Podouken

Pull a stool up to the bar and prepare to be overpoured as we talk about Bally Midway's ode to the service industry, Tapper.

Who was actually behind this strategic bartending simulator? How did a marketing opportunity lead to a lot of bad PR? Exactly who is this overworked bartender? How did Yakity-Yak Talking Teeth lead to Wacko, Timber, and Journey (and even to Golden Tee and Street Fighter: The Movie)?

Plus plenty of chit-chat like a cautionary tale about clearing your Game Boy camera's memory before selling it, rocking out to some Clown Core, reminiscing about being tricked into learning stuff when playing Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, and discussing the love letter to 90s beat 'em ups that is TMNT Shredder's Revenge.

Welcome to the beginning of the Blue Collar miniseries that explores the ordinary and dependable workers who somehow become the hero of their own arcade game. So it's time to pop some Pookas, fry some Fygars, and eat some dirt with everyone's favorite divorcé, Dig Dug.Is it ethical to euthanize nuisance animals from your garden by any means necessary? What did Namco's writers have against Taizo Hori? How much did Atari bank by licensing this strategic digging game?We also perform at 23andMe on Grimace, peddle some bootleg medical equipment, explore Jarrod's love for vicious ladybugs, and let the hate flow through us while discussing the Obi-Wan Kenobi series (caution: may contain minor spoilers).

We're out of continues on the Nintendo Life miniseries so let's end with a C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER! What happens when some of the top 90s arcade companies come together to make a game through brute force? We get the Killer Instinct.How did Jurassic Park lead into Nintendo's Donkey Kong Country? What role did a small English village with a population of 850 people play in giving us some arcade classics? Why are there attempts at throat singing in this episode? How did MIPS lead to MIRT and give Mario an even bigger head?We trace the origins of overpromising with a project that sees reality, but not quite in the way it was promised. Also a big thanks to our corporate sponsor UltraTech who promises to teach PastBlaster how to beat the orange car in R.C. Pro-Am in exchange for an ad read.

In this very nice episode we discuss the classic Irem shooter that became known as the last dedicated Nintendo arcade released in the States all thanks to Kung Fu - the tubular R-Type.How did a dung beetle become the main inspiration for this STG? Is this the last episode of our Nintendo Life miniseries? Why did Irem design a level specifically to get the player to give up? Is a hotdog a sandwich?So follow along with ya boyz by smashing that subscribe button and ringing that bell as we talk about childhood memories of Mr. Goodburger, Rob not knowing the difference between Metal Slug and Metal Gear Solid, the best breakfast cereal, Adam getting upset about hitboxes, and discovering the meaning of a Tokyo phone book.

Unlike the PlayChoice-10 we won't charge you a quarter for every 300 seconds that you listen (which would be about $11.00 for this episode) but we sure will talk about it and the SNES counterpart - the Nintendo Super System.What was the best PlayChoice-10 game released each year? Was the Super System the perfect arcade to be featured in Bayside High's The Max? Why does Jarrod hate Nintendo arcades? How did the 1989 Fred Savage star vehicle, The Wizard, lie to us?We unravel the maybe mythical mystery of David Crane and his amazing tennis game, pick which Disney ride to die on, define the differences between the California and Florida versions of Sunny D, and talk the most annoying callouts in pinball.