Beat of the Month: Video Game Podcast

We interrupt your regularly scheduled Saturday to bring you an early episode of Beat of the Month! It's May 4th, so of course the special occasion is Star Wars Games! We've been playing Star Wars games all month long and The Beats crew has got quite the assortment of games to talk about.

We've got a quartet of old school games from the Atari 2600 with Star Wars Arcade and Death Star Battle, all the way up to modern day with Jedi Survivor on PS5. We also talk a bit about some Star Wars adjacent games like Mass Effect 3 (OK, loose connection but hey - space is space). We round things out with a bit of Fallout the TV show and of course some Star Wars trivia. So instead of watching the original trilogy for the 50th time, join us for some Star Wars gaming goodness!

As the earth cycles around the sun, we've made a complete cycle around the Beat of the Month crew and landed back at Muff's choice for the next deep dive. Featuring wrestling, bikinis, and an all female cast, it could only be Rumble Roses! I hope you saved your eclipse glasses since these visuals are so hot they'll burn your retinas! While there were only two games in the series (for PS2 and Xbox 360) the series seems to have gained a bit of a cult classic following. Obvious reasons aside, it also has a pretty solid wrestling game foundation. We get into the characters, the mechanics, the story - and more! And we've got some wrestling game trivia to end the round as well. So grab your popcorn, your sweat bands, (and if you must...your tissues) and join us for this deep dive into Rumble Roses!

Winter is over, the birds are chirping, and the weather is changing - but the Beat of the Month marches on! No wait, March was last month. For THIS month, we are looking at games featuring Mother Nature, since April Showers bring May Flowers! For the most part we've got games with rain such as Death Stranding and Arkham Knight, but we also sneak in some other weather related games in there as well. Not a single mention of Heavy Rain which seems like a missed opportunity, but what can you do - we all played that game already!

Think you have a better idea than games about rain? Well, you might be on to something... If you have any episode suggestions, please send us an email at beatofthemonth@gmail.com. We'd love to hear from you!

It's March Madness and Women's History Month, so what better way to celebrate than having a 64 bracket tournament of the best women in gaming! The Beats crew each took our favorite choices as well as some fan picks, randomly assigned them to the bracket, and then went through each of the match ups to pitch our cases for a final winner. Some heavy hitters got eliminated early, some obscure contenders stayed longer than expected, and some arguments got quite heated! Does Sonya Blade have more of the public eye than Princess Zelda? Is Malenia from Elden Ring more than just a meme? Find the answer to these questions and more!

This episode the Beat of the Month crew are focusing on a topic we know all to well - madness! These are games where the main character is going crazy or maybe were already insane to begin with. We've got some oldies covered such as Loaded for the original Playstation, 2000s PC game American McGee's Alice, the original Alan Wake, and more! We also cover some odds and ends that are a little less maddening such as card game craze Balatro and hear from some adventures in thrifting. So even if it isn't cold be sure to grab your straight jacket and join as for a maddening episode!

Also, please keep a look out for social media posts where we will be asking YOU to contribute ideas for our March Madness bracket of best women in gaming!

With all of the news recently with Xbox and Sony and their future plans, the Beat of the Month crew take some time to reflect on the current state of the games industry with some general discussion. Sound boring? You couldn't be more wrong! Tensions run at their all time highest causing one Beats member to leave mid-episode. But before those shenanigans we take a look at our memories with the very first original Xbox and the early days of Xbox Live. We also kick things off with some Xbox trivia. Why would we have trivia at the start of the episode anyway? Inquiring minds want to know...

With the release date of Dragon's Dogma 2 quickly approaching, the Beats crew decided to take a deep look at the original game to see what all the hubbub is about! This episode is all about Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen, and we have quite a bit to unpack with this western style RPG made by Capcom. We start out with an overview of the series, a look at the game's mechanics - including the very unique Pawn system, and then a walkthrough of the main quest. It's a unique episode this time since while most of us were completely new to the game, Moose was here to guide us through some of the aspects of the game that we didn't fully understand. Affinity? Items Spoiling? Fast Travel? As I mentioned, there is a lot to unpack! And you better unpack lest you want to be overencumbered... And as usual we have some Dragon's Dogma trivia at the end to wrap things up. So bring your favorite rambling pawn and join us on this deep dive of Dragon's Dogma!

