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Melbourne International Games Week & PAX Aus Are Back!

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After 2 years of virtual events, 2022 is shaping up to have two massive events back in-person!

The Melbourne International Games Week (MIGW-22) (Oct 1 – 9) and PAX Aus 2022 (Oct 7 – 9) events are back! Save the dates, book in your annual leave, get a sitter and get ready to be back catching up with likeminded peeps at these (industry and public) events.

We are mindful that it has been a while since these events were held in person, so there may be some anxiety, but please be easy on yourself and only attend if you are sure and feel comfortable in mixing in large crowds, especially after these last couple of years.



Awesome Pop Culture Art Works by Pappas Pärlor

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There is no shortage of awesome and talented artists in this world. The latest artist to capture our attention is Johan Karlgren, aka: Pappas Pärlor.

Johan’s creations are unique as they are refashioned framed art pieces injected with very clever pop culture themes and franchises, including popular Star Wars and video gaming characters.

Check out all Johan’s art works here. Here are our favourites:

source: Pappas Pärlor



Oz Comic-Con is back with OCC Pop Up Shows!

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Oz Comic-Con gets back to the grassroots of pop culture with the launch of community-based OCC POP UP shows

In a year that relegated fans to virtual conventions, the team behind Oz Comic-Con are thrilled to announce the launch of their first LIVE event of 2021. OCC POP UP is a community-based event
showcasing the local pop-culture scene and is set to hit Sydney Showground on March 6th and 7th. We can assure you that masking up has never felt this good.

Since its Australian launch back in 2012, Oz Comic-Con has secured a permanent place within the hearts of fans across the country through its ongoing support of the local community. Although things may seem a little different this time around, OCC POP UP will encompass everything we have come to love and know over the years.

With a jam-packed schedule full of workshops and activities, attendees can expect appearances from local creators, comic artists, gaming and freeplay opportunities, industry talks and panels and exclusive merchandise that can’t be found anywhere else. Some of the highlights include:

  • Creators Live – an area dedicated to promoting Australian digital content creators such as YouTubers, streamers, podcasters, bloggers, and influencers. Whilst it’s a great chance to sell merch and network with each other, Creators Live provides a new platform amongst an ever growing community and a chance for Creators to interact with their fans;
  • Cosplay Active – a cosplay competition for mainstream competitors that find themselves a step above the Cosplay Parade but not quite ready for the Championships of Cosplay. Open to both solo and group performances, Cosplay Active is an opportunity to showcase crafting talents, perform a skit, and bring along the PLAY component of cosplay. And, even your pets can get involved, with the finalists of the OCC Pet Cosplay being invited to attend the Con;

Confirmed guests for the OCC POP UP include Queenie Chan (The Dreaming, Fabled Kingdom), Christopher Sequeria (Sherlock Holmes: The Australian Casebook, The SuperAustralians ), Louie Joyce (Haphaven, Past the Last Mountain ), and JusZ Cosplay, with more announcements yet to come.

A first-of-its-kind event in Australia, OCC POP UP is truly an event for the whole family no matter what fandom you belong to. For more information about the event, guest announcements, and to purchase tickets, please go here.

EVENT DETAILS:

  • OCC POP UP Sydney
  • WHEN: March 6 – 7, 2021
  • WHERE: Sydney Showground, 1 Showground Road, Sydney Olympic Park

TICKET INFO:

Tickets to OCC POP UP will be sold in sessions with a limited amount of full day tickets available for each day. In full compliance with government guidelines and regulations, session times will allow for crowd management in a controlled environment. For more information about ticketing and general information regarding OCC’s COVID guidelines, please visit the Oz Comic-Con site.

 

 

The 2020 Christmas Gift Guide Extravaganza!

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With Christmas just around the corner, you know it’s time to start hunting for gifts for your family, friends and of course, yourself. With the kind of year we’ve all had, you’d be forgiven for splashing your cash on those dearest to you (or on yourself).

This year’s Christmas Gift Guide has something for every kind of geek, no matter your budget. We have action figures, books, movies, toys, retro gaming stuff (of course!), video games, watches headphones, t-shirts, Star Wars stuff, flip clocks, pinball related gifts and magnets to whet your Xmas Gift ideas appetite.

