Kena: Bridge Of Spirits Review & Guardians Of The Galaxy Impressions | GI Show

by Alex Stadnik on Sep 23, 2021 at 11:42 AM

We're back with another exciting episode of The Game Informer Show! This week, we're discussing our hands-on time with Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy and the official review for Kena: Bridge of Spirits! Today's episode is also a special one as we bring on the one and only Liana Ruppert for her last episode before she sails off to work at a little studio called Bungie. Thought we were done? We also bring on the illustrious Ben Hanson to talk MinnMax, Age of Empires IV, and so much more!

Follow the crew on Twitter: Alex Stadnik (@Studnik76), Alex Van Aken (@itsVanAken), Brian Shea (@BrianPShea), Liana Ruppert (@DirtyEffinHippy), and Ben Hanson (@yozetty).

The Game Informer Show is a weekly gaming podcast covering the latest video game news, industry topics, exclusive reveals, and reviews. Join hosts Alex Stadnik and Alex Van Aken every Thursday to chat about your favorite games – past and present – with Game Informer staff, developers, and special guests from all around the industry. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.

Check out the timestamps below to jump to a particular point in the discussion:

00:00:00 – Introduction
00:02:00 – Liana Is Going to Bungie
00:07:55 – Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
00:36:21 – Kena: Bridge of Spirits
00:52:22 – Life is Strange: True Colors
01:01:20 – Age of Empires IV
00:08:58 – Deathloop
01:18:13 – Housekeeping
01:23:09 – Heat Map
01:48:40 – Community Emails

Topic Of The Show:

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Hands-On Preview

We don't mean to brag, but Brian Shea got to play Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy ahead of its October 26 release! In today's show, we discuss how the character interactions felt and whether the game's writing fits the series' iconic characters. Shea also breaks down how the game involves Rocket, Gamora, Drax, and Groot while players only have complete control over Star-Lord.

Check out our Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy preview here.

The Playlist:

Game Informer Staff discuss the games they're playing.

It's another massive week in the world of video games. We kick The Playlist off with Alex Van Aken and Ben Hanson breaking down their time playing Kena: Bridge of Spirits, developer Ember Lab's introductory title that has us impressed with its gorgeous visuals and adorable characters. Next up Liana regales us with her time playing Life is Strange: True Colors and tells us why it's her current game of the year. Finally, Stadnik wraps up the segment with him gushing about Deathloop and how the game empowers players and makes them feel smart through its open structure.

Read our Kena: Bridge of Spirits review here.

Listener Questions:

The Game Informer crew answers your burning questions.

Get ready for some flaming hot takes in the return of Heat Map, our community section where you can send in your own audio and we'll play your spicy opinion on air (if it's appropriate that is). This week, we're hearing from Jonah, Tommy, and Joel about EA and the Star Wars license, Marvel's Avengers Vs. Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and Breath of the Wild! We also round out the show with a few good ole fashion write-in questions featuring talks about getting into the video game industry and what happened to the PlayStation Vita!

Read their questions below, or submit your own via the Official Game Informer Community Discord or by emailing us at Podcast@GameInformer.com:

I have been listening to the GI crew since the Hanson era, and I finally worked up the courage to write in, I'm twenty-eight years old, and I'm from Cincinnati. My question to everyone is, how do you get into the gaming industry? Gaming is my one true passion, and I want to be in the marketing side of the industry. I have hopes of one day working for Sony, Sucker Punch, or Game Informer. My favorite games are Ghost Of Tsushima, Marvel's Spider-Man, and Soul Calibur 6. Thanks again, and talk about more fighting games, please! - Brandon (email)

So, with the switch now getting Bluetooth audio support, and an upcoming OLED screen. Nintendo is finally catching up to the Vita. That said, why do you think the Vita failed so spectacularly when compared to the switch given how advanced it was at the time? Was it because it can't play Nintendo games? The rejection of standardized data storage? Some combination? Why is the switch so much more successful when it's technologically only catching up with 2012? - Crayter (Discord)