RPGFan's Retro Encounter

Mother 3, a Japan-only Game Boy Advance RPG, the final game in Shigesato Itoi's trilogy, the subject of many direct questions to Reggie Fils-Aime. We won't say exactly how, but four Retro Encounter panelists played Mother 3 over the month of May and have a lot to talk about, including (but not limited to) grief, capitalism, and snakes.  Explore Mother 3 and avoid bad crime shows from the early 2010s in the latest Retro Encounter! Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Alana Hagues, Jo Padilla, Zach WilkersonGet in Touch: RPGFan.comEmail us: retro@rpgfan.comTwitter: @rpgfancomInstagram: @rpgfancomFacebook: rpgfancomTwitch: rpgfancom

The Game Boy Advance was a huge success for Nintendo in the early 2000s, giving the world five Pokemon games, three Fire Emblem games, the first Mario & Luigi RPG, and so much more.  Four Retro Encounter panelists gab GBA on today's episode of Retro Encounter! Listen to us discuss all the Game Boy Advance games under the sun, especially because Boktai needs to be played in sunlight.  Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Pete Leavitt, Leona McCallum, Tina OlahGet in Touch: RPGFan.comEmail us: retro@rpgfan.comTwitter: @rpgfancomInstagram: @rpgfancomFacebook: rpgfancomTwitch: rpgfancomThis Episode's Related Links: RPGFan's Game Boy Advance Reviews

Is Final Fantasy VII Remake the most-anticipated RPG in history?  Are the character portrayals up to high fan expectations? Was the combat too opaque? Why is it called Final Fantasy VII Remake without clarifying that the game is releasing in multiple parts? All of these questions and more, asked and anwered by a mostly-positive somewhat-frustrated team of Retro Encounter panelists.  Spoilers abound in a very special Remake Retro Encounter!   Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Alana Hagues, Jo Padilla, Peter Triezenberg, Zach WilkersonGet in Touch:Email us: retro@rpgfan.comTwitter: @rpgfancomRelated Links:RPGFan.comFinal Fantasy VII Remake ReviewFeature: Memories of Midgar: Our Favorite Moments from the Mechanical Metropolis of Final Fantasy VII

The panelists of Retro Encounter are stuck at home, and at least four of them decided to watch the Castlevania animated series available on Netflix.  The cartoon is loosely based on the events of Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse and Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, and our podcast is loosely based on the concept of discussing video games and related topics that interest us.  This counts.  Is the Castlevania animated series bloody awesome or does it pale in comparison to the games that inspired it?  Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Patrick Gann, Alana Hagues, Zach WilkersonGet in Touch:Email us: retro@rpgfan.comTwitter: @rpgfancomRelated Links:RPGFan.com

Aurora borealis? At this time of day? Localized entirely in the Freil Empire? Yes! But all our panelists had to wait until the World of Evil near the end of the game to see it.  And in many ways, it is a riveting, yet quickly escalating conclusion as we make our way through the second half of this older Quintet GEM. Listen on to hear us wax poetical about the fleeting nature of existence when we visit the Mountain of Souls, ponder Dr. Leo's motives and...whatever's going on in his lab, and finally uncover the truth about King Magridd (jury's out on whether he's actually a good king). Oh, and then there's settling the score with Deathtoll and finding out what happens when your divinely mandated objectives are met but you still rather like humanity.  Featuring: Hilary Andreff, Greg Delmage, Kyle Seeley, Mike SalbatoGet in Touch:Email us: retro@rpgfan.comTwitter: @rpgfancomRelated Links:RPGFan.comRPGFan: Soul Blazer ReviewRetro Encounter Episode 5-1: Terranigma Part IRetro Encounter Episode 5-2: Terranigma Part IIRetro Encounter Episode 5-3: Terranigma Part III

The group hunts out monster lairs around the globe to some amazing slap-bass tunes as they discuss the very well-received early Quintet RPG Soul Blazer...and discover the importance of waiting at the title screen for game intros on some of those old titles. This segment of our divinely inspired adventure covers up through St. Elles (the third area of the world), but it still includes a range of unique creatures, such as talking elevators and rafts, goats musing on the nature of reincarnation, and a rather inept mill owner. Does Blazer's journey through the empire hold up? How does one blaze a soul? Or is it BLADE a soul? Find out this and more, and don't forget to tune in for Part 2 as well, because you know you want to see what happens when you reverse a bargain with Deathtoll.Featuring: Hilary Andreff, Greg Delmage, Mike Salbato, Kyle Seeley

Retro Encounter is a little more serious than usual this week, as five panelists discuss video games as escapism, video game characters with whom we identify, and specific emotional attachments to video games, in the context of mental health and self-care. It's an episode full of personal stories and serious topics, and about how video games can be rewarding in ways other than simple fun. Featuring: Hilary Andreff, Lucy Gray, Alana Hagues, Jo Padilla, Zach Wilkerson

Retro Encounter wraps on Tokyo Mirage Sessions FE with a discussion on the game's second half, including standoffish new co-workers, tokusatsu superheroes, and whatever the hell The Opera of Light is supposed to be.Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Nathan Lee

Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE sounds like a fever dream. Atlus makes another RPG about teens saving the world from extra-dimensional shadows by teaming up with spirits, except all of the shadows and spirits are Fire Emblem characters and all of the teens are pop stars? Two Retro Encounter panelists dissect and celebrate the Mad Libs weirdness of one of the Wii U's signature RPGs. Also that's a musical sharp sign and not a hashtag.Featuring: Michael Sollosi, Nathan Lee

The spice must flow! Retro Encounter once again muses on the hypothetical and the unlikely in our second Adaptations episode! What movies, books, and TV shows would Peter, Tina, and Audra like to see turned into video games, and how would we go about it? All I know is that I'm kicking myself for not mentioning Tron. Featuring: Peter Triezenberg, Audra Bowling, Tina Olah