Gimmick Awards 2025 – Best Mechanic Podcast

Systems are such a special part of games. Sets of rules and features that turn into engines to produce unique outcomes as they crash together. And the mechanics that make up these systems can stand out as truly remarkable. Here are our favorites from the last year. The Nominees Are: Weather (Death Stranding 2: On the Beach) Highroller (of the Devil) Media Literacy Quizzes (of the Devil) Smashing Everything (Donkey Kong Bananza) Duels (Dynasty Warriors: Origins) Voltage / Last Resort (The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy) Team Up Specials (Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment) Live Combat (Pokémon Legends Z-A) Weapon Schools (Rise of the Ronin) Back-to-basics Skating (Skate Story) The Grand Bazaar (Story of Seasons: The Grand Bazaar) Reloading Rules (Suit for Hire) Our intro and outro music for the Gimmick Awards 2025 is Lay back by Kazuki Kaneko, and our art is a commission from GOMA on Bluesky.