We are easing into 2024 with this episode by playing anything we want! That's right - no theme, no deep dive, no pressure - just playing whatever we had in the old backlog or wanted to wrap up from 2023. As expected it's a hodge podge of games ranging from Sonic Superstars, Mass Effect, Returnal, Spider-Man 2, PSVR2 games, and more! We've also got some 'anything goes' trivia which seemed like a good idea at the time, but well, maybe a little focus is a good thing...

If you have an episode suggestion for us for 2024, please send us a note at beatofthemonth@gmail.com!

It's our annual year end episode and it's packed full of discussion with what we played in 2023! There were a ton of great games this year but we also include any games we played this year that may not include games released in 2023. We run down our awards and then lookback on our memories from the year such as favorite multiplayer and single player moments, a radio spot we had, as well as our annual report card for each of the 3 main consoles. We also break down our stats of how much gaming the beats crew did this year and have a double dose of Game of the Year themed trivia. Also - we announce our big winner for the Nintendo Switch Online membership giveaway that one lucky winner will get for 2024 - it's a huge episode! We look forward to playing more games in the new year and telling you all about them!

This episode the Beat of the Month crew are taking a deep dive into one of Melbro's favorite games from the past couple of years - Neon White! We explore the gameplay, the characters, the music, the design - and more. Did everyone enjoy the game as much as Melbro? *hint - it's complicated* We also tallied up our stats and see who came out on top as the true elite gamer of the group. Whether you're familiar with the game or not, there's a lot to enjoy still (plus the trivia at the end isn't really related to the game at all). So discard your pistol to jump into your headphones and join us for this deep dive of Neon White!

Move over Marvel, the Beat of the Month crew are taking over the superhero space for a week and talking about all things related to caped crusaders! Then again we talk a lot about Marvel during the episode, so maybe they aren't really moved over all that much. However, that's not all we have to talk about! In addition to discussion about the new Spider-Man 2 we also talk about some older classics such as TMNT and Boogerman (ok, maybe that last one isn't such a classic). The episode kicks off with what we like and don't like about superheroes, what defines a superhero, and some trivia to get our brains boosted for the rest of the discussion. So pull out your action figures, get your superman underoos, and join us for this look at superhero games!

Thanksgiving is approaching and the Beat of the Month crew have an appetite for games all about food! We go through the timeline of gaming history with several old classics such as Pac-Man and Burgertime, some 16-bit games with Chester Cheetah and Garfield, newer titles like Yakuza and The Witcher, and more! For the cherry on top we have some extra discussion about what we eat as we game, Super Nintendo Land's Toadstool Cafe, and a trip to the Sonic Symphony. So grab your turkey leg, cook up some stove top stuffing, and from the Beat of the Crew we wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!

The Beat of the Month crew are kicking off October with one of the most frightening gaming series ever - Dead Space! We talk through our thoughts on the new remake of the original Dead Space as well as the other two main entries in the series. There's also a surprising amount of side content that this series has seen over the years including spinoff games, books, movies, and more! And the good news for you is that where this podcast is going you won't need eyes to see - since it's all audio! Wait, that's a reference to the wrong franchise... In any case we've got a lot to talk about, wrapping up with a 'dead' 'space' game at the end that will test your knowledge of more than just horror games. We've got more spooky shows ahead in October with Ghost Games and Iconic Horror Villains in gaming - so stay tuned if you dare!

On this episode the Beat of the Month crew take a look at one of the newer genres to emerge into the video gaming scene - Souls-like games! What exactly is a Souls-like game anyway? Let's see - hard difficulty, uh...hmm... well we talk about it some and figure it out. We also talk about some of the specific Souls-like games we played recently such as Remnant: From the Ashes, Tunic, Death's Door - and more!

