#232 | Should We Have Connected?

There's little doubt that this year's Video Game Awards was the strongest industry showcase in a long time, potentially in several years. Geoff Keighley did a great job, and he deserves credit as a great ambassador for our medium. But even more important than the VGAs, the winners, and the pomp and circumstance were the game reveals. PlayStation players are going to be eating very, very well in the years to come, particularly when you consider how full the schedule is without much of an inkling of what's coming from first and second party outside of Insomniac's Marvel duo. So let's dive extensively into Ken Levine's new BioShock-like banger Judas, Hideo Kojima's haunting and wonder-invoking Death Stranding 2, Guerrilla's beautiful LA-based Horizon: Forbidden West DLC called Burning Shores, a promising new action-RPG from Don't Nod titled Banishers: Ghost of New Eden, the return of From Software's dormant mech battler with Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon, 505's surprisingly fun-looking romp Crime Boss: Rockay City, Supergiant Games' first sequel ever in Hades II, and so much more. Other news this week includes the industry's unending obsession with Days Gone discourse, the FTC's decision to sue Microsoft over the Activision acquisition, and more. Is this the longest episode of Sacred Symbols ever? Yes... it sure is. Thanks to our sponsors! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://www.betterhelp.com/sacred and get on your way to being your best self Start your credit journey with Chime. Get started at https://www.chime.com/sacred Reclaim your health with a FREE 1-year supply of immune-supporting Vitamin D AND 5 FREE travel packs with your first purchase at https://www.athleticgreens.com/SACRED Start feeling better with Feals! Go to https://www.feals.com/symbols to become a member and get 40% off and free shipping Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices