The Level

Kole, Dennis, and David talk about the new PS Vita's crappier screen, we ask you about the state of the next gen, and then we talk a lot about Sportsfriends. The Brief: Kentucky Route Zero Episode III released. PS Vita Slim announced for North America. Left 4 Dead Arcade is apparently a thing. Multiplayer: Have you bought a next gen console? The Grind: Sportsfriends Dennis: Rocksmith 2014. Dark So...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about whether or not games need a stadium, Elder Scrolls Online, and we ask you if E3 is still relevant. The Brief Call of Duty is an X-Games event now. A literal video games stadium. PS4 system update has neat things. Ultima Online and Dark Age of Camelot listed on Steam Greenlight. Multiplayer Is E3 still relevant? The Grind: Dennis: Retro/Grade. Everyday shoote...

Kole Ross, Ben Merkel, Dennis Furia, and David Moneysmith talk about Rocksmith 2014, The Elder Scrolls: Online, and we ask you about your favorite mini-games. The Brief Sid Meier's Civilization: Beyond Earth announced. Beyond Good and Evil 2 confirmed to still exist. Homeworld will be in 4k. Darth Maul game was in development, cancelled. Multiplayer Favorite or least favorite mini games? The Grind...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about a bunch of Smash Brothers stuff, do a Free-Play multiplayer, and then dive into Monument Valley. The Brief Goat Simulator gets multiplayer mode. Smash Bros. for "Fun" or for "Glory". Smash Bros. has Mega Man. DO GAMES CAUSE VIOLENCE? Multiplayer FREE PLAY Beta bugs? Real life skills? The Grind Ben: The Last of Us. Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Kole: Monument Vall...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the GAME_JAM fiasco, we ask you what sequels most improved on their prequels, and then we actually talk about video games for once. The Brief: Spring news drought. Occulus death threats. "Game_Jam" explodes. Batman: Arkham Origins gets Mr. Freeze DLC. Multiplayer Most improved sequels? The Grind Ben: The Last of Us. Kole: Proteus. Flappy Golf. Sometimes You...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about how the Last of Us is becoming more of a movie, we ask you about your favorite game adaptations, and then talk about South Park: The Stick of Truth. This episode was recorded live and in person, so please excuse the wonky levels. The Brief: Zynga knows everything about you. The Last of Us to become more of a movie. Walmart does game trades now. Multiplayer:...

Dennis Furia and Murph Murphy gather to give an exhaustive and factual rundown of Dark Souls II. Check our Murph's other podcasts, The Dork Night and Hours Played.

Kole, Ben, and Dennis talk about the Occulus Rift aquisition, we ask you which game you wish you could play for the first time again, and then we avoid talking about any video games whatsoever. The Brief: Facebook buys Occulus Rift. Notch ditches Occulus. Sony develops their own PR. Multiplayer Feels like the first time. The Grind Dennis: Train Jam Games. Ben: None. Kole: Dark Souls II.

Kole, Ben, and Dennis talk about the Batman: Arkham Knight announcement, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, and we ask you what games you anticipated most. The Brief: Batman: Arkham Knight announced. Twitch Beats Pokemon. Steam Family Sharing goes live. Multiplayer What games have you anticipated the most, and what lengths have you gone to to sate your desire? The Grind: Dennis: Star Wars...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the closure of Irrational, Calculords, and we ask you about your most-desired genre mashups. The Brief Irrational closed. Asheron's Call shutting down. Twitch Plays Pokemon. Steam Tags. The Last of Us Documentary. The Grind Ben: The Last of Us: Left Behind. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons. Payday 2. Metro: Last Light. Kole: Guitar Hero controller. New PC. Three...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the Flappy Bird fiasco, Jazz Punk, and we do a free-play multiplayer segment. The Brief: Flappy Fiasco. An extended and frank discussion about F2P models. Goat Simulator. Murasaki Baby confirmed for America. The Grind: Ben: X-COM: Enemy Within. Dennis: Papers Please. David: Fallen London. Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. Kole: Jazz Punk. Multiplayer: Free-play.

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about an announcement that will ruin the podcast forever, Octodad, and we ask you about your favorite unique control schemes. The Brief: Nintendo's buyback woes. The Last of Us DLC is a thing. Duke Nukem Mass Destruction is a thing. AlpacaLlama Furia The Grind: Ben: X-COM: Enemy Within. Dennis: Spelunky. Tearaway. Kole: Octodad: The Dadliest Catch. David: Kingdom...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the Angry Birds NSA controversy, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, and we ask you about your favorite video game music. The Brief: NSA is spying on Angry Birds. Sly Cooper movie is a thing. Forced Perspective Tech Demo. Vikings issue C&D against King. The Grind: Ben: X-COM: Enemy Within. Kole: Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons. David: DmC. Dennis: DmC. Suits and...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about whether or not we want to change our name to Candy Level Saga, Risk of Rain, and we ask what you wish you could play but can't. The Brief: Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition. OpenEmu.org is a great emulator. The Last of Us fan t-shirt design. Candy(tm) Crush Saga(tm) developer trademarks "Candy" and "Saga". The Grind: Ben: X-COM: Enemy Within. Kole: Risk of Rai...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about Sim City's offline mode, Knock Knock, and we ask you how you find time to play games. The Brief Occulus Rift works on Steam now, kinda. JazzPunk is a thing. SimCity gets offline mode. The Grind Dennis: Plants vs. Zombies. DmC. David: Castle Crashers. Guild Wars 2. Kole: Knock Knock. Ben: X-COM: Enemy Within. Multiplayer: Finding time to play games.

