Evil Avatar's Shotgun

e084: Holla For A Dolla

modeps — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 01:57:10 +0000

This weeks show is cash money! YOUR cash money! Microsoft dropped a bomb on us today with a price hike for Xbox Live Gold, and we’re gonna let you know what we think about it. Chances are it’s not good. Since we’re talkin’ bout money probs like Lou Dobbs, we also cover the issue of the used games market expanding nationwide to Best Buy and Target. Then our courageous gumshoe reporter Jeff The Great sends in an email detailing the sneaky fine print in the new Block Buster games rental service. We recap of our Super Street Fighter 4 Community Game Night, and Adam gives us some preview info on whether Shank is the new hotness.

So grab your Zune (or other listening device of choice) and get ready for some podcast on this weeks Shotgun!

Also, Duck Tales…

e083: Whip Out My Stick

modeps — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 12:26:52 +0000

The end of August is approaching, and while most of the U.S. is getting at least some reprieve from the oppressive summer heat, there’s no shortage of heated discussion in this week’s podcast. Jim, Ben, and Adam are joined by guest and recently recruited red Matt ‘gzsfrk’ Williams to discuss the sequel to a game with a controversial pedigree. Jim also gives his impressions on the latest Madden after a 3 year hiatus from videogame football, and Adam and Ben regale us with their latest tales of Street Fighter conquest. Finally, Matt & Jim go head-to-head over the appeal of traditional adventure games in the modern videogames landscape.

Bonus content includes Adam’s advice on how to gracefully avoid an unfavorable match-up at a Street Fighter tournament by red-ringing your opponent’s console–this week on Shotgun.

e082: You R So Dumb

modeps — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 11:37:10 +0000

Tonight we take it back to basics with our core cast of three. We have a discussion about the feasibility of Call of Duty going “pay to play”, and what it could mean. We give a quick recap of Puzzle Quest 2, and realize it’s lost a bit of luster with time. Jim gives us some initial impressions of Starcraft 2, while Ben gives a quick review of Castlevania HD. Meanwhile, Adam announces the beginning of his professional Street Fighter career. That’s gonna turn out great!

All this and apparently some football game comes out soon, on this weeks Shotgun!

e081: The Torchlight II Interview

modeps — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 00:37:41 +0000

Tonight we have a very special Thursday episode for you, with some very special guests! Max, Travis, Jason and Wonder from Runic Games sit down with us to talk about their just announced sequel “Torchlight II”. They’re here to answer all the burning questions from the many Torchlight fans in our community. We talk about what’s new, what’s returning, and most importantly, if you can wear a floppy bunny hat for headgear.

So listen in to learn about one of our most anticipated follow ups of the coming year on tonight’s special episode of SHOTGUN.

e080: PWNTophobia

modeps — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 16:00:34 +0000

This week we have Moe Fwacky from Penny Arcade and the PAX Cross Country Super Trip! We have some controversial reader mail, followed by a review from Jim about the new Alan Wake DLC “The Signal”. Ben reviews the best in free games with Alien Swarm, which you should go download if you haven’t already. Pwnophobia gives us a quick review of his technical problems and Hydro Thunder Hurricane. Plus we talk turkey about the newly announced Street Fighter vs. Tekken games which will surely be a hot topic amongst people who care about topics like that. Also, Jim thinks Limbo isn’t that great. SUCK IT INTERNET!

e079: We Have a New Adam

modeps — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 02:14:45 +0000

This week we’re joined by Adam from POWET.TV, and he replaces our regular Adam who was too busy fighting in some sort of death arena to record a podcast. Jim, Adam and Ben get down to brass tacks and review the newest (and not so newest) releases like Limbo, Lego Harry Potter, and Transformers: War for Cybertron. Ben continues to catch up to 2009 with the news flash that InFamous is indeed a good game.

We also only get sidetracked by one insane, nerdy conversation about Transformers. All this and an absolutely bizarre set of games in weekly releases in the dead of summer on this weeks SHOTGUN!”

e078: Round Three, FIGHT!

modeps — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 11:47:26 +0000

We have a big show this week! We are joined by Todd Fuller from Short Attention Guys and he sits in to chat on our official return from the E3 doldrums. We congratulate Pwnophobia on his first MMA win, which certifies our podcast is now able to beat up and steal lunch money from all others. Speaking of roundhouse kicks, we talk about EVO 2010 from Las Vegas, along with some impressions on Puzzle Quest 2, Singularity, Joe Danger, and Blacklight: Tango Down. Modeps, Pwn and Todd also have a quick round table discussion detailing more about Crackdown 2.

