đŽđď¸ #008 - Nintendo Power Podcast
A big one from Captain N...
Hey podcast listeners!
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A new 30-day podcast project called Backlog Companion! (Want to participate?)
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Plus⌠kids, jobs, errâbody getting sick.
Stay healthy out there, friends, and thanks for being here,
Tom
You might likeâŚ
Nintendo Power Podcast
If yâall know me, you know Iâm a bit of a Nintendo historian. So letâs have a quick history lesson.
In the late 1980s, Nintendo needed a way to reach kids (and their parents) at scale. Beginning with a tiny newsletter (Fun Club News,) they ultimately released one of the most popular gaming magazines of the time, Nintendo Power!
In the pre-internet days, magazines were a gamers chance to see previews of new games for the first time, read reviews of whatâs hot and whatâs not, and learn all those sweet tips, tricks, and secrets to help them beat hard-as-nails NES games like Contra and Mike Tysonâs Punchout.
But the internet did happen, and print magazines began to see a slow decline. Nintendo Power magazine shut down in 2012. đ
But unexpectedly, in 2017, a new challenger approaches...
Nintendo Power returned in podcast form, described as âthe official podcast of Nintendo of America, with discussions and commentary from Nintendo staff and special guests.â
There are 21 episodes in the feed, and they typically release monthly (though sometimes the wait between is a bit longer.)
And like anything official by Nintendo, itâs cover art has that glowing gold Official Seal of Quality. Is it quality, though? Letâs see.
Runtime?
Expect the average episode to be between 30 and 60 minutes.
Who hosts it?
Nintendo Power Podcast is hosted by Chris Slate, a former editor-in-chief, and heâs joined by other members of Nintendoâs internal team. Itâs a rotating cast of extras. Thereâs a ton of variety in their roles at the company, the era of games they grew up with, and their preferred genres, which I really enjoy.
Whatâs the format?
Fans of Nintendo Power magazine will recognize some of their favorite segments in podcast form!
The Feature: Like Nintendo Power, thereâs a main feature. Also like the magazine, itâs often very self-promotional and timely. Example: When a new first-party Nintendo game is about to be released, theyâll ship an episode that spends a ton of time pumping up the game.
Pro's Picks: Chris and whoever is guest hosting run through the various games theyâve been playing! No surprise here, theyâre mostly Nintendo titles!
Player's Pulse: In Nintendo Power magazine, this was commentary and feedback from readers by way of letters. In the podcast, Chris reads similar comments solicited from the web. In the Gameboy 30th Year Anniversary episode, he digs into user-submitted memories of their first portable.
Warp Zone: Chris quizzes the guests on games and stories that were features in previous Nintendo Power issues from previous decades.
Whatâs so special about this?
Hereâs what I dig the most:
đ Itâs so NintendoâŚ
Iâm a Nintendo geek, so Iâll buy all the hardware, watch every Nintendo Direct, listen to every podcast, and if they released a magazine, or book, Iâd be all in.
This podcast is such a squeaky clean cog in the Nintendo marketing machine. But SO was Nintendo Power magazine. For a while, the magazine was the marketing machine. In that way, this podcast ends up being the perfect homage to the issues I grew up with. Itâs delightfully self-aware, polished, and promotional.
đŽ Hey, this is weirdâŚ
Last week I gushed about my love for Whatâs Good Gamesâ theme music produced by video game composer, Dale North.
Dale produced Nintendo Powerâs theme song, too! And while not as catchy, itâs a bit more symphonic and epic. I love it, and you might, too.
đ¤ Some rad exclusivesâŚ
Chris has access to Nintendo of America, Nintendo of Japan, and many third-party partners and indie developers. Most video game podcasts donât have this power!
In episode one, thereâs a detailed interview with Breath of the Wildâs producer, Mr. Eiji Aonuma, and director, Mr. Hidemaro Fujibayashi. There were details shared in that episode that werenât yet shared.
Itâs awesome to catch that level of exclusivity from time to time.
What do others say about it?
Thereâs a 4.8 star rating on Apple Podcasts out of 1.2k reviews!
I always forget thereâs a generation that didnât get to experience gaming magazines the way I did.
Hereâs a review from âBeatXAiaiXSonicâ
âââââ âGreatâ
Iâm new to Nintendo power because when I grew up the magazine ended, but I love this podcast it has everything a life long Nintendo fan could have I just wish they could start making the magazine again. I would be fine even if they just printed out what they said in the podcast and added pictures. Other wise I love this podcastđšđ
â
I already cautioned you to accept that this podcast is part of Nintendoâs marketing machine. Hereâs a funny review from âfudgestinklerâ
ââ âFart noiseâ
Zero honest conversation about video games. The first episode was an insightful interview with the makers of Breath of the Wild and every episode after that is a well produced hour long commercial for whatever games are announced or just released by Nintendo.
I donât know. I wouldnât expect sharp criticism from a company trying to sell their games.
Is it kid-friendly?
Definitely! Some games discussed are rated T or M, but the conversations are super PG. I regularly listen to this with my son, who is also a big Nintendo fan. (Note: You might not care about this⌠I typically donât, to be honest, but Iâm on an epic quest to find podcasts that I can reliably listen to with my kids in the car!)
Final thoughts?
Nintendo Power is back!
This is a weird one. Itâs not a regular podcast if you are looking for a weekly or bi-weekly show to add to your rotation. Like Nintendo Directs, they just kind of drop whenever, though (also like Nintendo Directs) you can expect them to drop when big games are on the way.
I think this is a must-subscribe for Nintendo fans and Switch owners. If youâre neither of those things, skip it!
Where to listen? Whatâs a good starting point?
That first episode with the Breath of the Wild interview is a great place to start. Otherwise, catch the latest episode to see whatâs new with Nintendo.
đ Here are your links:
Spotify (not on there!)
Stitcher (not on there!)
Do you already listen to Nintendo Power Podcast? Have you checked it out after reading this? Love it? Hate it? Let me know your feedback!
Random Spotlight: Analogue Pocket
As a proud owner of Analogueâs Super Nintendo and Genesis FPGA consoles (Super NT / Mega SG,) Iâve been drooling over the announcement of the Analogue Pocket, their take on portable gaming. Itâll play your old Gameboy, Gameboy Color, Gameboy Advance carts, and many others with special adapters. đ
Hereâs the link: https://www.analogue.co/pocket/
Reader Recommendations
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