Breakout
By The Escapist
BreakoutSep 01, 2021
The Live Service Bubble Has Burst
This week on Breakout, we're talking all about the recent layoffs, which we believe indicates the live-service bubble has truly burst.
Spider-Man 2 and Mario Wonder are How You Do Franchises Right
This week on Breakout, we're talking all about Spider-Man 2 and Mario Wonder, and how these are perfect examples of franchises done right.
Where Do Soulslike Games Go From Here?
This week on Breakout, we've been playing a lot of soulslikes lately and wonder where the genre goes from here.
A Chat with Red Barrels About Outlast and Designing Horror Games
This week on Breakout, we interview the development team behind Outlast following the release of their documentary to learn more about the franchise, and making horror games in general!
Assassin's Creed Mirage, Forza, Cocoon... Oh My!
This week on Breakout, we discuss a bunch of different games we've been playing as 2023 continues to deliver hit after hit.
Games That Do Difficulty in Unique Ways
This week on Breakout, we discuss games that do difficulty in interesting ways.
What We Learned From the Wild Xbox Leaks
This week on Breakout, we discuss the big Xbox leaks.
Lies of P Is a Fantastic Soulslike
This week on Breakout, we discuss Lies of P, which is yet another fantastic game in a wave of great games over the past few weeks.
Starfield Just Keeps Getting Better the More You Play
This week on Breakout, we discuss Starfield which seems to just keep getting better the more time you put into it.
Sea of Stars is as Good as We Were Hoping It Would Be
This week on Breakout we discuss Sea of Stars, which has completely lived up to our expectations as one of the best indie games of the year.
The Overshadowed Games of 2023... So Far
This week on Breakout, we discuss the games we think have been overshadowed by major releases this year... so far.
No, Developers Aren't Panicking Over Baldur's Gate 3
This week on Breakout, we discuss the current discourse surrounding developers supposedly "panicking" over Baldur's Gate 3, and everything else we've been playing and watching.
Baldur's Gate 3 Is A Massive Success Worth Celebrating
This week on Breakout, we discuss the breakout success of Baldur's Gate 3, the musical indie gem Stray Gods, and we've put some time into Atlas Fallen.
Breathing Life Back Into Old Games
This week on Breakout, we discuss the recent trend of a lot of older games suddenly getting revitalized.
It Only Takes HOW Many Hours to Get Good?
This week on Breakout, we discuss the games that took a while to click for us, our closing thoughts on Final Fantasy 16 and anything else we come up with. You know the drill.
Is the Era of Mind-Blowing Games Over?
This week on Breakout, we discuss the games that blew our minds and wonder if that era of games is over.
The Microsoft x Activision Acquisition is Almost Complete, What's Next?
This week on Breakout, we discuss the recent updates on the Microsoft acquisition of Activision, and what we think that will look like should the CMA approve it.
Forget Activision, Xbox Should Bring Back Summer of Arcade
This week on Breakout, we discuss today's news and remember Xbox's great Summer of Arcade initiative.
Turns Out Switch Still Has Some Life Left in It
This week on Breakout, we discuss today's Nintendo Direct showcase which signaled the Switch still has some life left in it before the inevitable follow-up console.
FF16’s Demo Absolutely Sold Us on the Game
This week on Breakout, we discuss the Final Fantasy 16 demo, our thoughts on Summer Games Fest and more.
Overall, 2023 Has Been A Pretty Strong Year for Games
This week on Breakout, with the year at the half-way point, we discuss the current state of games and how over the last few weeks, things have really started heating up in a great way.
The Calm Before the Summer Game Fest Storm
This week on Breakout, we discuss our predictions for what we'll be seeing during Summer Game Fest which starts next week.
The PlayStation Showcase Failed to Provide a Clear Roadmap for the PS5
This week on Breakout, we discuss the PlayStation Showcase - what we liked, didn't like and the noticeable lack of any news about first party studios.
Overwatch 2's PvE Mess and Broken Promises from Publishers
This week on Breakout, we discuss the mess that is Overwatch 2 and frequent broken promises from publishers.
The Console Wars Were Over a Long Time Ago
This week on Breakout, we discuss "console wars" and how they've been over for a long time now and people just haven't seemed to realize it yet.
