Axe of the Blood God: An RPG Podcast

Following the release of Action Button's new review of Boku no Natsuyasumi, we welcome Tim Rogers to talk about this PS1 classic, which has plenty of connections to modern RPGs like Persona 5. Naturally, the conversation spreads out to hit many different topics within the realm of RPGs, including: Tim's rising appreciation for Final Fantasy 7 Remake Taco Tico, rats, and impromptu Nostalgia Pit Pondering Yuji Horii's successor  This episode is currently available exclusively to our Patrons! You can find conversation timestamps below.  Timestamps 0:00: Intro 11:00: Boku no Natsuyasumi and Taco Tico 23:55: The connections between Boku no Natsuyasumi and Earthbound 28:30: Rats, racoons and possums 38:50: Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Kingdom Hearts, and old developers 1:00:00: The PS1 is the best console ever 1:10:00: Sony's quest to make its own Dragon Quest 1:17:00: Reminiscing about Japan and Saizeriya 1:25:25: Dragon Quest and Mad Catz   1:34:50: Cyberpunk and Mighty Ducks 1:39:10: Who is the successor to Yuji Horii? 148:55: LA Noire and why games should be structured like a TV show 1:59:00: Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

War is hell. Unless you're talking about Valkyria Chronicles, the much-celebrated tactics RPG by Sega. See, war is still hell in Valkyria Chronicles, but it's also very pretty and fun to play. This week, very special guest and valued Blood God Patreon contributor Vivicomplex joins Kat, Nadia, and Eric to talk about World War Anime. Protip: Just send your scouts to the front line. Ain't nbodoy getting through those rifle-toting maniacs. Also in this episode: Eric can't talk about what he's been playing because of embargos, but that's alright because hahaha Chainsaw Man goes brrrrrr. Nadia maxed out her island paradise hideaway in FFXIV. Nobody is invited to visit. Suckers. This week on Autumn of Avatar: There ain't no war in Ba Sing Se, and there never was. In the Post Show Vivi sticks around after a spirited episode of Axe of the Blood God (aren't they all) to talk a bit more about what made her fall in love with Valkyria Chronicles in the first place. The gang also talks about how their Pokemon Black and White Pantheon playthroughs are going, and there's even a bit of talk about the band PUP. Wooo oooo ooooo, ooo oooo! Available exclusively to subscribers in our Stars of Destiny tier! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Axe of the Blood God, Kat, Nadia, and Eric talk about CD Projekt Red's (overly?) optimistic road map for the future of Cyberpunk 2077 and the Witcher series. Looks like CD Projekt is working hard to repair Cyberpunk's tarnished reputation in addition to making new games set in worlds that lack indoor plumbing. It's a long and winding road that's sure to be full of challenges, and we salute CD Projekt for assuming we're still going to be here in a decade. Always look on the bright side of life! Also in this episode: We're really behind on the new batch of RPGs. Sorry, we're trying to fix it :( Disco Elysium developer ZA/UM is going through difficult times Autumn of Avatar continues as we delve deep into Book Two Nadia electrocuted a lemon to go see the 1993 Super Mario movie in theatres POST SHOW Hey, Paisanos! Nadia and Eric talk about the new Super Mario Bros. movie trailer. Seems this movie might be fun and charming after all, even if Chris Pratt's flat-tire voice still isn't a great choice for everyone's favorite feisty plumber. Eh, I think we're all in agreement that Jack Black's Bowser is going to carry the movie, anyway. Available exclusively to subscribers in our Stars of Destiny tier! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

