494: “Sonic R’s Soundtrack Has a Life of Its Own” - Richard Jacques, The Sound of 90s SEGA - The Retro Hour EP494
This week’s episode comes live from Retromessa 2025 in Norway, where we were joined on stage by legendary video game composer Richard Jacques. From creating music on a ZX Spectrum at age 11 to scoring iconic titles like Sonic R, Jet Set Radio, Headhunter, and Mass Effect, Richard shares his incredible journey through Sega’s golden years, live orchestras at Abbey Road, and the unexpected afterlife of a song that became a meme.
Richard's website: https://www.richardjacques.com/home
Contents:
00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories
54:42 - Richard Jacques Interview
Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show:
Liverpool Gaming Market: https://www.liverpoolgamingmarket.com/
Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com
Check out PCBWay at https://pcbway.com for all your PCB needs
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We need your help to ensure the future of the podcast, if you'd like to help us with running costs, equipment and hosting, please consider supporting us on Patreon:
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https://www.patreon.com/retrohour
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Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour
Show notes
Sega Laserdisc Emulation Has Just Taken a Major Leap Forward: https://tinyurl.com/yc3t492v
The Settlers II Finally Settles on Amiga 29 Years Late: https://tinyurl.com/y5xjjyvh
Modder Builds Windows 98 Handheld Using Original Hardware: https://tinyurl.com/2v7j2y37
Happy 30th Birthday to Internet Explorer: https://tinyurl.com/452j77md
Parenting Like It’s 1999: https://tinyurl.com/2etae5m7
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1:36:52
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1:36:52
493: “Flash Games Should Never Have Died” – Alex Johansson, Experimental Game Maker - The Retro Hour EP493
This week we are joined by award-winning experimental designer, educator and game maker Alex Johansson of ALYO Games. He is the mind behind wild alt-controller creations like Muppet Boxing, syringe-powered co-op games and his new Morse code-based strategy title Morse. We dive into the wonderfully strange world of odd inputs, discuss why Flash games should have been preserved, explore how gaming can reach older and underserved communities, and hear how Alex’s love for tactile play has taken him from cardboard-box cockpits to the heart of the ham radio scene.
Alex's website: https://alexvscoding.itch.io/
Contents:
00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories
43:13 - Alex Johansson Interview
Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show:
Crawley Gaming Market: https://www.crawleygamingmarket.com/
Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com
Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour
We need your help to ensure the future of the podcast, if you'd like to help us with running costs, equipment and hosting, please consider supporting us on Patreon:
https://theretrohour.com/support/
https://www.patreon.com/retrohour
Get your Retro Hour merchandise: https://bit.ly/33OWBKd
Join our Discord channel: https://discord.gg/GQw8qp8
Website: http://theretrohour.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theretrohour/
X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour
Show notes
Heretic and Hexen remasters: https://tinyurl.com/k6ueyunb
PS1 clone will also play Sega CD and Sega Saturn: https://tinyurl.com/fvd37ypa
Monty Mole games: https://tinyurl.com/mtskfsxh
AOL is turning off its dial-up after 34 years: https://tinyurl.com/4f95wrf6
40 years of the Amiga as an album tribute by Allister Brimble: https://tinyurl.com/2d4a5c85
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1:33:52
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1:33:52
492: “My Teacher Said I Wasn’t That Good” – The Story of Worms with Andy Davidson - The Retro Hour EP492
This week, we chat with Andy Davidson, the creator of the legendary game Worms. Andy shares how a quirky artillery game made on a school Amiga evolved into one of the most recognisable franchises in gaming history. From ripping sprites out of Lemmings for a laugh, to a five-minute pitch that landed him a publishing deal with Team17, plus some updates on the upcoming Worms Director's Cut 1.5 for the Amiga!
