It’s been a little while since we Idle Weekended, but for good reason! Your fearless hosts have been going through some *life stuff* and playing games that help us cope. Get ready for some talk about comfort games, the place of challenge and difficulty, and getting our brains into better spaces. Welcome back to the weekend! Discussed: Into the Breach, World of Warcraft, Total War, mental health, Sonic Mania, Animal Crossing, health, Assassin’s Creed: Origins, State of Decay 2, Dishonored 2,...

We consider a favorite archetype of ours in sci-fi: the sensitive badass! Rob and Danielle talk gender in sci-fi, the ways in which Farscape and the Expanse rock our socks, and why Thor is a whole lot more awesome than Guardians of the Galaxy. Discussed: The Expanse, John Wick, Farscape, Thor: Ragnarok, Thor, Guardians of the Galaxy volume 2, Black Panther, Edge of Tomorrow, Sicario, Uncharted series, Uncharted 2, Uncharted: Lost Legacy, Hitman, Ghost Recon: Wildlands, Star Wars: The Last Jedi

It’s been too long, friends. But we have a solid, meaty Idle Weekend for you, ripe with discussions of long-running franchises we have a long relationship with, our trials in not ruining games for ourselves, and the utterly bananas part time work experiences gained by working for weirdos. It’s Idle Weekend all right! Discussed: Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze, Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia, Total War Rome II, Total War: Medieval, Into the Breach, The Evil Within 2, Kitchen...

On this belated episode of Idle Weekend (Danielle is sorry for the wait), we discuss the things that really just do it for us—and the alternative, the games that leave us cold. It’s a very hot and cold weekend here, just like real life! Sort of! Discussed: The Division, Surviving Mars, Black Maps: The American Landscape and the Apocalyptic Sublime, Into the Breach, The Martian, Tropico, Star Trek, Dude Watching with the Brontes - Hark, a Vagrant!, Daniel Ortberg’s Texts from Jane Eyre, The...

Rob and Danielle take some time from playing the latest and greatest to do things they enjoy even more: play old games that actually scratch the right itches. It’s like 2007 all over again in here! Discussed: BioShock, BioShock 2, BioShock Infinite, Warcraft 3, The Hour, War Thunder, Don’t Starve, The Hour, Mindhunter

Rob and Danielle regale one another with tales of TV shows (and movies, and books, and games!) that they weren't too keen on at first, but those frowns turned upside down with a little persistence. Discussed: Brooklyn 99, Crazy Ex Girlfriend, Altered Carbon, Game of Thrones, Tombs of Atuan, The Expanse novels, The 100, 2312, Rubicon, All Our Asias

This week, we welcome freelance writer Dia Lacina to the Idle Weekend world in order to discuss lesser entries in franchises or series that everyone s***s on, but we love them. There’s a whole lot of Star Trek Talk in this one, a serious appreciation for Michael Mann’s Manhunter, and a slew of delicious trashcan eclairs. Discussed: Star Trek Voyager, Star Trek: Enterprise, The Bourne Legacy, Manhunter, Banjo-Tooie, BioShock 2, Dark Souls 2, Jupiter Ascending, Guardians of the Galaxy,...

What dark depths lie under bright futures we like to imagine? That, and other lofty questions, are addressed on this episode, where we look at the authoritarian side of the sci-fi we love, the colonialism of games we’re enjoying, and the very difficult question of what on earth to do with David Cage Games. Quick content warning: this episode contains discussion of sexual harassment and abuse in media. Discussed: They are Billions, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Roadside Picnic, Battlestar...

with copy! Idle Weekend 1/21/18 It’s Back, Baby! This weekend, we talk about what it takes to make a game come back into the conversation, even if it’s just our little corner of the internet. It’s because we have a little Bloodborne on the brain, and a little Darkest Dungeon in the hands. And Strangers Things afoot. Note! Rob’s audio is a little funky in this episode, but he’ll have his proper mic back next week. Discussed: Bloodborne, Dark Souls, Darkest Dungeon, Stardew Valley, LA Noire,...

This weekend, we extol the virtues of consoles and games that change our relationship to games, in honor of Rob’s newfound love of the Nintendo Switch. We also get into some good questions about gender stereotypes and game preferences, and profess a deep love of 20s gangster period pieces. Discussed: Nintendo Switch, Breath of the Wild, Stardew Valley, LA Noire, Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, Peaky Blinders, Boardwalk Empire

In the extreme(ly bad) weather, it’s important to note one thing: we all have to work together to survive. Hence, we recount our favorite games and movies with extreme weather, from the comfort of our snowed-in houses. Discussed: Max Payne, The Grey, The Long Dark, Kona, The Division, Super Mario 3D World, Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Nightwing, Grayson, In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex

The Idle Weekenders bid this crappy year adieu with the help of friend and colleague Cameron Kunzelman. They talk home settings in games, from the cozy confines of Stardew Valley’s quaint town, to the too-millennial aspirations of later Sims, to the much wackier ways in which horror games set family life. Then, we talk some serious trash about White Christmas and other fabulous trashcan eclairs. Like Dark Matter. Discussed: Stardew Valley, Zelda: Breath of the Wild, The Quiet Year,...

