Skip to main content
The Escapist Show

The Escapist Show

By The Escapist

The Escapist Show, hosted by Jack Packard and The Escapist Editor-in-Chief, Nick Calandra, is a weekly look at the games we've been playing and discussion about the hottest video game news items of the week.
Available on
Apple Podcasts Logo
Google Podcasts Logo
Pocket Casts Logo
RadioPublic Logo
Spotify Logo
Currently playing episode

Somebody Has Been On a Yakuza Binge

The Escapist ShowJun 07, 2021

00:00
32:21
Halo Infinite Seems To Be on the Right Track

Halo Infinite Seems To Be on the Right Track

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick has been playing Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, Jack is playing Inscryption, and then they discuss the latest update for Halo Infinite and how the last year of transparency compares to Cyberpunk 2077, considering the game just received further update delays to 2022.

Nov 14, 202136:01
Getting Lost in Metroid Dread

Getting Lost in Metroid Dread

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick has been playing Metroid Dread, Jack's getting his butt kicked by his kids in Smash, we discuss God of War coming to PC and give our impressions on the Oculus Quest 2, which was provided by Oculus for a sponsored event this past week.

Oct 26, 202129:33
Far Cry 6 Is Ubisoft's Open World Formula At Its Worst

Far Cry 6 Is Ubisoft's Open World Formula At Its Worst

This week on The Escapist Show, Jack's playing Tails of Iron, Nick's finally tired of Far Cry and, well, that's it.

Oct 11, 202127:27
Psychonauts 2 Is Simply Wonderful

Psychonauts 2 Is Simply Wonderful

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick gushes over Psychonauts 2, Jack went back to Spookware, and we discuss the games we though we'd dislike, but ended up loving. 

Sep 06, 202133:49
We Tried Playing Cyberpunk 2077...Again

We Tried Playing Cyberpunk 2077...Again

This week on The Escapist Show, both Nick and Jack are playing Hades, and then we took another look at Cyberpunk 2077...

Aug 29, 202133:41
Hell Let Loose Is A Stellar World War II FPS

Hell Let Loose Is A Stellar World War II FPS

This week on The Escapist Show, we discuss 12 Minutes, Hell Let Loose, The Wratch's Den, an update on Activision Blizzard and wrap it up with a discussion on online gaming and how there's a wealth of tools to help you find new friends that a lot of people probably don't know about.

Aug 22, 202136:31
Activision Blizzard and the Push for Meaningful Change and Accountability

Activision Blizzard and the Push for Meaningful Change and Accountability

This week on The Escapist Show, Jack plays a mobile game, Nick plays some Halo and then we discuss the current situation with Activision Blizzard and how we as consumers can help push for change and accountability.

Aug 09, 202142:42
The Escapist Year 3 Update

The Escapist Year 3 Update

Nick and Jack discuss the past two years on The Escapist and what we're doing for Year 3.

Aug 05, 202127:20
Steam Deck Should Be A Wake-Up Call for Nintendo

Steam Deck Should Be A Wake-Up Call for Nintendo

This week on The Escapist Show, Jack plays more weird indie games, Nick tries to find some love for Fallout and they discuss the Valve's new Steam Deck. Should Nintendo be worried about losing its title as the platform for indies?

Jul 25, 202129:32
Side Quests and the Fear of Missing Out

Side Quests and the Fear of Missing Out

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack discuss Blue Fire, Final Fantasy VII Remake and the fear of missing out with side quest content.

Jul 12, 202136:30
The Cycle of Cynicism in Games

The Cycle of Cynicism in Games

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick has been playing some Chivalry 2 and Ratchet and Clank, Jack is making Yogurt Commericals, and we discuss the weird cycle of cynicism in games post-E3 2021.

Jun 27, 202141:02
Somebody Has Been On a Yakuza Binge

Somebody Has Been On a Yakuza Binge

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack discuss the games they've been playing, and for the episodes main topic we briefly discuss E3 predictions and why E3 2021 is by far and away Microsoft's most important show yet.

Jun 07, 202132:21
A Conversation About Completing Games Before Reviewing Them

A Conversation About Completing Games Before Reviewing Them

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick's making his way through Luigi's Mansion 3, Jack has nitpicks about Monster Hunter Rise and then we have a conversation about the games media and the never-ending debate about finishing games for review.

May 23, 202149:42
Returnal and the Conversation About Difficulty in Games

Returnal and the Conversation About Difficulty in Games

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack discuss the games they've been playing and then have a conversation about difficulty in video games, which was brought up again recently with lots of complaints about Returnal.

