Joystiq Podcast 027 - Chocolate log edition

by Justin McElroy { Nov 30th 2007 at 12:58PM }

It's a jam packed edition of the cast this week, kids. First up, there's some hot Justin on Daffy action. Then, we explain why people who don't like Assassin's Creed are stupid. Then, we get an incredibly brief visit from the Silver Surfer himself, Doug Jones. Finally, all hell breaks loose with 360 dashboard update talk, the Brush With Fame and our new feature The Big Three. Also ... (shudder) ... Chocolate Log. Cast ahoy!

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Hosts: Chris Grant, Ludwig Kietzmann and Justin McElroy

Music: "Get Ready for Love" by Nick Cave, "Red Eye" by Ben Kweller.

See all of this week's links after the jump.

Update Stuff:
Xbox 360 gets new backwards compatibility update
Browse others' friends lists with 360 fall update

Can rap find a place in music games?

Rockstar drops GTA IV box art video, dates new trailer

Poor sales of Space Giraffe make Jeff Minter sad

The Big Three:
3. Joystiq Holidaze: best of Black Friday
2. Xbox 360 Fall Update details spilled by MS Japan
1. PS3 version of Orange Box might be 'downright unplayable'

Tags: assassins-creed, assassinscreed, doug-jones, joystiqpodcast, podcasts

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Donald @ Nov 30th 2007 1:07PM

What rolls downstairs
Alone or in pairs
Rolls over your neighbour's dog
It fits on your back
It's good for a snack
It's LOG, LOG, LOG!

Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:16PM

People who don't like Assassin's Creed are stupid. I haven't listened to it yet and I'm just about to, but I bet a choclate log it's ol' man McElroy who doesn't like the game.

Assassin's Creed is stepping us ten years into the future of gaming. The ten years the Manhunt 2 just helped us to step backward with. So now we're good.

Justin McElroy @ Nov 30th 2007 1:17PM

Actually, I love, love, love the game.

Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:20PM

I've spoken too soon once again...

I don't get my second brush with fame during the podcast

shivr @ Nov 30th 2007 1:34PM

Vegnagun... I don't know why, but I have this funny feeling that you were... brushed with something lately... maybe fff...fffffuuuam? fun? fish? Fettuccine?

Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:36PM

No way...Did it happen again? Is there no limit to the amount of BWFs I can receive?

T3H WICKERMAN (FDF) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:19PM

This podcast is very new and exciting. Unlike last week when I had to listen to a repeat on my bi weekly car trip. Milk is teh gross.

T3H WICKERMAN (FDF) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:20PM

Its okay to love.Is it really that good?

Fernando Rocker @ Nov 30th 2007 1:22PM

I enjoy the Podcast... a lot.

But maybe you should dedicate some time to talk about the website, about us the readers... about the comments.

Just an opinion.

Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:23PM

(he's asking for a brush with fame)

T3H WICKERMAN (FDF) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:28PM

Fernando you will NEVER get a brush with fame. You are already quite famous for your old avatar here! (hair cut) -still love ya though lol

fantastic dan @ Nov 30th 2007 1:36PM

i read the website for what it is and enjoy the podcast because it's different. i don't want to hear "oh boy that sony topic got 300 comments, lets read some".

Ben @ Nov 30th 2007 1:24PM

If Assassin's Creed taking us ten years into the future then games are really going to suck. It was a unfinished, unpolished waste of $60.

LilCo187 @ Nov 30th 2007 1:48PM

I'll second that! Turns out Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) is actually an intern in the mailroom at Ubisoft.

Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:50PM

Ho did you guys know!?

MDB @ Nov 30th 2007 1:31PM

I can't believe anyone would defend Assassin's Creed. You actually have to be stupid to like that game. Seriously. You repeat the same investigations over and over again for the majority of the game. It's a slightly more complex version of when you play fetch with your dog. Does that sound intelligent to you, Joystiq?

