Announcements

A Huge Arcade Coin-Op Sale On Craigslist

January 23, 2016 By ausretrogamer

Last Saturday (January 16) in a storage unit in Grand Island Nebraska there was a huge one day sale on classic and vintage arcade machines, jukeboxes and various other coin-ops. These relics had not seen the light of day in over 30 years!

The seller on Craigslist stated that there was too much gear to move and everything had to go – at fantastically great prices (Ed: relatively speaking!). The array of machines that had to go included: Asteroids and Asteroids Deluxe, Galaga, Bi Plane, Head-On, Omega Race (stand up and sit down), Space Invaders and Tank II to name just a few.

So, who of you attended this once-in-a-lifetime fire sale? Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook and tell us all about it.

PS: I wish we had these kinds of storage unit sales in Australia!

A Space Invader lurks in storage

Oh wow, a sit down Omega Race!

A great view for the spiders!

Asteroids, Paddle-Ball (ahem, Pong!) and Head-On!

Oh that dust!

Oh wow, a stand-up Omega Race too!

Packed to the rafters!
image source: Craigslist

Australia’s First Video Gaming Museum

January 8, 2016 By ausretrogamer

At last, Australia has a dedicated video games console museum! The Nostalgia Box is a museum dedicated to all things video gaming consoles. The museum opened its doors last month in Perth, and to say the public took to it like a duck to water would be a gross understatement.

Among the pew-pewing echoing in the museum, we caught up with the brainchild and boss level ninja of The Nostalgia Box, Jessie Yeoh, and asked her some hard hitting questions about her awesome museum.

AUSRETROGAMER [ARG]: Tell us how the idea behind The Nostalgia Box video game console museum came about?
Jessie Yeoh [JY]: I’ve always been interested in video games when I was growing up. Unfortunately I had to leave those behind as I got busy with studies and work, but the memories stayed with me. I get super excited when I see games I grew up with, and I figured many people must be going through something similar. My dad is a business man and he is someone I look up to, so starting my own business has always been my dream. When I was considering what I wanted to do long term, I thought, why not combine the two. I wanted to recreate those special childhood memories again and share them with everyone that comes in, and also show the younger generation how far we’ve come. That’s how the whole concept came about.

ARG: Who are the people (the team) behind The Nostalgia Box?
JY: It’s a solo effort by myself but I’ve received a lot of help from friends and even complete strangers. It is amazing to see how passionate people are about this and just how far they’re willing to go to help with the Museum without expecting anything in return.

ARG: Where do you or did you source the classic gear from?
JY: Some items are from my personal collection but for the most part I have been buying at local markets, eBay, various websites and during my travels. A friend just bought a whole bunch of gear while traveling in Europe and will be bringing it back to Australia for us. We’ve even had visitors come in and donate their own games and consoles to the museum which is remarkable and makes me proud of what we are trying to accomplish here. Our collection of games and consoles just keeps growing!

ARG: What consoles and games can the public expect to see at the museum?
JY: We want visitors to learn about the history of video game consoles, and what better way to do that than to let the consoles tell their story. We have almost 100 consoles on display, from the first generation through to the seventh. To name a few; we have the Magnavox Odyssey, the first commercial video game console ever released in 1972, Sears Tele-Games Pong which is Atari’s first home console; more popular consoles visitors are likely to be aware of such as the Atari 2600, Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Mega Drive etc. Visitors can expect to see most if not all the consoles that have made a significant impact in video game console history from its early beginnings to what it is now. In terms of games available for hands on play, we want visitors to have an all rounded experience, so we try to have games and consoles from each generation. For example, we currently have Pong, Colecovision with Donkey Kong , Atari 2600 with Space Invaders, Nintendo Entertainment System with Super Mario Bros, Nintendo 64 with Mario Kart etc. We currently have 10 consoles hooked up for playing and will be adding more in the future. We will also be regularly rotating games for special events and upon request out of our extensive video game library.

ARG: Will you keep adding classic gaming systems to the museum collection?
JY: We are pretty happy with the collection we have now, but will definitely keep a look out for other rare consoles that are important to the home console history. One particular console we would like to have is the Epoch’s Electrotennis which is Japan’s very first video game system released in 1975. Unfortunately this console is very rare and very expensive.

ARG: Do you have permanent exhibits or will you rotate the collection?
JY: The exhibits pertaining to the history of gaming consoles are comprehensive and will remain permanent exhibits. As for our gaming area, we will rotate the games to be played regularly and for events. But we do have plans to do special themed exhibits in the future, we will see.

ARG: Are all of the exhibits interactive?
JY: Yes very much so, the experience is twofold. Visitors can learn about the history and background of each console and how gaming developed, then proceed to our gaming area where they can actually interact with a range of consoles, enjoy themselves and experience history.

ARG: Will the museum branch out to arcade and/or pinball machines, or will it just remain as a console museum?
JY: If all goes well, we would like to branch out to other systems like arcade and computer in the future, truly making this a nostalgic experience for everyone, not just home console gamers.

ARG: When did the museum open officially?
JY: We opened our doors on the 16th of December in time for Christmas and we’re open 7 days a week.

ARG: What is next for The Nostalgia Box?
JY: We intend to implement more events to help foster a local retro gaming community. Keep an eye out on our Facebook page for themed gaming nights, tournaments and other kinds of great events. Still too early to say if the concept works, but if all goes well and the museum becomes sustainable on its own, maybe one day we’ll consider branching out to other states. But Perth is our home for now.

ARG: And before we let you go, do you have an all–time fave gaming system and/or game?
JY: It is a very cliche answer, but Super Mario Bros. on the NES is my all time favourite game (ARG: ours too!) not only because it is a classic but also because it brings so many fond memories of playing and fighting over the controllers with my brothers. Sometimes they would give me an extra controller that wasn’t even plugged in and because I was so young I thought I was playing. These are some of the nostalgic memories we hope to invoke from our visitors as well as create new ones for the next generation of gamers.

If you are in Perth, you have no excuse, you must visit The Nostalgia Box museum for your retro gaming fix. For everyone else, if you intend to visit Perth, then you must experience some video gaming history at The Nostalgia Box.

What: The Nostalgia Box – Video Game Console Museum
Where: Shop 3, 16 Aberdeen Street, Northbridge, WA 6000
Open: 7 days; 9:30am to 5:00pm
Admission Fee: Adults $14; Family (2 adults 2 children) $40; Concession: $10

images supplied by: Jessie Yeoh – The Nostalgia Box Museum

Contra: 7″ Bill and Lance Action Figures

December 9, 2015 By ausretrogamer

Oh my gawd! Just in time for Christmas, well, they aren’t available just as yet, but anyway, where were we? Oh yeh, those awesome people at NECA (creators of cool toys and collectibles!) have announced that they will release (April 2016) a special edition 2-pack action figure tribute set of fan favourite Contra video game characters, Bill ‘Mad Dog’ Rizer and Lance ‘Scorpion’ Bean!

For those of you that don’t know, Contra was also known as Gryzor and Probotector. Anyway, this Bill and Lance 2-pack action figure set will be the first appearance of non-movie-based characters in the NECA series, which will pay homage to Konami’s 8-bit glory days. Standing approximately 7” tall, the figures have all new head sculpts and “pixelated” paint deco. The set includes custom-designed weapons based on the classic game; detachable blast effects for the weapons; and that infamous power-up capsule with a clear support stand for “floating” effect.

For those collectors among you that will not open their packaging, a special window box package will be used to recreate the look of the classic game cartridge – which will look damn fine on your shelf!

April 2016 can not come fast enough! Here are a few more pics to whet your insatiable appetite:

image source: NECA

2015 Australian Timezone Supanova Pinball Championship Grand Final

November 30, 2015 By ausretrogamer

This past weekend pinball players from all around Australia descended on Supanova Brisbane to compete in the grand final of the 2015 Australian Timezone Supanova Pinball Championship, with the winner walking away with a brand spanking new Stern WWE Wrestlemania Pro pinball machine! With all Australian state winners (and runners-up) in attendance, this wasn’t going to be an easy flip and tilt to become the national champion.

