Play Retro Show

Released by LucasArts in 1998, Grim Fandango is a unique adventure game that combines a rich narrative, memorable characters, and a distinctive art style inspired by Mexican folklore and film noir. Players follow the story of Manny Calavera, a travel agent in the Land of the Dead, as he uncovers a conspiracy that threatens his very soul. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Streets of Rage (titled Bare Knuckle in Japan) is a series of side-scrolling beat 'em up video games. It centers on the efforts of several ex-police vigilantes trying to rid the fictional American metropolis of Wood Oak City of a crime syndicate that has corrupted its local government. The first three games in the franchise were developed and released by Sega for the Sega Genesis in the early 1990...

Let's talk about Earthbound on the Play Retro podcast! Released by Nintendo in 1994 for the SNES, EarthBound, known as Mother 2 in Japan, is a unique RPG that combines modern settings, humor, and heartfelt storytelling. Players follow Ness and his friends on a quest to save the world from the evil Giygas, using psychic powers and everyday items. Its distinct style and emotional depth have earned i...

A classic arcade game where players control Chef Peter Pepper in his quest to create giant hamburgers while avoiding relentless enemies like Mr. Hot Dog, Mr. Pickle, and Mr. Egg. Players must strategically navigate through platforms and ladders, dropping burger ingredients from higher levels to complete each burger at the bottom. With its unique gameplay mechanics, challenging levels, and quirky c...

Released by Neversoft and Activision in 1999 and 2000 respectively, Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 & 2 brought the thrill of skateboarding to gaming consoles with unparalleled realism and style. Players could perform jaw-dropping tricks and combos, skate through iconic locations, and customize their own skaters and parks. These games not only defined the skateboarding genre but also left an indelible...

Released by Nintendo in 1984 for the NES, Excitebike - a high-speed race against time, where the only thing hotter than the other racer's skills is your bike's overheated engine. Jump ramps, avoid mud pits, and push through grassy terrain in-between. Just try to keep your bike from turning into a stationary bonfire that leaves you running back from the sidelines. If you ever wondered what it's lik...

Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee (1997) and its sequel, Abe's Exoddus (1998), are quirky platformers by Oddworld Inhabitants that blend sinister corporate plots with fart jokes. In these 2d fixed / flip-screen platformer games, Abe, a Mudokon with a knack for trouble, stumbles upon his bosses' evil plan to turn his people into snacks and brews (literally). Armed with nothing but his wits and the ability to...

Dr. Mario is a classic Nintendo puzzle game where you play as a plumber-turned-doctor trying to rid the world of viruses by tossing multicolored capsules into a bottle. It's like Tetris with a medical degree! "Wario's Woods" is a game where Toad gets to play Tetris with a grumpy forest of monsters, courtesy of the ever-greedy Wario. It’s basically a colorful, chaotic scramble to align critters and...

This arcade classic from 1982 by Namco started the Digger genre proper and we haven't dug ourselves out yet. Players control the titular character, Dig Dug, as he tunnels through underground levels filled with enemies. The objective is to eliminate all the monsters by either inflating them until they burst or by crushing them with rocks. Players use Dig Dug's trusty pump to inflate enemies until t...

From the mind of Chris Sawyer, Comes the beloved Retro PC Game classic. Step up and take the reins of your very own amusement park. Build, design, and manage the greatest attraction in "RollerCoaster Tycoon" – where the business of fun never ends! Prepare to unleash your creativity and business savvy in this addictively entertaining simulation. The park gates are open – are you ready to become the...

From Wolverine on the NES in 1991 to X2:Wolverine's Revenge on the PS2 in 2003, all of these titles share one thing in common. Their titular character and the inability of the developers to fully capture the essense of what makes a good Wolverine game. Most suffer from obscure plots where you scarcly encounter other mutants to poor game controls of a character that is poetry in meat slicing motion...

"Beneath A Steel Sky" is a point-and-click adventure game set in a dystopian future, developed by Revolution Software and released in 1994. The game unfolds in a post-apocalyptic world, specifically within the confines of a towering city known as Union City, ruled by a dictatorial regime and an all-seeing AI. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Atari's bestselling game of all time!! Step into the void of deep space with "Asteroids," the pulse-pounding arcade sensation of 1979, brought to you by Atari! Prepare to navigate a lone spaceship through an endless asteroid field, where danger lurks in every fragment and survival is the ultimate challenge. With state-of-the-art vector graphics that plunge you into the vastness of outer space, and...

