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If you're new to MinnMax, thank you for being here and supporting us! Also, we'd like to apologize for our long-running and objectively stupid tradition of telling jokes to celebrate American's Thanksgiving holiday.

Jeff Cork, Leo Vader, Ben Hanson, and Jeff Marchiafava will be sharing 20 reasons they're thankful for gaming in 2023, but really it's just an opportunity to write a bunch of mediocre jokes to make each other laugh.

MinnMax wouldn't exist without you, so we need your help writing jokes and making the segment even better! Submit a joke or two in the comments below about video games in 2023 with the set up "I'm thankful for..." and we'll pick our 20 favorite and share them in a Twitch stream on Monday night at 8pm Central, an archived YouTube video on Wednesday, November 22nd. Oh, and the podcast version will also be in the bonus podcast feed for $5 supporters.

As always, we're thankful for your support and your wonderful sense of humor... as seen below in the comments.

Here are links to previous years joke-a-thons to give you an example of the format.

2017 - https://youtu.be/Qnnhihwudtc?t=6475

2018 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtHNBn5tU0o

2019 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOqdWgCsp60

2020 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOTL9GEvwTs

2021 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnEX2sKLyuk

2022 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5GjLLs1JPc 

Files

Comments

Lewis K

I’m thankful for Lies of P. It’s not often a game tells you what the mystery letter stands for so late in the day with the Door Guardian being completely PooPoo PeePee boss design. I’m thankful for Exoprimal. What a novel and fun concept to have dinosaurs raining from the sky. I also wish it luck in its nomination and as the front runner at the Game Awards for “Quickest Game to Have Your Real Teammates Replaced by Bots”

Ampex

I'm thankful for the upcoming release of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, which has the potential to be the best Far Cry game since Halo Infinite

Reid Harry

I’m thankful for Baldur’s Gate 3! It’s got me on a CRPG diet, I CRPG and then I play it.

Palo

I'm thankful for live a live on PS5. It's fun to say and to play.... g'day

Brian W

I’d like to thank Nintendo and the Zelda franchise for once again making a creative and engaging gameplay experience. It really shows what a game of the year should…. Wait, hold on…balders gate 3 has bear sex!

Garrett Hulfish

I'm thankful for Indies finally getting out of the way so that AAA games can shine throughout 2023. My time is too precious to waste on anything made for less than hundreds of millions.

Bob Buel

Star Wars? Sea of Stars? Star Ocean? Starfield? Is this a videogame or Hollywood Blvd?! (mime a home run swing motion)

Bob Buel

Crime Boss: Rockay’s City? More like Crime Boss: Rockay’s SHITTY!

Jump On Everything

I'm thankful for Alan wake 2 for bringing us the brand new dance craze the Alan shake

God's Garage

I’m thankful for all the games this year that made me ask questions about my own life. Alan wake 2 made question what’s real, armored core VI made me question whether mechs are back in style, and 2023 made me question whether or not my position as a game developer will exist at my company next year. Puzzle games are great, but lay-off the existential crises will ya!

The Sleepy MailMan

This year, I’m thankful for Geoff Keighley, finally breaking down the barriers between politics and games. This past year, Bill Clinton! This next year, who knows?!

Thom Blackburn

This year I'm thankful for the Indie Game of the Year category at The Game Awards. Finally, billion dollar game publishers can break through the traditional publisher system that's been holding them back. We call this the "Whose Line is It Anyway" loophole.

Neill Smith

I'm thankful for ubisoft's bold vision to faithfully adapt the derivative story telling of the Avatar films into a derivative open world checklist game! Frontiers of Pandora? More like Frontiers of getting panned by critics!

Tokyo Game Life

I’m thankful for Psych Odyssey. Now I know the harrowing backstory of a game that ranked lower than Unpacking on The Two Tens.

Neill Smith

I'm thankful for cocoon for finally answering the question "does a puzzle game need any actual puzzles?" With a resounding no, not as long as it's pretty.

Jon Larson

I'm thankful for Avatar Frontiers of Pandora for giving the Na'vi cosplayers the game they've always wanted, a Far Cry game cosplaying as an Avatar game.

