Grumpy Old Gamer

The lads are back and there are four of them this time. Ian, Al, Tim, and Lucas dig into the big question: who actually won the console war? Spoiler: it's not complicated. Then things get interesting as the crew unpacks Phil Spencer's exit from Xbox, the arrival of Asha Sharma with her AI background and no games industry experience, Sony's quiet 180 on exclusivity, and what Project Helix plus Steam on Xbox might actually mean for the next round of the console wars. The Steam Machine gets a look-in too. Nobody holds back.

Al, Tim, and Lucas confess their digital hoarding addictions by analyzing their Steam libraries. Turns out we've all got hundreds of games we'll never play, bought during sales we can't resist, gifted by friends who promise "we'll play together" and then ghost us. We used SteamDB to crunch the numbers. Al has £550 worth of unplayed games sitting in his library gathering digital dust. Lucas bought Elder Scrolls Online three times - bought it, refunded it, bought it again on sale, refunded it again, then bought it a third time because it was even cheaper. Tim can't remember buying Farming Simulator 2013 and has no idea why it's installed. The conversation spirals into the psychology of Steam sales. Why do we buy games at 90% off when we know we'll never play them? Why does "it's only £2" feel like a compelling reason to add another title to the pile? Why do we convince ourselves we'll definitely play Dying Light this time when we've been saying that for 11 years? We debate physical versus digital ownership. Tim and Al have shelves of boxed PC games they'll never install because who runs optical drives anymore. Lucas sees his Steam library as a collection of military badges - achievements for simply owning the games. We're all hypocrites who miss game manuals while exclusively buying digital. Regional pricing gets exposed. Lucas admits Argentina used to have ridiculous Steam discounts - £50 games for £5. Free-to-play games get dissected. Tim's spent hundreds on Magic: The Gathering Arena and it shows as £0 library value. The friendship tax is real - buying games together, playing for an hour, never touching them again. Nobody's changing their behaviour. The Spring Sale just started. We're all doomed.

Al has a confession: he doesn't play racing games. Tim and Lucas do. This was always going to be an interesting conversation. In this episode, the three of us trace the full arc of racing games, from chucking 10p into Outrun at the arcade to Formula 1 drivers logging laps on iRacing between Grand Prix weekends. We argue about whether Driver counts as a racing game, mourn the fact that Lucas has never heard of Wipeout, celebrate Mario Kart's role as the ultimate family destroyer, and spend a suspicious amount of time on the Forza Horizon open world and what people get up to on its motorways. We also tackle the big question: has the simulation side of the genre hit a ceiling? And if arcade racing still has room to grow, what does that actually look like? Ian is not here. He has not been sacked (yet).

Al and Tim think they know Warhammer 40,000. Ian definitely does not. So this week, Ian asks the questions, Al and Tim answer them without any preparation whatsoever, and somehow everyone learns something. Topics covered include what Warhammer 40k actually is, the Horus Heresy, why the Emperor is essentially a very expensive battery, the Tyrannids versus the Xenomorphs, whether the Enterprise D would survive five minutes in the Imperium of Man, who the good guys are (short answer: there aren't any), and why the Necrons haven't just killed everyone yet. Drinking is involved. Accuracy is not guaranteed. Come and tell us what we got wrong.

Grinding in games used to feel rewarding. You put the time in, you got stronger, and you saw the difference. Now it often feels like a second job, or worse, something designed to push you toward spending money. In this episode, we break down what grinding used to be, what it’s become, and where the line should be drawn.

Ian, Tim, and Lucas dig into comfort gaming — those familiar titles you keep coming back to when you need to switch off and just play. From Fallout and The Sims to Powerwash Simulator and Path of Exile, the lads talk nostalgia trips, cozy games, survival base-builders, challenge runs, and why some stressful games are weirdly relaxing. Plus: Tim's mobile game shame, Lucas's obsession with South Park: The Stick of Truth, a deep cut on Jurassic Park: Operation Genesis, and the entire squad agrees — fuck Ubisoft (but Black Flag was class). Al's been sacked again. Obviously.https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/bloghttps://gog.fm/spotifyhttps://gog.fm/applehttps://gog.fm/amazonhttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://gog.fm/twitchhttps://gog.fm/steamhttps://gog.fm/curatorhttps://gog.fm/facebookhttps://gog.fm/twitterhttps://gog.fm/bskyhttps://gog.fm/instagramhttps://gog.fm/threads

