PLOK! - Nitro Rad

[@stripedhyenuh]

I remember reading an interview with the Pickford brothers about Plok and apparently the no password system thing was 100% an oversight, they just honestly forgot to add a password feature until after the game was already shipped out and were kicking themselves for it

[@Tzelemel]

Yeah, the instruction manual even references it.

[@VexAcer]

Not from the SNES era, but this reminds me of a similar dev store of why the first Ratchet & Clank didn't have any strafing. The devs legit didn't think about it while designing the game. By the time they had the idea it was way too late in development to properly add it. They did have time to at least try a compromise though: with the jetpack upgrade you can hover around on the ground (meant they didn't have to design a new animation system for the character) but it feels really floating & bad to control.

[@Ruudos]

I'm not sure but I remember reading in Retro Gamer magazine that they actually didn't add a password sstem in it on purpose. I should see if I can find the article.

[@stripedhyenuh]

@@Ruudos I just did a search and you're right, I found an article mentioning that it was an intentional design choice but they regretted it immediately afterward. I remembered it half right

[@miilexthemii9353]

Oof...

[@SoundsideSherry]

Fun little bonus: not only are the levels where you play as Grandpappy Plok entirely in sepia, but if you pause the game, it's a totally different graphic! It's an old-timey "Intermission" card, like you'd see in a silent film!

[@Gatorade69]

Plok Prequel when ? Who owns the franchise ?

[@Idran]

@@Gatorade69 The Pickford brothers, they kept the rights to the IP

[@Gatorade69]

@@Idran That's cool. I feel now would be the perfect time for a sequel or prequel handled by some indie studio. They could get real crazy with the art style.

[@CommanderWiggins]

​@Idran I read that as "the Plokford brothers" at first.

[@marcellosilva9286]

I also noticed that the font on the score and Plokontinue letters are also different, they look more old-school

[@warbossgegguz679]

Fun fact, the music on Plok was so insane that Miyamoto himself had the cart checked because he didn't think the SNES could actually make music that natural sounding. He also loved the game in general and it directly resulted in Nintendo publishing the game in Europe. Easily one of the strangest Shigi stories out there.

[@alex_-yz9to]

Nintendo europe REAAAALY liked Plok too

[@warbossgegguz679]

@@alex_-yz9to As they should. It's not like got-tier, but definitely underrated.

[@kitterbug]

it was more than that, shiggy personally loved ploks gameplay putting it in his personal favorite platformers list. Nintendo was gonna publish plok everywhere, but he resembled a character from a prototype game (super donkey from the gigaleak) too much, so it was only in europe. Shame, plok coulda been in smash!

[@Siinory]

And Tim Follin (the composer) actually HATES video games and yet composed the sickest jams! Oh also, someone made a remix of the boss music but Hotline Miami styled

[@Sigismund697]

For me it was when he told retro it would be fun if Samus had bug eyes and that's why the visors exist in Prime Or the splatoon devs to come up with original characters for the game and if not then they would use mario

[@milaisgrumpy6664]

As someone in the Plok!'s Boss music said once: "Starting out as a haunted house track then turning into Hotline Miami"

[@Mordecrox]

"Do you like diddling people?"

[@Evilriku13]

The italian Joel quote :O

[@lilwyvern4]

Or "Watch out for aliens" turns into "watch out for the cops."

[@Laevateinn102]

My favourite is: "TIM IT WAS JUST PLOK"

[@HypercatZ]

Or "First you're afraid of ghosts! Then you're afraid of police!"

[@pigfish99]

On may 30th, 2024, Geoff Follin passed away of pancreatic cancer. Rest in peace. Your legacy of amazing music shall always be remembered.

[@bemasaberwyn55]

Goddamn

[@NoelStalker]

oh no! What a great musician. I could listen to the Akryllic track every day. They did a great job on Spiderman and Xmen soundtrack as well

[@DoodledSandwichthe2nd]

What a legend

[@MisterDutch93]

The Pickford bros. actually kept the PLOK! universe alive by releasing a quite extensive webcomic that you can buy or read online. Their last update was fairly recently too, so there's still hope for a PLOK! revival down the line. I'd love to get an official port re-release with better save features on Steam or the Switch. If Bubsy can get a new game, so can Plok.

[@HolyGoddessMotherAnne]

Plok deserves a sequel all these years later.

[@term-827]

But Tim Follin isnt doing work for game companies anymore, but Carpenter Brut is a possible second choice.

[@HeckinBrandon]

Got a link for that comic?

[@Frietuurs]

@@term-827 What does this mean? What does Carpenter Brut have to do with Plok or Tim Follin?

[@tehcrusher]

@@Frietuurs Listen to the plok boss theme and then roller mobster and get back to me on that

[@AlonzoTompkins]

I love how the final level of the game can be used to explain why Plok never had sequels.

