sneame

To be honest, if you go back into the Retrogaming Roundup archives, you can find quite a few examples of Mike participating in recording sessions and seemingly having little idea of what is going on! I don't know if the mere fact that RGRU reviewed the SD2SNES is definitely proof that Mike would be able to identify one! I say that with affection, though. As piperclub intimated, Mike brought a lot of entertainment and passion to those old shows. It's a shame that his entrepreneurial desires have soured these qualities. Mike's endearing bumbling doesn't seem so funny when he's asking you to foot the bill.

The Facebook announcement seems to suggest that Kickstarter *was* (and, perhaps, could still be) their "pre-sell" option. So there is still a chance they'll be doing a Kickstarter in the future where you are asked to back the project as a supposed pre-order for the console (which presumably does still have the risk of non-delivery attached, compared to a genuine pre-order with a major retailer).

I've been lurking in this forum for a while, and thought I'd join to take part in this thread. I've also been a fan of Retrogaming Roundup since its inception, and noticed they've just removed most mentions of Kennedy from their site and Facebook - although he officially left as one of the main team a while back, he was still listed as a co-host until a couple days ago. He did take part in their regular top 10 in the brand new episode (#92), though, presumably recorded before the indiegogo went live, and it was kind of amusing to hear him complain about the service he received from someone selling a Vectrex game: Although there might be a bit of retrospective schadenfreude in hearing that now, my take on the VGS affair - like some on here - is that he did not intend to deliberately scam anyone with the system. I don't know him personally, but I've been listening to his broadcasts for years (on Retrogaming Roundup, and before that Retrogaming Radio), and he does seem to be someone genuinely passionate about the hobby. At the same time, it has been a running joke on RGRU that SoCalMike is not always the sharpest person, and he's been prone to misspeaking, dropping solecisms and just generally letting his excitement about something get in the way of clarity. My impression of him has always been that he embodies both the highs and lows of the American dream - he has a real entrepreneurial spirit and a drive to turn his passion for gaming into a business (which is certainly no bad thing). However, I don't really think he has the business acumen to be the leader of some of these projects - working hard and talking up a big game aren't the only requirements for success. I subscribed to the first year of Retro magazine and I had several problems with issues arriving late, and in one case not at all. This lack of organization - coupled with the pre-order price point of the RGS - killed my interest in backing the console. And yet... there's still part of me that could be won over if they properly regroup and get that price down. I think he's a good guy, and I'd like to support his ventures, but I really hope he steps back at least a little with the management moving forward.