Stephen Georg (born: March 20, 1989), is an American YouTuber who runs several channels on YouTube, most notably StephenVlog and StephenPlays. He is a South Carolina native who enjoys design, cats, astronomy, and internet media. He began creating YouTube videos in 2009 and has kept a near-perfect schedule since.
Stephen was born and raised in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and lived there before moving to Raleigh, North Carolina in 2022. In 2001, at age 12, Stephen received his first video camera and began shooting short films with his friends. At 16 he started a website to host his video creations, and garnered attention from various outlets including The Canadian Press and Electronic Gaming Monthly. In 2006, Stephen moved his projects to YouTube.
Stephen started college in 2007 at SCAD, the Savannah College of Art and Design, in Savannah, Georgia. While in college he spent more time uploading to YouTube, starting StephenVlog (2009) and StephenPlays (2011). In June of 2011 he graduated with honors from SCAD with a BFA in Film and Television, focusing in video editing. Two months later he married his fiancé, Mallory. Stephen currently lives in Myrtle Beach, SC, creating YouTube videos as a full-time career. On August 10, 2015, StephenPlays hit 100,000 subscribers. On March 1, 2023, StephenVlog hit 100,000 subscribers.
Early life[]
Stephen Georg was born March 20, 1989 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. He is 6'6" tall. At age 12, he received a video camera and began to make silly home videos with his friends. In 2005 he began a website to host all of his video creations, and garnered attention from various news outlets, being written about by the Canadian press and even featured in video game magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly for his various works.
In 2007 he started college at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in Savannah, Georgia. While in college he became "serious" about YouTube, starting StephenVlog (2009) and StephenPlays (2011). He graduated with honors with a BFA in Film and Television in June 2011 with a focus in video editing. He married his fiancée, Mallory, two months later. They previously lived in Columbia, South Carolina. Stephen and Mallory then moved to Myrtle Beach in July 2012, and ten years later, moved to Raleigh, North Carolina. Creating content on YouTube is Stephen's full-time job.
StephenVlog[]
Stephen had originally seen vlogs of people who sit in front of their computers and talk to the camera, and he thought it was "terribly boring". In November 2009, however, he saw a few vlogs where people were leaving the house and not simply talking to webcams. He decided that once he went home for winter break that he would start "StephenVlog", and attempt to film his life.
In his first video (Day Zero) he explains that he doesn't know how long he'll be doing the project for. He has been vlogging everyday for over 5 years now. On Day 364 he received YouTube partnership. There are now over 5,000 StephenVlog days (and counting).
Notable Days[]
- Day 234 - Stephen proposes to his girlfriend, Mallory.
- Day 500 - The "best" moments from the first 500 days, as voted by fans.
- Day 557 - Stephen and friends graduate from college.
- Day 620 - Stephen and Mallory get married.
- Day 703 - The first of many appearances by Emile, "Chuggaaconroy".
- Day 953 - The first time Stephen and Mallory meet Timothy "NintendoCapriSun " Bishop at an Applebees restaurant in Wisconsin.
- Day 1019 - The day Stephen and Mallory adopted Sagan and Kepler.
StephenPlays[]
Stephen's original exposure to Let's Plays was through Chuggaaconroy. They had met on EarthBound fansite Starmen.net in 2005, and always kept in touch. Emile would frequently bring projects and episodes to Stephen for critique before releasing them to the public, as Stephen was an experienced editor.
Recurring Series[]
- First20: Every Friday, Stephen and Mal play the first twenty minutes (or so) of a video game they own.
- Demo Fridays: On occasional Fridays, Stephen and Mal play a demo of a game on XBL or PSN. Substitutes for First20.
- GTA Online: Stephen and Friends mess around in Grand Theft Auto Online. Sporadically released on Saturday nights when Stephen and Friends isn't released.
- Animal Crossing New Horizons: Stephen and Friends visit each island owned by a friend in Animal crossing and mess around.
- Memorable Moments: Humorous and memorable moments from previous LPs. Posted Monday-Thursday.
- Mini-Golf Versus: Stephen and Mal play mini-golf at various locations in Myrtle Beach, sometimes with friends.
- Morning Mario: Stephen plays a viewer-submitted level from Super Mario Maker every weekday morning.
- Grandpa's Game Garage: Stephen plays viewer-submitted levels from Game Builder Garage.
- Stephen and Friends: Stephen, Mal, and Friends play various multiplayer games. Sporadically released on Saturday nights when GTA Online isn't released.
