The Pop-Culture E-Zine
Wish we were as clever as programmer Phil Ashby.
DOOM seems to be able to run on anything electronic with a screen, so Phil didn’t want to miss out. He took his electronic Tidal badge from the 2022 ElectroMagnetic Field Festival (aka EMFCamp) in the UK and got it to run DOOM, yes, DOOM!
source: HonekaiMedia
story source: technabob
We still remember the day when we visited Treasureway (defunct now) store in 1982 and seeing He-Man and Skeletor on the shelf for the first time – we were immediately drawn to the action figures and the MOTU universe in general. It would seem that Mattel knew exactly how to market these muscle-bound toys to kids. We begged to get one and after some incessant begging, we were told that we could choose one that day. It was a tough choice, but our very first MOTU action figure was He-Man! Our second one was Zodac, closely followed by Stratos. We didn’t get Skeletor till well after.
source: Masters Of The Universe on Facebook
Over the course of the early to mid 80s, we had a modest collection of MOTU action figures, so when we finally got Castle Grayskull for Christmas in 1984, we felt like we had completed our MOTU journey. Upon hearing that there was going to be a cartoon based on Masters Of The Universe, we couldn’t contain our excitement. The cartoon couldn’t come fast enough! Saturday mornings on the couch with the doona (duvet to our UK friends) over us, watching He-Man battle Skeletor and his evil minions was a perfect way to start our weekend!
40 years on and Treasureway may no longer exists, but we still have our collection of original He-Man and the Masters of the Universe action figures – long live MOTU!
Some of our original MOTU collection
Here we were thinking it doesn’t get any better than Lego’s Nintendo Entertainment System set, but looks like we were terribly mistaken! Lego have now gone up another level with their amazing Atari VCS/2600 (10306) set! Just look at the intricate detail, it oozes an intoxicating aroma of nostalgia. The set contains 2,532 pieces that create the iconic woodgrain console, three game carts, a CX40 joystick, three-shelf cabinet and three 3D vignettes of classic 2D games!
Just like when the Lego NES set was released, this won’t be cheap. Slated at a retail price of AU$369.99, you can grab one from 1st August – not long to wait now!
image source: Brickfinder – Facebook
Retro gamers rejoice, you can finally put away your physical SNES game manuals as you can now use the SNES Manual Archive online library to check out any game manual from your smart device (or computer) anywhere in the world!
This amazing resource for nostalgic fans of videogaming history was painstakingly curated by a team of dedicated peeps lead by Peebs. To say we owe them all our gratitude would be a massive understatement!
PS: If you look closely, there are Super Famicom, N64 and Virtual Boy manuals too!
Story source: The Verge / image source: Reddit / Title image: Peebs
Every morning we do what most of us probably do when rolling out of bed – we grab our phone and scroll through our Twitter timeline to see what we had missed while asleep!
This morning was no different till we came across a tweet from our Liverpudlian friend, Paul Darbyshire, who showcased a DIY Super Famicom SF-1 Mini that was fully integrated with a 5.5 inch LCD TV in a cute CRT case!
I mean just look at this thing – it’s so adorable! The creator of this amazing DIY is Limone Studio, so you should check out his DIY creation video here.
Oh yeah, now we need to find the ChoFamitsuku DIY kit (~ AU$55.00) to make our very own SF-1 mini!
SF-1 Mini Features:
This time, I made a TV-integrated Super Nintendo SF-1 mini with a DIY kit Super Nintendo. (No TV function)
I haven’t actually seen sf1 in the design, so I referred to the photos on the net.Features
-5.5 inch LCD screen
-usb c-type 5v power supply
-RGB output
-Stereo sound #Retro game #Super Nintendo pic.twitter.com/VWYrqgRvSI— Limone Studio (@limonegongbang) July 6, 2022
By: D.C. Cutler, U.S.A.
First off, I’ll try not to spoil anything. (Ed: WARNING – proceed with caution if you have not watched ST4 as yet!)
I didn’t start watching “Stranger Things” until this year’s season. Season four of the popular Netflix series has been enthralling and masterfully plotted.
I never thought I would like the people of Hawkins, Indiana, but they grew on me rather quickly. I watched the fourth episode of the season, titled “Chapter Four: Dear Billy,” and the greatness of the storytelling and the final, video game-like ending, made me realize that the show wasn’t just some nostalgic, kid show. It was much more than that.