We replaced Tim with Lucas from Argentina and nobody told him. Now three idiots argue about subscription services, cloud gaming, and why you technically don't own any of your digital games.The conversation covers how none of us can remember the last time we bought a physical game, yet we complain about not owning anything. We're all trapped in the Steam ecosystem with hundreds of games we'll never play again and can't resell. Game Pass costs more than just buying Minecraft outright, but people keep paying anyway because we're gullible idiots who forget to cancel subscriptions.Cloud gaming gets debated as either the great equalizer or the final nail in ownership's coffin. Lucas argues for the satisfaction of building your own PC. Al suggests cloud access might democratize gaming. Ian points out the practical benefits of playing games on a potato laptop. Nobody agrees on anything.GOG gets praised for selling DRM-free games you can own, but we all still use Steam because the interface is better and our libraries are already there. The EU's Stop Killing Games initiative offers hope for permanent game access, assuming it passes and forces global changes like Steam's refund policy did.https://gog.fm https://gog.fm/blog https://gog.fm/spotify https://gog.fm/apple https://gog.fm/amazon https://gog.fm/discord https://gog.fm/twitch https://gog.fm/steam https://gog.fm/curator https://gog.fm/facebook https://gog.fm/twitter https://gog.fm/bsky https://gog.fm/instagram https://gog.fm/threads

Season 2 starts with a challenge. Each host picks two games under £10 for the others to play. We'll revisit these choices in the season finale to see how wrong everyone was.Ian recommends Far Cry 5 to Tim for its co-op chaos and rural Montana cult-shooting. Tim throws Tekken 7 at Al as a callback to our arcade episode and a test of whether RTS players can handle fighting games. Al drops Warhammer 40K Boltgun on Ian as an entry point to the setting before episode 5's planned 40K deep-dive. Ian counters with Remnant 2, a souls-like co-op shooter he claims isn't that hard. Tim unleashes Stellaris on Ian, which Al warns could consume months of his life. Al finishes with Battlefleet Gothic Armada 2 for Tim, full cathedral-sized battleships and enough lore to drown in.Games covered:Far Cry 5 (Ian → Tim)Tekken 7 (Tim → Al)Warhammer 40K Boltgun (Al → Ian)Remnant 2 (Ian → Al)Stellaris (Tim → Ian)Battlefleet Gothic Armada 2 (Al → Tim)https://store.steampowered.com/app/552520/Far_Cry_5/https://store.steampowered.com/app/389730/TEKKEN_7/https://store.steampowered.com/app/2005010/Warhammer_40000_Boltgun/https://store.steampowered.com/app/1282100/REMNANT_II/https://store.steampowered.com/app/281990/Stellaris/https://store.steampowered.com/app/573100/Battlefleet_Gothic_Armada_2/

It's the Season 1 finale, and we're coming full circle. 10 episodes ago, we kicked things off with a bold claim: Gaming Is Shit Now. But after 20 weeks of arguing about everything from Half-Life 2's superiority over GTA to the death of couch co-op and the predatory practices of EA (f##k EA) and Ubisoft (f##k Ubisoft even more), we've reached a surprising conclusion.In this episode, we confront our own hypocrisy. We hate live service games... but we're both paying for EA Play to play Battlefield 6. We despise subscription models... but we're using them like they're demo discs. We complained about broken launches and day-one patches... but maybe early access and the ability to fix games post-launch isn't the worst thing?What We Discuss:Are we just hypocrites for complaining about things we actively support?Live service games, season passes, and monetization (and why we tolerate them)How cross-platform play has revolutionized gaming accessibilityThe Stop Killing Games initiative and consumer protectionsWhy broken launches still suck but patches are actually beneficialThe positives of modern gaming we've been ignoringOur final verdict: Is gaming ACTUALLY shit?BONUS: Post-credits rant about Call of Duty Black Ops 7's disastrous launch, Battlefield 6's victory, and Steam's new console dominating the future.After 10 episodes of being grumpy bastards, we've finally admitted it: gaming in 2025 might actually be... good? The benefits far outweigh the negatives. Cross-play, consumer choice, accessibility, and yes, even those bloody subscription services have their place.Thanks for sticking with us through Season 1. We'll be back in 6 weeks for Season 2, bigger, grumpier, and ready to contradict ourselves all over again.https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/bloghttps://gog.fm/spotifyhttps://gog.fm/applehttps://gog.fm/amazonhttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://gog.fm/twitchhttps://gog.fm/steamhttps://gog.fm/curatorhttps://gog.fm/facebookhttps://gog.fm/twitterhttps://gog.fm/bskyhttps://gog.fm/instagramhttps://gog.fm/threads