- Extra Life: Every fall, Stephen and Mal host a video game marathon on their Twitch channel with Extra Life to raise money for their local children's hospital. These videos are later uploaded on the YouTube channel.
Let's Plays[]
- A Bird Story (PC/Mac) (2014)
- Amnesia: The Dark Descent (PC/Mac) (2011)
- Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs (PC/Mac) (2013)
- Assassin's Creed (360) (2007)
- Assassin's Creed 2 (PS3/360/PC/Mac) (2009)
- Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (PS3/360) (2010)
- Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (The Da Vinci Disappearance) (PS3/360) (2011)
- Assassin's Creed: Revelations (PC/PS3/360/iOS) (2011)
- BattleBlock Theater (360/PC) (2013)
- Battle for Zendikar DLC (PC/Xbox One/iOS) (2015)
- BioShock (PC/360/PS3/Mac/iOS) (2007)
- Chulip (PS2/PS3) (2002)
- Desperate Escape (PS3/360) (2010)
- Donkey Kong Country (SNES) (1994)
- Donkey Kong Country 2 (SNES) (1995)
- Donkey Kong Country 3 (SNES/GBA) (1996)
- Donkey Kong Country Returns (Wii) (2010)
- Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze (WiiU) (2014)
- Dragon Ball (GBA) (2004)
- Earthbound Beginnings (NES/GBA/WiiU) (1989)
- Earthbound (SNES) (1995)
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (PC/360) (2011)
- Far Cry 4 (PS4/PS3/Xbox One/360/PC) (2014)
- Gears of War (360) (2005)
- God of War (PS3) (2008)
- Grand Theft Auto V (360) (2013)
- Half-Life 2 (PC/Mac) (2004)
- Half-Life 2: Episode 1 (PC/Mac) (2006)
- Half-Life 2: Episode 2 (PC/Mac) (2007)
- Halo: Anniversary (360) (2011)
- Halo 2 Anniversary (Xbox One) (2014)
- INSIDE (PS4/PC/Xbox One) (2016)
- Journey (PS3/PS4) (2012)
- Kirby's Dream Course (SNES) (1995)
- Kirby Super Star (SNES) (1996)
- The Last of Us (PS3) (2013)
- The Last of Us: Left Behind (PS3) (2014)
- Left 4 Dead 2 (PC/Mac) (2009)
- Limbo (Everything) (2010)
- LittleBigPlanet 2 (PS3) (2012)
- LittleBigPlanet 3 (PS4) (2014)
- Lost in Nightmares (PS3/360) (2010)
- Magic: The Gathering - Duels of the Planeswalkers (360) (2009)
- Magic Duels (PC/PS4/Xbox One/iOS) (2015)
- Mario Kart (N64/GCN/Wii/WiiU) (1992-2014)
- Metal Slug (PS3/PS4/Wii) (2009)
- Minecraft (PC/Mac) (2009)
- Minecraft Custom Map: It's Better Together (PC/Mac) (2009)
- Minecraft Custom Map: Monarch of Madness (PC/Mac) (2009)
- Minecraft Custom Map: The Tourist (PC/Mac) (2009)
- Minecraft Custom Map: Mystery of the Pumpkin Castle (PC/Mac) (2009)
- Pikmin (Wii) (2009)
- Pokémon LeafGreen (GBA) (2004)
- Portal (PC/Mac) (2007)
- Portal 2 (Single Player) (PC/Mac) (2011)
- Portal 2 (Co-op with Mal) (PC/Mac) (2011)
- Resident Evil 5 (PS3/360/PC) (2009)
- Shadow of the Colossus (PS3) (2005)
- Sonic Generations (360) (2011)
- Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) (2008)
- Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (Wii U) (2014)
- To The Moon (PC/Mac) (2011)
- To The Moon DLC (PC/Mac) (2012)
- Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3) (2007)
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3) (2009)
- Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (PS3) (2011)
- Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (PS4) (2016)
- The Walking Dead (PC/PS3/PS4/Xbox One/360) (2012)
- The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii) (2006)
- Smash Ultimate
- Bioshock Infnite
- Pikmin 4
Ninten Speaks[]
Ninten Speaks is a YouTube account following the re-imagining of the character Ninten from the MOTHER video game (also known as Earthbound Beginnings), where he speaks freely on issues of today. His topics range from current events to simpler things such as math or music. The first 10 episodes are on his xfisjmg1 account. When the series started, it was audio-only and could only be listened to through iTunes podcast, but eventually was added to YouTube. Realizing that a weekly Ninten Speaks episode would smother his other videos, Stephen decided to create a separate account just for Ninten Speaks.
