The crew is joined by Ash Parrish from The Verge to discuss the reports of Xbox handhelds (from OEMs) coming later this year and the prospect of a next-gen Xbox coming in 2027 (and how weird time works because it feels like the Series X|S came out just yesterday). But first, we revisit Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 demo for Miranda's final thoughts, and get Ash's insights on South of Midnight from her preview and interview with actor and developer Ahmed Best.

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Our Xbox crew discusses the awful news of WB Games closing down Shadow of Mordor developer Monolith Productions along with two other studios. Is their patented Nemesis System dead forever? But first, we spend a happy first half of the podcast gushing over a few new games we've been playing: Split Fiction, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and Monster Hunter Wilds.

00:00:00 - Intro

00:03:00 - Spilt Fiction Impressions

00:13:52 - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Preview Impressions

00:33:48 - Monster Hunter Wilds Impressions

00:38:15 - Is Hazelight Studios the new Telltale?

00:43:26 - WB Games has shut down 3 Studios

00:56:55 - Is the Nemesis System Dead Forever?

01:05:50 - Fable Delayed

01:13:08 - Outro

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Our Xbox crew reacts to all of the new and cool games we got to see at the latest ID@Xbox Showcase, from Jump Ship to Herding to Outbound to 33 Immortals and more! And joining us to shed a bit more light on the ID@Xbox program and all of these games is ID@Xbox Director Guy Richards.

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As Avowed officially launches this week, its Game Director, Carrie Patel, and the studio head at developer Obsidian Entertainment, Feargus Urquhart, join us for a conversation about their big new first-person fantasy RPG. They discuss how the project evolved since its original unveiling, what they did with the extra development time when its release date moved to February, and much more! Plus: Feargus talks Fallout, shares a Matt Stone and Trey Parker story from making South Park: The Stick of Truth, and more!

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We've been waiting for this moment: to be swimming in new first-party Xbox games. We have all been playing both Avowed and South of Midnight, and we discuss our thoughts on each of them. We also spend time talking about our experiences with Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 so far and why we love its grounded medieval RPG world. Finally, we discuss Bloomberg's new report about WB Games and what's next for Rocksteady, Monolith, and Avalanche with regard to Batman, Wonder Woman, and Hogwarts Legacy, respectively.

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The OG Xbox podcaster Danny Peña from Gamertag Radio joins us to discuss one of Xbox's "core four" franchises, Forza, heading to PlayStation 5 in the form of Forza Horizon 5. What does it mean for Xbox? And is any franchise "safe"? Plus: Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is out and awesome (and successful), we show some love to one of the newest games on Xbox Game Pass that you might not be familiar with, and more!

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As Xbox boss Phil Spencer visits two of our friends' podcasts, we discuss his clarifying comments on the future (not to mention present!) of Xbox. Plus: why we love Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, we talk about BioWare getting restructured and what it means for Mass Effect 5, and more!

00:00:00 - LA Fires Support & Intro

00:02:51 - Poll Results from last week's Xbox Direct

00:09:04 - Ninja Gaiden 2 Black Impressions

00:18:30 - Phill Spencer Talks the Future of Xbox

00:43:45 - BioWare getting restructured & Mass Effect 5

00:56:45 - Outro

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We recorded live immediately following this week's fantastic Xbox Developer Direct, so our reactions are very real, highlighted by the stunning announcement of not just the LONG-awaited Ninja Gaiden 4, but also the surprise shadow drop of Ninja Gaiden 2 Black. We've also got plenty of thoughts on Doom: The Dark Ages, South of Midnight, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33!

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With the corroborated rumors that Microsoft is bringing Halo: The Master Chief Collection to PS5 and Nintendo Switch 2, is Xbox now officially a Sega-like third-party publisher? We discuss the complicated (and weird) idea of Halo heading to other platforms. Leading up to that, though, we discuss the rumored details of the Unreal Engine 5 remake of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, what the mystery game in next week's third annual Xbox Developer Direct might be, and more!

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Happy New Year! We begin our first episode of 2025 by discussing some changes happening on the podcast before getting into what you really care about: Xbox games! We talk about what we played over the holidays and then talk about two sequels that are likely still pretty far away: The Elder Scrolls 6 and Mass Effect 5. When will we see TES6 next when it's already been over six years since its official announcement? And will the Paragon/Renegade system return for Mass Effect 5? Join us to discuss it all!

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In our final show of 2024, we look ahead to 2025 and give Microsoft some advice in the form of do's and dont's for Xbox in the new year. Thanks so much for listening all year long, and we'll see you next week for the start of a new and exciting year of Xbox!

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