All this and a two man psycho freak out about Two Worlds 2 on this week’s SHOTGUN.

PS: Naughty Bear sucks

e077: ‘Merica

modeps — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 12:25:09 +0000

On this weeks episode, we record a short show because we’re tired from celebrating America’s birthday so hard. Modeps and Pwn talk about their feelings on Crackdown 2, Kragg espouses the virtues of Mass Effect 2, and there are a LOT of Wii games you don’t care about dropping this week. All this and a quick voice mail about motorcycles with three wheels on this weeks Shotgun!

e076: For a Long Time

modeps — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:18:04 +0000

On this week’s show we’re joined by friend of the show Rich, who gives us some insight on his trip to E3 as we finally wrap up coverage of the biggest news story of the summer. We talk a bit more about the big three and their presence at the show, what was worth standing in line for 8 hours for, and if free booze can really convince you to buy games.

Also this week we respond to listener mail, have a quick chat about Puzzle Quest 2, Kragg no longer hates Six Axis, and everyone except Modeps thinks Crackdown 2 pretty much sucks.

All that and more on this weeks Shotgun!

e075: Expo? Sure! DAY TWO +E3 Sword of Fire

modeps — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 02:22:28 +0000

Tonight we wrap up our E3 coverage with a podcast cross-over episode of epic proportions! The entire Fall Damage crew (Mixmoff, Aevan, and Dr. Scares) join Modeps, Pwnophobia and Kragg to re-cap all the exciting, and not so exciting news from the conference. As with any roller coaster ride, there are gonna be dizzying highs, terrifying lows, and a lot of swearing. Oh, and we all love Nintendo.

So join us loyal listeners, for a show that will undoubtedly teach us about ourselves, each other, and the fact that 6 people is a LOT for one Skype conversation.

e074: Expo? Sure! DAY ONE!

modeps — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 02:22:32 +0000

Day two of our coverage is the first day of the real E3 Expo thing! We talk a little bit about Ubisoft’s conference as well as the two big dogs, Nintendo and Microsoft. Instead of Ben, we’ve got booth babe lover, Jeff the Great back on. We’ll be back tomorrow with the final E3 inspired show, talking about some of our highlights and lowlights.

e073: Expo? Sure! DAY ZERO

modeps — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 01:12:42 +0000

Microsoft has renamed their motion thingy to be called Kinect and sure enough, it’s aimed at the casual audience. We give a quick rundown about some of the interesting bits that came out of today’s Microsoft and Electronic Arts press conferences in a half hour show. See you tomorrow!

e072: Pre-E3 E-Spectacular

modeps — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 12:46:02 +0000

This weeks Shotgun explodes off the internet and into your eardrums with crazy predictions about E3! We talk about what we think will be the highlights, the low lights, and possibly the best reveals from the big players. Kragg rants about motion controls, Modeps espouses his wishlist, and Pwn confesses he just doesn’t really care about conventions. All this plus our (continued) thoughts on Alan Wake, a review of Green Day Rockband, and a beautiful serenade in voice mail format from an angel-voiced crooner on this weeks Shotgun.

e071: Milking the Zombie

modeps — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 10:49:04 +0000

This week on shotgun, we have super special guest co-host Cat from www.n4g.com! We spend some time talking about horse physics in Red Dead Redemption, chatting about the “Twisted Metal” rumor, and giving some more insight on Gunnar gaming optiks (with a K because they are extreme). We also talk a bit about sweet flavored energy goo milked directly from zombies, and have a collective support group style bitch session about those Twilight movies. Finally, before a drunken modeps gets too punchy to podcast, he gives a drunkdeps explanation of what an embargo is. Yes, this podcast doubles as edu-tainment!

All this and Pwn ruins a perfectly good Vanilla Ice joke on this weeks Shotgun!

e070: Wrath of Khan

modeps — Tue, 25 May 2010 12:26:16 +0000

On this Monday’s episode (Yep! Late because of Lost!) we have on special awesome guest co-host of awesomeness Jeff Conolly, from “Tim and Jeff’s Geeked Out Show of Awesome Awesomeness”
We start by possibly spoiling the last six years of some people’s tv watching lives, then move on to talk some Red Dead Redemption. Well, most of us. Modeps lost his xbox in a fire, so he settles for stopping Kragg from offending Ireland.