May 16, 202136:44
The Curious Case of the 'Days Gone' Controversy

The Curious Case of the 'Days Gone' Controversy

This week on The Escapist Show Nick and Jack discuss the games we've been playing and the controversy surrounding Days Gone.
Apr 25, 202142:02
The Last of Us Remake Doesn't Mean Much For PlayStation...Yet

The Last of Us Remake Doesn't Mean Much For PlayStation...Yet

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack discuss the games they've been playing and what The Last of Us remake potentially means for PlayStation going forward.
Apr 18, 202138:25
Outriders Is a Surprisingly Fun Looter Shooter

Outriders Is a Surprisingly Fun Looter Shooter

Today on The Escapist Show, Nick is joined by special guest Parris Lilly of GamerTag Radio and Kinda Funny to discuss their thoughts on Outriders and whether or not the industry has already moved on from E3.
Apr 11, 202139:22
Sony's Disinterest in Preserving PlayStation's History is A Missed Opportunity

Sony's Disinterest in Preserving PlayStation's History is A Missed Opportunity

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack discuss Sony's sudden closure of the PS3 and PS Vita's stores and their apparent disinterest in preserving PlayStation's history.
Apr 04, 202133:53
How Game Pass Could Be Used To Give Failed Games Like Evolve A Second Chance

How Game Pass Could Be Used To Give Failed Games Like Evolve A Second Chance

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack discuss how a subscription service like Xbox Game Pass could breathe life into games that failed to find an audience on their initial release.
Mar 22, 202127:23
Microsoft Has Officially Acquired Bethesda, So What's Next?

Microsoft Has Officially Acquired Bethesda, So What's Next?

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack talk about the games they’ve been playing and discuss Microsoft’s acquisition of Bethesda and what that overall means for Xbox.
Mar 16, 202127:25
What Does an Open World Pokémon Game Actually Look Like?

What Does an Open World Pokémon Game Actually Look Like?

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack discuss the Pokémon Legends reveal and ask: What does an open world Pokémon game actually look like?
Mar 07, 202150:41
How Did We Feel About The Latest Nintendo Direct?

How Did We Feel About The Latest Nintendo Direct?

Nick and Jack discuss their thoughts on the latest Nintendo Direct and why it was a bit...meh.
Feb 21, 202132:35
The Mass Effect...Butt Controversy?

The Mass Effect...Butt Controversy?

The latest gaming controversy involves...a digital butt.
Feb 16, 202136:56
Did Google Just Signal the End of Stadia?

Did Google Just Signal the End of Stadia?

Google just killed Stadia's first party studios, does that mean the end of the platform too?
Feb 07, 202139:15
Jack & Nick's Biggest Gaming Shames

Jack & Nick's Biggest Gaming Shames

Jack and Nick share their biggest gaming shames.
Jan 31, 202132:43
The LucasFilm Games Revival & What's Next For Star Wars

The LucasFilm Games Revival & What's Next For Star Wars

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack breakdown the LucasFilm Games revival and predict what's next for Star Wars games...and hope that the MachineGames Indiana Jones title isn't a first person shooter.
Jan 24, 202146:21
How Gears 5: Hivebusters Might Hint at An Exciting Future For Xbox IP

How Gears 5: Hivebusters Might Hint at An Exciting Future For Xbox IP

This week on The Escapist Show, Jack plays more Dark Souls and previews Loop Hero, while Nick is daydreaming about the future of established Xbox IP thanks to Game Pass.
Jan 17, 202139:07
Elden Ring Is The Best Game We've Never Played

Elden Ring Is The Best Game We've Never Played

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack discuss the games we've been playing and get very hyped for Elden Ring.
Jan 10, 202124:60
Nick & Jack's Favorite Games of 2020

Nick & Jack's Favorite Games of 2020

It's time for our games of the year episode.
Dec 28, 202023:46
Getting Started With and Discovering the Magic of the Souls Games

Getting Started With and Discovering the Magic of the Souls Games

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick discusses his journey to getting started with the Souls genre after years of trying and failing.
Dec 20, 202024:45
We All Need to Relax Over Game Reviews

We All Need to Relax Over Game Reviews

This week on The Escapist Show, we discuss the games we've been playing, the recent Halo delay, and the ridiculous discourse over Cyberpunk 2077 reviews and game reviews in generals.
Dec 13, 202027:59
How Much Does Online Presence Tie into Credibility?

How Much Does Online Presence Tie into Credibility?

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick & Jack discuss how online presence ties into credibility.
Dec 06, 202046:22
The Open World Bloat Problem (and How Assassin's Creed Valhalla Kinda Fixes It)

The Open World Bloat Problem (and How Assassin's Creed Valhalla Kinda Fixes It)

This week on The Escapist Show, Jack is back in Dark Souls, Nick finished Sekiro and we discuss the open world bloat problem currently plaguing the AAA games industry.
Nov 29, 202029:19
Demon's Souls Is Stunning on the PS5

Demon's Souls Is Stunning on the PS5

This week on The Escapist Show we discuss Assassin's Creed: Valhalla, Spider-Man: Miles Morales and provide our first impressions on the PS5.
Nov 22, 202033:44
Our First Impressions of The Xbox Series X

Our First Impressions of The Xbox Series X

This week on The Escapist Show we finally have our hands on next-generation hardware, so I provide my first impressions of the Xbox Series X and Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, while Jack has been spending more time in the cloud (Stadia) checking out Baldur’s Gate III.
Nov 15, 202030:03
Breaking Down The "Should Streamers Pay Developers" Controversy

