Another year done means a new batch of video games elevated into the vaunted Top 5 List of our Game of the Year picks. This week on the podcast we discuss our top picks for 2020 along with a few honorable mentions. Will the next-gen consoles sweep the honors or is there still juice in last generation's library? We have a supersized show in which to hash it all out. Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with the player below, find us on Stitcher, subscribe via iTunes, Amazon Music Podcasts, and Google Podcasts, toss this RSS feed into...

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Power Button - Episode 325: The Best That 2020 Had To Offer

With the portal sealed and 2020 banished back into Hell, it's time for our customary look back at the most memorable video gaming news from the year that was. Thanks to the coronavirus, 2020's news was largely "inside baseball" in nature as nobody could safely stage a large physical presence at a convention or trade show, but there was still plenty to talk about as Nintendo's Super Mario Bros. celebrates its thirty-fifth anniversary, Apple and Epic go to war over - what else? - money, Microsoft goes on a buying spree, and so much more. Download this week's episode directly...

Power Button - Episode 324: 2020's Biggest News Revisited

We're taking a break from video games this week to discuss Blake's recent source of excitement, The Mandalorian. Spoilers ahead for seasons one and two! And we also dip into Wonder Woman 1984 as a sidequest using Pedro Pascal's presence in both as a stepping stone. Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with the player below, find us on Stitcher, subscribe via iTunes, Amazon Music Podcasts, and Google Podcasts, toss this RSS feed into your podcast aggregation software of choice, and be sure to catch up on past episodes if you're joining us late. Remember that you can...

Power Button - Episode 323: Movie Mode: The Mandalorian

We have a very special double-length podcast for you this week as my wife joins us to discuss our recent wedding that was packed full of hidden video game references. From the Borderlands vault symbol arch to the stomping of the Goomba glass to the Super Mario pixel are in my tie, we tell you all about how we slipped video games into our wedding in ways that you wouldn't notice unless you were in on the joke. All of our favorites are there including The Legend of Zelda, Untitled Goose Game, Donkey Kong, Sonic the Hedgehog, and so many...

Power Button - Episode 321: You Are Cordially Invited...

In celebration of my own imminent wedding day, this week's podcast is all about gaming's greatest weddings! From Bowser kidnapping Princess Peach for a wedding on the moon in Super Mario Odyssey to the shotgun weddings of Fallout 2 to the Mad Moxxi love potion scheme of Borderlands 2 to, uh, Booster kidnapping Princess Toadstool for a wedding in Marrymore in Super Mario RPG and beyond, we're talking about the good, the bad, and the matrimony. Join us for seventy minutes of discussion before I head off to say my vows. Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with...

Power Button - Episode 320: Gaming's Greatest Weddings

One of our favorite books here at Power Button, Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation, is now a documentary streaming on CBS All-Access, so it's the perfect time to talk to the book's author and friend of the podcast Blake J. Harris and his co-director on the film, Jonah Tulis. Join us for an hour of conversation in which we discuss topics such as how the book made the transition to the screen, the difficulty of clearing all of those archival clips for use, the visual impact of showing key moments in the story as...

Power Button - Episode 319: Into The Console Wars Documentary Trenches With Directors Blake J. Harris and Jonah Tulis

City-building simulators and their ilk are all the rage on this week's podcast episode. Join us as we reminisce over classic titles including SimCity, SimCity 2000, SimCity 3000... well, you get the idea there, plus SimCopter, SimFarm, Rollercoaster Tycoon, SimTower, and all the way to our current obsession, Cities: Skylines. Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with the player below, find us on Stitcher, subscribe via iTunes, Amazon Music Podcasts, and Google Play, toss this RSS feed into your podcast aggregation software of choice, and be sure to catch up on past episodes if you're joining us late....

Power Button - Episode 318: Cities In The Sky

The ongoing game of pricing and release date chicken between Microsoft and Sony finally reached the cliff this week as both companies lifted the curtain on their plans for the next generation of video game consoles. We're spending the hour discussing the new details about the Sony PlayStation 5 and the Microsoft Xbox Series X and Series S plus a quick dip into the world of Nintendo for some pre-release Super Mario 3D All-Stars gossip. Pull up a retailer's website and mash the refresh button with us as we try to preorder a console. Download this week's episode directly from...

