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PAPA World HQ Site On The Market!

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REPLAY FOUNDATION OUTGROWS WORLD HEADQUARTERS
World’s Largest Pinball Tournaments to Continue

With PAPA 20 around the corner, Replay Foundation, the NPO that operates the Professional & Amateur Pinball Association (PAPA) brand of tournaments, has just announced that it is placing the PAPA World Headquarters, a facility in Scott Township, just outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on the market. This facility currently houses more than 700 rare and valuable pinball and arcade games in the Replay collection.

PAPA Buildout – January 2004

Since its founding in 2011, Replay Foundation has operated two of the largest pinball tournaments in the world, the PAPA World Pinball Championships and the Pinburgh Match-Play Championship. In 2013, the PAPA World Headquarters, which opened for the first public PAPA event in the Pittsburgh area in 2004, was donated to Replay Foundation and used to operate these events. The Pinburgh championship quickly outgrew the PAPA World Headquarters facility and was moved to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, as part of the annual ReplayFX event, starting in 2015.

PAPA 7 – September 2004

PAPA 9 – August 2006

This reduced the headquarters to hosting only one public event each year, and that event, the PAPA World Pinball Championships, has exceeded the facility’s capacity for the past several years. Consequently, the headquarters is being put up for sale on the commercial real estate market, effective immediately, with a transaction expected to close sometime after the PAPA 20 event this month. Replay Foundation will not be reducing the size of its collection, nor are there plans to discontinue the PAPA World Pinball Championships.

PAPA 13 – August 2010

PAPA 19 – April 2016
source: PAPA

“We recognize that our followers have thirteen years of nostalgia and great memories of the headquarters, but the facility has hit its limits in terms of attendance and logistics, and of course parking was always a nightmare,” said Kevin Martin, chairman of Replay Foundation. “We are very optimistic about the continued growth of our events and the PAPA brand, and we look forward to making further announcements regarding PAPA 21 and next year’s Circuit Final.”

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PAPRIUM: A New Brawler On The Sega Mega Drive

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Strike Harder, Beat Stronger!

Do you yearn for a Streets Of Rage-like game for your old trusty Mega Drive (Sega Genesis to our American friends)?

Well yearn no more! WaterMelon Games, the development crew that makes cool retro games like Pier Solar, are back with their latest (and possibly greatest) 16-bit killer game, PAPRIUM (aka: ProjectY)!

PAPRIUM is a post-apocalyptic, outrageous head-kicking brawler made in the spirit of classic beat’em ups like Double Dragon, Final Fight and Streets of Rage. This brand new Sega Mega Drive (Genesis) game is being built from the ground up and is expected to smash on your 16-bit Sega console in 2017!

PAPRIUM has been lovingly crafted at WaterMelon’s Magical Game Factory using Investor’s votes and suggestions, which have helped shape the game! Make no bones about it, this game has been developed by a team driven by true passion and 16-bit excellence.

PAPRIUM is the biggest Sega Mega Drive game ever made (over 80-MEG!), featuring multiple game modes, speed (uncompromised 60fps!), 24 levels and up to 5 selectable characters! Come at us PAPRIUM, we are waiting!

We have pre-ordered ours, so if you want to do the same, go here.


source: WaterMelon Games

PS: Thank you to Anthony Durso for bringing PAPRIUM to our attention!

Pimp Your Vectrex Controller

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Even in its original guise, the Vectrex is one unique and gorgeous piece of gaming hardware! The all-in-one vector gaming system has been a long-time favourite of collectors, hence its hefty price tag.

If you happen to have a Vectrex and you want to make it pop, then perhaps some custom controller overlays of your favourite Vectrex games from German store, arcadeartshop, would be an ideal way to personalise your machine. Arcadeartshop also allow for individual designed controller overlays, all you need to do is send them the graphics and they’ll do the rest!

