Next Gen Basecast

It’s time for the new episode of the Basecast! Ben, Andy and Jonny discuss ALL the news in video games, including:

Borderlands 3!

Sekiro!

The Division 2!

Phoenix Wright! (sort of)

Mini Mega Drive!

The State of Play Stream!

And a whole lot more – Give it a listen!

Andy and Jonny have a natter about those videogames. Featuring:

* Gameblast!

* Far Cry: New Dawn!

* Devil May Cry 5!

* Anthem!

* THQ Nordic Do A Bad!

* Apex Legends!

* Sonic The Hedgehog!

* Fortnite!

* Discless XBox One S!

* Tetris 99!

Spring is in the air and Ben, Jonny and Andy have returned from trying to see their shadows at Gobbler’s Knob to talk about:

* Apex Legends!

* GameBlast!

* Groundhog Day!

* Apex Legends!

* GameBlast!

* Groundhog Day!

* Apex Legends!

* GameBlast!

* Groundhog Day!

And much more!

It’s time for episode 150 of the Basecast – Ben Jonny and Andy get together and talk about:

Kingdom Hearts!

Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy!

Hitman!

Resi 2!

Metro Exodus!

Loot Boxes!

PS4s being disguised as fruit!

And… Er… Ariana Grande.

Join us next week for more fun and games, subscribe and leave us a review!

Ben and Andy are your guides through the week of gaming this time round – and it’s been a pretty quiet one! On the pod this week:

Resident Evil 2!

Kingdom Hearts!

Hitman 2!

Erm… Bantz!

If you like the pod, subscribe and all that jazz, and we’ll see you next week!

Do you like spoilers? If so, join Andy, Jonny and Kieran as they discuss a whole bunch of videogames (and also movies!) in a ridiculously spoilery way! May include classy spoilers for:

The Resident Evil 2 Demo!

New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe!

Ace Combat 7!

Diablo 3: Season 16!

Dark Souls Trilogy Collectors Edition!

Mortal Kombat 11!

Assassins Creed: Odyssey DLC!

Cancelled Star Wars games!

Nintendo’s Russian CEO!

The Uncharted Movie!

The Sixth Sense and The Book of Eli!

Disney Infinity 4.0!

The Lego Movie!

Fornite!

Listen with care!

Ben, Jonny and Andy shake off the post Christmas cobwebs to chat about all things videogames, including:

Starlink!

Spider-Man!

Black Mirror: Bandersnatch!

Titanfall 2!

Subnautica!

Knowledge Is Power: Decades!

Hitman 2!

OnRush!

Resident Evil 2 Demo!

Resident Evil 2 Board Game!

Soulja Boy’s Consoles!

Catherine!

Alien: Blackout!

Bungie Splits From Activision!

It’s time to go through the ten best games of the year (according to NGB’s writers and editors)!

10 – GUACAMELEE! 2

Guacamelee 2 is an incredible Metroidvania with an excellent soundtrack and a wonderful art style. It’s one that picks up right where the last one left off, and it doesn’t let up in terms of the humour, action or Mexicana. As someone who doesn’t normally “get” Metroidvanias, this is a fantastic game that kept me on the hook from start to finish.

Andy: Ayayay! The original Guacamelee was a fun Mexican tinged Metroid-vania with a wicked sense of humour and, while ostensibly more of the same, Guacamelee 2 is the perfect continuation.

9 – Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Andy: Still a relatively new title but, without a doubt, an incredibly deep and generous fighter with loads to enjoy. Maybe it’s not everyone’s bag, and that’s cool, but it is simply the cherry on top of what has been an excellent year for gaming.

Charles: I haven’t felt the hype for a game in a while but this smashed it. Not only did the release fill me with excitement but now that it is here, every time I have to turn it off I am sad. It’s like resetting a timer that I watch every second tick away from until I can play again. It is also so refreshing to have a game that doesn’t insight “pay to win” tactics. You play to unlock characters. The way it should be. I may be sliding into the realms of being a retro generation when it comes to games now, but Smash ticks every box on my nostalgic heart whilst adding enough new criteria for me to stay interested.

8 – HITMAN 2

Hitman 2 is, for all intents and purposes, Season 2 of one of the best games of 2016. An incredible set of levels, culminating in quite simply the best mission environment that has ever been included in a Hitman title. A wonderfully silly sense of humour permeates the game, with a few glorious easter eggs, and a deadpan delivery of Agent 47’s lines in the most ludicrous of situations. It also allows you to import all of the original game’s content so you can experience everything all over again with *sharp intake of breath* working mirrors! Simply put, this is one of the best games of the year and you’re doing yourself a disservice if you miss out on it.