Mitch

I’m thankful for Redfall, Jedi Survivor, and The Last of Us Part 1 on PC, for… (Note: I will finish this joke in a series of patches over the next 6 months, please see the attached joke roadmap)

Neill Smith

This year I'm thankful for the talented developers at... Wait... Hold on... I'm being told they were all laid off. Ok well then I'm thankful for the community engagement team at... Wait... Hold on... Really them too? Ok, uh, well I guess I'm really thankful for the informative reporting at... Really?! Son of a bitch.

Mitch

I’m thankful for massive layoffs across the games industry at big publishers like Embracer and Sony, because I’m a soulless ghoul named The Spirit of Capitalism! By the way, have you met my kids, Short Term Profit and Stock Buyback?

Loud EEL

I'm thankful Sony and Nintendo collaborated again on their respective acclaimed sequels SM2 and TOTK by making games where you soar through the air and play with gadgets

Mitch

I’m thankful that PlayStation has canceled half of their 12 planned live service games. All of these mediocre live service games make me want to hire an unalive service - for myself!

notweirder

I’m thankful for gaming industry veterans Donald Mustard and Pete Hines stepping down from their roles at Epic Games and Bethesda. If you’re running a hot dog stand that’s low on condiments, do I have some names for you!

Sam Kennedy

I'm thankful for Horizon: Call of the Mountain. Climbing in virtual reality really fulfills the ultimate promise of VR: a headset that instantly makes you vomit.

Sam Kennedy

As a game developer, I'm thankful for Coffee Talk 2. It really allowed me to live out my dream of having a job!

Sassy Little Imp

I’m thankful Nintendo finally included Daisy as a playable character in a mainline Mario game. Sure, she doesn’t play any differently than the other characters, and she’s just a pallete swap for Peach, but… (Long pause) Wait, why did I want this so much? Why did I want this at all? Is life nothing but a never-ending series of trivial desires designed to distract us as we inevitably shuffle off this mortal coil? Guys, that’s not a rhetorical question. This is really me [SAY YOUR NAME], asking this. Answer me. ANSWER ME!!!!! (Note to the person reading this joke: Sob quietly and sporadically for the rest of the podcast.)

Sam Kennedy

I'm thankful for Forspoken for finally giving me a game where I’m somewhere that’s not what I would call earth, I’m seeing freaking dragons, and…oh yeah, I’m talking to a cuff. Yeah okay, that's something I do now.

Daniel Doran

I’m thankful for water and paper towels. I’m new to VR and enjoyed trying out PSVR2 at launch until I misjudged how much clearance my nose had for a good sneeze.

Daniel Doran

I’m thankful for Horizon Call of the mountain. Now I have an excuse for why there’s a sharp pain behind my right shoulder blade…I’ve been climbing a freaking mountain!

Sassy Little Imp

I’m thankful I didn’t love Immortals of Aveum. I would have felt like a real loser having to say that title out loud when the topic of favorite games came up with relatives at Thanksgiving. Thank goodness my favorite game is PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo

Jared Piers

Apologies for submitting so many, I just like writing stupid jokes! I’ll tell you what Im not thankful for, that feeling that your bladder is full but when you try to go, nothing comes out! Or as I call it, the lies of pee. I’m thankful for Skull Island: Rise of Kong for taking the ‘worst game of the year’ title away from The Lord of the Rings: Gollum. Surely, JRR Tolkien is smiling down from heaven. I’m thankful that we still have 3 years and 145 days left until the passing of our beloved Geoff Keighley. Mark my words, IT’LL HAPPEN. I’m thankful that Remedy has once again pushed the medium of video games forward with Alan Wake II. Finally, a game for intellectuals such as myself. That part in Alan’s 3rd chapter where the screen goes black and a message appears saying your ‘save data was corrupted’ is especially bold. So meta.

Sassy Little Imp

I’m thankful for all the amazing original games that came out this year. Or at least, I hear they’re amazing. I’ve been busy playing Mortal Kombat 1, Alan Wake 2, Baldur’s Gate 3, Pikmin 4, Street Fighter 6, Final Fantasy 16, and Microsoft Office 365!