Power Button - Episode 317: Preorder Tech: The Next Generation (Or, PlayStation Versus Xbox: Mayhem At The Terrordome)

PlayStation Plus offered Square-Enix's Rise of the Tomb Raider as a free download earlier in the summer and since my fiancee is an Uncharted fan, I suggested she might want to try it out since they have some similarities. She enjoyed it, got me into playing it, and that led to this week's podcast discussion in which we brief Blake Grundman on our experiences with the dry monologues, hunting animals with poison mushroom arrows, avoiding the gory deaths, and tracking a mythical witch. Good luck to you, Lara Croft! With us at the controls, you'll need it. Download this week's...

Power Button - Episode 316: The Tomb Raider Rises

Nintendo opened the floodgates on its Super Mario Bros. thirty-fifth anniversary plans and game announcements this week with lots of new products on the way to celebrate the occasion. On this week's podcast, we're discussing all of the news including the Mario Kart Live toys, Super Mario 35 battle royale game, Super Mario 3D All-Stars coming to the Switch, and so much more. Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with the player below, find us on Stitcher, subscribe via iTunes and Google Play, toss this RSS feed into your podcast aggregation software of choice, and be sure to...

Power Button - Episode 315: A Celebration Fit For A Plumber

Have you heard about this new Marvel's Avengers game coming out soon? We certainly have, and on this week's podcast we're discussing the beta version of the game that has been available on and off for the past few weeks. Corey is back with us this week to help us pick it apart, put it back together, and look ahead to the finished version of the game and beyond to the datamined list of future playable characters. Excelsior, and all of that stuff! Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with the player below, find us on Stitcher, subscribe...

Power Button - Episode 314: Avengers Beta, Assemble!

We can't resist a new Paper Mario title (except for when we do), so on this week's episode of the podcast we're discussing the first half of Paper Mario: The Origami King for the Nintendo Switch. There are lots of spoilers in here for the red and blue streamer areas plus a little bit beyond, so hold off on joining us for this one until you reach the Monty Mole village if you are concerned about spoilers. We'll pick up the second half of the adventure when Blake gets around to finishing it. Download this week's episode directly from PTB,...

Power Button - Episode 313: Paper Mario, The Origami Killer

Microsoft broadcast a special hour-long look at upcoming games for its Xbox Series X console recently, so on this week's podcast we spend eighty minutes discussing the showcase and talking about which games interest us the most. We also dig into the console's Smart Delivery promises and touch on how Microsoft buying up a whole slate of developers is about to pay off for them. We'll leave a light on for you, Battletoads! Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with the player below, find us on Stitcher, subscribe via iTunes and Google Play, toss this RSS feed into...

Power Button - Episode 312: Xbox Series X Xhowcase

Destiny 2 continues to expand as developer Bungie recently outlined its revised roadmap for the ongoing development of its popular shooter, so on this week's podcast it's only natural that Blake Grundman would want to discuss it. I'm not a Destiny fan, but my fiancee is, so Corey is back for her second appearance on the show to talk all about Vex and the Warmind or whatever it is that goes on in Destiny. I'm glad they know what they're talking about because, in this case, I certainly don't. Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with the player...

Power Button - Episode 311: 2 Destiny 2 Furious

On his fifth attempt to get into Borderlands, Blake Grundman is finally making progress on his way to open the vault thanks to playing the Borderlands Legendary Collection for the Nintendo Switch. Now that he's ready to talk about his experiences on Pandora, we brought in our resident expert vault hunter, my fiancee Corey, to join the discussion. We have an our of conversation about all things Borderlands for you, so catch a ride to Moxxi's bar and pull up a seat. Download this week's episode directly from PTB, listen with the player below, find us on Stitcher, subscribe via...

Power Button - Episode 310: The Big Borderlands Show

One man's opinions and commentaries on happenings in the video game industry.

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