The MinnMax Show

Check out the game codes and charity auction items for MinnMax's Give To The Max 2026 on Friday, November 6th here - https://bit.ly/nicecity26 MinnMax's Ben Hanson, Jeff Marchiafava, Janet Garcia, Kyle Hililard, and guest cohort Haley De Boom touch a bit on Phantom Blade Zero before talking about the leaked trailer for Mass Effect: Universe. Since she was just working on Apple's Vision Pro for years, Haley De Boom offers her review of the Steam Frame from Valve. Then JeffM weighs in on Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, raves about The Message From Deep Space, and we kick off a big group discussion about the game featured in the MinnMax Spotlight from Valencia, Spain called Virtue and a Sledgehammer. Then we answer questions submitted on Patreon by the community and award the iam8bit question of the week! You can win a prize and help make the show better by supporting us on Patreon and submitting a question! https://www.patreon.com/minnmax Watch and share the video version - https://youtu.be/TmsVL864DJU Help support MinnMax's supporters! https://www.iam8bit.com - 10% off with Promo Code: COSTUMEQUEST https://alienware.com/gameyourway https://ProtonVPN.com/minnmax To jump to a particular discussion, check out the timestamps below... 00:00:00 - Intro 00:03:13 - Join The Deepest Dive on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 00:05:31 - Phantom Blade Zero 00:09:31 - Give To The Max 2026 - https://bit.ly/nicecity26 00:12:36 - Mass Effect: Universe 00:27:00 - Alienware Ad 00:28:03 - Steam Frame VR Review 00:56:34 - Proton VPN Ad 00:58:07 - Nintendo Switch Sports Resort 01:06:07 - Virtue and a Sledgehammer 01:27:52 - The Message From Deep Space 01:39:25 - Thanking iam8bit 01:40:40 - Community questions 02:26:43 - Get A Load Of This JeffM’s GALOT - https://store.epicgames.com/news/epic-games-launcher-preview Janet's GALOT - https://www.audubon.org/app Haley's GALOT - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBO8s_McKjU Ben's GALOT - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knocking_on_wood Kyle's GALOT - vulture.com/2011/03/the-lost-roles-of-jim-carrey.html Community GALOT - https://www.gamefile.news/p/control-resonant-art-galleries?r=j7zsx\&utm_campaign=post\&utm_medium=web Disclosure - Games discussed on MinnMax content are most often provided for free by the publisher or developer. Support us on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/minnmax Support MinnMax directly on YouTube - https://youtube.com/minnmax/join Follow us on Twitch - https://www.twitch.tv/minnmaxshow Subscribe to our YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/minnmax Subscribe to our solo stream channel - https://www.youtube.com/@minnmaxstreamarchives Buy MinnMax merch here - https://minnmax.com/merch Follow us on Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/minnmax.com Go behind the scenes on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/minnmaxshow This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

Help MinnMax celebrate its 7th anniversary by hitting 7,000 Patreon supporters! If you're a new supporter at even the $2 tier we'll DM you on Patreon with a Steam code for Blippo+ - https://www.patreon.com/minnmax MinnMax's Ben Hanson, Sarah Podzorski, Haley MacLean, and introducing our new Guest Cohort for a month: Haley De Boom! After working at ILM, Square-Enix, and Apple, we're excited to have her insight for the next month of MinnMax content. First up, Haley and Sarah review Planet Zoo 2 from Frontier Developments and share some pros and cons of its complexity. After that we react to the breaking news from Bloomberg's Jason Schreier that EA has laid off 400 employees and closed BioWare, canceling the new Mass Effect game in the process. Then we share thoughts on Final Fantasy Resonance, the HD-2D game from Square-Enix that is a retro rebuild of the mobile game Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. There's so many games to cover, as we also talk about the Lovecraftian horrors of Penuin Colony, Double Fine's Thank