Video game podcasts?
in Gaming
Unfortunately it’s probably not in the cards for the boys to do a weekly video game news and review podcast, and this is precisely what I’m on the market for.
So, question for the Baldies: Any good video game podcasts out there you’d recommend to a Bald Move fan?
So, question for the Baldies: Any good video game podcasts out there you’d recommend to a Bald Move fan?
Ideal qualities:
•funny
•not TOO whiny
•occasional guests is ok, but I prefer static host dynamic podcasts
•diversity would be fantastic, but if a standard two white dude production is great, that won’t stop me from listening
•preferably a smaller, Bald Move sized or smaller production.
•funny
•not TOO whiny
•occasional guests is ok, but I prefer static host dynamic podcasts
•diversity would be fantastic, but if a standard two white dude production is great, that won’t stop me from listening
•preferably a smaller, Bald Move sized or smaller production.
•good sound quality. At, or near Bald Move sound quality.
•not a podcatcher exclusive. Fuck Spotify.
Got any recommendations? Also, if Bald Move ever wanted to do one, I’d support the shit out of it.
Comments
Giant Bombcast: I usually have this one on for background noise and news discussions. Jeff Gerstman knows his stuff, but I find him to be insufferable to listen to. He likes what he likes, but will let a single aspect he doesn't like to ruin an entire game for him. But then also has no problem railing on that aspect for 25 minutes while other hosts just sit and listen, because he is the boss. It also deals heavily with the tech aspects of hardware and such. to the point where my eyes glaze over. So, not my favorite. But they are probably the most downloaded podcast for video games out there, so it may just be me.
But these days Giant Beastcast is my favorite. They are the Eastcoast version of Giant Bomb. The crew has excellent chemistry and keep the conversation moving in the standard intro/check-in->games->news->e-mails format. It is regularly funny and insightful. So this is the one I would recommend most, especially after one of their hosts who would derail conversations recently left.
Just a note, that with Covid-19, all recordings are done via whatever app they are all using (across the board), so the audio quality (since you mentioned that) is not going to be pristine.
And it's not that I dislike Jeff, but you can tell he has been in the industry for a looooong time and is done with some of the BS that he consistently sees. Ben does a great job explaining his point of view even when Jeff is dominating things. I like Brad quite a bit as well, but they all just don't a candle to the New York folks.
I’m still on the hunt because I’d like a few to listen to, but they are now on my rotation.
Waypoint Radio is great and checks all of your boxes except that they're a part of a giant evil corporation, but they also hate their corporate overlords. However, they're quite political, and I know that can be a turnoff for some. They don't just lean left, they're all the way left. They currently end their podcasts with "Fuck Capitalism. Go Home." They don't talk about politics all the time, but they will discuss events when it's relevant. They'll also go into the political issues in gaming like working conditions.
If you're looking for highlights, they did a mostly serious deep dive into Kingdom Hearts' lore called Lore Reasons and 16 hours of analysis of BBC's Pride and Prejudice. Both of those series are some of my favourite podcast content ever. Unfortunately, Vice reined them in and they aren't allowed to do the extra stuff anymore, but the regular podcast is still mostly great. They're also quite diverse, but the two white dudes are definitely stereotypes that some may find insufferable.
Kinda Funny also has some podcasts worth listening to. I mostly like listening to them because they tend to be more positive than most of the other podcasts out there. They have a daily podcast with a set of rotating hosts. It used to be fantastic but their best cohosts have moved on to bigger and better things, but it's still pretty good. However, the main guy, Greg Miller, is someone people seem to either love or hate. They have a bunch of other content as well, but it can be borderline unlistenable to listen to because when the main group gets together, they all turn into woke frat boys.
1. What's Good Games. Three ladies (Andrea Renee, Britanny Brombacher, and Kristine Steimer) cover the latest gaming news and games they are playing. They are generally very funny and positive, while still being honest and informative.
2. How Did This Get Played. Nick Wiger and Heather Anne Cambell review the worst and weirdest games throughout gaming history. Very funny and entertaining.
How Did This Get Played is great. Not quite what you're looking for but it is very, very entertaining. I love Nick on The Doughboys and Heather Anne Campbell is hilarious. Worth it for the new theme music every single week based on the game they have chosen.
https://www.idlethumbs.net/3ma/
I used to listen to idle thumbs occasionally too, but it looks like they stopped recording a couple of years ago. They were much more general about what type of games they covered, including some console stuff. They do have some other shows that I haven't listened to: https://www.idlethumbs.net/shows
It's a 2 white dude podcast with a guest on almost every episode. Their guests are very often people in the video gaming industry from reporting to development to streamers. Their guests tend to be fairly diverse. Every episode they cover the top stories in gaming news, talk about what they've been playing, and some episodes they have a segment on VR and/or board games. I started it because I was a fan of one of the hosts (Jeff Cannata) from an old web series that reviewed movies, games, and tv shows. (Totally Rad Show)