Press Row Podcast - 2014 Sports Gaming Year in Review

[Steve_OS]

The 112th episode of the Press Row Podcast is our annual Year in Review show, featuring our full panel reflecting on the incredibly interesting year that was 2014. From busted launches to compelling experiences, surprising successes to shocking failures, 2014 had a little bit of everything – good and bad – for people who love the genre. Enjoy!

Joining us this week:

• Owen Good, Polygon (@owengood)
• Bryan Wiedey, PastaPadre (@pastapadre)
• Kat Bailey, US Gamer (@The_Katbot)
• Samit Sarkar, Polygon (@samitsarkar)
• T.J. Lauerman, ThatSportsGamer (@ThatSportsGamer)
• And your host, Richard Grisham, GamesRadar/OXM/@GAMER (@richgrisham)

Be sure to check out Kat Bailey’s piece in US Gamer right here about her FIFA 15 experiences that she describes on the show.

Send us your feedback! We love to hear from you and can’t wait to read your stuff on the air in a future episode. Do it one of these ways:

1) Follow the show on Twitter at @PressRowPodcast and send us some Tweets while you’re there
2) Email the show at [email protected]
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Also, the Press Row Podcast is now available on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/...ow/id563624090) and Stitcher Radio (http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/oper...ss-row-podcast), so subscribe to it and rate it too!

Enjoy the show!

Run Time: 1 Hour, 25 Minutes

If you can't view or listen to the embedded player below, please click here.

[jpollack34]

Great podcast guys.

Have to agree totally with Owen Good. In a year that has been truly disappointing not only from a sports gaming perspective, but just gaming in general -- all the broken titles at launch (which is becoming the norm) to stripped down/modeless games (like NHL15) -- it's refreshing to see Pro Evolution Soccer rise up once again. It's truly a spectacular game. Not only does it have loads of individuality (something missing in Fifa imo) but it somehow replicates the different team styles as well. It feels and looks like a proper game on television, and yet maintains the fun factor.

I think one thing companies don't realize is that they are losing fans when they strip down their games and give users less power/control. It has nothing to do with outside influences,. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy. Users want control. They are still hanging on to a model that hasn't adapted. PES in many ways has adapted because they have lots of customization options. The Golf Club sets a perfect example. That is the future whether companies like it or not. The users want power... to customize etc.