[@helfire14]

"Hey, in Plok 2, the Fleas could come back and-" Plok: "Nah man, trust me, they are NOT coming back."

[@archivechannelforthejet]

It does have a web comic that continues where the game left off. It's pretty interesting

[@fernandozavaletabustos205]

I remember this mascot from the Jon Tron and Arin Let's Play!

[@WohaoG]

@@helfire14 "I eradicated the source"

[@AlonzoTompkins]

@Username That Works Oh my god I forgot about that. Hahaha Thanks for the reminder. I need to reread it.

[@TheXell]

You know your boss-theme is a banger when it spontaneously transforms you into John Wick.

[@maxtaylor5665]

Hotline Miami

[@ChapSnat752]

James Wick

[@jameslawrenson1208]

This music turns people badass.

[@LavaCreeperPeople]

*More SNES music that goes hard af:* “Full Mega Man X OST” Super Mario Kart soundtrack “Street fighter II / 2 soundtrack” "Complete Super Metroid Soundtrack (1994)” “Plok! SNES Soundtrack” “Spiderman X-Men Arcade's Revenge FULL soundtrack” “Mystic Quest Legend Soundtrack (SNES OST, 25 Tracks) Final Fantasy Mystic Quest” Dragon Ball Z Super Butouden 1 OST TMNT SNES “MEGA MAN VII OST (SNES) Checkpoint” “Power Rangers Complete Soundtrack OST - SNES” chrono trigger soundtrack “[SNES] Super Bomberman OST (SPC)” “Super Bomberman 2 Full OST” “Super Bomberman 3 Full OST” “Super Bomberman 5 Full OST” Casio Mario Soundtrack Exception: Mega Man X Corrupted OST (not SNES but sounds very identical)

[@ahmadmalaki8364]

Or jacket from hotline Miami

[@02fd84]

Tim Follin actually makes story games now. I think markiplier ended up playing his most recent game, so it was somewhat successful among horror fans. Has FMV stuff too, which is always interesting.

[@inaccurateprophecy8971]

Really? What’s he worked on?

[@Doodle1678]

Oh really? What’s it called

[@DisplayName317]

@@inaccurateprophecy8971 Contradiction and At Dead of Night. Contradiction was apparently a bit of a struggle to get properly financed but At Dead of Night ended up going fairly viral as OP mentioned and he has plans of making a sequel.

[@tomysshadow]

@@DisplayName317 I liked Contradiction. It's too bad it ended on a cliffhanger that will probably never be resolved, though

[@creativecutieprincessd]

@@DisplayName317 Dude, he did At Dead of Night?! I loved that game.

[@hemangchauhan2864]

Everytime someone learns about Tim Follin, an angel gets wings

[@LavaCreeperPeople]

*More SNES music that goes hard af:* “Full Mega Man X OST” Super Mario Kart soundtrack “Street fighter II / 2 soundtrack” "Complete Super Metroid Soundtrack (1994)” “Plok! SNES Soundtrack” “Spiderman X-Men Arcade's Revenge FULL soundtrack” “Mystic Quest Legend Soundtrack (SNES OST, 25 Tracks) Final Fantasy Mystic Quest” Dragon Ball Z Super Butouden 1 OST TMNT SNES “MEGA MAN VII OST (SNES) Checkpoint” “Power Rangers Complete Soundtrack OST - SNES” chrono trigger soundtrack “[SNES] Super Bomberman OST (SPC)” “Super Bomberman 2 Full OST” “Super Bomberman 3 Full OST” “Super Bomberman 5 Full OST” Casio Mario Soundtrack Exception: Mega Man X Corrupted OST (not SNES but sounds very identical)

[@Josuh]

@@LavaCreeperPeople rip Super Bomberman 1 and 4

[@LavaCreeperPeople]

@@Josuh i did add super bomberman 1 xD sorry, super bomberman 4 was a bit disappointing though so....

[@nolancho]

Oh shut up! What a stupid thing to say.

[@ObviousTrollFrom2007]

@@LavaCreeperPeople Earthbound, the DKC trilogy, and Clock Tower anyone?

[@Its_me_NicoBros]

God I love when people plays a game where Tim Follin made the music and proceeds to go insane about how amazing his music is. Tim Follin will always be the ultimate CHIPTUNE GOD.

[@ensommeille5315]

genuinely one of my favourite soundtracks of all time, the stuff he managed to do on the NES while so limited is still revolutionary

[@SaberToothPortilla]

The guy truly was an innovator of that era. Frankly, I think the music is pretty damn solid in the strictest sense, but even if you didn't, you can't deny that he was a wizard where manipulating the limitations of the system is concerned. Musically, he's great, but sonically, his soundtracks were feats. A lot of talented people would have trouble making something sound that good with *modern* hardware, he did it well over 30 years ago.

