Retronauts Episode 209: Final Fantasy VII, Pt. 2
Jeremy Parish and Bob Mackey finally leave Midgar to explore the remainder of Final Fantasy VII with the help of their fellow party members, Chris Kohler and Kat Bailey.
Mar 25, 2019•1 hr 40 min
Retronauts
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Episodes
Retronauts Episode 208: Goodbye, Reggie Fils-Aime
On April 15, 2019, Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime will step down from his role, bringing about an end to an era. But who was Reggie, and why was his tenure at Nintendo so unique? On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, and Henry Gilbert as the crew examines the life and times of Reggie Fils-Aime during Nintendo's highest highs and lowest lows.
Mar 22, 2019•56 min
Retronauts Episode 207: Capcom's Disney Afternoon
East meets West, and then some! Jeremy Parish and Chris Sims (east) meet with Bob Mackey and Nina M. (west) to talk about the franchise that brings people of all coasts together: Capcom's Disney games for NES.
Mar 18, 2019•1 hr 35 min
Retronauts Episode 206: Final Fantasy VII, Pt. 1
Jeremy Parish and Bob Mackey once again meet with Chris Kohler and Kat Bailey to deep-dive their way through the history of Final Fantasy. This time they've hit the Big One: Final Fantasy VII, a game SO monumental in impact it's a two-episode discussion.
Mar 11, 2019•1 hr 51 min
Retronauts Episode 205: Katamari Damacy
Jeremy Parish and Bob Mackey roll up Benj Edwards and Ben Elgin into an ever-growing ball of garba—errr, that is, an ever-growing podcast retrospective about Namco's delightful trash-gathering simulation Katamari Damacy.
Mar 08, 2019•1 hr 8 min
Retronauts Episode 204: Spider-Man Games Part 2
We left you hanging for over a year after our first exploration of Spider-Man games (episode 135), and now we're back to see what the world of polygons held for Marvel's arachnid hero. Spidey had quite a bit of video game history between his 2000 self-titled game and his... 2018 self-titled game, and we're here to comb through the webs of the past to see if there's anything worth salvaging. On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Henry Gilbert, and Jeremy Parish as the crew activates the...
Mar 04, 2019•1 hr 37 min
203: A Tale of Two Tribes
Jeremy Parish talks to Martijn Reuvers and Collin van Ginckel about the history of their development studio, Two Tribes, a company that bluffed its way into existence in the sunset days of Game Boy and became indie game pioneers with Toki Tori and Rive.
Mar 01, 2019•1 hr 53 min•Ep. 203
Retronauts Episode 202: Listener Comments Catch-Up
It's been six months since Bob's last listener comments episode, and plenty of feedback has built up since then, practically screaming to be read live on the air! And in this episode, Bob and guest Henry Gilbert will be doing just that: reading and responding to various questions and comments (left on the Patreon and Retronauts dot com) on topics as varied as BioShock, Pokemon, Wario Ware, the PlayStation 2, and more! Plus: A song about Lou Albano that may surprise you.
Feb 22, 2019•1 hr 11 min
Retronauts Episode 201: First Encounters
Jeremy Parish, Bob Mackey, Nadia Oxford, and Kallie Plagge look back at some the greatest publishers of all time and the games that helped define them in our eyes. From Donkey Kong and Mario Bros. to The Sims and Halo, it's an episode chock-full of meet-cutes!
Feb 18, 2019•1 hr 34 min
Retronauts Episode 200: The 2019 Years-in-Review Revue, Pt. II
Continued from episode 191! The whole Retronauts East gang gathers once again to complete their look back at the years that have come before—the most notable gaming (and pop culture) events of 1989 and 1999.
Feb 11, 2019•1 hr 51 min
Retronauts Episode 199: Nintendo's Stairway to Rhythm Heaven
Live from MAGfest 2019! Jeremy Parish, Bob Mackey, and Chris Sims explore the musical legacy of Nintendo R&D1 from Donkey Kong to the grand culmination of the studio's love for brilliant music and sound design: Rhythm Heaven. Special thanks to Trey Johnson for an assist with the audio!
