Things really fall into place when Lisa from the Geek Pop Podcast connects with three Mario-related drop-puzzlers — Yoshi (NES, 1990), Wario’s Woods (NES, 1994), and Dr. Mario (Gameboy, 1990) — as Mike and Jaymo continue their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode we’ll study how Yoshi gave birth to Pokemon, reveal Wario’s Woods connection to Japanese radio comedians, and expose Dr. Mario’s little-known original profession!

For another dose of Dr. Mario, check out Mike and Jaymo’s first take on the franchise with Dr. Mario (NES) and Dr. Mario 64 (N64) back in Season 1, Episode 6 (https://www.theoldswitcharoo.com/episode-6-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-megavitamins/).

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old SwitchAroo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠www.theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Intro  

(1:10) Welcoming Lisa

(7:17) Yoshi 

(27:54) Wario’s Woods

(53:19) Dr. Mario

(1:09:15) NintenDO or NintenDON’T

You can find Lisa and the whole Geek Pop podcast at https://geekpoppodcast.wordpress.com/ as well as on Twitter (geekpoppodcast), Instagram (geekpop), and Facebook (GeekPoppin).

Yoshi manual: https://www.digitpress.com/library/manuals/nes/Yoshi.pdf

Wario’s Woods manual: https://gameadvanceplaythroughs.weebly.com/uploads/1/1/5/8/11580409/__warios_woods_instruction_manual.pdf

Satoshi Tajiri (Game Freak) vs. Tsunekazu Ishihara (Creatures) Talk | Nintendo Online Magazine: https://web.archive.org/web/20151113010805/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/nom/0007/taidan1/page02.html

Game Freak Director Junichi Masuda On The Making Of Yoshi And Pokemon by Alistair Wong | Siliconera: https://www.siliconera.com/game-freak-director-junichi-masuda-on-the-making-of-yoshi-and-pokemon

Super Mario Adventures #10 | Nintendo Power Issue 41, October 1992, page 62: https://archive.org/details/nintendo-power-issue-041-october-1992/page/62/mode/2up

Derick McDuff of the Underrated movie podcast returns and brings Kurosh Jozavi of the The KJP Show to talk Kirby Super Star (SNES, 1996) and Kirby’s Dream Land 3 (SNES, 1997) with Mike and Jaymo, continuing their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode we’ll check out all the Kirby Super Star game modes, debate the drawbacks of Kirby’s animal companions in Dream Land 3, try to see through how the SNES pseudo hi-res mode allowed it to easily display transparencies, and reveal a rare cameo appearance from the voice of Masahiro Sakurai himself! Kurosh, Derick, and Mike also go head-to-head-to-head to see who can snag the most G from a vault of obscure references in The Great Cave Offensive.

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old SwitchAroo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠https://www.theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Intro  

(0:52) Welcoming Derick

(1:15) Welcoming Kurosh 

(5:48) Kirby Super Star

(43:00) Mini-Game Minute: The Price is Fight

(54:23) Kirby Super Star (continued)

(1:11:56) Kirby’s Dream Land 3

(1:47:28) NintenDO or NintenDON’T

(1:57:31) Derick’s Final Thoughts

You can find more from Derick and the Underrated movie podcast at https://underratedmoviepodcast.com/, wherever you get your podcasts, and on social media. This Kirby episode wasn’t enough Popstar for you? Then check out the Aug. 12, 2024 episode (#143) of Underrated to hear Jaymo and Derick in the groove on Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping.

