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The Incredible Arcade Warehouse in Japan

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Oh My Gosh! Micah Moore, the cool peep that explores the strange and wonderful as part of his Legend of Micah Facebook page has done exactly that – explored the strange, wonderful and incredible arcade in Kawasaki, Japan, modelled after the Kowloon Walled City – an infamous slum in Hong Kong. The Amusement Game Park Kawasaki (Anata No) Warehouse has narrow alleys, flickering lights and the sounds of an underground marketplace that create a maze filled with 80’s and 90’s arcade games.

Taishiro Hoshino, an art designer for kabuki theatre, painstakingly reproduced signs and posters from the real Kowloon Walled City, which was demolished in the early 90’s. This arcade is going on the bucket list immediately!

Big thanks to Skooota for letting us know about this one!


source: Legend of Micah – Facebook

 

Double Dragon: Busting Heads For 30 years

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If you have been with us since we began our retro gaming journey, you’d know that we are huge Double Dragon fans, especially the arcade game!

Speaking of the arcade, would you believe that Double Dragon is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year! It’s amazing that after three decades, this game is still being talked about with such affection.

Kung-Fu Master and Renegade may have preceded it, but Double Dragon was the first co-operative beat’em up on the arcade block. Who could forget the two Lee brothers punching, kicking, elbowing Black Warrior thugs to get to their damsel in distress. Let’s not spoil it for those that haven’t finished the game, but let’s just say that brotherly love doesn’t count.

Being the first co-op beat’em up game, Double Dragon paved the way for all that came after it and kickstarted the golden age of the beat’em up. Long live Double Dragon!

Interesting fact: Double Dragon’s arcade board is quite complex – instead of utilising an expensive 16-Bit CPU, the game runs on two 8-Bit CPUs with a third CPU dedicated to sound! How ingenuous!

 

Awesomely Cool SNK Neo Geo Attire At Fangamer!

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*GULP* Hope you are all sitting down, cause you gotta check out the official SNK Neo Geo attire available now on Fangamer!

The only problem we can see is, which piece of clothing to get? Actually, there is an easy answer, ALL OF THEM!

Which one do you like?

image source: Fangamer

 

The Age Newspaper: Retro Gaming Revival

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The ausretrogamer team was recently interviewed by Adam Turner for the Sunday Age M lift-out cover story which was all about the revival of retro gaming and the classic gaming area at PAX Australia!

If you didn’t get the chance to read the article in print, then you can read it all online right now on The Age website!

The full story can be read online on The Age website now

 

Mi-Sex: Computer Games

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Watching the ABC’s Classic Countdown on the weekend, we saw a music clip that triggered a torrent of nostalgia. The music clip in question was Mi-Sex’s Computer Games.

Released in 1979, Computer Games was way ahead of its time, both in the context of the nascent computer and video gaming age, and the use of Control Data Corporation’s data centre to film their music video, which features a number of arcade games from 1979 – can you name them all? The answers are further down below – don’t you dare cheat!

For those of our vintage that remember this hit song, here it is for you to enjoy once again. And for those that haven’t heard this before, kick back and enjoy!


source: saynotonowave

Answer: Computer Games features Vectorbeam’s Speed Freak, Atari’s Basketball and Exidy’s Star Fire! Did you get them all right?

 

NFL Blitz Turns 20

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By: D.C. Cutler, U.S.A.

From the first time I played the arcade version of Midway’s NFL Blitz at a movie theatre arcade, I was hooked. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the release of the colorful, over-the-top football game in arcades. And yes, that makes me feel old too.

Before there was Madden, there was Blitz if you were an NFL fan and gamer. Blitz wasn’t as technical and stylized as a year of Madden, but it was just as fun and competitive to play with your friends. When Nintendo 64 released Blitz, the game was so different than any other football game on the market.

Blitz had a blown up exaggeration to it with the humorous violence when you tackled an opposing player. The explosive crunching sounds and the streak of light behind the ball when you threw it deep elevated the gaming experience. The graphics and play popped off the smallest of television screens.

The “late hits” after plays were a bit much; so much so, it’s one of the reasons, along with some of the graphic collisions, the NFL almost offered to refund Midway’s licensing fee. I’m sure the NFL was pleased when they saw the early numbers of units sold.

Everyone I knew who had a Playstation or Nintendo 64 system owned Blitz. Like Madden or Goldeneye, playing Blitz was a happening at a friend’s house. I can’t count how many times in high school I participated in an NFL Blitz tournament. No money was ever involved, but a friend had to wash my Jeep after I humiliated him in a rout.

On weekends, I would play an entire season (usually with the Cowboys or Broncos) in a single day. And I loved the pitch play. My go-to-play was always “Da Bomb,” or the pitch to my running back down the right sideline. The reverse pass play was always a must on a difficult drive as well.

As much as I’ve enjoyed years of Madden, I think I have fonder memories of playing Blitz. It wasn’t as formal as Madden, but the action was just as enthralling and challenging. When you scored a touchdown against a really good opponent, it was just as gratifying as when you scored in a competitive Madden duel. And, I would know, I’ve played against some exceptional Madden players.

Twenty years ago, Midway created one of the most enjoyable football games ever. It still holds up, and when I play it, I’m flooded with bittersweet memories of close wins and crushing defeats.

I hope, somewhere in a lively arcade, kids are still playing and discovering a version of NFL Blitz.

source: The Arcade Flyer Archive

 

Coyote Peterson Finds ‘Pac-Man Of The Sea’

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“On this episode of Beyond the Tide, Coyote and the crew explore the tide pools of the San Juan Islands in search of bizarre marine creatures… and OH BOY do they find them!

From Sea Lemons to Giant Purple Sea Stars almost everything they discover is truly and amazingly unique. 

To top it off they also find the largest species of Chiton, the “Gumboot”, in the world which is a creature so bizarre it hardly looks as if it’s even alive! However it does have a striking resemblance to one of the most beloved video game characters of all time. 

Get ready to meet the Pac-Man of the Sea!”

(Start watching at 13:26 to jump straight to the Pac-Man creature).

Source: Brave Wilderness via Laughing Squid

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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

 

 

The Ultimate NES – Now You’re Really Playing With Power

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Whoa, our socks have well and truly been blown off! From all of the console mods and superguns we’ve come across, Gamester’s Ultimate NES (UNES) is by far the most impressive!

Gamester’s UNES hybrid console supergun can play original NES carts, JAMMA boards and Neo Geo MVS carts – how awesome is that! The impressive feats just keeping coming – the UNES has dual video outputs, allowing two different games to be played simultaneously on two TV screens! Oh yeah, the addition of the Neo Geo controller ports, hidden under the flap above the NES controller ports is downright ingenuous.

Best part about this console mod is that it was not turned into some Frankenstein monster – if you look at it front on, you would swear that it was just an original NES console. No one can tell the power that lurks inside this beast! Gamester’s UNES is truly playing with some serious power.

Ultimate NES Specifications:

  • Base: 1985 Nintendo Entertainment System with new 72 pin connector
  • Power Supply: Astrodyne external triple output, 5V@10amps, 12V@3amps, -5V@1amp
  • Outputs: Composite Video, S-Video, Component Video and Stereo/Mono Audio
  • Inputs: JAMMA Connector, Neo-Geo controllers
  • Video Encoder: NeoBitz + JROK Sync Cleaner
  • Weight: 3lb 8oz / 1.6kg

Looks normal enough…
UNES, Gamester, Ultimate NES, JAMMA, MVS, Neo Geo

Wait a minute, what are these extra Neo Geo controller ports…
UNES, Gamester, Ultimate NES, JAMMA, MVS, Neo Geo

That is one sexy rear!
UNES, Gamester, Ultimate NES, JAMMA, MVS, Neo Geo

The power is within! Oh, great NES game inside too…
UNES internal, UNES, Gamester, Ultimate NES

source: Jamma Nation X – Gamester’s Ultimate NES

 

Movieland Arcade: A Hit Of Nostalgia In Vancouver

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Ah Vancouver, the city of many cruise ships and retirees boarding these massive vessels! This post has been a long time coming, but that’s because we’ve been distracted – till now!

Continuing on with cool places we visited while on our North American trip (like the Seattle Pinball Museum, Toy Shack and A Gamer’s Paradise in Vegas), the city of Vancouver delivered its own piece of gaming nostalgia via the Movieland Arcade!

