Do you miss the sound of a rotary phone or crack opening a VHS tape you rented from Blockbuster?
Well, sit down, relax and crank up the volume to take in the best 44 seconds that your ears will hear today.
source: UNILAD Tech
80s
By The Power Of Grayskull: Passing the Sword!
Celebrating its 40th year of existence, the Masters of the Universe has brought a lot of happiness to generations of peeps, including us Gen X’ers.
For those of us with young kids, we need to pass the baton (Power Sword) to the next generation to ensure MOTU lives on for years to come!
source: Masters Of The Universe via Facebook
Celebrating 40 Years of Masters Of The Universe
We have posted a fair bit about Masters of the Universe lately, so we thought why not do it again! Well, the MOTU franchise is celebrating its 40th year, so there’s that too!
Following the official Masters Of The Universe social channels (Facebook, Twitter & Instagram) has been a trip down nostalgia lane for us folks who had (still have) their original MOTU action figures and accessories.
Some of the posts that the MOTU social media team shares are funny and cool, but it’s the stop-motion posts that grab our attention – just like this latest one (created by Stuntpuppets), where Beast Man takes on He-Man (after beating down Man-At-Arms) in a one-on-one Beast-Brawl!
source: MOTU on Facebook
40 Years Of Masters Of The Universe
40 Years of MOTU
We still remember the day when we visited Treasureway (defunct now) store in 1982 and seeing He-Man and Skeletor on the shelf for the first time – we were immediately drawn to the action figures and the MOTU universe in general. It would seem that Mattel knew exactly how to market these muscle-bound toys to kids. We begged to get one and after some incessant begging, we were told that we could choose one that day. It was a tough choice, but our very first MOTU action figure was He-Man! Our second one was Zodac, closely followed by Stratos. We didn’t get Skeletor till well after.
source: Masters Of The Universe on Facebook
Over the course of the early to mid 80s, we had a modest collection of MOTU action figures, so when we finally got Castle Grayskull for Christmas in 1984, we felt like we had completed our MOTU journey. Upon hearing that there was going to be a cartoon based on Masters Of The Universe, we couldn’t contain our excitement. The cartoon couldn’t come fast enough! Saturday mornings on the couch with the doona (duvet to our UK friends) over us, watching He-Man battle Skeletor and his evil minions was a perfect way to start our weekend!
40 years on and Treasureway may no longer exists, but we still have our collection of original He-Man and the Masters of the Universe action figures – long live MOTU!
Some of our original MOTU collection
‘Stranger Things’ Video Game Moment
By: D.C. Cutler, U.S.A.
First off, I’ll try not to spoil anything. (Ed: WARNING – proceed with caution if you have not watched ST4 as yet!)
I didn’t start watching “Stranger Things” until this year’s season. Season four of the popular Netflix series has been enthralling and masterfully plotted.
I never thought I would like the people of Hawkins, Indiana, but they grew on me rather quickly. I watched the fourth episode of the season, titled “Chapter Four: Dear Billy,” and the greatness of the storytelling and the final, video game-like ending, made me realize that the show wasn’t just some nostalgic, kid show. It was much more than that.
Max is my favorite character on “Stranger Things.” Why, I’m not sure? Maybe because she reminds me a little of myself when I was young, and, like Max, I was always optimistically curious about life. Sadie Sink plays Max superbly. Her journey through the fourth season of the hit series is the most captivating storyline. So much so that the Kate Bush song “Running Up That Hill,” released in 1985, has made its way to the top of the current music charts. In the fourth chapter, the song is used brilliantly in the scene that reminded me of a video game. The song is a part of the dramatic scene where Max makes her escape from Vecna, the primary villain. The song is used as a key diegetic piece that works magnificently.
When Max breaks free of Vecna, she is running along a rocky ground through the demonic dreamscape. I got video game vibes when Max is running between falling rocks and debris to get to her friends who are using Bush’s song to get her back to the real world, in a graveyard. Her run made me think of hundreds of video games that I’ve played over the course of my life. She was on a mission to get back to her friends, and the nail-biting scene is shot beautifully. It conjured up visions of a video game hero dodging obstacles to reach a safe place or new level. Everything about it works.
Max’s sprint to her friends and “Running Up That Hill” made for an extraordinarily calculated action sequence that will resonate with fans of the series for years.
image source: Rotten Tomatoes
An Alternative 80s iPhone
Now this alternative-history 80s iPhone by Redditor, Echonix9, is so darn clever!
