The Retro Hour (Retro Gaming Podcast)

This week, we chat to Harvey Smith, the legendary designer behind Deus Ex, System Shock, and Area 51! From his early days playing D&D and Ultima Underworld to working at Origin Systems on Super Wing Commander. We hear about the challenges of designing Deus Ex, working alongside Warren Spector, and the technical innovations that made it a classic! Contents: 00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories  37:43 - Harvey Smith Interview Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour Show notes Mortal Kombat II for 3DO: https://tinyurl.com/mjf9hewr PS2 memory card that can run your entire library: https://youtu.be/mdxDRtfEXNg Dream Ride – a new Skidmarks style game for the Dreamcast: https://tinyurl.com/vnysuarv Tang FPGA console: https://tinyurl.com/pp3jhzun

This week, we chat to Dave from the wonderfully nostalgic Youtube channel Rose Tinted Spectrum.  From growing up in the arcades of Blackpool to his love of ZX Spectrum budget games, his hilarious takedowns of classic gaming TV, and why he really isn’t a fan of The Bitmap Brothers! Rose Tinted Spectrum: https://www.youtube.com/@RoseTintedSpectrum Contents: 00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories  39:45 - Rose Tinted Spectrum Interview Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour Show notes New AVGN game: https://youtu.be/ffmrpIeHLzU The Retro Tap: https://tinyurl.com/3etpych9 Heavy Recoil Mega Drive port: https://tinyurl.com/3ew6zcr8 The end for Blu-ray/Minidisc?: https://tinyurl.com/ycyerkv3 Atari Karts re-run: https://tinyurl.com/575jhu6c

Paul Carruthers, the programming wizard behind the Sega Mega Drive’s iconic Mortal Kombat port, joins us this week to share his incredible journey. From his early gaming memories and passion for puzzle games to the challenges of co-founding Astral and developing titles like Archipelagos, Paul delves into the intricacies of game development. He offers an insider’s perspective on bringing the arcade phenomenon Mortal Kombat to home consoles, discussing the hurdles of limited hardware and the origins of the famous blood code.  Contents: 00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories  38:01 - Paul Carruthers Interview Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour Show notes Dreamcast online Half-Life & Counter-Strike: https://tinyurl.com/4ajujn88 Amiga F-Zero style racer: https://youtu.be/Z9-Z79e2t_c Atari Jaguar Livewire: https://youtu.be/E1mRvi8qzE0 Doomguy swaps weapons for wine: https://tinyurl.com/ybpy399f Broken Sword for Evercade: https://tinyurl.com/3j58ftn8

This week, we’re joined by Eugene Sandulenko, project lead of the legendary ScummVM, to explore how this essential tool preserves gaming history. From its origins to supporting classics like Blade Runner and lesser-known gems, Eugene shares fascinating stories about reverse engineering, community passion, and overcoming challenges like LucasArts’ legal battles. Plus, we discuss how ScummVM adapts to modern trends, supports countless platforms, and even improves the retro gaming experience without losing its charm.  Contents: 00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories  41:03 - Eugene Sandulenko Interview Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour Show notes Capcom and Bandai Namco handheld: https://tinyurl.com/3nnvwms3 Atari handheld: https://tinyurl.com/2j95myyk Kero Quest 64: https://tinyurl.com/wnb8ay3b House of the Dead 2 remake: https://tinyurl.com/4kjjx8uc Atari prototype found: https://tinyurl.com/5xeszd5s

This week on The Retro Hour, we’re joined by gaming legend Jez San OBE, the mastermind behind classics like StarGlider, the groundbreaking SuperFX chip, and the much-loved Croc: Legend of the Gobbos. From his early days coding on a TRS-80 to working with Nintendo on Star Fox, Jez shares his journey through the golden age of gaming. Hear how he reverse-engineered the Game Boy, created stunning 3D experiences, and built Argonaut into a pioneering powerhouse. Plus, exciting insights into the upcoming Croc remaster and the rebirth of Argonaut! Contents: 00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories  44:05 - Jez San Interview Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour Show notes The Spectrum outsells the Xbox: https://tinyurl.com/tu6bu6c3 Snes version of Batman Returns now on Mega Drive: https://tinyurl.com/nupwkx8x Secret hidden in Majora’s Mask found: https://youtu.be/W1x6XnTaN28 New FPGA PS1: https://x.com/TakiUdon_/status/1877179623026397528 Soviet bots: https://youtu.be/GdLLPRsgsV8

As we take an extended break for Christmas, we're treating everyone to a FREE bonus episode of our Patron's only podcast, The Retro Hour After Hours. In this special episode of The Retro Hour After Hours, Dan, Ravi, and Joe face a challenge that many gamers fear – giving some of the most notoriously awful video games of all time a fair shot! Will Joe have anything positive to say about Shaq Fu? How did Ravi react to the sleazy BMX XXX? And Dan revisits his 1994 Christmas present and gives Rise of The Robots a proper work out, is it really as bad as we all remember? Normal podcasts will resume next Friday. Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour

It's our favourite episode of the year, we let our hair down and find out who will be crowned this year's Retro Hour Christmas Super Quiz champions! DJ Slopes from Slopes Game Room on Youtube sets the all important questions this year as regulars Paul Drury from Retro Gamer/Edge magazine and quiz extraordinaire Oliver Wilmot, take on Dan and Joe and Ravi and Ashley to find out who will be crowned this year's champ. Grab a mince pie, and enjoy! Merry Christmas to all our amazing listeners, we'll see you in 2025! Slopes Game Room on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@slopesgameroom Paul Drury co-hosts The Ted Dabney Experience podcast - interviews with the leading lights and supporting cast of the Golden Age of Arcades: https://www.teddabneyexperience.com/ Check out Oliver Wilmot's regular Yet Another Video Games Quiz at: https://www.facebook.com/anotherquiz Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour

Join us for an epic look back at 2024 as we celebrate some of the most incredible guests and legendary industry icons who’ve graced the podcast this year. From fascinating stories to behind-the-scenes tales, this bumper episode is packed with highlights you won’t want to miss. Have a very Merry Christmas, and don’t forget to join us next week for our festive Christmas quiz! Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour Show notes: Netscape: The Spectacular Rise and Fall with Tara Hernandez - The Retro Hour EP452: http://bit.ly/3Df8jnW Inside SEGA's Golden Era: A Chat with Mike Fischer - The Retro Hour EP411: https://bit.ly/3ZUWmgg Comix Zone: Creating a Mega Drive Cult Classic - The Retro Hour EP457: https://bit.ly/4g9CJGX Amstrad CPC 40th Anniversary with Roland Perry Pt 1 - The Retro Hour EP425: https://bit.ly/4g7razQ Yoko Shimomura: The Music of Street Fighter II & Kingdom Hearts - The Retro Hour EP444: https://bit.ly/4gaUMfD Resurrecting Arcades: Meet Europe’s Biggest Arcade Importer - The Retro Hour EP453: https://bit.ly/3ZOfcp8 Domark: The Inside Story With Co-Founder Dominic Wheatley - The Retro Hour EP416: https://bit.ly/3DbnAWJ Orbital: Paul Hartnoll on Rave Culture & Video Game Music - The Retro Hour EP431: https://bit.ly/3VDioBD Secrets of id Software Marketing: Mike Wilson’s Insider Stories - The Retro Hour EP439: https://bit.ly/41rXoBr Revolution in the Valley: The Birth of the Apple Macintosh - The Retro Hour EP440: https://bit.ly/4ix4w5z From Bullfrog to Two Point: Syndicate, Theme Hospital and Beyond with Mark Webley & Gary Carr: https://bit.ly/3VExjLD Strategic Simulations & Saints Row - The Retro Hour EP450: https://bit.ly/49Cnhk3 The Father of Internet Radio: Carl Malamud - The Retro Hour EP419: https://bit.ly/4ixSI32 Dragon's Lair to Disney: The Journey of Darlene Lacey - The Retro Hour EP434: https://bit.ly/3DeX4Mp Burnout 1&2 to Sonic Rivals with Joe Bonar - The Retro Hour EP428: https://bit.ly/3ZxgMdz

We have a long overdue catch up with video game music legend Allister Brimble to discuss his illustrious career, from his early days composing for the Amiga to his recent work on the officially endorsed reboot of Team 17’s classic, Project-X. Discover the stories behind iconic soundtracks for games like Alien Breed and RollerCoaster Tycoon, and gain insight into Brimble’s creative process, his experiences with industry giants like Codemasters and Disney, and his thoughts on the evolution of game music from the 1980s to today.  Contents: 00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories  44:27 - Allister Brimble Interview Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show: Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour Get 4 months of ExpressVPN for FREE: https://expressvpn.com/retro The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour Show notes: Build NES Games with GB Studio Hack: https://tinyurl.com/5ftwckcf Sega Shuts Down the Super Sega FPGA Project: https://tinyurl.com/4t649exk Kirito: A YouTuber Beat ’Em Up for the Mega Drive: https://tinyurl.com/47kmzy9u Victory Heat Rally Coming to Switch: https://tinyurl.com/53stjmvb Sony Leadership Initially Dismissed the PS1: https://tinyurl.com/467tdm5z

In this episode, we sit down with Adrian Stephens, the legendary developer behind the Mega Drive cult classic Comix Zone. Adrian takes us on a fascinating journey through his career, starting with early experiments on the BBC Micro, his chart-topping Killer Gorilla, and his work with Superior Software and Micro Power.  Plus, hear about his move to 3D with True Crime: Streets of LA. Contents: 00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories  38:38 - Adrian Stephens 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 The Retro Hour Book: https://retrohour.myshopify.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/ X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour Show notes: Jaguar comes to iPhone: https://tinyurl.com/597vdbsv Sonic 3 the movie on Genesis cart: https://tinyurl.com/yvnh8wht Real-life Pac-Man: https://tinyurl.com/5n8xvkna Codename Iceman fan hack: https://tinyurl.com/bdd45nrd