I don't know if any publication has had quite so much impact on Retronauts over the years as Wikipedia. It's not that Wikipedia is some comprehensive repository of human knowledge (though it does make a very handy starting point for most research); it's that it simply exists. When I kicked off this show back in 2006, the mere fact that we were even discussing old games and obsolete game hardware was novel in and of itself, and we rarely needed to dig deep to bring much to the conversation, gi...
2022-03-14 12:00:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
March 6, 1992: Jobe 3:16 says "I AM GOD HERE"
by Diamond Feit
Virtual reality is a paradox. A simulation of reality cannot itself be "real," of course, but what I'm talking about is the dual nature of virtual reality. On the one hand, its advanced technology is perpetua...
2022-03-13 13:00:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
Jurassic Park is frightening in the dark, and one of the most important movies of the 1990s. So, in our continued mission to discuss movies that influenced and spawned video games, it only makes sense that we cover Spielberg's dinosaur film that captured countless hearts and wallets nearly 30 years ago. And we got so wrapped up in chatting about Jurassic Park, we didn't even get around to the games! But podcasting—uh—finds a way. (Meaning a follow-up podcast is coming soon.) On t...
2022-03-11 08:01:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
Dizzy the Egg. For as long as Stuart Gipp has been involved with Retronauts, he has taken every opportunity to raise awareness of and appreciation for the shell-cased superhero. And now—in accordance with the prophecy—he's finally done an episode of the podcast all about Dizzy. And he's done it with Dave Bulmer, because of course he has. Every main game in the series is covered, along with many spin-offs and tangential silliness. Thrill to the time Stu contemplated destroying the...
2022-03-07 12:32:09 +0000 UTC
View Post
Previously on This Week In Retro: Japanese video game publisher Sega releases a big-budget science-fiction shooter, Binary Domain, to lukewarm reviews overseas and underwhelming sales. The failure of Binary Domain adds fuel to the already-popular opinion that Japanese game development is past its prime and woefully lagging behind the work being done in other nations.
...
2022-03-07 01:09:09 +0000 UTC
View Post
We have once again entered the world of survival horror. Yes, Retronauts has been here before, but our last dedicated Resident Evil episode was six years ago and it summarized the entire PlayStation 1 trilogy. This week, we are focusing squarely on the genre-defining tale of unaware cops stumbling into a deserted mansion and discovering that the dead can walk. That means we'...
2022-02-28 12:01:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
February 16, 2012: Do Hollow Children dream of electric sheep?
by Diamond Feit
It is the 21st century and I share my home with robots. When I was a child, the notion that I might someday cohabitate with a robot was purely science fiction (or cribbed from 2022-02-27 14:39:29 +0000 UTC
View Post
You can tick off a handful of video game characters that even people who are indifferent to the medium know through sheer exposure, at least if they're older than 30. Pac-Man. Donkey Kong. Mario. Sonic. And... Q*Bert. What makes Q*Bert so unique is that nothing much has ever come of him since his debut 40 years ago—Gottlieb and other developers have made a few desultory efforts over the years to franchise the little guy up, but none of them have stuck. The problem, I suspect, is that origin...
2022-02-25 13:13:51 +0000 UTC
View Post
Despite existing for nearly 30 years beforehand, it took until nearly the '90s for the X-Men to find their way into video games. And it should come as no surprise that the IP's Renaissance during that decade coincided with some of the most notable games to ever feature Professor X's collection of special youngsters. (Though the aughts blessed us with a few worth talking about as well.) On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mac...
2022-02-21 08:01:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
February 1997: Talkin’ ‘bout New Generation
by Diamond Feit
When can inevitability and evitability co-exist? When can something be a sure-thing yet also remain completely up in the air? Ask Capcom: In 1991 Street Fighter II, a sequel to a modestly successfu...
2022-02-20 13:01:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
This week brings us simultaneously an informative public service episode and a call back to the podcast's past. Back in 2016, nearly six full years ago, we hashed out a rundown of the many different options available for playing classic games on modern devices. It was a little tech-oriented, but most existed as a breakdown of the options available beyond "digging up an Nintendo deck, plugging it into a flatpanel TV never designed to display low-resolution analog video, then weeping." A lo...
2022-02-14 13:00:07 +0000 UTC
View Post
January 26, 2012: How does CAPCOM spell portable survival horror? R-E-V-E-L-A-I-T-O-N-S
by Diamond Feit
I've written a fair amount about the Resident Evil series at this point with good reason: The first game was an experience I'll never forget because
2022-02-13 13:00:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
In the early '00s, Nintendo wasn't doing particularly well. With the GameCube and the Game Boy Advance (outside of Pokemon) failing to light the world on fire, the company had no chance but to work with the hand they dealt themselves. As the Sonys and Microsofts of the world ventured into the uncharted territory of "online," Nintendo had a multiplayer solution that would result in some innovate experiences that nonetheless received plenty of scorn from consumers expecting more. On this episod...
2022-02-11 08:01:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
It's official: After three full-length episodes on Capcom's groundbreaking video game, we've exhausted the topic of Street Fighter II. Naturally our series must continue, but just like Capcom, we can't simply count to 3 just yet! No, ...
2022-02-07 12:00:06 +0000 UTC
View Post
January 31, 1997: Square hits the PlayStation with a meteor
by Diamond Feit
I was always a science-fiction fan. It might be in my blood. My birth preceded the Star Wars phenomenon, but by the time I was old enough to understand movies or television, I loved lig...
