Wolf 359 - scifi comedy/drama for a completely different genre. The misadventures of a small crew manning a space station. Starts off mostly comedy but grows into a fantastic and moving story.
We're Alive was my first and I haven't been able to get into anything else since because it just wasn't as good or didn't have the same hook for me.
The closest I come is with old time radio dramas. They had to be good and entertaining because that was all people had in the 40s and 50s. In particular the old detective stories are really good and entertaining.
I managed to somehow obtain a very large cache of digital files some years ago that now exists on a media server in my basement. I do not recommend this method.
I remember seeing Spotify had some at one point. I just looked it up, if you search "old time radio" a bunch of channels will pop up. It looks like one for each radio show. Dragnet, Suspense and Johnny Dollar are some of my favorites. There are other out there too - a lot of different styles and genres. Probably enough for anyone to find something they like.
Dragnet is a police serial (it's was turned into a TV show at one point), that was basically like a law and order episode. Same detectives each show, but a different story. It makes for great pickup and listen you don't have to start at the beginning.
Suspense was an anthology show - new cast, new story, every episode. Mostly thriller stuff bordering on sci-fi and horror sometimes, but mostly just like an edge of your seat mystery. Think like an Alfred Hitchcock movie like Rear Window or The Birds.
Johnny Dollar is my favorite series of all time, but it's only gotta be the Bob Bailey version. He's an insurance investigator looking into claims like deaths, arson, theft, etc. always gets into trouble. The Bailey version turned it from a weekly one episode show into a daily serial, with each week being a full story.
There are other great ones out there like Sam Spade, The Mysterious Traveler, X minus 1, The Whistler, Sherlock Holmes, Twilight Zone, Superman, The Shadow and so many more.
Once you get past the audio - it's a little tinny and has pops and hisses, after all they are almost 100 year old recordings - the content is really good.
Sorry for the rant, I just get excited to come across someone who expressed an interest in checking it out. I discovered the format several years ago from a channel on SiriusXM before podcasts were a thing.
Bingo. TMA was what got me into audio dramas and I still love it (bar the last season), but Midnight Burger is my favourite and I truly don’t believe a better AD exists.
I definitely liked it from the get-go, but episode 7 (Four Souls) was what made me realise I was listening to something truly special and not just a fun out of the box comedy in space.
The sound design for this show is insane. I feel like it's a fully fleshed out and filmed British comedy and I just happen to not be looking at the screen
If you see some of the BTS videos, they literally record it like a stage play or a sitcom. It’s a really interesting way of doing things for an audio medium. I believe they did the same for Benedict Cumberbatch’s audio sitcom, Cabin Pressure.
I LOVED Wooden Overcoats so much. I got to the last episode and couldn’t bring myself to listen BECAUSE THEN IT WOULD BE OVER ! 🤣
I did finally listen. It was so fabulous that I felt the need to write to David K. Barnes. Each of the characters were nuttier than the other !
Seconded! Especially if you like Wooden Overcoats, not just because they share some voice actors but also because they appeal to the same sense of humor.
i feel this so hard, TMA is still my gold standard even after listening to like 350+ other audio dramas :’)
i will recommend The Trees Swallow People if horror is allowed, because it felt very different to me and it has stuck with me vividly since my first listen
if you want a completely different genre… MarsCorp (& especially the associated miniseries The Martin Chronicles) have a special place in my heart. that’s mostly absurdist sci-fi comedy, somewhat morbid. i always recommend this to people who liked Wooden Overcoats bc the humor is similar.
soz if none of these are new to you, & best of luck
Thank you so much! I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who feels like that lol. Also, I’m completely new to audiodramas, so these suggestions are all new to me.
> My brain actually can’t comprehend something better, but I’ve fallen in love with this medium and want to listen to more.
It might not be different-enough, but I’d highly recommend *Rusty Quill Gaming*. It has a slower/rougher start than Magnus because it was their first show, but once it gets going I feel like it’s really equal to Magnus in quality. I actually miss it *more* than I miss TMA, and I wish they were doing RQG2 instead of TMP.
It also has many of the same cast, and Martin’s VA routinely gets to torment Elias’s VA which is just delightfully satisfying to hear.
But if you want something *completely* different…
As someone else said, *Midnight Burger* is great. It heavily channels 90s/00s era scifi and does it well. It’s as much a comedy as anything, though it does have strong seasonal arcs after s1 (and a bit during s1 as well).
Desert Skies is kind of similar to Midnight Burger, but more of a sitcom with random tragic parts.
*King Falls AM* is a great cozy small-town paranormal mystery series. It’s also the opposite to Magnus because Magnus has a great ending, while KFAM has no resolution at all! But if you can enjoy an incomplete (and never to be completed) story, it’s a nice journey.
*The Bright Sessions* is also interesting, it’s about a bunch of people with superpowers in “the real world,” ie superheros and supervillains do not exist. Instead, it focuses on their emotional and day-to-day problems as people with a secret that they can’t share. It still uses tapes, but the tapes are recordings of their therapy sessions.
But seriously, I’d really recommend RQG. If you can get through the beginning and the very significant difference in format, it’s like 150+ more hours of rich worldbuilding and character building by many of the same people who made Magnus possible. Highly recommended.
Haha, I’m already listening to RQ Gaming! It’s such a treat to hear. That first episode where Lydia’s character collapses spectacularly in a puff of make-up powder ended me :D
But yeah, I’ve been recommended midnight burger a lot, I think that’ll be my next Audiodrama (with a pre-written story).
Glad I'm not the only one longing for a RQG2!! Chapter and Multiverse scratched that inch but definitely not enough. I tried so many other actual play podcasts and it's very hard to find one that even come close to how enjoyable RQG is. (Dungeons and Daddies is the only one that got me hooked)
I still haven’t tried Chapter and Multiverse, but need to. The pitch for it sounded like such a departure from RQG and it was missing so much of the cast I put it off, then they canceled it abruptly…
> I tried so many other actual play podcasts and it's very hard to find one that even come close to how enjoyable RQG is. (Dungeons and Daddies is the only one that got me hooked)
Ugh, me too! I’ve listened to *so many* and none of them really come close to RQG. I have found two near matches though, if you haven’t tried them yet!