Feb 08, 2019•51 min
Retronauts Episode 198: Dragon Quest XI
Every once in a while, we like to focus our attention on (gasp!) modern games to see how well they've stuck to tradition over the passing decades. And there's no series more traditional than Dragon Quest, which still plays pretty close to how it did 30-some years ago. On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, and Henry Gilbert as the crew takes a look at how Dragon Quest XI--the newest entry in the series--thoroughly modernizes its many old-school qualities for one of the be...
Feb 04, 2019•1 hr 35 min
Retronauts Episode 197: Konami on MSX
Kurt Kalata and Rob Russo of Hardcore Gaming 101 join Jeremy Parish to explore the alternate reality version of Konami's legendary run of NES games: Their extensive MSX home computer library. From Metal Gear to Nemesis, it's all familiar, and yet... not.
Jan 28, 2019•1 hr 20 min
Retronauts Episode 196: Princess Tomato in the Salad Kingdom
You've heard of Hudson's Adventure Island, but how about Hudson's adventure games? Though the developer was mostly known for platforming and bomber men, in their pre-console-development years, Hudson cashed in on the adventure game craze. And one remnant from this era managed to sneak over to American shores: the NES port of Princess Tomato in the Salad Kingdom. On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, Nina Matsumoto, and Chris Sims as the crew ponders this clunky-but-charm...
Jan 25, 2019•1 hr 6 min
Retronauts Episode 195: A History of Game Piracy
Chris Kohler joins Jeremy Parish and Bob Mackey to tackle the topic of piracy. It's not the same thing as emulation! But it's closely related? And it's bad! But it's important, good, and essential to game preservation!? There's a lot to unpack this week!
Jan 21, 2019•1 hr 40 min
Retronauts Episode 194: Brian Fargo on Wasteland, Fallout, and The Bard's Tale
Interplay and InXile boss Brian Fargo offers fresh insights into his pioneering work with role-playing games like The Bard's Tale, Wasteland, and Fallout.
Jan 14, 2019•1 hr 15 min
Retronauts Episode 193: Mark Turmell on NBA Jam & NEMO
In an episode that's nearly retro itself, we go back to GDC 2018 for an interview with Zynga's Mark Turmell on his historic work, including NBA Jam, NFL Blitz, Hasbro's failed NEMO console, and the spiritual connection between arcade and mobile gaming.
Jan 11, 2019•1 hr 1 min
Retronauts Episode 192: WarioWare
Wario started out as literally the anti-Mario, and his platforming series did a great job of playing with the tropes of the genre. But in 2003, Wario would have a much bigger task: subverting the ongoing trend of bloated game design with sheer minimalism and absurdism. On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, Ray Barnholt, and Henry Gilbert as the crew examines the subversive brilliance of WarioWare series on its 15th birthday.
Jan 08, 2019•1 hr 44 min
Retronauts Episode 191: The 2019 Years-in-Review Revue, Pt. I
The whole East gang's here: Ben, Benj, AND Chris join Jeremy for the traditional New Year's look back at 10/20/30/40 and even 50 (!) years ago. Naturally, the usual Retronauts East banter and digressions take the whole thing so far off track we only get halfway through our planned discussion this time through. See you for the follow-up in 2019!
Dec 31, 2018•1 hr 56 min
Retronauts Episode 190: Holiday Special 2018 - Pokemon's "Holiday Hi-Jynx"
It's that time of the year again: when listeners brave the harsh climates, territorial wolves, and malfunctioning home security devices for a chance to visit the Retronauts Holiday Cabin in parts unknown. And, just like in past years, we'll be using this holiday getaway as a good excuse to discuss a video game-related Christmas cartoon. For 2018, we set our sights on the long-running Pokemon cartoon's first Xmas adventure: "Holiday Hi-Jynx." Along with featuring perhaps the most controversial Po...
