The Besties — Best Game Bracket: 2025 Edition, Part 1

Podcast: The Besties
Hosts: Chris Plante, Griffin McElroy, Justin McElroy, Russ Frushtick
Date: December 19, 2025

Episode Overview

The Besties return for their annual Game of the Year tournament, setting up an epic bracket of 2025’s best (and late 2024’s) video games. With their signature mix of humor, sincerity, and deep game knowledge, Griffin, Justin, Chris, and Russ pit their favorites against each other, break down what makes these games special, and debate which ones deserve a spot in the next round. The episode sets up the “Elite Eight” through themed matchups—story, action, PlayStation Worlds, platformers, stress/no-stress, and more—while exploring what made these games memorable, innovative, or just plain fun.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Podcast Banter, Award Show Nostalgia & Game Awards Highlights (00:00–13:36)

• The show opens with the classic Besties banter about bizarre award-giving dreams ("bronzed versions of ourselves") and a riff about ‘The Bronze’ from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (00:00–02:40).
• They reminisce about past Game of the Year (GoTY) awards and joke about merch fulfillment failures.
• The group discusses their reactions to this year’s Game Awards:
  • Chris is hyped for Ace Combat 7 (“Can we give it a story that people care about?… ready for Ace Combat 7” – Chris, 06:37)
  • Justin can’t wait for Gang of Dragon, a Yakuza-like brawler starring Don Lee (07:19–08:03).
  • Order of King’s Clash Mobile Fury (“Clash Puzzle Melee. This is called 1000 Puzzles. 1000 Puzzles. 10 years in the making. No one gives a shit.” – Justin, 08:57)
  • Divinity and KOTOR returns are hot topics, but most agree KOTOR is unlikely to release soon (10:07–10:20).
  • Free Shepherd, a dog-sheep-herding sim, gets a spotlight for its wholesome setup (11:05–11:16).
  • Zany press events: Lenny Kravitz's awkward video game acting as a Bond villain leaves them in stitches (“Like James Bond, you are a cancer. But like any cancer, you can be stopped” – recounted by Chris, 13:19).
• The group quips about celebrity game promo appearances: “My kryptonite is seeing celebrities come out at the VGAs that… were told by their agent an hour before… but when they try, that’s what hurts!” – Justin, 15:15

2. Setting Bracket Rules & Accessibility Caveats (16:05–19:15)

• Blueprints is deferred to the 2026 bracket due to unfinished accessibility options, especially colorblind settings. Russ expresses disappointment: “I intentionally didn’t play it because I thought it would be kind of a miserable experience for me” (17:20).
• The hosts emphasize the bracket is based on taste, not objectivity ("It is trying to be our game of the year, based on our conversations throughout the year." – Chris, 18:51). If a critically acclaimed game didn’t make the bracket, it likely didn’t click with the crew.

3. Bracket Showdowns – Themed Matchups

Story Selection: Expedition 33 vs. Dispatch (19:13–38:38)

Dispatch:

• Interactive fiction/“cinema” game about a washed-up superhero inheriting the family business (superhero insurance/dispatching Z-list ex-villains).
• “Best example of interactive fiction in game form.” – Justin, 20:00
• Balances humor with heart, akin to The Boys meets Parks & Rec (21:30–23:08). Episode five’s bar fight sequence is especially funny (“pound for pound the funniest kind of like 10 minutes of video game that’s maybe ever been made.” – Griffin, 23:40).

Expedition 33:

• French JRPG-influenced game about mortality, art, and grief. “You are in [the action]… from the drop, is like, here is this compelling high stakes issue.” – Chris, 26:08
• Stunning art, tight reflex-based combat, unique characters, divisive but memorable third act.
• Some found its many systems overwhelming or repetitive, others praised its ambition ("I’m going to be thinking about the game for a long time." – Griffin, 27:36).

Outcome: Expedition 33 narrowly advances.

Action: Absolum vs. Hades 2 (38:47–54:02)

Absolum:

• Innovative, roguelike-infused beat ‘em up with deep co-op play. “The best beat em up gameplay… ever made.” – Griffin, 41:17
• Progression and synergy systems echo Hades, with wild character builds and replay value. “Best co op game I played all year, like bar none.” – Russ, 41:17

Hades 2:

• Sequel to the genre-defining first game, starring witch Melinoë fighting Kronos.
• “Doesn’t feel as special as the first, but is even better mechanically.” – Russ, 45:26
• Some felt familiarity dulled its impact; still highly addictive and polished.

Outcome: After passionate debate, the crew votes for Absolum for its innovation and freshness, despite Justin’s strong support for Hades 2:
"It's obviously Hades 2. Guys, please do not let your innovation ruin this for you!” – Justin, 53:46

PlayStation Worlds: Death Stranding 2 vs. Ghost of Yotei (54:10–65:18)

Ghost of Yotei:

• A vengeful, stylish open world samurai tale, refining and evolving its predecessor (Ghost of Tsushima).
  “You know the list. You have a list of people that you’re going to kill because of what they did to your family.” – Justin, 55:33
• Character depth, tactile mechanics, and immersive minigames praised.