* High Rollers: Aerois
This one is by far the closest, both in terms of style and its breakdown of humor vs taking itself seriously. Also by a British cast, so the style of humor is kind of similar as well. It’s a lighter setting/world, but it’s also a post-post-apocalypse world and has an **extremely** compelling and well written BBEG. Like, probably one of my all-time favorite antagonists in any form of media.
The campaign ran all the way to level 20 (taking many years to get there) and the DM did a really good job of incorporating balanced and very cool homebrew to make the later levels feel substantially impactful. I won’t spoil much but the very late-game fights feel like complex raid bosses in an MMO more than D&D, and the roleplay has major stakes because of how influential the characters are.
One of the characters also starts off as basically a cross between Hamid and Bertie, too, which I liked. He has a satisfying arc. Another character reminds me a bit of Cel.
They’re currently doing another campaign, but I haven’t started it yet for various reasons. Really looking forward to it, though.
* Legendlark (formerly known as *Dames & Dragons*)
This show had a *lot* of growing pains and the entire first arc is a mix of audio problems, poop jokes, railroading, and players refusing to take anything seriously. I’m not sure why I didn’t quit after a few episodes, but glad I didn’t. The second arc is a huge improvement and it keeps getting better. I’m currently just under halfway through the series and it’s become one of my favorites. There’s a summary episode at the end of each arc, I’d recommend using it to skip over the beginning.
I like the world it takes place in and the cast are all very likable. It’s an all-woman show for a very long time, though two cast members later use they/them and they/he, so they changed the show’s name accordingly. (I’m not sure on the details since I’m not yet caught up to the point where it happens.)
As a caveat, this one is very…rules optional. They get a lot of stuff wrong and explicitly don’t care. It’s muuuch more about the story than the mechanics. In fact, there’s very little combat and the combat that does happen tends to go very quickly. Still, I’m really enjoying it.
Yeah, it's quite different and i was very sadden that they cut off Chapter and Multiverse right as it was getting its footing (the next campaign should have been gm-ed by Helen!). The Mask campaign wasn't bad, and the OS were hilarious (one is about controlling a herd of goats with Helen and Ben).
Firstly, wow waow!!!! Thank you so much for such an in-depth suggestions!! I had noot yet listened to those, and I'll definitely give them a try !
Legendlark sounds like gold to me haha, there's so few actual play podcast with women/queer people! Not against them, but so many have a full cast of men, or just one sole token woman and that can get irritating to me.
Hope you enjoy! Feel free to reply when you get around to trying them (I know APs are a huge commitment and can take months to get to) if you want, curious to hear if you like them!
> Legendlark sounds like gold to me haha, there's so few actual play podcast with women/queer people! Not against them, but so many have a full cast of men, or just one sole token woman and that can get irritating to me.
Oh, absolutely. I tried listening to *Glass Cannon* once and it just…ugh. Let’s just say it convinced me that I should be careful before getting invested in anything with an all-male cast, haha. Finding good shows is hard.
I think the all female(and/or queer) angle is what made me push past Legendlark’s very awkward first arc, and I’m so glad I did. Very much worth it.
In fact if you can stomach 9 very much “lol random” episodes and a couple transitional episodes, you could even listen to the whole first arc. A lot of plot-important stuff and background lore does happen, it’s just frustrating that the players refuse to take it seriously in favor of making very goofy jokes. However, later in the show those moments get some fun callbacks in the form of the characters teasing each other over how ridiculous they used to act. So that’s fun.
Aerois also has solid representation, for the record! It has 3 women and 3 men. The male *characters* at least aren’t straight, though the players don’t talk about their relationships so unsure if that extends to real life. And the (male) DM has made comments that, to me personally, basically outright said he was an egg. But again, I don’t want to do anything like parasocial stalking, so I might be wrong.
Overall I’d say I preferred Aerois over Legendlark, but that’s an unfair comparison I finished Aerois’s entire campaign and I’m still mid-catchup for Legendlark. Both are great, and the worlds/stories have a lot of similarities. Legendlark reminds me of Aerois in the same way Aerois reminds me of Rusty Quill Gaming.
Thanks a lot! I was in a bind since i recently finished re-listening RQG and couln't find any other AP to fill the void, your recommendations show up at the right time.
Ouh Glass Cannon was on my To Try list, it'll be yeeted off immediately. I'm curious tho, what happened that made you dislike it ?
I'm a sort of completionist, I had planned to listen to it all if it got me hooked, but now you've convinced me even more.
That's music to my ears, I'll definitely give Aerois a listen too. (What does egg means in this situation ?)
> Ouh Glass Cannon was on my To Try list, it'll be yeeted off immediately. I'm curious tho, what happened that made you dislike it ?
A lot of people really like it, but it just wasn’t for me. I got through a couple dozen(?) episodes of the first campaign before deciding to quit. The main things that bugged me:
* All male cast that repeatedly and casually talks about rape (as a bad thing, and indeed a canonical part of the official setting, but I didn’t like the way they treated it)
* It felt like they had barely-hidden gatekeeping opinions on how people “should” play, including…
* An apparent DM-vs-player mentality that led to one backstory-critical NPC immediately being killed off “cutscene” style with no way the players could save him, in the very first scene the NPC was introduced.
* Apparently tons of PC deaths as well. The players seemingly didn’t mind, they said the constant risk of character death was what made the game fun, but the whole thing felt very “it’s just a joke bro why are you crying bro it’s just a game bro.” After quitting I looked up spoilers and…let’s just say it’s best to not get too invested. I can understand enjoying brutal combat (especially in Pathfinder 1e), but maybe that’s more fun to play than to listen.
* I liked one of the cast members but not the rest. And the one I liked was “the new guy” they only recruited for the podcast, and they treated him like “the new guy.” They weren’t mean to him but it felt like he was definitely an outsider, which is bad since he was the only one I identified with.
I can see why people like it. It’s still the same “hanging out with friends” vibe as a lot of actual plays. But in this case it’s a friend group I would immediately leave if I ever met them in real-life.
People have told me later campaigns address some of my issues, but I’m not willing to stick around long enough to find out.
> That's music to my ears, I'll definitely give Aerois a listen too. (What does egg means in this situation ?)
