The Staying In Podcast - four pals talk video games, board games, movies, and nonsense

More Steam Deck chat starts off the show, then it’s off on a photography expedition with Alba: A Wildlife Adventure from ustwo games, plus a trip to the cinema to see Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One. Back at home it’s board game time with Crack List from Pierre Faucon and Hachette, and Sweet & Spicy from HeidelBÄR Games.

We start off by ranking the Mission: Impossible films (you will be upset by some of the placings), then get straight into a breakdown of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Then it’s on to Jury Duty - the show, not the obligation - and finally Alderac Entertainment’s push your luck game Cubitos.

Sipping tea with Honey Badger, getting an Inkling about Osprey Games, having a Block Party with Big Potato, subscribing to LEGO, doubling up on Dorfromantik, and having a swinging time with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Plus, grabby geese.

We kick things off with power washing fantasies and foraging, then try and find hidden wizards with Wandering Towers from Capstone Games, and bury some dice with Spots from CMYK. After that we get gambling with High Society from Osprey Games, and get an introduction to roleplaying with Critical Foundation from Hachette. Plus, Finger smoking.

Fading fast? Pop on the latest episode for some high energy geek culture chat; it’s better than coffee!!! (?) We talk The Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-Earth from Fantasy Flight Games, Bamboo from Devir, Hungry Monkey from HeidelBÄR Games, Ghost of Tsushima from Sucker Punch, Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and Extraordinary by Emma Moran. Plus, a hog.

Fellow humans, we welcome you to the Staying In Podcast. In this episode we have a good time discussing Lok, a game by Blaž Urban Gracar; BEEF, a series by A24; Mr Inbetween, a series by FX; and PowerWash Simulator, a game by FuturLab. Plus, a pleasant discussion about a useful new tool called ChatGPT.

Keeping it Zen-like with a Rolife Book Nook Shelf Insert, staying focused in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, nodding along gently to Hi-Fi RUSH, relaxing with Thorolf with Catan: The Helpers, and running around terrified fighting for our lives against the gibbering zombie horde with Resident Evil 3: The Board Game. Plus, McDonald’s milkshake?

Movies and television? Yes. Video games? Yes. Board games? Yes. This episode of the podcast has it all. Movie and TV reviews include Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (it’s very very good) and The Last of Us (it is also very very good), tabletop-wise we dig into the excellent Kingdomino Origins from Coiledspring Games, and head out to explore Pikmin Bloom from Niantic. Plus, cordial.

Airecon was absolutely amazing, and we have many gifts we’ve brought back for you, including Nidhoggr Mead, uh, mead, and Honey Badger Games tea, accessible character sheets and Roll Table for 2 from Fights and Fancy, and the short, strategic, simple, and sneaky Ominoes from YAY Games. But that’s not it, oh no! There’s also jumping aboard the space bus and tearing through the universe in Wormholes from AEG, and deducing the machinations of a mastermind in Tragedy Looper: New Tragedies from WizKids Games, as well as the perfect little pub game - Kluster from Borderline Editions (via Games Crusade). Plus, miracles.

Over on Netflix, Wednesday is straight out of the mind of Tim Burton and some of the team behind Smallville and it’s great, Gavin Inglis and Glen Rahman’s Alone Against the Frost from Chaosium is well-written, super challenging solo roleplaying for Call of Cthulhu, Resident Evil 2: The Board Game from Steamforged Games is an ace adaptation of a classic video game onto the tabletop, and Paperback Adventures from Fowers Games is moreish wordy fun.

Ghibli-esque slice of life Shin chan: Me and the Professor on Summer Vacation The Endless Seven-Day Journey is Millennium Kitchen’s nostalgic return to Boku no Natsuyasumi, and Mada is all about discovering the hidden game within just as much as it’s about hand management, risk taking, and prickly pears. Kids go hunting for ghosts in Joe Cornish’s very bingeable Lockwood & Co. that has sharply-written dialogue throughout its eight episodes of creepy horror, and we’re off to Airecon and have some convention advice for anyone that’ll listen. Plus, health and safety gone mad?

Our Flag Means Death is a romantic comedy (with emphasis on the romance) of pirates and gentlemanliness, hot off our RRR kick we’ve fallen hard for Eega, and we have thoughts on modern horror Barbarian. We get investing in property with Rebuilding Seattle by WizKids, scope out just how much love has gone into Sniper Elite: The Board Game by Rebellion Unplugged - a hidden movement board game based on the video game - and Prospero Hall smashes it yet again with The Rocketeer: Fate of the Future from Funko Games. Plus a gaming weekend of fun.

The best board games to play remotely, how Back 4 Blood is a modern Left 4 Dead with deck building, we head to a Welsh village Chasing Static, you’ve got to love That Old Wallpaper’s strangely compelling theme, and The Decagon House Murders uses the howdunit format to great effect. Plus, a rich vein of stuff.

The butt-clenchingly moreish Vampire Survivors from poncle, the really lovely and dead quaint comedy Ghosts, and the lovingly adapted video game brought to life Horizon Zero Dawn: The Board Game from Steamforged Games. Plus pillows, and ripping music in 2023.

Andor is Disney+’s new Star Wars series and it’s a fantastic Brechtian political spy drama that doesn’t rely on lightsabers, K3 from Helvetiq is an abstract game that’s a cross of Chess, Connect 4, and programming, and Akropolis from Gigamic is a very quick tile laying boardgame we just love. Plus New Year’s resolutions and predictions for 2023 based on movies.