Aging_Poorly

I’m thankful for Starfield’s various caves and outposts on its randomly-generated planets. I had experienced Déjà vu before, but Starfield was the first time I ever experienced Déjà- Déjà- Déjà- Déjà- Déjà- Déjà- Déjà- Déjà-vu. I’m thankful for HBO, who has apparently told Neil Druckmann and Naughty Dog that no, they’re not going to unnecessarily re-make the first season of “The Last of Us” two or three times. I’m thankful for Sabotage Studio, the developer of Sea of Stars, for proving once and for all that you’ll have a better time without grinding. Who does Sabotage Studio think they are, my middle school dance chaperones? I’m thankful that the Game Awards did not nominate Hogwarts Legacy for any awards this year. Keep your chin up, JK Rowling, that was just a TERF break. I’m thankful for EA Sports’ rebranding of FIFA into “EA Sports FC 24”, which honors the proud American soccer fans’ tradition of obnoxiously refusing to say the word “soccer” for some reason. I’m thankful that 2023 reminded us that the best villains in gaming will always come back in some form or another: whether it’s the new, fresh take on Ganondorf, Lilith making a devilish return in Diablo IV, or John Riccitiello going from “terrible, greedy, scumbag former CEO of EA” to “terrible, greedy, scumbag former CEO of Unity” I’m thankful for Apple for announcing the Apple Vision Pro, and that it will take their average factory employee only 972 days’ of wages to afford the down payment for one. I’m thankful that at least three games with multiple Game Awards nominations had a memorable moment where the playable characters got to ride on a dragon, but I’m *not* thankful that I missed the invite to whichever developers’ conference was handing out what must have been some pretty choice mushrooms. I’m thankful for Mario Kart 9, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and GTA 6, for saving me 200 bucks for the 4th year in a row. I’m thankful that Bethesda dropped Hi-Fi Rush unannounced, refusing to allow YouTuber Sony Ponies enough time to come up with 20 reasons it was going to be terrible before the first gameplay trailer launched. I’m thankful for Kelsey and the Kyles for taking over MinnMax hosting duties this summer, and allowing the phrase “mind-boggling” to stay out of my ears for a few short months. I’m thankful for Hanson’s paternity leave, which allowed me to go 3 months without the disappointment of getting demolished on the first floor of Trivia Tower.

Conner Withey

I'm thankful for the GTA VI trailer, showing that Rockstar's satirical wit is still intact. My favorite part was when the wildly successful company sent the Pinkertons after a guy who got trading cards too early. Wait, what do you mean the trailer isn't out yet...

GreenMountainState

I'm thankful for Redfall, without it 2023 might have truly been the best year in gaming.

Tyler Steele

This year, I'm most thankful for Starfield. It reminded me that, of the theoretically infinite universes and lifetimes out there, I only have one. And I shouldn't spend it playing through 4th grade reading level quest lines. I'm thankful for Baldur's Gate 3. It's easily taken the throne of the best quality game designed for my personal tastes that I will almost certainly play at some point. I'm thankful for SIGNALIS for sticking with me long after I beat it. If someone could please explain to me what the game is about so I can stop feeling bad about myself, I'd be even more grateful!

Shawn Mills

I'm thankful for Alan Wake announcing the new book he's working on. It's a cookbook that features several "light" options.

Dragonhunter

I'm thankful for Sony and their efforts of supporting PSVR2. I wasn't really a fan of the PSVR2 being all white, but that dusty grey look now looks really cool.

SlyCut

I'm thankful for the music and sound design teams that spend countless hours crafting just the right melody, ambience, and sounds to really make me feel immersed in the world I'm playing in. I really enjoy listening to their podcast explaining the whole process while I play their game on mute.

Luca Alberti

I'm thankful for Pikmin 4 because at least something is getting sorted and completed in my life, only the digital one of course. I'm thankful for Street Fighter 6 for reminding me that I love fighting games, and with hard work and easy modes implemented, I still suck at them. I'm thankful for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, because there's nothing more I want in life than look at grandma's grape pudding and think "OH GOD THE HANDS ARE COMING, JESUS CHRIST RUN!" I'm thankful for Alan Wake 2 for keeping it real, fighting supernatural forces of darkness feels much more cheerful than regular office jobs where you have to deal with co-workers. I'm thankful for Sam Lake for teaching me the only important thing to make a break trough in the industry is good looks, writing skills, connections with Epic Games, good dancing and a good dose of Finnish folklore we're all familiar with.