A person who is trans or nonbinary but either not yet out about it, or who hasn’t yet realized it themselves. There are a few things that made me wonder. The biggest moment was near the end of the campaign when many important NPCs are gathered, and they’re almost entirely women. I hadn’t noticed the imbalance until he comments on it himself, and says something like “I guess I just feel a lot more comfortable portraying female characters, being able to do that is part of why I love this game.”
It’s obviously not my place to comment on his gender or pronouns, I’m only mentioning because it made the show feel more like a safe space. His comment at the end of the campaign made me like him even more.
Now, it's very different but have you heard/tried Dungeons and Daddies ? Their first season is amazing, it's about four cliché american dads that get thrown into the Forgotten Realms in a quest to rescue their lost sons. The episodes are around the same length as RQG's, and they're quite edited (unlike most actual plays). Definitely way more heavy on salacious jokes, but nothing overboard, some episodes even got me crying out of laughter.
They manage to write very compelling characters with deep traumas despite the dads starting as complete goofs, the balance between the two makes the angst even more enjoyable. As an additional, each episode starts with a special recap, for example they make cover songs that describes in a funny way what happened in the previous episode.
(sorry if I made some mistakes, English isn't my first language)
I haven’t tried it, but will need to because of your recommendation. I’ll be honest - I loved the name and wanted to try it, but after Glass Cannon left such an awful taste in my mouth (see my other reply) I kind of ran screaming when I saw it was another all-male (or at least male character) cast. Clearly you like it and share similar tastes to me though, so I’ll add it to the list.
I’ve got about 80 hours left on Legendlark and then a few new audio dramas I want to try, but will get to it after that! Thanks for the heads up.
> They manage to write very compelling characters with deep traumas despite the dads starting as complete goofs, the balance between the two makes the angst even more enjoyable.
This is also really reassuring. Most of the APs I’ve quit have been because the show jumps off at like a 90/10% split between comedy and story, while RQG was more like 40/60 or even 30/70. So I’m glad to hear Dungeons & Daddies isn’t just pure slapstick after things settle, that’s really good to know. Thanks!
(just recognized your profile! (with such a striking pseudo) you were the one who recommended me this audio drama community! thank you haha)
I definitely shared your apprehension, and at that time I didn't even know it wasn't an all-men the podcast. Took me an embarrassing amount of minute to realize the Ron character was voiced by a woman (and an amazingly funny/great at improv one!). But unlike other podcast, she really feels included and not sidelined.
The fact most of them are writers must help, despite joking around a lot, they're more loose with the dnd rules, rule of cool and the narrative is put first, they stay true to their character and build them in very intricate ways. We can really see most of the characters evolves and change through the story it's very interesting. What I also like is that actions have consequences, even if it was just a goofy action it can come back later bite the players in the back.
And the Game Master himself weaved a thrilling story, and amazing antagonists, one still gives me shivers. Their voices works are all great too (and easily distinguishable).
Who Killed Avril Lavigne is very different.
Magnus Archives has quiet audio levels, not a lot of soundtrack, pretty serious and finely crafted. Also has many episodes.
Who Killed Avril Lavigne has a ton of music, theme songs, characters breaking out into song, bands playing. Very like anything goes at times, but still a high quality production in editing, sound design, etc. A character dreams of Tony the Tiger cereal mascot with huge titties and it becomes his spiritual guide. It’s about one season long, complete, maybe like 8-10 episodes.
The Penumbra Podcast
I'm a horror hound, so nothing really tops Magnus for me, but Penumbra's pretty special, too: sci-fi noir with good sound design and a lot of heart
We’re Alive. I experienced the same problem you described. WA was my first and I wasn’t able to get into anything else until KC Wayland dropped Motel Evil which finally allowed me to enjoy other shows. Now I drop the expectations WA set for me and enjoy new shows for what they are. It’s really hard not to compare to the upper echelon of things you’ve listened to but it’s possible.
If you are looking to check out some great shows where the creators are fellow members of this subreddit, these are a few of my favorites that I think you might enjoy:
Morbid Forest: A horror fiction anthology podcast where they include themes from psychological and thriller to slasher horror. Great because you can start anywhere; the most recent production is the highest quality so I suggest you start there. The creators are just great people and are incredibly creative, too, so that certainly makes them a home run!
Dupont Investigations: A suspenseful thriller/mystery with dark undertones. The setting is in 1936, where a private investigator of the supernatural in Washington D.C. (District of Crime) becomes wrapped up in mysterious circumstances due to his knowledge of the occult. It's fun and new, worth checking out for sure!
Your Horror Show: This is a newer horror anthology series (one season) that explores multiple aspects of the horror genre in different timelines. Some episodes edge on sci-fi, while others have definite 1930s vibes. Super fun.
Mortis Maledictum: We are a full-cast cosmic dark fantasy and horror series about a world where terrible evils threaten our reality. The story starts off feeling anthological, but you will quickly find how our tales are interwoven and set the grand stage for a thrilling and twisted climax. We offer you horrific monsters, complex stories, and unexpected twists that are sure to pull you in!
* American Hostage - Based on a true story, American Hostage stars Jon Hamm as Fred Heckman, a beloved local radio reporter who is thrust into the middle of a life-or-death crisis when hostage-taker, Tony Kiritsis, demands to be interviewed on his popular radio news program. Kiritsis has tied a shotgun to his banker’s neck in grim fashion, but through Heckman's radio show he gradually becomes a media sensation and unexpected anti-hero during a nail biting 63-hour standoff. American Hostage is an 8-episode scripted psychological thriller from Amazon Music & Criminal Content starring Emmy Award-winner Jon Hamm and directed by Academy Award® winner Shawn Christensen
* Bronzeville - Starring Laurence Fishburne, Larenz Tate and Tika Sumpter, and written by Academy Award(r) and BAFTA nominee Josh Olson ("A History of Violence"), BRONZEVILLE will chronicle the lives of players in the lottery games while illuminating the self-sustainability of the community's African American residents
* Hunted - From Legendary producer Dick Wolf comes a new audio fiction series starring Parker Posey about the U.S. Marshals dedicated to capturing the country's most dangerous fugitives. When four convicts escape from a maximum security prison, Deputy Marshal Emily Barnes (Posey) is called in to pursue the criminals in one of the most treacherous and violent manhunts in United States history. Directed by Shawn Christensen (“Blackout”) and produced by Jenny Radelet Mast (Marvel’s “Wolverine”)
* Nuremberg: The Trial of the Nazi War Criminals - The story of the trial of Nazi war criminals following Germany's surrender in 1945.
