Sacred Symbols: A PlayStation Podcast

Just when you thought Sony Bend was actually going to release a game this generation, you were wrong. Well, kinda. The studio's eagerly-anticipated third-person open world game Days Gone has been delayed, and we discuss what that means for PlayStation 4's 2019 calendar year. Plus, the saga surrounding Rockstar's phantom 100-hour work weeks continues, and we sound off with some candid and honest thoughts. Also: News about Medievil Remastered on PS4 is imminent, CoD: Black Ops 4's online functionality is leaving people unimpressed, Jade Raymond has officially left Electronic Arts... and one wily listener had the audacity to ask Chris if a Pop-Tart is indeed a ravioli. So let's jump into a heaping helping of Sacred Symbols, where the news are noodles, and your many questions, comments, and concerns make for a savory sauce. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In an interview, Rockstar's co-founder seemed to indicate that the massive team working on Red Dead Redemption 2 is pulling 100-hour work weeks to finish the game. But is that actually true, or have his words been completely misconstrued? Is all well, or is it time to sound the alarms? We discuss. Plus: Sony finally confirms PS5 is coming (duh), PlayStation Network names will be a-changin' starting in early 2019, some naughty bits are being removed from the upcoming Senran Kagura game, and Sony Santa Monica appears to be working on two separate, unannounced titles. You can look forward to all of that -- and much more -- on this week's Sacred Symbols, with plenty of your questions, comments, and concerns peppered in. Y'know. For flavor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A few days ago, cell phone footage of a new, triple-A Harry Potter game (purportedly an open world RPG) was leaked, giving us a glimpse into what the popular franchise could look like on current-gen (and possibly even next-gen) consoles. But this week's news doesn't stop there. All signs are pointing to PSN name changing possibly happening very soon, Skybound Entertainment swooped in to save the Telltale Walking Dead franchise, Killzone's revival is looking mighty likely, The Witcher's author is suing CD Projekt Red, Symphony of the Night's PS4 release may disappoint Castlevania purists, and much, much more. Of course, we sprinkle a couple dozen of your questions, comments, and concerns in there, too. So keep it locked: We've much to discuss. Much to discuss, indeed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The fall rush is just about here, and there's much to discuss. For starters, Mega Man 11 has arrived, and Colin -- The World's Biggest Mega Man Nerd™ -- has some feelings about it. News concerning the recent (and very surprising) Telltale closure has also been flooding out, including word of a class action lawsuit, which we discuss. Plus: Our long PS4 cross-platform play national nightmare is over, new PlayStation Plus games have been revealed, Bungie trademarked a new video game title, and you better damn well buy Dragon Quest XI, or else. You have all of that (plus much more) to look forward to, rounded out, as we do each week, with your questions, comments, and concerns. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The last few days have been dire. Beloved adventure game dev Telltale has been suddenly shuttered, leaving some 250 people unemployed. It's incredibly sad, and we take the time to go through the whats, whys, and hows. Sony also revealed that PlayStation Vita manufacturing will officially conclude in the coming months, indicating that, after dodging death for years, Vita's end is nigh. And Capcom's Canadian studio, Capcom Vancouver, has been shuttered as well. But even with all of the blood, there's good news, too. Insomniac's Spider-Man has broken sales records, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is coming to PS4... oh, and did you hear about the PlayStation Classic? Where do we begin?! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's the calm before the storm, and we're looking to keep ourselves busy in the wake of Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Spider-Man. Colin made the unusual step of starting up Mass Effect Andromeda to pass the time. Did he make such a decision because he hates himself? We discuss. But beyond that, of course, there's news to discuss. Spider-Man is getting New Game+, PS4 firmware 6.0 is in the wild, Assassin's Creed ports are PS4-bound... and we apparently scarred someone by discussing the Human Centipede last week. All of that news (plus much more) is accompanied by your questions, comments, and concerns. Let's enjoy the lull while we can, shall we? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We're conducting an experiment. Instead of jamming Spider-Man into a regular episode of Sacred Symbols, thus inevitably making a three hour-plus show, we decided to spin-out an episode exclusively dedicated to our favorite Web Slinger, and his PS4-exclusive adventure in particular. We structured the entire show around audience questions and comments, and we'd love your feedback on if this format works for you or not. Either way, though, we hope you enjoy an extra episode of Sacred Symbols this week. And rest assured, we'll be back to do another next time a big, meaty experience comes out that we have a ton to say about (especially if it's exclusive to PlayStation). