Press Row Podcast

With spring training right around the corner baseball is about to be back on the minds of many. It's also the time of year when the changes that the upcoming MLB The Show game will be sold on start to be revealed. The first wave of information just hit with hints at some big new features and improvements for MLB The Show 17. News on everything from gameplay, presentation, and graphics to the big t...

Now into its 8th year, the Pastapadre Community Awards have set out to recognize all the efforts made in sports gaming which go well beyond just that of naming the "Sports Game of the Year." For 2016 the awards expanded to 12 categories and collected over 33,000 votes in the process. Sports video games are complex and rich in content, and no one game excels in every area that make them up. The Com...

The highly anticipated home/handheld hybrid Nintendo Switch will release on March 3rd for $300, eventually require a paid subscription for online play, and expanding storage will a be a practical necessity by adding on a separately purchased SDXC memory card. Switch has a dismal launch lineup outside of the new Zelda, while sports games look to be a ways off with FIFA and NBA 2K18 both officially...

Every year it’s important to look back on developments within the sports gaming genre, not just as a reminder of what has happened, but as insight into the direction individual franchises are going and the trends within the industry that will impact them all. Bryan Wiedey and Rich Grisham discuss some of the most important stories of 2016 in the new year's first episode. Reference Link: The bigges...

The College Football Playoff is almost here and, as it so happens, Bryan Wiedey and Rich Grisham both have their teams involved and going head-to-head in the semifinal. The two discuss Washington vs Alabama and NCAA Football 14 simulations of the games before turning to topics such as the Blizzard Mountain expansion for Forza Horizon 3 and a rundown of the annual Pastapadre Community Awards catego...

It's episode 200 of the Press Row Podcast! After reflecting on the milestone four years in the making, attention turns to awarding the 5th Annual Press Row Podcast Sports Game of the Year. The top three games of 2016 are revealed, the panel reacts and discusses the reasoning behind them landing where they did, and later get to the games that didn't place while also bringing up a few unconventional...

With Washington set to face Alabama in the College Football Playoff, Press Row Podcast host Bryan Wiedey is looking forward to a month of jousting with now-enemy Rich Grisham. After opening with some college football talk the two transition to an in-depth discussion on the just completed Madden Classic eSports event. Topics broached later in the episode include how Golf Club VR and NBA 2KVR have b...

The world of video games is constantly evolving, and no phenomenon has impacted how companies market, how media covers, and how consumers discover them more than livestreaming. On this week’s episode of the Press Row Podcast, we gather streamers and content makers from three different angles – a publisher (Adam Burnett from Out of the Park Developments), an independent media outlet (Chris aka Mill...

Press Row Podcast – Episode 196 From the streets of Brookago 2016 has been an astoundingly good year for video games in general and sports video games in particular. It’s been far too long since host Rich Grisham connected with good friend Cicero Holmes from Spawn on Me to chat about his take on the scene, so we righted that wrong this week to discuss exactly that. From the spate of new hardware t...

While it's uphill battle for sports games in the world of eSports the likes of EA Sports and 2K Sports are dedicated to carving out a place for their franchises in the lucrative competitive arena. The games are battling the actual real-life sporting broadcasts for interest from viewers, while also struggling to prove a compelling watch when they often fail to look like the sports they are supposed...

While it may not technically be winter yet, for all intents and purposes it is that now for the sports gaming genre. Outside of Steep, which will be out in early December, we're entering the darkest period of every year for sports games with the next major release not expected until the end of March with MLB The Show 17. Despite that there's always news and developments to react to and some of tho...

PlayStation VR has reached the market, PS4 Pro is only a matter of weeks away from release, and the Nintendo Switch was just officially announced and will arrive March 2017. As always sports are a big factor in determining how successful gaming systems are over the long term as they draw in consumers and keep them engaged with the platforms. What role will sports be playing in the early days of th...

Press Row Podcast – Episode 192 – Visiting Old Friends It’s been too long since we caught up with longtime Press Row friends Chris Sanner from Operation Sports and Jeremy Stein from SGN games – so we right that wrong this week! Chris and Jeremy join host Rich Grisham to chat about what sports games they’re spending time with this fall, including Madden 17, FIFA 17, PES 2017, and NBA 2K17. It’s a f...

It's a great time to be a racing game fan and we've brought together our two official Hit The Pass racing correspondents from across the globe - Canada and Australia, to be specific - to discuss the bumper crop of titles that fans are enjoying right now. Greg Sewart and Dr. Ken Parker join host Rich Grisham to dive into recent releases Forza Horizon 3, F1 2016, NASCAR Heat Evolution, and Asetto Co...

An unprecedented number of sports game releases within a compressed window of just a few weeks has left both consumers and reviewers struggling to find the time and/or money for all of them. The panel in this episode of the Press Row Podcast discusses at length four of the latest games to arrive on the market - NHL 17, NBA 2K17, Pro Evolution Soccer 2017, and Forza Horizon 3. On the show this epis...

Now in the midst of the busiest time of the year in sports gaming, Bryan Wiedey and Rich Grisham reflect on recent releases and those right around the corner. With limited time what games rise to the top and which fall by the wayside? Between Madden NFL 17, PES 2017, NBA 2K17, NHL 17, FIFA 17, and several racers - Forza Horizon 3, Nascar Heat Evolution, F1 2016 - there's no choice but for a game t...

One mode in Madden NFL 17 has expanded so much in terms of both content and prominence that it couldn't even fit into the Review Roundtable episode. Bryan Wiedey and T.J. Lauerman examine the revenue-driving Ultimate Team by going through its intimidating feature set and assessing what is working well and what could be improved. Has it all gotten to be a little too much for the average gamer? On t...

One of the most anticipated Press Row Podcast episodes on an annual basis is here with the Madden NFL 17 Review Roundtable! The panel discusses various themes of this year's game, examine where it excels, and identify the areas that need the most work going forward. On the show this episode: Bryan Wiedey (@pastapadre), Pastapadre/Hit The Pass/Sporting News Owen Good (@owengood), Polygon Rich Grish...

Madden NFL 17's release is imminent - or in the case of those with EA Access on Xbox One the season has already kicked off - and before getting to the big panel review roundtable podcast (that'll be next week) Bryan Wiedey, Owen Good, Rich Grisham, and T.J. Lauerman discuss early impressions and experiences with the game. Is this the year Madden finally returns to the upper-echelon of sports games...

NBA 2K17 is now just 27 days away from release. Very little is known about the game, and that's a departure from the norm this close to a product coming out - particularly one with the massive popularity of NBA 2K. Naturally fans are seeking out info, but not only are they failing to find it on social media, they're being treated with a level of contempt by official reps for 2K Sports simply becau...

With four months of MLB The Show 16 now in the books it's time to evaluate just how developer Sony San Diego can improve on an all-around excellent game next year. From gameplay to the big modes (Diamond Dynasty, Franchise, Road to the Show) Press Row Podcast host Bryan Wiedey and panelists Owen Good and T.J. Lauerman go through a great number of personal suggestions and those contributed by the c...

With the release nearing of this year's main crop of sports games there's a great deal of news to catch up on. That includes the first real game info on NBA 2K17 and expected Olympics-related announcements to come soon, observations from the first Madden NFL 17 player ratings and what they mean, the potential of cross-network play for Rocket League, and impressions out of an NHL 17 press event. Th...

It's the second annual Sports Game Power Rankings! Bryan Wiedey and Rich Grisham navigate the sports gaming landscape to determine which franchise stands atop the genre and how they compare to each other within. The assessment relies on criteria that includes sales, reviews, cultural impact and more, so can NBA 2K repeat or will a new series take the crown? On the show this episode: Bryan Wiedey (...

Two major controversies arose this week and they have raised questions regarding the rights of consumers who purchase video games and spend money on digital items within them. With MLB The Show 16, developer Sony San Diego banned a relatively large number of player accounts but some users may have found themselves banished unjustly. In FIFA the integrity of Ultimate Team mode has been brought into...

One of the busiest weeks for gaming news every year has come to a close for 2016. E3 and EA Play offered up a prime opportunity for publishers to reveal trailers and new features for their upcoming suite of games. In the case of EA Sports that meant info on a story mode for FIFA 17 and Franchise improvements for Madden NFL 17. A new mountain sports game called Steep was revealed, a sequel to The G...