Get your pen and paper ready and let’s go! 🎅

LEGO Star Wars TIE Fighter Pilot Helmet via Amazon: $75.00

STAR WARS Rebel Classic Graphic T-Shirt (medium size): $29.99

Game & Watch Super Mario Bros. via Ozgameshop: $114.15

PC-Engine Mini via Play-Asia: $253.00

Portable LCD Monitor for PC-Engine: $203.25

NBA Jam Book via Amazon: $30.76 (paperback) or $7.23 (Kindle)

Best Hit Chronical 2/5 Scale SEGA SATURN (HST-3200) Plastic Model Kit via Catch: $47.99

Star Trek: Stardate Collection (10 movie collection) via Amazon: $59.41 (Blu-ray) or  $29.96 (DVD)

World of Nintendo Action Figures via Amazon: prices start from $20.00

Timex Pac-Man watches via Amazon: prices start at $88.50

Space Invaders Tiny Arcade Table Top Edition Electronic Game via Catch: $29.99

Magnets of classic arcade games and pinball machines from the 70s, 80s and 90s by Magnetism via Etsy: prices start at $4.00

Just Pinball – The Zine: A Photojournalist’s Journey through Modern Pinball via Etsy: $42.25

Atari Pong Mini Arcade with 12 games: $61.14

Flip Clock – Vintage TV Auto Flip Down Clock in Retro Red by MIDCLOCK: $57.73

Seiko 5 Sports Street Fighter Limited Edition Watches: Blanka $620.00 / Guile $720.00 / Ryu $720.00

Retro Gaming / Video Game Controller Poster via Etsy: $47.51 

Super Nintendo (SNES) Controller keyring via Etsy: $10.00

Arcade1up 4-in-1 Pac-Man 40th Anniversary Counter-Cade Console: $299.00

Commodore 64 Xmas Bundle (of games!) via itch.io: $5.00 or above

8BitDo NES30 Gamepad via Play-Asia: $35.52

Atari Micro Arcade Electronic Game – includes Missile Command, Centipede & Pong: $24.99

Mini Arcade Asteroids via Catch: $37.60

PinSwitch – the ultimate pinball peripheral for the Nintendo Switch via Etsy: $325.00

Last but not least, we can’t recommend the EPOS Sennheiser GSP 600 ESports headset ($319.00) enough for your aural gaming pleasure. We always thought all headsets are the same, but we were very very wrong. If you want to treat your ears with some awesome sound, be it gaming, podcasts or music, then you should treat yourself this Christmas with a pair, it’s been a tough year!

Hope you all have a safe and awesome Festive Season and may you all receive awesome gifts from Santa!

NOTE: Prices are in AU$ and correct and all items in stock as at the time of publishing.

 

PICO-8 Masters Of The Universe: The Battle For Eternia

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Do you guys remember when we got giddy over the fictional C64 Barbarian – Masters Of The Universe Edition game?

Well guess what, thanks to the amazingly talented game programmer, Andrea Baldiraghi (aka: TheRoboZ), you can now play the ultimate rethemed Barbarian video game, Masters Of The Universe: Battle For Eternia right in your browser (or that nifty little PocketCHIP running PICO-8) for some slashing good times!

Mr Baldiraghi, we thank you for creating this awesomeness in 3 months – Wow! Now grab a sword and let’s battle for Eternia!

image source: TheRoboZ – MOTU

 

Talking Retro Gaming, Pinball and Toy Collecting with Cause and Effect Gamers

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I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed during the Tech Games Fest event (TGF 2020) by our good friend Andrew Owen from Cause and Effect Gamers – Andrew is also the co-ordinator of TGF.

We talk all things retro gaming, our involvement with PAX Aus, the lure of pinball, toys – especially Masters Of The Universe, and of course, movies we love to watch!

Grab some popcorn and enjoy 🙂


source: Cause and Effect Gamers

 

8 Bit Baby Shark Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo

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That earworm of a song has invaded the 8-bit space! Yep, you’ll be singing “Baby shark doo doo doo doo doo doo” all day long, so we apologise in advance – at least the 8-bit visuals will be to your liking.

Once you are done singing this mega viral YouTube song, listen to the fascinating history of Baby Shark via the Twenty Thousand Hertz podcast.


source: Baby Shark Official

 

OZ COMIC-CON: Australia’s Greatest Pop Culture event launches tickets and plans for 2019

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Oz Comic-Con is returning to Melbourne on June 8th – 9th, and Brisbane and Sydney in September, giving fans across all fandoms the ultimate event for all things pop culture. Assemble your super squad and get ready for a jam-packed weekend of entertainment.

Oz Comic-Con was introduced to Australian shores in 2012 and has since cemented itself with pop culture fans, offering a little bit of everything for everyone interested in film, television, comics, anime, cosplay and much more. Convention goers can expect appearances from film and television stars, comic book artists and voice actors, gaming tournaments and freeplay along with out-of-this-world activations, industry talks and panels, and exclusive merchandise that can’t be bought anywhere else.

An event for all ages, kids can leave their mark on MARVEL’s colouring wall, spark their creative desires in a range of kids comic artist workshops and walk tall in the Kids Cosplay Parade.

Comic enthusiasts can immerse themselves in the Comic District with opportunities to meet comic guests from major publications and enjoy the Comics Library. Gamers can head on over to the Gaming Zone and feed their competitive spirit or simply relax in the freeplay gaming area.

Oz Comic-Con also plays host to the Australian Championships Of Cosplay, the most prestigious costume contest in Australia, presented by Spotlight and Brother. It is the first stop in the ‘Quest For The Crown’, a global competition that will see the overall Australian winner representing Australia at the 2020 C2E2 Championships of Cosplay in Chicago.

Confirmed guests for Melbourne so far include film and TV actor Alexander Calvert, Shadowhunters actors Dominic Sherwood and Alberto Rosende, also welcoming local and international comic book artists Dean Rankine (The Simpsons , Rick And Morty , Futurama ), Nicola Scott (Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman ) and Carla Wyzgala (Hidden Door Comics ).

Whether it’s appearances by film and television stars, comic book artists, gaming tournaments, cosplay, creative workshops or hard-to-find merchandise, Oz Comic-Con is the perfect one-of-a-kind experience for the whole family! With new announcements made every week, Oz Comic-Con Melbourne 2019 is set to be the most exciting show to
date.

MELBOURNE
WHEN: June 8 th (Saturday) – 9 th (Sunday) from 9am – 6pm, daily.
WHERE: Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre | Convention Centre Pl, South
Wharf, VIC 3006
TICKETS

BRISBANE
WHEN: September 21 st (Saturday) – 22 nd (Sunday) from 9am – 6pm, daily.
WHERE: Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre | Merivale St & Glenelg Street, South
Brisbane QLD 4101

SYDNEY
WHEN: September 28 th (Saturday) – 29 th (Sunday) from 9am – 6pm, daily.
WHERE: Sydney Showground, Sydney Olympic Park.

TICKET INFO: Tickets are ON SALE now – save up to 33% with early bird prices. Also available is a range of exclusive tickets, including the Collectors Pass and Shadowhunters Experience.

For tickets and additional information visit www.ozcomiccon.com

image source: Oz Comic-Con

 

Emoji Art for Geeks

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We knew there was a good use for emojis!

Our talented co-founder, Ms. Ausretrogamer has put emojis to good use by creating iconic artwork of pop culture geekiness, from Star Wars, Dr. Who, Donkey Kong, to The Simpsons, Bob’s Burgers, The Shining and Mortal Kombat to name just a few.

If you don’t want to miss Ms. Ausretrogamer’s geeky emoji artwork, follow her on Twitter.

 

Stephanie ‘Hex’ Bendixsen Visits Melbourne

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While in Melbourne-town for the Melbourne eSports Open, author, presenter and broadcaster extraordinaire, Stephanie ‘Hex’ Benidxsen had a bit of down time to check out the many awesome pop culture sites, gaming establishments and other extremely rad geeky stuff that our great city has to offer!

As Hex says, “Luckily Melbourne is a hub of gaming and pop-culture-related activity” – it sure is! if you haven’t checked out all of these places, then you are missing out!


source: Visit Melbourne via Facebook