Kurosh and the KJP Show: A Gaming Experience is on YouTube at @kujoprime (https://www.youtube.com/@kujoprime)

Kirby Super Star manual: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/clvs/manuals/common/pdf/CLV-P-SAAQE.pdf

Kirby’s Dream Land 3 manual: https://archive.org/details/kirby-s-dream-land-3-1997-nintendo

Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES developer interview – Volume 6: Kirby Super Star by Akinori Sao: https://www.nintendo.com/en-za/News/2017/October/Nintendo-Classic-Mini-SNES-developer-interview-Volume-6-Kirby-Super-Star-1298937.html

Zelda streamers RiRiYells and SSJ3Butch return to clash swords with Mike and Jaymo discussing The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES, 1991) and The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Four Swords (GBA, 2002), continuing their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode, we’ll take our first step into trying to understand the wild world of Zelda randomizer runs, try to figure out if Link to the Past is better on the SNES or Game Boy Advance in NintenDISorDAT, and the best and worst of Link to the Past’s cavalcade of enemies.

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old Switch-a-roo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠https://www.theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Intro  

(1:19) Welcoming RiRi

(1:51) Welcoming Butch 

(5:02) The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

(44:32) Mini-Game Minute

(1:01:13) NintenDISorDAT

(1:28:19) Four Swords

(1:44:22) NintenDO or NintenDON’T  

Follow RiRi on Twitch at RiRiYells (https://www.twitch.tv/ririyells)

Butch on Twitch at SSJ3Butch (https://www.twitch.tv/ssj3butch)

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past manual: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/clvs/manuals/common/pdf/CLV-P-SAAEE.pdf

The Legend of Zelda - A Link to the Past and Four Swords manual: https://www.thegameisafootarcade.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/The-Legend-of-Zelda-A-link-to-the-Past-Four-Swords-Game-Manual.pdf

Discussion Between Miyamoto & Horii - originally from Game Staff List Association Japan: https://glitterberri.com/developer-interviews/miyamoto-horii-discussion/

The Top 100 Games of All Time (2007) | IGN: https://web.archive.org/web/20080917190825/http://top100.ign.com:80/2007/index.html

IGN (2007) The Top 100 Games of All Time - Readable list | Video Game Canon: https://www.videogamecanon.com/lists/ign-2007/

Special Bonus Contest - Nintendo Power Issue 16 (September/October 2007): https://archive.org/details/nintendopowerissue016septemberoctober1990/page/n11/mode/2up

Gallery: A Link to the Past Enemies | ZeldaDungeon.net: https://www.zeldadungeon.net/wiki/Gallery:A_Link_to_the_Past_Enemies

Legend of Zelda A Link to the Past SNES Japanese Commercial #1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjpHzLYHkwA

Long-time friend Bryan steps into the ring with Mike and Jaymo in the ring for Punch-Out!! (NES, 1987) and Super Punch-Out! (SNES, 1994), continuing their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode, we match up Punch-Out!! and Super Punch-Out!! in a head-to-head bout sponsored by the Cable Club podcast. We’ll debate whether Punch-Out!! holds up or not with Mr. Dream replacing Mike Tyson, unveil the hidden two-player mode in Super Punch-Out!!, and marvel at the insane levels that Punch-Out!! speed runners have achieved. Will these two games be O.K. or K.O.ed?

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old Switch-a-roo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠https://www.theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Intro

(1:17) Welcoming Bryan

(7:35) Punch-Out!! vs Super Punch-Out!!

(1:34:05) NintenDO or NintenDON’T

Find Bryan on Instagram at bryan.s.lee (https://www.instagram.com/bryan.s.lee) and YouTube as bryanlee

Episode sponsor The Cable Club Podcast is also available on YouTube @TheCableClubPodcast

Mike Tyson's Punch Out!! Manual: https://archive.org/details/mike-tysons-punch-out-nes-hiresscans

Super Punch Out!! Manual: https://archive.org/details/super-punch-out-usa

10 Things You Didn't Know About Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! On NES by Reycarlo Abella | GameRant: https://gamerant.com/mike-tyson-punch-out-nes-trivia/

Profile: Minoru Arakawa by Glen Bayer | Nsidr: https://www.nsidr.com/archive/profile-minoru-arakawa/

Which Punch Out!!! Boxer is the Biggest Cheater?/Infractions | Bumbles McFumbles Wiki

Which Punch Out!! Boxer is the Biggest Cheater 2 - The Rumble in the Jungle - Bumbles McFumbles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_JCv-ldJXU

