Continuing the tradition from the legacy Mashcast, we present the 2018 State of the Gaming Union where we take a look back at what happened in 2017 and how it might impact us in 2018 and beyond.

The Console Wars

We take a look at Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony in 2017. Nintendo surprised everyone with how well the Switch did, while Microsoft was a bit quiet despite releasing new console hardware. Sony had a massive year in game releases.

2017 Trends

Most of these trends had been moving forward anyway, but in 2017 we saw some of the worst in loot boxes we’ve seen, while also seeing everyone scramble to make their game an eSport. Also Battle Royale doesn’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon.

2017 Impactful Games

Between Sony and Nintendo’s releases, there were enough great titles for 2017. That doesn’t even include amazing multiplatform releases like Wolfenstein II.

2017 Fumbles

Can you say Destiny 2? In a year where Bioware decimated the Mass Effect brand and EA messed up so bad with Battlefront 2 that the CEO of Disney had to get involved, Destiny 2 is still the biggest fumble of 2017. That says a lot.

2018 Expectations

With all we’ve seen in 2017, can we accurately predict what we will see in 2018?

Hosts

Jarret Redding

Jarret is Executive Director as well as one of the founding members of Mash Those Buttons. He plays all types of games, but tends to lean more toward FPS, Stealth, and Combat games.

Nick Zielenkievicz

Host of WoW! Talk! and The Tauren & The Goblin. Sometimes known as the Video Games Public Defender. Wants to play more Destiny and Marvel Heroes but WoW is all-consuming. Decent F2P Hearthstone player. Sad that he lost the Wii that had Wrecking Crew on it. Would be happy if the only game ever made was M.U.L.E. Gragtharr on Skywall-US. Garresque on Ravencrest-US.

Christina Zammarrelli

Gaming has been a core part throughout Poptarts life. Though her specialty is JRPGs, she tries to branch out and try new things. Most of her time gets put into the MMORPG, Final Fantasy XIV, but she still finds time to play new games.

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