These Games Will Win at The Game Awards – Maybe!

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Besties – “These Games Will Win at The Game Awards – Maybe!”

Release Date: December 6, 2024
Hosts: Chris Plante, Griffin McElroy, Justin McElroy, Russ Frushtick
Episode Title: These Games Will Win at The Game Awards – Maybe!

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1. Introduction to the Episode

In this episode of The Besties, Griffin McElroy and Russ Frushtick delve into predictions for the upcoming Game Awards. With both hosts present—Justin McElroy and Chris Plante absent due to other commitments—the discussion centers around forecasting which games will clinch various categories at the awards show scheduled for December 12th.

Russ Frushtick (05:16):
"We're going to be talking about the Game Awards. We're going to be talking about who's going to win all the different nominees, who's not going to win by as a result of that and what are some of the big announcer renos we are expecting to come down the pipeline."

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2. The Game Award Trophy Debate

Griffin and Russ kick off their conversation by scrutinizing the physical Game Award trophy. Griffin expresses his dissatisfaction with its design, deeming it nonsensical despite its aesthetic appeal.

Griffin McElroy (00:13):
"Yeah, sure. Here's my first sort of thought. It doesn't make any fucking sense."

Russ Frushtick (00:19):
"What do you mean? It's like a flying lady."

They humorously debate alternative trophy ideas, contemplating symbols more resonant with gaming culture, such as the Triforce from The Legend of Zelda.

Griffin McElroy (01:21):
"Wouldn't that be cool?"

---

3. Navigating the Game Awards Categories

Griffin takes on the challenge of reading aloud every award category, highlighting the extensive range from "Best Esports Team" to "Game of the Year." Both hosts acknowledge the diversity and number of categories, noting that while some may not resonate with them personally, the breadth caters to a wide array of gaming interests.

Griffin McElroy (05:56):
"How many categories could there be?"

Russ Frushtick (06:50):
"It is a buffet of video game award giving."

---

4. Category-Specific Predictions

a. Best Esports Team

With limited familiarity, Russ humorously bases his prediction on the team names rather than performance metrics.

Griffin McElroy (07:16):
"But yeah, like, you know, the triforce."

Russ Frushtick (08:01):
"I think techno gamers is going to take it just because of the Z."

b. Most Anticipated Game

Griffin confidently predicts Grand Theft Auto 6 to win, citing its high anticipation levels.

Griffin McElroy (10:09):
"Number one being Grand Theft Auto 6. Yeah. So that's the one that's going to win this award because it's Grand Theft Auto 6."

c. Best Multiplayer

The conversation shifts to popular multiplayer titles, with Helldivers 2 emerging as a strong contender due to its widespread appeal.

Russ Frushtick (11:27):
"I think it's gonna go to Helldivers 2. Cause I think everyone voting at least had a moment where they experienced it."

d. Best Family Game

Griffin and Russ discuss games suitable for families, highlighting Echoes of Wisdom as a favorite, especially among younger players.

Russ Frushtick (15:00):
"I have a quick cherry update. Seaside Drive got that cherry just barely."

e. Best RPG

The hosts narrow down their choices to Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Elden Ring, ultimately leaning towards the former due to its expansive narrative.

Griffin McElroy (17:41):
"I think Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is going to win the game award for best rpg."

f. Game of the Year

After evaluating several nominees, Griffin asserts that Astrobot is the frontrunner for Game of the Year, considering its design and player reception.

Griffin McElroy (35:02):
"I think Astrobot's gonna win it."

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5. Reflections on Previous Game Awards

Griffin and Russ reflect on past Game Awards winners, noting trends and the unpredictability of outcomes. They review winners from previous years, such as Baldur’s Gate 3 in the last year and Elden Ring in 2019, to contextualize their current predictions.

Griffin McElroy (36:07):
"Last year it was Baldur's Gate 3. [...] 2018, God of War, 2017, Breath of the Wild."

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6. Sponsorship Segment: Aura Frames

A brief interlude features a sponsorship message from Aura Frames, highlighting their digital picture frames as ideal holiday gifts. The hosts commend the product's ease of use and aesthetic appeal.

Sponsor Message (05:16 - 05:25):
"With Squarespace, go to squarespace.com for a free trial. And when you're ready to Launch, go to squarespace.com/besties to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain."

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7. Personal Experiences at The Game Awards

Russ shares his firsthand experience attending the Game Awards, discussing the event's structure, timing, and overall atmosphere. He advises potential attendees to eat beforehand due to the event's long duration and limited food options.

Russ Frushtick (38:17):
"There's very, very little sustenance in that theater."

Griffin reminisces about live-blogging the event, recounting moments like enjoying fast food during the broadcasts.

Griffin McElroy (42:58):
"I remember there was one year Justin was visiting Austin and we live blogged it together from his Airbnb that he was staying in."

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8. Listener Mail Discussion

The hosts address listener questions and comments, including a discussion about cherry updates in games like UFO 50. Russ advises on the technical aspects of playing retro handheld games and shares his preference for seamless gaming experiences.

Griffin McElroy (52:19):
"Question. Some of the games included in UFO 50 have slowdown even on the better Linux based devices."

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9. Honorable Mentions

Griffin and Russ highlight additional games they've been enjoying or have on their radar, such as the GTA trilogy remaster and the Dragon Quest 3 HD 2D remake. They also discuss upcoming challenges like earning cherries in certain games.

Griffin McElroy (55:06):
"I enjoy Astrobot... I enjoy, like, the design of it and the tone of it and how lighthearted and clever it is."

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10. Conclusion and Tease for Next Episode

Wrapping up the episode, Russ and Griffin express gratitude to their Patreon supporters and tease the next episode, which will feature the return of all four hosts—Chris and Justin joining in—to battle out their Game of the Year picks.

Griffin McElroy (59:07):
"So join us next week for the besties because shouldn't the world, World's best friends pick the world's best games."

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Griffin McElroy (00:13):
  "It doesn't make any fucking sense."

• Russ Frushtick (06:50):
  "It is a buffet of video game award giving."

• Griffin McElroy (10:09):
  "Number one being Grand Theft Auto 6. Yeah. So that's the one that's going to win this award because it's Grand Theft Auto 6."

• Russ Frushtick (16:48):
  "Someone for excellence, achievements."

• Griffin McElroy (35:02):
  "I think Astrobot's gonna win it."

• Russ Frushtick (38:17):
  "There's very, very little sustenance in that theater."

• Griffin McElroy (59:07):
  "So join us next week for the besties because shouldn't the world, World's best friends pick the world's best games."

---

Final Thoughts

Griffin McElroy and Russ Frushtick provide an engaging and humorous take on the Game Awards, offering insights and predictions across a wide spectrum of categories. Their camaraderie and deep knowledge of the gaming industry make for a compelling listen, especially for enthusiasts eager to hear informed speculations ahead of the awards ceremony. The episode balances serious predictions with lighthearted banter, ensuring it remains accessible and enjoyable for both regular listeners and newcomers alike.

Transcript

[Griffin McElroy]

Have we talked about the actual game award? Have we talked about the award? The physical, tangible thing you get.

[Russ Frushtick]

I don't think we have and I have strong feelings about it. Do you have an initial thought?

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, sure. Here's my first sort of thought. It doesn't make any fucking sense.

[Russ Frushtick]

What do you mean? It's like a flying lady.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's an angel lady. Done in a sort of like, I don't know, Gatsby esque art deco.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, sure.

[Griffin McElroy]

Sort of minimalist style. One could argue that there is a polygonal sort of thing going on and the angel is flying out of a bunch of pixels. That is the silver statue that we are describing. Apparently it's a Weta Workshop joint. So, like, that's great.

[Russ Frushtick]

Did they need to go to Weta? Really? They're gonna go to the cream of the crop for that guy?

[Griffin McElroy]

It's a great. Don't get me wrong, it's a great statue. It is iconic. It looks amazing. Is it a game award? I don't know.

[Russ Frushtick]

So what do you want? Ideally, like, you want some hands covered in Dorito dust or.

[Griffin McElroy]

What you've just said is reductive to a degree that is offensive to me. But mostly I think our listeners. Which is more offensive to me. Yeah, yeah. No, not hands covered in Cheeto dust.

[Russ Frushtick]

But like I said Doritos.

[Griffin McElroy]

But yeah, like, you know, the triforce.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh, you want the triforce?

[Griffin McElroy]

Wouldn't that be cool?

