Dredge is one of 2023's best surprises, a fishing adventure mixed with Lovecraftian horror. Don't worry though: it's not too scary. In fact, Dredge's much more interested in the fishing aspect than you might expect from a game marketed around cosmic terror. Plus, Plante has become obsessed with Octopath Traveler 2. How does someone who dislikes turn-based combat fall in love with this sort of game? And is it recommended for everyone or just people who love RPGs? All that and more on this week's ...
Apr 04, 2023•52 min•Ep 317•Transcript available on Metacast After glancing off the subject our last couple of episodes, we're finally ready to dive deep into Capcom's latest rejuvenation of their classic survival horror franchise, Resident Evil 4 Remake. Also, how buckwild does Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom look?! Also discussed: Octopath Traveler 2, Dredge, Psychodyssey Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each month!...
Mar 31, 2023•57 min•Ep 316•Transcript available on Metacast This week, we're joined by GameSpot's Tamoor Hussain to discuss the second installment in the Metal Gear Solid series. How well does the game's AI-controlled vision of the future match up with our own reality two decades later? Also, what's Raiden's whole deal? Like, what's he even DOING here? Also discussed: Diablo IV beta, You Must Build a Boat, Destiny 2, Octopath Traveler 2, ForeTales, There is No Game: Wrong Dimension, Dark Souls 3, Resident Evil 4 Remake, Dredge Get the full list of games ...
Mar 24, 2023•52 min•Ep 315•Transcript available on Metacast A few weeks ago, game developer Double Fine surprise-dropped a 22-hour documentary about the seven-year creation of Psychnoauts 2. At least that's the premise on paper. In reality, the stunning TV-length doc is a fearless look inside the day-to-day life of a video game studio -- warts and all. The documentarians, employed by Double Fine, have unprecedented access to practically every person and room . Frush and Plante talk about the series, called Double Fine PsychOdyssey, along with The Last of...
Mar 21, 2023•54 min•Ep 314•Transcript available on Metacast In lieu of some big blockbuster release to discuss this week, we've decided to once again firmly grip the handles of the grab bag and upend it all over the dang place. Games n' stuff discussed include: Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania, Destiny 2: Lightfall, Patch Quest, Sea of Thieves, Pizza Tower, Chained Echoes, Octopath Traveler 2 Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each mon...
Mar 17, 2023•58 min•Ep 313•Transcript available on Metacast The boys gather to discuss an interesting Souls-like from the Ninja Gaiden team in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, and Justin attempts to reignite his passions for the world of Destiny with the latest expansion, Lightfall. Also discussed: Better Call Saul, Johnny Mnemonic, and a smidge of Fortnite for good measure. Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each month!...
Mar 10, 2023•56 min•Ep 312•Transcript available on Metacast The Super Mario Bros. Movie hits theaters next month, but before you see Chris Pratt's rendition of the plumber, why not revisit the original Mario movie? Yes, it's time to watch the all-but-lost 1993 cult classic, starring Bob Hoskins as Mario Mario, John Leguizamo as Luigi Mario, and Dennis Hopper as Bowser. Considering the difficulty of finding a copy of Nintendo's wild first foray into film, our recap and breakdown may be the closest you come to a trip to Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel's Bl...
Mar 07, 2023•51 min•Ep 311•Transcript available on Metacast Sometimes, in our hour of greatest need, a hero comes down like a shining beam of light from the heavens to save us. Sometimes, that hero is pink and round, and eats like a million owls and rabbits and stuff, like Kirby does in Kirby's Return to Dream Land. Also discussed: Pokemon Sleep, Destiny 2: Lightfall, Bloody Hell, Paranormasight Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each m...
Mar 03, 2023•54 min•Ep 310•Transcript available on Metacast We continue our dive into the great and stealthy works of Solid Snake this week, as we've recently played Metal Gear Solid: Ghost Babel on the Game Boy Color. Does it hold up? We should probably stop asking that question of these things. Also discussed: Atomic Heart, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, Destiny 2, Physical: 100, Analogue Pocket Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each month!...
Feb 24, 2023•50 min•Ep 309•Transcript available on Metacast The Yakuza series has a new name. "Like a Dragon" is a literal translation of the original Japanese title Ryu Ga Gotoku. Returning to where things started fits the latest release: a remaster of Like a Dragon: Ishin, an action-heavy spin-off set in the Late Edo. The historical setting and standalone story make Ishin a compelling starting point for a series we love. For the back half of the episode, Frush and Plante share their recommendations for listeners preparing to dive into the Game Boy and ...
