1Upsmanship

Vwoom and jedi-leap your way through Respawn’s latest with Adam, Mike, and special guest Cody Johnston! Will this jedi survive to the end of the episode, or even score a spot on the Celestial Hard Drive? To find out, young padawan, you must use this zipline to go over there. This is very important. The fate of the galaxy itself may depend upon you being cool at zipline, can you do that? Use the force if you need to, just get it done.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re back, fresh from the barren, content-less Dark World, and we’re starting this season with a bang! This week we warp into the 2D Zelda that perfected the formula, and we’re joined by our favorite Zelda Enthusiast, Danielle Radford! Some would say this is one of the greatest games ever made. Some would say this game is still being imitated to this very day. Some might even say this game remains a blast to play. But none of those people are Michael Swaim! Yeah. He goes pretty hard this episode. So pick up your hookshot, zip over the gap and join us for the new season of 1Upsmanship!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join the chorus, new one. Voices clash and clamor in the never-ending quest to recover our lost souls from the dark places they may wander. In this episode, your stalwart hosts Adam and Michael pore over a game that demands to be taken seriously, both by virtue of the topics at hand and the loving care the developers obviously put into the exercise. But does laudable handling of human suffering equate to a good game? Should it? Does it have to? There’s no doubt Senua’s is a work of art, but to make it onto the Celestial Hard Drive, we’ll have to answer those questions and more.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stranded in a cold, dark, and surprisingly poop-covered future, our 1upsmanship crew battles its way through Callisto Protocol. Joined by longtime colleague and friend Tom Reimann (Gamefully Unemployed) our heroes debate whether this game got unfairly maligned and whether there’s ever truly enough spike-covered walls. They answer key questions like do we really need this particular white male protagonist? How does Callisto Protocol stack up to its obvious predecessor Dead Space? And will anybody ever bring Adam the space cowboy he so desperately desires? Listen and find out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Slap on your controversy armor Ship Heads, because this episode’s got some scorching hot takes that are gonna do some real AoE damage to looter fans. Joined by longtime pal, collaborator and Dia-bro Abe Epperson (Small Beans), our journey takes some twists and turns as we talk about the growth of the looter genre, Diablo 2’s historical significance, the role of internet communities in game development and whether the destination IS the journey for one of the most beloved PC games in video game history. Don’t miss it!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Adam is joined by longtime guest, first time host, Vanessa Guerrero (Twitter: @nessguerrero) to talk about Stray, the 2022 beloved indie cat caper. The conversation gets predictably ‘zurked’ as our feline fans veer off into indie game development cycles, monstrous allergies, and whether they need a face to be loved! But did that cute ginger tabby claw its way into the Celestial Hard Drive? Do our hosts finally grant robots the same emotional significance as humans? Will Adam finally find that crack in the cyberpunk fortress and reunite with Michael who’s just, like, waiting outside for him? Leap on in to find out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bar your doors and hit the floor Shipheads, cause this game’s about to rip off your jaw - in a good way! Joined by fellow maniac David Bell (Gamefully Unemployed), our heroes navigate the pros, cons and sometimes thongs of your favorite camp slasher turned asymmetrical multiplayer murder simulator! It’s a love letter to cinephiles and just a damned good time, in the sense that it’s utterly terrifying and Adam and Dave enjoy donning a hockey mask while they podcast. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Start your engines shipheads, because 1Upsmanship is taking on its first ever racing game and they picked a classic! Co-piloted by special guest co-host DJ Danl, our boys boost past futuristic space gambling plots, Mode 7 graphical innovations, the history of racing games as a genre, and Adam’s dad hogging the controller. But will F-zero pass the great checkered flag in time to win its place on the Celestial Hard Drive? Tune in and find out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shipheads, meet Anthony and Aaron, VR devs with a new game to show off and fascinating insights into the unique space in which they work. Arcaxer is VR’s first turn-based RPG. We dive into how they came up with such a wild idea, went about accomplishing it, and the trials and travails of trying to market the thing now that it exists. Visor up and let’s see what the next evolution of gaming looks like (spoilers: it involves running on a treadmill and then vomiting).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our heroes zip rooftop to rooftop over the grim streets of Dunwall, discussing all the important questions raised by one of the most creative franchises in recent video game history. How much does this game really owe to Bioshock? Is stealth the only viable approach? Wait, Susan Sarandon is in this? Should every game consider making you lord of rats? Hop aboard, Ship Heads, this one’s a whale of a time!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The fellas cap off their first season at iHeart with the traditional ranking of their favorite games of the year-slash-airing of grievances. Elden Ring might even be mentioned; who’s to say? If all the “traditional” outlets let you down on the GOTY front, give this episode a spin. If nothing else, shipheads can trust Michael and Adam to give their unvarnished opinions on what made an impact and what fell flat, no matter how unorthodox or unsupported by the facts. Agree or disagree, hopefully it makes for some interesting conversation and a solid look back at how the medium advanced in 2022. To those looking to connect via Discord, you can join the Small Beans server by following this link - https://discord.gg/bJrUm5w2P5See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The game is afoot in Fabletown, and someone’s out to get ahead…or two. Your very own gaming detectives Tweedle Swaim and Tweedle Ganz set out to determine whether Telltale’s decision-driven adaptation of Bill Willingham’s stellar Fables comics belongs on our Celestial Hard Drive. Will you side with Mike or Adam? Either way, they will remember that.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of our most esteemed guests, the designer of Subnautica and new miniature RTS game Moonbreaker, Charlie Cleveland stops by to talk about the design process, his long term goals and experiences as a designer, following up on the success of Subnautica, and how to deal with valid criticisms on a release. You can check out his new game Moonbreaker in Early Release on Stream. Join us for a great conversation about how games are made!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.