Glad you're back and the game is going so well. You have me intrigued by what this dark turn of events in your story will be. I hope you find a way to bring it to Macs! Also, still waiting for a reply to that message I sent you...
Messing with your friends is fun, for sure, but it can also make the game easier. My wife and I have avoided all kinds of deaths (usually from missed or botched jumps) by going into our bubbles at the last moment. And it makes it easier to enjoy with less skilled players. At the same time, the game is still challenging, so it's fun for us more skilled players. Fun for everyone, that's the Nintendo magic!
I've had good experiences the few times I've used ebay but it's been years since I bought anything on there. You should threaten the seller with a really bad review if he doesn't right it right. A lot of those professional sellers will do anything to avoid bad reviews. It could also get their right to sell revoked, I think, so you definitely have some options to pursue.
SMT IV is definitely a good "brand new" buy thanks to all the stuff it comes with. The whole first printing was the special edition, though, so I'm not sure you could even get the game new by itself yet. But James is right. It's pretty tough at the beginning but it gets easier as you go.
I wish I had a copy of Okamiden. Of course, I ought to play my copy of Okami first anyway...
Lol. I've heard it's the kind of game you can play indefinitely.
I hate looking through the CDs but you gotta do it. That's where I found Crash Bandicoot 2.
Whoa, great choices! When Julian put out that request for community suggestions (which is the next podcast, I guess) The Edge of Green from Radiant Historia is what I suggested, so I'm very happy to see you include it here. That soundtrack is so great. It was the first time in a long time that I stopped playing a game to just sit there and listen to the music. But I also loved that piece from Code of Princess. I haven't played it yet but I hope to, especially if it's got great music like that. And though I haven't played any of the Etrian Odyssey games, I do love Yuzo Koshiro's work, especially EOIII. I was surprised though by how much I enjoyed the remixed version. Koshiro really took his source and ran with it. So much sax! lol
The song from Nier reminded me of some of the work of Paul Schwartz taking classical or operatic pieces and giving them just a bit of a more modern spin, particularly of "Farewell," which is reworked from an opera (not sure which one). The only video I could find of it has someone's pictures from a trip to Portugal, so don't mind that. It's just a vehicle for the music 
I have yet to find a classic system like that. Man, the thought of coming across, like, a complete Sega Saturn for cheap is one of the things that keeps me going lol. But yes, I have way too many games...but that's a nice problem to have
I thought this episode was pretty good. Like you said, we finally saw some action again. I'm glad that the characters have plenty of room to grow as a team. Wouldn't be very interesting if they "clicked" together right away. As for Jaune, I agree with Glinda Goodwitch when she said (in this episode or the next one, I don't recall) that no matter what his transcripts say, he doesn't seem ready for their school. I hope that's a mystery that really gets fleshed out because it certainly has me intrigued.
I especially like that song from Beyond Good & Evil. I love the theme for that game too, "Sweet Home." And don't worry about us in regard to 8bit tunes. If anyone is going to appreciate that music, it's us right here on Pixlbit
