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4 weeks ago | 
rpgfan.com | Zach Wilkerson |Paul Skevington |Lucas Greene |Ben Love
Article / Highlight · Podcast · Retro Encounterby , , and on March 27, 2025I wanna be an RPG fan when I grow up. This week on Retro Encounter we gather to discuss the RPGs that defined our taste. Not necessarily our favorites, but games that helped us understand what we value in an RPG or in games in general. Does Final Fantasy show up? Who likes the most obscure Metroidvanias? Who surprises the host with their love for racing games?
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Oct 28, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Jonathan Logan |Ben Love |Audra Bowling
Article / Highlight · Podcast · Random Encounter by , and on October 28, 2024 On this episode of Random Encounter, we have another two GOTY contenders for you! First up is Dragon Age: The Veilguard, the first new Dragon Age entry in a decade! After BioWare’s last two flops, they desperately needed a win, and it certainly sounds like they got one with this new installment of the long-running and beloved series! Audra is here to share all of her thoughts on how Dragon Age has...
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Oct 10, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Wes Iliff |Gio Castillo |Ben Love |Nick Mangiaracina
Article / Highlight · Podcast · Retro Encounterby , , , and on October 10, 2024The Leifthrasir Hand of DarknessWhen Ogre Battle retreats to the shadows, who keeps the beacons lit? When Princess Crown fails to draw an audience, who picks up the bag and keeps marching? When Japan shows a lack of interest in Starcraft, who ties the series to a tower defense game and a visual novel and waves that enticingly over the crowds?
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Aug 5, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Jonathan Logan |Ben Love
Article / Highlight · Podcast · Random Encounterby and on August 5, 2024On this episode of Random Encounter, we’re chatting about heisting steam-powered robots and the foggiest post-apocalyptic city you’ve ever seen. First up, Ben embraces his inner robot pirate with the sequel to 2015’s TRPG, Steamworld Heist, Steamworld Heist II.
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Aug 4, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Audra Bowling |Gio Castillo |Kyle Cantelon |Ben Love
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Aug 1, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Ben Love
When SteamWorld Heist first came out in 2015 on the 3DS, I was blown away by how inventive and polished the game was. Capitalizing on the surprise success of SteamWorld Dig and the renewed interest in turn-based strategy games driven by the revival of XCOM, the small team at Image & Form (now Thunderful) delivered Steamworld Heist, a unique side-scrolling twist on the genre where your aim and positioning matter more than stats and percentages.
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Jul 20, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Ben Love
The mid-to-late ’90s are by far the peak of creativity and ingenuity for legendary development house Squaresoft. Buoyed by Final Fantasy VII‘s success on the PlayStation in 1997, Squaresoft created a wide range of experimental titles for the platform, blending genres like survival-horror (Parasite Eve), 3D platforming (Brave Fencer Musashi), and even shooting games (Einh√§nder) with refined RPG mechanics, resulting in some of the most inventive games ever released.
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Jul 17, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Zach Wilkerson |Ben Love |Mike Salbato |Jimmy Turner
A lot of people will point to the Super Nintendo or the PS1 as the “Golden Era” of RPGs, and there’s certainly something to that. But the PS4 is full of so many excellent RPGs, and they run the gamut between big budget, AAA titles, smaller AA titles, and indie darlings that took the genre in unexpected directions. With the PS4 presumably coming to the end of its lifespan, we decided it was time to honor the deep and varied lineup the console brought us.
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Jul 3, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Zach Wilkerson |Ben Love |Claton Stevenson
My first impressions of Grandia II was initially to cringe, particularly at the abrasive and often misogynistic sass coming out of main protagonist Ryudo’s mouth. Thankfully, though, Ryudo is quickly given opportunities to soften and grow, as the narrative reveals more about his life and relationship to the conflict between Valmar and Granas. I enjoyed the good vs. evil love triangle between Ryudo, Elena and Millenia, but always had my money on the perky succubus.
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Jun 27, 2024 | 
rpgfan.com | Zach Wilkerson |Ben Love |Claton Stevenson
Article / Highlight · Podcast · Retro Encounterby , and on June 27, 2024Deep fried Retro!This week we get the panelists back together to chat about the second half of Grandia II. Listen in while we talk about late game changes in tone, how well the pacing holds up, and if Ryudo is still endlessly hilarious.
