This Week in Video Game History

Nintendo dreamed up Metroid Dread around 2005, then shelved it. Fans waited sixteen years to play it. This week, we're asking whether the wait makes a game better, starting with the Mario sequel that wasn't really a Mario game.This week we're covering October 5th through October 11th, and almost every game on the list comes with a wait attached.**Super Mario Bros. 2** finally reaches America, and it's hiding a secret. **Mortal Kombat** hits arcades and helps give us the ESRB. **Doom II** takes id Software's shareware sensation to store shelves, and **Final Fantasy III** (yes, it's really VI) gives the West a villain for the ages. **Jedi Knight** puts a lightsaber in your hand, **Viewtiful Joe** slows down time, **The Orange Box** packs five games into one, **Dishonored** lets you play it your way, and **Alien: Isolation** gives fans the terrifying Alien game they'd been waiting for. And we close on the longest wait of all: **Metroid Dread**, sixteen years from the drawing board to your Switch.Then three deep dives: how **Doom stopped being free**, how Nokia's **N-Gage** became "the taco phone," and how a **student project** became **Portal** and stole the spotlight from Half-Life 2.Some things are worth the wait. Some things really aren't. Save your game, nerds.**📅 Week of October 5 – October 11****Games this week:** 🕹️ Super Mario Bros. 2 — NES (1988) 🕹️ Mortal Kombat — Arcade (1992) 🕹️ Doom II: Hell on Earth — MS-DOS (1994) 🕹️ Final Fantasy III (VI) — Super Nintendo (1994) 🕹️ Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II — PC (1997) 🕹️ Viewtiful Joe — GameCube (2003) 🕹️ The Orange Box — Xbox 360 / PC (2007) 🕹️ Dishonored — PS3 / Xbox 360 / PC (2012) 🕹️ Alien: Isolation — PlayStation / Xbox / PC (2014) 🕹️ Metroid Dread — Nintendo Switch (2021)**Deep dives:** 🎙️ Doom Goes Retail — Doom II leaves shareware behind (Oct 10, 1994) 🎙️ The Taco Phone — Nokia's N-Gage (Oct 7, 2003) 🎙️ The Cake Is a Lie — from student project to Portal (Oct 10, 2007)— Artwork by MizTink. Music by Shane Mandani (Twitch & Spotify). Written, produced, and hosted by Doug Coleman.👉 Subscribe on YouTube, and follow on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. #VideoGameHistory #RetroGaming #GamingPodcast #MetroidDread #SuperMarioBros2 #Doom #portal Chapter Markers00:00 -- Cold Open — "Was it worth the wait?"02:23 -- Theme by Shane Madani02:40 -- Intro — welcome + this week's lineup04:54 -- Timeline Intro05:10 -- Timeline: Super Mario Bros. 2 (1988)06:59 -- Timeline: Mortal Kombat (1992)08:23 -- Timeline: Doom II (1994)09:30 -- Timeline: Final Fantasy III / VI (1994)10:45 -- Timeline: Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II (1997)11:57 -- Timeline: Viewtiful Joe (2003)13:04 -- Timeline: The Orange Box (2007)14:24 -- Timeline: Dishonored (2012)15:38 -- Timeline: Alien: Isolation (2014)16:44 -- Timeline: Metroid Dread (2021)18:38 -- Deep Dive 1 — Doom Goes Retail21:08 -- Deep Dive 2 — The Taco Phone (N-Gage)23:16 -- Deep Dive 3 — The Cake Is a Lie (Portal)25:21 -- Outro + credits + next-week teaser**Fair Use & Content Attribution Notice:**Video game gameplay clips featured in this video are included in brief, transformed segments (with original audio muted and on-screen attribution provided) strictly for the purposes of news reporting, critical commentary, and educational analysis under Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act (Fair Use). All gameplay assets remain the property of their respective developers, and footage source credits belong to the tagged creators.**Apology in Advance**I want to apologize in advance for any names, places, studios, characters, and games I may mispronounce throughout this series and this episode.

