Contribute Your Questions/Comments for Our 15th Anniversary Episode!

I am quite sad I wasn't able to be a patron the month this request was put out and I know the show is likely already recorded, but I can't help sharing. I could never limit myself to independent era retronauts however. 1up era retronauts is an integral piece of my childhood. Distinct memories of hearing about Chrono Trigger in depth for the first time riding in the backseat of my moms minivan driving in darkness up a mountain. Learning the context that made Myst important in its day while stumbling into an arcade in a ski resort village and quarterfeeding my way through the Battletoads arcade game w/ a random kid. Convincing my parents to drive to a gamestop during a family trip because I knew they had a copy of Retro Game Challenge and after the way Jeremy described it I had to have it. Shoveling the driveway after the largest snowstorm I had yet seen came through town while raptly learning about Persona which sounded unlike anything I had ever played. Jeremy has at several times said that the initial idea was to be an explorer of old games and tried once or twice to set it on that path. And while that might be true that it wasnt that for you that is what it was for me and people my age. Thats what the first era of Retronauts excelled in. Its "jackass circus" allowed it to be an oral tradition for video games. And I would be lying if I did not say that didn't really carry over. Not that I'm negative. I think the past 1-2 years has been some of the best retronauts content since Jeremy left the first time. It feels like there is a little more of the chaotic energy while still being tempered. I'm really happy with the direction the show appears to be moving in. Although I might suggest you start looking for at least some younger regulars as you have really started to cover topics that aren't in your nostalgia range and it does come across. You just aren't able to talk about being there in the same way. Ultimately though I have been listening to Retronauts regularly since I was 11 or 12 and I just really wanted to thank all the Retronauts crew for the work theyve done to educate and entertain me through the years. Keep up the great work!

Donovan

Dear Retronauts, Congratulations is in order. The work you and your guests do is just outstanding and has become especially comforting in this last year and a half. Ever engaging, always amazing, each episode is a genuine learning experience and often a trip down memory lane. No questions here, just a thank you. Thank you for your insight. Thank you for sharing your passion. Thank you for making us laugh. It’s great to be a part of the Retronauts community. Cheers!

Nathaniel Smith

As someone who grew up in the 80’s, with very fond memories of the original NES (and everything that came after it), finding your podcast really scratched that itch I had of seeking out those who could relate to these experiences of mine. Everyone played video games back then, sure. But amongst my group of friends, I was the crème de la crème… the one who others would ask to “beat this game” for them; the one who fielded calls asking where the dungeons to the Legend of Zelda can be found; the one obliterated the Dr. Mario competition. So, the prospect of hearing from like-minded individuals was enticing, but little did I realize how absolutely mind-boggling knowledgeable these people were, and how well they worked together in producing a podcast! Giving you a measly $5 a month is the least I can do for helping keep my 45-minute daily commute entertaining. Nevertheless, I have a beef with your podcast planning committee. I anxiously awaited as the episode count neared 400. Surely, something special is in the works! Episode 398: SNES launch… aw yeah, those were the good old days! Episode 399: a cool, unexpected episode of anecdotes not very different than the ones living in my brain – love it! Ooh next week is going to be an awesome topic, I can feel it! Here it is, Episode 400! … Garfield? Wha da fuk… (a sad trombone sound effect might fit nicely)

Cheers to 15 years! Longtime listener here. I think it would be interesting to hear you all reflect a bit on a few of the future predictions you made in the past. Now that we’re in the future, do you feel the same? As we continue to look at the horizon, do you have new ideas? Selected predictions could be from any episode although I am specifically thinking of the very last episode from the 1UP era entitled “Retro Games on New Consoles.” Focusing on the independent era for your anniversary show makes sense, but the last 20-30 minutes of that last 1UP episode from 2013 has some interesting musings on the future that would be fun to hear you reflect a bit on given the current landscape. Reflecting on the conclusion of that chapter might also help your discussion on the beginning of the new era as well. The “10 Shitty Years of Virtual Console” episode from 2016 also features Chris Kohler and covers similar ground to the 2013 episode. Recorded as the Wii U era was ending and just prior to the Switch being announced, there were also more predictions in the episode that are rife for reflection. Thanks! Keep on Podcasting!

Congrats on the anniversary! One question I'd like to ask: if Bob and Jeremy were given the opportunity to work on any gaming series (as in, inputting ideas and influencing the direction of the game), what would it be?

Adam Elmahdi

I know this is me playing to type, but I'm curious what Benj thinks about the SC-3000! ;D

Branwen Shoop

I can't say enough good to things about Retronauts. I am always engaged and learning about games and consoles I played, watched, read about, or saw commercials for. You do a phenomenal job of choosing the right guests and rotating hosts to keep it fresh. My favorite episodes are the deep dives into the consoles, but really, not a single episode has disappointed. You even pull me into ones I'm sure I won't be into (Garfield being a prime example.). Quality with a capital 'Q'! I look forward to the day you cover SNK's Ikari Warriors and Victory Road. And dread the day you end the show.

