SPAWNPOINT

Spawnpoint host and Crossplay editor Patrick Klepek is joined by Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred game director Brent Gibson to discuss playing and making games as a parent. Gibson, importantly, is the father to an 11-year-old daughter and 13-year-old son, but his day job involves working on a video game that has to be fun for a player who might have dozens of hours available every month, or in the case of most parents, only a handful.Crossplay subscribers get access to episodes early at https://crossplay.news This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.crossplay.news/subscribe

Rumors of a new Switch have been floating around for quite literally years now, but later this year, a new Switch arrives. How much will it cost? We don’t know. What games are coming at launch and later? Nintendo hasn’t said. The more important question for Spawnpoint hosts Patrick Klepek and Keza MacDonald, however, is whether they’re buying one Switch 2—or a new Switch for everyone in the house. We unpack this and more, as we start to think about the Switch 2’s impending arrival.Crossplay subscribers get access to episodes early at https://crossplay.newsTimestamps:* 00:01:00 — Uh Oh, Kids Are Growing Up* 00:02:30 — Holiday Catchup* 00:06:00 — Mario Party Party Continues* 00:14:55 — Dress to Impress Invasion* 00:31:33 — Switch 2 Revealed This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.crossplay.news/subscribe

For years, Keza has avoided bringing Mario Party into the home, worried how her children would react. Would they fight the same way she used to with her brother? For Patrick, could his children get over the fact that both of them can’t be Peach? All this and more on the latest episode of Spawnpoint, the official podcast of Crossplay, including discussion on our kids’ relationship with video games and gift buying.Crossplay subscribers get access to episodes early at https://crossplay.newsTimestamps:* 00:01:02 — Keza finished her book!* 00:02:41 — Journeys in e-learning/winters in Scotland* 00:10:00 — Welcome to Mario Party* 00:23:19 — Pokémon Trading Card Game* 00:30:03 — Ad-infested knock off games for kids* 00:43:34 — Video games, kids, and the holidays* 00:54:19 — Mailbag This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.crossplay.news/subscribe

Welcome back to another episode of Spawnpoint! Keza is back from visiting the Nintendo museum in Japan, while Patrick is playing a familiar game: allergies or cold? What they have in common, though, are children who are obsessed with Astro Bot, but they’ve struggled with playing the game in different ways. Plus, while Keza isn’t high on the new Zelda, her children are having a blast. We also talk about the weight jobs and careers have on being a parent, and how ours have impacted our kids.Crossplay subscribers get access to episodes early at https://crossplay.newsTimestamps:* 00:01:00 — Allergies or sick?* 00:04:30 — Nintendo’s new museum* 00:07:30 — Getting into Pokémon cards* 00:15:00 — Astro Bot + Zelda mania in the house* 00:36:34 — It’s a Mario Party party* 00:42:07 — The big question: careers and children* 00:55:33 — Mailbag This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.crossplay.news/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.crossplay.newsIt’s time for another Spawnpoint bonus episode exclusively for Crossplay subscribers, in which Patrick and Keza sit down to discuss one of the few very long video games they’ve played and finished this year, Capcom’s Dragon’s Dogma 2. We’re both parents, but why did we prioritize finishing this over, say, any other game? Being a parent means picking and…