Feb 21, 2023•51 min•Ep 308•Transcript available on Metacast Just one week after our episode about surprise game releases, Nintendo went ahead and stealth-dropped a remastered version of the classic GameCube Space Pirate-slaying Simulator, Metroid Prime. But is it still fun after almost 20 years and an intensive graphical spit shine? I mean, yeah, we said as much in the title. Also discussed: PSVR2, Forward: Escape the Fold, 20 Minutes Until Dawn, Knotwords, Dick Tracy Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more e...
Feb 17, 2023•58 min•Ep 307•Transcript available on Metacast Nothing's better than when you don't know that a game exists, and then POOF! It's just right there on the homepage of whatever digital games distributor you use to get new games. Even better? When it's super fun, like Tango Gameworks' rhythm-based beat-em-up, Hi-Fi Rush! Also discussed: Forward: Escape the Fold, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, Physical: 100, Rock Band, Guitar Hero, DJ Hero, Season, Letterkenny, 20 Minutes Until Dawn Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fa...
Feb 10, 2023•1 hr•Ep 306•Transcript available on Metacast We expected 2023 to be an incredible year for video games with Zelda and Starfield on the calendar. However, we didn't expect to have so many great games by early February. This week, we talk about Hitman's incredible "Freelancer" DLC and the meditative experience collection game Season. Plus, Nuclear Blaze and our favorite language-learning app: Busuu. Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonu...
Feb 07, 2023•46 min•Ep 305•Transcript available on Metacast Join us as we revisit the USG Ishimura, the pride of Earth's planet-cracking operations and, also, the extremely monster-infested setting of EA's remake of their classic survival horror title Dead Space. Does it still hold up some 15 years after its initial release? (Spoiler alert: Yes. Yes it does.) Also discussed: Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Mario 64, Half-Life, Fable, Burnout 3: Takedown, Metal Gear Solid, Metroid Prime, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Freelancer, Time's Ours, You Pod to Win...
Feb 03, 2023•47 min•Ep 304•Transcript available on Metacast Intelligent Systems' long-running series of strategy-RPGs gets even longer this week with the release of Fire Emblem Engage! Join us as we discuss the evolved tactics in this new installment, as well as the ethics of trapping ghost soldiers in Cracker Jack prize rings. Also discussed: IGF Award Nominees, Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On, Futureport 82, &Juliet Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bo...
Jan 27, 2023•45 min•Ep 303•Transcript available on Metacast Today we're trying a new format called Better Know a Dungeon (a.k.a. Isn't It Levely). We pick an iconic stage or dungeon and perform an autopsy, revealing what makes it magical. For our experiment, we've selected Elden Ring's Stormveil Castle. For the back half, we help you pick which Persona to play, now that Persona 3, Persona 4, and Persona 5 are widely available. Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties...
Jan 24, 2023•54 min•Ep 302•Transcript available on Metacast To kind-of-celebrate the almost-25th anniversary of Metal Gear Solid, we went back and played a couple different versions of the game to see how well Hideo Kojima's super spy thriller holds up. And hey, how's the pilot episode of HBO's adaptation of The Last of Us? Also discussed: Sea of Thieves, Traitors, Neon White, Industry, The Shout Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each ...
Jan 20, 2023•1 hr•Ep 301•Transcript available on Metacast This week, we're joined by GameSpot's Lucy James as we discuss Squanch Games' joke-packed first-person shooter High on Life. How many full-belly chuckles did we experience during our time alien bounty hunting? Also, can J.B. Smoove do voices in every game? Also discussed: Disco Elysium, 100 Ft. Robot Golf, Towerfall, Overcooked, Portal 2, The Stanley Parable, Prey, Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, The Past Within, Outpath: First Journey, Dragon Quest IX Note: The day after we recorded this episode a...
Jan 13, 2023•53 min•Ep 300•Transcript available on Metacast Welcome to the second-annual Resties Video Game Predictions episode! Each January, Frushtick and Plante make six bold predictions for the upcoming year in video games. We also revisit the previous year's prediction and announce a winner. (The year's champion gets a new, soon to-be-revealed anime statue.) Will Tom Cruise appear in video games? Could cloud gaming go mainstream? Is this the year of AAA mega-hits? Listen to the episode and find out! Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discu...
Jan 10, 2023•59 min•Ep 299•Transcript available on Metacast With last year's best games played and adjudicated, we look forward to some of our most anticipated releases of 2023. Sure, you got your Zeldas and your Starfields, but there's way more coming down the pipeline — some of which are out pretty soon! Games discussed: Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Starfield, Final Fantasy XVI, Diablo 4, Star Wars: Jedi Survivor, Hollow Knight: Silksong, Atomic Heart, Judas, Suicide Squad, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Pragmata, STALKER 2, Fire Emblem Engage, Armored Core ...
