This week's grab bag episode includes first thoughts on Hades II, mid-game thoughts on the charming turn-based cartoon battler Wander Stars, and (spoiler free) final thoughts on Death Standing 2: On The Beach.

In the roundup: all the news from the Tokyo Games Show, including the Nintendo, Xbox, Sony, and Annapurna directs that happened this month, and a light review of some Switch 2 accessories that Snakebyte sent my way.

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Hollow Knight: Silksong is here! Join me as I recount my fraught and torrid journey through the kingdom of Pharloom. It's a wondrous place — immersive, vast, absorbing — but it's held within a game that's ruthlessly difficult, and trolls the player in a way that I've found difficult to enjoy.

In the roundup: Time Flies, Lumines Remastered, Snakebyte Switch 2 accessories.

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Read the Myrkur article: https://grapevine.is/mag/2025/09/15/echoes-of-the-end-inside-the-biggest-icelandic-video-game-of-2025/

Read the VGC Silksong review: https://www.videogameschronicle.com/review/hollow-knight-silksong/

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Herdling is another vibey journey through a forlorn world from the young Okomotive studio. The shepherding gameplay is alternatively fun, clumsy, endearing, and frustrating, but overall, it’s a three-hour journey that is a must for indie game fans.

In the roundup: Hollow Knight, and Silksong pre-game!

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Sword of the Sea is like playable dream. It combines the simplicity and wonder of Journey, the oceanic splendour of ABZU, and the searing speed of The Pathless into a mesmerising new form — it's the apotheosis of the Matt Nava formula.

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Wheel World is a free-flowing cycling game that's met with a surprisingly mixed reception, given the demo hype. It starts off well, but it's a game of two halves, in quite an unusual way.

In the roundup: Haste, Cipher Zero, Artis Impact, Ovis Loop, Heistgeist, Donkey Kong Bananza, Death Stranding 2: On The Beach, and more.

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Word Play is an ingenious new puzzle-roguelike that crosses the streams of Balatro and Scrabble. The result is a compelling little game with big potential.

In the roundup: Cipher Zero, Haste, Driftwood, Ritual of Raven, Time Flies, Death Standing 2, Wheel World, and more.

Here's that video of the Word Play dev talking about making his game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHKRWmfcMBw

Here's the Ludocene site (best used in a phone browser): https://www.ludocene.com

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It's the Year of Kong! Nintendo's first "proper" (don't @ me, Mario Kart fans) Switch 2 blockbuster is here, and it's one for the books. Donkey Kong is now a fully realised modern Nintendo mascot as he smashes, dances, and chomps his way through a series of wonderfully designed, multi-layered levels that are simply a joy to experience. A couple of minor-ish quibbles stop it from being an unreserved 10/10, for me at least — but that doesn’t detract from the headline: it truly is Donkey Kong’s time.

In the roundup: Cipher Zero, Wildwood Down, Wheel World, Fretless: The Wrath of Riffson, The Drifter, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora.

Indie Quest guest appearance: https://indiequest.buzzsprout.com/1425403/episodes/17508234-episode-115-keep-on-questin-indie-people-with-john-of-gaming-in-the-wild

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Thanks to boss tier patrons KingChamp and ShyGuy — and thanks for listening!

This week's pod is a roundup episode featuring Blade Chimera, Midtris, and Death Stranding 2. In the roundup: Tron Catalyst, Tiny Garden, Preserve, Wheel World.

I also talk about moving the podcast's hosting away from Spotify, given the unforgivable actions of the CEO, and discuss removing GITW from Spotify completely. For the record — Pocketcasts does it just as well; and YouTube Music has you covered if you have a YT Premium subscription.

Links mentioned:

My Grapevine cover story: https://grapevine.is/mag/feature/2025/07/04/the-summer-ring-road-around-iceland-in-12-days.

The latest Gaming In The Wild YouTube videos: http://youtube.com/gaminginthewild.

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Thanks for listening!