Sparky

I'm thankful for Baulder's Gate 3 for revealing to me I may have a slight problem with being attracted to people who are no good for me. C'mon Lae'zel we can make this work : (

Daniel Doran

I’m thankful for sleepless nights. I found the depths in Tears of the Kingdom right before I was about to go to sleep. It was such a rush…I couldn’t fall asleep! I’ve been awake ever sense.

Daniel Doran

I’m thankful for my own personal information. What else would I be able to barter with every time I sign up for a gleam.io giveaway that I never win? I mean really can I just shove my soul into my computer and play any game I want? I swear I heard someone say their sister “game passed”…is that not what they meant?

BEEFCAKE

I’m thankful for Microsoft saving me so much money by purchasing Activision blizzard… now instead of paying $70 a year, I’ll get 10 year olds teabagging and calling me a little bitch included in my GamePass subscription! What a value!

Keegan

I’m thankful for Sonic fanart on DeviantArt for… reasons

Keenardo

I'm thankful that Ben Hanson welcomed his son into the world this year! Welcome to Earth, Hans Benson!

Vincent L.

I’m thankful for my daughter because she is proof I do more than play video games

Vindicated

I'm thankful for a new mainline Final Fantasy title, without the humor and charm that I love about the others in the series. I'm thankful for Marvel's Spider-Man 2 showing us how much better Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart could have been.

Jared Piers

Im thankful for Jimmy Carter. As he nears the end of his life, I say we should give him the highest honor that we as a gaming community can give a former president. Having a weird kid mumble something incoherent about him at the Game Awards. Armored Core 6? More like Armored Bore Sucks! Umm... Tired of Poobicon?... Check out the Deepest Dive on Minnmax's youtube channel. Im thankful for Lies of P. A Bloodborne esque soulslike about the adventures of Pinnochio is something I never knew I needed. Cant wait for the inevitable sequel, Truths of Poop.

Adam

I'm thankful this year will be remembered for the release of so many great, amazing games, and also Final Fantasy 16.

Adam

I'm thankful for the Korok who taught me a valuable lesson in physics about underestimating rocket power. He died doing what he loved. Screaming. What a hero.

Adam

More like "Alan Weak", am I right? No? Hmm. Can't spell "Alan Wake" without "Weak Anal" - is that something?... I'll see myself out.

General Guy

I’m thankful for my PS4 that has allowed my cheap a** to continue playing decent games that come out in 2023 on last gen hardware that aren’t Madden

Vilis

I'm Thankful for 2023, the greatest year in gaming ever. Starring the only non-sequel or remake in the line-up: Forspoken! (I know there were others, but that kills the punchline!)

Starkiller

I'm thankful for Tears of the Kingdom introducing us to the Ultra Hand ability. If only they didn't Ultra Hand those cutscenes together to make a us watch the same thing over and over!

Adam

I'm thankful for Humanity (..the GAME. the 2023 game. Not the species. Good God, no. Jesus). Anyway, I'm thankful for the Humanity game, a depressingly accurate take on: "Hey man, if you were just physically cuter, hordes of people would throw themselves off cliffs if you told them to."

Sassy Little Imp

I’m thankful Assassin’s Creed Mirage and Mortal Kombat 1 both decided to do away with colons. The only difference is that in Assasin’s Creed Mirage, the colon is eschewed from the title, and in Mortal Kombat 1, it’s removed directly through Sub Zero’s stomach. Either way, good riddance!

Sassy Little Imp

I’m thankful for the Making of Karateka. The only other time I had more fun with the making of something than the end product, I became a father! And, just to be clear, this is one of the jokes I, [SAY YOUR NAME] wrote. This is my personal opinion about fatherhood. Sorry, it’s just the way I feel.

Sassy Little Imp

I’m thankful for all the amazing games written by women, people of color, and LGBTQIA creators this year. It’s so nice to see that the games industry is finally moving past the old writer’s room paradigm of 4 straight, white guys cracking juvenile jokes. Ok, next up is [SAY THE NAME OF LITERALLY ANY OF YOUR 3 COHOSTS], with a delightful bon mot about how Lies of P sounds like something that comes out of your wiener.

