Gamer Podcasts

carrotpanic wrote:

It's still pretty good when there's not a woman on, as terribly sad as that is. I didn't even bother listening because I knew what it would be like. Lightens up the podcast backlog!

And it's so frustrating because it's often not the fault of the women guests. Ariel always had interesting things to say and while I wasn't a fan of Andrea for a while, her last couple of appearances were better. It's sad but it's becoming clear that Garnett just has the means of making his female guests looks stupid. I was a fan of his for a long time but this is a crappy realisation I've had. Between this and the much heavier iOS slant the show is taking (the topic doesn't interest me, sorry), I'm running out of reasons to keep listening. I have a nasty habit of being unable to disconnect from podcasts I've listened to from the beginning (had this problem with TWiT and listened to it for a long time after it stopped being good) but I think I may have to force myself to cut the cord on this one soon if it doesn't improve. Unfortunately, I've seen how Garnett reacts to strong criticism in the comments (usually along the lines of "You get this show for free so shut up!") so I don't think it'll change.

Dreaded Gazebo wrote:

Not good. Garnett once again showed his inability to act normal and structure a decent show when women are on the podcast.

It didn't help that Cannata wasn't around to keep him in check for the first half of the show either. It got better when he showed up.

Also, I really feel like Zivalich came across as something of a bimbo in this setting (just like Andrea Rene does). Like Rene she really seemed out of her league, and Garnett uses that to just berate them constantly.

There are some good female game journalists out there, but they don't seem to show up on Weekend Confirmed. Maybe they simply know better than to come on this show.

gore wrote:

Also, I really feel like Zivalich came across as something of a bimbo in this setting (just like Andrea Rene does). Like Rene she really seemed out of her league, and Garnett uses that to just berate them constantly.

See, I kind of thought that about Zivalich too but in a couple of Andrea Rene's more recent appearances where Garnett laid off and she was able to speak more without interruption, she actually said some interesting things. It seems at least to a certain degree that his childish behaviour towards female guests just tends to derail them and makes it harder to get their points across. Really wondering now how much of it is them being bimbos and how much of it is them just coming off that way because Garnett constantly pokes them and unhinges the discussions they try to have. He's surprisingly good at doing that it seems.`

Parallax Abstraction wrote:
gore wrote:

Also, I really feel like Zivalich came across as something of a bimbo in this setting (just like Andrea Rene does). Like Rene she really seemed out of her league, and Garnett uses that to just berate them constantly.

See, I kind of thought that about Zivalich too but in a couple of Andrea Rene's more recent appearances where Garnett laid off and she was able to speak more without interruption, she actually said some interesting things. It seems at least to a certain degree that his childish behaviour towards female guests just tends to derail them and makes it harder to get their points across. Really wondering now how much of it is them being bimbos and how much of it is them just coming off that way because Garnett constantly pokes them and unhinges the discussions they try to have. He's surprisingly good at doing that it seems.`

I think you're probably right - he surely can't make it easier on them, and it's definitely not all their fault. Rene does every now and then have something interesting to add. Zivalich though, this is not a good start; for example, she went on a 5 minute monologue detailing the plot of several games, adding pretty much no insight about how they played or why they were worth playing. I totally spaced out during that section.

In contrast to both of them I feel like Ariel was much more interesting with some unique insight to add to discussions. I felt she was simply more knowledgeable (which makes since for somebody who actually works at a game studio).

Yeah, Ariel was awesome. I actually felt like she had a pretty good handle on Garnett. Her discussions about JRPGs were some of the best parts of the shows.

Dyni wrote:
Le0hart85 wrote:

...still need to find a consistent third to replace WC

Idle Thumbs has officially returned. You're welcome in advance. Bird noise.

They are a bit all over the place, but I like Giant Bomb, so I guess I'm not really complaining.

Giant Bomb, GWJ, and Idle Thumbs is my current rotation. Although I keep Weekend Comfirmed around for when they occasionally talk about stuff I like. Also, maybe I enjoy hatin' on Garnett.

Squee9 wrote:

Also, maybe I enjoy hatin' on Garnett.

I think that's exactly why I keep listening to Weekend Confirmed.

Squee9 wrote:
Dyni wrote:
Le0hart85 wrote:

...still need to find a consistent third to replace WC

Idle Thumbs has officially returned. You're welcome in advance. Bird noise.

They are a bit all over the place, but I like Giant Bomb, so I guess I'm not really complaining.

Is this your first time around listening to Thumbs?

Squee9 wrote:
Dyni wrote:
Le0hart85 wrote:

...still need to find a consistent third to replace WC

Idle Thumbs has officially returned. You're welcome in advance. Bird noise.

