• Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!

Retronauts Podcast Thread

I just started listening to the Panzer Dragoon episode and I'm really enjoying it. This format works quite well for me. Jeremy, you mentioned Moebius / Jean Giraud, he did work on the game. He created the cover art as well as some key artwork and character designs. I read an old interview of his a while ago in French where he was quite enthusiastic about the project despite admitting that he had never played a videogame before in his life. I'm paraphrasing but he basically said that he was very eager to contribute to a burgeoning art form that he had no knowledge of. I admire the open mindedness he displayed even in his latter days.

Anyway, great episode, I look forward to more.
Two Sega episodes in just a few weeks? My dark prayers have worked.
 
I've already reported Jeremy to the Podcasting Ethics Committee and can assure you he'll receive a full, brutal takedown on Heat Street sometime this week.

Wow, Jeremy had to fly out to LA for his disciplinary hearing.

R7iO8hp.jpg


Hope the punishment wasn't too severe!

Looking forward to the big things.
 
They called me a loose cannon and put me on six weeks' suspension, but I'm going to keep recording the show off the books because I'm this close to cracking the case, I can feel it.
 
Hey Jeremy, I really enjoyed the music episode. It reminded me of the YMO and Prog-Rock episodes you did, which made me think you totally need to dive into doing an episode on Fusion Jazz and it's effects on 80's - 90's game music, specifically from Sega arcade games, PC Engine soundtracks and Capcom arcade games.

Just listen to some Casiopea, T-Square and Naoya Matsuoka and you'll start connecting the mental dots:

https://youtu.be/TFcSwTmfEME

https://youtu.be/CGxltOO2VIU

https://youtu.be/ZAHLRVTWoRU
 
I jumped through all the Sony hoops to get the PSP Genesis Collection on my Vita. I just finished the first Sonic the other day. I was surprised at how well it still holds up, it really is head & shoulders above just about everything they were putting out back in those days. A lot of that stuff is borderline unplayable now (Super Thunderblade is pretty awful). And yes, Ray is right, the game is pretty darn hard all things considered. I'm starting up the second one and it seems even tougher so far; oddly I remember it seeming pretty easy when I tried it briefly back in the day.
 
Really enjoyed the Simpsons micro episode, but you guys really should finally learn that "Europeans" for the most part grew up with NES dominance. Spectrum and Master system might have dominated in the UK, it was way different on the continent with the NES being the most popular console from '86 onwards.
 
I jumped through all the Sony hoops to get the PSP Genesis Collection on my Vita. I just finished the first Sonic the other day. I was surprised at how well it still holds up, it really is head & shoulders above just about everything they were putting out back in those days. A lot of that stuff is borderline unplayable now (Super Thunderblade is pretty awful). And yes, Ray is right, the game is pretty darn hard all things considered. I'm starting up the second one and it seems even tougher so far; oddly I remember it seeming pretty easy when I tried it briefly back in the day.

How did you manage to get it on your Vita?
 
So I'll just chill and wait for you guys to come to PAXAUS right?
... right...?

What's the Patreon milestone for that!?

You can even use the spare room... but Bob has to sleep on the floor.
 
Really enjoyed the Simpsons micro episode, but you guys really should finally learn that "Europeans" for the most part grew up with NES dominance. Spectrum and Master system might have dominated in the UK, it was way different on the continent with the NES being the most popular console from '86 onwards.

Yeah, this. Every time you guys are talking about Europe, it's actually just the UK. We certainly liked Sega here in France in the 80s and early 90s but the NES still sold twice as much as the SMS and UK PCs were almost nonexistant. And we also have better taste in platformers than those weirdos from across the Channel. ;)
Rayman 1 was pretty bad though, sorry.
 
How did you manage to get it on your Vita?

Purchase on PSN web store -> download to PS3 -> transfer to Vita.

I was lucky my brother still had a PS3 in a box in the basement.

It's a lot of hoops, but I kind of understand why they made it difficult. The game used the PSP's wifi for local multiplayer, and every time you use the home button to zoom out to the menu, it resets that. I've put a ton of hours into the games (thanks Phantasy Star II) and it's rare, but I've had a game freeze 2-3 times when returning from the home screen and it tries to reconnect to wifi.