Ben Merkel, Kole Ross, David Moneysmith, and Dennis Furia talk about PlayStation Now, X-COM: Enemy Within, and how incapacitated Kole is. The Brief PlayStation Now offers game streaming. Steam Machine Specs Released. Half Life 3 perfectly rendered environment. Final Fantasy XIII The Grind Kole: Starbound. David: Starbound. Ben: X-COM: Enemy Within. Dennis: Gravity Rush. Starbound.

Kole Ross, Ben Merkel, Dennis Furia, and David Moneysmith talk about the games we played over break, we ask you how you did on your 2013 gaming resolutions, and encourage you to stick around after the credits for a discussion about Dishonored. The Brief Sphere Chess To the Moon minisode and Mac port. Batman: Arkham Origins Mr. Freeze content . The Grind Dennis: Castle Crashers. Zero Escape: Virtue...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about Starbound, Walking Dead Season 2, and ask you to name your favorite games of 2013. The Grind Dennis: Uncharted: Golden Abyss. Star Wars Pinball. Ben: Dragon Age II. Beyond: Two Souls. David: Kingdom of Loathing. Starbound. Borderlands 2. Kole: Contraption Maker. Actual Sunlight. Walking Dead Season 2. Multiplayer Some kind of game of the year discussion.

Kole, Ben, and David talk about the Metal Gear Solid 5 delay, a bunch of old games, and ask you what your favorite new IP is (and what that even means). The Brief Portrait of Shame: PS4 Black Friday shooting. Metal Gear Solid 5 won't come out for a while. Epigentics and Assassin's Creed. The Grind David: Batman: Arkham Asylum. The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing. Ben: Batman: Arkham Origins....

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about this disappointing new next gen era, the Dark Souls II beta, and ask you about Easter Eggs. The Brief PSN and Amazon. Knack panned. CoD gets dedicated servers again. GTA V Beach Bum Expansion. The Grind: Ben: Batman: Arkham Origins. David: Batman: Arkham City. Dragon's Dogma. Dennis: Dokuro. Star Wars Pinball. Dark Souls II Beta. Kole: Dark Souls II Beta. Pa...

Kole, Ben, and Dennis talk about being on the eve of the next console generation, Batman: Arkham Origins, and the state of games journalism. The Brief: Next gen is around the corner. Streaming capabilities added to Minecraft. Steam Machine Stuff. PS4 controller compatibility stuff. WWE Wrestling 2K14. The Grind: Ben: Batman: Arhkam Origins. Grand Theft Auto V. Dennis : Mass Effect 2. DEFCON. Kole:...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the Walking Dead Season 2 announcement, Sir, You Are Being Hunted, and we ask you about spooky games. The Brief: The Walking Dead Season 2 gets a release. GTA sells 29 million units. Motion sickness research in games. Ubisoft and console exclusivity. The Grind: Dennis: Hotline: Miami. Gone Home. Kole: The Stanley Parable. David: Sir, You Are Being Hunted. Pa...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the Dark Matter controversy, continue their discussion of Grand Theft Auto V, and ask you which heroes suck. The Brief: Deus Ex: Human Revolution Directors Cut released. Dark Matter pulled from GoG and Steam. Xbox One road trip tour. Rollers of the Realm The Grind: Kole: Beyond: Two Souls. Grand Theft Auto V. Ben: Grand Theft Auto V. Dennis: Ace Combat V: Th...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David talk about the Watch Dogs delay, Beyond: Two Souls, and we ask you about your gaming pet peeves. The Brief: Watchdogs delayed to Spring 2014. Eldritch is a thing. Microsoft possibly looking at cross platform ownership. The Grind: Ben: Grand Theft Auto V. Kole: Beyond: Two Souls. Dennis: Limbo. Demon's Souls. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. David: Neverwinter. Kingdom of...

Kole, Ben, Dennis, and David have a belated discussion about the Valve announcements, Grand Theft Auto V, and firsthand impressions of the Oculus Rift. The Brief: Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Father 2014 Beyond: Two Souls released. Steam Box. Steam Controller. The Grind: Ben: Grand Theft Auto V. David: Payday 2. Neverwinter. Kole: Crypt of the NecroDancer. Occulus Rift. Dennis: Trine 2. Limbo. Link...