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Submit Your Question For The MinnMax Show Podcast (Patreon)

Published:
2026-09-15 17:35:54
Imported:
2026-09
Tags:

Content

Due to an embargo, the audio/final version of The MinnMax Show won't be going live until Friday morning. We'll still have a Backstage Pass version, not including the embargoed discussion.

This week for community questions on the podcast, we'll have Ben Hanson, Kyle Hilliard, Jeff Marchiafava, and Janet Garcia. It's your turn to make the show better by leaving a question, news story, BetterQuest goal, or anything else for us to read on the show as a comment below! We’ll choose our favorite and iam8bit will ship out the great prize below for the winner! We'll stop pulling questions around 8am Central on Wednesday.

On this week’s episode we’ll be talking about...

[Embargoed Game Review]

Starcraft

Hideo Kojima's Physint

Combolands: Roguelike Citybuilder

Wolverine Follow-Up

Everybody at the Backstage Pass tier can watch us record the show live on Wednesday at 12pm Central, with an exclusive pre and post show. The unedited archive will be available to view after the fact. You could do us a favor by subscribing to the audio version of the podcast on iTunes or your favorite podcast app, telling a friend, leaving a review, and subscribing to our YouTube channel!

https://apple.co/3lRbzbE

https://www.youtube.com/minnmax

You can also find the Artful Escape vinyl for sale in iam8bit’s online store, and you can use the promo code SUNSET for 10% off everything under $100. Psst… please don’t post that promo code anywhere else on the internet. It’s a MinnMax-exclusive thing. https://www.iam8bit.com/collections/all

Files

Comments

Travis in Fargo

I spoke with someone recently who is very successful and respected in their field of work, so I was surprised to hear that they experience a great deal of “imposter syndrome.” Do you ever feel similarly, and how do you deal with levels of “imposter syndrome?”

Travis in Fargo

What game show do you think you’d excel the most being on, that caters to your personal talents and interests?

Jacob Mazanowski

I’ve heard suggestion/rumors about Nintendo (and other developers) holding games for release so they can have games for launches, anniversaries, etc. How often does MinnMax hold content before you release it and what is the longest you’ve ever held something? (Not including content under embargoes)

Arturo Perez

Hi Minnmax! Can we have a community meet up in Canada? Maybe come visit what is left of bioware😬 Sincerely, Arturo Alone in Alberta

Antonino Laberdee

Hey Minnmax! Have you ever played through a game either all the way or for a significant time without knowing about a core mechanic? For example, I played through the last of us believing clickers couldn't be killed until I reached a certain mission where the only opportunity to advance is to kill them. Meaning up until that point I painfully snuck around the maps. Similarly, after many hours of fields of mistria, I realized you can creating plantable land using a hoe and you aren't limited to your starting plot. Am I just bad at gaming?

Neal McMahon

Hey MinnMax! I was thinking about this the other day. When a game starts on one console generation and then gets a sequel on the next, the graphics obviously improve, but the character models can change dramatically too. What do you think are some of the biggest visual upgrades to a main protagonist between console generations? For example, Solid Snake in MGS 1 (PS1)-> MGS 2 (PS2), Miles Morales in Spider-Man (PS4) → Miles Morales (PS5) is a pretty drastic one. Other examples: * Kratos — God of War III (PS3) → God of War (PS4) * Aloy — Horizon Zero Dawn (PS4) → Horizon Forbidden West (PS5) * Nathan Drake — Uncharted 3 (PS3) → Uncharted 4 (PS4) What are some others that really stand out?

Fossil Arcade

I once invited a friend home after school, on my birthday, and after being expressly told not to he deleted my completed save file on Sonic 3 & Knuckles ... what's your biggest gaming injustice from the past? (No, he never came over to my house again)

Channing Potatum

Since the release of Spider-Man 2 and the Insomniac leaks, there has been a right-wing effort online to disparage the studio. I’ve seen hate for Spider-Man 2 in “non-political” spaces that clearly was influenced by these trolls. Do you think these bad-faith arguments had an effect on the criticism of Wolverine, even if it was unintentional or unconscious on the part of the reviewers?