Andy Davidson on X: https://x.com/totalwormage
Contents:
00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories
35:31 - Andy Davidson Interview
Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show:
Crawley Gaming Market: https://www.crawleygamingmarket.com/
Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com
Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour
We need your help to ensure the future of the podcast, if you'd like to help us with running costs, equipment and hosting, please consider supporting us on Patreon:
https://theretrohour.com/support/
https://www.patreon.com/retrohour
Get your Retro Hour merchandise: https://bit.ly/33OWBKd
Join our Discord channel: https://discord.gg/GQw8qp8
Website: http://theretrohour.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theretrohour/
X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour
Show notes
Rare's 40th Anniversary Blue Plaque: https://tinyurl.com/yfvut7sc
Rare Evercade Collection: https://tinyurl.com/bdd3emcb
Rare Vinyl Set: https://tinyurl.com/4puzktvw
Rick Dangerous Mega Drive Port: https://tinyurl.com/ydr25k9f
Zelda Homage NES-Style Spin-Off: https://tinyurl.com/4ahudfru
Groundbreaking Game Descent’s Anniversary: https://tinyurl.com/tddfybfa
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1:40:59
491: Croc Was Meant to Be Yoshi - Then It All Changed! - Matt Porter, Argonaut Programmer - The Retro Hour EP491
This week we’re joined by Matt Porter, former programmer at Argonaut Software and one of the key developers behind Croc: Legend of the Gobbos. Matt shares inside stories from the development of titles like Creature Shock, Scooby-Doo Mysteries, and SWAT: Global Strike Team, delves into the challenges of porting games across wildly different platforms, and teases some fascinating lost betas and unreleased gems he’s been finding on 30-year-old hard drives.
Dovetail Games: https://dovetailgames.com/
Contents:
00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories
37:40 - Matt Porter Interview
Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show:
Sheffield Gaming Market: https://www.sheffieldgamingmarket.com/
Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com
Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour
We need your help to ensure the future of the podcast, if you'd like to help us with running costs, equipment and hosting, please consider supporting us on Patreon:
https://theretrohour.com/support/
https://www.patreon.com/retrohour
Get your Retro Hour merchandise: https://bit.ly/33OWBKd
Join our Discord channel: https://discord.gg/GQw8qp8
Website: http://theretrohour.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theretrohour/
X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour
Show notes
James Pond Revival and AI Campaign: https://tinyurl.com/9wafa3zx
Bitmap Bureau Terminator Game Delay: https://tinyurl.com/yry357hp
Game Gear Camera Mod Using GBC Hardware: https://tinyurl.com/msrus64r
Rare 3DO M2 Console Withdrawn from Sale: https://tinyurl.com/4z6hv5h7
Super Mario Bros. Remastered Coming to PC: https://tinyurl.com/4dmy62vk
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1:39:11
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1:39:11
490: "I Only Found Out My Game Was in a Magazine Years Later" Rob Smith, Retro Inventor - The Retro Hour EP490
This week’s guest is Rob Smith: the mad‑scientist of the retro scene. Rob takes us on a tour of his wild inventions—from a disco‑themed floppy‑disk cleaning workstation that actually plays tunes, to a full‑scale whack‑a‑mole game controlled by an Amiga via Arduino and AMOS, and his glowing levitating Boing Ball built with magnets and LEDs. He also talks about the Retro Directory, disc backup stations, and his journey from VIC 20 BASIC to making modern retro PD titles.
Rob Smith's website: https://robsmithdev.co.uk/
Contents:
00:00 - The Week's Retro News Stories
47:48 - Dave Isherwood Interview
Please visit our amazing sponsors and help to support the show:
Sheffield Gaming Market: https://www.sheffieldgamingmarket.com/
Bitmap Books - https://www.bitmapbooks.com
Take your business to the next level today and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for £1/month: https://shopify.co.uk/retrohour
We need your help to ensure the future of the podcast, if you'd like to help us with running costs, equipment and hosting, please consider supporting us on Patreon:
https://theretrohour.com/support/
https://www.patreon.com/retrohour
Get your Retro Hour merchandise: https://bit.ly/33OWBKd
Join our Discord channel: https://discord.gg/GQw8qp8
Website: http://theretrohour.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theretrohour/
X: https://twitter.com/retrohouruk
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/retrohouruk/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theretrohour.com
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theretrohour
Show notes
Atari Classics in Volkswagen Vehicles: https://tinyurl.com/wfner8j2
Paprium Flash Cart Release: https://tinyurl.com/2ucerftm
Metro’s Top 20 Amiga Games: https://tinyurl.com/ftz5y86h
Grant Sinclair Gamercard: https://tinyurl.com/nzc9uuem
Atari x Pac-Man Collection – Limited Edition 2600+: https://tinyurl.com/47ar835w
Atari 50 Namco DLC: https://tinyurl.com/bd8xczzs
Modern SNES Handheld in Development: https://tinyurl.com/45c8u3jn
Brasil