[Russ Frushtick]

You get the triforce and you fucking hold it up. Like link holds it up.

[Griffin McElroy]

What if it's a sword? What if the Game award is a sword?

[Russ Frushtick]

Wait, it's one sword or everyone gets their own sword.

[Griffin McElroy]

What if it's a ribbon? What if we do ribbons or plaques for this one? You know, it doesn't always have to be a big trophy. How cool would it be if. And the Academy Award for Best supporting Actor goes to Matthew McConaughey. You get up there and it's a bowl. It's like a little an orb. You get a spear.

[Russ Frushtick]

No, here's the thing. I like the ribbon idea. Because what's cool about ribbons is they get pinned onto the winner.

[Griffin McElroy]

Cool.

[Russ Frushtick]

So by the end, if you're fucking Matthew McConaughey and you're taking it all in, if you're Elden Ring, you end up looking like a, you know, like.

[Griffin McElroy]

A decorated war hero.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, you're like a general.

[Griffin McElroy]

Oh, why not? War hero badges. What do they call those? Like the purple badge. The purple badge you get when you get hurt. Medals. Yes, medals. There's so many incredible ways to congratulate.

[Russ Frushtick]

Someone for excellence, achievements.

[Griffin McElroy]

That is it, isn't it?

[Russ Frushtick]

We did it.

[Griffin McElroy]

Just a big cutout cardboard of an.

[Russ Frushtick]

Xbox 360 UI prompt and it makes the noise cool.

[Griffin McElroy]

We came full circle back to gamer shit.

[Russ Frushtick]

We did.

[Griffin McElroy]

My name is Griffin McIlroy and I know the games, the best games of the year as according to the game awards happening tomorrow.

[Russ Frushtick]

My name is Ross Ralshikaida. The best game of the week and.

[Griffin McElroy]

This is the besties. You don't need four on a podcast.

[Russ Frushtick]

No.

[Griffin McElroy]

Sometimes you don't even need three. No, I do a podcast, rest with my wife and that's two. And you're not my wife. No matter how bad the Internet wants that to be true. You're not my wife.

[Russ Frushtick]

We made that mistake so many times.

[Griffin McElroy]

You're not my wife. But we are going to do a two hander because both of our boys are out on assignment and the holidays get crazy for everybody. Don't.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

This week we're going to be talking about the game Awards. We're going to be talking about who's going to win all the different nominees, who's not going to win by as a result of that and what are some of the big announcer renos we are expecting to come down the pipeline. There have been so many leaks. Keeley's trying to keep his fingers plugged in all the holes, isn't he? But it keeps on juicing out.

[Russ Frushtick]

He's got some big fingers.

[Griffin McElroy]

He does have big meaty paws. We're going to talk about Geoff Keighley's huge hands and the game award nominees and who we think is going to win right after this short break.

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[Russ Frushtick]

So I think last week when we were talking about this, we implied that the episode would go up the day after the game awards. That's not true. It's actually going up several days before.

[Griffin McElroy]

The game awards are on Saturday, aren't they?

[Russ Frushtick]

No, it's December 12th.

[Griffin McElroy]

Oh, shoot. Okay, well then it's not tomorrow.

[Russ Frushtick]

So we are. This is genuinely going to be a predictive thing and you will be able to follow along to see how right we are after we determine all the award winners. And just to start off with Griffin, if you could do me a favor, if you could read every category as quickly as possible, that'd be great.

[Griffin McElroy]

You want me to read every category of award?

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, it's one award show. How many categories could there be?

[Griffin McElroy]

Oh, I'm so glad you asked for this fucking four hour long award show. We've got player's voice, a strong start. Player's Voice. Best Esports team, Best Esports Athlete, Best Esports Game Content creator of the year. Most anticipated game, Best Multiplayer Best Sports Racing, Best Sim Strategy, Best Family game, Best Fighting game, Best RPG Best Action Adventure game, Best Action game Best VR Arkansas Game, Best Mobile game, Best Debut Indie Best Indie Best Community Support Best Ongoing game, Best Games for Impact, Innovation and Accessibility Best Performance Best Audio Design Best score in Music, Best Art Direction Best Narrative Best Adaptation, Best game direction, Best game of the year. It's probably not best game of the year, is it?

[Russ Frushtick]

It is actually.

[Griffin McElroy]

Someone went a little bit best crazy there. That's all of them though.

[Russ Frushtick]

You might be right. That is all of them. And people give the game awards a lot of shit for being just like a bunch of trailers. But that is a lot of awards too.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's not the problem isn't that there's a lot of trailers. I love trailers.

[Russ Frushtick]

Me too.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's that there's a lot of everything, isn't there?

[Russ Frushtick]

There's a lot of everything involved. It is a buffet of video game award giving.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. And a lot of this stuff I don't care about. And that's fine. Like it's not all have to be catered to me. But I mean if you want to start at the bottom and go up.

[Russ Frushtick]

No, no, no, no.

[Griffin McElroy]

You want to start at the top.

[Russ Frushtick]

The bottom is the juicy stuff.

[Griffin McElroy]

We gotta save that.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, yeah, we gotta save the juicy stuff.

[Griffin McElroy]

But like, Russ, I'll be honest with you. I have, I think at this point, 17 years experience in the games industry covering it in various, various ways. I don't even know how to begin deliberating if the best esports team is gonna be Bilibili Gaming or Navi or Team Liquid. Team Liquid's the one I recognize. I also recognize T1, so it could be one of those two. Do you have any thoughts?

[Russ Frushtick]

Well, we should be very clear. For one thing, these are not because I don't want to spoil the besties game of the year. So what we're saying here is not what our picks are for each of these categories.

[Griffin McElroy]

No.

[Russ Frushtick]

So when we do the besties game of the year, specifically for best esports team, it might not be Bilibili Gaming.

[Griffin McElroy]

No.

[Russ Frushtick]

So, like, just. Just to have that upfront, which is to say best esports team, I'm gonna have to go by funniest name, which is Bilibili Gaming, I think.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. I don't even know if we're pronouncing that right. It's entirely possible. We are not.

[Russ Frushtick]

It's spelled that way.

[Griffin McElroy]

Can I just. Maybe we should skip some of the ones that we aren't gonna be able to say anything about. Content Creator of the year. Again, no one I know got the nom. Wait, wait, wait, wait.

[Russ Frushtick]

Let's see, let's see. Cause again, we could. Okay, so we have Queso Ill won. Techno gamers with a Z. Typical gamer. And Usada Pekora.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, I don't. Apologies. This is not a read on any of these people. I don't follow anything. So I don't know.

[Russ Frushtick]

I like the Z and techno gamers. That's my immediate thought.

[Griffin McElroy]

I do like the Z in techno gamers.

[Russ Frushtick]

So I think techno gamers is going to take it just because of the Z.

[Griffin McElroy]

Let's do most anticipated game. This is the one that maybe we can apply some level of logic. Two, we've got Death Stranding. Two on the Beach. Ghost of Yote. We've got Grand Theft Auto 6. We've got Metroid Prime 4 Beyond, and we got Monster Hunter Wild.

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay, this is probably the funniest category of all of them because as we all know, Geoff Keighley has a buddy, he has a pal. He has a compatriot in arms.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. Oh, you're saying that there's no way Keeley can. Well, first of all, there's a jury. I think who decides the award winners? It's not just Kilo himself.

[Russ Frushtick]

No, no, I know, I know.

[Griffin McElroy]

But I do love the conspiracy. Theorizing that this one's not even a conspiracy.

[Russ Frushtick]

I'm just saying, you know, I don't know.

[Griffin McElroy]

He's there like Kojima.

[Russ Frushtick]

And if you were to look at best most anticipated games of years past, I'm sure there's been some Kojima shit in there. And I would say like I am excited for that game. It's probably number two on this list of most anticipateds for me.

[Griffin McElroy]

Number one being Grand Theft Auto 6. Yeah. So that's the one that's going to win this award because it's Grand Theft Auto 6. The only reason I think that is because it's Grand Theft Auto 6.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Is the only reason why.

[Russ Frushtick]

I mean it is not coming out in 2025.

[Griffin McElroy]

Not going to come out in 25. No. But it is anticipating. We are anticipating it should win.

[Russ Frushtick]

Although if there's. If it's okay. If it's Death Stranding though, we're all going to look a little side eye a little bit, right?

