We cover some headlines this week, but first, we talk about Alex’s time in the Nyquil rehab center.

After that, Jonathan talks about some XBL games he’s picked up.  Stacking is an interesting, fairly entertaining adventure game, but he needs some more time with it before giving a rating.  He’s also picked up Galaga Legions and Space Invaders Infinity Gene, both updates to the classic arcade games.  Galaga is a little less insane than Space Invaders.  Take that as you will.  Jonathan’s been in rehab of his own, as well, and has cancelled his World of Warcraft account.

Sam has placed a number of pre-orders: Bulletstorm, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and Duke! Nukem! Forever!: Balls! of! Steel! Edition! Inappropriate comparisons fly over that last title.  He’s also picked up his Marvel vs. Capcom 3 pre-order.  It’s pretty, button-mashy entertainment.  He also started and then immediately returned Enslaved: Odyssey into the West.  He’s also gotten rid of Nier, and hasn’t had much luck advancing Dragon Age: Origins along.

Alex has played Battlestations: Pacific, and had no luck getting an online game going.  Dead Space 2 ran aground on similar issues.  R.U.S.E. is consequently seeing a revival on Alex’s gaming schedule.

In the headlines, we revisit a few stories, try to skip a couple stories, and take about some new stuff:

• A followup to the FoxNews article: A response from Carol Lieberman, and one more.
• Rocksteady confirms Batman: Arkham City will be ‘single-player only’
• Kevin Butler Tweet Accidently Shares PS3 Root Key
• The Smithsonian is planning a video game exhibition.
• New Assassin’s Creed To Be Announced In May; AC: Brotherhood Sells 6.5M Units
• PSA: PlayStation Network content must be re-purchased on Xperia Play

Name That Game was…. forgotten.  Next week, folks!

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It’s our first headline show of 2011, and we’re mixing up the format a bit!  More on that later, though.

First, Jonathan talks a bit about Undead Nightmare, the zombie DLC for Red Dead Redemption.  “Epic mounts” are mentioned, and mocked.

Alex has been Borderlands, and Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit, both of which improve when he has real people to play with instead of the computer.  An encounter at TGSTSNBN (Producer’s note: it took me a while to figure this out, but I got it) leads to Alex’s outing as an Xbox fanboy.

Sam has finished Red Dead at the urging of his cohosts, and his opinion may have changed because of it.  His opinion of Dead Space, though, remains high, and his opinion of Nier continues to drop.

In the headlines, each of the hosts takes on two headlines of particular interest.

Sam: Parasite Eve 3 & Bioware’s Gay Sex Response

Alex: Casket Douche & Frogger Boy

Jonathan:  Sega Toylet Concept & PS3 ’Sploit!

Finally, Alex presents the most awkward Holiday Wingman that we’ll likely ever hear.

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We start off the new year with a guest!  Brandon, one of Sam’s buddies from his hometown, joins us to discuss games, and share his Top Ten.

First off, though, Jonathan tries to justify his WoW addiction, shares his Christmas good fortune, and defends Donkey Kong Country Returns.

Alex talks about how bad he is at AssBro, and how bad Tron Evolution: The Video Game is.

Brandon’s been playing Super Meat Boy, Super Street Fighter 4, and The Void.  He’s a man who enjoys self-inflicted pain.

Sam’s been plowing through Red Dead Redemption despite his complaints, ditto Nier, and he’s disappointed he didn’t try Dead Space sooner.

Brandon’s Top Ten continues his masochistic themes with some classics, and some classically hardcore games.

Finally, we announce the first Way of the Contest!  Send us in your ideas for a game based on the events of 2010.  The one we like best will receive a copy of Forbidden Island, a cooperative board game from Matt Leacock of Pandemic fame.  There are more details on our forums.

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