Gamertag Radio

In this episode of Gamertag Radio, host Danny Peña sits down with Chris Hewish, President of Xsolla. With over 25 years of experience in the gaming industry at companies like Activision, DreamWorks, and Skydance, Chris shares valuable insights on the evolving business of video games. Danny and Chris discuss the shift in premium game pricing, hardware costs, and the economic realities facing game d...

While preparing for an international move to Punta Cana, Danny Peña and Riana Manuel-Peña put all their major gaming rigs and consoles into storage. The result? Danny spent the last two months reviewing all major upcoming and new game releases strictly on the ROG Xbox Ally X , while Riana tested out the Nintendo Switch 2 ! In this episode of Gamer Tag Radio, they break down what it’s like living p...

In this episode of Gamer Tag Radio, Danny Peña and Riana Manuel-Peña take a trip down memory lane to react to and share their absolute favorite video game swag, press kits, and promotional packages received throughout their gaming careers! From a limited-edition 007 gold gun display and a custom Sifu tea set to pizza-scented TMNT Xbox controllers and ultra-rare consoles (like the E3 2005 Xbox 360...

Join host Danny Peña and special guest Riana Manuel-Peña on this special episode of Gamertag Radio for a spoiler-free review of the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 campaign! Danny and Riana dive deep into their hands-on impressions across multiple platforms—including Riana's experience on Xbox Series S and Danny's early impressions playing on Nintendo Switch 2. They break down: Story & Pacing:...

Danny Peña and Parris Lilly dive deep into the ultimate history and current status of the Call of Duty franchise. The duo examines COD's historic sales domination since 2005, comparing its performance against industry giants like Halo 3 , Grand Theft Auto , and Red Dead Redemption . They also evaluate the business impact of releasing Call of Duty on Game Pass on day one, analyzing why strategy shi...

Danny Peña and Parris Lilly are joined by special guest Brittany (aka Blonde Nerd ) to break down Parris’ hands-on preview experience playing The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake on Nintendo Switch 2 at Nintendo’s 2026 Holiday Showcase! Parris shares details from his 80-minute preview session, covering Kokiri Forest, the Deku Tree, Hyrule Field, Hyrule Castle Town, and adult Link combat ins...

Danny Peña and Parris Lilly return to discuss the biggest stories in gaming and tech! In this episode, the duo dives deep into the early estimated sales numbers for Gears of War: E-Day , addressing the online discourse around Game Pass vs. direct sales and why artificial sales metrics don't paint the whole picture. Later, Parris shares his hands-on experience at the Microsoft and NVIDIA Surface Ev...

Xbox recently announced XBOX XP , a new division focused on Xbox Pictures, Products, Places, and Partnerships. But what does this major announcement actually mean for content creators, influencers, and gaming communities? In this episode of Gamertag Radio, Danny Peña and Riana Manuel-Peña sit down with industry veteran Andy Lunique (aka Chef Andy, former games influencer marketing specialist) to b...

Parris Lilly had the opportunity to check out Nintendo Switch Sports Resort at the Nintendo Holiday Showcase in New York City! In this hands-on preview, I walk through my experience testing out both exploratory and competitive modes: Island Exploration: Power cruising (wave racing), prop plane flying, and skateboarding with photo objectives Competitive Modes: Thumb wrestling, archery, table tennis...

The whole crew is back! Danny Peña, Parris Lilly, and Peter Toledo sit down to catch up on the latest gaming news, hands-on impressions, community voicemails, and industry rants.   First, the team listens to community voicemails touching on compassion during industry layoffs, Danny’s work with media outreach on major games, and accessibility options like difficulty modes in modern RPGs.    Then, P...

In this episode of Gamertag Radio, Danny Peña and Riana Manuel-Peña, a panel featuring clinician scientist & content creator, Arie, Teamwork CEO Lynetta Cunningham, and MediaWise interactive learning designer Sean Marcus discusses strategies for keeping young gamers safe online. The panel covers navigating age ratings, fostering open communication between parents and children, combatting toxic...

We sit down with Creative Director Matt Searcy and Art Director Aren Hamak at the Gears of War: E-Day event in Los Angeles to discuss bringing the franchise back to its darkest roots!    In this interview, the team behind Gears of War: E-Day breaks down:The Fall of Kalona:  - How the city evolves and crumbles as the outbreak unfolds.    - Marcus & Dom’s Origin: Exploring their relationship fol...

We played through the Gears of War: E-Day co-op campaign across PC, Xbox Series S, and the ROG Xbox Ally X to deliver our honest impressions! From witnessing Emergence Day in real-time to testing Unreal Engine 5 performance, new cover mechanics, weapon modding, and city destruction, we break down everything you need to know.   Is this prequel story a return to peak horror-infused Gears of War, or...