You Bus Driver, the comedy of Car Park Capital, Welcome to Elderfield, and why Resident Evil 5 is still such a blast to play. Then we answer questions submitted on Patreon by the community and award the iam8bit question of the week! You can win a prize and help make the show better by supporting us on Patreon and submitting a question! https://www.patreon.com/minnmax Watch and share the video version - https://youtu.be/A1WwknqQuUc Help support MinnMax's supporters! https://www.iam8bit.com - 10% off with Promo Code: COSTUMEQUEST https://www.protonvpn.com/minnmax - 70% off your two year plan https://www.alienware.com/gameyourway https://www.rocketmoney.com/minnmax To jump to a particular discussion, check out the timestamps below... 00:00:00 - Intro 00:00:49 - Haley De Boom's amazing career 00:15:21 - Help MinnMax hit 7,000 supporters for our 7th anniversary 00:17:31 - Planet Zoo 2 00:35:37 - EA kills BioWare and Mass Effect 00:59:04 - Final Fantasy Resonance 01:18:06 - Proton VPN Ad 01:19:32 - Penguin Colony 01:25:33 - Double Fine's Thank You Bus Driver 01:29:45 - Car Park Capital 01:35:08 - Alienware Ad 01:36:35 - Welcome To Elderfield 01:44:52 - Resident Evil 5 01:48:08 - RocketMoney Ad 01:49:44 - iam8bit Ad 01:50:54 - Community Questions 02:31:55 - Get A Load Of This Haley De Boom’s GALOT - https://ff-resonance.vercel.app/ Sarah's GALOT - https://soranews24.com/2026/10/20/umamusume-horse-girl-concert-in-city-of-angels-is-in-danger-of-being-cancelled-because-of-visa-issues/ Ben's GALOT - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connecticut Haley's GALOT - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/normandy-fm/id1443859615 Community GALOT - https://shmuplations.com/residentevil/ Disclosure - Games discussed on MinnMax content are most often provided for free by the publisher or developer. Support us on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/minnmax Support MinnMax directly on YouTube - https://youtube.com/minnmax/join Follow us on Twitch - https://www.twitch.tv/minnmaxshow Subscribe to our YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/minnmax Subscribe to our solo stream channel - https://www.youtube.com/@minnmaxstreamarchives Buy MinnMax merch here - https://minnmax.com/merch Follow us on Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/minnmax.com Go behind the scenes on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/minnmaxshow This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

We'll DM you a Steam code for the excellent The Incident At Galley House if you're a new Patreon supporter at the $5 tier before 10/19/26 - https://www.patreon.com/minnmax MinnMax's Ben Hanson, Kelsey Lewin, Jeff Marchiafava, Kyle Hilliard, Janet Garcia, and Leo Vader convene to unofficially kick off MinnMax's Game of the Year debate for 2026 by letting folks know the games they need more people to play. What's on your list of must-players before GOTY season begins? Then we descend into Metroidvania season with early thoughts on Konami's Castlevania: Belmont's Curse, Well Dweller, Silver Pines, and Echo Weaver. JeffM and Ben also talk about the open-world off-world driving game called Over The Hill. Then we answer questions submitted on Patreon by the community and award the iam8bit question of the week! You can win a prize and help make the show better by supporting us on Patreon and submitting a question! https://www.patreon.com/minnmax Watch the video version here - https://youtu.be/byuLVZqzgdA Help support MinnMax's supporters! https://www.iam8bit.com - 10% off with Promo Code: COSTUMEQUEST https://www.factormeals.com/minnmax50off- 50% off and more Alienware.com/gameyourway Build credit fast and get your first month for just a dollar at getkikoff.com/minnmax today. Thanks to Kikoff for sponsoring us! To jump to a particular discussion, check out the timestamps below... 