by Gadolf the Absolute on Sun Apr 01, 2012 6:03 pm
It's funny I should bump into this thread as I've very recently taken a strong liking to this very show. I'd remembered hearing the name some time back but never took a look at until recently when the Adventure Island episode was posted on 4chan. I've since been making my way through the series and picked up Retro Game Challenge. It seems to have had an unusual surge of popularity as of late. Watching Arino light up like a child when he finishes a level never fails to put a smile on my jaded,angry face and seeing Actraiser show up as the game directly after my very first episode left me with a shit-eating grin the size of Russia.
As much as I love this show now,Arino isn't without his faults. He's so hasty and impatient that it starts to irk me watching him make the same stupid mistakes time and again. The man is incapable of just stopping for a second to think. His staff pampers him and he loves to claim victory with "his own power" after his AD has handheld him through the game. Landing the last hit on a boss doesn't mean much if your assistant did the first 5 for you because you were too incompetent to see a simple pattern. He also outright cheats on some of his arcade trips and the owners tend to just roll over for him when he does. He's also got his moments of snippiness and general lack of gratitude for the favors his staff grants him and honestly it's a little sad watching them cower before him like he's on the verge of shooting up the place if they forget to grovel at his feet. It's never stopped me from enjoying the show,just some observations. It doesn't take long for you to immediately dread every time he puts the controller down.
On a related note,people who don't want to download the episodes should check out ancientcircle on Youtube,he has (I believe) the very same translated episodes set up in a convenient playlist. I haven't watched Kotaku's version,but I've heard nothing but bad things about it since they lack content like the Tama Ge segments. I wouldn't recommend them given that circumstance unless you're really looking for a condensed version of the show. Certainly a great show though and just plain tons of fun to watch. Dude's got gumption,you've gotta respect that.