Dec 28, 2018•1 hr 16 min
Retronauts Episode 189: Neon Genesis Evangelion
You mustn't run away… from this episode! Classic sci-fi anime Neon Genesis Evangelion is coming to Netflix soon, and Wes Fenlon and Henry Gilbert join Jeremy Parish and Bob Mackey to explore the show, its legacy, and (of course) its video game tie-ins.
Dec 24, 2018•1 hr 39 min
Retronauts Episode 188: Netflix's Castlevania with Adi Shankar & Zillion with Funimation
An animated feature double feature! First, Funimation walks us through the decades-overdue English version of Sega tie-in anime Zillion. Then, Netflix's Castlevania creator Adi Shankar talks about indie games and preserving Belmont lore for television.
Dec 17, 2018•1 hr 28 min
Retronauts Episode 187: Drill Dozer
After Pokemon took off in a huge way, developer Game Freak didn't exactly have the time or incentive to dabble outside of their cash cow. But all that changed in 2006, when they created Drill Dozer: a fun, compact little game built entirely around the concept of drilling. Unfortunately, Drill Dozer's release on the Game Boy Advance well into the DS's lifespan means very few people got a chance to experience Game Freak's inventive platformer. On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Henry ...
Dec 14, 2018•47 min
Retronauts Episode 186: Inside SNK's Archives
SNK 40th Anniversary Collection producer Frank Cifaldi walks us through the process of creating a definitive playable historic record of SNK's decades-old pre-Neo•Geo catalog.
Dec 10, 2018•58 min
Retronauts Episode 185: The Music of PlayStation 1
Shane Bettenhausen joins Jeremy Parish, Bob Mackey, and a plethora of Retronauts listeners to enthuse about the games that took advantage of Sony PlayStation's groundbreaking audio capabilities by including bangin' soundtracks.
Dec 03, 2018•1 hr 38 min
Retronauts Episode 184: PC Roguelikes
By patron request, we delve into the cryptic history of what might be the world's most complex genre: PC roguelikes. Genre aficionado Steve Tramer walks Bob and Jeremy through the unforeseen consequences of Rogue, Nethack, Dwarf Fortress, and more!
Nov 26, 2018•1 hr 43 min
Retronauts Episode 183: SNK's 40th, Pt. 1
Retronauts contributor and SNK ultra-fan D. Feit joins Jeremy Parish for a casual conversation about the games of SNK's 40th Anniversary Collection for Switch—the first in a two-part exploration of this landmark anthology!
Nov 19, 2018•1 hr 47 min
Retronauts Episode 182: SEGA Genesis 30th - Expert Mode
Ken Horowitz from Sega-16.com joins Jeremy to offer some perspective on SEGA's 30-year-old console from someone who's been on the front lines with it nearly from the beginning, in this side story to our recent Genesis anniversary tribute.
Nov 16, 2018•53 min
Retronauts Episode 181 - Dragon Ball/Sailor Moon Games
Ah, Dragon Ball and Sailor Moon: The twin jewels of '90s anime. Though many series have surpassed these two in longevity and popularity, these anime titans hold sole responsibility for getting so many Americans into anime during the late 90s, when Japanese animation wasn't so commonplace in our country. And, of course, when you have two properties so huge and influential, you're gonna see a whole bunch of video game adaptations. On this episode of Retronauts, GameSpot's Sam Leichtamer and Kallie...
Nov 12, 2018•1 hr 58 min
Retronauts Episode 180: SEGA Genesis Turns 30
Jeremy Parish, Benj Edwards, Chris Sims, and a host of Retronauts listeners recount the best moments and memories of SEGA's 16-bit Genesis on the occasion of the console's 30th birthday.
Nov 05, 2018•1 hr 45 min
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