[@Hatsworthful]

TIM IT WAS JUST PICTIONARY

[@BottomOfTheDumpsterFire]

Yeah, when I first heard of Tim roughly 15 years ago, he was by far the most underrated composer. Now? He's finally getting the respect he deserves, although nobody has talked about Equinox yet.

[@Hevymin]

*TIM IT WAS JUST PICTIONARY*

[@superbro6413]

That segment when you just started crawling around your room with the shotgun was just so extra, I couldn't help but laugh Always a joy to see you flex your cinematography skills for dumb funny bits like that

[@palecaptainwolfkayls8499]

Spontaneous 360 camera

[@bria.w4073]

I lost it at that part it was so unexpected

[@scottecs]

Oh my god! Did you miss the entire L&R button mechanic and STILL manage to finish the game? Congrats!!!

[@LavaCreeperPeople]

hi verified

[@WestOfLee100]

what?

[@kevingh0st99]

WTF!? Scottecs qui?

[@Tinkatube]

What's the mechanic?

[@Dragorosso95]

What does that mechanic do?

[@levilevis9032]

I love the sudden camera angle change during the boss music segment, making the room seem artificially large to a comedic effect when Rad is just crawling under a couple desks and flipping a fold-out couch over to act as a shield as people suddenly start invading with weapons draw. It's like a daydreaming sequence suddenly put into the real world of the video, it's hillarious.

[@Starpotion]

It's genuinely good cinematography that comes out of nowhere lmao, such a great little skit

[@whyvernics]

I know this is nothing new but I still can't believe how fluid and natural his voice sounds in modern videos, I genuinely feel like someone is speaking to me rather than reading a script it rocks

[@Gatorade69]

Just recently found the channel and yeah, that's what drew me in was his manner of speaking. It feels personal. Like current AVGN has just gotten so bad It's clear James is just reading a script, when it used to have that personally feeling that Nitro Rad's videos have.

[@tehcrusher]

@@Gatorade69 Funny you should say that, because NitroRad's real name is also James

[@canaconn2388]

Eh when he strains his voice with the higher pitches, it's really grating on the ears

[@BenMarcWilliams]

Okay, but can we talk about how having a Zelda cartridge that's actually Madden is a goddamn hilarious prank?

[@FelisImpurrator]

It had to have been Maddening the first time.

[@reinforcedpenisstem]

What would you like to talk about with it?

[@yup8865]

Reminds me of the one time I bought Conkers Bad Fur day and it ended up being Pokemon Colosseum (Edit: Pokemon Stadium 😂 GC game would have been shocking)

[@FigureFarter]

Or how Plainrock swapped Star Fox Weekend with PGA Tour

[@pinkpools]

@@reinforcedpenisstem lole

[@ilikecurry2345]

"The challenging difficulty, even on Child's Play, can make this too hard for tots, but perfect for the pros." ~George Wood, 1993

[@Carsonj13]

Ah flights of fantasy...

[@traewilson5127]

Sure. Of course that's his opinion. Games *significantly* easier he calls unbeatable, but Plok is a fair challenge. What a profoundly strange sad little man. He has my pity.

[@Carsonj13]

@@traewilson5127 "Resident Evil's puzzles are impossible without hints."

[@RandysaurusRex]

"The game's appeal is of the same high quality as Bubsy; both games feature outstanding action."

[@carlosemilio5180]

Gitcy! Its good for your spleen.

[@Detective_Faux]

"I guess you guys aren't ready for that yet. But your kids are gonna love it." - Tim Follin 1993

[@iwanttocomplain]

"Then I'm gonna recycle it 300 times and retire on my offshore savings accounts" - Follin 2004

[@kiwisen]

​@@iwanttocomplainthis is how He rolls🎉

[@iwanttocomplain]

@@kiwisen it's how he arpeggios.

[@pangake]

your reviews always have a very positive side to them that make it a joy to watch. coupled with your technical quality and incredible cinematic gags make spending a half an hour's worth of silly plok game my forte.

[@kakazi2170]

How did you leave a comment a day ago

[@pangake]

@@kakazi2170 if i answer i'd have to subject you to a patreon advertisement

[@Sideqazxsw]

@@kakazi2170 People who give Nitrorad money through Patreon get access to his videos a day earlier than those who don't.

[@corokossa]

his optimism and excellent critiques are why I subscribed. I had heard of NitroRad for years but never watched until his Illbleed review showed up in my home feed. he quickly became one of my favorite reviewers because of how positive he is

[@goranisacson2502]

Plok feels like the first time that a main character is suitably badass and hardcore to DESERVE a Tim Follins soundtrack. This little jolly fella is all Banjo-Kazooie wacky sploinky as long as he's sitting in his chair, watching the footy match, having a tea, is all good in life mate... then someone steals his flag. And death follows in it's path, accompanied by synths you will remember wherever your soul goes when you face the fist of Plok.

