1UP.com - Games, Dammit!

With two major releases it's another one of those weeks where there's almost too much to talk about. Seth Killian from Capcom Unity joins us to talk about his transition from college professor to God of all things Street Fighter. Sam and David talk about the success and failures of Modern Warefare 2 (Spoilers from 1:17-1:29), and Jeremy puts Nintendo¹s game design for everyone thesis to the test with New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Also news about the release of Microsoft's Natal, a new Hero game from Activision, and prepare your slingshot once again as Rockstar's Bully might be returning.

The Black Dragon Returns. No, we're not talking about the new RPG from Bioware; former 1UP editor Jeff Green is in-studio to talk about his life as a developer and his new gig as editor-in-chief of EA.com. Scooter and Jeremy also join in to talk about Assassin's Creed II, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Mass Effect 2, and much more.

Starting a podcast is hard. A mere two weeks after bidding a bon voyage to our former leader we're relaunching with new segments, new voices, and a very special guest. Doublefine head honcho and Brutal Legend creator Tim Schafer joins us in studio on our maiden episode where we go off topic early and often, but manage to talk about Borderlands, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Assassin's Creed 2, and many others. Away we go!

With John and Garnett embarking on new and separate adventures we gather one last time as a group and reminisce of our favorite episodes and even sneak in some talk about new games

We're back to wrap up TGS 2009. 8-4 again generously offered us their offices to record and JJ, Mark, and John join in for the show as well. Sam, Shane, and Garnett complete the group that sits down to get everything they've seen out on the table. And while we had the impression the show had been really down, when we put together the list there were plenty of games to talk about including Final Fantasy XIII, Yakuza 4, Gran Turismo 5, PixelJunk Shooter, Zero Day Attack on Earth, Quantum Theory, Dead Rising 2 multiplayer, and more.

With TGS set to open in the morning Jeremy, Matt, David, Sam, and Garnett sit down to discuss what they're most excited to see at the show. Is it Yakuza 4? the Metal Gear Peacewalker demo maybe? or will something unexpected be on their minds? There's also a quick look back at couple of distractions from earlier in the week including the Videogames Live concert and a trip to the arcade.

We start our Tokyo Game Show coverage by catching up on the hottest games in Japan and a general look at the videogame scene here with Justin Epperson, John Ricciardi, and Mark MacDonald of 8-4. Sam Kennedy and David Ellis also join Garnett at the table as the group gets up to speed on Monster Hunter, Dragon Quest, and more. The second half of the show then gets into some of the trends here including the popularity of handheld gaming and a breakdown of the current situation for Wii, PS3, and Xbox 360.

With Sam already in Japan, Jeremy joins David, John, and Garnett for the week before TGS show. In the first segment Whatcha Been Playin covers Halo 3 ODST, Modern Warfare 2 Multiplayer, Mario and Luigi, DJ Hero, Gran Turismo PSP, and more. Holiday hardware moves from a rumored Wii price cut to the rapid momentum gained by the PS3 start off the second segment before giving way to whether Nathan Drake really needs to Twitter, and John's checklist for TGS.

The band gets back together at PAX 2009 as Andrew, Shane, David, John, and Garnett take the stage. The show opens with their recap of some of their favorites on the show floor and then they open the floor to audience questions. (Note the audio quality is less than ideal due to the live recording and it improves approximately 10 minutes into the show.)

With David catching the PAX flu and Sam away in NYC John and Garnett tackle a massive show with the aid of Gamasutra's Christian Nutt. In a wide ranging Whatcha Been Playin they get into Osmos, Torchlight, Need for Speed Shift, Motorstorm Arctic Edge, Soul Calibur Broken Destiny, Batman Arkham Asylum, and more. The second segment keeps up the pace beginning with a recap of the August NPD sales stats hot off the presses and afterward including Apple calling out the DS and PSP for a handheld console war, the announcement of a new 2D Sonic headed our way in 2010, and Left 4 Dead 2 Boycotters changing their minds after a trip to Valve.

Sam, David, and Garnett return from their journeys but John's a late scratch from the lineup. The trio finds their hands full with Star Trek Online, NFS Shift vs. Forza 3 vs. Gran Turismo 5, Dead Nation, Resident Evil Darkside Chronicles, Eye Pet, Osmos, and more just in Whatcha' Been Playin? alone. And then after the break they tackle the price drops (and in the UK an increase) on console hardware, whether 40 dollars could be the magic price for expanding the games market, Kojima's plans for Peace Walker, and more.

Sam and Garnett wrap-up a week's worth of the awesome games and announcements at Gamescom 2009 in Cologne, Germany. It's cornucopia of the best upcoming games including Heavy Rain, Final Fantasy 13, Diablo 3, DJ Hero, Assassins Creed 2, Castlevania, ModNation Racers, and much more.

The infamous fourth chair gets a week off as Sam, John, and Garnett do the show as a trio. They've got their hands full with a Whatcha Been Playin? segment that includes Madden 10 both for 360/PS3 and Wii, Fat Princess, TMNT Turtles in Time Re-Shelled, Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, and more. There's no letup after the break with July NPD sales figures kicking off a discussion that covers Sega's renewed commitment to mature games on the Wii, impressions of the XBL update, and a quick look at the buzz from the first day of QuakeCon.

We pull the old double switch with Gamasutra features director Christian Nutt and our own Alice Liang joining David and Garnett. In the opening segment Little King's Story gets Whatcha' Been Playin? started before a look back at Lost Odyssey and Mass Effect gives a little preview of the upcoming RPG discussion and DiRT 2 shifts gears entirely to wrap it all up. After the break Christian helps revisit the topic of revitalizing Japanese RPGs and then the talk turns to Fat Princess's launch struggles, Starcraft 2's delay, and a potential PlayStation customer loyalty program.

The quiet summer erupts as Sam, David, John, and Garnett find themselves in a first segment Whatcha Been Playin? packed with Scribblenauts, Borderlands, PixelJunk Shooter, Shadow Complex, Shatter, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, and still there's more. After the break the second half of the show begins with a look at what it takes to establish and sustain a franchise before getting into what's upcoming in the Halo world, Sega's struggles with Sonic and mishandling of Yakuza in America, and more.