Community Showcase Submissions - January 2019

Happy New Year and Happy New Studio, Allies!! This is my first time submitting to the showcase but I just wanted to drop a quick note to let you know how very proud I am to be supporting your family of entertainment. It's a thrill to know my little bit every month is helping you to make great things. Your passion shows through in your work and you encourage me to make steps to pursue a passion of my own. I know, Brandon, that you recently turned 40, but for me that was a few years ago. Last year, I had been starting to feel that my current, mundane place in life would be my final place ...working in a boring job doing mundane things... but 40+ is not too old to turn it around and pursue a dream. When I saw the new studio reveal I had goosebumps and happy tears streaming down my face. You have made your dream a reality and if you can do it, maybe I can too. I have always wanted to use my vocal talents to make money and with the encouragement of your enthusiasm and passion, I am taking steps to make that dream a reality. Hopefully by this time next year, I will have grown enough financially to make the trip out from Chicago to see your 4th anniversary celebration. Can't wait to meet you all in person and if you ever go "on tour" I'd love for you to make a stop in Chicago =) Take Care, Much L&R @Jessie_Blu_

JessieBlu

Hey guys, I'm more of a silent observer but I started going on gametrailers.com when I was 13 or 14. I saw the GTA San Andreas trailer on your site and had to wait like an hour until it was done buffering because of my slow Internet connection. Thank you for all the content you give to us and I'm proud to support you since day 1 of Easy Allies and I will never stop supporting you. Glad you guys got a tudio now, can't wait to see it. Also I know you can't show it because of copyright reasons but I made a DMC V Trailer with the music of DMC 3 and if you'd watch it off show and could give some feedback it would be really appreciated <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJedL5Hqm_A" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJedL5Hqm_A</a> Love you guys, keep up the great work!

Dragonhunter

What-up Allies! Happy New Year. I hope I'm not too late with my submission but ran into a computer difficulty when I was trying to export my video earlier. I wanted to thank everyone for the joy and sense of community they brought me throughout 2018. I hope I can give some of that joy back to you guys! Love you all, and sending my upmost love and respect all around, Brian from Happy Gaming <a href="https://youtu.be/NDzhII3HNnI" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/NDzhII3HNnI</a>

Happy Gaming

Screeching in with a few seconds to spare with this comment fingers crossed. Roll on up 2019 the official year of little pig, littttleee PIGGGG an omen of greatness no doubt. My personal pledge this year is to challenge myself to complete as many unique creative endeavors possible within my free time each week. Typically in the past I tended to get far too impatient attempting fresh hobbies and yet to see so many creative outlets you guys have proudly shared in these showcases has reignited some enthusiasm to work on my own creative curiosities through out 2019. You will never know unless you try right ? So this month I wanted to aim for a photoshop challenge to complete and kind of hoped for some of your suggestions to help. My goal is to work on naturally blending each member of the council in various iconic movie posters of your choosing. Hopefully the results await in the next community showcase submissions post. L&amp;R :)

Christian Thomas

(Oh boy, I didn't realize the showcase was happening so soon! If I'm late, oh well.) Hello Allies. It’s GOTY season. And everyone with a keyboard and internet access is getting on to voice their opinions on what was the greatest games to come out. I’m sure a lot of people before me have submitted their own Showcase Lists. As it turns out, I played and finished a lot of games from this year too, and I want to talk about it. But with a bit of a twist. Here are my Top 3 games of non 2018 games! IE, games that I played in 2018 that didn’t come out this year. 3- Fire Emblem Thracia 776 If you a Fire Emblem fan who is confused that they’ve never heard of this game that Brandon just read, that is because it’s one of the games in the series never officially released outside of Japan. This is often credited to be the most difficult game in the Fire Emblem series. I would probably agree with the sentiment, but I didn’t have too much trouble with it, considering how much I’ve been playing this series. The real issues come from the fact that it’s not a very balanced game. Certain enemy armies have more advantages than you ever will. It required intense strategy, or finding the cheesiest ways to break the chapter with a Warp staff. But whether it was being played seriously, or purposefully exploited, it was still a lot of fun. I can’t recommend going out of your way to play this game, especially if you aren't a fan of the series. But if a remake should ever be made, do consider it when it eventually comes out… “In America”. 2- Final Fantasy 7 I played two Final Fantasy games all the way through for the first time this year. One of them being Final Fantasy 7 and the other being Final Fantasy 9.. Both were absolutely fantastic games, but I came away from FF7 with stronger emotions. Simply put, I think FF7 is the better game. From it’s core concepts like the Materia system and Limit Breaks, to just the unnoticeable things like the fast battle pace, it kept me engaged throughout the entire thing. Midgar was awesome, and my favorite part of the game. But the rest of the game was absolutely enjoyable too. It was serious, humorous, and a bit nonsensical. It’s not my favorite Final Fantasy (FF6! One of the greats!) But I would say it’s up there. 1- Yakuza 0 This year saw my introduction to the Yakuza series. It’s been a blast playing these games. And while I have now played every game in the series, I still look fondly on my first one: my dear Yakuza 0. It took my awhile for me to reach the point of investment, but am I ever glad I did. Oddly enough, it wasn’t the dramatic story that got me hooked so easily, but rather the silliness of the series. Well that, and Goro Majima. At the beginning of the game, I made it my sworn duty to get revenge on Mr. Shakedown, and scoured the city to find him. In the process, I inadvertently did sidequests for 3 hours, and saw such grand emotional payoffs for each one. The kid getting “basically Dragon Quest 3” is my favorite. Thank you Yakuza for being so awesome. Thank you Jones and Huber for hosting. And thank you allies for listening. Hope everyone’s 2019 is full of Love and Respect! -ChrisTheFields

Stay

Hi Brandon &amp; Huber, This might be a bit late but I wanted to thank all of the Allies for the great content in 2018. As many others I can't wait for the studio. My expectations are as following... j/k Jones, I have faith in you guys :) Also a big thank you to all of the other patreons who make it possible for this content to exist. Thanks! I just finished Octopath Traveler and while I loved the game for what it did I have to agree with almost all of the complaints. It helps that I knew the game is about 8 short stories instead of 1 big one but it missed some of the epicness that the oldskool JRPGs had. Loved the combat system and the music was awesome. I even liked the voice acting. I can not wait for their next game. The only thing I would need is that 1 big epic storyline. If they manage to do that then... OMG! Not meant as a video submission but for Jones personally: Last month you said you might wanted to see some old FFXI videos, you can check them out on my channel if you want. Vrtra one: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5BXALq8CnE" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5BXALq8CnE</a> L&amp;R Jax Mcclane

Hello Jones and Huber. I apologize, I have not posted a showcase comment in a while. However I just wanted to say Happy New Year, and good luck with the studio's future. It really is amazing how far everything has come, and you all deserve the utmost success for your work. Thank you for all your effort, I truly do appreciate it. Love &amp; Respect, Tegan - P.S. - Super hyped for Re2 Remake. Let's go Capcom, Bring back Shinji Mikami for RE8 (he said he was into the idea at least once). Also, God of War for Game of the Year please. L&amp;R, Cheers mates, longriflejack.

Tegan Combatti

Hello Brandon and Huber, With 2018 finished, I want to go over some of my most memorable games of the year and for no reason at all give them a score. 1) Far Cry 5 DO I HAVE TO GET ATTACKED EVERY 20 SECONDS??? Far Cry 5 is a game that absolutely never wants you to let your guard down, enjoy the scenery or really just have even the slightest moment of peace ever. Just getting from point A to point B got so exhausting I would just fast travel as much as possible, which is really disappointing because this game is very pretty and it would have been nice to get the chance to just look around. Final score: 5.8 2) Castlevania: Symphony of the Night This one is conflicting for me. On one hand The visuals and music are amazing, the gameplay is fluid, fun bosses and there’s a great sense of exploration with the castle feeling truly alive and open. On the other hand the second half of this game is just the first half but upside down? Nope, Bail. Final score: 7.9 3) Dragon Quest Builders The scope and aimlessness of sandbox can be overwhelming and freeze me up while I try to figure what I should do next, but builders has a great solution for this by being a mission driven game. Whenever I’m unsure of what to do next, one of my townspeople probably has something for me to do, whether that’s going out to find an item, a person or to construct a new type of building. Then if I have an idea for something I really want to build, there’s there’s typically no ticking clocks I have to worry about. The low difficulty, great music and fun visuals help to make a great game to just unwind with. FInal score: 9.1 4) Splatoon 2 Octo Expansion Octo expansion is structured very similarly to the main campaign, which is a series of stages where you typically have to get through an obstacle course. What Octo expansion does so much better than the main campaign is the amount of variety within these stages. While many stages are an obstacle course, there are many ways you might have to go about this, such as having to escort a large ball with you, having a limited amount of ink or being locked into one of the special modes like the jetpack. Along with these there are some great puzzle based stages, the standouts being a giant game of pool and using your weapon to carve out a statue made of crates. Then, once you’ve done all of that you get thrown a twist I can only describe as completely bonkers. Octo expansion is legitimately one of the best pieces of DLC I have ever experienced. Final score: 9.5 That’s it for now, next month I’ll talk about my 2 favorite games of the year and some other general thoughts on 2018 Love and Respect, Jon

Hopefully this post doesn't get deleted!

Hey Brandon and Mike! I'm currently in Paris with my wife and we discovered that that giant building from Mission Impossible: Fallout was currently an ice skating night club!!! We immediately ran there and had an absolute blast. When we got in we could only think of Huber. You'll see why when you look at the pics! Bonus Notre Dame pic because it reminded me of Bloodborne. <a href="https://twitter.com/pooksmcjernes/status/1080707047245709312?s=21" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/pooksmcjernes/status/1080707047245709312?s=21</a> Love you guys! Andrew Gottlieb JoJo's Dent Co.

Happy New Year Brandon and Huber! Resident Evil 2 is coming out this month... whoa! Seems too good to be true! I think I will play the Resident Evil HD Remaster to celebrate, I haven't played it since the Gamecube. I loved RE7, so I have high hopes for the RE2 Remake, let's keep this hype train rolling Capcom! Chooo ~choooooooo!~~~ L&amp;R Ian, @alexander_arts

Ian Alexander

im replying to this cuz apparently posts disappear sometimes and this helps????

