It’s another one of those weeks where we didn’t do much, but we go deep on Bloodlines 2, get into it about the increasingly terrible user experience of Xbox, AI art in Black Ops 7, and more!

00:00 Going to bed at a decent hour for once, proving your identity

15:06 Bloodlines 2 has sunk its fangs into Julian

54:17 Dark Deity II, Justin’s final thoughts on Dispatch

01:25:51 Justin’s big adult adventure

01:40:01 The enshittification of Xbox continues; Julian’s theory on AI art used in Black Ops 7

02:06:24 Let’s go to space

02:32:13 Justin’s movie roundup (Scream franchise, Final Destination franchise)

02:45:21 CQC (Comments, Questions, Concerns)

See John Gholson as Carl in the play Noise/Complaint on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pP1ynRInd34&t=5s

Theme song and interstitial music by Megan McDuffee: https://meganmcduffee.com

Logo and artwork by John Gholson

Announcer: John Gholson

Join our Discord, learn about how you can support the show, and more: https://linktr.ee/TheStageSelect

Email: thestageselectpod@gmail.com

Copyright 2024 Space Monkey Mafia Productions

We’ve been slacking when it comes to addressing your comments, questions, and concerns, so we thought we’d kick this episode off with those. Then we have some closing thoughts on some games, some initial thoughts on some others, and quite a few movies to talk about!

00:00 Doordash advice, what is wrong with Julian?

10:36 CQC (Comments, Questions, Concerns)

01:05:09 Final thoughts on Keeper, Ball x Pit is a PROBLEM

01:18:07 Justin’s final thoughts on Ghost of Yotei

01:45:49 Justin’s initial thoughts on Dark Deity II

02:13:47 Julian’s tale of woe in The Outer Worlds 2, first thoughts on Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2

02:44:27 Julian’s movie roundup (Fuck My Son!, Talk to Me, Prey, Psycho Goreman)

03:04:20 Justin’s movie roundup (finishing off Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th, Scream series)

Theme song and interstitial music by Megan McDuffee: https://meganmcduffee.com

Logo and artwork by John Gholson

Announcer: John Gholson

Join our Discord, learn about how you can support the show, and more: https://linktr.ee/TheStageSelect

Email: thestageselectpod@gmail.com

Copyright 2024 Space Monkey Mafia Productions

After the craziness of last week it was nice to return to normal. Or, whatever passes for “normal” at The Stage Select. Don’t worry, we’ll catch the Phantom of The Stage Select one day. Richard Harden, Private Detective, is on the case! Still!

00:00 Friday the 13th is a weird franchise, announcements

15:38 Justin’s final thoughts on Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2

25:49 The Outer Worlds 2

57:34 Judge My Mix

01:36:35 Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Ghost of Yotei, Dispatch

02:02:28 Julian’s final thoughts on Dark Deity 2, Ball x Pit

02:23:18 Thanking Patrons, movie roundup (The Crow 2024, Sinners in IMAX, Better Off Dead)

See the trailer for Man Finds Tape, starring John Gholson! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jN9gk6zpf7U&t=2s

Theme song and interstitial music by Megan McDuffee: https://meganmcduffee.com

Logo and artwork by John Gholson

Announcer: John Gholson

Join our Discord, learn about how you can support the show, and more: https://linktr.ee/TheStageSelect

Email: thestageselectpod@gmail.com

Theme song lyrics:

What could this possibly be?

Seems a lot like a podcast…

Wonder what specifically?

Talkin’ bout video games,

With your hosts, you’re in good hands.

Not more of the same!

Now we’ll jump right in,

So expect the unexpected and more.

Now we’ll get groovin,’

Never know who’s gonna walk through the door!

There just might be some treasure in this chest,

Having fun with our special guests,

Time for Stage Select!

Copyright 2024 Space Monkey Mafia Productions

We already planned to have a good deal of nunsense this week, but things got out of hand in a big way. The Phantom of The Stage Select struck back in a big way, and he’s having nun of our shenanigans. Nuntheless, we persisted, with a good handful of games and movies to talk about. You’ll also want to be sure to listen to the very end, but keep it under your hat. Nun’s the word!

00:00 Haunted dog, it’s weird living in a place for a long time

41:15 Video games are weird, Justin’s final thoughts on Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

01:08:02 Ledgerbound

01:16:06 Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2

01:50:09 Keeper, Ninja Gaiden 4

02:04:44 Julian’s movie roundup (Good Boy, Good Fortune, Black Phone 2)

02:17:21 Justin’s movie roundup (Jaws 2-4, Friday the 13th series, Nightmare on Elm Street series)

Theme song and interstitial music by Megan McDuffee: https://meganmcduffee.com

Logo and artwork by John Gholson

Announcer: John Gholson

Join our Discord, learn about how you can support the show, and more: https://linktr.ee/TheStageSelect

Email: thestageselectpod@gmail.com

Theme song lyrics:

What could this possibly be?

Seems a lot like a podcast…

Wonder what specifically?

Talkin’ bout video games,

With your hosts, you’re in good hands.

Not more of the same!

Now we’ll jump right in,

So expect the unexpected and more.

Now we’ll get groovin,’

Never know who’s gonna walk through the door!

There just might be some treasure in this chest,

Having fun with our special guests,

Time for Stage Select!

Copyright 2024 Space Monkey Mafia Productions

Julian was on vacation last week, which means he finished a good amount of games and tried some new ones! We also hit up some movies and answer your questions. It’s a podcast where we talk about video games!

