The Retro Hour (Retro Gaming Podcast)

We're launching a book! Plus. we get the inside story on Harmonix Music Systems, the company who brought us the legendary party games Guitar Hero and Rock Band.  How the company founders remortgaged their houses to make it happen, how they did an industry first and made a game featuring the Beatles music, and how their two leading games eventually became rivals! Back The Retro Hour Book on Kickstarter: https://bit.ly/3NTwV6Z The Space Bar 25th anniversary re-release: https://www.zoom-platform.com/product/the-space-bar Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books https://www.bitmapbooks.com/ Use AI to optimise and run your Google Ads with stunning results!  Get 3 months free access to the platform (only pay for your Google Ads) by using our promo code RETRO at https://myadbot.com 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 Upcoming events: Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: You've been playing Super Mario Bros wrong: https://bit.ly/3Tlts2h Saucy 'lost' Sega FMV game from the '90s is found: https://bit.ly/3EmnuK3 Resident Evil 4 item screen released as a full game: https://bit.ly/3hzMYKX Chop Goblin, retro FPS to completed in one go: https://bit.ly/3UtG8Fs  

In the first of our epic 2 part interview, we go deep inside the world of Infocom with Mike Dornbrook.  Infocom were one of the earliest video games companies, starting on university mainframes, their text adventures like Zork and Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy soon became cult classics on home micros. The Space Bar 25th anniversary re-release: https://www.zoom-platform.com/product/the-space-bar Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books https://www.bitmapbooks.com/ 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 Upcoming events: Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: Spectrum Quake: https://bit.ly/3DWCXQR Every US PS2 manual scanned: https://bit.ly/3Wxh6XC Oregon Trail comes to Switch: https://bit.ly/3UqZlra The Samurai collection: https://bit.ly/3UH1Be3 C64 accordian: https://bit.ly/3UsjRYu

We catch up with Peter Leigh aka Nostalgia Nerd for a chat about the history of personal tech, from the N-Gage to the Newton, the Atari Lynx to the Laser pen. Nostalgia Nerd's Gadgets, Gizmos & Gimmicks book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3fdqK0E  Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books https://www.bitmapbooks.com/ Thanks to our latest Patreon backers, in the Hall of Fame this week: Pascual Strømsnæs, Aron Szabo, Lance Bertoldie, Andri Byarkason 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 Upcoming events: Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: Silent hill 2 remake set to disappoint?: https://bit.ly/3TJr4mV Amiga comes to Evercade: https://bit.ly/3gE9WQI New 3D engine for Sierra games: https://bit.ly/3U7DjJT Get a better picture from the GBA player: https://bit.ly/3SGSxnJ Prototype Smashbros footage released: https://youtu.be/i3IOWaVDbx0

Our guest this week was named one of the "25 Game Gods" by PC Gamer, we chat to Bruce Shelley, who helped design Sid Meier’s Civilization and Railroad Tycoon. 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 BetterHelp - You deserve to be happy. Try the world's largest on-line therapy service and get 10% off your first month by using our link at http://www.betterhelp.com/retro Thanks to our latest Patreon backers, in the Hall of Fame this week: Liam Dobson, Gregory G, Neil Thomas 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 Upcoming events: Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: Resident Evil text adventure: https://bit.ly/3gfDtzZ Perfect Dark decompiled: https://bit.ly/3zn3C6X Brain cells learn to play Pong!: https://bit.ly/3eJWLNP Modders recreate lost Mario Sunshine stage: https://bit.ly/3CR5i9E Discmaster: https://bit.ly/3MRewaq Mario Kart XXL GBA surfaces: https://bit.ly/3DhaHIp GBA carts now run on Steam Deck: https://bit.ly/3TICI0H

We explore the world of vintage computer collecting, restoration and upgrading with Shelby from the wonderful Youtube channel, Tech Tangents. Tech Tangents on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/AkBKukU Tech Tangents on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/techtangents 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 Thanks to our latest Patreon backers, in the Hall of Fame this week: David Burgess, Brett Alexander, Andrew, Timo Haanpää 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 Upcoming events: Amiga 37 - 15th and 16th October Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: Mario trailer is here: https://bit.ly/3rQuW9g Doom running on NotePad: https://bit.ly/3es92pI Pokemon yellow fan remake: https://bit.ly/3T1PSpI Elden ring for Super Nintendo: https://bit.ly/3CUWKj0 Text adventure started 40 years ago is finally finished: https://bit.ly/3CVL7sn

