The SegaGuys RetroPod: Recent Episodes
The SegaGuys
Two veteran gamers talking about their love of all things SEGA and reminiscing about the glory days when SEGA hardware and software innovated the industry. [This podcast has now ended. Archived by RadioSEGA.]
In a series where James and Dan go through the Saturn's history year by year, we begin with Year 0. We cover everything from conception in 1991 to the Saturn's Japanese launch in 1994.
Welcome fellow SEGA fans to another episode of The SegaGuys RetroPod, and in this show we proudly bring you another WinterFest special for our friends and colleagues at RadioSEGA.
In this episode, Dan and James talk about what it means to have been "Raised by SEGA". Are you a SEGA kid? Did you live for Sonic the Hedgehog? Or did you come under the influence of those blue, blue skies later in SEGA's console run? However and whatever your answer, we hope you can resonate with our chat here.
Thanks for tuning in and for all your support in 2021. We’ve got great plans for 2022 including new features and guests. So enjoy the show, and may you have a very Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year.
Welcome to "First on SEGA", a new subseries discussing games and innovations that were found first on SEGA hardware!
First up, with the 25th Anniversary having just passed, James and Dan discuss Tomb Raider, its origins, their memories, the series' lasting legacy and more!
Hello SEGA fans! In this week's show, we delve back into SEGA's vault as we select and discuss the first 6 lost gems from our favourite company's storied arcade past that, for whatever reason, never made it into the home.
Scud Race, Jurassic Park - The Lost World, Planet Harriers, Indy 500, Harley Davidson, and Top Skater round off Vol. 1 of what will be a miniseries. Dan & James discuss the games, their gameplay, their hardware, and speculate on just why these brilliant titles never went on to receive a home port in their era.
Enjoy!
In the second episode of "The SegaGuys Review..." series, James "The SegaHolic" and Dan "The Mega Driver" take a look at Sonic R, a game that's highly divisive today (even for a Sonic title).
Not only will they judge how it fares in terms of graphics, sound and gameplay, but they'll look at its ports and how it was reviewed back in 1997.
With the Game Gear turning 30 years old this year in the UK (and in the US), Dan "The Mega Driver" and James "The Segaholic" discuss the console, their memories of SEGA's legendary handheld, and their favourite games for the console.
James "The SegaHolic" and Dan "The Mega Driver" discuss the import boom of the 90s, their favourite games, memories and their history with the import side of the hobby.
Shoutout to sega-mania.com and their excellent SEGA magazine!
On this brand new episode, James & Dan go back in time in our new series known as "The SegaGuys Review…" to take a look at the much maligned yet much loved SEGA Saturn launch title, Daytona USA.
We compare it to the later Saturn and Dreamcast versions that followed and discuss Daytona’s impact on the industry, both in the arcade and at home.
"My Favourite SEGA..." (the series where we invite members of the community to talk about their favourite SEGA Music, SEGA game and SEGA console) is back!
This episode's guest is content creator CuppaTea4Meeeee, who discusses his beginnings with gaming, his YouTube and Twitch channels as well as his Favourite SEGA.
James "The SegaHolic" and Dan "The Mega Driver" each select 6 songs close to their hearts as The SegaGuys deliver a dozen classic SEGA music tracks.
Sonic the Hedgehog, SEGA's most famous and successful character and franchise turned 30 years old this month. To celebrate, we look back on Sonic's storied history, his extensive library of games (and litany of other media) with memories from not only The SegaGuys, but the gaming community too.
Thanks to @16bitnostalgia, @ABeerAndAGame, @Hi1stTime, @DistantSpires, @stewie55uk and @gamesfreezer on Twitter for their memories.
For even more that we couldn't fit on the show, check out this thread of Sonic love: https://twitter.com/swooper_d/status/1392359300086091777
Welcome to a brand new episode of The SegaGuys, where on this show James & Dan give their opinions on the return of the greatest 3D fighter of all time, Virtua Fighter, in the PS4/5 console exclusive; Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown.
Many thanks once again to Danny Russell at SEGA of America for providing us with review codes for the game and DLC bundle!
Welcome to another episode of the RetroPod, where this week we conclude the SegaGuys "Console Wars" trilogy by sitting down with the author of the brilliant book and the brains behind the CBS documentary, Blake J. Harris.
We pack plenty into this hour long chat as we discuss Blake's gaming roots, his influences (and challenges) while researching and writing the book, delve into the artwork behind the documentary, and get the lowdown on how the SEGA (good guy) vs. Nintendo (bad guy) narrative came to be.
