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Everything Retro Is Hot At CES 2018

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If you were in Vegas last week for the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) you would have been forgiven for thinking that it was the 1990s!

It definitely looks like companies are finally tweaking to the fact that retro gaming is big business. From Hyperkin announcing the mighty Ultra Game Boy to Retro-Bit announcing their partnership with Sega, it looks like 2018 is going to be a big year for retro gamers and their credit cards!

Here are our hot retrogaming picks from CES 2018:

Hyperkin Ultra Game Boy in an aluminium case will turn heads for sure!
image source: Gizmodo

Retro-bit did a mic drop by announcing that they had signed a licensing agreement with Sega to produce accessories for Sega’s Mega Drive, Saturn and Dreamcast gaming consoles! They even showed off games for the NES and SNES! These guys were on fire in Vegas!

Retro-Bit’s Sega Dreamcast Bluetooth Controller, Receiver and TV connectivity cables

Retro-Bit’s Sega Saturn controllers!

Retro-Bit’s Sega Mega Drive / Genesis Bluetooth Controllers

Retro-Bit’s Games for the NES (Holy Diver) and SNES (R-Type Returns CE)

source: Retro-Bit on Twitter

(Atari) Table Pong – If you weren’t lucky enough to snag this via its super early-bird Kickstarter price, then you will be paying three times more for it now!

source: Alex Kidman via Finder

 

Play Your Fave Retro Gaming Systems in Your Web Browser

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Virtual Consoles – a recently launched website makes it possible to play legendary computers and consoles like the Apple II, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum and Super Nintendo (to name a few) right in your web browser.

The Virtual Consoles website offers its services free of charge: you can play on 9 old school gaming systems without installing any add-ons or plug-ins. Now that is pretty damn cool!

With the revival of retro gaming and the ever escalating costs, this site has come at the right time. “The site generally uses open-source development, so the use of emulators is completely free of charge. An up-to-date browser and an average desktop computer is all that is needed, although most of the retro computers offer good experience on tablets, as well”, says Kornel Kolma, founder of virtualconsoles.com.

Play with Spacewar! from 1962
Currently there are 9 online emulators available on the site: Apple II, Atari 2600, NES , Super NES. DOS, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. There are also some curiosities to be found in the collection, like the CHIP-8 interpreter which ran on microcomputers of the 1970s, and the DEC PDP-1, which was introduced in 1959 – making it possible to play the original Spacewar! game online.

“We only attached games to the emulated computers and consoles if they were freeware games or had gotten approval from the copyright owner. For most of the emulators we made it possible to upload games from existing collections. Our long-term goal is to come to an agreement with copyright owners of old games and make these games available in a retro gaming online store”, says Kornel Kolma. Kornel also added, “The short-term plan of Virtual Consoles is to launch additional emulators which will run in your web browser”.

With Virtual Consoles, the game is definitely not over!


 

Grab Some New Atari Jaguar and 2600 Games!

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Get your Atari 2600 and Jaguar consoles ready, as AtariAge has released six new games for pre-order!

The Atari 2600 gets, Super Cobra Arcade, Space Cactus Canyon and Draconian, while the Jag gets Escape 2042, AstroStorm and the Jeff Minter Classics, Llamatron 2112 and Revenge Of The Mutant Camels!

All six new games will feature high-quality, professionally printed boxes, manuals and labels. Draconian, Super Cobra Arcade and the Jeff Minter Classics will include a poster featuring the box art for each game (and the best part, the Jeff Minter Classics poster is double-sided!).

We are quite excited about these games, but it is the Jaguar Jeff Minter Classics we are most looking forward to! Hit the AtariAge Store now and grab yourself some cool new games for your old Atari hardware.

image source: AtariAge

 

Amazon’s Retro Zone: All Retro. All The Time

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While the big news is of Amazon arriving Down Under, we were more excited about their new Retro Zone!

Amazon has curated their best of the best retro gaming items, from console, games and toys, to clothing and books! Oh yeah, there is plenty of Sega, Nintendo, Square Enix and Atari gear too!

So what are you waiting for, go and hit up the Amazon Retro Zone now!

More Retro than you can poke a stick at!

The heavy hitters of retro gaming are all there! Wait, where is Commodore?

image source: Amazon Retro Zone

 

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?

 

Atari Table Pong Project: More Than A Coffee Table

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Back in March of this year we told you about the incredible Table Pong Project Kickstarter. Raising in excess of US$335,000, this project was always going to be under huge scrutiny. Well, we are happy to report that the project is on track and the early prototype looks absolutely amazing! We honestly can’t stop staring at this gorgeousness!

If you want to see how awesome this coffee table is, then put on some water proof clothing, as you will be drooling with excitement! Oh yeh, if you want to deck out your house with a great interactive coffee table, then hit Table Pong Project’s pre-order page right now.

