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Game Informer Show 99: Kingdoms of Amalur

This week's podcast got a little hairy due to technical difficulties and me being out for part of the day with a family matter, but we got it done. First up, Phil Kollar and Adam Biessener save the day with a long, wide-ranging discussion about 38 Studio's much-discussed open-world RPG Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. Does this new franchise have what it takes to compete with the likes of Skyrim? As it turns out, the answer to that question is a bit more complicated than "Yes" or "No." After that, I return to my post as host to talk to Andy Reiner, who's at the annual DICE Convention in Las Vegas. He checks in via phone to tell us about the year's most exclusive event in gaming.

NOTE: I know this is a shorter podcast and only one segment. It was, as they say, an "interesting" day. We had some technical problems that scuttled a couple of call-in interviews we had scheduled, and I was called out of the office until around six on some family business...so HUGE THANKS to Phil Kollar and Adam Biessener for stepping up and saving the podcast this week. Sorry it's late/short/missing bumper music/etc.

For more on Kingdoms of Amalur, check out Phil's review.

Attachment: http://media1.gameinformer.com/media/audio/theshow/ep99/theshow-ep99.mp3

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Comments
  • yes baby one more episode to go!!!!!!!!!!

  • Very interesting that both GI and G4 have interviews with the KOA staff just after its release. Me thinks I see a little marketing stunt in the works (too bad that the game is getting a load of critical reviews). Maybe they can 'talk' the game up past it's mediocre reception.
  • Sweet! I'm really interested in this game.

  • Saw this game at a friends place. Worth a gander if i'm not done with Dark Souls yet?
  • I am enjoying Kingdoms of Amalur very much. It reminds of the first Fable and I have greatly missed games like that so this is a welcome treat.

  • mediocre reception? you guys are supposed to buy games when they come out; this game looks awesome; BUY IT!!! It only got a mediocre reception because of you guys who go into game stores to buy games: this game wasn't flying off the shelves...

  • Love the podcast and glad its fixing to hit 100!

  • The Reiner and Phil episode actually made me want to get this game and that was several month ago. Almost to 100, GI Show!
  • I'm going to wait until after SSX comes out to pick this up. I want to make sure I have enough money for SSX and then I'll see about getting it.

  • Good to hear that the problems you had with the game are things I don't care about, and everything that matters to me is there.  I'll be starting Amalur in a few days.  I played the demo a few times and really enjoyed it.

  • Damn, I envy you guys, here in my country the game hasn't arrived yet

  • Sorry I didn't have time to listen! But it's nice to see that next Thursday would be GIOS 100th podcast!

  • Okay, I'm sorry. I vomited at the pronunciation of Drizzt Do'Urden. This may just be my pronunciation, but it always sounded right to me (spelled phonetically): Dritz Doh-Urden. That's just me. Other than that, great podcast, as always. Helps me get through a boring drive to work.
  • Good podcast, thanks for the additional insights Phil.

    It sounded from the written review like you had mixed feelings about the game... so I was really hoping you'd do a podcast on it. Being able to hear your tone and the word choice when you talk about it gives me a better impression of how you really feel.

    Sounds like a promising and worthwhile game, even if it doesn't hit all the marks. I wish my copy had arrived by now so I could play it myself! I preordered from their site (to get the $80 CE) and it said it would be launch day delivery, but we're a couple days past launch now and no show...

    Adam, it kind of sounded like you were predisposed to not like the game. Or maybe you were just in a joking/making fun mood?

    And one final note... you guys talked about their being a need for a good PvP MMO. Then you talked later about GW2 coming out. Don't you think Guild Wars 2 will fill that void, considering how important PvP was to the first game?
  • I tried the demo of this game, having high expectations for it, but it didn't really impress me.. Felt too arcade-like, and was not what I had hoped for at all.. But it might be just the thing for people that enjoy mindless hack 'n' slash with open-world'ish gameplay..
  • love the game with a passion within just three days i have put over 20 hours into the game

  • Nice!!!  Can't wait!

  • Played the demo at least 3 times and loved it. Will be getting this game in the near future.

  • Chakram in the game rock, was going to be a rogue and decided to use all the fate weapons I got from per-ordering upon trying the Chakram I instantly these are the weapons I want, and started all over to be a mage and not a rogue, I have Chakram in main and dagger in secondly so I can do stealth kills if I want, or just wreck face with the Chakram

  • I'm not sure if I wanna go and pick this up just yet. Not that I dont have the money, but I have a feeling that I won't put much time into it after reading the reviews and playing the demo. I could be wrong though, I expected to be disappointed by dark souls, and now I've beaten it twice after 200 hundred hours.

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