Max is my favorite character on “Stranger Things.” Why, I’m not sure? Maybe because she reminds me a little of myself when I was young, and, like Max, I was always optimistically curious about life. Sadie Sink plays Max superbly. Her journey through the fourth season of the hit series is the most captivating storyline. So much so that the Kate Bush song “Running Up That Hill,” released in 1985, has made its way to the top of the current music charts. In the fourth chapter, the song is used brilliantly in the scene that reminded me of a video game. The song is a part of the dramatic scene where Max makes her escape from Vecna, the primary villain. The song is used as a key diegetic piece that works magnificently.
When Max breaks free of Vecna, she is running along a rocky ground through the demonic dreamscape. I got video game vibes when Max is running between falling rocks and debris to get to her friends who are using Bush’s song to get her back to the real world, in a graveyard. Her run made me think of hundreds of video games that I’ve played over the course of my life. She was on a mission to get back to her friends, and the nail-biting scene is shot beautifully. It conjured up visions of a video game hero dodging obstacles to reach a safe place or new level. Everything about it works.
Max’s sprint to her friends and “Running Up That Hill” made for an extraordinarily calculated action sequence that will resonate with fans of the series for years.
image source: Rotten Tomatoes
Now this alternative-history 80s iPhone by Redditor, Echonix9, is so darn clever!
But alas, it is only a prop! Don’t despair, we can still enjoy in imagining having such a device in the 80s. Echonix9 also added a light-pen peripheral, with Redditor Danamania going a step further by adding an old school green on black display (see below pic)!
Echonix9 advises that:
This took about 4 weeks to make from modelboard and laser cut acrylic. Apparently it looks like a render which I can only take as a compliment!
The display is vacuum-formed acrylic, though I essentially let the soft plastic droop into the shape of the screen. I then back-sprayed it with grey and a little silver.
I first created a CAD model in Rhino, using the rough overall dimensions of a pocket TV I have. This allowed me to print off scale plans and have the front panel cut from modelboard with a CNC machine.
With the 3D model I could also laser-cut the back and sides from acrylic, with icons and holes for sockets. There was a lot of filling and hand-sanding to get it smooth and the corners just right!
Details like the aerial, db9 socket and power switch on the opposite side were bits from my electronic stash.
I’m simplifying what is quite a unconventional method of making something like this, especially considering I have a model I could just 3D print, but I learnt a huge amount by giving it a go, making mistakes and taking advantage of the equipment I won’t always have access to, outside of education.
source: reddit | imgur | danamania
With the popularity reaching fever pitch for the latest season of Stranger Things (season 4), it was inevitable that major brands would jump on the partnership bandwagon.
The timing (pun intended) of the Timex X Stranger Things watch collaboration is perfect, just in time for the second part of season 4 kicking off this Friday, July 1 on Netflix.
It seems that Timex have captured the aesthetic of the show quite well with the 80s digital (and analogue on the Camper version) look and most importantly, a nod to the show with hidden features and alarm sounds that play the iconic Stranger Things melody – this perfectly completes the hair-raising sci-fi-horror-drama immersion.
We love the Timex X Stranger Things T80 digital watch with its stainless steel bracelet and overall silver tone. Oh yeah, it has the spine-chilling graphics on the watch face and a hidden Stranger Things logo when you activate the INDIGLO® backlight!
source: Timex x Stranger Things
Let’s get one thing straight, we are checking out the digital version of the Wonder Boy Collection, which is vastly different from the physical boxed edition from Strictly Limited Games. Just so you guys are informed, this digital version contains 4 Wonder Boy games, whereas the Strictly Limited Games (physical) edition has all 6 of the classic Wonder Boy titles, plus every Master System, Mega Drive/Genesis, Game Gear and arcade versions of those games, both in English and Japanese, for a grand total of 21 games – so you see, there is a pretty big difference!
OK, we have got that out of the way, let’s get into the 4 games that you get in the digital version of the Wonder Boy Collection. First off the bat (and our absolute favourite, because we grew up with it) is the arcade version of Wonder Boy (1986). The next one is another arcade version, Wonder Boy In Monster Land (1987), with the last two titles being Mega Drive/Genesis ports of Wonder Boy in Monster World (1991) and (Wonder Boy) Monster World IV (1994).
