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GoldenEra – The Film About The N64 Video Game, GoldenEye 007, Is Now Available for Pre-Order!

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The fantastic documentary on the most awesome FPS game, GoldenEye 007, is now available for pre-order!

In case you weren’t aware of this fantastic film, GoldenEra is a celebration of a magical moment in video games history, when 3D games burst onto screens and into our imaginations. The film showcases GoldenEye 007, a game that would inspire a generation with innovative gameplay and a multiplayer mode that would change gaming forever. Who doesn’t remember their 4-player death-matches with mates on their Nintendo 64?! Ah, it was so much fun!

GoldenEra is a nostalgic celebration of one of the most important video games of all time. A game that broke all the rules and defined a generation of gamers. The story is told by academics, journalists, celebrities, fans and the game’s designers.

GoldenEra the feature length film, explores the passion, ambition and naive exuberance of the team from countryside England that produced countless hours of joy to millions of gamers around the world.

Featuring hours of content, including:

  • Art of GoldenEra
  • GoldenEye and Obsession
  • GoldenEye inspired VR
  • In Game Reenactments
  • Mick Gordon on Rare
  • Music of GoldenEra
  • The Memes
  • The N64 Hardware
  • Writing GoldenEra
  • Bringing Back GoldenEye (Feature Length GoldenEye Movie!)

You can now pre-order the GoldenEra Limited Edition “Most Deadly” Blu-ray with N64 Slip Case film right here!



PAX Aus 2023 – But Wait, There Is More!

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With only a few more sleeps till PAX Aus 2023 kicks-off this Friday, there are more exciting and enticing news coming out from Australia’s premier gaming and pop culture event!

PLAION is proud to announce the Atari 2600+ – a modern day faithful recreation of the pioneering console that first appeared in 1977.

The new Atari 2600+ system will be on display at PAX Aus this week in the Classic Gaming area. The Atari 2600+ is launching worldwide on 17th November 2023 and available to pre-order for $189.95.

Nintendo has revealed more of their PAX plans – Not only will PAX visitors be able to experience Super Mario Bros. Wonder ahead of release, they will also be able to play Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet: The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero Part 1: The Teal Mask, Detective Pikachu Returns and Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown on Nintendo Switch.

Detective Pikachu Returns is launching on the first day of PAX, Friday 6th October. Also available to play on the Nintendo stand will be  an unreleased game from Square Enix – STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R. See all the Nintendo PAX news here.

image source: Rocketcomms



LEGO Halloween: Brick Or Treat!

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What better way to celebrate Halloween than to build some spooky Lego sets!

To help us all celebrate Halloween, LEGO have been kind enough to provide build instructions on creating spooky stuff, like vampires, pumpkins and even your own shadow puppets!

To get you started, here are a few:

  • Build a ghost and/or a bat (instructions)
  • Build a pumpkin (instructions)
  • Build a vampire (instructions)

Grab the rest from the LEGO site right now, then grab all your spare bricks and get constructing! What a treat, thanks LEGO.

image / story source: LEGO



Chironex Studios’ GRIST Game Seeks To Recapture The PC Gaming Experience From The 1980s

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We are now even more hyped for PAX Aus 2023! If you are asking why, then let us tell you……

Growing up in the 80s, our first encounter with a desktop PC was a chunky beige box with a green monochrome CRT monitor. The keys were as loud as the disk-drive accessing the sectors on the 5.25″ floppy, and without any GUI, we had to explore this (what now seems archaic) machine through trial and error using commands that were quite foreign to us at the time. Like any kid back then, we found games to play on these old school computers, which got us hooked. Bathed in the green glow we explored different worlds, made tough decisions, and became different characters – it unleashed our imagination.

Well, an independent Australian game developer, Chironex Studios is seeking to recapture those early days of PC gaming with their new game, Grist!

GRIST is a digital boardgame-slash-rpg about surviving as a Starship Commander in a universe where the secrets of faster-than-light-travel have been lost to time and conflict. Voyage across the galaxy sending out your crew on missions, recovering artifacts of the pre-collapse civilisation, and pushing back the terrors that lurk in the dark between worlds. All the while deciding which parts of your humanity you will keep, and which will be traded for one more year of life among the stars.

GRIST combines vintage ascii terminal style graphics with a synthwave soundtrack for an iconic ascii-wave aesthetic. Gameplay features include a unique positioning based combat system, multiple-choice events with long-tail outcomes, strategic hand-optimization, and a variety of different scenarios to test your abilities.

Currently in development by Chironex Studios, GRIST is planned for an Early Access release in late 2023, so add it to your Steam wishlist right now! And if you are going to PAX Aus in a few weeks, then make sure you head to Booth 16 in the Indie area (Expo Hall) to speak to the developer and check out GRIST!

image source: Chironex Studios



Bluey The Video Game Will Debut on November 17th

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For those of us with children of a certain age, there is no doubt that you would have come across the awesome Bluey cartoon on ABC TV (iView).