CrabPalace

This year saw the release of Gunbrella, a game about a gun crossed with an umbrella. They also announced the upcoming prequel about the weapon's origin, Gunbilical Cord

CrabPalace

This year I'm thankful Spiderman got the black suit and became mean. It was just as cool as in the movie!

CrabPalace

I'm thankful there were so many good games this year: hamburger, fries, a shake... Wait a minute, those aren't games, they're what I had for lunch this morning!

Rich McLaughlin

I’m thankful for Starfield because [loading screen] we needed an immersive RPG and [loading screen] this goblin camp is really fun!

CrabPalace

This year gamers couldn't stop talking about a certain sexual interaction with a certain animal... But enough about Bobby kotick

jkk411

This year I'm thankful Charles Martinet got the send off he deserved for his years of service to Nintendo. Not since my parents sent my childhood dog to live on a farm have I witnessed something so touching. This year? I'm thankful for The Murder of Sonic The Hedgehog. That cocky blue bastard had it coming for a long time.

Erin T.

I’m thankful for marketing teams in 2023 continuing to push the boundaries of video game hype. I didn’t just Star-feel’d, I Star-fell’d to my knees and wept! — I’m thankful for Like A Dragon: Ishin. Are you “Ishin” for a self-contained samurai story starring characters from the Yakuza series? Want to hear an in-depth discussion about it from a panel of experts? Join us for THE DEEPEST DIVE on…wait the game came out in February?? — I’m thankful for Baldur’s Gate 3, a monumental game that took the world by storm and really earned its near-universal praise. Too bad about Ben Hanson hating it, huh?

notweirder

I’m thankful for EA Motive giving Isaac Clarke a voice. They really filled up all the Dead Space in the air

James Welsh

I’m grateful for Everybody 1-2 Switch’s approach to transparency by putting its metacritic score in the title. That way, Everybody knows to 1-2 Switch the game in their shopping cart.

Beau Bakken

I'm thankful for how much fun I've had with Hogwarts Legacy this ye,, Oh sorry, I forgot we are all collectively ignoring its existence.

Sassy Little Imp

I’m thankful Super Mario Wonder is just good enough to not threaten the validity of my childhood nostalgia. Sure, compared to Super Mario World, Wonder has improved controls, graphics, gameplay variety, and actual co-op. But it doesn’t hold a candle to these features that came with Super Mario World at launch: My parents: Still together My dog Shadow: Still Alive Global Warming: Don’t know what that is yet.

Brainfreeze

I'm thankful for video games in 2023, not just for reminding me to Hi-Fi Rush to the polls, but to Alan Wake up on time and System Shock Remake my bed as well.

Brainfreeze

I'm thankful that in a year as packed as 2023, my favorite games were Resident Evil 4 Remake, Metroid Prime Remastered, and Advanced Wars Reboot Camp. It's been 20 years game industry, when are you finally going to make a sequel to nostalgia?

Brainfreeze

I'm thankful to the video game industry for laying me off this year. How else would I have enough time to write all of these incredible jokes?

RabidLime

I'm thankful for Leo finally playing and loving an RTS stealth tactics game, Shady Pirates: Gambit's Kurse Kids. With his approval, I know the developers will have long and illustrious careers.

MyNameIsDan

I'm thankful for the ps5 slim because it showed me that no matter how much weight I lose, I'll still look ugly AF.

Tanner Hoisington

I'm thankful for Summer Games Fest and its annual attempt at reminding jaded games press there IS something worse than E3. Maybe they'll get the memo next year!

umryan

I'm thankful to RGG Studio for releasing so many titles in the Yakuza/LaD franchise. By the time I catch up to the current games in my series playthrough, they will be severely discounted or free on PS+! Keep em coming RGG!

Nick from Atlanta

I'm thankful for Exoprimal, which shows us that even a concept as cool as "mech suits vs dinosaurs" can fail to keep people engaged. I'm thankful that in 2023, all the executives making terrible business decisions that affected the livelihoods of their employees finally faced some consequences. Take that, capitalism!