Owen S

Hello MinnMax, What can we learn from Marathon? Their recent announcement seems like a Hail Mary trying to save themselves from death but the core community feels largely hopeless right now. As a lover of the game I can’t help but feel that online haters and steam chart posters have won this battle. Thank you and I will be on Tau Ceti IV until I am no longer able to be.

Malcolm Holliday

Are we gamers obsessed with games looking "cool"? I ask mainly because of the art directions of the new Star Fox and Ocarina of Time received massive hate pretty quickly on their initial reveals. People tend to point to the "cooler" iterations of the characters like Fox in the Galaxy movie. I also didn't love the initial teaser for OoT but I was a fan of what was shown in the full trailer.

MakeItUnclear

It's been a few weeks. Can we give JeffM a few minutes to rant righteously about whatever is on his mind these days?

Jerry Young

Hi MinnMax! I have a question about the role of game reviews and with Wolverine out now, I feel like it deserves some follow-up. Should the role of someone reviewing a game ever drift from telling others what they liked/didn't like about a game into telling others how they should feel about a game? There was a point during the wolverine discussion last week where Jacob said something akin to everyone should be more demanding of the quality of games(mentioning everyone else should want better popcorn). This isn't the only review of the game that seemed to leave the realm of discussing their experience but instead telling players what they should think and should demand more from games. Is any of this fair? Why should reviewers be telling others how they should feel about a game? That doesn't seem to be within the scope of what reviews are designed to do. Sorry for being a bit blunt with this question but the conversation around Wolverine bothered me a bit because of how it was framed. Thanks!

NoGoodMook

You get to read out a lot of fun usernames as part of this show. Do you have any favourite ones? Personally I'm a big fan of PuppyPalooza

Zach royer

Does the MinnMax crew think Hideo Kojima can drive Xbox sales, or has the perspective of console exclusives shifted enough for these platforms not to be affected by new exclusive titles? As big of a fan of Kojima myself and the rest of the audience might be, Physint isn’t (hahah) going to get me to buy an Xbox, nor will other Xbox titles.

ennui_enthusiast

If you could scan your face into a game, what game and character would you pick?

SlyCut

Hello all, Please describe the perfect sandwich in excruciating detail.

Neil Brown

Heya MinnMax! We all end up saying some nearly gibberish nonsense while playing games, with all the gaming lingo and silly situations games get into. Do you have any memorable times when you've said something while playing a game and realized how funny it is out of context, or if you've had someone who doesnt game overhear you and gets confused?

Brian Stanley

Is Herman Hulst the Pete Hegseth of Sony?

Richard Hayes

Have any cohorts traveled to China for games work in the past? Have any Chinese studios reached out to MinnMax? Is a trip to China possible in the future?

Jump On Everything

How often does your own name show up in video games and how do you react when it does? It's very rare I see my name so I do the Leonardo DiCaprio pointing at the screen thing.

Limp Bizquick

Do you think the sequel to physint will be called phaint? Sorry

kajmo

Hi CLCs, What time do you have your last drink of water before bed?

George Persaud

Hello to all the non JRPG obsessed cohorts. Trails in the Sky Second Chapter releases this week. The Trails Series is a long running JRPG franchise known for having a massive, interconnected plot spanning over a dozen full length, 50-100 hour JRPGs. The series is unabashedly a JRPG's JRPG full of anime tropes, the power of friendship, and flashy attacks wherein you say the same of the attack as you do it. My question is this. What would it take for you to play every single Trails Game, start to finish. Without being able to touch another video game until you're done. The Legend of Nayuta game, as well as the remakes are included in this binge. What's more, you must make an earnest effort to play the games to their fullest, that is to say you cannot skip cutscenes and have to do every side quest and activity you come across, as well as make a sincere effort to understand the full plot. What would make all that worth it? Say a new game in any franchise you wish is waiting for you at the end of the binge.

Matt Van Boeyen

Are there any popular musicians today who are compelling enough to be the protagonist of a video game, like MJ in Moonwalker or 50 Cent in Bulletproof and Blood on the Sand?

JD Silva

Heyo! Should more game developers do what CD Projekt Red is doing with the Witcher 3 and release DLC many years after a game has released? Could that be a more viable way to develop content with the rising costs of new game development?

