Nerds Without Pants: Episode 92: The EVOlution of NWP

Nerds Without Pants Episode 92: The EVOlution of NWP

We got your hadokens right here!

Welcome to a new era of Nerds Without Pants! This week, we roll out our latest segment: Stage Select! This is intended to be a special talking point segment to kick off each episode that should last about 20 to 30 minutes, but our inaugural edition clocks in at almost 2 hours. Wait, come back!

We’re joined by JD, and the very first Stage Select tackles our top 5 games of All Time, which is why it becomes such an epic conversation. This is by design, as we hope it will give new listeners and old a great barometer for our gaming tastes. If you know the Pantsless Ones well you may still be surprised at some of the selections!

After that, JD tells us about his first trip to the legendary Evo fighting game tournament. From his training regimen to his feelings about the tournament proper and some cool celebrity sightings, JD’s trip to Vegas was one for the ages.

We wrap things up with Chrono Crossing. This episode we’re tackling 2010, which was a phenomenal year for video games.

Next episode we will be talking about our top 3 video game weapons of all time during Stage Select, and Chrono Crossing back to 2009. If you want to contribute to these segments, leave a comment below!

FEATURED MUSIC:

Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo (MS-DOS CD ROM)- Balrog

Mass Effect- Title screen

Chrono Cross- Home Voyage

Super Street Fighter IV- The Juri Han song

#Nerds without pants #Nwp #Evo 2016 #Fighting games #Street fighter five #Best games of all time #Stage select

KnightDriver

08/02/2016 at 01:01 AM

2009 is chock full of great games, but the ones I actually bought that year and finished are just a few of those. I probably got the most enjoyment out of Wolfenstein, the Raven Software developed FPS. My friend Mark and I played it in tandem and giggled constantly every time we heard the mellon exploding sound of a headshot. That game had some neat magic abilities that boosted your skills. It made headshots even more powerful.

transmet2033

08/02/2016 at 08:13 AM

believe me, i know that Bioshock did not need a sequel, but for some reason I really fell for that game.

Chrono Crossing 2009: I thought that I was going to choose Shadow Complex, but then I remembered GTA: Chinatown Wars. I hate 3D GTA games, but I had a blast with GTA2 on the PSOne and I was so glad to see a return to that style in Chinatown Wars.

Our Take

Jesse Miller Staff Writer

08/02/2016 at 02:52 PM

Well of course I have to post my top 5 of all time! What a way to start off that segment with a topic that could warrant its own episode;)

5) Super Mario World - Super Mario 3 may be the touchstone Mario game for most folks, but Super Mario World took what Mario 3 did and perfected it. This game is still fantastic today and none of the other 2D Mario fare has even come close to matching the magic of this title.

4) Mario Kart 64 - I likely spent more time playing Mario Kart 64 than any other game I've ever played. Lots of folks point to Goldeneye 64 as the go-to multiplayer game on the Nintendo 64, but Mario Kart is the one that still pretty much holds up today. Fantastic game.

3) Phantasy Star IV - I was a Genesis kid, so I didn't to most of the Super Nintendo JRPGs until much later. I plays PSIV several times over and I still remember it fondly. The combo attacks, the story, and just everything about this game. It saddens me how this series has fallen from memory of the general gaming public, because it was such an important game for the genre.

2) Red Dead Redemption - I've never played a game before or since that I enjoyed just puttering around as much in as RDR. I loved just riding my horse over the plains and through the forests and up into the hills and mountains. The world was filled just enough with other folks to be interesting, but not so many that the game felt overpacked. The wide open spaces was part of the appeal of this one. Add to that a fantastic story that I didn't want to end, and you have a real winner.

1) Metroid Prime - Man o' man, talk about a game. I'm a huge fan of the Metroid series and while Super Metroid is up there, nothing nailed the atmosphere and feel of being a badass bounty hunter like the Prime series. Everything about this game was perfect, from the graphics, to the gameplay, to the atmosphere. It was suitably lonely, and you had to glean information from little nuggets of knowledge you would gain from scans and artifacts. I really hope that Samus can be blessed with another game of Prime's caliber soon.

And for Chrono Crossing 2009, it has to be Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. That game is what solidified Nathan Drake as a gaming icon, and made Naughty Dog a household name.

Exrian Contributing Writer

08/02/2016 at 04:57 PM

Thanks for the warm welcome guys. I am really enjoying NWP. It fills a good niche in my podcasts. I'm glad to be jumping in at the point where you want to make it more interactive.

Chrono Crossing 2009 Pick: Demon's Souls

It's not my favorite Souls game but it was my first. I'm glad I didn't get this as a teenager because I probably would have went through 3 controllers.

08/02/2016 at 05:12 PM

Stage Select Picks:

3. Earth Defense Forces Genocide Gun (I believe it would beat out the BFG in 1v1 )

2. Bayonetta's Hair (unique and insane weapon from one of my favorite games)

1. Soul Calibur Ivy's Whip Sword (probably not as effective as the prior 2 weapons but if I had to choose one, this would be it)

Casey Curran Staff Writer

08/02/2016 at 09:45 PM

Chrono Crossing for 2009 is definitely Batman: Arkham Asylum. It's rare enough that a lisenced game respects its franchise that much, but that game also introduced freeflow combat, which felt so fresh and new at the time along with great stealth, collectables that were actually fun to find thanks to smart level design, and a neat Metroidvania setup. An all around amazing game. Also Crash Bandicoot is absolute the peak of Naughty Dog, Playstation, platformers, and Australia.

Julian Titus Senior Editor

08/09/2016 at 12:24 AM

I think what I've come to realize is that I'm not much of a Naughty Dog fan. I thought the Crash games were "fine", had no interest in playing the Jak games, skipped Uncharted, and thought The Last of Us was a great game with some annoying issues. I admire them for what they've done with animation and graphics, but don't feel a strong pull towards their catalog.

PixlBit