, '81, '86 (and so forth) before letting the show return once again to the grave.

Scooter and Justin join Kat for a 2011 RPG Preview in the first Active Time Babble of the New Year, where they discuss Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, The Old Republic the general lack of Square Enix RPGs and Pokemon musks. Also, Kat bravely goes solo and takes questions while discussing Kingdom Hearts Recoded and the newly-announced Super Robot Taisen Z2. Will she be successful, or did she disastrously split the party? You be the judge!

What happens when one podcaster goes to CES, you have a new office with a podcast studio that lacks headphones, and you bring in guests from Double Fine? You get this Work-In-Progress-Sounding version of "Games, Dammit!" for the first week of 2011! Subbing in for Frank Cifaldi, we invited Tim Schafer (studio founder) and Lee Petty (project director) from Double Fine to sit and jabber with us. As a result, we have about an hour-and-a-half's hour of talk about games like Minotaur Rescue, Enslaved, Limbo, Dead Space 2, Heavy Rain, and, of course, Double Fine's Stacking. We also have Tim and Lee tackle questions about writing, the funniest thing that's happened to them, and CES memories. Unfortunately, as we recorded this without headphones (still setting up our new office space), we didn't know how our podcast actually sounded until post-production. So unfortunately, while you can get the essence of jokes about Weekend At Bernie's and how it relates to games, the definition of a "scotch nipple," or Lee's office antics at previous studios he's worked at, the reality is that sometimes, we all fade in and out of the podcast depending on how close we're leaning towards the microphone while talking. Oops. Our sincerest apologies for our un-optimal setup this week, enjoy what you can, and we'll have the podcast studio finalized and kinks ironed out for next week.

After an extended holiday break filled with snow, sake, and SASUKE! (look it up), the 8-4some is back and they got some 'splainin' to do! (:LAUGHTER:) Good thing former EGM and Turn 10 hipster Che "China Warrior" Chou joins in to talk iPhone game shame, his personal wall of give a s*** -- basically ANYTHING but his current workplace (Microsoft's 343 Industries) and their shadowy Halo project. Come for the New Year's cards, stay to hear what a former Forza guy thinks of Gran Turismo 5 (oh no he de-ent!). (:LAUGHTER:)

It's the final show of the year, and sugar-addled adventurers Kat, Scooter, Travis and Jeremy sit down to talk about the best RPGs of the year. Nier, Infinite Space, Resonance of Fate, Costume Quest and more all get their due as ATB closes the book on a blockbuster-filled (but perhaps flawed) 2010.

Ready for the new year? We're putting 2010 behind us the only way we know how: Odd Awards! Listen to us talk about such categories as, "He gave it to his Mama," or "PMPNP" (Predict Michael Patcher's Next Prediction).

It's a Games, Dammit! holiday miracle! We start out thinking that because we're recording early in a short week before heading out for the holidays, that we'd have a short show, but nope, we still fill your ears with nonsense for nearly two hours. Games-wise, we talk about Stacking and Back to the Future -- in addition to each cast member detailing his personal Game of the Year (and the one 2011 he's looking forward to). You also learn that Scooter has a frankly irrational association with the number 12. Besides that, we tackle listener questions about elevator action pitches, time travel paradoxes, whether a game can address a heady issue like the Holocaust, and what is worth a dollar nowadays. And just like your uncle who keeps on ranting long after he's no longer relevant to your conversation, we close out the year by reminiscing about our Ziff-Davis days for way too long. Happy holidays,and we'll be back in 2011!

Happy holidays from the 1UP Oddcast crew! Special remix by @tole_cover.

Nearly two hours of lovable nonsense this week! Games-wise, we chat a bit about Killzone 3, Intellivision Lives, and Jeremy's disappointment with Super Mario All-Stars 25th Anniversary Limited Edition. Plus, we learn all about the Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer game via Amazon reviews (and Frank also attempts to buy Rudolph on-air), and Jeremy and Frank discuss the merits of the original TRON movie. After a very magical appearance from a "special guest," we get into listener queries about seasonal games, gaming guilty pleasures, elevator action, the state of survival horror games, Europeans and embargoes, and how Jeremy can play Vagrant Story on his PSP. All this, and a special offer from one Jeremy Parish to one lucky listener.

The latest World of WarCraft expansion has arrived; and Kat, Mike, Travis and Justin form a raiding party to plumb its depths. Scooter also drops by to chat about the newly-announced Elders Scroll V and Mass Effect 3, as well as his expectations for the upcoming PS3 port of Mass Effect 2. Listening to this episode is worth at least 50 DKP.

On this week's Oddcast, we can't wait for Bad Company 2 Vietnam, share moments about our NYC trip, Tony Hawk is a dying breed, Alice has a new instrument, Sam likes Kratos and Chris explains why his girlfriend has no idea about our show. Also, we take call-in questions and emails.

Let's make this perfectly clear: Like Kinect, sauerkraut, and inverted controls, this special holiday episode of 8-4 Play is not for everyone. How can you know? Take our simple quiz: 1. Do you enjoy Monster Hunter? 2. Are you curious about Monster Hunter? 3. Would you like to hear almost two hours of talk about one of Japan's biggest gaming franchises in the last decade? If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, enjoy. If not, please listen to an older episode again and let's just forget this ever happened.