Travis Manick

Does the PAX Panel feel like you've "made it?" Is that an actual thing for you or do you not see it that way? If you could be involved with any major event or viral moment to propel MinnMax, what would it be?

Catpurrnicus

Hey crew, Jacob thought Spider-man 2 was to fun and Wolverine was not fun enough. Why is he Goldilocksing Insomniac Games? Do you think their next game will be just right?

nerd

I know people love smash and Mario kart has gotten other Nintendo characters in 8. But I want more Nintendo crossover games, what do you think would be a good idea for a crossover game?

Fancygraham

Should we, as Jacob puts it, “demand more from our popcorn”? What other things should we demand more from? Cordless vacuums? Lip balm? Weedwhackers?

resnet

Hi MinnMax! Do you have any crazy videogame-related injuries?

Lucas S

Hi MinnMax, What is one gaming habit that will negatively affect your health the most when you are in you are in your 60s

nerd

Just a side comment, I work as a teacher and about 90% of my students play roblox, Minecraft, fortnite, or valorant. Rarely do they mention other games like elden ring or final fantasy. I wish consoles were cheaper and more accessible for them cause they're missing out on great games. Thank you for everything yall do btw. Yall make my 40 minute commute actually something I look forward to

Jacob Mazanowski

Do you have any games you have never played but still know a ton about?

SenttheProphet

Would you ever join forces with KindaFunny or GiantBomb? Have a Minnesota outpost? What is the future of the various independent outlets?

Sam Worms

If you could go back in time 10 years, what would you tell your younger self to invest in or stockpile?

LlorchDurden

JeffM have you played COSMOS? Can we have JeffM play NMS on a Thursday "when the expedition has begun"? not a random save but the Expedition mode. This one should be a showcase of the 10 years so it's THE way to see the progress through. Please? thank you

Will K.

Sounds like the Lies of P team is developing Wonders of O next. What [Plural Noun] of [Initial] would you like to see? Doesn't have to be fairytale-inspired.

Joe Dean

I've got some bad news. Unfortunately you're going to be consumed. The bright side, you get to decide who consumes you. Kirby or Samus? Feel free to provide your reasoning. (PS No Smash bros. nonsense. Kirby is consuming you and you're not getting spat back out.)

J.Vaso

Hi Minnmax!

J.Vaso

that's all

RynaGoGo

After watching the Metroid Ravenous trailer I’ve got to ask, is screaming and powering up always cool? Samus is cool. Goku is cool. If Arthur Morgan screamed and powered up would you say cool?

Jackson Davis

What's the deal with so many game subtitles starting with 'Re'? Revelation(s), Resonance, Reckoning, Revolution... do these words just inherently sound 'cool'? Do you lose any interest in a game when it has a generic 'cool' subtitle that has little to do with the game's content?

Chris Hardin

Hey Minnmax Crew! I was thinking randomly this week about when I had to read "A Modest Proposal" in school. It was my first realization that humor existed before our current time and people have been funny for ages! What piece of literature, media, etc helped you realize humor is older than the 20th century?

J.Vaso

HI Minnmax! Are there any topics in the entertainment media space you've come to realize bring you no joy and have started avoiding? For me personally, as much as I've tried not to be, I am a certified Nintendo hater but Nintendo is such a big part of the gaming news/rhetoric space that I've always felt the need to consume discussions of it anyways. About a year ago I finally decided I should just start skipping Nintendo discussions, whether they be videos/articles or Nintendo focused podcast segments (sorry) and have discovered that it genuinely improved my general state of happiness. On that note I really appreciate the time codes in your podcast uploads so I know where to click so i don't have to hear about Mario.

oaklandnative

I am a dad with limited gaming time. I am getting increasingly frustrated with the start times for games. I wanted to play a few TacSim missions in 007 the other day, and it felt like it took at least 10 minutes to get to the title screen and then start some missions. I game exclusively on a Steam Deck and it's now to the point where I just keep playing one game only until I'm done with it so I can take advantage of the quick resume. It seriously frustrates me because I would love to be able to jump in and play whatever I want for 30 minutes, but I don't want to waste 1/3 of my time just getting to the point of play. Am I just too impatient? Do you have any tips on how to deal with this? Why do I need to spend so long looking at logos and epilepsy warnings just to get to the damn title screen every freaking time?!

