Today’s special episode takes The Besties into a new direction. With newer releases being put on hold, the gang is looking back at what was the best year for video games ever. Each present cases for why the year stood out and examine all the variables. Listeners can get in on the action by heading over to https://twitter.com/thebestiespod and cast their vote to help pick a winner!

What Was the Best Year for Video Games Ever?

It's Game of the Year meets King of the Hill as four of Earth's best friends – Griffin McElroy, Justin McElroy, Chris Plante, and Russ Frushtick – rank and review their favorite video games. Because shouldn't the world's best friends pick the world's best games?

Video Games

Games & Hobbies

Leisure

Special guest Lucy James (GameSpot, Giant Bomb, Frames Per Second Podcast) joins Frushtick and Plante to discuss Another Crab’s Treasure. Have you ever wondered what it would have looked like had Rare made a Souls-like in the early ‘00s? Now you have an answer! Plus, the crew shares updates on other games they’ve been playing, from Stellar Blade to TopSpin 2K25.

A Souls-like for Fans of N64-era Mascot Games

Duck and cover! This week, The Besties discuss the first two episodes of the excellent Fallout TV series. Then, they talk through the ways the Fallout approach could alter the trajectory of video game adaptations. Plus: a bunch of great listener recommendations!

Falling in to the Fallout TV Show

This week, The Besties share their favorite “rainy day” games!  These are the games we dig out when we’re feeling blue and need something that provides a quick dose of comfort. Turns out our list is quite long! In the back half, we do the rare Besties spoilercast with Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth — a.k.a. one of 2024’s best games.

Chicken Soup for the Gamers' Soul

This week we've got a game inspired by the SNES era and a game that probably shouldn't have come out at all. We'll also find out just what Justin thinks about Dragon's Dogma 2, and what's going on with the Stardew Valley 1.6 update.

Pepper Grinder and Princess Peach, Together at Last

Dragon’s Dogma 2 is the best game of the year? Or is it the buggiest? It might be the most divisive! This week, The Besties talk about the wildly ambitious (and difficult to run on most hardware) fantasy RPG from Capcom. Plus, we take a deep dive into the reader mail pool. Did we mention we keep all the letters in a pool, Scrooge McDuck-style? Because we do.

What Was the Best Year for Video Games Ever?

Download our free app to listen on your phone