Bob and I recently braved the frozen hell of a Milwaukee springtime blizzard in order to hang out at Midwest Gaming Classic, and we have the audio documentary proof of our madness. This week's episode was recorded entirely at MCG a few weeks ago, and it consists of two different segments. First, I chat with Kevin Bunch (producer of Atari Archive) and Brian Clark (boss of One Million Power) about the short and small life of the Atari 7800, a nice little console that deserved better than it got. Then, we go live to the convention floor to explore the backstory to the 7800 as both Bob and Atari history expert Marty Goldberg (co-author of Business is Fun) delve into the "Atari crash" and discuss why it's not really fair to pin that whole affair entirely on Atari. It's kind-hearted revisionism at its best!
The audio quality in the first half of this episode is, of course, much cleaner than the live material. Hopefully, though, you'll find both conversations equally enthralling. The discrepancy in audio quality does account for the slightly reversed order of this episode, though. It would make a little more sense to hear the Atari crash commentary first, then move into the impact it had on the 7800… but I realize some people have trouble stomaching live audio, and I didn't want people to bounce off this episode under the assumption it was going to sound like that all the way through. Anyway, enjoy!
Retronauts Episode 150
Atari: The 7800 and the raw deal
MP3, 59.8 MB | 2:01:53
Direct download | Retronauts on iTunes | Retronauts at PodcastOne
Episode description: A two-parter from Midwest Gaming Classic 2018. First, Kevin Bunch and Brian Clark talk the history of Atari 7800 with Jeremy. Then, as a backup, Marty Goldberg (and Bob!) join Jeremy and Kevin to explain how the Atari Crash wasn't totally Atari's fault.
This week's music comes from a variety of games that appeared on Atari 7800 (though the music itself mostly comes from versions adjacent to the 7800, usually C64 or Atari 8-bit computers). Think Commando, Ikari Warriors, that sort of thing.