VanDiagram

What are your observations of how European, Japanese, American, and Canadian developers (and/or those from other regions) have uniquely evolved over since the 1980s in their approach to what a video game is? What types of technological, design, storytelling, and play elements do they each prioritize? What do they each do uniquely well, and what examples of their strongest contributions to our collective gaming experience?

First, I want to say how important Retronauts has been for me, especially during the pandemic, as something I could turn on to help me tune out the craziness of the world. So thank you for keeping the show rolling over this past year +. I drifted from JRPGs for quite some time before playing SMTIV in college and having a sort of "ah-ha" moment, where I remembered why I loved the genre in the first place. I wonder if there was a game or series that helped reinvigorate your love of a particular genre?

I wanted to take the time to say thank you for the literally thousands of hours of train rides, holidays, hospital visits, flights, commutes, jogs and RPG grinds that you've accompanied me on over the last 15 years. Big thanks to Jeremy, Bob, and the hundreds of guests who have helped make this the best retro gaming podcast out there. My question: you can have a no-question-off-limits, two hour interview with anyone from the games industry, alive or dead. Who would you pick and why?

What's the most memorable reaction you've had upon answering "Hey Jeremy / Bob - what do you do for a living?" since you've been fully independent?

Seán Foley

Are there any genres or elements of older games, perhaps those that arose from technical limitations, that you'd like to see make a comeback? For example, aside from remakes for the likes of Streets of Rage, the belt-scroller / beat 'em up? Keeping the sign-off simple - I heart Retronauts and thank you once again for over a decade and a half of joy!

Seán Foley

Have you guys ever considered doing the tony hawk pro skater games i know that from a glance its just another sports game but i think there would be enough for a hand full of episodes the original 4 games show pretty soiled evolution on the game play formula and the underground games are very hard time capsule of the early 2000’s mtv jacak ass area of cultural just something to think about for a topic to cover plus i think you guys should cover more early 2000’s franchise that aren’t mario or final fantasy Keep up the great work and hears to another 15 years

y2kpodcst

What has it been like marketing Retronauts over the years? Did people just naturally follow the show from it's 1UP days, or have you had to work hard to build an audience? How will you continue to grow your audience in the future? Keep up the great work. It's my favorite podcast!

blim

It’s don’t have anything pithy to say, so I’ll just crack a joke about the old Micro episodes sometimes being longer than the regular episodes. Thanks for all the hard work and great content over the years!

Virtual Balboa

I just wanted to add that I really enjoyed episode 271. Having never played a text adventure, it was really interesting as well as enjoyable.

Firstly, thank you to all of the Retronauts crew (regulars and guests). I’ve really enjoyed the Holiday Extravaganzas especially the Pokémon episode. In a Treehouse of Horror-esque scenario, what game or game series would haunt you in your nightmare? (Not necessarily about scary games but the games you dislike the art style, gameplay, developers, fan base, etc. ). Thank you again.

Which creative team do you wish was more prolific or would reunitr for another project? Thanks for so many years of great shows!

What game did you have no experience with when it was released, but you checked out because you'd be doing an episode on it and then fell in love with it? Which game did you love at the time that when you revisited it for an episode you realized it would have been better as a memory?

Tim Shrimpton

What unreleased retro game and what untranslated retro game do you most wish had a gotten releases? Thanks for everything!

Andrew O.

When did you realize video games could be bad?

Langdon Alger

So when's Jetpack Goonies coming out? Seriously though, Retronauts was the first podcast I started listening to regularly and I wanted to thank all of you for the great show.

Michael Lacerna

What was your first attempt at games writing? Did you keep a journal? Were you scared to freely express an interest in gaming? I want to start writing about games but could use a little nudge off the dock. Re: diving in. I’m terrified of beginning. Retronauts is freaking mana (mäna) to me. Thank you Jeremy and Bob for your incredible work.

Thanks Retronauts for all of the wonderful podcasts. I thought a non-video game question might be in order for the anniversary. As a videographer by trade I’m always interested in gear. What do you guys use to record and produce your podcast? Writing this I’m already imagining Bob reading it and Jeremy responding, “No one cares about that.” To Jeremy I would say, “You’d be surprised.” And besides travel (thanks COVID!) what do you find most challenging about producing Retronauts? Congrats on the 15 years. Looking forward to 15 more. Thanks Bob for the English Lit degree perspective (I was English Lit too) and the Lucasarts retrospective. Those are some of my favorite games of all time. Thanks Jeremy for the constant deep insight and the prog rock and movie references. I’ve laughed at all of them. Thanks to everyone else who records with you. I could identify something I love about each of them, but you told me to limit to 300 words.