Hi Brandon and Huber, it's been a crazy year as it was my first year at university! I'm doing a media and computer science degree. I thought I would share the first few minutes of a youtube video that I wrote, voiced and edited over the past couple of months, I hope this doesn't seem too self-promotional, but your content was a big inspiration and got me excited about writing and editing again, so I wanted to show you! The video is called 'Pepsiman, An Excessively Deep Analysis' which is pretty self explanatory... It was really fun to make and I hope to keep making videos into the new year, so thanks for getting me excited about creating content! <a href="https://youtu.be/hiWO9ToDYuA" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/hiWO9ToDYuA</a>

I think patreon ate my last post, so hopefully this saves it xD

sirvorn

Hello Jones and Huber, I hope you both had lovely holidays and anticipate the new year. Time has flown but you guys still carry the same vibes from when I first pledged three years ago while also evolving so much. Here's to another jolly year for EZA. My last two posts were about my mother’s first two games: FFXV and Yakuza 0, which she adored. I saw some people asking so I thought I’d answer this, she’s in her 50s and teaches Kindergarten. She’s sweet, she’s kind, she’s a cancer survivor and just wants to live her life while trying new things. I treasure this shared hobby. She’s amazing and I love her and I want to share that. So thank you guys for letting me do that. Her third game was FFXIV, but saving that for Damiani. At the request of Jones, Ben, and chat her fourth game: Nier Automata! Where...she got about three hours in and said “maybe later” giving no score. Moving around looked pretty, gameplay didn’t interest her. Sorry guys. SO. For her fifth game, we went with Persona! I showed her clips from the series and the Persona 4 Golden opening + setting sold her real quick. About a month, some hiccups with controls, and a hundred screenshots sent later she saw the true ending. I can’t remember if either you or Huber have played P4 so I’ll try to generally summarize the essay she sent me: ===== Parts she enjoyed: - Favorite character: Kanji, Social link: Death, Song: Never More - Inaba nails the feel of a small town in japan. Having grown up in one herself, the nostalgia hit her hard. - Going to school daily? Working part-time jobs? Managing a schedule to hang out with friends and having to actively build bonds? All in a game?? Blew her mind. She gushed about this a LOT. - She loved strategizing with the combat and became obsessed with fusing personas, yes! - The focus around facing and accepting oneself was absolutely beautiful to her. - The ending though bittersweet, was perfect. Left her teary. Now the big grievances: - Unappealing, repetitive layout and music of the dungeons - She never wants to hear the second or third dungeon theme again. - Save stations. In her words: “Please. Just let me save anywhere”. - The teacher Kashiwagi. Too creepy. Overall: delighted by the idea of a game where a majority of one’s time was spent just living “life” in a small town. She’s proud to say she read all the books, fused all available personas, and only missed one social link! ...sorry Ai. It was a cozy interactive story that incorporated the ordinary aspects of life along the way wonderfully. 9.5/10 ============ So far we’ve had: three winners, one a secret until Damiani’s turn, and one...not so hot. I’ll end posing the same question! Any game suggestions to add to her list of potential choices? She wants to play Persona 5 eventually but loves more options :) Cheers.

sirvorn

I hope that you two had a good time during the holidays. I had a good time myself during the holidays, as far as video games, I played a lot of Smash Brothers. Ever since I got that game it has been pretty much the only game that I have played. I am not a hardcore smash fan, but the fact they added Chrom, gave me a character that I had to master and main. There are so many games I have to look forward to this year, Ace Combat 7, KH 3, Animal Crossing Switch, Daemon X Machina and of course, Fire Emblem 3 Houses. I think this could be another great year to go with the amazing last two years.

Mr.V

Hello brandon and huber! I dont have any art to show off this month, so i wanna make a top list of my favorite games of the year, i dont know how many i’ll fit in with the word limit, but i´ll do as many as i can 1.smash bros ultimate: my game of the year, im an insane fanboy when it comes to smash bros, its one of the very few games where i confidently say that “im pretty good” at, and this game’s conent alone had me floored, i havent even finished world of light but i love this game to bits, and i know its dumb for the vast majority but i looooooooooooooooooooove that mini mp3 funcionality, some smash music is so good to work with im tellin ya 2. Celeste: this game hit me hard with how they handled panic attacks and anxiety in general, its a tough platformer that threw me into an emotional journey i was not ready for, but i thank it for it, a really important game for me this year 3. god of war: this is a beautiful game, a technical marvel and also when it hit me around 10 hours in that the game hadnt cut a single time, i was like... damn. And when a game has you in tears of excitement when you get an item later on, you know its one of your favorite games, even though i dont think i will replay it, but ill eagerly wait for the next one 4.spiderman: another beautiful technical marvel, this not so much in the visuals for me (they are super pretty but new york is not as whimsical as nordic mithology) and this will be very minor for a lot of people BUT THE AMMOUNT of transitions of animations from swinging to any other activity, all the ways spiderman flips and weaves thru the city, all the jumps, attacks swings all super flashy and buttery smooth transition between them, it had me in awe, and of course the story was a fantastic spiderman story 5. gorogoa: i dont really have that much to say about gorogoa other that its arguably the best puzzle game ive played in this decade, mindbending puzzles that blow your mind everytime you get them, its short, sweet and a masterpiece 6. Monster hunter world: this game is pure fun, the second i was done with a hunt i was ready for the next, i played this earlier in the year when it came out on ps4 alone, and then on pc with some friends when that came out and i fell in love all over again, i dont think i can go back to og monster hunter now but im not sad, im excited for more, i do hope they keep doing both “world” and “classic” series tho And im approaching the limit so ill leave it there, happy new year allies!

Fsnowzombie

Wingatakus here. Hey Brandon and Huber ! Thanks for all the creative inspiration and everything you all do. Knew we would make it to that studio one day. Brandon in your best southern cowboy voice can you yell. "Hey ma ! I just won some Manime !". Thanks for the tickets to Mirai it was really good and Huber youre one of the greats! Anyway here is some Mariopaint art I made years ago. Except the last one thats black and red that one is kinda brand new started years ago but finished it recently. The main stamp used was made by my best friend Jamie who sadly passed away last year in July. So it was made in honor of him. With all the Love and Respect Stay Easy. Its the latest 3 pics in the link. <a href="https://twitter.com/myawesomeideas?lang=en" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/myawesomeideas?lang=en</a>

John Wingate

Just making sure the Patreon monster doesn't eat my comment.

Well howdy Jones and Huber! I hope you both had a Happy New Year and Merry Christmas, I can't wait to see you guys in the new studio! Well, it's January, which means reduced hours and less money to spend on games...so i guess it's a great thing I stocked up in December. It kind of happened without me even planning it, I went into the game store to look for one game and ended up coming out with 6 games that I have been looking to get for months. Then I heard the news that the Super Nintendo Classic was going to be discontinued after 2018 so I finally bit the bullet and got the system. I'm now swimming in retro games and it is a wonderful place to be. I didn't play any games that came out in 2018 so I don't have a horse in the race but if I had to guess EZA's GOTY I'm going to go with God of War. Nothing too much more to say except that it was great to play the wonderful crossover game Professor Layton vs. Pheonix Wright, although I was a little disappointed that the game only paid cameos and lip service to their respective series with the exception of the 4 main characters. Good game, but still feels like a very big missed opportunity. Speaking of missed opportunity, when is the Switch going to get a game from either one of these series? I'm starting to get a little worried about either one of them never showing up on Nintendo's newest platform. Anyways, have a great month, you guys are the best, Love and Respect.

Save

Michelle Jackson

January Game Dev Update: <a href="https://youtu.be/WtZ7AJs8jPY" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/WtZ7AJs8jPY</a>

Michelle Jackson

Dummy comment to make others appear

Alexander Zyryanov

Happy New year allies As I promised last month I am hear to deliver my manga awards for 2018, but first some criteria 1. I must have read all nominees in the last 12 months, 2. any series can be nominated regardless of the year it was first published and each entry can only appear in one category. We kick of this years awards like every show should with the power of love! And the nominees for best romance manga of 2018 are: Our Happy Hours Otonari Complex Horimiya Princess Jellyfish And the winner of best romance title of 2018 is… Princess Jellyfish for its heartfelt fusion of romance and comedy with an eccentric cast and beautiful art it was well ahead of the other nominees. From the doki doki feeling of love to intense actions you can only get from the world of sports. And the nominees for MY best sports manga of 2018 are: Mai Ball! Rikudou Welcome to the Ballroom Teppuu And the winner of best sport title of 2018 is… the high intense female soccer feast that is Mai Ball for delivering a over the top action manga with a truly stand out art style and solid comedy beats. From the intense world of sports animation to another world entirely And the nominees for best fantasy manga are: I was reincarnated as a hot spring in an alternate world, and I'm way too effective Drifters Tsuyokute New Saga Goblin Slayer And the winner of best Fantasy manga of 2018 is the sometimes graphic but ever engrossing Goblin Slayer for its ability to deliver a realistic fantasy world amidst the mountain read this year. From the worlds of might and magic to oncs filled with head strong protagonists fueled by the power of youth. And the nominees for best shonen are: My Hero Academia Dr. Stone Fire Force One Piece For its ability to keep me inverted in its characters and world I awarded My Hero Academia the title for best shonen. From stories of heartfelt battles to the pages of the hard R. And the nominees for best Seinen are: Boys on the Run Vinland Saga, 7 Billion Needles I Am a Hero For me a great Seinen needs grit it needs over the top violence but above all else it needs to be emotional. And the winner of best Seinen manga of 2018 goes to Vinland Saga for giving me everything I look for when it comes to this genre plus it contains one of the best characters of the year Thorkell a bloodthirsty eccentric who dual wielding axes. And now for some quick fire rounds Best BL goes to Hinekure Chaser Best Yuri goes to the lovely After Hours The best Artist of 2018 is awarded to Irie Aki for their breath-taking art in Ran and the Gray World. Ending of this months submission with the big one My best manga of 2018 goes to Shimanami Tasogare.

Posting again because it looks like it got eaten last time, hopefully not again!

Will Schmuck

Hey Allies, Ever since I beat God of War earlier last year, I am pretty much only playing one game until Remake2 comes out. Is it Red Dead Redemption 2? No, that's still in the shrink wrap. Is it Spider Man? No, I got the Noir outfit and kind of stopped caring after that. Is it Let's Go Eevee? No, I got to the Silph Co. Tower and stopped there because portal puzzles are dumb. The answer is Monster Hunter World. I've got about 300 hours into the PS4 version and just passed the 100 hour mark on PC. I've made the best armor available and have killed the hardest monsters many times over including the Kulve Taroth raid, and I've participated in the seasonal events to get the great outfits that go with them. I've done it all with the Lance as my main weapon. I love the Lance because it feels like a fighting game in the sense that you are playing a spacing game with the monsters. You counter and punish the monsters with your counter and power guards, but only after you have learned their specific attacks, their movements, their timings, and their tells as to when they will do what moves. It feels like you as a player have to get better instead of relying on mindless grinding and number-increase dopamine, and while there is still an RNG element regarding decorations and the weapons that drop from Kulve Taroth, you are rewarded with the materials to make even better gear only after proving you can beat the monster without it. This brings me to my concern about yearly GOTY discussions; it feels like games will not win unless they are more of a guided experience. I say guided as opposed to linear because there are plenty of open world games that win GOTY awards, but I mean guided in a sense that the progression of getting better might involve some level of skill but more so involves only the investment of time. Time to progress through the narrative, time to grind those numbers up by mashing through encounters, etc. Monster Hunter World gives players more of a rewarding feeling because they require YOU to get better, not just your xp bar. YOU dodged that attack, YOU broke that tail, YOU learned from your mistakes and applied that knowledge. Don’t get me wrong, guided games still can evoke a lasting emotional impact and affect players in amazing and meaningful ways. I just feel like all too often, games like Monster Hunter that offer deep gameplay don’t get as much credit as games that instead offer deep story. Should a game that provides meaningful and rewarding gameplay for hundreds of hours not win because the story didn't make players cry or gasp in shock? Personally, I prefer a game that makes me want to keep playing because it’s fun as opposed to continuing on because I just haven’t seen credits yet. L&amp;R, Will Schmuck

Will Schmuck

just a reminder that patreon is dumb sometimes and it can delete posts but a reply is enough to save it. also you know i love these Lyn but i had to say it again

Nora Parón

just want to save my comment!