It's worth the trouble though, the games look as good as I've ever seen them on the Vita screen. There's some kind of subtle filter added that works really well and doesn't detract from the original visuals (which are available). That said, it's a really weird collection. No Streets of Rage games, no Space Harrier, no Revenge of Shinobi, no Super Hang-On (in fact no racing games of any kind). What it does have are a few oddities that don't show up on other compilations like Shadow Dancer (which is awesome), and a lot of prehistoric forgotten Sega arcade games like Space Fury, Eliminator & Astro Blaster.
 
RE: The radio episode - I thought that format was perfect, didn't really need any changes. Having the monologue made it a definite step up from the episodes that were purely music, I always appreciate background on these largely unknown musicians, since it's often difficult to find. As for a guest/second podcaster, I'm sure it could be informative at times, but it's not needed.
 
I'd enjoy the music episodes more if Jeremy added another person like he alluded to in the last one. With a few exceptions, I don't really like podcasts that feature just one person.
 
Backer episode is up and about the Wii.

I can't remember how long it took me to find one. I think it I stumbled upon one 3-4 months after launch.

I think the games I enjoyed the most were the Kirby games. Epic Yarn, Return to Dreamland and the 20th anniversary collection. Epic Yarn was so good. I remember people being pissed at Gametrailers for giving it a "best graphics" award.

The Wii is also how I discovered Klonoa. I remember lots of press saying "everyone buy this game, it's a proper hardcore game for the Wii" then nobody did and now we'll never get another one. I ended up tracking down and playing all the mainline Klonoa games(GBA, PS2, Wonderswan) afterwards and loving them all.

I remember rebuying SNK classics collection Vol 1 on the Wii after I had already bought it on PS2 because it didn't 2 seconds of input lag unlike the PS2 version.

Donkey Kong Country Returns was awesome. The Super Mario All Stars package was great.

Also one of these days I'm going to play Opoona. I bought it when it came out because I heard Shane say on 1up Yours that it only used the nunchuk and thought "Okay I gotta try this" and I still haven't got around to it.
 
My wife wanted a Wii, but not enough to camp out or hunt one down when they were hard to find, so we bought one the first time we went into a big box store and there were plenty of them sitting on a shelf ready to buy.

That was September, 2008.
 
I somehow never played a Wii untill 2010- I was in college when it came out, and everyone had either a PS2 or 360. The "Wii Sports Parties" were FIFA and Guitar Hero parties for me. And most of my friends who don't really play games never picked one up- but a few of them did eventually buy a 360 with Kinect.
 
Sorry for the completely unrelated topic, but Jeremy... I've become curious whether you ever replayed Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins (or the later version) after that scolding review many moons ago. Did your opinion ever change?

The more I listen to Retronauts episodes, the more I wonder why you the game's retro approach didn't do much for you. In all honesty i can't really remember what you wrote, just the reactions! It doesn't seem to be available anywhere to read now. A gin infused video revisiting it would be fun i think!
 
Our Nintendo Wii episode is now live for all non-Patreon folks!

http://www.retronauts.com/?p=1811
Thanks for the new episode!

I loved the Wii and it is pretty interesting hearing from people that were around the US press at the launch period. I remember podcasts at the time being a difficult listen because the US press had all be recently wooed with free xbox 360s and free xbox live, and Gears of War online was satisfying the 'curb stomping' tastes of the american media around the same time. I was working in games development at the time and the attitude amongst gamer-bro devs was similar.

I was mostly very relieved to see bright and colourful games again.
 
Loved the Wii, I look forward to listening to the episode. It certainly wasn't nearly as good as the DS but there were plenty of great and unique games on that console. And at the time of its release, I hadn't played a game since my teens. The casual stuff brought me back into gaming big time.
And once I hacked it, it was the perfect 8 and 16 bit emulation machine for me. Still is.
 
Our Nintendo Wii episode is now live for all non-Patreon folks!

http://www.retronauts.com/?p=1811

Great episode! I really enjoyed it.

Have you guys considered doing multiple episodes when tackling broader subjects like this? I've really enjoyed the deeper dive episodes where you've spent a whole show focused on a single important game. For covering something as big as a major console, I think it would be great if you did a whole month of episodes on that topic. So for the Wii, you could have had one episode focused on the hardware and the launch, a second focused on first-party games, a third focused on third-party games and maybe a fourth on other odds and ends (such as Wiiware, homebrew, peripherals, games that didn't make it to the U.S.). Just an idea. Love the show.
 
Great episode! I really enjoyed it.

