By John Walker on November 23rd, 2011 at 1:31 pm.
In episode 51 of the RPS Electronic Wireless Show, Jim and John catch up on the events that have taken place in the week since we last recorded. Events like the release of some games, and some games we have played. Those are the events we experience in our lives.
There’s chat about how great Tim Stone is, Jim’s racism against cat people, and we ponder why RPS readers like RPGs so much. John explains why he hates Modern Warfare 3 so much, while Jim moans about BF3′s doors. There’s thoughts on how open we really want our worlds to be, and then, perhaps not surprisingly, we turn to Skyrim. We talk Skyrim’s structure, exploration, quests and peculiarities.
We bemoan the peculiar interface decisions, talk about interactive spaces, and think about its artistry. Then to end, John goes off on a rant about why marking from 7 to 10 is actually fair reviewing.
Get the mp3 directly from here, subscribe to it by RSS with this, and don’t get it on iTunes from here.
Or listen to it right here:
Apologies for the lack of jingles. The hard drive on which John stored them died during the week since we last recorded.
23/11/2011 at 13:35 Crimsoneer says:
THE DRAGON HAS AWOKEN FROM HIS SLUMBER
23/11/2011 at 13:38 Gesadt says:
first in 2011?
23/11/2011 at 13:38 The Sombrero Kid says:
stop eating my comments please :(
23/11/2011 at 14:31 Jarenth says:
It’s your own fault for making them so tasty.
23/11/2011 at 22:40 Necroscope says:
I find it annoying too. I typed out response only for it to disappear into thin air…:(
23/11/2011 at 13:39 Drayk says:
How come I always have trouble understanding you british people on podcast when I have no trouble understanding american folks… Should I blame Tv shows ?
23/11/2011 at 15:35 vecordae says:
You should blame the Illuminati for your troubles.
You never asked for this.
23/11/2011 at 15:43 Dath says:
Blame TV shows. I understand them perfectly, but that might be because I talk to English people on skype 24/7
23/11/2011 at 16:38 OJSlaughter says:
Your ignorant! I demand you watch every series of Top Gear for your foolishness :p
23/11/2011 at 16:44 John Walker says:
Oh gosh, the delicious irony.
24/11/2011 at 03:49 Morganman says:
See, it’s funny for me, as an American, to think that British people are hard to understand. But then I remember that my stepdad is from Gloucester, so…
24/11/2011 at 09:51 Drayk says:
I didn’t know about this “Top gear”show, but I don’t have a TV… I just watch DVDs.
Not my type though… I am sure I am missing the joke…
Oh well, I’ll download those podcasts to adapt my audition to the joys of British accents…
Strangely I remember a conversation with a really cute redhead from Scotland, and I could understand her and her gaelic accent perfectly well after two pints of that awful beverage you have the nerves to call beer.
23/11/2011 at 13:42 Jams O'Donnell says:
What in the blazes!? You people will be starting a blog next, with all your technical wizardry.
23/11/2011 at 13:44 Joseph-Sulphur says:
Yesssss! It has been too long since the last wireless show. If there isn’t at least 10 minutes of John complaining about how sick he was/is I will be most disappointed.
23/11/2011 at 13:49 westyfield says:
I hope they do the cream tea joke. That bit was always my favourite!
23/11/2011 at 15:59 Optimaximal says:
Confusing RPS with Rum Doings is only going to make Nick hate you even more than he already does!
More-so if the confusion was deliberate!
23/11/2011 at 13:50 nabeel says:
Awesome, it’s been so long since the last one!
23/11/2011 at 13:54 Nathan says:
By jove; what the devil is this?
23/11/2011 at 13:57 wiper says:
No way!
23/11/2011 at 13:59 frenz0rz says:
Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees!
Hopefully we wont have to wait 6 months for the next one. More wireless shows please!
23/11/2011 at 15:48 Dath says:
1 week* ;D
23/11/2011 at 17:08 DigitalSignalX says:
It’s been a busy week.
24/11/2011 at 00:09 fullbleed says:
“The next podcast is currently undergoing preparation and will be available within 6 months”
23/11/2011 at 14:02 westyfield says:
Here‘s the Minecraft game-within-a-game John mentioned.
23/11/2011 at 16:21 gwathdring says:
That’s incredible! Now I’m imagining stop-motion DOOM, just for kicks.
23/11/2011 at 14:04 Shooop says:
You finally figured out our soliders’ secret slow-motion superpowers have you?
Now you know too much. The black helicopters are already on their way.
23/11/2011 at 14:21 sneetch says:
No, you fool! They’ll go slow-motion and shoot the highlighted weak spot by the rotors! Abort! Abort!
23/11/2011 at 14:04 Belsameth says:
Amazing summary of SR3. I think a lot of reviewers missed that vital point.
Besides the fact that the story is silly tho, it’s also *very* well told for all its sillyness.