[Griffin McElroy]

Well, especially if it is followed by him coming on stage and debuting a trailer for exclusive trailer for Death Stranding 2 on the beach. I would love. I would love a new Kojima trailer.

[Russ Frushtick]

We're due for one.

[Griffin McElroy]

We are due. I mean it was this time last year that we got. I feel like a glut of them last VGA's. Isn't that when he announced the project with Jordan Peele?

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, the like OT or whatever that was called. The PT follow up. Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Let me see some of that. Let me get some of that, please.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, that'd be great.

[Griffin McElroy]

Multiplayer Call of Duty Black Ops 6, Helldivers 2, Super Mario Party Jamboree, Tekken 8, Warhammer 40,000, Space Marine 2. A wild list.

[Russ Frushtick]

It's maybe the most diverse list in the bunch.

[Griffin McElroy]

Thinking about it, I did not play a lot of multiplayer this year. The stuff I got into was like Sea of Thieves. That game is very old and not a ton of people play it. I was swept up in the Helldivers 2 zeitgeist for a couple weeks there, for a few weeks there. But I did not pick up the new Call of Duty.

[Russ Frushtick]

Great campaign. But I did not play the multiplayer. I think it's gonna go to Helldivers 2. Cause I think everyone voting at least had a moment where they experienced it.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, it is definitely the most. It is the most zeitgeisty of all of these. I would say. And it is the one that I think people are the most sort of familiar with. I also don't know if Helldivers 2 is going to thrive in any other categories.

[Russ Frushtick]

Probably not.

[Griffin McElroy]

So this would probably be.

[Russ Frushtick]

I don't even know if it shows up in any other categories.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think it does. We'll see, though. Best sports, slash racing. We're not going to be able to F1 24. EA Sports. FC 25. I don't even know what sport that is.

[Russ Frushtick]

FC is probably football club. Ball club.

[Griffin McElroy]

EA Sports. Football club.

[Russ Frushtick]

Which football, though?

[Griffin McElroy]

Probably. I mean, I don't know. They don't call American football teams football team.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think it's FIFA. I think it. What used to be FIFA is now FC25.

[Griffin McElroy]

Okay, I'm sure.

[Russ Frushtick]

And you listen to this podcast for our video game expertise. And now we just don't even know what the names of the game.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, there's. Yeah, there's the. I do love. There's a new expansion team in the NHL. It's in Salt Lake City, and it's the Utah Hockey Club, which I do. I like the simplicity.

[Russ Frushtick]

Are they gonna stick with that?

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, man. That's the.

[Russ Frushtick]

That's great.

[Griffin McElroy]

That's the name. NBA 2K25, Topspin 2K25. WWE 2K25.

[Russ Frushtick]

Now Topspin 2K25 did have that new backsp system for when you're, like, doing like a really powerful backspin shot. And I think that alone might take it.

[Griffin McElroy]

Agreed, Russ. Some of the greatest advancements in backspin technology. Also a recognition of what a landmark year it's been in the sport of tennis. Big names stepping down. Big names stepping up. We got challengers, which was so horny and made everyone so horny.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah. Big time.

[Griffin McElroy]

Which I don't actually know if that came out this year.

[Russ Frushtick]

Best. Yeah, I think it did. Spider man was in it. Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Best sim. No, he wasn't. Best sim strategy game. Age of mythology retold. Frostpunk 2 Kunitsugami. Path of the Goddess. I know our own Chris Plant was a big fan of that.

[Russ Frushtick]

He loved that game.

[Griffin McElroy]

Manor Lords and Unicorn Overlord. I played Unicorn Overlord.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, we played that for Abesties.

[Griffin McElroy]

I've heard great things about Manor Lords. I know that our sort of merch lead. McKay got into Manor Lords of Memory Serves. I don't know. We're pretty far outside of our. I would say we don't have, like, a big strategy fan in the show.

[Russ Frushtick]

No, we don't.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's usually one of the genres we have to reach outside the show to get somebody to talk about.

[Russ Frushtick]

I mean, I like. I mean, you know, if Matterlords gets the nod from the only person that seemingly cares about strategy games, I mean, it looks like it's not gonna go to Kunitsugami. Cause that game is too friggin weird. I played it, it was weird as hell.

[Griffin McElroy]

It might go to, I mean, Unicorn Overlord.

[Russ Frushtick]

Beloved by people who love those games.

[Griffin McElroy]

Beloved by people who love those games. And I don't know if Vanillaware has like a winning track record in the VGAs.

[Russ Frushtick]

So you think people are gonna look back and be like they're due maybe.

[Griffin McElroy]

But Frostpunk was such a big groundbreaking. It was like a big strategy game when that dropped. And I feel like I didn't hear as much about Frostpunk too. But again, I don't work for Polygon anymore. And so my exposure to the day to day fucking heartbeat of this industry is so disconnecting.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think it's fair to say we should just skip this category because we.

[Griffin McElroy]

Skip it on over to best family game. We have families. We are a family. Best family game. Astrobot Princess Peach Showtime Super Mario Party Jamboree. The Legend of Echoes of Wisdom or the Plucky Squire.

[Russ Frushtick]

Now I will say that my son fucking loves Echoes of Wisdom because you can summon like 16 crows.

[Griffin McElroy]

Henry finished it. Henry finished that shit. Henry cut his teeth on that game. I was so proud of him. He really stuck with it even though it was quite, quite difficult at times.

[Russ Frushtick]

Did Henry play Astrobot? I think the Astrobot and Echoes of Wisdom are like the two that have the best shot.

[Griffin McElroy]

Absolutely. Of these five, he has not played Astrobot. He has asked about it. But Daddy's PlayStation 5 is on the third floor.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

And he doesn't the no go floor.

[Russ Frushtick]

In Beauty and the Beast when he's not allowed to go to that wing.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. Daddy's encased rose. Magic Rose is in his office. I have been going back and playing Astrobot. We have started the process of kind of like sharing our own personal like top tens to each other. Not anything set in stone, but just so we know that with Henry. No. Me and you and Chris Justin have started sharing our top tens with each other so that we know there's no big gaps in our stuff. If one person loved one game, everybody wants to make sure they've had a chance to play it. So I've been going back and actually playing some more Astrobot and I've been very much enjoying it.

[Russ Frushtick]

That game fucking rolls.

[Griffin McElroy]

I will say this one of these games is nominated for Goatie and one of them is not. And the game that is nominated for Goatie is Astrobot.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, there have been weird moments of, like, split votes, but I think Astrobot is going to take it.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think Astrobot wins it. Yeah.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, I think so too.

[Griffin McElroy]

Best fighting game. Should we just keep on going?

[Russ Frushtick]

I'm looking at this list. Yes, we should keep on going. Wait, Multiverses still exists.

[Griffin McElroy]

Multiversus is still going. Still trekking, still going. It's nominated for a couple things. I think maybe Tekken has a panda. Tekken does have a panda. Best rpg. Now we are fucking talking. We are talking Dragon's Dogma 2, Elden Ring.

[Russ Frushtick]

Maybe the most competitive category in the entire five hot ones.

[Griffin McElroy]

Five hot, hot little guys. Dragon's Dogma 2, Elden Ring, Shadow of the Erdtree, Final Fantasy VII, Rebirth. Like a dragon, infinite wealth, metaphor, refantazio. Three of these are nominated for Goatee. Elden Ring, Shadow, the erdtree, Final Fantasy 7, Rebirth, and Metaphor are all nominated for Goatee. What a fucking banger year it's been for my favorite genre of video games.

[Russ Frushtick]

Crazy.

[Griffin McElroy]

I have been eating so good this year, it's insane.

[Russ Frushtick]

But I also don't really understand the difference between action adventure and where that line gets drawn.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's getting blurrier and blurrier.

[Russ Frushtick]

Very confusing to me. But that's okay.

[Griffin McElroy]

I mean, my. I'm not gonna get into my druthers. We'll get into my druthers when we do our goatie list. I don't think it goes to Dragon's Dogma 2. I don't think it'll go to Infinite wealth as tragic.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh, that's interesting. Why do you not think Infinite Wealth?

[Griffin McElroy]

I think that that series is beloved by many, including myself. But I also think given the sort of like, jury nature of how these things are selected, sure. It is going to go to either probably Elden Ring or Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.

[Russ Frushtick]

Interesting. Yeah. I don't know. I think Elden Ring, with the DLC nature of it all, I think will hinder.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think it goes to Rebirth then. Yeah, just process of elimination. I feel like Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is going to win the game award for best rpg. It does not win that in my heart. Yeah, but you know, that's the way the cookie crumbles.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think that's a good assumption to make.