There are some amusement centres that are stuck in a bygone era, a period of time when arcade parlours in the 80s were lined with machines, both of the arcade and pinball kind, checkered linoleum flooring, cheeky signage, an attendants booth for exchanging your notes for coins and of course, the smell. Well, it is safe to say that Movieland Arcade encapsulates this 80s era perfectly.

Situated at the hipster end of Granville Street in central Vancouver, Movieland Arcade cannot be missed – its distinct red tile facade enticing you to go in and experience some real gaming nostalgia. With pinball tables and arcade machines ranging from the 70s to the late 90s, you better exchange your notes for a shed-load of coins as you will want to play them all!

Movieland Arcade reminded us of the arcade joints we used to frequent in the 80s on Swanston Street and Russell Street in the centre of Melbourne. Unlike those arcade joints going the way of the dodo, Vancouver can count itself lucky with a place like the Movieland Arcade.

Whoa, we spot Movieland Arcade across the road!

You definitely can’t miss the distinct facade of this majestic arcade parlour

We better grab some more coins!

Here we go! Hmm, pinball or straight to the arcade machines?

We shall start from the left and work our way to the right..

You have to go slow when you are in here! Too many awesome distractions!

We can’t go past some Neo Geo action

Killer Instinct is next!

Whoa man, haven’t seen a Gauntlet Legends machine in almost 20 years!

Some single racing action on Daytona USA!

Inserting coins now!

Nothing beats some 8P head-to-head racing!

We spy Medieval Madness! Time to destroy some castle!

Needing some gun action, which Area 51 will satisfy

We enjoy gunning down zombies!

Hmm, not sure if these ‘movies’ and that ‘theatre’ are appropriate, but…

OMG, Raiden Fighters! There go all of our coins!

Our shmup senses have gone into overdrive! Get us some more coins!

We spent our last few coins on some Playboy action *wink*

Darn it, the booth attendant must’ve had a toilet break. We’ll be back.

Ausretrogamer 2016 Highlights

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As another year draws to a close, one can’t help but to reflect on the year gone by. With a record number of visitors hitting the site, we had a heap of highlights in 2016, so dwindling them down to a handful proved to be harder than we thought. Are you ready? Here we go!

We started the year by learning how pinball machines work and how to troubleshoot general problems – a course that was well worth doing!

Getting the grand tour of ZAX Amusements and getting to play the newly released (at the time) Ghostbusters Pro pinball machine was a double highlight!

What better way to spend your birthday than having the awesome Ms. ausretrogamer organising a birthday mystery tour involving escape rooms, USA foods, retrogaming hunting at vintage markets, arcade action and a drive-in movie!

It is always a wonderful surprise when you go on a holiday and find a market that has retrogaming goodies! Carrara Markets delivered the thrill of the hunt buzz we were looking for!

After the birthday mystery tour, it was only fair to repay Ms. ausretrogamer in kind, by surprising her with The Walking Dead Pro pinball machine for her birthday. The look on her face was priceless!

When Marcus Sezonov extended us an invite to his Rosstown Retro Pinball Arcade tournament, we definitely could not pass up the opportunity. With a fantastic pinball collection comprising of classic machines from a variety of manufacturers from around the world, we could not stop flipping the silverball. Oh yeah, Marcus also had an original Japanese Space Invaders cocktail table to satisfy our arcade urge.

Being part of Australia’s biggest gaming event is a privilege. For PAX Aus 2016, our Classic Gaming Area was even bigger and better – more arcade and pinball machines, old school computers and consoles, handhelds from yesteryear and for the first time, a classic gaming museum!

Another PAX Aus 2016 highlight was participating in Seamus Byrne’s Geek Trash or Treasure? Finding Collectibles with Real Value panel in the Gamespot Theatre! We can now say that we popped our public speaking cherry.

Last but not least, meeting Jack Guarnieri at the recent exclusive Melbourne Jersey Jack Pinball event was a huge highlight and one we will not forget in a hurry! Oh yeah, playing the Pat Lawlor designed, Dialed In, was pretty great too!

We can’t wait to see what awesomeness 2017 brings us all! We’ll take this opportunity to thank you for your patronage and hope that you’ll come and visit us again in 2017.

Happy New Year to everyone – we hope it is a happy, healthy, successful and fun one!