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Back in my Play: A Podcast for Nostalgic Gamers (New Episodes Every Sunday)

B

Barrylocke

Member
So the topic about the Retro Game Challenge/Game Center CX 2 patch being finished makes me wonder if any of you hosts/listeners ever played the first one on the DS.

If you aren't familiar with it, it's based on the Game Center CX show with Arino. The Kacho sends you back to the past to play games with his kid self and complete challenges. It's a compilation of 8 NES-era styled games from different genres such as shmup, RPG, and action platformer. The game also has game magazines ala Nintendo Power/Famitsu with news on new games coming soon in the story and even cheat codes that you can use. I thought the game compilation was pretty solid, and both the creators at indieszero and the localizers at Xseed did a nice job emulating the feel of the times.

Unfortunately it didn't do so hot, so until now, the only way to play the sequel (which bumped it up to 15 games and also had games based on SNES and Game Boy type games) was in Japanese. Indieszero more recently co-developed NES Remix alongside Nintendo EAD Tokyo.
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
We are finally recording a new episode tonight. This will celebrate the 1-Year Anniversary of the show.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night with Brian Davis of Next Level Games
 
R

Ramune

Member
Wow, congrats on a year of podcasting!!! Time really flies!
I was listening to the latest episode and Kevin mentioned a meetup in Cambridge, Ma. this Saturday. Is this still a thing and is there a place, things to bring (I'd bring my portables including the NGPC and link cables!), and whatnot.
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
Ramune said:
Wow, congrats on a year of podcasting!!! Time really flies!
I was listening to the latest episode and Kevin mentioned a meetup in Cambridge, Ma. this Saturday. Is this still a thing and is there a place, things to bring (I'd bring my portables including the NGPC and link cables!), and whatnot.
Click to expand...

Not looking good now, have a huge project at work right now. Will let you know tomorrow. Worst case it is the week after next.
 
J

JEKKI

Member
what whaaaaaat~!! I got my tweet read on the Mika Mika episode!

I got that BIMP cred now!

now I'm obligated to buy a shirt next time they come out =P
 
M

mrkgoo

Member
Just caught up on the Masters if Doom episode.

Fantastic interview, Kevin.

Interested in the book, but it's not on my preferred e-book site, iBooks. But a copy is winging itself from my local library!
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
Latest Episode:
Episode 28: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night




Brian Davis from Next Level Games joins us to remember and revisit Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. We also discuss the process of getting into our backlogs.




Previous Episodes:



Next Episode:
???
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
Greg Sewart and I are recording the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Music episode this weekend and YOU are the third chair. Reply with your favorite tracks and why you love them so much. Personal stories a plus :)
 
Z

zmet

Member
A very cool idea for an episode! I'm a big fan of Genesis/Mega Drive tunes. Some of my recent favorites:

Star Cruiser - To a Galaxy Far Away: http://youtu.be/df05c0kYryE

Sailor Moon - Stage 5-1: http://youtu.be/KZdBjnTZMiQ
A much better game (music and game play wise) on the Mega Drive than on the Super Famicom, in my opinion. The only thing it's missing from the SFC version is the two player co-op, but each sailor scout has more moves to balance that omission.

Master of Monsters - Into the Deep Blue Sky: http://youtu.be/NFSF6RhFJak
I rented this game a lot and every time I played it, I would select this tune as my background music. It's very haunting and sad and reminds me of a Vangelis Blade Runner track.

Cosmic Carnage (doesn't use any of the 32X's sound channels) - Zena Lan's Stage (Fully Armored): http://youtu.be/wYWPx59ZwXk
A pretty average fighting game on the 32X with tons of Samurai Shodown style scaling/zooming. The music in the game is amazing and probably has one of the best fighting game soundtracks on the system. As I mention above, it's completely coming from the Genesis/Mega Drive sound hardware, and doesn't use any of the 32X's sound channels.

Dangerous Seed - Introduction: https://www.dropbox.com/s/c7cdacy92wehgnq/22 STAGE START.mp3
I've always like this tune (and the whole soundtrack as well) because it totally reminds me of a Pat Benatar song during the breakdown.

Sonic 3D - Diamond Dust Zone 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WiZbWYWde4
I hated this game went It first came out (maybe it was because I moved on to the Saturn and Playstation), but went back to it about four years ago and totally enjoyed it.

M.U.S.H.A. - Aggressive Attack: https://www.dropbox.com/s/j1opbk0o8zthraf/31 Aggressive Attack.mp3

Phelios - Ending Credits: https://www.dropbox.com/s/srkyn8kg7wuyyqv/24 Track 24.mp3

Streets of Rage - Stealthy Steps: https://www.dropbox.com/s/garbgumsw24bqcj/10 Stealthy Steps.mp3
When it comes to straight-up bass, this track is up there. Folks with a subwoofer will know what I mean. I don't think there is a SNES/SFC track that get's as low as this one does in frequency.