Developed by Looking Glass Studios and published by Origin Systems for the MS-DOS, Mac OS, and PC-98. In it, the player controls a hacker who is caught attempting to steal files from the TriOptimum Corporation and is taken to Citadel Station, and cooperates with Edward Diego, an executive from the aforementioned company, to remove the station's AI, SHODAN's ethical constraints in exchange for a mi...

Chrono Trigger is a 1995 role-playing video game developed and published by Square. It was originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as the first entry in the Chrono series. The game's development team included three designers that Square dubbed the "Dream Team": Hironobu Sakaguchi, creator of Square's Final Fantasy series; Yuji Horii, creator of Enix's Dragon Quest series; a...

Inspired by the comic strip of the same name from Mad Magazine, known for its unique blend of strategy, platform, and competitive elements. Developed by First Star Software, the game pits two players, each controlling a spy (one dressed in white, the other in black), against each other in a race to collect secret items from an embassy and escape before the opponent or time runs out. The gameplay i...

"Advance Wars," released in 2001 for the Game Boy Advance, is a critically acclaimed turn-based strategy game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo. Set in the fictional continent of Cosmo Land, the game revolves around tactical battles between four nations: Orange Star, Blue Moon, Green Earth, and Yellow Comet, against the invading forces of Black Hole. Players assume the rol...

Players control Simba through various stages that mirror the movie's key locations and plot points, starting from Simba's youth as he explores the Pride Lands to his final confrontation with his uncle Scar as an adult. The gameplay involves running, jumping, and battling various enemies, including hyenas and other wildlife, with the mechanics evolving as Simba grows from cub to adult, reflecting h...

"Black & White," released in 2001, is a weird ass/minimal hud god game developed by Lionhead Studios and designed by Peter Molyneux. It blends elements of strategy, simulation, and adventure, allowing players to assume the role of a deity governing over a living, reactive world with your god hand and god creature that has his own motivational ai that can be trained to act in a manner that the...

Superman: The New Superman Adventures, commonly referred to as Superman 64, is an action-adventure video game developed and published by Titus Interactive for the Nintendo 64 and based on the television series Superman: The Animated Series. Released in North America on May 29, 1999, and in Europe on July 23, it is the first 3D Superman game. It is widely considered one of the worst video games eve...

Unreal Tournament' (1999), where only the quickest reflexes and sharpest strategies prevail. Each battle is a symphony of chaos, with weapons like the Flak Cannon and Shock Rifle at our fingertips, turning each skirmish into a test of skill and wits. The arenas, from the cold depths of Facing Worlds to the labyrinthine corridors of Deck16, are battlegrounds where legends are forged. Here, in the h...

"Prince of Persia", rotoscoped animations and a blend of platforming and puzzle-solving gameplay, set within a Persian palace where the protagonist races against time to save a princess. Its sequel, "Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame" (1993), expanded upon this foundation with enhanced graphics, more complex level designs, and a richer narrative, continuing the Prince's saga against the...

Originally designed as a single game but split due to a shorten development time pressured by a McDonald's promotion that saw the first part released in early 1994 and S&K released late 1994. When played separately, both games offer distinct experiences with their unique levels and gameplay innovations. When combined via the Lock-On Technology, they form a more cohesive and extended narrative,...

Set in the fictional province of High Rock and parts of Hammerfell on the continent of Tamriel. The game's world is noted for its immense size, reputed to be one of the largest in any video game. The player is sent by Emperor Uriel Septim VII to the kingdom of Daggerfall to accomplish two main objectives: to free the ghost of the late King Lysandus from its earthly shackles and to recover an ancie...

An arcade classic that paved the way for Vehicular Combat games. Know for that sweet ass Peter Gunn theme and hard as balls gameplay. Drive down an endless road of civilians and easy to identify enemy cars trying to run you off the road, shoot you, destroy your wheels with those spinny things and drop bombs on your from a helicopter or take a break and hit the waters in a speedboat. Upgrade your c...