HPCritical

This week host Jerel is joined by Rodrigo and Brandon as they discuss the cancellation of E3, and what that means for the future of the show, its exhibitors, and what may or may not change going forward. While E3 has been undergoing reformations for some time now trying to find its footing, with the cancellation and reimagining of E3 going forward, we talk about what has to change, what the future...

The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X are slowly approaching, and they’re bringing in this generation in very different ways. The end of this year will bring with it a new generation of consoles. While Sony has been pretty tight-lipped about the PlayStation 5 experience, Microsoft has already given out a ton of information about the Xbox Series X , even premiering its appearance at the Game Awards ....

FIRE EMBLEM: THREE HOUSES FINALLY HAS REPRESENTATION, BUT IS BYLETH WORTH ALL THE CONTROVERSY? The new year is upon us, and we bring in our first podcast of 2020 with special guest Toby. As our resident Nintendo fan, Toby joins host Jerel as they weigh in on the inclusion of Byleth as the fifth and final Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC character reveal for the first season pass. Is the hate Byleth...

It's the end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020. With a new year upon us, we had to revisit some of our favorite games and gaming moments of 2019. Come join host Jerel as he chats with Kristie, Brandon, and Rodrigo all about what their favorite games of 2019 were with some honorable mentions for titles that didn't make the cut. Come have a laugh with us as we discuss our games of the year for 2019....

In a tear-jerker of an episode, host Jerel is joined by Marissa and David as they take a look back on the games and the moments within those games that really had an impact on their lives throughout the year. No matter how hard times were, video games and friends helped us get through the year, and we look back on those precious moments spent with great friends and video games. Come have a listen...

Nintendo began their Nintendo Direct presentations years ago, and have perfected the formula over that time. PlayStation and Xbox have followed suit in a way, PlayStation more so with their own State of Play presentations. But what makes these presentations worth it? Jerel joins host Brandon as they discuss what makes one of these presentations noteworthy, what works and what doesn’t and what fans...

Throughout the years, games have evolved to an inconceivable quality. Stories, characters, accessibility, and more have all progressed within the gaming industry, but the question is, do our gaming tastes evolve with us or with the industry? Jerel joins host Brandon this week as the two have a free-form discussion on their personal gaming preferences throughout the years. They discuss the games th...

Finally, Pokémon Sword and shield have been released to the world, and we at HPCritical are super excited. Three of our biggest Pokémon fans have come together to give their impressions of the beginning of the latest Pokémon journey for generation 8. Join Jerel, Kristie, and Brandon as they delve into how they’re loving (and disliking) the latest game in the Pokémon series.  ARE YOU A POKÉMON...

As the gaming industry evolves, so too do sequels. With Blizzcon 2019 behind us, Marissa and I (Jerel) take the time to talk about what exactly Overwatch 2 is, whether it’s necessary, why it’s being developed and how we feel about the announcement coming off of the success and love that we have for the original Overwatch. We also dive into what happened with the story of Overwatch between the orig...

Now that we’ve all had a chance to play the latest game in the Fire Emblem series, we couldn’t resist but talk about our experiences. Nintendo has created a one-of-a-kind Fire Emblem experience, and the gaming council gets together to discuss a mostly spoiler-free (there may be slight spoilers for Support Conversations) quick review of Fire Emblem Three Houses. With representatives from each house...

With the recent release of Fire Emblem Three Houses, a lot of people are playing a Fire Emblem game for the very first time. While Three Houses is definitely a great place to start for anyone new to the series, it’s far from the first in the franchise. With 16 titles under its belt, the Fire Emblem series is definitely one with a lot of history. To learn just exactly what Fire Emblem is, I’ve brou...

Nintendo has unveiled the next iteration of their latest console. The Nintendo Switch Lite is the handheld answer to those who don’t need the full “Switch” capabilities of the original Nintendo Switch. Though the handheld is $100 cheaper than its predecessor, it loses a number of features in favor of that cheaper price tag. The question is, though it’s a great entry price, is the $200 handheld onl...

With E3 2019 finally over, there’s a ton to discuss based on all of the information learned form the press conferences. We discuss the good, the bad, and the unique as we delve into what made E3 2019 tick. Did you enjoy the conference this year? We’ll tell you what we thought. Come take a listen!

Game of Thrones is officially over with its 8th and final season coming to a close. So this week on the HPCritical Podcast, Marissa, David, and Toby sit down to talk about their thoughts, feelings, and yes, their complaints about season 8. We discuss the writing and characters at length, how we all felt about the final episode and the person who won the Iron Throne. But be warned! This podcast con...

It's almost that time of year again. #E32019 is fast approaching, and everyone here at HPCritical can barely contain their excitement. With the imminent "gamer's Christmas" on the horizon, we decide to take a look at Microsoft this week, delving into what we think their press conference will hold. Microsoft is in such a unique position this year without their direct opposition Sony holding a place...

This week on HPCritical we have special guest and friend to the show, Toby. As a fan of all things Nintendo, we delve into the news for the week with him, keeping an emphasis on the newest Nintendo related news segments. On top of that, we look into the upcoming Pokémon: Detective Pikachu film coming out later this week, and compare that to the big industry mix-up that was Sonic the Hedgehog: The...

With Critical Mode finally being released through the latest update for Kingdom Hearts 3, we decided to take the time and discuss how we felt about the beloved franchise after completing the saga that brought us the partnership between Sora, Donald & Goofy. Join our host Jerel, as he chats with David, Kristie, and Brandon about all things Kingdom Hearts 3 in part one of our Kingdom Hearts in r...

Pax East has come to an end, and with that we take a look at some of the titles displayed on the show floor. The biggest announcement of course, being Borderlands 3. We discuss the latest in the Saga from Gearbox, and look at some comments from the community. Afterwards, we give a bit of advice on how to handle a backlog after discussing what we’ve been playing. Come take a listen!

This week, Jerel and Marissa take the mic to discuss all things Xbox. With the rumor of a disc-less Xbox on the way, as well as E3 upcoming, we discuss what this new console could mean, what would make E3 perfect for Xbox, and what we hope to see from Xbox in the coming months.

On the first episode of the MPCritical podcast, the gaming council speaks on the advantages and disadvantages that come along with grabbing either physical or digital copies of their next gaming purchase. They discuss which version of games they prefer and why and what the future may hold in this regard.