RPGaymer

This year marks Earthbound's 30th birthday! Celebrate with us as we discuss what made this game a one-of-a-kind experience with our newest cohost, Zac! Also, be sure to check out our video on whether Earthbound is still worth playing today: https://youtu.be/wrU81DGdHOc?si=LS6WP-ZAq1alp2mo

The DS duo of the Fire Emblem series are quite the contentious pairing. Not only did they suffer as lackluster retellings of the beginning of the series, but only one of them was released globally. However, these games do have some redeeming qualities and are a relatively fun, if not overly simple, way to experience the series' origins.

We made sure to kill off everyone else so that way we could recruit Professor Bopper and ActualLizard to talk about the highs and lows of Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and Fire Emblem: New Mystery of the Emblem.

Fire Emblem Awakening is often dubbed the savior of Fire Emblem series as things weren't looking good for one of our favorite tactics games. For better or worse, Fire Emblem Awakening introduced a lot of interesting new mechanics, like the pair-up system, while also reacquainting the series with offspring units. It's also known for its unbalanced gameplay that usually leads to playthroughs with only a handful of characters.

Come hear our thoughts on the 3DS's first Fire Emblem entry!

It's Fates time, my dudes. And it's about to get real ugly. Fire Emblem: Fates is a pretty polarizing entry. In some aspects, it's a mechanically sound, highly engaging game while still managing to be a mess of a plot.

In order to tackle such a chaotic game, it's time to bring in a little bit of chaotic energy.

Anyone else ready for the Professor Bopper + SpeedyHawk Dual Strike?

Fire Emblem Sacred Stones is the worst Fire Emblem in the series......said no one ever.

All jokes aside, Sacred Stones is an incredible entry and often hits the top of most of Emblemer's Top 3 lists.

What is it about this entry that makes it so appealing? Is it Eirika and Ephraim's diverging paths? The split promotion choices? Or just the fun, ol' GBA animations?

In order to tackle this iconic game, Patrick is teaming up with the incredible Professor Bopper (again) and ActualLizard (again, again) who is definitely, 100% not actually a lizard (or is he?). If you've never played this game, make sure you scour those used game stores or pray that this eventually comes to the Switch. If you have, why is this game so special to you?

Season 3 might be over but that doesn’t mean we’re going to stop talking about your favorite games! One of the most gracious groups of content creators I’ve had the opportunity to work with is hands down the Fire Emblem community. In season 2, we blazed through the entire Fire Emblem series, but now is the perfect time to tackle each game individually!

Fire Emblem Engage might be the most recent title but it does a lot of things right. I couldn’t possibly tackle this game myself, so thankfully, I have ActualLizard and Mekkah joining me today. Seriously, Mekkah, can you just be my own personal engage ring at this point?

It’s been a long time coming but we’ve finally reached the season 3 finale of RPGaymer. What better way to close out the season than to talk about America’s favorite pastime: RPG Mini Games. From Blitzball to Gwent, mini games have been a staple in the foundation of good gaming experiences. Sometimes you just need to take a breather from saving the world to catch a fish or race some chocobos… and maybe win an ultimate weapon while you’re at it.

Castlevania is another one of those series that has been around since the dawn of console gaming. Tales of Belmonts, whips, vampires, and crypts. The notoriety of its design grew so large that it even spawned its own sub-genre. Though the series has turned to dust, its image has been resurrected by many spiritual successors which carry on the incredible legacy. Drop in and give a listen on why the Castlevania series matters and how it has had such an impact on games today.

And make sure to subscribe to https://www.youtube.com/@ProfessorBopper

The Legend of Zelda series has had its fair share of styles, but none contain as much whimsy as The Minish Cap. MC was released in 2004 but has recently resurfaced on the Nintendo Switch Online. On this episode of Bonus XP, we go over why this entry in the Zelda pantheon deserves a lot more praise for its accomplishments.

Get your Kin Stones ready and fuse with us as we discuss how this tiny tale is still a giant adventure.

How many times have you been galavanting about on a world map only to be jumped by 3 over-leveled dragons that make chopsticks out of your bones? Or have you been in a cave where every 10 steps you run into the exact same group of monsters you just fought? Encounters come in many shapes and sizes, but true game design only happens when they’re curated by game developers to give an appropriate challenge that tests a variety of skills.
Jason, Casey, and Patrick weren’t ready to encounter this episode, so they had to bring along a 4th party member! Author of Fight, Magic, Items: The History of Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and the Rise of Japanese RPGs in the West, Aidan Moher is here to help our trio take down this behemoth-ridden encounter! Purchase 'Fight, Magic, Items': https://fightmagicitems.rocks/

You won’t need to use the boost to get through this episode of RPGaymer! Star Fox 64 is a certified banger. Nintendo’s first foray into 3D may have had its fair share of clunk, but you can’t deny that they nailed this one. It’s one of those pinnacle titles on the N64 that not only was super innovative for its time but also still holds up as an incredible game today. So make sure to barrel-roll your way into our discussion on what makes Star Fox 64 one of the best games ever made!

You can never have enough Legends of Zelda content, right? This time on Bonus XP, we're highlighting oldie and genre-defining goodie: Ocarina of Time!