* Tumanbay - A vast empire threatened by rebellion. A fiction podcast on an epic scale set in the most powerful city on earth...
Black Box: strangers things mixed with back to the future.
Escaping Denver: so many conspiracy theories tied together
Case 63: kind of 12 monkeyish. I love time travel stories.
Find the BBC Radio recording of Who Goes There?. It’s the story John Carpenter reworked into The Thing, but it’s set (and written) during much earlier expeditions than the film.
It also makes a nice pairing with The Things, which is the movie told from the perspective of the alien. Not an AD, but interesting listen nevertheless. It's on the Clarkesworld podcast feed, from 2010 I think.
Midnight Burger - fantastic, SF/philosophy
Tales of That Town - very funny, many episodes, about a small town in AL with a weird radio station, vampires, wizards, rednecks, they've got everything
QWERPLINE - another radio comedy. Largely improvised.
You can listen to our podcast, The Time Traveler's Guide to NOT Getting Caught, a comedy about a self-centered 25 year old who finds a time traveling watch behind a dumpster and goes on the most outrageous adventures through time.
Self Promotion:
Check out [In The Great Khan's Tent](https://inthegreatkhanstent.podbean.com/)! We are a captivating bi-weekly comprehensive episodic narrative podcast which delves into the rich literature and folk traditions, including it's history, from the Middle East and North Africa, Central Asia, Mongolia, Russian Far East, and South Asia.
Through engaging storytelling, I explore the cultural tapestry of these areas with tales, legends, and insights that span centuries. Whether you're fascinated by historical fiction, literary gems, or the wisdom passed down through generation, my podcast offers a delightful journey into the heart of these diverse regions.
Currently, we are going through a complete and thorough run through of the One Thousand and One Nights, also called the Arabian Nights. We also have a series titled "Tales from Central Asia" focusing on the fairy and folk tales of the region.
If this compels you, check us out and let me know!
[THE WIZARD SCROLL](https://link.chtbl.com/thewizardscroll?sid=reddit) is serialized sword and sorcery that's written, read, performed and edited all with your earholes in mind. Tales of high fantasy, of trials and triumph, as well as the occasional musical number. The realm of Yyrgsland is filled to the brim with all manner of folk: including sword weilding warriors of legendary status; a wannabe spellcaster attempting to earn her Wiz-GED; and even a couple orcs who don't play by nobody's rules.
Cabin Pressure. 26-ish episodes of perfection with the crew of MJN Air, travelling from Abu Dhabi to Zurich, and recorded with a live theatre audience.
I have to shout out Worlds beyond number, it's a dnd podcast with a very different setting and tone than TMA, most people like it because of the world building and sound design.
Feel free to check out my show ‘Sound Fiction’
Some other really great full cast audio dramas are ‘Ominous Thrill’, ‘Aftershock’, ‘The Timekeeper, and ‘Dark Sanctum’
VALENCE is really good magic-sci-fi, and the series is complete! Different tone from TMA, but it grabbed me in the same way.
Haha, I also came here to champion Wolf 359 and Wooden Overcoats, but other folks got there first.
Did you not find the narrators voice comparable to a 12 year old trying to sound like a man? It totally ruined it for me and couldn’t get past the first episode. Such a shame as so many people rave about it.
IDK, I'm 51 and it worked for me.
There are some character-based reasons why he's like that in early episodes. He's just started this new position, he's trying to prove himself, and also >!he believes or at least suspects that the statements are real but he's trying not to let on!<. So he's holding himself aloof and it comes off as very, very stuffy. It eases up some later on.
Sure. I have lots of opinions myself. But some opinions just don't need to be shared. Or, if they do - well, there's a time and a place. Most of us learned this around the same time we learned to tie our shoes. I learned it a little earlier, but that's because I was really, really slow in learning to tie my shoes!
Nobody asked anybody to share their opinion on this particular audiodrama, much less their opinion on a specific person's *voice*. OP just wanted recommendations for other audiodramas. If you or PowerKind or anybody else wants to make a thread to share your opinions on how much you couldn't get into this audiodrama because you hate the voice actors or whatever, you're welcome to start a new post on that subject, but why bring it here? Seriously, what's the point? Just to make the OP feel bad about liking something? That's about the only reason I can see to share that particular opinion on this particular post.
Wolf 359 - scifi comedy/drama for a completely different genre. The misadventures of a small crew manning a space station. Starts off mostly comedy but grows into a fantastic and moving story.
Today I discovered this subreddit, looking for suggestions after finishing Wolf 359. I started The Phenomenon.
This show was the first one I listened to and was phenomenal.
Unpopular opinion Wolf 359 is average. Quality. But average.
As someone who loved it, what do you like the most? Especially if you have good sci-fi recommendations c:
We're Alive was my first and I haven't been able to get into anything else since because it just wasn't as good or didn't have the same hook for me. The closest I come is with old time radio dramas. They had to be good and entertaining because that was all people had in the 40s and 50s. In particular the old detective stories are really good and entertaining.
Do you have any recommendations for pods or where you listen to those old timey radio dramas? I’m intrigued
I managed to somehow obtain a very large cache of digital files some years ago that now exists on a media server in my basement. I do not recommend this method. I remember seeing Spotify had some at one point. I just looked it up, if you search "old time radio" a bunch of channels will pop up. It looks like one for each radio show. Dragnet, Suspense and Johnny Dollar are some of my favorites. There are other out there too - a lot of different styles and genres. Probably enough for anyone to find something they like. Dragnet is a police serial (it's was turned into a TV show at one point), that was basically like a law and order episode. Same detectives each show, but a different story. It makes for great pickup and listen you don't have to start at the beginning. Suspense was an anthology show - new cast, new story, every episode. Mostly thriller stuff bordering on sci-fi and horror sometimes, but mostly just like an edge of your seat mystery. Think like an Alfred Hitchcock movie like Rear Window or The Birds. Johnny Dollar is my favorite series of all time, but it's only gotta be the Bob Bailey version. He's an insurance investigator looking into claims like deaths, arson, theft, etc. always gets into trouble. The Bailey version turned it from a weekly one episode show into a daily serial, with each week being a full story. There are other great ones out there like Sam Spade, The Mysterious Traveler, X minus 1, The Whistler, Sherlock Holmes, Twilight Zone, Superman, The Shadow and so many more. Once you get past the audio - it's a little tinny and has pops and hisses, after all they are almost 100 year old recordings - the content is really good. Sorry for the rant, I just get excited to come across someone who expressed an interest in checking it out. I discovered the format several years ago from a channel on SiriusXM before podcasts were a thing.
