Beat of the Month: Video Game Podcast

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!

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 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!

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!