00:00:00 - Intro 00:03:58 - Give To The Max Charity Stream on 11/6/26 00:07:24 - Leo and the haunted cabin 00:11:59 - GOTY Debate Prologue 00:12:29 - Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave 00:14:26 - GOTY Debate Prologue 00:16:06 - Blood Dungeon 00:17:53 - Cairn 00:21:15 - Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave 00:22:48 - Paranormasight: The Mermaid's Curse 00:26:12 - Vampire Crawlers: The Turbo Wildcard from Vampire Survivors 00:30:27 - The Blood of Dawnwalker 00:31:15 - Esoteric Ebb 00:33:08 - The Incident at Galley House 00:34:20 - The Mermaid Mask 00:35:52 - Dogpile 00:38:30 - Titanium Court 00:41:38 - Moldrise 00:42:31 - Perfect Tides: Station to Station 00:47:04 - Deadlock 00:48:44 - Welcome to Elderfield 00:49:30 - Orbitals 00:51:12 - Normal Golf Game 00:52:32 - Star Fox and Ocarina of Time 00:55:25 - Phonopolis 00:55:36 - Tomodachi Life: Living The Dream 00:57:33 - Star Wars: Zero Company 00:58:03 - Pokemon Pokopia 00:58:40 - Debating incremental games 01:00:35 - 007 First Light 01:01:37 - Gears of War: E-Day 01:03:22 - Saros 01:04:34 - Control Resonant 01:07:26 - Creature Kitchen 01:09:16 - Factor Meals Ad 01:11:32 - Castlevania: Belmont's Curse 01:19:56 - Well Dweller 01:23:04 - Silver Pines 01:24:58 - Echo Weaver 01:32:43 - Alienware Ad 01:34:15 - Over The Hill 01:36:28 - Beat Weaver 01:45:34 - KikOff Ad 01:47:01 - Thanking iam8bit 01:48:03 - Community questions 02:22:40 - Get A Load Of This JeffM’s GALOT - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYMbF7VH350 Janet's GALOT - https://www.timeshifter.com/ Ben's GALOT - https://kotaku.com/inside-the-failed-fight-to-unionize-one-of-gamings-most-idealized-studios-2000742755 Kyle's GALOT - https://bsky.app/profile/tobyfox.undertale.com/post/3mvnweyco7223 Community GALOT - https://www.reddit.com/r/broodwar/comments/b3kw6t/ben_affleck_loses_at_starcraft_too_according_to/ __ Disclosure - Games discussed on MinnMax content are most often provided for free by the publisher or developer. __ Support us on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/minnmax Support MinnMax directly on YouTube - https://youtube.com/minnmax/join Follow us on Twitch - https://www.twitch.tv/minnmaxshow Subscribe to our YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/minnmax Subscribe to our solo stream channel - https://www.youtube.com/@minnmaxstreamarchives Buy MinnMax merch here - https://minnmax.com/merch Follow us on Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/minnmax.com Go behind the scenes on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/minnmaxshow This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

MinnMax's Ben Hanson, Kelsey Lewin, Haley MacLean, Leo Vader, and Sarah Podzorski start the show on a serious note: We've unanimously decided that Jacob Geller won't be involved with MinnMax moving forward. We understand his actions have caused a lot of pain and we try our best to answer the most common questions you all have about the situation and how MinnMax is moving forward. You can read Jacob Geller's statement here - https://bsky.app/profile/jacobgeller.com/post/3mwtmr4ccas22 After that, the main show begins as we talk about the unlikely hit game on Steam Dressmaker, rave about Star Wars: Galactic Racer and its wild improvements on the beloved Star Wars Episode I: Racer. Sarah has sunk 200 wonderful hours into Valve's technically unannounced third-person MOBA Deadlock and Haley is sinking her teeth into The Blood of Dawnwalker. After that, we answer some fun and thoughtful questions from the community. As you can imagine, this was a challenging episode to record and we appreciate your patience and support as we enter a new era of MinnMax together. Then we answer questions submitted on Patreon by the community and award the iam8bit question of the week. FYI - Due to the intense discussion at the top of the show, it was our choice to demonetize this episode and to remove all ads. Watch and share the video version of this episode here - https://youtu.be/rF3x6Iurjfw To jump to a particular discussion, check out the timestamps below... 