[Griffin McElroy]

Now, best action adventure game again. Astrobot. Prince of the Lost Crown. Okay. Silent Hill 2. Okay. Star Wars Outlaws and the Legend of Zelda.

[Russ Frushtick]

Echoes of Wisdom now, what is the unifying characteristic of all these games?

[Griffin McElroy]

Nothing. There's fucking. No. You can see there's no unifying between Legend of Zelda, Echoes of Wisdom and Silent Hill 2. There is nothing. There is nothing.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Does Astrobot kind of run. Run the. Run the tables a little bit, do you think?

[Russ Frushtick]

I mean, in this category, I think it fucking cruises. There's some great games in this category.

[Griffin McElroy]

Well, there's again, it's Echoes of Wisdom and Astrobot. Right. Like two games.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think Prince of Persia is up there in terms of quality.

[Griffin McElroy]

I don't know about voting in my book. Absolutely.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

I don't think that it's going to. I don't think it's gonna get up over Astrobotan. Echoes of Wisdom, though.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah. I think Astrobot's gonna take this one.

[Griffin McElroy]

We could be so. Right. We are basing these guesses entirely on how the VGAs have, like, operated in previous years and, like, well, but we.

[Russ Frushtick]

Can also narrow down, like, Outlaws is not taking it. Not a chance. Silent Hill 2, a remake, probably not gonna take it. And Prince of Persia Lost Crown I love, but it. It's not fucking Astrobot or. And it's not a Zelda game.

[Griffin McElroy]

I don't know that the Zelda name is going to be enough to get over. I think Astrobot is a better game than Echoes of Wisdom.

[Russ Frushtick]

Agree.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think Echoes of Wisdom, you know, it's not Breath of the Wild. It's not Tears of the Kingdom. It's not some.

[Russ Frushtick]

I mean, I can tell you it's not in our top. Whatever.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. I don't think any of us sort of had it up in our top 10.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think Astrobot takes it.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Best action game. Black Wukong, Call of Duty, Black Ops 6, Helldivers 2, Stellar Blade, Warhammer 40,000 Space.

[Russ Frushtick]

Stellar Blade. Surprising entry in here. I didn't know that there was a lot of support for Stellar Blade, but.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, I don't think it's going to win it. I think this one maybe is Black Wukong.

[Russ Frushtick]

So there is a very large contingent of Black Wukong folks out there, and we've seen its appearance in a number of different categories. And this is, I think, going to determine a lot about whether it's going to run the table in the categories is how unified that the voting block is for people that love Wukong.

[Griffin McElroy]

Is Wukong in the goatee?

[Russ Frushtick]

Yes.

[Griffin McElroy]

Category it is.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. I think it's going to take this. I don't. I don't think.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think you could Maybe Helldivers too, but I don't. I don't know. I feel like Black has a much larger footprint. Yeah.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think Wukong is. Is going to end up taking that one.

[Griffin McElroy]

Let's go past Best VR AR game.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, I am. Yeah. I haven't played Arkham Shadow yet, but I really, really want to because it got great reviews. Oh, I did Asgard's wrath 2.

[Griffin McElroy]

I love the first. Asgard's Wrath.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

I just haven't played my headset since we did that. Whatever that Dungeons of.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh, yeah, I like that.

[Griffin McElroy]

Whatever game was. I really like that one. But it's not nominated. Best mobile game. This one's interesting. AFK Journey, Balatro, Pokemon Trading Card Game, Pocket, Wuthering Waves and Zenless Zone Zero. Balatro being on here I think is unfair. Unfair. Yeah. I don't think it's fair because Balatro came to mobile, you know, seven months, eight months after it first came out.

[Russ Frushtick]

Sure.

[Griffin McElroy]

And there's. If we're considering all ports, like, I don't know. I think Balacho makes this list because it's a smaller indie game. Right.

[Russ Frushtick]

And so, like, I mean, it's a really fucking good.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's a really good mobile game. Yeah, I guess so.

[Russ Frushtick]

I don't know that we can, like, knock it because it came out on other platforms first necessarily. Like, it came out before the voting happened on mobile.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. I would say it's either Balatro. I think it's almost definitely Balatro. I think Zenless Zone Zero maybe has a chance of squeaking.

[Russ Frushtick]

You don't think Pokemon?

[Griffin McElroy]

I think. No, I don't think Pokemon. I enjoy the Pokemon trading card game, Pocket. I collected them all. I feel good about that. Sure. Yeah.

[Russ Frushtick]

And it's a good thing they're not releasing any more cards. So you'll always have them all.

[Griffin McElroy]

That's it. I might just delete the game now, so I don't pursuing it. I got my rare Chase animated Mew card. I'm not looking to, you know, lose my shirt. Okay. Best debut indie game Animal. Well, Balatro, Manor Lords, Pacific Drive, the Plucky Squire. Okay, so I've seen a lot. Let's talk about Balatro. Balatro's up for a lot of stuff, including Game of the Year. And I feel like this has happened a lot of times where there has been a game that has been nominated for a bunch of stuff, including Game of the Year, an indie game that also is nominated for best indie Game. That is also nominated for best debut indie game. And it gets all of Them.

[Russ Frushtick]

Right.

[Griffin McElroy]

That is the precedent that has been set by the Game Awards.

[Russ Frushtick]

It does happen usually because people just like, oh, I've locked into this pick. So I'm going to pick it every time that category shows up.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yes. What is the. I was reading the polygon sort of guess on some.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh, yeah, we've been doing. Yeah. Oli has been writing a great article series about predicting winners for each of the categories.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. So Cuphead won Independent Game and then one debut as well. So did Disco, Elysium, Bridge of Spirits, and Stray. So, like, this has happened quite a bit. So to hop up to Best Independent Game, because it's somewhat. I mean, it's quite similar.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's Animal well, Balatro, Loreline, the Laser eyes, Nava and UFO 50. So, like, I really think there's a good chance of Balatro just going ham.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, I think so too. As much as I would want to, like, see a split vote here and do, like, debut indie to, like Animal. Well, and Best Indie to Balatro, something like that. Or UFO 50, for that matter, I'd.

[Griffin McElroy]

Love a UFO 50 win, but I don't think it is going to happen. I think Balatro wins Best Independent Game. Definitely.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yes.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think Best Debut Indie Game.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think it's gonna be Balatron.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think it's gonna be Balatro. I would love an Animal Whirlwind.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Okay. Best Community Support.

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay, so the category name is kind of funny. Cause it sounds like we're just like, which community manager was doing the best job. But I think this is just like updating games.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. Which is different from Best Ongoing Game in no way at all.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah. I don't know how. Wait, are the category.

[Griffin McElroy]

These are different categories. I don't get it. I don't know. I don't know why. Why is this show so long? Why does the show have to be so long? It is literally. It is unwatchable in a literal sense. For me. I can't sit and watch a three and a half hour long award show. I simply can't.

[Russ Frushtick]

I mean, here's what I'm gonna say. EPIC gave its community with its support for its community. Godzilla.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. So, yeah, I mean, of these, It's Baldur's Gate 3. I don't know what Baldur's Gate 3 is doing on there.

[Russ Frushtick]

They've been doing free updates basically the whole year.

[Griffin McElroy]

That's cool. But why not in Best Ongoing Game? Okay. Final Fantasy 14. Fortnite. Helldivers 2. No Man's Sky. Yes. Fortnite. I think Best ongoing game. Destiny 2, Diablo 4, Final Fantasy 14, Fortnite Helldivers 2.

[Russ Frushtick]

I wanna. You know, I think I'm gonna take a step back. Here's what I think the difference is. I think community support is free updates constantly updating the game. And I think best ongoing game is the game itself. Is the game fun? That's my personal definition of it. And if that's the definition, I think it's no man's Sky. For best community support and probably Fortnite.

[Griffin McElroy]

For best ongoing game.

[Russ Frushtick]

For best ongoing game. That'd be my.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, I mean, this is the. I feel Destiny 2 has never won this category and has been nominated for it, I think most years.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah. You think it's gonna be like the emeritus?

[Griffin McElroy]

No, I don't. I don't think the VGA's work like that.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, probably.

[Griffin McElroy]

I feel like there's usually not an emeritus chip in. But this was a good year for Destiny 2. At least a good first half of the year. When Final Shape dropped. Yeah.

