In this episode, I talk to Russell Gordon, who is also The Iron Mage. He’s a musician who is trying to get into the business of scoring video games. In the first part of our conversation, I find out what games Russell has been playing recently, what he is currently playing, what games he’s looking forward to, and his all time favorites. We also find out how the composer of the Side Quest theme song is doing during the pandemic.

I only completed fourteen games in 2019, and I wrote even fewer reviews. Toward the end of the year, I all but stopped doing episodes of Side Quests. Well, 2020 is a new year.

In my first episode for the new year, I start by recapping my year in games, for 2019, with a quick note about what I though of each. I follow that with a portion of my list of games that I would like to complete in 2020 and why I want to play them.

Finally, I very briefly talk about Side Quests in 2020.

While the podcast still plans to focus on video games and video game related topics, I am going to try and focus a little more on the musical aspect of games. But, I still have ideas that I haven't gotten to and I'm sure more will come along. So, while it should focus more on music in the grand scheme, it won't be about music exclusively.

Other than talking about all of that, this episode is also a (late) companion to July's TWRM Radio mix, "Pelagic." I talk about video game music used for seas, oceans, sailing, and nautical adventure. I discuss a few of the instruments, commonalities between tracks based on the scenario or setting, RPG themes vs. pirate themes, and pirate games in general. I also ask for some input from you, the listeners!

Check us out on The Well-Red Mage!

In the conclusion of the dialogue between The ABXY Mage and his legendary and loquacious friend, The Well-Red Mage, they begin by spending a little more time on their favorite--and the objectively greatest--game ever: Chrono Trigger. This bags another funny story from Red about a mispronunciation from his past.

Next, they get into the many interesting names and locations in Final Fantasy IX, a game which The Well-Red Mage definitely knows more about than The ABXY Mage. Speaking of games Red knows more about, he also explains how to know the definitive way to say Pokémon names. His final lesson takes them to the 'aga' and 'aja' spells from some later Final Fantasy games.

Somewhere in there, they talk about some miscellaneous game names as well as how to say "xeno." Back to the world of Final Fantasy, they discuss cities from VII, Aeris vs. Aerith, and Cait Sith. Finally, they end with a humorous debate and quite a bit of joking around and laughing. As always, it was a great time.

Check us out on The Well-Red Mage!

In part two of the discussion with The ABXY Mage and The Well-Red Mage, they talk about how they mispronounced different video game words when they were stupid, little kids. Some of these include Ryu, from Street Fighter, the difference between mana and manna (and how you pronounce each of them), and a hilarious Mega Man story from Red. This, later, leads to more Mega Man related talk, mostly about Dr. Wily.

But first, they talk about a bunch of different Zelda names and terms including that weird instrument nobody had ever heard of before the N64. They also discuss the possible differences between Hyrule and Hylia, instead of just researching it.

Finally, to wrap up this part of their conversation, they talk Pokemon; so many weird names. Since ABXY has never played Pokemon, they play a game where guesses how various names are pronounced. However, before this, they talk about how who is better, Squirtle or Bulbasaur. Unfortunately, due to recording issues and editing needs, they had to cut the part where Red admits that ABXY was right and Squirtle is clearly the superior Pokemon. He definitely said it though, no matter what he tries to tell you now.

Check us out on The Well-Red Mage!

In this episode, The ABXY Mage and The Well-Red Mage talk about different ways to pronounce various video game names, places, beasts, etc.

They start with a simple example of Mar-ee-o vs. Mary-o and how location can determine how you pronounce different terms. Then, they move on to voice acting and how some people still manage to mispronounce words that are said, out loud, in games. They touch on the occasional instance when voice acting, years later, can betray what you were so sure was the correct pronunciation, which (unsurprisingly) leads to another Tidus vs. Teedus argument from Red.

That argument then segues into ABXY's similar argument about the pronunciation of Ivalice from Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy XII. They then debate the difference between the Tidus and Ivalice arguments. Finally moving on, they get into Final Fantasy IV characters, EarthBound, YouTube inaccuracies, Final Fantasy VII, more EarthBound, and then more Final Fantasy VII. As you may--by now--expect, this is only the first part of the conversation.

Check us out on The Well-Red Mage!

In the third, and final, part of their conversation on non-final bosses, The ABXY Mage, The Bizzaro Mage, and The Off-Centered Earth Mage talk about some their favorite boss battle songs, and they also discuss the pros and cons of multi-stage bosses.

After that, they take a dive into "bad" bosses: boss fights restricted by mechanics, good games with not-great bosses or boss battles, and bullet-sponge bosses. This takes them into a discussion about Final Fantasy XV's Adamantoise and finally, a brief touch on some Zelda.

Check us out on The Well-Red Mage!

The ABXY Mage, The Bizzaro Mage, and The Off-Centered Earth Mage continue their talk about boss fights by covering their favorite game genres for boss battles, as well as the annoying, wussy bosses that rely on minions to do their dirty work for them.

We also get into bosses with weak spots, the difference between glowing targets and logical weaknesses, and our ideas for an accessible middle-ground between the two. Finally, we touch on health bars vs. visual cues; is it possible that some features are mainstays because of tradition but now suffer a lack of forward progress as a result?

Check us out on The Well-Red Mage!