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Ausretrogamer is Six Years Old

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Ausretrogamer launched six years ago today! We’re not doing a whole lot to celebrate, unless eating cupcakes and doughnuts counts as a celebration – but we didn’t want to let the day pass without some sort of acknowledgement. It would be an understatement to say that the retro gaming scene is a tad different today than when we launched in January 2012. Back then there was no NES or SNES Classic Minis nor was there a PAX event in Australia.

The retro gaming community has grown in leaps and bounds with its momentum showing no slowdown – long may it continue to be this way. In fact, if we can blow our own horn for a moment, we’ve set new traffic records on ausretrogamer in 2017 – and we have all of you awesome peeps to thank for that!

We at ausretrogamer are not planning on stopping anytime soon. Your enthusiasm and excitement for retro gaming and its limitless possibilities is what keeps us motivated to keep on going. Who knows what the next six years will bring, but rest assured, we will keep doing what we do as long as you keep reading and engaging with us on social media. Thanks heaps!

 

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

 

Argonauts Pinball Club: Bumper Xmas Meet!

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Hey peeps, this Thursday (Dec 7) is the last Argonauts Pinball Club monthly meet for the year (at the Golden Fleece Hotel). The club meets will resume on the first Thursday in February 2018!

As it is Christmas time and hampers are the prize of the season, the Argonauts Pinball Club has got your pinball maintenance hamper needs covered. Just check out the awesome special prize pool for the top 3 pinball wizards! Argonauts Pinball Club’s Geoff Wills tells us that there will also be giveaways and something for those that have supported the club from the start!

So make sure you keep this Thursday free and get down to the Golden Fleece Hotel to play in the end of year Argonauts Pinball Club special monthly meet.

For more info on the Argonauts Pinball Club competition rules and conditions, head to Pinball Score now or like them on Facebook to keep up with all things pinball.

Argonauts Pinball club – Top 3 Pinball Wizards Hampers!

Choc-full of pinball maintenance goodies!

1st Place

2nd Place

3rd Place

There is always plenty of action at an Argonauts Pinball Club meet!

image source: Argonauts Pinball Club

 

The Making of Star Wars Pinball

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Just a couple of weeks out from the release of Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi, Stern Pinball celebrates the 40th anniversary of the original film trilogy by giving us the making of their Star Wars Pinball machine!

Just in case you didn’t know, Star Wars Pinball was created by Stern Pinball’s all star development team including legendary game designer Steve Ritchie and Hall of Fame programmer Dwight Sullivan.

May the Force be with you all!


source: Stern Pinball via Facebook

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Pinball Press
Pinball Press brings you news from the world of pinball – events, product reviews/updates, interviews and the people in pinball!

If you have any pinball news to share, hit Pinball Press on Twitter

 

 

 

PinBox 3000: Making Of A Pinball Designer

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We bought the PinBox 3000 for our little one to be creative and have some fun. By creating her own pinball machine this may be the making of a future pinball designer – no pressure of course!

We can’t wait to see what our little one will come up with. We reckon Steve Ritchie and John Borg better watch out!

PS: We will report on her pinball table creations once she is old enough and stops putting things in her mouth.

 

PAX Aus 2017 Was A Classic!

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For a 5th year in a row, the PAX Aus Classic Gaming area proved yet again to be a popular spot for families, friends, kids, teenagers and people of all other ages wanting to get their hit of nostalgia.

The Classic Gaming area had it all – consoles, computers, handhelds, arcade and pinball machines. And for the more competitive types, there were tournaments to show-off their old school skills, like Press Play On Tape’s International Karate comp on the Commodore 64.

The museum displays had visitors intrigued, from Weird and Retro’s awesomely rare Atari pieces (like that cool Atari baseball and patches!) and Lord Sugar’s Amstrad micros, to our custom built Neo Geo MVS console and games.

In the arcade area, Greg Pell and Bartronica had curated some very cool and rare machines, like an original 3-player Rampage and a Ms Pac-Man. But once again, it was the fighting machines (Mortal Kombat II) and the gun games (Point Blank and Time Crisis) that proved quite popular.

As proven in previous years, pinball is getting a lot of attention, and rightly so. Skott Kellett assembled some absolute beautiful pinball machines with the help of the great pinball community – Bayside Pinball Club, Pinmem, Melbourne Silverball, Mr. Pinball and Zax Amusements. There were machines older than most players playing them and there were machines from Stern and Jersey Jack that had just been released. You would have been hard pressed not to have found a machine you would’ve liked to flip on.

The Classic Gaming area will be back bigger and better for PAX Aus 2018. For now, enjoy these photo highlights!

