The Pop-Culture E-Zine
Being fans of Swedish outfit, Love Hultén, there is no shortage of retro gear they make that make us drool!
Their latest creations, the SNES-PVM and Famicom Computer(FC)-PVM all-in-one systems combine a 9″ Sony Trinitron PVM-9042QM monitor with genuine Super Famicom and Famicom consoles – which are absolutely gorgeous!
video and image source: Love Hultén
As huge fans of the beat’em up genre, we are quite excited to see this homebrew version of Final Fight, titled Final Fight Ultimate on the Sega Mega Drive!
Retro developer, Mauro Xavier and his cohort of CFX experts, Edmo Caldas (music) and Master Linkuei (ripping, tricks & tech support) are bringing us one of the all time classic co-op beat’em ups on Sega’s 16-bit beast. To say we are excited for this port would be a massive understatement. We need Final Fight Ultimate in our life ASAP!
source: Mauro Xavier
Ask anyone that played pinball in the early 1990s to name their favourite machine, we reckon The Addams Family will be right at the top of the list.
Without a doubt, The Addams Family pinball machine is one of the greatest machines of all time. Not only was it the best-selling solid state pinball machine of all time (selling over 20,000 units worldwide) TAF, as it is affectionately known, is still beloved by many and enjoyed some 30+ years after its release. This Pat Lawlor and Larry DeMar designed pinball machine is an absolute masterpiece.
Enjoy this cool history about The Addams Family pinball machine!
source: Kevin Carrington
The first horizontal (or side scrolling for the retro crowd) shoot’em up that took the world by storm was Irem’s R-Type. There was also Konami’s Salamander (aka: Life Force) too, followed by the Thunder Force series on the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis. These titles have become iconic in the shmup genre, so it is our privilege to announce that there is a new contender to be added to this illustrious list, Remote Life.
Just looking at the screenshots we have in this review, you’ll agree that Remote Life looks darn amazing. Coupled with the gorgeous visuals is a great soundtrack and sound effects, but most importantly, the action is top notch! With a myriad of weapons to pick up and cycle through, your ship can arm itself to the teeth to take care of enemies (and other obstructions) standing in your way. The game mechanic and control system is intuitive with modern controllers (moving, shooting, cycling weapons etc), making Remote Life an absolute blast (pun fully intended!) and fun shmup to play on your given system.
To think that this fabulous shooter was created by a single developer (Next Game Level), totally boggles the mind. It has a AAA look and feel, without the price, which is a massive win for us gamers. The inspiration of Remote Life may be old schools shoot’em ups, but it stands on its own, with its own unique shooter features.
Remote Life successfully merges the classic shoot’em up formula with its own new and unique improvements to differentiate itself from the crowd. One very cool feature is the 360 degree shooting, which is unusual for this genre, expanding the combat mechanic, while the presence of support machines such as allied automatic turrets or temporary drones, and even usable vehicles that drastically change how combat plays out, are welcome additions that modernise the shooter gameplay. The variety is another positive, with differing types of enemies – with new ones revealed in each level, and many unique and visually amazing mid and end-level bosses – each with their own attack patterns to keep you on your toes.
As mentioned, the weaponry is varied with new weapons introduced at each level, each requiring the player to pick up them up. The twist in the weaponry is the limited ammo, so you will have to be wise in what weapon to use on any given level. There are 16 missions which are quite varied, with some feeling more “open world” than others, so there is a ton of content to test your shoot’em up mettle!
If you have any interest in shooters/shoot’em ups, then we can’t recommend Remote Life enough – it is a visual, aural, brutal and fun extravaganza! This is one of the best shmups we have played in a long long while!
Details:
Disclaimer: The Xbox Series X|S review code for Remote Life was provided by PR Hound.
With Casa Ausretrogamer going through some renovations at the moment, it has dawned on us just how difficult design decisions are, from paint colour, flooring, to what tiles to use in the bathroom, kitchen and laundry.
