Share

cover art for Episode 53: The Xbox vs GameCube Draft

The Back Page: A Video Games Podcast

Episode 53: The Xbox vs GameCube Draft

Who can build the best hypothetical mini console, Matthew, representing GameCube, or Samuel, representing the original Xbox? As both consoles have turned 20 years old, in this episode we'll revisit the libraries of each in a competitive format. 

Wondering who won this one? It was Matthew, with around 60% of the vote.

This week's music is from the Super Mario Sunshine soundtrack by Koji Kondo and Shinobu Tanaka, the Metroid Prime soundtrack by Kenji Yamamoto and Kouichi Kyuma, The Simpsons: Hit and Run soundtrack by Marc Baril, Jeff Tymoschuk and Allan Levy, and the Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne soundtrack by Kärtsy Hatakka and Kimmo Kajasto.

More episodes

View all episodes

  • Mailbag – Two Giant Ben Edition

    01:50:16|
    It's a bloody mailbag! Please save your shrugs for the end. Thanks for all the questions, as ever.This week's music is from the Hotline Miami soundtrack by Perturbator. 
  • Two Giant Men Play the Nintendo Switch 2

    02:03:37|
    A new Nintendo console is here. Matthew is truly submerged in the Switch 2 experience, while Samuel has merely dipped a toe in the water. Here's how we're finding it so far.This week's music is from the Mario Kart World soundtrack by Atsuko Asahi, Maasa Miyoshi, Takuhiro Honda and Yutaro Takakuwa.
  • From N64 Magazine to Gamesmaster to Games Publishing (with Geraint Evans)

    02:11:27|
    It's Matthew hosting the pod solo this week, and his guest is Geraint Evans, formerly of N64 magazine, NGC and Gamesmaster. These days, he's working at the publisher PQube.This week's music is from the Phantasy Star Online Episodes 1 + 2 soundtracks by Hideaki Kobayashi and Fumie Kumatani. 
  • What We've Been Playing (Doom: The Dark Ages, Blades of Fire, The Hundred Line, The Siege and the Sandfox)

    01:23:28|
    Matthew has almost finished the new Doom game, while Samuel has done about half of it – so that's the focus of this week's episode. Matthew also explains his appreciation of the new MercurySteam game, Blades of Fire, and digs deep into his never-ending playthrough of The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy on Switch.This week's music is from The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy soundtrack by Masafumi Takada and Jun Fukuda.
  • The Best Games of 2005

    02:30:14|
    57 minutes and 13 seconds – that's the timestamp you want for all the game chatter, including two top 10 lists of the best games of 2005. Skip all the bullshit!For everyone else? Enjoy tales of college woes and secret freezer politics. Nonsense podcasting awaits.This week's music is from the Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater soundtrack by Harry Gregson-Williams.
  • GOTY 2025 Check-In

    01:19:59|
    Our guest cancelled! Gah. Well, here's an episode we airlifted out of our collective asses. Hopefully it's not too bad with two days' notice to plan it.
  • Games Court – Castle Island x Blue Prince Edition

    01:55:20|
    20ish listeners' pre-owned purchases go on trial before Judge Castle, as Games Court returns!We also talk about this week's GTA 6 trailer, with a brief section on Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, too. Do get in touch if you have any future Games Court entries, and we'll keep making them.This week's music is from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 by Lorien Testard.
  • Mailbag (sandwich + game pairings, writing cover features, console launches, other nonsense)

    01:40:10|
    It's time for another round of listener questions as we each recover from the 50 hours of games we played for last week's episode.Did anyone need 100 minutes of mailbag questions? Probably not, but as ever: it happened.Note: we recorded this week's episode before the Polygon and Giant Bomb layoffs if the tone around the games media chatter seems off.
  • What We've Been Playing (Blue Prince, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Promise Mascot Agency, Tempest Rising)

    01:50:42|
    It's catch-up time, as a spring wave of fantastic games hit at once! All of the above, plus Bionic Bay and some Metroid series chatter.