[Russ Frushtick]

But now they're just taking naps. Bungie's having a. I don't know what's.

[Griffin McElroy]

Going on over there. I feel like sometimes they've got a new game. I get glanced off of the side of like that community and it's like. I see people get angry and I'm like, okay, okay.

[Russ Frushtick]

So much has changed over the years.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think maybe Diab could take it just because a Diablo expansion is such a big fucking deal. But yeah, my guess is either that or Fortnite games for impact. I don't.

[Russ Frushtick]

Not sure what the intent is. So let's go ahead and skip.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, that one's just a guess.

[Russ Frushtick]

Accessibility.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yes.

[Russ Frushtick]

Also, I don't know the list of the accessibility features for all of these games. I know they all included a lot of accessibility features, but I don't feel qualified to determine which was the best.

[Griffin McElroy]

The most accessible. Yeah, that's fair.

[Russ Frushtick]

I'm just glad they all tried.

[Griffin McElroy]

Sure. Best performance. Brianna white. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. Who was that? Who did Brianna White play? Brianna White played Aeris, I believe. Or Aerith, if you will. Hannah tell Life is Strange Double exposure. Humberly Gonzalez for Star Wars Outlaws. Luke Reed of Silent Hill 2, I'm imagining is the lead of that. And Mileena Juergens for sinhua's saga, Hellblade 2.

[Russ Frushtick]

I mean, she was very good of what I played. I didn't like the game at all. But her performance in Hellblade 2 was pretty through the roof. Great.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. Yeah. I think that that is a Game that showcases performance maybe more than any other thing. So I think that that is very likely to.

[Russ Frushtick]

I guess as someone who has played Final Fantasy 7 all the way through, which I haven't. Rebirthed all the way through. Does Aerith, like, bring it at one point?

[Griffin McElroy]

I mean, always.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, she's very good.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's a fantastic performance. And I think that that is a hard role to nail. The kind of, like, etherealness, but also, like, she's got pissed sometimes. What?

[Russ Frushtick]

She gotta get pissed sometimes?

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. Like. Yeah, there's quite a bit of depth there. And I think that that's. I think that she does a great job with it.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

But I don't know. I think CYN was talking. It's like how there's Oscar bait movies.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yes.

[Griffin McElroy]

Like, I feel like this is sort of like that in terms of these type of VGAs.

[Russ Frushtick]

Agree.

[Griffin McElroy]

Best audio design.

[Russ Frushtick]

I am not qualified.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's Astrobot, Call of Duty, Black Ops 6, Final Fantasy 7, Rebirth, Senua Saga, Hellblade 2, or Silent Hill 2. I think Astrobot is fucking gorgeously.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh, that is true.

[Griffin McElroy]

Designed. I also think Silent Hill 2 is a game that is maybe exclusively about audio design and not at all about visual design.

[Russ Frushtick]

But how much of that was majorly different from the audio design that was in the original game?

[Griffin McElroy]

Well, I mean, you gotta think about, like, the audio of the original game was, like, produced on a fucking eight track.

[Russ Frushtick]

I'm sure they had to redo it.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. I mean, I don't. I don't know. I think that the. I think audio design, when one is having to, like, update it over, you know, 20 years of hardware changes, I think that it counts again.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Best score and music. Astrobot. Fucking great. Final Fantasy 7, Rebirth. Also pretty good metaphor. Refantazio.

[Russ Frushtick]

I really like the music in that game.

[Griffin McElroy]

Fucking great. Silent Hill 2 has music too.

[Russ Frushtick]

Scary.

[Griffin McElroy]

Jesus Christ, man. That battle theme of metaphor refantazio slaps pretty hard.

[Russ Frushtick]

It's pretty great.

[Griffin McElroy]

Every level I play in Astrobot, every level I play an Astrobot is like, pretty funky.

[Russ Frushtick]

So good.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's pretty good stuff.

[Russ Frushtick]

And I do think for Rebirth, I think they probably. To correct me if I'm wrong, lean a lot on the score that was introduced in the first.

[Griffin McElroy]

It is very, very, very much so. They do a lot of. It may be Rebirth just in how clever they get with those adaptations sometimes. Like, the main battle theme is not the da da da da da da da da da. It is a. It's like a battle version of the main Final Fantasy 7 theme. It's like a da da da da da.

[Russ Frushtick]

And you're going to be on stage. Correct.

[Griffin McElroy]

And I'll be on stage and I'll be doing that.

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay, cool.

[Griffin McElroy]

So I don't know. Probably Astrobot, I think.

[Russ Frushtick]

Astrobot.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

Best art direction, Astrobot, Black Wukong, Elden Ring, Shadow of the Erdtree, Metaphor. Refantazio or Neva.

[Russ Frushtick]

I mean, Astrobot is my probably art direction.

[Griffin McElroy]

It has a lot of art in it. Although Shadow of the Erdtree.

[Russ Frushtick]

Erdtree is.

[Griffin McElroy]

If it can't get this one. Like, all their games look so fucking sick, man. Yeah, Black Wukong was a very visually striking game, but I don't know if it's of the kind of scale of Astrobot or Elden Ring. So I'd say it's one of those two. Best narrative, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. I fucking hope not. Like a dragon. Infinite Wealth. Yeah, dog.

[Russ Frushtick]

I Love it.

[Griffin McElroy]

Metaphor. Refantazio. Yeah. Senua Saga, Hellblade 2 and Silent Hill 2.

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay, so I think it's down to the top three. Final Fantasy 7, Like a Dragon and Metaphor Man.

[Griffin McElroy]

Is there anyone who liked where the story of Final Fantasy 7 went?

[Russ Frushtick]

I've spoken to a lot of people that are die hard Final Fantasy people, not just Griffin McElroy, and it seems like none of them like the end.

[Griffin McElroy]

Nobody likes it. They're doing too much multiverse bullshit and no one likes that. So I don't. I don't even understand what it's doing here. I. Man, this would be great for like a Dragon. Infinite. Well, to get in there because it has my favorite story.

[Russ Frushtick]

It does have a great story. I am completely enraptured by that story. So that would be my pick for this.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. Best adaptation. Real quick. It's going to be Arcane or Fallout. It's not going to be.

[Russ Frushtick]

I gotta be real. Let's take a second to give some props to Knuckles, which is Knuckles.

[Griffin McElroy]

Great, great fun. A lot of fun. Like a dragon. Yakuza. I haven't watched it yet. Tomb Raider, Legend of Lara Croft. I haven't watched that yet. Arcane. Fallout is one of those two. Fallout was such a big deal. But Arcane.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think it's going to be Fallout. Arcane. People love Arcane. But I think I feel like this season came pretty late in the voting process, like last month or so, and Fallout just dropped a. Sorry, a bomb.

[Griffin McElroy]

Fallout. Yeah. Yikes. Fallout got its hooks in people outside of the usual realm of people who would watch a video game adaptation. I have heard Arcane is excellent. I've watched half the first season and did not finish it. But yeah, I hear it's very season is excellent. Best Game Direction. We're coming down to the final season. This is the dumbest category in best game Direction. Astrobot, Balatro, Black Myth, Wukong, Elden Ring, Shadow of the erdtree, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, or Metaphor Refantazio. It's literally gang. It is literally gang. The same exact nominees as game of the Year. So let's just do both of those, huh?

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay. And what is. I even want to know what is Game Direction.

[Griffin McElroy]

We crank them on this every year.

[Russ Frushtick]

Russ, because we're going to crank them one last. What the fuck do you mean, Jeff? Tell us. Tell us what you mean. It should just be complicated games at that point.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yes.

[Russ Frushtick]

Just based on how big your studio was and how many like HR meetings.

[Griffin McElroy]

You had to have, that's what it should be. We should get a list of like total headcount at each studio and be like, the fact that you all managed to. Balatro, get the fuck out of here. You're like one guy. Come on. Stop it. Yeah, I don't. I don't. Let's get best game of the year. Game of the Year. Astrobot Balatro, Black, Wukong, Elden Ring, Shadow of the erdtree, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Metaphor Refantazio.

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay, let's lose the ones that we think have no shot. I think Erdtree has no shot either.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think Erdtree has no shot either. It is the one that people are most fussy about its inclusion being here.

[Russ Frushtick]

It's a very good game.

[Griffin McElroy]

Balatra would be a big upset, I think.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think so too.

