The idea for Bantam Banter began as a sort of joke between site founders Michael Ruiz and Ricky Frech. Originally pitched as a podcast, it was meant to be an avenue where the two can bring some friends together and just have fun talking about video games. Ranging from more traditional topics like “ranking the Yakuza games” to goofier discussions like “which Backyard Sports character would win a karate competition,” it was essentially where their rejected ideas would come to life.

Now they made it an entire website.

Bantam Banter is a website dedicated to the stuff they love: Video games, wrestling, skateboarding, Survivor, and whatever else the two are passionate about at the moment.

Our Team

Michael Ruiz – Founder, Editor, and Host

One of the founders of Bantam Banter, Michael is a former journalist who wrote a whole lot about video games for a few years. Now that he has “retired,” this website is now his portal to not just share his takes on gaming but also other interests such as wrestling, music, beer, and skateboarding. You can expect to listen to him regularly on site’s flagship podcast, as well as probably read his thoughts on the greatest video game franchise ever created, Yakuza.

Ricky Frech – Founder and Host

The other founder of Bantam Banter, Ricky currently freelances for sites like Gamepur, Overload, and a few others. Whenever those places decide his pitches are too dumb for the internet, expect to see them pop up here. Outside of that, he’s looking to dip back into sharing his many thoughts on different reality TV shows and wrestling. And, of course, he’ll regularly feature on the site’s flagship podcast, talking way too much about Yakuza.