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Archives for January 2019

JUMPGRID: The Bullet Hell Hyper-Pac-Man

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Whoa, this new Ian MacLarty developed white-knuckle dodge’em-up is straight outta Melbourne!

You may be asking, what exactly is this game? Well, let us tell you, at its essence, JUMPGRID is a bullet hell hyper-Pac-Man. The player must survive an ever-moving cosmic obstacle course by deftly teleporting between nodes on the “jump-grid”. Clear all nodes to open a wormhole to the next level. Success requires only a few seconds of precision finger ballet, but touch any of the pulsing hazards and the level instantly resets, ready for you to try again, and again, and again… This is a game about honing your muscle memory until you learn to dance with your fingers!

Features
  • Skin-of-your-teeth gameplay with easy to learn controls
  • Over 100 uniquely challenging levels
  • An original pulse-pounding electronica soundtrack
  • Flaunt your skill and find fame on the speedrun leaderboards
  • Adjustable game speed

Jumpgrid will be hitting PC/Steam, Mac and Itch.io on February 12 for US$4.99 / £3.99 / €3.99 / A$7.50.

image source: Ian MacLarty

 

Japan Amusement Expo: JAEPO 2019 Highlights

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We have always wanted to attend an amusement (trade) expo, and it doesn’t get any bigger than the Japan Amusement Expo (JAEPO), which was held over the last weekend.

The heavy hitters of the industry were all there showcasing their latest games and machines (Sega, Taito, Konami, Capcom, Bandai Namco), hoping to attract distributors and operators alike. Oh yeah, Taito’s ‘Mega Rage Darius’ throwback section was a nice touch and proved quite popular!

image source: megarage_mizo

Here are some highlights and new machines that caught our eye from JAEPO 2019. Obviously Space Invaders and anything pinball related caught our eye.

Taito stand

Taito’s Densha De Go (train simulator) – Standard and Kids versions

Taito – Space Invaders Gigamax (10P Space Invaders with a display that fits on a side of a building)

Taito / Raw Thrills – Halo: Fireteam Raven

Street Fighter V Type Arcade (Capcom @ Taito’s stand)

Taito – Space Invaders Pinball Jam

Arcade1Up Japan – Space Invaders 40th Anniversary

Konami – stand

Konami – Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) 20th Anniversary Edition

Bandai Namco Technica – Pac-Man Panic Pinball

Bandai Namco Technica – Super Panic Ball (pinball)

Bandai Namco Technica – unique tool display from a Jersey Jack Pinball cabinet

exA-Arcadia – the NEOGEO MVS of our time!

Arcade Buttons galore!

image sources: Arcade Heroes, Taito Zuntata on Twitter, Taito, Arcade1Up Japan, BemaniStyle, exA-Arcadia & BK2000

 

Lusting for the Sony PSX DESR-7100 PlayStation 2 Console

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It is no surprise that we (outside of Japan), missed out on a lot of cool gaming products, just like this Sony PSX DESR-7100 PlayStation 2 console!

The Sony PSX DESR-7100 is a digital video recorder that can be used to record and playback TV programs (on its hefty 250GB HDD), play your favourite PlayStation 1 and PlayStation 2 video games and of course, to blast your audio CDs on.

The DESR-7100 has interfaces (under the front panel) for two PlayStation memory cards, USB (to connect with the PSP) and Sony’s proprietary Memory Stick PRO Duo. The rear of the system has two PlayStation (DualShock / DualShock 2) controller ports, VGA, S-Video, composite video, RGB/SCART and RF (VHF and CATV connections).

The infrared remote makes the whole package feel more like a one stop media centre, which would have been mind blowing for us back in 2003!

This model (7100) came with a 250GB HDD, but the entire DESR range starts at the lower-spec models (DESR-5000) and goes all the way up to the top of the range DESR-7700 which includes all the bells and whistles for the time, like the Ghost Reduction Tuner and the introduction of the Broadcast Satellite (BS) inputs/outputs.