00:00:00 - Intro 00:00:09 - FAQs on the Jacob Geller decision 00:08:36 - The Show Begins 00:10:47 - Dressmaker 00:27:15 - Star Wars: Galactic Racer 00:49:53 - Valve's Deadlock 01:02:27 - Arkheron 01:05:16 - The Blood of Dawnwalker 01:20:15 - Rumbleverse 01:23:25 - Woodo 01:27:35 - Love Eternal 01:31:41 - Community Questions 02:15:26 - Get A Load Of This Leo’s GALOT - https://hitmanguesser.com/ Sarah's GALOT - https://www.ign.com/articles/sega-community-relations-director-speaks-out-after-sonic-discord-goes-wild Ben's GALOT - https://archive.org/details/tippett-archive Haley's GALOT - https://www.reddit.com/r/reddeadredemption/comments/1wx651n/i_finished_my_valentine_diorama/ Community GALOT - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dk3QHIu3Ow Disclosure - Games discussed on MinnMax content are most often provided for free by the publisher or developer. This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

We'll DM you a Steam code for Jackbox Party Pack 9 if you support MinnMax at even the $2 tier on Patreon, or if you're a current supporter upgrading to the Backstage Pass tier. Offer ends on Monday, September 28th. https://www.patreon.com/minnmax MinnMax's Ben Hanson, Jacob Geller, Kyle Hilliard, and Janet Garcia share their evolving thoughts on Remedy's Control Resonant before a review discussion on Silent Hill: Townfall. Then we're joined by JJ Bersch, the researcher from the cohort-favorite podcast Blank Check to join Kelsey Lewin and Jeff Marchiafava in unpacking Nintendo's Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave on the Nintendo Switch 2. Then we take a freaky turn to JeffM-town USA as we wind back the clock to the early years of the Rogue genre through the lens of Dragon Quest and the Baby Steps of golf games. Then we answer questions submitted on Patreon by the community and award the iam8bit question of the week! You can win a prize and help make the show better by supporting us on Patreon and submitting a question! https://www.patreon.com/minnmax Watch and share the video version here - https://youtu.be/TEjnWqCLX20 Subscribe to JJ's Blank Check newsletter - https://blankcheckpod.substack.com/ Join The Deepest Dive on Control Resonant - https://www.patreon.com/minnmax/posts/get-ready-for-on-169799000 Help support MinnMax's supporters! https://www.iam8bit.com - 10% off with Promo Code: SUNSET https://www.hungryroot.com/minnmax - 40% off with Promo Code: MINNMAX To jump to a particular discussion, check out the timestamps below... 00:00:00 - Intro 00:01:49 - Control Resonant 00:11:21 - Get a Jackbox Party Pack 9 code 00:12:10 - Silent Hill: Townfall 00:29:10 - Welcome JJ Bersch from Blank Check 00:33:07 - Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave 00:53:17 - Star Wars Zero Company 00:56:22 - Hungry Root Ad 00:58:34 - Onimusha: Way of the Sword 01:10:42 - Dragon Quest Heroes: Torneko's Mystery Dungeon -Classic HD 01:24:48 - Normal Golf Game 01:31:36 - Thanking iam8bit 01:32:56 - Community questions 02:23:13 - Get A Load Of This JeffM’s GALOT - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BeMOJ6EhDw Jacob's GALOT - https://nebula.tv/videos/tomscott-when-i-blow-this-whistle-a-swimming-pool-appears Ben's GALOT - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rydp5C5QsPQ Kelsey's GALOT - https://aftermath.site/football-shirt-kit-video-game-sponsors-sponsorship/ JJ's GALOT - https://www.vulture.com/movies-league/ Community GALOT - https://youtu.be/rb36KAQXIqw?is=c2ElSVbGJTViYCih Disclosure - Games discussed on MinnMax content are most often provided for free by the publisher or developer. Support us on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/minnmax Support MinnMax directly on YouTube - https://youtube.com/minnmax/join Follow us on Twitch - https://www.twitch.tv/minnmaxshow Subscribe to our YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/minnmax Subscribe to our solo stream channel - https://www.youtube.com/@minnmaxstreamarchives Buy MinnMax merch here - https://minnmax.com/merch Follow us on Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/minnmax.com Go behind the scenes on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/minnmaxshow This podcast is powered by Pinecast.