We hope you enjoy this episode, and many thanks to Blake for giving us his time. We look forward to welcoming you back on soon.
You can find Blake on Twitter @blakejharrisNYC.
Welcome to another episode of The SegaGuys RetroPod. In this show James talks through his 15 top Mega Drive/Genesis games with Dan.
The backstory to this show is that Dan sent James a Mega Drive as a gift six months ago and after acquiring an Everdrive cartridge, James has been playing through the library and has chosen these 15 games as the ones he'd be happy to have on his shelf if it were all he could own.
What do you think of the list? Were you screaming out at your Alexa or tearing your headphones out in disgust? What games would you change?
Thanks as always for listening.
Enjoy the show.
Welcome to another episode of the RetroPod, and what an episode we have in store for you...
As we prepare to celebrate our 1st birthday here at The SegaGuys, we are so very proud to be able to bring you an exclusive sit down with none other than the former President and CEO of SEGA of America, Tom Kalinske. We had the absolute privilege of covering a wide range of topics with Tom, from his roots in the industry to taking on Nintendo, working with Hayao Nakayama, his thoughts on the SEGA Saturn and so much more.
This episode was so enjoyable to record and we truly hope our listeners enjoy tuning in just as much. We both also want to take this opportunity to thank both Tom and Al Nilsen for giving us their time, it was an honour to speak to two absolute SEGA legends.
Enjoy the show.
Welcome to another episode of The SegaGuys RetroPod and to another in our "My Favourite SEGA..." series, where we welcome a member of our community onto the show to chat about their gaming history, their favourite SEGA console, SEGA game, and piece of SEGA music.
This week we sit down with Anthony Cox as we take a deep dive (get it?) into Ecco the Dolphin and get muddy with some classic SEGA arcade music.
Enjoy, and thanks once again to Anthony for taking the time to speak with us.
Welcome to another episode of The SegaGuys and to another episode of "My Favourite SEGA...", where this week we welcome yet another brilliant SEGA community guest to the show. It's a real pleasure for us to sit down and chat once again with the one and only 'KC', host of RadioSEGA's brilliant podcast, The SEGA Lounge.
KC kindly hosted us on the Lounge last year, so it's only fair we return the favour and have him on the RetroPod to chat about his gaming history, favourite SEGA game/music/console and much more.
As always when we catch up with KC, there are laughs galore in this one. Thanks again KC, it was great fun.
You can find KC @KCRadioMan on Twitter, and find The SEGA Lounge @TheSEGALounge. Visit thesegalounge.com for the latest podcast news and to stream episodes, and remember to check out RadioSEGA at radiosega.net.
Dearly beloved gamers, you join us today on the 20th anniversary of the Dreamcast's untimely demise. Yes, on 31/03/2001, SEGA ceased production of the console and took themselves out of the hardware business forever.
However, we are not going to mourn the Dreamcast. No, on this episode we have something different planned, a celebration of the life of the Dreamcast by taking you all down memory lane with James & Dan.
We will take you through our Dreamcast journeys, from hearing about the console for the first time, playing one for the first time, importing our units, the games we played, and much more. The legend will never die...
Welcome to yet another episode of The SegaGuys RetroPod! On this weeks show, James & Dan take another trip into SEGA's past, to a moment which proved pivotal in the direction the gaming industry would take.
In 1993, SEGA of America led by Tom Kalinske came close to forging a deal with Sony which would see the two Japanese tech giants join forces, creating the proverbial uber console and in doing so alter the course of both companies making them unrecognisable today. As fate would have it, SEGA of Japan led by Hayao Nakayama, vetoed the deal, citing that Sony were not experienced enough in the gaming field and therefore not worthy partners. The rest, as the saying goes, is history.
Join us as we take a step by step look at just how the future could have turned out... and what we would have lost had the deal taken place, asking the ultimate question: would YOU change any of how things went with both SEGA and Sony?
Enjoy the show.
Hello and welcome all to a very, very special episode of The SegaGuys as James and Dan welcome a true SEGA legend and icon to the show. Yes, on this episode we had the absolute honour and privilege of chatting with Al Nilsen, the former head of Global Marketing at SEGA of America from 1989-1993.
Al needs no introduction, his name is synonymous with the Genesis (Mega Drive), the eventual look and design of Sonic the Hedgehog, and was part of the iconic team that drove SEGA to No.1 in the market at a time in gaming when Nintendo ruled store shelves with 95% market share.