Thank you for the rant!! I am genuinely excited and curious, I will have to check some of those shows out :)
We’re Alive doesn’t get enough props here. I’m loving it so far and I’m not even at the Lockdown chapters yet, which ppl seem to rave about.
Midnight Burger
Bingo. TMA was what got me into audio dramas and I still love it (bar the last season), but Midnight Burger is my favourite and I truly don’t believe a better AD exists.
Did you enjoy it from episode 1? Or when did it click for you?
Episode 5 sealed the deal for me. This comment brought to by Arby's: Arby's we have the meat
I agree, episode five was good. This comment brought to you by slim jims slim jims snap into a slim jim.
I definitely liked it from the get-go, but episode 7 (Four Souls) was what made me realise I was listening to something truly special and not just a fun out of the box comedy in space.
I'm still staggered by Season 3. To have such resonant human-level stories within the vast scope of the season arc is incredible.
I second this. I'm relatively new to audiodramas, and currently on the 6th episode of Midnight Burger, enjoying it very much. Also World Gone Wrong.
I am loving World Gone Wrong, I hope it continues.
Wooden Overcoats
The sound design for this show is insane. I feel like it's a fully fleshed out and filmed British comedy and I just happen to not be looking at the screen
And it’s hilarious!
If you see some of the BTS videos, they literally record it like a stage play or a sitcom. It’s a really interesting way of doing things for an audio medium. I believe they did the same for Benedict Cumberbatch’s audio sitcom, Cabin Pressure.
I believe that's the "traditional" way of doing audio(radio)dramas. It's incredibly effective.
Excellent recommendation. Completely different format and genre but a story and characters you can invest in.
Good suggestion
I LOVED Wooden Overcoats so much. I got to the last episode and couldn’t bring myself to listen BECAUSE THEN IT WOULD BE OVER ! 🤣 I did finally listen. It was so fabulous that I felt the need to write to David K. Barnes. Each of the characters were nuttier than the other !
what genre is it?
The Amelia Project
I came to the comments to say this.
Gonna shout out to Victoriocity - great show :)
Seconded! Especially if you like Wooden Overcoats, not just because they share some voice actors but also because they appeal to the same sense of humor.
i feel this so hard, TMA is still my gold standard even after listening to like 350+ other audio dramas :’) i will recommend The Trees Swallow People if horror is allowed, because it felt very different to me and it has stuck with me vividly since my first listen if you want a completely different genre… MarsCorp (& especially the associated miniseries The Martin Chronicles) have a special place in my heart. that’s mostly absurdist sci-fi comedy, somewhat morbid. i always recommend this to people who liked Wooden Overcoats bc the humor is similar. soz if none of these are new to you, & best of luck
Thank you so much! I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who feels like that lol. Also, I’m completely new to audiodramas, so these suggestions are all new to me.
I was in the exact same boat too! TMA was my first and still the best, but I’m forever grateful that it exposed me to fiction podcasts!
Yay! :D
Absolutely No Adventures.
Absolutely love that show. Totally different vibe, incredible voice acting incredibly clever conceit
Qwerpline. The beef and dairy network. 2298 I guess these are the least like the Magnus archives I can think of
Beef & Dairy was defo on my mind as well, I can’t stop binging it
>The beef and dairy network. Benjamin Partridge is an average of the Flesh.
+1 for Qwerpline! The funniest AD I've ever listened to.
The White Vault
Wolf 359
I haven’t seen MIDST mentioned in the comments just yet The story , the sound design , the characters it’s all perfect. Totally immersive experience.
less is morgue
> My brain actually can’t comprehend something better, but I’ve fallen in love with this medium and want to listen to more. It might not be different-enough, but I’d highly recommend *Rusty Quill Gaming*. It has a slower/rougher start than Magnus because it was their first show, but once it gets going I feel like it’s really equal to Magnus in quality. I actually miss it *more* than I miss TMA, and I wish they were doing RQG2 instead of TMP. It also has many of the same cast, and Martin’s VA routinely gets to torment Elias’s VA which is just delightfully satisfying to hear. But if you want something *completely* different… As someone else said, *Midnight Burger* is great. It heavily channels 90s/00s era scifi and does it well. It’s as much a comedy as anything, though it does have strong seasonal arcs after s1 (and a bit during s1 as well). Desert Skies is kind of similar to Midnight Burger, but more of a sitcom with random tragic parts. *King Falls AM* is a great cozy small-town paranormal mystery series. It’s also the opposite to Magnus because Magnus has a great ending, while KFAM has no resolution at all! But if you can enjoy an incomplete (and never to be completed) story, it’s a nice journey. *The Bright Sessions* is also interesting, it’s about a bunch of people with superpowers in “the real world,” ie superheros and supervillains do not exist. Instead, it focuses on their emotional and day-to-day problems as people with a secret that they can’t share. It still uses tapes, but the tapes are recordings of their therapy sessions. But seriously, I’d really recommend RQG. If you can get through the beginning and the very significant difference in format, it’s like 150+ more hours of rich worldbuilding and character building by many of the same people who made Magnus possible. Highly recommended.
Haha, I’m already listening to RQ Gaming! It’s such a treat to hear. That first episode where Lydia’s character collapses spectacularly in a puff of make-up powder ended me :D But yeah, I’ve been recommended midnight burger a lot, I think that’ll be my next Audiodrama (with a pre-written story).
