Rock the Dragon Kazuma Kiryu starred in at least a dozen video games in the last eighteen years and experienced a remarkable fictional life. In today’s podcast, two of RPGFan’s most enthusiastic Like a Dragon advocates examine the life and times of the Dragon of Dojima, as part of Retro Encounter’s Year of the Dragon celebrations. Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Jonathan Logan; Edited by Michael Sollosi Opening and ending music by Miles Morkri Get in Touch: RPGFan.com RPGFan Shop Email us: retro@rpg...
Feb 15, 2024•1 hr 7 min
Opinions are like cats. The internet is full of them. We mostly fall into conventional wisdom here on Retro Encounter when it comes to what games deserve celebration and which games do not (there will not be an episode on Beyond the Beyond anytime soon), but we don’t always go with the grain. Five panelists each share two of their more offbeat, uncommon RPG beliefs, ranging from a certain series needing to reboot to several games being just too damn long. Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Audra Bowlin...
Feb 08, 2024•1 hr 39 min
Should we double check the envelope? We’re in the middle of entertainment awards show season, and it’s high time Retro Encounter decides a worthy ballot for the RPGs with the best characters, music, visuals, gameplay, and story. But to make things interesting, we’re drafting four games for each category, and no RPG can be drafted more than once. Does that make sense? If you listen to the episode, then all will become clear! Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Aleks Franiczek, Jimmy Turner, Zach Wilkerso...
Feb 01, 2024•2 hr 37 min
Fill my heart with Retro / And let me play RPGs forevermore We're back this week to discuss the second half of Moon , a game that parodies RPGs so much it almost becomes an Adventure game. How does the second half of the game compare with the first? Did we get all the love? Just how many frustrating minigames can one man take? Listen in to find out! Featuring: Zach Wilkerson, Aleks Franiczek, Ben Love; Edited by Zach Wilkerson Opening and ending music by Miles Morkri Get in Touch: RPGFan.com RPG...
Jan 25, 2024•1 hr 19 min
FOUR HUNDRED BABIES If you’ve listened to a Retro Encounter multiple of 50 before, you know that the panel is going to come up with a public poll for a future Retro Encounter episode. This time around, we’re having a shark party! The panel will “invest” in pitches from twelve Retro Encounter panelists from past and present in a game inspired by a certain entrepreneurial television show. It took 8 years and 8 months, but Retro Encounter made it to 400 episodes. Time to get this party started, but...
Jan 18, 2024•1 hr 47 min
Bubby, if you ain't got Retro Encounter, you'll stop breathing and pass the heck out. After waiting over two decades, we finally got a localization of this quirky gem, Moon: Remix RPG Adventure . So, we got three of our panelists to discuss the first half of the game. We talk about the odd gameplay mechanics, just how many times we passed out before we figured out the Love system, and the games Moon went on to inspire. Listen in to find out what we thought on its opening hours! Featuring: Zach W...
Jan 11, 2024•52 min
Movin’ to the country / I’m gonna eat a lot of Toadstools Super Mario RPG turned 27 in 2023 (!), and to celebrate, Nintendo and ArtePiazza released a snazzy new remake. Three Retro Encounter enthusiasts discuss the new remake’s new look, gameplay adjustments, and breezy difficulty, as well as Mario RPG’s influence over the intervening decades. Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Jimmy Turner, Zach Wilkerson; Edited by Michael Sollosi Opening and ending music by Miles Morkri Get in Touch: RPGFan.com RPGF...
Jan 04, 2024•51 min
2023 and Me In true RPGFan podcast fashion, Retro Encounter always looks back. In an annual tradition since 2015, a Retro Encounter panel examines the previous year of RPGs and highlights a few favorites. What RPG is labeled a platonic ideal? What two 2023 downloads might be among the best DLC of all time? How about that Baldur’s Gate 3? All of this and more in the final Retro Encounter episode of 2023! Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Aleks Franiczek, Jonathan Logan, Zach Wilkerson; Edited by Paul D...
Dec 28, 2023•2 hr 19 min
I'm a sucker for a good podcast! 25 years ago, RPGFan started life as LunarNET, and five years before that, Lunar: The Silver Star released in the West. So, in honor of that, we got four of our resident Lunar fans together to chat about the various versions of Lunar: The Silver Star . Are we fans of the Working Designs localization? How does the combat hold up? Are Jessica and Kyle the best couple in the series? Listen in to find out! Featuring: Zach Wilkerson, Ben Love, Noah Leiter, Scott Clay;...
Dec 21, 2023•1 hr 23 min
Quest Like A Dragon! One Warrior, one Rogue, and one Mage separately traveled across Ferelden to recruit allies in order to stop a Darkspawn Blight, but how did it go for them? Our panelists explored the diverse societies presented in BioWare’s dark fantasy RPG this month, but to what ends? Listen and find out why Dragon Age: Oranges’s narrative is so engrossing, this podcast forgot to discuss combat! Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Aleks Franiczek, Wes Iliff; Edited by Paul Dennis Opening and endin...