We cover a variety of topics with Al, from his starts in gaming, to his journey to SEGA, the evolution of Sonic, the global launch of Sonic 2 and the famous Sonic 2sday, the launch of the Mega CD, his thoughts on the 32X & Saturn, and much, much more.
We both truly hope you enjoy this episode as much as we enjoyed recording it and once again, Al if you read this, thank you once again for taking the time to chat with us. We had a blast (processing)! *sorry, couldn't resist
Welcome to another episode of The SegaGuys, where today we have a brand new series for you all to enjoy.
Through the coming weeks and months we will be featuring guests from our Twitter community, inviting them to speak to us about their favourite SEGA game, SEGA music, and SEGA console, giving them and us a chance to delve into bouts of nostalgia and relive some classic gaming moments which mean so much to them and shaped them into the gamer they are today.
For our first episode in this series, we are very proud to be joined by the host of Dreamcast Years and Dreamcast Junkyard, and the author of Dreamcast Years One and Two, Andrew Dickinson. We hope you enjoy listening to this wonderful sit down with Andrew as much as we did recording it.
You can follow all the people and content mentioned in the episode as follows:
Andrew - @oddment84
Dreamcast Years - @DreamcastYears
Dreamcast Junkyard - @TheDCJunkyard
Thanks for listening, and enjoy the show!
Hello and welcome once again to a brand new SegaGuys RetroPod!
On this show, James and Dan will go back in time to E3 1997 and examine Bernie Stolar's now infamous line, the one liner which shattered the dreams of millions of Saturn owners and seen SEGA's 32-bit system fizzle out in the West by 1998, leaving gamers on this side of the world without a new and supported SEGA system until the launch of the Dreamcast in late 1999.
We:
Revisit the launch.
Give our thoughts on what SEGA could have done differently.
Tell you why the Saturn very much had a vital role to play in SEGA's future, a role it was never allowed to fulfill.
Detail the games which could have made all the difference (the worst part is they launched them!).
And tell you why that infamous line was SEGA's very own Sliding Doors moment, a moment which sent ripple effects through the company that would impact it until the final Dreamcast was manufactured.
All this and much more on another packed SegaGuys RetroPod!
Welcome, and a Happy New Year to all our listeners! On this first RetroPod of 2021, James & Dan go back in time to the origins of the Xbox, when SEGA tried their hardest to remain in the hardware game (albeit fleetingly) by hanging onto the coattails of Microsoft's new kid on the block.
We go back to the Dreamcast's final days, explore the talks between both companies, SEGA's dreams and Microsoft's denial, before taking you on a journey to the present day to show just why SEGA has had a far larger influence on Xbox (and modern gaming) than many give them credit for.
We hope you enjoy the show, and please subscribe. If you enjoy the show, consider leaving us a rating or review on your preferred listening platform. Thank you!
We're back! The SegaGuys return to bring you some festive SEGA goodness as we form part of RadioSEGA's WinterFest 2020 lineup.
On this show, James & Dan select and discuss their Capcom "Dirty Dozen" as they explore Capcom's legacy on SEGA consoles, starting in the earliest days as their relationship blossomed with Street Fighter 2 Champion Edition on the Mega Drive and watching them grow generation after generation, arguably becoming SEGA's staunchest third party developer ever.
Thank you once again to KC, Viper, and the RadioSEGA community for having The SegaGuys as part of WinterFest 2020. It was a truly astounding event with an array of SEGA content creators making their contributions. Enjoy!
Hello and welcome to a brand new RetroPod, where this time James and Dan pay homage to the brilliant SEGA Mega Drive on its 30th (THIRTIETH!?) PAL anniversary.
We discuss our memories of the system, our favourite games, the music we adore, and as usual through in plenty of banter to boot. There's also (as with our Saturn special) some fantastic appearances from some of our community listeners, who share their love and memories of an iconic system for you all to enjoy.
Thanks again for listening!
On March 29th 2001, just two days before the discontinuation of the SEGA Dreamcast, SEGAGAGA was released in Japan. The game was described as a "SEGA Simulation", allowing players to take control of the company and save it from the "evil DOGMA Corp" (aka Sony), who had 97% of the console market.
In this episode, James & Dan travel back to the 1990s and inspired by SEGAGAGA, detail their 13 point plan that could save SEGA:
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Don't kill the Saturn so soon.
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Launch Dreamcast alongside PS2.
