Play Retro Show

Let’s do podcast about the history of a side-scrolling action platformer for the Sega Genesis, set in a dystopian future where Earth is overrun by rogue robots. Players control Vectorman, an Orbot janitor-turned-hero, as he battles through diverse levels to stop the evil Warhead. Featuring innovative pre-rendered 3D graphics, fluid animations, and a techno-inspired soundtrack, Vectorman pushed the Genesis to its limits.

A groundbreaking pre-rendered 3d sprite platformer for the Super Nintendo developed by Rare. Players control Donkey Kong and his sidekick Diddy as they journey through the jungle to reclaim their stolen banana hoard from the villainous King K. Rool!

A classic side-scrolling beat 'em up arcade game set in the medieval fantasy land of Yuria. Players choose from three heroes—Ax Battler the Barbarian, Tyris Flare the Amazon, and Gilius Thunderhead the Dwarf—each with unique magic abilities. Together, they battle through hordes of enemies, ride mythical creatures, and face the evil Death Adder, who has kidnapped the royal family.

On this really big Twinkie of an episode, we’re covering some of the classic Ghostbusters games, starting with the original 1984 Ghostbusters Business Sim game by Pitfall creator David Crane, Ghostbusters II's questionably fun version of the movie, The New Ghostbusters II game that Japan and Europe got that was surprisingly good and Ghostbusters for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis that was doing its own thing. Plus, we’ll give a quick mention to The Real Ghostbusters arcade game.

Cho Aniki is a Japanese video game series originally developed by Masaya and published by NCS Corp. The first game was released in 1992 for the PC Engine system. The game's sequels and spin-offs later appeared on the Super Famicom, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, WonderSwan, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable. Best known for its homoerotic overtones, wacky humor and vivid, surreal imagery. Most of the games have never seen release outside Japan.

SMB2: Known for its dreamlike setting and gameplay changes from the original Super Mario Bros. Players can choose between Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool, and Toad, each with different abilities, as they navigate the world of Subcon to defeat the villain Wart. Unlike other Mario games, this installment focuses on picking up and throwing objects at enemies rather than stomping on them.

The Shining Force series blends traditional RPG storytelling with tactical, grid-based combat. In Shining Force I (1992), players guide Max and his diverse team of warriors in defending the kingdom of Guardiana from the Dark Dragon. Shining Force II (1993) follows Bowie, who must rally heroes to face the malevolent forces of Zeon, offering a more open-world experience and refined strategy elements. Shining in the Darkness (1991), a precursor to these, is a first-person dungeon crawler where players explore mazes, solve puzzles, and battle monsters, laying the groundwork for the later games' storytelling and world-building.

Based on Tim Burton's 1988 film, Beetlejuice for the NES is a platforming adventure game developed by Rare and published by LJN. Players control Beetlejuice as he navigates different areas in an attempt to scare humans out of a house he wants to claim as his own. Players use Beetlejuice’s unique abilities, such as summoning skeletons and transforming into different creatures, to solve puzzles and defeat enemies. The game features side-scrolling levels with a mix of combat and platforming elements.