The Grumpy Old Gamer team takes a quick look at the best and worst of videogames in 2025. The greatest releases - or at least the ones that we bothered to play - the controversy of Assassin's Creed Shadows and the sale of EA to Saudi Arabia, and the games that should have hit but somehow fell short. https://gog.fm https://gog.fm/blog https://gog.fm/spotify https://gog.fm/apple https://gog.fm/amazon https://gog.fm/discord https://gog.fm/twitch https://gog.fm/steam https://gog.fm/curator https://gog.fm/facebook https://gog.fm/twitter https://gog.fm/bsky https://gog.fm/instagram https://gog.fm/threads

In this episode of the Grumpy Old Gamer Podcast, our hosts dive into the controversial topic of Steam's Early Access program. Join us as we explore the pros and cons of early access games, discuss why only 25% of these games ever reach full release, and debate whether AAA developers are exploiting gamers through this system. We also touch on standout early access titles like 'Manor Lords' and the long-standing development of 'Star Citizen.' Tune in to hear our unfiltered thoughts and why we believe some developers might be taking the piss. https://gog.fm https://gog.fm/blog https://gog.fm/spotify https://gog.fm/apple https://gog.fm/amazon https://gog.fm/discord https://gog.fm/twitch https://gog.fm/steam https://gog.fm/curator https://gog.fm/facebook https://gog.fm/twitter https://gog.fm/bsky https://gog.fm/instagram https://gog.fm/threads

In this episode of the Grumpy Old Gamer Podcast, hosts Al, Tim and Ian explore the age-old question of whether video games were more difficult in the past or if it's just nostalgia clouding our memories. The discussion covers the evolution of game design from arcade to console, the impact of technical limitations, the role of memory cards and auto-save features, and how modern games like Dark Souls and Souls-like titles compare to classic hard games. They also delve into the psychology of difficulty settings and the benefits of allowing players to tailor their gaming experience. With anecdotes about classic games like Mortal Kombat, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Resident Evil, the episode provides a comprehensive look at how gaming difficulty has transformed over the years.https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/bloghttps://gog.fm/listenhttps://gog.fm/youtubehttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://gog.fm/steamhttps://gog.fm/twitchhttps://gog.fm/facebookhttps://gog.fm/twitterhttps://gog.fm/bskyhttps://gog.fm/instagramhttps://gog.fm/threads

Ian, Tim, and Al have finally had it with the “console wars.” We talk about how exclusives don’t mean a thing anymore, how every console is just a glorified PC in a plastic box, and how Microsoft and Sony have stopped pretending otherwise. We get into why developers don’t care what you play on, why Game Pass broke the old business model, and why the Steam Deck is quietly killing the whole idea of a console. There’s moaning about overpriced hardware, fake “next-gen” claims, and how the same three companies keep selling us the same promises. Basically: the console isn’t dying, that's just sensationalist, click-bait, bullshit.https://gog.fm/ https://gog.fm/blog https://gog.fm/discord https://gog.fm/twitch https://gog.fm/steam https://gog.fm/facebook https://gog.fm/twitter https://gog.fm/bsky https://gog.fm/instagram https://gog.fm/threads

Ian, Al, and Tim trace first-person shooters from 1970s NASA research projects to today's microtransaction machines. The genre peaked with single-player campaigns that had character and personality, then corporate greed killed everything good about shooting things on a computer screen. This covers how FPS games went from academic experiments to id Software's revolutionary trilogy to the console wars that split PC and living room gaming into separate universes. The hosts examine why modern shooters are generic military simulators with pink weapon skins instead of the memorable protagonists who used to crack jokes while saving the world. Three middle-aged gamers conclude that better graphics came at the cost of everything that made FPS games worth playing, then spend twenty minutes arguing about GoldenEye control schemes and whether Duke Nukem's one-liners were brilliant or just juvenile toilet humour that somehow worked.https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/bloghttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://gog.fm/twitchhttps://gog.fm/steamhttps://gog.fm/facebookhttps://gog.fm/twitterhttps://gog.fm/bskyhttps://gog.fm/instagramhttps://gog.fm/threads

