The Pop-Culture E-Zine
Let’s start by saying we don’t condone illegal graffiti. However, when graffiti is welcomed as street art and makes a societal impact, we definitely take note.
The /r/Graffiti Reddit thread is one place that is full of great graffiti, some topical with recent events, and some tugging on our nostalgic heartstrings.
Here are a few that caught our eye, even the freight train carriage with the three-button NES controller! Check out the rest on Reddit.
image source: reddit – /r/Graffiti
Who would have thought it, paper craft models of some of the most iconic classic gaming consoles and computers!
The best part of these paper craft designs is that even peeps like us can follow the instructions without fear of breaking anything rare that we couldn’t replace.
No matter your classic gaming tastes, artists and designer, Rocky Bergen has you covered, from the Amiga 500, Sega Master System, TRS-80 Model III to the ZX Spectrum, Atari ST and even the glorious Sharp X68000 amongst many many others!
So what are you are you waiting for, get printing, cutting and crafting!
image source: Rocky Bergen
So how much storage space would it take to store every Nintendo video game (from the stable of their major consoles) that can be emulated?
Don’t worry about trying to work out the answer, as Reddit user, RHYTHM_GMZ, has already done all the hard work for us.
You’ll need roughly 7.53TB (yep, that’s TERABYTES!) of space to be able to emulate every darn Nintendo video game! With the Wii making up 6.56TB of the 7.53TB total, you may want to know the breakdown of the rest of the Nintendo game libraries, so here you go:
For those of you that prefer to visualise these figures, we have you covered – see below!
NOTE: Games libraries based on the uncompressed NTSC versions
[story source: RHYTHM_GMZ via Reddit]
By: D.C. Cutler, U.S.A.
Metroid’s Mother Brain is considered one of the most diabolical she-villains in video game history.
When I was a kid, I was obsessed with defeating Mother Brain every time I put my Metroid cartridge into my Nintendo Entertainment System. It took me a while to finally defeat her, and when I did, I wondered if Mother Brain had a backstory. How did she get to possess such vast power?
When I would play the original Metroid, I found Mother Brain fascinating. In later Metroid games, we got a little backstory on Mother Brain, but none of it seemed that imaginative. The original design of Mother Brain was the best. All of the designs in later games, especially in Super Metroid, when Mother Brain looked like a brain with a grotesque chicken body, were slightly extreme and almost silly. In the original Metroid, Mother Brain was captivating and menacing by just sitting in a glass jar, controlling the game like a puppet master. When I would defeat Mother Brain, my imagination would run wild. Was what we saw in the jar her original or real form?
image source: Samolo via Deviantart
Metroid was not the easiest game to beat. It took me several tries before I finally completed the game. I wasn’t an expert at the game like my brother. It took him just a day or two to defeat Mother Brain. Then he would usually move on to another game and beat that before me as well.
In the video game magazines of the time, like Nintendo Power, they never really went into much depth when it came to the iconic, she-villain. But the early games didn’t tell as much about Mother Brain either. It must’ve been a boring existence, just sitting there in a protective glass jar, ruling the planet, hoping that a bounty hunter wouldn’t come along and destroy you. However, she did have an army of henchmen protecting her. Villains in other major games at the time were primarily male and mostly on the beefy side.
Mother Brain was engrossing because she was so different from all of the other heavy villains in video games. Mother Brain is one of the reasons Metroid is a classic NES game.
image source: metroid.fandom.com
Before the big CES 2020 event kicks off, the CES Unveiled event showcases the latest products and trends leading up to the main event.
Three products caught our attention from Arcade1Up, iiRcade and My Arcade which we thought we’d share with you all below.
We can’t wait to find out more about these hot items, so stay tuned!
Arcade1Up has teamed up with our friends at Zen Studios to bring you a couple of pretty awesome three-quarter size pinball machines which include titles from Bally/Williams and other yet to be announced, big names in the pinball space! We love both the Star Wars and Attack From Mars machines and can’t wait to hear more about them.
image source: northvibe via pinside
This new ultimate home arcade, iiRcade, with online capabilities, enables gamers to legally download and play their favourite officially licensed arcade games – no more shady arcade ROM sites! Gamers who want to enjoy their favourite retro arcade games or play modern games in the arcade environment can now have the full arcade experience in their homes, either in a full size stand-up or bartop guise, it is up to you. With iiRcade, gamers can select and purchase a game they want on iiRcade’s app store, which is then automatically downloaded and installed on their iiRcade machine.
image source: iiRcade
The Super Retro Champ console is the successor to My Arcade’s award-winning Retro Champ and enables retro gamers to enjoy their SNES, Super Famicom, and Sega Genesis/Mega Drive cartridges from a single console. The Super Retro Champ features a 7-inch screen and a built-in rechargeable battery that offers up to 5 hours of play time. Retro gamers can play the Super Retro Champ in handheld mode or use the 2 included wireless gamepads to play in tabletop and TV mode. An HDMI® output allows users to enjoy their classic games from the comfort of their couch.
image source: Games Press
It is amazing to think that we started ausretrogamer 8 years ago! How time flies when you are having fun!
