The Stage Select

Welcome to week two of The Stage Select’s game of the year deliberations for 2025! We once again paired a veteran to the deliberations with a first-timer, as Xavier Kreiger joins Sixty X Celph to discuss the best returning game, crown the best ninja, and determine the best character in a completely reworked category. Enjoy! 00:00 Introduction 03:38 Best Returning Game 47:27 Best Ninja 01:02:00 The...

Welcome to week one of The Stage Select’s Game of the Year Deliberations for 2025! We’re joined by returning champion Mike Fallek as well as first-time deliberator Addie to go over the best game not released this year, the best porn game, and the best-looking game. Let’s go! 00:00 Introduction 04:05 Best Game Not Released in 2025 01:35:26 We Played it For the Story (Best Porn Game) 02:17:58 Best L...

And that’s a wrap, folks! Well, after this season finale it is. Listen to us talk about the year in gaming that was 2025, a look towards next gen (whether we want it or not), and get into the nitty gritty about the state of the podcast. We’re off for six weeks but don’t fret; episodes will be releasing every week that we’re gone. See you in 2026, a totally real year that’s about to happen! 00:00 R...

Our penultimate episode of the season is a short one but a good one. We recorded this the day before recording the big final Game of the Year episode, so this week is light on games as we were focused on last minute prep and also had other things to record this week. Join us next week for our year in review as we bring season 2 to a close! 00:00 Being a target for Agent 47 15:52 Dragon Ball Z: Kak...

It’s a big week, as we’re joined by Friend of the Show (and star of Man Finds Tape!) John Gholson to talk about his new movie, being a hungry actor, and The Game Awards. Also other things! 00:00 Musical theater 11:08 John talks about the response to Man Finds Tape and the struggle of full-time acting 40:57 Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair 52:45 Catching up with John’s recent gaming, Dispatch 01:...

It's a secret to everybody!

As we begin to wind down the second season (and the holidays are upon us) we have fewer games to talk about. But this is still a fun episode, I think. Maybe. I don’t even know anymore. I’m tired, y’all. 00:00 Thanksgiving 14:41 Julian returns to Death Stranding 2 34:50 Justin returns to Cyberpunk 2077, Julian is done with Ball x Pit 01:00:35 Judge My Mix 01:41:44 Julian’s trek for mall Chinese foo...

Hello. This is Morgun, the stage manager for The Stage Select. Julian told me to write the show notes for this week’s episode, but I am not allowed on stage during the show, so I am not aware what they discussed. However, I would like to say that I am okay after they landed their spaceship on me. I am not sure how long I was unconscious, but Abramo told me that he didn’t get around to moving the s...

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 advent...

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...

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:...

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,...

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 Hade...

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 a...

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 Bananz...

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...

Somehow we only had two games to talk about but the show is still over 2 hours long. Listen, our yap game is strong; never underestimate it! 00:00 They’re in a cube 09:06 Judge my mix CD 28:37 Final thoughts on Shinobi: Art of Vengeance 39:04 Borderlands 4 01:14:29 Let Julian cook 01:18:51 Abramo said he fixed it… 01:46:20 Thanking patrons, The Long Walk, Dangerous Animals, From Dusk ‘til Dawn Lis...

This week we’re joined once again by Westen from Big Nerd Gaming! Since the last time he was on he has debuted his own podcast, and you should check it out! We also had a lot of games to talk about, and a surprisingly large amount of movies, as well. But per Westen’s request: NO FUN. 00:00 Introduction, The Big Nerd Gaming Podcast 18:36 Hollowknight: Silksong 36:41 Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, Eriks...

Welcome back! After last week’s…debacle, we had a ton of games to talk about. So strap in for lots of different titles, candy bar taste-testing, and much, much more! 00:00 Bananas, hot dogs, gas station sushi 16:43 Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater 46:33 Trails of the Sky 1st Chapter Remake, Gears of War Reloaded 01:04:46 Julian has a plan 01:19:01 Justin’s final thoughts on Promise Mascot Agenc...

Welcome to...well, quite honestly, an episode I'm not too proud of. That reason will become apparent when you get there, but before that it's a fun ride, and we salvage it as best we can to give the show some kind of resolution. We'll do better. 00:00 Introduction, Ohio festivals 28:15 Edinburgh Fringe Fest 49:33 Food in Scotland, sightseeing 01:06:07 Promise Mascot Agency, final thoughts on Last...

It’s another jam-packed edition of The Stage Select thisMweek with life updates, lots of video games and movies, Gamescom, and much, much more! 00:00 House hunting, The Stage Select Socialist Minute™, home maintenance 23:09 Julian hates PC gaming 35:27 Some behind the scenes about making a podcast, finding something to play (The Alters, Last I Saw You, Wanderstop) 48:35 Promise Mascot Agency 01:01...

This week we actually finished some video games! We also have Korean corndogs, rants about the movie pre-roll, and…can a god of all creation get depressed? Tune in and find out! 00:00 Television, announcements 20:18 H Mart, The Working Man 36:02 Closing thoughts on Mafia: The Old Country 01:05:48 Closing thoughts on Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound 01:24:24 Madden Football 26 01:56:19 Super Robot Wars Y 02...

Welcome back! This week’s episode is what I like to call a potpourri show, because we’ve got a little bit of everything. Some old games, some new games. Old movies, new movies. Nacho Fries. Mattress toppers. You know, the things you expect from a video game variety show. 00:00 Introduction, eating 22:59 The Fantastic Four, Point Break 32:23 Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, Starmaker Story 50:38 Man of Med...

You’ll probably be wondering where the title of this week’s episode came from. Fortunately we had AddieXD back on for a lesson in delayed gratification. Enjoy! 00:00 Today’s Special, time to kill all Jedi 14:18 Julian’s new hobby(?), general ennui 18:52 Power Chord, Steam wishlists 27:23 Catching up with Addie 35:58 Persona 4 Golden, Dead Take 49:58 Final thoughts on House of Ashes, Death Strandin...

It’s a good thing we created The Stage Select as a variety show, because somehow this episode is almost 4 hours long and we barely talked about video games. But it’s still a Fantastic episode. See what I did there? 00:00 Introduction, Paw Patrol 17:59 Saying goodbye to Ozzy Osborne and good riddance to Hulk Hogan 41:01 Fancy sandwich 48:48 House of Ashes 01:03:23 Justin’s initial Death Stranding 2...