We also get some impressions from Modeps about Trauma Team and how it’s nothing like Operation, and lets us know that Yoshi didn’t ruin a game. Pwnophobia clues us in on whether Rocket Knight is awesome possum or just a rat flying away with your fifteen dollars. Finally, we announce our official Evil Avatar “Insomniac” Community game nights that you DON’T HAVE TO PAY FOR!

All this and a whole buncha swear words on this weeks SHOTGUN!

e069: Flatulance

modeps — Mon, 17 May 2010 11:12:16 +0000

This week’s special guest is none other than the man, the myth, the legend, JVB from TalkingAboutGames.com. We spend a bit too much time talking about an incident that took place in the Rockstar booth at PAX East amid conversation of Red Dead Redemption. Adam has finished Alan Wake so we finally stop talking about it until Ben plays it. All this and Ronnie James Dio is dead in the longest show we’ve done.

e068: The Danger Zone

modeps — Mon, 10 May 2010 09:43:37 +0000

This time on Shotgun we start off “Season 3″ with a bang! Our special guest co-host is Mixmoff from the Fall Damage video game podcast about video games! Modeps and Pwnophobia give us some impressions about Alan Wake, and we discuss whether 3D Dot Game Heroes and Iron Grip:Warlord are indie gold or just shameful bronze. We also announce the winner of our LoTRo giveaway contest and have a mature, thoughtful discourse about why Mortal Kombat 2 isn’t the best looking game on the block anymore.

All this and the derogatory slurs Kragg gets called in Halo:Reach on this week’s episode!

e067: Reaching for Alan

modeps — Mon, 03 May 2010 11:12:53 +0000

Much ruckus this evening as we’re negative on just about everything, particularly the misconception as to what kind of game Alan Wake is and how Halo: Reach doesn’t really do anything for first person shooters. Ben also talks a bit about IG Warlords and how it’s pretty awesome, even though it has some technical issues.

e066: Super Street

modeps — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 15:56:14 +0000

Ben is away on assignment this week so Adam and Jim are joined by Al from DualShockers.com and forum user Brandon (Shela Monster). We spend a lot of time talking about the soon-to-be-released Super Street Fighter IV as well as the evil, evil game Neptune’s Pride.

e065: Eight Out of Ten

modeps — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 12:16:38 +0000

After a week off, we’ve returned with more stupidity than you can count. This week Ben decides to talk briefly about a bunch of games while Adam questions the general gaming public. Jim follows that up by alienating anyone that’s 15 and listens to the show, then rambles about Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening for a spell.

e064: The Itis

modeps — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 13:01:22 +0000

Our first full episode since the interview bonanza that was PAX East. Ben seems to have caught that dreadful Itis while we all reflect on the fun and pain that was PAX. We also talk a bit about God of War 3, Metro 2033, and of course, the lack of weekly releases this week. Happy Freakin’ Easter.

PAX013 – Klei Entertainment / Shank Interview

modeps — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 01:55:27 +0000

We were invited to a closed door session with Klei Entertainment’s CEO Jamie Cheng who let Adam play through a sweet demo level showing off the combo system and some new parkour elements of Shank.

PAX012 – Realtime Worlds / APB Interview

modeps — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 01:51:34 +0000

Adam is on the mic this time while Ben plays a right handed PC game, left handed. We hear some info about the player run economy as well as a bunch more about what it’s like to play APB.

PAX011 – D3Publisher / Puzzle Quest 2 Interview

modeps — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 01:48:48 +0000

While Ben plays some Puzzle Quest 2, we get some details from D3′s Tim Ramage about some of the new stuff that’s in the sequel as we are joined by The Escapist’s John Funk for a little question and answer session.

PAX010 – Ruffian Games / Crackdown 2 Interview

modeps — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 01:40:23 +0000

After checking out the multiplayer in Crackdown 2, producer James Cope joins us for an interview to talk a little about Ruffian’s forming and a lot about Crackdown 2.

PAX009 – Wizards of the Coast / Dungeons and Dragons Interview

modeps — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 02:09:21 +0000

What better way to wrap up the geeking out than with Wizards of the Coast and Dungeons and Dragons? Nothing.

PAX008 – Mommy’s Best Games / Grapple Buggy Interview

modeps — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 02:06:47 +0000

We’ve talked about Shoot 1Up previously, and the developer, Mommy’s Best Games, decided to take up residence at PAX East so we decided to drop by for a quick chat about all of their titles.

