How long do piñatas live?

The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has decided on another classic and our hosts are honor-bound to see it through... or at least play it for an hour. For this episode, they are tasked with maintaining a garden full of colorful creatures in the life sim developed by Rare and published by Microsoft Game Studios. This game launched alongside an animated series and resulted in a few sequels, so it must have some merit. That said, keep in mind that it was released nearly two decades ago. Did it age gracefully, or has all the candy inside gone bad? As usual, our hosts have played an hour and come to their decision. Will this oldie be a goodie? Join Tom and Chris as they take a swing and crack this game wide open, exposing all the tasty tidbits contained inside!

What do you think? Let us know!
Hit us up on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tc1h1d
Or on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@tc1h1d
Drop us an email at tc.1h1d(at)outlook[dot]com
Follow us on Goodpods @1h1d
Check out our fancy site: https://quitthebuild.com/1h1d
Watch the video: https://bit.ly/1H1DYT

Thanks for taking this ride with us :-)

It was crafted by a team of ninja.

There are a number of classic titles included in the Xbox Game Pass library and the "Surprise Me" button has seen fit to call upon one of those classics for this episode. Developed by Team Ninja and published by Tecmo Koei way back in 2009, this action-adventure game was originally a PS3 port of Xbox 360's Ninja Gaiden 2. While Tom is quite familiar with the game from his ancient GameStop days, it's pretty impressive that he never got around to playing it. We suppose that's fortunate because that lack of prior play left it on the table as a candidate to review for this show! Will it be worth the wait or will he learn that the years have been rather unkind? Join Tom as he connects with his cohost with the most Chris to kick open this crate and devour the nuggets of wisdom within!

What do you think? Let us know!
Hit us up on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tc1h1d
Or on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@tc1h1d
Drop us an email at tc.1h1d(at)outlook[dot]com
Follow us on Goodpods @1h1d
Check out our fancy site: https://quitthebuild.com/1h1d
Watch the video: https://bit.ly/1H1DYT

Thanks for taking this ride with us :-)

Recruiting all extreme event enthusiasts!

Developed by Ubisoft Annecy, the same folks that brought us Steep, comes this Massively Multiplayer Online Extreme Sports title. Weaving together seven national parks into one seamless world that can be traversed and explored using all manner of extreme sports gear, these developers have crafted quite the sandbox. The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has now put it on our radar and it's time for our hosts to gear up and take it for a spin. Will the standard hour be enough to scratch the surface of this content-rich title? Will the mechanics of extreme sports games and open world games combine into a beautiful spectacle, or will it fumble and fall over the handlebars and onto its face? Join Tom and Chris as they break down their extreme experiences of avoiding breaking their own necks!

What do you think? Let us know!
Hit us up on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tc1h1d
Or on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@tc1h1d
Drop us an email at tc.1h1d(at)outlook[dot]com
Follow us on Goodpods @1h1d
Check out our fancy site: https://quitthebuild.com/1h1d
Watch the video: https://bit.ly/1H1DYT

Thanks for taking this ride with us :-)

Would you believe the title is even longer in Japanese?

Developed by MONKEYCRAFT Co Ltd and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc, the remaster of the second title in the quirky puzzle franchise is the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button's selection for this episode. Tom played some of the original game way back when the Playstations were only two in number, but now he will finally try (an admittedly modernized version of) the sequel. Has a lot changed in the domain of rolling a sticky ball over countless objects in the last few decades? Has the presentation and the story become even weirder? Join Tom and his partner in collections crime Chris as they roll through various environments and discover who has the bigger balls... of stuff. More importantly, will this action puzzler be comprised of elements that make it deserving of your valuable time or will it be a real ball of junk? Let's roll up our sleeves and sort out their final decision!

What do you think? Let us know!
Hit us up on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tc1h1d
Or on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@tc1h1d
Drop us an email at tc.1h1d(at)outlook[dot]com
Follow us on Goodpods @1h1d
Check out our fancy site: https://quitthebuild.com/1h1d
Watch the video: https://bit.ly/1H1DYT

Thanks for taking this ride with us :-)

This drink makes you see ghosts, no big deal.

