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!
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!
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.
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...
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.
Hey, this game really SUCKS! But only because it's supposed to. This week on Retronauts, we jump back to the ancient year of 2001 to dig deep into Luigi's Mansion: the GameCube launch title that underwhelmed at the time, but really holds up today. And, thanks to a new 3DS port, it's more playable than ever before! On this episode, join Bob Mackey and Henry Gilbert as they shine their flashlights all over Luigi's first adventures in the paranormal.
Jeremy Parish and Bob Mackey talk to USgamer's Caty McCarthy and Polygon's Matt Leone about modern-day takes on classic series--their history, the best and worst of them, and whether or not they're even necessary.
Jeremy Parish teams up with HG101's Kurt Kalata and Rob Russo to take on the violent, deadly history of the Double Dragon franchise (and hopefully save Marion in the process).
America's daring, highly trained special podcasting force of Jeremy Parish, Benj Edwards, and Chris Sims take on G.I. Joe, the ruthless comics/toy/games franchise that ruled the world during the ’80s.
Jeremy Parish and Bob Mackey travel back (and forward) in time with Kat Bailey and Chris Kohler to revisit one of the greatest RPGs of all time: Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest mash-up Chrono Trigger.
Jeremy drops by the offices of Q-Games to speak to Dylan Cuthbert (and Mark Lentz) about the early days of gaming and how tinkering with Game Boy hardware led to the creation of the first true 3D game on Super NES, Star Fox.
When Mario debuted in 1981's Donkey Kong, he entered a gaming landscape devoid of voice acting, so Nintendo never stopped to think, "Hey, what's this little guy supposed to sound like?" Over the years, though, as Mario entered the world of cartoons, live-action TV shows, and movies, someone had to sit down and decide on the voice of this formerly voiceless character. And decide they did! On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey and Henry Gilbert as they explore the many voices of Mario, an...
We at Retronauts regret to inform you once again that something is very old. (Hey, we're just doing our job.) That's right: The PlayStation 2 turns 18 this month, and to celebrate its passage into adulthood we've put together two whole hours of podcasting fun about Sony's market-dominating beast of a console. Just how important was DVD support? And will any console ever outsell the PS2? On this podcast, Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, Henry Gilbert, and Matthew Jay rev up their Emotion Engines and at...
The Retronauts East survey of Namco's arcade legacy continues! Jeremy, Benj, and Chris tackle the coin-op doldrums of 1983-1985 while dreaming of more interesting days to come.
To mark the 10th anniversary of the movie that changed the face of modern cinema (for better or worse), Jeremy talks Iron Man—the character, the games, and the weird lack of games—with comics expert Chris Sims and long-time Iron Man superfan Benj Edwards. Also this episode: The end of "Micros"! Now the biweekly Friday episode will just be plain ol' "Retronauts," whatever their length. Because this week's 80-minute podcast sure doesn't look so "micro" to us...
Jeremy and Bob go international to examine the origins of the world's most influential console RPG series. First, we stop in Nagoya to talk Dragon Quest with Alex Fraioli. Then, USgamer's Nadia Oxford beams in from Canada to lament the cruelty of DQII.
The end is nigh! Sort of. Jeremy, Ben, and Benj return to look one last time at SEGA's classic arcade legacy, exploring their coin-on megabits of the late ’90s. From Virtua Fighter 3 to Crazy Taxi, it's like crib notes for the Dreamcast era...
Nadia Oxford dials in to swap listener mail submissions with Bob and Jeremy for episodes we've recorded but not yet published. Get a preview of things to come in the weeks ahead with community opinions on Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy VII, and more!
Ray Barnholt and Henry Gilbert join Bob and Jeremy to talk about the OTHER Super Mario Bros. 2—plus, we fill in the 8-bit Mario gaps we've never touched on before. Call Foreman Spike, 'cause we're the Wrecking Crew, baby.
Jeremy talks to Chasm's James Petruzzi about creating the best IGA-vania style exploratory platformer in a decade, along with the challenges of meeting modern player expectations with a game built so clearly in the classic spirit of Symphony of the Night.
Greetings, programs! Anthony Schwader of the Game & Movie podcast joins Jeremy to discuss games about a movie about games: Disney's Tron, and all its tie-in video game creations.
It's a double dose of bardy delight! First, Jason Wilson and Rowan Kaiser join Jeremy and Bob in the studio to talk about the importance of Interplay's The Bard's Tale. Then, designer Michael Cranford regales us with the saga of its creation.
A potpourri of topics this week as Ben Elgin and Benj Edwards talk Jeremy through the early days of dial-up gaming and BBS madness. Then, Shivam Bhatt and Bob help tackle a long-overdue listener mailbag.
In 1994, Sega released the Pico: a cute little purple-and-teal suitcase that ran on Genesis hardware and promised to enhance young minds rather than rot them. While it was a neat little piece of tech at the time, America didn't take as kindly to the Pico as Japan did--though Sega's little "learning computer" managed to touch a few tiny lives before it disappeared with only 20 releases to its name. On this episode of Retronauts Micro, join Bob Mackey, Henry Gilbert, and Pico enthusiast Sam Leicht...
Back in 2007, Irrational Games wowed the world with BioShock, an FPS experience that bridged the gap between PC and console games with its role as the "thinking man's shooter." With 2013's Infinite closing the book on the series—and Irrational Games as a whole—and still no new Ken Levine game to speak of, there's never been a better time to revisit the recent past and a game that really kicked the HD generation into high gear. On this episode, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, and Gary Butterfield...
Jeremy talks to Wizardry programmer Robert Woodhead about the history and inspirations behind his influential all-time role-playing classic.
Jeremy, Chris, and Benj take a wildly disorganized (one might say "postmodern") journey through the original adventure of Indiana Jones... and eventually remember to touch on the games based on the film, too.
We celebrate five years of rebooted Retronauts by getting the original band back together! Ray Barnholt and Dr. Sparkle return to discuss Mario Madness: The U.S. version of Super Mario Bros.
Jeremy chats with 17-Bit Studios boss Jake Kazdal about the road he traveled from working an NES-era Nintendo game counselor to collaborating on SEGA classics like Rez to running his own game development studio in Japan.
For this Retronauts Micro, we're going for a community-focused approach as we respond to YOUR comments about Bob's latest round of episodes! This week, join Bob Mackey, Henry Gilbert, and Matthew Jay as the crew fields responses to previous Retronauts installments about video game ads, the Nintendo GameCube, Doom, television games, and Spider-Man games. All this, and a close examination of a video where Stan Lee excoriates Todd McFarlane and Rob Liefeld! Could you ask for anything more?
