The XboxCast
Season 5
Episodes
Thursday Dec 30, 2021
Thursday Dec 30, 2021
What a roller coaster of a year!
We did 69 episodes in one year, met new friends, got a new logo and much, much more. But now it's time to wrap it up and go on holiday!
This year we've tightened up the award categories, narrowing it down to ten. And even planned ahead with our listeners' choice awards.
Want to find out what game was the biggest time sink? Or even which one was the best looking? Well, look no further. We have our subjective answers to all your questions and more.
We'd like to extend a big heartfelt thank you to every single one of you - from the patrons to the listeners to even the casual followers on Twitter. We appreciate each and every one of you guys!
We hope you found joy in what we created this year and you'll be as excited for even bigger things to come.
Next year is going to be bananas!
From the whole team at The XboxCast - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
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Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Saturday Dec 18, 2021
Saturday Dec 18, 2021
Let's take a look back on the year that was.
With some very special guests to help out.
What could go wrong with a 6-person podcast?
Joined by our friends from Hall of Gamers, we go over each month in what is arguably one of the best years for Xbox. We go over stories of interest, product launches, Game Pass additions - anything that really caught our eye. At almost 3 hours long, we have a lot to cover!
And we even argue about how to pronounce Forza...
Special thanks to our incredibly special guests - Hall of Gamers!
Be sure to follow them on Twitter and everywhere else. (They did say where you could find each of them, but that went off the rails pretty quickly...)
Tune in next week for our last episode of the year! It's going to be the annual Game of the Year one, so you definitely don't want to miss out. We'll be live streaming on Twitch and YouTube!
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
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Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Thursday Dec 16, 2021
Thursday Dec 16, 2021
It's our very last #GameFace! episode for the year!
Just FYI.
Lee had to resort to desperate measures to get his guests to leave... Like cucumber beer!
At least that's his excuse for why he's over podcasting as we slide into Christmas.
For some reason we've all signed up for the Twelve Days of Christmas that True Achievement's is running. And this causes us to jump into some very different games. For instance, Kyle dives back into Doom 93! Great music, great level design, great to be back in the Nineties! There is some Tomb Raider single player multiplayer action in search of an achievement. And Exo One could have been amazing, but it just lets you down...
Lee plays Gang Beasts, which is shooting up his list to his most favourite game ever. Watch out Life is Strange! His daughter is beating him at his own game... We're so proud! We're going to have to do a community night sometime! Did you know that Lee caused havock in his younger years? He would hack all the shop computers on the fly! Using BASIC too!
He's also selling us on Hades... It does sound amazing.
All while Simone stumbles into being a stone cold killer...
Join our #Discord! Tell us all about the games you've been playing!
Come and talk nonsense!
--
If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
--
Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Saturday Dec 11, 2021
Saturday Dec 11, 2021
A hostile planet here, a hostile planet there.
Shake it all around and there's a hostile planet everywhere!
This is our last #NuNews for the year, so let's try end on a high note! In a totally expected move, Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5 has stormed onto the top two spots! Finally, we have something new to say about the charts. Lee does not like Gang Beasts, but you'll have to listen to the next #GameFace! to find out why... FIFA 22 and FIFA 22 are in the charts. No idea which one is which, but it's a very sneaky move by EA.
Achievements are back as a talking point. Seems everyone is hanging out for the Achievement 2.0 upgrade which Microsoft has rumbled about for years. Do you think it will ever come? Who knows at this stage. Amazon is rumored to make a Mass Effect series and Kyle doesn't believe this will be any good. Much hand wringing occurs, although Lee is pretty confident it could be interesting at least. Talk about a role reversal!
Serious Sam 4 gets shadow dropped on Game Pass, which reminds us that games have come out for Game Pass. In fact, all the games have come out for Game Pass. At this stage, if you finish all the games on Game Pass, you get a medal. And with the news that the Xbox Series S being the top selling console for Black Friday, it seems the world is waking up to the value of Series S + Game Pass.
How does the last New & Noteworthy Games land for this year? We start off strong, have a Halo rant, look at some interestng looking games, and then end with a bit of a wet blanket. To say Lee was not impressed is an understatement.