We're covering September 28th – October 4th — and this week, the games take a back seat to the people who made them. It's the week four programmers walked out of Atari and founded Activision, inventing the third-party studio; the birthday (and the just-announced retirement) of immersive-sim godfather Warren Spector; the Bandai–Namco merger; and the anniversary of the loss of Gunpei Yokoi, the quiet genius behind the Game Boy and the D-pad. Around them: Super Mario 64's leap into 3D, Pokémon Red & Blue's American debut, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, Cuphead, Astro Bot, and Cut the Rope — plus an October Round-Up back to the Atari 2600. Founders, and farewells. Beginnings, and goodbyes. Save your game, nerds.— Artwork by MizTink. Music by Shane Madani (Twitch & Spotify). Written, produced, and hosted by Doug Coleman.👉 Subscribe on YouTube, and follow on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. #VideoGameHistory #RetroGaming #GamingPodcast #SuperMario64 #Pokemon #GunpeiYokoi #Activision**Fair Use & Content Attribution Notice:**Video game gameplay clips featured in this video are included in brief, transformed segments (with original audio muted and on-screen attribution provided) strictly for the purposes of news reporting, critical commentary, and educational analysis under Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act (Fair Use). All gameplay assets remain the property of their respective developers, and footage source credits belong to the tagged creators.** Early Apologies ** I know I have a tendency to mispronounce well, everything, so I sincerely apologize to anyone and everyone for any and all names, words, or areas I mispronounce.** Chapter Markers **00:00 -- Cold Open — "Name one person who actually made it"01:57 -- Theme by Shane Madani02:14 -- Intro — welcome + this week's preview04:45 -- Timeline Intro05:01 -- Timeline: Pokémon Red & Blue (1998)06:42 -- Timeline: Super Mario 64 (1996)08:11 -- Timeline: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (1999)09:55 -- Timeline: Cuphead (2017)11:31 -- Timeline: Astro Bot: Rescue Mission (2018)12:38 -- Timeline: Cut the Rope (2010)14:05 -- Monthly Round-Up — October classics (Breakout → Punch-Out!!)17:10 -- Deep Dive 1 — The Rebels Who Put Their Names on the Box (Activision)21:06 -- Deep Dive 2 — Play It Your Way (Warren Spector)23:56 -- Deep Dive 3 — Two Giants Become One (Bandai + Namco)25:23 -- Deep Dive 4 — The Man Who Fit a Console in Your Pocket (Gunpei Yokoi)29:15 -- Outro + credits + next-week teaser** Video Credits **Pokémon Red/Blue || Complete (100%) Walkthrough Part 1 - To Viridian Forest --  @cckaamos4158 Super Mario 64 - N64 Gameplay --  @N64guide  Let's Play Tony Hawk's Pro Skater: Part 1 - Warehouse --  @CrystalFissure Cuphead (2017) PC Gameplay 4K - No Commentary --  @MProChannel2  ASTRO BOT Rescue Mission – Launch Trailer | PS VR --  @PlayStation  Cut the Rope - Walkthrough #2 --  @OmNomStories Atari 2600 - Breakout - Game 1 (1 Player)--  @retrosmack8871  Swordquest: Earthworld (Atari 2600) - 01 Full Playthrough --  @evilryangames [ColecoVision] Frogger (1983) Longplay --  @DolmaKalem [ColecoVision] Pitfall II: Lost Caverns (1984) Longplay --  @DolmaKalem  Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! (NES) Playthrough --  @NintendoComplete ​

We're covering September 21st–27th — the week games grew up. It runs from Myst (1993), the no-enemies puzzle island that became the best-selling PC game of the decade, through Baldur's Gate II, Katamari Damacy, and Halo 3's Finish-the-Fight blockbuster launch, to Fortnite's free battle royale that ate the industry, a real lightsaber in VR with Vader Immortal, and Cyberpunk: Phantom Liberty completing modern gaming's greatest comeback. Plus two deep dives: how Myst, Silent Hill 2, and Ico proved games can be art, and how battle royale swallowed the whole business. Also featuring Wing Commander (1990). Be sure to save your game, nerds.

00:00 -- Cold Open — "For forty years they called it just toys…"
01:39 -- Intro Theme by Shane Mandani
01:56 -- Welcome + this week's preview
03:32 -- Timeline Intro
03:47 -- Timeline: Wing Commander (1990)
05:02 -- Timeline: Myst (1993)
06:21 -- Timeline: Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn (2000)
07;31 -- Timeline: Katamari Damacy (2004)
08:45 -- Timeline: Halo 3 (2007)
09:57 -- Timeline: Fortnite: Battle Royale (2017)
11:06 -- Timeline: Vader Immortal – Episode II (2019)
12:17 -- Timeline: Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (2023)
13:38 -- Deep Dive 1 — The Day Games Became Art (Myst, Silent Hill 2, Ico)
16:27 -- Deep Dive 2 — How Battle Royale Ate the World (Fortnite)
18:36 -- Outro + next-week teaser + credits

Fair Use & Content Attribution Notice:

Video game gameplay clips featured in this video are included in brief, transformed segments (with original audio muted and on-screen attribution provided) strictly for the purposes of news reporting, critical commentary, and educational analysis under Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act (Fair Use). All gameplay assets remain the property of their respective developers, and footage source credits belong to the tagged creators.

We're covering September 14th–20th — the most expensive week on the calendar, the seven days the industry saves its biggest guns for. It's anchored by one date, September 17th, which gave us both Kingdom Hearts (2002) and Grand Theft Auto V (2013) — the biggest entertainment launch in history, over $1 billion in three days. Plus Halo: Reach and Bungie's goodbye, Gears of War 3, Borderlands 2, the buried Vita gem Killzone: Mercenary, and two lovingly remade Game Boy classics: Metroid: Samus Returns and Link's Awakening. Three deep dives: GTA V vs. Hollywood, the Kingdom Hearts elevator legend, and Bungie's long goodbye to Halo. Be sure to save your game, nerds.

We're covering September 7th–13th — maybe the most stacked week on the calendar — anchored by a date the industry keeps circling to change everything: the ninth of September. The PlayStation launch, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, the Dreamcast's 9-9-99 debut with Soul Calibur, and Destiny's half-billion-dollar day all landed on it. Plus Mortal Monday's bloody arrival, Final Fantasy VII's jump from Nintendo to Sony, and Insomniac's Marvel's Spider-Man. Two deep dives: how the ninth crowned Sony and buried Sega, and the plumber who rebuilt the industry after the crash. Be sure to save your game, nerds.

We're covering August 31st – September 6th by running the whole arc of the medium in one week — from the Magnavox Odyssey, the first home console ever sold, to Bethesda's thousand-planet Starfield. Along the way: our month-level rundown (Wizardry, the Sega Master System, Out Run, the TurboGrafx-16, the Atari Lynx, and Civilization), plus the brutal Ghosts 'n Goblins, the industry-rewiring Jetpack Joyride, a stacked week in 2013 (Outlast, Diablo III on console, Total War: Rome II), and Hideo Kojima's swan song, Metal Gear Solid V. Two deep dives: how mobile ate the world, and gaming's thirty-year VR fever dream. Be sure to save your game, nerds.

Chapter Markers

00:00 -- Cold Open — "Imagine it's September, 1972…"
01:24 -- Theme
01:41 -- Intro — welcome + this week's preview
02:40 -- Timeline Intro
02:49 -- Timeline: Ghosts 'n Goblins (Sept 5, 1985)
04:12 -- Timeline: Jetpack Joyride (Sept 1, 2011)
05:11 -- Timeline: Diablo 3 (console release) (Sept 3, 2013)
06:38 -- Timeline: Total War: Rome II (Sept 3, 2013)
07:53 -- Timeline: Outlast (Sept 4, 2013)
09:13 -- Timeline: Metal Gear Solid V (2015)
10:15 -- Timeline: Starfield (2023)
11:21 -- Deep Dive 1 — One More Run (how mobile ate the world)
12:39 -- Deep Dive 2 — Gaming's 30-Year VR Fever Dream
13:54 -- Monthly Round Up
14:22 -- Magnavox Odyssey
15:11 -- Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord
15:48 -- Sega Master System
16:06 -- Outrun
16:23 -- TurboGrafix-16
16:50 -- Atari Lynx
17:26 -- Sid Meiers Civilization
18:00 Outro + credits
19:37 Next time on… (Ep. 34 bumper) → sign-off

We're covering August 24th–30th by walking straight through time, 1982 to 2022, watching the medium grow up: Richard Garriott's Ultima II, the cult classic EarthBound, the console-shooter landmark GoldenEye 007, the GTA challenger Saints Row, the rulebook-tearing Guild Wars 2, the beloved flop The Wonderful 101, and the FMV revival Immortality. Plus three deep dives: the evolution of the RPG, how the shooter came home, and the death and resurrection of full-motion video. Be sure to save your game, nerds.

Chapter Markers

00:00 -- Cold Open — "Imagine it's August 24th, 1982…"
01:29 -- Theme
01:46 -- Intro
02:56 -- Timeline Intro
03:26 -- Ultima II: The Revenge of Enchantress (1982)
04:40 -- EarthBound / Mother 2 (1994)
06:05 -- GoldenEye 007 (1997)
07:43 -- SaintsRow (2006)
09:05 -- Guild Wars 2 (2012)
10:19 -- The Wonderful 101 (2013)
11:52 -- Immortality (2022)
13:24 -- Deep Dive 1 — From Britannia to Tyria (evolution of the RPG)
15:01 -- Deep Dive 2 — GoldenEye and the day the shooter came home
16:48 -- Deep Dive 3 — FMV: the genre everyone laughed at
19:16 -- Outro

August 17th–23rd might be the most stacked seven days on the gaming calendar. This week: the most controversial Metroid ever made, a Sonic collection hiding a secret 3D playground, and Black Myth: Wukong breaking records worldwide. Then the single Tuesday in 2001 that dropped three heavy hitters at once — Arcanum from the creators of Fallout, Armored Core 2 from a pre-Souls FromSoftware, and a fishing game on the already-dead Dreamcast. Plus Deus Ex: Human Revolution's cyberpunk comeback, the day EA bought Command & Conquer, and the two days that handed Nintendo the birth of Zelda, the Super Nintendo, and the Nintendo 64.

Grab your controller, and press start to continue.

⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 — Cold Open 01:18 — Theme01:35 — Intro 02:59 — Timeline Intro03:11 — Metroid Prime: Federation Force (3DS, 2016) 04:02 — Sonic Jam (Sega Saturn, 1997) 04:54 — Black Myth: Wukong (PS5/PC, 2024) 05:41 — Arcanum: Of Steamworks & Magick Obscura (PC, 2001) 06:30 — Sega Bass Fishing 2 (Dreamcast, 2001) 07:12 — Armored Core 2: Another Age (PS2, 2001) 07:57 — Deus Ex: Human Revolution (PC/PS3/360, 2011) 08:45 — Deep Dive: The Day EA Bought Command & Conquer 10:05 — Deep Dive: A Very Big Week for Nintendo 11:49 — Outro🎨 Artwork by MizTink Find MizTink at Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/miztink🎵 Music by Shane Mandani Find Shane Mandani on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/grandewarlockOn Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3Jy9J5vNVFB3BuPUV0yYis🎙️ Written, produced & hosted by Doug ColemanFind Doug on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/therobustone

This week in video game history covers August 10th through the 16th — a week soaked in dread, disappearance, and second chances. On August 11th, 1999, System Shock 2 introduced a generation of designers to genuine fear in the form of SHODAN, one of gaming's greatest villains, and laid down the immersive-sim blueprint that BioShock would later build on. It shares that exact date with the birthday of Shinji Mikami, the man who coined "survival horror" — the anchor of our first deep dive, which runs through Resident Evil 4, Devil May Cry, God Hand, Vanquish, and The Evil Within.

The timeline also visits August 10th, 1999, when Nintendo's Mario Golf (a secret RPG) and Square's Chocobo Racing let two giant franchises clown around; Cool Cool Jam (2000), a charming SNK rhythm game trapped forever on the failed Neo Geo Pocket Color and never released in the West; We Happy Few (2018) and its "take your Joy or else" dystopia; Payday 2 (2013), the co-op heist that never ended; and Plants vs. Zombies 2 (2013), the free-to-play sequel that landed on the industry's mobile fault line.

Two more deep dives round it out: the strange seven-year disappearance of the Scott Pilgrim game and what it taught us about game preservation and digital ownership, and how fan developer Christian Whitehead and friends were handed Sonic and made Sonic Mania — the best Sonic game in 25 years.

Artwork: MizTink • Music: Shane Mandani • Written, produced & hosted by Doug Coleman

Be sure to save your game, nerds.

The week of August 3rd–9th across gaming history. Metroid hides a secret on the Famicom Disk System (1986), Guardian Force stays trapped in Japan on the dying Saturn (1998), Nintendogs and Advance Wars: Dual Strike share a single Nintendo DS day (2005), Braid helps light the fuse on the indie revolution (2008), No Man's Sky launches a universe and watches it fall to earth (2016), and Fall Guys becomes the world's lockdown escape hatch (2020).

Three deep dives this week: the Indie Explosion, the broken-launch redemption of No Man's Sky, and the strange, sad story of the Advance Wars game that September 11th delayed.

Artwork: MizTink • Music: Shane Mandani • Written, produced & hosted by Doug Coleman

Be sure to save your game, nerds.