CC&P 9: Getting Our Game Faces On!

[Digital beats and bass intro music]

SAREENA:
Hey hey, everyone! Welcome back to Curried Chips & Poutine, and guess what? We're gonna be serving you a whole lot of fun, because we're going to be talking about my biggest hobby that I have been doing for the entirety of this year without any guilt - and that is video gaming! Yaaaaas!

MELISSA:
Yaaaay!

[Laughter from both.]

MELISSA:
I mean, we're both huge nerds, so this is not a surprise to some people, I guess?

SAREENA:
No, we've kind of dropped it in in earlier episodes, but I'm so excited that we have a whole episode to talk about video games.

MELISSA:
Oh yeah. And this probably won't be the only episode we do on video games, it'll be, y'know, a teaser - a taster, as it were.

SAREENA:
Yeah, we've tried to keep this maybe a little bit more general so it can be open to everybody, and hopefully convert some people who don't play games into joining us, but if you do have any specific games you would like us to talk about - I have a huge list, I'm sure Melissa has a decent list that we could pop up on insta that you could maybe do some votes or something for, then we could get a game-specific episode up and running for you.

MELISSA:
It certainly would be super fun. And you know, one thing too is that Sareena and I have very, very different taste in video games. For example, Sareena, I think you're much more of a PC gamer versus I have more consoles, I think.

SAREENA:
Yeah, but that's more for convenience rather than choice, 'cause when I was living at home my brother has an Xbox, Xbox One and things, so I definitely would play on the console, but because I'm more nomadic, PC is much more accessible.

MELISSA:
That's fair.

SAREENA:
So that's why I've moved onto the PC gaming, and yeah, have loads of fun with it. But I know you are all about the Playstation!

MELISSA:
I am, and I recently got a Switch, so that's also been my recent obsession, god forbid.

SAREENA:
Yeah, Nintendo's always great for being more accessible, and family-friendly and just fun, warm-feeling games.

MELISSA:
If anything it's definitely more innovative out of the consoles there, 'cause PS4, y'know, and Xbox- I actually don't know much about Xbox - but PS4 is all about the sleek, smooth, the future of gaming! Nintendo's like, 'yeah, you know what? We should have a game where you switch up coloured tiles and you watch 'em disappear'.

SAREENA:
And Eggbox are releasing their newest console and it looks like a fridge, so.

[Both cracking up.]

MELISSA:
The PS5 looks like a fridge, so I feel you there. It's like white and black and everything.

SAREENA:
I think the PS5 still looks nice? Literally the Xbox is... the Xbox X is a tower, it's a cuboid, it's just there, and chunky.

MELISSA:
Really?

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
Joke's on you, Nintendo made that first, they made the Gamecube back in the 2000's!

SAREENA:
I know but that was just like one level, this is like if you imagine three Gamecubes on top of each other.

MELISSA:
...Okay, fine. It's like a room heater.

SAREENA:
Yeah, I'm sure it will be, or it'll be really cold, depending on how many fans they've jammed in there.

MELISSA:
That's true. We'll just have to see I guess, I actually don't know- I didn't know it was called the XBox X, but I'm like 'that's funny, they just kind of, you know, making their way around in a circle - Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and then, what? Xbox X?

SAREENA:
Yeah, Xbox X, and then... just yeah, whatever else they're gonna come up with. They've already made that joke, like ' oh, they've come a full 260, they've done a whole revolution!'

[Sardonic laughter from both sides.]

MELISSA:
Nothing but original content on this podcast, folks!

SAREENA:
I know, yeah. [laughing] But I think, video games for me, have been such a saving grace for this year, and-

MELISSA:
Oh my god, for sure.

SAREENA:
- it's always been something that I love to do, especially coming home from work or whatever, but now because I have more time, just the various kinds of games that are out there have provided endless hours of entertainment! And I'm very, very grateful.

MELISSA:
Yeah! 'Cause I only recently got a Switch, and around the start of the pandemic I overheard - 'cause we went into an EB Games to pick up a game for my cousin - and the guy was talking about how when the pandemic started, you couldn't get a Switch anywhere! People were reselling theirs on eBay and Kijiji and stuff like that- for upwards of $900!

SAREENA:
Wooow. That's crazy!

MELISSA:
That is- yeah, because they couldn't keep up with the demand. And now obviously things have slowed down, we're just in Lockdown 2.0, people are more prepared for it this time around so they have more stock. I was able to get my Switch with not a lot of stress, which is good, so...

SAREENA:
Yeah, that's what you want. I wouldn't want to be in the pre-order queues, or trying to source a PS5 or Xbox X at the moment-

MELISSA:
I know!

SAREENA:
That is the hot Christmas present of the year! And I think that's an upside of being a PC gamer, once you've got your laptop, you're set up, you're kind of good to go, you can just download whatever you like, really. And being on a Microsoft laptop I have access to the Xbox app, which I can get the game pass, so I can still play all Xbox games if I wanted to, so you know, Halo Infinity is due to come out sometime next year as well, so I could totally jump in on that.

MELISSA:
Ooh, true.

SAREENA:
But I've got access to Steam, Origin, and just, there's tons of games out there, so. The hardest decision is usually picking what game to play-

MELISSA:
Yep.

SAREENA:
-and with the release of Cyberpunk 2077 that's made it considerably easier to choose which game to play! So if you also started the Cyberpunk journey, let me know how you are finding it.