[@Dorelaxen]

Tim Follin is one of my favorite composers. He only had a few SNES credits, but seriously, those were Plok!, Equinox, Super Off Road (a personal favorite) and freaking ROCK 'N ROLL RACING. Every game soundtrack he's composed is top tier stuff. He's still active in composing, but it's really sporadic these days.

[@Vicobop]

Also Spider Man and X-Men in Arcade's revenge! Which if you haven't heard, just find Gambit's theme and you'll fall hard.

[@nolancho]

Oh shut up you!

[@Pezmage1]

Man, I had my snes hooked up to a small stereo when I was young and I recorded the Plok soundtrack on a cassette through it and would listen to it on my Walkman all the time. Good times

[@FloowSnaake]

Cool

[@FoxMan_FF]

It's worth noting that, in lieu of passwords, you can punch the fruit you find in some levels instead of collecting it to heal. This activates a bonus stage which, when completed, lets you skip chunks of the game! Sure, it's trial and error to find the bonus stages, but it's something! Anyway, thank you for covering what is unironically my favorite SNES game! This put a huge grin on my face.

[@pcachu]

Tim Follin is the definition of "you didn't need to go THAT hard".

[@PiercingSight]

Note: Tim said that Geoff actually did most of the music for this game himself. Tim helped, but it was mostly Geoff. And sadly, Geoff passed away last week. RIP to a legend.

[@FlameSoulis]

I just came back to this exact video because of hearing the news. We're starting to lose some amazing people behind the marvels we grew up with.

[@farcryfromhere]

i feel like discovering the plok boss theme for the first time is a gamer's rite of passage. its just too damn good!

[@DeskoDev]

James making a Plok video? I am HERE for it! EDIT 1: Tim Follin doesn't do lots of video game music alone nowadays, but he is behind a two relatively recent FMV games - Contradiction: Spot the Liar and At Dead of Night. EDIT 2: Also, you didn't mention this, but you can also lower your jump height/fall faster by holding down on the dpad!

[@Vicobop]

Aaaand you can rage yourself by pressing L and R after you get the amulet. It consumes shells and in return your somersault is imbued with a razor ability.

[@nolancho]

Oh shut up!

[@zilikslider]

I remember being obsessed with PLOK!'s music

[@fernandozavaletabustos205]

I remember this mascot from the Jon Tron and Arin Let's Play!

[@coolbrotherf127]

90% of the reason I clicked on this video was to listen to what you had to say about the music. It's such an amazing soundtrack for a SNES platformer. Also, this game really is the pre-Rayman game, I wonder if they did play this and get inspired.

[@Esitaro3670]

I don't know what type of magic Tim Follin uses while making music, but damn, it's incredibly catchy and also shows how ahead of it's time he is

[@LookitVideos]

There's a channel named explod2A03 that explains some of the tricks ("Single Channel Echo by the Follin Bros.")

[@KeWinn]

A hidden gem amongst SNES games. Really glad you pointed out how incredibly good the music is in it! Thanks for covering PLOK!

[@Quintingent]

Oh wow, this brought back memories I'd otherwise long since forgotten. When I was young and first getting into games, around the turn of the millenium, my mum, who had (and still has) a complete lack of knowledge about games, found a VHS in a charity shop where Craig Charles (who I knew at the time from Robot Wars, and later Red Dwarf - others may know him from Coronation Street) talked about Nintendo games, including various segments such as reviews and even a little discussion with developers. I didn't remember most of the games, but one stood out to me - a silly little guy with a pretty bold artisitc style compared to the other games, which were a mix of NES and SNES. For years, all I could remember was a segment where they discussed a cheat for the game where you could follow some collectibles to a secret, and enter a bonus stage where you drove a car. ...until now, when I see that character on the screen again. "It's that guy from the VHS!" I thought to myself, and lo and behold, searching for 'Criag Charles Plok' was able to bring up a pair of KZbin videos of the VHS. So uh... thank you for helping me find a piece of my childhood I thought I'd forgotten. And hey, the video, like always was great. Looking forward to the next one!

[@KazeMemaryu]

PLOK is my absolute favourite SNES game. As a child, I had nightmares about the Creepy Forest level, now I find it surprisingly fun. That said, I only beat the entire game a few years ago, and it took me two sessions for a total of 8 hours. One thing that will always stand out to me is the sheer depth and length of the songs. The longest track, Akrillic, takes almost 4 minutes to loop back to its starting point, and every second of it is mesmerizing! The music actually uses two of the audio channels meant for sound effects as extra instruments to achieve its unparalleled layered vibes. It was so good, Miyamoto thought he was getting pranked when he tried the game, believing that they hid a separate speaker system in the room playing back music beyond what he thought possible on the SNES.