You can now vote for our #GameAwards! We want to hear from you!
For all the info - CLICK HERE! But if you want to jump straight into voting - CLICK HERE! Remember, these are games you've played this year, not necessarily games that have come out this year.
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
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Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Saturday Dec 04, 2021
Saturday Dec 04, 2021
Welcome to The Xboxcast.
Also known as The Angry Englishman podcast.
Simone played games? Simone played all the games? Simone played every game?
Normally this is Lee's job! We have GTASC to thank for this.
Simone shoots some hive, finds Xur (and doesn't find him very attractive) and gets worried that her ship is not very pretty. All to get an achievement! Which she did.
And then she climbed into a truck and drove it off a cliff.
Lee is stuck in Mexico racing cars, which we pretty much expected. He finds that he can only be average at this game. No professional racing car driver here... In a twist, Lee is the one taking all the in-game photos this week!
Kyle has gotten stuck into Exo One, which has launched day and date into Game Pass. And now Lee is dubious of Kyle's gaming abilities... Will he be able to 100% this game? We wait and see.
Join our #Discord! Tell us all about the games you've been playing!
Come and talk nonsense!
--
If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
--
Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Tuesday Nov 30, 2021
Tuesday Nov 30, 2021
Lee had a life this weekend. Who would have thought?
Xbox is still celebrating #Xbox20 and we're getting so much behind the scenes stuff! It's every Xbox nerd's dream. Xbox surely has left its mark on history, and this gen is just getting started to. Talk about excitement!
We go over all the reasons you don't want a PlayStation this Christmas, all the cool new games coming to Xbox Game Pass and Seagate’s shiny new 8 terabyte Game Drive. It even has lights! Who doesn't like lights? If you want something big and green to store your games on, this is for you.
In some exciting news, Xbox is looking at rejigging the achievement systems! What do you hope to see in Achievements 2.0?
This week, all the games are in the noteworthy column! So, every game should be quite exciting. We hope... Kyle is really excited about Before We Leave. It looks like a cool, cozy city builder. Lee sees some paths. And it’s on Xbox Game Pass! Even better. Looks like we found our post-Christmas dinner game!
Our Game of the Year Special is fast approaching, and like last year, we're going to include you, dear listener! Keep an ear out for how we do nominations, voting and some end of the year surprises on our Twitter.
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
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Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Thursday Nov 25, 2021
Thursday Nov 25, 2021
Lee doesn't drink chochy milks, and to be honest you can tell.
It explains so much!
Xbox is now officially 20 years old, so let's take a bit of a look back. 20 years! Can you believe it? Just look up some of the #Xbox20 hashtags on Twitter and get all the warm fuzzies. From lifelong friendships, to pioneering live services, Xbox has been instrumental in the gaming world.
We go over our best features, surprise features, missing features, and feature features!
And we've even roped in our Patrons to get their thoughts. What does the community think?
We're hanging onto GTSAC, making it into week 2 where we think we may bomb out...
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
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Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Monday Nov 22, 2021
Monday Nov 22, 2021
Because who doesn't like blue aliens?
Especially when they are warm and not cold.
Podcasting on a Saturday means we have all the news. Every single piece ever written. In the world! So, strap yourself in and let's dive into the news of the week.
Xbox has turned 20 this week, and there is a lot of exciting news coming out. From a docu-series to a sneaky Halo launch, it was a great celebration of everything Xbox. And we now have the last Backwards Compat drop with Xbox adding 76 games to the program. We're super excited to see Max Payne make the grade!
GTA Remastered and COD Vanguard have landed with a thud. From broken game modes, invisible bridges and way too much rain, these games aren't exactly polished... Forza Horizon 5 has rocketed into the charts as the ultimate dopamine factory.
We rant slightly about The Game Awards. But then again, who isn't? Can you believe Forza Horizon 5 didn't make the GotY cut?
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
--
Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Wednesday Nov 17, 2021
Wednesday Nov 17, 2021
What games do you sprinkle on your breakfast?
This is officially our 60th episode this year! If we had known, we might have planned something. But we didn't so we didn't.
