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Steam Greenlight: Lode Runner Legacy

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“Lode Runner Legacy” Infiltrates Steam Greenlight
Classic platformer returns with fiendish new challenges

When Tozai Games announced that the classic platformer series Lode Runner was on Steam Greenlight, we had to take note! “Lode Runner Legacy” is the latest edition in the classic Lode Runner series, a masterpiece of action puzzle gaming first introduced in the U.S. in 1983 by creator Doug Smith. This new version features all of the high-adrenaline gameplay Lode Runner is known for with an updated Voxel visual style and powerful editors that let players create their own Runners and items. The Steam Greenlight campaign can be found here.

“Lode Runner endures because its combination of action and puzzle-solving never goes out of style,” says Scott Tsumura, co-founder of Tozai Games. “For this new edition, we’ve included a suite of game editors that allow players to customize to their hearts’ content and create their ‘one and only Lode Runner.’ We hope longtime fans and new players support this updated edition of ‘Lode Runner Legacy’ on Greenlight.”

In Lode Runner, players manipulate “Runner” to infiltrate the evil empire and recover stolen gold while avoiding enemies and minefields. The ingenious balance of puzzle and action gameplay from the original game is alive in “Lode Runner Legacy,” along with many new features that offer a fresh Lode Runner experience to both new players and returning fans alike.

Lode Runner’s frantic action takes place in static, maze-like levels, where a single player dodges enemies while running and climbing platforms to reach and claim stacks of gold. Jumping and shooting foes is forbidden, but blocks can be blasted to access lower platforms or trap pursuing enemies. Winding through ever-increasing levels of complexity is not for the faint of heart.

Key features of Lode Runner Legacy include:

  • Adventure Mode: Sneak through the evil Empire and bring back stolen gold!
  • Puzzle Mode: It’s all puzzles, all the time. No enemies allowed.
  • Classic mode: Play the original 150 levels in 3D!
  • World Levels: An outstanding collection of user-created levels.
  • Level Editor: Create your own levels and share with other fans.
  • Character Editor: Design your own Runner and enemies.
  • Item Editor: Create custom gold items.
  • Online Rankings: Compete against other fans in global standings.

New in this edition:

  • Varying level sizes
  • More technical bonuses
  • Deadly enemies
  • Challenging new AI
  • FPS camera view

“Lode Runner Legacy” is expected to launch this summer. For more information, visit the Tozai blog.

source: Tozai Games

 

Luftrauserz Cleared For Landing On The C64

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Change your soiled trauserz peeps, as RGCD is busily flashing C64 cartridges with Paul Koller’s Luftrauserz game. Yep, you read that right, the awesome shoot’em up Luftrauserz is coming to the venerable 8-bit micro! Work is also being done on the game’s manual and case inserts which we must say, look absolutely amazing. We’ll hopefully get word on the release date very soon – we’re betting that this game will sell like crazy!

While we are on the C64 news bandwagon, RGCD are also relaunching their out of stock games, which is great news for all of you that missed out on awesome games like Powerglove, C64anabalt, Super Bread Box and Bomberland. These relaunched titles will have improved cartridge labels (see below) and newly designed printed manuals. We reckon we’ll have to hit up RGCD for a few C64 carts for the Classic Gaming Area at PAXAus 2017!

source: RGCD

Stern Announce Star Wars and Jersey Jack Release A Flashy Trailer For Dialed In!

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Whoa, what a way to start June!

Stern Pinball finally announced their new machine, the Steve Ritchie designed Star Wars! Funnily enough, the announcement came via a brief spot on The Star Wars Show (see embedded video). Stern has promised that Star Wars Pinball will take players to a galaxy far, far away! More information, photos and pricing to come – we can’t wait!

Stern’s new STAR WARS pinball machine makes a cameo appearance on The Star Wars Show!

source: The Star Wars Show

Also going all out was Jersey Jack Pinball. With the announcement that their latest machine, Dialed In! was in production, the New Jersey-based factory went all Hollywood by producing a very flashy and cool promotional video to show off Pat Lawlor’s brilliant original concept game. Mark our words, Dialed In! is destined to be a top 10 pinball machine of all time!

Jersey Jack Pinball’s DIALED IN! official trailer!

source: Jersey Jack Pinball

Wow, wish every month starts  like this! Stay tuned for more pinball news!

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Pinball Press
Pinball Press brings you news from the world of pinball – events, product reviews/updates, interviews and the people in pinball!