Death Stranding 2:

• Hideo Kojima’s polarizing “walking” sim sequel, now more generous, less frustrating, and deeply rewarding.
  “It is constant in a way that made me finally, like, I hated Death Stranding One…I was running back packages that I found so I could finish up, you know, leveling up this one connection.” – Griffin, 62:39
• Emphasis on player creativity, improved tools, and open-endedness.

Outcome: Death Stranding 2 moves forward.

Platformers Reimagined: Baby Steps vs. Donkey Kong Bonanza (65:18–76:16)

Baby Steps:

• Bennett Foddy’s open-world “walking simulator” where each leg is controlled independently—a metaphor on self-reliance, accepting help, and failure.
  “The intentionality that you’re taking in every single thing you do is incredibly satisfying to me.” – Russ, 66:49
• Punches above its weight by exploring self-loathing, isolation, and the challenge meta in player behavior.

Donkey Kong Bonanza:

• Open-world platformer where you can smash the world, co-op chaos, and collectible hunts—“only Nintendo could give you this much freedom.”
  “You mean I can smash everything? I genuinely felt that thrill of like, something new.” – Justin, 73:25

Outcome: Baby Steps advances unanimously, praised for its unique Mario-style party game moments and emotional depth:
“I can’t stop thinking about Baby Steps. And I did have a very unique experience playing it with Justin and Travis sharing the controls.” – Griffin, 75:39

Stress vs. No Stress: Silksong vs. Wander Stop (78:43–84:46)

• Wander Stop, a meditative tea-shop game about rest, is lauded for its novel approach to progression and relaxation.
  • “It is telling a story about enjoyment for enjoyment’s sake, rest for rest’s sake. And I think that’s really, really unique.” – Griffin, 81:20
• Hollow Knight: Silksong moves on as a unanimous favorite.

Stories, Part 2: Blippo+ vs. Citizen Sleeper 2 (84:53–94:43)

• Blippo+ is a playable multimedia art project, “a TV station from an alien planet.” (Justin, 85:33–87:32) “It’s not a video game. I don’t even mean that as a slight.” – Justin, 88:19
• Citizen Sleeper 2 builds on its predecessor’s survival-RPG structure—stronger tuning, better sense of place, but still sometimes overwhelming in systems.

Outcome: In a surprise, the eclectic Blippo+ progresses—“Blippo plus is—I mean it’s better than Blippo in basically every way.” (Justin, 94:15)

Game From This Year vs. Last Year: Avowed vs. Indiana Jones (94:47–101:37)

• Indiana Jones: “On the theme park ride van Indiana Jones you’ve always wanted because it doesn’t give you back pain…” – Chris, 95:14
  • Notable for first-person approach, visuals (“Having light pour through the fabric into the windows of a Vatican office looks stunning.” – Chris, 97:15), and satisfying melee combat.
• Avowed: Strong side quests, creative fantasy, potent (if heavy-handed) COVID anxieties, but “never quite congeals."

Outcome: Indiana Jones moves on.

Surprise Hits: The Root Trees Are Dead vs. Sectori (101:43–109:58)

• The Root Trees Are Dead: Obra Dinn/Her Story–inspired investigative journalism in a fictional candy dynasty. A game about “finding the tiny detail and digging deep on that” – Chris, 105:00.
• Sectori: The new Geometry Wars, now with seven distinct modes and a full campaign. “I'll never uninstall this from my Rog Isla X.” – Griffin, 107:59

Outcome: Sectori advances.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On recency bias and judging games:
  “There's also a recency thing that is truly tough to weigh because I beat Expedition 33 back in like April or something. And I finished Dispatch over like a breathless four day period a couple weeks ago. So it's still kind of super fresh in my mind.” – Griffin, 35:11

• On Death Stranding 2’s mood shift:
  “Either he let someone else work on it or he experienced his own Hallmark Christmas movie where he finally found love in his heart.” – Justin, 64:25

• On Baby Steps as art:
  “A lot of games aren't art. And I think Baby Steps actually might be so bold.” – Justin, 70:28

• On Donkey Kong Bonanza’s destruction:
  “Whoooa, you're gonna let me do this? The whole game. Like, it. Like, it seemed that. Like, whoa, that doesn't seem fair.” – Justin, 73:25

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Game Awards & Announcements: 05:11–13:45
• Accessibility, Rules, Caveats: 16:05–19:15
• Expedition 33 vs. Dispatch: 19:13–38:38
• Absolum vs. Hades 2: 38:47–54:02
• Death Stranding 2 vs. Ghost of Yotei: 54:10–65:18
• Baby Steps vs. Donkey Kong Bonanza: 65:18–76:16
• Silksong vs. Wander Stop: 78:43–84:46
• Blippo+ vs. Citizen Sleeper 2: 84:53–94:43
• Avowed vs. Indiana Jones: 94:47–101:37
• The Root Trees Are Dead vs. Sectori: 101:43–109:58
• Elite Eight Announced: 110:07

The 2025 Besties Bracket—Elite Eight

1. Expedition 33
2. Absolum
3. Death Stranding 2
4. Baby Steps
5. Silksong
6. Blippo+
7. Indiana Jones
8. Sectori

Stay tuned for Part 2, where the Besties fight it out for 2025’s Best Game. As always, “shouldn’t the world’s best friends pick the world’s best games?”