Famicom Dojo Podcast: Video Game Soul Food

by Sean "TheOrange" Corse, filed in Famicom Dojo Podcast, Podcasts on Aug.03, 2012

New games come out every year, and we tend to play them now and again. But there are also those games that you come back to year after year, when something new and fancy just won’t cut it, and you just need a little bit of that video game soul food.

Sean and Vinnk bring up their favorite games which have that exciting spark even years after first playing them. Sometimes those games aren’t even all that good, just supremely… comforting. Which games are your “soul food”?

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Tags: DS, Elite Beat Agents, iNiS, Nintendo, Ossu Tatakae Ouendan, Ouendan

xdaniel

(First time commenting on an actual Famicom Dojo podcast here, after one or two random comments on your YT videos, so here goes…)

One “soul food” game actually came to mind right away while listening to the podcast, one I first played some 15+ years ago – Zelda: Link’s Awakening on the original Game Boy. It was my first GB game, my first Zelda game, and probably my first really substantial game; “substantial” as in a long-lasting, involving, story-driven adventure. I had already played a lot of games before that, mainly on the C64 and Amiga, but none of them really got me hooked and made me want to keep playing and finish them. Zelda LA was the first to do just that.

The gameplay clicked with me from the start – which is one reason why I became a fan of the franchise, I guess -, the characters were fun, the graphics were detailed, sprites well-animated, etc. (or as far as they could on the Game Boy anyway), and especially the music was just wonderful. To this day, the renditions of the Zelda theme from this game, as well as the Ballad of the Wind Fish are among my top favorite tracks from the series, and in their original 8-bit forms even. This game is what’s shaped my tastes in gaming, and my mindset about what makes a game truly great, if that makes any sense. And all this is why I keep going back to it every few years – be it on my original copy, the DX version cartridge I got a while ago, or even emulated on the PC or another handheld like the PSP.

Another game, one that’s much younger but again has been a “first in a series” for me, was Metroid Prime on the GCN. My first experience with it in general was similar to that I had with Zelda LA, in that the gameplay pulled me in immediately, the game’s atmosphere (especially once you landed on Tallon IV and arrived at the Chozo Ruins) was something I hadn’t experienced before, and the whole package was something amazing to look at and listen to. I don’t think I’ll ever forget stepping into the icy landscapes of Phendrana Drifts for the first time, thanks to the, in my opinion, breathtaking view in the first open area there, as well as the music. One of my favorite Prime music tracks right there, together with the file select menu. Again, a game I tend to replay every few years, and one I have several different versions of now (original PAL release, later got the NTSC version, a year or so ago the PAL Trilogy version on Wii).

There’s more games that come to mind while writing this up, like Mario Kart DS for example, but I’ll rather cut this short here (“short”, yeah right) – hope this hasn’t been too bad or long-winded of a post 😛

Greetings from Germany and keep up the good work!

http://www.famicomdojo.tv/ Sean “TheOrange” Corse

Thanks for the comment! Those are definitely great games. Link’s Awakening in particular might not get the recognition it deserves because it was originally a 4-color Game Boy game, but I think the DX version was able to make up for that a lot — as well as to find ways to get newer generations to play it via the Nintendo eShop (assuming it’s presently or will ever be downloadable, that is).

I hope you feel compelled to comment again in the future! And keep watching those videos. 😉

Œlk Stadtbahner

About the Mega Men TAS for 4 games. I think the comment about sync is only for the 4 different video feeds. As emulators can playback a file, which has only controller input saved, the same playback file has been used to play trough all 4 games. Of course, tricks had to be used to get trough the games and stuff.

Also, what kind of “2 meg maximum” – megs? You remember the Mega Drive (Genesis for you american guys) and of course, the Neo Geo.

I’ll post my soul food later.
uglyjoe

Soul food games, for me, contain a mix of fun, nostalgia, and just a “tiny” amount of complexity.

For example, I love to play Strider for the NES. It has an awesome ambiance, amazing music, (plenty of bugs…), and fun action-platforming gameplay — passes the fun test. I had it when I was younger — passes the nostalgia test. And, because you have to go from area-to-area in a non-linear fashion, it’s easy to forget exactly what has to be done to advance in the game — passes the “tiny” complexity test.

