Famicom Dojo Video Game Podcast

We're four generations deep into reasonably realistic 3D graphics based on nothing more than colored triangles, but if you go back to the first fully 3D console graphics the picture isn't so pretty. And yet we loved these games all the same. Was it am amazing as we thought, or were we just kidding ourselves? Vinnk and Sean try to take off their rose-colored glasses and give a serious look to the Nintendo 64, Playstation, and Sega Saturn. What game franchises were born in that generation? Which ones met their untimely end? "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

We take a trip over to our friend's house where everything sounds different. Er, where you play the games that you didn't play at your house because you didn't own the system, didn't own the game, weren't ALLOWED to own the system or game, or just like the atmosphere better than at your place. And for this episode, we invited a few friends over to our house! Zac (@ZacShipley), aDam (@aDamRulz), and Ernie of No Topic Required (@NoTopicRequired) take over the show for this April Fool's Day episode. Supposedly Sarah Rattle (@SarahRattle) was there too, but we sure didn't hear her! "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

Sometimes the show runs a little long, or goes completely off-topic. That's when we create an audio bonus, exclusively for the website! When we first started the podcast, we fully intended to create such extra content to help drive traffic back to the website since there was no other way to listen to it. But, as it turns out, people just don't find that enticing! So, despite the desire to keep things "exclusive", we want to share these audio bonuses with you in a way that most listeners will actually be able to hear it. They're just so good! Sean and Vinnk comb the three year history of the Famicom Dojo Podcast for its best extras, and put them into this one episode: Vinnk unveils the hidden secret behind the unlicensed developer Color Dreams, Sindra and Vinnk bond over their love of Silent Hill, Sean gives a brief history of Superman films, and also explains how he got started making videos... before he was old enough to shave. "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritone

In the ever-shifting landscape of video game development, there are major players and the scrappy underdogs. Kickstarter has given smaller studios a bigger voice, but back in the day before the Internet was a thing, which companies set themselves apart? And which ones have fallen apart since? Sean and Vinnk talk about their favorite publishers and developers of today, the classics of yesteryear, and ponder whatever the heck happened to them. Some evolved, some, disbanded, and some should be put out of their misery. Did your favorites make the list? "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

Before EA, official sports titles were more spread out, and used in all kind of ways. Games like NBA Jam are hard to come by these days (barring updates to NBA Jam). Before annual installments of Year of the Same Game, you had crazy sports game ideas that were one and done. These weren't simulators, like we have today, but imaginitive riffs on the sports to make up for any technical proficiency that hardware of the time may have had. And that's what makes them Rad Sports Games. Vinnk and Sean talk about their favorite titles, including the aforementioned NBA Jam, Punch Out, Bases Loaded (and a bunch of other weird baseball games), and even Scotti Pippen's Slam City! If you've never played it before, why... it sure is something else. Will we ever see their like again? Aside from EA picking up the IP for NBA Jam from Midway, that is... "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at

Sometimes a game gets a second life on a new platform or console, typically with upgraded graphics, additional sound effects and/or voices, and additional Internet-enabled features only a Millennial could love. Sometimes a familiar name is slapped onto an entirely new game that seeks to upend the status quo for the franchise and provide a clean slate -- usually with a new developer, and sometimes a new publisher -- to begin totally anew. Sean and Vinnk compare video game remakes to reboots, decide which games deserved them, and which actually got them, and which ones they ended up playing and liking anyway. "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

Phil Bond on the subject of f2p gaming: "When you make a game where paying any money whatsoever feels like cheating, that has to be a mistake -- right?" Or, as Vinnk puts it, you can pay to play more, or pay to play less. Sometimes both in the same game. Just don't say that Nintendo should follow this model, or... we'll say something not nice, or something. Vinnk and Sean trade stories of their particular Free-2-Play addictions (Puzzles and Dragons, and Candy Crush, respectively), and their guilt over never paying any money for these games, leaving it to "whales" to support the entire system. And Vinnk may have inadvertently made his daughter into a gold farmer. "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

Spearheading the revival of adventure games, Broken Age Act 1 was released last week on Steam for the Kickstarter backers (and press reviewers). A decision to black out reviews until later in January was reversed only a couple of days after the game came out. Broken Age is just that good. Even though we haven't finished it (as of recording this episode), we wholeheartedly agree that it will become an instant classic. Sean and Vinnk talk about what killed the adventure game for our generation, revel in its revival thanks to companies like TellTale and Doublefine, and crowdsourcing for an explosion of indie games on websites like Kickstarter. We can't agree on just what an adventure game is, exactly, but that's part of the fun, right? "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

It can be difficult choosing a top game for 2013 when you've only played a fraction of the ones released during the year, but we're sure gonna try! Vinnk and Sean talk about their respective top game of 2013, and try to convince the other why it's so much more awesome than all the others. Plus, more Future Retro, and Pile of Shame! Including some titles that could have been GOTY contenders... if we had only played them. "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

With the latest Nintendo Direct, a very interesting title was released Wii U eShop. Nintendo has gone all ROM hacker on us, and created a challenge game based on a dozen titles from the NES launch lineup. More than that, these challenges directly focus on the secrets within games, and show you how to beat more difficult stages or bosses. Sean and Vinnk share their impressions of NES Remix, whether they're too awesome at video games to really like such a title, and worry just a tiny bit that Nintendo is (rightfully) horning in on Famicom Dojo's retro-educational turf. You should download and play too... assuming the eShop is online long enough to download it. (Curse you, Pokey-Mans!) "Famicom Thrash" and "RPG" theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

Ever since Double Fine Adventure (a.k.a. Broken Age), Kickstarter has been the go-to place to fund games in genres long-thought dead (e.g. Adventure Games), by creators long thought dead (e.g. Al Lowe -- kidding! We love ya puddin'), or franchises long thought dead (e.g. the Mega Man-esque Migthy No. 9 by Keiji Inafune). Is this a good thing? And can it possibly last? While Vinnk was in the US, he joined Sean for a live Famicom Dojo screening at the Madison Underground in Madison, WI. Vinnk and Sean discuss their one-night-only Madison Underground live show, including the story of being accosted by a supposedly off-duty Marine while filming some footage for the show. It's a long story, and we totally tell it!We also talk about which Kickstarter games are the most interesting, which ones we've funnded and played, and whether or not having a Wii U stretch goal is an absolute necessity (well, Sean thinks so). We also tried out some "delicious" Pepsi-flavored Cheetos -- complete with video! "RPG" theme son

Vinnk was in the US for a few weeks, and came back to Japan with a new Wii U and a bunch of games! Then just last week Nintendo announced the $50 price drop and the Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD bundle. Sean bought a 3DS XL right before the seemingly-ridiculous 2DS announcement, but he ain't even mad, bro. Sean and Vinnk discuss their new systems, similarities (good and bad), and how they feel about purchasing them just before major shakeups in the market. We also learn that Sean doesn't think Super Mario Galaxy was that great of a game! :O "RPG" theme song by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

Did you know that there was an episode of Famicom Dojo before there was a Famicom Dojo? Not just the one released on Zac Shipley's channel, but one we never released for public consumption? Sure you didn't! We know lots of stuff from back in 2006. Learn more from Vinnk and Sean as they talk about their memories of Famicom Dojo before there was a Famicom Dojo, how the name was chosen, and the relevation that even the first episodes took a super-long time to create! Oh, and we explain a bit more about our plans for the future of Famicom Dojo in 2013 and beyond. "RPG" theme song by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

E3 is over, but did anything of substance happen aside from Sony stabbing Microsoft in the side and twisting the knife? Everything of substance occurred before or after E3, including Microsoft's "Xbox 180" announcement about its disc DRM and "always on" connectivity. In this digital world, has E3 outlived its usefulness as a press-only event? Sean and Vinnk unpack the reasons why Microsoft reversed course, and struggle with which next-gen console to get to compliment the Wii U. And Sean finally realizes that maybe he shouldn't have passed over the PS3 last generation. "RPG" theme song by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

When we first started this podcast, we thought the DLC Apocalypse would be a generation or two off, but if Microsoft has its way (and Sony decides to follow suit next week at E3), it'll be a lot sooner than anyone wanted. Any gamers, anyway. Microsoft seems pretty happy to keep us in the dark (or they did until the day before this podcast was posted). With disc DRM and a persistent internet connection prevalent on everyone's minds -- even leading to Adam Orth leaving the company -- you'd think Microsoft's messaging would be more on-target. Now they won't even answer press questions before or after their E3 events. What's going on? In what world does this make sense? Vinnk is back to discuss with Sean the the consequences of having an unclear PR strategy, holding things too closely to the figurative chest, hanging gamers out to try. We also decide to let loose with a few Famicom Dojo announcements of our own, including a Kickstarter for a Season 2 Blu-ray and DVD, a new YouTube channel, and plans for

Last week, Microsoft unveiled their next-generation gaming console, controller, and name. While the "XBONE" jokes are already flying, more is being made of what Microsoft didn't say at this event than what they did say. (Or did. Or showed.) Which is kind of too bad, because even amongst the crazier ideas (e.g. cloud computing), there were some pretty cool concepts. Oh, and that whole pesky "used games" and "always online" messaging fiasco. Sean welcomes guests Zac Shipley (No Topic Required) and Justin Severson (Powet.TV) to talk about these missteps, try to focus at least a little bit on the positive aspects of the presentation, and speculate about Microsoft's endgame in the console space, and if the Xbox One will really be "the one", final console that Microsoft will ever make. "RPG" theme song by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

EA has thrown its stake in the ground, and determined that it does not need or care to support Nintendo on the Wii U. No Frosbite engine, no current development on Wii U, and a senior developer who openly tweeted that Nintendo's console platform was "crap". So much for that "unprecedented partnership"! Vinnk and Sean make the obvious comparisons to Dreamcast (which was the last console EA totally shut out), speculate on the future of proprietary, company-branded game console hardware, and try to determine if Nintendo even needs EA in this generation... or any other. "RPG" theme song by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

The Wii U might seem like it's in trouble, but even if the least bad of the "always on" rumors for the next Xbox prove true, will Microsoft be the worse one off this generation? Is this company that only entered console gaming this side of the millennium trying as hard as it can to apply the digial download methodology of gaming to physical media, or is it just a bunch of baseless fanboy fears and rampant speculation? Sean and Vinnk run down three possible scenarios for what to expect when the new Xbox is finally announced later this month, each one making Microsoft look worse than the last. We started this podcast worrying about the effect that digital DRM games would have on the medium at large, but we never thought the event horizon would occur so soon. Or maybe it won't. We'll find out soon enough! "RPG" theme song by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.

Even in the 8-bit days, the theme of time travel in video games was all around us. For some, it was a story excuse to visit historical landmarks and offer. Other explored idea of what it meant to manipulate time Usually, they were some poorly-designed movie tie-in. But each one offered an unmentioned promise that someday, somewhen, the ultimate time travel game would arise. Now, if only someone would invent actual time travel and send that game back to us in time for this episode! Vinnk and Sean discuss their favorite (and sometimes not-so-favorite) time travel games, what they did right, what they could have done better, and spend probably too much time gushing about Presto Studio's The Journeyman Project and bolstering the merits of the 1996 Doctor Who movie on Fox starring Paul McGann. But, mostly, it's about games. And we somehow forgot to mention Shadow of Destiny... (Don't worry; we'll try to cover that in the show notes.) "RPG" theme song by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net This pod

One of the many interesting things about the PS4 is the name itself, since one of the Japanese words for "Four" is also the word for "death". Prophetic, given the state of Sony and the PS3, or just a harmless pun? They'll need a lot of killer apps to overcome that name, amiright? (Thanks to @Cheesemeister3k for that joke.) Sean and Vinnk discuss the PS4 reveal, the DualShock 4 controller redesign, and whether or not either of them will be getting one. Sony, y u no show console? Ah, no matter. What matters is the games, right? We try to find something to hold on to since we only have a list of titles and no price... or box... or... "RPG" theme song by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net This podcast is brought to you by the Famicom Dojo Video Series. Train Your Game at https://youtube.com/famicomdojo.