8 Bit Central - Retro Gaming Blog

Not everyone is psyched about "Kids" tablets

A Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 Kids Tablet seen at my local Toys R Us...

I've found a pretty good array of retro inspired games in Google's Play Store. But as a retro gamer, it seems that we are still on a "waiting list" for emulators that will allow us to play a wider array of ROMS on tablets. This in turn pushes me away from tablets as gaming platforms despite the surge in mobile gaming. The world is finally becoming aware that video games are not kid's toys - many demographics love gaming! Still there are many products that are unnecessarily aimed at kids. Buy an iPad, not a kiddie-tablet.

I have a Galaxy Note which is the cellular phablet version of this tablet. I dig the phone, but the pic above proves you just can't please everyone.

I assure you I did not change the device's name - seen above - but I'm not a fan of "kid's" electronics. At first glance, these kiddie-tablets seem like a good match for kids, but they out-grow them too soon. Everything about kiddie electronics screams "Toddler". What happens when your child ages? It will happen sooner than you think!

Maybe you're the sort of parent that can't share of has to check your Facebook account for Likes every ten minutes. In that case you may want to shift focus and spend more time with your kids... via educational content on your tablet. If your child is so young that you fear they might damage your more expensive device... maybe your child is still too young for any electronic device.

Having a tablet for the family seems a much better option as it will cater to both parents and kids alike. Buy an iPad for the family and watch your kids grow into it's full potential. This seems a better choice than a cartoon-themed tablet that will be ignored sooner than you think simply because is looks like it's for little kids. FYI- Little kids want to be big kids :)

Summer vacation is a great time to teach Retro Gaming!

When the final school bell rings, in late June, a swarm of kids erupt from schools with their heads full of gleeful cravings. Some go to camp. Some go on family vacations. Some chill out at home. I'll bet many of them play video games.

But very few kids think about the learning/teaching culture of the classroom. Summer is a time to run wild and be free! I remember those days and how much I looked forward to playing video games. I sort of relived that feeling with my son this Summer. We had a blast playing everything from Atari 2600 to PS3 and a few local-play games on our Nintendo 2DS'.

I always assume that the newest system will prevail and the others will lie dormant. Not true! We always find a few retro games that become the go-to favorites. In July Robotron: 2084 on the Atari 7800 was the winner and in August it was Missile Command on the Atari 800. We also dug into Terminator Salvation on the PS3 and Smashing Drive on the Gamecube.

Despite the allure of the newest Gen-8 game consoles, my son loves retro games. I think we assume kids will think 8-bit games are lame by comparison. Try a compilation disc like Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection that offers a range of older games on a modern platform. It has a lot of games from Vectorman and Altered Beast to three versions of Streets Of Rage.

I'm a huge fan of spreading retro gaming via kids because they are the most open-minded to games in general. Too often kids fall into the trap of playing the latest greatest games on retail shelves because they are promoted on TV, social media and word-of-mouth. Break that mold! inspire a kid to play an 8-bit game and experience some of gaming's history via a joystick.

Video gaming runs deeper than just the latest consoles and games. Help spread the manic joy of retro gaming! The future of retro gaming is yours to share

Summer vacation - part II

I'm taking a few weeks to vacation with my son. The site will probably be somewhat quite until we've played every game we own, hit every arcade in the area and feasted on ice cream after rounds of mini golf.

When Player 2 is here, everything else takes a back seat.
If there's a kid in your life - your own or otherwise - take some time to introduce him/her to retro Gaming. Even hardcore kids with 8th gen hardware seem happy to take a break from insane load-times and laden hard drives to dive into the fast passed frenzy of 8 bit games!

The 1993 Nintendo Character Guide formalizes Yoshi and lays out proper promotional use

Blake Harris, author of Console Wars, had some interesting tweets regarding the backstory on some of Nintendo's most iconic characters. From The Nintendo Character Guide (©1992) published in 1993. News sweeping the Internet is Yoshi's full name. First appearing in Super Mario World (1990), the SNES pack-in game, Yoshi was a side kick to Mario, but would become a recurring character ultimately holding his own game titles.

Your best pal may have been called Mikey, but his parents probably named him Michael. The same apparently holds true for Yoshi whose formal name is actually: T. Yoshisaur Munchakoopas! Who knew?

Aside from learning his full name, the Character Guide itself is an interesting item. It sounds like a special publication from Nintendo Power Magazine that would hold encyclopedic info about Nintendo characters across all of their licensed games. However this publication was not made for fans. It's actually a business tool for marketing departments who wish to use Nintendo logos and characters in ads, promotions, etc...

Most companies have a similar publication or set of guidelines as to how their logos and other copyrighted assets are displayed. These guides often include appropriate sizes, aspect ratios, Pantone/CMYK colors, and font faces with size and style attributes. Setting such standards keeps the company logos uniform and doesn't confuse customers in the marketplace.

Nintendo has a very strong brand from it's logos to it's characters. When we see Mario in any context, we know it's Nintendo's Mario. We don't confuse him with other plumbers. The reason for this are guides that companies, like Nintendo, use to maintain conformity where ever their brand is displayed.

If you ever saw a CocaCola logo in a blue font on a pink background, you'd likely stop and wonder if it was really part of the Coke brand we all know so well. Brand continuity becomes increasingly important as your company grows in size. Both Coke and Nintendo are globally recognized companies. Part of becoming a global company is customers knowing and recognizing your products. If they love your product, they'll want to buy it. If they can't find it because every ad or display looks different, your product tends not to sell as well.