What's the Deal with So Many AAA Games Having Major Launch Issues? ft. Tina Sanchez
This week on Breakout, special guest Tina Sanchez joins Marty, Nick and KC to discuss the launches of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and Redfall, as well as other recent AAA games that have really just been unacceptable.
Our Initial Impressions of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
This week on Breakout we discuss Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Microsoft's latest hurdle in the ongoing Activision-Blizzard saga, and more.
The Weird Old Gaming Trends That We Miss
This week on Breakout, we discuss the weird, old and dumb gaming trends that we wish would come back in some form.
Game Mechanics That We Just Can't Get Enough Of
This week on Breakout, we discuss our favorite video game mechanics, the news about Redfall only being 30FPS at launch, and whatever other topics come to mind.
In 2023, GameCube is Finally Getting the Love it Deserves
This week on Breakout, we discuss how the Gamecube is finally getting the love it deserves in 2023.
We've Finally Gotten to Play Dead Island 2
This week on Breakout, we got some hands-on time with Dead Island 2, The Finals, Resident Evil 4 and more.
Starfield’s Delay is Absolutely a Good Thing… Mostly
This week on Breakout, we're looking at the Starfield delay and what it means for the year going forward.
The Blandness of So Many AAA Games is Impossible to Ignore
This week on Breakout, we're looking at how so many AAA games of late have cookie cutter design and are just utterly bland.
We're Still Thinking About Elden Ring a Year Later
This week on Breakout, we're looking back at Elden Ring which launched one year ago this weekend and has now sold a whopping 20 MILLION copies.
Our Initial Impressions of Wild Hearts
This week on Breakout, we're discussing a bunch of games we've been playing including Wild Hearts, Wanted: Dead, Hogwarts and more.
2023 is Starting to Feel like the Swan Song for the Switch
This week on Breakout, we're discussing today's Nintendo Direct.
Why It Took 3 Years to Learn to Love Death Stranding
This week on Breakout, Nick has finally played and finished Death Stranding, 343 Industries is getting a reboot and we've been playing a lot of great games in January.
It's Okay for Some Games to Just Be Okay
This week on Breakout we're taking a look at Games as a Service titles following the leak that yet another game, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, has a battle pass included.
Dear Games Industry, Please Chill on Games as a Service
This week on Breakout we're taking a look at Games as a Service titles following the leak that yet another game, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, has a battle pass included.
Is 2023 The Year PlayStation Finally Gets Back to Multiplayer Games?
This week on Breakout we're taking a look at Sony's upcoming slate of games, with a focus on their big investments into new multiplayer games after years of focusing strictly on single player adventures.
Our 2023 Gaming Goals
This week on Breakout we're talking about our gaming plans for 2023.
Our Favorite Games of 2022
This week on Breakout we're talking about our favorite games of the year for 2022.
Xbox's Lack of Communication About First Party Titles is Backfiring
This week on Breakout we're talking about Xbox, and how 2022 has been a very quiet year for the platform that's failed to instill much confidence despite all the investment and previous announcements made.
What to Expect from 2022's 'The Game Awards'
This week on Breakout we're talking about The Game Awards, which airs tomorrow!
Have Video Game Adaptations Finally Stopped Being Terrible?
This week on Breakout we're talking about video game adaptations in media, along with a discussion about the expectations of live service AAA games which have more often than not recently had really rough launches.
The Callisto Protocol's Paywalled Death Animations Are a New Low
This week on Breakout we're talking about season passes and The Callisto Protocol specifically locking down content for a linear single player game...
Did Elden Ring Deserve to be Nominated for Best Narrative?
This week on Breakout we're talking Elden Ring and the debate around its "Best Narrative" nomination at The Game Awards.
AAA Season is Here and It's a Mixed Bag
This week on Breakout we're talking about our early impressions of God of War: Ragnarök, Sonic Frontiers, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and more.
PSVR 2 at $550 is Dead on Arrival
This week on Breakout we're taking about the price point of PSVR 2 and why we think it will be dead on arrival. We've also been playing a bunch of the latest releases, as our backlogs re-fill as we head towards the end of the year.
In Defense of "Certain" Remakes
This week on Breakout we're talking about remakes following the announcements of the Silent Hill 2, The Witcher and more being remade. We'll also provide some recommendations on spooky games to play for Halloween.