With a choice of glossy or rough laminate, these custom controller overlays are a cool way to add some colour to your Vectrex and protection for your controller. Priced at €5 (plus shipping) per overlay, we reckon that they are very reasonably priced – we’ll get a couple, thanks!

source: arcadeartshop.de

 

The Atari PONG Coffee Table – It’s Not Just A Game

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UPDATE: Since this article was published, the Atari PONG coffee table crowdfunding campaign has been moved to Kickstarter (from IndieGoGo)!

Make way traditional coffee table, there is a new and fun coffee table in town!

If you are sick of the bland look and the one dimensional use of your current coffee table, then the retro futuristic Atari PONG game coffee table is for you.

Before you start casting aspersions, this is not your average DIY-Arcade-Cocktail-Table people make out of Ikea furniture (Ed: not that there is anything wrong with that!). This Atari PONG coffee table is WAY more than that – it is a physical implementation of the classic Atari video game! Think of it as a playable, mechanical homage to one of the first video games. The coffee table doesn’t just have an iconic game built in, it is totally multi-functional with four USB ports, Bluetooth for music streaming, clock and all of this in a great looking retro futuristic design.

Originally developed as a tribute to the iconic game, the plan of Table Pong Project was to bring back the same experiences you used to get when playing the digital version, with awesome retro sounds, bouncing lights and maintaining the same mechanics that stay true to the original gameplay. This coffee table won’t just be used for holding your books, laptops, drinks, food or your tired feet, no siree, this gorgeous thing will also reunite family and friends by stimulating social interactions, just like the old Atari VCS/2600 console did.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that this Atari PONG coffee table uses archaic technologies to bring it to life. Thanks to modern electronics, electric motors and magnetic fields, the Table Pong Project has managed to create a playable real-life coffee-pong table that is stylish and super fun!

With a smidge under 30 days left on the Kickstarter campaign, you still have a chance to grab yourself a piece of history which your family room will thank you for.

Hmm, there is a hard waste collection coming to our suburb, so it will be out with the old and in with the new (old). We definitely want to join the revolution! *wink*

 

source: Table Pong Project

 

Pre-Order Your Neo Geo Pocket SD Flash Cart Now

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After the great response to our story on SainT’s Neo Geo Pocket SD Flash Cart project, we had been keeping a close eye on the genius hardware hacker’s progress on his highly anticipated piece of Neo Geo kit.

Well, it is time to pop the champagne! SainT has been keeping quite busy tinkering away on the device and we can now report that progress on this wondrous kit has reached a point where pre-orders are being taken. Hop to it now so you don’t miss out.

Check out SainT’s latest progress videos below and then make sure you pre-order your Neo Geo Pocket SD flash cart, as they will go quick!

The first video shows the functionality of the menu system and how the device will function from navigating the SD card contents to installing and running games.

This latest video from Retro HQ’s SainT shows that all issues have been resolved, including the running of 4MB games, like Metal Slug 2 – which works great! According to SainT, the hardware is now complete. Our excitement is set to maximum level!

source: Retro HQ

 

Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia

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In 2015 when our fave plumber, Mario, celebrated the 30th anniversary of his Super Mario Bros. game, an epic book was released in Japan to coincide with this momentous occasion. The Encyclopedia Super Mario Bros., also known as Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia: Nintendo Official Guide Book was available to lucky Japanese gamers all the way back in October 2015.

Just like the good (Ed: or bad!) old days where we would wait two years for a western release of awesome Japanese gear, the wait is (almost) over! The Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia will be available (in Europe and North America) in June this year via Book Depository.

We can’t wait to wrap our hands around this tome!

image source: mariowiki

 

Atari Flashback 7 Console Giveaway Winners

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Our Atari Flashback 7 console giveaway was a huge success! We were inundated with heaps of drool-worthy retro entries, making picking the winners all that more difficult!

We congratulate the winners, Tim Barnett and Daniel Cook for their great retro photo entries. Hope both Tim and Daniel enjoy their Atari Flashback 7 console prize!

If you want to see the other awesome retro pic entries, head on over here.

Winner 1: Tim Barnett:
“This blanket took 400 squares and 5 months for my wife to crochet. That’s retro love!”