Look, this is where we are!

Almost there. Oh wait, we know this guy – it’s Mr Ant Stiller!

We have arrived!

On the way to the pinball section and look who we run into – Melbourne Silverball & Head2Head Pinball’s Marto!

Love this machine, again!

 

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

 

Meet Jersey Jack Pinball’s Newest Pinball Machine: Pirates Of The Caribbean

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Just in case you’ve been busy playing Jersey Jack Pinball’s other awesome machines (which is understandable), you may have missed the unveiling of their fourth and latest title, Pirates Of The Caribbean! The machine made its debut at the Pinball Expo in Chicago last Thursday and to say that it impressed the pinball world would be a gross understatement.

Jersey Jack’s Pirates Of the Caribbean features all the best bits of the five films and hosts a remarkable 3.25 sextillion game play variations – so you will never play the same game twice! Pinball wizards can play as one of 22 movie characters to plunder on this awesome looking machine. As per usual, JJP will release the machine in three versions: a Collector’s Edition (USD$12,500), Limited Edition (USD$9,500) and Standard Edition (USD$8,500). There will be variations between the machines, as expected, with the Collector’s Edition being the most blinged out of the lot with barnacle-covered legs and body armour, a moving ship in a bottle topper, rotating pop bumpers, extra toys and a custom hand-drawn playfield art package featuring the villainous Davy Jones.

The machines are packed with innovative and unique features including the spinning wheel that can be activated directly above the main flippers, which when lit gives extra points or even allows the player to plunder their opponent’s points or balls. There is also a secondary display showing Captain Jack’s compass, which in the film’s shows the direction of his heart’s desire, constantly shows the player the best shot they can take at that time – very clever indeed.

It is great to see Jersey Jack Pinball raising the bar yet again and with Pirates Of The Caribbean, we reckon they have another hit on their hands!

If you missed Buffalo Pinball’s live Twitch stream from the unveiling at Pinball Expo 2017, you can check it out now on YouTube.

source: Jersey Jack Pinball

 

Pinball Machines Almost Banned in 1978

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Just like the pinball prohibition era in the US, an Australian council (Heidelberg, Victoria) took it upon themselves to ban pinball machines. This ABC TV report from July 13 1978 shows how close our silverball pastime came to being driven out of milk bars, cafes and fish and chip takeaway shops!

If this ban had gone ahead, we may have required the pinball wizardry of Roger Sharpe to reverse the ban order! Luckily cooler heads prevailed.


source: ABC TV

 

Things That Go Bump in the Night: The Spooky Pinball Story

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From little things, big things grow. This is definitely the case with Spooky Pinball.

In a little rural Wisconsin town called Benton where the population is a smidgen under 1,000 people, we witness what the power of family, friends and community can achieve when they all work together towards a common goal. Charlie Emery’s vision of making his own pinball machines was a big risk, but he was never going to be swayed by all the people that told him he was mad for leaving his secure job of 20 years to pursue his dream.

Joel and Dana Reeves’ Things That Go Bump in the Night: The Spooky Pinball Story chronicles the story of how Spooky Pinball came to be, from its very humble beginnings with their podcast, its hardships in starting up the manufacturing of pinball machines to its eventual and continued success.

With unprecedented access to the Emery household, key folks from Benton and pinball industry luminaries, this documentary weaves a narrative that keeps you glued from start to finish. From Chuck’s re-theming of Firepower II to Godzilla and chance meeting with DIY extraordinaire Ben Heck (Heckendorn) at the Midwest Gaming Classic in 2011, to America’s Most Haunted, Domino’s Pinball Adventure and Rob Zombie Spookshow pinball table productions, you live through the ups and downs of being a pinball manufacturer.

If you are into documentaries that delve into the resilience and determination of people that strive to succeed in the boom-or-bust world of pinball manufacturing no matter what, then Things The Go Bump In the Night: The Spooky Pinball Story cannot be missed! Get on Vimeo right now and rent (or buy) this film – you will love it!

Oh yeah, we have our fingers crossed that Spooky Pinball will produce Ben Heck’s dream machine, Bible Adventures with its numbered modes; Adam and Eve 2-ball multi-ball where every shot scores except for the apple, 40 days and nights of flood, 40 years in the wilderness, 7 deadly sins, 10 Commandments and the 10 Plagues of Egypt – what’s there not to like!

Film: Things That Go Bump in the Night: The Spooky Pinball Story
Where: Vimeo
Released: June 30, 2017
Duration: 1 hour 4 minutes + bonus features
Price: Rent AUD$5.20 or Buy AUD$11.72

source: Things That Go Bump Movie