Retronauts

Jeremy Parish and Ben Elgin take a deep dive into the history and concept behind Apple's HyperCard technology and how it became a surprising platform for game development -including the best-selling PC game of the 20th century, Cyan's Myst.

Words no longer have any meaning as Jeremy, Benj, and Chris record a so-called Micro episode that last more than an hour. But then, there's a lot to say about Metroid II and its remake, Samus Returns.

By patron request, we continue our Final Fantasy deep dive series by looking at a trilogy of RPGs that aren't part of the series? The Final Fantasy Legend spun off from Final Fantasy II, but they became their own thing almost immediately.

Chris Sims and Benj Edwards join Jeremy once again to survey the history of exploratory platformers. This time, it's Master System and Super NES games. (Or would be, if the discussion hadn't been sidetracked by Chris' freshman journey into Super Metroid.)

It might not have been a smash-hit back when it released in 1989, but Monster Party went on to be remembered by NES kids as one of the more memorableif inexplicable8-bit games. Though the (unreleased) Japanese version set out to be a much more direct parody of horror hits, the extant experience skirts close enough to breaking copyright law to make the whole thing worthwhile. On this episode of Ret...

It's not an old game, but it has an old soul. Jeremy and Bob chat with Henry Gilbert and (former) IGN editor Jose Otero about the latest Legend of Zelda (Breath of the Wild) and how it connects the series' present to its past.

30 years ago, Lucasfilm Games gave us Maniac Mansion: an unassuming little adventure created by people who never dabbled in the genre before. But this lack of conventional wisdom caused Maniac Mansion to be an adventure game unlike anything else in existenceand one that would shape the future of Lucas' game division for years to come. On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish,...

Yeah, it's another Mario mailbag as our Sunshine episode received way too many listener letters to be contained in the main episode. Sam, Henry, Bob, and Jeremy offer equal time to some very different Sunshine opinions than our own

Two Micro episodes combine powers to become a full episode! First, Kurt and Rob of Hardcore Gaming 101 join to discuss King of Fighters. Then, Ben and Benj follow up with a home gaming-focused counterpart to our recent arcade memories episode.

Taking a break from our string of glowing Mario retrospectives, we have a not-so-glowing look at vintage Mario. Yeah, 2002 is vintage now. Henry Gilbert and Sam Claiborn join us to discuss what's great about Super Mario Sunshine... but mostly what's not.

Thanks to some industrious hackers, we've recently learned that a digital version of Golf for the NES has been secretly implanted into the firmware of every Nintendo Switch as a tribute to Satoru Iwata. But how was it discovered, how can you play it, and why did Nintendo choose Golf of all games? On this disturbingly relevant episode of Retronauts Micro, host Bob Mackey and guest Henry Gilbert ans...

It's another dive into the classic arcade works of SEGA as Ben, Benj, and Jeremy visit the years 1988, 89, and 90 and all kinds of great and interesting games like Altered Beast, Gain Ground, Galaxy Force, and more!

Yoshi's Island hasn't been re-released in its original, unadulterated form since its 1995 debut, but the upcoming launch of the SNES Classic promises to make this platforming legend slightly more available (while supplies last). And to mark the recirculation of Nintendo's last hurrah for the Super Nintendo, we sat down for an episode-length discussion all about Yoshi's gorgeous, inventive, and som...

Jeremy speaks to game and computer historian David Craddock about his new book of Apple II game developer interviews, "Break Out," including David's most interesting experiences meeting the people who created video game history.

Former Computer Gaming World boss Jeff Green joins Jeremy and Bob to explore the world of the Great Underground Empire, consider Zork's influence on gaming, and do their best not to be eaten by a Grue.

Jeremy, Ben, and Benj reminisce about the experience of living through the golden age of arcades, with many additional memories coming in the form of an hour-long listener mailbag segment.

With the recent release of Mario + Raving Rabbids, and with Super Mario Odyssey's launch lurking just a few months away, we're currently undergoing a sort of Mario Madnessmuch like the same outbreak that attacked several million children back in '88. To celebrate this resurgence in all things Mario, join Retronauts' own Bob Mackey and special guest/Mushroom Kingdom expert Henry Gilbert as the two...

Not long ago, corporations employed colorful cartoon characters to lure hungry and impressionable children into their dens of corn-based products. And, since this time period happened to overlap with the rise of video games, several food mascots ended up starring in their very own interactive experiences. On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, Henry Gilbert, and Chris Antis...

Kurt Kalata and Rob Russo join us from Hardcore Gaming 101 to delve into the history of Konami's legendary Gradius series. From its prequel (Scramble) to its most recent spinoff (Otomedius), we blast our way through the span of the entire series!

Fresh from Long Island Retro Gaming Expo, Jeremy and Bob yield the floor to Kurt Kalata and Rob Russo from Hardcore Gaming 101 to explain the history of Falcom's Dragon Slayer series. Just in time for the PS4 debut of the latest spinoff, Tokyo Xanadu!

Jeremy, Bob, and Chris hunker down to discuss the entirety of Square Enix's Mana series but only make it through the first two games: Final Fantasy Adventure for Game Boy and Secret of Mana for SNES. (Whoops, we accidentally went extremely in-depth.)

Jeremy speaks with legendary developer Tetsuya Mizuguchi on his start in games, the genesis of Space Channel 5 and Rez, and face-mounted Game Gears. Later, Kishi and Kim Justice join to discuss Metal Gear's anniversary and Fire Pro World, respectively.

We NES kids know Little Nemo best from his classic Capcom platformer, but what about the character's role in a revolutionary newspaper comic from the early 20th century? And what of Little Nemo's extraordinarily expensive and fairly obscure box office flop that spawned two different video games? On this episode of Retronauts Micro join Bob Mackey, Henry Gilbert, and Mikel Reparaz as the gang trace...

Following up on the first Metroidvania episode from a few months back, we collect the jump boots and circle back around to take a look at the next stage of the genre's evolution: The NES era.

Ah, Super Mario Bros. 3. What more can be said about Nintendo R&D4's grand finale for the 8-bit era? Well, we managed to fill 90 minutes discussing this timeless game, so the answer is "a whole lot." On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, Ray Barnholt, and Henry Gilbert as the crew takes a closer look at one of Nintendo's greatest creations, and find it's still worth be...