Winner 2: Daniel Cook
“The summer of 89/90 – the greatest summer of my life. Where me and my bro would stay up all night spending hours and hours on my newly acquired and much loved Commodore 64. Ahhhh… retro gaming heaven”

“Meanwhile back in the 80s…where a young boy (with his tragic retro haircut) would dream of killing rapidly descending aliens in his sleep” – Daniel Cook

Thanks to our great friends at Five Star Games for supplying the Atari Flashback 7 console prizes!

 

Junglist Returns With New Gaming Show

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New Youth Network, SNACKABLETV.tv, has launched a brand-new video game show called UNDER CONTROL, with Jeremy Ray (Junglist) and Jessie James (Geek and Gamer Girl) hosting.

The show went live on SNACKABLETV.TV on January 26th 2017 and is broadcasting on the CATCH app on Sydney buses reaching a huge audience in the 13-to-30-year-old age bracket.

The two hosts are already prominent figures in the gaming industry, with Junglist being one of the co-creators of the (sorely missed) Good Game and Kotaku contributor, and Jessie being one of Australia’s most popular Twitch streamers with over 74,000 followers.

New content will be produced weekly. Under Control will feature snack-sized content on all things gaming; reviews, interviews, behind the scenes, news, features and on-site event coverage.

“Sometimes I go over to Jessie James’ house and we have conversations about games. Lately, there’s been this weird camera guy there, but she told me not to worry about it. I’m sure it’s nothing!”, says Junglist.

“Once we pried Junglist off Dark Souls III and cleaned him up, it became clear he was the best co-host I could imagine. We keep each other in check and hardly ever try to kill each other offline anymore. It’s great!”

SNACKABLETV is a revolutionary digital youth network housing the best in bite-sized content. It’s an entirely new way for young people all over the world to access high quality short-form entertainment for FREE, without annoying advertisements or subscriptions (Ed: Yay!). It’s mainstream-accessible without dumbing down the content or neglecting the core gaming audience.

“We’re excited to be creating something new and authentic for the gaming community.” – Deb Morgan, SnackableTV’s Under Control Producer.

You can view UNDER CONTROL now, so hop to it!

source: SNACKABLETV – Under Control

 

PAX Australia 2017 Dates Announced

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Woohoo, we finally have news of the PAX Australia 2017 dates!

PAX Australia will take place 27-29 October 2017 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre and tickets are scheduled to go on sale 14 March, 2017.

Early bird tickets will save you $5 AUD on the full ticket price. Friday Only, Saturday Only, and Sunday Only tickets will cost $65 AUD. Three Day Passes (including International Three Day passes) will cost $165 AUD. Attendees wishing to bring their own computer, can also purchase a BYOC pass for an additional $45 AUD.

“Australia’s gaming community has given PAX such an incredible home here,” said Jerry Holkins, co-founder of PAX and Penny Arcade.  “This year will see the fifth PAX Aus erupt in Melbourne, and there’s every indication it will be the best one yet.”

We can’t wait to get stuck into creating a bigger and better Classic Gaming Area at PAX Aus 2017. We hope to see you all there!

 

WIN: Atari Flashback 7 Classic Gaming Consoles

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Attention peeps: We are giving away 2 x ATARI FLASHBACK® 7 CLASSIC GAMING CONSOLES!

Yep, you read that right, our good friends at Five Star Games have provided us two brand new Atari Flashback® 7 classic gaming consoles to giveaway to our awesome audience!

For your chance to win, head over to our Facebook giveaway and post your most retro gaming related photo in the comments section!

So what are you waiting for, go and snap your most retro gaming related pic and enter the giveaway for your chance to snag a cool console!

If you don’t know what the Atari Flashback® 7 classic game console is, then here is what you need to know:

The console features 101 built-in Atari 2600 games. These games include Frogger and Space Invaders™, along with all-time Atari 2600 classics like Asteroids®, Centipede™, Jungle Hunt, Missile Command®, and Pong, among many more. The console includes two wireless controllers, styled like the Atari 2600 originals, and two legacy (DB9) controller ports for optional wired joysticks or paddles for that nostalgic hit!

image source: Five Star Games