2022-02-06 14:00:06 +0000 UTC
View Post
When you think about "32-bit era Squaresoft," what comes to mind? If you're a normal human being, you automatically think of Final Fantasy VII, Chrono Cross, or Xenogears. But if you're an ancient like myself and my guests on this week's Retronauts (Jeremy Parish and Andrew Vestal), you might also give voice to the bold, weird stuff Squaresoft threw at the wall back in the day. Namely, Bushido Blade, Tobal No. 1, Racing Lagoon, and a whole...
2022-01-31 14:00:08 +0000 UTC
View Post
Diamond here! I got sick this week (not COVID) and was unable to file my usual column this week. The subject was decided and I started writing, but it just won't be ready at this time. I'll share it when it's finished, I promise. Thank you.
2022-01-30 14:00:06 +0000 UTC
View Post
Sometimes, the presence of the words "part one" in an episode title can seem like a goof where a topic got away from us. Or maybe sometimes it even sounds like a threat. In this case, it's an inevitability. We've talked about Pokémon before, of course, but never in significant depth—an oversight that changes today, right here, in this very episode. I called in the ringers for this one, too. Known pokémaniacs Kat Bailey (of IGN and Axe of the Blood God), Shivam Bhatt (of Casual Ma...
2022-01-28 13:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
At the dawn of the '80s, director John Carpenter released Escape from New York, an action thriller that went on to be a modest hit. Sometime after this, and halfway around the globe, a man named Hideo Kojima saw this movie, and it lit his brain on fire. What do these two seemingly unrelated facts have to do with each other? Well, if you even touched the Metal Gear video game series, you may have some idea. On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey,
2022-01-24 08:00:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
January 18, 1947: こんなゲームにまじになっちゃってどうするの？
by Diamond Feit
I started playing video games from a very young age, and it didn't take me long to imagine what it would be like to create my own game. I can still vividly remember two ...
2022-01-23 14:01:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
This week's episode is one of those slightly recursive "documenting the process of documenting game history" episodes, but, hey... stick with what you know, right? I've been wanting to get Richard Moss and Evan Amos on the show for quite a while, since both of them have created some invaluable resources for anyone with an interest in the medium's history. And look, here they are together! At the same time! Talking about what it takes to put together a big ol' book about old video games.
2022-01-17 14:00:08 +0000 UTC
View Post
January 14, 1987: No errors detected
by Diamond Feit
I'm not sure another video game will ever have the impact that the original Legend of Zelda did back on the NES. The title was meaningless, the...
2022-01-16 14:00:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
"What if David Lynch made a TV show?" Shockingly, it happened in the early '90s, and the American public couldn't help but gawk at the surreal antics of Agent Dale Cooper and the quirky citizens of Twin Peaks. And while we sadly never saw an official video game adaptation, Lynch's two-season series inspired quite a number of video games—especially in Japan, where Twin Peaks acted as an absolute phenomenon. On this episode, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, Diamond Feit, and Shane Bettenhausen...
2022-01-14 08:00:04 +0000 UTC
View Post
Zool! Those four fearsome letters that strike such terror into the heart of the Americas.
What is Zool? Why is there so much fruit? Why do you press "up" to jump? All these questions and more are answered in Retronauts episode 429, hosted by—of course—Stuart Gipp, who is joined by Dave Bulmer (he of Sonic the Comic the Podcast fame) for the first time ever. And with a shocking, erotic reveal in the first few minutes, it's safe to say that things get a little ...
2022-01-10 13:00:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
January 1982: Take off every 'ZAXX'!!
by Diamond Feit
Here's a hot take to keep everyone warm during these oh-so frigid days of early January: The relentless pursuit of "realism" is killing the medium of video games. I understand why it appeals to so many people, as I y...
2022-01-09 14:01:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
Happy New Year! Some months ago, I went to Kyoto to the not-so-secret headquarters of Vitei, an independent game studio that will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2022. Vitei was founded by Giles Goddard, a young man from the United Kingdom who came to Japan as a teenager to work for Nintendo. Can you believe that sentence is a fact? I can't, and I've met this guy!
Giles Goddard and I, along with Chuhai Labs producer Mark Lentz, had a nice chat about how he st...
2022-01-03 11:00:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
January 1982: Women be hoppin'
by Diamond Feit
We've arrived in 2022, a year that is rich with major anniversaries to remember together. 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 25 years ago…pick a number, there'll be great moments in pop culture to reflect upon. Yet for me, the m...
2022-01-02 14:00:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
So, it's come to this, has it? The Sony PlayStation has hit the alarming milestone that is its 10-year anniversary. Well, OK, we missed it by a couple of weeks if we're going by the Japanese launch date, but at least we remembered! Unlike a certain someone we could name whose name starts with an S and rhymes with "baloney." But that's OK. Even if its father is cold, distant, and incapable of expression affection for its most gifted child, we know the score—and just to bolster our b...
2021-12-31 13:02:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
2021: An Unexpected Journey
by Diamond Feit
We made it, folks. This time last year, a lot of us felt like we were at our collective wits' end, exhausted and overwhelmed by the collision of a global pandemic, economic chaos, and a tyrant threatening to occupy the White H...
2021-12-27 09:26:35 +0000 UTC
View Post
Let's be honest: things weren't too hot in the year 2002. In between two pointless wars, and in the midst of a huge economic downturn, Americans couldn't even turn to their friend the television for comfort—this was the explosion of reality TV, after all. But in the midst of all this chaos and depression, the video games were pretty dang good! This week on Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, Henry Gilbert, and Kat Bailey as the crew peers back into the not-too-distant past to see wh...
2021-12-27 08:00:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
