We have reached an end of an era. Microsoft has finally done something so heinous that even Chamberlain refuses to defend it. Pour one out for Tango Gameworks. Also this week, Chance has to buy a new PS5 to remove a Fallout 4 mod (almost). Alex begins the multi-year process of playing early access Hades 2. And Chamberlain finds emotional fulfillment in a AA game that no one else played.

It's all Fallout, all of the time, unless it is still post-revolutionary war America and Chamberlain is still busting ghosts with a surprisingly effective sword and solid Scottish accent. Chance and Alex are both thousands of years past that, just not is the same place, with one in Fallout 4 and the other in New Vegas. You know which is which. Also this week, a frank discussion on the merits of Zach Snyder and why normal shaped middle age men are not often featured in sex scenes.

Except for Brotherhood of Steel, but we won't talk about that.

The Fallout love fest continues, with Chance and Alex making impassioned cases to Chamberlain that he should obtain a Prime subscription. He will not. He will instead continue on with the flawed but affable Banishers. Alex has deserted Dragons Dogma 2 for Fallout New Vegas (along with just about everybody else) and Chance is still killing every cyclops that crosses his path.

Alex has fallen victim to Chance's hype over Dragons Dogma 2, purchased it, and proclaimed it 'ok.' Chance is appalled and is taking revenge by continuing to enjoy the game he was already enjoying, only now out of spite, which makes everything better. Alex has also declared the Fallout series worth your time and done so without the spoilers that Chamberlain lives for. And Chamberlain has started Banishers, the best ghost busting anything to come out for a long damn time.

Chance has finished up Dragons Dogma 2 and immediately turned around and starting playing it again, something that not even Spider-Man 2 managed to illicit. It's that good. Alex started playing Citizen Sleeper, remember a better game, and finally finished I Was a Teenage Exocolonist instead. And Chamberlain played a bunch of little games while in recovery from FFVII Rebirth, including the best walking sim in a while, Return to Grace. Oh, and he bought Belatro, so that is how he lives now.

(yes, the title is an HTML joke based on the episode number, nerd)

Alex continues to reject all things new in favor of games that run great on the Steam deck. This week it is Days Gone, that other open world zombie game. You know, the one with the bikers. Chamberlain was going to come prepared with a full game breakdown of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth but came up one hit shy on the final boss, triggering a very small tantrum followed by a nap. And Chance has space in his heart for Dragons Dogma II, proving that the destination is irrelevant as long as you have fun getting there.

Despite there being literally too many new games to play Alex has decided to dive way, way back into his backlog and sample a game he missed the first time around: Devil May Cry 2. He makes no promise of finishing it, but he did try to make Dante do things. Chance tries to enjoy Unicorn Overload, fails, and runs back to Elden Ring. And Chamberlain still has not finished Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. It's weird, he still loves it, and there are a few mild spoilers.

While not technically a holiday (at least in the western hemisphere) the release of a new Final Fantasy game is almost always cause for celebration. Or usually. Or sometimes. Okay, once in a while a good Final Fantasy game comes out. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is one of the good ones and Chamberlain is thrilled. Also this week, Alex puts an incredible amount of time into Balatro and Chance has maxed out another character in Elden Ring while preparing for the expansion, stopped playing her, and may very well do this again several times.