Back in the Old Times, Retronauts had an annual tradition: Every new year, we'd look back 10, 15, 20, 25 (etc.) years to survey the greatest gaming landmarks of those bygone years and thereby chart the course of the medium's evolution. We dropped this habit a while back (who knows why, podcasts are mysterious like that), but now? It's back, baby, back.
Fittingly, old-timers Jeff Green and Ray Barnholt join us to reboot this dormant tradition — in a slightly new form to fit the steady evolution of the show, that is. Rather than looking back at years by five, we are instead looking across decades: 10, 20, 30, and 40 years ago. We look back to 1978, 1988, 1998, and — yes, sorry, it's retro now — 2008 to study the growth of the medium across the better part of a half-century. From Space Invaders to (gasp) Fallout 3, we grapple with them all.
Join us again next year for the follow-up! (Also, we hope you will also join us for the 75 or shows that'll come in between now and then.)
Music this week comes from some rad-as-heck games from these years, like Bionic Commando, Metal Gear Solid, and Xenogears.
MP3, 52.8 MB | 1:54:49
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Episode description: We dust off an ancient Retronauts tradition, kicking off a new year by looking 10, 20, 30, and even 40 years into the past to explore the evolution of video games through landmark events and releases of bygone decades. Jeff Green and Ray Barnholt join us!