King Salmon - Ending: https://www.dropbox.com/s/5xzeoyvljevj0ph/29 Ending.mp3
 
T

Teknoman

Member
CoachKevin said:
Greg Sewart and I are recording the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Music episode this weekend and YOU are the third chair. Reply with your favorite tracks and why you love them so much. Personal stories a plus :)
Click to expand...

ibbHs357aneQCu.gif


*I'm only going to pick two from the Sonic series

Sonic 3
Hydrocity Zone Act 2
Competition Menu

These two stick in my head for the simple fact that the first time I played Sonic 3, it was via a rental when my cousin and one of my best friends spent the night at my house. So much fun was had in the 2p vs races, and it also introduced them to "cool game music". My friend already knew that games could have good music due to he was a Sega fan first and foremost and introduced me to Streets of Rage 2 (and how awesome the Genesis was in general). My cousin thought the music from Sonic 3 sounded like "something off the radio".

Now for the rest:

A few new favorites -

Mega Turrican
Stage 2-1
(So atmospheric)

Rolling Thunder 3
Bad Moon


Thunder Force IV
Sand Hell

Jewel Master
Stage 1
(Feels like something from a modern Castlevania, years before that music style would be seen)

Sol-Deace
Stage 1 - Cosmic Illusion
(I dont care what anyone says about the Genesis version, its soundtrack is best :p )


Some classics:

Shining Force II
To Arms!

(You can just feel the tension and determination in the battle)

Earthworm Jim
The Decent

Castlevania: Bloodlines
Sinking old sanctuary

Shinobi 3
Solitary

Contra Hard Corps
The Hard Corps Blues

Ristar
Planet Freon - Ice Scream

Gunstar Heroes
Stage Clear

Streets of Rage 2
Good Ending
(So many feels).
 
N

Neifirst

Member
A couple selections from Sonic 3 & Knuckles. I used to purposely die on these stages just to continue to listen to the music, especially the hand-claps on Flying Battery Zone 2!:

Sonic 3 - Ice Cap Zone Act 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYxlqTpZ-24

The Jetzons - Hard Times / Ice Cap Zone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2OWC5Hosv8

Sonic 3 & Knuckles - Flying Battery Zone Act 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T7hdIh-gtw

Sonic 3 & Knuckles - Flying Battery Zone Act 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bd8G40yhxNQ

Possessing the greatest opening song to a JRPG ever, Phantasy Star IV was easily worth its $100 price tag. As excited as I was to finally find out what happened after PSII, I let this intro screen run a half dozen times

Phantasy Star IV Intro
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HR_dtc3xL_c

I remember picking this RPG up on account of the print ads which showed the dragon bosses that took up 90% of the screen. Didn't like the game a tremendous amount, but it had some really great tracks, especially the first village:

Sword of Vermilion First Town
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdeloqWZ2P4
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
Latest Episode:
Episode 29: The Music of the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive




Greg Sewart joins Kevin to discuss the music of the Sega Genesis and the Mega Drive. We also read some stories and listen to favorite tracks from the audience.



Previous Episodes:



Next Episode:
???
 
Y

Yes Boss!

Member
Damn,

Just got to the 1:35 mark and forgot just how damn good the Mega Turrican OST is. What a mind-fuck. Been a few months since I played that game...what a gem.

(it is up on VC, btw. that is how I played it...looks stunning through the Mini)
 
T

Teknoman

Member
Yes Boss! said:
Damn,

Just got to the 1:35 mark and forgot just how damn good the Mega Turrican OST is. What a mind-fuck. Been a few months since I played that game...what a gem.

(it is up on VC, btw. that is how I played it...looks stunning through the Mini)
Click to expand...

Just listening to the intro made me want to drop whatever and play Rocket Knight Adventures.
 
O

orient

Neo Member
Fantastic episode. Loves me some of that Mega Drive music. There's some awesome music on the Master System, too -- I love the tones that come out of that machine.

Best tune on the entire system?

Got to agree with Greg -- the Shining Force games are some of the best 16-bit RPGs on any system. Usually tactical RPGs take themselves a bit too seriously, but the SF series is light-hearted and full of quirky characters. Thanks to the bold, colourful art-style, the games still look great today. Of course, you're not going to get the depth of Fire Emblem: Awakening, but you don't really need it, either -- these are 20-25 hour games, as opposed to 40 hours +.
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
orient said:
Fantastic episode. Loves me some of that Mega Drive music. There's some awesome music on the Master System, too -- I love the tones that come out of that machine.

Best tune on the entire system?

Got to agree with Greg -- the Shining Force games are some of the best 16-bit RPGs on any system. Usually tactical RPGs take themselves a bit too seriously, but the SF series is light-hearted and full of quirky characters. Thanks to the bold, colourful art-style, the games still look great today. Of course, you're not going to get the depth of Fire Emblem: Awakening, but you don't really need it, either -- these are 20-25 hour games, as opposed to 40 hours +.
Click to expand...

Glad you liked it! I am intrigued, just wish I had a way to play them on the Vita. Hard to play 16-bit RPGs for 40 hours on the couch.
 
