In this episode Josh and Bryan are talking about Hades II, developed and published by Supergiant Games and released in September 2025 for Windows and Mac, alongside Nintendo Switch and Switch 2, with PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions following in April 2026. Picking up after the events of the original Hades, the sequel casts players as Melinoë, Princess of the Underworld, as she trains to take down Chronos, the Titan of Time, and restore her fractured family. Where the first game asked you to escape the Underworld, this one asks you to defend it and the surface world above across two distinct paths, each stacked with new weapons, boons, and a crafting system deep enough to make the Crossroads feel like its own small civilization. With Jen Zee's art, Darren Korb's music, and Greg Kasavin's writing all operating at full strength, Hades II is Supergiant leaning into more of everything that made the original a phenomenon. Join us as we dig into the game's run-based structure, its sprawling cast of gods and companions, the effectiveness of its story, and whether "more" is always the right way to follow up a masterpiece. Death to Chronos!

Three Word Reviews:

Bryan - Compelling, Cluttered Homecoming

Josh - Back for Seconds

In this episode of Pixelated Playgrounds, Clint and Bryan are strapping in for their first mission with the world's most famous spy, tackling IO Interactive's origin story reboot, 007: First Light. Developed and published by IO Interactive, the studio best known for the modern Hitman trilogy, First Light rewinds Bond's story to age 26, when he's still a hotheaded Royal Navy recruit, voiced and performed by newcomer Patrick Gibson. We were curious to see how much of the Hitman DNA would carry over, and the answer turned out to be a lot, in the best way: sprawling, densely detailed levels built for multiple approaches, whether players want to talk, sneak, or shoot their way through.

Where the game really won us over was in the smaller character beats between the big set pieces, the training compounds, the casinos, the rooftop chases, all of it stitched together by a Bond who's still learning what kind of spy he wants to become. It's not a flawless espionage thriller, and we get into where the pacing and mechanics stumble a bit, but as a reintroduction of 007 to games after a long absence, First Light earns its number. We also talk about what a sequel could build on if IOI gets another shot at Bond.

Three Word Reviews:

Clint - A New Trick

Bryan - Bond Is Back

In this episode of Pixelated Playgrounds, Bryan and Josh take the throne in Titanium Court! Developed by New York-based creator AP Thomson and published by Fellow Traveller, Titanium Court is a strategy game that mashes match-3, tower defense, and roguelike mechanics together as you command the eponymous Court in battle against the enemy. Between runs, you retreat home for visual-novel-style story beats, courtier interactions, and a slow unraveling of exactly what this strange, fairy court actually is.

Winner of the Seumas McNally Grand Prize and the Excellence in Design award at this year's Independent Games Festival, Titanium Court has earned a reputation for writing that's genuinely funny without leaning on snark, and for a genre mash-up that is singular rather than derivative. Listen in as Bryan and Josh dig into how the match-3 and tower-defense layers actually talk to each other mechanically, whether the randomness undercuts or reinforces the tactics, and whether this IGF winner lives up to the hype. So grab your keys, you're going home! Eventually. Maybe.

Three Word Reviews:

Bryan - World’s a Stage

Josh - Keeps You Guessing

Show Notes:

Rebecca Valentine’s Interview with AP Thompson for Kotaku

In this episode of Pixelated Playgrounds, Bryan and Josh dig through decades of dirt to reconstruct an American dynasty in The Roottrees are Dead! Originally developed by Jeremy Johnston during Global Game Jam 2023, the game began as a free browser title before being remastered for a full Steam release in January 2025 with hand-drawn illustrations by artist Henning Ludvigsen and expanded content courtesy of developer Robin Ward and studio Evil Trout. In The Roottrees are Dead, a private jet carrying the wealthy Roottree family crashes in 1998, triggering a massive inheritance dispute worth billions. A mysterious client hires the player to verify every legitimate blood descendant, a task that starts as a simple three-sibling family tree and explodes into a five-generation saga spanning 50 relatives and counting.

In the tradition of games like Return of the Obra Dinn and The Curse of the Golden Idol, progress comes through careful reasoning rather than action: discover a clue, search the archives, verify the evidence, and lock in your answer before moving on. The investigation is anchored in Butler County, Pennsylvania, home of the Roottree Candy Company, and the game uses the constraints of '90s internet to deepen the immersion in ways that feel both nostalgic and genuinely clever. So listen in as Bryan and Josh bust out their dial up modems and solve a family mystery in The Roottrees are Dead!