Jan 06, 2023•51 min•Ep 298•Transcript available on Metacast We continue the ritual of making the ritual slightly different every year, when we bring the final eight down to the final four, and then introduce another contender before we rank the final five. And at last we’ll have the answer to the burning question: what’s the second-best game of 2022? Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each month!...
Dec 23, 2022•1 hr 16 min•Ep 297•Transcript available on Metacast IT BEGINS. Well, it ends. Okay, actually, both. This week, we're taking our top 16 games of the year and pitting them against one another in arbitrary combat until only eight remain. Next week, we'll get things sorted down to a nice, tidy ranking of the five best games of the year. Join us! But like, get comfortable, because this is going to take a while. Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bo...
Dec 16, 2022•2 hr 57 min•Ep 296•Transcript available on Metacast Need for Speed: Unbound deserved a better launch than this. After a decade of middling entries, EA has returned NFS responsibilities to the exceptional racing developer Criterion Games. The team has produced a street racing game that blends Forza Horizon with the thrills of the Midnight Club games. And it just looks cool! Frush also got Prodeus off his backlog. It’s a solid retro FPS, ideal for playing on a portable like the Switch or the Steamdeck. Plus, we talk through the Besties 2022 bracket...
Dec 13, 2022•40 min•Ep 295•Transcript available on Metacast This week, we're joined by beloved Besties guest host Ron Funches as we discuss the gory extravaganza called Warhammer 40K: Darktide. Is Left 4 Dead still fun when it's in space and there's religion and cyberskulls and stuff? Let's find out! Also discussed: Elden Ring, OlliOlli World, Astronite, Need for Speed Unbound, Marvel Snap, Evil West, WCW Matches from 1991-1992. Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesti...
Dec 09, 2022•52 min•Ep 294•Transcript available on Metacast Marvel's Midnight Suns is a tactics game from XCOM developer Firaxis, only instead of shooting aliens a hundred times from behind cover, you play cards to beat ass with your best friend, Blade. This is, objectively, a very good idea, but how well does the rest of the game hold up? Also, what's on our backlog as we approach the GOTY proceedings? Also discussed: Dave the Diver, Pentiment, What the Bat, Binding of Isaac, Andor, Soccer Story, Peglin, Tiny Rogues Get the full list of games (and other...
Dec 02, 2022•49 min•Ep 293•Transcript available on Metacast The Resties Required Reading List strikes again! Our goal is to curate a "must-play" list of 25 games released between 1980 to 2020. Think of it like Video Games 101. This week, we've selected games from 2010-2014. Join us as we revisit the early days of our careers covering video games! Visit @thebestiespod on Twitter to see a full list of games from this week's episode. Previous picks -- 1985-89: Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, SimCity. 1995-99: Super Mario 64, Pokemon Red and Blue, Fi...
Nov 29, 2022•57 min•Ep 292•Transcript available on Metacast It's one of the biggest releases of the year and Justin paid his daughter, Charlie McElroy, to play it for him. Yes, it's Pokémon time once again and we're diving into Scarlet and Violet. We've also got way more to say about Pentiment. Also discussed: Andor, Fargo Season 4, Spy x Family and Warhammer: Darktide. Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each month!...
Nov 25, 2022•57 min•Ep 291•Transcript available on Metacast Sonic Frontiers, the open-world iteration of Sega's fast rodent simulator, is kind of a mess. But is it the fun kind of mess, like when a can of spray cheese explodes in your car, and it's gross and everywhere, but man it'll be a great story later? Let's talk about it, and also a random assortment of other new releases! Also discussed: McPixel 3, Somerville, Pentiment, GOTY Award Nominees, Reservation Dogs, Andor Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want mo...
Nov 18, 2022•56 min•Ep 290•Transcript available on Metacast We are being bombarded by awesome games. This week, we brought two must-try adventures. The first, Somerville, is the spiritual sequel to indie mega-hits Limbo and Inside. The second is Dave the Diver, a game we hadn't heard about until scuba fishing/sushi serving/business management sim skyrocketed up the Steam Charts. The quirky cocktail is one of the most memorable roleplaying experiences in a long, long time. This episode's lineup may be the closest we've come to "you will find something to ...
Nov 15, 2022•49 min•Ep 289•Transcript available on Metacast How do you follow up a certified club banger like 2018's God of War? Join us as we discuss Sony Santa Monica's daunting sequel and its unsurprising breakout star. (Spoiler: It's Richard Schiff.) Also discussed: Signalis, Dave the Diver, Marvel Snap, Binding of Isaac Get the full list of games (and other stuff) discussed at www.besties.fan . Want more episodes? Join us at patreon.com/thebesties for three bonus episodes each month!...
Nov 11, 2022•55 min•Ep 288•Transcript available on Metacast 