MELISSA:
And then there's me, hopping on a bandwagon for a game that came out three years ago... I've been playing Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and I know it just came out like a few years ago but now I'm getting into it. I'm reliving those dreams, I'm like 'thank god all this information is out there, ready and waiting for me'! [laughing] So I don't have to do trial and error to find out all the little things, 'cause there's- it's a huge game! There's a lot of stuff to do in this game.

SAREENA:
Yeah. But that's what you would expect from an open-world game, so.

MELISSA:
Yeah! And I don't normally play open-world games, so this, for me- there's just a lot to do.

SAREENA:
Yeah. But that's great, 'cause Horizon: Zero Dawn was open-world, and what we mean by open-world is like, the world that you're in is absolutely massive, and it ranges from you do story missions - you know, give more to why you're there, what you're doing, and then you've got like errands, in a sense. Like, 'oh, this person in that village needs help!' or 'they need  supplies over here, but the wildlife got to it so now it's strewn across the map, you have to go to all these points and find it' and you're like 'damn it!'

MELISSA:
Yep. And you know, stuff you can get to upgrade your materials and, you know-

SAREENA:
There's so much to do.

MELISSA:
Oh yeah. We digress!  [question time chime] Let's get to the question, shall we?

SAREENA:
Who's going first this time?

MELISSA:
I mean, we both love video games, but why don't you start?

SAREENA:
[video game power-up sound effect] All right, cool! So, my first question is: would you rather have a virtual universe that all of us can plug into, so similar to Ready Player One, if you've seen that? Or choose which games you, individually, could plug into and play?

MELISSA:
Uh, so kind of like a deeply immersive sort of thing you mean, or?

SAREENA:
Yeah, have you seen Ready Player One?

MELISSA:
I haven't.

SAREENA:
So, imagine the internet as it is now, but instead of the internet you just put on a headset and you are transported into a new virtual world, but we could all be there.

MELISSA:
Ohh. As ourselves, or like-

SAREENA:
You could choose your avatar, so you could be a pirate, and you could play whatever games or do whatever but you've got a digital avatar. You can travel wherever you want to and whatever, but everybody can do it so I could meet up with you there, or your friends, you know, you could hang out but it's all virtual.

MELISSA:
Mmhmm. Or... just me?

SAREENA:
It's just you, but you choose- you could choose any game that you would want to choose to plug into; like for me, it could be like I could plug into Mass Effect: Andromeda, and just be in that universe. But I would have my digital avatar in that universe alone, so no one else could plug into it.

MELISSA:
Aaah!

SAREENA:
But the first one is for everyone.

MELISSA:
I mean, I feel like it'd be more fun in a social sense, especially - I mean, again, reflecting on the times of today, what it's like during the lockdown - that's probably more important to have virtual meetups for everybody? Whereas the second one is very self-indulgent though, isn't it?

SAREENA:
It is.

MELISSA:
It's just you, in your favourite game.

SAREENA:
Yeah, you could be in that universe, you could do anything, you don't necessarily have to do the story of it, but you could be in the universe and do the story when you get around to it, I suppose.

MELISSA:
So what you're saying is, I could go around rolling a giant ball that has stuff stuck to it and then put it up in the sky so it becomes a star, is that it?

SAREENA:
Yes, yeah you could do that if you so desired.

MELISSA:
[laughing] For the record, that's the Katamari Damacy series of games, which is one of my favourite games, and that's what you're doing - you're rolling around a giant ball called the katamari. Stuff sticks to it, you want to get it as big as you can, and you put it up in the sky and it becomes a star or a planet.

SAREENA:
Beautiful.

MELISSA:
I love it, it's super fun-

SAREENA:
Poetry in motion.

MELISSA:
[laughing] It sure is! Oh boy, I feel probably I would be able- oh man, I'm going with the first option, I think, because I think it would be super fun. I have lots of- I have tons of international friends - you, obviously, being one of them - That way, obviously it would be a lot easier to meet up, and we can be like ' hey let's meet up in front of this digital cantina and go on an adventure or something'.

SAREENA:
Yeah, essentially that's how it is in the film, and you can have however many people, and you know, the fun thing about Ready Player One is that you see a lot of video game-inspired themes and characters around, so it kinda would be like that in real time. So yeah, it does sound- it does look like a lot of fun as well.

MELISSA:
Yeah, I'll probably just do that, as much as it would be really fun to be a character in a universe of one of my other games, I don't know! I mean, I like my friends...

SAREENA:
That's good that you like your friends! [laughing]

MELISSA:
And they're real friends! Yeah, and they're real people, that much I know!

SAREENA:
Yeah, I think I would join you in doing that option as well, because as much fun as I do have playing Cyberpunk or the Mass Effect series, or Doom or anything like that, it can sometimes always be more fun with friends - but I suppose we're on different gaming levels, you know, you might hold me back...

MELISSA:
Okay, maybe I don't want to play games with you then, if you're going to be all snippy about it!

SAREENA:
It's fine, we can meet up at the bar later, like 'hey how'd it go?' and you'd be like 'wah the boss is still there!'

MELISSA:
'Ah, you've come at last!' And they've been waiting for like 40 minutes, it's been fine.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

[Both laughing.]

MELISSA:
All right, so that's a fun sort of something to think about.

SAREENA:
Yeah!

MELISSA:
And I feel like people probably have thought about it, but, you know.

SAREENA:
Yeah, I mean I imagine that that's already kind of a consideration, I can totally see the next level of gaming working towards that; I know virtual reality is getting bigger and bigger with more games coming out to support it, and with technology being as progressive as it is, I don't imagine that it's too long that most of us will have VR headsets. I mean, I would love to get one, but the price tag is a bit high...