Working in the gaming industry is a dream for so many people. You get to play games for a living, what's not to love, right? Hosts Casey, Jason, and special guest Brendan Hesse from The Crawl all have unique experience writing and creating video game content like reviews, social media posts, YouTube Videos, and more. With their powers combined, they bring the inside scoop on what it's like to work as a journalist in the gaming industry, how the job can feel tiresome and rewarding at the same time, and some of their favorite (and least favorite) aspects. Also, listen in to see how the group rates and reviews older, classic games. Will Chrono Trigger retain its prestigious status without host Patrick there to defend it? Find Brendan: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheCrawl/ https://www.twitter.com/Brendan_LH https://www.twitch.com/eyeamahab https://direct.me/hessebrendan

Not many games are as addictive as Roguelikes. The hook. The loop. The death. Repeat. Roguelikes and Roguelites have been around for quite some time now and have broadened into as much of a subgenre as RPGs. They are equally as frustrating as they are enjoyable (looking at you Darkest Dungeon 👀). I’m still waiting on someone to make one mega Roguelike by combining all the genres. Can’t wait for Platformer Deckbuilder FPS Turn-based Metroidvania Golf Simulator to come out. But until it does, come listen to our episode on this excellent genre!

GC Vazquez & Cullen are back yet again to talk even more about Dragon Quest! This time we're taking a deep dive into the side games, like Monsters, Heroes, Swords, and Builders. Plus, we even spill some behind-the-scenes tea about Dragon Quest's former music composer.

The original PlayStation is likely the most loaded system in terms of RPGs. From titles like Legends of Dragoon, Chrono Cross, Final Fantasy 7, and so many more, this system was known for housing banger after banger.

I’m honestly surprised it took us this long to talk about how the PS1 era was one of the most influential eras in all of gaming. But here we are, gushing about our childhood, our faves, and the endless hours of random encounters. And what better way to pay homage to these classics than by teaming up with special guests, Gaming Broductions!

Check out the Bros' productions: https://www.youtube.com/@GamingBroductions

Apparently, we can’t get enough of Final Fantasy 9 because here we are analyzing, not only one of the best Final Fantasy characters but one of the best RPG heroes of all time.

Kicking off our very first Bonus XP character analysis, there’s no better character to talk about than everyone’s favorite Black Mage: Vivi. From his adorably whimsical design to his existential character arc, Vivi is easily of Final Fantasy’s most complex characters.

With the Mario movie finally upon us, we wanted to take a moment and pay homage to this titan of a series! Mario 64 was certainly not our first Mario game, nor is it the best of the series, but it is still iconic. Mario's first foray into 3D might be a little rough by today's standards, but the memories we have of playing this game are irreplaceable.

Bad games. We’ve all played them. From the clunkiest platformers to the junkiest battle systems, bad games always find their way into innocent gamers' hands. 

There are so many ways to determine if a game is bad. Do you look at reviewer scores? Do you stop playing it once it is no longer fun? Are some of the mechanics too ‘out there’ that they break the experience?

Gather round kiddos as we break down what goes into a bad gaming experience, where we draw the line on how far we’ll play, and name-drop a title or two *cough cough* Quest 64. 

Also, stick around for part 2 where we flip the script on our usual Poorly Described game. This time we’re overselling bad games to make them sound much better than they actually are!

Yesterday, we were blessed with a 10-minute trailer for the upcoming Legends of Zelda game, Tears of the Kingdom. Today, you’re being blessed as Patrick and Jason are doing their due diligence and recorded a Hype or Ripe episode discussing all of the exciting goodies that appear in this trailer and all of the potential flops.

This trailer not only offered is a glimpse of new areas for Link to explore but also a bunch of new mechanics that are drastically going to impact gameplay. All I can say is that I can’t wait for another trip back to Hyrule and hopefully May 12 gets here very quickly!

Hold on to your job hats folks because we’re in for a heck of a ride!

First and foremost, we are pleased to announce our very first guest of the season, part-time hero, full-time YouTube sensation, KBash! Every video game content creator has that special someone who laid the groundwork in inspiring them to take the plunge into blazing their own video game review trail. KBash is one incredible guy and we will always be grateful, not only for his luscious locks or his hilarious game reviews but for playing a part in helping dreams come true!

But enough gushing, we’re here to talk about jobs and classes in RPGs! Player choice is a very important facet of gaming and the ability to customize characters can lead to some crazy builds. However, is this feature getting stale? Come gather around as Dr. Professor Surgeon General KBash and RPGaymer team up to take over the world… and maybe talk about jobs classes some too. Probably. I dunno.

Follow KBash:

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KBash

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KBashShow

Grab your D20 and your character sheet because we're playing Bunkers & Bad*sses! On this week's episode of Bonus XP, Patrick is joined by his husband Scott (awwwww!) as they recap and review their recent playthrough of Tiny Tina's Wonderlands on PS5. 

Tiny Tina's Wonderlands released in early 2022 with a rough start that made it difficult to play. Now a year later, is it actually worth playing this popular Borderlands spin-off?

What do you think? Have you played Tiny Tina's Wonderlands? 

As we gear up for RPGaymer Season 3, we decided to look back at all the  games we played during 2022. Yup, all of them.

Join Patrick, Casey, and Jason as they rewind all the games they played,  what they loved, what they liked, and what they couldn't even finish.