Before Xbox Live and Discord, there were basements full of CRTs, ethernet cables running like spiderwebs, and hands covered in Dorito dust. This week, Chase and Austin are joined by Wayne and Howie to relive the glory days of LAN parties, couch co-op, early multiplayer memories, and the snacks that fueled them.

Grab your controllers, fire up the ethernet hub, and keep your hands clean (or don’t) — because Episode 5 is all about LAN Parties and Doritos Dust.

This week, Austin and Chase are joined by two very special guests: Howie (aka Scott) and Wayne, Austin’s older — and according to Chase — “much better-looking” brother. Together, the crew rewinds to a time before online gaming took over the world, reliving the magic of couch co-op, local multiplayer chaos, and all-night LAN marathons.

We cover:
🎮 Life before online gaming — from Mario/Duck Hunt to GoldenEye to the first FPS experiences
👾 Arcade glory days — TMNT: Turtles in Time, X-Men, Rampage, Power Rangers
🔌 LAN party setups — multi-TV madness, ethernet cables everywhere
🎮 Halo, Gears, CoD — local tournaments, campaign runs, and Wayne’s legendary Gears soapbox
🎮 Pokémon link cables, Double Dash battles, NBA Street, Shaolin Monks, and more
🕹️ First gamertags — BlueSanta117, IZI Pwnage IZI
🥤 Snacks & drinks of the era — Game Fuel, Red Bull, fork-eaten chips, Monsters, and of course… Doritos

We also introduce two brand new segments this week:

👫 Co-Op Mode (New)

A collaborative segment featuring guest opinions, crossovers, and crew-based conversations. For its debut, we discuss the group’s current gaming obsessions and what they’re most excited for in 2026

💾 Listener Memory Card (New)

Your stories take center stage! We dig into your submitted favorite games and first COD experiences.

Finally, we reach our Save Point, reflecting on how the four of us still run DnD campaigns together today and how these early multiplayer moments shaped entire friendships.

Next week, we take a detour into film nostalgia with “Be Kind, Rewind,” covering Blockbuster, Friday night rentals, DVDs, and the golden era of physical media.

🎧 Want to be featured in a future Listener Memory Card segment?
This week’s question:
Which of these give you the most nostalgic, warm-fuzzy media memories — Blockbuster, Netflix (early days), Redbox, GameFly, or something else? And why?

Email us at: themidnightreleasepod@gmail.com