Nora Parón

Hey Brandon + Huber! I originally planned a year in review post, but realized that this basically took all year too so here goes. Late 2017 I finally got into the Yakuza series, and since then I played through every entry I could leading to 6, so I thought to give them each short reviews. Slight Yakuza spoilers ahead, hope you enjoy. Yakuza 0: Still one of my favorites in the series, 0 fleshed out Majima as one of the deepest characters in the whole series, while making a prequel that made a decent impact on the rest of the series. I’m still salty that the disco minigame stayed in 0, but I give it a 10. Kiwami: A good remake for what it had to work with, most of the substories boiled down to “someone tries to scam Kiryu” but Kiwami added some important connections between 0 and 1. Taking Nishiki from a one-note villain to one of my favorite characters of all time, this is a 9. Kiwami 2: I skipped 2 during the series playthrough because it wasn’t remade yet, but what I’ve played is a delight. Taking the fantastic experience system from 6, adding more to tie into 0, Kiwami 2 feels like a proper new entry. 9.5. 3: This game probably has the best vibes in the series, since Kiryu has fully left the yakuza and become an orphanage owner. Throughout the story, you help your orphans with minor problems and it fleshes out Sunshine Orphanage as a truly unforgettable place. The main plot is simple, but the Okinawan yakuza are extremely charming. 9.0. 4: I found Yakuza 4 to be really wonderful. Akiyama is one of my new favorite characters, Saejima too even with his simple fighting style. At first I didn’t care for Tanimura, but the way his backstory factors into the greater narrative redeems him. Waiting to play as Kiryu until the end seems tough, but the wait is definitely worth it. Also a 9. 5: At first, I really enjoyed 5. Kiryu’s life as an undercover taxi driver was compelling, but halfway through Chapter 2 the game forces you to become a hunter in the middle of nowhere for 2+ hours. Alongside that, the final character Shinada’s arc could have been removed and I wouldn’t care. That being said, the Finale is magnificent, which brings us to an 8. 6: I could quickly tell that this game was going to be one of my favorites. All of the new characters have some of the most expressive faces I’ve ever seen, and the story presents an interesting mystery that has a worthwhile payoff. By credits I managed to be invested in every single character, with a perfect culmination to end Kiryu’s story. An absolute 10. I hope you enjoyed! I certainly did, by the time I finished 6 I knew that this was one of my favorite series of all time, one that i’ll always be there for. Happy Showcase, greenbendy

Nora Parón

Happy New Year, Jones and Huber! 2018 is finally in the books and it was an intense year for me in gaming. When I first started submitting to the showcase, I talked about my battle against the backlog. Well over the last year, I made some serious headway, finishing 20 games and playing countless others. I got my first Platinum in Spider-Man and now have two 100 percent story runs and 100 percent in all 3 DLCs. I finally got to Horizon Zero Dawn, which is now my second Platinum, a game that is so good it makes me reconsider my GOTYs list from the previous year. I put in 45 hours into the Witcher 3 before needing to step away. I beat my first ever Mario (Odyssey), my first Pokemon since Fire Red (Sun), and my first Yakuza (Kiwami, but I’m currently about 40 hours into Yakuza 0). I went back and caught games that had passed me by when I beat Mass Effect Andromeda (unjustly maligned, though not perfect) and Batman Arkham Knight (maybe my least favorite game I’ve finished this year). Add in Red Dead 2, Super Smash Ultimate, Life is Strange, WWE 2K19’s Career Mode (please play this Huber it’s buckwild), and Nier Automata and we’re still nowhere near the full list. The number one thing I can take away from the past year is that I’ve never had such a varied gaming diet. I went outside of my comfort zone to try new things and had incredible moments of excitement. I even finally tried to get into online multiplayer for the first time in my life, with Overwatch showing me how fun it can really be. When I was looking at my list early last month, I had a sudden hankering for a solid 7, which lead me to the final game I beat of the year. Murdered: Soul Suspect was $2 on PSN last month and I knew my choice was made. It was short, it wasn’t going to be a masterpiece, and I could just kick back and enjoy. This game is the perfect 7, though Ben did not agree when he reviewed it (he gave it a 5.5). The story is basic but has decent twists and turns and I just love being a ghost detective. Biggest complaint would be the stealth/combat against the demons, which just get annoying. I ended up shouting “Could you just go back to being a fun game?” when the demon scream would let you know they arrived. My resolution for 2019 is continue getting more creative with my game choices to branch out and try new stuff. I’m looking forward to everything y’all do in the coming year. Love and Respect, Kyle “GOTYlocks” Lee P.S. Spider-Man is GOTY, Arthur Morgan is Best Character.

Kate Bishop

Recommendations: Movies: Iron Monkey (Hong Kong), Arsenic and Old Lace (1944), Porco Rosso - Crimson Pig (anime) Series: Baccano Games: Rain (PS3), Bishi Bashi

Trung Nguyen

Hello Jones and Huber. 2018 was a pretty cool year in gaming and I managed to somehow dive into all the games I really wanted to play. December I finished Shenmue 1, final 2 DLCs of Spider-Man and played some Megaman 11. Looking into January I have already few locked on and this might be the best for the month which used to be a quiet time just like for movies. Onimusha, Tales of Vesperia, Ace Combat 7 and Resident Evil 2 and for others Kingdom Hearts 3 too. And seeing what we are and possibly be getting, it's going to be another good year. Only few things disappointed me last year. Biggest was probably one that had a moment that totally ruined a pretty enjoyable game. A Way Out. Didn't enjoy much of the holiday since I was working except on Christmas Eve. Anyway here are a few drawings I did: <a href="https://twitter.com/tearjuengi/status/1080494641915576320" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/tearjuengi/status/1080494641915576320</a> Happy New Year and may this year be another great year for you and all the people in this community and beyond. Love and Respect TearjuEngi

Trung Nguyen

Hello, Jones and Huber! Hey everybody! I’ve got a quick little painting for you guys today! I made it as a gift for a future roommate (I’m moving to Florida to work as an intern at Walt Disney World in about a week here, and I’m losing my mind!), but I ended up being very proud of how it came out, so I thought I’d show you! I had a lot of fun with the colors in the background and painting the text. It doesn’t really show up in the images, but I went a little overboard with gold paint, so it shimmers like nobody’s business, which I love! Best wishes in the new year! &lt;3 Lyn images: <a href="https://imgur.com/a/auOBmbi" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://imgur.com/a/auOBmbi</a>

Lyn

Happy new year, Jones and Huber! The last time Huber was on the Showcase, I took the chance to talk about my love of a semi-obscure turn-of-the-millennium European stealth game (Robin Hood: Legend of Sherwood for the record). This time I want to talk about another one: Hidden and Dangerous, a 1999 first/third-person tactical shooter from Czech developer Illusion Softworks, who went on to make the Mafia series. Hidden and Dangerous plays broadly similarly to the original Rainbow Six or the Delta Force series, except that it’s set in the Second World War. You control a team of up to four SAS commandos, switching between team members on the fly to make use of their different skills and inventories. Your men are extremely fragile, going down in two or three shots, so the emphasis is on careful scouting, painstaking set-up, and efficient execution. You can access the map (itself a thing of beauty) at any time to plan out complicated multi-stage moves for your whole team – say you want your sniper to make his way to a ridge, while the rest of your men approach a guard post from three different angles. What makes Hidden and Dangerous well worth persevering with is the way it beautifully evokes its setting. This is the closest you will ever come to playing one of the great war films – think Guns of Navarone, 633 Squadron, The Eagle Has Landed etc. The game is divided into six multi-mission campaigns, which take you to a dazzling range of settings in occupied Europe: train stations, canal locks, airfields, cities, underground research stations. My favourite part of the game happens before the action starts. When you start a campaign, you are asked to choose eight soldiers from a selection of dossiers. Putting together a team of specialists for an ‘impossible’ mission is something that always gets me syndroming, and this game evokes this very elegantly. The names and personalities of my favourite ‘chaps’ are burnt into my memory: the leader William “Mad” Calvert, the sneak-thief Anthony “Eye” Switcher, the phenomenally strong Jiri “Butcher” Trebissky. After picking your team, you have to take enough equipment to see you through the whole campaign – if you run out of ammo for your British gear, you’ll have to make do with what you can scavenge off Jerry. The developers made the ‘Deluxe’ edition of the game available as freeware to promote Hidden and Dangerous 2. I highly recommend downloading it just to experience the first mission, in which you have to cross a guarded railway bridge in the middle of the night in order to meet up with your resistance contacts on the other side of an Italian river. This is a deeply evocative level, with some of the most effective sound design in gaming history – the teeming rain, the rush of the river, the peals of thunder, the roar of the train. Even after two decades and countless WW2 games, Hidden and Dangerous remains one of the most successful evocations of the ‘vibe’ of this period.

Samuel Cardwell

Hello Brandon and Huber! I am sorry for these 2 months in a row, I feel like these videos are against the original rules. This is different this time though, and I really didn't want to wait 9 months to show Huber this game. Please enjoy. <a href="https://youtu.be/mcKn7PM0Az8" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/mcKn7PM0Az8</a>

Super3dcow

Stay

Stepan Hakobyan

Hello Jones and Huber, Let’s talk GOTY. I’m going to choose from the games I played for the first time in 2018, most of them are not released in 2018 (I did not complete only one). So here is the list in order of playing from January to December. • Nier: Automata • SteamWorldDig 2 • Dungeon Slog (from newgrounds.com) • Tyranny • Dishonored 2 • Final Fantasy XV • Minit • Rayman Legends • Roguelight (from itch.io) • Shadow of the Colossus (2018) • Hill Climb Racing 2 • Splatter - Blood Red Edition • Mummy Demastered • God of War (2018) • Wizard of Legend (Co-op with my brother) • Road Redemption • Horizon: Zero Down • Revolution Ace • Shadow of the Tomb Raider • Lara Croft and the Table of Osiris (Co-op with my brother) • Odallus: The Dark Call • Vanquish • Salt and Sanctuary • Tower 57 • Vagrant Story Some general thoughts are: Rayman Legends is the jolliest game here. The music levels are superb. Horizon: Zero Down disappointed most. While the world and mechanics are unique, and I very much like it, I could not care less for Aloy and her journey. Lara is following her in Shadow of the Tomb Raider. Huber, thank you for Mummy Demastered. I would recommend Salt and Sanctuary to any Souls or Metroidvania fan. Vagrant Story. Wow, never played anything like this, really hardcore. Maybe God of War is the best game in 2018, but my GOTY goes to Nier: Automata. The masterminds behind the game made every aspect of the game perfect. No, not perfect, just right. They make you feel, they play with your emotions and expectations in every way. And the game will stay with you long after you finish it (hehehe). Thanks, and happy new year version 2.0.1.9.