O

orient

Neo Member
CoachKevin said:
Glad you liked it! I am intrigued, just wish I had a way to play them on the Vita. Hard to play 16-bit RPGs for 40 hours on the couch.
Click to expand...

Yeah, it sucks that they're not on the PSP Genesis Collection, although I'm pretty sure the Phantasy Star games are on there. I'd recommend going straight to Phantasy Star IV (if you're thinking of trying out the series) -- I'm sure PSI & II were amazing at the time, but by today's standards they're extremely old school. I haven't played III but I hear it's a weird entry in the series. IV is sensational.
 
S

stewy

Member
The only thing PSIII has going for it is the interesting premise, imo. Take that away and you have an extremely mundane game, with production values that are pretty embarassing even for the time.
 
T

Teknoman

Member
The only thing i dont like about PS2 is that you have to return home to recruit new members, but the game never tells you this.
 
N

Neifirst

Member
Teknoman said:
The only thing i dont like about PS2 is that you have to return home to recruit new members, but the game never tells you this.
Click to expand...

I'm sure that's one of many reasons why Sega of America packed in that fully detailed walkthrough book with each copy. That second or third-to-last dungeon on Dezoris where you had to fall through certain pits on purpose would have been impossible, especially with that encounter rate. And even getting halfway through would be difficult without the visophone.


I really wish Sega would have brought over those remakes where you could adjust the difficulty, speed, and encounter rate. Supposedly, they all had an English language option already.
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
Shit, shows like the last one cause me to spend money on old games again.

And the market for Genesis games has hit the fan just like SNES games. Like 50% or more just since Christmas 2013! Fucking crazy.
 
O

orient

Neo Member
I thought I cancelled my Retron5 order but Amazon just shipped it, apparently. Oh well, they honoured the original price and I'm fine with paying under $100 for it. I've wanted a machine to play NES and SNES games on, without dropping money on actual hardware that I have very little interest in owning (and taking up space).

My next purchase is a modified model 1 Master System with AV out. Bit pricey but worth it.
 
K

Krorg

Member
I don't think you need to do any mods for the master system 1. You should be able to get away with using the same cables the mega drive uses.
 
O

orient

Neo Member
Man, I didn't even check -- I just assumed it was too old for that to work. Now I see there are compatible Scart cables, which would be perfect if my TVs had Scart. Anyone know if Scart to HDMI converters are worth it/output a good image?
 
entremet

entremet

Member
Kevin, what do you think about the Analouge NT?

Uses actual NES/Famicom hardware, RGB capable with HDMI option, which should be included instead of an add-on as the thing is 500 bucks already and compatible with the FDS.
 
Harlock

Harlock

Member
Loving the episode about Genesis music.

If you going to play Phantasy Star 4, maybe is a good thing play PS1 from Master System. Is no way grinding like PS2 and holds very well. Maybe looking to on-line maps of the later dungeons, because is not easy to navigate in first person. And they have very annoying traps to fall into the lower level. But besides that is a very unique game. And PS4 makes direct references to PS1.
 
P

pizzapizza64

Member
entrement said:
Kevin, what do you think about the Analouge NT?

Uses actual NES/Famicom hardware, RGB capable with HDMI option, which should be included instead of an add-on as the thing is 500 bucks already and compatible with the FDS.
Click to expand...

I can't speak for Kevin, but I can say that I think it's awesome. It's beautiful and has all legitimate parts...that said...$500...gulp.
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
entrement said:
Kevin, what do you think about the Analouge NT?

Uses actual NES/Famicom hardware, RGB capable with HDMI option, which should be included instead of an add-on as the thing is 500 bucks already and compatible with the FDS.
Click to expand...

At that price, just get a Framemeister and enjoy great upscaled visuals on all your consoles.

Analouge's stuff is always nice, but too much of the cost is just from the look of the hardware. Also why I went with the Neo Geo OMEGA over their version.
 
entremet

entremet

Member
CoachKevin said:
At that price, just get a Framemeister and enjoy great upscaled visuals on all your consoles.

Analouge's stuff is always nice, but too much of the cost is just from the look of the hardware. Also why I went with the Neo Geo OMEGA over their version.
Click to expand...

I guess it's because NES doesn't support RGB Natively. After modding, adding a Four Score and such it may seem comparable.
 
O

orient

Neo Member
I have so many games on 3DS that I may just wait for the Vita version of Shovel Knight. I'm in no rush to play anything new at the moment because I just started a new game in Fallout: New Vegas and I'm loving it.

So weird that New Vegas sucked me in but Skyrim didn't.
 
C

CoachKevin

Member
If you are in the Chicago Area I will be at the Emporium Arcade Bar on N Milwaukee Ave tonight. Come hang out and play some arcade games! I also have shirts and stickers!
 
T

Teknoman

Member
Btw all genesis / megadrive people, we're going to start having high score contests in the genesis appreciation thread. Im going to make the first contest post early tomorrow ( weeklong saturday to saturday). We're kicking off with Lightening Force aka Thunder Force IV... and if this goes well, we will have one every week or at least every other week.
 
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