Rob and Danielle survived a truly, comically terrible fall to podcast again! We chat about the too-realness of Night in the Woods, going home for the holidays, and the games and movies that have made the last few months vaguely tolerable. Merry Holiday time to you all! (Mild content warning for discussion of domestic abuse in I, Tonya) Discussed: Night in the Woods, Dishonored: Death of the Outsider, Tacoma, Prey, I, Tonya, Thor: Ragnorok, A Christmas Gift

Danielle and Rob are here, in Idle Weekend-land, a very good place, to discuss... The Good Place (spoilers abound), and many other games, shows, and movies that do twists well. Discussed: The Good Place, Mad Men, The Visit, Blade Runner, Momento, The Prestige, Westworld, BioShock, BioShock Infinite, Prey, Edith Finch, SOMA, Dishonored: Death of the Outsider, Mass Effect 3, Forza 7, Valor, Hidden Agenda

Rob and Danielle both had delightful woodland experiences to recount this weekend, as well as stories about gaming happy places (like Prey) and a beloved movie—Blade Runner. The first one. Don't worry, we'll talk about the new Blade Runner soon! Discussed: F1 2017, Game of Thrones (the board game), Prey, Blade Runner: The Final Cut, Blade Runner: The Director's Cut

Sometimes, you have to pay to play. Danielle returns from glorious Scotland to regale Rob with tales of sightseeing, martial arts, and Mario Vs. Rabbids, while Rob has many vacation tales of his own, including the time he was too tall to ride Space Mountain. Both Weekenders learn of childhoods similarly spent in gay seaside resort towns, and everyone is interested in good sitcoms. It's a very idle weekend indeed! Discussed: Saugatuck MI, Ogunquit ME, Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Brazilian...

Idle Weekend is back! After a too-long lapse where PAX happened and we all worked too much, Rob and Danielle return to what they know best: talking about Star Trek, Farscape, and immersive sims. After a riveting discussion of criminally under-utilized licenses in games and the new Dishonored, they open a heavy mailbag and an especially exciting discussion of weekend projects. Discussed: Battlestar Galactica Deadlock, Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek (TOS), Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek...

In this fine installment of Idle Weekend, we get really excited about (GOTY) Prey, the finest damned immersive sim this side of the solar system. Rob has finished it, and we spoil the hell out of the ending. We also talk about fun sleepover games: the games of our younger years that we enjoyed on an all-night basis with buddies. It's a very happy episode of idle Weekend! Prey Spoilers! Discussed: D&D, Donkey Kong Country, Perfect Dark, Sonic 3, Prey, BioShock 2, Kingsman: The Secret...

In honor of the Mooch, we go through our gaming torrid affairs: games we had a very brief, very intense love affair with. Sometimes, these things just don't work out. Discussed: Kingdom, No Man's Sky, Empire: Total War, Mass Effect 3, What Remains of Edith Finch, Ruse, 10 Cloverfield Lane, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

This weekend, we wade into the game engine kerfuffle with opinions, context, and that characteristic Idle Weekend spice. Then, we go hard into a discussion of weekend projects, with action movies, professional wrestling, and combat sports. Like you do on a gaming podcast! Apologies this episode went up late, and double apologies for a missing episode last week. More Idle Weekend is on the way! Discussed: game engines, Mass Effect Andromeda, Ultimate General: Civil War, John Wick 2, Kingsman:...

Rob and Danielle meet for an overdue weekend after a Rob's cross-country move. Rob's been getting re-acclimated by playing a lot of MLB The Show 17 and discovers it's like watching baseball with a cool, knowledgeable friend. But a discussion of sports leads to a discussion of Boston sports and their deserved reputation for racism. But somehow, Xander Cage makes it all okay. Discussed: MLB The Show 17, Animal Crossing, Boston sports

We survived E3! That's reason enough to do a horror-themed episode this weekend, thanks to a nifty demo for Distrust. We take a lovely tour through some of our favorite, terrifying game experiences, with a light sprinkling of film. Then, we move on to our mailbox and dig into two very exciting weekend projects. Note: we had some slight mic issues this episode. Discussed: Distrust, Alien: Isolation, It Follows, Alien, Lost, The Babadook, Prey, System Shock 2, Alan Wake, Soma, Her Story,...

This weekend, we're all about going really fast in pretty places. We discuss our favorite racing games, spurned on by a couple of recent humdingers, Dirt 4 and Wipeout Omega Collection, and Rob's love of F1. Discussed: Wipeout Omega Collection, Dirt 4, Codemasters' Formula 1 series, Dirt 2, Dirt 3, Split/Second, Road Redemption, Mario Kart, Diddy Kong Racing, Sonic and Sega All Stars Racing, Rad Racer, Side Effects, LadyKiller in a Bind, Anna Anthropy's Triad, Lip Service, The Hunger,...

This weekend, we decided to talk about hard-stops in games. The things that make us look a game in the face, in disbelief or exasperation, and break up with them on the spot. We also dig in on music we love in games, sexism in sports and action movies, and two films we are feeling hot and cold on, often at the same time! Discussed: Endless Space 2, The Witness, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Demon's Souls, Dark Souls 3, The Longest Journey, Yooka-Laylee, Prey, Wolfenstein: The New...