Any recommendations for *other* quality gaming podcasts?
Wednesday, October 3rd, 2007 - 5:27pm
Needless to say, GWJ is at the top of my list.... although I also greatly enjoy the GFW podcast. In distant third is the PC Gamer podcast.
Can anyone recommend others? I, like most who frequent these forums, am looking for intelligent discourse by articulate speakers with a minimum amount of "umms" and "like"s (I'm looking at you ear-bleed-inducing ShackNews Podcast).
Any thoughts appreciated.
Wazoo
Gaming podcasts suck, in general. There's crap like... A girl recording his own musings while he's adventuring in World of Warcraft and so on.
There was a "Next Gen.biz" podcast which was pretty good quality, other than that I don't know.
I like Keith and the Girl for non gaming podcasts, but they're not exactly "intelligent discourse"...
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Well, I'd mention GFW, but you've already found that.
Evil Avatar Radio isn't half bad. It's pretty console centric so if that's not your thing you may find it less than informative.
My gaming podcast subscriptions extend to:
- Gamers With Jobs (obviously)
- One Life Left - about to start its new season
- PC Gamer UK - though it's rather forced, pretty crap and they admit as much
- Played
- Shacknews ShackCast
I also listen to 1UP Yours occassionally, but I only really like one of the hosts--the rest seem to enjoy acting like blowhard idiots, and it drags on far too long most episodes. So I only download individual installments as and when I'm desperate for something games-related to listen to in the car.Other than that, I'm open to further suggestions too.
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Team Fremont Live and Game Theory are not bad.
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Gamasutra's podcast is good. Much more business oriented, which I like.
PC Gamer Podcast is good.
I've only listened to 1UP yours for the past 3 weeks and there is no reason why these shows should be 2+ hours every week. I agree with Wrestlevania above.
The 1UP Show is a good video podcast. Roughly 30mins and has lots of good content.
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I enjoy the Twitch Asylum podcast. Unfortunately they haven't put out a new episode for months. They have a grand total of 16 shows and most are about 2 hours. If you have nothing else to listen to you should check them out.
http://www.twitchasylum.com/
Episode 15 is the epitome of entertainment. The first 45 minutes or so, one of the guys from the show tells a story about how he got a PS3. If anything, check that episode out.
I listen to the GWJ Conference Call for intelligent discussion.
I listen to the Best Damn Podcast Ever for pure enjoyment and laughter. That's about it anymore. I used to subscribe to a ton, but as Mex said, they're mostly crap.
There's a Wazoo over at the BDPE as well...
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www.oxmpodcast.com (Official Xbox Magazine) is the only other one I listen too. It's a little dry but informative at times.
Lag used to be a lot worse back in the day. Hell, it took Jesus 3 days to respawn.
Yeah 1up Yours used to be a hot ticket but they seem to have lost their way since the lineup shakedown in recent months. I like the calm rationality of John Davidson and the new member, Mark MacDonald, but those two other guys Garnett & Shane are pretty obnoxious and annoying. I find myself looking forward to the podcast less and less recently.
I also listen to Player One Podcast pretty frequently. It's no GWJ, but it's worth a listen.
http://playerone.libsyn.com/
I've yet to hear a podcast that rivals GWJ. The whole tone just can't be beat.
A few that I listen to in addition to the GWJ conference call;
GFW Radio (Jeff Green and the crowd are usually a hoot)
The Dice Tower (for board games)
The Instance (for my weekly WOW podcast fix)
The problem with the 1Up Yours podcast is that they've become painfully self-aware and self-referential at times. You'll often hear Garnett make some comment about "Giving the people what they want" or "Wo ho ho! Here we go again". I don't blame them, it definitely happens over time that guys who used to act fairly loose drink a little too much of their own kool-aide and buy into their persona a little too hard. You start making decisions in the heat of the moment based on what "Podcast me" would say instead of what you really think.
Sorry, I think about this crap more than I should, but I always try to learn from other sites and podcasts.
Other Good Podcasts:
EGM Live has picked it up, lately. The new format using segments works well, at least until they bring Sean Baby on. Then they reach for the funny and fall flat on their faces over and over again. Still, I listen every week.
Sports Game Guy Sports Anomaly, another 1Up podcast. They're loud, but usually fun to listen to.
Downloadable Content, The Penny Arcade Podcast. They don't do it often, but I like listening to their process. They think about things ... differently.
Evil Avatar Radio sounds like "normal" radio, except they actually know games. A fine replacement for Phil's old show.
Kojima Productions Report is a great little podcast if you're into Metal Gear.
Certis beat me to it. - Elysium
Other podcasts??
There are more?
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Gary Whitta's 'Game theory' is worth an occasional listen (no link sorry, I'm at work)
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While I'll agree with others about the sometimes-variable-in-quality aspect of 1Up Yours, I still dig it and would call it my second favorite to GWJ. Those guys really know their stuff - but, yeah, I could do with a little bit less of the god-complex from some of them. That said, the 1Up Show (video format) is fantastic every time I watch it. Overall, I think the folks over at the 1Up Network could be some of the most important gaming journalists around, and they're doing some of the coolest stuff - the only problem is that they seem to realize it.
GFW Radio is great because the guys are honest, fun, and talk about PC games - which is hard to come by these days.
I enjoy the Insomniac Games' Full Moon Show, which is a fun look inside development. They tend to toot their own and Sony's horn quite a bit, but they give some cool insight on the development process and tend to have some great guests.
