Go Back and Play

It's our 100th episode! Join Nate and a whole host of guests as they consider a dozen games that didn't quite make the cut to receive their own episodes. Ryan extols the virtues of some games that don't hold your hand, Sebastian highlights some games with more narrative punch than you might at first suspect, Nate loves a game which has big Studio Ghibli energy, and Jordan likes when Luigi is scare...

Nate, Sebastian, Lucy, and Jordan all gather to discuss WARIOWARE, INC.: MEGA MICROGAME$!, Nintendo's bizarre anthology of games which take place in the blink of an eye. We discuss panic, elation, and the grammar of videogames. Sebastian wonders whether Wario's red nose means that he is a drunkard, Lucy laments the absence of Waluigi, and Nate wishes that he could hang out with all of his friends...

Nate, Sebastian, Ryan, and returning guest Brock discuss Nintendo and Silicon Knights' 2002 horror adventure ETERNAL DARKNESS: SANITY'S REQUIEM. We talk trying to sort the wheat (cosmic horror) from the chaff (appalling racism) in adapting the works of H.P. Lovecraft, the excitement and eye-rolling corniness of "sanity effects," and how we wish there were more anthology games with ensemble casts....

Nate, Kari, Jordan, and Ryan unite to discuss KINGDOM HEARTS, the 2002 action-RPG / nostalgia stimulator from Final Fantasy developer Square Enix. We discuss arcane lore, breezy combat, and how this early cross-over sensation hits a little bit different in an era in which Disney owns a 95% stake in American pop culture. Kari relates a story of her brother giving some bad advice, Ryan goes to bat f...

Nate, Sebastian, and Kari are joined by special guest Rebekah Valentine to discuss Nintendo's 2001 "social simulator" ANIMAL CROSSING. Become indebted to a raccoon! Make friends with a penguin! Get life advice from a musical dog! We discuss the game's curious development history, the bizarre premise, and the wholesome outcome. Nate gets excited about retrogaming within retrogaming, Reb gets misty-...

Nate, Sebastian, and Jordan gather to discuss REZ, the synaesthetic rail shooter music experience from Sega and United Game Artists. We discuss games as multi-sensory experiences, electronic dance music, commitment to a visual aesthetic, and hacking the planet. Sebastian contemplates a nefarious betrayal of the listening audience, Jordan doesn't know how to pronounce "Lumines," and Nate demands th...

Nate, Sebastian, Ryan, and Jordan all gather to discuss HALO: COMBAT EVOLVED, Bungie's game-changing console FPS from 2001. We discuss the game's rocky development, its somewhat monotonous level design, and all the cool lore that's lurking just out of frame, probably. We're not 100% sure. Nate savors tiny hits of dopamine, Sebastian decries the musical Newsies, and we consider the matter of whethe...

Nate, Sebastian, Ryan, and David gather to discuss GRAND THEFT AUTO III, Rockstar Games' open-world criminal sandbox and infinite playground of the ne'er-do-well. We discuss bad satire, clunky controls, and those excellent moments when you can tell, in slow motion, that you're not going to land a stunt jump cleanly. Ryan agonizes over having to drive halfway across the city just to start a mission...

Nate and Ryan are joined by returning guest Brock to discuss SILENT HILL 2, Konami's 2001 horror masterpiece and one of the true greats of the medium. Nate and Ryan both have scares while playing the game, Brock laments the poor quality of the game's HD remaster, and everybody agrees that protagonist James Sunderland has a terrible time. Nate does a frankly terrible Ed Wynn impression, Brock does...

Nate, Sebastian, and Jordan gather to discuss ICO, Sony Computer Entertainment Japan's 2001 exercise in gorgeous environments and narrative minimalism. We discuss abandoned castles, escort missions, and bloom lighting. Sebastian lauds the game for expanding the emotional palette of videogames beyond "fun," Jordan appreciates how intuitive the puzzles are, and Nate wishes the game had flashbacks so...

Nate, Sebastian, Ryan, and David all gather to discuss ADVANCE WARS, the 2001 turn-based military masterpiece from Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. We discuss inauspicious release dates, perfect information, and the "Pokemonification of global military conflict." David praises thorough but very helpful tutorials for complex systems, Sebastian threatens to burn someone's house down, and Nate gets...

Nate, Sebastian, Jordan, and Ryan all gather to discuss DEVIL MAY CRY, Capcom's 2001 action game about slayin' demons and slingin' one-liners. Join us as we discuss a combat system that encourages finesse and expressive play, cutscenes with truly execrable dialogue, and trench coats. Ryan wonders whether the game has more in common with the Divine Comedy or Oedipus, Jordan relishes firing two guns...

