Which Bombcast host do you prefer?

Indifferent, the podcast has always been misdirected and off topic and the host has always shown occasional bias towards certain topics no matter whether it's Jeff, Ryan or Brad. Also I'd be willing to bet the quality of questions chosen is heavily influenced by the quality of questions sent in.

In short I disagree.

[x] Vinny

I don't remember much about Jeff's hosting style so I don't have real strong feelings one way or another. I'm fine with Brad as he is now but I've definitely noticed the same things you have. I don't know if he's gotten better about it or if I've just gotten used to it.

@officer_falcon: Yeeeeah Vinny! I've been obsessed with the Beastcast lately. It's got a different feel to it; I still really like the original bombcast too.

[x] Who cares

It's all good.

Is Rich Gallup an option? What are we voting on? What's the phone number?

Anyway, the Bombcast (and now the Beastcast) are still sounding great to me. Literally over a decade of listening to some of the guys and it's still something I look forward to each week.

I mean, Brad doesn't spend nearly long enough talking about the Peegs but other than that, it's all good.

Jeff is a better host than Brad but the bombcast is better with Brad hosting.

That's because Jeff is even better and more entertaining when simply reacting to stuff and Brad was awfully boring before he started hosting. At least now he's more engaged and active in whatever discussion is going on.

But really, Vinny is the best.

Brad is the brave man we need to face the horrors of Tumblr.

They are both great, but I like Jeff's willingness to embrace total chaos on a frequent basis.

[x] Vinny is the beast host, thank you I'll show myself out

When Jeff was hosting Brad would regularly drift out of the conversation for extended periods of times, having him host keeps him focused. Also, it frees up Jeff to cut loose and go on wild tangents because he doesn't have to be steering the wheel.

I think Drew should host.

Don't make me choooooooose!

Jeff is great playing off a host. And Brad is a great host. So Brad.

Edit: I wish Brad was a bit more inquisitive though. Put people to the wall, man. If only for the hell of it.

I don't feel that way at all. Jeff has so much to say about a lot of stuff, he's way better suited for a role where he can concentrate on contributing to a discussion instead of steering it. And Brad is forced to be a lot more active as the host - no more sleepy brad, except maybe for upf.

...THERE IS ONLY ONE CHOICE.

James 'Da Pimp' Lipton

Jeff is probably a little tighter than Brad but Brad hosting frees up Jeff to riff which is the best part of the bombcast. So Jeff with an asterisk. Vinny is better when not hosting too. He's been too hammy for my taste lately.

Ryan.

I am REALLY surprised Brad is winning this vote. He might be the most unprepared, uninterested, and poorly planned host ever. He'd generally prefer to be sleeping.

Brad as host allows Jeff to "explore the space" more, man.

Ryan

Jeff is better but it doesnt matter that very much becouse Jeff usually takes over and steer the conversations anyway. A bombcast when Jeff is away is often very slow.

To Brads credit he has improved immensely lately and it might be thanks to his new more active role. I really enjoyed his arguments during this GOTY talks which is a first.

@pr1mus said:

Was gonna type this out but why bother when you did? Though I think Brad is a fine host, I think because his voice doesn't change that much he can sound meaner then he actually intends when trying to steer the topic. I'm sure he will only get better with time!

I enjoy Jeff's more free-wheelin' style as host, but he's always been great as the color guy, or whatever role you want to call it.

Exactly this.

This...

@buddy900 said:

but also this..

I'd like to see Jason host, personally!

I don't think Brad is a bad host, but when Jeff hosted they tended to get into more rambles about off topic stuff...which is my favorite part of the bombcast.

What @pr1mus said is correct. We get a more engaged Brad, and a funnier Jeff. Win-win.

For example, if Dan starts talking about something Brad doesn't like, he'll dismiss it and try to shut it down as quickly as possible while steering the conversation toward something else that he (but not necessarily anyone else) likes.

Dude that's because 4/5 times it's about wrestling and that already gets discussed enough outside of things other than the dedicated wrestling podcast they already have!

I love the Bradcast personally. There's still plenty of off-topic stuff and I feel like not having Jeff host actually brings out the best in Jeff because when he's ready to go off he can do so without having to reign himself in (also seems like he's had more fun in this capacity).

Also I don't think it's a fair comparison in the first place because what Jeff and Brad had to work with as hosts is very different. The videogame landscape is pretty volatile from year to year, people's roles at GB are always evolving, the operational side changes dramatically etc..

