Destin Legarie Podcast | Save State Plus

Final Fantasy Resonance caught me completely off guard. I recently had the chance to play the game with Square Enix, and now that the surprisingly substantial demo is available, I've gone back and played through the opening for myself.What I found is a fantastic blend of classic 2D Final Fantasy and modern RPG design. You've got turn-based combat, exploration, tents and save points, Espers, Visions based on iconic Final Fantasy characters, Resonance attacks, fully voiced NPCs, and some beautiful cinematic moments layered over that nostalgic pixel-art presentation.After spending a few hours with it, Final Fantasy Resonance feels like the kind of Final Fantasy game I didn't know I was missing.

I got to check out Sega’s new Crazy Taxi and came away really impressed. It still has that fast, chaotic energy you’d expect from Crazy Taxi, but with a modern approach that makes the whole thing feel much bigger.Here are my early impressions after getting some hands-on time with the game, what surprised me, and why I’m feeling much better about Crazy Taxi’s return.

Xbox’s new Disc to Digital feature lets players turn eligible physical Xbox games into digital licenses, so I decided to try it myself.In this video, I walk through the process, show how it works, what you need to do, and some of the limitations you should know about before trying it.If you’ve got a collection of physical Xbox games, this is one of my favorite features, and I hope more companies follow suit.

I got to play Exodus during a preview event in Austin, and as a longtime Mass Effect fan, this one is hitting a lot of the right notes for me. I played through a full mission featuring combat, companion abilities, dialogue choices, exploration, upgrades, the Recycler weapon system, and the Gauntlet abilities that play a major role both in combat and traversal. There are definitely some familiar Mass Effect vibes here, especially when commanding companions and deciding how to handle major story moments, but Exodus is also introducing some really interesting ideas of its own. Time dilation in particular could have huge consequences for the choices you make throughout the story. After playing the mission twice to see different outcomes, I came away wanting to know a lot more about these characters, this world, and how my decisions will come back to affect me later. Exodus is currently planned for 2027.

I got to sit down with Exodus Narrative Director @DrewKarpyshyn. He's one of my favorite writers because of his work on Mass Effect. We talked about what he's bringing to Exodus, and a little bit about Mass Effect.Can't wait to see what's in store