Skip to main content

Jumping the Shark Podcast #109

No High Scores

On Jumping the Shark #109 the gang is all-in for sanity rattling Cthulhian adventures on the iPad. Brandon deals with the trauma of trying to play Wasted Lands without crashing. Then he and I wade into the haunted museum of Elder Sign: Omens, while Bill explains all the Cthulhu mythology we don’t get. Bill keeps the ball rolling with some thoughts on King Arthur 2 and we segue from that into a discussion on the growing usage of online passes in video games, their affect on the used market, and whether it’s a good or bad thing. Finally, we wrap it up with some of Danielle’s thoughts on Trine 2, Ahmish bashing, and, is this the end of the line for Jumping the Shark? We’re not entirely sure. More details on that after the break…

iTunes Link
Past Episodes
Edit Type: Skype
(The embedded feed is included after the break.)

Still with me? Good.

So if you’ve listened to the show you’ve heard Bill address that, in all likelihood, Gameshark won’t be funding Jumping the Shark any further. If you haven’t – surprise!

It’s a shame if this comes to pass, but frankly, who, two years ago, thought we’d still be here? Not me. While we don’t know what changes we might have to make as a result of whatever is happening over there, the big point here is the show isn’t going anywhere. Its days as Gameshark.com’s official podcast are probably numbered. The name may have to change. Or not. I may take up the saxophone and become a street player, but that’s a separate issue. Whatever. Regardless of what happens, we’ll still be doing a show and you’ll still find it here at No High Scores. Why? Because you people can’t live without us and we all know it.

READ ALSO:  Brakketology Confronts the Dragon… Despairs

Todd Brakke

Todd was born in Ann Arbor with a Michigan helmet in one hand and a mouse in the other. (Never you mind the logistics of this.) He grew, vertically anyway, and proceeded to spend over 16 years as a development editor for Pearson Education, publishing books, videos, and digital learning products under the Que and Sams Publishing imprints. Because that wasn't enough of a challenge, Todd has also been a 20-year part-time snob about video games, writing reviews, features, and more for multiple outlets. Follow him on Twitter @ubrakto or check it out his website at ToddsFoolery.com.

23 thoughts to “Jumping the Shark Podcast #109”

  1. Listen, man… your Ascension record is way better than mine. Right now, I’m 30+ games under .500! I honestly don’t think that there is anything you can learn from me…  But if you can give me the secret to beating Todd or Bill, I’ll name my next child after you.

  2. Both Bill and Todd are inveterate liars and horse thieves. They cheat, and badly. That’s the secret.

    Now, as for that kid, it’s M-I-S-T-E-R…

  3. 1) Crusader Kings II demo has come out since you recorded and I can report that it runs wonderfully and I haven’t run into any bugs. There might be some background, number crunching stuff that’s messed up, but my demo experience shows me that my preorder for CKII was money well spent.

    2) GameShark and the podcast. Well pooey to them because w/o the podcast (and now this site) I wouldn’t even go to GameShark. But, alas, business is business.

    3) H.P. Lovecraft movies. Stuart Gordon is probably best known for referencing (or adapting stories of) Lovercraft in his horror films. While most of his movies aren’t very good, I’d recommend checking out Re-Animator and From Beyond. They’re definitely b-movie material, but they’ve got some good non-cgi special effects and I’m a huge fan of Jerffrey Combs’s over the top acting. The Resurrected is another horror film based off of a Lovercraft short story (the same one Re-Animator is based on). Also worth checking out. Sadly, there all set in modern times (in the 80′s), but at least they draw from Lovecraft. From Beyond is probably the most Lovercraftian of the ones I mentioned, but that could just be personal preference.

    4) I have a job that I should get back to.

  4. Okay, I love you guys dearly, but it was just painful listening to Brandon and Todd talk about Elder Sign: Omens.  Could you guys not hear me shouting at you while you were recording?  Learn 2 play n00bz!!!!1!!!

    Equally painful was Bill calling out that terrible Fred Ward comedy about Lovecraft.  You’re better off just watching him in Tremors.  Garion has the right idea by bringing up Stuart Gordon, although I think The Resurrected — from Dan O’Bannon, no less — is grossly underrated.  However, if you want to see the best film adaptation of Lovecraft yet made, you have to see Andrew Leman’s Call of Cthulhu, which is an absolute masterpiece for how well Leman understands and expresses Lovecraft.  No joke.  It’s on Netflix instant view.  Get thee hence forthwith!

  5. It seems like the video game press is going through financial hurdles. Just recently, some layoffs at Future US and their myriad of gaming mags, namely Gamesradar (another podcast I enjoy listening to). I’m aware that Gameshark doesn’t have a print mag but they’re probably reassessing where to drop funds.

    If you guys are willing to set up shop like Quarter to Three or something similar, I’d chip in with a donation. I’d be worth it to hear Abner rant against the Amish again.

  6. Well, I wrote a comment and got spam filtered.  But, yeah, there are far better Cthulhu movies than that terrible Fred Ward made-for-TV thing.  Andrew Leman’s Call of Cthulhu is a must-see.

  7. Well I’m pretty sure I pronounced Cthulhu right at least, didn’t I?  What else could I possibly have gotten wrong? Join us for episode 110 and explain it to us!  

  8.  

    p class=”p1″>You mean like they’re up to making the most bad ass cinnamon rolls and apple pies you’ve ever eaten.

  9. If you guys were to even think about walking away from the show, I’d have to travel to America and smack each and every one of you over the head. Hard.

  10. Bill isn’t playing with me any more (sniff), but I don’t see the problem in beating Todd…

    You however, give me a thorough beating in almost every game.

  11. Is there any indication of what would happen to the existing episodes if GameShark management decides to pull the plug?  A new podcast with the same NHS team and theme song can call itself anything it wants, but seeing two years of Jumping the Shark go the way of Fidgit would make me really mad.

  12. Officially, I have no idea. Unofficially, I have all the episodes and, even in a worst case scenario, I’d be happy to make them available to anyone that wants them. 

  13. The episodes, the old ones, wouldn’t go anywhwre. GameShark (Mad Catz) doesn’t control them in ANY way shape or form. They are not going anywhere. 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *