One Controller Port Podcast

Mr. Jakes from Basement Brothers joins me to talk about why he thinks CRTs are overrated for retro games. We also talk about the value of physical hardware in video games.

Slave Zero X is intensely stylish, not only in its aesthetic but also in its gameplay. With that, I wanted to discuss with the lead game designer and the developer's CEO on how they achieved that vision, the role the Slave Zero franchise played, their commitment to challenging the player, and how they built the world.

Game Links

Misc. A Tiny Tale is a 3D platformer focused on building a better world through small acts of kindness. I spoke with the lead developer, Michael Pearce, about his experience in creating the game and how it makes a difference.

Misc. A Tiny Tale Links

In my eyes, game coverage has almost always been global. So I was surprised when I met Lukas Eggen, who previously covered them locally for Las Vegas Review-Journal. We talk about his experience covering games in Las Vegas and his perspective on the future of gaming journalism. 

This week, we talk VR, looking at sexy games without an eye for sexual content, Gal Guardians, and River City Underground.

In this episode, we tackle a long-standing frustration of mine: the current state of Final Fantasy XIV. As someone who loved FFXIV 1.0, I've long been off the Final Fantasy XIV train. Today, I have some negative feelings about the game's current state, so I wanted to talk to someone who still likes it.

Alex Fraioli, who previously appeared on our podcast about Love Letter RPGs, returns to discuss his love for Final Fantasy XIV in the modern day.

This week I talk about my time at LVL UP EXPO 2025, look at the games announced in the Qureate Direct, and what to call what I do.

Links

We spend a lot of time consuming information about Japanese games from fellow English speakers located outside Japan. Amber Vještica, Editor-in-Chief at Automaton Media West, covers games from inside a Japanese games news outlet, giving her team unique access and insight into local Japanese video game culture.

We discuss her role at the company, how they choose what types of stories to cover, and Automaton West's goals for bringing Japanese gaming news to English-speaking audiences.

This week I talk about my return to fighting games, DMM Game's AI Translations Process, how age impacts your Tomodachi Life, Konami Medal Games, and Gunvolt 3.

Podcast Links

Despite what some people might assume, Japanese adventure games and visual novels are a big blind spot for me. And while I've enjoyed the games, most titles in the genre rarely grab my interest.

In this episode, I talk to Bowl of Lentils, who has created videos about the genre's history and why these games matter. We go in-depth into the genre's core appeal, history, and future outlook. We also talk a bit about the Trails series.

Bowl of Lentils Links

This week, I talk about my final thoughts on Sanctum 2 and Ed-0: Zombie Uprising, give a little postmortem on my Nintendo video, and talk the new VR Chat webcam support and Copilot for Xbox.

This week I go through some recent picks ups, talk about some small mobile games, and give my thoughts on Storybook Workshop and Super Bunny Man.

I have a long history of using machine translation to help me read Japanese news stories, talk to fan bases online, and sometimes even play games. However, when you don't know the original language, it's hard to understand what impact these tools may have on how we interact with the Japanese language.

I talked with Cargodin, a fan translator on games like Napple Tale and Blue Legend of Water, about how she views the English audience's relationship with the Japanese language as changing over the years.

Cargodin's Links

This week, we return to video and talk about Wizardry Variants Daphne's success and my thoughts on Super Mario Wonder, Shining Blade, and 007 Quantum of Solace.

Podcast Links

This week is Game of the Year 2024! We give rewards for various categories that highlight the games I played this year. We also have a last-minute emergency news story about Million Arthur and a new podcast scheduled for next year.

This week we talk about the Game Awards announcements and trailers, as well as review One Controller Port output in 2024.

This week we talk Koei Tecmo's reasoning for investing in AAA, Dragon Quest III mod drama, Media Vision shutting down Meggido 72, and Square Enix's use of AI in game development.

Games designed for kids can be enjoyable even for adults, though they often require looking at them with a different mindset than traditional games. In this episode, I talk to Vinnk of the Famicom Dojo podcast about his enjoyment of games for kids, how his kids grew up with games, and the impact they've had on his family life.

Vinnk's Links

Sometimes, Japanese games have a certain allure to them that I have trouble quantifying. I've really started to question why I and others hold a game on a pedestal partly because of its country of origin. I also sometimes wonder why it's easy to feel awkward when engaging with Japanese gaming communities and personalities, setting aside the language barrier.

In this episode, I talk to Ray Barnholt about his experience with Japanese games throughout his life, his passion for Boku no Natsuyasumi, and how he achieved his dream interview with the Director of the series.

This week I talk about a Final Fantasy VII Reeve fanbook, FFXI crafting guilds, new Switch localizations, and the team behind VR Kanojo.

Links

Phantasy Star Online played a massive role in popularizing online console games at the turn of the century. However, I often struggle to convey its appeal today. I talked to two YouTubers, DeployableLover and Section Skyly, who actively play the game today, about their experience and what they like most about it.

Section Skyly

This week, I reflect on a year of my time on HorizonXI, a Final Fantasy XI rollback server, and an overview of how the Final Fantasy XI experience evolves on the road to level cap.

This week we talk about recent Nintendo throwbacks, Coin Musme's closed beta test, a lo-fi study app, and a limb-based brawler.

Links

This week I talk about the Strinova beta test, me being judgmental about anime, creators and anime girls, plus I finally play Spider-Man 2!

I tried my best as the new monster on the block at Monster High, plus I talk Final Fantasy XI and break down my struggles with Blade Arcus.

Fan Translations exploded. I talk to Matt La France, a 20-year veteran, about why he got involved, how the scene developed, and his future outlook.

Matt's Links

I talk about doing a game-ish diagnosis test, my time with Yoshi's Topsy Turvy, Oreca Battle 2, and studying Japanese with Shashingo.

This week, I discuss LvlUpExpo 2024, a port mortem on my Xeno series Panel, and Square Enix's and Koei Tecmo's Financial Reports.

OCP Links:

I talk understanding addictive tendencies using FFXI, Wii U/3DS shutdown's impact on my view of games, and 2008's ultimate stress relief game.

This week, we talk about Gundam SEED on PS2, Princess Peach Purikura, Million Arthur's Re-death, and hostess club games.

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This week I ramble on about my feelings on the current view of the game industry and the new Kusogeeeeee platform.

OCP Links:

This week I talk Japanese edutainment games, my weird feelings on Wii revivals, and talk about my thoughts on Granblue Fantasy Relink.

OCP Links:

This week we go all over the place, talking Switch's presence in Japan, Konami's actual place in the game market, people's goals for learning Japanese, and Game Genome's deep dive into Love & Berry.

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