Mike Lynch

Since becoming more public-facing people, what's something you were uncomfortable doing that you actually enjoy now?

Kevin Kuper

Hello Minn and Max, I have discovered the dungeon crawler carl book series and have been screaming from the rooftops at everyone I know to try it but find it is a high barrier to entry for most and i need someone to talk to about how good it is! What is something that you have been championing for years that no one seems to be willing to check out? Is there something that you won't try and what is the barrier for you? Thanks!

Trebor Treebeard

Here’s one. So Miyazaki was inspired by board games in crafting the game loop for Duskbloods. This got me thinking, what’s the inverse of this — what’s a board game you’ve experienced that plays like a video game?

mantaguy

Prediction Time: Does Wolverine make the top spot on Yahtzee's blandest games of 2026 list over on Fully Ramblomatic?

Wajora

Next week on September 24th we will see the release of 4 major titles: Control Resonant Silent Hill Townfall EA Sports FC 27 and of course Garfield – Escape from Monday What is the best combination of these games' names a la Barbenheimer that you can come up with for the occasion?

Chree McGee

Hey MinnMax, Wolverine, a game that a lot of people felt would be a safe bet, came out to a surprisingly tepid reaction, considering it came from a company with a bulletproof reputation. I started wondering, could something similar happen to a game like GTA VI? What is the worst-case-scenario for Rockstar’s latest?

thejjuan1

Hello summoners.With the release of Final Fantasy 7 Revelation. Will this be the last time when we hear the phrase “ the epic conclusion to the blank trilogy” in the next 10 years? I miss having a good game trilogy. Mass effect, Uncharted, Gears, Halo, God of War, Batman Arkham, Bioshock, and Dark Souls. All these trilogy’s come out in a 7-10 year window. Now we are lucky to get one game in that time frame. I know game development takes so much longer these days and developers don’t want to be committed to 3 games. But that’s why I give CD Project Red props with this commitment to a new Witcher trilogy. Apparently they want the last of the new trilogy to be out by 2035.

pork bun powered

Hi MinnMax, Last week's Wolverine conversation struck a chord with me. As a self-described "artsy fartsy" guy, I admit to being a little bit jealous when I hear someone is having fun "just pushing buttons". Do I have high standards or have I just set up barriers to my own fun? Is ignorance bliss??

David Dubs

Hey Gang, lets say you have one wish to change anything in your life, but if anyone notices something has changed, the wish comes undone. What are you wishing for?

Jack Seage

Going by the YouTube playlist numbers, this will be episode 365* of the MinnMax Show! Congrats! Going purely off vibes, what date should today's episode represent on the official Minnmax calendar (aka, the Calenndar)? Alternatively, what episode would be Arbor Day? *Technically the first episode is called episode zero ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Joshua H.

Hey MinnMax, how’d you get Kyle Bosman on the front of the vinyl cover the Artful Escape for this week? But seriously, I feel like I see all you guys so many places. I know it’s the circle that I follow and pay attention to. How much do you think you’re stuck in your circle of information and influence?

Thom Blackburn

Since you're totally going to talk about Control Resonant, what links to Quantum Break do you think might happen since Courtney Hope plays a character in that...

Linktrev

Hey MinnMax, Sometimes I'll listen to a review and hear a comment that makes me realize I never even thought about the game that way during my own playthrough. It got me wondering: are you always in review mode when playing a game for the first time, even when you aren't going to talk about it on the show? Can you ever shut that mindset off when you're just playing for yourself, or do you enjoy experiencing games through that lens?

Poofydoo

Were you uncomfortable at Pax with an actor (Ben Starr) following you around since Ben is anti actor? 😂

Ian

Hey Minnmax Which classic book do you think could make a 10/10 video game ? Unironically the Count Of Monte Cristo I think could make a great game with a bunch of different mechanics for each of the different stages of his life.