Stepan Hakobyan

Stay

VGJunky

Hey guys, VGJunky here. Happy New Year! I think my post didn't make it into the last Community Showcase so I'm hoping it sticks this time. I've moved from gameplay videos to music this time around, and I decided to share a piano piece I learned about 10 years ago from One of the Greats. I've been trying to practice more lately and this was always one of my favorites to play, arranged by an old OCremix guy named kLuTz who's since retired from the scene. His work is pretty unknown out there so I wanted to keep it alive and spread the love. Please excuse the live/rough recording, I'm no pro by any means <a href="https://soundcloud.com/vgjunky/chrono-trigger-peaceful-days-1000-ad-arr-klutz" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://soundcloud.com/vgjunky/chrono-trigger-peaceful-days-1000-ad-arr-klutz</a>

VGJunky

Hey Jones. Hey Huber. Happy New Year! During the Game Awards, Roger Clark won the award for best performance, and to be honest, I was a little surprised. At the point I was at in Red Dead, I loved it, but Arthur still seemed like a 1 dimensional yes man. I'm happy to say that at the point I'm at now, my opinion has taken a complete 180. One moment in particular during a stranger mission sold it for me. You end up having a fist brawl inside an art gallery. During the escalation, I happened to pan the camera towards Arthur's face. I saw one of the biggest grins I've ever seen in a video game. And it didn't feel out of place or character at all! Here he is seeing a man getting in trouble for some rather funny reasons, slowly escalating into chaos, and he knows he's going to walk away from this with zero negative ramifications. I'm almost surprised there wasn't an exchange of “why are we fighting anyways?’ ‘haha I don't know mister, but I ain't bout to stop’ *followed by a punch to the face.” A few moments like this, and much more progress in the story have me with an even deeper appreciation for the game, but it still doesn't quite get the GOTY from me.   And that's why I'm glad you're here Huber, because otherwise I would feel a little strange using this descriptor. I wanted to take a few moments to talk about “savoring the kill”. More specifically, about God of War on the hardest difficulty with absolutely zero HUD. Plenty of games get compared to Dark Souls with varying actuality, but this is one place I think it works. From the very first draugr to the Valkyries, if you don't have movesets practically memorized and acute focus, it can spell an easy death for Kratos. This really encourages you to use all the tools at your disposal and it feels absolutely amazing for it! Making that very first draugr encounter (which took me nearly an hour and a half, for lack of mentioned tools) to the biggest of the bosses all incredibly fulfilling to finally get that glory kill, most of which I would subconsciously jerk the controller in the direction of the action of the kill. When I played the game on normal in April, it more or less cemented itself as my GOTY, but going through it again has elevated it to one of my most frustrating, but also most fulfilling gameplay experiences I've ever had.  Also picked up Smash Ultimate. Shout out to the tournament streams from you guys, which transformed my view from an exasperated o boy more smash, to an excited o boy more smash. I'm a Young Link or Snake main myself. Have an awesome January. Good games are on the horizon. ‘Til next time!

Jordan Kirk

Joy!

mikkel hervel nemmøe

And the official Easy Allies GOTY 2018 goes to... Red Dead Redemption 2! Yipee!

mikkel hervel nemmøe

After the past few years, it was kinda odd to not have PSX. Then again, after the prior year's, that might have been for the best. I did play a few games throughout the month though. The final DLC for Spider-Man came out and it did not disappoint. I got two glorious bugs that were so bad that a reload was forced in order to continue. For one, there is a mission where you are chasing someone. Shortly after saying don't move, they did just that. Frozen in place mid-chase, I approached them, kicked them, tried webbing them and nothing. Had to reload the mission. The second bug happened during the final battle were I needed to restart the battle. I won't go into it for the same reason I didn't clip and tweet it, it was the final battle. It was a fitting end to my playthrough of Spider-Man. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed my time with the game a lot, but it sure has some kinks that I hope they work out for the next game. I also played the Shadow of the Colossus remake as it was a Christmas gift. Controls are kinda junk, but it is a beautiful game with a great soundtrack, so I guess it evens out. It was fun to play through. Other than that, played more Tetris Effect. My brother and I took turns playing Mystery Mode a lot. I think it may be my favorite in the game. I do love how the game could just screw you over at any point, so it keeps you on your toes. I find that to be a lot of fun. I also have been playing the Dreams beta and that is all I will and should say for that. Anyhoo, 2018 was a great year for gaming. My top 5 games of the year, from 5 to 1, were God of War, Moss, Monster Hunter: World, ASTRO BOT: Rescue Mission, and Tetris Effect. 2019 is shaping up to be a great year as well. It is also a year that games I have been waiting for will finally, hopefully, be released. Kingdom Hearts III, Dreams, and Shenmue III. I am ready! Also, who knows what the year will bring. I had no interest in Monster Hunter: World and even thought it was trash after playing the beta, but it ended up being one of my favorites of the year. We didn't know ASTRO BOT: Rescue Mission or Tetris Effect existed until Mid-2018 and those ended up not being only some of my favortie VR experiences, but my favorite games that I played this year. So, yea, who knows what 2019 will bring. There is already plenty to get me excited, but the unknown has me even more so. From the days of known we leave behind, to the unwritten ones that lay ahead, I hope the new year brings you all days of joy, good health, and is just simply fantastic. Cheers!

Jason A. Sackel

Hello Huber and Jones! Hello everyone ! I hope you enjoyed your break thoroughly and I am eagerly anticipating the changes to come ! I also might not be in chat this time, because there's yet another festive dinner in store for me this evening (yes, it's evening here). This month, as a reminder of the festive season that we just left behind us (or are about to), I'm sharing with you something that's been a musical tradition for me for the past four years : take Christmas carols and reinterpret them as epic, sort of Zimmer-esque pieces that are frankly better suited for devastating magical spells and galloping through the battlefield than for jolly gift-giving. This year's selection for my Epic Christmas of 2018 was O Tannenbaum. Over the last 3 years I've also done Jingle Bells, Carol of the Bells and Silent Night, so if anyone wants to check these out, I've included a link to the playlist in my post. Happy 2019 to all, and to start us off in a good direction, I'll leave you with some of the last words from the Twelfth Doctor : « Hate is always foolish, and love is always wise. Laugh hard, run fast, be kind. » The link for this month's piece of music : <a href="https://youtu.be/0vKxgN7qMVY" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/0vKxgN7qMVY</a> The whole playlist for those interested : <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz0R17apW8GxmugWOPJl10QZaRko7sV8d" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz0R17apW8GxmugWOPJl10QZaRko7sV8d</a>

Kévin Gillet

Hi Brandon and Huber! Hope you are all well and enjoyed the holidays, I know that I did. I finally got a chance to fly home to Sweden and see family and friends, that I haven't seen in way too long. This month I'm going back to talk about something, which I haven't touched for a while. Star Citizen. As you may remember, in the last couple community showcases, I've spoken about my crazy hiking trips and about being stuck in the Welsh countryside and what not, but now its back to the games. Whilst I was visiting home, one of the biggest patches for Star Citizen ever finally dropped. I spent an evening around one of my best friends house and we discovered what was new. We have finally gotten a brand new planet and a couple moons, among other things. We were so excited when we jumped into my friends MISC Freelancer and blasted off to Loreville. a new HUGE city on planet Hurston. They have introduced “no fly zones” so we almost got shot down a dozen times before we managed to call in for a landing request and fly into one of their hangars. Starting to explore by foot inside the city, we quickly got lost (despite the signage), before we eventually found the train transit system, which they implemented in order to quickly get between areas. We were a little bit unlucky as we missed the first train and had to wait a whooping 150 seconds before the next one. Making it to one of the big areas, we discovered that they FINALLY have implemented a shop that we can buy ships in for in-game currency. Just a shame that some of the ships costs way above our budget as for now. They have said that this is to be fine tuned.. but I can't wait to walk in and buy my very own Prospector, Hammerhead or Arrow ship. Instead we headed back to the hangar where we spawned in the Aegis Sabre Comet. I must say that this is my absolute favourite ship thus far in Star Citizen. I just cant wait for a chance to buy my own. We went airborne and started to fly around above the city to get more of a top view and take it all in. Unfortunately we soon got attacked by another player. As I never really have flown with flight sticks before, I quickly got hunted down and blown to pieces... oh well, at least it was quite an adventure! What games do you love to just spend time exploring in? Love and Respect, Lotias (Images can be found here: <a href="https://imgur.com/a/hJTldtL" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://imgur.com/a/hJTldtL</a> )

Sebastian Hall

Dear Jones and Huber: Just thought I’d share a favorite and timely memory of mine that I think the two of you would appreciate. It was a calm, chilly Midwestern Saturday evening in early 1998. In a couple of hours, some friends would be coming over for a night of cheap pizza, movies, and video games. To prepare for the festivities, my dad said he'd take me to Blockbuster so I could pick out something new for us to play. Pacing up and down the aisles, I kept thinking about the responsibility I had to select a game we could all enjoy well into the late hours of the night. On the other hand, it was also an opportunity to impress my friends with something more than a little inappropriate for 3rd graders. So when I finally laid eyes on the game I had been dreaming about ever since it appeared on the cover of my monthly GamePro, selfishness took over, and I knew what it would be: Resident Evil 2. Having convinced myself that this was the best choice, I wasn’t concerned when my dad suggested more than once that I consider a sports title or when my friends listened apprehensively as I described the game based on my limited knowledge. I knew I had something special on my hands. Unfortunately, I just didn’t know the way in which that would manifest itself. Deciding to start with Leon, we promptly found ourselves surrounded by flames and a horde of zombies slowly encroaching on our position. Having no experience with the series and no manual accompanying the rental, we struggled to decipher the controls, particularly how to aim and shoot. Frustration and fright followed, with each of us reluctantly taking our turn to try and make any meaningful progress. But morale quickly faded, and the once lively party decayed into silence. After seeing Leon dragged to the ground with the bloody "You Died" appearing on screen over and over again, we weren't just scared, we were disturbed. Less than a half hour later and it was over. We cut our losses and realized the nightmares weren’t worth it. A quick phone call and trip to Blockbuster later and we were able to exchange RE2 for something a little more jolly. We then spent the rest of the night beating each other up in Wayne Gretzky 98. L&amp;R, Trevor P.S. I eventually gave Resident Evil another shot with Nemesis and loved it so much that I went back to RE1 and 2, with it now being one of my favorite series of all time.

Dont disappear

Desquick

Hey Self, hope this works this time.