MELISSA:
Oh boy. Yeah, they gotta make that stuff way more accessible, is what we're saying. So, you know, maybe drop the price. 'Cause I don't want to devalue their work, but you also gotta make it available to the layperson, not just like the millionaire. You know.

SAREENA:
Yeah. Or the youtube streamers or whatever.

MELISSA:
Hey, maybe- if any sponsors are listening, sponsor us! Then get us a headset, please.

SAREENA:
That would be amazing.

MELISSA:
It would, though, wouldn't it? One of these days, we'll get there.

SAREENA:
So what would your first question be?

MELISSA:
[video game power-up sfx] So, my first question - you may or may not pick up on a pet peeve of mine in this one, but - all right, so would you rather have a game that's got beautiful graphics, plays like a dream, but has the worst voice acting in the world? Or -

SAREENA:
Ohhhh. Yeah?

MELISSA:
- Would you rather have a game that's- you know, it's simple, doesn't look- nothing to write home about, probably looks like ass - BUT. It's got wonderful music and the best voice acting you will ever hear?

SAREENA:
Ohhhh. Yeah, like the second one for sure.

MELISSA:
Oh my god, yeah.

SAREENA:
You can be as pretty as you like, and I mean I just got a new laptop, I'm all for pretty -

MELISSA:
Beautiful graphics, yeah.

SAREENA:
Yeah, I'm playing Cyberpunk, you're literally in the belly of the really disgusting city, but I'm like 'but look! You can see the dirt so good!'

[Both cracking up.]

SAREENA:
'Look at this puddle, I can see the reflections in it', literally that's where I am in Cyberpunk. But voice acting makes such a big difference.

MELISSA:
Oh my god.

SAREENA:
And if it does have a good soundtrack then that'll always be a winner as well, so... I'll go with that, 'cause the voices, 'cause you want to build the relationships with the characters that you are having to talk to -

MELISSA:
Yes!!

SAREENA:
- and be, and if they're annoying and just not really doing it, it kind of takes you out the fantasy of the experience of the games. So yeah, I'll definitely go with the better voice acting and the good music!

MELISSA:
Yes! Because oh my god it kills me, 'cause I will play a video game and you see the player character, and they open their mouth, and I'm just like, 'okay, you need to be quiet, I need to NOT listen to you talk'.

SAREENA:
[laughing] Yeah.

MELISSA:
And oh my god, it just drives me up the wall! And there's no option to turn it off or at least change it to a different language, I'll be like '[noises of complaint] Please stop, I'm dying'! So, a minor gripe, for example, Breath of the Wild - don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful, beautiful game, it's lovely, I love everything about it. The second I had the opportunity, I immediately switched the voice track over to Japanese.

SAREENA:
Really?

MELISSA:
Yeah, because - this is also just kind of like a pet peeve in general that I have, is that every time there's some sort of fantasy world, the default accent is always British. I'm like-

SAREENA:
How dare you!

MELISSA:
Yeah, but in a- I'm not playing this fantasy game to be 'oh look, it's just fantasy England', no! It's a game in a whole other world!

SAREENA:
But that's better though, usually it's in video games, all the voice acting's American, and it's like well I hear this all the time in media and stuff, like yes let's diversify the voice actors that are coming through and stuff, and any time there's a character who's a bit different I'm like 'let me just talk to you all the time!'

MELISSA:
Yeah. But you know, I just - there's a whole bunch of different things that come into play but I'm just, you know. For example, this is not a video- well it's a movie based on a video game and it tanked, for good reason - but for example, the Prince of Persia movie.

SAREENA:
Aah, yeah.

MELISSA:
First of all, their first mistake was casting Jake Gyllenhaal to be a Persian prince, because that doesn't make sense - and then they gave everybody British accents, like that ALSO doesn't make sense! Why would you.... it's based on a real- ugh, but yeah, video games, for example, the Persona 4 video game? Don't get me wrong, it's a Japanese RPG so it's like, you know, you're the leader of a party and you go and you have turn-based battles and stuff, right? And the voice acting just destroys me, I have to turn it off, I have to skip through all the cutscenes, I'm like 'I hate you, stop talking, just let me go back to beating up shadows with my sword, please'!

SAREENA:
Yeah. I guess this kind of pet peeve is like, you've got a book that you really really love and it's being adapted into a film and then when they actually bring it out, it's nothing like the books - so it's the same kind of feeling, like 'but why?'

MELISSA:
Yeah. But why...

SAREENA:
So casting is very, very important, yeah. 'But why'.....

MELISSA:
Oh my god, it is. But WHY? Out of all the creative choices you could have gone with, why THIS one, you know?

SAREENA:
Yeah. [laughing]

MELISSA:
And then on the other hand, a game like - for example, Undertale, it's not an ugly game by any means, it's just a retro, charming pixels, and very reminiscent of old-school NES games - and the soundtrack for that just... oh my god, they celebrated the anniversary the other day, and they did a fully orchestrated concert of the soundtrack, and oh my god it was amazing. The soundtrack already is fantastic, and they orchestrated the whole thing and just, oh my god.

SAREENA:
Music makes- obviously casting, the music, the artwork, everything has a purpose. If one thing's out it does detract from the rest of it. If you're looking for a very beautiful game with great soundtrack, and moving storyline, I really love Ori and the Blind Forest, and I'm playing through-

MELISSA:
Oh my god, it's beautiful.