Before we get into all that though, we spend some time at the top of the show to talk about hard hitting topics like movie theater popcorn, air conditioner repair, and all of the errors that we made during the previous episode. As usual we've got trivia to round things out for another packed episode!

The main mission of a game is definitely important, but it's those great side quests that can spice things up and take a game to another level. One could argue that a great side chick can have the same effect. This episode the Beat of the Month crew are tackling both topics! Only the most depraved members of the Beat of the Month crew could speak to this, so Brian had to leave the hosting duties to Muff. Apologies in advance for the insanity that you are about to witness. In this slightly coherent episode we tackle the best side quests in games as well as the side women that left us wanting more. We talk about Witcher 3, Final Fantasy, Horizon Zero Dawn - and many other games! We also have a trivia game involving side quests and side pieces that is...interesting. So grab that special someone in your life and ask them to join you for this episode of Beat of the Month!

Hot on the heels of episodes about Rhythm Games and Party Games the Beat of the Month Crew tackle the ultimate rhythm party game - Rock Band! Whether you are a Call of Duty playing dude bro or a World of Warcraft basement dweller, you've probably played Rock Band before. We take a look back at some fond memories we have of the Rock Band franchise and the big parties we used to throw centered around the game. We also talk about the extensive DLC song list, the variety of instruments, and the infamous Stage Kit complete with strobe light and fog machine.

In addition to Rock Band we dip even further back into the games that came before such as (of course) Guitar Hero, but also Karaoke Revolution, Amplitude, and more! We also kick things off with Rock Band/Guitar Hero trivia and even have some snippets of our latest Rock Band session with questionable vocal quality. So grab your plastic Fender Stratocaster, secure your USB microphone, and get ready to rock out over some Rock Band!

While it's been said many times on this show that real men work, we also take some time to party every now and then. This episode the Beat of the Month crew are taking a look at Party Games! We talk about what defines a party game, what separates a good party game from a bad one, and of course discuss some of the games themselves. We didn't get to play as many as we had hoped for, but still got in some rounds of Overcooked, Fall Guys, and more. And of course, we've got some party game trivia to close things out. So grab your headphones and your party hat and come join us for this look at Party Games!

Here at Beat of the Month we've talked about all kinds of games, rambled in-depth about genres and systems, but haven't taken a deep look at one of the most important aspects of any system - the controller! This episode we discuss our most loved controllers, our most hated, and everything in between. From the humble beginnings of a joystick and a single button to the complex controllers of today that pack in a dozen or more buttons and tons of extra tech, there is a lot to talk about. We get into some random controller related topics as well such as light guns, 3rd party offerings, and some controller types you may have forgotten even existed (fishing anyone?). As usual we get into some controller trivia right out of the gate - cow milking, table flipping, butt poking - some controllers get pretty wild! So whether you're still a fan of the simple NES pad or you've got a 100 button Steel Battalion behemoth sitting in your closet, there's something for everyone in this episode filled with controller conversation!

Kick, Punch, it's all in the mind

Want a rhythm game podcast? I'm sure you'll find

The beat of the month crew, are coming through for you

So get ready to listen about a game or two!

Yes maybe a cheesy description, but we couldn't hold back our excitement for this episode about Rhythm Games! Well, maybe some of us are more excited than others... We're all in the middle of Zelda and Final Fantasy, but still came through to talk about a bunch of rhythm games including Dance Dance Revolution, Elite Beat Agents, Final Fantasy Theatrhtyhm, and more! We also talk about some lesser known games including fan suggestion Rhythm Sprout and a couple Japanese only releases. Plus there's an extra dose of trivia with some trips down memory lane - did you know Nintendo hosted a Donkey Konga tournament at select movie theaters around the country? Listen in to find out more details from one of the attendees...