Oh yeah, the DESR range also introduced Sony’s XrossMediaBar (XMB) which we grew to love and use on the PSP, PS3 and 2008-era Bravia TVs!

Who has one of these? Hit us up on Twitter on Facebook and show us some photos so we can drool some more.

image source: eBay

 

Console Variations: Rarest Consoles Ever Made

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We thought we’d seen every conceivable console variation that has ever existed, yep even the Pioneer CLD-A100 LaserActive that plays Mega Drive / Genesis carts, CDs and LaserDiscs, sadly, we were wrong (in a good way)!

Check out some of these amazing console variants (you may know some or most of them) and then go to the Console Variations site to drool over the rest!

Hyundai Comboy (NES variant sold in South Korea only)

N64 ANA (given away by All Nippon Airways (ANA) in April 1st 1999)

GameCube Panasonic Q (we knew about this one, but still cool to see it)

Nintendo Wii: 26k Gold aka Royal Wii (only 1 made!)

Atari Marlboro Lynx

Game & Car Navi HiSaturn

Sega Dreamcast: Maziora Edition

Sony PlayStation 10 Million (only 1 made)

Xbox Panzer Dragoon Orta

Atari 2600 jr. Black (only released in Ireland)
image source: Console Variations

[story source: Kotaku Australia]

 

Wireless Game Boy and GBA Controller

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Darn this Wireless Game Boy controller is ingenious!

In a nutshell, InsideGadgets’ Alex Iannuzzi has created a custom Game Boy (GB) TX cartridge which transforms the original Game Boy into a wireless gamepad that can be used on any device that accepts USB HID input, like a PC or Raspberry Pi (via a USB receiver). Oh yeah, there are receivers for the GameCube, Wii and SNES too – which is just awesome!

The GB TX cartridge works with Game Boy, Game Boy Pocket, Game Boy Colour, Game Boy Advance, and Game Boy Advance SP handhelds (Ed: there is also a GBA TX cart that works on the Micro, DS and DS Lite). The best part is that you don’t have to hack or upgrade the original Game Boy or the other GBA hardware to make this all work. Alex has done the hard work for your by designing and building the TX cartridges without the need to hack your precious Nintendo handhelds.

For more details or to place your order, go to InsideGadgets now. If you fancy yourself as a DIY guru and you want to have a crack at building one of these yourself, you are far braver than us, so go here.

image source: InsideGadgets

[story source: technabob]

 

Katy Perry and John Carpenter Have Something in Common

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By: D.C. Cutler, U.S.A.

Pop star Katy Perry is lending her likeness to several characters in the mobile role-playing game Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. The first one, Popstar Katy, has the red costume Perry wore during her “Witness” tour. Square Enix, the publisher of Brave Exvius, said that other character designs will be available in future in-game events.

Final Fantasy Brave Exvius has been downloaded more than 30 million times worldwide since its launch at the end of 2015.

For the 2002 The Thing, legendary film director John Carpenter made a cameo in the game adaption of his classic horror film. I remember playing the game and thinking that a certain character looked an awful lot like Carpenter. After doing a little research, I found out it was him. It’s one of the coolest video game cameos ever. It helps that The Thing video game is underrated. You feel like you’re in the movie.

image source: Ungeek

Carpenter, who’s a big gamer, probably was allowed to play the frightening game to make sure it deemed a worthy cameo. I’ve watched the 1982 film before playing the game; the game’s visuals are stunningly indistinguishable from the movie.

I’m surprised that more actors, musicians and film makers don’t lend their likeness to video games. I don’t know if artists get well compensated when they do a game cameo, although, with approximately 2.2 billion gamers in the world, the exposure can’t hurt any musician or actor’s brand. Gamers are usually consumers of movies and music as well. Cameos by artists in video games is smart business.