The Hottest Robot

Ben and cohorts, Greeting from Northern California. In response to your Nintendo direct reaction stream from last week, I think I speak for all Californians when I say that we ARE excited for the Hela game. I caught your joke right away and it gave me a chuckle.

sandeezy

remember how awesome the wii was? well how many Wii launch games can you name? don’t say wii sports. here’s the list: • Avatar: The Last Airbender • Barnyard • Call of Duty 3 • Cars • Excite Truck • GT Pro Series • Happy Feet • Madden NFL 07 • Marvel: Ultimate Alliance • Monster 4x4 World Circuit • Need for Speed: Carbon • Open Season • Rampage: Total Destruction • Rayman Raving Rabbids • Red Steel • SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab • Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz • The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy • The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess • Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam • Trauma Center: Second Opinion • Wii Sports

Travis in Fargo

How similar are you to the person or people who raised you? Do you find you’re increasingly similar to them as you age?

Oliver Deeds

Great question. The video was definitely titled "wolverine review". I could imagine they will try to split hairs and say the description states a "review discussion" so it's less formal but let's see

Travis in Fargo

There’s an abundance of “wives” content these days, from trad to Mormon and beyond. If there was a reality show called “the secret lives of gamer wives:” 1) do you think it would be popular? and 2) would you watch it?

FinalSin

Hey all, What's the one thing that still gives you butterflies before you do it?

WeGoGiant

What has the better exclusive lineup, the PS5 or the Switch 2? Will the answer be the same in 6 months?

Mason Parker

With the impeding release of Fire Emblem, I am reminded that Fire Emblem for Gameboy Advance was the first game and with it the first console that I bought and paid or with my own money. The console and that game both hold a dear place in my heart. What are each of the cohorts first game they remember buying with their own money, and how has that game, series or console shaped your general video game preferences?

Nathan Fajfar

With the imminent release of the Steam frame, what are yalls thoughts on the current VR space? Is the lack of games holding back wider adoption of the tech? Nintendo packaged wii sports with the wii as an immediate demonstration of the system, what kind of equivalent could serve VR?

KayBree

Hello! After listening to the Kingdom Hearts conversation a few weeks ago, it made start thinking about how that franchise is considered against other japanese games/franchises. Why is the general consensus that Kingdom Hearts is "wacky and confusing" compared to something like Metal Gear or other Kojima games? Is it because Kojima games are grittier and more sci-fi?

Nemesis

Hey CLC’s! Ben and Jacob’s Uprising Stream got me thinking. I am a lapsed gamer with toddlers. I dream of one day playing Fortnite and other games with them but have no time or friend group to play now. Question for the group - Should I be playing Fortnite now? How far in advance should I start playing so that I’m at least proficient enough to keep up with them? Fortnite, Minecraft, and Roblox all look like foreign languages when I see a stream.

Nick deVries

Hi MinnMax, The devs behind Wardogs (a game I've never heard of lol) made some comments today about crunch culture, and almost all the comments I saw were incredibly against this. I don't disagree with those replies entirely, however it did get me thinking about crunch in general. Any industry with a deadline will face this - I work in accounting and we have many, and essentially crunch for 3 straight months in the spring. You guys at MinnMax probably crunch every December when you record 20+ hours of content in the span of a week. I also know the immense pride/satisfaction I get when the work is done and done well, and I assume this isn't unique to me. I guess my question is if there's much more nuance to the crunch issue, or if this is something I'm way off base on. Thanks, love the show!

Nathan Ryer

Hey MinnMax! Given enough years playing a single sports franchise (FIFA, NBA2K, Pro Baseball Spirits) could you become a professional level coach or manager?

Jon

Kirby and the World Beyond looks like it will contain a lot of the ideas from Forgotten Land but with a bigger scope. With Mouthful Mode, Kirby swallowed some pretty big stuff, but what will be the biggest thing that Kirby will swallow in World Beyond?

Aging_Poorly

Wonders of O, huh? Call it now: Will we be playing as Dorothy or the Wizard? What roles will the lion, tin man, and scarecrow have: villains or friends? Will they hint at musical numbers from Wicked? Any other bold fun predictions?

Juniper Cain

Hi all. In light of the Wolverine discussion, do you think it would be helpful if Gaming Media had it's own equivalent of a Letterboxd ‘3 stars and a heart’? A popcorn emoji next to the score or something, so you could give it whatever critical score fits, but have that little indication of "I had a fun time"?