Nate, Sebastian, Jordan, and Kari gather to discuss FINAL FANTASY X, the seminal RPG series' first entry on the PlayStation 2. We discuss early motion capture, awkward English dubs, and high melodrama. Sebastian laments that such good pathos is wrapped in a shell of anime nonsense, and Nate exults over his anime nonsense having a solid core of pathos. Kari loves an ending that sticks to its guns,...

Nate, Sebastian, and Jordan gather to discuss JET SET RADIO, Smilebit and SEGA's roller-blading, spray-painting, stick-it-to-the-man action game from 2000. We discuss "future funk" music, cel-shading, and police militarization. Sebastian christens himself "Wheelfellow," Nate admits to further childhood trauma, and Jordan describes many things as "very Dreamcast."

Nate, Sebastian, David, and Ryan all gather to discuss DEUS EX, Ion Storm's millennial game of conspiracies, nanomachines, and near-future cyberpunk wackiness. We discuss the wealth of different approaches the game makes possible, the difference between conspiracy theories of today and twenty years ago, and slicing dudes in half with a nanotech sword. Sebastian makes a ribald joke about Harry Bela...

Nate, Sebastian, David, and Kari all gather to discuss THE SIMS, Maxis's game of cozy domesticity, consumer capitalism, and interior design. We discuss fancy toilets, aspirations of buying stuff, and whether or not the game works as satire. Sebastian squeezes in a terrible pun, Nate's Sim fails out of a life of crime, and we regale you with tales of unimaginable cruelty to digital entities. Come f...

Nate, Jordan, and Ryan all gather to discuss SHENMUE, Sega's late-1999 martial arts revenge epic -- or the first chapter of it, anyway. We discuss embodiment, detailed virtual worlds, and forklifts. Jordan doubts Ryo's detective skills, Ryan gushes over kittens, and Nate marvels at what a weird, ambitious, flawed game this is. Ryan gets addicted to capsule toys. 

Nate, Kari, Sebastian, and Jordan all gather to discuss HARVEST MOON: BACK TO NATURE, Marvelous and Natsume's 1999 game about agriculture and small town life. We talk routine, pastoral fantasy, and missed opportunities. Kari suggests that sometimes it's fine for game series not to change very much across iterations, Nate reveals a moment in which he brought shame to his father's house, and Sebasti...

Nate, Sebastian, and Ryan all gather to discuss CHRONO CROSS, Square's 1999 JRPG about parallel worlds. We discuss the ways in which it dramatically contrasts itself with its predecessor, its environmentalist themes, and how it's a big, beautiful mess of a game. Nate salivates over deicide, Sebastian agonizes over a bevy of ridiculous optional characters, and Ryan turns "Terminator" into a verb. 

Nate, Sebastian and David gather to discuss TONY HAWK'S PRO SKATER, Neversoft's 1999 skateboarding opus. We discuss the rise of extreme sports, the sickest skate tricks we've ever pulled, and what a cool guy Tony Hawk seems to be. Sebastian tries to name a skateboard trick, Nate admits he's never seen "Jackass," and David admits to a youth spent skanking. 

Nate, Sebastian, and Ryan gather to discuss SYSTEM SHOCK 2, Looking Glass Studios and Irrational Games' tale of hackers and hybrids in darkest space. We discuss the coalescence of the "immersive sim" genre, whether "spiritual successors" can borrow too heavily from their predecessors, and the merits of hive minds versus scornful AIs. Nate reveals he has just seen ALIEN for the first time ("It's go...

Nate, Sebastian, Jordan, and Ryan all gather to discuss SUPER SMASH BROS., Nintendo's 1999 mascot fighter which showed what happened when classic franchise stars stopped being polite... and started getting real. We discuss the glory of chaos on the battlefield, the joy of watching Link take a sword to Pikachu, and how a game with such simple controls was able to authentically capture such a wide v...

Nate, Sebastian, Ryan, and returning guest Brock sit down to discuss SILENT HILL, Konami's psychological horror adventure from 1999. We discuss how the game takes the Resident Evil mold in a different direction, how the game shamelessly steals from (and still does justice to) its inspirations, and how sometimes being on the wrong side of the Uncanny Valley can be so, so right. Sebastian praises th...

Nate, Sebastian, and Jordan gather to discuss CRAZY TAXI, SEGA's 1999 arcade game about driving a cab in a manner some would consider "wild." We talk about the gig economy, city layouts in videogames, and we discuss at length the various oddball titles of SEGA's wonderful, all-too-briefly-present final console. BONUS: Another guest appearance from four-year-old William, who is our resident expert...

Nate, Sebastian, David, and Kari gather to discuss SUIKODEN II, the best JRPG you've never played. We talk stories of war, stories that start from humble beginnings but grow epic in scope, and flying squirrels. Sebastian gushes about iron chef competitions, Kari can't bring herself to fight with a friend, and David snatches a physical copy of the game right out from under Sebastian's nose. This is...