Speaking of tiling, perhaps we should take some inspiration from this lot!
image source: Pinterest
image source: houzz
This may not be new news for some, but we thought we’d share it anyway – Masters of the Universe, Barbie and Mattel Games are some of the eye-popping attractions that will be at the new Mattel Adventure Park in Glendale, Arizona (USA)! It’s another automatic bucket list entry for us at Ausretrogamer!
The amusement park, which is a collaboration between Mattel, Inc. and Epic Resort Destinations, LLC, is set to open early 2023. Other recently announced experiences include a Hot Wheels roller-coaster and go-karting, a Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends indoor park. Barbie will be involved by way of a beach house flying theatre, hologram technology and a rooftop F&B area.
But wait, there is more! There will also be a nine-hole mini-golf experience, as well as a Masters of the Universe’s Castle Grayskull that will be transformed into a 4,500+ sq. ft. state-of-the-art laser tag arena where fans “have the power” to fight for Eternia. This all sounds pretty darn good to us. We can’t wait for this adventure park to open!
image source: Mattel
It has been a dream of ours to visit Japan since we can remember – one day we will visit this great land!
For now, we will just look at these funny and weird images that showcase the beautiful uniqueness of Japan. For those that want more, check out the Facebook page, Japanese Stuff Without Context
Here are some of our faves, but you can see more here!
image source: boredpanda
By: D.C. Cutler, U.S.A.
Only a few more days until I watch “Top Gun: Maverick” in an IMAX theatre, and I’m so excited to finally see it. I’ve been wanting to watch the Tom Cruise sequel since I saw the trailer almost two years ago.
I have a lot of fond memories of playing the 1987 Nintendo game “Top Gun.” When I was little, I loved the movie, so I asked for the flight simulation game on my birthday. My father played the game more than I did when I first got it. He enjoyed showing me how many times he could effortlessly land his F-14 fighter plane on the U.S. aircraft carrier. I had a difficult time landing my F-14 at first. I couldn’t get the timing and steadiness right as I approached the aircraft carrier.
When I would hear one of the film’s iconic songs, like “Take My Breath Away” or “Danger Zone,” I would get anxious and frustrated. The songs made me think about my inability to land my jet on the large carrier.
Coming into land
Then my brother started playing “Top Gun” when I wasn’t playing it. He landed on the aircraft carrier with no problem within about three tries. It floored me. I thought, how was I so bad at landing? I kept trying, and I kept crashing like an amateur. I even started to wonder if I was playing on a harder mode than my family. Or that my brother and father had some sort of cheat code that they found somewhere or through someone they knew.
All my gamer friends at school would make fun of me because I was unable to land my F-14 on the aircraft carrier. I would come home from school or baseball practice and try to land, again and again. I got so discouraged; I didn’t play “Top Gun” for a week. I just let the game cartridge sit in the corner of my room, on my dresser. It was basically my way of ignoring the game.
Landed!
Then, one weekend morning, I got up early and I slide “Top Gun” into my NES. I took a few deep breaths and anxiously played the game until I got to the aircraft carrier. I kept my controller steady, and I kept hitting all the right buttons. If I could’ve nervously started biting my fingernails, I would have, but my hands were busy. My F-14 steadied out and I landed like it was a piece of cake. I called my friends and told them, waking most of them up from a deep sleep.
After I successfully landed my jet on the aircraft carrier, it became rather simple. The trick: I wasn’t thinking about failure so much.
image source: mobygames
Who would have thought RACV were into retro gaming?!
To our astonishment, we stumbled upon a great article in their bi-monthly magazine, RoyalAuto, where they ask the most pertinent question, does Sam Crowther have Australia’s best Nintendo collection? To find out, go and read all about Sam’s impressive and vast collection here.
story and image source: RACV RoyalAuto
Who doesn’t like freebies? If you did put your hand up, then we respectfully ask that you see yourself out 😉
For those of you that love freebies, then you’ll love this one! You can now grab the Sega Mania Issue #4 Digital Edition (Magazine) totally free of charge (it’s usual price is A$5.00 / GBP£2.50)! It also comes with a new exclusive cover design by ’90s Sega artist Duncan Gutteridge and an awesome Mega-CD Mini mag!
What are you waiting for, go and grab your free copy of Sega Mania!
source: Sega Mania