Super Punch-Out!!'s Secret Two-Player Mode Discovered After 28 Years by Kat Bailey | IGN: https://www.ign.com/articles/super-punch-out-secret-two-player-mode-discovered

Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! in 14:46.48 (World Record) - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOm8tJZUv9I

Blindfolded Punch-Out in 18:03.54 (World Record) - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc9XE6zns7A

Mike Tyson's Punch-Out - 2 player 1 controller blindfolded speedrun w/ sinister1 @ AGDQ 2020 [23:39] - zallard1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4HnZ4-_HzI

Summoning Salt's World Record Explained - Bismuth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STVeGPkqHtQ

The Quest to Beat Matt Turk - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBR9ypSOTGQ

World Record Progression: Mike Tyson - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bt1DFNSNbRk

The History of Blindfolded Punch-Out - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZT6JEOC3D8

The History of Mike Tyson's Punch-Out World Records - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR1r_9yiKG4

The History of Super Punch-Out World Records - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRF6LTEYLBA

Ryan (aka Warboss5) rejoins Mike and Jaymo as they dive deep into the classic RPGs Breath of Fire (SNES, 1993) and Breath of Fire II (SNES, 1994), continuing their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode, we explore the origins of the Dragon Clan, debate the merits of archaic turn-based combat, and discover the hidden depths of these two epic tales. Ryan shares his love for old RPGs and how Breath of Fire II’s intriguing storyline and character development kept him hooked. We also discuss the quality-of-life improvements in the sequel, the peculiar translation quirks, and the unforgettable moments that make these games stand out. Along the way we also touch upon Japanese toilet ghosts, facehuggers, and, for some reason, the Gilligan’s Island castaways.

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old Switch-a-roo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠https://www.theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Intro

(1:30) Welcoming Ryan

(6:00) Breath of Fire

(40:08) Mini-Game Minute: Rosetta Stone

(43:13) Breath of Fire Cont’d

(51:40) Breath of Fire II

(1:36:07) NintenDO or NintenDON’T

Ryan on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@warboss5

Breath of Fire manual: https://archive.org/details/breath-of-fire-usa

Breath of Fire II manual: https://archive.org/details/breath-of-fire-ii-us

Dragon Ball GTFS Commentary | Episodes 20-22 - FourStarBento (Discussion of Japan and spoilers): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZG9xcR5O7ow&t=7m34s

Japanese Breath of Fire II Commercial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11ieCeUa-8o

Power Profiles: Keiji Inafune - Nintendo Power Issue 220 ( October 2007): https://archive.org/details/nintendo-power-issue-220-october-2007/page/80/mode/2up

Mike’s party gets wrecked by the witch Nimufu: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Esr_L3kwlMQ&t=15640s

Mike and Jaymo are joined by Margo (aka TikTok’s Mrs.Librarian) as they go down the tubes playing Super Mario Bros (NES, 1985) and The Lost Levels (NES, 1986) as part of their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode, we try to figure out if the Super Mario Bros box art is a snuff graphic, Mike and Margo go toe-to-toe in Super Mario trivia with Mario Mythbusters, and we trace the origin of the Kaizo Mario craze back to a rare floppy-disk-based Nintendo console not released in North America! Then stick around for NintenDISorDAT, as we debate if these games are better played in the original NES format or their glammed up re-releases from the 1993 SNES compilation Super Mario All-Stars.

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old SwitchAroo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠https://theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

PS: Think you’re Jump Man enough to take on Jaymo’s Kaizo-level? Enter the course code 6H4-GWQ-SDG in Super Mario Maker 2! Plus, if you upload a screenshot to the Mini-Game Minute section of our Discord proving you reached the flagpole, you might win a special prize (if you’re fast enough, that is!)

(0:00) Intro  

(1:07) Welcoming Margo  

(3:19) Super Mario Bros.  

