Cup of Jones - January 11, 2021

Heya Jones, Oh. Oh no. Oh no, no, no, no. Welp, anyway. Would Easy Allies rather be a left-handed flee, a crab on a slab at the bottom of the sea, a newt on the root of a banyan tree, a fig on a twig in Galilee, or a man who never learns how to be free?

Asbo Zappruder

Hello Brandon. Just wanted to say that I like the look of your background. Great lighting and many props to look at, but at the same time they aren’t distracting if I want to focus my attention on you.

Alexander Zyryanov

Hello Jones! Time for yet another show pitch from a member of the community. No idea what it would be called and I only have a loose idea for it. Just a short (or long) discussion between some allies deep diving into something, like spoiler mode. In a recent L and R segment, you guys talked about box arts and I felt like you all could go on for a while talking about it. What Don't Skip is to reviews, this would be to spoiler modes. Maybe. Just some people geeking out about some random thing.

Parasitepaladin

Hi Brandon, I was thinking about ideas for the opening bit and came up with these. Some are variations of other suggested ideas, some are variations on the podcast formula itself. 1. Introduce a segment called 'First Word', mirroring the podcast's 'Final Word'. Very often the community puts out very insightful comments on a subject you've discussed in the previous podcast. Sometimes they make it into 'Corrections', sometimes into 'Love & Respect' but featuring them every week at the beginning of the show would be a nice gesture, considering you are so community focussed. 2. You said that you are trying to implement a game into every 'L&R' segment. Why not start with that 'L&R' game every week? We all love those games and it's a delight to watch and listen to your reactions every time. On the other hand a weird 'opening game' could alienate newcomers to the podcast, but let's face it... it has been no different in the Bosman era ;) 3. 'Exactly X years ago': You could open the show with a community suggested story that happened exactly X years ago. A patron could submit something like this next week: 'Exactly 4 years ago the Nintendo Swith was announced. How did it shape the industry in your opinion?' Stay healthy Andre

Andre Funk

Mr. Jones, I know that you are being especially cautious with Covid but can you share your thoughts on how you would be returning to the studio, the PO box and society in general. I guess I am asking how you would know it was time to return and what conditions would have to be met for the business to return to a semblance of normalcy. L&R Morgan Mohalla

Morgan Mohalla

Hi Jones! With the possibility of game delays becoming more and more prominent in 2021, I ask of you which of the three reasons below are the most likely contributor? A) Covid-19 continuing to make it difficult for developers to produce games? B) The backlash following Cyberpunk 2077's release, warning Devs from releasing an unfinished product and damaging their companies reputation in the process? C) Playstation pulling Cyberpunk 2077 from its Store entirely, setting a precedent to where Devs could potentially lose a huge revenue stream if players can no longer buy and access their games? B and C are kind if connected, but I see B as more of a reputation issue whereas C as a financial concern. What do you think? Thanks for all you guys do! OhDaeJay NS, Canada

Happy New Years Jones! Hope your holidays went well and are geared up for what's to come for 2021! With how slow our business typically is this time of year, it got me wandering the internet a bit and I decided to head on over to the Easy Allies official website. I know you've mentioned in the past that the site isn't a main issue for the allies to be focused on, but I had a question that I stumbled across. Scrolling through the rows of shows - I noticed that Table Top Escapades was not listed (afterwards also noticing the few Top Tens and possibly other shows I am forgetting or not aware of are missing as well). I know they are not produced anymore, but was wondering why they are omitted entirely from the site - since they are still great shows, even if they are put in the proverbial closet for now. (Side note - here's always hoping for a return of table top - as that is how I rediscovered the allies post GT days after looking for a D&D podcast to listen to during my long commutes). Just wanted your thoughts - could always have a row or section on 'quashed' programs for those that may not have known of their existence previously. Thanks for your time - keep up the good work, and looking forward to what you and the team bring to 2021! Cheers / L&R From Canada