With an impressive line-up of pinball machines (2 x WWE Wrestlemania Pro, 2 x Kiss Pro and 2 x Game Of Thrones tables) to compete on, it was game on! After winning the Supanova Melbourne state final, we interviewed Johnny Crabtree and predicted that he would be a sure bet to hoist the national trophy and truck back the brand new pinball machine. So, how did we go with our prediction? We were right on the money! With 34 points in the final, Johnny fought off some stiff competition from Greg Siegele (2^ndon 33 points) and Richard Rhodes (3^rdon 31 points) to win by one point to claim the national title and the big winner’s prize of a Stern WWE Wrestlemania Pro pinball machine. It just goes to show how close the competition is among the top tier pinball wizards. Congratulations Johnny, a very well-deserved win!

The crowd gathers to watch the pinball wizards do what they do best

Let the flipping begin!

Marty Robbins keeping a close eye on the competition

Greg Siegele scores an impressive 126,523,740 on WWE Wrestlemania!

And the 2015 Australian Timezone Supanova Pinball Champion is – Johnny Crabtree!

Enjoying their spoils – winners are grinners!

image source: Australian Pinball League

Congratulations and thank you to the organisers, volunteers and sponsors (AMD, Timezone Australia, Supanova Pop Culture Expo and Australian Pinball League) of the event – without them, this would not be at all possible.

Roll on 2016 and keep flippin’!

Jon Hare’s Sociable Soccer Now Live On Kickstarter

November 20, 2015 By ausretrogamer

If you have been living on another planet and just returned to our blue marble, you may have missed the big news – Jon Hare, the coding genius who created Sensible Soccer, is back with a Kickstarter campaign to make Sociable Soccer, a worthy spiritual successor to one of the greatest footy (Ed: soccer) games of all time. With the pedigree of Sensi Soccer, you know this new game will be an absolute beauty.

Jon Hare’s Sociable Soccer will be kicking off on your PC, Steam, XBox One and Playstation 4 at the end of 2016. To say we can’t wait for this game, would be a gross understatement. Kick some goals for Sociable Soccer by backing it right now on Kickstarter!

image source: Tower Studios

Rebooting Shadow Of The Beast

November 5, 2015 By ausretrogamer

Back in 1989, Shadow Of The Beast (SoTB) wowed us gamers on Commodore’s 16-bit powerhouse, the Amiga. With its impressive graphics, awesome parallax scrolling and David Whittaker’s atmospheric score, Reflections/Psygnosis had produced another winner. The game was so successful, it was ported to a number of 8-bit and 16-bit systems.

The original SoTB has aged pretty well and still gets a lot of play time, so when we heard that Heavy Spectrum Entertainment Labs were going to bring this classic to the modern era (on the PS4), our nostalgic senses went into overdrive. Who would have thought that 27 years after it was released, SoTB would now be enjoyed by a new generation of gamers, while providing some heavy-duty nostalgia for gamers that enjoyed the original all those years ago.

Having recently played the demo and watched the trailer, Weird and Retro’s Aleks ‘Serblander’ Svetislav told us he was excited to see what the finished game would be like. I know we are not alone in saying that we are super excited that SoTB has been brought into the 21^st century on a powerhouse system of this era. How will it compare to the original? Only time will tell. Roll on January 2016!

source: Sony Playstation

Now drool over these screenshots!

image source: “supplied”

PAX Australia announces return of the Classic Gaming Area at PAX Aus 2015

October 26, 2015 By Ms. ausretrogamer

The Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) is proud to announce that the Classic Gaming Area will be returning for the third time, bigger and better than ever, at PAX Aus 2015. The Classic Gaming Area joins the dozen of areas on the show floor catering to PAX Aus badge holders over the three-day event including Tabletop, Console, PC, eSports, and more.

Image source: Blow The Cartridge

The Classic Gaming Area will feature a plethora of playable retro consoles and computers from the 1970s to the early 2000s, and for the first time, arcade machines and pinball tables! This will also include the new and much anticipated Game Of Thrones pinball tables!

Image source: IGN

A joint initiative between PAX and Melbourne-based retro gaming experts Ausretrogamer, Retro Domination, Weird and Retro (all providing retro consoles and computers), local barcade Bartronica (providing arcade machines), and pinball enthusiast Scott Kellett with Amusement Machine Distributors, Bayside Pinball Club, and Pinmem (providing pinball tables), the Classic Gaming Area will transport PAX Aus attendees young and old to the golden age of video gaming.