We go inside Microsoft back in the late 90s to hear the story of the original Xbox, Direct X, Microsoft's failed attempt to buy Nintendo and lots more with Kevin Bachus. Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books https://www.bitmapbooks.com/ Get 3 months of ExpressVPN for FREE: https://expressvpn.com/retro Thanks to our latest Patreon backers, in the Hall of Fame this week: Bernd, The Amiga Show, Rob Hull 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 Upcoming events: Amiga 37 - 15th and 16th October Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: EmuVR: https://www.emuvr.net/ NES OS: https://notin.tokyo/nesos/ Device brings back harddrive clicking: https://bit.ly/3EoUIc8 Zelda texture bug: https://bit.ly/3ElFyod SNK VS Capcom for C64: https://bit.ly/3CCcW8S Half Life 2 VR mod: https://bit.ly/3ebHNzQ

We chat to Youtuber ctrl-alt-rees about classic Atari machines like the ST, Falcon and Jaguar, and learn some lesser-known stories about unreleased systems like the Atari Sparrow and Panther. ctrl-alt-rees: https://www.youtube.com/c/ctrlaltrees/ https://ctrl-alt-rees.com Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books https://www.bitmapbooks.com/ Check out PCBWay at pcbway.com for all your PCB needs Thanks to our latest Patreon backers, in the Hall of Fame this week: Richard Baker, RetroPassion Ltd 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 Upcoming events: Amiga 37 - 15th and 16th October Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: Blockbuster video game championship is back: https://bit.ly/3RthGlb Maniac Mansion comeback?: https://bit.ly/3BVnAGj Sega Saturn controller port hack: https://bit.ly/3LWVNcX C64 OS: https://c64os.com/ C64 OS video: https://youtu.be/MVeW2ZlV2WU Fan uses Super Mario Maker 2 to make a full "classic" Mario: https://bit.ly/3rjdIRI

We get the inside story of Incentive Software and the classic 3D Contruction Kit which allowed users to create 3D worlds on platforms like the ZX Spectrum, C64 and Amiga with special guest Paul Gregory. Paul's website: https://www.indigobeetle.co.uk/ Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books https://www.bitmapbooks.com/ BetterHelp - You deserve to be happy. Try the world's largest on-line therapy service and get 10% off your first month by using our link at http://www.betterhelp.com/retro Get 3 months of ExpressVPN for FREE: https://expressvpn.com/retro 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 Upcoming events: Amiga 37 - 15th and 16th October Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: Golden Eye 007 comes to Xbox and Switch: https://bit.ly/3UBacjc Intel's retiring the Pentium: https://bit.ly/3UvWvBS Operation Wolf is back: https://bit.ly/3xKzAZR Atari 50 updates: https://bit.ly/3xLJBWI Phantom Fury: https://bit.ly/3SrnhcN

Point & Click adventure games are going through a major revival at the moment, and we chat to Dave Gilbert from indie studio Wadjet Eye Games.  Inspired by classics from Sierra and Infocom, they specialise in the adventure genre, with some stunning pixel art and stories.  Wadjet Eye Games: http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/ Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books https://www.bitmapbooks.com/ Check out PCBWay at pcbway.com for all your PCB needs Thanks to our latest Patreon backers, in the Hall of Fame this week: Dave Moyle, Paul Wilcock 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 Upcoming events: Amiga 37 - 15th and 16th October Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: Guy completes every N64 game: https://bit.ly/3QJS7Mt  Portable Amstrad CPC464: https://bit.ly/3dmb8Hh  Wolfenstein 3D on Sega Master System: https://bit.ly/3DstMaW  Gargoyles remaster: https://bit.ly/3qFKpbG  Intellivision Amico non-exclusives: https://bit.ly/3ROOs1n  Civitas 2230 kickstarter: https://bit.ly/3S9MlVs

We chat to the fascinating Michael Case who started his career working on adult games for the Atari 2600, and then brought some of the biggest PlayStation titles to the PC. Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books https://www.bitmapbooks.com/ Thanks to our latest Patreon backers, in the Hall of Fame this week: Luke Challis 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 Upcoming events: Amiga 37 - 15th and 16th October Notts VGA Festival - https://www.nottsvge.com/ - 17th & 18th December 2022 Show notes: Rare's lost Game Boy competitor is found: https://bit.ly/3eBEMsm Microprose retro style flight sim: https://bit.ly/3D7RnxC MS-DOS games recreated in AI: https://bit.ly/3d1zaaq Evercade EXP announced: https://bit.ly/3DcN5oG Japan's war on Floppy Disks: https://bit.ly/3RxGw4v Old skool gamer mag Kickstarter: https://bit.ly/3Qzx13k