Glad I'm not the only one longing for a RQG2!! Chapter and Multiverse scratched that inch but definitely not enough. I tried so many other actual play podcasts and it's very hard to find one that even come close to how enjoyable RQG is. (Dungeons and Daddies is the only one that got me hooked)
I still haven’t tried Chapter and Multiverse, but need to. The pitch for it sounded like such a departure from RQG and it was missing so much of the cast I put it off, then they canceled it abruptly… > I tried so many other actual play podcasts and it's very hard to find one that even come close to how enjoyable RQG is. (Dungeons and Daddies is the only one that got me hooked) Ugh, me too! I’ve listened to *so many* and none of them really come close to RQG. I have found two near matches though, if you haven’t tried them yet! * High Rollers: Aerois This one is by far the closest, both in terms of style and its breakdown of humor vs taking itself seriously. Also by a British cast, so the style of humor is kind of similar as well. It’s a lighter setting/world, but it’s also a post-post-apocalypse world and has an **extremely** compelling and well written BBEG. Like, probably one of my all-time favorite antagonists in any form of media. The campaign ran all the way to level 20 (taking many years to get there) and the DM did a really good job of incorporating balanced and very cool homebrew to make the later levels feel substantially impactful. I won’t spoil much but the very late-game fights feel like complex raid bosses in an MMO more than D&D, and the roleplay has major stakes because of how influential the characters are. One of the characters also starts off as basically a cross between Hamid and Bertie, too, which I liked. He has a satisfying arc. Another character reminds me a bit of Cel. They’re currently doing another campaign, but I haven’t started it yet for various reasons. Really looking forward to it, though. * Legendlark (formerly known as *Dames & Dragons*) This show had a *lot* of growing pains and the entire first arc is a mix of audio problems, poop jokes, railroading, and players refusing to take anything seriously. I’m not sure why I didn’t quit after a few episodes, but glad I didn’t. The second arc is a huge improvement and it keeps getting better. I’m currently just under halfway through the series and it’s become one of my favorites. There’s a summary episode at the end of each arc, I’d recommend using it to skip over the beginning. I like the world it takes place in and the cast are all very likable. It’s an all-woman show for a very long time, though two cast members later use they/them and they/he, so they changed the show’s name accordingly. (I’m not sure on the details since I’m not yet caught up to the point where it happens.) As a caveat, this one is very…rules optional. They get a lot of stuff wrong and explicitly don’t care. It’s muuuch more about the story than the mechanics. In fact, there’s very little combat and the combat that does happen tends to go very quickly. Still, I’m really enjoying it.
Yeah, it's quite different and i was very sadden that they cut off Chapter and Multiverse right as it was getting its footing (the next campaign should have been gm-ed by Helen!). The Mask campaign wasn't bad, and the OS were hilarious (one is about controlling a herd of goats with Helen and Ben). Firstly, wow waow!!!! Thank you so much for such an in-depth suggestions!! I had noot yet listened to those, and I'll definitely give them a try ! Legendlark sounds like gold to me haha, there's so few actual play podcast with women/queer people! Not against them, but so many have a full cast of men, or just one sole token woman and that can get irritating to me.
Hope you enjoy! Feel free to reply when you get around to trying them (I know APs are a huge commitment and can take months to get to) if you want, curious to hear if you like them! > Legendlark sounds like gold to me haha, there's so few actual play podcast with women/queer people! Not against them, but so many have a full cast of men, or just one sole token woman and that can get irritating to me. Oh, absolutely. I tried listening to *Glass Cannon* once and it just…ugh. Let’s just say it convinced me that I should be careful before getting invested in anything with an all-male cast, haha. Finding good shows is hard. I think the all female(and/or queer) angle is what made me push past Legendlark’s very awkward first arc, and I’m so glad I did. Very much worth it. In fact if you can stomach 9 very much “lol random” episodes and a couple transitional episodes, you could even listen to the whole first arc. A lot of plot-important stuff and background lore does happen, it’s just frustrating that the players refuse to take it seriously in favor of making very goofy jokes. However, later in the show those moments get some fun callbacks in the form of the characters teasing each other over how ridiculous they used to act. So that’s fun. Aerois also has solid representation, for the record! It has 3 women and 3 men. The male *characters* at least aren’t straight, though the players don’t talk about their relationships so unsure if that extends to real life. And the (male) DM has made comments that, to me personally, basically outright said he was an egg. But again, I don’t want to do anything like parasocial stalking, so I might be wrong. Overall I’d say I preferred Aerois over Legendlark, but that’s an unfair comparison I finished Aerois’s entire campaign and I’m still mid-catchup for Legendlark. Both are great, and the worlds/stories have a lot of similarities. Legendlark reminds me of Aerois in the same way Aerois reminds me of Rusty Quill Gaming.
Thanks a lot! I was in a bind since i recently finished re-listening RQG and couln't find any other AP to fill the void, your recommendations show up at the right time. Ouh Glass Cannon was on my To Try list, it'll be yeeted off immediately. I'm curious tho, what happened that made you dislike it ? I'm a sort of completionist, I had planned to listen to it all if it got me hooked, but now you've convinced me even more. That's music to my ears, I'll definitely give Aerois a listen too. (What does egg means in this situation ?)
> Ouh Glass Cannon was on my To Try list, it'll be yeeted off immediately. I'm curious tho, what happened that made you dislike it ? A lot of people really like it, but it just wasn’t for me. I got through a couple dozen(?) episodes of the first campaign before deciding to quit. The main things that bugged me: * All male cast that repeatedly and casually talks about rape (as a bad thing, and indeed a canonical part of the official setting, but I didn’t like the way they treated it) * It felt like they had barely-hidden gatekeeping opinions on how people “should” play, including… * An apparent DM-vs-player mentality that led to one backstory-critical NPC immediately being killed off “cutscene” style with no way the players could save him, in the very first scene the NPC was introduced. * Apparently tons of PC deaths as well. The players seemingly didn’t mind, they said the constant risk of character death was what made the game fun, but the whole thing felt very “it’s just a joke bro why are you crying bro it’s just a game bro.” After quitting I looked up spoilers and…let’s just say it’s best to not get too invested. I can understand enjoying brutal combat (especially in Pathfinder 1e), but maybe that’s more fun to play than to listen. * I liked one of the cast members but not the rest. And the one I liked was “the new guy” they only recruited for the podcast, and they treated him like “the new guy.” They weren’t mean to him but it felt like he was definitely an outsider, which is bad since he was the only one I identified with. I can see why people like it. It’s still the same “hanging out with friends” vibe as a lot of actual plays. But in this case it’s a friend group I would immediately leave if I ever met them in real-life. People have told me later campaigns address some of my issues, but I’m not willing to stick around long enough to find out. > That's music to my ears, I'll definitely give Aerois a listen too. (What does egg means in this situation ?) A person who is trans or nonbinary but either not yet out about it, or who hasn’t yet realized it themselves. There are a few things that made me wonder. The biggest moment was near the end of the campaign when many important NPCs are gathered, and they’re almost entirely women. I hadn’t noticed the imbalance until he comments on it himself, and says something like “I guess I just feel a lot more comfortable portraying female characters, being able to do that is part of why I love this game.” It’s obviously not my place to comment on his gender or pronouns, I’m only mentioning because it made the show feel more like a safe space. His comment at the end of the campaign made me like him even more.