CD Projekt Red's Cyberpunk 2077 is currently experiencing something of a redemption arc. Does the (hugely) troubled RPG necessarily deserve said arc, though? Well…yes, but also no. This week on Axe of the Blood God, Kat, Nadia, and Eric invite Normandy FM's Kenneth Shepard for a chat about the state of Cyberpunk 2077, as well as what the future holds for the game—and for CD Projekt Red. Also in this episode: RIP Google Stadia, we hardly knew ye. Downwell fans will "dig" Shovel Knight Dig. Heh, that's a good one. "Dig." Autumn of Avatar continues. Toph has joined the party! Forget Cyberpunk. It is all about Cybertwunk now. POST SHOW Cyberpunk 2077's recent renaissance is owed to Cyberpunk Edgerunners, a Netflix series based on CD Projekt's RPG. Eric and special guest Kenneth Shepard talk about what makes the series good enough to bolster its troubled source material. Predictably, all semblance of civilized discussion unravels about midway through the discussion and everyone just yells at each other about Star Wars for the rest of the post show's run time. Available to listeners in the Stars of Destiny tier! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For this week's episode we're joined by the very talented folks behind 99 Potions, Fantbyte's dedicated RPG podcast that was unfairly cut short by the site's recent layoffs. In solidarity with our fellow creators, we invited Nere, Michael Higham, Andrea Shearon, John Warren, and Natalie Flores on the show to pour one out for a great website, talk about what they've been playing, and delve into some of their problematic favorite characters. Also in this episode: One more Xenoblade Minute with Michael Eric has thoughts on DioField Chronicle And Autumn of Avatar wraps up Book 1! Time Stamps 0:00 - 07:00: Intros and housekeeping 7:00 - 1:00:00: What we've been playing 1:00:00: Random Encounters 1:03:00: Problematic Faves 1:35:00: Autumn of Avatar, Book 1 Finale 1:50:00 - Pouring one for Fanbyte + Outro In the Post Show Nere, Michael, and Andrea stick around with Eric to talk about their favorite alcohol, discuss the reaction to unfinished assets from the GTA Mega Leak, and much more. This segment is available exclusively to our Stars of Destiny Patrons! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on the Axe of the Blood God RPG podcast, Kat is out and Nadia learns one more time that it's really just that easy to take an inherently chaotic podcast and make it twice as dizzying. Friend of the show (and Nadia's former employer in the long ago and far away) Anthony John Agnello stops by for a visit and talks all about the huge RPG news deluge that occurred with last week's Nintendo Direct. A new Final Fantasy Theatrhythm game! A new Fire Emblem game! A name for the Breath of the Wild sequel! Farming! Farming! Farming! Also in this episode: How nice is Zack Fair's hair? (So nice.) Harvestella is weird but good! Holy crap! Suikoden remasters! Things are heating up in Autumn of Avatar.  RIP Fanbyte. :( Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Axe of the Blood God tackles the 2022 fall RPG preview—which feels like a nutty thing to say, since summer only started yesterday. Right? Right…? Oh. Thankfully, RPGs help take away the sting of passing time for a little while. And it so happens the last quarter of 2022 is loaded with some bangers. Persona 5 for Nintendo Switch! Tactics Ogre Reborn! Valkyrie Elysium! Not to mention a couple of small indie games called Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. What a way to end the year that gave us Elden Ring and Xenoblade Chronicles 3. Also in this episode: Mickey is a sad divorced dad in his new Animal Crossing-style game ("ah-ha!") Xenoblade Chronicles 3 chapter 5 ruined Nadia's life Kat's going to Japan and Nadia and Eric are not :( Nadia ruined the Autumn of Avatar forever Handy-dandy timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 5:08 - What we're playing 40:04 - Random encounters 44:56 -  Main topic: The fall RPG preview 1:12:17 - Autumn of Avatar 1:35:15 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The fall season is upon us, and more fantasy shows than you can shake a wizard's staff at are popping up! Since RPGs and fantasy have a fair bit to do with one another, we brought on IGN's Alex Stedman to chat about House of the Dragon, The Rings of Power, how RPGs and fantasy tales intersect, and kick off our Autumn of the Avatar! All that, plus: Eric dives into the film history of Immortality The crew debates space vs. dragons We're oo-surping things now Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's a slim week at the Blood God, so we dipped into our rainy day bucket of topics to discuss Sony's first-party games. Does it need more first-party offerings, or should it stick to its third-party deals? We discuss all that and more, including: Final Fantasy XIV goes Stardew Valley Kat is getting back to Sunbreak Nadia demonstrates why we don't have shop class anymore Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Axe of the Blood God, Kat, Nadia, and Eric have a (digital) devil of a time talking about Soul Hackers 2. They're joined by Fanbyte.com superstars Michael Higham and Diego Argüello, who both have plenty to say about this strange game. It appears Soul Hackers 2 strives to land somewhere between the dark, complex Shin Megami Tensei games, and the character-driven Persona titles. Does Soul Hackers 2 hit the mark? Or does it just hee-ho off into the sunset, destined to be forgotten? Also in this episode: The preliminary sales numbers for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 are looking pretty fine The Embracer Group acquires everything on planet earth, including Lord of the Rings Riku the Nopon refuses to die for your sins; you don't deserve redemption The gang talks about "'The Garden of Eden', by I. Ron Butterfly" In the Post Show Michael Higham and Diego Argüello sit in on this week's post show, and the whole thing derails in about six seconds. The conversation bounces from religion to literature to something about furries and the Metaverse. Do not look in the dead, cold eyes of the Zuckerberg Metaverse dollar store Mii; it will swallow your soul. Available to subscribers in the Stars of Destiny tier and above on our Patreon! Axe of the Blood God is sponsored by NordVPN. Grab your EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal by going to https://nordvpn.com/bloodgod to get a Huge Discount off your NordVPN Plan + Free Threat Protection + 1 additional month for free! It’s completely risk free with Nord’s 30 day money-back guarantee! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices