Episode 380 – “Gandalf, Game Fest, and Getting to the End”

Fred finally put a bow on Octopath Traveler II, clocking in at a hefty 76 hours. He’s now stuck in that post-game limbo, unsure what to dive into next—and somewhere along the way, he saw Gandalf, which we’ll unpack. Jake, meanwhile, is still going strong in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, now 31 hours deep and not letting up.

Listener feedback this week was short but sweet. Big Box gave us props for our thumbnail game, and 1blktalon chimed in with a time-stamped shoutout for Jake’s "Amen" moment from Episode 378, also weighing in on Jade Raymond. Appreciate the love—and the laughs.

As for the news, Summer Game Fest 2025 is right around the corner. Geoff Keighley will host on June 6th, and PlayStation is officially on board as a partner. Expect big reveals, including WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers, and a post-show indie showcase from Day of the Devs. Meanwhile, IO Interactive is gearing up to unveil 007 First Light during their own showcase the same day, teasing Bond’s origin story with the tagline "Earn the number."

CD Projekt Red is offering a first look at the tech behind The Witcher 4 at the State of Unreal on June 3rd, showing off what Unreal Engine 5 will bring to the franchise. Tango Gameworks is back in action too—thanks to KRAFTON—and already hiring for a new action project following their reboot.

Kojima’s Death Stranding 2: On the Beach will get the spotlight during a June 8th live event hosted by Keighley, with a gameplay demo and surprise guests promised. In less celebratory news, Borderlands 4 found itself in hot water after Randy Pitchford suggested that “real fans” would pay $80 for the game. After backlash, he walked the statement back with a public apology.

Also this week, we learned that The Order 1886 was originally meant to be a trilogy—plans for The Order 1891 and 1899 were scrapped after poor reviews and the eventual closure of Ready at Dawn. A small nod lives on in Astro Bot, where Sir Galahad appears as a collectible.

And finally, MindsEye continues to stir controversy. Developer Mark Gerhard blames targeted attacks and bots for the game’s rocky reception. Whether that’s true or not, the game launches June 10th, so we’ll see for ourselves soon enough.

Let’s get into it.

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