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The World’s Last Blockbuster Store Is Available To Book on Airbnb

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We may have found our ‘blow our mind‘ moment for the day!

Wanna relive the 90s again by browsing shelves full of VHS tapes, watching movies on the VCR and eating popcorn on your old school lounge-suite? Well, if you are a resident of Deschutes County (Oregon, US), then you are in luck, as you can book and stay at the world’s last Blockbuster store via Airbnb! This seriously is mind blowing, with the nostalgia meter going off the scale.

Oh yeah, if you are lucky enough to immerse yourself in this glorious 90s nostalgia, don’t forget to rewind the tape when you are finished!

PS: If only Australia’s last Blockbuster store was available to rent!

image source: Airbnb

story source: laughingsquid

 

Mortal Kombat 1oz Silver Coin – The Flawless Collectable

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When it comes to cool pop culture collectables, New Zealand Mint (aka: NZ Mint) is on the money in satisfying collectors and geeks alike!

NZ Mint has created a number of video gaming related collectables over the years, so their pedigree in this category is second to none. We previously collected their Space Invaders 40th and Tetris 35th anniversary silver coins which proved quite popular with you all.

Following on from their successful Space Invaders and Tetris silver coins, NZ Mint has now introduced a limited (to 2,020 pieces of the) Mortal Kombat 1oz Silver Coin collectable. This arcade cabinet and silver coin are right in our wheelhouse! During the early ’90s we played the heck out of Mortal Kombat in the arcades, patiently waiting our turn to inflict some gruesome attacks to earn flawless victories. We are happy to say, this NZ Mint Mortal Kombat 1oz Silver Coin definitely earns a flawless victory!!!

This awesome collectable embodies everything cool that is Mortal Kombat! When you open the package, you are greeted by the specially designed Mortal Kombat-themed arcade cabinet, complete with the game logo and three of the original characters on each side; Sub-Zero, Scorpion and Raiden. The “Choose your Fighter” screen is also a great touch to the presentation.

Lifting the arcade cabinet off the base reveals the precious two dollar silver coin collectable cushioned in black velvet. The coin has the words ‘Mortal Kombat’ and the mythical dragon engraved against the fiery red and yellow background colours that are synonymous with the game. The coin is absolutely stunning, which means we can’t keep our hands off it! The other side of the coin features the Ian Rank-Broadley effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

To complete this collectable is the confirmation of the coin’s authenticity, which is printed under the base. With the Mortal Kombat 1oz Silver Coin being officially licensed by Warner Brothers and its limited availability to 2,020 units worldwide (reflecting the year of issue), this is the perfect memento for those who grew up playing Mortal Kombat or for any arcade fighter gaming enthusiasts! No ‘Fatality’ here, only a ‘Flawless Victory’!

Disclaimer: NZ Mint kindly provided the Mortal Kombat 1oz Silver Coin for this article.

 

Arcade Raid Over Dubbo

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Have you ever dreamed of raiding a warehouse full of arcade machine we used to play back in the day?

Well, that dream is now a reality, thanks to Dubbo Arcade and Amusements! From looking at the photos on their Facebook page, we reckon they may have pretty much what most of us are after, either an old school arcade machine from the 80s or 90s, those hard to find arcade game boards, Hankin cocktail tables, or perhaps a jukebox or a pinball machine to tickle your nostalgic nerve.

Whatever you are after, we reckon a visit to Dubbo may be in order 😉

image source: Dubbo Arcade and Amusements via Facebook

 

Play 2500 Classic MS-DOS Games For Free

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No need to copy, swap dodgy disks or download questionable software, because you can now play an additional 2,500 classic MS-DOS based games for free!

Yep, you read that right folks. You can now play these classics without fear of doing anything illegal. All you have to do is head to the Internet Archive and browse their many, many classic games in their catalogue – we love you Internet Archive! Which MS-DOS game will you play first? For the record, we are starting with Street Rod and will then move onto Secret Of Monkey Island 😉

story source: Kotaku Australia

 

1991 Toys “R” Us Awesome Vintage Catalogue

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We love old toys and video game catalogues. We have previously featured the Toys “R” Us 1996 Christmas catalogue and the hefty 830+ page 1992 Christmas Sears, Roebuck & Co. ‘The Great American Wish Book’ to tickle your nostalgic nerve.