This is not a bad little collection, but it does feel incomplete if you are a hardcore Wonder Boy fan. Considering there other titles in the main series left off this compilation, coupled with the remakes and Adventure Island ports, this could have been such a stellar collection worthy to be in everyone’s games library. Anyway, we digress!
If you are reading this, then you will know what types of games these are. Wonder Boy is an out and out platformer with jumping and collecting items on the way to rescuing his girlfriend – sound familiar? Yeah, it is in the Super Mario Bros. ilk, which isn’t a bad thing. The rest of the collection take this formula and sprinkle RPG elements to spice things up in each of the successive titles in the collection.
All games have the option to save/load states, modify the controls, rewind speeds and importantly, the video, which includes options to change the display, scaling and shaders – ensuring that you can retro it up to your heart’s content. The arcade ports have the additional options to change the number of lives, bonus lives and difficulty level, with Monster Land having the option to change how you use your special weapon. It would be remiss of us not to mention a blaring error on the Wonder Boy (1986) selection screen where there is reference to Tom-Tom’s girlfriend as Tanya instead of Tina. Hey, we know we are being very pedantic, but come on, this is elementary detail that should have been a no brainer.
All games are faithful to their original content, with the emulation accuracy being quite good on the Nintendo Switch. As it stands, for AU$39.99 (US$29.99), you get four pretty good Wonder Boy titles, but you can’t help it think how much more awesome it would have been if they added Monster Lair and Dragon’s Trap to this collection.
Disclaimer: The Nintendo Switch eShop code for the Wonder Boy Collection was provided by PR Hound.
Cowabunga! Sorry, we really had to start with that!
How good do we beat’em up fans have it right now? Both Final Vendetta and TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge get released within a day of one another. The last time we had it this good, I had a mullet and the singing budgie, Kylie Minogue, was killin’ it with her Stock Aitken Waterman hits. Oh yeah, and we are late doing this review because this game is deliciously addictive, just like a capricciosa pizza (minus the anchovies)!
You’ve probably read (or watched) a ton of reviews about this game already, so we honestly don’t know what else to say that hasn’t already been said – if you are into scrolling beat’em ups (playing solo or co-op), then adding TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge to your games library is a no-brainer, GET IT RIGHT NOW!
source: DotEmu
For those that need an extra push that are asking, how darn good is this game, well let us tell ya! We played Final Vendetta before Shredder’s Revenge and called it the beat’em up genre’s magnum opus (it’s darn good), but we honestly reckon Shredder’s Revenge is just as good (if not better!). The main pull for us is the fact that this game oozes nostalgia with its beautiful full-colour pixel visuals, aural (yay Tee Lopes!) and play mechanics by transporting us back to early 1990 in the video rental store where we first played the 4P Konami arcade game which totally blew our mind. Shredder’s Revenge has blown our mind too! Obviously it is a step above the original arcade with ample levels that are choc-full of foot clan baddies to smash with satisfying moves, attacks and brutal combos – there are 21 in total. Some moves do consume your Ninja Power bar, so you have to be strategic when to use it. Being TMNT, there is also a radical mode (basically god mode) that can be unlocked to mow down everyone on screen. Oh yeah, you can also taunt your enemies before you unleash your fist of fury. Did we also mention that you can play with up to six players simultaneously? No? Well, we have now – it’s just so gnarly! What else can we tell you about this game that no one has said already? It’s so bodacious!
We love the fact that you can play Shredder’s Revenge in Story or Arcade mode, with the latter basically giving the player a harder challenge with limited lives, continues and no saved progression – just the way we like it. Both Story and Arcade modes offer an easy (chill), hard (okay) and tough-as-nails (gnarly) difficulty levels, so it all depends on your mood and skill level.
If you need more convincing, then perhaps this game isn’t for you. If you are sitting on the fence, we say get off it and get playing TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge on your chosen system ASAP, you’ll thank us for it! Seriously though, if we had a rating system, we would give this all the stars in the observable universe. Bravo and thanks Tribute Games and DotEmu for giving us a superb game.
image source: DotEmu
Disclaimer: The Nintendo Switch review code for TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge was provided by DotEmu.