But alas, it is only a prop! Don’t despair, we can still enjoy in imagining having such a device in the 80s. Echonix9 also added a light-pen peripheral, with Redditor Danamania going a step further by adding an old school green on black display (see below pic)!
Echonix9 advises that:
This took about 4 weeks to make from modelboard and laser cut acrylic. Apparently it looks like a render which I can only take as a compliment!
The display is vacuum-formed acrylic, though I essentially let the soft plastic droop into the shape of the screen. I then back-sprayed it with grey and a little silver.
I first created a CAD model in Rhino, using the rough overall dimensions of a pocket TV I have. This allowed me to print off scale plans and have the front panel cut from modelboard with a CNC machine.
With the 3D model I could also laser-cut the back and sides from acrylic, with icons and holes for sockets. There was a lot of filling and hand-sanding to get it smooth and the corners just right!
Details like the aerial, db9 socket and power switch on the opposite side were bits from my electronic stash.
I’m simplifying what is quite a unconventional method of making something like this, especially considering I have a model I could just 3D print, but I learnt a huge amount by giving it a go, making mistakes and taking advantage of the equipment I won’t always have access to, outside of education.
source: reddit | imgur | danamania
Butcher Billy’s Stranger Tales: The Second Season
If you are a Stranger Things fan, then you’ll know the artwork from Brazilian designer/illustrator, Butcher Billy, is stunningly amazing!
The timeline of Stranger Things is perfectly suited for us nostalgia seekers with nods to everything retro that we loved from the 80s. Butcher Billy captures the Stranger Things aesthetic perfectly in his art creations, including this eye-popping Stranger Tales: The Second Season series, which includes Atari VCS/2600 cartridges and Stephen King paperback novels – Butcher Billy aptly states that “these are some of the stranger things of the 80’s.”
Check out the entire collection here and then head over to Butcher Billy’s RedBubble store.
The Atari Carts
Stephen King pulp paperbacks
source: Butcher Billy via behance.net
The Eerie Timex X Stranger Things Watch Co-Lab
With the popularity reaching fever pitch for the latest season of Stranger Things (season 4), it was inevitable that major brands would jump on the partnership bandwagon.
The timing (pun intended) of the Timex X Stranger Things watch collaboration is perfect, just in time for the second part of season 4 kicking off this Friday, July 1 on Netflix.
It seems that Timex have captured the aesthetic of the show quite well with the 80s digital (and analogue on the Camper version) look and most importantly, a nod to the show with hidden features and alarm sounds that play the iconic Stranger Things melody – this perfectly completes the hair-raising sci-fi-horror-drama immersion.
We love the Timex X Stranger Things T80 digital watch with its stainless steel bracelet and overall silver tone. Oh yeah, it has the spine-chilling graphics on the watch face and a hidden Stranger Things logo when you activate the INDIGLO® backlight!
source: Timex x Stranger Things
Retro Gaming Inspired Bathrooms
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
Galacticon – Nintendo Switch Review
Galacticon is exactly the type of game our Nintendo Switch has been screaming out for! There is something familiar and comforting about Galacticon, its look, feel and sounds hark back to our arcade days from the 80s.
Upon starting Galacticon, you are reminded that it is inspired by a couple of iconic Williams titles, Defender and Joust – not a bad way to start. Where you constantly scroll at breakneck speeds in Defender while attacking enemies and rescuing some poor souls, Galacticon implements this mechanic in mostly a single screen, making the game a tad easier to play. We aren’t saying Galacticon isn’t challenging, far from it – but at least you don’t contend with the constant sideways scrolling and getting hit by an enemy that you can’t see.
The graphics, sound, control and gameplay could’ve easily been ripped out from the early 80’s arcades, they are that cool and add to the overall experience of this title. Did we mention how amazing the raster scanline patterns look? Your eyes will love you for it. This game oozes nostalgia for those with an 8-bit retro heart, but modern players aren’t left out in the cold, as they too get a romping great game that is fun to play and looks and sounds darn awesome.
The mix of blast and rescue (with a sprinkle of puzzle) gameplay action is a welcome distraction for our Switch. Galacticon will have you flying back to it over and over, either to beat your previous score or get yourself onto the world high score table, this is one fun way to spend quality time on your Nintendo Switch! Highly recommended!
Release Date: May 22, 2022 (Nintendo Switch & Steam)
Developer: Radin Games
Publisher: Flynn’s Arcade / Pikii
Price: €4.99/$4.99/£4.99 (20% off in the first week of release)