Beast of Reincarnation Dropped the Ball | Between Levels Podcast Ep. 7

WheelieAverage has played three hours of Stranger Than Heaven, and RGG Studio might have created one of the strangest combat systems we’ve ever seen. This week, Wheelie and FightinCowboy break down Stranger Than Heaven’s unusual limb-based combat, weapons, executions, accessibility concerns and story spanning five different decades. We also return to Valor Mortis now that Cowboy has played significantly more of the game. He explains why he currently sits around a 4/5 despite the bugs, while Wheelie discusses his final 7/10 review and why he thinks the game could become much easier to recommend after a few patches. Then we discuss the closure of BioWare, the legacy of the studio behind Mass Effect and other iconic RPGs, EA’s role in its struggles and why celebrating developers losing their jobs is something we simply cannot understand. Elsewhere, we talk Dragon’s Dogma, the rising cost and risk of AAA development, whether buying games later hurts developers, community comments, our Fantasy Critic battle and The Bonus Level’s Final Fantasy Resonance roundtable. Featuring WheelieAverage and FightinCowboy. CHAPTERS 00:00 – Welcome to Between Levels Episode 17 01:38 – Wheelie Has Played Stranger Than Heaven 02:08 – More Valor Mortis Impressions 04:46 – Cowboy’s Valor Mortis Verdict So Far 06:12 – Wheelie’s Final Valor Mortis Review 07:44 – Why Dragon’s Dogma Feels Like a True Adventure 11:18 – The End of BioWare 14:42 – Stop Celebrating Studios Closing 17:14 – Why Making Games Is Such a Financial Risk 22:49 – Stranger Than Heaven Hands-On Impressions 24:52 – The Combat Is VERY Hard to Learn 26:09 – Weapons Completely Change the Combat 29:11 – Stranger Than Heaven’s Accessibility Concerns 30:35 – How Do You Tell a Story Across Five Decades? 33:04 – Yes, Snoop Dogg Teaches You How to Roll 33:23 – RGG Is Letting Its Next Generation Cook 35:01 – Your Open-World Comments 36:15 – Not Every Game Needs to Be for Everybody 38:05 – Oblivion, Morrowind & RPG Freedom 42:23 – Does Buying Games Later Hurt Developers? 46:43 – Does FightinCowboy Promote Between Levels Enough? 53:06 – Fantasy Critic Is Coming Down to the Wire 1:00:30 – The Bonus Level & Final Fantasy Resonance 1:02:42 – Why Cowboy Struggles With Turn-Based Games 1:05:53 – The Internet Made FightinCowboy Bald 1:08:37 – Can Open Worlds Feel TOO Aimless? 1:10:18 – What Happened to Fun Sports Games? 1:11:34 – A Future Between Levels Tournament? 1:14:34 – The “Beat Down Wheelie” Stream 1:16:10 – Our Game Awards & GOTY Plans 1:16:57 – Outro

