The Free Cheese
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602 episodes
This week on The Free Cheese, is he on fire? Our first baseball game makes The List with MLB Slugfest 20-04. Just in time for the start of the season, we check out how the alternative to modern simulation baseball games holds up.
This week on The Free Cheese, you can't hack this boss. We finally check in with a game we've talked about for years to see how Starbreeze's Syndicate reimagines the classic strategy game. Can Brian Cox and Rosario Dawson save the story? Does Detective Vision™ enhance every game? Let's find out and rank Syndicate on The List!
This week on The Free Cheese, did you think that the book was better? We point and click our way through Harlan Ellison's I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream, exploring each of the game's characters and stumbling our way into different endings. We discuss the central themes in the game, some of the surprises we found, and explore how the game feels to play for the first time in 2024.
This week on The Free Cheese, you have to get more of them. Our two panel members play through Pokémon Gold Version and Pokémon Silver Version. We visit Johto in this episode and discuss our third of four Wii Sports Killers. While only the second in the core series, the pair of games were originally intended to be the final games in the series and brought a significant number of additions to the gameplay. We highlight the 100 new Pokémon, how the day and night cycle game impacts your adventure, and what it means to be friends with a Pokémon. This episode covers our individual journeys through the end of Johto and victory over the Elite Four.
This week on The Free Cheese, time is a key to creation and a vessel for destruction! What happens when Atlus translates its Megami Tensei series into something to compete with other monster collecting RPGs on Game Boy Advance? The DemiKids are born! We take a look at the first and only DemiKids games to release in North America. We explore where they differ from other Megami Tensei games, how they compare to Pokémon, and what separates them from themselves.
This week on The Free Cheese, play some games, dork! We join the WarioWare corporation five seconds at a time, punching, mashing, picking, and jumping all the way to the top. In this episode, we break down the essence of what makes WarioWare so intriguing and easy to learn. We look at how the game is able to satisfy each element of playing a video game and see where it ranks against other Nintendo titles.
This week on The Free Cheese, everything is upside down. We revisit what we consider title synonymous with Sony's original vision for the PlayStation Vita just in time for the platform's twelfth anniversary. While Gravity Rush would later receive a port to PlayStation 4 and a sequel on the platform, its beginnings on Vita are definitive. We discuss the game's unique gameplay, its influences, and rank it on The List.
This week on The Free Cheese, three sentences in three languages! Our second Wii Sports Killer™ is introduced this week in Super Mario Galaxy 2 for Nintendo Wii. We discuss its role as one of the Wii's best titles in the library, some of our favorite levels in the game, and how Yoshi adds to 3D Mario.
This week on The Free Cheese, who will rule the world? First, we do some homework. Then, we try to take over the globe. Civilization VI marks our first 4X entry on The List and gives us the opportunity to learn from our mistakes as we play. We share our tips for getting started in a Civilization game and stories about some of the victories and losses we endured.
This week on The Free Cheese, are your thighs sore? Nintendo continued its series of fitness video games with Ring Fit Adventure, creating a full role-playing game that happens to use your body as the controller. In this episode, we set goals for 2024 with Ring Fit Adventure, discuss the broad gameplay and scope of the game, and share the impact that the game has had on us so far.
This week on The Free Cheese, we are back in Greek mythology! Our first MSX game joins The List with Konami's Knightmare. We take control of the hero Popolon and battle through 8 stages, one line at a time. Knightmare transforms a traditional arcade shooter into an epic adventure but where does it lie within Konami's legacy?
This week on The Free Cheese, infinite spiders! We add our first game to The List for Season 12, another of Compile's catalogue. The Guardian Legend combines top-down shooting with top-down exploration. We discuss how the blend of genres works to create something new and where this game ultimately falls in the history of the NES' library.
This week on The Free Cheese, how do I become the demon? We begin our journey through Season 12 and toward potentially dethroning Wii Sports from its high perch above The List. Bungie's Halo: Combat Evolved takes the spotlight as our first of four games chosen to become the new number one. We cover the campaign, our favorite moments and weapons, and talk a bit about the sound and enemies within Halo: Combat Evolved. In this episode we focus heavily on how well Halo was realized from the start and the impact that a single game can have at the launch of a console.