Legendary Thread is decent for WoW stuff, but they get pretty deep into the lore and can use specific terminology so often that you can be lost in a conversation for minutes on end.
GameSpot presents The HotSpot is about to be taken off my iTunes list. I like to think it was good at one point in time, but I think it's always been mediocre and I just recognize it more now that I have more quality podcasts as a benchmark. As Certis described about 1Up Yours, I think they tend to be a little too self-referential and try way too hard to be funny and EXTREME! (a.k.a. really loud and obnoxious)
I'll second Downloadable Content. Those guys are ridiculously intelligent and, in the same way, ridiculously funny.
And... since you asked this in the "Everything Else" forum, I'll force-feed you my non-gaming favortites: This American Life, NPR: Car Talk, NPR: Wait Wait.. Don't Tell Me!, Real Time with Bill Maher, Diggnation.
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In my late-evening haze yesterday, I completely neglected to mention Brent's excellent Virgin Worlds podcast. I'm not a fan of MMOs, but they're certainly the big deal at the moment and Brent's coverage is peerless.
It's also well put together and always interesting. Except when Brent went away for a couple of weeks recently and handed the reins over to a couple of guest hosts -- those were buttock-clenchingly awful. But he's back now, mercifully, and in full effect, so make sure you check it out.
I'm downloading the latest Team Fremont podcast, as I meant to pick that up after Certis mentioned it a couple of shows back and I subsequently forgot to check the show notes for a link.
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I'd like to throw in a slight defense of the HotSpot, as I find them at least quite informative... I also think their EXTREME!ness feels more like a (slightly tired) caricature of ads, rather then a purely self-referential attempt at hilarity. They're not half as good as GWJ, but defintely less annoying than the whole DRUNKEN GAMERS! thing at Team Fremont (sorry Certis...).
PC Gamer UK is also alright, it's so shoddy it's almost good
GFW Radio is, I'm afraid, getting worse. Shawn Elliott takes over faaaar too often, and he's not always funny... far from it nowadays. But I like Jeff Green, so I keep listening.
Action Button has a podcast where they read their own reviews, written in a terribly overwrought english. A pain to read, can be fun to listen to, though they haven't updated in a while.
It was on one of these very threads on this very site that someone recommended Extralife Radio. While not specifically a gaming podcast, they are almost always very fun, well produced, and true to your inner geek!
Oh, I forgot Consolevania! It's usually a bit too long, but it doesn't come out all that often, and it can be hilarious if you enjoy the absurdity of it all!
Yeah, you're right about the HotSpot. And Jeff Gerstman is both very knowledgeable and has a pretty cool head on his shoulders considering how much of a celebrity he's become. He's apparently one of the first people the mainstream media go to for "expert" coverage of the industry. I think he's great, and his reviews are generally solid, too. He seems to be leading the charge at GameSpot to really bring reviews into a more rational, less hype-focused state.
All right, I won't take it off my iTunes list quite yet... I just hope they can tone down the crazy a bit. I get what they're trying to do with it - the humor they're trying to use - but it usually ends up being a bit too over the top for me.
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The Hotspot is going down the road for me as Rich Gallup leaves the show a month ago, it is more chaotic, they try to be funnier than they are, they are close to be deleted of my RSS feed. The only reason Im still listening is because Jeff Gerstman is still in
GFW is great
Hasbro may have bought the name Avalon Hill 10 years ago but to borrow a phrase, I knew Avalon Hill. It was a friend of Mine. You sir are no Avalon Hill.
Agree on that Gallup's leaving has left the HotSpot in a rather shaky state... he gave the show a more focused and professional tone. I also keep listening mainly because of Gerstmann, whom I deeply despised at first, but very much admire now.
There can be only one!
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I like Angry Gamer
http://www.angry-gamer.net/ag/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=13&Itemid=97
With all the flack about 1Up Yours here, you should listen to the first few minutes of the latest podcast.
The episodes are usually short, but they get quite irate and it is very amusing.
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I've recently started listening to Team Fremont, and I'm enjoying it other than their annoying tendency to talk over music. I think part of my enjoyment is that they apparently live and work very near me, so I can get some local perspective on things like which gamestops to avoid/go to.
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Holy-crap-yes! I didn't think to include it because it's not a podcast--but every gamer should be watching Consolevania!
I heartily recommend you watch them from the very beginning, as that's a very good place to start. You simply won't enjoy the later episodes quite as much otherwise, and they've some superbly dark characters in their previous episodes (such as the ineffably brilliant John Gacy).
I'd also like to add another vote for the Action Button Dot Net podcasts; they're cutting and brilliant. I just wish they'd start making them again.
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And along with that, there's also Infendo Radio, another of Scott Johnson's podcasts. Infendo is purely Nintendo topics, though.
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I disagree fully, it's still one of the best podcasts out and most times it's on par or just a bit better than 1up yours but GFW is pretty outstanding.
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Mex refering to Actresses:
Make no mistake, I'd hit them all so hard that my pelvis would have to be classified as a deadly weapon, I just don't think they're all
Well I didn't mean to say it was bad, but I do feel it's gotten worse. I guess I sounded harsher than I meant to.
Fact is, maybe I'm just tired of hearing Elliott playing his "character", talking 90% of the time. He seems a bit too aware of his role.
Don't get me wrong, they still often make me laugh, and I enjoy their extremely unstructured approach. I just feel they've lost their edge a little...
Small world... but not the same Wazoo.
Agreed. This American Life is absolutely one of the BEST radio shows on the air. I also enjoy Left, Right and Center as well as Fresh Air..... when not listening to game stuff.