Welcome to The Bonus Level — an extra Between Levels episode outside of our normal numbered weekly podcast. WheelieAverage is joined by Dom from Dom’s Roundtable and Danreb Victorio from SmashPad for a special Final Fantasy Resonance review roundtable. Wheelie has finished the main story and spent around 40 hours with the game, Dom has put more than 70 hours into it and explored virtually everything, while Dan joins us from the middle of Chapter 6. That gives us three very different perspectives on Square Enix’s return to old-school, turn-based Final Fantasy. We discuss the HD-2D presentation, characters, story and the Vision system, which lets you combine abilities from iconic Final Fantasy characters in some ridiculous ways. We also get into Resonance attacks, the soundtrack, how successfully Square Enix transformed a former mobile game into a full premium release, endgame grinding, Espers, technical issues and whether Final Fantasy Resonance really is a must-play JRPG. Finally, we look beyond Resonance and ask where Final Fantasy should go next. Should Final Fantasy XVII remain 3D? Could turn-based combat make a full comeback? And what influence could games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 have on the future of the franchise? Featuring WheelieAverage, Dom’s Roundtable and Danreb Victorio of SmashPad. CHAPTERS 00:00 – Welcome to The Bonus Level 01:20 – The Final Fantasy Resonance Review Roundtable 02:11 – Wheelie’s Final Fantasy Resonance Impressions 03:07 – Danreb’s First Impressions 05:00 – Dom’s Thoughts After 70+ Hours 06:16 – How Wheelie Got Into Turn-Based Games 10:01 – The Vision System Explained 15:06 – Resonance Attacks & Breaking the Combat System 18:06 – The Problem With Unlocking Visions 19:28 – Final Fantasy Resonance Is a Museum for the Franchise 20:31 – Final Fantasy’s Iconic Music 23:39 – Gilgamesh & Classic Final Fantasy References 24:51 – You’d Never Know This Was a Mobile Game 28:18 – Is Final Fantasy Resonance a MUST-PLAY? 30:27 – What Doesn’t Work? 32:14 – The Endgame Grind 34:43 – The Hidden Vision That Makes Grinding Easier 36:20 – Taking 16 Turns & Dealing Over a Million Damage 37:03 – Are Espers Too Weak? 39:16 – Technical Issues 41:05 – Quality-of-Life Features We Want 42:43 – Why Fast Travel Works So Well 47:15 – Where Does Final Fantasy Go Next? 52:35 – Final Verdicts 56:43 – Guest Coverage & Outro

Valor Mortis takes centre stage this week as WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe dive into the game, its aggressive first-person combat, build crafting and some of the technical issues Wheelie encountered during his playthrough. Wheelie has finished Valor Mortis, while Cowboy is around five or six hours into the game and having a much more positive experience so far. We compare impressions, break down Cowboy’s parry-focused build and discuss what works — and what doesn’t. Wheelie also shares his thoughts on the new Street Fighter movie after attending a special screening with Paramount Pictures. That quickly turns into a much bigger conversation about video game adaptations, whether games are the best form of entertainment and why translating an interactive experience into film can be so difficult.

Phantom Blade Zero is getting closer, and after spending six hours with the latest build, Sarthe thinks it could be something very special. In Episode 15 of Between Levels, WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe dive deep into Phantom Blade Zero. Sarthe has now played the game five different times and breaks down its incredibly fluid combat, huge weapon variety, free respec system, level design, difficulty options, soundtrack and why S-GAME is so adamant that this is NOT a Soulslike. Cowboy hasn't played it yet, but Phantom Blade Zero has become one of his most anticipated games and everything Sarthe says only makes that anticipation worse. Wheelie also gives his impressions of Hellraiser, a survival horror game that combines familiar elements from games like Resident Evil and Silent Hill with an uncompromising approach to the body horror that defines Hellraiser. We also return to Gears of War: E-Day as Cowboy and Sarthe approach the end of the campaign, discussing its more open structure, co-op, horror influences and stunning Unreal Engine 5 visuals. Plus, we discuss the best video game music of 2026, 007 First Light, Star Wars: Galactic Racer, Forever Ago, Control Resonant and just how difficult choosing our Game of the Year is going to be. Featuring WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe.

Gears of War: E-Day is finally here, and Wheelie thinks it might be Xbox's best game since the Xbox 360 era. In Episode 14 of Between Levels, WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe dive into Gears of War: E-Day, including why the preview may have shown one of the game's slowest sections, its early review scores and why games should be judged on what they actually are rather than what a reviewer wanted them to be. Wheelie's verdict? E-Day is a must-play. We then return to World of Warcraft Forever, with a major beta update bringing new levels, class changes and dungeons before getting into the growing controversy around streamer handouts, gold buying and whether Blizzard should be cracking down harder. Later, Wheelie and Sarthe give their impressions of Star Wars: Galactic Racer, including its incredibly fast racing, roguelike progression, build variety and multiplayer. Wheelie scored it 9.5/10, while Gears of War: E-Day earned his full 10/10. We also discuss Minecraft Dungeons 2, Castlevania, Phantom Blade Zero, Stranger Than Heaven, Fable, Final Fantasy VII Revelation and just how absurdly packed the next few months of gaming are. Featuring WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe.