Retronauts

It's the closest thing to the real thing! Kevin Bunch and expert guests Tom Boellstorff and Braxston Soderman talk about the Atari 2600’s chief rival, the Mattel Intellivision. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 15 December 2025

Diamond Feit and Christa Lee chow down on the recent Bandai Namco star-studded lore-laden Metroidvania Shadow Labyrinth (featuring Pac-Man). Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 8 December 2025

You're listening to a free preview of Retronauts 733: Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. To hear the rest, and get two exclusive extra episodes every month, access to our previous Patreon-exclusive episodes, and early access to ad-free podcasts, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 5 December 2025

WIIIILMAAAA! Don’t take Flintstones games for “granite”. Join Stuart Gipp, John Linneman, and Thomas Nickel as we talk the old-school Stone Age family. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 30 November 2025

Nadia Oxford, Kevin Bunch, and Lucas White talk about the Mega Man-inspired rock band, The Protomen. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 24 November 2025

Video games: can you dig it? Yes, and you can also dig IN them—which is the point of this week's podcast. What started as one man's dream to bury aliens alive has remained a viable concept in video games to this very day; Donkey Kong Bananza, we're looking at you. But how has this simple concept evolved over the years, allowing us to safely simulate tunneling underground without getting our fingernails dirty? On this latest installment of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Diamond Feit, and Jeremy Parish as the crew assembles in a Portland hotel room and imagines a new life underground. Retronauts is a completely fan-funded operation. To support the show, and get two full-length exclusive episodes every month, as well as access to 100+ previous bonus episodes, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 17 November 2025

The clones attack, as Kevin Bunch, Diamond Feit, Meredith Rose, and Mollie Patterson discuss the history of court cases around cloning video games like Pac-Man and Street Fighter II. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 10 November 2025

You're listening to a free preview of Retronauts 727: Klonoa. To hear the rest, and get two exclusive extra episodes every month, access to our previous Patreon-exclusive episodes, and early access to ad-free podcasts, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 7 November 2025

Jeremy Parish, Kaye Ross, John Learned, and cover artist Greg Melo swear fealty to Lord Matsuno and return to the fray to revisit the isometric battlefields of Final Fantasy Tactics in light of its recent remake as well as [gestures expansively] Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 3 November 2025

Greetings, you rancid retro revenants! We're knee-deep in the spookiest of seasons, which means it's time once again to crack open the crypt and gaze in fright at a selection of horror games that tried their best to scare our pants off oh so many decades ago. In the past few years, we've covered NES and 16-bit games, so now it's time to move onto the world of multimedia: where pre-rended ghouls and washed up actors alike did their best to make horror thrive in an era beyond floppies. On this week's episode, join Bob Mackey, Kaye Ross (of Duckfeed.tv) and Michael Sawyer as the crew attempts to appreciate the art of fake blood and FMV. Retronauts is a completely fan-funded operation. To support the show, and get two full-length exclusive episodes every month, as well as access to 100+ previous bonus episodes, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts. Cover art by Nick Daniel.

Transcribed - Published: 27 October 2025

Diamond Feit reports from the largest Tokyo Game Show ever and interviews Hamster CEO Satoshi Hamada about the Arcade Archives series of classic game rereleases. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 20 October 2025

Nadia Oxford, Kevin Bunch, and Victor Hunter talk about trains. Trains in retro video games! Game trains! (But maybe not train games?) Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 13 October 2025

WHAT: Our "The Best and Worst of Retro Game Horror" panel, live at PRGE 2025 WHERE: Blue Auditorium (E145 - 146) at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo WHEN: Saturday, October 18th at 1:15pm WHO: Bob Mackey, Jeremy Parish, Gary Butterfield, Kaye Ross Additionally, you can catch Jeremy's solo panel "Not the NES: 40 Years of Also-Rans" on Saturday, October 18th at 10:15am in the Blue Auditorium, and you can see Bob and Jeremy together on the Watch Out for Fireballs panel "The Best and Worst 7/10 Games of All Time" on Sunday, October 19th at 2:00pm in the Red Auditorium.  Please check out the official PRGE 2025 schedule for more information!

Transcribed - Published: 10 October 2025

Inspired by the host's recent deep-dive into TurboGrafx-16 and a chance encounter at Retro World Expo, this episode sees Jeremy Parish, Kurt Kalata, John Andersen, and guest Jimmy Cooney recount the wild early days of former gaming powerhouse Hudson. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 10 October 2025

No, you're not still in a dream: Metal Gear Solid 3 is now over two decades old. Despite its age, the peak of Hideo Kojima's tactical espionage action series remains more relevant than ever thanks to a shiny, new remake released this year. But is Delta's faithfulness its fatal flaw? On this episode, join Bob Mackey, Maddie Copp, and Brendan James (of the Blowback podcast and Chapo Trap House's new MGS miniseries) as the crew decides if feeding on a tree frog in stunning 4K is truly worthwhile. Retronauts is a completely fan-funded operation. To support the show, and get two full-length exclusive episodes every month, as well as access to 100+ previous bonus episodes, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts. Cover art by Nick Daniel.

