Cup of Jones - June 8, 2020

Jones: You’re doing great with the podcast. And with Easy Allies as a whole. Thanks for all you do. What color will the box for Xbox Series X and PS5 be? My guess is black for Xbox and white for PS5.

Logan Young

HI Brandon, Will Easy Allies be doing a Spoiler Mode for The Last of Us Part II? I appreciate how you didn't discuss the game's leak prior to release, but once it comes out I'd be really interested to hear some of the Allies discuss how they think the leak affected the game's release. I expect player reviews will be significantly more negative because of the leak, and I'm intrigued that major reviewers that don't give scores like Kotaku, Polygon, and Ars Technica were extremely critical of the game when compared to reviewers that issued numerical scores. I've also read complaints that the much of the game couldn't actually be discussed in the reviews per restrictions form Sony and/or Naughty Dog. Would any of these topics potentially be on the table for discussion, or would the Spoiler Mode be strictly more focused on the game itself? Again, I'd be interested to hear the Allies' takes on all these issues surrounding the actual game itself. L & R, Runfire

Runfire

Heya Jones, Yeah, I don't know what's going with this. They said someone will come look at it tomorrow. But if Easy Allies was a model in 18th century France, would it stay with the aloof genius artist or go to America with the pastry chef?

Asbo Zappruder

Hey Jones, following the Future Games Show on Saturday you raided Kyle’s channel. His viewership numbers jumped up quite a bit, and, after checking in again an hour later, the numbers and activity were still well above what I normally see during Easy Allies/Kyle gaming streams. This reminded me of good old TV tactics - slotting a new or unpopular show directly after the cash cow, so that some people might stick around. Why don’t you try this for your own content? I’m watching the Guerrilla Collective right now and Brad is not on it. However, there is a two hour gap between the scheduled ending and Brad’s stream. You may be missing out on some carry-over potential.

nilgeki

Hey Jones. In light of the PS5 event last week and the presumably many more major events to come, have you and the other Allies ever considered doing an official Spoiler Mode type of discussion that could take place a couple of days after an event? Obviously you all provide your immediate thoughts after the show, and run through the announcements again on the podcast, but it could be fun to discuss the points and questions that arise after we've all had time to dwell on the things we saw and were told. It could also be a good place for Patrons and the community to give their perspectives and feedback on the event, widening the discussion and creating broad and differing viewpoints for the Allies to discuss. For example I wasn't as high on the event as many of the Allies, and I think it would be fun for Huber to spend 5 minutes telling me how wrong I am and to be more excited. L&R Callum

Safety just cause

Nextgenheff

Hey Jones, The real E3-esc events have begun. After seeing the first few, which do you guys prefer, when it was all in one week or now that the events are pretty spaced out? How do you guys plan on handling the coverage of all the events? Maybe near the end of the summer you guys could have a week of reflection coverage going over the announcements you guys loved as well as demo’s that are worth checking out. Finally with all the games announced on saterday, I had a podcast segment idea, Wishlist This. Have each panelist give a game from the conferences that they added to their steam/epic wishlist and why. Hope you guys have a good week, L&R Sean

Nextgenheff

Hey Jones, any plans to play/cover Desperados 3?

Jesse Nye

Hello, Jones! Sorry if I was too heated in my last weeks comment. My emotions and anger were running HIGH. So, here is a question for you, a few, actually....I am sorry. Will goals ever come back? And if they ever do, I feel like sticking to the, if the goal isn't met, the show stops is a decent driver for pledges to stay around. Like, for example, a monthly L & R only podcast. And speaking of, with you in charge of the podcast, how do you plan on going about doing L & R podcasts, if you have any interest in all that is.

Parasitepaladin

Hey Jones - once you or an Ally have decided to review a game, how important are "blind" impressions? Specifically, do you make an effort to avoid seeing a game's early metacritic score or listening to previews from other outlets, or do you think public sentiment has an unconscious impact on your reviews? Not sure if you can speak for all allies, but curious if you have discussed this internally. - B-Ray

Brandon Ray

Hey Jones, I know that you're a big Disney fan so I figured I ask this: Since Disneyland is set to re-open next month, do you see yourself making a visit at any point or do you plan on waiting until a vaccine for COVID-19 is ready and distributed?

Karl Williams

Hello Brandon. Is it possible to continue doing Q&As via Zoom when you return to the studio? I can name three benefits of this: 1. It’s easier to see you and to hear you. In studio multiple allies sometimes talk simultaneously and I never saw that during Zoom calls. 2. If you have something to show, you can do so. If you need to write something or look for something online, it’s easier to do so. This benefits questions like “Favorite collector’s item”, “Kill your babies” and “Best soundtracks on a console”. 3. Cats! I love cats and love seeing how Damiani and Ben pet their furry friends. I also think that seeing pets contributes to the raw & personal feeling of the Q&A, which (in my opinion) is what this tier is all about.