Tumblr is the best host

Ryan

I think Bradcasts make the surprise Jeffcasts a big treat. Like when Vinny would be the surprise host, pre-Beastcast.

Brad absolutely righted the ship. Jeff just isn't built to be the kind of company man that hosts the Bombcast. However my very favorite Bombcast host scenario was always Jeff-While-Ryan-Was-Out for some fun inmates-running-the-asylum style hijinks as a change of pace.

When Jeff was the main host he tended to be a muted version of Jeff, and he couldn't be an engine of chaos. Brad could also get pretty disengaged before he was the host. I think the current version really plays to both their strengths.

I prefer Brad but that doesn't mean I'm against Jeff. I like it when Jeff hosts. Always have.

The agree with everything the OP says. No need to say more except that Jeff doesn't have time to fool with running the Bombcast.

I wish the podcast would go wildly off topic more often (no wrestling) and generally go longer.

I prefer Jeff hosting simply because I find Brad's voice and the way he pronounces certain words annoying. When Jeff hosted/hosts, Brad (as someone already pointed out) didn't speak as much so I didn't really notice how I felt. But I like them both really.

I do miss Sleepy Brad, though.

I prefer Brad because it frees Jeff up to take a step back, call his shot, and go yard whenever he feels the need to.

Brad. A Jeffcast should be a funny shakeup not the status quo, the bombcast became too meandering and dull with him at the helm.

Rich Gallup, Ryan and Vinny have been the best podcast hosts the site or "the spirit of the site" has had.

Jeff is great but he isn't a good host past a few episodes. That is why Ryan hosted everything they did. Brad is good but not great.

He can be a bit indecisive at times but i like what Brad brings to the Bombcast as the host.

Yeah I agree.

Jeff has had some good episodes but don't love him as a host plus he is so much better being able to chime in on the podcast vs having the be the host as well. When he was the host there was a lot lost in Jeff just coming in with his comments how he can.

I've been listening to a lot of old Bombcasts and yes Ryan was a fantastic host and an interesting aspect I think many overlook is how quickly he would often have the podcast turn to games. Like in old shows they might be talking about the big new games in the first two minutes of the show. But he was fantastic at weaving the personal stuff in later and pacing in general. Listening now I can see him controlling the pace of and guiding the show in a way I didn't appreciate then.

I think Brad does a good job mostly but I have some gripes. I do think they could mix the personal stuff up more and I think they do WAY too many e-mails. Especially when many times they don't even seem well screened. I don't care about e-mails enough for them to be half the show sometimes.

I think Brad is a fine host. Sometimes I think the questions he picks are not the most interesting of questions, but that could very well be because of the questions that are being sent in. I am really fond of some of the threads that happened before Brad became the host. Having a 3-5 week series of emails based around jobs where people had to visit other people's homes, the Australia debacle, and even some of the darker stuff, the poop emails, were amazing email highlights.

Lately, there hasn't been anything like that, except for Skrey (spelling?) Overload, which isn't quite the funniest thing in the world. If you were to ask me what type of questions were asked like a week or two ago, I probably couldn't remember. The incredibly off topic emails that could lead to train wrecks are generally more interesting than "Hey Bombcast, what about <insert game>? What's up with that?" questions. I think Vinny and the Beastcast are better at having more in depth, branching conversations lead by an email question. The Bombcast is still at its best when the guys just hang out, get off topic, and praise or critique games. With that in mind, Brad is the best person to fit that role now. Jeff, Dan, Jason, and Drew are better as contributors. Brad is good at going around the room and asking the guys about what they're up to, which is the core of like half of the Bombcast. He also typically goes last to talk about what he's been up to, unless it is something major like MGSV or The Witness.

So all of that said, the Bombcast is just about the best podcast I have ever listened to, whether it is back in 2008 (I'm slowly going through the back catalog), in 2013 when I started listening to it with Ryan, with Vinny or Jeff, and how it was since 2014-ish when Brad took over. My only real complaint is I wish Brad picked some more interesting and funnier emails, but the emails section is still great regardless.

I mean the answer is Ryan. He was so great. Anyway my second choice is Vinny cause I love how he always throws in music beds.

If those are my only two options I'd have to easily say Jeff. Brad is fine. I just prefer Jeff.