[@Vicobop]

From what I had seen in another recent video on the game, the soundtrack used only 5 out of the 8 channels, which was shocking. But it explains why you could still hear all the sound effects, whereas Megaman X used almost if not all the channels and that's why you'd sometimes have audio clipping out. Follins did magic.

[@Vicobop]

And yes it's unbelievable how long the tracks are! They all felt like a trip you're taken on.

[@Nat_the_Chicken]

I've seen multiple people say, as if it's fact, that the Follins used sound effect channels in the music to make it better, and then multiple people contradict them to say that actually part of what makes the soundtrack incredible is that they _didn't_ do that. That makes sense to me, I think beyond the compositional ability they were extremely clever programmers who really understood what they were working with. By this time they were used to working magic with 2A03, Amiga, and even ZX beepers, so where other composers felt they needed the extra channels at the expense of sound effect conflicts, they decided to just use workarounds (like clever multi-pitch sampling and lots of tweaking of certain instrument sounds rather than just compressing recordings) and make music that sounded like about 10 channels with just 5. Don't get me wrong, I particularly love modern chiptune that uses a couple more channels than most games of the real chiptune era had available (VRC6, mostly). But being able to absolutely maximize harsher limitations deserves at least as much credit. Anyway, all this does make me wonder where so many people got such a strong misconception (assuming that's indeed what it is). Were there reviewers or youtubers that just assumed this music had to use the sfx channel trick and then spread that idea?

[@therealseanw.stewart2071]

PLOK was one of the first games I remember buying at the store with my parents, heck, it was one of my first games in general. I'll never forget that awesome clay box art that grabbed my attention. This game is near and dear to my heart, it's extremely nostalgic, and let's not forget the incredible soundtrack composed by the legendary Tim and Geoff Follin, masters of their craft in the 8-and-16-bit eras. Cotton Island's theme, the beach theme, the boss theme...they're all masterpieces and some of the most astounding aural experiences on SNES. I still enjoy replaying PLOK to this day every now and then, I say this game holds up beautifully in all its uniqueness and surreal, joyful atmosphere. Plus, I'll never forget the first time a game ever made me laugh so hard as a toddler was his encounter with the underpants on the flagpole! "HEY! THIS ISN'T MY FLAG!"

[@LunarAntic]

Tim Follin kicks ass as a VGM composer, God bless you Tim

[@spaceghost566]

I did NOT expect to see plok on this channel but im glad regardless. The pickford brothers have been actually making a comic series about Plok which acts as a direct continuation of the video game. With Plok apparently resting on that chair for over two decades. Its a really fun comic and its worth looking at!

[@Saxdude26]

YEEEEEEEEEES! The harmonica playing, flag searching, limb throwing, tomato sauce and mustard, pyjama-looking boy! Not to mention a classic with one of the most underrated boss themes that many people recognise but don't realise it's from THIS GAME! Oh, thankyou for covering this game James! 🎵

[@CrossKnights]

I'm so glad you spent so much time talking about the music. I played this game a lot when it first came out, and the music for this game stayed with me for my entire life. I would find myself humming one of the songs periodically for years not knowing where it was from only to find out about 5 years ago that was actually from Plok. It's crazy to me that Tim Follin was never tapped to do music for a bigger more mainstream title.

[@HeisenbergFam]

Nitro's casual return after a month is a blessing, the reviews are on point

[@Splooshua.]

I just saw u on markiplier comment section 🤔

[@victoriouswinner7745]

You just said the same thing about Elvis the Alien. Get outta here!

[@the-golden-duck]

@@victoriouswinner7745 yeah

[@Hinokassaudifan1]

We aren't cooking anything mr white.

[@Melurem]

how are you everywhere?

[@thesilverw0lf]

I hope the composers find this just to smile at your joy at vibing with their music

[@IneXtrikabul]

This game was a weirdly standout memory of my childhood. I hadn't realized how long I'd been waiting for this video until now...

[@sweetwheatsy]

This really feels like Rayman in several ways... Strange locales and weird creatures, the use of flailing limbs, the brutal difficulty at times, rocket platforms, signs/flags as level completion-marks, etc. Michel Ancel must have played this at some point.

[@enoyna1001]

I was thinking the same thing. The OG Rayman was so brutal for me as a kid.

[@gjtrue]

The music in this obscure little game is amazing and something else. Easily some of THE best stuff coming out of the SNES. Certainly that badass boss theme the composers had no reason to go so hard on. Tim Follin and his brothers deserved far more attention for their musical scores. I put 'em right up there with the like of Koji Kondo, Nobuo Uematsu, Mick Gordon, Hitoshi Sakimoto, and so on.

