Remember The Game? Retro Gaming Podcast

I think the term "hero" is thrown around too loosely these days, but this week on the show I'm shouting out our Patreons, because they're God damned heroes.I also explain why I don't cover games older than the NES on here (Atari, ColecoVision, etc). I talk about how nostalgia can drastically impact your opinion of an old video game. And finally, I rant about how a game should worry about being fun before it worries about it's frame rate, resolution, blah blah blah. Just make your game fun, nothing else matters!!!!And after all that, my buddy Chris and I talk about Super Punch Out for the Super Nintendo, the (slightly) superior sequel to the legendary Mike Tyson's Punch Out on the NES. And please, toss us a good review and a follow, would ya? We'll follow you back!Twitter - @memberthegameInstagram - @memberthegameSuper Punch Out!! is one of the games I owned as a kid. And dare I say, it's the first game I mastered. I was 255-0 on my save file (the game maxes out there). I had the top times and scores for every boxer/circuit (including beating everyone in under 1:00). I knew this game like the back of my hand. And I never got sick of it.I don't know if it's the graphics, the fact that I owned it, maybe the lower difficulty, whatever the reason, I like Super Punch Out!! better than Mike Tyson's Punch Out! on the NES. It's the better game, and I'll die on that hill. And even if you think the original game is better, you still have to admit the 16-bit adaption is pretty awesome. My buddy Chris agrees, and he's here this week to tell you all about it.Also, fuck you, Super Macho Man. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

12 Feb 202051min

This week, I touch on the Nintendo Switch surpassing the iconic Super Nintendo in console sales totals. The Wii is Nintendo's top-selling home console of all-time, can the Switch catch it? (Yes, it can). I also send my best wishes to MariKar, the Tokyo based go-kart tour company that was recently sued by Nintendo. They aren't allowed to let their clients dress up as Nintendo characters anymore, and it's sad. My girlfriend and I got to give it a shot back in 2018, and it was one of the best experiences of my life. And on the heels of the Final Fantasy VII remake delay, I take a quick look at some of the upcoming games in 2020, too. Two new consoles, some incredibly heavy hitting games, the Switch is rolling along; this is shaping up to be one of the biggest years in gaming history!All that (and more!) before my pal Tyler and I take you back to 1993 and talk about a Fox helping a frog fight a gorilla in space. If you just want to hear about that, skip to 21:30.And please, toss us a good review and a follow, would ya? We'll follow you back!Twitter - @memberthegameInstagram - @memberthegameStarFox is tricky. I played it as a kid, just like you probably did. Skippy the stupid frog would fly around and beg me for help, and I'd save him every time. We thought the graphics were revolutionary. Nintendo was taking gaming into exciting new places! And they had a trillion dollar franchise on their hands! Right??Wrong. Well, kinda right...I don't know. StarFox is still around. Primarily in Smash Bros, but I think we'll see another mainline game eventually. And when we do, I hope it ages better than the first one did. Replaying this game to prepare for the podcast hurt my heart a little, because this game just isn't as good as I thought it was. Have a listen to this week's show and I'll tell ya all about it! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

5 Feb 20201h 4min

This week, I share my thoughts on Byleth being announced as the final Smash Bros DLC character (for now at least), touch on the greatness that is Witcher 3 on the Switch, and I'm finally playing Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. Oh yeah, and Mark McCue and I talk about a bear that keeps a bird trapped in his backpack. If you just want to hear about that, skip to 14:50. And toss us a follow, pleeeease? We'll follow you back! Twitter - @memberthegame Instagram - @memberthegame I missed out on Banjo-Kazooie back in the Nintendo 64 days. As I've (infamously) made clear on the show, I'm not a huge fan of old-school 3D platformers, and it just never jumped out at me back in the day. I always thought it looks colourful and nice, but I never really had a crazy urge to play it. Luckily, I have a friend named Mark McCue that wouldn't stop badgering me to give Banjo a shot, and for the sake of this show, I finally did. And it was absolutely delightful. I can't even explain how impressed I was with Banjo-Kazooie, although I'll give it a shot on the podcast this week. To be fair, I did play the Xbox Arcade remastered version and not the original Nintendo 64 release, but from what I've been told, that's the way to go. The game SCREAMS retro gaming, from the graphics, to the music, to the gameplay, it took everything Mario 64 did and did it better. And that's from a life long Mario fanboy. This game is fucking awesome, and if you haven't played it, you really should. We'll tell you why on the show this week. Mark McCue is a Banjo-Kazooie super fan, and I'm a junkie in training, and if you're not already one of those things, we're gonna change your mind over the next hour or so. Enjoy the podcast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

22 Jan 20201h 4min

This week, I touch on the upcoming PS5/XBox wars, how can the Switch stay relevant, Final Fantasy VII remake has been delayed, and I let you know what I've been playing. Then we shift into Rock Band! If you just want to hear about that, skip to 20:10.And toss us a follow, would ya? We'll follow you back!Twitter - @memberthegameInstagram - @memberthegame"Well technically, I don't think Rock Band is considered a 'retro' video game..." I know. I don't care. It's my show and you can listen to this for free. If you don't like it, go watch cartoons. It'll be thirteen years old this year, and I mean, who DOESN'T "remember" playing Rock Band back in the day? See what I did there?This game was the shiiiiit. Music games EXPLODED in the 2000's. Guitar Hero lit the fuse, and Rock Band was the dynamite that boomed. I remember going to parties where the centre of the festivities was arguing about who's turn it was to play next. Get a big TV, turn the volume up, and it was better than air-drumming in your car. It was the ultimate party game. And if you had someone that didn't really know how to play, you just stuck them on the bass like a real band would. We all have our own stories about how we broke our drum pedal, and what we did to fix it. You see the plastic instruments laying around people's houses, at garage sales and flea markets. They're everywhere. And you know why they're everywhere? Because everyone played Rock Band. My buddy Andre did. He's my guest this week, and we had a hell of a time looking back on life in a band. I hope this episode hits the nostalgia button for you a hard as it did for me! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

