Red Barrels Podcast

Episode 58, and we have three pieces of bad news: BAD NEWS 1: Sofie is off sick, and it's just Ed and Alex :( BAD NEWS 2: It's a news episode. BAD NEWS 3: Legendary RPG studio Bioware has been killed by the forces of capital. Yep, it's a sad one. After a quick news roundup, Alex and Ed spend the episode commiserating and celebrating one of the great dev houses and talking about the gam...

It's episode 57 and with Ed back again, we are simply jonesing to talk about some games again! Alex discovers what a depressed person can really do in Control Resonant, and meanwhile Ed tells us all about what he's been playing on his holiday - indie Greek mythology match-three game Mythmatch! And of course Sofie quietly judges us the entire time. News next week - and we'll be all over...

Welcome to episode 56 - and guess what? Ed's back! He's returned from his bad boy motorcycle wanderings, just like the worst part of Twin Peaks. And what a time to arrive as we've got a red-hot news episode! First Sofie gets into updates on the IWGB Rockstar trial, Ed finally weighs in on the weird Zero Company furlough saga, and Alex investigates the complex world of AI decomps (and r...

It's episode 55, and with Ed still away it's just Alex and Sofie again. But before we get into our games, it's time for some accountability. The Red Barrels Podcast is issuing an apology - more details in the broadcast. We are coming clean on our failures, both to our audience and to the working class as a whole, and committing to doing better. We hope that in the fullness of time, we...

Apologies for being a day late! It's episode 54 and with Ed still on holiday and no guest, it's an Alex and Sofie two-person special! But despite our publicity efforts, the world keeps turning regardless of how many people are on the podcast, so we still have news to cover. Alex gets into - guess what? - more Xbox layoffs and now a whole restructuring. Sofie examines the apparent demise of...

Episode 53 is here, and thank god we still have Jamie Woodcock on to rescue us from that boring number! That's right, the author of Marx at the Arcade joins us again, this time to join in on our usual odd-numbered-episode of games chat. Inevitably, he's telling us all about Star Wars: Zero Company - meanwhile Alex talks about the newly free from BDS South of Midnight, and Sofie channels he...

It's episode 52, and the sad news is that the bad boy of the Red Barrels Podcast, Ed, is away on holiday. But the amazing news is that we have a guest co-host (ghost host?), Jamie Woodcock! Storied leftist academic and author of Marx at the Arcade! Sofie and Alex try to maintain their composure about this, but it's difficult. Guests aside, it's still a news episode of course! Alex gets...

Episode 51 might be a boring number - but it's an explosive episode!! It's a games one, and in a desperate ploy for relevance, Alex has replayed GTAV in anticipation of course of the sequel. Does it hold up? Has it been cancelled? How many TV shows does it rip off? You'll find out! Meanwhile, Ed battles ludonarrative dissonance in Uncharted 2. And of course, Sofie is here to silently j...

Whoa - it's episode FIFTY?! How could that possibly be the case?? I tried to imagine what would come after episode 49, but I never could have guessed it would be this. Wow. And a half century can only be enjoyed one way - with an (almost) all-out GTA VI blowout! We start this news episode with our reactions to the big GTA showcase video - do we like it? Or not?? And then Alex talks about the s...

Ep 49 - just one away from 50! Isn't that exciting? For some reason?? It's a games episode and as a result, it would be weird if we didn't talk about the games we've been playing. Alex keeps things on track (sorry) in Denshattack!, Sofie elfs all over herself by playing a round of D&D, and Ed squeezes out the last drops of Dark Souls 2 by playing the DLC. Lots of GTA stuff in o...

Episode 48! We did it! And of course, it's a News One. There's obviously no bigger news than a new Kingdom Hearts trailer, but we deny our deeper impulses and resist talking about it for a full hour. You're welcome. But in less important news: Ed relays the saga of the CEO of Saber Interactive humiliating himself, Sofie informs us of a possible downfall of Roblox, and Alex talks more a...

Episode 47 arrives, and thank god, Sofie is still back. Enjoy your now listenable episode! And of course, it's a games one - Sofie kills god (of course) in 33 Immortals, Alex has some notes on the Victorian legal system in The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles, and Ed falls in love with the most endearing sidekick character of all time in Jak and Daxter. We can't be stopped!! And of course, we...

