Patrick Siller

“Aniero” and “Kallo” may not be as well known at Central Michigan University as names like “Rao” or “LeFevour,” but they are celebrities in their own right.

Limit Break Radio, a podcast and Web site produced in the basement of Merrill Hall, has gained a following of between 70,000 to 120,000 regular listeners worldwide, making it one of the most popular “Final Fantasy XI” podcasts in the world.

“It came to us as a total surprise – a good surprise, but a total surprise,” said Troy senior Nathan Bender, who is known to the online community as, “Aniero,”

“Final Fantasy XI” is the latest incarnation in a seven-year-old series of online role-playing video games, set in the fantasy world of Vana’diel.

Limit Break Radio was created two and a half years ago. Bender and Oakley sophomore Robbie Pollock, also known as “Kallo,” created the podcast with the help of two other friends after enjoying the community-based game and hearing similar “Final Fantasy XI” podcasts.

Limit Break Radio also has been featured in a newsletter from “Final Fantasy XI” publisher Square-Enix Co. The co-hosts discuss gameplay mechanics, strategies, news and humor within the “Final Fantasy XI” community.

“Nate called me up one summer and said that we do the same thing just sitting around,” Pollock said. “So, why not do it?”

Since then, 40 episodes of the podcast have been published, each lasting anywhere from two to four hours long.

Bender and Pollock have become quasi-celebrities within the Final Fantasy community, and were warmly greeted with fans at the 2008 “Final Fantasy XI” Fan Festival in Hollywood.

“It’s so weird to have strangers – just out of nowhere – come up and know who you are, by voice, even in this case,” Pollock said.

Bender said the popularity was unexpected and he never thought Limit Break Radio would have this large of an impact.

“The show is, to some people, very instrumental in the way that they either play the game or the reason that they still play the game,” Bender said. “To me, that’s very touching.”

Because of this popularity and exposure, Bender and Pollock have created the Limit Break Radio Network, which features content from members of the “Final Fantasy XI” community ranging from Holland to Japan, creating a global phenomenon.

“It’s additional content that is still related to ‘Final Fantasy XI,’ yet inherently unique from what we do on ‘Limit Break Radio,’ but also has that same production quality” Bender said.

Matthew Randall, a Limit Break Radio fan from England, said he listens to the podcast for the entertainment value.

“The entire team always works together so well and you can really see the commitment made by every last one of them to put out a really good show,” Randall said via e-mail.

Matthew Andrew, a fan living in Australia, said he was surprised by the number of friendships he has gained within the “Final Fantasy XI” community because of Limit Break Radio.

“The amount of planning, background research and effort that is put towards such an entertaining show pays off extremely well,” Andre said via e-mail. “The production and sound quality is second to none, and Nate does an excellent job with his editing skills.”

Bender and Pollock used the Web site’s wide reaching audience for a larger cause last October when Limit Break Radio supported “Extra Life,” a national gaming marathon where gamers collected donations for the Texas Children’s Hospital while playing video games for 24-hours.

This past October, Limit Break Radio teamed up with other popular “Final Fantasy XI” Web sites and raised about $11,000, with $9,345 of the total donation coming directly from “Limit Break Radio” supporters.

Those numbers surpassed event organizer, Sarcasticgamer.com, and was second place in total money raised for the event. Bender and Pollock broadcast all day and all night to rally support for the cause.

features@cm-life.com

E-mail the author: Eric Joyce