SAREENA:
Yeah, and I found the story just amazing - but also, for as pretty as it looks it will stress you out.

MELISSA:
[laughing]

SAREENA:
There are some major sequences in them that you have to nail first time, or you're just in this endless loop of [Game Over music] 'I'm dying! I'm respawning! I'm dying! I'm respawning!', and it's just.... aaaugh!

MELISSA:
[laughing] Yep! It softens the blow a little, I think, it's like at least I get to watch this beautiful loading screen!

SAREENA:
No! Just, I'm sure some of the sequences have just taken me many, many, many, many attempts. When you do finally make it through you're like [heavenly music] 'I'm a new person!' [laughing]

MELISSA:
Yeah! You know, it's like when you figure out puzzles and stuff, it tickles that little part of your brain and you're like 'yeah! I did this! I'm good!'

SAREENA:
Mmhmm, yeah exactly. And then if you get stuck at anything you can just go to youtube and look at a Let's Play and then be like, 'okay, that's how I'm supposed to do it, cool cool'.

[Both laughing.]

MELISSA:
'Dear GameFAQS'!

SAREENA:
Please help!

MELISSA:
Help me, what do I do?!

SAREENA:
[video game power-up sfx] So, my next question is based on.... kind of like, open world? So if you're in an open world that requires you to travel great distances, what'd you call it- a mechanic that they use is fast travel.

MELISSA:
Yes.

SAREENA:
So once you've visited a place you can click back and be like, 'yep, I wanna go here' but you necessarily don't have to actually run or ride back there, you can just kind of have a loading screen and save-

MELISSA:
-teleport.

SAREENA:
-and teleport, exactly, yeah. Or, in some games, you get a steed or a nice car or whatever, and you can travel in style, so those two kind of mechanics. Melissa, would you rather have the ability to fast travel across the places you've visited?

MELISSA:
Okay.

SAREENA:
Or be able to call a noble steed on which to travel upon? [laughs]

MELISSA:
[gasping] Oh, I have thought about this. Is it- are we applying this to real life, then, so am I gonna fast travel to anywhere I want to in Toronto, you mean? Or am I gonna be riding like a horse or something, through the streets of Toronto?

SAREENA:
Yeah, yeah exactly. So you go to work, you know, you go to the doctor's, wherever it is that you've been to in Toronto - or just Canada, you could fast track. You know Canada would be a good map.

MELISSA:
[gasping still] Oh my god!

SAREENA:
Or, you know, you can do a Dragon Age and summon a massive elk to ride upon or whatever.

MELISSA:
Ohh noo! Okay, I'm - oh, you know what, as much as I adore riding a fun fancy steed, I'm gonna have to go with teleporting. That's been- I'm like, 'hey hey hey, scientists! Get working on this, please! I want this teleporting business right now!'

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
Although, I will say though - so, again, back to Breath of the Wild, sorry - spoilers, I guess? But you have to go to a desert area, and do you know what their main method of transport is?

SAREENA:
...Camel?

MELISSA:
No, they have these creatures called sand seals, and you're surfing behind them. You're basically tying a shield - and you're surfing on the shield-

SAREENA:
Ohhhh. Oh my god!

MELISSA:
-and they're pulling you along, and it's amazing. 'Cause these are- the sand seals, first of all, they're adorable, and they're like 'bork bork!' and flipping around in the sand, I'm just like '[delighted noises]!' Obviously that's not possible here in Canada, thank you, snow - but if it was possible I'd do that everywhere!

SAREENA:
Yeah!

MELISSA:
But no, I'm gonna have to go with teleporting.

SAREENA:
You're gonna go with teleporting.

MELISSA:
Yeah, I gots to.

SAREENA:
And you know you could just be out for a walk, and be like 'I'm really tired, let me just whistle for my- you know, my steed just appears next to me. Off I go!'

MELISSA:
Aw, that's true too...

SAREENA:
'Cause that's what I really liked about Zelda and the Twilight Princess, for the Wii?

MELISSA:
Yes.

SAREENA:
You literally just pick up-

MELISSA:
-and whistle for your horse.

SAREENA:
Yeah, you whistle for your horse, and I love ponies!

MELISSA:
Yes, you do!

SAREENA:
So that was just fun, I'm like 'I want a pony!' So just having that ability would also be fun. But...

MELISSA:
But...

SAREENA:
Fast travel is always very, very convenient.

MELISSA:
It's so useful! I could be like 'hey Sareena, I'm coming over in like a minute, hang on' and you'd be like 'WHAT?' Boop!

SAREENA:
'Let me load in'!

MELISSA:
'Yeah, the textures need to load in, hang on!'

SAREENA:
Yeah! I would just see the outline of you slowly materializing in the space of my room, 'oh no! Melissa's coming, hold on!'

MELISSA:
All the stray pixels around my face, I'm like 'that's just my face, that's what I look like, I'm not finished yet!'

SAREENA:
Oh god!

[Laughter from both.]

MELISSA:
I love it! No, okay! No, teleporting would just make things so much easier.

[The sounds of interrupting each other and a sheepish whispered apology.]

SAREENA:
Mmhmm. And - yes, you don't have to take public transport or see... or allow anyone else, really, like boop! There I go, back home, but yeah. Good choice, good choice, we all want fast travel, yes.

MELISSA:
Yes, please. If it's safe and sustainable to do so. [video game power up sfx] All right, time for my second question, then. Okay, so kinda going in with that same theme for overworld stuff, so would you rather see things in first person, as you're seeing the world now, but with an HUD?