If you have any pinball news to share, hit Pinball Press on Twitter

 

 

 

PAC-MAN X ORLINSKI: Perfect Art

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Released in Japanese arcades on May 22 1980, Namco’s PAC-MAN has just celebrated his 37th anniversary!

When Toru Iwatani, creator of PAC-MAN, had pizza for lunch, he took one piece from the whole pizza and there it was – a circle with an open mouth!

The best ideas often come from the simplest life experiences. Mr. Iwatani didn’t know he would leave such a mark in the video game industry when he was eating his pizza. Yet, 37 years later, PAC-MAN is still one of the most archetypal characters in gaming. As well as changing the face of arcade games back in 1980, Namco also managed to create an icon in popular culture.

For PAC-MAN’s 37th anniversary, Neamedia has just unveiled a Kickstarter for a series of beautiful sculptures designed by Richard Orlinski with support and license from BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Europe.

The collection will be available in 3 versions. A yellow 25cm version, a golden chromed version of the same size, and an exclusive 1 metre version limited to 37 units. Added to that, different stretch goals will unlock special rewards such as a PAC-MAN metal figure, artwork of the original PAC-MAN sketches and a limited-edition art book.

If you want to grab yourself a piece of PAC-MAN history, then head to Kickstarter now!

source: Neamedia – PAC-MAN X ORLINSKI Kickstarter

 

Dirty Donny Down Under

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Get your calendar out and mark it busy on May 26 and 27 as the awesome artist, Dirty Donny Gillies will be at the Kustom Lane Gallery for his “Blacklight Rebellion” Art Show and Book Signing. If you are a fan of Dirty Donny’s work, then come on down to check out his stunning art and for a meet and greet with the great artist.

Oh yeah, for those of you that love Dirty Donny’s superb art on Stern’s Metallica and Aerosmith pinball machines, then you will be in for an extra special treat thanks to Skott Kellett and Pinball Perfection‘s Geoff Wills!

Event: Dirty Donny Gillies “Blacklight Rebellion” Art Show and Book Signing
Where: Kustom Lane Gallery – 535-537 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn VIC 3122
When: Friday May 26 from 7:00pm; and Saturday May 27 from 6:00pm
Cost: Free entry!

We will be snapping lots of pics at the event so make sure you follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook!


source: Dirty Donny

source: Kustom Lane Gallery

UNIQLO Nintendo T-shirt Grand Prix 2017

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Back in July 2016 when UNIQLO announced that their t-shirt design grand prix for 2017 (UTGP’17) would be Nintendo themed, we bet that they weren’t expecting an avalanche of awesome entries – they received 16,000 submissions from all around the world!

Fast forward to May 2017 and UNIQLO have announced the 25 winning designs selected by none other than Shigeru Miyamoto and his Nintendo team! We love all of the winning designs, especially Takashi Kawazoe’s retro Super Mario (red) t-shirt!

The t-shirts should be available at UNIQLO stores by the end of this week (May 19) – with ‘should’ being the operative word! Make sure you check in to grab some of these Nintendo themed tees, as we bet that they won’t last long!


source: UNIQLO

source: UNIQLO

 

Super Russian Roulette: A New Party Game For The NES

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If you were one of the lucky ones to have backed Andrew Reitano’s new NES game, Super Russian Roulette, then you better take your Zapper gun out of its holster! The backer update that came through this morning stated that Super Russian Roulette cartridges will commence shipping on June 5!

There was more good news from Andrew, with the carts having multi-region support, meaning that all copies of the game will operate at the correct speed on NTSC, PAL-A and PAL-B consoles!

We have been quite impressed with Andrew’s updates throughout this whole process and what he managed to cram into Super Russian Roulette:

  • Over 9 minutes of spoken audio
  • 50+ assignable nicknames
  • 44 unique cowboy frames/poses
  • An options screen to build your own cowboy / adjust gun size
  • Alternate versions of each unique animation
  • 3 extra high quality tracks in the NSF Saloon
  • Multi-region capability : NTSC & PAL version on the same cart
  • A much more interactive cowboy through rigorous playtesting
  • And lots of other surprises!

With the Zapper out of its holster and our finger on the trigger, we are ready for Super Russian Roulette!

Testing on the Mattel / PAL-A version

New programmers ready to go!

Hard at work – batch programming the Super Russian Roulette carts!
source: Andrew Reitano

 

The Ultimate Pinball Wrist Piece

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If money is no object, then we would love to have this pinball piece adorn our wrist!

