Hot Button

Episode 65: Kicking Ass, Taking Names, and Making Games - The History of E3

It’s that time of year once again! E3 time! But unfortunately we can't run you through all of the news from E3 2020 as we did before. And that’s because E3 2020 isn't happening. So instead, we are going to go all the way back to 1995 and tell you the story of the very first E3 ever. Where it came from, who started it, and of course who else they pissed off along the way. Join us for this fascinating story of how one of the world’s largest trade shows was created, concluding with a nice 25-year walk down memory lane as we recap every E3 from the beginning to now. Kaz Hirai, Jamie Kennedy, and Mr. Caffeine await!

Episode 50: Hot Button Year-One Edition

It’s our one-year anniversary! Can you believe we have been doing this for 50 whole episodes now? Us either! Which is why today we are gonna take a trip down memory lane and run through our library of topics starting from our first release all the way through to the present. Hear how we update stories that need to be updated, fix mistakes that need to be fixed, and make jokes that we somehow didn’t get to before. It’s our “where are they now?” episode and even our sound guy is here to celebrate!

Episode 49: World of Warcraft's Corrupted Blood Incident

Plagues are not new subject matter to video games. Many a fictional post-apocalyptic world starts with a plague. But what happens when the world's biggest MMO accidentally introduces a plague that kills off a ton of it's lower level players, almost making the game unplayable? On this episode we are joined by MMO expert Dan Bittner, as we break down World of Warcraft's Corrupted Blood Incident. Learn how a simple bug in a new raid led to players running through the skeleton covered streets of Orgrimmar and Stormwind in a panic. And how these player’s reactions not only changed the world of Azeroth, but also the way Epidemiologists study the spread of disease IRL.

Episode 48: Tales from EVE Online

This week we discuss a group known for its lying, backstabbing, racketeering, piracy, war for profit, and corporate greed. No, not Congress, the players of the infamous mmorpg EVE Online. We talk a bit of history, some of its several thousand player battles, and a few of it's more frighteningly dedicated members.

Episode 47: Itchy Tasty - The Origins of Resident Evil

Halloween is just around the corner, so what do you say we close out the end of our spooky scary series by exploring the origins of gaming’s most spooky scary series. This week we enter the world of survival horror to discover just how the Resident Evil franchise was born and how zombies would see their biggest revival in pop culture yet. It’s a story that might go back much further than you think!

Episode 46: Kowloon’s Curious Kusoge - Hong Kong 97

Our Hot Button Halloween series trucks on with one of the greatest mysteries of the retro gaming underground, Hong Kong 97’! An unlicensed Super Famicom title that featured terrible gameplay, stolen artwork, gross politics, and the inclusion of an actual dead body to boot. Who made this? Why did they make this? Was the corpse real? It’s a full investigation here on the show today as we dig through the entire history of the infamous title, beginning to end!

 Note: This episode was recorded a month ago and is not related to the current controversies surrounding game company Blizzard and their stances on the state of Hong Kong’s ongoing fight for independence. We do plan on covering these such events in the future.

Episode 45: Superstition Bowl - The Madden Curse

Its the second week in October, which means it’s time for more spooky Hot Button episodes! And with football season in full swing, what better topic to cover than the infamous Madden Curse? Is being on the cover of America’s most popular sports game a career ending decision? Or is football just an incredibly dangerous sport with a ton of superstitious fans? Follow along as we check in on some of the former cover athletes to find out.

Episode 44: Sinneslöschen's Ladder - The Polybius Conspiracy

It’s Halloween time y’all! And what better way is there for us to celebrate here at Hot Button than by doing an entire month of topics connecting video games with the world of horror. Our first entry this week is about one of the industry’s biggest urban legends, Polybius. A mysterious arcade cabinet said to have plagued children back in the early 1980s. Was it a top secret government project to control their minds? Or was it just a harmless rumor born out of the days of early internet trickery? The truth might actually be scarier than you think.

Episode 43: Hatred

It didn’t take long after the invention of games for many to be centered around the idea of killing enemies, but what happens when a questionable developer makes one so grim, so tasteless, and so nihilistic that it risks even being able to be released at all? Find out how Hatred, an isometric shooter where you indiscriminately murder as many innocent people as possible, found it’s way for sale. Despite its 18+ ‘Adults Only’ rating and just awful critical response. NOTE: This episode was intended to be released on August 9th, 2019, but due to tragic circumstances around its release date, we decided that the best course of action would be to delay it for a later launch. Please see our previously shared statement for more details. Statement Here: https://www.hotbuttoncast.com/statement-8-9-19

Episode 42: Pandora's Gearbox - History of Gearbox, Borderlands, and Randy Pitchford Part 2

Our two-parter on the life and times of Randy Pitchford and company Gearbox concludes! This week, guest Melanie Grear returns to the studio and joins the crew in the rundown of where Battleborn went wrong, what took Borderlands 3 so long, and why Randy should probably not be allowed to have a Twitter account or visit Medieval Times.

Episode 41: Pandora's Gearbox - History of Gearbox, Borderlands, and Randy Pitchford Part 1

Borderlands 3 is out today! And what better way is there to celebrate its launch than to dig into the history behind the franchise as well as the man most credited in bringing it to the world. This week returning guest Melanie Grear joins us in chronicling the life and times of eccentric game developer Randy Pitchford and how his studio Gearbox put themselves on the map, for better and for worse.

Episode 40: Microtransactions #1

This week we are launching a new series! One that will host collections of shorter more bite-sized stories out there in the world of games. For our first batch of topics, we get into some noted crazy uses for the Playstation 3’s Cell Processor, talk about Australia’s cracking down on video game weed, and even cover what is universally called the biggest comeback in all of professional esports!