SAREENA:
Aaah.

MELISSA:
So you could see your health meter and stuff up on- like, while you're just looking around.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
Or... would you rather live life and it's- but you're seeing it in third person, but you can adjust the camera?

SAREENA:
Mmmmmmm, ohhh.... Playing third person view in games is so handy, you can just swivel the camera around, like 'is there an enemy right on the other side of this wall? Yes there is!'

MELISSA:
Yes there is.

SAREENA:
Or is there a ledge? I've been playing the new map on Apex Legends and it's like- the map's up in the clouds, which is amazing, but what they've done is instead of you freely being able to jump up, climb up and then just keep going, you have to check if you're jumping up and over into the abyss!

[Both cracking up.]

SAREENA:
I'll be like, 'it's okay, I'll just hide behind this cover and- LOL jokes! [descending slide whistle noise] Falling through the sky and dying!'

MELISSA:
Welp, time to reload!

SAREENA:
Yeah, yeah. Reload my life!

MELISSA:
Oh my god.

SAREENA:
You are in first person playing Apex, so having that camera ability would be very useful, but...

MELISSA:
But for your day-to-day life.

SAREENA:
My day-to-day life, I can just see all my vital signs and stuff just, in my vision.

MELISSA:
Yeah.

SAREENA:
Is it the same information I'd get first and third person, but in third person I can just swivel the camera around?

MELISSA:
I'm gonna say yeah, probably, let's do that. Just because third person, it does offer you that freedom to spin the camera around, so you can see what's behind you, what's above you, you know... before you even move.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
Versus first person, where you can just see all your things, so it's like...

SAREENA:
Oh man, that's quite difficult because I'm like, in third person you could look at yourself more often, but do I really want to see myself doing it? I just want to be like...

MELISSA:
Or just, 'oh that's what I look like when I'm running desperately down the street trying to catch the bus'. Okay!

SAREENA:
Yeah, you know, or when I'm trying to exercise, 'look how pathetic I am'-

MELISSA:
[bursting into sympathetic laughter] Aww no!

SAREENA:
I'm like, 'let me just try'.... shaking arms.

[Laughter from both sides, but for very different reasons]

MELISSA:
No, stop it! This is a fun, positive, happy podcast!!

SAREENA:
I'm positive that I don't look great when I'm exercising!

MELISSA:
I don't think anyone does, come on!

SAREENA:
That's true. But if I was in first person, which I am, I don't have to acknowledge that.

MELISSA:
You can just watch your heart rate spiking as you're jogging or something.

SAREENA:
Then, if I'm changing my field of view as third person, do I have to stand still? Would I be in the middle of talking to you, face to face, and then you could tell that I'm changing my camera?

MELISSA:
No-

SAREENA:
Like do my eyes glaze over or whatever?

MELISSA:
[cracking up] No no no, I wouldn't be able to tell, you would - you could probably do like a mad 360 the whole time we're talking and I would be none the wiser.

SAREENA:
[cracking up now too]

MELISSA:
It'd be really funny, though. It'd be like wheeeee!

SAREENA:
That would be really funny, I think that's swayed it for me. I'm gonna take the third person!

[Both are still laughing.]

MELISSA:
I honestly- I might just do first person, 'cause it's not that different from how we live already, obviously.

SAREENA:
No.

MELISSA:
You know what's pretty cool, though? There's actually a game called Dead By Daylight, which actually kind of makes it into a game mechanic, in first person and third person. So, the premise of the game- it's like a multiplayer online game - it's a round of I think 4 people? Or more, but one person is a killer, and they have licensed characters, they've got like the guy from Scream, they've got Pyramid Head from Silent Hill, they have, you know... Freddie. That kind of thing, and the other characters are survivors. So the survivors have to boot up generators to get a portal to escape open, basically, and the killer, obviously, their job is to find and kill the survivors. So, when you're playing as a survivor, you have third person adjustable camera views, because you have to be aware of your surroundings and stuff.

SAREENA:
Yes.

MELISSA:
And as a killer, you're the only one and you have first person view. Because generally speaking, it is- when you play a killer, you have all these abilities to make it difficult for the survivors somehow-

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
-oh, you can track them, or you can go invisible, you know. But the survivors, there's more of them and they don't have- they can't really fight back, so they have a couple of other things up their sleeves. I thought it was a really cool kind of idea that, as a killer, your line of vision would be more limited, versus when you're a survivor, you have to know what's going on so you don't die.

SAREENA:
Yeah, I mean it's the exact same kind of mechanics in Among Us as well. [laughs]

MELISSA:
I mean.... kind of, kind of?

SAREENA:
Yeah, 'cause there's different ways you could play Among Us, you could try to do like the hide and seek play, where you basically turn the lights off for everyone, so they still have to do tasks, and the crew have their vision lessened, but the impostor gets their view entirely and they have to just find everyone while they're trying to do their tasks. That's kind of fun, but I do like the, you get different abilities, like being hunter versus prey or whatever, or survivor.

MELISSA:
Exactly.

SAREENA:
Yeah, so that makes sense. And that adds a very, very different mechanic to the game as well, which is always fun.

MELISSA:
Mmhmm, yeah! I thought it was very cool, 'cause I don't think I've ever seen another game that really does that, so I'm like 'all right!' I mean, I haven't played this game, but I've seen people play this game and I'm like, 'oh! That's neat!'

SAREENA:
Yeah, that's cool.

MELISSA:
It's how you live your life, Sareena - are you the hunter, or the huntee?