Despite the video series focusing primarily on a character from an obscure video game, Ninten Speaks appeals to a wide audience because of his broad topics. Very rarely are his video game roots mentioned or hinted at, and the few times they are are too subtle for the casual viewer to catch. Ninten's particular character and attitude come from an improvised radio play of the same game, also co-created by Stephen Georg. In the radio play, Ninten was given an incredibly high voice and a low IQ. He generally rambles on until another voice actor stops him. This carries over into the video version, where quick cuts give Ninten the same effect he had in the radio play. The videos are all primarily filmed in Stephen's college dorm room. All of the Ninten Speaks videos are shot in HD.
In late January 2009, it was announced on Earthbound fansite, Starmen.net, that Ninten Speaks would be moving to video. The account was registered on the 4th of February and started gaining comments immediately. Two days later a promotional video showed up on YouTube, primarily to enable subscriptions. Within 48 hours, the Ninten Speaks account had over 100 subscribers. To coincide with the promotional video release (and to move people to the new account), Stephen's 10th Ninten Speaks episode (the last audio-only episode) was about Ninten purchasing a video camera. The video also used an annotated link to send viewers to the new account.
Collaborations and Guest Appearances[]
Stephen has collaborated with several other YouTubers, notably fellow associates of TheRunawayGuys. Stephen was the fifth main guest of TheRunawayGuys, joining Proton Jon, NintendoCapriSun, and Chuggaaconroy for their LP of The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures as well as for Fortune Street. Before this he played Baby Luigi in MKDD on Team Stephenplays with his wife Mal in MKDD and was a participant in their Smash 64 and Wii U tournaments as Ness as well as their Bomberman tournament. Stephen also was with them during their fourth Twitch stream. In The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures, he played Purple Link. In Kirby & the Amazing Mirror, he played as Yellow Kirby.
Stephen collaborated with Chuggaaconroy frequently on both their channels from 2011 to 2022. He became friends with Emile on starmen.net in 2005, before either of them started making videos on YouTube. They did not meet in person until Day 703, when Emile stayed with him and Mallory for a few days. They went on to become close friends. On the vlog, Emile was known for always being extremely generous to Stephen and Mal by exchanging gifts with them regularly, and was notorious for always intentionally ending the vlog incorrectly. As of July 2024, the friendship status of Stephen and Mallory with Emile since his controversy is unknown. As a result, it is also unknown wether they will ever collab again.
Other Information[]
Video Game Collection[]
Over the years, Stephen and Mallory have amassed a vast collection of video games by frequenting flea markets in the early days of the vlog, visiting game stores, and through the help of their viewers who send them games in VlogMail. They completed their N64 game collection at the end of 2015, completed their GameCube collection at the end of 2018, and are currently focusing on Wii games.
Their video game collection can be found here.
Devotion to Fans[]
Stephen has attracted attention to his channels by acknowledging that he always reads every comment posted, and will reply personally to any comment that requires a response. He likes to be easily reached by anyone, and reads and replies to all YouTube messages he receives. He did a Network Spotlight video for TGS, and predominantly featured his fans, talking about what they like about StephenPlays; moments from Let's Plays they enjoyed the most, how they got into watching Stephen's videos, etc..
Skyrim LP[]
One of his past LPs, Skyrim, has focused on putting the "let's" back in "let's play", by only being recorded one episode at a time. Unlike most Let's Plays which are completely pre-recorded, Stephen's Skyrim LP is recorded one at a time, giving the audience time to comment on the video and offer suggestions, advice, or pointing out things he may have missed.
Tools[]
Stephen's Vlogs were shot with the Flip Ultra HD camera until Day 899 when he got a Canon 300 HS Elph. Stephen's LPs are recorded using Screenflow (Mac recordings), Fraps (Windows recordings), and the Black Magic Intensity Pro (console games). Stephen uses a Hackintosh computer with OSX Mountain Lion. He does all video editing in Final Cut Pro X.
Other Channels[]
Stephen runs several other channels on YouTube.
- Stephen's Basement - His original YouTube account, containing old projects. It was originally called xfisjmg1
- DailyPack - A channel about booster pack openings of Magic, Pokémon, and Yu-Gi-Oh, that has been discontinued as it was "too much work for such short videos".