Once again at the mercy of the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button, our hosts have been tasked with playing the life-sim management game by solo developer Cheesemaster Games. Conceived by Dan Beckerton and brought to life through the help of a successful Kickstarter campaign, this pixel-art title sees the protagonist move to the country and get roped into running a bath house for forgotten spirits. The premise definitely feels like it would fit nicely in a Studio Ghibli film and the developer acknowledges drawing inspiration from classic spirit-focused anime and manga. Will the game prove as timeless as those stories? With just one hour to make a decision, will it captivate our hosts and encourage them to keep playing when the mandated time is up? Join Tom and Chris as they spill the tea on their first impression!

What do you think? Let us know!
Hit us up on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tc1h1d
Or on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@tc1h1d
Drop us an email at tc.1h1d(at)outlook[dot]com
Follow us on Goodpods @1h1d
Check out our fancy site: https://quitthebuild.com/1h1d
Watch the video: https://bit.ly/1H1DYT

Thanks for taking this ride with us :-)

It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere.

The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has selected the sand-packed action RPG from the Germans over at Deck13 Interactive GmbH. The subtitle makes you think it's a sequel, but it's actually a major free update inspired by player feedback from the initial launch. Neither Tom nor Chris played the game in its original incarnation, so they are blissfully free of bias and able to give this iteration a fair shake. Will this revamped package make for an entertaining experience that leaves our hosts itching to keep playing after the hour is up, or will they be itching for a shower to wash away all that sand and their memories along with it? As usual, they have each played an hour and now are sitting down to share their thoughts. Let's dig in and unearth their final decision!

What do you think? Let us know!
Hit us up on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tc1h1d
Or on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@tc1h1d
Drop us an email at tc.1h1d(at)outlook[dot]com
Follow us on Goodpods @1h1d
Check out our fancy site: https://quitthebuild.com/1h1d
Watch the video: https://bit.ly/1H1DYT

Thanks for taking this ride with us :-)

Domo arigato, sushi roboto.

Here's another weird one courtesy of the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button! From the minds of the two-brother team that is Catch & Release LLC comes a sushi restaurant (and encompassing town) simulator. You play as a sushi-making robot with aspirations of becoming a famous chef, but when you are saddled with a restaurant in a sleepy town, it becomes clear that you have your work cut out for you. As the title implies, you will need to make a lot of sushi and you will need to make a lot of friends if you want your business to succeed. Tom and Chris have had a mixed bag of experiences with the simulation genre, so it is anyone's guess where this colorful restaurant manager will fall on that spectrum. As usual, just one hour of gameplay is all they get before they must make their utensils-down final decision, let's hope they make it count!

What do you think? Let us know!
Hit us up on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tc1h1d
Drop us an email at tc.1h1d(at)outlook[dot]com
Follow us on Goodpods @1h1d
Check out our fancy site: https://quitthebuild.com/1h1d
Watch the video: https://www.youtube.com/c/1hour1decision1h1d

Thanks for taking this ride with us :-)

Put your sleuthing skills to the test!

The advantage of using the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button to select the games for this podcast is that our hosts are exposed to many titles they might have otherwise overlooked. Case in point, this point-and-click mystery where the player must investigate scenes for clues and words to correctly fill in the blanks on a key phrase that summarizes an important moment in the plot. Developed by a pair of Latvian brothers as the debut title for their studio Color Gray Games, the objective for this title was to create a detective game set in the 18th century that utilized an art style reminiscent of 1990's point-and-click adventure games. Were they successful in capturing the nostalgia of those classic titles? Is a quirky mystery game with a major emphasis on deductive reasoning worth your time? Lucky for you, Tom and Chris have done the research and are ready to share their reports!

What do you think? Let us know!
Hit us up on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tc1h1d
Drop us an email at tc.1h1d(at)outlook[dot]com
Follow us on Goodpods @1h1d
Check out our fancy site: https://quitthebuild.com/1h1d
Watch the video: https://www.youtube.com/c/1hour1decision1h1d

Thanks for taking this ride with us :-)