They are a bit all over the place, but I like Giant Bomb, so I guess I'm not really complaining.

Giant Bomb, GWJ, and Idle Thumbs is my current rotation. Although I keep Weekend Comfirmed around for when they occasionally talk about stuff I like. Also, maybe I enjoy hatin' on Garnett.

Yea, after listening to the first 10 mins of last week's cast of Weekend Confirmed, I couldn't take it anymore. I just finally have to accept that I can't take Garnett's adolescent behavior anymore. Listening to good and funny podcasts is one thing (see what I said about the McElroy's casts and also The Rooster Teeth podcast is okay, if a little immature at times.) but what Garnett does is just childish and foolish. Even when they talk about actual games and events, there is always something that derails the conversation. Berating and lowest common denominator jokes of the same ilk every ten minutes is not the way to go.

As for finding my consistent 3rd gaming podcast, I guess I left out Rebel FM on that list. I love listening to every one of their shows, they are just inconsistent (and I understand why, they're doing it out of love and on their spare time in their own houses). Last week's episode was entertaining and a little light on content, but was nice to get first impressions about what they were thinking about Darksiders 2 and to hear about Sound Shapes. It's nice when Arthur likes something, see? He can be decent when he wants to be ;).

As for Idle Thumbs, I did try to jump into that cast after I started hearing about it coming back and tried listening to the episode after the Kickstarter. I just couldn't get into it and it seemed a little all over the place. I should probably redownload and give them another go...

Le0hart85 wrote:

I should probably redownload and give them another go...

I've done it like five times and it still hasn't taken. They're just not funny to me

I just started listening to them too and don't find them particularly funny either, but they have some good discussions that are a bit more intellectual which is what I miss about GFW Radio.

I've been digging on Indoor Kids, depending on the guest. Kumail was a standout for me in his two Portlandia cameos, and he and Emily have great, married chemistry.

Le0hart85 wrote:

As for Idle Thumbs, I did try to jump into that cast after I started hearing about it coming back and tried listening to the episode after the Kickstarter. I just couldn't get into it and it seemed a little all over the place. I should probably redownload and give them another go...

It's definitely all over the place - the format is basically "whatever pops into somebody's head." If that's not your bag, stay far away

I don't understand a universe where there are people who don't like Idle Thumbs.

kuddles wrote:

I don't understand a universe where there are people who don't like Idle Thumbs.

I can sort of understand it I think (especially in the context of replacing Weekend Confirmed). WC (and many gaming casts, including the GWJCC) are very structured: what you've been playing, new releases, industry news, topic for in-depth discussion, reader feedback (plus or minus some stuff).

Compared to that, the Thumbs are sheer insanity. I happen to enjoy this insanity, but I do understand that it's not what some people are looking for in a cast.

gore wrote:

what you've been playing, new releases, industry news, topic for in-depth discussion, reader feedback (plus or minus some stuff).

The thumbs cover this stuff as well. Also SPACE AND AWESOME JETPACK ROBOTS.

I didn't like the original Idle Thumbs either so you guys aren't the only ones. I think my main reason was that I didn't enjoy the personalities.

juv3nal wrote:
gore wrote:

what you've been playing, new releases, industry news, topic for in-depth discussion, reader feedback (plus or minus some stuff).

The thumbs cover this stuff as well. Also SPACE AND AWESOME JETPACK ROBOTS.

Well, yeah, they talk about the stuff, but there's no fixed format to it - it's all kind of stream of consciousness. Sometimes something that starts as a "what game I'm playing" thing will end up circling around to some weird emergent narrative from a game 10 years ago, or how rad the music was for some DOS game.

I love that stuff, and the weird tangents into crazy town kind of make the show what it is, but I understand why some people might not dig it.

For me it's nothing to do with the format or the content, I enjoy shows all over the spectrum with regards to both. The guys just are a different type of nerd than I am, and it doesn't jive.

kuddles wrote:

I don't understand a universe where there are people who don't like Idle Thumbs.

Alright, alright, I'm putting them back on the iPhone now as I type this. I think I wasn't connected to the people in the show yet and couldn't get a handle on what they were talking about in the show. I'll try from where I left off and maybe just skip those parts and come back until I get a feel for what the hosts are like. I don't mind a wandering cast, just as long as I have a grasp on the conversation and feel engaged. I have high hopes after hearing everyone sing so much praise and am gonna hop back on that horse and see where it leads me. Please, forgive me for my silly ways. I will pound my ears against their gentle tonage until something gives!