Three Word Reviews:

Bryan - Genealogy as Gossip

Josh - Dialup Era Deductions

In this episode of Pixelated Playgrounds, Bryan and Josh suit up for Dispatch, the 2025 superhero workplace comedy developed and published by AdHoc Studio, originally released on PlayStation 5 and Windows. Founded by Telltale Games alumni including Michael Choung, Nick Herman, Dennis Lenart, and Pierre Shorette AdHoc brings their episodic storytelling DNA to a story about Robert Robertson, a powerless third-generation hero who, after the destruction of his Mecha Man suit, lands a job as a dispatcher for the Superhero Dispatching Network, managing a team of dysfunctional, reformed villains known as the Z-Team. It's a tale as old as time featuring a group of screw-ups slowly becoming a found family, but Dispatch pulls it off with so much craft and confidence that it feels fresh all over again.

We dig into what makes Dispatch tick as both a game and an interactive series, examining its tight episodic structure, its gorgeous animation, and the way its licensed needle drops lend it the rhythm and credibility of a prestige streaming show. We also talk through the tension at the heart of the experience: this is a game that is, at times, less played than watched, and we explore whether the dispatching mini-game with its spiderweb stat graphs, skill-matching, and ongoing mission storylines does enough to make you feel meaningfully invested in the heroes you're sending into the field. Standout voice performances, particularly Aaron Paul's restrained but surprisingly expressive take on Robert Robertson, and a genuinely well-written ensemble help carry the load. The humor occasionally veers crude or cliché, but that's half the charm. So clock in with Bryan and Josh as we take the call on AdHoc's confident, polished, and wonderfully familiar Dispatch.

Three Word Reviews:

Bryan — Clichés Executed Flawlessly

Josh — Its Super Effective

In this episode of Pixelated Playgrounds, Bryan and Josh journey through the afterlife in Death Howl! Developed by The Outer Zone and published by 11 Bit Studios, Death Howl is a deckbuilder that merges deliberate exploration, demanding combat, and stark, minimalist storytelling. Set in Mesolithic Scandinavia, the game features a mother named Ro who ventures into the spirit world to reclaim her lost son. Death Howl sets its self apart aesthetically with a rough, impressionistic pixel art and vibey sound design to its layered mechanics and themes. Interestingly its often billed as a “souls-like deckbuilder” a label that originated with the community rather than the developers. As ambiguous as the ‘souls-like’ term can be the game captures the spirit of the genre in meaningful ways: its bonfire-like sacred groves, its tense death mechanics that are both punishing and forgiving, and its constant encouragement to explore every corner for secrets and advantages, among other things.

With tense combat focused on positioning, deckbuilding strategies, and the satisfaction of repeatedly crafting powerful synergies rather than settling into just one, Death Howl also succeeds on a mechanical level. The aesthetics and mechanics all stand in service to a game that is telling a story about death, loss, and what it means to confront sorrow. By blending its aesthetic and mechanical strengths to suit this story, Death Howl leaves a lasting emotional impression. So listen in as we go on a journey worth remembering in Death Howl!

Three Word Reviews:

Josh - Constrained Card Crafter

Bryan - Soulslike, Not Derogatory

In this episode of Pixelated Playgrounds Bryan and Clint are diving into Resident Evil Requiem, and coming at it from two angles: Bryan jumped on board with the series starting at Resident Evil 7, while Clint has been a lifelong devotee. Developed and published by Capcom, the game showcases a studio operating at full strength. We were struck immediately by the visual fidelity and the sound design, which is as tense and reactive as anything in the genre. The story follows FBI analyst Grace Ashcroft and returning series icon Leon S. Kennedy as they investigate deaths tied to Raccoon City, and right away we get a sense of the game’s defining idea: two protagonists, two playstyles, and a deliberate split between survival horror dread and full-throttle action.

Its a novel approach to solving the problem that often causes Survival horror games to fall flat as the player becomes more powerful. Grace’s sections lean into vulnerability, limited resources, puzzle-solving, and slow, nerve-wracking exploration, while Leon’s segments let us cut loose with bigger weapons and chaotic combat. That push and pull gives the game a rhythm we found incredibly compelling, constantly resetting tension and payoff. Resident Evil Requiem doesn’t reinvent the series so much as perfect its modern form, elevated zombie camp executed with precision, and a reminder that Capcom has been quietly mastering this formula for years.

Three Word Reviews:

Clint - Old Meets New

Bryan - Elevated Zombie Camp