Vidya Game News – November 17, 2016
– Polygon has released their massive video game gift guide, which is neat to read just to catch up on all of the cool stuff you didn’t even know existed.
– The new Daytona USA game, confusingly called Daytona 3 Championship USA, has some trailers out now.
– To hype the (incredibly hard to get) NES Classic, Nintendo has interviews with the developers of Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 3 here. And hey, check out our episodes for the first and second games of that series!
– In a fun feature, Polygon’s Owen S. Good tallies up how much it would cost to just buy an NES and all of the games on the NES Classic, instead of paying the prices online for it.
– From Motherboard and other sites, a guy is shooting for 2017 for the release of Tanglewood, a new Genesis game programmed on an authentic development kit.
ON THIS DAY (OR CLOSE TO IT!) IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– Mentioned prominently in last week’s show was WWF No Mercy, which was released on this day in 2000 by Asmik Ace and AKI. It’s still considered to be one of the gold standards for wrasslin’ video games.
– The ole Xbox was released on Nov. 15, 2001. That old chestnut didn’t sell well in Japan, and ultimately came out behind the PS2 in America, but it established a firm beachhead in console sales for Microsoft.
– Three days after the Xbox came the Gamecube. Again, it finished behind the PS2 in the sixth generation console wars, but it had some very well-received games, like…
– The Metroid series is kind of a big deal in November. In 2002, both Metroid Prime and Metroid Fusion had concurrent releases for the Gamecube and GBA. The sequel to Prime came out on Nov. 15, 2004. (And hey, check out our episode on Super Metroid here!)
– On November 16, 2004, Valve released Half-Life 2. The incredible FPS was followed by sequels, Episode One and Episode Two, and then NOTHING. The third installment will never come out because Valve clearly hates us now.
– Dragon Quest VIII, the first of the series to drop the “Dragon Warrior” name for an American release, came out for the PS2 on Nov. 15, 2005. It was a solid effort, although not as long and deep as previous efforts from Enix.
– In 2006, the PlayStation 3 came out. It was a swell system, but it ceded the control of the market that the PS2 and PSX had established because of a high initial price and lack of third party support. (And by the way, the PS4 came out on Nov. 15, 2013, so Sony likes to push them consoles out in the holiday season.)
Video game history information comes from GameFAQs and Moby Games. And as always, if you’d like to support the show, do so via our Amazon link.
Episode 081 – Not Sonic the Hedgehog (WCW vs. nWo games, 1997 and 1998)
Episode 081 – Not Sonic the Hedgehog (WCW vs. nWo games, 1997 and 1998)
This week in Your Parents Basement, the show has been taken over by a rogue element! We are no longer covering Sonic the Hedgehog – and trust us, we’re so disappointed by that – and instead, we’re covering WCW vs. nWo World Tour from 1997, and WCW/nWo Revenge from 1998! Both are by Asmik Ace and AKI for the Nintendo 64. We’re joined by Steve’s buddy josh
You can manually download this week’s “we’re outta time!” podcast here or subscribe to the show via the iTunes store. To manually subscribe, use this link in the device / podcast player of choice. You can also follow us on Twitter, or ‘like’ us on Facebook.
As always, if you like the show, support us by buying from Amazon! You can use this link to go to Amazon, and any purchase you make will kick a couple bucks to the show, with no extra cost to you. It’s a win-win!
Want to have an email or comment read on the air? Send us a message on the ole Twitter or Facebook, or, shoot that mail to parentsbasementpodcast@gmail.com.
TIMESTAMPS
- 0:00 – Intro, which features the excellent title theme from the game we thought we’d be covering. Josh crashes the proceedings a few minutes in, so we segue from Sonic to wrasslin’ talk.
- 46:00 – Emails! John Tetris wants to know about wrestlers as well.
- 1:05:30 – Even though Brisket is out of the picture for today’s show, we still have to help some people in… Ask The Sweet Boys.
- 1:11:00 – Snifferoo. WE’VE GOT TO CATCH THEM ALL!
- 1:11:45 – Outtake.
SHOW NOTES
– According to Price Charting, World Tour and Revenge are both cheaply priced. They go for $3.75 to $5 for the loose carts, and $13 to $18 if you want the box and manual included. In contrast, the more advanced No Mercy goes for $8 for the cart, and $27 for the box and manual.
– The awesome book that Steve mentions, Death of WCW by R.D. Reynolds and Bryan Alvarez, is available on Amazon.
Vidya Game News – November 10, 2016
– Unsurprisingly, Gandhi remains an asshole in Civilization 6, per Kotaku. Check out our show on the original Civilization here!
– On Kill Screen, Emma Kidwell has a nice essay about how video games helped with language when she spent her summers in Japan.
– The NES Classic Edition comes out Friday in the U.S., and some reviews are coming in for it. Kotaku also notes that the old Nintendo call-in lines will be active, too.
– Also, as you may have heard, new Genesis consoles are being made… in Brazil. Polygon’s Charlie Hall notes that the system won’t have HDMI support or ship internationally, but it does come with 20+ games preloaded. Sega in Brazil is like Spinal Tap in Japan, or David Hasselhoff in Germany.
– Kyle Orland of Ars Technica writes about four “found” Kirby games for the SNES, and the difficulty of preserving old digital games, here. You can find our Kirby show here.
– From Matthew Figueira and other sites, Blizzard won’t be doing remakes of Warcraft 1 or Warcraft 2 anytime soon. Also, no news on a potential Warcraft 4 either. But hey, listen to our show on the old series!
– Obduction, the new game from Myst creator Rand Miller, will be released for the PS4 and VR in 2017. Read about that and more in Miller’s interview with Dean Takahashi of Venture Beat. And listen to our Myst show here!
– From Kotaku: What should you feed your pregnant characters in The Sims?
ON THIS DAY (OR CLOSE TO IT!) IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– Golden Sun, a popular RPG series by Camelot and Nintendo, first hit U.S. shores on Nov. 11, 2001. It’s 15 now! Almost old enough to drive.
– It was only a year ago, but the sweet baby boys can scarcely remember what our lives were like before the release of Fallout 4 on this day in 2015. We have a lot more time… Stupid, pointless time without Fallout 4. Bethesda’s masterpiece has had several DLC expansions and mod support added, and people are already clamoring for the fifth installment, or a side game, or anything else because Fallout is LIFE.
– Also, Skyrim came out on Nov. 11, 2011. It’s now five years old! A regular sweet kindergarten baby boy. Bethesda sure loves to spoil us in November.
Video game history information comes from GameFAQs and Moby Games. And as always, if you’d like to support the show, do so via our Amazon link.
Episode 080 – Wave Race 64 (1996)
Episode 080 – Wave Race 64 (1996)
This week in Your Parents Basement, we are surfing the waves on our Kawasaki jet skis! From 1996, we’re playing Wave Race 64 by Nintendo for the N64.
You can manually download this week’s wavy podcast here or subscribe to the show via the iTunes store. To manually subscribe, use this link in the device / podcast player of choice. You can also follow us on Twitter, or ‘like’ us on Facebook.
As always, if you like the show, support us by buying from Amazon! You can use this link to go to Amazon, and any purchase you make will kick a couple bucks to the show, with no extra cost to you. It’s a win-win!
Want to have an email or comment read on the air? Send us a message on the ole Twitter or Facebook, or, shoot that mail to parentsbasementpodcast@gmail.com.
TIMESTAMPS
- 0:00 – Intro, which features the breezy, techno title theme from the game.
- 24:00 – The return of a popular segment… Huell’s Track Tracks! Wherein Huell ranks the best musical tracks from racing game tracks.
- 30:00 – A new segment from Steve, and listeners! We air your Comments Concerns and Questions.
- 38:00 – Emails! Our most private listeners writes in again.
- 46:15 – Once again, we really help some folks out with another segment of… Ask The Sweet Boys.
- 51:15 – Snifferoo. We’re finally covering one of the most requested games, over our earlier objections.
SHOW NOTES
– According to Price Charting, Wave Race 64 is still really affordable, going for just $6 for the loose cart and $10.50 if you want the box and manual included. It’s also available on the Wii virtual consoles, which probably helps keep the cost low.
– As mentioned on the show, Wave Race 64 is a sequel to the original for the Game Boy. The original is pretty cheap as well, about $4 for the cart, but $31 if you want the box and manual, per Price Charting.
– Also mentioned on the show, there doesn’t seem to be any imminent plans for new games in the series. Nintendo renewed the trademark in 2012, but that’s about it.
Vidya Game News – November 3, 2016
– Daaayyyyyyttttoonnnnaaaa! From Polygon and other sites, Sega has confirmed that a new entry in the Daytona USA series will be coming out. Read more here.
– Apparently, the creator of Balloon Fight first brought up the NES Classic Edition idea about 10 years ago! You can read a translated interview with Yoshio Sakamoto here, via Nintendo Everything.
– The director of Deadpool (Tim Miller) is stepping away from that series, and his next project will be Sonic the Hedgehog, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
– Supermodel Gisele Bundchen dressed up as Luigi for Halloween, because her SBB was dressed as Mario. Popsugar has the story here, based on her ‘stagrams. (And hey, listen to our shows on Mario 1 and Mario 2 here and here!)
– And speaking of the Brady household… From Steve’s home state paper The Providence Journal, what game did Tom Brady like to play with his roommate? Well, Tecmo Bowl, of course! Read more here. And listen to our Tecmo Bowl show here.
– Via Gamespot, Crash Bandicoot now talks! … in the Netflix TV show Skylanders Academy. Check out our Crash Bandicoot episode here!
ON THIS DAY (OR CLOSE TO IT!) IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– Fire Emblem came out for the Game Boy Advance in 2003. While it was the first (official) English localization for the series by Nintendo, it was the seventh main game of the series. Rumor goes that Nintendo finally decided to give it the ole translation try because of the popularity of Marth in Super Smash Bros. Melee.
– Ratchet & Clank came out Nov. 4, 2002 for the PS2. Insomniac’s effort was well-reviewed, and spawned a series.
– Valkyria Chronicles, a solid turn-based, tactical RPG, came out on Nov. 4, 2008 for the PS3. Surprisingly, it was by Sega! A remastered version came out on May 17, 2016 for the PS4, to rave reviews.
– The first Dragon Age game from Bioware came out for the PS3, 360 and PC on this day in 2009.
Video game history information comes from GameFAQs and Moby Games. And as always, if you’d like to support the show, do so via our Amazon link.
Episode 079 – Ghosts ‘n Goblins series (1985-1991)
Episode 079 – Ghosts ‘n Goblins series (1985-1991)
This week in Your Parents Basement, we are slaying a variety of monsters in our underwear! From 1985 to 1991, we’re playing the games of the Ghosts ‘n Goblins series by Capcom for the Arcade, SNES, Genesis and NES! We are joined by special guest, superfan and father of the show’s sweetest baby boy listener, Hawk!
You can manually download this week’s spooktastic podcast here or subscribe to the show via the iTunes store. To manually subscribe, use this link in the device / podcast player of choice. You can also follow us on Twitter, or ‘like’ us on Facebook.
As always, if you like the show, support us by buying from Amazon! You can use this link to go to Amazon, and any purchase you make will kick a couple bucks to the show, with no extra cost to you. It’s a win-win!
Want to have an email or comment read on the air? Send us a message on the ole Twitter or Facebook, or, shoot that mail to parentsbasementpodcast@gmail.com.
TIMESTAMPS
- 0:00 – Intro, which features the creepy music from the prologue to the SNES version.
- 36:00 – Emails! Julian Assange writes in, and so does Harry Carey!
- 56:30 – It’s everybody’s favorite… Ask The Sweet Boys!
- 1:01:00 – Snifferoo. Next week, we’re whipping about the waves with a Nintendo 64 game.
SHOW NOTES
– According to Price Charting, prices have held up pretty well for the series. The loose cart price can range from $13.50 (NES) to $22 (SNES, Genesis) to $80 (Master System), and the box and manual shoots the price up to a range of $41 to $132.
– Ghosts ‘n Goblins is one of the prepackaged 30 games coming out in the sweet baby boy NES Classic Edition. It’s scheduled to be released in November.
– Here is a ridiculous speedrun of the game, done in 21 minutes with no deaths.
– Hawk Man 5000 previously guested for Mega Man 2, which you can listen to here!
Vidya Game News – October 28, 2016
– Kyle Orland has a good interview with Sid Meier, of Civilization fame, for Ars Technica. You can read it here! And check out our Civilization show here.
– Speaking of Orland, he had a cool link in his weekly newsletter to an older piece about how insider leaks happen. (If you’re not subscribing to Orland’s weekly newsletter yet, you should! That is, if you love vidya games.)
– On Engadget and other sites: A prototype for a SNES version of Rayman has been found.
– In honor of Halloween, Justin Carreiro of The Young Folks has a look at Maniac Mansion. You can listen to our show on it here! Also, Ryan Gibbs of The Young Folks once talked SimCity with us here.
– Pokemon Sun and Moon, which release Nov. 18 for the 3DS, are Nintendo’s biggest pre-ordered games of all-time, per a release by the company published on Polygon.
– Nathan Grayson of Kotaku summarizes some of the issues hitting up mod support for Sega games on Steam here.
– The USgamer team ranks all 30 games in the NES Classic here! Games we’ve covered on YPB: Bubble Bobble, Castlevania, Punch-Out, Tecmo Bowl, Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 2.
– On Polygon and other sites this week… The official Sega employee song from the 1990s.
ON THIS DAY (OR CLOSE TO IT!) IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– The PlayStation 2 came out on October 26, 2000. It was pretty popular.
– In 2002, a little game called Grand Theft Auto: Vice City came out. It was pretty, pretty, pretty popular. Almost exactly two years later, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas came out, and it was also pretty, pretty, pretty popular.
– Another lil game, Fallout 3, came out on October 28, 2008. Again, it was pretty popular.
Video game history information comes from GameFAQs and Moby Games. And as always, if you’d like to support the show, do so via our Amazon link.
Episode 078 – Civilization (1991)
Episode 078 – Civilization (1991)
This week in Your Parents Basement, we are playing for just ONE MORE TURN, we promise! From 1991, we’re playing Civilization by MicroProse (and later Firaxis and Spectrum HoloByte) for the PC and Super Nintendo. Our special guest is Amanda, Steve’s friend from his college newspaper!
You can manually download this week’s Wonder-building podcast here or subscribe to the show via the iTunes store. To manually subscribe, use this link in the device / podcast player of choice. You can also follow us on Twitter, or ‘like’ us on Facebook.
As always, if you like the show, support us by buying from Amazon! You can use this link to go to Amazon, and any purchase you make will kick a couple bucks to the show, with no extra cost to you. It’s a win-win!
Want to have an email or comment read on the air? Send us a message on the ole Twitter or Facebook, or, shoot that mail to parentsbasementpodcast@gmail.com.
TIMESTAMPS
- 0:00 – Intro, which has a moment of glory from Steve.
- 30:45 – It’s time for another installment of Video Game Theater! This time, with music! AND EMOTION.
- 38:00 – Emails! Who would we rather kiss?
- 48:45 – Hoooo boy, it’s the return of… Ask the Sweet Boys.
- 58:00 – Snifferoo. Things get SPOOKY next week, as in honor of Halloween, we’re playing one of the toughest game series of all-time!
SHOW NOTES
– According to Price Charting, the Super Nintendo version of Civilization is about $20 for the loose cart, and $47 for the box and manual. The actual PC game is free on a lot of sites, and Freeciv is (as the name implies) free and awesome.
– Civilization 6 came out last week, and with that, there was a bunch of stuff out on the series. (And hey, that’s why we did the show this week too.) Brian Fung of The Washington Post scored an interview with Sid Meier. And he likes to play as the Romans.
Vidya Game News – October 20, 2016
– Today has a crap-ton of current video game news. Nintendo says they’re releasing information on their new console, the NX, for realies this time at 10 a.m. EST. Likewise, Rockstar is releasing a trailer for Red Dead Redemption 2 at 11 a.m. EST. What a time to be alive! (UPDATE: The RDR2 link has been updated with the trailer, which looks awesome, and the NX is now called the Switch, and most of the trailer is about friggin’ controllers.)
– From ESPN property FiveThirtyEight, the world record speedrun for Super Mario Bros. continues to go down. And hey, check out our first ever episode, which was on that game!
– Wired.com has translated a really good interview with Miyamoto done by a Japanese publication. Read it here!
– Did you ever wonder to yourself: “Hey, what if the Swedish Chef loved vidya games? And then he hacked passwords for them?” Well, you’re in luck! Bisqwit has a cool video on passwords for River City Ransom on YouTube here. Listen to our past show on that game here!
– The Chicago Tribune has a review of “Merge,” which is a play about the early years of Atari.
– The Verge, via a Nintendo social media account, post a treasure trove of old systems they found in a warehouse.
– Paste’s Jason D’Aprile has a good, long interview with Rand Miller of Myst fame. Check out our Myst episode with Jovial Jackee here!
– A very British dude, Daniel Ibbertson a.k.a. Slopes Game Room, has the complete history of the Shinobi series on YouTube.
ON THIS DAY (OR CLOSE TO IT!) IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– Shining Force 2 came out for the Genesis at some point in October 1994 – the exact date is seemingly lost to time. The Shining Force series is Sega’s version of Fire Emblem, in that both tactical RPG series were ignored and not properly promoted for the longest time. And, well, Sega has kind of ignored it except for more Japanese releases.
– Konami released Metal Gear Solid for the Playstation on October 21, 1998. You can listen to the sweet baby boys and Dale talk about it here!
– Also in 1998, Xenogears came out. It tends to get a bit too much hype, but it’s still a pretty solid PSX RPG by Square. It tends to get more fame because of programming and localization issues.
– Borderlands came out for the PS3 and 360 today in 2009. The first-person shooter from Gearbox Software mixed RPG elements into a first-person shooter, and it had a distinctive art and humor style. It’s sold more than 4.5 million copies.
Video game history information comes from GameFAQs and Moby Games. And as always, if you’d like to support the show, do so via our Amazon link.
Your Parents Basement 
Episode 082 – Pokemon Red and Blue (1998)
Episode 082 – Pokemon Red and Blue (1998)
This week in Your Parents Basement, we are desperately trying to catch them all! From 1998, we’re playing Pokemon Red and Pokemon Blue by Game Freak and Nintendo for the Game Boy. And, the sweet baby boys are joined by special guests Ryan Gibbs and Mel Turnquist!
You can manually download this week’s deep, story-driven podcast here or subscribe to the show via the iTunes store. To manually subscribe, use this link in the device / podcast player of choice. You can also follow us on Twitter, or ‘like’ us on Facebook.
As always, if you like the show, support us by buying from Amazon! You can use this link to go to Amazon, and any purchase you make will kick a couple bucks to the show, with no extra cost to you. It’s a win-win!
Want to have an email or comment read on the air? Send us a message on the ole Twitter or Facebook, or, shoot that mail to parentsbasementpodcast@gmail.com.
TIMESTAMPS
SHOW NOTES
– According to Price Charting, pretty much all of the Pokemon games have retained their value to a certain degree. Blue and Red go for about $19 for the cart only, and $60 to $85 for the game, box and manual.
– There have been 122 releases of Pokemon, which is disgusting and impressive at the same time. Polygon has a timeline here.
– Ryan’s site is The Young Folks, which you can find here.