[Griffin McElroy]

I love that it's here. Don't get me wrong. I love that a game like Balatro has been considered for Game of the Year. I think if you look at sheer, like time spent playing games this year, Balatro would rank pretty high for me. And so I do. I do love it being here. I don't think it's going to take it. That leaves. I don't think Metaphor Refantasio.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, I don't think so either.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think that those are a little bit too niche. That leaves Astrobot, Black Myth and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. I think of those. Astrobot probably. Probably takes it.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, it's real. I think it comes down to Astrobot and Black Myth, honestly. Because I think Final Fantasy 7, whatever the remake, I think got the nod that year, if I recall correctly. And I think people want to mix it up and it's really just.

[Griffin McElroy]

It would be surprising for me. I don't understand the. We're trying to guess at this point the kind of like how the jury will vote. And that is a really abstract concept. So, yeah, I think there's just a.

[Russ Frushtick]

Lot of people that considered black myth to be a fine game, but not a great game. And I think every single person that played Astrobot was like, oh, this is a great fucking game.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yes. Yeah, I think Astrobot's gonna win it. I think maybe there's a chance. FF7 reverse sneaks in there. The VGA's. You can never really guess what the game of the year is going to be.

[Russ Frushtick]

That fucking Divorce game won. Remember that divorce game?

[Griffin McElroy]

It takes two.

[Russ Frushtick]

They turn into little dolls. Yeah, yeah, that one. That was a good game. But like game of the year. Let's look at.

[Griffin McElroy]

I want to look at previous year winners.

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay.

[Griffin McElroy]

We get game award for game of the year on Wikipedia. Last year it was Baldur's Gate 3.

[Russ Frushtick]

Great pick.

[Griffin McElroy]

Great pick. And then year before that, elden ring. Sure. 2021, it takes two beats Deathloop, Metroid Dread, Psychonauts 2, Ratchet and Clank. Rift Apart in Resident Evil village. Weird year. 2021.

[Russ Frushtick]

That was a weird year.

[Griffin McElroy]

2020, Last of Us Part 2, 2019 Sekiro, Shadows Die Twice. Fuck yeah. 2018, God of War, 2017, Breath of the Wild. Of course. 2016 Overwatch, 2015 Witcher 3 and 2014 Dragon Inquisition. So I don't know. That didn't really help.

[Russ Frushtick]

No, it didn't.

[Griffin McElroy]

It didn't really help. I think Astrobots.

[Russ Frushtick]

But it is wild to think that Dragon Age got like blanked in this.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. Yeah. Given the fact that no games for veilguard whatsoever, I didn't care for it. But there's other games on this whole list that I didn't care for that did get nominated for stuff. Super Mario Party Jamboree is nominated for two categories. Cool. Yeah. Okay. All right. I'm so tired.

[Russ Frushtick]

We did it. We guessed all the right answers. Before we end the segment, I have a quick question for you, Griffin. What is going to open the show? It's probably going to be a trailer. What trailer is it going to be?

[Griffin McElroy]

I don't know. So, Henry, we went to a toy store this past weekend and Henry bought a Magic 8 ball and I grabbed it and brought it up to my office. So I thought like, if we wanted to like, just check and see.

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay. Okay.

[Griffin McElroy]

You know, like Hollow Silksong. Are we going to get any Hollow Silksong updates? Don't count. On it. Yeah, yeah, that one's obvious. New GTA 6 trailer. That's not gonna fucking happen. But yes, definitely. According to the eight ball.

[Russ Frushtick]

Confirmed.

[Griffin McElroy]

I don't think that they would do that.

[Russ Frushtick]

No, they're not going to. The eight ball is wrong.

[Griffin McElroy]

The credibility on that one is incorrect.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think. Here's my prediction. Death Stranding 2 is gonna open the show with a weird ass fucking trailer.

[Griffin McElroy]

That would be great. I would love that. I would love the tone of the show to be set by a baby climbing out of someone's throat or whatever the fuck. Um, let's take a break and I want to hear about what it's like to actually be at one of these things. Russ.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh, boy.

[Griffin McElroy]

We'll be right back.

[Russ Frushtick]

This episode of the Besties is sponsored by Aura Frames. And you know what? We here at the Besties love Aura Frames. It is a very, very cool, I would say the coolest digital picture frame you can buy. What's so cool about it is that my mom, who is not technologically savvy at all, can have it in her home and I can upload new photos to it. And there's nothing she needs to do. She just keeps it plugged in and she'll see new pictures of her grandchild and be very pleased and I'll feel like I've done my duty as a son. I specifically added a bunch of photos from Thanksgiving and she was thrilled to see those just automatically pop up. Aura is very, very cool. To that end, you can save on the perfect gift by visiting auraframes.com to get $35 off Aura's best selling Carver matte frames by using promo code besties at checkout. That's a U R A frames.com promo code besties. This deal is exclusive to listeners, so get yours now in time for the holidays. Terms and conditions apply. Okay, so for the people listening at home and maybe watch, you know, maybe they watch the game Awards every year. Maybe they get excited and they see all the announcements and they see all the people having such a good time in the audience. I thought that I would share, as someone who's attended the Game Awards once, what it is like to be in the audience of the Game Awards.

[Griffin McElroy]

What? When? What was this? What year?

[Russ Frushtick]

Last year. Okay, I was there. So this is very recent. So here's the thing about the Game Awards. The game Awards happen. I think they start at like 4:30 or 5:00pm Pacific Time, which is smack dab in the middle of dinner. And you should know if you happen to have Tickets and plan on going, please, for the love of God, eat something before you go. Because there is very, very little sustenance in that theater. So you've watched a lot of trailers and you got no anything in your stomach. You've got nothing.

[Griffin McElroy]

I mean, there's not, I imagine, a snack booth, unless they have like a.

[Russ Frushtick]

Collab with Taco Bell where they're like handing chalupas out. Like, you're gonna be really hard up. So, like, as much as thrilled as someone might be to win an award, they'd probably be more thrilled to be handed out like a cup full of nuts.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, that would be cool. They should have, you know, Paul Rudd running down the aisles, handing people bottles of water.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

As he, as he loves to do. That would be sick.

[Russ Frushtick]

It's. It's a. I don't know if it's because I'm jaded and I've been to award shows before. Not the Game Awards, that was my first time at the Game Awards. But I've been to like GDC awards, which is fun, but there's just like a ton of downtime when it's something that is broadcast.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah.

[Russ Frushtick]

Because you have to run ads and you have to whatever. So I. It's not an experience that I would. You would have to be like really a die hard fan to want to be in the room itself. Because if you're not, you would be so much happier at home just watching a stream.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. Who's it? Who's it for? Who's that for?

[Russ Frushtick]

The people that go. Are in the audience, you mean? Yeah, I think it's industry. I mean, it's a lot of people that were like nominated for awards or companies. You know, it's like a. It's like a networking rah rah us kind of night, which is nice.

[Griffin McElroy]

That's cool.

[Russ Frushtick]

There aren't many of those. No, I don't. I mean, again, the public can go, as far as I'm aware, their tickets, they sell tickets. I don't think they sell as many tickets that they used to the public. I think it's a lot of that room is sold. But I don't know, man. If you're in the back of the LA live, wherever it happens and you're just watching Geoff Keighley on a big screen, like you could be watching Jeff Keighley on your big screen at home having a nice steak dinner. So please don't do that.

[Griffin McElroy]

We used to live blog these things back when people live blogged these things. Does Polygon still do live Blogs.

[Russ Frushtick]

Well, I wouldn't describe it as live blogging per se, but we'll certainly have reporters all night covering. You know, it's a huge news night. It's probably the biggest news night of the year at this point, given that E3 has like gotten weird.

[Griffin McElroy]

God, that's fucking weird, man.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah. So what was that experience like when you were live blogging it?

[Griffin McElroy]

It was always pretty intense. I remember there was one year Justin was visiting Austin and we live blogged it together from his, like Airbnb that he was staying in. We got a bunch of. Got a bunch of burgers and fries from Pete Terry's and tore those up and I got a tummy ache and then the show never ended. Yeah, and my wife at the time, Rachel, I mean, she's still my wife. I don't know why I said at the time.

[Russ Frushtick]

Well, she was at the time too.

[Griffin McElroy]

Rachel was like, this is outrageous. Cause she watched it with us and she was like, why is it so. I don't understand why it is still going. It's always been pretty long. It has only gotten longer. I would love a tight two hour game award show.

