Sacred Symbols, Episode 177: Grand Theft Uh-Oh
Added 2021-11-19 17:00:10 +0000 UTCSometimes, very easy things turn out to be very hard for no apparent reason. Apparently, this mantra rings true for Rockstar, which released its acclaimed PlayStation 2 trilogy of Grand Theft Auto games on PS4 and PS5 in... well... a pretty shocking state. It's a big story (and a damn shame), and we discuss it in-depth. Rockstar ain't the only one hurting, though. Activision isn't only beleaguered from top-to-bottom due to claims of impropriety galore, but because its new Call of Duty game is apparently selling softer than any entry in the series in some 15 years. That, too, is a big story (although less of a damn shame), and we discuss that in-depth, too. Plus: Delays! Six Days in Fallujah, Saints Row, and Pragmata have all been pushed, while WB's crossover fighter MultiVersus is real, and League of Legends goes all-in on expanding its universe on PlayStation. We wrap up, as we always do, with listener inquiries. Will the effects of COVID and the chip shortage extend the PS5 generation? Is it possible that PlayStation's Spider-Man will appear in the new Spiderverse film? How do we feel about detective-style games? Can we instruct a listener on how to properly execute his first kiss?
Timestamps:
0:00:00 - Intro
0:08:24 - Opening questions and concerns.
0:23:09 - Some smaller news items.
1:11:44 - What have we been playing?
1:25:47 - Call of Duty: Vanguard may be having its worst release since 2007.
1:38:12 - Warner Bros. is cooking up a Smash Bros. clone.
1:50:30 - Six Days In Fallujah has been delayed.
1:58:13 - It’s going to be a while until we see another Saints Row game.
2:05:09 - Pragmata has been delayed.
2:06:43 - Riot Games is getting into the console space.
2:13:49 - Embracer Group has confirmed plans to acquire more studios.
2:17:16 - NPD numbers for October have arrived.
2:21:09 - News Wrap-Up
2:22:32 - Will the chip shortages extend this console generation's life?
2:29:00 - Why do people still think video games cause violence?
2:33:41 - Will we get a proper send-off to the PS4?
2:39:21 - Do we like any mystery games?
2:42:05 - Could we see an Insomniac Spider-Man in No Way Home?
Comments
Glad to hear Kurt! Best of luck with her.
Your Boi Nicky V
2021-11-27 23:05:15 +0000 UTCI'd like to check it out, and hopefully I will when it comes to PS4.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-26 01:47:56 +0000 UTCColin, I really think you’d LOVE SMTV. It’s the one JRPG I’ve played in a long time that doesn’t incessantly talk at you every five seconds. The turn-based combat is addicting, and you can just go off and grind. It’s old school as fuck—in its design and it’s difficulty—and I could see you really enjoying it. I know switch isn’t your favorite and that SMT isn’t your favorite series but it seems so up your alley
Zack Forney
2021-11-23 23:26:28 +0000 UTCMicah is super digging it, too.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-23 22:32:38 +0000 UTC2020 was definitely awesome for PS4 as a goodbye.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-23 22:32:32 +0000 UTCWhat's the point, really.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-23 22:32:23 +0000 UTCIt all went well, I did as the SS crew said and asked her first and she said she'd love to. She told me she was really happy I asked and didn't delay it anymore as I think she has been having the first move but was nervous about it like I was.
Kurt Lewin
2021-11-23 14:57:16 +0000 UTCI love Vanguard, I am biased because I love WW2 games, but I do understand that V is flawed and is the same as all the other ones. I would love a COD WW1. It wouldn't be close to a true WW1 game but I want more love for a war that changed humanity forever. WW2 is very overdone but the WWs have so many stories and fronts they can explore but no one is pushing for it. It's always modern or future shooters.
FluffyNeko
2021-11-23 05:07:49 +0000 UTCNot liking turkey sounds like yall have never had fried turkey before
Joey Burgos
2021-11-23 00:40:05 +0000 UTCAmazing episode thank you 🙌 Don't know if it's been mentioned but the PS4 had its farewell in 2020. It reached its graphical peak with the Last of Us Part II and Ghost of Tsushima was a swansong not just to Sony's skill in mascot creation (Aloy, Drake etc.) but to the generation that redefined open world games. Coupled with the release of the PS5 itself I don't think it needs another goodbye!
joefray_
2021-11-23 00:16:55 +0000 UTCNoted.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-22 19:59:11 +0000 UTCI say Go Italian.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-22 19:59:07 +0000 UTCGlad you're enjoying it. =)
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-22 19:58:59 +0000 UTCI love dark meat.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-22 19:58:51 +0000 UTCI'd love a Middle East, modern-or-near-history-driven CoD. That'd rule.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-22 19:58:40 +0000 UTCThat's a lot of work.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-22 19:58:27 +0000 UTCIt would be nice if the 48 minutes of "Smaller News Items" were more granularly broken up as the rest of the podcast is.
Douglas Morreale
2021-11-22 13:30:20 +0000 UTCChris’ thoughts on turkey calls into question the validity of his every opinion. Turkey is amazing! In fact people wait all year for me to make my turkey. This year I floated the idea of me not making a turkey and damn near had a riot on my hands. On the other side ham is a shit meat. It is easily the worst meat among common meats. I don’t enjoy ham unless it’s very thinly sliced.
Christopher Smith
2021-11-22 13:19:15 +0000 UTCI’m about 20 hours into Shin Megami Tensei 5 and I’m having a blast. Very addicting gameplay loop of collecting and fusing demons. It does seem like its designed to run on better hardware than the Switch though. The visuals and environments look great on Switch but would really benefit from running at 4K 60fps. Its fair to compare to Persona simply because the Persona series was spun-off from the SMT series. Persona has actually become more popular. That is the type of audience this will attract but those fans might be disappointed as there are significant differences between the two series.
Alex Gould
2021-11-22 03:46:36 +0000 UTCGlad Dustin is feeling better and hopefully that cough doesn't stick around long. Good time to point out that the CDC also recommends getting vaccinated? Btw juicy dark turkey meat is fantastic, I don't know what Colin and Chris are smoking.
Glendelman
2021-11-21 20:56:43 +0000 UTCThese yearly games really need to just become platforms. COD can charge for new maps and gun sets, sport games can charge for official roster updates and ability to play online.
Michael Buffill
2021-11-20 23:26:03 +0000 UTCHere’s how Activision can make Call of Duty better. Make Modern Warfare 2 in Iraq and about the Iraq/Afghanistan wars showing the gray area of war. They can also make one about China and/or North Korea and have US or Russian or any other country Special Ops team go investigate their concentration camps and the way they treat civilians. Also along the lines of what Colin said, I too was thinking before the episode how it would be cool if we get a RTS Call of Duty similar to Command and Conquer, or a Third Person COD like SOCOM. Don’t abandon the first person but explore other genres. LOVE YALL KEEP IT UP!
Jeff Caseres
2021-11-20 21:38:39 +0000 UTCI think you guys except Dustin have been eating dry Turkey your whole lives, the first time I’ve made Turkey I did a lot of research because I was not a fan of Turkey, the first time I did it was freaking juicy and flavorful. 3 day wet brine is the way to go, air fried is the way to go. Also imagine if Ben Franklin got his wish of making the Turkey the national bird. We wouldn’t have Turkey at all to eat in the US since it’s the national bird I believe
Hose A Contra Razz
2021-11-20 21:32:53 +0000 UTCIndeed.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-20 19:26:59 +0000 UTCReally great point.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-20 19:26:52 +0000 UTCEnjoy!
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-20 19:26:45 +0000 UTC=)
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-20 19:26:42 +0000 UTCThe segment about AI doing the GTA Defintive Edition was interesting when thinking about the SS+ episode about AI. Colin might be right that games made by people will be niche and boutique compared to games made by AI in the future. This GTA thing might be the first learning experience by a big publisher.