Breaking Down The "Should Streamers Pay Developers" Controversy

This week on The Escapist Show, Jack and Nick discuss the games they've been playing and then breakdown the big Twitter controversy from earlier in the week about whether or not streamers should pay developers for streaming their games.
Nov 01, 202036:59
Immortals Fenyx Rising Preview - Not Quite Breath of the Wild

Immortals Fenyx Rising Preview - Not Quite Breath of the Wild

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick and Jack both got to preview Ubisoft's upcoming Immortals Fenyx Rising game, and Jack finally tried cloud gaming...his response may surprise you.
Oct 25, 202032:03
Cyberpunk 2077, Media Gatekeeping & What We're Excited About For Next-Gen

Cyberpunk 2077, Media Gatekeeping & What We're Excited About For Next-Gen

This week on The Escapist Show, we talk a little bit more about Spelunky 2 and Star Wars Squadrons, plus new details on the Cyberpunk 2077 crunch situation and even more social media drama. We end the episode on some next-gen excitement, and promise that next week we'll be getting back to the fun stuff.
Oct 18, 202039:03
Cyberpunk 2077 Crunch, Online Toxicity and Platform Responsibility

Cyberpunk 2077 Crunch, Online Toxicity and Platform Responsibility

This week on The Escapist Show, we discuss our time playing Crash 4, Spelunky 2 and Star Wars: Squadrons, the Cyberpunk 2077 crunch news, the online toxicity surrounding it and being responsible with your platform.
Oct 11, 202048:15
A Second Opinion on Google Stadia & Cloud Gaming

A Second Opinion on Google Stadia & Cloud Gaming

This week on The Escapist Show, Jack has been playing some Breakpoint and Rocket League, while Nick took a little break from gaming. We also took a second look at Google Stadia after the ZP review earlier this year and Nick has some new thoughts on Cloud Gaming.
Oct 04, 202036:32
Microsoft Buys Bethesda and Is Poised To Become The Netflix of Games

Microsoft Buys Bethesda and Is Poised To Become The Netflix of Games

Microsoft bought Bethesda, Nick beat his first souls game and more in this week's The Escapist Show episode.
Sep 27, 202034:15
Turns Out Sony Does Believe in Cross-Gen Games

Turns Out Sony Does Believe in Cross-Gen Games

This week on The Escapist Show, Nick finally takes a crack at Bloodborne, almost destroys his office, and we discuss the latest PS5 event which showcased not only the games coming to PS5, but PS4 too apparently.
Sep 20, 202022:56
Why Does Nintendo Get A Pass On Its Weird Business Decisions?

Why Does Nintendo Get A Pass On Its Weird Business Decisions?

Nick, Jack and special guest Marty discuss their time with Marvel's Avengers and take a look at why Nintendo gets a pass in the industry when it comes to weird business decisions.
Sep 13, 202036:13
Don't Sleep On Spiritfarer

Don't Sleep On Spiritfarer

Nick and Jack both highly recommend you check out Spiritfarer, and we discuss all the new content coming to The Escapist.
Sep 06, 202029:16
The Amount of Games As A Service Titles Is Getting Ridiciulous

The Amount of Games As A Service Titles Is Getting Ridiciulous

This week on The Escapist Show we take a look at the Marvel's Avengers beta and discuss games as a service and how the industry is being bloated by it.
Aug 30, 202027:54
The Oculus Store Is The Least Consumer-Friendly Digital Storefront

The Oculus Store Is The Least Consumer-Friendly Digital Storefront

This week on The Escapist Show we take a look at a bunch of different games we've been playing, our thoughts on Sony dipping their toes back in multiplayer, the Facebook / Oculus controversy and our thoughts on all the delays currently happening around next-gen consoles.
Aug 24, 202030:55
Delaying Halo Infinite To 2021 Was The Right Call

Delaying Halo Infinite To 2021 Was The Right Call

Halo Infinite has been delayed to 2021, leaving Microsoft in a tough spot this holiday season with the launch of the Xbox Series X, but ultimately it's the right call.
Aug 16, 202023:14
No, Games Shouldn't Return to Just Black and White Morality

No, Games Shouldn't Return to Just Black and White Morality

This week we breakdown the controversial Polygon article about morality in video game narratives.
Aug 09, 202035:24
The Xbox Games Showcase Wasn't The Slam Dunk It Needed To Be (with Special Guest Parris Lilly)

The Xbox Games Showcase Wasn't The Slam Dunk It Needed To Be (with Special Guest Parris Lilly)

Microsoft still has a lot to prove after the lackluster July Xbox Games Games Showcase.
Aug 02, 202052:06
Is The Games Industry Ready For Next-Gen?

Is The Games Industry Ready For Next-Gen?

This week we discuss whether or not the industry is actually ready for next-gen consoles to launch in just a few short months.
Jul 26, 202036:27