Bluey episodes keep both kids and adults entertained, imparting some good advice and lessons learned. When we saw the below trailer for a video game of the eponymous blue heeler, we got quite excited.

We have now marked November 17, 2023 in our diary, as this will be a day one acquisition for us (on probably every format available!)!


source: IGN



AtGames & Zen Studios Present: The Addams Family Virtual Pinball Machine

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The Addams Family pinball machine still holds the record as the biggest selling pinball machine of all time. There is a reason for this feat, the machine is much loved, as it is so much darn fun to play, with mechs that make you go wow, to multi-balls that can make your head spin. The Addams Family pinball machine is the epitome of a fun game!

Why are we talking about a 30 year old pinball machine? Well, AtGames is now collaborating with Zen Studios to bring you The Addams Family pinball machine, packed with 15 other pinball tables and of course, the amazing The Addams Family, all in glorious digital format.

Not much more news than that, but from what we can see on the AtGames site, the machine has a reasonable spec (see specification image further below), which we are happy to see that it includes built in solenoids and speakers for haptic feedback, making the pinball realism as close as possible to the real thing. The machine can also be expanded with 140+ Legends 4K pinball tables via AtGames’ PinballNet subscription service (Ed: D’oh!) which sounds pretty cool, even though it means an additional cost for the subscription (your mileage may vary).

Pre-orders will be staggered across a number of waves, opening the first (early bird) pre-order stage on 22nd of September (US time), however, there is no mention if these will be officially available in Australia – c’mon AtGames, don’t let us down!

image source: AtGames



PAX Aus 2023 Panel Schedule Announced

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With PAX Aus literally just around the corner, we wanted to share some exciting news that will hopefully bring all of those loose puzzle pieces together to form the final picture – the launch of the PAX Aus 2023 Schedule. Whilst you may have initially asked what sea-shantying pirates, cursed cakes, and the most prestigious cosplay competition in the Southern Hemisphere had in common, well, now you know.

Having spent months behind closed doors curating the most comprehensive celebration of all things gaming, the team at PAX Aus is thrilled to unveil the panel schedule for this year’s event covering everything from meet and greets and freeplay opportunities through to main stage panel discussions and competitions.

So, please… take a seat and start mapping out your weekend here: https://aus.paxsite.com/en-us/schedule.html

Though a starting point is almost impossible to find, here are just a few of the highlights from the schedule:

Friday, October 6

  • Storytime with Erika Ishii | Main Theatre, 12:00 – 1:00 pm

  • Whose Voice Is it Anyway 2: The Voicening | Twitch Quokka Theatre, 6:30 – 7:30 pm

  • Beyond Stereotypes: Exploring Indigenous representation in video games | Kookaburra Theatre, 3:30 – 4:30 pm

  • Cursed Cakes 2.0 | GenerOZity Wombat Theatre, 4:30 – 5:30 pm

  • Sustainability at Xbox and its Approach to Developer Engagement | PAX Together Theatre, 10:00 – 10:30 am

  • The Future of Gaming – is cloud gaming set to transform the future of how we play forever? | Twitch Quokka Theatre, 11:00 – 12:00 pm

Saturday, October 7

  • Secrets & Stories, Music & Myths: A Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical Development Retrospective | Main Theatre, 12:00 – 1:00 pm

  • Robert Hartley GM presents D&D Death Roulette | GenerOZity Wombat Theatre, 1:30 – 3:00 pm

  • Sea Shanties you say? Yahaarghh! | GenerOZity Wombat Theatre, 9:00 – 11:00 pm

  • Cosplay Beginnings Workshop: Props and Armour | Cosplay Theatre, 11:00 – 12:00 pm



Sunday, October 8

  • My parents wanted me to be a doctor, but I want to be a content creator | Twitch Quokka Theatre, 12:30 – 1:30 pm

  • Bach 4 Blood: Game Soundtracks vs. Classical Music | Galah Theatre, 3:00 – 4:00 pm

  • Cosplay Central Crown Championship Finals | Main Theatre, 2:00 – 3:30 pm

In addition to the massive panel schedule, there will also be some celebratory, memory-inducing moments celebrating PAX Aus’ 10th Anniversary. These are:

  • The Year That Was PAX Aus 2013 – a special retrospective panel reminiscing on the year that was 2013;

  • Fireside with Mick Gordon hosted by New Zealand podcaster, KiwiTalkz, as they deep dive into 10 years of video game music;

  • PinnyPals 4*Eva – Celebrating a decade of PAX pin collecting down under;

  • Join the Press X Science panel who have hosted a panel for 10 years at PAX Aus exploring what we have learned from a decade of exploring science and videogames;

  • A retrospective on the legendary PAX Aus Omegathon;

  • Fireside with Halfbrick who were at the original PAX Aus – looking back to 2013 as well as discussing what they have been doing since then;

  • I attended every PAX Aus for 10 years – a look at the memories from the community, content creators exploring the key moments in the history of PAX Aus that have made the event what it is today;

  • Omegathon 10 Year Battle Royale – The last 10 years of Omegathon winners compete to find out who will be crowned the 10 year Omeganaut.

