Battle Circuit - Episode 135
Podouken
In the year 20XX, a battle for world domination now begins!! The last featured episode of the 4 Player Beat ‘Em Up miniseries aptly finishes with Capcom’s last 2D arcade beat ‘em up, Battle Circuit. Is this the closest we’ll ever get to a Cowboy Bebop arcade game? How did an eight-player racing game turn into this four-player beat ‘em up? Who has the worst Elvis impression? Which Capcom system had the best games: CPS1 or CPS2? In lieu of listener questions we felt inspired to do a Podouken Ranks on the twelve Capcom 2D beat ‘em ups starting with Final Fight and ending with...
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Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom / Shadow Over Mystara - Episode 134
Podouken
Welcome to the D&D world! We’re expanding the lore with not one, but two Dungeons & Dragons arcade games made by Capcom! Tuck in for an in-depth episode about the Known World, why the Record of Lodoss War is more than an anime, and the rare example of how a consultant can actually help a company as we talk about Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom and its superb sequel, Shadow Over Mystara. Why aren’t there steamboats in the Known World? Does Past Blaster really think Shadow Over Mystara is the best beat ‘em up ever? What character names are on Capcom’s naughty list? How...
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Metamorphic Force - Episode 133
Podouken
Let’s go BEAST MODE with Konami’s Metamorphic Force! It’s the best X-Men meets Altered Beast arcade beat ‘em up that takes place on the island of Dr. Moreau where everyone is made out of water balloons that you’ll ever play. Guaranteed. What were the working conditions for copywriters at Konami USA’s headquarters? How much snow does it take to shut down a Florida city for multiple days? Why should your safe search be on when Googling one of Metamorphic Force’s bosses? Which regional version of this arcade game is the best? Rob spills the deets on his biggest arcade and pinball...
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Golden Axe: Revenge of Death Adder - Episode 132
Podouken
A barbarian, halfling, dwarf riding a giant, and centauress walk into a bar. It’s not just the setup for a joke but also a fantastic beat ‘em up that Sega has criminally done very little with. Let’s delve into the history of Golden Axe: Revenge of Death Adder! Do we have a reverse Splash situation happening in this game? What was the name of that one event on American Gladiators where they put that thing in the bigger thing? How did Jarrod score a Revenge of Death Adder PCB? Has anyone listened to the new Demon Skol record yet? Get ready for a lightning round of listener questions as...
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Captain Commando - Episode 131
Podouken
Return to Metro City in the distant future of… 2026 to fight crime with a video game mascot, his ninja friend, an alien mummy, and a reincarnated supergenius baby. No, this isn’t some crazy fever dream, it’s one of Capcom’s most popular 90s beat ‘em ups - Captain Commando! Is Captain Commando a true sequel to Final Fight? What arcade board system grossed the most? Will Rob get cancelled for his opinion on a beloved Christmas movie? Do we have video evidence of Captain Commando kidnapping a group of kids (yes!)? ‘Twas the episode before Christmas and all through the studio, we...
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Crime Fighters / Vendetta - Episode 130
Podouken
Are you tough enough to take on the sleaziest underground characters imaginable in order to rescue several beautiful girls? That’s not us asking. That’s Konami trying to entice arcade goers to play their first four-player beat ‘em up (and largely failing). We take the humanic weapons out for a spin in the largely forgotten Crime Fighters and its vastly improved sequel Vendetta. How did Crime Fighters lay the groundwork for Konami’s much more successful games? Who thought it was a good idea to include some very problematic enemies? Why is this game so different between regions and...
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Gauntlet - Episode 129
Podouken
Welcome to Podouken - formerly an arcade history podcast, now rebranded as one of the vast multitudes of D&D podcasts. Let’s roll a d20, hope that our history modifiers are high, and talk about Atari Games’ four player hack ‘n slash, Gauntlet. How did a game about Dungeons & Dragons inspire this game about Dungeons & Dragons? Is Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (or M.O.M.) a good movie? Do focus groups provide anything of value? Why did we wait 128 episodes to discuss four player beat ‘em ups?! We’re going the distance with our listener questions which...
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Choplifter - Episode 128
Podouken
Run! Go! Get to the choppa! Then load up some hostages in your helicopter and take them to the nearest USPS for express priority shipping back home. In the final Listeners’ Choice 5 miniseries episode we’re flying the unfriendly skies of the Brøderbund and Sega classic game Choplifter! How did this game make its way from the Apple II to the arcade? What simple foreign puzzle game did Brøderbund pass on? Is the United States Postal Service the ultimate spy cover story? Did our special guest record from a submarine sonar station? Our questions this episode include defining some...
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Virtua Tennis - Episode 127
Podouken
Are you the best tennist? Well then, slap on your Citizen watch, drink a fresh bottle of Evian, and prove it on Sega’s virtua carpet courts against tennis legends like Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Mark Phillipoussis. Lets Power Smash it with Virtua Tennis! Wanna hear the most annoying sound in the world? Should we have a Real Arcade Wives of Podouken episode? What are our controversial takes on Pickleball and will those takes alienate some of our listeners? Our questions this episode include some doozies like asking us to come up with Podouken pickup lines and what top 80s or 90s IP would we...
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Ninja Baseball Bat Man - Episode 126
Podouken
It was the best Batman game in arcades. It may have been the best baseball game in the arcades. It wasn’t the best Ninja game in arcades but two out of three ain’t bad. For the first episode of our Listeners’ Choice (part 5) miniseries (and our 5th year anniversary episode) we’re going to discuss the most known unknown game out there - Irem’s Ninja Baseball Bat Man. How did this intoxicating combination of words come to be (and why is it so irresistible to say out loud)? Which of Mr. SNK’s kids had the best rebrand of Ninja Baseball Bat Man? Does an alligator lose its tail? How...
info_outlineLet’s be honest, 1997 wasn’t our favorite year due to a trio of horrible deaths, songs like “MMMBop” ruling the radio, and George Lucas unleashing Greedo shooting first upon the theater-going public. But that doesn’t mean the Neo Geo games of that year weren’t awesome! We assemble our 4 slot with a duo of puzzle games in Money Puzzle Exchanger and Magical Drop 3, the return of another samurai fighter in The Last Blade, and the run ‘n gun stylings of Shock Troopers.
Did we purposely plan our Neo Geo 1997 episode to come out within hours of the last episode of the first season of X-Men 97? Why can’t Jarrod quit puzzle games? Why can’t Rob quit samurai fighting games? Does this episode contain more mispronounced Japanese names than all other episodes combined?
We get asked the mother of all dad question: what are our summer grilling ideas? Join the Podouken Discord and ask your own questions, which could be included in a future episode, by following this link: discord.gg/k5vf2Jz