Consoles on display will be NES, SNES, Dreamcast, Saturn, Master System, Mega Drive, GameCube, N64, PC-Engine, C64, Amiga, Atari ST, Atari 2600, Atari Lynx, Game Boy, Wonderswan, PS1, PS2, and Xbox.

The classic arcade section will include Mortal Kombat 2, Time Crisis, and even an original Donkey Kong cabinet.

Image source: Prima Games

Ausretrogamer’s Alex Boz explains “besides freeplay consoles, computers, arcade machines, pinball tables, and friendly retro gaming experts, the Classic Gaming Area will be running tournaments all weekend with some great prizes!”

Guy ‘Yug’ Blomberg, PAX Aus Content and Community Manager adds “the Classic Gaming Area has been a very popular and successful part of PAX Aus since we began in 2013, we are thrilled it is back for 2015 and excited about this year’s expanded range of activities.”

More information about the Classic Gaming Area, including tournaments, can be found at https://www.ausretrogamer.com/paxaus-2015-classic-gaming-tournaments.

Friday and Sunday badges and 3-day international badges are still available and can be purchased online at www.paxaustralia.com.au/registration.

For further information visit paxaustralia.com.au or follow PAX Australia updates via Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Source: PAX Australia

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ms. ausretrogamer
Co-founder, editor and writer at ausretrogamer – The Australian Retro Gamer E-Zine. Lover of science fiction, fashion, books, movies and TV. Player of games, old and new.

Follow Ms. ausretrogamer on Twitter

Pinball Frenzy At PAXAus

October 22, 2015 By ausretrogamer

Who said that pinball was dead? Well, it may have taken a back seat a decade and a half ago, but boy, has pinball come back in a big way. There has been a resurgence of flipping the silver ball with companies like Stern Pinball making contemporary tables based on the hottest bands and pop culture franchises on the planet, from AC/DC, Metallica, KISS, to Iron Man, The Walking Dead, Star Trek and WWE Wrestlemania, there surely is no shortage of great pinball machines to tilt and bump on.

Since pinball has once again become cool (Ed: it never lost its cool!), it was a no brainer to start thinking about including pinball machines in the PAX Aus Classic Gaming area. After meeting Scott Kellett at Supanova earlier this year, we had a brief chat and that is when Scott mentioned how cool it would be to have pinball machines at PAXAus. A few discussions later, Scott’s idea was given the greenlight to pursue having pinball machines in the Classic Gaming area. Through sheer determination and dedication, Scott has round up the big names from the pinball community (Bayside Pinball Club, PinMem and AMD) to deliver us an array of amazing pinball tables (Ed: there will be 10 pinball tables!) for all of you to enjoy and compete on. In a major pinball coup, Scott has arranged to have the first Game of Thrones pinball table available for play in Australia at PAXAus 2015 – even more reason to see you all at PAXAus 2015!

For those with a competitive streak, the ‘PAXAus 2015 IFPA Pinball Tournament’ (proudly brought to you by AMD) will be on Saturday, October 31 – more details here. There will be great prizes on offer, including showbags full of Stern goodies and an awesome Game Of Thrones backboard translite! Get your flippin fingers ready for some pinball frenzy at PAXAus 2015.

Event: PAX Aus 2015
Date: Oct 30 – Nov 1, 2015
Where: Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC)
Tournaments: PAXAus 2015 Classic Gaming Tournaments

image source: Amusement Machine Distributors (AMD)

Kickstarted: An Illustrated History of Game Controllers

October 14, 2015 By ausretrogamer

Now here is a Kickstarter campaign we can get excited about! Player One Books is planning on releasing three volumes in the illustrated History of Game Controllers series, kicking off with volume 1 (which is currently on Kickstarter!).

The books will detail the history of joysticks and game controllers beginning with 1972’s Magnavox Odyssey controller, through to the joystick boom of the early ’80s and the emergence of game pads as the dominant force by the late ’80s. The book will feature photographs, detailed descriptions, reviews and technical information on over 120 different joysticks and game controllers released between 1972 and 1989.

If this is your kind of thing (Ed: it sure is!), then hit the Player One: An Illustrated History of Game Controllers Vol.1 Kickstarter now and pledge to make this happen!

source: Player One: An Illustrated History of Game Controllers Vol.1