Phew, that’s quite a meaty schedule but we hope this helps with mapping out your activities for the PAX Aus 2023 weekend extravaganza!



The Nintendo Museum To Be Completed By March 2024

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How darn awesome will this be when it’s finished in March 2024!

Nintendo is converting their old plant in Kyoto, Japan, into a museum to showcase products from throughout their long history in gaming.

If you are planning a trip to Japan next year, perhaps consider checking our the Nintendo Museum while you are there for the cherry blossom season 😉

Birdseye view of the Nintendo Museum roof – love the question mark [?]
Image source: Nintendo



story source: theverge.com

‘Cheers to 10 Years’ – PAX Aus Announces Even More Major Content

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‘Cheers to 10 Years’ As PAX Aus Announces Even More Major Content

With only three weeks to go until PAX Aus 2023, there is even more delicious content including more news from Nintendo and announcements from SEGA, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, Star Wars Unlimited, Five Nights at Freddy’s and more to sink your teeth into!

We are hoping to see as many of you at PAX Aus this year, so we can’t wait for these weeks to fly by! Oh yeah, you should know where to find us by now (ahem, at our home base, the Classic Gaming area).

OK, without further ado, here is the awesome news…..

PAX Aus 2023 is shaping up to be an absolute whopper and there’s no better way to celebrate the last 10 years than showcasing even more great gaming content with more major announcements confirmed today. So please, take it slow and try not to stuff your face too quickly with all this delicious content…

In addition to Nintendo’s tournament in PAX Arena, Nintendo returns to the PAX expo floor headlined by Super Mario Bros. Wonder – playable before its release on 20th October! Fans can also shop in-person at the Nintendo booth with My Nintendo Store, which will have merchandise to peruse and purchase. Look forward to more information coming soon about the playable titles and available merch from Nintendo.

Gaming icon, SEGA will be attending PAX Aus this year with a booth showcasing Sonic Superstars and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name. Melbourne-based Ukiyo Studios will be presenting “SEA What I Made! (SWIM)”, the largest Southeast Asian indie games delegation of its kind to grace Australian shores. A total of 15 titles from Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines will feature a variety of game genres from turn-based RPGs to Southeast Asian-inspired Diablo-likes and even restaurant management sims.

And for tabletop fans, Star Wars: Unlimited will be demo-ed for the first time in Australia at PAX Aus. Two icons of the tabletop world will also be at PAX Aus – Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. Attendees will be able to learn to play Dungeons & Dragons with their friendly Dungeon Masters waiting to guide you on a quest. From there, visit the D&D Superstore where you will be able to find everything you need and want from sourcebooks to minis to collectibles and more. For Magic: The Gathering fans and noobs you can learn to play and get lost in the Wilds of Eldraine with fantastical creatures, unbelievable settings and beloved characters with a unique twist.

Pack your Senzu Beans and Devil Fruit, because the tabletop major moments don’t stop there with Dragon Ball Z and One Piece showcasing their games and hosting tourneys at the event. Compete for glory in the Dragon Ball Super Regionals and One Piece Card Game Tournament, pick up a free demo deck (while stock lasts), as well as try your hand at the new Dragon Ball Super Fusion World card game.

Vanguard, Weiss Schwarz, Shadowverse and Final Fantasy Trading Card Game will also be showcased at PAX Aus and Asmodee, yes, them of Exploding Kittens, CATAN, Ticket to Ride, Dobble/Spot It and so many more legendary games fame will be bringing their latest and greatest games.

What’s October without a jumpscare? Five Nights at Freddy’s will be activating the world of Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza where Freddy and the gang are dying to meet you – step into the scene and see if you can survive five nights?

While on the topic of bears, what about bears, in space?! Hear from Broadside Games as they discuss how they went from working a day job and developing games on the side to focusing on a game full-time! The team behind the upcoming action-packed game, Bears In Space, tell all at PAX Aus!

And lastly, tabletop legends Phil Walker-Harding (Sushi Go, Bear Park, Imhotep) and Matt Dunstan (Fairy Tile, Relic Runners) will also be on the floor at PAX Aus, with Walker-Harding demonstrating his game, Spellbook, and Dunstan showcasing a new game, to be revealed for the first time at PAX Aus.

With 3-Day and Saturday Badges sold out and limited single-day badges available, you better gear up for PAX Aus’ 10th anniversary celebration. PAX Aus 2023 takes place October 6-8 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. For more information and badges, please visit their official website.

image source: PAX Aus