This episode the Beat of the Month crew talk about one of the most beloved gaming franchises of all time - The Legend of Zelda! With the recent release of Tears of the Kingdom we share our initial impressions, which might not be as glowing as you'd think! Well with 8 different people some of us are bound to have wrong opinions... At the time of this recording many of the crew were focusing on Final Fantasy VII Remake, and by the time this airs the focus will have shifted to Final Fantasy XVI, but a few of us still have put some solid time into Link's latest adventure. We also reminisce on our first experiences with the franchise, talk about some of the games we liked the most (and a few we didn't like as much). We've also got a bit more in-depth discussion on a few games that the crew has played more recently including the new version of Link's Awakening and his very first game on the NES. There's a music selection segment (since how can you talk about Zelda without mentioning the excellent history of music) and some trivia to kick things off. It's a packed episode! So get ready to hookshot your headphones and join us in this heavy dive into Hyrule!

We continue our celebration of episode 100 with the second half of 100 questions! We cover a wide variety of topics and trivia including our desert island games, what we snack on while we're gaming, and looking back at the past 100 episodes. We also spend an unnecessary amount of time reflecting on having sex with chickens. It was quite late when we recorded this so we're a little more rowdy and meandering than usual, but what is a celebration without some incoherent ramblings that you regret the next morning? We've got some big topics coming up for the next 100 episodes including a Zelda series retrospective (with discussion on Tears of the Kingdom), Rhythm Games, and more! Thank you so much for listening and we hope to entertain you for 100 more!

We've hit a major milestone with episode 100 and to celebrate we are covering 100 video game related questions! We cover all sorts of topics such as what game would you still want to play at age 100, what's your proudest gaming achievement, why no one except Brian cares about the Mario Kart 8 DLC, and a whole lot more (97 more to be exact). We've also got a variety of trivia questions mixed in - do you know what ill fated systems had less than 100 games released? Some questions were created in house, some were provided by fans of the show, and some were submitted by followers on social media trying to win that sweet $100 gaming gift card (winner announced at the end)!

We had too much content to fit into one episode, so stay tuned next time for part 2 where we cover the latter half of the 100 questions. Thank you all so much for your support, and we are looking forward to 100 more episodes! And one more thing - if you want to show your love of Beat of the Month to the world we've got some sweet new merchandise available for sale at beatofthemonth.com - check it out!

This episode the Beat of the Month crew were dealt an idea from fan of the show Skeeter, so we shuffled up our backlogs and played some more games! That's right - this episode we are taking a look at Card Games! Collectible card games, traditional table card games...first person shooters? Anything goes if it has some cards in it! We take a look at a variety of card based games including Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales, Neon White, Inscryption, and more! And as always we've got some Card Game trivia to round things out.

And if you play your cards right, you might win a $100 gift card to the Nintendo eshop or PlayStation store! For our next episode which is the big '100' we are having a giveaway to celebrate. Keep an eye out on our Instagram and Twitter for a chance to win. And be sure to tune in to that episode where we will announce the winner and have a lot more fun things planned!

Since our last deep dive was hacking, slashing, and murdering anything in our way with God of War Ragnarok, we decided to slow things down a bit and pick a game that was a little more relaxing. For this episode we take a look at Abzu - an underwater adventure game released in 2016. Did the calming nature of this game soothe our hearts and win us over? Or did the more laid back gameplay not resonate with our bloodthirsty instincts? Listen to find out!

There are spoilers ahead, but since Abzu clocks in at just around 2 hours (and was given for free at one point by Sony) we'd recommend you give it a playthrough before you listen. Or go ahead and just get spoiled - we don't really care that much either way... As always, we've got some trivia at the end to test your knowledge of water based games. And one more thing! As this game has connections with the game Journey, we mention that title quite a bit as well. We don't spoil anything much from Journey, but if you haven't played that, several of our crew strongly recommend that you do!

Winter is over, the snow is gone, but our backlogs have continued to grow! This episode the Beat of the Month crew decided to do a little Spring cleaning. No we aren't tackling that dirty pile of dishes left over from Thanksgiving - we're still too busy playing games! Instead we are revisiting some games that we've been putting off for awhile or that we started playing weeks/months/years previously and just never finished. It's a hodge podge of titles we've got spanning from adventure game Pentiment, horror game The Callisto Protocol, Action/Music mashup Hi-Fi Rush, a double dose of Sonic Lost World, and more! And as always we've got some trivia focused around one of the most exciting themes in gaming - cleaning. So while you're folding laundry or tidying the garage, leave your headphones in and join us for some Spring cleaning!

It's been a long time coming, but the Beat of the Month crew have completed their journey with Kratos, Atreus, and more than a dozen supporting characters. We lived to tell the tale and will be sharing that with you - right now! We take a deep look into God of War Ragnarok including what's new from 2018, our favorite bosses and moments, an overview of the story, and more. There was a lot to remember, a lot of enemies to dismember, and there will be plenty of spoilers - you have been warned! And if you are only familiar with the earlier outings of the Ghost of Sparta, you may be surprised to hear that this game also managed to be quite the tearjerker. This ain't your grandpa's God of War! Or maybe it is; Kratos is pretty old... We round things out as usual with some God of War franchise trivia. So summon your headphones like you would a leviathan axe and join us for this deep dive of God of War Ragnarok!

It's March Madness season and the Beat of the Month crew are once again having a tournament bracket celebrating the best of the best of gaming. Last time we voted Link as the best video game character of all time. This year we narrow it down a bit to the best villain in all of gaming! Will Link's arch nemesis Ganon take the top prize? Or will a lesser known character make their way to the top of the bracket? We've got a lot of familiar faces here like Bowser and Sephiroth but we also have some characters you might not have heard as much about. Just who is Bob Nelson anyway? To get things kicked off we begin with some villain trivia and then it's all business as we determine the biggest, baddest...cutest?...villain of all time!

For this episode of Beat of the Month we take a look at a theme that crosses over into many genres - Martial Arts! Fighting games, Beat em' ups, RPGs, and I'm sure many more. We take some time to discuss what is considered a Martial Arts game - is ClayFighter a Martial Arts game? We're a bit split on that one... And then as always we talk about some of the games we played including Sifu and Ghost of Tsushima. We also chat about other topics in the realm of Martial Arts such as UFC and the real life fights we've gotten into. And of course, we close things out with some Martial Arts trivia. Think you know what game for the Atari Lynx has you fighting frozen foods? So put in your headphones, enter your state of Zen (or in Muff's case, his state of VR) and join us for this deep dive into Martial Arts games!

This episode the Beat of the Month crew take a look into one of video gaming's most treasured franchises - Final Fantasy! During our trip down memory lane we cover at a high level the characters, the story, and the music across just about every mainline release. Sure we don't have a lot to say about games like FF II, but then again who really does. We also take a deeper look into FF VII Remake and then touch on some of the spinoff franchises such as Tactics and Theatrhythm. There's a lot to cover! And of course, we have a triple dose of trivia at the end. So summon your headphones, mount up on your comfiest Chocobo, and join us on our journey through Final Fantasy. Kupo? Kupo!

This episode we tackle a topic that we've been planning on for a long time - the best music in gaming! We play a wide range of games that have great gaming soundtracks including Rez, Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory, Guardians of the Galaxy - and more! Then we each picked what we considered the very best song in gaming history and do a mini-tournament to decide what song is the Beat of the Month pick for the definitive greatest song in gaming. Our choices may surprise you as they aren't the traditional choices you'd typically see, but we think you'll find them undeniably great none the less! And as always we've got some gaming music trivia where we play some tunes and try to guess the song. So put the controller down, turn the volume up, and join us for this musical journey! Damn speaking of Journey, that game didn't get mentioned at all... Stay tuned next episode for our overview of the Final Fantasy series!

The Beat of the Month crew decided to take a break from the typical themes and round out the year with an anything goes style podcast. We cover a wide range of games from Halo Infinite, Immortality, Death's Door, Portal, Monster Train - and more! We also talk about what games we are looking forward to in 2023 which include Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and...ah who cares what other games are coming out next year. We've also got some 'Free' for 'All' trivia at the end as well. And while we tease the next episode featuring a deep dive of God of War: Ragnarok, we actually need a little more time exploring Asgard so we'll be taking a look into Game Collecting for our next episode. We hope you join us!

It's the end of the year and The Beat of the Month crew are going all out with a full awards show! We discuss the biggest gaming story of 2022, the best character in gaming, most over hyped game, and of course the best game of the year - and more! We also reflect back on our favorite gaming moments of the year and our favorite episode. There are a lot of games to talk about from God of War: Ragnarok, Elden Ring, Sonic Frontiers and some lesser known games that left an impact on us. We've also got stats tallied up all year for who in our crew played the most games and as usual round things out with some 2022 gaming trivia. And to top it off we announce the winner of our year subscription to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack - It's a jam packed episode and we hope you enjoy! 

We also hope you'll join us for 2023 where we've got a God of War: Ragnarok deep dive, an episode dedicated to the Final Fantasy story, and we've already got a fan submitted episode lined up as well! If you have a suggestion for an episode for us to tackle, please send us an email at beatofthemonth@gmail.com. Happy New Year and happy gaming!

The Beat of the Month crew is taking this episode to cheer up our buddy Moose who hasn't been able to join an episode lately. He'll be back in early 2023 for our celebration of Final Fantasy, and for this episode we've focused on games that Moose has enjoyed which includes Hades, Titanfall 2, Yakuza Like a Dragon, Halo Infinite, Maui Mallard in Cold Shadow, and more! We also talk about some games that Moose probably doesn't give a crap about like God of War Ragnarok and Sonic Frontiers, but I'm sure Moose can respect us for wanting to play the new hot games...  We also take some trips down memory lane with gaming stories we had with Moose - some dating 20+ years ago! 

And if you haven't yet - find our social media post on Instagram and Twitter for a chance to win a free year of Nintendo Switch Online with the Expansion Pack! We will announce the winner next time during our end of the year episode!

Beating a video game always feels good, but beating a game that has a great ending is even better! This episode the Beat of the Month Crew take a look at some of the greatest video game endings ever, and also look at some of the endings that were memorable for all the wrong reasons. As you might expect for a topic like this - there are some big spoilers ahead! We give a bit of warning before the biggest spoilers, and there are some whoppers. God of War (2018), The Witcher 3, Last of Us Part 1 and 2, ICO, Super Mario Bros 2, Final Fantasy 15 - all spoiled! We pack this episode with even more game endings, trivia, and several too hot for podcasting moments. 

AND THAT'S NOT ALL! If you would like a chance to win a free year of Nintendo Switch Online with the Expansion Pack keep an eye out for a post on our Instagram or Twitter and let us know what your favorite video game ending of all time is!

Thanksgiving is approaching and the Beat of the Month crew decided that we would have a special episode devoted to a topic that I'm sure is on everyone's mind during the holidays - Crime. Yes that's right - this episode focuses on Crime Games! We talk a bit about Grand Theft Auto 3 and our experience with that iconic title as well as the bizarre online world that exists in some mods of GTA5. We also talk about some crime games we played this month including 2 games from the Yakuza series, Reservoir Dogs, and Neon White. We even divulge some of the real life crimes we've partaken in as well. As usual, we've got some crime themed trivia to round things out - so please join us! 

Almost nothing in gaming feels as good as a nice headshot. Except maybe doing it while the rest of the enemies are completely clueless to your whereabouts. Oh, and then taking the dead body and stuffing it into a locker. Yeah...that's the stuff. That's right - this month the Beat of the Month crew take on Stealth Games! We cover some stealth games such as Aragami and Horizon Zero Dawn and then some other odds and ends that we've been playing like Cuphead DLC and Stray. We also break down what makes a stealth mechanic good and bad (PROTIP for game makers - if the majority of the game isn't a stealth game, the stealth mechanic probably isn't good!) We've also got a double dose of trivia, but with a twist! And what exactly is a 'Syphon Filter' anyway? Tune in to find out!

Ever play a game where you can't wait to get back to that one level? You know, that one level that stands out above the rest of the game as something special? This episode the Beat of the Month crew explore their favorite levels in gaming history! There's a lot that goes into what makes a great level and we've got examples ranging from old classics like using Kuribo's shoe in Super Mario Bros 3, all the way to Fortnite and their Ariana Grande concerts. And how about bad levels? What games do you remember had a level that would stop you in your tracks like the infamous Turbo Tunnel from Battletoads? As always we round things off with some level based trivia. Do you know what level 6 was in Sonic the Hedgehog 2? Tune in and find out!

This episode the Beat of the Month crew tackle a genre that has been around for as long as games have been made - Sports Games! Even if you aren't buying the newest version of Madden every year, it's likely that you've played a sports game at some point. We take a deep look at the games that laid the foundation for the genre with the NES (yeah we know sports games existed even before then...) and then branch into the 16-bit generation and further. We also go into a bit of detail on sports games we played this month such as Michael Jordan: Chaos in the Windy City, Dodgeball Academia, and more! As always we cap things off in the 4th quarter with some sports game trivia. Can you name all the bowling games released on the N64?

And please send us an email to beatofthemonth@gmail.com! Send us a question, an episode suggestion, or anything that comes to your mind and we'll read it on an upcoming episode. 

Arcade gaming - a staple of the youth of many gamers, and of the Beat of the Month crew! We take this episode to explore the arcade games we played when we were kids, what arcade experiences we've had lately, and discuss a bit on whether arcade gaming is still alive and kicking. We take a look at some newer arcade games that we've played this month including the new House of the Dead remake, TMNT Shredder's Revenge, and more! We also talk about some of the games of yesteryear that you can find at Galloping Ghost Arcade which the Beat of the Month crew recently took a visit to. So grab your tokens, count up your redemption tickets, and join us for another episode!

On this special episode of Beat of the Month we take a look at one of the most beloved consoles to ever be released: Dreamcast. Sega's final entry into the console market had an excellent game library, offered features and graphics which had never been seen before, continues to have a loyal fanbase over 20 years later, and was unfortunately very shortly lived. 

We interviewed a variety of people that each had a unique experience with the Dreamcast and covered topics from their launch experience, games they loved (and still love!), how they felt when Dreamcast was discontinued, and more. Our interviewees include:

SeannyFunco - FuncoLand employee during the launch of the Dreamcast. More stories from his time at FuncoLand can be found at https://seanpiotrowski.net/. We'll be looking to do an episode in the future focused on his time at FuncoLand!

Gavin - EB Games employee during the launch of the Dreamcast. Gavin has a podcast called Geeking off the Page which can be found on Spotify and other podcasting platforms. You can reach him at planetgeekpod@gmail.com.

Seppo Helava - Script Programmer for Seaman. In addition to working on a number of different games he also worked on VR programs for stroke rehab and offers mentoring for people looking to enter the game industry. He's easy enough to find online since he's the only Seppo Helava in the world.

Derek Pascarella - He continues to bring unreleased games to the West with complete translations. All of his projects covered during this episode can be found at https://dreamcastforever.com

Chuck - He has amassed a complete collection of Dreamcast games. He can be found on gamefaqs as well as on ebay selling a variety of games under the name amcdc79.

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out our previous shows as well as drop us a note at beatofthemonth@gmail.com - we'd love to hear from you!

Welcome to Mario Kart - and to Beat of the Month! The crew take a look at one of the most beloved spinoff franchises of all time - the Mario Kart series! 30 years ago the original SNES game was released and 30 years later it's still a lot of fun. How about all of the other games in the franchise? We run through our experiences with each game and whether we think they stand the test of time or if they should be sent back to last place with a blue shell. As always we've got some trivia and an extra dose of music since the soundtrack to these games are phenomenal - yes I used the word phenomenal!

If YOU have an idea for an episode or a question you would like to ask the Beat of the Month crew, please send us a note at beatofthemonth@gmail.com - we'd love to hear from you!