(10:53) Mini-Game Minute: Mario Mythbusters

(18:23) Super Mario Bros. Cont’d

(37:51) Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels  

(56:02) NintenDISorDAT  

(1:01:21) NintenDO or NintenDON’T  

Follow Margo on TikTok: @mrs.librarian: https://www.tiktok.com/@mrs.librarian

Super Mario Bros. Manual: https://archive.org/details/Super-Mario-Bros-Manual-NES-1985

Super Mario All-Stars Manual: https://bdjogos.com.br/manuais/870-super-mario-all-stars-super-nintendo-manual-usa.pdf

Super Mario Bros 2 The Lost Levels Japanese Commercial - VG Legacy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWsZCoGFLwg

Super Mario Bros. Any% Speedrun in 4:54.631 *WR* - Niftski: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Khu9BB2g4Ks

Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels Any% 8-4 Speedrun in 7:51.956 (without loads) *WR* - Niftski: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL0Lcei_nio

World Record Progression: Super Mario Bros - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdAkY7RfajY

4-2: The History of Super Mario Bros.' Most Infamous Level - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1AHCaokqhg

Super Mario Bros: The Human Limit - Summoning Salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rIJNT7dCmE

Super Mario's Invisible Difficulty Settings - Game Maker's Toolkit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkvyYTSKTQY

Kristal returns to join Mike and Jaymo for two more “street” fighting games: Fighter's History (SNES, 1994) and Doomsday Warrior (SNES, 1993), as part of their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode, we dig into the extremely French reason Capcom lost its plagiarism lawsuit against Data East over Street Fighter 2 similarities, try to determine if Doomsday Warrior was really meant as an early-90s environmental cautionary tale, and Mike and Kristal even put their Geo-Guesser skills to the test playing "Where in the World is Karnov's Winnebago?"

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old Switch-a-roo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠https://theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Intro  

(1:08) Welcoming Kristal of The Lazy Circles  

(6:39) Fighter’s History  

(30:08) Mini-Game Minute: Where in the World is Karnov’s Winnebago?

(32:43) Fighter’s History Cont’d

(42:47) Doomsday Warrior  

(1:15:13) NintenDO or NintenDON’T

Find the Lazy Circles on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thelazycircles/

Find Kristal on Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/revoltingingenue/

Fighters History manual: https://www.retrogames.cz/manualy/SNES/Fighters_History_-_SNES_-_Manual.pdf

Doomsday Warrior manual: https://archive.org/details/doomsday-warrior-snes-instruction-booklet

Twitch streamer SSJ3Butch joins Mike and Jaymo for three animal platformers, Mappy-Land (NES, 1986), Flicky (Sega Genesis, 1991), and Spanky’s Quest (SNES, 1991), as part of their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode, we also check out Mappy: The Beat, the 2013 Mappy animated series produced by webcomic creators Scott Kurtz and Kris Straub, discuss Flicky’s appearances in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, and marvel at the high honors awarded to anyone that could prove they were a Natsume Game Master in Spanky’s Quest.

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old Switch-a-roo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠https://theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Promo for Strange and Beautiful Network

(0:38) Intro  

(1:49) Welcoming Butch  

(4:05) Mappy-Land  

(29:16) Flicky  

(49:32) Spanky’s Quest  

(1:22:15) NintenDO or NintenDON’T  

(1:28:12) Hodag Talk  

Follow Butch on Twitch! - https://www.twitch.tv/ssj3butch

Strange and Beautiful Network - https://www.strangeandbeautiful.club/ 

Mappy-Land Manual: https://archive.org/details/MappyLandNESHiResScans  

Flicky Manual: https://segaretro.org/Flicky#Mega_Drive_version  

Spanky’s Quest Manual: https://archive.org/details/spankys-quest-usa⁠

The Untold History of Japanese Game Developers: Volume 3 by John Szczepaniak: http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/books/the-untold-history-of-japanese-game-developers-volume-3/  

(Post-outro hodag) I Know What I Saw: Modern-Day Encounters with Monsters of New Urban Legend and Ancient Lore by Linda S. Godfrey: https://www.amazon.com/Know-What-Saw-Modern-Day-Encounters/dp/0143132806⁠