SAREENA:
[laughing] Well. I'm a hunter, always looking for my next meal. That sounds like me now anyway.

[Both cracking up.]

SAREENA:
Is my delivery timer here yet? Let me just swivel my camera...

MELISSA:
It's like 'you! Where is the driver? Where are they with my food?'

SAREENA:
Yeah, just as I'm furiously tapping on my phone, watching the tracker.

MELISSA:
Watching it in real time, okay.

SAREENA:
[video game power up sfx] My last question was going to be, have a game made that you yourself are the hero, centre stage, of this game, would you want it to be a platform game - so a game similar to Ori and the Blind Forest, or kind of Super Mario, kind of 2D jumping on platforms to get to different places - or would you prefer an open world style game?

MELISSA:
Oh man. [sighs] Is platformer my only option? Or are there other games?

SAREENA:
Platform or open world.

MELISSA:
Aww.

SAREENA:
Yeah, so you'd have like a platform like Super Mario-style version of a game, but it doesn't mean it's limited to the story of Mario- I was about to say Mariokart-

[Both cracking up.]

SAREENA:
-of Super Mario World. It could be as complicated or as beautiful as Ori and the Blind Forest, that kind of thing, or you could have the choice of an open world game.

MELISSA:
With like objective markers and stuff?

SAREENA:
Yeah, imagine Breath of the Wild, Horizon: Zero Dawn... Mass Effect: Andromeda is technically an open world as well, so anything that would require you to do fast track. [laughs] In the game.

MELISSA:
Ohhh. Because I am not very good at either of these game genres - I'm a sham, I know. So.... I don't know! 'Cause I mean, I'm just more familiar with- the only reason I'm familiar at all with open world stuff is because of Zelda, so... and again, it's not my usual type of game. Whereas platformers, I've played them in the past, and I have sucked super hard at them.

SAREENA:
[laughing]

MELISSA:
[unhappy noises]

SAREENA:
I'm sorry, it wasn't meant to be a difficult question!

MELISSA:
Uh, jokes! It is! It's the hardest question you'ved asked this session, so far for me.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
Uh, might have to do... yeah, you know what, I'll have to do open world. I think - I mean, you know, real ife, technically, that's an open world-

SAREENA:
Mmhmm, yeah.

MELISSA:
-with some caveats I'm sure, but... It's funny though, 'cause again, in Breath of the Wild - sorry guys, I've been playing it for the last.... you know, the whole time I've had my Switch! It's just when they say 'open world' they mean 'open world, you can climb everything, you can jump in the water, you can surf - obviously the map is huge! And there's warp points everywhere so it's not super bad, but it's the kind of game where you could spend hours just running through snowfields-

SAREENA:
Oh yeah.

MELISSA:
-or climbing a mountain, or gliding around with your paraglider.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
Yeah, I'll probably have to go with open world, if it's the Zelda world.

[Both laughing.]

MELISSA:
I imagine that would be your choice too?

SAREENA:
Yeah, it would be. Most of the games I do play tend to be open world, I mean Ori and the Blind Forest or the Will of the Wisps have, I guess, been the newest platform games that I've played.

MELISSA:
Okay.

SAREENA:
And they've been really great, and it's challenged me in a much different way than an open world would because they require precision and attention to detail, so when I'm applying for jobs I use them as examples. [laughing]

MELISSA:
[cracking up]

SAREENA:
"Mediocre at platform games." Please hire me.

MELISSA:
Oh my god, I mean that's exactly why I'm bad at platformers, any time there's precision jumping I'm garbage at it! And the games I like to play generally speaking don't really use either of those mechanics? I like to play Japanese RPGs, so turn-based combat, usually there's fast travel points and there's not a whole lot of open world stuff - like there's some, just to get to where you need to go, but generally speaking once you get there and you've got your fast travel point, you never have to do it again, and it's usually not even that far to begin with.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
Or it's music and rhythm games, where you just press buttons in time to the music, and you don't need an open world for that. Or a platform!

SAREENA:
No. They're fun, I like playing those kinds of games if I need a break from my universes, but on the whole I tend to go towards open world because I quite like delving into a whole new story. And with open world, you can choose what you do and don't want to do as well-

MELISSA:
Mmhmm, exactly.

SAREENA:
I'm playing Cyberpunk and that's completely open world. It was funny, because they give you your car for the first time and I'm like 'oh yeah, driving' and I've been playing Forza, which is a racing game for the Xbox-

MELISSA:
Yes.

SAREENA:
And in Forza you can drive around, like you say, through the fields, smash up walls, you know, crash into other cars, go through water without any consequence really - and I'm trying to drive in Cyberpunk and I-

MELISSA:
It's not the same?

SAREENA:
It's not the same because I accidently go on the pavement and then all the pedestrians are like 'oh my god!' And then they call the police and I'm like, 'what's going on?'-

MELISSA:
What??

SAREENA:
-and I get out of my car to be like, oh here's where I need to go, and the police just shoot me dead-

MELISSA:
[horrified laughter]

SAREENA:
-because they think I'm inciting gang violence, and I'm just like 'no, I just can't drive my car!'

MELISSA:
[still laughing]

SAREENA:
[sighs]

MELISSA:
Oh my god that's so- I mean, obviously things are gonna be different from game to game, but that is so funny.

SAREENA:
It's so funny because Cyberpunk is supposed to be- you know, it's rated 18+, it's supposed to be full of gang violence and nudity and all that kind of stuff, but here's me, just like 'I just can't drive!' and then police mechs descend and I'm like - [crashing sound effect] - boom, done, ball of flame.