15 Jan 202053min

Few games are as sure fire slam-dunk first ballot hall of famers as DOOM. It's just one of those series that everybody's played. It's on everything. Everyone knows it. I mean, it's DOOM.Admittedly, I don't have a ton of experience with it. I remember some of my friends playing it when I was a kid, but I didn't spend a ton of time with it until I started playing it on the Super Nintendo. And as much as I was enjoying it then, I had people telling me that was one of the worst versions of it. I couldn't believe it. From the online play, to modding the bad guys, to the pop-culture references, DOOM did it all, it was everywhere, and it had something for everyone. This is one of those games and franchises that has such a loyal and hardcore fanbase, I got a little nervous about covering it on the show. I don't know it that well, and I'm completely PC illiterate, and the last thing I need is a bunch of angry emails and tweet from you damned "PC Master Race"ers yelling at me because I didn't do you stupid gun game justice. Luckily, my guest this week picks up the slack. My pal and returning guest to the show Patrick (Resident Evil 4, Super Mario Land) is back this week, and he loves him some DOOM. By the end of the episode, I loved DOOM. You'll love DOOM, too.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

8 Jan 202054min

When a majority of people think of first-person shooters and the Nintendo 64, Goldeneye 007 probably comes to mind. And while it's unquestionably an iconic video game (we covered it all the way back on episode 11!), Perfect Dark is better. At everything. From the additional weapons, to the insane multi-player options, to the great story telling (Elvis for the win), Perfect Dark was a masterpiece. I'm not sure how well the Nintendo 64 version has aged - that controller is such a monstrosity - but the fantastic Microsoft-centric port is absolutely the definitive way to play anyways. And it's still worth firing up all these years later.I'll be honest, I don't have a ton of memories when it comes to Perfect Dark. I wasn't a huge shooter fan, and after Goldeneye I moved on from the genre until Halo got it's claws in me. But after playing it on my 360 a few years ago, I regretted that choice whole-heartedly. This game was one of the swan song titles for the Nintendo 64, and it really pushed the console to it's absolute limit. Rare and everyone involved should be proud of this game, and its about damned time we gave it a chance to step out James Bond's shadow and shine.My pal David Rae is my first guest of 2020, and we're looking back at the iconic Perfect Dark. It's a *perfect* way to start the year! See what I did there?? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

1 Jan 20201h 6min

This is what 'Remember The Game?' is all about. Old cartoons, old video games, old video games about old cartoons. So much nostalgic goodness this week. (And the entire 8-bit version of the theme song makes this episode worth downloading on it's own!) So many video games that are based on a popular franchise turn out to be hot garbage (exhibit A: Episode 70 of this show; Ghostbusters), but luckily for all of us 80's kids, Capcom decided to swim against the current and buck that trend. DuckTales isn't just a decent video game adaption of it's cartoon counterpart, it's a great one.  This game is crazy fun, and while it has a challenge to it, it's not soul crushing like so many of it's NES brothers and sisters. You play the role of Scrooge McDuck, and the game sees you travel all over the planet solar-system in search of treasure. You can play the levels in (almost) any order, and there's a ton of exploration involved. It's not linear at all, and it pushes you to search every nook and cranny of each level if you want to go for a high score. Or worth, in this case.  DuckTales also features cameos by so many great characters from the show, including Scrooge's nephews; Huey, Dewey, and Louie, Launchpad the pilot, that cranky old Scottish duck that raced Scrooge to the lamp in the intro, and the vampire lady duck. (I'm not caught up on my DuckTales characters).  It also introduced the cane/pogo stick mechanic, which was so popular it still pops up in games today. Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze and the iconic Shovel Knight both borrow it with great success.  Mark McCue and I gush about one of the best damned games the NES has to offer this week. Not ponytails or captain tales, no...DuckTales! Whoo-oo! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

18 Des 201947min

I'll never get tired of talking about wrestling video games. The only issue with talking wrestling video games is the fact that there's probably more bad titles than good ones. Lucky for all of us, this is one of the good ones. In fact, it's one of the great ones. WWF Wrestlefest is everything video games should be. It's bright and colourful, the gameplay is addictive, and it's an arcade game. As much as I love vegging out on my couch playing video games on my TV, there's just something special about standing at an arcade cabinet. Holding that greasy, germ covered joystick in your hand while you mash those giant buttons...you can barely hear the game you're playing because there's so many other games around you. It's video game euphoria...I don't even know if anyone reads these stupid things, so we're just gonna get to the show. My buddy Brad is back this week, and it's our first episode recorded by phone, so if the sound quality is off, I apologize. I hope you can trudge through it and enjoy this week's episode, because it's a gooder. It's Hulk Hogan. It's Sgt. Slaughter. It's Demoilition. It's WWF WrestleFest!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

11 Des 201956min