When we started our site and social media channels in January 2012, we had no idea what was to come. We were pleasantly surprised to find so many like-minded people who enjoyed playing and talking about old games we used to play many many decades ago. Nostalgia is a powerful force that binds us all – long may it continue!
To all the people that have contributed and to those that are still contributing content and everyone that engages with us, thank you very much – you all rock our world!
Looking forward to another year full of retro gaming goodness 🙂
Ho Ho Ho, Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Festivus and Season’s Greetings everyone! No matter your type of gaming fun, be it modern, retro, pinball or something in between, we hope you all have a wonderful Festive Season and may your 2020 be filled with happiness, prosperity, lots of fun and good health!
The ausretrogamer and pinball press teams will be taking a short break to enjoy this time of year with family and friends. See you all in 2020 🙂
image source: Redbubble
image source: VPinball
We love receiving emails from modders out there to show us their customisation work.
We received an email from Dorison Hugo (aka: @lyberty5 on Twitter) who tinkered with his purple GameCube to make it look like as if Mario was trapped inside the console. Dorison explains that this was a cosmetic mod, which still needed a bit of tinkering to get it done – like freeing up the space, in which he had to move the fan onto the other side of the case. Also, he had to drill small holes to allow air intake near the Mario figurine to ensure the console would not overheat.
This is a fairly simple and cheap-ish mod, with the window frame and Mario being made out of cheap water-based clay. Dorison has shown ingenuity throughout this customisation, including the use of cotton tips (Q-tips) acting as the prison bars. Dorison’s aim was to show that no real (and expensive) equipment was needed for a simple mod.
Have you customised your consoles? If you have, we’d love to check them out – hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!
image source: Dorison Hugo
If you thought the contemporary F1 Spirit video game, a remake of the classic MSX title by Konami, was awesome, wait till you play Retro Reloader’s Project D – F1 Spirit, a tweaked version of Brain Games‘ remake with Initial D arcade style elements, from the music, sound effects, to the enemies, graphics and menu.
Go and burn some rubber, drift or blast a berm in Project D – F1 Spirit!
source: John Retro Reloader
It’s that time of year when the ausretrogamer team does the hard yards by going shopping to curate a plethora of cool retro and pinball products that you can grab as Christmas gifts for your geeky friends and family (and yourself too)!
Here we go!
Tiny Arcade Frogger via Amazon AU$32.64
Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego Handheld Game via Amazon AU$28.66
Boardwalk Arcade: TMNT Mini Pinball via Amazon AU$32.57
The Mandalorian t-shirt via Amazon AU$28.99
MicroArcade Tetris via Amazon AU$32.57
Retro-Bit Official Sega Genesis USB Controller 8-Button Arcade Pad via Amazon AU$32.57
My Arcade Mini Data East Retro Arcade Player via Catch AU$79
The Game Console : A History in Photographs via Book Despository AU$38.16
Complete Pinball Book: Collecting the Game and Its History via Book Depository AU$88.46
Pinball Wizard Enamel Pin (Red Glitter) 1980’s Throwback via Etsy AU$15.24
Custom NES Retro Gaming Themed Black Shoes – Ladies/Mens via Etsy AU$106.66
Sega Mega Drive Mini via Amazon AU$129
Polaroid OneStep 2 Viewfinder i-Type Instant Camera via Catch AU$196
Star Wars Chewbacca Jumpsuit via Catch AU$59.99
LEGO® Star Wars Darth Vader’s Castle Building Set via Catch AU$197
Star Wars The Black Series Darth Vader Premium Electronic Helmet via Catch $159
Harry Potter Hogwarts Back To School Backpack via Catch AU$29.99
My Little Pony – Princess Celestia via Amazon AU$15.00
GO-TCHA Evolve Smartwatch for Pokemon Go Daredevil Red via OzGameShop AU$59.99
Sonic Boom – 5 Figure Multipack – Sonic, Knuckles, Tails, Amy & Dr. Eggman via OZGameShop AU$32.69
Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition Nintendo Switch via OzGameShop AU$57.99
Star Wars Pinball Nintendo Switch via OzGameShop AU$42.99
Rick and Morty Spaceship & Garage Large Construction Toy Set via Amazon AU$29.31
Data East Classic Collection SNES Cartridge via Amazon AU$36.04
Attack From Mars Pinball – Shadowbox Art via Etsy AU$196.59
Tempest X RepliCade via Amazon AU$215.06
Casio Retro Calculator Unisex Watch via Amazon AU$39.00
8BitDo SF30 Pro Bluetooth Controller via Amazon AU$59.99