Definitely the biggest waste of $60 I've spent this year. The game isn't so bad, but definitely not worth $60 because there is ZERO replay value unless you want to go chase around fucking flags for five hours. Enjoy that.

Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) @ Nov 30th 2007 1:34PM

You must not have shoes, because you have no sole.

MDB @ Nov 30th 2007 2:00PM

You must have no life because you respond to every comment on here and also made your username to reflect the fact that you were mentioned on a video game blog's podcast because of that very fact.

Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) @ Nov 30th 2007 2:07PM

I had no life over the ten minute span that I posted those comments. And I also had no life during the three whole seconds it took to change my name on the website, that reflects something that happened on that website.

I don't "have I life", I guess, because I like video games. I do what I have fun doing.

MDB @ Nov 30th 2007 3:01PM

There's no point in even arguing with someone who defends Assassin's Creed. How could you defend that game? Since you've beaten it have you picked it up? If so, what could you possibly find entertaining the second time around? The harder difficulty? Oh there isn't any.. Do you just love sitting on a bench and happening to hear conversations that are more than 50 feet away and then basing an entire assassination attempt upon that information?

Say whatever you want, this is my last comment. It's clear by your overzealous commitment to Joystiq commentary and your adoration of Assassin's Creed that you are stupid. That undoubtedly means that if this banter would continue you would bring me down to your level of idiocy, and then beat me with experience.

Christopher Grant @ Nov 30th 2007 5:41PM

But wait! Are you really arguing that replayability is the metric used to define and weigh what is either a) art or b) just a video game. Regardless of how you see the medium, I wouldn't think replayability would be a primary concern at all!

"Did you read Ulysses? Yeah, just once? Man, that book sucks."

Vegnagun (Brushed With Fame) @ Nov 30th 2007 7:31PM

Alright so you probably won;t read this, but if you do...

Assassin's Creed isn't the best game ever. It's got a lot of design issues that get repeated too much for comfort. That being said going through a market place, watching Altair make his way through a crowd, and the combat all feels next-gen. It's true that it's repetitive but I never was bothered by that. I just wanted to progress through the story to see where both stories went.

And yes, I have picked it up. I'm collecting the flags and view points for achievements.

parasite_evil @ Nov 30th 2007 1:33PM

Hahahahahahaha, I was re listening to podcast 20 yesterday just to hear you talk about your steed.

Justin "There's my steed." McElroy you rock!

LilCo187 @ Nov 30th 2007 1:51PM

Is ANY game worth $60? I have a hard enough time forking over $50 for a Wii title. Good thing it's not a next-gen console allowing it to avoid that + $10 premium..........................................

shivr @ Nov 30th 2007 2:20PM

for real... I had a real hard time swiping the ol' debit card for a new mario galaxy last week, and thats one of my most looked forward to games on the wii >_>

LilCo187 @ Nov 30th 2007 1:52PM

Teh power of teh inturnetz!

Kevin @ Nov 30th 2007 2:14PM

Wait... Wait... I haven't played Assassin's Creed, but you're telling me that, playing an Assassin, I don't get to do things that Assassins wouldn't do?

I demand fighting Dinosaurs on Jetskis! I want to shoot down the moon! I need to decapitate hordes of zombies with a low flying helicopter!

But seriously, assassins assassinate people. There should only be 1 mission type.

vectorelement @ Nov 30th 2007 2:20PM

I'd pay to be in that product meeting where Nestle decided to name their product "Chocolate Log." HA!

shivr @ Nov 30th 2007 2:37PM

Wait so... does Ludwig actually like AC enough to name it GotY, or is he just saying that to spite the reviewers who gave it low score, who were just giving it low scores to spite the hype and prove themselves unhypeable?

Ludwig Kietzmann @ Nov 30th 2007 6:09PM

No, I was surprised by how much I loved it. It just clicked with me and all the elements I enjoy the most in games. I absolutely love rich worlds and being able to traverse environments in interesting ways -- it's why I consider Prince of Persia: Sands of Time one of my all-time favorites as well.