Hey Jones! Yo Huber!! I don't have enough time write a real comment. Eli (silent N.) Peters

I was tempted to repeat myself last year and make a comment about the upcoming trip to MAGFest but I see at least one other patron is doing a great job explaining the joys of the annual event for me, so instead, I just want to inform Huber that at MAGFest 2013, Yuzo Koshiro of Streets of Rage fame did some live DJ-ing of his own music and it was euphoric to dance with a big crowd to tracks like Go Straight from Streets of Rage 2. Here is a clip of it, starting at the 25 minute mark. Less than two minutes in, you'll see someone holding up a fake pipe and the crowd is chanting "Pipe!" <a href="https://youtu.be/9z2ujbw1OBA?t=1501" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/9z2ujbw1OBA?t=1501</a>

Joseph Caruso

THIRD TIME IS THE CHARM PATREON Hello Allies! All of the Love All of the Respect This month the Shenmue EZA DUB Project continues. Thanks to Ben last month for continuing the tradition of above average voice acting for this project. Today is a very important day. Today is not unlike the day Sora first held a key blade. It was meant to be. Mr. Michael P. Huber. You have been cast as Main Character/Best Boy, Ryo Hazuki. If you would be so kind as to read these many lines. Thus immortalizing yourself as the greatest Dreamcast protagonist of all time. RYO HAZUKI: -Huh? Ine-San! -Ine-San… -My Father? -Fuku-San! FUKU-SAN! -Fuku-San. -Father! -“WHY YOU…!” -“Fa-Father.” -“Wha…what are you saying? Father!” -***”No…Father!…NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!” -“I’m Fine, really…and you? Are you alright?” -“I understand…but you needn’t work too hard.” -“Do you know where fuku-san is?” -“Really…Thanks.” -“Don’t worry, i’m fine… I want to ask you about that man.” -“The man called Lan Di…What did he talk with my father about?” -“The black suits…catch the names?” -“I see…Thanks Fuku-san.” -“If you remember anything at all, be sure to tell me.” -“They killed my father right in front of me. -“I will have my revenge.” -“I need to do this for my father.” -“Hey.” -“Hey!” “Hello,” -“Hi, Megumi”. -“You gotta kitten in there?” -“Sure.” -“Is This Your Kitten? -“All alone? -“”A black car?” -“So you’re gonna keep her here?” -“I See.” -“I Understand.’ -“Wait a second.” -“Do this…so it’s easier to eat.” -“She’s so tiny, but already an orphan… -SURPRISED: “Yamagishi-san?” -“Yeah, it’s close by there.” -“Megumi, you need to be careful around cars too. -“Well, I’ve got to go now.” -“Oh…well…when i think of a good one i’ll let you know.” -“Bye-Bye” -“Excuse me.” -“Is that so?” -“Sorry, maybe later okay?” -“Yes.” -“ Yeah” -“No reason see ya later.” -“On the day of the incident, did you see some men in black suits?” -“You mean a black cat?” -“Was there anything else unusual about that day?” -“So thats what happened,” -“I’m looking for anything at all, is there anything you remember?” -“100 yen each” -“Maybe just one” -“I Should Try Again” -“I Love These” -“This is Cool!” -“Maybe I Should Get Another.” -“Nah Not Today.” -“I Should buy one.” -“This Again?” -“Hey, What’s this?” -“How is your back?” -“I heard from someone in the neighborhood that you almost got ran over by a car.” -“Could you tell me about what happened with that car?” -“A Black car…” -“Did you see the license plate number?” -“Oh, well I’m glad to hear your okay.” -"Got a Minute?" -“My Father must have known Lan-Di was coming.” Names: “Sumiya-San” “Yamagishi-san” “Mishima-San” “Nozomi…” -“Previously on Shenmue “ -SUBTLE CHOKING NOISES -FIGHTING BASED GRUNTS FLASH BACK LITTLE KID RYO -Ok…I’l eat them. -STRUGGLING TO EAT A GROSS THING NOISES “Yuck” -…a friend from school… -Well…a friend is…a friend. -Oh… -Mmmm… -Uh… -I… -LIL RYO FIGHTING BASED GRUNTS -Huuhhh Huhhh HIYAA! I assume that was amazing. Well Done Huber. Thank You. L&amp;R Your Friend Dan Allen Detroit, MI PROJECT SO FAR: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUUk-a7SquQ9QGbcBGrs6JOIGDgFWLYbA" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUUk-a7SquQ9QGbcBGrs6JOIGDgFWLYbA</a>

Dan Allen

Hello Brandon and Huber. I have been a fan of GT since 2008 (I am 21 now), it was my main gaming outlet and it introduced me to E3 so thank you. I got really sad when GT ceased to be, it felt like there was nowhere else to go, I have been watching only easy allies since day one, but I could not pledge because I don't have disposable income, love the group streams and all the podcasts, you are an important part of my daily routine. I finally finished my game!!, I have been working on it for the past year and a half, I can only work on summer time due to my education. Thank you very much for filling the lonely hours making the game. Here is the trailer (first time editing a video): <a href="https://youtu.be/t7bbk9MENfQ" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/t7bbk9MENfQ</a> And here is a steam code to try the game (please fellow patrons I beg you to not use the code): XRZG7-GV3Z2-KD8N3 Its not out yet even though the trailer says so, just facing some "Achievements" hiccups. The game is a Two-Players versus game where one player controls the HERO and one player controls the portals to spawn MONSTERS in real-time. Combine multiple MONSTERS with different abilities, Devise plans to corner the HERO, and seize victory. Or be the HERO and survive the onslaught of MONSTERS. It would mean the world to me if I see you try it (it requires 2 controllers) L&amp;R Mubarak S Alkhuzaee

NOTE: For word count sake I only commented on the games that weren't on the last list, except Owlboy, which i feel bad for.

Hi again Brandon and Huber, Happy New Year! This worked out quite nicely, last time Huber was on I ranked the games I'd completed so far in 2018, I now have the completed list. I lost 3 months of my spare time animating at the end of the year so didn't get through as many, and crucially, have only played about 5 hours RDR2, so sorry Brandon, that doesn't rank here. 19/ Owlboy, Switch Sorry Owlboy, still bottom of my list, nothing personal. 18/ Donkey Kong Country, Snes Mini 17/ Wolfenstein II, PS4 16/ Bloodstained Curse of the Moon, Switch Don't really have history with Castlevania (something I mean to rectify) so not sure how this compares, but I enjoyed this and look forward to the full Bloodstained 15/ Final Fantasy III / VI, Snes Mini 14/ Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Switch I'm surprised this doesn't rank higher either, just been that kind of year! 13/ Overcooked, PS4 12/ Megaman Legacy Collection 2, Switch The only thing I was playing when making my Santa animation, so thank's for keeping me relatively sane Megaman! Best to worst: 9, 10, 7 and 8 11/ Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, Switch 10/ X-Com 2, PS4 Just eeks out Rabbids because it has more depth in its systems. 9/ South Park: The Fractured But Whole, PS4 8/ Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Switch Just competed Adventure mode, ends very well but takes a little too long to get there. 7/ God of War, PS4 Sorry Huber, sorry Huber, sorry Huber! I thoroughly loved it while I was playing it, and can't fault it's design, mechanics, looks or story, but I really haven't thought about it much since putting the controller down, so can't put it higher... sorry Huber. 6/ Bayonetta, Switch 5/ Rayman Legends, PS4 4/ Streets of Rage Remake, PC Huber if you still haven't played this you've got to grab Brad and stick him on a sofa next to you! As a long time fan this is exactly what I wanted, branching paths, unlockable characters, classic and remixed music, I've got a lot of respect for the people who put this together. 3/ Spider-man, PS4 Was so close to putting this on the top spot but this game cheated because letting me be Spider-man nets you a few bonus points and I think it knows this. That said I still sometimes boot it up just to swing around the city. 2/ Celeste, Switch 1/ NieR Automata, PS4 So yup, NieR is still top for me, I love that game and encourage more people to play it. But since it came out last year I think that must make Celeste my GOTY! The original Red Dead is one of my all time favourite games so I do expect the sequel to place high on my 2019 list, but I'm also exited to see what surprises there will be, I would never have predicted how this list turned out! Love &amp; respect Dave Cleland

Safety comment just in case Patreon is still awful.

Phazonmasher

Hey Jones and Huber, While you read this, I'll be driving through West Virginia on my way to the best damn games show in the country - MAGFest. Short for Music and Games Festival, MAGFest has become the highlight of my year that I've sacrificed a Christmas break for to attend since 2014. MAGFest is so special compared to every other games event because it's a community. Sure, there are thousands of people crammed into the Gaylord Convention Center in Washington DC for four days, but where else are you gonna find amateur musicians playing a Metroid inspired set in the hallways, or getting to see amazing performances from the best people in games music? Only at MAGFest baby! So for this month, I'm gonna share my top three MAGFest experiences. 3. Seeing Mighty No. 9 music performed live. Now, I know what you're thinking! Mighty No. 9 didn't have the best music, but let me tell you that hearing it performed live by a band before the game's release when expectations were still high was pretty magical. Also, in hindsight, it's very funny having Keiji Inafune come out on stage to announce one more delay and saying it will be worth the wait. 2. Seeing the score to Journey performed live alongside live gameplay. A few years ago, Austin Wintory, composer of Journey, did something daring. He invited a contest winner up to the stage and they began to play Journey. He then conducted a live orchestra to play the score along with the gameplay hitting every beat along the way. He also had an artist speed paint a Journey piece during the three hour concert and sold it for charity the next day. It was incredible. 1. Meeting Dave Wise. I have friends in the VGM scene and when they told me they had Dave Wise, ex-Rare composer who did Donkey Kong Country, Battletoads, etc,, cornered in a private performance room, I rushed up to meet him. I didn't get to say much to him because he was about to bust out his saxophone and play a set of DKC music with a jazz ensemble that had met in the room a few minutes prior. I really appreciated how great of a guy Dave is though when I went down the next day to have him sign my copy of Donkey Kong Country 2 and he remembered me. It's still one of my best memories. There are so many more stories, but I'm trying not to die in West Virginia if it decided to snow this year. Let's hope not! But if the allies or anybody else ever decides to come to MAGFest, you won't be disappointed. It's the biggest and best family there is. L&amp;R

Phazonmasher

2018 was not my year for games. Normally, six to nine games I’m interested in come out in a given year, but last year? I only played FOUR. And one of those is actually three remasters in one package. Most games I want were either finally dated for 2019 or pushed into 2019. Before my lists, let me get the obvious over with: No, the Switch still doesn’t have enough I’m interested in. No, I don’t have any connection or affinity for the Spider-man property or character. And no, Westerns are not my thing. Of the four games I DID play this year, Shadow of the Tomb Raider sits at the bottom. It’s by no means bad, but O.K. isn’t good enough in today’s market. The 2013 reboot surprised me by how much I liked it and I had an enjoyable time in Rise of the Tomb Raider, thus I felt beholden to finish out the trilogy. This game is… fine. It feels much too derivative to Rise, there are fewer combat encounters, and the thing that REALLY bummed me out: technical problems, particularly with audio. Going from decent to good, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed Detroit: Become Human. And while the end of Kara’s arc left me irritated because the ending I got was not reflective of how I was trying to get through her story, I still enjoyed the overall narrative and the follow-up full playthrough to see just how different the game can be throughout. Side note: After that ending, I now understand the fervor behind Mass Effect 3’s ending. I’m not THAT upset from my experience with Detroit, but I get it. My second favorite experience this year was Spyro: Reignited Trilogy, and while it feels weird to me to discuss remasters in a GOTY list, this package is incredibly fun, albeit VERY short and easy (So much so, I platinumed all three games in about three or four days. Seriously, each takes less than six hours to complete everything possible). They look FANTASTIC and were a lovely revisit of my first gaming franchise. (The original Spyro was my first game EVER. I got a PS1 bundled with it for Christmas when I was six.) And finally, my GOTY (and apparently A LOT of other people’s as well): God of War. What else has there not been said about this game? With that in mind I won’t dwell on it longer than to say: This is one of my favorite games of all time. Currently, my anticipated games list sits at 17, 10 are currently slated to come out in 2019 (From LEAST to MOST anticipated): Gears Tactics Beyond Good &amp; Evil 2 Death Stranding Halo: Infinite Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe Edition Days Gone Metro: Exodus CTR: Nitro Fueled CyberPunk 2077 Wolfenstein: Youngblood Ori and the Will of the Wisps Gears 5 DOOM: Eternal The Last of Us Part II Kingdom Hearts III Final Fantasy VII: Remake

Brandon K Gann

Lock it in.