Jordan Carothers swoops in from the ⁠Arcadiology⁠ podcast to join Mike and Jaymo as they barrel roll through the Star Fox trilogy (Star Fox on the SNES, Star Fox 64 or Lylat Wars on the Nintendo 64, and Star Fox 2 on the Super NES Classic) as part of their epic quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In this episode we divebomb through the history and impact of the Star Fox trilogy, including the groundbreaking tech of the Super FX graphics chip and the industry-shaking inclusion of the Rumble Pak. We'll also explore how Star Fox 2 languished from when it was completed in 1995 to when it was finally released in 2017. We even get a little amorous with the Arwing pilots in a silly game of “Marry, Fox, Kill!”

You can find ⁠Arcadiology⁠ (where Jordan and the Wiggens brothers play and rate a new arcade game every two weeks) on most podcasting platforms. You can also check out the ⁠Apr. 2, 2024 episode (#13)⁠ (https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/arcadiologypodcast/episodes/Arcadiology-13-Joe--Mac-Returns-1994-e2hrkbg) to hear when Mike joined the ⁠Arcadiology⁠ (https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/arcadiologypodcast) crew to talk about Joe and Mac: Returns (1994).

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal Fields of The Lazy Circles for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old Switch-a-roo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on ⁠⁠https://theoldswitcharoo.com⁠⁠, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Intro

(1:13) Welcoming Jordan from ⁠Arcadiology⁠

(5:34) Star Fox trilogy

(22:15) Joy Pros

(46:39) Minigame Minute: Marry, Fox, Kill

(49:23) Joy Cons

(54:19) High Score and 30 Years Ago

(1:02:59) NintenDO or NintenDON'T

⁠Star Fox manual⁠⁠: https://archive.org/details/star-fox-usa-rev-2

⁠Star Fox 64 manual⁠: https://www.nintendo.com/eu/media/downloads/games_8/emanuals/nintendo_8/Manual_Nintendo64_LylatWars_EN.pdf

⁠Star Fox 2 manual⁠: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/clvs/manuals/starfox2/html/USen/index.html

“Do Star Fox Pilots Really Have to Amputate Their Legs?“ - CBR: https://www.cbr.com/star-fox-characters-legs-amputated/

Derick McDuff from the Underrated movie podcast joins Mike and Jaymo this episode to try to catch 'em all on film for an a-Mew-zing exploration of Pokemon Snap (1999) from the Nintendo 64 as part of an epic quest quest to research and review every retro game in the Nintendo Switch Online catalog!

In between reminiscing about our favorite parts of Pokemon Snap, we'll also explore how this game evolved from a Jack and the Beanstalk game, what Pokemon's absence kept Pokemon Snap at only 63 possible Pokemon instead of 64, and have our own real-world Pokemon Snap showdown that may make you see the game through a new lens. It's 'wonderful'!

You can find more from Derick through his linktree for the Underrated movie podcast (https://linktr.ee/underratedmoviepodcast) wherever you get your podcasts as well as on social media. You can check out the Feb. 26, 2024 episode (#131) to hear Mike and Derick's conversation about Drew Goddard's "Bad Times at the El Royale".

Thanks for listening, and a very special thanks to Kristal for our catchy new theme song! Subscribe to The Old Switch-a-roo to get more retro goodness delivered straight to your feed! You can also join the fun on https://theoldswitcharoo.com, where you'll find access to our Discord, voicemail, and so much more!

Game on, everyone.

(0:00) Intro

(0:58) Welcoming Derick McDuff

(4:51) Pokemon Snap

(9:41) Pokeon Snap Trivia : Behind the Camera

(28:04) Joy Pros

(54:10) Snap Judgments Mini-Game

(1:02:02) Joy Cons

(1:18:22) NintenDO or NintenDON'T

Pokemon Snap manual: https://www.retrogames.cz/download_N64_manual.php?id=1090