[Russ Frushtick]

Here's the slight edit that I would make and maybe if Jeff is listening and he can, he can slot this in. If we could know the amount of money that changed hands for the placement of a given trailer, that'd be really helpful. Because sometimes you know, like, oh, this is not a trailer that they wanted in there. Just because editorially this is like a great moment for a trailer. This is like, we're paying some bills right here. And knowing, hey, this game is so shitty that they needed to pay $300,000 for replacement would kind of help just from a watching standpoint. I'd kind of like to know that.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's interesting. I've seen some lists of like supposed leaked announcements that are coming. Oh, I mean, I don't like talking about those things because it seems like just complete.

[Russ Frushtick]

You think it's spoilies?

[Griffin McElroy]

Some spoilies. But I didn't see anything on there that really blew me away. Apparently Keeley. What has Keeley said about. I feel like Keeley usually does try to couch.

[Russ Frushtick]

He does. He tends to be like, we're gonna have a good night versus we've got 37 world exclusives.

[Griffin McElroy]

Sometimes it's that. But the whole industry is in a kind of weird waiting period. Like, right. Like you're not gonna see a bunch of Nintendo stuff. You usually don't at the game Awards, but you're not gonna see any now. I Feel like until the Switch 2 gets announced.

[Russ Frushtick]

Can you fucking believe if Kiwi pulled such a coup that like the thing starts and big fucking Mario's face shows up on the screen and you're like pinching it like in Mario 64.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's the Switch 2 announcement.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yes. Can you fucking believe if he pulled that off.

[Griffin McElroy]

No.

[Russ Frushtick]

He would be unstoppable. He would be Thanos.

[Griffin McElroy]

He would be Thanos. But he's not. There's not going to be a switch to announcement at the game Awards. That is absolute poppycock. There won't be party to it.

[Russ Frushtick]

I know. Half Life three though.

[Griffin McElroy]

Half Life three for sure. What else we got going on?

[Russ Frushtick]

We've got some reader mail. Do we want to do some reader mail real quick?

[Griffin McElroy]

J.D. cohen says. Damn it, Russ, they're peppercorns.

[Russ Frushtick]

Okay, so the pickle shapes that we discussed last week, JD Is saying that they're peppercorns. I don't think. I mean, one of them might be the ball. The hard ball might be a peppercorn. Yeah, but peppercorns aren't rectangles.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, no, not traditionally, no. Most stuff that grows in nature is not a rectangle naturally. There's very few natural rectangles.

[Russ Frushtick]

What about those watermelons in Japan?

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, again, not a natural shape in nature are the cubed watermelons. This is from Slifer Jam. Thank you. For anyone who enjoys the new Half Life 2 commentary, Valve also has full commentaries for Half Life 2, Lost Coast, Half Life 2 episodes 1 and 2, Portal, Portal 2, Left 4 Dead 1 and 2, Team Fortress 2 and Half Life Alyx. So everything else basically.

[Russ Frushtick]

Basically everything else. Are they missing anything? I guess Half Life one does not have commentary. Probably technologically speaking, they couldn't pull it off.

[Griffin McElroy]

No wild that Half Life 2 was last sort of on the list.

[Russ Frushtick]

Well, they needed a justification for why they should spend time. I do like the idea that someone would play through Half Life Alyx with commentary and just like you're slamming the VR headset on and I'm like, I'm just going to listen to this guy talk about fucking shaders for a while.

[Griffin McElroy]

Hmm. Okay. Interesting.

[Russ Frushtick]

That's the dream.

[Griffin McElroy]

Tim bees my big heads up for the UFO 50 on retro handhelds. Question. Some of the games included in UFO 50 have slowdown even on the better Linux based devices. I bought an RGB 10 Max 3 as my dedicated UFO 50 handheld and games like Ninpech and the Towns in Grimstone run very slowly. The developer of the port has confirmed that there's no slowdown on the new Retroid Pocket devices that support Portmaster. But at that point you're spending like $200. Russ, those new Retroid Pocket fives look pretty hot.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, they do look very good. I would say that it's probably not worth spending $200 just to play UFO 50 on one of those devices. No, what I played, I didn't play all the games. I just played a couple. And what I played on the RG35XX H was playable, but I did notice a little bit of slowdown. So if you're looking for a fully perfect experience. Yeah, you should do little research. I think this is probably right. The retro Pocket devices can do it, but you would have to probably install Linux.

[Griffin McElroy]

Those are Android based, right?

[Russ Frushtick]

Well, you can install Linux on those devices, but it just adds to the complexity of it at a certain point. I've said this to you, Griffin. My dream smaller handheld at this point is something that can run SteamOS. And right now Valve does not allow third party devices to run SteamOS. There are some workarounds and some shells that you can do that like allow you to kind of do it. But my hope is that like, look, a fucking Switch Lite form factor. Running Steam games like Bring it.

[Griffin McElroy]

Oh man, that Odin 2 and the Odin 2, I think Portal is the.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, that's the big one.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's like a bigger one. Yeah, those big. The Odin Pro I think is the one that I have now that I like. When I got the hankering to play like Dark Cloud 2, I wanted to like get into PS2 games and knocked those out pretty well.

[Russ Frushtick]

Did it require like a lot of tinkering to get those?

[Griffin McElroy]

Quite a bit of tinkering to get.

[Russ Frushtick]

Some of those PS2 games to work.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah.

[Russ Frushtick]

Time man to do that tinkering stuff.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, I don't know that I'm at the point where I want a new retro handheld bad enough to actually go out and buy it. But it's getting close.

[Russ Frushtick]

I can feel you're experiencing it. This is how you should experience it. Which is just like, oh, that looks really cool. And then wait two weeks, literally they.

[Griffin McElroy]

Are only getting cooler and stronger and.

[Russ Frushtick]

Better and smaller and moving very quickly. So yeah, I think there's no big rush in buying anything at the moment.

[Griffin McElroy]

Hey, let's do honorable mentions.

[Russ Frushtick]

Let's do it.

[Griffin McElroy]

You've been playing anything?

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, so I've been playing through the GTA trilogy. I've talked about it a few times. This is the remastered trilogy. I'm playing it on Steam deck. I am on to Vice city.

[Griffin McElroy]

Okay.

[Russ Frushtick]

Beat GTA 3. Which still holds up, in my opinion. It's a little rough. I think the nostalgia was carrying GTA 3 a little bit. But it is fucking wild. How much of a leap Vice city is over GTA 3.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's insane. Yeah.

[Russ Frushtick]

And that game came out one year after GTA 3 came out.

[Griffin McElroy]

Well, I think they learned a lot from GTA 3. Right.

[Russ Frushtick]

But a fucking year?

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. I don't know.

[Russ Frushtick]

Five to six has been. What has it been, 10 years?

[Griffin McElroy]

It's been a million billion years.

[Russ Frushtick]

I realize the scale is a little bit different, but there is so much that they like. Just quality of life improvements and gameplay features.

[Griffin McElroy]

Sure.

[Russ Frushtick]

That only one person could drive a car in GTA 3. You could never have more than one person in a car.

[Griffin McElroy]

That's bonkers. I didn't realize that. Yeah, yeah, man. I remember when Vice City came out. It took me by surprise. I was pretty plugged into. I read most gaming mags, but still Vice City came out and I remember seeing it playable at a demo station at ebay and thinking like, what the fuck? Like, how did this happen?

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah. Because the game GTA 3 came out in October of 2021. No, 2001 October and then in May was when Vice City got announced. So imagine GTA 3 wins all these Game of Year awards, blows everyone away. How the fuck is this possible? And four months later there's a fucking follow up. That's like dramatic. I mean, it didn't come out then, but like one year later it was out. A lot of that has to do with the fact that they started development, obviously while GTA 3 was in development. But I think it was initially planned as an expansion pack and they were like, fuck it, we can blow this out.

[Griffin McElroy]

And they did.

[Russ Frushtick]

It's great.

[Griffin McElroy]

Anything else?

[Russ Frushtick]

That's pretty much it for us. There's been a lot of illness in the household, so we're just kind of hanging in and hunkering.

[Griffin McElroy]

I finished Dragon Quest 3 HD 2D remake.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh my God. What's your playtime like, how long that takes?

[Griffin McElroy]

Oh, like 15 hours.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh, that's not too bad.

[Griffin McElroy]

You can truck through that thing.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, that's not bad.