When will we get a Jaguar episode?

I bought my brother a DE10-Nano after hearing the SmokeMonster episode, and we've been living the MiSTer lifestyle ever since. It's been a great way to experience games and consoles we'd previously overlooked. Are there any aspects of retro gaming you would not have experienced were it not for doing the show?

I've loved Retronauts from the early days, and became a patron after the Star Fox interview with Dylan Cuthbert opened my eyes to how important the show was for gaming history. My question for the anniversary is a little bit more on how the main folks on retronauts got into gaming. Less gaming history and more your history. What were your first gaming memories etc...

Have been a fan for 15 years. Have you ever thought about bringing back the original theme song for a “retro” throwback? I like the newer one but the old one had such a mysterious going-on-a-journey vibe to it that I really enjoyed.

Mikey Cox

I originally used to listen to Retronauts while mowing lawns for money back in middle school! Thanks for introducing me to Mr. Driller. It's the only reason I'll boot my PS Classic again. I'd love to see an episode/revisit of the STALKER series. They're interesting open-world FPS games, the spiritual predecessors of my current multiplayer addiction "Escape From Tarkov", and has had a new entry announced recently so its even relevant! 😉 Thanks for making me a little smarter every month!

So, just a comment thinking back on the archives. It’s nice to see so many more girls on Retronauts in the more recent years. Not that it was ever exclusionary, but back in the 1UP days, it was mostly a sausage fest. As a 30-something white male myself, I find it really interesting to be able to hear the opinions of women, and LGBTQ gamers up close and personal on the podcast. Sometimes I share their opinions, and sometimes they bring different angles to a game that I never have had the life experience to think about myself. Let’s hear it for the Retronauttes!! From Jenn Frank to Kat Bailey, Nadia Oxford, Nina Matsumoto, and many more!!

Colbin Erdahl

I’m dying for the day that you pick up on a Pokémon part 2 episode that goes from Diamond and Pearl onwards. It’s been five long years. In all seriousness, Retronauts is one of my favorite podcasts of all time. Been rocking it since 2011 in the olden 1UP days

Alex Irish

Yall the greatest. Been listening since the beginning.

Stephen “Seven” Perteet

Been listening since early ‘07. What are your favorite and least favorite episodes? What topic would you want to discuss again if you haven’t already? Any stories from the Ziff Davis days that haven’t been told?

Carl Petroff

I stumbled into Retronauts through Game Boy World in late 2015 while looking for information on (what else?) Boxxle. After watching the video, I thought "wow, that guy has a really nice radio voice and has clearly done his research". One thing led to another and I've been a regular listener ever since. I go back to the Final Fantasy V episode every year as a pre-Four Job Fiesta ritual, and I will always appreciate Bob fulfilling what was probably a very strange request and autographing his copy of Critical Play that I bought from him off eBay a few years ago. Thanks for continuing to put out consistently quality content every week!

Retronauts was the first podcast I ever listened to, and I happened to discover it during a low point in my life. I will spare you the details, but am sure just about anyone who is (or once was) an unemployed, single, post-arts/liberal humanities graduate will have an idea of what I mean. The show’s witty, friendly and knowledgeable banter always made me smile and the central focus helped me rediscover my love for video games - something that I thought I no longer wanted in my life. It helped reignite joys and passions I had completely forgotten about. I’d like to extend my sincere thanks to every host and guest that have accompanied me throughout the peaks and valleys I’ve lived through over the last few years; I still get excited every time I see a new episode in my feed. As far as questions go… Will we ever see more video content? I loved the occasional streams and would be super keen on some casual conversations between the Retronauts crew and guests as they play through some old favourites (or least-favourites…). Thanks for all of the wonderful work that you do!

preppy_prince

Wow, that Metroid episode was also my first of Retronauts!

Colbin Erdahl

As someone who only discovered Retronauts last year and binged the entire revival run, I feel as though I've been a fan since the beginning. I know it's probably difficult to remember back through 15 years worth of episodes, but what are each of your personal favorite episodes? Whether because of guests, topics or just everything coming together nicely. Congratulations on the anniversary everyone! (PS. I know you guys prefer actual names, so if this gets read, feel free to say Matt R instead of Phoequinox)

Phoequinox

I first found Retronauts with the 2016 Micro episode on GamePro TV. I was astounded to hear that others had accurate recollections of this low-budget, short-lived TV series that was nevertheless meaningful at the time to my 10-year-old self. I’d wake up excited for the prime 4am random weekday slot it had -- but pre-dawn is no time for noisy 90's radical dudes, and my father’s annoyance at this violation of his normally-peaceful mornings eventually forced me to set our VHS timer to record it instead. That Retronauts episode brought back fond, funny memories of a pretty mediocre show that felt very special way back when. I’ve been a loyal listener of Retronauts ever since.