Fernando Ramirez

Hey Minnmax, Nintendo's running a "Customer Appreciation Sale" funded by a $300M refund after courts struck down Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs — Tariffs on Switch 2 hardware (Vietnam) dropped from 46% to 10%. That's significant savings for the big N who of course did not permanently drop any prices for consumers because capitalism . . . Duh! With Sony killing discs by 2028 and hyper inflated prices on physical goods, is this the opening for Nintendo to become the kings of physical media? Is their future tiny cartridges, Amiibo, and shiny foiled covers, or is this the last hurrah before they follow Sony's lead and go all digital? Love the show, it's a great listen as I endlessly refresh and fail to secure a metroid ravenous limited edition.

anathema anathema

What’s up, MinnMax! I know I’m not alone in my frustration with RPG equipment offering 6% poison resistance or incrementally different attack speed or crit chance, and would love to know: which games do you think have the most exciting equipment options and variety?

Geebeesee

Hey there, doesn’t it seem like every game is an 85 nowadays? Is there something wrong with the way we engage with the 10 point cycle? Is the surplus of games and limited play time of reviewers necessitating that only “good” games be deemed worthy of a review? OR, is there a shadow organization mandating that all games be rated between a 7.5 and 10? Inquisitive minds need to know!

Benjamin Arce

Hey Minnmax, would the team ever do a top 100 games of all time (The Ten Tens)? and follow up question: how much weight does "it was the first to do X" or your personal nostalgia add when ranking games across generations? Thanks, Ben in Chicago

Luis Pérez

Wolverine's launch has been interesting, since it's definitely proof that we should demand for better popcorn, but at the same time it brought upon bad faith criticism, tainting a lot of discussion around the new game. It's not the first time it's happened, and to list examples would take a lot of time, but it does raise an interesting question. Sure, the Internet and its nature has turned most forms of criticism toxic, but has game criticism become too definitive because of the speed of launch cycles?

Random Oil Man

Artful Escape and Mixtape by Beethoven & Dinosaur are a great example for me of a studio who have avoided second album syndrome. Can you list some others?

Luca Alberti

Hello MinnMax crew. What is your personal Object of Power? Please assign them a power of sorts

mapleviolet

i wanted to check in on the promise made last two tens that was made to check out more of kelsey’s weirdo games. have we done this?

Swansonge

The year is 2048. The hologram personifications of video game characters are now allowed to run for president. Who are you voting for?

Graham Jones

Hey minnmaxians, I have been playing Blood of the Dawnwalker and loving it but find myself appreciating it even more because of the little bit of jank it has. That had me thinking... How do you grade games based on jank? Do you have any games that you appreciate because of or despite their jank?

beebat

I was at Blizzcon last weekend and when they announced a return to the Starcraft universe and dropped that insane trailer, the room was ELECTRIC. What reveal sticks in your memory as a peak hype moment?

Matt Galeza

Hey Ben and the Minnmax crew, I’ve realized that I fell in love with video games and became a fan of PlayStation and Xbox because of developers and the amazing games I experienced. I still love video games but I’m not really a fan anymore because of executives. Games used to be creations made with passion. Now they feel like decisions based off numbers. Obviously, I’m talking about the AAA space as there are great indie games all the time. But I feel like if the AAA space dies, consoles will be right behind them. They’ve given us plenty of reasons to not want to buy them anymore to the point where I’m genuinely thinking the next gen might be the end of consoles other than Nintendo. Am I way off base? Do you have any ideas or see any path to save the AAA space or at least alter its present course? Ultimately, there’s not a whole lot we can do to actually affect these companies’ decisions but I’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter. I know I’ve distilled a huge problem into a small question so feel free to tackle it from any angle. Thanks for the awesome pod, ~Matt ccmg12

Kyle Brown

Hey minnmax, what board games are you playing these days?

Matt Galeza

What helps me is when someone says something like ‘you should hate this game,’ change it to ‘I feel like you should hate this game.’ They are still ultimately sharing their opinion on a game, even if they’re framing it in such a way where it sounds like they’re stating an empirical truth. You control your opinion on how you feel about stuff and you should try to not let this bother you if you can. And if it does, find the people and podcasts that don’t use that language. I’ve definitely stopped listening to some people because they treat their opinion like it’s the truth and it’s annoying. But it’s still just their opinion.

Matt Galeza

One of my friends stole my copy of Mario 64 because I had more stars than him. Another friend was about to lose to me in nagano so he ripped the game out of my 64 and left my house.