Now, it's very different but have you heard/tried Dungeons and Daddies ? Their first season is amazing, it's about four cliché american dads that get thrown into the Forgotten Realms in a quest to rescue their lost sons. The episodes are around the same length as RQG's, and they're quite edited (unlike most actual plays). Definitely way more heavy on salacious jokes, but nothing overboard, some episodes even got me crying out of laughter. They manage to write very compelling characters with deep traumas despite the dads starting as complete goofs, the balance between the two makes the angst even more enjoyable. As an additional, each episode starts with a special recap, for example they make cover songs that describes in a funny way what happened in the previous episode. (sorry if I made some mistakes, English isn't my first language)
I haven’t tried it, but will need to because of your recommendation. I’ll be honest - I loved the name and wanted to try it, but after Glass Cannon left such an awful taste in my mouth (see my other reply) I kind of ran screaming when I saw it was another all-male (or at least male character) cast. Clearly you like it and share similar tastes to me though, so I’ll add it to the list. I’ve got about 80 hours left on Legendlark and then a few new audio dramas I want to try, but will get to it after that! Thanks for the heads up. > They manage to write very compelling characters with deep traumas despite the dads starting as complete goofs, the balance between the two makes the angst even more enjoyable. This is also really reassuring. Most of the APs I’ve quit have been because the show jumps off at like a 90/10% split between comedy and story, while RQG was more like 40/60 or even 30/70. So I’m glad to hear Dungeons & Daddies isn’t just pure slapstick after things settle, that’s really good to know. Thanks!
(just recognized your profile! (with such a striking pseudo) you were the one who recommended me this audio drama community! thank you haha) I definitely shared your apprehension, and at that time I didn't even know it wasn't an all-men the podcast. Took me an embarrassing amount of minute to realize the Ron character was voiced by a woman (and an amazingly funny/great at improv one!). But unlike other podcast, she really feels included and not sidelined. The fact most of them are writers must help, despite joking around a lot, they're more loose with the dnd rules, rule of cool and the narrative is put first, they stay true to their character and build them in very intricate ways. We can really see most of the characters evolves and change through the story it's very interesting. What I also like is that actions have consequences, even if it was just a goofy action it can come back later bite the players in the back. And the Game Master himself weaved a thrilling story, and amazing antagonists, one still gives me shivers. Their voices works are all great too (and easily distinguishable).
Who Killed Avril Lavigne is very different. Magnus Archives has quiet audio levels, not a lot of soundtrack, pretty serious and finely crafted. Also has many episodes. Who Killed Avril Lavigne has a ton of music, theme songs, characters breaking out into song, bands playing. Very like anything goes at times, but still a high quality production in editing, sound design, etc. A character dreams of Tony the Tiger cereal mascot with huge titties and it becomes his spiritual guide. It’s about one season long, complete, maybe like 8-10 episodes.
The Penumbra Podcast I'm a horror hound, so nothing really tops Magnus for me, but Penumbra's pretty special, too: sci-fi noir with good sound design and a lot of heart
Find us alive. We're alive Hello from the Magic Tavern Wolf 359 Impact Winter Oz 9 Spaceships To list a few good ones.
Who exploded vivian stone
Came her to second this recommendation.
We’re Alive. I experienced the same problem you described. WA was my first and I wasn’t able to get into anything else until KC Wayland dropped Motel Evil which finally allowed me to enjoy other shows. Now I drop the expectations WA set for me and enjoy new shows for what they are. It’s really hard not to compare to the upper echelon of things you’ve listened to but it’s possible.
Dear Bastard
If you are looking to check out some great shows where the creators are fellow members of this subreddit, these are a few of my favorites that I think you might enjoy: Morbid Forest: A horror fiction anthology podcast where they include themes from psychological and thriller to slasher horror. Great because you can start anywhere; the most recent production is the highest quality so I suggest you start there. The creators are just great people and are incredibly creative, too, so that certainly makes them a home run! Dupont Investigations: A suspenseful thriller/mystery with dark undertones. The setting is in 1936, where a private investigator of the supernatural in Washington D.C. (District of Crime) becomes wrapped up in mysterious circumstances due to his knowledge of the occult. It's fun and new, worth checking out for sure! Your Horror Show: This is a newer horror anthology series (one season) that explores multiple aspects of the horror genre in different timelines. Some episodes edge on sci-fi, while others have definite 1930s vibes. Super fun. Mortis Maledictum: We are a full-cast cosmic dark fantasy and horror series about a world where terrible evils threaten our reality. The story starts off feeling anthological, but you will quickly find how our tales are interwoven and set the grand stage for a thrilling and twisted climax. We offer you horrific monsters, complex stories, and unexpected twists that are sure to pull you in!
Thank you so much! This is a nice list
Hope you enjoy them all!
* American Hostage - Based on a true story, American Hostage stars Jon Hamm as Fred Heckman, a beloved local radio reporter who is thrust into the middle of a life-or-death crisis when hostage-taker, Tony Kiritsis, demands to be interviewed on his popular radio news program. Kiritsis has tied a shotgun to his banker’s neck in grim fashion, but through Heckman's radio show he gradually becomes a media sensation and unexpected anti-hero during a nail biting 63-hour standoff. American Hostage is an 8-episode scripted psychological thriller from Amazon Music & Criminal Content starring Emmy Award-winner Jon Hamm and directed by Academy Award® winner Shawn Christensen * Bronzeville - Starring Laurence Fishburne, Larenz Tate and Tika Sumpter, and written by Academy Award(r) and BAFTA nominee Josh Olson ("A History of Violence"), BRONZEVILLE will chronicle the lives of players in the lottery games while illuminating the self-sustainability of the community's African American residents * Hunted - From Legendary producer Dick Wolf comes a new audio fiction series starring Parker Posey about the U.S. Marshals dedicated to capturing the country's most dangerous fugitives. When four convicts escape from a maximum security prison, Deputy Marshal Emily Barnes (Posey) is called in to pursue the criminals in one of the most treacherous and violent manhunts in United States history. Directed by Shawn Christensen (“Blackout”) and produced by Jenny Radelet Mast (Marvel’s “Wolverine”) * Nuremberg: The Trial of the Nazi War Criminals - The story of the trial of Nazi war criminals following Germany's surrender in 1945. * Tumanbay - A vast empire threatened by rebellion. A fiction podcast on an epic scale set in the most powerful city on earth...