[@connorjacobs1]

Rest in Peace Geoff Follin, thank you for your wonderful work.

[@Kiezkollege]

That game broke me when I was a kid. The psychedelic music, the difficulty, the odd enemies and character design.

[@irwegwert]

Tim Follin actually made one of my favorite FMV mystery games a while back called Contradiction: Spot the Liar. Every character, especially the protagonist, hams it up so much that it's a blast to watch. It's so funny.

[@ItsRocky_01]

I knew/heard the boss theme before, but actually seeing where it came from was like a straight punch to the gut (in a good way)! Definitely gonna spend awhile listening to the soundtrack because all the songs featured in this video were just amazing. It's also really nice having this focus on older games since I haven't heard of them and it's great seeing James have alot of fun talk about them. Keep it up dude! :]👍

[@64Bits]

I was always and will always be blown away by this amazing soundtrack. Plus games back in the day that were always part cartoon were always my favorite. Pac Man 2 and Bubsy for example weren't great games, but there was so much cartoon charm to their animations. Plok has that same feel. Really great game.

[@MrWatchAndwatch]

The OST has no business going this hard, damn

[@The16bithero]

I really loved that John Wick scene going with the music. You know your music is legendary when it turns you into a legend

[@DaCaptainDerpy]

This game was such a hidden gem! Thank you for covering this game!!!

[@joedee6879]

I love how your videos feel like you're taking us on an adventure with you

[@MadHatter42]

Seeing James geek out and gush over the music was such a treat. I hardly ever think about the OST, so seeing him give it some-well deserved credit is always very gratifying.

[@KassFireborn]

I would never have heard of this, and now I am looking up the soundtrack *immediately*. Thank you, Nitro Rad, and thank you unknown cartridge-sender.

[@KassFireborn]

True story: I spent too much time yesterday wandering through various Spotify playlists, and it infected my dreams. The only part I now remember clearly, though, is going through one playlist for stuff to check out and going, "Oh, there's a Plok remix! Well, I *have* to listen to that." It's invaded my subconscious and I've never even played it, good job.

[@Interference22]

I played Plok! years ago and my god that opening theme music is absolutely superb. It sounds so weirdly high quality and bass-y, then the electric guitar kicks in. Great stuff.

[@quartzionic]

Tim Follin still makes games today! He has his own studio, Baggy Cat Ltd. They made Contradiction and At Dead of Night, if you've heard of those.

[@NaveedMohebbi]

God the shot at 11:45 is so good. Love it. Plok is such wild game and the music really makes it.

[@marywallace3620]

Honestly for all of it's weirdness and kinda hard gameplay and it's awesome music, I actually have a huge nostalgia for Plok. Why? Because I used to play this a lot as a kid. Me and my grandpa would take turns playing it. Like everytime one of us gets stuck (mainly me lol) or died (again mainly me) the other would continue on until they get stuck or die. We actually beat that game together over the course of a month or two.

[@MACZ2021]

I'm extra glad this review happened cause now more people will be aware of Plok! now. When James starts to mention the music, I expected him to talk about it in full the first time but then as he kept doing it I was all like "yeah I totally get where he's going with this" and I was not let down in the slightest. Can't wait for the Mischief Makers review next time, I've been dying to see anything made by Treasure get talked about on this channel since they're my all time favorite game developer so this is gonna be well worth the wait.

[@miguelify646]

This game was brutal as a kid. felt like it took weeks to get through the Bobbins Brothers and then they come back later with a third brother. was never able to finish it and ended up giving it back to the friend i borrowed it from. I did like it tho and i think Nintendo Power had a short comic in their magazine.

[@CheesecakeMilitia]

I love when a game is more famous for its music than anything else. Like Smurf's Nightmare on Gameboy being renowned for its "Mysterious Planet" chiptune track (and I'd never have heard of it if not for siivagunner shitposts). I don't remember when I first heard of Plok but it was definitely in the context of some buds raving about its soundtrack back in the pre-2010 internet.

[@paranormeow]

it’s always so amazing to see you cover hidden gems like this!!! It’s always a treat to see a new upload from u :]

[@humblebee5575]

On your recommendation, I've been playing through Hotel Dusk, and while I've really been enjoying it so far, whenever certain songs play it makes me think you're about to chime in with commentary because that's what I associate it with.

[@SenyoMena]

I love the scene about the boss fight theme, the camera angle was great

[@BurgerBroeders]

Please, never stop making this content. I recently started watching all your content from beginning to now and I’ve been finding out about so many games I need to play or getting nostalgia for so many games I have played. Lesser known games like Plok, Addams Family, Ironsword really deserve an in-depth review like this. Yet keeping it very cosy and “small”. Also love how in the intros you always take us with you through a memory you had about the game in question or the period it came out in.

[@itzpeanut9904]

plok is truly a masterpiece in music, tim follin and his brother are a BEAST

[@Hobhunks]

The use of the soundtrack as diegetic music leading to the little sequence with the gun and the creative camera transition was really something! Just such a smooth transition :) Also, we've seen James wearing Digimon stuff in a few videos now, and Terriermon has been lurking in the back for ages. DIGIMON WHEN?!?!?!?!

[@Alanzice]

OMG, Plok! Never would guess a new episode about it. Plok needs some love for sure.

[@MudaGameStudio]

That shot with you crawling around with the Plok boss music was incredible. That genuinely made me go 👀. Fantastic work all around! I also love Plok’s design- I love when people get weird with video game mascots, so he’s now up there with some of my favorites!

[@lime_tuna]

im really glad you mentioned tim follin, dudes such a legend and deserves the recognition

[@robertlaroche9261]

Speaking as someone who beat this game on original hardware a couple of years ago. I did face similar frustrations you did, but like you said, that made it even more satisfying to beat and when I beat the final boss, that felt good! Plok is now one of my favorite SNES games, because of creative and unique it is. Great video as always, Dude! I'm really excited for your Mischief Makers review! That's one of my favorite N64 games!

[@The-official-knudschannel]

If Plok had a voice, I imagine he would sound very British.

[@Thot_Patrol_USA]

for whatever reason i imagine him sounding scottish af like count dankula voicing him

[@Topaz542]

Honestly im loving this new format. Keeping all the stuff that made your old vids classic but they feel so much more like you

[@jimation66]

This is another one of those gems that I've been meaning to get to for a while now. Hopefully this video might've been the push I need to finally try Plok for myself.

[@bored_person]

11:45 I never expected to see such inventive and well executed cinematography in a brief skit in a video game review. That brief scene was better than many big budget action movies.

[@keijijohnson9754]

25:11 - Okay at that point, Plok may as well just be the John Wick of 90's platformers! 😂 Heck, he has the soundtrack to match the chaotic journey he's been on up to this point!

[@reubenbailey7491]

Man, the opening just immediately slapping you across the face with (I think) the beach music makes me know that this is gonna be a good one.

[@gabrielf.4530]

You are a gem, please continue to knock it out of the park

[@Jezroth]

MISCHIEF MAKERS!!! I knew it the moment you started talking about 2D n64 with a catching cover! I was the same but only ever got to play it once or twice at one of my dad’s friend’s places It was so cool but I had no idea what to do, I’m very keen to see it after all these years!

[@francjirachi]

ahhh Plok, I really like that game, and of course it's music. Did you also know they have a comic series that continues it's world, and it's still ongoing? It's crazy hahaha

[@john_michael97]

My take on the whole “lives and continues” thing is very similar to my opinion on Difficultly, it is a tool that the developer can use to deliver an intended experience, and when used effectively it delivers something unique that some people find worth experiencing.

[@Chowder_T]

I've only ever known Plok from reviewers making throwaway comments about it. I never knew how charming this game was. Also, that music is dope as heck

[@bradwig]

love this type of old school content. giving an interesting game a deep dive. amazing work

[@thecrtf4953]

Id love to see this game get a remake as it has such a fun charm to it that you cant help but love Loved this review!

[@RyanBeardy]

Love hearing your thoughts / what is important to talk about when it comes to these NES and SNES reviews you're doing! Hope to see more quality content surrounding these much simpler games!

[@theinvertedone1667]

I love these retro 2d platformer videos. Nitro Rad talking about my favorite Era of gaming is a treat to behold. Keep it up, bro! I look forward to that Ironsword video! And all hail Tim Follin, indeed.

[@danielmccormick700]

My 2nd Nitro Rad video, after finding you & Brady on the Punky Skunk video. It's funny that I've been following retrogaming videos on KZbin for the last 7 years, and only now am I finding Nitro Rad videos coming up in my searches.

[@tonybloodcherry]

Been watching for years now, welcome aboard!

[@mybumstudios1989]

I've never played Plok, but it's made by the talented Pickford Bros.... they went on to run a small studio called Zed Two and made some great games. AquaAqua is my favourite of all time

[@thomasb6214]

dude the videos you make on these games that I’ve just NEVER heard of always end up being amazing and so much fun to watch, great job as usual

[@Hugelag]

Tim Follin's music is the equivalent of that one image of a guy using a sword to cut food. He makes absolutely bangers, regardless of the quality of the actual game. The video was great, and nice shirt.

[@graveyardgary4482]

This channel is awesome can’t believe I’m just now finding it. Your the man, Nitro!

[@LuccaFerreiraCM]

25 years I've been looking for this game. I've thought it was some delusional dream or a false memory, i can't believe I've found it. Thank you!

