Vidya Game News – July 7, 2016
– Polygon has an awesome full-length feature on where Blizzard’s Starcraft: Ghost went wrong.
– Also from Polygon, a good, long read by Colin Campbell on an Atari artwork book.
– A translation for Wizardry Gaiden IV has been released, according to the folks at ROMhacking.net. Check out this “new” SNES game here!
– Hadlee Simons at Gearburn has a look at five failed handheld systems.
– From various websites, Stephen Colbert attempts to eat a Hot Pocket quicker than a guy completes Super Mario Bros. 3. Video here!
– As expected, Nintendo shut down a Kickstarter project for an NES coffee table book.
– The latest video on Cracked from Cody Johnston is about how Christopher Nolan stole his ideas from DuckTales. No word yet from Todd how this infraction ranks on the DuckTales scale.
– From TechTimes, Paul Rudd has barely aged since starring in SNES commercials back in the day.
– Also on TechTimes, Chinese companies are constantly making bootleg games with all the Nintendo characters.
ON THIS DAY IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– On July 10, 2001, Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec came out for the Playstation 2. The effort from Polyphony Digital set a new standard for realistic racing games. The sixth installment came out in December 2013 to glowing reviews for the PS3, and Gran Turismo Sport is due out in November as a PS4 exclusive.
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.
Vidya Game News – June 30, 2016
Image from MobyGames.
– The Nintendo 64 turned 20 last week, which led to retrospectives from plenty of places, like Nerdist and Tech Insider.
– The fine folks at Shmuplations are dong the lord’s work, as they’ve unearthed an old interview from developers on Super Mario Kart. You can read it here.
– The new Toejam and Earl game has gotten more funding, and it’ll see a console release! Read more about it in a piece by Brandon Orselli from Niche Gamer. And, check out our episode on the original!
– RZA will be doing some music inspired by old Atari games, which actually sounds kind of cool. Read more on Billboard here.
– Good news, everyone! Adventures of Mana, a 3D remake of the old Game Boy game Final Fantasy Adventure, is now out for the Vita. Read the release from Sony here. It’s the first game in the Secret of Mana series, which we covered in the past.
– From MCV, via Famitsu, the new Harvest Moon game for the 3DS is #1 on the Japanese sales chart. It’s scheduled to come out in America at some point in 2017.
– It’s short notice, but Nintendo is hosting a festival in Montreal this weekend! For more details, go here. And if you’d like to head Down Undah, there is an 8-bit festival in Melbourne later in July, according to Time Out Melbourne.
– Yougurtland is partnering with Nintendo.
– A Final Fantasy VII version of Monopoly is coming out in April 2017. It’s by Merchoid, and you can read more on Examiner.com here.
– A Kickstarter campaign has been launched for a “complete remake” of System Shock. Read more on the project page here.
– The producer of the Tetris movie now claims it’ll be a three-movie series! Yikes. Read more on Empire.
– The Angry Video Game Nerd re-visits Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the NES, 10 years after he first covered it. Check out the video here. For James and Mike Mondays, they played Alex Kidd in Miracle World.
ON THIS DAY IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– Star Fox 64 came out this day in 1997. And hey, we reviewed it! Check out our show here.
– On June 29 in 2000, Icewind Dale by Black Isle Studios was released by Interplay. It was a well-reviewed game based on Dungeons and Dragons.
– In 1996, Bruce Jenner’s World Class Decathlon came out for the PC. It was 20 years ago Jenner won a gold medal in the decathlon, so, that was kind of weird.
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 061 – ActRaiser (1991)
Episode 061 – ActRaiser (1991)
This week in Your Parents Basement, we are playing God as we level fields and destroy Satan! From 1991, we’re playing ActRaiser by Quintet and published by Enix for the SNES. The sweet baby boys are joined by special guest Mike Deeney – a fan of finer things in life, like ActRaiser.
You can manually download this week’s holy 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 is the rousing song from the second stage, Bloodpool.
- 51:30 – Emails! The gang talks video game all-nights, jobs in vidya games, and potential games based on musical figures.
- 1:17:15 – Snifferoo. Next week, we’re bad enough dudes to play the most American game of them all for the Fourth of July.
SHOW NOTES
– According to Price Charting, and as discussed on the show, ActRaiser has retained its value pretty well. The original cart goes for $28.50, with the box and manual pushing the price up to $68. The sequel, which is just a straight-up action platformer, goes for a similar price.
– As mentioned on the show, a Kotaku article on randomizing The Legend of Zelda.
Vidya Game News – June 23, 2016
– Cool: An Ecco the Dolphin prototype for Dreamcast has been found. Read more here.
– This week, blastr has another cool list, this one on 10 Genesis games that deserve comebacks. It’s by Dany Roth and you can read it here. Included are past YPB games Comix Zone and Vectorman!
– Natsume had a busy E3, as they showed sequels and remakes for Harvest Moon, Wild Guns and River City Ransom. Read a write-up from Gaming Illustrated’s Greg Johnson here. And, listen to our River City Ransom show here!
– From James Vincent at The Verge, Warcraft is now the highest-grossing film based on a video game of all-time, thanks to its strength in China. It surpassed Prince of Persia, which finished with $336 million. Warcraft is up to $378 million and counting. (And for our Warcraft show, go here!) Allison Elkin at VICE has a piece on what ex-World of Warcraft players think of the movie.
ON THIS DAY IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– Guess who turns 26? Sonic! The first game in the series, Sonic The Hedgehog, came out this day in 1991. The series is still alive, by the way.
– Also, on this day in 1996, the Nintendo 64 was released in Japan. It was a pretty, pretty, pretty good system. Pilotwings 64 and Super Mario 64 were the prominent launch games.
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.
Vidya Game News – June 16, 2016
– Want to know how the Warcraft movie did? Well, Paul Tassi of Forbes.com has a piece on it, and the headline probably says it all: “The ‘Warcraft’ movie is a crushing disappointment in almost every way.” Well, then. On Rotten Tomatoes, it’s sitting at 27 percent with critics, but surprisingly, 82 percent with the audience. However, shockingly, the movie opened up to $156M in five days in China, which beats out the opens of the latest Star Wars and Fast and Furious franchises. For more on that, read this piece from Wired.
– To look at the reverse, Evan Hoovler of blastr has a fun list of the worst video games based on movies or TV shows. Included on the list is past YPB subject Superman 64, of course.
– Also on blastr, Dany Roth has another good list, this one on 10 SNES games that deserve a comeback. Spoiler alert: Two are on the schedule for future YPB episodes.
– Simon Parkin of Ars Technica has a good, long read on the history of Team17, makers of the Worms series.
– In honor of E3, Nintendo has deeply discounted some older games, like $5 for A Link to the Past. Check out the full list on their site.
– This week’s James and Mike Mondays game is Kung Fu Heroes for the NES. Check it out here.
ON THIS DAY IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– In 2002, Neverwinter Nights was released for the PC on June 16, 17 or 18, depending on the source you use. The BioWare RPG was the company’s follow-up to its Baldur’s Gate series, and it was both well-reviewed and well-bought by consumers. Elements of the game engine were used later for Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Dragon Age.
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 059 – Cool Spot (1993)
Episode 059 – Cool Spot (1993)
This week in Your Parents Basement, we are indulging in product placement to the highest degree! From 1993, we’re playing Cool Spot by Virgin Games for the SNES mostly, and the Genesis.
You can manually download this week’s soda-riffic 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 is a 7-Up commercial that is a little better with some visuals.
- 37:45 – Emails! It’s all about accomplishment and women’s equality this week.
- 55:30 – Snifferoo. Annie are you okay, are you okay, are you okay Annie?
SHOW NOTES
– According to Price Charting, Cool Spot has actually retained its value fairly well, ranging from $6 to $10 for the cart, depending on the platform. Not great, but not horrible for a product placement game.
– Register for the NOW 50th anniversary celebration here!
– Steve’s PSN Profile is here, in case you want to see how bad he is at PS3 games.
Vidya Game News – June 9, 2016
– A fun piece from Dany Roth of blastr, as he looks at 10 forgotten NES games that deserve a comeback. Included on the list is The Guardian Legend, which we covered a few weeks ago.
– Joe Juba of Game Informer spoke with Takashi Tokita, one of the directors of classic RPG Chrono Trigger. He’d like to see a “high quality, high end” version of the game. As a comment on the article summed up perfectly: *breathing intensifies*
– Obduction, a spiritual successor to Myst by Cyan, is scheduled for a July release according to Elise Favis of Game Informer. (And hey, listen to our Myst episode!)
– Director Rocky Morton tells Poppy-Jay Palmer of SciFiNow about the horrible experience he had directing the Super Mario Bros. movie.
– Anthony John Agnello looks at the development of story in the Metroid series for the AV Club. (And hey, check out our Super Metroid episode!)
– Jeremy Peel of the PC Games Network has an interview with the current management of Atari.
– Nolan Moore is trying to hack a Power Glove to control robots, drones and other things, which is awesome. Read more about his project here.
– The latest Mike and Bootsy game on Cinemassacre is Swamp Thing for the NES. Check out their video here!
ON THIS DAY IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– Hey, the Game Boy Advance came out on June 11, 2001! It ended up selling more than 81 million units, which is pretty, pretty, pretty good. Castlevania: Circle of the Moon was a launch title. It’s a stellar side-scroller with RPG elements, and worth hunting down.
– Also on June 11, but in 2000, The Legend of Dragoon came out for the Playstation. It was a fairly mediocre RPG, but one of the first released for the system, so it sold fairly well as a result.
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.
Vidya Game News – May 19, 2016
– As Kotaku’s Luke Plunkett types in his write-up, Sega’s game testing training videos were peak 1990s, right down to Soundgarden and Nine Inch Nails background music.
– From Polygon’s Allegra Frank, a remake of cult classic Wild Guns is coming out for the PS4!
– In unnecessary video game movie adaptation news… A Tetris movie is in the pipeline, according to Deadline. And not a documentary about the game’s interested and tangled history, but a science fiction game. A discount film studio has picked up the rights to Atari’s Missile Command and Centipede, also per Deadline. Also, confirming long-standing rumors, Nintendo said it would look to re-enter the ole Hollywood business.
– What was the code name for the biggest heroin bust in Delaware’s history? Operation Duck Hunt, of course. Read more via The Sussex County Post.
– Nintendo Player has an awesome long read on the recently-unearthed Happily Ever After, a Snow White-based NES game from the early 1990s. The game itself is a generic, Nintendo Hard affair, but the story behind it is fascinating. Plus, the ROM has been made available for free online!
– From several sites, a retro 8-bit version of Monopoly, featuring Super Mario Bros., now has a sale slug on Amazon.
– Per Gamasutra and several other sites that got the press release, mod support for older Sega games caused them to sell 350,000 copies on Steam since April 28. For the details, click here.
– For James and Mike Mondays, the guys play Doom 64, which Steve remembers somewhat fondly from his childhood! If you didn’t have a high-powered PC back in the day, it was a fairly easy way to play the ole game. Also from that site this week, Mike and Bootsy play Pinball for the NES!
ON THIS DAY IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– In 1997, Eurocom released the Midway arcade game War Gods for the N64. Because the system was so starved for games at various points, it was hyped for months in Nintendo Power, but it ultimately was just a mediocre fighting game.
– New Super Mario Bros. now isn’t, as it celebrated its 10th year on May 15. (Note: It’s still an awesome platformer for the DS, though.)
– For a brief history in time, people thought they’d get in shape via vidya games. On May 21, 2008, Nintendo came out with Wii Fit and the Wii balance board. Both the balance board and the Wii are now probably in your closet.
– The year after Wii Fit, Next Level Games dropped a remake of Punch-Out!! for the Wii. While it was well-received, it wasn’t the iconic game that the original was.
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 055 – SimCity (1989)
Episode 055 – SimCity (1989)
This week in Your Parents Basement, we are building and bulldozing through municipalities! From 1989 and 1991, we’re playing SimCity by Maxis for the PC and SNES. Joining us is special guest Ryan Gibbs from The Young Folks!
You can manually download this week’s growth-focused 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 the nifty menu music from the SNES version of the game! For a full music playlist, check out the YouTube playlist here.
- 55:30 – Emails! Cosmo writes in to apologize, and Brisket writes in about himself.
- 1:19:15 – Snifferoo. Next week, we’re play TWO classic vidya games for the ole Atari 2600!
SHOW NOTES
– According to Price Charting, most of the SimCity games available are affordable. The SNES version goes for $7.80 for the loose cart, $24.95 for box and manual, and $102 new. The PC versions are widely available on the Internet, typically for less than $10.
– Doug Bierend of Medium’s Reform had a long interview with developer Will Wright on the thought process going into SimCity.
– Will Wright’s daughter Cassidy was involved in BattleBots, running the rowebuts Chiabot and Misty the WonderBot.
– For more info on SimSafari, check out Wikipedia. And be sure to check out Gibbs’ work on The Young Folks!
Vidya Game News – May 12, 2016
– A copy of Stadium Events that a guy got at a yard sale for $2 just turned into a $7,500 sale for him. This site has the story. (Warning! Autoplaying video.)
– Someone has hacked an NES with a custom modem to read Twitter. Read about it on Motherboard!
– From Reddit, and copied to a bunch of other sites, a user has developed a Virtual Boy emulator for Google Cardboard.
ON THIS DAY IN VIDEO GAME HISTORY…
– Super Mario RPG, a collaboration between Square and Nintendo, came out May 13, 1996. It turns 20 on Friday! Holy hell!
– The Saturn was released on May 11, 1995. With its release came console versions of Clockwork Knight, Daytona USA, Panzer Dragoon and Virtua Fighter. For a good, long retrospective, check out this piece by Jeremy Parish on US Gamer.
– Six years ago on May 11, 3D Dot Game Heroes by Silicon Studio came out for the PS3. If you’re a fan of Zelda-like games, it’s pretty good, and available in plenty of bargain bins!
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 