7 – Yoku’s Island Express

Yoku’s Island Express is a solid little title that mixes up pinball with platforming to great effect. Playing as the titular bug while shifting around a huge ball, the way in which the platforming is achieved is kept fresh throughout with a series of evolving mechanics and increasingly zippy pinballing. Brilliant stuff.

Deb: Yoku’s Island Express is one of the most charming and delightful games I have played this year! I knew it would be my type of game but I underestimated just how much I would love it, I am still head over heals for it! Following a small bug with a big heart it was one monumental adventure. An amazing experience from beginning to end, I could not wait to share it with everyone and was all I was talking about for weeks. I couldn’t help myself in recommending it to anyone I knew who loved games. The music is infectious and uplifting and the hand painted character and world design is absolutely adorable. It is unique, quirky and ingenious and I advise everyone to add this to their collection!

Andy: A sweet little Metroid-vania with some Sonic Spinball influences, Yoku’s Island Express is an absolute delight.

6 – TETRIS EFFECT

If you’d told me at the start of the year that a new Tetris game would be on our Game of the Year list, I’d have been checking your calendar and making sure that everything was OK at home. But here we are. After its initial unveil at E3, I was captivated. A game from Mizaguchi, the architect of Rez,

Today’s GOTY content comes in the form of a discussion between Ben, Gari, Jonny and Andy talking about the games that didn’t *quite* make our list – so if you hear it today then it’s sadly not going to be on the top ten!

If you’re enjoying our content, let us know, drop us a comment below and see if your favourite gets on our top ten list tomorrow!

Our GOTY content continues, with discussions on the Best Soundtrack, our Best Surprise, the Best VR game and our Most Anticipated title for 2019!

BEST SOUNDTRACK

This one was split two ways, with Gari opting for Spider-Man’s orchestral bombast – saying: The soundtrack for Spider-Man really is one to behold. From the epic opening orchestral score to music that feels like a mixture of The Amazing Spider-Man theme mixed in with other entries from the Marvel universe, the score really hits you in the feels. Alongside the score changing and adjusting depending on what’s happening in the world, it really pulls you in to make you feel like you’re part of the world that you’re controlling. A score that will stick with me for a very long time and for it to beat God of War for my “Best Soundtrack”, that says it all about how incredible this made me feel being a huge Spider-Man fan since a very young age.

However, taking home the title to join it’s other win in the best looking game category, the winner is…

WINNER: RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2

Red Dead’s soundtrack is a wonderful blend of jangling western guitars, subtle acoustic lilts and outright furious tones at times, with a fantastic score underpinned by a collated OST that adds to some of the most incredible moments of the game. “May I Stand Unshaken” and “That’s the Way It Is” hold their heads way above anything in most other games this year thanks to some emotionally powerful scenes that stick in your mind well past the closing credits.

Robin: The sound design as a whole is thoroughly impressive throughout RDR2. The music, speech and sound effects all combine seamlessly to add to the depth and atmosphere of what is one of the most impressive achievements in gaming in recent memory. RDR2 is a real living, breathing world, and one where its excitement and emotion is heightened by the authentic, evocative soundtrack.

BEST SURPRISE

Some tough choices this time out, with a number of games taking a spot on the list – but there was one winner that edged out all the others…

Robin: Being a huge fan of couch co-op games – a genre which has sadly been an a steep decline over the last few years – A Way Out was a breath of fresh air. Ok, it may not have the most original storyline, or boast any particularly impressive gameplay innovations, but the title was built from the ground-up to be a shared experience and in that regard it succeeds immensely. Culminating in a twist ending that you will either love or hate, this is a real friendship maker and/or breaker.

Gari: I loved the Spyro trilogy as a kid and although I had a feeling that it would get remastered at some point, I did not expect developer Toys for Bob to do such a stellar job. built from the ground up, the work and craftsmanship put into the game are evident from the moment you start playing. Tighter controls, beautiful animations and to top it off, it’s a stunner to look at. With 3 games included, there’s enough content to keep you happy. With a game that both adults and kids will love, you can’t go wrong with the Spyro Reignited Trilogy if you’re after that retro style 3D platformer with a modern lick of paint.

Jonny: Metal Gear Survive was something that should have been the original Fallout 76, in terms of hanging survival mechanics on an existing IP just to plug a release schedule gap, in fact turned out to be perfectly enjoyable and enjoyably silly.

WINNER: TETRIS EFFECT

If you’d told me that a new Tetris game would feature in my top ten games of the year list way back in January, I’d have told you to get lost. However, Tetris Effect was unveiled at E3 and a part of my tiny little mind began to melt. A wonderful game from Mizaguchi and his team, Tetris Effect reinvents what it means to drop blocks into holes,