We're trying to take part in GTASC this week - and, spoiler alert, it's not going so well. We have to get achievements and keep up with some very dedicated people. Will we survive the week? Will we make it to week 2? Why are we stressing ourselves out?
Simone and Kyle have finally started Halo 5, and are absolutely loving it so far. Jumping out a plane and shooting the enemies - it makes you feel way too cool. It reminds us a lot of the first mission of Gears 5. And we all know what a disappointment that turned out to be...
If you want to get your name yelled into the void, become a Patreon and help us make even more of the content you love.
We also have a YouTube channel where we stream the podcast recording, have previous episodes in video form, and all sorts of other things. Follow us there if you're not a fan of Twitch!
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
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Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Saturday Nov 13, 2021
Saturday Nov 13, 2021
Lee is Jeremy Clarkson and this is The XboxCast!
We're starting to think about our Games of the Year, and that means you need to think of it too. Check out our Patreon for last year's categories to make sure you're prepared. Want to discuss your thoughts? Jump into our Discord and tell us all your games of the year!
Forza Horizon 5 is taking the charts by storm, and keep in mind this is a day after properly released. As of recording it was sitting on 2 million players. As of publishing - 7 million! That is absolutely incredible. Halo is celebrating 20 years with new cosmetics in the Master Chief Collection, including an Xbox on your back and even Clippy watching you.
Mass Effect has a new poster and the hype is real! Why can't we get Mass Effect now? Waiting is hard... I want to put this poster up in my room.
Kyle and Lee get sidetracked talking about these remasters and re-imaginings. The things we really want it to play the games how we remembered them. Not how they actually were. Bring the games into the modern age, new graphics engines, updated controls - that's what we really want.
Forza Horizon 5 is leading the charge on new games coming out this week, sucking all the air out the room for the other releases. Doesn't stop us from finding a few other really pretty games to get distracted with.
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
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Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Thursday Nov 11, 2021
Thursday Nov 11, 2021
It's only taken halfway through November to get to this point.
#Witcherween has now officially concluded.
--- Spoilers ahoy ----
All through October, we were playing through The Witcher 3, and seeing how far we can get in a month. Since it is a game about monsters, so it totally counts for Halloween and #TerrorTober. And you can't change our mind about this!
So how far did we get? What did we think? What was our favourite quest? And why did Lee start a different game?
We also have a YouTube channel where we stream the podcast to, have previous episodes in video form, and other things. Be sure to follow us there if you're not a fan of Twitch!
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If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
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Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox
Saturday Nov 06, 2021
Saturday Nov 06, 2021
As chaotic as things get, we're here to sort it all out.
Well maybe not.
Brackets Windows enters the Gaming Charts under the guise of Age of Empires. But doesn't hold much other excitement apart from the fact that Cities: Skylines is a city builder. Kyle has found one of you has played Fallout 76 for over 8,000 hours. Do you need someone to talk to? We're here to help...
We're still chatting about The Witcher and even celebrating the first games 14th birthday. Did you know Geralt can't jump in the first game? Microsoft release their earnings for the past 3 months and it's quite a reasonable jump. Hardware sales are up 166%! Not too shabby for a console thats not available and apparently has no games.
LG have decided to lock their latest features behind the bigger sizes, and we don't see this working out for them at all. Now Lee's TV tells him how long he's been playing for. That's only slightly annoying...
For new games, Unpacked ticks Kyle's box while Call of Duty confuses us all. Why is it coming out now? When can we get Halo? If you have the Ultimate Edition - you can even jump into Forza Horizon 5! But we doubt this is news to you. You're probably already playing. In which case, tell us how it is! Other new games aren't really interesting, but that doesn't stop us from covering them anyways. Lee notices that everything coming to Game Pass are the most interesting games this week.
Shout out to our Head of Media - Matty - for the new lower thirds! Check it out on YouTube or Twitch and tell us what you think. And don't forget to join our Discord!
--
If you liked this episode, don't feel ashamed.
Rather, join the dozens of others that are following us.
http://linktr.ee/thexboxcast
--
Your hosts are:
Kyle: XarCrius on Xbox
Lee: Leehoward on Twitter and Xbox
Simone: GymBeanNZ on Twitter and Xbox