Graeme Hill

Hey Jones, want to run this idea by you so that its on your mind. So hear me out, how about instead of doing Easy Livin, you have Easy Chillin? When its safe to travel and be in person again, how about instead of you all going to a beach house, all of the allies rent out a cabin in the mountains sometime in the winter for some long game sessions sitting by the fire. Instead of Ian and Don Hit the Beach, it could Ian and Don Hit the Slopes? (Obviously ski passes are extra expenses and it doesn’t need to be near a ski resort, thats just the first thing that comes to mind when trying to come up with winter themes for that Easy Update speical.) If you and the allies want to try and do something akin to Easy Livin in the future but don’t want the hassle of houses without air conditioning in the summer, maybe a change in season could add some spice and interest to the event. In my experience houses/cabins in the mountain are basically required to have heat to avoid you know, freezing to death. Just wanted to share this idea I had with you in case it isn’t something you’ve already considered. I’m sure there are reasons why this would be a different challenge or not worth it, but I’d still be interested in hearing your thoughts on it. L&R, Dan

Daniel Kozlowski

Jones, If you come across a question you love but it isn't the right week, why not hang onto it for later on? Do you HAVE to use the questions from a given week on that week? I don't think so. If a question from a couple of weeks ago fits now, use it and say it: "so and so asked this question a couple of weeks ago and it wasn't right then but it is now." L&R

Corrigall

Hi, Jones. Thank you very much for showing Norbert. As always, he looks lovely and seems to have even more fur than two years ago. He's really beautiful and it shows that you and Amanda are taking excellent care of him. I believe he's already big enough. I've raised over 15 cats throughout my life and most of them never got as big as Norbert. That's it for this week, no questions, I just wanted to thank you for indulging my request. L & R

Daniel Ribeiro

Sup Jones! With the EZA 2020 Awards coming up, I wondered what your process is for gathering the best trailers? I remember you reaching out through Twitter for 2019's trailers and correct me if I'm wrong but I believe back in the GT days, you'd keep a spreadsheet to fill in throughout the year. Is gathering everything at the end of the year more efficient or would something like posting a Patreon post once a month help in the long run? Thanks for all you guys do!

Ivan Ndahiro

Hey Mr. Jones! With last week’s tech hiccup forcing you to record the episode as opposed to live streaming it, it made me realize the imbalance EZA has between being live (streams, Cup) and recorded (all shows) and I wanted to know: Is one format more beneficial than the other, or because both are different enough that meet the unique criteria (live for reactions, feedback, etc. and recorded for more in-depth conversations or show focus) where both are essential? Just something I noticed and was interested to hear if EZA ever considered either increasing or decreasing being live or pre-recorded content. Thanks again for reading and have a wonderful rest of your day! Cheers! QUESTION: Between being live or having content pre-recorded, is one more beneficial than the other or because both are unique where certain content can’t exist in the other format, it’s necessary to have both? And do you think EZA should do more or less for either?

Brandon K Gann

Hi Jones, I recently started a YouTube channel of my own where I look at some older games in a sort of review style and I just wanted to know what your process is for recording gameplay. By that, I mean how do you when and what to record? I've been playing 6-8 hour long games so I've just been recording my entire gameplay, and using my notes I take at the same time, I take what I need and edit it all down to a 15ish minute video. But I feel like this probably slows me down a lot during editing as I have to constantly pare down hour long clips to the few seconds I need for each segment. Only reason I do this is because I don't know if something interesting or useful could happen if I'm not recording. What's your and the other allies' strategy for knowing when to record gameplay during reviews, as I can only assume you don't record everything. L&R Logan Tawse

Logan Tawse

Hi Brandon. Thank you for considering my new show idea from last week, hopefully other allies like it as well. And yea the "Future of _____" definitely sounds better :) Regarding what you said about the map in Tsushima, I completely understand your frustration. I'm obsessed with uncovering maps in OW games as well and Tsushima was driving me up a wall xD (most recently I had similar frustrations with the map in Yakuza Like a Dragon where tiny spaces between the buildings just wouldn't clear :)) ) Anyway, I was wondering if you guys will do a 2021 prediction stream and whether you'll ask for suggestions/predictions from Patrons like you did a couple of years ago. L&R and cheers.

Hey Jones! Thanks for answering my question about the New Years resolution game. Also I know the ideas of Glinny and Santa's advisory board came from Kyle, but I just meant to point out that the things about those that made me laugh the most were the creative suggestions that Patrons got to submit. So yes Kyle may be more the creative type as you said, but in the end it was what the patrons came up with that made me laugh the hardest. Either way, keep up the great work adapting to the challenges 2020 threw at you. And for what its worth, In the Jones era of podcasts - i actually love the ad reads. I am a patron but I'll still listen to the ad version because i love the new music choice and the ad reads in general! Love and respect from Canada! Garrett Zamora

gbzmr (Zamora2Podcast)