It’s close to my game of the year I think. (and one of the few AAA titles I finished this year)
23/11/2011 at 14:11 kyrieee says:
Episode 51? That’s crazy considering you almost never do these =)
23/11/2011 at 14:18 Jams O'Donnell says:
Idle Thumbs stopped at Episode 50 and then reformed and started releasing episodes regularly again (before stopping again, the gits). Are we in for a similar podcast revival here?
Nope.
23/11/2011 at 14:18 PatrickSwayze says:
YOUR HARDRIVE HAS CRASHED?
YOU THINK THAT’S A GOOD ENOUGH EXCUSE FOR NO JINGLES?
YOU SHOULD HAVE HAD OFF SITE STORAGE!
I’M CANCELLING MY RPS ACCOUNT AND I’M GOING TO PIRATE YOUR PODCAST NOW AND DISTRIBUTE OVER THE REST OF THE INTERNET!
FUCKING NOOBS!!!1!
23/11/2011 at 14:22 Lord Custard Smingleigh says:
What deviltry is this?
Someone call a police constable. I’ll not stand here and tolerate any more of this tonfoolery!
23/11/2011 at 14:23 fugo says:
Bejeweled? Clearly Peggle would be the politician anaesthetic of choice. I nearly lost my degree to that ‘casual’ piece of pure wonder and joy.
23/11/2011 at 14:26 Hodge says:
And so we stand respectfully for the annual casting of the pods.
23/11/2011 at 14:26 diamondmx says:
Generic spoiler warning, not too helpful. Could care less if you spoil MW3 from beginning to end, and you can talk about Skyrim’s many things to do and what you’ve found, but detail more than the start of Skyrim’s story and I’d be sad (because I haven’t got around to doing the main quest yet).
So I guess I’ll listen when…who am I kidding, I’ll have forgotten all about this by tomorrow.
23/11/2011 at 14:27 Magnetude says:
Well this is going to brighten my afternoon. Is anyone else’s browser shitting itself when it has to scroll past the player? It’s all whoosh-chug-chug-chug-whooooooooooosh down to the comments
23/11/2011 at 14:31 shoptroll says:
Yay! It’s back!
23/11/2011 at 14:32 AndrewC says:
OH GOD NO, if you have computer games decide international policy instead of war, then it will be the people who are best at computer games be the ones that decide international policy.
23/11/2011 at 16:09 Jams O'Donnell says:
What’s wrong with that? I can totally be trusted with politics.
23/11/2011 at 14:39 Jams O'Donnell says:
What I like most about Jim & John podcasts is that silliness is gone along with and neither of them bat an eyelid, like how readily Jim accepts that Francis Bacon is the source of his FIFA/manshoot quotation.
23/11/2011 at 14:40 fugo says:
also guys can you stop the background noise fading out between words? it keeps making me think the show is over halfway through a sentence when someone pauses for a moment
23/11/2011 at 14:46 Wallace says:
Wait, that Labyrinthian place is real!? To Skyrim!
23/11/2011 at 15:42 vecordae says:
It’s awesome! Fake Spoiler: The boss is a shape-shifting wizard with mismatched eyes named David Bowie. You will remind him of the babe.
23/11/2011 at 15:59 AndrewC says:
What babe?
23/11/2011 at 17:20 Jams O'Donnell says:
The babe with the power
24/11/2011 at 11:38 Hodge says:
What power?
24/11/2011 at 11:46 JackShandy says:
The power of voodoo.
23/11/2011 at 14:46 Man Raised by Puffins says:
Silly Jim, RPS is Kieron’s blog.
23/11/2011 at 14:47 Jim Rossignol says:
That is true.
23/11/2011 at 14:54 Skusey says:
Thank you Jim and John. I missed these.
23/11/2011 at 15:04 Limey says:
I want games to be ranked in colours, not denoting an hierarchy, but just whatever the reviewer feels best suits the game.
Unfortunately metacritic would become a huge brown mess.
23/11/2011 at 15:35 somnolentsurfer says:
What is this that’s appeared in my iTunes library? Huh, it appears to John’s coming out as a furry. Moving on…
23/11/2011 at 15:46 CaspianRoach says:
You should do these more often, this year I can finally freely understand spoken english.
23/11/2011 at 15:51 mana says:
lies, it’s not on my iTunes store page thingmajig at all…. I demand refunds, also TF2 hats
…and a cuddle
23/11/2011 at 16:23 Makariel says:
I can’t believe it! Rejoice!
23/11/2011 at 16:27 gwathdring says:
That was delightful. Thank you, sirs.
23/11/2011 at 17:17 Futurecast says:
OOOOH OOOOOO. WHY ARE YOU EVEN TALKING ABOUT MODERN WARFARE???
OOOOH OOOOOO.
23/11/2011 at 17:52 Flobulon says:
Hurray! PLEASE do more!
23/11/2011 at 17:54 Tams80 says:
I never imagined you sounding like that. I’ve been reading RPS in the wrong voices dammit!
