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Retro XP

@retroxp.bsky.social

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The retro video games newsletter of @marcnormandin.bsky.social https://retroxp.beehiiv.com/

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · 4d

Kicking off a new column at Retro XP, where a guest author — in this month's case,
@kimimithegameeatingshemonster.com
— pops in to say hello and write about a game they want to share with you. First up, the 3D Sonic game on the Sega Saturn that we *did* get, even if it wasn't what was expected.

Guest Feature: Sonic R

Super Sonic racing... on foot!

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Marc Normandin @marcnormandin.bsky.social · 11d

Capping off my month of Playstation 30th anniversary coverage with R4: Ridge Racer Type 4. It's the last of the series released on the original Playstation, the console that was as successful out of the gate as it was because Namco brought Ridge Racer to the launch party in the first place.

30 years of the Playstation: R4: Ridge Racer Type 4

Ridge Racer bids farewell to the Playstation it helped to launch with one of its all-time greats.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · 11d

R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 pulled together elements of everything Namco had been doing with Ridge Racer games to that point, showed off fantastic handling and visual style, added a fleshed out grand prix story mode, and dropped an all-timer soundtrack on top of it all. One of the Playstation's greats.

30 years of the Playstation: R4: Ridge Racer Type 4

Ridge Racer bids farewell to the Playstation it helped to launch with one of its all-time greats.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · 14d

Namco Museum, like the Playstation itself, celebrates 30 years this year. And the series was never better than on the console it got its start on, thanks to Namco actually leaning on the "museum" concept as more than something to put in the title.

30 years of the Playstation: Namco Museum

The start of a vital trend, and Namco has arguably never done it better than on the Playstation.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · 17d

The DS and Wii entry in the Geometry Wars series, Galaxies, deserves your attention (and a modern release, too).

Retro spotlight: Geometry Wars: Galaxies

The Wii and DS got their own Geometry Wars entries back in 2007, which to this day remain the only Nintendo system releases in the franchise.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · 22d

Thanks!

Reposted by Retro XP

Marc Normandin @marcnormandin.bsky.social · 22d

I just want all of you to play Baroque, a true all-timer

30 years of the Sega Saturn: Baroque

Baroque is a horror-themed roguelike dungeon-crawler, and its finest form was stuck on the Sega Saturn in Japan for decades.

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Marc Normandin @marcnormandin.bsky.social · 25d

Descent released on MS-DOS in 1994 as the first "true 3D" first-person shooter, and the game that popularized six degrees of freedom in movement (and made some people nauseous because of it). That it could run on the Playstation as well as it did, and control as well as it did, was mind-blowing.

30 years of the Playstation: Descent

The first true 3D first-person shooter showed off the actual power of the Playstation.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · 25d

Descent is a vital game in the 3D space, not just in general, but also because it ran and played so well on the Playstation in your living room. If the cheaper 3D console out there could run something this well, then the era of polygon-powered platforms was truly here to replace faux 3D.

30 years of the Playstation: Descent

The first true 3D first-person shooter showed off the actual power of the Playstation.

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Marc Normandin @marcnormandin.bsky.social · 29d

While you're trying not to post anything that will be used against you as you stand in front of a tribunal, you could read my latest for Endless Mode, on a whole bunch of Playstation games that should be re-released in the present (or released in North America for the first time!)

Endless Mode @endlessmode.bsky.social · 29d

The original Playstation hit American shelves 30 years ago this week. Many of its best games have basically been playable ever since, but there are some greats in desperate need of a rerelease--including these 13 games. www.endlessmode.com/video-games/...

The Original Playstation Is 30. It's Well Past Time to Rerelease These 13 Games.

Happy birthday, Playstation. We wish we could celebrate by playing these 13 games, but they'd have to be rereleased first.

www.endlessmode.com

Reposted by Retro XP

Marc Normandin @marcnormandin.bsky.social · Sep 9

Happy 30th to the Playstation, I'm covering it all month at @retroxp.bsky.social and have an @endlessmode.bsky.social piece going up tomorrow on a bunch of its games, but for today please enjoy my look from last year at Jumping Flash!, the first 3D platformer and a Sony classic.

Retro spotlight: Jumping Flash!

The first 3D platformer was something of a Playstation tech demo, but also a ton of fun in its own right.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Sep 8

Gradius Gaiden was a Playstation original, a side story for the Gradius series made by a team at Konami besides the core developers, and the result was the best Gradius to that point — and maybe since, too. Unlike so many Playstation games, the focus here wasn't on polygons, but incredible sprites.

