March 11, 2015 Freelance writer Cara Ellison joins us to discuss grown-up relationships in video games, children's relationships with Lara Croft, and the poo icon in Cities: Skylines. A conversation for adults only.

Games Discussed: Full Throttle, Cities Skylines, SimCity (2013), Tomb Raider, White Night, Beatbuddy: Tale of the Guardians - The Crazy Arcade Adventure!, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor

March 5, 2015 Those bifocals you threw away and those books you burned all those years ago are remembered fondly this week, as we celebrate our 200th episode with a fully stocked six pack of hosts. Join Chris, Jake, Nick, Steve, Sean, and Danielle for a discussion of Valve's VR announcements, the life of Minecraft's progenitor, GDC 2015, and why we don't usually use Skype on these things. Thank you so much for listening to and supporting us through the casting of 200 pods.

Things Discussed: Valve Vive, Far Cry 2, Half-Life, Minecraft, 80 Days, Black Ice, Disorder

February 26, 2015 The old becomes new, in a pod cast by two, as a title once lost becomes found. Chris and Jake plunge in to the new Darkest Dungeon, and Besiege delights as it confounds. Sean joins Chris and Jake before the ad break, and Gex lore is run into the ground.

Games: Darkest Dungeon, Besiege, The Order: 1886, Captain Forever, Captain Forever Remix, Banjo Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts

February 18, 2015 On Mars you don't have to turn around to take a selfie, thanks to recent developments from our trading company's offworld patent lab. Pardon the cough.

Games Discussed: Doom, Sid Meier's Railroads, Offworld Trading Company, Imperial 2030, Besiege, Godus

February 12, 2015 This week on Idle Thumbs we talk about our crippling addiction to Destiny, our experiences in a recent AAA first person zombie survival game, and why Far Cry 2 might not be that great after all. What happened to us? We were joined by special guest Justin McElroy of Polygon and the My Brother, My Brother and Me podcast.

Games Discussed: Dying Light, Far Cry 2, Far Cry 4, Destiny

February 5, 2015 It was the 90s, and there was time. There was a quiet space left in between, room to decide for yourself what was what. But then Mario had to go and open his big fat mouth. Now he never shuts up.

Things Discussed: Super Mario 3D World, Super Smash Bros Melee, Apex 2015, Team Fortress 2, Dota 2, Greece, Klax (GameBoy Color)

January 28, 2015 Jake goes back in time with Grim Fandango Remastered, Nick makes sure the trains run on time in Mini Metro, Danielle moves time forward in controlled and user-selected increments in Majora's Mask 3D, and Chris talks about a dead guy coming to life, limbs flailing, cursing at everyone. Somewhere, on a plane, a big guy in a suit plays some free-to-play game, and is satisfied with his choice.

Games Discussed: Mini Metro, Mini Metro 2033, Infinifactory, Game of War: Fire Age, Grim Fandango Remastered, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D, Tyrian 2000, Super Mario Bros. (film)

January 21, 2015 The match is about to start, the anticipation so thick you can see it in the air. Dust2, of course. You strap on your MicroSoft HoloLens (Pimple edition, bought new) and scan the crowded auditorium. Aimbots found: Six. Wallhacks: Eighteen. You're not sure why you even came. You put the device back in its huge carrying sack and go home to manage your fake baseball team.

Things Discussed: Microsoft Windows 10, Microsoft HoloLens, Super Mega Baseball, The Uncle That Works For Nintendo, Nintendo 3DS XL (2015), The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D, Gravity Ghost, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2

January 14, 2015 It's road trip week. Buckle your torn-off seat belt, and put the Elijah Wood Flipper movie on the in-van VCR because we're going to Disney World. Not responsible for any injuries of any kind including death.

Games Discussed: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Naut, Alien Isolation: Salvage Mode, Night in the Woods, Lost Constellation

January 7, 2015 You've delved too deep below the sea, to a time before human memory. A voice from your past won't stop echoing in your head, telling you lies, telling you about space, telling you things you've heard so many times before.

Games Discussed: Subnautica (Early Access), Fibbage, The Outer Wilds

January 1, 2015 We ring out the old, and ring in the new, with what may be the oldest conversation in the existence of our medium: What is the best video game of all time? Not the greatest, mind you, but the best. See you in 2015! (Thanks to Matter magazine for sending us on this quest as part of their video game week, earlier this month.)

Games Discussed: Tetris, Minecraft, Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3D Land, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Spelunky, QWOP, Skyrim, Grand Theft Auto V, Dwarf Fortress, The Sims, SimCity, Mario Kart 64, Grim Fandango, Double Dragon II, Bad Dudes 2, Renegade, Guitar Hero, Rock Band, Rock Band 2, Half-Life, Doom, Far Cry 2, Flappy Bird, Flappy Bird Family, Blast Corps, Full Throttle, Christmas Lemmings

Films Discussed: Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

December 24, 2014 It is the season of giving gifts, unless you are Sean Vanaman, who only seems to receive gifs. Danielle and Chris get deeper into Dragon Age Inqusition, which mostly means Iron Bull talk. After that, it's time for a holiday mailbag trip through the digital back alleys of the competitive Smash scene, and a bleak realization about what 2015's really The Year Of.

Games Discussed: Bernband, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Super Smash Bros., Project M, Tetris, Hexic, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4

December 18, 2014 Alone and in a strange place, a robot types furiously at a terminal keyboard. "dir" it writes. No response. "asdfghjk," it continues, to similar success. It glances around, looks back at the keyboard and then the screen. "load Dragon Age."

Games Discussed: The Talos Principle, Serious Sam, Portal, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Framed

December 10, 2014 With the end of the year coming up fast, Jake and Danielle are joined by Patrick Klepek of Giant Bomb, to pull back the curtain on the deliberations and distractions involved in picking the Games of the Year, and to share some surprising travel tips the modern gamer may find useful.

Things Discussed: Captain Toad Treasure Tracker, VA-11 HALL-A, Bayonetta 2, Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire, Alien: Isolation, Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze, Digital Spacey, Jurassic Park, Jurassic World

December 3, 2014 Nick and Sean are transfixed by the supple, majestic fur of Far Cry 4, Chris crosses a road better than anyone in the room (but not better than his friends), and Jake stares at a real brain on a real plate.

Games Discussed: Far Cry 4, Jumanji, Far Cry 2, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, Crossy Road, Street Fighter 2, Super Smash Bros for Wii U