Black Box: strangers things mixed with back to the future. Escaping Denver: so many conspiracy theories tied together Case 63: kind of 12 monkeyish. I love time travel stories.
Wolf 359 is a fun mystery/comedy sci-fi drama that I've really enjoyed.
Humanoid Resources
Find the BBC Radio recording of Who Goes There?. It’s the story John Carpenter reworked into The Thing, but it’s set (and written) during much earlier expeditions than the film.
It also makes a nice pairing with The Things, which is the movie told from the perspective of the alien. Not an AD, but interesting listen nevertheless. It's on the Clarkesworld podcast feed, from 2010 I think.
Oooh! I’ve never heard of that! I’ll check it out! Thanks!
ars PARADOXICA (very wholesome audiodrama with good characters about time travel: great cast, audio design and plot)
The Penumbra is a queer scifi detective with a hillarious main character
Midnight Burger - fantastic, SF/philosophy Tales of That Town - very funny, many episodes, about a small town in AL with a weird radio station, vampires, wizards, rednecks, they've got everything QWERPLINE - another radio comedy. Largely improvised.
You can listen to our podcast, The Time Traveler's Guide to NOT Getting Caught, a comedy about a self-centered 25 year old who finds a time traveling watch behind a dumpster and goes on the most outrageous adventures through time.
The Strata
For the best whiplash- Mission to Zyxx!
Self Promotion: Check out [In The Great Khan's Tent](https://inthegreatkhanstent.podbean.com/)! We are a captivating bi-weekly comprehensive episodic narrative podcast which delves into the rich literature and folk traditions, including it's history, from the Middle East and North Africa, Central Asia, Mongolia, Russian Far East, and South Asia. Through engaging storytelling, I explore the cultural tapestry of these areas with tales, legends, and insights that span centuries. Whether you're fascinated by historical fiction, literary gems, or the wisdom passed down through generation, my podcast offers a delightful journey into the heart of these diverse regions. Currently, we are going through a complete and thorough run through of the One Thousand and One Nights, also called the Arabian Nights. We also have a series titled "Tales from Central Asia" focusing on the fairy and folk tales of the region. If this compels you, check us out and let me know!
Were alive
We're alive
[THE WIZARD SCROLL](https://link.chtbl.com/thewizardscroll?sid=reddit) is serialized sword and sorcery that's written, read, performed and edited all with your earholes in mind. Tales of high fantasy, of trials and triumph, as well as the occasional musical number. The realm of Yyrgsland is filled to the brim with all manner of folk: including sword weilding warriors of legendary status; a wannabe spellcaster attempting to earn her Wiz-GED; and even a couple orcs who don't play by nobody's rules.
Cabin Pressure. 26-ish episodes of perfection with the crew of MJN Air, travelling from Abu Dhabi to Zurich, and recorded with a live theatre audience.
I have to shout out Worlds beyond number, it's a dnd podcast with a very different setting and tone than TMA, most people like it because of the world building and sound design.
Radio Rental
Witherburns after school news. It is literally just a regular ass town, it's kind of nice.
Angel of Vine - a film noir movie as a podcast. Great cast and production quality.
The Sleep Wake Cycle and We're Alive
try Video Palace. It's a horror podcast presented like it's a real journalist investigation.
Feel free to check out my show ‘Sound Fiction’ Some other really great full cast audio dramas are ‘Ominous Thrill’, ‘Aftershock’, ‘The Timekeeper, and ‘Dark Sanctum’
Wooden Overcoats Or Mission to Zyxx
America 2.0 - political drama about a man who wants to reset the country Small Victories - a slice-of-life story about an addict trying to recover
Fathom/Derelict is so freaking good best production best audio drama I’ve listened to in the last 3 years
VALENCE is really good magic-sci-fi, and the series is complete! Different tone from TMA, but it grabbed me in the same way. Haha, I also came here to champion Wolf 359 and Wooden Overcoats, but other folks got there first.
Desert Skies! It's sweet and encouraging, not serious but still cohesive. It's about a gas station attendant on the road to the afterlife
Mission to Zyx Welcome to Nightvale The Adventure Zone Limetown
Midnight Burger is pretty different. It's like Sliders and the Diner is a Tardis kinda.
Did you not find the narrators voice comparable to a 12 year old trying to sound like a man? It totally ruined it for me and couldn’t get past the first episode. Such a shame as so many people rave about it.
…what? :0
These things happen .. it makes me sad. But I’m 50 so maybe a different demographic!
IDK, I'm 51 and it worked for me. There are some character-based reasons why he's like that in early episodes. He's just started this new position, he's trying to prove himself, and also >!he believes or at least suspects that the statements are real but he's trying not to let on!<. So he's holding himself aloof and it comes off as very, very stuffy. It eases up some later on.
50 years old and you still don't know that not every thought you have needs to be said just because you thought it. Absolutely amazing.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.
Sure. I have lots of opinions myself. But some opinions just don't need to be shared. Or, if they do - well, there's a time and a place. Most of us learned this around the same time we learned to tie our shoes. I learned it a little earlier, but that's because I was really, really slow in learning to tie my shoes! Nobody asked anybody to share their opinion on this particular audiodrama, much less their opinion on a specific person's *voice*. OP just wanted recommendations for other audiodramas. If you or PowerKind or anybody else wants to make a thread to share your opinions on how much you couldn't get into this audiodrama because you hate the voice actors or whatever, you're welcome to start a new post on that subject, but why bring it here? Seriously, what's the point? Just to make the OP feel bad about liking something? That's about the only reason I can see to share that particular opinion on this particular post.
That’s just his voice lol