Kotaku Splitscreen

Kirk and Maddy talk about games they're playing, which in Maddy's case is still Destiny 2 and Borderlands 3 . Kirk beat Sayonara Wild Hearts , a music-focused game that he strongly recommends, and he just started Disco Elysium , a detective game with a ton of dialogue systems. We then break for some discussion of the news (32:23), touching on Kotaku's coverage of Pokemon Go and privacy, Blizzard's approach to China and Hong Kong, and the Fortnite black hole. We close with off-topic talk (56:53) about books each of us has read: Educated by Tara Westover, Green Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson, and Y: The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra. Music pick of the week: “Begin Again” from the Sayonara Wild Hearts Soundtrack, by Daniel Olsen and Jonathan Eng, feat Linnea Olsson. “The Creators Of Pokémon Go Mapped The World. Now They're Mapping You” by Cecilia D'Anastasio and Dhruv Mehrotra:

To celebrate the 200th episode of Splitscreen, Maddy finally started playing Destiny 2 . Meanwhile, Kirk beat Untitled Goose Game . We also bring on Kotaku staff writer Joshua Rivera (30:28) to discuss his article about Blizzard's crackdown on a pro Hearthstone player who spoke out about Hong Kong, and then the three of us discuss Borderlands 3 , Destiny 2 , and all the looting and shooting that can be done in those games. We close with off-topic discussion (1:17:50) about Gentleman Jack , The Great British Bake-Off , and The Real World . Music pick of the week : “Since 99” by Vargas and Lagola Wired PS5 Exclusive:

Kirk and Maddy start by congratulating Jason on his new fatherhood, then get straight to the heart of the matter: video games. Maddy's still playing Fire Emblem and also tried two cool tabletop games, Sheriff of Nottingham and Escape from Aliens in Outer Space . Kirk's tabletop group is still playing Betrayal Legacy ; Kirk also played the new Hitman level and... drumroll... Destiny 2: Shadowkeep . After a break (28:32), we bring on Kotaku 's editor-in-chief Stephen Totilo to talk about Ghost Recon: Breakpoint and also attempt to define a sidequest (and shout out some of our favorite ones). We then close out with off-topic talk (1:08:15) about Elementary , Star Trek: The Next Generation and Can You Ever Forgive Me? Music pick of the week: "Oh My," Natalie Prass

Kirk and Maddy make do without Jason, who's busy with imminent fatherhood, and discuss the joys of Untitled Goose Game and playing games as a jerk (who is also a goose). Kirk is also stuck on a Gears 5 boss and trying out tons of new offerings in Apple Arcade. We break for news (31:04) about the Oculus Quest, further discussion of Apple Arcade and subscription services, and a bunch of listener emails about weird gaming traditions. We close with off-topic talk (59:54) about Dark Crystal and Hustlers . Music pick of the week : "Little Wing," Jimi Hendrix

Episode 197: Kirk, Jason, and Maddy talk about the great new visual novel AI: The Somnium Files, the wonderfully addictive Fire Emblem, and Remnant: From the Ashes, aka Gears of Dark Souls. Then they get into news (34:07) on Nicalis and Apple Arcade, plus a listener question about weird gaming traditions. Finally, off-topic talk (57:16) and the legend of Gardner Minshew continues (or does it?). Music pick of the week: “Rock Steady” by Aretha Franklin from Young, Gifted and Black, 1972