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.
What’s on your mind, old man? Maybe it’s loafing amid a crisis, fighting faculty members, doubting the dawn of time, refusing to swear an allegiance, having a meltdown, suffering hot dog denial, falling for a hologram, taking a knee, arguing…
I don’t want to die, there’s so much in life I want to enjoy. On this episode we’re ramming a car into a mountain, leisurely ignoring imminent missile attacks, shaking down Caraway, bullshitting our way into a base, tricking idiot soldiers,…
It’s time to play the action movie. This time we’re following monsters to find Squall, fighting other monsters in jail, suffering exploration monotony, beating a man for his Battle Meter upgrade, improving Squall’s humanity, concocting a…
The dream is dead. On this episode we’re waking up in jail, suffering from dipshit separation syndrome, remaining oblivious to Ward warping, moving cells, kicking Zell, surrendering to a Mean Cop, meeting small monsters, stating an obvious…
Squall is dead. So we’re Laguna. Today we’re talking disc swap technology, taking refuge in a cozy cabin, lying to Ellone about mortal danger, finding solace as a Weird Uncle, boggling the brains of Kiros and Raine, learning Julia’s fate,…
Now that we’re through Disc One and Squall is dead, we’re going to try a little something different by bringing on some persons of lordly caliber to do some high-level recapping and high level bullshitting: Curtis and Karl from the Every F’n FF…
This game is full of idiots and they’re all on our team. Tonight we’re dividing into two teams, referring to our father as That Man, brandishing the Odine Bangle, screaming down Rinoa, evading lockdown, solo confronting Edea, bearing witness to a…
Galbadia is a nation of fools. While there, we’re angrily boarding a train, being a major creep, inducing sniper drama, accepting a test of courage, meandering about Deling City, avoiding public transit, navigating a tomb maze, beating up…
Avoid the trauma of past tense. Today we’re absorbing the grandeur of Galbadia Garden, showcasing ostentatious wealth, doing pervert pushups, learning of a surprise execution, psychologically terrorizing Rinoa, searching for an unforgivable villain,…
Evaporating into bats is a great touch for any guy. This time we’re idly panicking in the woods, passing out into the dreamworld, awkwardly fumbling metaphors, slaughtering Esthar soldiers, cramping up, observing the crystal blue, losing an old key,…