CaffeineDad

Hey gang! I’m halfway through the Yoshi episode of Pew Pew Bang, and I’m loving it, and that inspired this question. My 2-year old toddler does not care for Mario, was a little scared of Star Fox, took time to warm up to Pikachu, but she LOVES seeing Yoshi pop up when I play Super Mario World in front of her. She’s trusted him intrinsically from the moment she saw him! Is there a more trustworthy and lovable character in video games?

Jerry Young

That’s totally fair but for me there is a clear line between the two that isn’t an accident. there are reviews that go out of there way to say exactly that, where they say “I didn’t enjoy this but form your own opinion”. That’s not what happened with a lot of Wolverine reviews. It was “this is bad, you as the consumer should demand/deserve better”. And for me it’s not the place of the reviewer to take that step.

Fossil Arcade

What a POS. I had a friend who wold turn off the system if he was about tonlose at ay game.

Fancygraham

As of this writing, September 15th, it is Music Education Day in Saskatchewan. How important is music education to you?

Parker Aden

Hey MinnMax! What is the most atrocious thing you have witnessed another cohort do on a travel vlog? This is your space to now roast them. I’m certain it won’t come back to haunt you during the Two Tens!

p9xm

Hey all, this past week Wardogs came out and immediately made a big impact, hitting 2 million in sales the first weekend. Then came a couple interviews with the CEO of the studio and he has some kinda weird takes on mandatory crunch in the workplace. Two parter, are any of you interested in Wardogs, and also, has a game executive ever said something in an interview so odd or off putting that you're no longer interested in checking out their games?

Alon Zwick

Hi Minnmax! Anyone else get annoyed when games are announced so far in advance? It feels like they either get canceled or get delaying into irrelevance.

Duderado

Howdy crew! Does your job covering games ever force you to learn more about a game than you want? I already know I'm going to love FF7 Revelation so I'm skipping all coverage on it so my eyes are as fresh as possible for release.

giuliano

Hey MinnMax! I watched the full backstage pass version of the PAX vlog. It was cool to see you all getting recognized by people at PAX. Which one of you gets recognized the most? And how do you feel when getting recognized? Is it awkward?

Michael Nickley

Hello MinnHACKS, If somebody were to write a hit piece about MinnMax, what are the best mildly insulting plays on each of your names that you think they might come up with? For example: “Ben Hanson? More like Ben Has-Been!” Sorry, Ben. It’s all over for you now. Anyway, have fun!

Shoes

What great game sits unplayed because turning on the console/booting it up is somehow too much?

TekWriter

My Dearest MinnMax, I take up my keyboard this evening to share with you a matter that has occupied my thoughts these many days, and I do hope this message finds you in good health and good spirits. Word has reached me of certain developments in the realm of Square and their upcoming Revelations; namely, the introduction of what they call a "jobs system," a great many more errands of the fetching and slaying variety, and a map so vast as to span an entire world entire unto itself. I confess these tidings have set my mind to wondering, and I put the following question to you as I would to no other correspondent: Might it not be that Square is laying the very groundwork for a grand new campaign — a Massively Multiplayer endeavor in the manner of that beloved Final Fantasy XIV pastime, yet drawn from the storied and much-cherished world of Final Fantasy VII? I confess I can hardly contain my speculation on the matter, and I eagerly await your learned opinion, dear friend. Do divest your thoughts at your earliest convenience, for I shall not rest easy until I hear your views on this most pressing of questions. Your faithful and curious listener, TekWriter

Jon Grizzle

Hey Minnmaxers! So after hearing the negative feelings about the VA in modern Zelda games, which I share, I wanted to say that I actually switched the spoken language to Japanese for both BotW and TotK and had a much better experience overall. As for an actual question, I was wondering if y'all had any music tracks from a game that immediately activates your sense memory and sends you back to a particular time and place? This was on my mind since hearing the new arrangement of the intro theme for Ocarina of Time, which always makes me remember my childhood home and sitting on my brother's bed watching him play the coolest thing 4 year old me had ever seen!

