In this episode of Video Wizards, we travel to January 1997 to witness the sad slow demise of the arcades in Western Europe, with cabinets getting replaced by slot machines in all but the last remaining dedicated gaming halls. But in these bright and colourful sanctuaries, there’s still a lot of video game fun to be had, with head to head combat and driving being the running themes. Capcom and Arika’s first 3D entry in their leading fighting franchise, Street Fighter EX, is presented to the masses, while the Osaka giants also get a bit experimental with their first CPSIII game: Red Earth. This is set off by Sunsoft’s oddball parody fighting game Waku Waku 7 and the crowd pleasing, jaw dropping spectacle cab of Model 3 powerhouse SCUD Race. And then there is Cruis’n World by Midway.

With home gaming becoming the more emphasised side of our hobby, Sony’s PlayStation is going especially strong, with Cool Boarders, Destruction Derby 2 and the Japanese release of the seismic Final Fantasy 7, while Europe is gearing up for the release of the Nintendo 64. In the world of Metal, acts like Marilyn Manson and Limp Bizkit carve new paths, where Hip-Hop artists find themselves at a crossroads. And the beginning of the year in cinema is lit up with the theatrical release of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope – Special Edition. You want more? How about titanic local Dutch skating tours? A new instalment of the Video Wizards Quiz? The Dan Clark Baller of the Month Award?

This near 6 hour throwback audio experience contains way too much content to detail here, so get very comfortable indeed and enjoy the first Video Wizards podcast episode of the new year!

Show theme tune: NEON CITY, composed by Ed 「イートレム」 Tremblay for Mudprints Music and licensed exclusively to The Video Wizards Podcast, ©2019 Mudprints Music, all rights reserved.

Other music used in this episode:

• TV Theme Style (The Winner) – by Colin Thomson, 2018
• Straight Outta Compton – by N.W.A, 1988
• Character Select – by Shinji Hosoe, Ayako Sasou & Takayuki Aihara for Street Fighter EX, 1996
• Strange Sunset (Guile’s Theme) – by Shinji Hosoe, Ayako Sasou & Takayuki Aihara for Street Fighter EX, 1996
• Groovin’ Daylight – by Hideaki Miyamoto, Kaoru Ohori & Fumio Ito for SCUD Race, 1996
• Advent of the Supreme Ruler – by Takayuki Iwai for Red Earth, 1996
• The Sun Also Sets (Dandy J’s Theme) – by Masato Araikawa for Waku Waku 7, 1996
• Title Theme – by Vincent Pontarelli for Cruis’n World, 1996
• Rowdy (Opening Theme) – by Takenobu Mitsuyoshi, Fumio Ito & Hidenori Shoji for Virtua Fighter 3, 1996
• Break Out (SEGA Saturn Arrangement) – by Hideaki Miyamoto for Virtua Cop 2, 1996
• Krystal Karrington – by Camp Lo, 1997
• Beyond Real – by Jigmastas, 1996
• Tried by 12 – by East Flatbush Projects, 1996
• Third Degree – by Dilated Peoples (featuring Defari), 1997
• High Drama – by Mike Zoot (featuring Mos Def), 1997
• Universal Magnetic – by Mos Def, 1997
• Dead Bent – by MF DOOM, 1997
• Tragedy – by The RZA, 1997
• Faith – by Limp Bizkit, 1997
• The Beautiful People (Live at Bizarre Festival 1997) – by Marilyn Manson, 1997
• Cosmic Girl – by Jamiroquai, 1996
• In Your Car – by Kenickie, 1996
• Your Woman – by White Town, 1997
• Hakke & Zage – by Gabber Piet, 1996
• No Diggity – by Blackstreet (featuring Dr. Dre & Queen Pen), 1996
• Paparazzi – by Xzibit, 1996

And finally: our special thanks to テクノワールド奥州.

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