The Legend of Zelda is perhaps most famous for being one of the flagship franchises on Nintendo consoles, expanding into the third dimension and consistently innovating as time has marched on. However, the franchise has also had its fair share of exploration on handhelds beginning with Link’s Awakening and continues to this day on the console/handheld hybrid Nintendo Switch with the remake all these years later. Today on XVGM Radio, we explore the vast history of the Legend of Zelda on handhelds and dive deep into their soundtracks all while sharing our own memories of playing them. From Mike and Justin’s shared dislike of Tingle to Mike’s sad story about his grandmother and even our patron pick gets a little deep! Draw your Master Sword, grab some headphones and get ready for some amazing music on Episode 73 of XVGM Radio!
Read MoreEpisode 72 – Vanillaware w/ Pragmatik
The story of Vanillaware, an Osaka-based Japanese game developer, is one that could’ve been showcased in failure. The company’s first game almost shut down the company, but they later would regroup and continue working on video games, putting out some of the most original and interesting titles on more recent generations of consoles. Today, we sit down with Pragmatik, a Youtube game reviewer and super-fan of Vanillaware who shares some in depth information on games like Muramasa The Demon Blade, Odin Sphere and Dragon’s Crown. Musically, there’s a lot to dive into here, so grab your best swords and sorcery gear (and maybe a mech or two) and jump into the music of Basiscape (Vanillaware’s go-to composer crew featuring Hitoshi Sakimoto and more.) Join Mike, Justin and Joey (Pragmatik) as they dive intro the controversy behind the ladies of Dragon’s Crown, Mike’s fury towards Odin Sphere’s inventory system on the PS2 and…Justin audibly spots a shamisen?! SHOCK AND AWE! All on this episode of XVGM Radio!
Read MoreMarch Patreon Live Recording – 2021
Back in September 2020, the XVGM Radio guys started putting together a licensed tracks episode and noticed that most of the tracks were Tony Hawk game related. So they decided, hey, we’ll shift gears and play all TH music and go back to licensed music at a later time. And that later time, as voted by YOU, our Patron, is now. March’s theme was our first ever (and certainly not the last) where Patrons could directly vote for the episode, and since we had a tiebreaker, we’ll be playing the other winner next month. But for now, prepare to rap, dance, groove and headbang through some truly classic licensed music for video games! Hear Mike yet again gush about how great Saints Row IV is for entirely too long, listen to Mike and Justin admit their lack of Soccer interest, and hear Justin talk about his post-college adventures with band-based rhythm games, in this balls to the wall episode full of music you’ll be bobbing your head to!
Read MoreEpisode 71 – Board & Card Games 2
Going all the way back to Episode 3 where they covered Board and Card Game based titles, Mike and Justin are back at it, revisiting the theme but adding in some new twists and turns. This time around, they’re focusing on featuring video games that are board/card games utilizing gaming’s top franchises. From conversations about how Eddie from Mega Man dials a phone, to Speed: The Movie: The Card Game and of course, what the DS in every DS game REALLY stands for. Hint: It’s not Dice Suckers…you’ll certainly roll high with episode 71 of XVGM Radio!
Read MoreFebruary Patreon Live Recording – 2021
On this character spotlight Patreon exclusive episode, Mike and Justin visit Bowser’s Castle and have a focus on the king of Koopas himself, Bowser! Listen to tales about Mario sports games fueling Justin and Mike’s college/post-college years! Hear Mike wax nostalgic about his love of Super NES games, tangents about unnecessary characters in games, being inside Bowser (gross)…and a special announcement at the end of the episode regarding a brand new tier we’ll be announcing for Patrons. Get ready to feel the fire of Prog and hard rock, crunchy metal arrangements of classic Mario tracks, and….Pee Wee Herman music?! It’s February’s Patreon Exclusive XVGM Radio Live Show!
Read MoreEpisode 69 – Sexy Games
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It’s time to dim the lights, snuggle up with your favorite person and…put on some VGM?! In a post-Valentine’s Day delight, Mike and Justin have set up a playlist of games involving sexy characters and their equally sexy songs. The music choices here range from smooth jazz, sultry salsa, hard rockin’ and hip-hoppin’! Listen to discussions about hot dogs running from hungry girls, Mike getting his Beethoven tracks mixed up, plus a special call in from a certain grumpy gamer! All on this sensual, seductive episode of XVGM Radio!
Big thank you to Heather Pascale for the commercial voiceover!
