The Punished Podcast – Episode 10: Fall 2024 Preview

As the summer comes to a close, let’s reflect on some exciting video game announcements! In Episode 10 of The Punished Podcast, we discuss everything that excited us from giant publishers and indie studios alike. We also did waiver wire pickups for our Fantasy Gaming league, which is a fun way to stay in the loop about what’s hot and what’s (unfortunately for me, as you’ll find out) not.

There’s a lot to look forward to this fall, starting with this Thursday’s release! As Sam says in the podcast, “The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is the Zelda game I’ve wanted for 15 years.”

The Punished Podcast Episode 10

Check out the latest episode below. A reminder that you can listen here, download the MP3 file, or catch us on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Happy listening!

(Please note: This episode was recorded on August 15, 2024, prior to the releases of Star Wars Outlaws, Black Myth: Wukong, Astro Bot, The Plucky Squire, and Frostpunk 2.)

MP3 Download | Spotify | Apple Podcasts

Timestamps:

• 0:00 – Intro + Favorite RPG Companions
• 03:57 – Biggest Video Game Announcements from Summer 2024 (Hosted by Sam)
• 26:50 – Deep Dive on 12 Exciting Indies Featured During Summer 2024 (Hosted by Amanda)
• 49:15 – Waiver Wire for Fantasy Gaming League (Hosted by David)
• 01:17:25 – Closing & Epilogue

Here’s an excerpt from our discussion:

• Amanda: “I feel so lame saying this, but I am so excited about Assassin’s Creed Shadows and Star Wars: Outlaws. I know they’re giant open-world games that are just doing the same Ubisoft shit, but I don’t care. I want it. The trailers look fun. I want to run the world around with my little alien guy in Outlaws, and in Shadows, it looks tight. The whole time [I was watching the trailers] I was fist-pumping. It felt very fan service-y… it’s a very simple yay! for me.”
• Sam: “Exactly—like, I know you like Assassin’s Creed, so I’m genuinely happy for you. Meanwhile, for me, I watched some YouTube reactions to some of these showcases. For the Xbox one, there was one group of people who were reacting like, ‘All these games look exactly the same, I don’t want any of this.’ Meanwhile, this is like candy for me. Give me more Starfield, give me more Perfect Dark.”
• Amanda: Imitating Sam: “Give me more Gears of War, nom nom nom.”
• Sam: “Exactly! An RPG I can finish in 30 hours? Yes!”
• Amanda: “Yeah, and you’re excited about Indiana Jones: The Great Circle! … Yes, I think it’s an interesting summer that is divided by personal taste. There’s also a lot here that was being announced that won’t come out ’til 2025, at least.”
• Sam: “Yes, exactly, it’s a sugar high of Summer Game Fest. You can get excited about all these games but you can’t play them for a while… What showcase was the best, and what’s the worst? David, you want to go first?”
• David: “I have to give my flowers to Microsoft. Compared to the competition, they really brought the bangers this time. And they needed a win desperately, after the whole Tango and Arkane Austin situation. Shout-out to the folks at Tango for getting acquired. Yeah, Microsoft brought the goods. I’m so excited about a lot of the slate. I know Xbox too well, though. I think it was their Gamescom 2014 presser. They had Scalebound, Crackdown 3, and a bunch of other games that looked really incredible at the time.”
• Sam: “Like Fable: Legends, I think? And it just didn’t come out?”
• David: “Yeah… It was a good presser that slowly went downhill as the games came out. So I’m always wary of that with Microsoft. That said, there’s such a velocity of good-looking games that they announced or showed more of that I can’t help but feel they’ll hit on a couple. Fable, I continue to remain really excited about. Perfect Dark surprised me. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, I’m sure it won’t be an exclusive, but a turn-based game that isn’t from a Japanese developer is really exciting. South of Midnight, besides the awesomeness of having a playable female Black protagonist, it kind of feels like Microsoft’s answer to Kena: Bridge of Spirits. And it’s a throwaway for the worst conference… I think it’s Ubisoft. I’m sorry, Amanda.”
• Amanda: laughs
• David: “Believe me. I want Assassin’s Creed: Shadows and Star Wars: Outlaws to be awesome. Outlaws got me excited to begin with, but the more trailers they showed…”
• Amanda: “I know, I know. Like, don’t show me all that.”
• David: “Exactly. Show less… I think Ubisoft needs to go back to the drawing board and come up with some fresh ideas. Something’s gotta give here.”

Most Anticipated Indies of Fall 2024 (and Beyond)

We highlighted the following titles:

• Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus, developed by Squid Shock Games, published (lol) by Humble Games, released July 17, 2024
• Été, developed by Impossible, released July 23, 2024
• Dungeons of Hinterberg, developed by Microbird Games, published by Curve Games, released July 18, 2024 
• The Plucky Squire, developed by All Possible Futures, published by Devolver Digital, released September 17, 2024
• UFO 50, developed and published by Mossmouth, released September 18
• Life is Strange: Double Exposure, developed by Deck Nine, published by Square Enix (very debatable on how we define indie but that’s a convo for another time), releasing on October 15, 2024
• Afterlove EP, developed by Pikselnesia, published by Fellow Traveller, releasing Q3 2024
• Demonschool, developed by Necrosoft Games, published by Ysbryd Games, delayed until Q1 2025
• Rooster, developed by Sticky Brain Studios, releasing Q1 2025 TBA
• Tiny Bookshop, developed by Neoludic Games, release date TBA
• Lost and Found Co, developed by Bit Egg Games, published by Camera Games, release date TBA
• While Waiting, developed by Optillusion, release date TBA

Fantasy Gaming League Update

Listen to the episode for the spice of our picks and updated scores from our Fantasy Gaming series. Below is a snapshot of where our teams were at heading into the episode. Releases with a red X indicate games that have been officially delayed (or, in the case of Hades II, that didn’t qualify for a Metacritic score in 2024).

If you want to see what we picked, click the reveal below.

And, if you want to see the lay of the land as of 9/23/2024, click this next reveal.

Fantasy Gaming Leaderboard

Song Credits: 

• “Vida La Vida!” by Chihiro Aoki from Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (2024)
• “Beach Buds (Gameboy Remix)” by Mark Sparling from A Short Hike (2019)
• “Été Trailer” by Impossible Games from Été (2024)
• “I Am Astro Bot (ASTRO BOT Remix)” by Kenneth C M Young from Astro Bot (2024)
• “Trailer Theme” by Tony Trippi and William Havlicek from The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (2024)