

The Level
Duckfeed.tv
The Level is a podcast for people who love video games. It's a weekly roundtable hosted by friends and industry outsiders Kole Ross, Ben Merkel, Dennis Furia, David Moneysmith, and Jala Prendes. Every Friday, we discuss video game news, the games we've been playing, and listener mail.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 12, 2016 • 1h 41min
161: My Hips Are My Bond
Kole, Ben, Dennis, and Jala talk about Humble's streaming partner deal, Duskers, and we ask you how you name things in multiplayer games.
THE BRIEF:
Upsilon Circuit Update.
Harold Halibut is a stop motion adventure game.
Suda 51's The Silver Case gets an English demo.
Humble announces streamer partner deal.
Rocket League getting Rocket League Rumble.
MULTIPLAYER:
What's your naming scheme for online games? What would you name your No Man's Sky planets?
THE GRIND:
Kole: Ain't Played Shit.
Jala: Capcom vs. SNK 2.
Ben: Klocki. Hook. Duskers.
Dennis: Pokemon Go. Destiny. Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin.

Aug 5, 2016 • 2h 11min
160: PwPwPvPwPwP
Kole, Ben, Dennis, and Jala talk about Telltale's Batman launch woes, Guacamelee, and we ask you about your favorite kinds of multiplayer.
THE BRIEF:
Overwatch gets Rio Summer Olympic skins.
Oculus removes restrictions on games.
Gamescom heightens security.
Telltale's Batman faces launch woes.
No Man's Sky already beaten, underwhelming.
Mt. Everest is coming to Oculus Rift.
MULTIPLAYER
What's your relationship with different kinds of multiplayer?
THE GRIND:
Dennis: Guacamelee. Destiny. X-COM 2.
Kole: Pokemon Go.
Ben: Rocket League.
Jala: Virtue's Last Reward. Puzzle Juice.

Jul 29, 2016 • 1h 51min
159: Table Flippin'
Kole, Ben, and Jala talk about the tiny little NES, INSIDE, and we ask you what's most important in games: Gameplay, Narrative, or Atmosphere.
INSIDE spoiler chat begins at 1 hour, 30 minutes, and proceeds to the end of the episode.
THE BRIEF:
GameStop's "Song of the Deep" released, reviewed.
Games that make you think of sex.
No Man's Sky delayed on PC, but won't require PS+ on PS4.
Tiny little NES is coming.
MULTIPLAYER
What's most important to you: Gameplay, Narrative, or Atmosphere?
THE GRIND:
Jala: Resident Evil 5. Resident Evil 6. Virtue's Last Reward.
Ben: Her Story. Kentucky Route Zero. INSIDE.
Kole: Final Fantasy Record Keeper. INSIDE.
LINKS OF NOTE:
Stephen's Song of the Deep review
5 Games That Will Make You Think About Sex

Jul 16, 2016 • 1h 40min
158: This is Zubat Country
Kole, Ben, Jala, and David talk about Pokemon Go, Pokemon Go, Rhythm Heaven Megamix, and we ask you about Pokemon Go.
THE BRIEF:
Quadrilateral Cowboy gets a release date, July 25.
Telltale's Batman details emerge.
Twitch Plays Pokemon Go.
MULTIPLAYER:
What's your most interesting Pokemon Go story?
THE GRIND:
Ben: Vacation.
David: Defender's Quest.
Jala: dream;scape. Virtue's Last Reward.
Kole: Rhythm Heaven Megamix. Super Stickman Golf 3.

Jul 8, 2016 • 1h 50min
157: Facepalm Trees
Kole, Dennis, Jala and David talk about the CS:GO gambling fiasco, Zero Time Dilemma, and we ask you about patriotic games.
THE BRIEF:
New Leviathan game is out.
Summer Games Done Quick.
Atlas Reactor leaves beta.
CS:GO Gambling scams.
MULTIPLAYER:
What are some of the most patriotic games?
THE GRIND:
Jala: DmC. Danganronpa. Moon Hunters.
Dennis: XCOM 2. Lovely Planet. Overwatch.
David: Dark Souls III. Doom.
Kole: Overwatch. Zero Time Dilemma.

Jul 1, 2016 • 1h 48min
156: The Ol' Crazy Hole
Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about how Call of Duty got dragons, Doom 2016, and we do a Free Play Multiplayer.
THE BRIEF:
PSN Jihad naming controversy.
Call of Duty gets dragons.
Brexit tops name rankings for Plague, Inc.
MULTIPLAYER:
Free Play.
THE GRIND:
David: DOOM. Dark Souls 3.
Kole: Rule of Rose. Zero Time Dilemma.
Ben: The Vanishing of Ethan Carter.
Dennis: Hero Siege. Night Squad. Lovely Planet. X-COM 2.

Jun 24, 2016 • 1h 29min
155: Those Chickens Burn Back
Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about new Zelda: Breath of the Wild details, more Overwatch, and we ask you which video game characters you'd like to have dinner with.
THE BRIEF:
Overwatch removes "Avoid This Player" option.
More Zelda Details emerge.
Weird names.
Resident Evil: Umbrella Corps launches.
MULTIPLAYER:
What video game character would you like to have dinner with?
THE GRIND:
Ben: This War of Mine.
Dennis: Zero Gear. Overwatch. X-COM 2.
David: Dark Souls 3.
Kole: Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. Persona 4.

Jun 17, 2016 • 1h 53min
154: Dolphin Puncher XD
Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the E3 announcements and X-COM 2.
THE BRIEF:
Exhaustive E3 roundup.
MULTIPLAYER:
We rolled these into the brief.
THE GRIND:
Dennis: Overwatch. X-COM 2.
Kole: Echo Night: Beyond. Steins;Gate.
David: Dark Souls 3.
Ben: This War of Mine.

Jun 10, 2016 • 1h 29min
153: You Should Feel Bad
Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the Final Fantasy XII: Zodiac Age announcement, Dangerous Golf, and we ask you for your E3 headline predictions.
THE BRIEF:
Rocket League gets hats.
WATCH_DOGS 2 leaked.
Alison Road canceled.
It's been 10 years since Half-Life 3 was announced.
The Wit.nes is a Witness demake.
Final Fantasy XII Zodiac Age announced.
Mortal Kombat Beer is coming.
A.P.B. is coming to the Xbox One.
Someone made a Half-Life 2 scanner drone.
MULTIPLAYER:
E3 Headline Predictions
THE GRIND:
Dennis: Team Fortress 2. Rogue Legacy.
Kole: Dangerous Golf.
David: Dark Souls III.
Ben: This War of Mine.
LINKS OF NOTE:
Half-Life City Scanner drone

Jun 3, 2016 • 1h 53min
152: The Yadda Yadda Button
Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about neural net game images, Steins;Gate, and ask you about empowering moments in games.
THE BRIEF:
Let's apply neural networks to video game images.
Sony's doing their E3
Humble Narrative Bundle.
Chinese gamers riot over Nintendo changing Pikachu's name.
MULTIPLAYER:
What are the most empowering moments in games?
THE GRIND:
Kole: Steins;Gate.
Dennis: Danganronpa 2. Tokyo Jungle.
Ben: FTL. Rocket League.
David: Dark Souls 2.


