Retronauts Episode 446: Secret of Evermore
Quoth Square USA: "Evermore!"
I didn't think much about game genres in my youth, I just tended to play whatever looked interesting. As an adult, however, I'm learning that certain consoles quickly developed reputations based on their available library. Furthermore, it turns out the Super Famicom/SNES had a LOT of RPGs. Like, way more than I ever could have guessed.
This week's episode is about one of those RPGs and it has quite the history: Arriving after 1993's acclaimed Secret of Mana (and coming from the same publisher), Secret of Evermore sounded like a sequel to that game, but that was not the case! In fact, it was created in the United States under the working title Vex and the Mezmers. I think Square was right to ditch that ridiculous name, but by dubbing it "Secret of…" the company confused critics and consumers alike.
Some people love this game, and some people are outraged by it. Is it Square's most shameful creation? Goodness, no. Is it a hidden gem? Our panelists (host Nadia Oxford, frequent host Jeremy Parish, and guests Jared Petty and Ash Paulsen) debate that very point, so tune in and find out if you missed out on this 1995 American-made JRPG.
Description: Nadia Oxford time-skips through the history of gaming with Jeremy Parish, Jared Petty, and Ash Paulsen to discuss one of Squaresoft's most curious experiments: Secret of Evermore, their attempt to create a game in America, by Americans, for Americans.
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Artwork for this episode by John Pading and editing thanks go to Greg Leahy.