[Griffin McElroy]

It's fine. It's good. It looks good. It's again, comfort food. It is not going to crack my go to list, I don't think. But I enjoyed my time with it. It chilled me out. It was very much a vibe, but I don't think it.

[Russ Frushtick]

Maybe we'll have an honorable mention category for whatever was the most vibe of the year.

[Griffin McElroy]

That one's going to be up there still. I'm going to be playing UFO 50 for a long time and I want people to go ahead and get used to that. Just a quick cherry update. Seaside Drive got that cherry just barely.

[Russ Frushtick]

That's tough. That's a tough one.

[Griffin McElroy]

That's a tough one. That is a hard one. I think you have to get 30,000. I got like 30,100. It was pretty.

[Russ Frushtick]

Oh, my God. I didn't realize there was a score requirement.

[Griffin McElroy]

There's a score requirement on that one. And a Tactics cherry that I'm nearly done with. Warp Tank, which I really have been enjoying.

[Russ Frushtick]

Warp Tank's cool.

[Griffin McElroy]

Warp Tank is very, very cool.

[Russ Frushtick]

Let me ask you, are you guiding a lot of this stuff before you start playing, or how are you doing it?

[Griffin McElroy]

Not well.

[Russ Frushtick]

Because, like Valbrace, for example, I know the cherry in that is like a little esoteric.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yes, I did look up the cherry on Valbrace because I did not want to get, you know, 10 hours into it. It's one of the few games they call it an epic play where it has save states, essentially. And I did not want to. You can fuck yourself over in Valbrace, where you get to the last level and it's too late for you to do the things you need to do to get the cherry. But no, for the most part, Tactics is just. You've got to get pretty good at it pretty fast. And Seaside Drivers, you just got to fucking do it. I have been kind of going back and forth between games that are easier to complete and get the cherry on because it's just about persistence and knowledge. Block Koala is just. You have to beat every level. You don't have to beat every level to beat the game. You only have to beat 40.

[Russ Frushtick]

Got it.

[Griffin McElroy]

If you want the cherry, you have to beat all 50 levels. That's like doable because you just have to solve more puzzles. Whereas in Seaside Drive, it's like. Or Velgres, I think is another one. Or any of the like, Hell Bullet. Hell Shooters are like. You actually just have to be very good. So I've been kind of like going back and forth between games like Night Manor, which is pretty easy to cherry, and then like a more twitchy game. I still have not done ninpech. I have also been replaying with Henry Super Mario Odyssey.

[Russ Frushtick]

Whoa.

[Griffin McElroy]

What a good game. What a very good game.

[Russ Frushtick]

They should make another one of those.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, they should probably make another one. It's been interesting and maybe I'll talk about this here because I don't want it. It'll be so non helpful in a game of the year discussion. I really enjoy Astrobot. I enjoy, like, the design of it and the tone of it and how lighthearted and clever it is. It has. It has been unable to, like, hook me in a way where I am eager to go back and play more of it.

[Russ Frushtick]

Sure.

[Griffin McElroy]

Which is, for me, kind of like a huge thing. It's kind of like a huge motivator is to feel this, like, hook to keep coming back and playing more of it. And I playing Odyssey has kind of illuminated, I think, a little bit kind of what I am not getting totally stuck in with. And in Odyssey, just the amount. The sheer amount of tech and discovery in each of those gigantic worlds is so exciting to me in a way that, like, hunting down all the little bots in each, you know, linear level of Astrobot has not. It is entirely. This is not to denigrate Astrobot as a game as much as it is a sort of structural preference.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah.

[Griffin McElroy]

In, like, I love that Mario Odyssey is just this world's fucking huge, and if you find something that's cool and exciting, whereas an Astrobot. If I find an Astrobot and then I see that when it joins the line, there's like, two or three missing and I can't go back.

[Russ Frushtick]

I'm like, fuck.

[Griffin McElroy]

And I also just enjoy the tech of Mario movement, of just like the hack dive and all that being sort of like, really? You can get so nasty with that.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah. That was the. I think the one area that it's very clear, like, Astrobot. I mean, they're gonna make a fucking sequel. And the one area that I could see them expanding on is, like, the Astrobot, just their movement options.

[Griffin McElroy]

Because it feels good to move around an Astrobot. It feels good. That laser hover jump. Like, it feels good. It does not feel like I am the world's greatest platforming gamer and I.

[Russ Frushtick]

Could turn into a fucking ball whenever I want.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah, exactly.

[Russ Frushtick]

Or whatever it is.

[Griffin McElroy]

Henry Beat Odyssey. Now we're going back and, like, playing all the, you know, going back and looking for more moons. But, like, I showed him in that final, like, Mushroom Kingdom level, like, actually, you could do this. And I showed him, like, the hat dive down a hill into a ball. Super speed roll. And he was like, what in the world? Yeah, there's like. I don't know. There's so much.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, there's a skill ceiling in.

[Griffin McElroy]

There's a skill ceiling. I don't Know, all that stuff to me is sort of like very, very exciting. And that game is just. I can't believe how good that game is. It will never not be astonishing to me that that game and Breath of the Wild came out in the same year. Same. Same. Yeah, same few months.

[Russ Frushtick]

Insane. Totally insane.

[Griffin McElroy]

I think that's probably going to do it for us.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, I think we did it. I want to thank the patrons [e-mail] thebesties we have a new bracket battles episode up. It is for best food in video games. Best games.

[Griffin McElroy]

That's a good one. Hey, gang. It's a good one, that one.

[Russ Frushtick]

Actually, we can give you a clip right here. Here's a clip.

[Griffin McElroy]

Who put in boiled crab? Cause that one was early on the list and that seems like a pretty outside choice. Okay. That's such a funny icon.

[Russ Frushtick]

I put both of them in. I entered both of them. And if you've played Elden Ring and you're a min maxer like I am, you would probably know that boiled crab as an item is one of the best items in Elden Ring. As a consumable, it provides a huge benefit to your damage reduction for a full 60 seconds, which is usually enough for a boss fight. And if you don't have 99 of them, you're doing it wrong.

[Griffin McElroy]

Yeah. How do you get 99? You just buy them. You buy them from crab store?

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah. There's a guy, he's a vendor. I killed him so that I could buy them from my main hub. That's cool. I felt bad about it, but it's.

[Sponsor]

Like men have died for many worse reasons.

[Griffin McElroy]

Russ. It's like you murdered Trader Joe so that you could get his stuff on Amazon. You became a traitor to Trader Joe.

[Russ Frushtick]

Yeah, we had fun with that one. Just a heads up, if you have someone in your life that loves the besties but can't necessarily afford the Patreon, you can gift Patreons to people. We have a link. It's patreon.com thebesties gift. And you can, you know, give a month or a full year subscription to besties content, which is great. I also wanted to thank the following patrons. We have Finian, we have Mike S. We have Brent, and we have little Mel. Thank you for being patrons. Thank you to everyone else for being patrons. Y'all are awesome.

[Griffin McElroy]

Thank you all so much for joining us. And by us, I mean just me and Russ. An intimate time for you, the listener. Next week, though. Next week, though, it's going down for real.

[Russ Frushtick]

The gang is gonna be back. We're gonna be all four of us duking it out for part one of our game of the year spectacular.

[Griffin McElroy]

We're doing some different stuff with it. We've discussed doing some different stuff with it.

[Russ Frushtick]

I think. Yeah, we change it a little bit every year, and I think this year is no different.

[Griffin McElroy]

Just looking at our personal faves, we're having listeners pick the final four.

[Russ Frushtick]

How are we doing? So we've, I think, shared with the listeners our 12, which was determined off looking at our top 10 lists.

[Griffin McElroy]

Okay.

[Russ Frushtick]

And then the final four will be listener picks that we will discuss, which is not a different thing. We've done that several years in the past.

[Griffin McElroy]

So. Yeah. Goatie Part 1 next week. Join us as the battle begins. And it's going to be a fun one. I think just looking at the games, we're all excited.

[Russ Frushtick]

It's a big range. Looking at all of our top tens is like, not. There's definitely crossover, but not as much.

[Griffin McElroy]

Crossover as they're usually no clear winner. Not like, you know, in years past. So it'll be. It'll be a fun discussion, I think. I don't think it'll get nasty this year.

[Russ Frushtick]

No, it'll be nice because we're all adults. We'll hug.

[Griffin McElroy]

So join us next week for the besties because shouldn't the world, World's best friends pick the world's best games.

[Russ Frushtick]

Besties?