Alexander Zyryanov

Since jones mentioned it, i went to graphtreon to see how the two sites did this past month https://graphtreon.com/creator/EasyAllies https://graphtreon.com/creator/colinslaststand

A Joker Fan

Dear Jones and Allies, Thank you for pausing to reflect, to consider your words, and taking a stand for what all of you believe in. You could play it safe and keep your mouths shut, but you didn't. As a school teacher, I know how hard it is to walk that fine line between expressing your thoughts while being very aware that it could anger parents and admin. But some things need to be said, and I salute you all for doing so. This isn't about politics. This is about life and death. Thank you for speaking your minds from your hearts. Love and Respect.

Corrigall

Part of the problem is everyone has the same vanilla take and are too afraid to press each other. There's a reason guys like kyle and colin, to an extent, are popular, their arguments are creative, they challenge the other person, they're not afraid of offending the twitter mob, and aren't afraid of hot takes. I want some real deep dive discussions, I want bloodsports, that's what's exciting to me. I felt like too many times kyle would try to start an argument and than the other allies would give a look like you're wasting my time I gotta get home and beat traffic, but the rants about seemingly random things were the best part about the allies. I think Ian tries to be the counterpoint sometimes, but if feels forced like he's intentionally trying to be difficult just because, so it doesn't come off as genuine. When kyle says captain toad is a adventure game and not a puzzle game, you can feel the passion.

A Joker Fan

He has his own streaming channel if that helps at all. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtzPfDX766dsJncrChaNj5w My perspective is, of course I miss him a little, but the Allies can’t really do much about it. He wanted to leave and he left. Best of luck to him, I'll try and follow and support his future endeavours where possible. But I think it's best to enjoy what is there rather than lament what isn’t. Because one day that won’t be there and you might regret not enjoying it as much. Sorry, that got a bit deep.

Varun Kachhwaha

Dear Jones I struggle to write this. I really miss Kyle as a part of Easy A and for me it doesn’t feel the same without him. But I also really like you guys as well and I’m not sure how to sort through these feelings. Any tips or suggestions?

Kola Aina

Hey Jones, I just want to correct your usage of the word "Reactionary". I do not think you wish to describe Easy Allies this way, because that phrase has a very specific political meaning, and it's not what it reads like. Reactionary is a word used to describe people who wish to cling to the status quo, largely conservative in definition. It doesn't mean "In reacton of" a vague issue, but rather, describes a specific reaction *to* the idea of change. It is specifically a word used to describe people who react to social change by /opposing/ it. I know that's the opposite of what you wished to mean by using that word (about 11 minutes in the episode or so), so I wanted to help you avoid using it in the future. Cheers.

Kitsunelaine

We do, there's a button right below the player to donate. -Bloodworth

Easy Allies

Your positively inspires me Mr. Brandon Jones. I’m upping my pledge and that’s that.

Chip Damage Mike

Just Doubled my pledge. Appreciate you all standing up for what you believe in.

MaxaMillion711

Hey Jones, with the release of the first Pokémon Sword/Shield around the corner, it got me wondering. Why are Expansions like these relegated to Frame Trap duty instead of receiving reviews? Are DLCs not worthy of scores? What about changing the score of the original game after a significant DLC release? While I understand dat producing a full review might be too time consuming, but I feel like DLC releases are very underused at EZA, even though they often offer the best gameplay experience of the entire game (fight me.). Thanks, stay stafe from the Netherlands.

Fabian Overdijkink

Jones, I’m missing the animal crossing streams! If you could in some way next time on stream, scroll through your craftable/diy list, I have tons sitting around if you ever get to me on the list but wouldn’t want to waste time on stream finding ones you don’t have. Thanks!

Ajax

Hey Mr. Jones! I really enjoyed the Trivia challenge you were a part of with MinnMax, Blessing, Jake, and Alessandro, and while I know I’ve asked about collaborations what feels like years ago, I was curious if EZA is looking into bringing in guests from marginalized communities to help further spread the messages the protests have put forefront for us all. Kinda Funny Games Daily did an entire week with black hosts not only talking about daily gaming news, but also speak on current events and Spawn on Me’s Kahlief Adams hosted a podcast, “A Lesson in Blackness” with guests to discuss the issues, and I think it’s a good opportunity for EZA to also help be a part of the conversation while simultaneously providing another platform for others. Much like Maximilian Dood for Frame Trap, Ben Hanson for the podcast, and GameXplain on Friend Code, I know EZA welcomes guests, and this is a great reason to be topical and having healthy and necessary conversation. Thanks for reading as always and once again, have a wonderful rest of your day. Cheers! QUESTION: Inspired by Kinda Funny Games Daily a couple weeks ago and Spawn on Me’s “A Lesson in Blackness,” is EZA considering bringing on guests from marginalized communities in the gaming space? Those podcasts had meaningful and important conversation and I believe EZA could also provide similar opportunities and growth for the audiences of the main podcast and FrameTrap.

Brandon K Gann

Ah I totally forgot to make mention last week!! I’ve been curious if the $7 tier will be worked on considering all movie related discussion and lists haven’t been updated in about a year. I know it’s a slow process to add to top movies, but would be cool for Huber, and Ian to update the things they’ve enjoyed. (Even TV shows)

Kristian