Julian

Congrats on 15 years! Been listening since year 9 when Jose Otero and y’all discussed Metroid (recorded right before Federation Force was revealed funnily enough). My question for you is what’s a newer game from the past ~5 years that’s become one of your GOATS and therefore can’t wait to talk about in an episode for the show? For me it’s Prey & Persona 5.

I have two questions. I understand if you don’t pick either. 1. What’s the story behind Bob Mackey’s hatred of CRT TVs? I understand hating giant Trinitron, but does this extend to PVMs and smaller sets? 2. Are there any plans to bring back Mike Choi for a Part 2 of Classic console hardware design? Sean

When will the episodes about Wing Commander and Shadowrun franchises appear?

private

What’s the worst setup/location you’ve had to deal with for recording a Retronauts? Alternatively, the best or most luxurious?

Colbin Erdahl

I didn’t really start playing video games until the summer of 2014, right before I entered college. My parent’s coworker gave me their old Super Nintendo with Super Mario Kart, ALttP, FFII, DKC and more. I hadn’t even heard of a SNES at the time and didn’t care at all. When I was bored in college, I plugged in the SNES (pronounced S-N-E-S, the way our lord and savior intended) and discovered a passion for retro gaming. I began playing everything I could on anything I could. It wasn’t much longer before I stumbled upon Retronauts while I worked a shitty data entry job, and you all kept me company through several years where my life felt bleak and purposeless. Seven years from when I started college and gaming, and I’m at the end of my MSW & MBA program. I work as a therapist and am speaking about mental health and video game communities at a state conference next week, hoping to maybe inspire a technology adverse industry with a passion cultivated through playing games (that generally predate me) and learning so much from your show about the historical context, significance, and love for the medium. Thank you for being a part of the majority of my gaming career and adult life. Cheers to the future. Will Ard Atlanta, GA

About how many hours do you think you put into each Retronauts episode? Obviously this varies by the type of episode, but if you take a standalone episode about a single game, how many hours do you think you spend playing the game, researching, coordinating guests, and post-producing? This is starting to sound more prying, but really I was just curious, because I know a lot of love and care goes into each hand-crafted episode.

Colbin Erdahl

Even if it is just a one-off episode, are there any future topics that could bring back former contributors like Jenn Frank or Scott Sharkey?

Steve Martin

And when will there be a line of Retronauts branded flat caps?

Colbin Erdahl

Just wanted to thank you all for the years of informative and entertaining conversations about video games and other topics. Your podcasts made the workday a lot more bearable and I got to learn about many of the memorable and forgotten games that built the gaming industry we have today.

Jakob Soto

Would you ever have any of your older episodes graded and then sold via auction? Perhaps as some kind of audio NFT?

Jason Lew

Whatever happened to Jeremy's flat cap?

Lorfarius

That's not a question, Nina, but we'll let the listeners judge for themselves

Bob Mackey

As a Patreon supporter of not only this podcast, but Jeremy & Bob's solo endeavors, I've gotten used to your individual styles. But I can't put a finger on what makes you two such a good team. What do you think it is that has kept you guys together for so long?

Jon Heiman

I think Bob gets stupider every year

nina matsumoto

How does the team feel about rom hacks that add Quality of Life improvements to older games? For example: Save support to Mega Man games, or adding more info to the map in Super Metroid.

Jon

I love the podcast, it's the first one I ever started listening to. It's fantastic, I love getting exposed to a lot of games I never played, as well as reliving my favorites. Any plans to review more old PC games? Specifically I would love to hear a podcast about Arcanum. It's in my personal top 5 games of all time.

give me an example of a dream video game. Answer can be as specific or loose as you want. For example: -Blending together a few of your favorite games; -specific designer / developer collaborating on an IP; -an innovative indie game concept greatly expanded upon -taking a genre in a new direction Not meant to be a daunting question, I just want to hear you talk more generally about your cravings in gaming, or a direction you’d like to see them go.

Only a listener and Patreon for about a year but enjoyed every second of it. Do you have special criteria for chosing contributers for the project?

What game/series did you previously dislike or just had no interest in until doing a episode on it?

Scott Scislowicz

Since most of the regulars have exited the "games press" in the last few years, what is life like? Is there anything you miss?

I don’t have a question, I just want to say Quintet games rule. I know there was a Quintet episode but I’d love to see you revisit the games a bit deeper one day.

Jody Anthony

In more seriousness, which was your favourite episode to make, and which topic have you gained the most from doing a deeper dive?

Cody C.

Question for whomever is on the panel: favorite Ys game and why?

Peter LaPrade

Bob, do you regret introducing most of us to the Pokemon Christmas Bash? With Brock, Misty and Ash?

Cody C.