Transcribed - Published: 6 October 2025

Jeremy Parish, Kurt Kalata, John Andersen, and about a hundred of YOU definitively rank the 27 games that debuted with the NES 40 (!) years ago from worst to best. This is the final word on these games! Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 29 September 2025

You're listening to a free preview of Retronauts 718: Donkey King Bananza. To hear the rest, and get two exclusive extra episodes every month, access to our previous Patreon-exclusive episodes, and early access to ad-free podcasts, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 26 September 2025

Jeremy Parish, Diamond Feit, Stuart Gipp, and Kevin Bunch try to bring a little light into the world as they talk about terrible video games—not by heaping scorn upon them, but by envisioning a better reality where they turned out to be pretty OK. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 22 September 2025

Who's back? Diamond Feit, James Eldred, and Drew Mackie are back for a podcast about the 90s blockbuster and cultural touchstone Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 15 September 2025

Live from Long Island: Jeremy Parish, Diamond Feit, Stuart Gipp, and Kevin Bunch explore the delights of Sega's official VHS tapes from the ’80s and the myriad ways developers faked 3D in the pre-polygon days. Video versions at patreon.com/retronauts! Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 12 September 2025

Make mine a Double! Nadia Oxford, Jeremy Parish, Stuart Gipp, and Victor "Maverick" Hunter talk all about the classic PlayStation platformer Mega Man X4. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 8 September 2025

All that glitters! Join Stuart Gipp and Dave Bulmer for a casual, free-wheeling discussion of the wacky world of gaming’s greatest collectables. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 1 September 2025

You're listening to a free preview of Retronauts 712: Steven Spielberg's Gaming Fascination. To hear the rest, and get two exclusive extra episodes every month, access to our previous Patreon-exclusive episodes, and early access to ad-free podcasts, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 29 August 2025

Another year, another sizzling report (plus developer interviews) from Japan’s largest indie game festival from our senior indie game correspondent Diamond Feit. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 25 August 2025

It’s the revenge of Shinobi… podcasts! Join Stuart Gipp, Diamond Feit, John Linneman and Thomas Nickel for a second look at the far-from-average Joe. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 18 August 2025

Jeremy Parish spins up the turntable to take you—yes, you!—through two hours of recent classic game music releases, including a ton of Konami NES chiptunes, official Super Mario jazz arrangements, Super Hang-On, and more. Play it loud! Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Enjoy this full episode and learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 18 August 2025

The Stu, Dave, and Seumidh dream team returns to tackle the contentious issue of Sonic the Hedgehog’s rough transition into 3D gaming. We were there, and it was. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 11 August 2025

What started as an attempt by Capcom to cash in on this new "online gaming" fad has escalated into the developer's biggest cash cow: Monster Hunter. Though the series saw more than its share of growing pains over the passing decades; despite the many attempts to make Monster Hunter a hit in the West, it's only become an incredibly popular crossover success in recent memory. So how did this idiosyncratic, grindy experience grow from niche audience to household name? On this episode of Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Kat Bailey, and Brian Clark as the crew feasts on extraordinarily huge pieces of meat in preparation for the harrowing discussion ahead. Retronauts is a completely fan-funded operation. To support the show, and get two full-length exclusive episodes every month, as well as access to 100+ previous bonus episodes, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 4 August 2025

ALL of the Retronauts (yes, that's a full six-pack of Jeremy, Bob, Diamond, Stuart, Nadia, and Kevin) come together to opine about the launch of Nintendo's latest console, the Switch 2, by framing it in the context of all the other Nintendo console launches over the past 40 years. This is a preview a patron-exclusive episode! Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 2 August 2025

Jeremy Parish, Kate Willaert, Chris Sims, and Stuart Gipp open the book on their next collaborative community playthrough (Prince of Persia: The Lost Sands) by discussing the game's heritage and sharing listener thoughts on the first half of the quest. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 28 July 2025

Diamond Feit, Stuart Gipp, & Richard Eisenbeis reflect on the Resident Evil Revelations spinoff series which nurtured the franchise's horror roots while the mainline games embraced blockbuster action. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 21 July 2025

You're listening to a free preview of Retronauts Episode 703: Back to the Future: The Game. To hear the rest, and get two exclusive extra episodes every month, access to our previous Patreon-exclusive episodes, and early access to ad-free podcasts, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 18 July 2025

We’ve got the old stuff back! Kevin Bunch, Diamond Feit, Will Cuevas, and Brian Clark return to Southtown to cover the rest of the Fatal Fury series. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 14 July 2025

Stuart Gipp dashes into the long-running, passionate world of Sonic fan games at a hundred Miles Prower with guests Ryan Langley (Rlan) and Lewis Clark! Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts

Transcribed - Published: 7 July 2025

Good Giygas, EarthBound is 30 years old!? Yes, and because we gave this cult SNES RPG the standard Retronauts treatment nearly a decade ago, this time around, we'll be taking a slightly different approach. To celebrate three decades of EarthBound greatness, on this follow-up episode we're digging into the fandom behind the game, and the communities that rose in the wake of its unceremonious 1995 launch. So this week, join Bob Mackey, Reid Young, Charlie Verdin, and Everdraed (all of Fangamer) as the crew looks back on the dusty message boards of the past and the modest empires that grew from them. You'll never look at a fuzzy pickle the same way again! Retronauts is a completely fan-funded operation. To support the show, and get two full-length exclusive episodes every month, as well as access to 100+ previous bonus episodes, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 30 June 2025

When is a prince not a prince? When he’s a frog or a snake! Diamond Feit, Christa Lee, and npckc laud one of Nintendo’s lesser-known games outside of Japan, The Frog For Whom The Bell Tolls. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 23 June 2025

You're listening to a free preview of Retronauts Episode 697: Fan Translations, Revisited. To hear the rest, and get two exclusive extra episodes every month, access to our previous Patreon-exclusive episodes, and early access to ad-free podcasts, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 20 June 2025

Jeremy Parish, Kevin Bunch, and Nadia Oxford may not be able to change fate, but they can certainly weigh in on Konami's PS1 RPG classic Suikoden and its place in history after revisiting the game through the recent HD remaster. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 16 June 2025

Jeremy Parish, Kevin Bunch, Benj Edwards, and Jared Petty bring our 50-40-30-years-ago retrospective series for 2025 to a close by looking at the major events and games of 1995—just in time to get ready for 2026's Years-In-Review Revue! Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 9 June 2025

Jeremy Parish, Kevin Bunch, and Brian Clark take a moment to reflect on the history of Capcom, beginning with the genre that got them started in the first place: shooting games where a little guy moves up the screen and blasts everything in sight. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 2 June 2025

Celebrating 25 years of Rare's other groundbreaking first-person shooter for the Nintendo 64, Diamond Feit, Kevin Bunch, and Cara Ellison share their mutual affection for Perfect Dark. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 25 May 2025

Two Mario RPG brands launched at the dawn of the 21st century, and while Paper Mario had the more immediate gimmick, Mario & Luigi devoted itself to standard RPG mechanics dressed up in Mushroom Kingdom finery. Though the series burned bright in its early years, the back half saw a decline with undercooked sequels, unpopular remakes, and the seeming death of Mario & Luigi—the brand, not the characters. And now that it's back once again, we must ask ourselves: is Mario & Luigi worth celebrating? This week on Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Mike Drucker (author of Good Game, No Rematch), and Stuart Gipp as the crew times out their button presses to deliver you a perfect podcast. Retronauts is a completely fan-funded operation. To support the show, and get two full-length exclusive episodes every month, as well as access to 100+ previous bonus episodes, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 19 May 2025

Nadia Oxford, William SRD, and Greg Melo talk about DragonStrike, a retro flight / combat game based around D&D's Dragonlance universe. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 12 May 2025

You're listening to a free preview of Retronauts Episode 688: Muppet Games. To hear the rest, and get two exclusive extra episodes every month, access to our previous Patreon-exclusive episodes, and early access to ad-free podcasts, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 9 May 2025

Jeremy Parish, Nadia Oxford, Chris Sims, Benito Cereno, and Shivam Bhatt congregate once again to talk about video gaming's difficult relationship with the concept of "God." (This episode was a recorded a couple of months ago, so the opening quip is unrelated to/uninspired by recent world news!) Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 5 May 2025

Sigma Start listening to this Saga of sound as Stuart Gipp chats to WayForward’s Matt Bozon and Adam Tierney about a GBA gem. Psyme me up! Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 28 April 2025

Jeremy Parish, Kevin Bunch, and Brian Clark regale a packed Milwaukee convention hall with tales of the greatness of Chrono Trigger—and then Jeremy and Kevin explore the wonders of 1980s Japanese game tapes (and LaserDiscs!). This is a preview of a Patreon-exclusive episode. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more and enjoy this full episode (plus countless other exclusives!) at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 25 April 2025

Now it's time to have the REAL answer: who is THE STRONGEST!? Diamond Feit? Kevin Bunch? John Learned? TheSeventhForce? We're ALL winners when we remember the SNK vs CAPCOM series of fighting games. Break up with basic browsers. Get Opera GX here: https://operagx.gg/Retronauts Sponsored by Opera GX! Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 21 April 2025

Jeremy Parish, Nadia Oxford, Stuart Gipp, Chris Sims, and Kate Willaert kick off a new feature to play and discuss great metroidvania in depth. Play along and join the conversation! This time: we tackle the first half of the final true Castlevania game. Retronauts is made possible by listener support through Patreon! Support the show to enjoy ad-free early access, better audio quality, and great exclusive content. Learn more and join our Discord to take part in this ongoing metroidvania chat at http://www.patreon.com/retronauts 

Transcribed - Published: 14 April 2025

You're listening to a free preview of Retronauts Episode 682: Bloodborne. To hear the rest, and get two exclusive extra episodes every month, access to our previous Patreon-exclusive episodes, and early access to ad-free podcasts, please visit the official Retronauts Patreon at patreon.com/retronauts.

Transcribed - Published: 11 April 2025