30 years of the Playstation: Gradius Gaiden

Gradius found balance on the Playstation, even if North America didn't find out for years.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Sep 8

Gradius Gaiden was a Playstation original, a side story for the Gradius series made by a team at Konami besides the core developers, and the result was the best Gradius to that point — and maybe since, too. Unlike so many Playstation games, the focus here wasn't on polygons, but incredible sprites.

30 years of the Playstation: Gradius Gaiden

Gradius found balance on the Playstation, even if North America didn't find out for years.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Sep 1

The Playstation did not start out with a dual-analog controller, as North America would have to wait until 1998 for the arrival of the DualShock. And then another year and change before the first-ever game to require it: the joyful 3D platformer that has you traveling through time, Ape Escape.

30 years of the Playstation: Ape Escape

Sony's and the Playstation's first attempt at a world that required analog sticks is still a joy to play.

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Marc Normandin @marcnormandin.bsky.social · Sep 1

September marks 30 years of the Playstation in North America, so I'm going to spend this month looking at games on the system that played a vital role in its success or influence in one way or another. First up, Ape Escape, which is also a way to talk about the DualShock and dual-analog controllers.

30 years of the Playstation: Ape Escape

Sony's and the Playstation's first attempt at a world that required analog sticks is still a joy to play.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Sep 1

The Playstation did not start out with a dual-analog controller, as North America would have to wait until 1998 for the arrival of the DualShock. And then another year and change before the first-ever game to require it: the joyful 3D platformer that has you traveling through time, Ape Escape.

30 years of the Playstation: Ape Escape

Sony's and the Playstation's first attempt at a world that required analog sticks is still a joy to play.

retroxp.beehiiv.com

Reposted by Retro XP

Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Aug 26

That's right.

40 years of Bomberman: The versatility of Bomberman

It's easy to forget now, since Konami has focused on multiplayer arena games, but Bomberman used to be Hudson Soft's Mario, meaning, anything they needed him to be.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Aug 26

That's right.

40 years of Bomberman: The versatility of Bomberman

It's easy to forget now, since Konami has focused on multiplayer arena games, but Bomberman used to be Hudson Soft's Mario, meaning, anything they needed him to be.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Aug 26

Thank you!

Reposted by Retro XP

Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Aug 22

The first Shiren the Wanderer game is actually the second Mystery Dungeon game, made by Chunsoft because they wanted a game free from licensing issues and established characters and worlds. It didn't release in North America until 2008, 13 years after its original date, and hasn't been seen since.

Re-release this: Shiren the Wanderer

Shiren the Wanderer is bigger than its ever been, so why isn't the first game in the series available anywhere in 2025?

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Aug 22

The first Shiren the Wanderer game is actually the second Mystery Dungeon game, made by Chunsoft because they wanted a game free from licensing issues and established characters and worlds. It didn't release in North America until 2008, 13 years after its original date, and hasn't been seen since.

Re-release this: Shiren the Wanderer

Shiren the Wanderer is bigger than its ever been, so why isn't the first game in the series available anywhere in 2025?

retroxp.beehiiv.com

Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Aug 21

Phantasy Star is a vital RPG from the 8-bit era, and one that, thanks to its Sega Ages treatment, is worth your time today, even if you're the kind of person who shies away from this era of role-playing game. Especially if, really.

Retro Spotlight: Phantasy Star

The original Phantasy Star is very much an old-school JRPG even in its more updated forms, but it remains a piece of genre history worth experiencing.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Aug 19

There aren't that many Fantasy Zone games, but that's fine. Sega nailed it the first time around, anyway.

XP Arcade: Fantasy Zone

A foundational title from 1986 that still plays (and looks) like a dream.

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Marc Normandin @marcnormandin.bsky.social · Aug 18

It took until 2025 for Night Striker to receive an official, uncompromised port to North America, but it's not too late to discover a Super Scaler classic. Taito focused Night Striker exclusively on Japan for 36 years, but now it's on Switch and Steam in the present: here's why you should care

Past meets present: Night Striker

Finally, after 36 years, a worthy version of 1989 arcade classic Night Striker has been released internationally.

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Retro XP @retroxp.bsky.social · Aug 13

For years and years, hardware differences in different consoles and computers played a major role in what games even sounded like, and since Ys I & II were ported again and again and for decades, it can be used as a lens through which to view these differences and changes over time.

The music of Ys I & II

An incredibly influential title not just in gameplay, but on the audio side, and one ported to a number of systems with various limitations and strengths,.

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