Have you guys considered doing multiple episodes when tackling broader subjects like this? I've really enjoyed the deeper dive episodes where you've spent a whole show focused on a single important game. For covering something as big as a major console, I think it would be great if you did a whole month of episodes on that topic. So for the Wii, you could have had one episode focused on the hardware and the launch, a second focused on first-party games, a third focused on third-party games and maybe a fourth on other odds and ends (such as Wiiware, homebrew, peripherals, games that didn't make it to the U.S.). Just an idea. Love the show.

Topics can always be revisited, or explored from a different angle. I would definitely want to avoid doing a whole month on a single subject, though, since we would risk alienating the people who aren't into it.
 
I would love to hear a revisit to the Falcom podcast / Ys again. The old one was just so long ago and Falcom is more relevant than they used to be back then.
 
I would love to hear a revisit to the Falcom podcast / Ys again. The old one was just so long ago and Falcom is more relevant than they used to be back then.
I have a Dragon Slayer episode lined up for this year. Ys will be separate, someday!
 
Wow you guys just dropped like $200/month

I'm guessing those are expired cards since we got charged last night.

Gotta wait longer for Micro's to come back now:(

Update your credit card info people!
 
Patreon totals always drop at the beginning of the month and slowly return to where they were over the following week. It's a goofy system, but no cause for panic.
 
There are so many great unsung Wii games that, for whatever reason, got absolutely no credit from game writers. The idea that the Wii has no hardcore games or that no one bought games outside Wii Sports is completely absurd. Like the Wii has an attach rate of 9, which is quite high, so I wonder where the above narrative came from. Presumably anecdotes about grandma or horror at Ravi Drums.

Anyway, Crystal Bearers completely sucks, and I doubt Jeremy would have mentioned it if he had played more of it.
 
Oh man Rescue on Fractalus! is amazing. I grabbed a copy while in Portland and found out my 800xl stopped working when I got home:(


That was the first game to ever give me a jump scare.


bIpxQrw.jpg

FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK
 
There are so many great unsung Wii games that, for whatever reason, got absolutely no credit from game writers. The idea that the Wii has no hardcore games or that no one bought games outside Wii Sports is completely absurd. Like the Wii has an attach rate of 9, which is quite high, so I wonder where the above narrative came from. Presumably anecdotes about grandma or horror at Ravi Drums.

The games press of that era (and earlier) definitely had much more of a "macho" vibe to it. I remember many of the Wii conversations on podcasts devolved into jokes about how the WiiMote looks like a penis and OH NO did you actually touch it? Gay! So it's not surprising to see so few people from that time actually deign to talk about the Wii's finer points.
 
The games press of that era (and earlier) definitely had much more of a "macho" vibe to it. I remember many of the Wii conversations on podcasts devolved into jokes about how the WiiMote looks like a penis and OH NO did you actually touch it? Gay! So it's not surprising to see so few people from that time actually deign to talk about the Wii's finer points.

Given the tone of conversation around the Wii U, I'm not sure that era ever ended.
 
The Wii episode was a ton of fun, great guests and some fun anecdotes.
Such a weird console. It completely dominated the charts but its library of great games was so much smaller than the 360/PS3's. Can't say I have a lot of fondness for it, even if it absolutely is one of the most unique and memorable gaming device in history.
 
Nintendo has been "gay" as far back as at least the Gamecube which I remember defending in middle school and freshman year of high school. Purple?! A handle?! No shooty shooty games and then the Super Mario Sunshine ad? How could I have won that battle when others got good ol' testosterone Max Payne and GTA (which both rock to be fair) on their systems. 'Twas tough to be a Nintendo console fanboy back in the day.
 
Nintendo has been "gay" as far back as at least the Gamecube which I remember defending in middle school and freshman year of high school. Purple?! A handle?! No shooty shooty games and then the Super Mario Sunshine ad? How could I have won that battle when others got good ol' testosterone Max Payne and GTA (which both rock to be fair) on their systems. 'Twas tough to be a Nintendo console fanboy back in the day.

Wind Waker was widely known as "The Gay Zelda" by many a GameStop customer (and a few employees) when I worked there in the early '00s.
 
Kind of ironic that the Gamecube is now looked back on as their last "hardcore" machine because it focused on graphical power & used a relatively standard controller.
 
I found it ironic that Nintendo of the Wii era seemed to have no concerns about wide-scale licensing of shovelware, as compared to how Nintendo of the NES era brought the industry itself back from the brink of oblivion after the flood of 2600 shovelware.

Arguably a great deal of their profits in the era came from cashing out future branding and developer goodwill.
 
Top Bottom