Retrograde Amnesia

Retrograde Amnesia is a deep-dive video game podcast dedicated to exploring classic Japanese Role-playing Games (JRPGs), chapter by chapter, beat by beat. The show blends structured narrative analysis, humor, and immersive production to guide listeners through the worlds, characters, and themes of the genre’s most beloved and strange stories.

Praised for its thoughtful pacing, encyclopedic research, and a blend of sincerity and irreverence, Retrograde Amnesia offers a cozy look back for players who want to engage more deeply with their favorite games within the medium. Play along with the hosts or reminisce your enduring thoughts as we trek through the stories we grew up with.

Each season covers a single game in exhaustive detail, using a a meticulous scene-by-scene format to reexamine every moment. Whether it’s dissecting the political intricacies of Final Fantasy Tactics, or unraveling the existential dread of Xenogears, the show approaches every game with a balance of critical insight and deep appreciation for the medium.

Listeners have described the show as:

“One of the best out there”
“If you love retrospective type podcast this is one of the best out there. They pick great games and take their time going through them. Just the perfect type of podcast for me. It’s like getting to live through these games from my childhood again without having to play all the way through them. Great job guys, I hope there are many more episodes to come.”
SIumlord, May 27, 2024

“What a gem”
“Discovered these guys when I was searching up stuff on Xenosaga, and saw a back catalog of amazing games. Started with [Final Fantasy VIII] and am about to do the next season. Chris and Eric are hilarious, insightful, and worth your time to listen to. Also Fakenet will you marry me.”
laser canon death sentance, January 23, 2024

“Witty, smart, and highly detailed”
“Chris and Eric rock. They play off each other super well, it’s like hanging out with a couple guys with a bottle of whiskey and even though you never have a chance to get a word in, you don’t really want to. Thoughtful and interesting with hilarious in jokes they are more than happy to bring you in on.”
alinktreetothepast, October 19, 2023

Since 2019, Retrograde Amnesia has been a destination for thoughtful JRPG fans seeking to reckon with the games they grew up loving — while learning to love the ones they missed.

Retrograde Amnesia is hosted by Eric and Chris — two old pals who have been thinking about JRPGs for multiple decades.


All Episodes

Xenosaga | E28: Her Brain Items [Song of Nephilim, Part II]

Why is she trying to sell stuff when she has nothing to sell? Join us as we’re (well, Albedo is) abusing a robot child for information, clarifying additional censorship, arguing over if dad can save daughter or if boyfriend can save girlfriend,…

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Xenosaga | E27: Poisoned by the Holy Spirit So Hard [Song of Nephilim, Part I]

Are you worthy to shed such tears? Cry with us as we’re cackling incessantly, letting Momo out of our sight, wasting vital shuttle transports, arguing about where Momo is, seeing a false daddy, friending a dead sister, blaming Helmer, rebuilding…

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Xenosaga | E26: Die in the Trash [Attack on Kukai, Part II]

My goodness, this feels like a dream. This episode feels like we’re welcoming Hyper Assistant Scott, remembering Angels and Elements, flexing while wasted, playing with toys too hard, vibrating the water, shaking off premonitions, preventing gnosis…

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Xenosaga | E25: The Christ for Robots [Attack on Kukai, Part I]

Well, it looks like we all managed to make it back. Now we’re relentlessly drawing a connection to Xenoblade 2, laughing through illusory worlds, existing in the subconscious, fighting energy with energy, vaporizing a gas giant, issuing the many…

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INFINITE PERFECT 001: Watch it Move [Burning Rangers]

Hello and welcome to Infinite Perfect, a new periodic Retrograde Amnesia podcast series built to assemble the devastating anecdotal happenstance that connects one of the hosts to their favorite games. Our debut episode covers the Sega Saturn’s Burning…

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Xenosaga | E24: The Time for Feasting Has Come [Old Miltia, Part II]

Joyful memories form only one half of the whole. Form the other half by becoming child soldiers, shooting Udo with machine guns, interpreting blood spatter, living a robot’s genetic memory, witnessing Kevin’s sacrifice, blowing a head off,…

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Xenosaga | E23: The End Comes Beyond Kevin [Old Miltia, Part I]

Would you shut up for a second, I’m in the zone right now. Get in your zone as we’re speculating Gundam names, shulking to ourselves, requiring only scenario guys, alluding to Udo and Zohar(s), losing nukes, deepfaking a space battle, figuring out…

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Xenosaga | E22: Theologically Problematic [Kukai Foundation, Part III]

This place permeates some kind of fondness for the past. Permeate your present by answering trivia questions from a kiosk, vibrating with kinky excitement, learning dream fragments are robot parts, demanding a lady’s measurements, introducing new…

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Xenosaga | E21: There’s a Ludonarrative Dissonance in This Town [Kukai Foundation, Part II]

Mom doesn’t understand how a man feels. But we feel like revisiting the world map concept, observing the global hum, cranking off, reading the signs of an obvious dungeon, getting high off of explosions, dumpster diving, loading a bar with…

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Xenosaga | E20: Central Bottom Hole [Kukai Foundation, Part I]

Hey, who’s an illegitimate son? Maybe it’s us, maybe it’s you, maybe we’re inserting the Durandal in the bottom hole, wondering of space flower cities are common, as you know’ing to oblivion, finding another palm tattoo guy, A-posing like an…

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