Tokyo Slim

Happy new year Allies! First of all, thanks for your feedback on my Last of Us trailer last month, Brandon! It had been a few weeks since I’d made my last trailer, but your feedback really propelled me to get back to it. So I made a new one! This time, I chose Red Dead Redemption 2, because a) it’s one of the greatest games ever made, obviously, and b) while re-watching John Wick, I realized I could make the song that I went on to use work with RDR2 well enough. Anyway, I’ve tried to take Brandon’s feedback from last month into account as well, so I hope it’s a better trailer. I hope you enjoy it! L&amp;R! <a href="https://youtu.be/T6UJ3-QPRK8" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/T6UJ3-QPRK8</a>

I rarely write anything even though I have been a patreon since day one. but here's my top five list of games 2018 Nr5: super smash ultimate Just a joly game. Nr4: red dead redemption 2. love the game but too slow pace and strange control to be able to be higher up Nr3: assassin's creed odyssey. Just love the setting, its just the best Assassins creed game. Nr2: spider-man ps4. I don't care about trophies, I platinum this game. couldn't stop playing. Nr1: God of War. Its a Good story, great game play. And i still love to play tis game. Ps. watch Goblin Slayer on crunchyroll its 12episods long. "I'm not saving the world. I just kill goblins." 5/5

<a href="https://tinyurl.com/y787pa62" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/y787pa62</a> <a href="https://tinyurl.com/y9jpclbx" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/y9jpclbx</a> <a href="https://tinyurl.com/y9mj7bn6" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/y9mj7bn6</a> <a href="https://tinyurl.com/ya7j5q4q" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/ya7j5q4q</a> <a href="https://tinyurl.com/ydxm45mv" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/ydxm45mv</a> In December of 2017, I went to PSX. My two most vivid memories of that trip were with the both of you, so I thought I share some of the pics I took during that trip. I hung out at Disneyland with Jones and some other allies. I ate a turkey leg. Had some Dole Whip. We went to the Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Jones has probably told all those stories a hundred times before, but I think he just loves Disneyland so much that he doesn't mind. Or he's too much of a pro to hide it if he does. :) After the EZA meetup, and what was probably a very long day for Huber, he and I were both walking the same direction {he was going back to his car, and I was heading back to my hotel}. He looked and sounded utterly exhausted, but we talked about our excitement for what we'd seen from Yakuza 6 on the PSX floor, Monster Hunter World, and how stacked this year was looking to be. I was a little worried about him getting home, but I feel like as the conversation went on, he started feeling the hype again and it got him pumped up enough to get home safe. It was one of the most fun 4 day weekends of the past few years for me. When it ultimately became clear to me that PSX wasn't happening this year, it made me sad, because this is the stuff I feel like I missed doing again. Hopefully PSX isn't dead, it's just sleeping. It was a hell of a last 12 months, gents. Looking forward to the new studio, and Year 3. Happy New Year to everyone!

Tokyo Slim

Hello , Huber and Jones I haven't heard you talk about this on camera much; what are your thoughts on the XMen joining the MCU? Do you think it should be a new cast or the same cast? and how would you want them to join? I was thinking a new cast that better resembles the Xmen comic books look with there tone of voice closer to the characters from the Xmen animated series. Anyway just curious what your thoughts were. Love &amp; Respect MGSJunkie

MGS-JUNKIE

this is SO SICK

Noah Weinstein

Hi guys! :D It's been kind of an exhausting month with the holidays and family stuff, but I finally got myself a PS4 and tore through Spider-Man, which was pure unadulterated joy (and maybe my favourite characterization of Peter Parker). Spider-Punk forever. I know this showcase is gonna be stuffed full of GOTY lists, but I did want to shout out my personal GOTY, The Missing: JJ Macfield and the Island of Memories. Please play The Missing. It’s like 7 hours long at most and genuinely shook me to my core (even though it took me a while to get through because I’m terrible at puzzles). It’s one of the most surprising, nuanced and emotionally-aware stories I’ve ever experienced and I want everyone on the planet to play it. What I’m actually here to showcase is that in a few days I’m releasing my fourth EP as Continental Drift, which is a songwriting and music project I’ve basically been using to document my last years as a teenager. It was a little stressful to produce a 6-track album in my living room in under 3 weeks, but I think it turned out really well. It’s called Molotov Mocktail and if anyone’s interested they can check out continental-drift.bandcamp.com on January 6th to hear it, or listen to the other 3 EPs I’ve released in the past year and a half right now! Here’s the cover art to show off: <a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DvdOdviU0AAfa2J.jpg" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DvdOdviU0AAfa2J.jpg</a> I hope you guys had a relaxing holiday, 2019 is shaping up to be a landmark year for EZA and I can’t wait to see where it takes you! L&amp;R &lt;3

Noah Weinstein

Hello Jones and Huber! At the start of 2018 I began the year by giving my top five games from 2017 (which was, starting at number five, Night in the Woods, Hiveswap: ACT 1, Splatoon 2, Persona 5 and Hollow Knight, in case you missed it) and initially my plan was to do the same this year, but the more I thought it, the more I realized I just couldn't list these games in the same way that I did last year. As such, here are my five favourite games of 2018, in no particular order. Starting off I have one I think a lot of people played, Monster Hunter World. I've been playing Monster Hunter since 3 Ultimate and I feel confident in saying that this is the best the series has looked, sounded and felt to date. Every little detail has been polished to astounding degrees and the ways in which the environment play a part in the hunt add a completely new dimension to the way you play. Best part of the game? The Great Sword's True Charge Slash. The MOST satisfying attack in video game history. After that, we have Iconoclasts. I have some misgivings about this game, but despite that, it is beautifully animated, has a great soundtrack and features a ton of really strong characters and a fantastic story, with some of the most gripping setpieces I've seen all year. Best part of the game? The two battles with the (absolutely wonderful) rival, Agent Black, and their corresponding battle themes, Jet Black and Moonlight. Third game on the list gets in on a technicality because it's not actually a game, it's an expansion, a SPLATOON 2: OCTO EXPANSION if you will. I already dedicated most of two Community Showcases to this particular experience (the July and August ones to be specific), so I'll keep it brief, but the best part of the expansion? The long-winded ending sequence, featuring heaps of great songs and a beautifully climactic final boss. Second to last, we have what else but Super Smash Brothers Ultimate. Much like Monster Hunter World, I feel like Ultimate takes an existing formula and polishes it to a mirror shine. Special mention goes to the balancing, because while there are still some characters that are stronger or weaker than the norm the power level is much consistently higher this time around than it's ever been before. Best part of the game? King K. Rool. It's been ten years but my man is back and stomping on the competition with more style and substance than ever. And last but not least, Tetris Effect. How do you even talk about Tetris Effect? What makes the game so important for me personally is its unrelenting, unapologetic positivity. Sure, it's meditative and beautiful, but it's the way in which it revels in its beauty and is so eager to share that joy with the player that makes it special. The best part of Tetris Effect is that it has a message and that message is that the world is beautiful. To quote the lyrics of the final level of Tetris Effect's Journey Mode: Look at this World we're made for Come with me We'll take tomorrow Everything you want Is waiting for you Love and Respect, and happy 2019, Small Leviathan

Small Leviathan

Hi Jones and Huber! I was hoping to put together a short progress video of an axe I'm working on, but with the weather being what it is in Canada, I haven't had much opportunity to work on it proper. Instead, here's some drawings I did of my own spidersona I was inspired to make after seeing people make their own after watching into the spiderverse! Their name is SILK or Silent-Spider! <a href="https://twitter.com/flexhealer/status/1079582619942014976" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/flexhealer/status/1079582619942014976</a>

Kit Snow

Hi Brandon and Huber! Happy New Year! I've been on a huge Final Fantasy kick, trying to play through the entire series over the last year, including some of the more meaningful spinoffs such as World of Final Fantasy. That being said, I just wanted to share some of my favorite moments from the series - these can range from epic boss fights to scenes brimming with emotion. Feel free to comment and share yours as well! I'll try to stay as spoiler-free as possible: FF1 - The literal beginning of it all, sitting at the title screen looking at the landscape, an indication of the journey to come. FF6 - This is one of my favorite games of all time, so I have to name three. The magitek armor march near the beginning while the credits roll and the soundtrack plays, Celes' song in the play, and the surprise twist where a "secondary" villain becomes the main antagonist and changes the world forever. FF7 - The long-awaited battle against Sephiroth, where One-Winged Angel forever was etched into my mind. FF8 - The attempted assassination sequence. I loved getting the party ready for this and the aftermath of it. Also, it is a bit corny in hindsight, but I'll always love Eyes on Me playing in the spaceship while Squall holds Rinoa. FF9 - The ending in general. A great end for a medieval fantasy - a tinge of sadness, with lots of happy. FF10 - While parts of the story, dialogue, and voice-acting get a bad rap now, especially the laughing sequence, the overall story succeeds enough to make the ending, as a certain character fades away, work extremely well. FF14 - The first MMO that I ever played, and I'm still hooked. Working with other players to clear each dungeon and trial (aka the bosses of this game) are powerful memories on their own, but as far as the game itself, the entire Heavensward expansion provided some of my favorite Final Fantasy content of all time, with many memorable characters, story arcs, and bosses, paired with some of the best music the series has had. FF15 - It may have needed some patching and DLC to make a decent story into a good-to-great one, but the ending is perhaps the best in the entire series. I do feel like it earns it as well, with this being the party of characters that together I cared the most for, and a villain that I can sympathize with and want to learn more about. Thanks again for reading my random thoughts this month, and I can't wait to experience another wonderful year of Easy Allies content! Love and Respect - Tyler :)

I'm really quite proud of these video essays I did to celebrate Game of the Year 2018. Feel free to pick your favorite 3 minutes. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1zDCgJzZUy-HivEl-TNHdJl_dvff5mJd" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1zDCgJzZUy-HivEl-TNHdJl_dvff5mJd</a>

Hello Huber &amp; Jones! ¡Feliz año nuevo, aliados! (That's happy new year, allies in Spanish). 2018 was a weird year for my gaming, and since I'm not sure of how to sum it up, I'll just ramble a bit. Definitely the thing that made me more proud this year is beating the original Super Mario Bros. in the NES playing all the 32 levels without using continues, and then doing it again with the second quest. I don't think I have ever done that in the original game. Another Mario related achievement was beating odyssey playing co-op with the wife. We had a lot of fun looking for moons all over the place and capturing foes. It's weird to know that is a new mechanic, after a few hours it feels so natural that one could think this is how Mario has always worked. And on a very different note, this is the year we finally went Pro! We had been willing to get a PS4 for a while now, but just when we were about to pull the (devil?) trigger, the Pro was announced, and since we were not in a hurry, having a healthy backlog of about 50 games combining 3 older consoles; we decided to wait until we could snatch one at a decent price. That just happened this November and we could finally play the one game that got us more excited this generation: Peggle 2. I'm not joking, I could have been the only person excited in that E3 when EA &amp; Popcap announced it, and I remember getting home and telling the wife we would need to get an xbox one, and when she replied with disbelief why was that, I told her that peggle 2 was just announced as an exclusive for the console, to which her reply was “crap, yeah, we'll need and xbox one now”. Good thing, like I said, we were not in a hurry; the game was eventually released in the PS4, the console we knew for sure we would get, so we didn't have to buy the xbox just for it. Even greater was our luck, when the very weekend I setup the PS4, peggle 2 was put on sale for a third of it's price. While I bought “Until dawn” and “A Way Out” with the console, they are still factory sealed waiting for us to beat peggle 2. And lastly, It took me a couple of weeks after getting the console to realize that I no longer have to wait for RE2 Remake, I could play it at launch; I have a PS4 now! I have been waiting for games for so long that I hadn't considered getting it at launch as a possibility. My Birthday is in 10 days so... I could justify it that way easily. What do you think I should do, allies? Love &amp; Respect, César.

