Happy July, folks! As the summer blazes on, what better way to avoid the heat than by cranking the A/C, kicking your feet up, and listening to some Weekend at Dave’s?
We’ve got a stellar episode prepared for you. Following our 2023 Gaming Preview episode, our editorial team here at The Punished Backlog is back with a mid-year check-in. What games have we enjoyed? What are our thoughts on 2023 thus far?
Perhaps most importantly, we’ll be recapping our Fantasy Gaming results up till now—and making some “waiver wire” selections based on the next six months. Just like the weather outside, our competition is heating up!
Catch the full episode here:
MP3 Download | Spotify | Apple Podcasts
Note: This episode was recorded on 6/26/23, before the releases of Oxenfree II: Lost Signals and Exoprimal.
Another note: Despite his comments to the contrary at 51:45, Sam too saw a score increase post-waiver wire (by dropping Fire Emblem: Engage). He and Amanda share the number-one Fantasy spot with 92.5 apiece. Exciting!
Show Notes
(0:00) — Intro
(2:14) — 2023 Mid-Year Check-In
(16:41) — Reflecting on Our Fantasy Teams So Far
(28:26) — Explaining the Fantasy Waiver Wire
(31:50) — Time for Waivers!
(53:31) — Getting Sidetracked and Talking About Movies
(55:57) — Outro
Song Credit:
Intro: “Let’s Do The Fooka-Fooka!” from Super Mario RPG (2023) (Yoko Shimomura)
Outro: “[Sector 4] – Ravaged Rustworks” from Hey! Pikmin (Masato Kouda, Kento Hasegawa)
Episode Guide
Looking for some helpful visuals as you listen to the podcast? Check out our episode guide below:
The 2023 Waiver Wire! (Potential Picks-Ups)
- Oxenfree II: Lost Signals - July 12
- Exoprimal - July 14
- Pikmin 4 – July 21
- Remnant II – July 25
- Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon – August 25
- Sea of Stars – August 29
- Lies of P – September 19
- Mortal Kombat 1 – September 19
- Detective Pikachu Returns – October 6
- Alan Wake 2 – October 17
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder – October 20
- Star Ocean: The Second Story R – November 2
- WarioWare: Move It! – November 3
- Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name – November 9
- Persona 5 Tactica – November 17
- Super Mario RPG – November 17
- Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora – December 7
The 2023 Waiver Wire! (Our Actual Picks)
- Amanda - The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
- Sam - Starfield
- David - Final Fantasy XVI
- David - Diablo IV
- Sam - Resident Evil 4 Remake
- Amanda - Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Amanda - Dead Space Remake
- Sam - Forza Motorsport
- David - Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
- David - Marvel's Spider-Man 2
- Sam - Street Fighter VI
- Amanda - Baldur’s Gate 3
- Amanda - Redfall
- Sam - Fire Emblem Engage
- David - Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League
- David - The Last of Us Factions
- Sam - Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
- Amanda - Assassin's Creed Mirage
- Amanda - Drops Redfall, picks up Super Mario RPG remake
- Sam - Drops Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, picks up Super Mario Bros. Wonder
- David - Drops Suicide Squad, picks up Mortal Kombat 1
- David - Drops TLOU Factions, picks up Pikmin 4
- Sam - Drops FE Engage, picks up Alan Wake 2
- Amanda - Drops... nothing! (She holds!)