Artists should just make sure that their cameo fits into the journey and narrative of the game. Carpenter’s cameo in The Thing comes out of nowhere, but it works because it fits the acclaimed director’s image and into the game’s universe. Same goes for Perry’s Final Fantasy Brave Exvius cameo as well.

image source: Bloody Disgusting

 

Polish Arcade Parlours and Games from the mid 1990s

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We love seeing old photos of arcade games and parlours, especially ones from Eastern Europe – just like these photos uploaded on Flickr by Marcin Wichary from mid 1990s Poland.

If you look closely, you will find some interesting bootleg machines, but that doesn’t matter, as this is great to see what gamers got to play in Poland in the mid 1990s.

You can check out the rest of the photos on Flicker.

source: Marcin Wichary on Flickr

 

Nintendo Switch Review – YIIK: A Postmodern RPG

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Face the impending millennium in YIIK: A Postmodern RPG from ACKK Studios. Not just a new approach to RPGs but a whole other dimension!

Unlike any RPG I have played, YIIK: A Postmodern RPG (pronounced Y2K) is an interesting take on a well-trodden genre. You play as Alex, an entitled 20 something that stumbles on a mystery bigger than him or his bachelor’s degree. The game takes place in a small town called “Frankton” in the year 1999, a very unassuming place for a mystery of these proportions. You will team up with old school friends, arcade employees, pacifists and more on your journey.

The story in YIIK loves throwing curve balls at the player and will have you constantly questioning what is going on, drawing you further into the plot. Even though YIIK looks rather quirky it also delves fairly deep into themes such as the metaphysical, depression and anxiety. Don’t fret though as the game is full of humour, subtle pop culture jokes and references. YIIK pokes fun at cartoon characters, internet culture and a certain JRPG series on multiple occasions very effectively.

The soundtrack in YIIK has an amazing blend of music including chiptune, electronic, jazz and arty pieces. All of the tracks are extremely catchy, I found myself humming along to them while playing and even when I wasn’t. The art style is fantastic and suits the gameplay and story to a tee. Lush colours and striking visuals help bring YIIK to life and flesh out this seemingly ordinary world. YIIK captures a perfect sense of 90s nostalgia, from the birth of the internet subculture, POGs and payphones. The in game online message board “ONISM1999” plays a major role in advancing the story and giving hints on side quests and secrets.

The little details make the biggest impact even in battle as you will fight rodents, bats, rogue stop signs with Vinyl records, Keytars and Hula-hoops. The battle mechanics in YIIK are a fantastic combination of standard RPG elements and quirky quick time events that make you feel far more responsible for every action in battles. Long gone are random die rolls and mashing through standard RPG battle menus. In YIIK you contribute to every action from attacking to defending yourself in carefully timed action sequences.

Having clocked almost 30 hours, to tell too much of what makes YIIK so very charming and special would ruin the impact of seeing it first hand for yourself. If you love a good solid RPG, great story and long for the 90s then YIIK is the perfect game for you!

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Mat Panek
Retromancer – Collector, repairer & fan of retro games & tech. Atari to Amiga, Nintendo to Sega! LD, Zip, Beta and a proud dad! One half of the TiredParents on Twitch.

Follow Mat on Twitter and Twitch

 

 

Disclosure: YIIK: A Postmodern RPG [Nintendo Switch] was kindly provided by Stride PR for this review.

 

 

Classic Gaming Consoles Redesigned as Cars

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Here is something to ponder, what if classic video game consoles were made into cars?

Ponder no more, as Jennings FordDirect from the UK has answered our question – check them out!

image source: Jennings FordDirect

[story source: technobob]

 

Quarter Arcades Galaga ¼ Scale Arcade Replica

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Whoa, seemingly out of nowhere we get the biggest surprise (so far) of 2019 – The latest Numskull Designs Quarter Arcades GALAGA ¼ scale arcade replica machine is coming to Australia!

We were totally blown away with their Pac-Man ¼ scale machine (which we got to play at PAX Aus 2018), so to say we can’t wait to play their Galaga machine would be a gross understatement.

The new Galaga ¼ scale arcade machine is currently available for pre-order (AU$278) via EB Games Australia!

Who is in? Let us know on Twitter or Facebook.

image source: EB Games Australia