Danny Peña and Parris Lilly dive into The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered! Over a decade after its original release, CD Projekt Red has delivered a major update packed with PC Path Tracing, DLSS 4.5 support, reworked combat animations, UI updates, transmog, auto-looting, and accessibility features.    In this episode, Danny and Parris break down their hands-on impressions across PC and Switch 2, d...

In this special episode of Gamertag Radio, Riana Manuel-Peña sits down with Kahlief Adams (Spawn on Me) and Tony Polanco (Tom's Guide) for a full deep-dive discussion on Control Resonant . The crew breaks down their history with Remedy Entertainment, overall impressions, character arcs, mechanics, side missions, sound design, and where this title stands in the Game of the Year conversation. ⚠️ SPO...

We were live at Venice Beach for the global Logitech G PLAY celebration! In this interview, Andrew walks us through Logitech G’s massive wave of announcements, featuring 15 new products and new software tools. We check out the return of an iconic microphone with the new Yeti 2, test the magnetic haptic click on the Pro X3 Superstrike gaming mouse, break down the Pro X2 Rapid analog keyboard, and e...

Danny Peña and Parris Lilly breakdown the massive news surrounding the "Xbox Big Reset". From major studio shakeups and layoffs to big organizational shifts across Halo Studios, Rare, Bethesda, and Activision, we unpack what these huge changes mean for the future of Xbox and its core franchises. In this episode: The Impact of Layoffs & Closures: Over 260 employees impacted across Halo Studios...

Welcome to Episode 1600 of Gamertag Radio! In this episode, Danny Peña and Parris Lilly dive into the latest massive shifts in the video game industry. We break down the shocking news regarding Hideo Kojima, PlayStation, and Xbox, including recent updates on his upcoming project. Plus, we discuss the latest rumors surrounding Xbox Game Pass, could day-one releases be coming to an end, and what doe...

In this live episode of Gamertag Radio sponsored by MediaWise, host Danny Peña is joined by co-host Riana Manuel-Peña, actor/composer Greg Chun, content creator Destin Legarie and MediaWise Deputy Director, Brittani Kollar. Together, they dive deep into navigating online toxicity, avoiding clickbait, detecting AI-generated content, and maintaining media literacy in today's attention economy.  Want...

In this non-spoiler review, Danny Peña, Riana Manuel-Peña, and Parris Lilly break down their early hands-on impressions and deep dives into Remedy’s latest release, Control Resonant.   From its expanded open-world Manhattan setting and deep combat mechanics to its incredible soundtrack and customizable assist options, the team discusses why Control Resonant stands out as a potential contender for...

Danny Peña speaks with ASUS's Whitson Gordon to discuss the official announcement and details of the limited edition ROG Xbox Ally X20 20th Anniversary model!  Whitson shares insights from Gamescom, detailing the device's standout features—including its hot-off-the-press 7.4-inch OLED display with variable refresh rate (VRR), TMR joysticks, rubberized grips, micro SD Express support, and transform...

In this episode of Gamertag Radio, Riana Manuel-Peña and Tony Polanco deliver their non-spoiler review, first impressions, and gameplay breakdown of Insomniac Games' Marvel’s Wolverine for the PlayStation 5! Tony shares his thoughts after 100% completing the game, joining Riana for a deep dive into how Insomniac handles Logan’s story, brutal combat mechanics, and team dynamics. In this discussion,...

Gamertag Radio's Danny Peña speaks with Square Enix directors Naoki Hamaguchi and Teruki Endo to discuss Final Fantasy VII Revelation, the third and final chapter in the remake trilogy.  The team reflects on the 10-year journey of rebuilding Final Fantasy VII, balancing nostalgic battle design with modern action RPG mechanics, and landing the plane for this legendary story. Danny also dives into m...

NVIDIA GeForce DLSS 5 is officially here, and NBA 2K27 is the first title to take advantage of it! Following early leaks and initial controversy surrounding how the tech works, I had the chance to get hands-on experience both at Gamescom and at home on my RTX 5090 rig. In this segment, sponsored by NVIDIA GeForce, I break down how developer Visual Concepts actually implemented DLSS 5 into NBA 2K27...

In this episode of Gamertag Radio , hosts Danny Peña and Riana Manuel-Peña team up with MediaWise to explore the impact of online misinformation and toxic culture within video game spaces. They are joined by lead web developer at Poynter, Jay Tillery and veteran 3D artist Del Walker. The panel discusses how rumors spread rapidly across social media, why negative clickbait dominates the algorithm,...