This week, we chat with the amazing Dan Cermak, whose remarkable career has spanned key roles at Strategic Simulations Inc., Westwood Studios, and Volition. Dan takes us through his early days as a self-taught programmer, his love for military history, and the challenges of developing iconic strategy games like Silent Hunter for the C64 and other classic systems. We also delve into his time at Volition, discussing how Saints Row stood out from the crowd, the evolution of online multiplayer, and its lasting impact on the open-world genre.

Contents:

00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories
42:08 - Dan Cermak Interview

Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show:

Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com

Check out PCBWay at https://pcbway.com for all your PCB needs

Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour

We need your help to ensure the future of the podcast, if you'd like to help us with running costs, equipment and hosting, please consider supporting us on Patreon:

https://theretrohour.com/support/

https://www.patreon.com/retrohour

Get your Retro Hour merchandise: https://bit.ly/33OWBKd

Join our Discord channel: https://discord.gg/GQw8qp8

Website: http://theretrohour.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theretrohour/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour

Show notes:

Bleem is back: https://tinyurl.com/yc7cttry
Fake PS1 discs flood the market: https://tinyurl.com/csueseuz
BBC found in dump ends up in museum: https://tinyurl.com/2xs8c95s
Atom Controller: https://tinyurl.com/ydbw6fcw
Unreal Tournament 99 Intro reimagined: https://tinyurl.com/mrckwf4r

450: Strategic Simulations & Saints Row - The Retro Hour EP450