[Both laughing.]

MELISSA:
It's so funny, 'cause you know, also too, that feeling you get when you're reaching the end of the game and you're like 'I don't want to hit the end yet so I'm gonna faff around and do ALL the sidequests'?

SAREENA:
Yeah. [laughing]

MELISSA:
In Zelda, oh my god there's so many things you can do. You can go shield surfing, right? You can attach balloons to things and watch them float away, it's the funniest thing in the world.

SAREENA:
Oh my gosh.

MELISSA:
And this one guy, he gave me a carrot as- no, gave me a carrot as a reward for taking down a couple of horse bandits, and I'm like 'all right, I'll take your carrot but, man! Man!!'

SAREENA:
Have a nosh.

MELISSA:
Yeah. Meanwhile, Zelda's like 'hey Link, y'know, any time now....'

SAREENA:
'Just waitin' over here.. lala la la la....'

MELISSA:
'Yeah, in a minute! I'm fishing!'

SAREENA:
Yeah, that's the nice thing about open world, if you're someone who loves to procrastinate, it has exactly the tasks for you!

[Both laughing.]

MELISSA:
Basically, yeah. And there's also a camera function so you can take selfies with things, and it's really funny.

SAREENA:
Yeah, that's what I was doing in Horizon: Zero Dawn. There's a photo mode and when I got my new laptop I was just like, going to the prettiest spots I could see, at the top of the mountains, you know, there's the Northern Lights or whatever, just taking pictures-

MELISSA:
Mmhmm.

SAREENA:
And then I would just send them to people, like 'is this a real picture or something in my game, could you tell me?' and they're like '....no?' and I'm like 'yeees'!

MELISSA:
Yeah, you've sent me a couple of those, I'm like 'huh, okay'.

SAREENA:
'Is this from my travels or is this me traveling in game?'

[Both laughing.]

SAREENA:
Good times.

MELISSA:
Good times. [video game power up sfx] All right, I am the one who wraps up, it is me.

SAREENA:
It's you.

MELISSA:
So my last question to you, then - so, would you rather have your life orchestrated with video game-type music? So you go to the shops and it's the same sort of shop theme; if there's enemies close by the music gets really intense and jittery.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
If- yeah, your life is just orchestrated like that though. Or - would you rather pick up everything and it's in the form of video game pickups, so it's glowing and hovering about 3 feet off the ground.

SAREENA:
[laughing] Oh my goodness.

MELISSA:
[also laughing] I think about these things a lot.

SAREENA:
Yeah. But....gosh, so anything you could interact with is just highlighted?

MELISSA:
Well.... so things you can pick up. So like a lot of food items, for example.

SAREENA:
God, that would just make going to the supermarket the most stressful thing - everything would be glowing at you!

MELISSA:
It'd be so funny! Yeah, it's just like, oh look there's a loaf of bread and it's just hovering gently above the ground, and you go over to it and you can see its price listed above, and it's 5 dollars.

SAREENA:
[SHOCK sfx] 5 dollars?? What kind of bread do you get??

MELISSA:
For a loaf of bread? Actually, no, that's expensive, you're right. So like the flavour text- haha, flavour text! You know, it'll be like 'Artisan Loaf, made from stoneground flour and.... you know, whatever'.

SAREENA:
Yeah...

MELISSA:
Everything has flavour text, everything is hovering and glowing!

SAREENA:
Oh gosh, I'd have to wear sunglasses everywhere.

MELISSA:
Okay no, I'd say it's probably just for consumables, or like key items.

SAREENA:
Okay. That'd be interesting to see what a key item would be, but then it's also interesting, what would trigger the combat music in real life or whatever?

MELISSA:
[cracking up] Next time you come across a co-worker.

[Laughter from both sides as a pseudo-boss theme plays in the background.]

MELISSA:
I dunno, certain family members, probably. People you don't like. [making various dun dun dun noises]

SAREENA:
What do you mean, people I don't like? I like everyone! I'm a nice person!

MELISSA:
[laughing at these bald-faced lies]

SAREENA:
Um, yes.

MELISSA:
Yeah well a nice person would laugh at my jokes maybe, Sareena!

SAREENA:
I laugh at your jokes! ... On the inside.

MELISSA:
[HA HA HA] I am calling shenanigans.

[More laughter from both.]

SAREENA:
I think I would have to go with the music because it kind of-

MELISSA:
Yeah?

SAREENA:
-fits in with the fantasy of like, 'I wonder what my life's soundtrack would be'!

MELISSA:
Oh, that's true.

SAREENA:
You know? I'm hoping it'd be pretty cool gaming music, so I'll do that.

MELISSA:
It also- you have to think, too, that it'd be the same music in certain parts of wherever - so it's like oh it's morning! So it's like the morning song or whatever-

SAREENA:
[laughing] 'It's the morning song'....

MELISSA:
- and it changes when you go to a different region, or a different time of day, that kind of thing.

SAREENA:
That's fine, I could do that. You know, you need some kind of consistency with, it can't just be all new tunes all the time.

MELISSA:
This is true, but imagine you're stuck in a line at the post office - [Mii channel music playing throughout] - and it's the same loop on repeat.

SAREENA:
That's fine, I'm sure my mind does that when I'm in the same kind of scenario.

[Both laughing.]

MELISSA:
No, you're absolutely right, actually, me too. It'll just be the one very specific line that I don't know the name of, but JUST this line!

