Sacred Symbols, Episode 285 | Deader Than Dead (Patreon)

We recorded a full episode of the show -- originally called Deader Than Dead because of the demise of E3 -- but we had no idea how apt that title would actually become. In the hours after we hit stop, word broke of Naughty Dog's cancellation of The Last of Us' standalone Factions mode, which they call The Last of Us Online (as first reported right here on Sacred Symbols). Naturally, we had to record a lengthy pickup to discuss the unfortunate news. And yes: E3 is dead, as mentioned above. From 1995 through 2019, E3 ran each and every year in LA (except for those two random Atlanta shows in the '90s), and it was a gathering point for games professionals, the media, and others. But as the magazine era gave way to web 1.0, and then to 2.0, and now to wherever we are now, the once mighty convention has no place in an environment where devs, publishers, and consumers can reach each other directly. In short: Let's give E3 the viking funeral it deserves. Plus: Insomniac purportedly gets hacked, Spider-Man 2's updates have been delayed, film production house A24 teams up with Kojima, fresh Resident Evil remakes are en route, and more. Then: Listener inquiries! If Blade is an Xbox console exclusive, why won't Microsoft just say so? Should we expect a State of Play early in the new year? How did FNTASTIC take their customers for a ride with The Day Before? Is Colin's "please look forward to that" saying simply an alteration of Jeb Bush's "please clap" debacle?

Timestamps:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:07:35 - Were the Old Gods of Asgard performing live?

0:13:35 - Do we have too many historical Asian action games?

0:18:32 - What bothers Marge in the bedroom?

0:20:05 - Please Look Forward To That = Please Clap

0:27:30 - What do you do when you’re in the Dalton Line of relationships?

0:41:51 - White Elephant isn’t what you think…

0:50:52 - C’mon man, I’m working on it

0:56:50 - Does Colin need to stop Micah from Tweeting?

0:58:53 - Any thoughts on the future of New York football?

1:03:34 - PlayStation 2023’s Wrap-Up is out

1:11:23 - Spider-Man 2’s updates are delayed until 2024

1:13:49 - A24 is teaming up with Kojima

1:21:18 - The Final Fantasy XVI team has disbanded

1:24:36 - Capcom says more Resident Evil remakes are coming

1:32:22 - Disney has spoken on why the Indiana Jones game was removed from PS5

1:42:10 - Fallout 4’s PS5 port has been delayed

1:43:42 - Exodus’ story was written by Drew Karphyshyn

1:50:14 - Ubisoft has registered Might & Magic

1:52:56 - What have we been playing?

2:17:19 - The Last of Us Online has been canceled

2:48:34 - Insomniac may have been hacked

2:56:38 - E3 is no more

3:23:41 -Sales data has arrived for November

3:29:51 -The new PS+ offerings have arrived

3:45:42 - What do we think about the separation of sports and racing games in award shows?

3:52:05 - Will we get a State of Play soon?

4:00:03 - Let’s talk about The Day Before

4:07:00 - How will eSports continue to grow?

4:12:06 - Are the awards at TGA treated too flippantly?