Remember cramming four sweaty mates on a sofa, squinting at a quarter of the TV, and screaming over who was screen-peeking? We do. This episode we grumble through the golden days of Halo LAN parties, lugging CRTs across town, and the brutal honesty of split-screen gaming. Then we drag ourselves into the present - headsets, online lobbies, and the joy of being insulted by 12-year-olds on Xbox Live. It’s a sarcastic stroll from local co-op to toxic chat rooms, with plenty of side-eye at what’s been lost along the way.https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/bloghttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://gog.fm/twitchhttps://gog.fm/steamhttps://gog.fm/facebookhttps://gog.fm/twitterhttps://gog.fm/bskyhttps://gog.fm/instagramhttps://gog.fm/threads

Tim, Al, and Ian argue whether Half-Life 2's influence trumps GTA 5's sales numbers, discovering that Steam's $10.8 billion annual revenue makes Half-Life 3 commercially pointless. This episode covers the Source engine's lasting impact on every modern shooter, how Half-Life 2 created digital distribution monopolies, and why the gravity gun remains more satisfying than any GTA chaos simulator. The discussion spirals through Gary's Mod spawning Skibidi Toilet, the Orange Box converting console peasants, and Tim's shameful admission of owning 600+ Steam games he'll never play. Three grumpy gamers conclude that artistic influence beats cultural impact while completely ignoring that both games are available on Steam, proving Valve won regardless.https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/bloghttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://gog.fm/twitchhttps://gog.fm/steamhttps://gog.fm/facebookhttps://gog.fm/twitterhttps://gog.fm/bskyhttps://gog.fm/instagramhttps://gog.fm/threads

Al, Ian, and Tim dive into the $184 billion gaming industry versus Hollywood's measly $42 billion box office, discovering that respect for source material apparently took 30 years to figure out. This episode covers why early 90s game adaptations were universally terrible, whether TV shows work better than movies for adaptations, and Tim's inexplicable excitement for Battlefield 6 despite it being a obvious reskin. The discussion meanders through GoldenEye's perfection, Spider-Man 2's web-swinging physics, and Al's controversial Uncharted movie defence before concluding that movies might become extinct because gamers have longer attention spans than expected. Audio quality remains questionable as three middle-aged men argue about Karl Urban's casting choices while completely forgetting this was supposed to be about video games and movies.https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/bloghttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://gog.fm/twitchhttps://gog.fm/steamhttps://gog.fm/facebookhttps://gog.fm/twitterhttps://gog.fm/bskyhttps://gog.fm/instagramhttps://gog.fm/threads

Al, Ian, and Tim launch their complaints about modern gaming with predictable results. This first episode covers the industry's monetization problems, DLC obsession, and live service addiction while questioning whether games were better when they shipped complete. The discussion covers subscription models, DRM failures, studio consolidation, and developer crunch before inevitably asking if nostalgia makes everything from the past seem superior. Technical quality matches the amateur hour you'd expect from three people figuring out podcast recording. Runtime exceeds reasonable limits because nobody had learned to edit yet. https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/bloghttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://gog.fm/twitchhttps://gog.fm/steamhttps://gog.fm/facebookhttps://gog.fm/twitterhttps://gog.fm/bskyhttps://gog.fm/instagramhttps://gog.fm/threads

Remember when you bought a game and got the whole game? When patches fixed bugs instead of adding microtransactions? When developers finished their games before selling them to you?Welcome to Grumpy Old Gamer, the podcast for everyone who lived through gaming's golden age and survived to see what it's become. We cut through the PR spin, the marketing lies, and endless cycles of manufactured excitement that have infected gaming media.Every two weeks, we examine what's worth your money and what's designed to separate you from it. We dig into forgotten classics that put modern releases to shame, dissect why your favourite franchise got ruined by corporate buyouts, and occasionally admit when a new game doesn't completely disappoint us.This is honest conversation about games from people who remember when the industry had standards and when "early access" meant you were lucky enough to get a demo disk with your magazine subscription.Grumpy Old Gamer. Because someone needs to say what everyone's thinking while the rest of gaming media pretends everything is fine.New episodes fortnightly. Stay strong. Stay grumpy.https://gog.fmhttps://gog.fm/discordhttps://grumpyoldgamer.com