00:00 The British national anthem, announcements

15:17 Final thoughts on Hell is Us

22:29 Thoughts on Silent Hill f after beating it the first time

37:18 Dead Take

44:42 Final thoughts on Hades II

01:05:53 Dark Deity 2

01:16:48 Steam Next Fest (Mad King Redemption, Star Trek Voyager: Into the Unknown), struggling with Ghost of Yotei

01:32:14 Donkey Kong Bananza

01:38:43 A brief FF XIV update, movie talk (Halloween, I Know What You Did Last Summer 2025, Jaws, Black Phone, One Battle After Another, Fallout)

02:30:50 CQC (Comments, Questions, Concerns)

Theme song and interstitial music by Megan McDuffee: https://meganmcduffee.com

Logo and artwork by John Gholson

Announcer: John Gholson

Join our Discord, learn about how you can support the show, and more: https://linktr.ee/TheStageSelect

Email: thestageselectpod@gmail.com

Theme song lyrics:

What could this possibly be?

Seems a lot like a podcast…

Wonder what specifically?

Talkin’ bout video games,

With your hosts, you’re in good hands.

Not more of the same!

Now we’ll jump right in,

So expect the unexpected and more.

Now we’ll get groovin,’

Never know who’s gonna walk through the door!

There just might be some treasure in this chest,

Having fun with our special guests,

Time for Stage Select!

Copyright 2024 Space Monkey Mafia Productions

It’s a somber week here at The Stage Select, with some sad news and announcements to kick things off. But hopefully we still manage to entertain you with our usual brand of silly, and a decent handful of games to discuss. Next week should be jam-packed with Julian having a staycation to just binge a ton of games!

00:00 Spike in Transformers had a rough life

13:42 Some sad news and also a serious announcement

30:26 Judge My Mix

01:01:28 Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, Dark Deity 2, Absolum

01:26:04 Blippo Plus

01:46:27 Hell is Us should not be missed

02:04:03 (Very) early impressions of Ghost of Yotei

Theme song and interstitial music by Megan McDuffee: https://meganmcduffee.com

Logo and artwork by John Gholson

Announcer: John Gholson

Join our Discord, learn about how you can support the show, and more: https://linktr.ee/TheStageSelect

Email: thestageselectpod@gmail.com

Theme song lyrics:

What could this possibly be?

Seems a lot like a podcast…

Wonder what specifically?

Talkin’ bout video games,

With your hosts, you’re in good hands.

Not more of the same!

Now we’ll jump right in,

So expect the unexpected and more.

Now we’ll get groovin,’

Never know who’s gonna walk through the door!

There just might be some treasure in this chest,

Having fun with our special guests,

Time for Stage Select!

Copyright 2024 Space Monkey Mafia Productions

Man, can you believe we haven’t had Xavier Kreiger on since last year’s Game of the Year Deliberations? It’s been far too long, so we enjoy catching up with him and a ton of games. Plus, back by “popular” demand: Judge My Mix!

00:00 Ouija: The New Beginning, announcements

19:52 Catching up with Xavier, Digimon Story: Time Stranger

47:44 Marvel Cosmic Invasion, Dark Deity 2

59:27 Donkey Kong Bananza, Lost Soul Aside, The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy

01:16:45 Hades II

01:41:07 Judge My Mix

01:55:38 Julian’s final thoughts on Wanderstop, Hell is Us, Plague, Inc.

02:15:25 Demon Slayer, thanking Patrons, The Void

02:27:47 CQC (Comments, Questions, Concerns)

Pre-order The Well Red Mage’s SNES RPG book from Bitmap

Books! https://www.bitmapbooks.com/products/the-definitive-book-of-snes-rpgs-vol-1

Theme song and interstitial music by Megan McDuffee: https://meganmcduffee.com

Logo and artwork by John Gholson

Announcer: John Gholson

Join our Discord, learn about how you can support the show, and more: https://linktr.ee/TheStageSelect

Email: thestageselectpod@gmail.com

Theme song lyrics:

What could this possibly be?

Seems a lot like a podcast…

Wonder what specifically?

Talkin’ bout video games,

With your hosts, you’re in good hands.

Not more of the same!

Now we’ll jump right in,

So expect the unexpected and more.

Now we’ll get groovin,’

Never know who’s gonna walk through the door!

There just might be some treasure in this chest,

Having fun with our special guests,

Time for Stage Select!

Copyright 2024 Space Monkey Mafia Productions

Welcome back! After only having a couple games to talk about last week we have quite a bit this week, including the new Silent Hill, Hades II, and catching up on recent presentations by Sony, Nintendo, RGG, and more!

00:00 Mad Max, Dorito flavor

10:42 Final thoughts on Chrono Gear: Warden of Time, Wanderstop

27:14 Gothic Remake, LISC

43:55 Cyberpunk is real fun, isn’t it? Shinobi: Art of Vengeance (Justin’s turn)

52:09 Hades II, Final Fantasy Tactics remaster woes

01:18:37 The Void, Hell is Us, Silent Hill f

01:40:51 Justin’s move round up (Jacob’s Ladder, every Mad Max movie)

02:09:33 Catching up on recent gaming events (007: First Light, Nintendo Direct, Sony State of Play, TGS)

02:42:14 CQC (Comments, Questions, Concerns)

Theme song and interstitial music by Megan McDuffee: https://meganmcduffee.com

Logo and artwork by John Gholson

Announcer: John Gholson

Join our Discord, learn about how you can support the show, and more: https://linktr.ee/TheStageSelect

Email: thestageselectpod@gmail.com

Theme song lyrics:

What could this possibly be?

Seems a lot like a podcast…

Wonder what specifically?

Talkin’ bout video games,

With your hosts, you’re in good hands.

Not more of the same!

Now we’ll jump right in,

So expect the unexpected and more.

Now we’ll get groovin,’

Never know who’s gonna walk through the door!

There just might be some treasure in this chest,

Having fun with our special guests,

Time for Stage Select!

Copyright 2024 Space Monkey Mafia Productions