2024: The Vibes Are In Shambles (Friends Per Second #50)
In which Jake gets sort of scammed on Facebook Marketplace
Hey Users!
Welcome to the second instalment of the Friends Per Second newsletter. Sincere thanks and high fives to everyone who has subscribed and said lovely things about it, it truly means a lot.
A lot of things slipped our minds this week. We almost forgot to record an episode until Jake remembered. Lucy forgot to take sunscreen to San Diego Comic-Con and is paying for it dearly. We also forgot to mention that this is the fiftieth (!) episode of the podcast. It feels like just yesterday we were recording our first episode at Summer Game Fest, and here we are, a whole two years later. We don’t have a cake or anything to celebrate, but it would be remiss of us not to mention it here. Here’s to many, many more.
Anyway, we did remember to put the newsletter together, so enjoy!
Games mentioned: Time Crisis 1 & 2
Misc. mentions: 90s McDonald’s garbage bins, a replica Christian Bale Batsuit, Lara Croft and Snake statues, Roombas (shoutout to r/roomba), Philips Hue Lights, a magnetic phone charger, bathroom wipes, Crest 3D White Strips, HyperX headphone mics, Jeff Bezos’ new look, The Sopranos
2024 feels… weird, right?
Humble Games Lays Off All Employees, Carries On In Name Only - Aftermath
SGDQ 2024 fundraised $2.5M despite declining viewership - GamesBeat
We don’t know about you, but we’re feeling weird about 2024. After thousands of layoffs, studios being closed and projects being cancelled, it’s been difficult to get excited about games. There have been some big releases, but other than Elden Ring, it doesn’t feel like anything has any real sustained buzz behind it. Even indie darlings like Animal Well and Lorelei and the Laser Eyes seem to have come and gone from the gaming zeitgeist in the blink of an eye, and lots of us are returning to comfort games to fill our time. Feels weird, man!
Games mentioned: Once Human, Marvel Rivals, The First Descendant, Zenless Zone Zero, Animal Well, Dungeons of Hinterberg, Anger Foot, NBA2K24, Roblox, Madden, Rainbow Six Siege, Helldivers 2, Counter-Strike 2, Rocket League, Baldur’s Gate 3, Team Fortress 2, Dota 2, GTA 5, Call Of Duty, Fortnite, Minecraft, Marvel Snap, Kunitsugami: Path of the Goddess, Dragon’s Dogma 2, Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Avowed, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, LEGO Horizon, Astro Bot, Concord, GTA 6, Monster Hunter Wilds, Été, Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, Indika, Palworld, Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus, Mass Effect trilogy, The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, Star Wars Outlaws, Elden Ring, Elder Scrolls 6
Misc mentions: Marvel Infinity Saga, Games Done Quick, EVO, Deadpool vs. Wolverine, r/roomba (getting a lot of love in this episode), Orlando Bloom: To The Edge, Billy and Dom Eat the World, Woman’s World by Katy Perry
User question #1 - Jonathan Velez
What do you guys consider is the best and worse marketing campaign in the video game industry?
Honestly, this could be a whole episode of the show because there have been some absolute corkers over the years. We had a very fun time talking about our favourites, but Lucy forgot to mention the utterly bizarre Virtua Tennis 2 Wimbledon bird stunt, so please read this at your leisure.
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided ‘Augment Your Pre-Order’ program canceled - Polygon
Dead Island Riptide's bloody torso statue sparks anger, confusion - Polygon
Watch Dogs video game stunt gets bomb squad called to Sydney website - The Guardian
Threaten Your Friends With Hitman Facebook App - The Escapist
Get Salty Mario Kart 8 Figures In Your Next Happy Meal - Kotaku AU (RIP)
Bethesda Wants Your Blood … For An Evil Within Promotion - GameSpot
Games mentioned: Deus Ex Human Revolution, Deus Ex Mankind Divided, Lawbreakers, Quake, Godfall, Redial, Radical Heights, Dante’s Inferno, Dead Island Riptide, Evolve, Watch Dogs, Crash Bandicoot, Hitman Absolution, Paper Mario, Age of Empires II, The Evil Within, Diablo IV, Wolfenstein II - The New Colossus
Misc. mentions: Borderlands movie, McDonald’s Happy Meals, GameBoy Advance SP Tribal Edition, Xbox street grafiti
What we’ve been playing
Weird vibes be damned, we still found time to enjoy some video games recently.
Ralph’s been playing some Destiny 2, and has been very much enjoying Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
Jake’s been kinda enjoying Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn
Lucy-ass games aplenty with Arranger, Été and Kunitsu-Gami
Games mentioned: Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Ōkami, Ashen, God of War (2018), Bloodborne, Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, Evil West, Gears of War, Max Payne, Braid, Concord, Marvel Snap
Misc. mentions: Dungeons & Dragons, THE GRID, a lovely Cillian Murphy colouring book
User question #2 - Graham Gilmore
Are there any other games that you can think of that are best played on a touch screen vs mouse and keyboard or controller?
With the disappointing sales of games like Death Stranding, Resident Evil 4, and Assassin’s Creed: Mirage on mobile, we ponder why these games are being ported to the platform at all, and talk about some games that are actually great to play on a touchscreen.
Games mentioned: Death Stranding, Assassin’s Creed Mirage, Resident Evil 4, FTL: Faster Than Light, X-COM, Donut County, Marvel Snap, Balatro, Vampire Survivors, Peggle, Papers Please, Zenless Zone Zero, Storyteller, Football Manager, Farming Simulator, The Division Resurgence, Rainbow Six Mobile
Misc. mentions: Netflix gaming
If you’ve got burning questions you’d like us to answer on the show, email us or drop them in the comments below!
Show and tell
Exercise and Glen Powell Summer, this week’s show and tell has it all. Lucy was tempted to sing the song from Longlegs the entire time, but somehow showed restraint (you’re welcome).
Ralph’s been enjoying some tennis (but still hasn’t seen Challengers)
Jake has been saving the movies with Twisters
Lucy enjoyed a little spooky time with Longlegs
Games mentioned: Destiny
Movies mentioned: Challengers, Dream Scenario, Pig, Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman 1984, Shazam, Shazam 2, Blue Beetle, Black Adam, Mission Impossible, Fast and Furious, Hobbs and Shaw, Mamma Mia, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, Twister, Top Gun Maverick, Renfield, Barbie
Misc. mentions: Longlegs song, Longlegs heartbeat video, Twisters movie box thing, Body Attack, Rumble, Lucy’s yoga flow video, ABBA (ah-bah), ABBA Gold, Glen Powell Summer
Thanks for reading!
Sorry it was a little late, writing it from my hotel room at San Diego Comic-Con. See ya next time <3 L
Another great show (and read). Congrats on the two years.
I agree that the year feels a little weird game-wise, but I have been loving the indies we've been getting. Animal Well, Lorelai, Nine Sols... But yes, there is a sense of things coming and going in a flash. Maybe it just goes with all the weirdness in general with the world at the moment.
I’ll tell you what fits the vibes Perfectly, you guys starting a Substack Newsletter 😅. The only video game podcast I listen to that would think to make one (some of the only people I know that would make one 😅) and we love you guys for it.