César Villa

Congratulations guys on a massive year for Easy Allies and 2019 os shaping up to be the biggest yet. Without further ado this is my gaming year that was: Game I have Completed 2018 Horizon Zero Dawn (2016) God of War 3 remastered (2015/2010) Rime (2017) Yakuza 0 (2017) Uncharted 3 (2015/2011) Axiom Verge (2015) Jak and Daxter (2001) Kirby Star Allies (2018) The Witcher 3 (2015) Psychonauts (2006) The Mummy Demastered (2017) Cat Quest (2017) Jotun (2015/18) God of War (2018) Bloodstaind: curse of the moon (2018) Pokemon Quest (2018) Hollow knight (2018) Monster Hunter World (2018) Captain Toad Treasure Tracker (2014/2018) The Legend of Zelda (1986) Minit (2018) Uncharted 4 (2016) Pokemon Lets go Pikachu (2018) Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018) My personal GOTY's based on games I have played. 1/2. God Red of Dead War Redemption 2 3. Hollowknight (switch) 4. Monster hunter 5. Spiderman 6. Super Smash Bros Ultimate 7. Bloodstaind: Curse of the Moon 8. Pokemon lets go 9. On Rush 10. Kirby Star Allies Honourable mention: Minit My Film of the Year: Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse I will miss the garage and the ad-hoc nature of easy allies that welcomed me in but I wish you all the best for the future and hope that your honesty and originality continue in the studio space. Lets all go into 2019 with a smile Love and Respect. Steven Beaumont

Steven Beaumont

Hello allies. In this post I’ll rank my top 10 games of 2018. But two things first: 1. God of War is not on my list, because it’s my most disappointing game of 2018. Not because it’s bad, but because I didn’t care about any character and I forgot the plot the moment I’ve stopped playing. I can enjoy games just for the gameplay, but after such reviews I was expecting another The Last of Us. 2. I haven’t played Red Dead Redemption II yet. I don’t want to repeat my God of War mistake, so I’m waiting until all hype dies out to give it a fair chance to impress me. And here are my GotYs: 10. Far Cry 5. Stealth with a bow is super fun, but there’s too much grind, and companion’s dialog had severe glitches. 9. Gris. Perfect game for one relaxing evening. 8. Hitman 2. Learning the levels and manipulating AI is extremely fun. Alas, there are only 5 stages and once you learned the environment, this puzzle game loses most of its charm. 7. Marvel’s Spider-Man. The story felt like watching season 7 of Game of Thrones without the first six, and was constantly interrupted by a new list of side activities. But the combat and traversal felt great, and besides distractingly bad interior mapping, the game looks good. 6. Astro Bot Rescue Mission. This is an exceptional VR title with a full game inside. The game itself has great level design and it’s my #6 only because I don’t enjoy platformers that much. 5. Shadow of the Tomb Raider. Story is forgettable, but Lara is very likeable character with great VO. Also exploration, traversing and puzzles are extremely good. 4. Forza Horizon 4. This game was a joy to play from the first start to the last finish, and many missions have extremely clever setup. Also it looks gorgeous, and Xbox Game Pass makes it one of the easiest purchases of 2018. 3. The Banner Saga 3. I could praise its story, music, art, battles and choices, but I say just one thing: not many games make you feel hopeless after a shocking loss, and then force you to master yourself and try to safe what is still left. 2. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. I love this franchise, but I wasn’t ready for Odyssey. I wasn’t expecting to put the main quest aside and travel around the world for 80 hours, enjoying the view and learning the history. I wasn’t prepared to deeply care about Kassandra and her personal quest. And I couldn’t guess that the questline that starts and ends in Volcanic Islands region will have one of the best payoffs I’ve ever seen in an RPG. 1. Detroit: Become Human. I’ve already said why this game is my GotY in October’s Showcase. In short, it has amazing visuals, relatable characters and deep and emotional story with choices that not just matter, but can teach you a few things about the life itself.

Alexander Zyryanov

Greetings from Madrid, allies, happy new year and happy new studio. I will get to the point right away. January is upon us, and with that Resident Evil 2 draws near. Having both of you here today, I would like you to know that your playthrough of RE2 in Easy Living was one of the coziest experiences I have ever watched, so thank you for that. For that matter, I have a few queries regarding the remake of RE2. First of all, is Huber getting enough sleep with that title looming on the horizon? Will we get a full playthrough with Kyle suffering in his hoodie? What do you think Jones of the marketing campaign Capcom is doing? Are they showing too much of the game? Is this a good strategy when a lot of the impact (in scares and atmosphere) might go away? Finally, a bit of a nitpick from what I've seen. Hoping Huber can clear it up because of the demo he has played recently. Regarding the interface while aiming is it a la RE4 with the laser reticule, or is it a more invasive interface with crosshairs like any other third person shooter etc? I say this because I don't know why the latter seems to break some part of the immersion of RE for me and I have seen both in the preview videos. Thank you for your time guys, L&amp;R

LiquidEnder

Hello, Jones and Huber! How was your holiday? It is now January and that means at least for me my annual Hannibal the TV show re watch. This is my favorite show ever made and such an underrated gem that everyone needs to watch, so for this entry i’m just going to talk about why I love the show and why I think it’s worth your time. Starting with the acting. The stars of the show Hugh Dancy who plays Will Graham and Mads Mikkelsen who plays Hannibal as well as the rest of the cast are all brilliant. They have such undeniable chemistry with one another that really elevate the show to greatness. Dancy has such a layered character and he handles it with such emotion and care he just shines on screen. While Mads brings such a poise, and calculated performance filled with grace, unease, and unpredictability. He really makes the role his own and his performance makes his Hannibal one of the best versions of the character. Next I have to mention the cinematography, the show looks like nothing i’ve ever seen on network TV, the imagery is as haunting as it is beautiful. In one moment it will show horrific deaths from women mounted on antlers, to a human cello where the strings are made out of a person's vocal chords, but will also show you stunning cooking scenes of body parts being prepared for Hannibal to feast on, its shot in a way that makes it look appetizing from a distance and it makes you feel gross. Its surreal, beautiful, and horrific. Lastly just want to talk about the writing. Hannibal and Will are expertly written in such a way that has never really been seen in past iterations. They have such a complex and layered relationship. it’s a slow and deliberate bulid that keeps you on the edge the entire time. Their chemistry, and the way they talk to one another keeps your eyes glued to the screen. It’s not just them either, all of the dialogue in the show is so smart and just grabs your attention. The way the characters interact, how they convey emotion and subtly all at once. This is a show that starts great and only gets better. It asks you to pay attention and listen to what the character are saying at all times. I feel this show never got the attention it should have gotten, so whenever i get the chance i try to tell everyone i can to try it. If I can just get one person to watch it I feel like i’ve succeeded. That’s about it! Next month i'll have some more gaming screenshots, until then here is to another amazing year for you guys. Its going to be exciting! bye bye guys!

Megan Linart

Hello! Holidays were busy, but now there's another year of games to look forward to. I can't wait to play Resident Evil 2 Remake and am hopeful they'll add a multiplayer mercenaries mode, which are some of my favorite mini-games. And Kingdom Hearts 3 has been a much anticipated game for a very, very long time. As crazy as the story has gotten, I'm still gonna cry during those credits. Anyway, here's some art! <a href="https://imgur.com/9v6zzfR" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://imgur.com/9v6zzfR</a> (another gif, so hopefully imgur makes it easier to download) Another game mockup, this time with 6 frames! It's Mysterious Monsters, but without the questions and more beat em up? The game show is a ways out, but I loved watching the playtest and can't wait to see what you all do with it! Happy New Years!

Tyson Nguyen

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Master Pantz

Where did you do this trophy challenge? Sounds fun!

DaleBastion

Happy New Year indeed! Sick vibes. 👍

DaleBastion

This rules! What a cool thing to make. L&amp;R

DaleBastion

Ahoy Mr. Jones, Mr. Huber and my fellow allies. Happy New Year! Let's kick it off with some good energy. I submit a twofer; Friend from The Goonies 2 and The Moon from DuckTales. Here's to an amazing 2019 and beyond. Cheers. Matt B <a href="https://youtu.be/80S5Z5Blj_o" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/80S5Z5Blj_o</a>

Matt Bollenbach

Hi Brandon, hi Mike, I always loved video game tournaments - and for that reason your group streams bring me the most of joy. Twice a year I host a tournament myself called the "Wohnzimmer Championships". ("Wohnzimmer" is the german word for "living room") Usually 12 to 20 of my friends fight in this event for the Championship belt, a trophy very similar to your EZA belt. And for everyone who can´t participate that day, I stream the whole thing on youtube. For every Championship I produce a short movie as an opener that is revealed at the start of the event. Last time, I took photographs from some of the usual combatants, gave each a unique superpower and put them in a two minute "anime-series-intro-style" movie against each other: <a href="https://vimeo.com/308824630" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://vimeo.com/308824630</a> (starts at sec 15) <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/elektrosportler/playlists" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/user/elektrosportler/playlists</a> (for all WCS Opener movies) I hope you like it. Keep up the excellent group streams - your MarioParty was a blast! If you like a suggestion for upcoming tournaments: Hidden in Plain Sight - especially it´s Deathrace mode Love,Respect &amp; all the best, elektrosportler P.S. The song in my movie is a track from an actual anime series

i just need to hear Huber say "I, Michael Huber, STRONGLY declare that Dragon Quest XI is the game of the year, the game of the decade; and far FAR superior to Red Dead Redemption 2."