PAX007 – Muzzy Lane / Making History 2 Interview

modeps — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 02:04:42 +0000

Here is a Q&A session regarding Muzzy Lane’s browser based title, Making History 2.

PAX006 – Playdead / Limbo Interview

modeps — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 02:01:09 +0000

While traversing the expo floor, we came across a slick looking, minimalist art style XBLA game called Limbo and decide that we wanted to know more. Here’s what we learned!

PAX005 – Fugazo / Frobot Interview

modeps — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 01:58:24 +0000

Ben and Adam briefly talk with Fugazo about their upcoming 70′s inspired robot game, Frobot.

PAX004 – Second Night

modeps — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 01:56:14 +0000

We wrap up the second night at PAX being a bit more coherent than the previous night. We had a chance to check out several titles including Alpha Protocol and Frobot. Enjoy!

PAX003 – Dark Energy Digital / Hydrophobia Interview

modeps — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 15:48:54 +0000

Nestled away in Microsoft’s relatively small presence at E3 is a game that’s helping push what is possible with Xbox Live Arcade games. We talk to Rob Hewson of Dark Energy Digital and talk a bit about some complicated stuff that scientists understand.

PAX002 – Twisted Pixel Interview

modeps — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 15:44:04 +0000

We meet with Michael Wilford CEO of Twisted Pixel fame and talk about how they got to where the are today and about all their games including the newly demoed Comic Jumper.

PAX001 – First Night

modeps — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 14:46:34 +0000

Our first, sleepy podcast from PAX East which is our first podcast together as a family, together. Adam didn’t get to see anything but at least we drank together.

e063: PAXie Daisy!

modeps — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:58:45 +0000

Shorter episode than normal, but still awesome. We talk about a bunch of stuff like God of War III and how it brings little new to the table but still manages to be really dope; and Final Fantasy XIII which just isn’t good but at least has a Choco-Fro. Also, the winner of Battlefield Bad Company 2 is announced and we talk a bit about our PAX plans… probably too much about our PAX plans.

e062: No Haggis

modeps — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:49:19 +0000

We’re back this week with the return of Martin “Lost” Perry as our 4th co-host! We discuss the new landscape of multiplayer gaming, Jim and Martin talk a bit about Heavy Rain, Adam chimes in more about how much he can’t stop playing Battlefield:Bad Company 2, and we have technical difficulties with the transatlantic flight of Martin’s voice across the internet.

Check out this, learn how to win a copy of Battlefield: BC2, and more on this weeks Shotgun!

e061: Anniversary SPECTACULAR!

modeps — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:44:50 +0000

A full year of Shotgun is in the books! This is our anniversary spectacular show, with an under the weather Jim and a shorter show than normal. Hey, at least we talk about Twisted Metal and Battlefield Bad Company 2. Did you know you can win a copy of Battlefield BC2 Limited Edition just by listening to this show? Well, you can. Awesome.

e060: Purple Rain

modeps — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:43:40 +0000

This week we have some heavy discussion about Heavy Rain, Adam gives a quick review of indie shooter “Shoot1Up” and Ben discusses the new Borderlands DLC.

Oh, and during the weekly releases we talk about some military FPS that’s coming out this week. You know, the one that isn’t Modern Warfare 2? All that and more on this weeks Shotgun!

e059: Amber Lamps

modeps — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 11:44:49 +0000

This week on shotgun we have the return of the often imitated but never replicated Ruumis! Our prodigal son sits in while Pwnophobia is on another vision quest learning the secrets of Modern Warfare 2 from the owl spirit.

We field a bunch of your voice mails and emails and chat some about the mediocre extravaganza that is Dante’s Inferno.

Ubisoft’s questionable DRM tactics incite a hysterical riot, Jim gives some first impressions on the PC version of Alien vs Predator, and we teach you how to get your virginity back.

So download and listen, but if things get rough, don’t forget to bring the amber lamps.

e058: Be Our Valentine

modeps — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 11:53:19 +0000

This week we have a special guest! Jim’s brother-in-law Joe sits in on the podcast as we get our nerd rage in full effect over the topic of DLC.

Did you choose fire or water? Adam chose fire, Ben chose water, and Jim chose both!