A few other ones that I can think of that fit are Bionic Commando, Final Fantasy, Maniac Mansion, Link’s Awakening (GB), and Landstalker (Genesis). I’m sure if I sat here longer that list would get longer and longer…

http://www.famicomdojo.tv/ Sean “TheOrange” Corse

Aw yeah! More Link’s Awakening love! <3

Daniel hathcock

Without at doubt, one of my favorite “soul food” games is Wizards and Warriors for the NES.
When I was a kid, my dad made me hang out with one of his co-workers kids for the whole weekend. I never met this kid in my entire life, and here he was in my room playing with my games. Well, we ended up renting Wizards and Warriors. I really didn’t care for it at first, and we didn’t make it very far. After he left, I decided to give a try solo. I really think it was him, because it quickly became my favorite game to just lay back and beat. Doesn’t hurt that the game has infinite continues either. Fantastic game with amazing music, and of course, made by Rare.

Stinger is fun to play because it reminds me of my mom and dad so much. A friend stayed at my house one Friday night, and we wanted to rent a game. I asked my parents to rent me a game, and they game back with Stinger. Again, I hated it at first, but god, that game sucked me in. Now, I look on it so fondly because my mom really tried to find something I’d like. *sniff*

Rock Band is a modern game that makes me feel good to play, and it reminds me of drunken nights with my wife and brother-in-law playing Journey. Every incarnation of Rock Band really. Beatles, Green Day, Lego, all of them.

My parents used to play the Atari back in the day. I think back then, video games weren’t necessarily something for kids, but for the whole family. Like, it was something else we could use the TV for. Everyone had something they liked to play. We all took turns playing Pac-Man, Frogs and Flies, Combat, Astroblast, and my dads game – Word Zapper.

My dad and I loved Super Mario Bros and Mike Tyson’s Punch Out, Excitebike, and my mom for some reason loved Duck Hunt.

Those games will forever be a part of me. When I’m old and grey, and I’m playing Zelda in my holodeck, I’ll still remember those simpler times in my childhood.

Oh yeah, there were 3 programmable games remember? Don’t forget Mach Rider!

http://www.famicomdojo.tv/ Sean “TheOrange” Corse

Oh man, how did I forget Rock Band and Guitar Hero? It’s too bad they really took a dive in popularity recently. For like half a decade you could see kids rocking out in Best Buys all across the US. Now you’d be lucky if you’d see a kiosk set up any more. (I guess it doesn’t help there haven’t been new store copies in a couple years.)

Rock Band is something I’ve been meaning to get back into, but the current baby environment isn’t incredibly conducive to that game. Some day! Then HE’LL be one obsessed with it. Wonder if I’ll be playing an Xbox 720 or whatever by then. I hope my tracks will port! Ah… who am I kidding… I’ll never let the 360 go…

http://regdarandthefighters.com/ VomitHatSteve

My “soul food” games are all old shareware PC games from the Dos era: Commander Keen, Cosmo’s Cosmic Encounter, Duke Nukem 1 (Not 3D!), and the original Prince of Persia (wasn’t shareware, but I’ve played the crap outta that game!)

http://www.famicomdojo.tv/ Sean “TheOrange” Corse

Do you have a way of playing those nowadays?

http://zacshipley.com/ Zac Shipley

I hate to be that guy, but “Soul food” is not what you’re talking about here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_food

You’re talking about Comfort Food
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comfort_food

That said, I can come back to follow games at any point and waste a day in the blink of an eye: Geometry Wars, Pac Man (any), Super Mario Bros 3, Halo Multiplayer… I also enjoy revisiting Chrono Trigger every few years and completing it over the course of a few weeks. Likewise I’ll try on A Link To The Past every couple years for a full run.

I’m shocked Mario never came up in discussion. Even the comments. Shame.

Rock Band and Guitar Hero are games that my wife and I desperately want to play again. We actually picked up Rock Band 3 a few months ago, playing on guitar and keyboards so that we wouldn’t wake our children. Maybe the music game will make a comeback when they’re older and we can fill out a family band.

Oh, and a good beat’em’up like TMNT or Final Fight or even just basic Street Fighter II are fun to revisit with friends since they’re not super deep and everyone my age played them way back when.

http://www.famicomdojo.tv/ Sean “TheOrange” Corse

Funny story — the moment Vinnk said that I made a joke about grits that eventually got cut, and he basically called me a racist. BUT I WAS RIGHT.

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