Michael Buffill
2021-11-20 16:22:38 +0000 UTCGuy who wrote in about the kiss, just ask! It's cringe but no way near as bad as swooping in for one and getting rejected. Also you better be honest about having no experience, she's probably worked it out already.
Your Boi Nicky V
2021-11-20 13:24:06 +0000 UTCI absolutely love this title. Looking forward to this one!
meijin3
2021-11-20 06:14:01 +0000 UTC"Swordman from Fire Emblem" 💀 I love Fire Emblem, but I love this comment just as much
Oistuh
2021-11-19 23:03:16 +0000 UTCI recall us doing that, yes. Possibly on stream.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:57:19 +0000 UTCWow, rough.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:57:08 +0000 UTCI concur. There are a ton of places they can go, and of course more fictional stories to tell as well!
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:56:55 +0000 UTCI don't see how any of that is relevant. The publisher cannot pass the buck onto the developer when they released the game.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:56:38 +0000 UTCThat sounds awesome.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:56:15 +0000 UTCI don't have the requisite MP for such a summon.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:56:05 +0000 UTCSounds perfect.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:55:57 +0000 UTCThanks!
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:53:47 +0000 UTCGlad to help!
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 22:53:44 +0000 UTCColin, Didn’t you guys deep-fry a turkey back in the Beyond days? If not, you should consider it! My fam uses an “oil-less” fryer, but either way it is a major improvement to an oven baked Turkey.
Chase Moroni
2021-11-19 22:49:11 +0000 UTCThe issue with the IGN review wasn’t that the review compared it to Persona the reviewer had only played Persona 5 so the whole review was referencing Persona 5 . If you go to a large site like ign people where hoping to get a review to find out how it was compared to the previous games and the reviewer couldnt do it . I actually felt sorry for the reviewer getting the assignment has he hadn’t the tools to give it the review fans where looking for at the moment the review is sitting at 26k dislikes to 2k likes.
Garry
2021-11-19 22:27:20 +0000 UTCWhy doesn't COD do something original? Why not make a COD Korea, or Vietnam? Nah, we're going make another WWII shooter.
Jeremy Seal
2021-11-19 19:44:36 +0000 UTCGreat episode so far, but I’m surprised y’all didn’t mention that Rockstar did not develope this trilogy. It was an outsourced studio that did their mobile ports, Grove Street Games in Florida. They also used the source code from the mobile ports which is why it has so many bugs the original versions did not. Rockstar just released an apology blog post and are going to update this trilogy and bring the original trilogies back for people
Kenneth Oms
2021-11-19 19:43:48 +0000 UTCI grew up in New Mexico and married into a traditional Spanish family. Every thanksgiving we do the traditional thanksgiving meal with turkey, mash potatoes, etc. but without fail there has to be a pot of red Chile sauce on the stove. The move is to replace the gravy and drizzle the red Chile all over your plate of food before eating. It adds the perfect amount of flavor to dishes that can tend to be bland. All that being said, you gotta respect the traditional thanksgiving food but there’s always room to mix it up a bit with some familiar cultural cuisine.
Samuel Ashley
2021-11-19 19:26:59 +0000 UTCMaybe listen to the show. LOL.
Colin Moriarty
2021-11-19 19:05:07 +0000 UTCY'all about to summon my grandma from her grave with all this turkey slander.
Explosivebob
2021-11-19 17:58:56 +0000 UTCCannot wait to drown my dry Turkey in gravy and eat it with some good sausage stuffing. Have a little lasagna and pass out for four hours watching football. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Stephen Forgione
2021-11-19 17:30:29 +0000 UTCAs a poet this title made me weep with joy. 🤣
Tonys_Always_Write
2021-11-19 17:29:30 +0000 UTCMy friend you should get awarded for some of these episode titles. Legit gold
Petre Cismigiu
2021-11-19 17:23:01 +0000 UTCBest episode title of the year.
Shaun Wilkinson
2021-11-19 17:09:12 +0000 UTCNothing helps that Friday work go faster than a new CLS joint. 🙏🏾
Dennis Johnson
2021-11-19 17:06:23 +0000 UTC
