Jeremy Parish

NES Works #027: M.U.S.C.L.E. Tag Team Match

Alright, the chronicles of the NES library continue this week! Starting with... oh dear. It's our very first game published by a third-party, and it does not set a high bar for future prospects. 

Well, we had a good run, right?

Scripts ahoy (betcha bite a script)

I'm going to be out of town for two solid weeks beginning this weekend for BitSummit and the next Retronauts episode recording weekend, so I've been storing up videos scripts and game footage to be able to work on while I'm away. Travel will not impede my ability to create videos about old video games. 

Between the M.U.S.C.L.E. and Chubby Cherub text I posted last week and these two new pieces (Ninja Kid and Tag Team Wrestling), I should be set until I ...

Game Boy Works #088: DuckTales

Well, today was awful. So, I decided to take my mind off the unhappy news from D.C., which promises to have devastating effects on my livelihood and life, by ditching my planned work for the day and putting together the next Game Boy Works a few days early. I feel a little better now; hopefully this will be a small ray of sunshine for you, too.

Seriously, though. For the past few years, this Patreon campaign has been the only way I've been able to afford to insure my wife's health. That's espe...

4,000 words about Bandai NES games

Isn't that just the most heartwarming title — one that speaks of quality and joy? Actually, let me sweeten the pot a little: 4,000 words about Bandai NES games developed by TOSE and based on anime licenses. YEAH!

Yes, this is how I spent my Friday. But hey, once we power through the ugly knot of these initial third-party NES games, we get to the good stuff. Like Gradius! And, someday, Castlevania! And Zelda and Metroid and Mega Man...! Ah...

Game Boy Works #087: Side Pocket

Here's your next video! Very exciting stuff. Well, maybe not "exciting," but Data East does make a mean game of pool. I enjoyed this one, which made for a nice change of pace from the recent slog of GBW entries.

Two (count 'em!) new Game Boy Works scripts

And both of them were even for games that I sincerely enjoyed recording and writing about! What a rare treat.

Whew, I finally feel like I'm getting back on track after several months of upheavals and instability trying to get Retronauts off the ground as a proper business. I'm still getting it off the ground, mind you, but most of the difficult foundational work has been sorted through. And that means I've had more time to play NES and Game Boy games and write about them. I hope to have both o...

Game Boy Works #086: HAL Wrestling

This is probably not the retrospective this game deserves, but it's the one we need right now. Or something like that. I wish I could provide more insightful commentary on HAL Wrestling, but I'm a complete bozo when it comes to pro wrestling, so... yeah. I tried to make it interesting despite my personal failings, though! Please enjoy...?

Easter treat: A new NES Works Gaiden episode

Hey look, I managed to make some progress toward getting ahead with my video production schedule. This episode tackles something a little different than usual in that it's a look at new games rather than old ones. Three new games, in fact. Enjoy and have a pleasant holiday, or a pleasant random Sunday if that's your thing.

Game Boy Works #085: Extra Bases

I'm steadily pushing to get releases up with more of a lead time, so here's the latest video up much earlier than usual. I'm hoping that if I can get a full 7-10 ahead of the public release, I might be able to start producing videos twice weekly…

Anyway, this is about an 8-bit baseball game. Shocking, I know.

A new Game Boy Works script, and…

Hey everyone, I forgot to post this in the midst of last weekend's live panel madness, but here's the script for the next episode of Game Boy World. It's a Family Stadium title. Ah well.

I've also updated the Columbus Circle script to reflect the fact that 8-Bit Music Power Finallaunched last week. For those who don't want to wait until this weekend's video post, I'll be streaming the "game" live for a special Gintendo tomorrow! You can, as usual, watch it here: 2017-04-12 12:06:51 +0000 UTC View Post

Game Boy World, er, Works: Skate or Die

Well, it's happening. The big Game Boy World/Works change... which is going to be hard to get used to, I can tell — I even said "World" in the intro. Consider it a transitional episode.

This one is posting a little later than usual, partially because of Midwest Gaming Classic, but mostly because I needed to retool the graphics and presentation to reflect the new series. I'm really happy with the look, though! I hope you will be, too.

Not entirely retro: An NES side story

The next Good Nintentions Gaiden — or rather, the first NES Works Gaiden — episode breaks from the usual set of topics from long ago in favor of a look at two new games. Though they are games for the NES (well, Famicom) hardware, so they count. I think.

Both 8-Bit Music Power and Kira Kira Star Night DX launched last year in Japan and shipped on actual Famicom carts, capable (theoretically) of running on real hardware. I didn't have any luck getting them to work ...

Some (minor) ch-ch-ch-changes

Hey everyone, just a quick heads-up! I mentioned this on the Retronauts blog but figured it bears a specific post here, for the people who support this specific corner of my work. 

Remember how I mentioned I have some changes in store for book production processes? As part of that (and some other partnerships we're developing for Retronauts), I've decided to consolidate all my video series under a shared "brand," if you will: Retronauts Works. Game Boy World is about to become "Game Boy W...