Dec 16, 2023•1 hr 20 min
Dungeons and Darkspawn Dragon Age, a standout mini series from BioWare's golden age of RPGs, is a blend of high fantasy, dark fantasy, politics, and dating sim that made a big splash in 2009. Two Grey Warden veterans and one Dragon Age neophyte form a Retro Encounter panel to take on the Darkspawn Blight, save a group of mages, and confirm that Dog is a very good boy. Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Aleks Franiczek, Wes Iliff. Edited by Michael Sollosi Opening and ending music by Miles Morkri. Get i...
Dec 07, 2023•1 hr 16 min
I think I heard a shot. We finished Bloodborne! Four very enthusiastic hunters suffered through hunters, Great Ones, Street Sharks, and many other horrors to conquer this PS4 classic. So what are our favorite bosses? What the hell does Insight do? How many times do we mix up "Great Ones" with "Old Blood?" Listen to learn! Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Gio Castillo, Aleks Franiczek, Zach Wilkerson. Edited by Michael Sollosi Opening and ending music by Miles Morkri. Get in Touch: RPGFan.com RPGFan S...
Dec 05, 2023•1 hr 14 min
Bleeding its horror / Creating my structure Welcome, good hunter! Retro Encounter discusses a From Software Souls-like in detail for the first time, with the Playstation 4's Bloodborne. Four panelists discuss the city of Yarnham, trick weapons, the Souls formula, and more in this episode about a bloody excellent video game. Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Gio Castillo, Aleks Franiczek, Zach Wilkerson. Edited by Michael Sollosi Opening and ending music by Miles Morkri. Get in Touch: RPGFan.com RPGFan...
Nov 24, 2023•1 hr 14 min
Back in the 90s and early 2000s, the localization of JRPGs was never a given. We RPG fans would often wait with bated breath, a copy of GamePlayers or Electronic Gaming Monthly in hand, hoping Squaresoft and other Japanese publishers would announce they were bringing their incredible games to the West. And more often than not, we would be disappointed. While many of these untranslated games have slowly made their way to our shores over the years in the form of remakes and collections, there are ...
Nov 09, 2023•1 hr 35 min
Only one person gets to be the hero. But is it always the right one? Just about every RPG has a main character that can be singled out as the hero of their story, but this is not about any of them. Quite often, there's a companion or even an NPC that is more fun or interesting than a video game's protagonist. That's who we want to discuss today - three RPGFan staff pick a few of their favorite less-important characters who are compelling enough to star in their own games, but never got the chanc...
Nov 03, 2023•1 hr 1 min
Boys and girls of every age / Wouldn't you like to see something strange? Halloween is a time to experience scares, eat candy, and also celebrate fandom through costumes. Costume changes in RPGs can take the form of in-game bonuses, clever references, or expensive DLC, but it's undeniable that a classy costume change can enhance the video game experience. Today, three panelists talk about their favorite alternate costumes in RPGs. Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Wes Iliff, Jimmy Turner; Edited by Mi...
Oct 26, 2023•53 min
Could you imagine? A puppet seeing another puppet- and then making it work? Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure is... cute. Energetic. Pleasant. But also sort of twisted? Is Cornet an earnest puppeteer or an unsuspecting necromancer? Do we want to play the rest of the trilogy now? In today's episode of Retro Encounter we explore these topics and more, from sad pirates to frog centaurs. Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Wes Iliff; Edited by Paul Dennis. Opening and ending music by Miles Morkri. Get in Touch:...
Oct 19, 2023•59 min
In Marl's Kingdom, the girl saves the handsome prince. Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure is remarkable for a 1998 RPG, in that it subverts a few traditional fantasy tropes, has multiple character-specific side quests, and punctuates it plot points with musical numbers. It also kicked off a trilogy of RPGs with multiple spinoffs, which received worldwide releases in 2022 and 2023. But how does it hold up to a modern audience of Retro Encounter panelists? Listen and find out! Featuring: Michael Sollos...
Oct 12, 2023•56 min
Through the Fire and Flames of Fate Dragon Quest hasn't had a main series release since 2018, but in the last five years we've had spinoffs, adaptations, and announcements galore. Three Retro Encounter panelists are joined by special guest Matt from the Dragon Quest Slime Time! podcast to discuss the past, present, and future of Dragon Quest . Bring on Dragon Quest XII ! Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Wes Iliff, Ben Love, Matt Masem; Edited by Zach Wilkerson Opening and ending music by Miles Morkri...
Oct 05, 2023•1 hr 13 min
Mr. Blue Sky, please tell us why you had to hide away for so long. Where did we go wrong? Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter is a bleak, unforgiving game that grants players tremendous highs when they emerge victorious from a boss battle on the brink of death, and threatens brutal lows if you lose all your progress far away from one of its limited save points. Three panelists played Dragon Quarter for Retro Encounter this month, but did any of them see the sky? Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Aleks Fran...