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DVD support.
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Ditch the modem.
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EA platform sport exclusivity.
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Retain the Saturn 3D controller.
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Marketing (show in-game footage).
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Don’t use advertising budget on sponsoring football teams.
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Grand Theft Auto 3.
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Better Model 3 ports (Scud Race, Daytona USA 2, etc).
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Premium & Standard SKU's.
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Downloadable Mega Drive/Master System Games + revive classic franchises.
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Don't give up!
This is our 10th episode, and we truly appreciate and are continually humbled by the amazing support of our listeners and the community. Thank you for tuning in, we hope you enjoy.
And so, here we are... the finale of the first ever SegaGuys CHRONICLES and the end of our journey though the Virtua Fighter games which appeared on SEGA hardware.
In this finale, James & Dan discuss the impact of Virtua Fighter 3 in both the arcade and the home, mull over the Dreamcast port and give their views on the work done by Genki, and touch on the Saturn port that never was while discussing the influence VF3 did have on a Saturn game you might know; Fighters Megamix.
Thank you to everyone who has joined us on this journey through the years and allowed us into their homes/phones/tablets/headphones to talk about one of our favourite gaming series ever. We hope you enjoyed listening as much as we did recording.
In this episode, James & Dan pay homage to the wonderful SEGA Saturn after the console reached the ripe old age of 25 in Europe on July 8th. The guys chat through their memories of the system, their first experiences with it, their favourite games, their most revered soundtracks, plus have the now mandatory SEGA sing song and plenty of banter to boot.
Special thanks also to the community members who got involved and recorded sound bytes for use in the show, as they tell you their special Saturn memories. They are:
@TomLeeCee, @Retro_Prime, @StewieUK55, @NeptuneVirtua, @SaturnTeamNews, @ChrisNunn84, @CuppaTea4Me, @Gothweet, and a special thanks to @Worcanna also for getting involved.>/p>
Thank you for tuning in and enjoy the show!
Welcome to another episode of the SegaGuys RetroPod, where this weekend we continue our CHRONICLES series and our focus on the Virtua Fighter series, this time looking at Virtua Fighter 2. We discuss the origins of the game, our memories of the first time we seen and played it, the key gameplay mechanic changes in the sequel, and touch on the various other ports that came after the SEGA Saturn version.
Thanks for listening, and please subscribe!
On this episode of the RetroPod, James & Dan give their reaction to the Game Gear Micro and ask how the hell someone managed to get it signed off for production. They also chat about the 'big' Famitsu story from June 4th, and give their opinions on what they would love to see from a SEGA arcade streaming service. As usual there's stories, tales from the past and tangents galore on another fun packed RetroPod.
Enjoy!
Welcome to the debut episode of our brand new CHRONICLES series, where James and Dan focus on a particular game or series and delve into it's history, various home ports, and personal experiences with the games.
To kick things off, we present volume 1, focusing on the legendary Virtua Fighter series. In part one, we discuss the original Virtua Fighter and Virtua Fighter Remix.
Enjoy!
Remember the BBC radio show called Desert Island Discs? You know, the one where celebrities come on and give a selection of songs they'd want with them if stranded on a desert island, along with one book and one luxury item?
Well, the SegaGuys decided to put a SEGA spin on it! What SEGA music would the lads want to be stranded with? What piece of gaming literature would they take and what luxury item would they want?
In part two, Dan "The Mega Driver" gives his choices.
Remember the BBC radio show called Desert Island Discs? You know, the one where celebrities come on and give a selection of songs they'd want with them if stranded on a desert island, along with one book and one luxury item?
Well, the SegaGuys decided to put a SEGA spin on it! What SEGA music would the lads want to be stranded with? What piece of gaming literature would they take and what luxury item would they want?
In part one, James "The SegaHolic" gives his choices.
Welcome to the debut episode of the SegaGuys RetroPod, where after an inspired piece of tweeting, James and Dan decided to link up and give their top 5 reasons why their respective SEGA console of choice represents the era in which the Japanese giant was at its most creative and innovative.
Here we have Part 2, with James "The SegaHolic" giving us his 5 Dreamcast picks.
Welcome to the debut episode of the SegaGuys RetroPod, where after an inspired piece of tweeting, James and Dan decided to link up and give their top 5 reasons why their respective SEGA console of choice represents the era in which the Japanese giant was at its most creative and innovative.
Here we have Part 1, with Dan "The Mega Driver" giving us his 5 Saturn picks.