The Klepackage @ Nov 30th 2007 2:39PM

I literally spit out water when Justin was "talking to the guard" and said the "Man, I gotta go climb something line".

I'm trying to get some of my friends to listen to the podcast. My roommate is really bad about listening to them in a timely manner because he's waiting for his new Zune to arrive. (Insert no one owns a Zune joke here)

Christopher Grant @ Nov 30th 2007 5:42PM

Your roommate owns a Zune? I've never actually heard of someone using one in real life before. Wow, that's sort of incredible.

shivr @ Nov 30th 2007 6:44PM

zunes were on woot for pretty cheap a while back... my friend got a black one for like 100 bucks

Dustin @ Dec 1st 2007 5:21PM

Believe it or not, some of your listeners even listen to the podcast on their Zunes. The new updates to the Zune enable podcast support... FTW!?

The Klepackage @ Dec 1st 2007 10:05PM

The Zune is actually a really nice piece of hardware. I loved the ones they had at CES.

Derevartives @ Nov 30th 2007 2:43PM

Kind of amazed that the MGS or FF series wasn't mentioned when talking about the emotional impact in games and whether or not games can make you cry.

Justin McElroy @ Nov 30th 2007 2:51PM

Yeah, I'm sure it wouldn't have been a problem if we had more 13-year-old girl co-hosts.

samfish @ Nov 30th 2007 9:41PM

I cried at the end of Okami.

Shut up. All of you.

Dustin @ Nov 30th 2007 2:56PM

I agree with Derevartives... I was suprised no one mentioned any of the FF games and if they made anyone cry, or tear up or anything at all.

And I have to say - American chocolate is the worst.

But... I just can't stop thinking about Chocolate Log... and the reference to 2 Girls 1 Cup...
WHICH BY THE WAY WHY DID YOU MENTION THAT!!!???

I feel sorry for every listener who looks that up now. And I take no responsibility... cause, well, you said it first, Justin.

tripletags @ Nov 30th 2007 3:13PM

Assissin's Creed does not live up to they hype ... if people need to explain WHY you should like something so much its not worth the time .. take sex for example ... everyone likes it in some shape or form .. only the loons that want to control it explain themselves so much as to why you should not have it.

Sorry guys, you may have bullied Chris but anyone who HAS played it and does not like it will never like it. Simple.

Jack @ Nov 30th 2007 3:19PM

Brush With Fame shenanigans! So we only get fame-brushed if we spam the comments section? After being begged to comment and leave iTunes reviews, I draw the line! I thought fame-brushes were some random philanthropy in service of faithful listeners.

But I was wrong. I'm disillusioned with the corruption of Brush With Fame mere episodes into its existence!

P.S. Enjoyed the podcast. Been listening since the very first embryonic episode and it's steadily improved. I feel like a proud father or, to a lesser extent, a proud cool uncle.

Christopher Grant @ Nov 30th 2007 5:43PM

Are you the uncle that's okay with buying the older teenagers beer, as long as they drink it at home?

Jack @ Nov 30th 2007 5:51PM

As long as they drink it at home, as long as they don't tell their friends or their parents where they got it, and as long as they'll let me play their new copy of Rock Band.

Slaziman @ Nov 30th 2007 3:28PM

I love Assassin's Creed.

Cen I hav my brush of fame now?

Slaziman @ Nov 30th 2007 3:59PM

OH SNAP, I should've finished the Podcast before posting this... but you just begged me to leave you guys in the dark about the spelling...

shivr @ Nov 30th 2007 6:47PM

so... how do you pronounce it then?

Luke @ Nov 30th 2007 4:27PM

That is DEFINATELY the best clip BWF could ever get.. Love this Podcast

You guys should do some interviews!

I say Xenogears for most emotional game ..possibly b/c how long it is.....im going to be playing the GC FireEmblem and the Wii one back to back and see if length truly is indicative of emotional commitment