GBW Script: Skate or Die: Bad ’N Rad

To be honest, after spending some time with this one, I was beginning to lean toward the "die" option. It's kind of a bold game, and it probably could have been pretty great with a little more refinement (and fewer top-down sequences), but it just didn't quite work out. 

Looking ahead: April 2017

Hi everyone, it's a new month, and a new opportunity for me to once again say thank you for your continued support of my video retrospective projects. These efforts would be impossible without your support!

I'd like to make a little more effort to give you a sense of what's coming up each month with a bit of a preview and state-of-the-union. So here's what is on tap for April, tentatively:

Game Boy World: Skate or Die - Bad N Rad and Extra Innings

Good Nintentions/Gaiden: C...

One final video for March: Arumana no Kiseki

Hi everyone, I wanted to squeeze in one final video before the end of the month and just barely made it. Here is the next Good Nintentions Gaiden, by request of David Morton: A look at Konami's cult Famicom Disk System import Arumana no Kiseki. I'm disappointed that I only managed to capture about half the game; I hit a point where I became stuck, and couldn't seem to figure out the way forward. But while the game is far from perfect, I see the charm in it. Maybe you will too!

Good Nintentions script: Arumana no Kiseki

Today I have for you the rough script for the next episode of Good Nintentions — a Patron request for a Gaiden episode on another Japan-only release. This one I was only too happy to tackle, because I've wanted to check out the game in question (Konami's Arumana no Kiseki) for years. Hard to say no to a little self-indulgence....

It's Game Boy World! Episode 083, specifically

You asked for it, I made it. A new episode of Game Boy World. I still have a few other things to sort out before I make an earnest return to the series, but hopefully this will assuage your fears that I've abandoned it. 

(P.S., this is a Bomberman game.)

Good Nintentions #026: Gumshoe

I'm very sorry to say I was unable to provide footage of anything beyond the first stage of this game because it is just as ridiculously difficult in the days of my doddering senior citizenship as it was when I was a kid. But hopefully the video is good regardless!? Yes? Fingers crossed.

Good Nintentions script #26

And here's the script for Gumshoe. In a wonderful coincidence, I managed to restore my ability to capture light gun games in HD today, so this episode will arrive on-schedule this weekend.

This brings the NES launch lineup to an end. From here on out, we move to third-party releases. But before we head there, I think I'm gonna do a little exploration in the World of Game Boy....

(Also, a trio of videos by request, one of which involves Dreamcast capture... which, in a happy coincidence, ...

Good Nintentions #025: Balloon Fight

I've been looking forward to this one since this project kicked off. Balloon Fight is tons of fun, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I even managed to talk my wife into helping out with the video capture for this one, which doesn't happen with just any game. It's just that Balloon Fight is, y'know, great.

I have a few video requests to fulfill, so that's probably going to be the next few weeks. Look forward to some weird stuff!

Here comes another Gintendo

Hi all, I'll be streaming NES cult classic Power Blade and its reputedly janky Famicom counterpart Power Blazer this afternoon at 5:30 p.m. ET. Please join me, should you be so inclined!

Script: Good Nintentions #025

Hopefully this next episode will taste like a big ol' cup of Scope to wash the flavor of Urban Champion out of your mouth. I was deeply offended when the USgamer team voted Balloon Fight one of the worst games on the NES Classic, because it's actually one of the best. Such a fun game, yannow?

Here is a video about Urban Champion

I've very sorry to have done this terrible thing to you! next up is Balloon Fight, though, which is [kisses fingers]

Gintendo en route this afternoon

Quick announcement: The next Gintendo stream will be happening in just a few hours. I need to squeeze in a couple of streams before I disappear offline to San Francisco for a week, so today I'll be playing Gradius II. Quite poorly, is my guess. Thankfully it's Gintendo, so I have an excuse.

Tearing off the Band-Aid

Yes, here we go. The script for Urban Champion. Thankfully Episode 25 will provide a lovely remedy to counteract this poison...

Good Nintentions #023: Donkey Kong 3

I'm just gonna leave this here....

Good Nintentions #022: Mario Bros.

The next exciting chapter of Good Nintentions is here! The tone of this episode was flavored by (1) the enormous amount of Mario Bros. fatigue and disinterest I've observed among Nintendo fans over the past decade and (2) the fact that, divorced of Nintendo's constant rehashes, it's a pretty darned great little arcade game. In that light, I've saved the discussion on Mario Bros. remakes etc. for a Good Nintentions Gaiden episode, with the purpose of this video simply being to f...

Good Nintentions 23 script

Yep, it's a rapid-fire spray of words, from my keyboard to your eyes. 

If you're wonder about Game Boy World (e.g., why so few episodes of late?), it's all down to logistics. Stepping out and turning Retronauts into a full-time business is a massive undertaking. When I announced I was leaving USgamer, several people told me they were "glad I was going to take some time off" — ha! I'm busier than I've ever been as I get all these moving parts lined up. Which was always the plan, so I don...

Good Nintentions 22 script

Here's the text for Mario Bros.... well, for a portion of Mario Bros. There'll be a Gaiden episode further down the road digging into the game's remakes and reworkings, just as soon as I get ahold of a copy of the Famicom Disk System version. In the meantime, look forward to this video in the next few days.