Actually, if you have the time to burn I might recommend starting from the beginning, and maybe skipping ahead after a while if you can't catch up, although there aren't that many episodes. Idle Thumbs are kind of like GFW Radio in that a lot of the enjoyment people get from the podcast is getting comfortable with everyone and their different tastes and personalities, whereas I'm sure if you jump in this late in the game you get a lot of asides and in-jokes that make no sense.

But...if you don't like it, you don't like it. It's just by far my favourite gaming podcast so it's just something I can never relate to when other people seem disinterested in it. It's like people who don't understand why Seinfeld was funny.

There is also http://www.thisyearcollection.org/. They take a year, or the entire run for IT, and condense it to one recording of what they consider to be the best parts. I've not listened to their IT collection but the Giant Bomb one I listened to was great. Less time than the whole run, but still several hours of good stuff.

Giant Bomb feels really good without Patrick. I don't hate Patrick but.. I don't know the flow is better.

Maybe bring him in on the new sections?

The latest episode of The Comedy Button had me in stitches. I was lying on the floor, gasping for air as Brian described the world's most unfortunate bank shot.

Blind_Evil wrote:

For me it's nothing to do with the format or the content, I enjoy shows all over the spectrum with regards to both. The guys just are a different type of nerd than I am, and it doesn't jive.

I've been thinking about this today because I wasn't happy with my inability to crystallize the reasoning, and I've got another nugget. Hopefully it's more helpful than my prior dismissals.

With all the other podcasts I really like (Bombcast, Rebel FM, The Basketball Jones, The BS Report) I feel I can relate to the hosts on a deeper level than the topics at hand.

I know about how Jeff Gerstmann loves hiphop, hates raccoons and Applebees. I know Bill Simmons' daughter loves hockey more than basketball and that kills him a little. I know Tas Melas plays on a softball team and that wife has opened a gourmet bakery in downtown Toronto. I know Anthony Gallegos shares my terrible luck with women.

Over the ten episodes or so I've heard of Idle Thumbs, I haven't gleaned any of that stuff from these guys. All I know is what they think of games. More exposure might help, but I've probably been exposed for twenty hours and it's not stuck. Game discussion is an okay starting point for a connection, but they come at it from a developer's standpoint rather than that of a fan. I know that's a somewhat plebeian complaint, but it's plain truth. Also, I think they're a little too "nice" for my tastes. I need a somewhat angry and wry edge, rather than carefree, nerdy goofiness.

kuddles wrote:

I don't understand a universe where there are people who don't like Idle Thumbs.

Make a little more sense, now?

Hmm that's odd. In the last few episodes they've talked about Sean being married and having to tailor his gaming around his wife, Sean growing up in rural Wyoming, Chris having an intense connection to San Francisco that caused him to abandon his move to the east coast, and Jake gaming and living with various roommates. I know what you're trying to get at, I just don't see it. They talk about books and movies fairly often, so they're not solely honed in on gaming. BUT, if you don't like it you don' t like it...can't nobody make ya!

Since they started back up I've only listened to the first one. *shrug*

Might be that they did get a bit more personal but I wasn't paying close enough attention. My podcast ritual is to listen while playing a game that requires very little attention, usually 2k. So rarely, if a podcast begins to bore me, it can lose me to the game.

And yeah, it's not a big deal if I like it or not. I've got plenty of podcasts I follow, in addition to the four listed there are at least three more I never miss (Retronauts, 8-4play, Comedy Button, Active Time Babble), and a few I get whenever they're talking about something I'm interested in (ESPN basketball podcasts, some IGN ones. I just made that post because I don't like people who take a crap on something without explaining.

Blind_Evil wrote:

Over the ten episodes or so I've heard of Idle Thumbs, I haven't gleaned any of that stuff from these guys. All I know is what they think of games. More exposure might help, but I've probably been exposed for twenty hours and it's not stuck. Game discussion is an okay starting point for a connection, but they come at it from a developer's standpoint rather than that of a fan. I know that's a somewhat plebeian complaint, but it's plain truth. Also, I think they're a little too "nice" for my tastes. I need a somewhat angry and wry edge, rather than carefree, nerdy goofiness.

All you need to know is puffins and Chris likes San Francisco....

But I think you're right, they really don't talk much about life outside of games. Or if they have I don't remember much about it. They do have some great anecdotal stories about working in the industry, and I mostly just enjoy listening to them banter because it's very natural sounding and not forced.

Anyone got any suggestions for mobile gaming podcasts, especially iOS but mobile in general?

duckilama wrote:

Anyone got any suggestions for mobile gaming podcasts, especially iOS but mobile in general?

Touch Arcade isn't bad. I've been listening to that one for the past couple weeks.