Podcast List-O-Tron

PODCASTS!

Listed in no particular order, except whatever order it currently is on my media player. I’ll link websites and RSS, because you’re worth it. (You might not be worth it, but I’ll take the chance.)

A Life Well Wasted (Stopped)
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Unfortunately seems to be mostly defunct, because Robert Lashley appears to have been gobbled up by 1UP or something to do videos and podcasts. But there’s still six great hours there, if you haven’t already listened to it, about the more esoteric end of gaming, all brilliantly produced.

Adam and Joe (Weekly)
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An editted hour from their Saturday Morning Show on 6Music, it’s probably a little hard to get into at first, as it’s completely riddled with in-jokes and entirely about their personalities, which might take some aligning before you understand it fully, but it’s consistently funny and excellently childish. WHY BE DENNY DIFFERENT?!

Double Fine Actioncast (Gamely)
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This isn’t exactly consistent, or at least, it’s only as consistent as they seem to be doing one podcast per game Double Fine releases, but it’s funny in and of itself, even if you don’t like their games. (Which would make you wrong.) It also has improv a capella jingles for each segment, which is something I wish more podcasts did.

Irrational Interviews (Erratic)
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Irrational’s Ken Levine interviews interesting gaming people. It’s pretty heavy on game design, but if you’re interested in game design, it’s fantastic. They sort of have a loose format with the questions, but Levine pretty much always hijacks it after the conversation’s started.

PC Gamer UK (Monthly, sort of)
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Bunch of funny journalists talking about the current issue of PC Gamer, except they mostly just joke about games that are in the magazine, and talk about stuff they’ve seen. Standard stuff, but consistently entertaining and good.

Rum Doings (Weekly)
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RPS’s John Walker and Positive Internet’s Nick Mailer talk about whatever they like for an hour, which usually involves Nick bullying John and John trying to tell a story without Nick lampooning him. It’s like watching the Devil poke the Stay Puft marshmallow man with a hot poker. It’s funny, but kind of uncomfortable. Also, John is Stay Puft not because he’s a blimp, but because he’s got a soft and gooey personality.

The Bugle (Weekly)
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Daily Show’s John Oliver and The Bugle’s Andy Zaltsman talk about the week’s news while making too many puns and funny observations. It’s sort of a British Daily Show, but not a tv show, and not much like the Daily Show at all, as it’s two guys and no interviews. But I think you get my point.

RPS Electronic Wireless Show (Erratic at best)
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It’s not as regular as I’d like, but it’s much like the PCG podcast, just without nearly as much structure, which can only be a good thing. Nominally, it’s about games. Practically, it’s very rarely about games. This can only be a good thing.

This American Life (Weekly)
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I’ve only started to listen to this a month or two ago, but fuck me it’s good. I mean, I knew it was before, because everyone raves about it, but seriously. This is like a mainline of empathy and heartbreak, once a week. Not really the best thing to run to, but then perhaps that uplifting/crushing climax of each story is the kind of fuel to make your legs pump faster. (I do most of my podcast listening while running.)

Three Moves Ahead (Weekly)
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Another one I’ve only just started listening to, but it’s wonderfully specific. It’s a panel of games journalists, sometimes with guest, talking about strategy games. Sometimes a specific one, sometimes lots. As dry as that sounds, it’s remarkably entertaining, and the guys really know their stuff. Recently switched host from Troy Goodfellow (top chap), to Rob Zacny (top chap).

Radiolab (Monthly, but Seasonal)
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It’s the science version of This American Life, if I’m going to be dismissive, which I’m not. Radiolab is the reason I gave This American Life a shot in the first place. Each one hour show has a vague topic, which then has a series of narrative driven scientific ideas explained using case studies and brilliant audio production to explain the concept to the listener. It works because the two presenters, Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, along with their many producers, don’t really know about the science they’re discussing, and so they’re our in, someone to ask the questions we want to ask. Probably the best show on here.

WTF With Marc Maron (Whenever he does them, which is all the fucking time.)
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Those fucking intros. The layout of the show is that Marc Maron, long time comedian, uses his contacts to get some comedy-related person into his garage to have a chat for an hour. It’s just that it’s prefaced with him talking about himself for ten minutes, which at first was intolerable, but as I’ve listened to more, is becoming something I don’t just skip. He’s got a deeply personal interviewing style, using his own experience and depression to get his subjects to open up. Sounds depressing, but these are comedians, they know how to turn depression into something funny. Which also sounds depressing. It’s not.

That’s the lot. I guess they were alphabetical, rather than arbitrary, so there you go. Hope you find something good and new.