The Retro World Series 2016 will host satellite tournaments, such as high score, speedrun, and high score, at various locations throughout the 2016 season before the main event. The schedule and locations of the satellite tournaments are posted below.
| Events | Location | Dates |
Madison, WI | February 20, 2016 | |
Brookfield, WI | April 9-10, 2016 | |
Pasadena, TX | April 30-May 1, 2016 | |
Plano, TX | June 18-19, 2016 | |
Austin, TX | July 30–31, 2016 |
The Retro World Series also hosts satellite tournaments throughout the 2016 season before the main event. The tournament types will be versus, speedrun, and high score. The satellite tournaments will feature single elimination versus tournaments and single round, single game, speedrun and high score tournaments. The winner of each tournament will win a $50 Visa Gift Card and a free entry into the Main Event tournament of their choice. The runner-up will receive a $25 Visa Gift Card. Players who place high enough earn points towards the Player of the Year award.
| VS. Tournaments | High Score & Speedrun Tournaments | |||
| Position | Points | Position | Points | |
| Winner | 80 | Winner | 80 | |
| Runner-Up | 44 | Runner-Up | 44 | |
| Semifinalist | 28 | 3rd Place | 28 | |
| Quarterfinalist | 13 | 4th Place | 21 | |
| Round of 16 | 6 | 5th Place | 17 | |
| 6th Place | 9 | |||
| 7th Place | 5 | |||
| 8th Place | 3 | |||
| * Based on 32 player entries into each satellite tournament | ||||