23/11/2011 at 18:31 Grinnbarr says:
So… we should take down evil dictators with a few rounds of Quake 3?
23/11/2011 at 18:44 Kevin says:
Got me thinking, has anyone in RPS actually met Tim Stone in person? Or will we learn that he’s actually an advanced quantum computer AI formed from the primordial soup of ARPANET?
23/11/2011 at 18:48 Shandrakor says:
THIS IS BLOODY BRILLIANT! <3 RPS MOAR THAN EVAR!
23/11/2011 at 21:46 Hidden_7 says:
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!
Can I just say, that I love the RPS Electronic Wireless Shows, they have kept me company on many a fine walk, and that though John’s Rum Doings is quite good as well, it’s not quite the same. Probably because Nick hates games, and only deigns to talk about them when he’s being condescending.
I’m sure it’s not easy to get together to do these podcasts, otherwise there’d probably be more of them, but just so you know, they are very much appreciated. More if possible, please.
23/11/2011 at 21:57 Necroscope says:
I agree with your comments on Skyrim. The companion AI can range from being a good tank to get the F out of this doorway I’m stuck in a deadend jumping about like a crazy salmon and you’re impossible to move, must I use a shout on you lol !!! The textures can range from somewhere in the vicinity of 2002 [like mentioned] to the present day in terms of quality. Looking closely at them reveals some rough edges blurry blocky but stand back and the overall picture is easy to admire. It also runs fast, loads fast etc and there isn’t any problem with distant object pop and I really appreciate that, object popping can ruin the illusion of immersion. The artistic vision is stellar for the most. I’ve taken over 1k of pics because I’m so enthralled by the world itself which I’ve picked up is one of bethesdas main design philosophies. The world itself a character and an amazing one to explore. The pleasure of finding an abandoned camp high up on a mountain track not marked on the map, searching about the place to loot the chest it then turning around to realise it belongs to a rather angry hagraven who has set up a trap for you is soo good.
24/11/2011 at 03:43 FRIENDLYUNIT says:
You mean “zed six” I think.
24/11/2011 at 10:00 VideoJames says:
“American soldiers can now slow down time”
Made me lol, thanks guys. Only recently listened to the old RPS Wireless shows. Looking forward to listening to more.
24/11/2011 at 10:40 Adanos says:
Now that’s what I call a busy week.
24/11/2011 at 15:56 Necroscope says:
Great stuff. Do more of these and I will be chuffed to pieces.
A few comments about Skyrim from this portal of red sauce: I’ve come across occasional enemies in dungeons crypts etc that can dodge my arrows from my sneak attack while they’re in search mode sometimes with back turned to me just like magic then continue searching. WTF? How does a vendor know stolen goods are stolen if they’re the same as other normal goods if I stole it on the other side of the map to him? Am I missing something ? Some of the textures are 2002 and look bad by todays Witchery 2 standard but stand back and I realise they’re well designed as a whole. The overall picture is awe-inspiring. Its the occasional rough textures but this observation is bordering on irrelevant as I don’t spend time looking for bad stuff it just occurs to me when I stop to check bags or a dragon soaring over whiterun ,and I note it. The freedom to roam is a problem and a pleasure and can cause indifference. Say for instance I independently of a quest entered a dungeon with bears [near riften, forgot name] then later picked the quest up from the orc camp to go to that dungeon to slay some giants that have taken up camp inside my suspension of disbelief is affected.
I say these things having sunk near 90 hours into the game and loved it to pieces. They’re minor footnotes to an enormous scale of pleasure.
Near Falkreath [I love the misty forest around there ] I was hunting deer with a dagger sneaking on them and I discovered a tower I hadn’t seen before then suddenly the rumble of a dragon overhead. The occupants of the tower came out to attack the dragon leaving me an easy few kills. I moved into their…MY tower to use as cover to fight the dragon as well as loot it. A few exchanges later I noticed a band of heavily armoured mercenary types approaching who it turned out were sent to kill me as revenge for murdering their master. So I’m sprinting through forestry turning to fire off shots at the mercs and pulling off dragon shouts to send them flying whilst this dragon scorches us with frost fire overhead. lol. Next thing I know a pack of 3 wolves are biting at my ankles but they’re so soft a few shots and they’re toast. So I’m still being pursued by the mercs although they’re dwindling in number as I pick them off. The dragon lands breathing frost fire so I run down into a gully to cover chomp some health pots and prepare my bow for enemies coming over the ridge. The merc leader appears so I see him off with a few shots. Easy. Next I move over the ridge line to fire on the dragon who is stranded stuck to a tree [bug ] lol I take him out from afar. Epic battle over :) That’s what I’ve loved about Skyrim.
24/11/2011 at 22:38 The Dark One says:
That video-games-instead-of-war idea sounds like something out of the book Kiln People.
Well, in that story, the wars are still physical things- they just take place in stadiums and are fought by temporary clay-powered robots. Professional soldiers are just the people provide the mental imprint for the golems,