What was your favorite track of the episode? Any sexy tracks you’d like to suggest to us to use? What was your favorite track? Shoot us an email at XVGMRadio@gmail.com or join in on the discussion at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/XVGMradio
We have a Discord Channel! Join us and chat about the show, share a random or obscure VGM song you love, or just chit chat with Mike and Justin about tacos! Join for free here: https://discord.gg/zWxDYfn
Thanks to all of our wonderful Patrons: Alex Messenger, Cam Werme, Chris Murray, Chris Myers, Chris Hart, Scott McElhone, Jordan & Anson Davis, Llama Adam, Kung Fu Carlito, Bedroth, Nick Davis, Ryan McPherson, Marques Stewart, MixxMaster, Brad Austin, Dan Laughton, Matthew Hannola, Jeremy Rutz and The Autistic Gamer 89. Become a Patron, get cool rewards, and more at http://www.Patreon.com/XVGMRadio
Our Twitter and Instagram are great ways to interact with us! Find us on there under our handle @XVGMRadio
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TRACK LISTING:
Intro – Feel the Magic XY/XX (DS, 2004) “Love Scene” Mariko Nanba
1 – PaRappa the Rapper 2 (PS2, 2002) “Romantic Love” Masaya Matsuura, Yoshihisa Suzuki, Naoto Sugai, Ryo Watanabe, John Simpson III (as Parappa), Ryu Watabe (as Chop Chop Master Onion)
2 – Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator (Steam – 2017, NSwitch – 2019) “Synth Cult” Jesse Cale
3 – Sexy Parodius (ARC/PS1/SAT – 1996) “Am I Sexy? (Sexy Adult Boss BGM)” Kiyohiko Yamane, Hideyuki Akutsu (AKT), Takayuki Fujii (Takabou), Hiroe Noguchi
4 – Leisure Suit Larry: Love for Sail (PC – 1996, Mac – 1997) “Tasty Tenor” Frank Zottoli (Piano), Kim Hutchcroft (Woodwinds), Tom Warrington (Bass), Claudio Slon (Drums), Mark Seibert (Guitar & Synthesizers & Percussion), Al Lowe (Soprano Sax), Steve Conrad (Trombone)
5 – Hot Dogs/Hot Girls (Hot Dog King) (WIN, 2007) “El Paso Hotgal” Mick Gordon
6 – Rumble Roses (PS2, 2004) “I’m Too Virtuous!” Akira Yamaoka
7 – Mighty Switch Force (3DS, 2011) “Love You Love You Love” Jake Kaufman
8 – Steam Heart’s (PC-98 – 1994, PCE-CD – 1996, SAT – 1998) “Final Boss” Takahiro Yonemura
9 – Possessioner (PC-98, 1994) “Alisa, Violated By Machine” Hiroaki Sano, Masahiro Kajihara
10 – Lollipop Chainsaw (XB360/PS3 – 2012) “Viking Zombies Sail on Lightning Seas” Jimmy Urine (from MSI), Akira Yamaoka
Episode 68 – Anime Game Music w/ G to the Next Level
What happens when video games and anime collide? You get video games based on anime, of course! Mike and Justin are joined by fellow-anime lover and Sega mega fan, George aka G To The Next Level, where the guys really hit it off celebrating video games based on anime and their stellar music. Diving deep into their own nostalgic memories of how they got interested in anime, the guys bring full attention to the jungle beats of Astro Boy, the creepiness of Mystic Defender and the smooth jazzy Sailor Moon vibes. Plus, George and Justin get super nerdy over Evangelion, Mike questions his sexuality after fawning over Shin from U.N. Squadron as a youth, and the guys pick their favorite Sailor Scout, all on this english-dubbed episode of XVGM Radio!
Read MoreEpisode 67 – No Nostalgia Fighters
HADOKEN! GET OVER HERE! C-C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER! All of these are sounds of the arcade and fighting game scene in general. But what about the fighting games that we didn’t play to death? On this episode of XVGM Radio, we dive into the music from fighting games to which we have zero nostalgia. From heavy discussions about balls..er…ballz, Alice Deejay comparisons, to the surprising lack of memories from giants like Sega, SNK and Konami, this is an episode full of monster tunes of an eclectic nature. New Jack Swing, 90s techno, jazz and funk are all represented. Get ready for a VGM tournament of which these two hosts haven’t attended as our No Nostalgia series continues with No Nostalgia Fighting Games!
Read MoreDecember/January Patreon Live Recording – 2020/2021
Happy New Year! To celebrate the exit of one atrocious year and potentially into a better one, we’re starting off brand new….with an episode dedicated to games with the word NEW in their titles! This was an eclectic retro mix of bombastic orchestral tracks, funky jazz, new jack swing bass lines, and some worldly music too! All music from a wide assortment of video game generations. Enjoy the last and first live show from 2020 and 2021!
Read MoreEpisode 66: Amiga Spotlight w/ NikoTengoku
New Year, New Niko Episode! 2020 was a rough year on all of us, but before it got out of hand, Niko had stopped by for an episode in January and there was discussion at the end of that episode to cover Amiga the next time he stopped by. We didn’t forget his suggestion, and so this episode of XVGM Radio sees the NikoTengoku himself is back with a slew of amazing Amiga tracks that will melt faces! Mike and Justin add some goody goody BASS to the mix, Justin’s eyeballs get threatened while he dreams about freshly squeezed apple juice and the boys crack up about hilariously bad cutscene art from Thunder Jaws, all on this absolutely hysterical episode of XVGM Radio!
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