Well, now we present you with the 1991 Toys “R” Us (US) catalogue that features classic toys and some very classic video gaming systems that will definitely jolt your nostalgic nerve. Enjoy!



source: eBay



Polish Arcade Parlours and Games from the mid 1990s

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We love seeing old photos of arcade games and parlours, especially ones from Eastern Europe – just like these photos uploaded on Flickr by Marcin Wichary from mid 1990s Poland.

If you look closely, you will find some interesting bootleg machines, but that doesn’t matter, as this is great to see what gamers got to play in Poland in the mid 1990s.

You can check out the rest of the photos on Flicker.

source: Marcin Wichary on Flickr

 

A Rare Look Inside Nintendo During the SNES Era

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If you’ve ever wondered what it was like in the Nintendo offices during their Super Nintendo days, then this excerpt  from the 1994 French documentary film Otaku is exactly what you are looking for!

Thanks to William Cladley from Game Escape for discovering this film and for adding English subtitles! Oh yeah, you’ll all recognise a younger Shigeru Miyamoto who even back then was always striving for a balance in creativity and management – both attributes have served him well.


source: Game Escape

90s Nostalgia Series Art By Aly Jones

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Gotta thank our friends Weird and Retro for bringing this art to our attention!

You all got to check out Aly Jones’ 90s Nostalgia Art Series artwork, the jolt of old school popular culture stuff will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside! Aly’s artwork will definitely make you miss the 90s!

Check out the entire Aly Jones 90s Nostalgia Art Series on Facebook and also hit Aly’s site for more of her awesome art!

image source: Aly Jones’ 90s Nostalgia Series via Facebook

 

Black Mirror Goes Retro

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blackmirror_titleBlack Mirror is back with new episodes and it’s as dark, beautiful, fascinating and sharp as ever. It’s everything a good sci-fi TV series should be, that Charlie Brooker is a genius!

Black Mirror takes aim at social media in Nosedive and Hated In the Nation, while Playtest is an Inception-like mind-bending cautionary tale about VR. They’re all fantastic, but our real favourite is the uplifting and beautiful San Junipero (episode 4). It’s simply oozing with retro goodness: music, fashion, and (most importantly) arcades from the 80s and 90s! Here are some nods to video gaming pop culture that we spotted in San Junipero as well as Playtest. Did you spot others?

Edge magazine makes a cameo in the Playtest episode, Black Mirror series 3
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Look closely at those shelves, you may see some retro goodies
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Perhaps Charlie Brooker is a fan of Edge magazine…
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We spot some PS3 and PS4 gaming goodies!
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Going back to 1987 in episode 4, San Junipero
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We’d be smiling too if we were about to play Bubble Bobble!
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Ah, Nemesis (aka: Gradius) is there too!
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The golden age of arcades make it too!
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No way, Time Crisis!
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We really need to visit Tucker’s!
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Image source: Black Mirror on Netflix

 

DOOM II: Hell In Jerry’s Apartment

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Seinfeld DOOM II featuredIt doesn’t get much more ’90s’ than DOOM II and Seinfeld. This mashup is real, and it’s spectacular!

Huge Seinfeld fan, Doug Keener, spent 100+ hours creating this spongeworthy wad about nothing. Play DOOM II inside 129 West 81st Street with sprites of the whole gang – audio clips and death animations included. So, giddy up and get playing.

Doug explains: ‘I am a massive fan of Seinfeld. The characters were put into the replica as a bonus to add to the tribute. The only reason they are killable is because I wanted to keep it in traditional Doom fashion, because what is doom without violence and death? This is in no way a “hate video” towards Seinfeld or the cast. It is a tribute and an homage to one of the greatest television shows of all-time, as well as one of the greatest video games of all-time’.

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SEINFELDMAP01
Source: Doug Keener via Laughing Squid
Image source: Doug Keener on Doomworld Forums

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msausretrogamerMs. 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