SAREENA:
Yes, exactly!! So at least then I would have a full track going, so I can't be too mad.

MELISSA:
That's true.

SAREENA:
What would you choose?

MELISSA:
I'm torn... personally, I like the idea of my life being orchestrated, and some poor sap having to play the music of my life, but also, the idea of going shopping and just perusing all the floating things is just so funny to me.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
I'll look over at my computer and it's highlighted, I'll be like 'ah, it needs an update, there we go'.

SAREENA:
Yeah. [laughs] That would be useful. It is quite funny just to imagine a loaf of bread - [gentle sparkling sound effect] - hovering and spinning gently in front of you.

[Laughter from both sides.]

MELISSA:
It's like comically oversized, too, just so you can see it, you know?

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
I almost want to do this, 'cause I can be like- no, you know, I think- no, I'm gonna have to go with the soundtrack, just because that is a very fun idea, and I'm curious to know what my boss theme would sound like, so let's go with that.

SAREENA:
[laughs] Yeah.

MELISSA:
Boss encounter - it can't be that bad! And then you turn and you see someone you don't like - [dramatic boss theme with ominous choir begins playing] - there's their name with a subtitle and a health bar and you're like 'OH NO!'

SAREENA:
Oh my god, yeah, and then their armour class or whatever, oh my gosh....

[Both cracking up.]

MELISSA:
No, let's do that, that'd be so funny.

SAREENA:
Yeah, it'd be funny, yep.

MELISSA:
I'm living for it.

SAREENA:
-And I've got third person camera view as well, I'm all ready for this!

MELISSA:
Oh that's true, yeah! I would have all my HUD - my Heads Up Display, and be all like, 'well Melissa your health is at 20%, don't go any further in this encounter' and I'll be like all right.

SAREENA:
I'm learning the hard way in Cyberpunk that I can't do that, and my kind of game style like... if I've got more than 40% health, I will go and stand in front of the gun and fire at you.

MELISSA:
[scandalized] Oh my god!

SAREENA:
As you're firing at me, 'cause I'm like 'yeah yeah, I can take it, it's fine it's fine!'And then as soon as I can I'm like 'OH GOD OH GOD' and then I'll stand behind one crate and just like.... cry.

[Laughing from both sides.]

MELISSA:
Yeah, that's another thing too, you and I? We game very, very differently.

SAREENA:
Yeah.

MELISSA:
I'll pick a technique and stick with it, for example: my favourite tactic is to snipe enemies either from afar where they can't reach me, or drop bombs on them.

SAREENA:
Yeah no, mine's just like... in their face, bang bang! What'd you mean I'm dying? I shot you first!

MELISSA:
What's this low health beeping? What does that mean? You just hear 'BEEP BEEP BEEP you have half a heart left you idiot' and you're like okay.

SAREENA:
Yeah, but we'd be good, we would complement each other if we were playing together.

MELISSA:
Yeah, I always tend to play more cautiously, like I always have a healing spell or healing items out the butt, I stockpile those things, right. And I'm like 'OH I'm missing 5 hit points, I'm gonna chug a health potion'.

SAREENA:
Yeah. But then see, you could bolster me as I'm just rampaging through the map or whatever, so, y'know, it would be good, it'd be nice. Thanks, Melissa!

MELISSA:
[sighs] Yeah. It's true, I always tend to go for the healer-type characters anyways for this reason, because I like the security of knowing I can bring you back from the dead, ha ha ha.

SAREENA:
And I like the security of being like 'yeah yeah no it's fine, I can be brought back from the dead, someone said they could do it'. [laughs]

MELISSA:
'Yeah, someone's got it, they're good, they're good. I don't have to worry about my wellbeing at all!'

SAREENA:
Yeah, exactly.

MELISSA:
Wow. We are two halves of a whole, aren't we?

SAREENA:
We are.

[More laughter.]

MELISSA:
Aah. All right, and on that super fun note, looks like it's time for the Self-Care Sign-Off. We got super nerdy this episode, so thanks for being there with us! We could talk for hours on the subject, so that'll be, like I said, it's like a whole separate podcast, a whole separate episode! Don't worry.

[soft chiming music playing throughout] But my Self-Care Sign-Off tip for today is, you know how you play a video game and you get frustrated by that one level? Could be a boss, could be a platforming section, something that drives you up the wall? Take a deep breath, go get a drink that's not coffee - and try again. Worst comes to worst, just put it down and try it again another time, when you're relaxed and not hangry.

SAREENA:
Yes. [laughing]

MELISSA:
And thanks once again for listening, guys. This episode, we just wanted to really talk about video games 'cause we love it, if there's something you love and would love for us to talk about, suggest a theme for an episode! You can reach us at curriedchipsandpoutine@gmail.com, or you can drop us a comment or a message on our insta page, also at CurriedChipsandPoutine. We're always open for suggestions and questions.

SAREENA:
And just before we sign off properly, we just wanna let everyone know that we'll be doing this upload, but after we're gonna have a Christmas post on our instagram page for you just to wish you all a very lovely Christmas and a bit of happiness for the end of the year, but also we'll be taking that week off as well! So that'll be nice, and we'll have one last episode for the year just before New Year's, so we can wish in some positive energy for 2021. So after this episode, we'll catch you then.

MELISSA:
Yeah! And thanks so much for listening, we appreciate every single download, every single comment, every single like, all of that. We just appreciate you guys, thanks for being there for us. All right, we love you.

BOTH:
Byeeee!

[Outro music.]