Kotaku Splitscreen

Far Cry 5 is a nihilist's dream while Ni no Kuni II is an idealist's dream. Kirk and Jason discuss that and much more, including news of the week on Lindsay Lohan, Shadow of War, and Todd Howard, the games they've been playing (20:36), and some listener questions (50:36) on games as a service, GPU recommendations, and the Xbox Game Pass. 

Kirk and Jason unwind from GDC by talking about some of the games they've played over the past few weeks, including Far Cry 5, A Way Out, SNES Classic, and Red Dead Redemption.

At GDC 2018, Kirk and Jason tried something new: an edible game. Specifically "The Patisserie Code," designed by Thimbleweed Park programmer/designer Jenn Sandercock as part of her upcoming cookbook of edible games. Everyone had a delicious time eating cream puffs, thwarting Nazis, and learning to read old-fashioned cursive.You can find photos of the game on Kotaku: https://kotaku.com/we-played-a-delicious-edible-tabletop-game-1824083975

Jason and Kirk are still posting pods from their time at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. This time they sat down with S.O.S. creative director (and former Dead Space developer) Ian Milham to talk about how he's building social dynamics into an online survival game.

In San Francisco (still) for the Game Developers Conference, Jason and Kirk met with Caledonia creative director Nels Anderson and art director Lyndsey Gallant to talk about how they started working together, Nels' terrific stealth game Mark of the Ninja, how art design works, and what people get wrong about UI. 

At the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, Kirk and Jason sat down with the always energetic Chris Hecker to talk about his last decade+ working on the asymmetrical multiplayer game Spy Party, which will soon be on Steam Early Access. They also shared some stories of playing the game against one another the day prior.

At GDC, Kirk and Jason talk with Double Fine president and CEO Tim Schafer about receiving the GDC lifetime achievement award, working on Psychonauts 2, and that one time Will Wright saved Double Fine.

At the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, Kirk and Jason talk with Respawn producer Tina Sanchez about breaking into the games industry, moving from Infinity Ward to Respawn, and the empowering phenomenon of the #MeToo movement.

Kirk and Jason kicked off GDC 2018 by chatting with Zachtronics writer/composer Matthew S. Burns about how he approaches writing puzzle-game music that you notice, but you don't NOTICE.

At GDC in San Francisco, Kirk and Jason chat with Tanya X. Short, captain of indie game studio Kitfox Games, about her unusual approach to structuring her game studio and how she helps her staff combat crunch and burnout.

Jason and Kirk talk with ex-BioWare general manager Aaryn Flynn about his years making RPGs (and running a studio) in Edmonton, as well as his experiences working at EA.

At GDC in San Francisco, Jason sat down with Jen MacLean, executive director of the International Game Developers Association, to get her take on all the recent talk of unionization among game developers.

"Why wouldn't I believe you? You're here." Kirk and Jason are joined by IGN's Marty Sliva and Andrew Goldfarb to talk about The Leftovers, going season by season to dissect the show and discuss why we all love it so much. Warning: There will be spoilers!

At South by Southwest in Austin, Jason and Kirk took the stage along with Telltale Games’ Leah Hoyer and the Guardian’s Keza MacDonald to talk about interactive storytelling, the rise of games as a service, and whether or not Jason actually has a “Soothsayer Hat.”

Kirk and Jason sit down with Rise of the Black Panther writer (and former Kotaku colleague) Evan Narcisse to talk about Ryan Coogler's Black Panther film and the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole.

Jason talks to Hermen Hulst, managing director at Guerrilla Games, about the studio's success with Horizon: Zero Dawn, how they moved past the grittiness of Killzone, and how he feels about crunch.

Is Donald Trump about to ban video games for life? Probably!!! Kirk and Jason talk about that and other big news like loot boxes and Diablo for Switch (6:27), then dig into some of the games they've been playing (41:14), like Dishonored: Death of the Outsider, Arkham Knight, and Ni no Kuni 2.

On this special episode of Kotaku Splitscreen, Kirk and Jason travel back to Destiny 1 and the era of Sleeper Simulant, Outbreak Prime, and the Vault of Glass. It’s a story about secrets and secret hunters, and how Destiny's most fabled mysteries eventually become real. CREDITS Written and produced by Jason Schreier and Kirk Hamilton Interviews conducted by Jason Schreier Edited and mixed by Kirk Hamilton Music composed and performed by Kirk Hamilton Editorial oversight by Stephen Totilo AUDIO SOURCING Official Destiny 2 Trailer Official Taken King Trailer Phillip Kenney Climbing to the top of Atheon’s Throne Room Primeguard, World’s First Vault of Glass completion: Vylsith, Vault of Glass Oracle Fight iraspberrykiwi commentary on vault of glass hidden area Viva La Fraggie Scent of the Worm guide Daniel Jurado’s amazing Vault of Glass glitch video 

Kirk and Jason jump right into news on Mafia 3's developer laying people off, Kentucky's governor blaming video games for shootings, and the System Shock reboot facing development troubles. Then they answer some listener questions (23:01) on console vs. PC gaming and getting your husband into The Witcher 3. They finish things off (48:05) by chatting about games they're playing: Assassin's Creed Origins and A Case of Distrust.

Kirk and Jason break down the news before getting into some nitty-gritty about what they've been playing (25:48), including Civilization VI, Dragon Quest Builders, and Into The Breach. Why do we play games, anyway? LET'S FIGURE IT OUT. Then they talk about the Olympics, whether it's OK to be friends with Nazis, and all sorts of other good stuff (51:47).