It's episode 46 but who cares because all that matters is that Sofie's back! Waaah! That's right, she's arrived from her wandering around the desert of housing trauma, and is finally here to make the podcast listenable again. The prodigal daughter returns! And she's just in time for some tasty news - Sofie gets into Saudi Arabia confirming their depressing buyout of EA, Ed talk...

It's episode 45 and that means: it's a games one! Still no Sofie sadly (back next week!) but Alex continues the Resident Evil streak by chatting about number 9 AKA Requiem, and Ed returns to the leafy climes of Samurai Japan in Ghost of Tsushima. It's a chewy episode! You can literally chew it! And of course, back on news next week! Please consider reviewing us on iTunes and Spotify, a...

Episode 44 is here and we have a treat - Alex and Ed (still no Sofie, back soon!) provide an exciting *ALL BAD NEWS* special! Ed talks layoffs at Xbox, and Alex talks layoffs at ZA/UM! We did it! It's a depressaganza! It's also our shortest-ever episode, time fans. So you can suck the negativity down in one gulp! And don't forget: games next week! Please consider reviewing us on iTunes...

Episode 43 is here and Alex and Ed (still no Sofie unfortunately, hopefully she will be back soon) are here to talk about the games we've been playing. And that means we're exploring the whole spectrum of pop culture, the alpha and the omega - of course, it's James Bond and Resident Evil. Alex has been pondering just how left-wing it's possible for MI6 to be in 007: First Light, an...

It's episode 42 which is an even number - and that means that it's news. But has any news happened? It's been pretty slow, we think? Of course, that's a pretty rubbish joke, we've actually been deluged in a newstravaganza. First up we talk about the Xbox layoffs and studio divestments - though not in detail as by coincidence (?!) we recorded just as the info came out. But we qu...

It's here! ZA/UMageddon has finally delivered an actual game to play, and that's the sort-of followup to Disco Elysium itself, Zero Parades! And for the world's foremost (and only?) Marxist gaming podcast we obviously have to go all out for it. And so Alex, Ed and Sofie have all played it, and have spewed their opinions all over the face of the podcast. Is it good? Is it bad? Does its...

We're back! We did it! After quite an hiatus, due to housing shenanigans, the Red Barrels Podcast has triumphantly returned, with an exceptional, newsy episode. As befits the events passed, we go all in talking about the Summer Games Fest and related events - of course we couldn't pass up an opportunity to discuss St. Keighley. We get into all the new games announced and shown, including g...

This episode is a day late! Why did this happen? Well, quite simply the ep is so red hot that the combination of that and the temperature outside would simply be too much for the world to handle. So, apologies for our consideration for human existance. But we're not joking about how hot the episiode is because we're delivering what everyone's been clamouring for: in preparation for ZA/...

Episode 38 erupts on the scene with an undeniable banger of an episode - we have in interview with Spring McparlinJones, AKA the Chair of the IWGB trade union's Game Workers branch! We ask what the UK's game union is up to, the shenanigans at Rockstar North and Build A Rocket Boy, and of course an update on ZA/UM, the UK's first ever unionised game developer. It was a privilege to talk...

Episode 37 pops right into your lap and welcomes you to pet and stroke it like a loving family cat. Unlike everyone else in your life, we'll never let you down. Also we're talking about games this week! Sofie gives us a twofer with Tomodachi Life and Flock Around, Ed opens old wounds by revisiting Blue Prince, and Alex thrills at tall ladies in Resident Evil: Village. And next week, some e...

Episode 36! It's here! You can't stop it! We did it already! And it's a news one! Sofie tells us about Xbox's embarassing climbdown, Ed gives us a deep-dive into Build A Rocket Boy's spiral of madness (and more updates on The Benz), and Alex regrets to inform you that Halo's music is now racist. Meanwhile, resentments build among the co-hosts leading to the inevitable lefti...

Episode 35 is here whether we like it or not. It's the situation now, we can't change it and must simply adapt to the new normal. But our lovely co-hosts are here to talk games into your waiting ears and make the transition to the new world a bit smoother. Alex explores a depressingly prescient fascist London in Watch Dogs: Legion, Ed ingests Alan Wake (more like Alan Woke amirite?) and So...

Episode 34 emerges over the horizon, shambling and heaving. But we whip it into shape, turning it into a lean, sleek episode, ready to be crammed into the holes on the side of your head. This time, Ed updates us on Stop Killing Games, Sofie announces an unlikely ally against the prudish payment processors, and Alex rants about the Triple I Initiative. You'll like this one! And of course, next...