Hautlence’s Playground Pinball wristpiece is the ultimate pinball watch that doesn’t tell the time but does play a mean game of pinball! With intricate Swiss mechanics controlling the spring loaded plunger and awesome spinning elements, the watch also has sink holes for points and two prominent pop bumpers with multipliers!

The Hautlence Playground Pinball may be missing flippers and may have more in common with bagatelle than pinball, but who cares, it’s still bloody cool! Oh yeah, in case you were wondering, you could buy 5 Stern Pro pinball machines for the price of this wristpiece!

image source: Hautlence


source: Spiral Magazine

 

Code Breakers: Women in Games

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Press play on Code Breakers, an exhibition curated by ACMI and the first of its kind in Australia celebrating the achievements of women working in the games industry.

Code Breakers celebrates emerging and established female game makers in an interactive and immersive exhibition. Visitors can get hands-on with an array of playable games – from indie through to commercial hits and new releases – all made by Australian and New Zealand women working in different capacities: as directors, programmers, developers, digital artists, writers, producers and designers.

Katrina Sedgwick, Director and CEO of ACMI says, “Despite women making up almost 50% of game players, they account for less than 10% of the games industry. Code Breakers seeks to shatter stereotypes and celebrate the women who are breaking down barriers and building vibrant, creative careers within a global industry that is increasingly diverse. Our hope is that the industry will soon reflect the diversity of the gaming community it seeks to serve.”

Nicole Stark, Co-Founder Disparity Games and Art Director and Designer on Ninja Pizza Girl

From platformers and role-playing strategy digital board games through to graphical adventure and racing games, Code Breakers offers something for everyone at every skill level. Deliver pizzas and crush bullies in Ninja Pizza Girl, join an animal clan in Armello or race souped-up cars in Need For Speed: No Limits.

Code Breakers ponders important questions in a post Gamergate landscape: What does a more inclusive games industry look like? How do we encourage this diversity? In Code Breakers, each maker reflects on the sometimes challenging journey they’ve made into this male-dominated industry, revealing the human stories behind their games via a custom built exhibition audio tour.

“I think this exhibition is an excellent way to give Australians a peek behind the curtain of game development, and highlight that women are playing an integral role within the industry. I really hope it helps to inspire girls and women to begin making their own games,” says Rebecca Fernandez, a games programmer who worked on recently released PS4/Steam titles Tricky Towers and Armello.

Lisy Kane, Producer at League of Geeks

The game makers featured in the exhibition include: Lisy Kane, Producer at League of Geeks, co-founder of Girl Geek Academy and one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30 in the games category; Katharine Neil, independent Game Developer and director of the hugely controversial and influential game Escape From Woomera; Maru Nihoniho, Founder and Managing Director of Metia Interactive and recipient of a New Zealand Order of Merit for her service to the gaming industry; and Siobhan Reddy, Co-Founder and Studio Director of Media Molecule, named in Fortune‘s 10 most powerful women in gaming.

Siobhan Reddy, co-founder and studio director of Media Molecule

Code Breakers has been curated by ACMI in collaboration with an advisory committee consisting of key industry figures Kate Inabinet, Animation and Games Industry lecturer at RMIT and creator of education based games for children; Helen Stuckey, media arts curator, researcher and Program Manager of Games at RMIT; and Leena van Deventer, a game developer, writer, educator and Co-Director of WIDGET (Women in Development, Games and Everything Tech).

A free exhibition, Code Breakers: Women in Games premieres at ACMI on Tuesday 25 July and runs until Sunday 5 November 2017. Information at acmi.net.au/code-breakers

source: ACMI

 

The ZX Spectrum Is Reborn As The Next

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All you one-eyed C64 lovers licking your wounds after the cancelled Commodore 64: For the Love of a Machine Kickstarter (Ed: which we are still devastated about), please look away now!

Just when those smarmy Speccy owners were popping the champagne in celebration of the rubber key computer’s 35th anniversary, the ZX Spectrum Next makes its appearance on Kickstarter.

source: ZX Spectrum Next on Kickstarter

Not only do Speccy owners celebrate a huge milestone for one of the most enduring computers, but they also have the opportunity to grab a brand-spanking new ZX Spectrum Next! With a brains trust that reads like a who’s who, including original Sinclair computers designer Rick Dickinson, the Next is in fine hands.

A day into the £250,000 crowdfunding campaign, the Next will definitely come to fruition with the goal well within reach – the question remains, how high will the pledge amount go?!


source: Henrique Olifiers