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Shadow of the Tomb Raider's launch is imminent, and we've been playing it, so we decided to dedicate a portion of this week's episode to Eidos Montreal's latest. Our conversation focuses not only on the finer points of the game, though, but on Lara Croft herself. Does her selfishness and callousness make her an unlikable protagonist? We discuss. We also go into the copious news that's emerged over the last seven days. Rocksteady is openly hiring for a next-gen game. THQ Nordic's buying streak continues unabated, this time with the Kingdoms of Amalur IP. Henry Cavill has been cast in the upcoming Netflix Witcher series. And that's just the beginning of a heavy news week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Next year (presumably), we'll finally get our hands on Naughty Dog's highly-anticipated sequel to The Last of Us, the aptly-named The Last of Us: Part II. But one Sacred Symbols listener has a concern: Is it even possible for it to live up to the hype? We discuss. We also delve deep into news from the past week. Spider-Man's DLC has already been announced, PS2's Onimusha is finally coming to PS4, Battlefield V has been delayed, Anthem is getting a demo... and did you know Sekiro was originally going to be a Tenchu game? We talk about all of that, plus much more, with plenty of your questions peppered into the mix. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Gamescom came and went with a whimper this year, but thankfully, we don't need to rely on the show for news to discuss. After all, CD Projekt finally publicly released its Cyberpunk 2077 demo, giving us much to discuss. But our show doesn't nearly stop there. Supermassive Games announced an Until Dawn-like anthology of horror games, NPD numbers for last month illustrate how PS4 games are selling in the US, Assassin's Creed is taking another much-needed break, and Shenmue III finally has a release date. We chat about all of that, plus much more, wrapped up with plenty of your questions, and information about our coverage plans for Insomniac's Spider-Man, which is just around the corner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sony recently announced updated sales figures for PlayStation VR -- 3 million and counting -- which raises an interesting question: Is that actually good? After all, only one in 27 PS4s sold have a PSVR unit hooked up to it. We discuss what that means. Meanwhile, there's news galore to cover, including DICE's long-abandoned Genesis game coming to PS4 and Vita, Until Dawn developer Supermassive's all-new IP trademark, the cancellation of Bloodstained on Vita, Bethesda's aggressive attitude towards Sony, and much more. Colin also gives a preview of Dragon Quest XI, the boys discuss the newly-released Metroidvania Guacamelee! 2, and we round things out, as always, with your questions. Oh, and there's a debate about the pronunciation of "GIF" as well. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In just the last few days, we were treated with the first gameplay footage ever for both Red Dead Redemption 2 and Doom Eternal. So naturally, we take the time to discuss what we thought of both demonstrations. Meanwhile, Chris is worried that Insomniac's Spider-man is being shown way too much, and so we dive deeper into his concerns. IGN's plagiarism scandal also keeps us busy, with a nearly half hour conversation about that alone. News ranging from a new PS4 Pro and God of War's New Game+ to Bethesda's newest in-house studio and Child of Light II rumors keep us busy otherwise, rounded out -- as always -- by your questions. Oh, and we sacrifice a baby during the show, too, in the name of the Dark Arts. Sorry about that. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

At 82+ million sold, PlayStation 4 is still lighting the gaming world on fire, and will sell in fewer than five years what PlayStation 3 sold in nine. Indeed, it's all but assured -- barring a mega meltdown at Sony, or within the gaming industry itself -- that PS4 will sell 100 million units, a number only three other home gaming consoles (two of them PlayStation-branded) ever reached. So naturally, we discuss what that means. We also take the time to chat about the Metroidvanias that are currently occupying all our gaming time, the newest NPD sales numbers, BioWare's strange insistence that it's still working on Mass Effect and Dragon Age, a possible (but unlikely) comeback for Resistance, FIFA 19's all-new survival mode, and much, much more, rounded out per usual with your questions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Developers are getting less and less stingy with their games' Trophies, almost to a comical -- and dare we say destructive -- degree. So this week, we discuss the Trophy ecosystem in-depth, and reflect on how Sony can better protect and nurture the ecosystem. But of course, we also get nitty-gritty with the games themselves. Chasm is out, and Chris has played it extensively, so we chat about the newest entrant to the Metroidvania genre. Old video game website The Escapist is returning, but is its apolitical slant too little, too late? Plus, Spider-man and Shadow of the Tomb Raider have gone gold, Quantic Dream lost an important court case, Capcom is making tons of money, and much much more. Get ready for a jam-packed episode, rounded out as always with your questions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sony-owned studio Guerrilla Games, the minds behind Killzone and Horizon: Zero Dawn, recently announced that it's expanding its roster from 250 employees to 400. This is huge news, indicating that Guerrilla is going to start releasing games at a far greater clip. So naturally, we discuss. Of course, there's other pertinent news to chat about, too, including expectations that the battle royale genre is set to gross $20 billion next year, Fallout 76's newly announced beta, Spider-man's exclusive PS4 Pro console, the fate of Telltale's The Walking Dead, tons of Bethesda-related chatter, an update on the upcoming Sly Cooper cartoon, and much, much more. All capped off, as always, with your questions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices