The Training Stage

After a year hiatus, The Training Stage returns with a packed two and a half hour episode. Your hosts, Tyler and John, discuss the games they've been playing recently, this year's Summer Game Fest events, Square Enix's stacked lineup of titles, and the game release calendar for the rest of 2022 and early 2023. We even tease something new coming in the future. We are sincerely excited to be back to produce a fun, bi-weekly show for your enjoyment. Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by...

The madness that is Blue Box's Abandoned continues, though could there be another marketing stunt happening at the same time? We investigate. We also offer updated information on the Activision-Blizzard lawsuit and other legal news in the video game industry. On the news front, Nintendo has set record-breaking numbers for Nintendo Switch hardware and software, and recently streamed an eventful Indie World showcase. It's also being reported that Rockstar Games is remastering the PlayStation 2...

As the end of summer draws near, we took some much needed time to discuss the biggest games of the summer, including Final Fantasy XIV. We also discuss our thoughts on Valve's Steam Deck console, the recent Annapurna Interactive Showcase, and the latest in Ubisoft's Tom Clancy franchise. Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by Rukunetsu and used with permission. TIMESTAMPS 04:33 - [John] Final Fantasy XIV 29:10 - [Tyler] Skyward Sword HD, Chicory: A Colorful Tale 1:07:10 - Congrats to...

The State of California has filed a lawsuit against publisher Activision-Blizzard over widespread sexual harassment and discrimination towards female employees of the company. We discuss this issue in great detail, including how we as a game-playing community can support those being abused within the game development community. And it's only fitting that we invited Angie, a moderator of the Competitive Overwatch Discord server, to add her thoughts on the matter. If this situation is too...

The monkey's paw curls as Nintendo announces the Nintendo Switch (OLED Model) for release later this year. It has a new OLED screen and some nifty new features for an extra $50, though lacks any new internal components or performance enhancements. What do we think? And what happened with all those insider scoops about a 4K Switch? We also discuss the recent PlayStation State of Play broadcast, the delay of Ghostwire: Tokyo, and Atlus' plans for celebrating the 25th anniversary of...

Well, we finally did it: one hundred numbered episodes of The Training Stage have been released! Between two iterations of the show running over the last 5 years, we have achieved triple digits. To help celebrate the occasion, we invited Angie (@angdacat) to join us for an extended games talk segment and to discuss the latest news, including new PlayStation acquisitions and the future of the Silent Hill franchise. Thanks for sticking with us for all this time. We hope you stick around for...

This time of the summer is usually fairly quiet, so we spend some time catching up on what games we've been playing. John has been playing his usual vices of Overwatch and Trials Fusion, while Tyler has become determined to finish Octopath Traveler. On the news front, rumors have suggested that EA Motive is currently developing a Dead Space reboot. Are they up to the job, or are they simply an imposter amogus? Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by Rukunetsu and used with permission.

E3 2021 has concluded and we discuss our favorite announcements and biggest disappointments. We also review our predictions and cover the latest regarding Blue Box Game Studios and their supposed relationship to Hideo Kojima and the Silent Hill franchise. Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by Rukunetsu and used with permission.

E3 2021 is officially over, but there's still one last event for us to discuss: the Nintendo Direct broadcast. Safe to say, Nintendo stole the show with exciting new projects like Metroid Dread and WarioWare: Get it Together, and a brand new look at the highly anticipated sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Joining us to discuss the Nintendo Direct and the future of the Nintendo Switch, we invited Sketch from the Toonami Faithful Podcast and Nick from the DAM Podcast! It's a...

After a day of fairly lackluster showcases, Tyler and John needed backup to help them work through the emotions. So, we arranged a well-rounded panel, with Kory and Jhamar from the DAM Podcast joining to discuss all of the biggest announcements from the Microsoft and Bethesda Games Showcase, Square Enix Presents, and the PC Gaming Show. Starfield, Redfall, Halo Infinite, Guardians of the Galaxy, Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin, and much, much more are discussed in detail on this...

It's the third day of our E3 2021 coverage, and we have two big showcases to discuss: Ubisoft Forward and Devolver Digital. Ubisoft shared new information on Rainbow Six Extraction and Rider's Republic, while announcing Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. Devolver introduced several new titles, including a brand new IP from Flying Wild Hog. Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by Rukunetsu and used with permission.

In recent years, the video game industry has rapidly extended its presence into film, television, and music. Today, as part of the E3 2021 season, Netflix highlighted a number of upcoming video game adaptations and anime titles coming to their platform. To help us work through these announcements, we invited Alex from PodcastONA to discuss The Cuphead Show, Castlevania, the new Shaman King, Godzilla: Singular Point, and much more! We also discuss the delay of Rune Factory 5 and the...

E3 2021 (unofficially) kicked off today with Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest, and he brought some great appetizers. Elden Ring, Death Stranding: Director's Cut, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, Metal Slug Tactics, Sable, a new PlayStation partner studio, and so much more revealed. Join us as we discuss every high and every low of the event. And be sure to stay tuned throughout E3 2021 for additional content, as we cover each day's major news in the world of video games! Follow us on Twitter:...

After skipping last year due to obvious reasons, E3 is back in action! And that means it's also time for our E3 predictions. What do we think Nintendo, Microsoft, Square Enix, and other publishers have planned for the event? And before we get to those predictions, we discuss the latest gaming news, including the recent interview between Sid Shuman and Hermen Hulst. Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by Rukunetsu and used with permission. TIMESTAMPS 05:12 - Guerrilla Collective stream...

The pre-E3 news cycle has ramped up with several key gaming events. Dragon Quest 35th anniversary stream, Sonic Central, and a State of Play focused on Horizon Forbidden West all brought exciting information on upcoming games. Nintendo has revealed release dates for two upcoming Pokémon releases. Virtua Fighter is finally back! Plus, Microsoft and Bethesda have detailed their joint E3 2021 plans, and Geoff Keighley has announced kick-off plans for Summer Game Fest 2021. Oh, and Macarena disc...

This week's podcast is all about PlayStation and the recent controversies surrounding the brand. Store shutdowns, acquisitions and partnerships, and mismanagement of studios. What happened over the last couple of months? And what does it mean for the future of PlayStation 5 on the first-party front? We cover the good, bad, and everything in between. But of course, that's not all, as we begin with a healthy dose of personal life updates, COVID vaccine talk, and some Resident Evil Village...

We are back at it again after another patented podcast hiatus. We discuss what's been going on in our lives (moving, work, family, COVID vaccines, so much!). We also cover a few news topics, including our expectations for E3 2021 and release dates for some highly anticipated JRPGs. Look, sometimes one has to take a two month nap, alright? Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by Rukunetsu and used with permission.

We start this week by discussing the wonderful game of life for the first 30 minutes. Tyler is packing up and moving to a new place, so John will be receiving the hosting chair for the entirety of March. But there is a bunch of gaming news to cover before then. Tons of PlayStation news, including official confirmation of a next generation PSVR unit and a new State of Play. Nintendo finally broadcasted a general Direct and The Pokémon Company announced two new mainline Pokémon RPG...

On this special solo episode, John runs down all of the big news from BlizzConline 2021. Overwatch 2, Diablo IV and Diablo II Resurrected, and the latest from World of Warcraft and Hearthstone. Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by Rukunetsu and used with permission.

I bet you never expected us to talk about the stock market, but here we are. Resident Evil Village has a release date and a very tall lady, ESA plans a digital E3 for 2021, tons of financial details from big gaming companies, and Google killing off its internal gaming developers. Sounds like another day in paradise, right? Follow us on Twitter: @TTStage Music by Rukunetsu and used with permission. TIMESTAMPS 02:18 - PlayStation in 2020 Stats 07:21 - Tyler is collecting boxed DS games....