[@max853412]

Nitro sneaking back in making my work day go that much quicker. Great video, but I’m so excited for Mischief Makers! Good to see you are making a video about it, lots of charm and genuinely fun!

[@Dragon_Screamer]

HA HA HA! When you said "N64 2D platformer" I yelled "Mischief Makers" as you said it! One of the best no doubt!

[@RyutheWeredragon]

Marina: Yahoo!

[@FleetFaxes]

God, being a long-time viewer of James’ videos and thus having vividly accurate expectations for what the Zelda cart punchline was going to be thanks to a 9-year-old Garanikor video is such a weird feeling. Confronting and thus having to accept the inevitable march of time that stretches on and on without any methods of slowing or stopping it, but in the dumbest way possible, is surprisingly very on-brand for this channel.

[@NitroRad]

That's absolutely bananas that you actually saw that old video LMAO

[@UltramasterBDJ]

@Nitro Rad Okay, so, apologies for posting this as a reply here, but apparently KZbin's AI marked me as a spammer. Why? Because of _one time_ over a month ago I tried to warn people away from buying a messed-up broken version of a TV-show on Google TV and recommended buying it elsewhere instead. (Guess posting that warning on all 13 episodes of that show was enough to trigger that. Or maybe it just didn't like the words "buy", "not", and "do" in reverse order.) So now I can only _reply_ to people rather than post new comments, horray. And the only way I even found out was because I tried editing a comment here and got an error, then when I refreshed the page the comment was just gone, and checking back a few days later, nope, still nothing. -_- Oh, and turns out me "liking" or "disliking" a video no longer has an effect either. The system still keeps track that I've voted ... but the next time I load the page the numbers are back to what they were before. So yeah. Disabling dislikes wasn't enough for KZbin, I guess. -___- ------------------------------------------ 12:44 "Have you heard the music to Pictionary on NES?!" ...Waitaminute... actually, I have! o_O Where have I heard this before? Maybe he's on 8bitpeoples. c__o__m ? (gotta assemble the link yourself, sorry) Around 2008 - 2013 I listened to a ton of stuff from there... This made me go through my entire collection from that time, weirdly couldn't find it though, so don't know what pseudonym he might go by. Also: Yay, Plok! A friend had that, and I played it only like once or twice (so obviously I didn't get very far), but somehow it stuck with me. So horray for childhood memories! :)

[@StrangeDew]

2:44 Nitro Rad getting possessed by AVGN for a moment

[@Wyrdwad]

I literally clicked on this video JUST to hear you gush about the music, and I wasn't disappointed. ;) Especially since I really didn't know anything about Plok OTHER than the music, so it was cool to get such an in-depth review of the game itself. Seems like a fun one, for sure! I also wanted to mention: Tim Follin had a protege. Sort of. I mean, he didn't KNOW he had a protege... but there's a game music composer from Spain who basically looked up to Follin and got his start by more or less duplicating Follin's style, then refining and polishing it through compositions for even more games than Follin himself ever composed for... and this protege is still composing for indie games to this very day! The man's name is Alberto Jose Gonzalez, but since that is literally the John Smith of Spanish names, he also sometimes gets credited as Joe McAlby. If you get a chance, I HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend checking out some of his music sometime, particularly on the Game Boy (which was the platform he composed for most commonly). He's known for scoring a lot of mediocre-to-bad licensed games based on decidedly European properties, including pretty much all the Smurfs, Asterix, and Tintin games, as well as all the Game Boy Turok games. His best overall soundtrack, I'd say, is Turok 2 on Game Boy, though ALL the GB Turok games feature absolutely outstanding music (and are half-decent games, too, TBH!)... but the two specific tracks he's probably best known for are "Another World" from The Smurfs Nightmare (think something along the lines of the moon stage from Ducktales, but even better!), and "Metal Beat" from the little-known Game Boy game Metal Masters, which may be the single most badass song ever composed for the hardware (though it doesn't really start until about 35 seconds in, so you might want to skip ahead when listening to it!). I wouldn't necessarily suggest playing the games he's worked on, for the most part, but I ABSOLUTELY suggest diving into the rabbit hole of their OSTs, as like Tim Follin, he always gave like, 62,000% to every game he was assigned, whether or not it deserved it. And a lot of his compositions are so Follin-esque, they're almost indistinguishable from Follin's own works on a blind listen. Just figured I'd fill you in! And, to close... Thanks for another great video!

[@andrewchilton7186]

That sequence you unleash at 11:40 or so is everything. You are truly one of the most talented Gaming KZbinrs, along with your friendly rival AntDude and Mr. Square Eyed Jak. NitroRad, you are Super talented.

[@Endbeats]

Love seeing you go back to some retro games! For other lesser known SNES games, I’d recommend Evo: the Search for Eden.

[@DominoPivot]

This looks really funny, I'd play it with savestates some day.