Sep 29, 2023•56 min
Don't be a D-Ratio. Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter doesn't want you to have an easy time. A remarkable blend of PS2 visuals, tactical combat, rogue-like elements, and horror atmosphere set to a Hitoshi Sakimoto soundtrack, the fifth game in Capcom's signature turn-based RPG series is as unique as it is challenging. Three RPGFan staff of various experience levels tackled Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter with open minds and full hearts this week, but how do they feel? Listen and learn! Featuring: Mi...
Sep 21, 2023•1 hr 1 min
The only podcast here is ours. And you can be its early witness! Final Fantasy XVI, one of the most-anticipated Square-Enix games of the 2020s, finally launched worldwide in June. And now, almost three months later, at least four RPGFan staff have finished playing and want to start talking. From favorite characters and fights to the future of Final Fantasy XVI DLC, this podcast delves deep into this Eikonic game. Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Gio Castillo, Tin Manuel, Zach Wilkerson; Edited by Zac...
Sep 14, 2023•1 hr 29 min
She'll take you for a ride on a wagon train to Zoombiniville It's back to school week here at Retro Encounter, where we stay retro but mostly avoid RPGs in a discussion of classic edutainment games, from The Oregon Trail to Sim City 2000. Who among our illustrious panel dreamed of being on the Carmen Sandiego PBS show? Which educational game most deserves a Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio adaptation? Listen and learn! Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Niki Fakhoori, Jonathan Logan, Jimmy Turner; Edited by Michae...
Sep 07, 2023•1 hr 9 min
Time to go work on Retro Encounter! We're back with our discussion of the second half of Disco Elysium . This week we dive into some of our favorite late-game side quests, go over our favorite conversations with our neckties, and discuss the fabulously strange ending. Did we get Kim to like us? Do we continue to be a disaster cop? Are Phasmids real? Listen in to find out! Featuring: Zach Wilkerson, Aleks Franiczek , Ben Love, Hilary Andreff; Edited by Zach Wilkerson Opening and ending music by M...
Aug 24, 2023•1 hr 58 min
This is the face of a late-stage Retro Encounter enthusiast. This week we get together to discuss a game inspired by Dungeons & Dragons , despite a complete lack of any dungeons or dragons: Disco Elysium . Listen in as we discuss the wild humor and politics of this strange, amazing video game, and find out just how many bad choices we can make while still solving a murder case. Featuring: Zach Wilkerson, Aleks Franiczek , Ben Love, Hilary Andreff; Edited by Zach Wilkerson Opening and ending ...
Aug 10, 2023•1 hr 10 min
Off my podcast, jester. The commissioner sits there. It's fantasy draft season! And, well, it's been a while since our last draft episode, and even longer since we've drafted characters from the biggest RPG series around. So, we decided to pull a new panel together to engage in some Retro Encounter rules-based discussion nonsense with a supersized episode where we draft all our Final Fantasy characters. Is Celes is main character or a supporting one? Where does Kefka fall on our big board? Just ...
Jul 27, 2023•2 hr 59 min
Life... Dreams... Hope... Where do they come from? A new episode of Retro Encounter of course, that's where! We're back this week to dive into the second, more ruinous half of Final Fantasy VI . After the relatively structured and straightforward pacing of the first half, the latter portions of Final Fantasy VI are certainly much more open, and quite a revelation when the game released. Is the second half still as interesting as it was all those years ago? Did we recruit everyone? Who makes the ...
Jul 13, 2023•1 hr 31 min
Think a "podcast" like ours could help you out in your quest? In honor of the recent release of Final Fantasy XVI , we got a few of our panelists together to play through the SNES classic Final Fantasy VI . Some of us have played it a million times, some of us are just running through it for the first, and we chat about everything from the story to the combat to that music . Who is the best character? How does the combat hold up? Did we all suplex the train? Listen in to find out! Featuring: Zac...
Jun 29, 2023•1 hr 32 min
What the hell, Yoko Taro? After our recently published "25 Years, 25 RPG Moments" feature, we decided to get the crew at Retro Encounter together to talk about some of the moments that made us laugh, made us happy, and most importantly, the ones that wrecked us. What moments did we choose? Which ones did we miss? Who got too emotional to talk for a little while? Listen in to find out! (Note: there are heavy spoilers for a number of the games we discuss here, notably Breath of Fire IV , Yakuza: L...
Jun 15, 2023•1 hr 53 min
Its gifts were mixed with good and evil both. This week we bring our panelists back together to discuss to discuss the second half of Lost Odyssey . While were were all pretty positive on the first half, some of us really like the latter portions, and some of us really don't. Did we do all the sidequests? Do the excellent short stories make up for the middling narrative? Are the environments still so very brown? Listen in to find out! (Editor's Note - While the host indicates this is Episode 374...
Jun 01, 2023•1 hr 17 min
