Episode 49 - The True Games of the Year 🥇 - Roguelikes, Gaming News, New games & Nostalgia

Join Heather, Leon, Stu, and TommyT in this week’s pre festive episode of Game Older as we dive Game of the Year picks! From the triple A to the indie hits of 2025 everyone has a fave & and everyone has a say on how they really feel about the Game Awards . No tom this week due to illness 🤒🎮 What we’ve been playing:TommyT picked up Stalker 2 on PS5, describing it as a perfect mix of Fallout and Metro, full of jank, charm, and chaotic firefights. He also tried Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora’s new third-person mode (much better than first-person, apparently) — but the game currently losing him sleep is Stardew Valley, which he’s now 65+ hours into, farming, decorating, and obsessively watching YouTube guides about.Stu’s been hooked on Clover Pit, a roguelike slot-machine-style game that’s as addictive as it sounds. He’s also back in Battlefield 6 — preferring its chaos over Call of Duty — and started Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, calling it a “budget God of War” with moral choices that actually hit hard.Leon completed Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (30 hours, loved it), declaring it one of his Games of the Year for its risks and emotional story. He’s also been deep into Ball X Pit, calling it “this year’s Vampire Survivors,” while surviving betrayal-filled nights in Arc Raiders and firefights in Battlefield 6.Heather has also been loving Arc Raiders — though she and Stu share stories of being shot in the back mid-extraction — and she’s picked up a serious haul of physical games including Final Vendetta, El Paso Elsewhere, Neon Blood, and Dead Island 2.📦 Retro pickups & cool finds:-Leon’s friend brought him a Final Fantasy XV collectible from Japan, plus he scored random PS5 titles from Sony’s charity blind box: Power Wash Simulator, Crow Country, and Trolls Remix Rescue (instant classic, apparently).-Heather unveiled two stunning new DualSense controllers — God of War 20th Anniversary and Astro Bot editions — along with a Bitmap Books release: 50 Indie Games That Changed the World.-TommyT announced he’s officially booked for Japan in October, offering to bring back merch for the team.📰 In gaming news:-Todd Howard comments on AI in game dev, calling it a “tool” but sparking a big discussion on whether it belongs in creative work.-Russia bans Roblox, citing “propaganda” — the crew reacts with disbelief (and plenty of sarcasm).-Gone Home devs announce Springs Eternal, launching in 2026.-Global RAM shortages worsen as AI companies like OpenAI monopolize supply, driving PC gaming prices up.-JJ Abrams’ Bad Robot is making a new Left 4 Dead-style co-op shooter for PS5 and PC.-Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is underperforming — with the gang debating whether annual COD releases should finally stop.-Netflix and Paramount are fighting over an $80+ billion bid to buy Warner Bros (including WB Games).Stay till the end and play along with our gaming quiz — how many will you get correct?Timestamps:00:00:00 - Intro & what we've been playing00:22:41 - Gaming News & New Games! 🗞️00:46:23 - Questions from Discord ⁉️01:02:07 - Main Topic : Game of the Year 🥇01:43:48 - Gaming quiz time!01:54:06 - Shoutouts and goodbye 👋Find all of our links here:Linktree: ⁠⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/gameolder2024⁠⁠⁠Discord:⁠ ⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/VzmAnSA7xaTwitter/X: https://x.com/GameOlderPodYoutube: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@GameOlder2024Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/game_older_podcast__/⁠⁠⁠Contact us: ⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠Discount codes and shout-outs:Bitmap Books 5% off all purchases: OLDER5⁠bitmapbooks.com⁠Extra Life Gaming Lounge, Sheffield:Quote "Game Older Podcast" for 5% off all items!Please don't forget to rate and review us wherever you listen, along with hitting the follow/subscribe button!