Jim and Adam discuss whether Dante’s Inferno lives up to the heated hype, or if it fizzled out, then Jim and Ben discuss the cross-platform differences of Bioshock 2, and Ben is beside himself with
great things to say about the multiplayer experience.

All this and some sneaky sleuthing about Square (alliteration!) on this weeks SHOTGUN.

e057: The Big Game Shuffle

modeps — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:16:12 +0000

Here we are, another week, another show! This week we’ve got an interview with the CEO from Jedi Mind, Inc about their brain reading technologies along with some fantastic discussion regarding Doodles and Bugs. Adam recaps some time spent with Bioshock 2 Developers and how he didn’t like The Battle of Forli for Assassin’s Creed 2 while Ben cries about the AvP multiplayer demo. Jim says some stuff too.

e056: International Edition

modeps — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 13:36:19 +0000

International Delight! This week we have a special co-host, EvAv’s own Martin Perry, standing in for Adam while he’s on a vision quest in Michigan.
Jim and Martin talk a bit about Mass Effect 2, Ben gives us some thoughts on Darksiders and the new-ish Dragon Age DLC, and Martin explains that he doesn’t hate every video game he plays, just most of them. He also enjoys haggis.

Check out all this, plus our “bro-tastic” Army of Two giveaway results on this weeks Shotgun!

e055: Mass Effect 2

modeps — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 08:05:22 +0000

This week on Shotgun we record at a special time so we can talk a LOT about Mass Effect 2! Jim responds to some voice mails and reader submitted questions. We announce the rules for our Army of Two giveaway which includes much fist bumping and bro hugging, Kragg beat Modeps without the aid of an arcade stick and listeners potentially die from liver failure!

e054: Rochambeau

modeps — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 17:23:29 +0000

This week we catch up on some voice mails from you, our loyal listeners! We get a cool history lesson on some sci-fi gaming classics, Jim takes up a super spooky and mysterious challenge on the Wii, and we try to explain which of the 5,347 awesome titles coming out before summer are most worth your hard earned money.

Also, Adam reviews Army of Two:The 40th Day, Ben tries to wrap his head around Nolan North’s mystical voice acting talents, and we learn that when it comes to NPD charts, five million soccer moms can’t be wrong. Seriously, your mom loves Wii Fit.

e053: Japaneasy

modeps — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 13:58:25 +0000

This week Adam describes what it’s like to take on Bayonetta, and we discover our podcast can come up with better names for an angel murdering witch than Sega can. Also Jim comes to term with his abusive relationship with Demon Souls, and Ben gives a review of the Dark Void demo which is full of quick time events and more Nolan North! In weekly releases, there is only one real game, so we’ll just tell you now to spend your allowance on a blu ray of Tyler Perry’s “I Can Do Bad All By Myself“

e052: The New Decade

modeps — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:12:07 +0000

We’re back after a week off for the holiday and Adam sounds less like a robot! We run through some holiday pickups and what we’ve been doing over the past two weeks, as well as our games of 2009, and the new releases.

e051: Xena Warrior Princess

modeps — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 13:43:46 +0000

Not much going on in the world of gaming, so we talk a bit about some television and how Jim proposed to his wife. Ben saw Avatar, Jim played Ju-On for the Wii, and we close out without saying “Merry Christmas” or even “Happy Holidays.”

Episode 50: Community GOTYs

modeps — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:16:43 +0000

We’re at the half century mark here folks, and what better way to hit that than to discuss the community picks for games (and shames) of the year. We also have all tried that incredible Jurassic: The Hunted game and a couple of us have given that Dante’s Inferno demo a shot. Oh, there’s a bit of talk about The Saboteur too. Cool.

Episode 49: Critically Inept

modeps — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:59:08 +0000

We’re back after a holiday hiatus talking about some games. Did you know that M.U.L.E. has been rereleased? How about that Jim is still freakin’ playing Dragon Age? Ben has played flipper flopper and picked up Left 4 Dead 2 and Adam goes pee. We run down all the winners of The Twelve Days of Evil, as well as let you in on an upcoming giveaway. Enjoy!

Episode 48: Feels Like an Expansion

modeps — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:34:14 +0000

We’re back again, with a new show! We run through our impressions of Left 4 Dead 2 while rage ensues (it gets a bit heated, so be careful listening at work). Adam has been rockin’ Assassin’s Creed 2, and Ben has been… playing… Halo Waypoint. Jim gives some glowing impressions of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and we all talk about the Bayonetta demo, while having a first climax.