Chandler

This year I'm thankful for monopolies. I know they're kind of destroying our society and making millions of people's measurably lives worse for the sake of the 1%, but call of duty is going to be on gamepass!! Baldur's gate 3 has given me so much to be thankful for this year. Great characters. An amazing story. Meaningful and engaging choices, It's a game that I truly believe is pushing the medium forward. But the thing I'm most grateful for is the massive hard-ons it's given me when I tell casual-ass gamers that it's my GOTY

Vincent L.

I’m thankful that Tom Hanks convinced Miyamoto not to call the game “Super Mario Bros. Oneder”

Stevelution

This year I’m thankful that Naughty Dog have once again found a way to release a reskinned version of a game they released in the last two weeks and thus ensuring the annual tradition keeps on going.

Jerrod Quick

Thanks for the MinnMaxx patreon for giving me a platform to tell a terrible joke I wrote years ago. What do you call a dancing sausage? A Ballet-Weiner.

Devin Atlee-Nutts

This year, I'm thankful that Counter-strike 2 was finally released: a long awaited sequel to a competitive shooter that plays identically to its predecessor. But it's not called Overwatch 2, so everyone loves it.

Ross Pfund

I’m thankful that Respawn found the perfect portmanteau of “turd” and “burgle”.

Adam3

I’m thankful I finally took the time this year to play shadow of the colossus for the first time. It’s massive mysterious world and huge boss fights help the game live up to its legendary reputation. I’m also thankful the developers named the horse Agro, as a warning to the player that he’ll be completely agro-vating to control I’m thankful Dave the diver was correctly categorized as a top indie game nominee at the game awards this year. Some may argue the game does not classify as a true independent title, but how can you deny a game that revolves around going ‘indie’ water?

DJ Tommy Pizza

I'm thankful for Rocksteady for delaying Suicide Squad to 2024, and for looking to Crystal Dynamics' most recent superhero franchise game for inspiration. Who knows how much games-as-a-service crap they can cram in before next February? "Clearly it worked for The Avengers" ain't just a strategy for DC's filmmakers anymore! Hey and I'm thankful that Forspoken released. Good job on not immediately imploding from cringe during the first trailer. Speaking of which -- a BIG thanks to Logitech for delivering that quality controller experience, whether you're playin' PC games, or are piloting a homemade submarine to explore the wreckage of the Titanic. I salute you Logitech 🫡

Reed

I'm thankful for the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 1. With Konami's respect for fans and level of emulation technology, they almost made Digital Foundry cry. I'm thankful for Payday 3. Getting a crew together, planning what to do, and making many attempts to pull it off smoothly. All that before even getting into a match. Server issues heisted my time!

SunniDee22

I’m thankful for the Scarlet and Violet: The Teal Mask DLC which has made me appreciate how well the original game ran I’m thankful for the new Pokémon DLC this year that showed me, yes I will buy any new Pokemon game regardless of price or quality (like an idiot)

James Welsh

Really? Nobody has a Wo Long joke? They're literally asking for it. Alright, I'll do it... Ahem. I'm thankful for Baldur's Gate 3 because Wo, that thing is Long.

clay_dough

This year, I’m thankful for Ben being here. Welcome Ben.

clay_dough

I’m thankful for MinnMax for creating new show overflow, where they ask for money on twitch to create videos that we didn’t want. (With Love)

clay_dough

I’m thankful for Lightning McQueen now being in Rocket League. I can finally say “Ka-chow” as I score on dem nerds.

clay_dough

I’m thankful for the Last of Us Tv show kiss of death scene. It perfectly illustrated how some people can just surrender to the infection in a beautiful and nonviolent way. Or maybe it was just gross.

clay_dough

This year I’m thankful for Chat GPT. I asked it to write me some jokes and the best it could come up with was, “I'm thankful for gaming in 2023 because it's the only place where my inventory is organized, my skills are maxed out, and I don't have to worry about my laundry pile.”

Kaizoku Risu

I’m thankful that a Pinocchio-inspired Souls-like game actually turned out to be quite good! Fortunately, fans of twisted storybook adaptations won’t have to wait long for the studio’s next game. In the hotly anticipated sequel to ‘Lies of P’, players will explore the Hundred Acre Wood in ‘Lies of Pooh’, dropping next year!

Hayden Scott-Baron

The community submitted jokes was a good idea. Unfortunately I had to stop listening after the second deliberate belch.