Hey Brandon and Huber, At the start of the month, I was really in the mood to play in open world New York city. I wanted to run up buildings, glide through the air, fighting bad guys as I went. Of course I am referring to Prototype. I picked up the Prototype Biohazard bundle on PS4 (both Prototype 1 and 2) and have had a blast going through the game again. I took part in another trophy challenge this month. It was a 12 days of Christmas challenge, in which each day for the first 12 days released a new challenge. The first day I had to get 1 trophy in an RPG. Second day was to get 2 DLC trophies, etc for each day. I had the full month to get the full 78 trophies unlocked. This lead me to get the platinum in Wolfenstein: The Old Blood, Everybody's Gone to the Rapture and Knack. I also finished off the final DLC for Hitman and played a few other games. I celebrated my 32nd birthday and was given 2 new games. LEGO Marvel's Avengers and South Park: The Fractured but Whole. So far I have played a bit of the LEGO game with my 5 year old son. He has had a blast smashing around as the Hulk. In the sales, going off the excellent Don't Skip from Ben, I purchased Castlevania Requim and played through Rondo of Blood to get 100% completion. This is my first proper attempt at a Castlevania game. Before this I had only tried Castlevania 2 on the NES classic, and that didn't last long. Really enjoyed it, especially when I picked up Maria and switched since she is faster. I am looking forward to trying Symphony of the Night. For Christmas my son got Smash Brothers Ultimate and also Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu. He is loving both of them. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, and a happy new year. Love and respect, BeardedScotsman86

BeardedScotsman86

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Hold

Jamie Buckley

Hold on on that.

Sara Knite

Happy New Year Jones and Huber! Zephyr Moon here! My apologies, I don’t have much art to share mainly because of how busy I was during the month (and it has nothing to do with my newly acquired PS4 Pro. Nope. Not at all. Maybe a little,) but I will say for those that haven’t done it yet, please go check out Young Justice. Season 3 is coming out on Friday after having been unceremoniously canceled six years ago and leaving off on one hell of a cliffhanger. To summarize, the series is about the former sidekicks of the Justice League as they form a team and do covert operations. Also, if it helps, one of the showrunners is none other than Greg Weisman. AKA the creator of Disney’s Gargoyles. Please go check it out. You won’t regret it. Here’s to an awesome 2019 and I can’t wait to see how much the studio will grow and change over time. Much love and respect, Zephyr Moon

Sara Knite

May I share with you a retelling of my reactions to the E3 2015 announcements of Final Fantasy VII Remake and Shenmue III? I'm normally not a very big reactionary person and outside of a Metal concert or mosh pits I've never really had any reactions like this. Going in I had not heard any of the rumors. Just watching the official stream on my bedroom TV by myself. (Sorry, I was not a follower of GameTrailers at the time). OK, the World of Final Fantasy trailer finished up and I was unsure what to think about it at the time. Next trailer starts and I'm instantly getting Vita game vibes.. The VO guy doing a movie trailer voice is really throwing me off. I see the cat-slide and think to myself "hey they stole that from FF7". They show more of the city and I start frowning, and saying out loud "wait... wait a minute". The VO guy says "the REUNION at hand" and my eyes open up wide. Then the opening theme song starts playing and I jump up out of my chair. Barret's gun-arm is shown and I start jumping for joy all the way through the end of the trailer. Next was some recovery time with the Devolver Digital showcase. They showed some pretty cool games, but I think many people might not have been giving their full attention at the time. After that they start talking about Kickstarter, yadda yadda yadda. Then from the very first music note and cherry blossom, I jump up and start saying out loud "No... NO.... NO..... NO!" When the Shenmue III logo flashes on screen, it prompts me to start what could be described as a combo attack. I start punching in the air over and over, then turn and grab under the mattress on my bed. I then flip it up into the air like a flapjack and it lands completely upside down, blanket, pillow and all. My cat, sitting in the window, gives me a serious look of concern. This makes me laugh and I continue watching with a big smile. Yu Suzuki says "The fate of Shenmue is in your hands now" and I get a bit misty-eyed by the end. Don't ask me why I did these things, they just happened on their own.

Master Pantz

<a href="https://youtu.be/EOHQ7SKBi2Y" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/EOHQ7SKBi2Y</a>

DaleBastion

Trigger warning for those with anxiety and or depression. So for new years rather than showcasing any bit of writing talent I may or may not have I thought it better to showcase my resolve. I have dealt with an anxiety disorder since high school when i truly started to understand it. Through therapy i found out that I had it since childhood actually. I also deal with bouts of depression and isolation, coupled with a short fuse and one of my docs told me I showed signs if cyclothalmia, a mild form of bipolar disorder where rather than rapid transitions it comes in waves and to less extremes. But above all my issues is my severe anxiety and panic attacks. I feel it constantly. In the muscles in my upper back a constant tension that I cannot get rid of. Nausea coming from eating and self loathing, insomnia. I have numerous ticks from cracking knuckles to scratching my scalp till i am pulling out hair. I did therapy when i was in high school. I also took pills. But I have never been happier or more resolved in my life than I am now and that's what i want to share today. I am going to visit my girlfriend in the Philippines again in February, finish my AA by June, and apply for spring transfer as a senior to a four year before the end of the year. Not only that but I want to write more. Flesh out the ideas i've had for years. I also want to handle my anxiety better by practicing coping mechanisms that don't involve punching things till my knuckles bleed or punching myself. I've been in better places emotionally but better places in life never. Which brings to my most important resolution for the year. My end goal of schooling currently is to teach. I have enjoyed it since i tutored others as a child into tutoring courses in middle school into TAing in high school. I have a lot of life experiences that i know will help kids who've gone through similar things. I have dealt with anxiety, depression, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts, bullying, academic probation, losing a house in the housing crash, mom had cancer and nearly died too many times to count, and for the last 5 years ive been losing close family members every year. What it comes down to is I want to share with people my struggles and hopes. Share my passions to let them know that everyday counts. I want to try to start posting text documents with my thoughts and or videos where i talk about myself and things you can do to help yourself and share my processes of escapism into my two major passions, video games and anime. So the goal is to start something relating to that before the end of the year. I even have a name for it. ACEcapism. So here's to a fruitful 2019. I look forward to it. L&amp;R Cisco PS thanks for everything easy allies. You've saved me and inspired me more than you'll ever understand PPS Huber Persona 5R will make it right. GOTY

Desquick

Hold

Karl Williams

Hi Brandon and Huber, Pokémon Anime thoughts Part 4. Let’s do it. 1. Here are some takes on the latter movies. Movie 9 (Manaphy): How nice of May to take a break from stinking up the joint to be a pretty decent Poke-mom to Manaphy; sorry Phantom but using two belts for long-ass beards is not a desirable fashion trend; please God, let this be the only time we see Ash flying around like a goddamn Super Saiyan. Movie 10 (Dialga vs Palkia): Kinda boring. Movie 11 (Giratina): Twitch was better off letting the entire movie play in reverse. Also, Shaymin is an asshole. “Gratitude” pokemon my ass. Movie 12 (Arceus): Arceus is the so-called “God of Pokemon” and it has a voice like that? Sure Jan. Movie 13 (Zoroark): Now this movie was worth watching. Actual fake news and some corporate CEO douchebag trying to choke the life out of a Celebi. What more could you ask for? Movie 14 (Zekrom/Reshiram): This Black/White doubleheader was neat to watch, each with a few different scenarios depending on the title version. I do think Zekrom is cooler than Reshiram, but I’ll take truth over ideals. And fuck Victini. This so-called “Victory” pokemon can literally help you cheat to win. Thank goodness Ash didn’t bring it along with him or he’d win all the league championships easily. 2. It was nice of Twitch to showcase Pokemon Chronicles, which is a very short series. It feels good having little to no Ash in the series as it focuses on other characters, like Gold/Ethan and Crystal (who try to save Raikou from competent Team Rocket grunts), Brock (who is, without question, the LAST person that should be giving their little bro advice on girls), Team Rocket (their 1st team-up), and even Misty (who continues to traumatize poor Psyduck by teaching it to swim). Sadly, it also means we see more Tracey. NOBODY WANTS TO SEE MORE OF YOU TRACEY! Other positive highlights: Butch of Team Rocket continuously losing his shit every time someone doesn’t say his actual name. Sorry Botch, but I think Bill suits you just fine. Or perhaps Biff :3 If I had one minor nitpick for the series, and it is minor in the grand scheme of things: Why the hell did James not get a chance to say the title card of an episode? He would have been the perfect choice to say the title card for the episode where Team Rocket are mistaken for superheroes. But instead, they get Meowth to do it. They even had Richie, the kid who beat Ash in the Pokemon Indigo League, say the title card for not one episode, but two. TWO! Man, it really sucks to see James get the short end the stick. I wish I could say things would get better for James, but the dub switch screwed that up and James sounds horrendous. But my current dub thoughts will be for a future comment. Not sure if Twitch will resume the marathon with the Sinnoh region by the end of January, but for the time being, it feels nice to finally have a break from talking about the show. When they complete the Sinnoh season, I shall return. Later.

Karl Williams

P.s. Sorry for going over the word count by a few. It's so hard to condense all you want to say into so many words, and then looking at every word you can possibly omit to make it all fit in the end.

Eric Jackson

Happy New Year Brandon and Huber, I hope you both are enjoying a much-needed vacation this holiday. Last month I reported that my father was in the hospital, and for this month I wanted to make my comment about him, rather than showcase any art or juggling video. Brian Jackson was born in 1958 in Mariana, Arkansas. He lost his father at the age of 13, and his mother less than 10 years later. He didn't finish school, instead focusing on a career as a contractor, eventually moving to Florida. He eventually met a woman named Dianna, and they married in 1979, going on to have three sons. In 1994, now living in NW Arkansas, Brian, while working on a construction job, fell off a two story building, landing on his legs, shattering both around the ankle and lower leg. He remained largely bed-ridden for the next year, until finally being able to walk again without assistance, but always with some pain and discomfort. For the next 24 years he continued to be a diligent father and exceptionally hard worker, despite this handicap, and rarely ever complaining about the life he could have had. In late November he complained about not feeling well, deciding to go on an all-fruit diet, which only helped to exacerbate the diabetes he didn't realized he was suffering from. He was admitted to the hospital with a blood sugar level of 1,600. Though the doctors and nurses did restore him to normal levels the damage was already done, and circulation all but ceased in his legs. The doctors tried to save them, but ultimately it was decided that the only chance they had in saving his life was the amputation of both his legs. Thankfully the surgery was a success, and after a couple more weeks he was allowed to come home. It's been an adjustment to life with him here, but despite his new situation, he's remarkably jolly and hopeful. More than anything, I want to celebrate the resilience of my father and mother, who two years ago suffered a nearly fatal heart attack. The strength they have shown, not only in overcoming such stress and strain on the body and mind, but their unwavering ability to come back stronger, more full of love and compassion, and maintain a level of happiness not often seen in a couple about to celebrate 40 years together. Lastly, I will say that we have started a GoFundMe campaign that may help enable my father to walk again, but whose principle goal is to outfit the home he's known for the past 26 years to be more accommodating for a person in a wheelchair. The GoFundMe is called "Help Brian Walk Again", and I'll also link it into this comment. Donations from wonderfully generous people are graciously accepted, but the biggest ask I can issue to anyone is the power of sharing and getting as many eyeballs onto our situation that may help us achieve our goals of eventual normalcy. With all the Love and Respect I have, Eric Jackson <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/jrpepp-help-brian-walk-again" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.gofundme.com/jrpepp-help-brian-walk-again</a>

Eric Jackson

Saveeeeeee

Michelle Jackson

January Game Dev Update: <a href="https://youtu.be/WtZ7AJs8jPY" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/WtZ7AJs8jPY</a>

Michelle Jackson