Now imagine if we had one of these tables in the Classic Gaming Area at PAX Aus 2017 – it would totally blow everyone’s mind. We may need to have a chat to the Table Pong Project crew *wink*


source: Table Pong Project

Retro Gamer Issue 171 is Out Now!

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Extra! Extra! Read All About It! The latest Retro Gamer, issue 171 has hit the physical and virtual newsstands!

We are huge fans of Retro Gamer covers, but this one takes the cake – it is simply awesome! Behind this gorgeous cover you’ll find a myriad of retro gaming features to satisfy your nostalgia hunger. Still not convinced? Here is a taste of what’s inside this issue:

  • The Kings Of Donkey Kong – We quiz the high scores past and present about Nintendo’s hit arcade game.
  • Pushing The Limits: R-Type (Spectrum)
  • SNES Mini Feature
  • Making Of Saboteur II
  • Hardware Heaven: Sinclaur QL
  • Licence To Thrill: Aliens
  • Archives: Introversion Software
  • Making Of Wild Guns
  • In The Chair: Simon Phipps.
  • Ultimate Guide: Zaxxon
  • Peripheral Vision: Super Scope
  • Retro Revival: Shadowfax
  • Making Of Arch Rivals
  • Retro Revival: Super Adventure Island
  • The Unconverter: Spider-Man The Videogame
  • Lost In Translation: Enduro Racer (Master System)
  • Future Classic: Undertale
  • Retroinspection: PocketStation
  • Minoirty Report: Game Boy Advance
  • Retro Revival: Dungeon Explorer
  • Back To The Noughties: August 2000
  • Classic Moments: Mischief Makers

source: Retro Gamer

 

Atari Star Wars: Ultimate Arcade Game Based On The Franchise

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Star Wars, the arcade video game may have just celebrated its 34th anniversary, but did you know how much it cost to make and what George Lucas thought of the game?

The Star Wars franchise has been going from strength to strength for 40 years and there is no sign of its star power going supernova. Atari may have waited a few years to make their awesome vector based coin-op game on the great franchise, but it was definitely worth the wait.

Released amid the American video games crash, Atari’s Star Wars (1983) was a godsend for operators and players alike. With its distinct sit-down cockpit and upright versions invading amusement centres, Atari’s Coin-Op division created a buffer from the wreckage of the industry around it. Starting out as Warp Speed, Atari’s Mike Hally quickly changed the game title to Star Wars once Atari secured the license – and the rest as they say, is history.

Looking at the Atari Star Wars bill of materials, it is unbelievable to fathom that the arcade unit cost was a mere USD$1,249 back in 1983, which is (approx.) USD$3,090 in today’s money, which is still damn cheap! The arcade version was given the seal of approval from Mr. Star Wars himself, George Lucas with a plaque that reads, “A special thanks for creating THE FORCE behind so much fun”. Once inside the cockpit, Lucas was smitten and the game went gangbusters, selling thousands of units, making Atari (or more accurately, Time Warner) a ton of money!

The FORCE will always be with Atari’s classic coin-op. Always!

Atari Star Wars – cockpit concept sketch (source: arcade blogger)

The bill of material! (source: atarigames.com)

Cockpit prototype (source: atarigames.com)

The finished product! She is (still) a beaut!

Atari execs watch in anticipation as George Lucas takes a test fly! He likes it! (source: video-game-ephemera)

George getting some game play pointers from Atari’s Don Osborne (source: arcade blogger)

Our preferred arcade flyer (via: the arcade flyer archive)

 

New Atari 8-bit Games in AtariAge Store

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If your Atari 2600, 5200 or 7800 is screaming out for new games, then we have some good news for you!

Go and check out the AtariAge store right now as they have a swag of new games that have just arrived for your trusty Atari 8-bit systems.

Still not convinced? OK then, here is the list of games available to feed your chosen Atari console:

Atari 2600

  • Anguna: Defeat the Goblin King in this Zelda-like fantasy action-adventure for the 2600.
  • Assembloids 2600: An addictive, fast-paced reaction game for the whole family and high score fanatics!
  • Drive!: Escape the crumbling temple with your treasure, driving over the bridge as fast as you can!
  • The Gizzle Wap: You must remove the Strange Red Tree and defeat the Invicta!
  • L.E.M.: The L.E.M. never failed in any mission assigned to it. Can you keep its record untarnished?
  • Panky the Panda: Your brother has been kidnapped by poachers — can you save him in time?
  • Scramble: How far can you invade our Scramble system?

Atari 5200

  • Ratcatcher: The city sewer has been overrun by nasty critters, grab some friends and clean it out!

Atari 7800

  • Bentley Bear’s Crystal Quest: Defeat Berthilda again in your quest to find all the Crystals of Life!
  • Super Circus AtariAge: Big Doings Under The Big Top! How good are your reflexes?
  • T:ME Salvo: Far into the future, save the Eloi from the evil Morlocks!

There is something for everyone in this lot! It’s a great time to be a retro gamer.