This week on The Free Cheese, this ball is crystal clear We begin Season 12 with our annual predictions show. After reviewing last year's predictions and spending one final moment reflecting on 2023, we look forward to 2024 and cast our predictions for the year. We also introduce our first annual round of group questions. We highlight a bit of what to expect in Season 12 and then close out the episode with our exciting plans for continuing the Console Ranking series. 0:00 - Intro 9:02 - 2023 Personal Theme Recap 15:54 - 2023 Predictions Results 26:10 - 2024 Group Predictions 41:12 - 2024 Personal Theme 50:21 - 2024 Predictions 01:06:46 - 2024 Most Anticipated 01:12:55 - Season 12 Announcements 01:21:26 - Console Ranking Aftermath 01:44:40 - Outro
This week on The Free Cheese, it’s the end of Season 11 - Part Two. As we conclude Season 11 and bring 2023 to its end, we each share our favorite games from the year. We discuss the games we liked the most from the new additions made to The List and close out with a small tease of what to expect in Season 12.
This week on The Free Cheese, it’s the end of Season 11 - Part One. In the first part of our two-episode finale, we’ll be revisiting The List with new math and a brand new way to rank each game that you can try at home! We’ll also discuss some of the trends in 2023 that we found ourselves noticing and aligning with.
This week on The Free Cheese, but it's got two screens. We're closing our three-part console ranking series with ten final additions to the list of consoles. At the beginning of this episode's recording, our ranked list of Consoles was: __ __ Timestamps for this episode's consoles are as follows: 11:19 - Sega Saturn 20:50 - PlayStation 4 37:47 - TurboGrafx-16 47:49 - Nintendo 64 01:01:27 - NEO-GEO 01:07:09 - Nintendo DS 01:20:21 - Wii U 01:31:18 - GameCube 01:40:26 - Sega Genesis 01:49:57 - Nintendo Entertainment System
This week on The Free Cheese, it's cold outside. Our final month of Season 11 begins with a walk through winter. We're talking about Christmas in video games, special holiday events, and games that just generally evoke a winter sensibility.
This week on The Free Cheese, we are taking an adventure through Hyrule. After a month of focus on the latest game in The Legend of Zelda franchise we conclude with a broader conversation around the series as a whole. We find out which character we most resemble, select the best mask in its darkest game, and cast our vote for the most important live action role to come. Matt prepares another thrilling round of A Game By Its Trophy, this time focusing on Zelda titles for Joe and Marc to guess through. Take a break and enjoy a trip through the history and future of Zelda with us.
This week on The Free Cheese, we conquer with power. Our discussion on The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom concludes with a look at the game's story and the direction it sets for the future of the franchise. We reflect on six months with the game and rank it on The List.
This week on The Free Cheese, discovery grants us wisdom. Our discussion on The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom continues with a look at the game's crafting system, the return of temples to the franchise, and how combat has changed since Breath of the Wild. We dive deep into the underground and discussion of the game's sense of exploration.
This week on The Free Cheese, courage guides us forward. We take our first steps into The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom by reflecting on its predecessor, Breath of the Wild. Then, we discuss the opening hours of our time with Tears of the Kingdom.
This week on The Free Cheese, congratulations on your mansion! Luigi finds his vacuum in this GameCube launch title as he seeks the whereabouts of his older brother Mario. We suck up ghosts one by one until we find the true horror behind the mansion.
This week on The Free Cheese, trick or treat! We're stacking up the sequel to Costume Quest against The List in this broken age of double Fine references in a single sentence. We'll dress up as werewolves, candy corn, wizards, and dead presidents to bring Halloween back to life.
This week on The Free Cheese, the game where HE comes home! In celebration of its 40th anniversary, we’re adding the killer video game Halloween, based on the film of the same name, to The List. We’ll see how it stacks against the film it’s influenced by and find out why the ESRB turned out to be a necessity.
This week in The Free Cheese, do you like thrill rides? We reveal the true reason behind our recording of Episode 498 earlier this year and add its remake to The List https://thefreecheese.com/thelist/. We discuss what's changed in Capcom's remake of the game that defined third-person action and look at where the Resident Evil series is going.
This week on The Free Cheese, bats don't like their picture taken. It's 1989 and Capcom just released the first survival horror video game, paralleling the film of the same name, Sweet Home. The game would later go on to inspire Resident Evil and remains an entertaining first step into the genre. We discuss the game, the film, and rank it on The List.
This week on The Free Cheese, what did you learn? We chronicle the rough timeline of educational software and share key lessons we’ve learned in video games.
This week on The Free Cheese, pata pata pata pon. After a decade of successful games and growing imitations, FromSoftware took some departures with its formula while holding onto key aspects of the games it had been making. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice introduces the player to a new world, one with a story and cutscenes to back it, putting them in control of Wolf on his journey for redemption.
This week on The Free Cheese, we're preinstalled with every CompUSA purchase! We're here to guide the great frog king on his journey to match the colors of three or more balls at a time. Chasing combo chains and gap bonuses, we find out where Zuma Deluxe ranks on The List.