Azza G

hey Minnmax. picked up oninusha this week and realise my top 5 games might have 3 Capcom published games in it. I can't remember the last time a publisher has had such a good year. so my question is, what is the greatest single year for a publisher? Nintendo in 2017 comes to mind as well as the Orange Box year or Square Enix in the Rebirth year. Metacritic makes lists each year showing best publsher through aggregation too

D M

Do you know anyone that graduated from Harvard?

OhMyBlob

Hey Minn to the Max! If we could magically count every button press ever, what do you think is the most pressed button of all time on a PlayStation controller?

Joan Centellas Jimenez

Hi Minnmax, here is my question: What are your thoughts on announcing games that might be launching in 2030 (starcraft)? And what about an opposite situation like Starfox launching within 6 weeks of announcement? What do you think about each marketing strategy?

Phil McKrackup

Hey MinnMax! What are your thoughts on the new resident evil movie coming out this weekend based on the trailers and stuff? I already bought tickets for Saturday and I’m excited. Mainly just based on the fact that the director is the same director of Weapons, which is one of my favorite more recent horror movies. I hope it’s good!

Tony Mayato

Greetings MinnMaxers, My question is simple. If there was no physical ramifications for eating a bowl of paint, what color would you pick and why?

Jason Wojnar

If you weren’t in games media, would you wait in lines to play video games before release at cons like Gamescom? I was there this year and I only waited on line to play Metro 2039. Everything else I just didn’t see the point (but I still had a great time at the event)

John • Gaming In The Wild

A question for Ben and anyone else who does their own YouTube stuff — what do you make of the recent counting changes, where we're all getting these wild view count bumps? On one hand it seems good to have bigger numbers, but on the other, YouTube tweaking their model seems low key worrying for YouTubers.

Josh LaBaw

Hello Cohorts, What the craziest yet believeable GTA VI rumor you hear? I have heard all NPC's will have an LLM & you'll be able to interact with them essentially for ever & they will remember.

Owen Badgley

Will there be a Resident Evil movie max spoilers 👀

Philip Mendoza

Moment of the year: Leo playing Hitman. Pauses during a pivotal point in his speed run, goes on an amazingly sweet rant about how Hitman is purely about the user’s mechanics and how you get out what you put in, and ends the rant with “it’s awesome because I’m awesome”. Unpause, misses a pivotal tranq shot. It was a thing of pure art.

EtherEli

FWIW, you’re doing the thing you advocate for by saying “for me, it’s not the place of the reviewer…” which is recognizing that your statement is subjective, and that’s good, BUT not everyone agrees on what the role of a critic is. It’s even a relatively new idea that reviews should focus on the reviewer’s personal experience, called New Games Journalism, originating in the mid-2000s. I think it’s worth remembering that Jacob is a critic who does deep dives frequently on his YT and if anyone here were to be extra critical, it would be him. To me, it’s helpful to even hear him say “you guys should demand better popcorn,” because that just informs who has what perspective in the conversation, and he’s the more prescriptive and demanding voice, as evidenced by that line. And if that matches your perspective, then you know you would probably align with his taste on the game, and if not, then the opposite. This is, in the end, a larger conversation about criticism in general, and the majority of the history of criticism is the critic telling people what they should think, and not couching everything in their own subjective experience. I appreciate having enough remove to know when someone’s take is more prescriptive than I’d be on board with, but at the end of the day I don’t want only one kind of review either, one that’s always softened down with “for me, in my own personal experience, etc,” phrasing. I like when someone has a take and sticks to it, and I liked the back and forth of the conversation last week where someone actually had a hard opinion about something. It works be annoying if that was the only voice you heard, but it wasn’t, and he was in the minority, so I’m just glad we got that variety at all.

EtherEli

Not them but anecdotally, a friend of mine just played Silksong and told me they only found out halfway through the game that they could tap L1 for the quick map. They had a friend over who did it when they had the controller, and it blew their mind because they had been opening the menu and navigating to the map page every time until then. The worst part was when I asked them if they had played the first Hollow Knight. They had.

LawlWorthy

Is Ben getting funnier?

LawlWorthy

We all like puns right? Do we think Play-Doh is based on Plato and the philosophical nature of creating abstractions of the world we want to see? Or is it just Dough you Play with?

Antonino Laberdee

Ooof. Nice to know I'm not alone in making life more difficult than needed.