I'm not sure how rare this Character Guide may be, but it certainly shows a lot of insight into Nintendo and how they regulate and tend their brands. I love that Yoshi has a full name, but the real gold is in how Nintendo has created such a powerful brand around the world.

If technology couldn't deliver Pam “Baywatch” Anderson game, why wait only to release V.I.P.?

Warning: this post is rampant with unsubstantiated speculation. Other sites call this "opinion"...

Pamela Anderson (Canadian-born actress) soared to fame, after a Playboy appearance, via TV's Home Improvement (1991-1993) sit-com where she was the Tool Time Girl. This led to Baywatch (1992-1997) which was very popular in markets around the globe. I didn't know that her later show V.I.P was contorted into a video game for Sony's Playstation & PS2, Nintendo's Game Boy Color, and a PAL release for the Game Boy Advance.

Reluctantly, I'll admit I watched a lot of Baywatch. However, in the late 1990s, I did not watch V.I.P. (1998-2002) past the first few episodes. It wasn't a very compelling show and Anderson lacked the former "flare" she had while scampering around the beach performing CPR in a swimsuit. When I discovered that Baywatch had a pinball game by Sega and a board game, I had to assume that the absence of a video game came down to technology and timing.

My theory is that the detail needed to develop a proper Baywatch game simply didn't exist at it's height of popularity, before it's initial run concluded. Although it was also popular in syndication through 2001, video games based on movies and TV are typically released during the initial broadcasting. Even in 1997 when Baywatch ended, the PlayStation and Saturn were the likely candidates to host such a boob-bouncing beach frolic (OK, it could be about lifeguard rescues). The N64 may have been inside Nintendo's circle of family values - face it, Baywatch was without any values ;)

It's possible that a Baywatch game may have been attempted prior to the Playstation's release in Sept 1995. What could put an end - or long legal delay - to such a project? The Hoff. See how David's head is the largest element of Sega's Pinball table? He'd have to be the focal point of any video game... and no one is going to buy a Baywatch game with his hairy chest front & center. Look at the V.I.P. box art - it's all Pam! There is no logical reason not to deliver a Baywatch video game to the drooling masses - myself included - unless there was some extenuating circumstance.

Pamela Anderson in V.I.P.

All the while I'm sure Pamela Anderson was considered a wonderful focal point for a video game. As Sony's PlayStation took hold with gamers, we began to see a new reality in graphics capability. Many gamers point to Lara Croft who's PS1 sex appeal pales by today's standards, but it was likely good enough to bring Pam's next endeavor to gamers - V.I.P. The game was released in 2001 for the Playstation.

While the V.I.P. game also made it onto the PS2, the original Playstation game was pretty dreadful. It involved two kinds of play - fighting bad guys and target practice in the form of shooting the bad guys. The fighting aspect was achieved via mimicking on-screen button sequences on the controller. The shooting is monotonous and was achieved by moving a target around the screen.

They certainly try to make these V.I.P. box covers enticing, so who's idea was it to slather The Hoff's mug onto the center of Sega's Baywatch pinball table? ignoring that fault, the table deftly show's enough of his buxom co-stars to make me want a Baywatch video game. Check out the inset LED display that offered in-game animations! Isn't that enough to make someone realize we all needed a Baywatch video game? At the same time that orange display also aided with diagnostic results and accounting.

From my lay perspective... Baywatch would probably sell well today on a PS4 or Xbone - despite the lapse since it was in syndication! :)

The Coolest cooler may enhance your retro gaming man cave more than your camping trip

To really add an inspirational edge to the traditional beach cooler you really have to think outside the box. If left to me, improving on the average Igloo brand cooler would likely end with a custom paint job and a shrug. I enjoy a chilled beverage, but that doesn't bring out the needed aspirations that will reinvent the traditional cooler.

Ryan Grepper started a kickstarter for his cooler reinvention called the Coolest. It does all the things your standard cooler does, but it goes a lot farther than that... as long as you're an outdoor fanatic. Along with keeping your drinks cold, it has a built-in blender for mix-drinks and smoothies that also lets it's power source charge your cell phone so you can port your music to the Coolest's blueTooth speaker.

If you're out after dark, internal LEDs let you easily grab the right beverage from inside. With oversized wheels, The Coolest easily travels from one place to another. It's built-in tie-down bungies let you strap your gear to it's top and it becomes a dolly! Sounds great!

...but I'm an Indoor Guy

I own a tent, but I'm not much of a camper. I'm a gamer. So, I'm thinking that the Coolest could easily add a lot of amenities to your man cave or game room. Rather than fending off mosquitoes, stay inside, play some classic games and snag chilled beverages from your Coolest cooler. Want a mixed drink? Don't shlep to the kitchen, just fire up the Coolest's built-in blender!

I admire Ryan's zeal for creating a device that makes it easier to enjoy the great outdoors, but if I have cold beer, a blender, music and an assortment of food... I'm pretty sure I'd rather be playing Wizard of Wor or Berzerk than camping!

I love what he's created. I simply want to point out that his feature-laden cooler can improve your indoor experience just as much as a camping trip. Sure, you can add a mini-fridge to your game room, but the Coolest can be placed anywhere and easily moved. I see a place for it indoors and out. The Kickstarter campaign asked for $50,000 and is still going after attracting in excess of $8 million!

The Coolest is not for everyone, but it's pretty cool and might take the heat off a furious game of 4-player Warlords. Bring the best of the kitchen to your man cave via the Coolest!

Bella made a splash at the TMNT premiere, but we can't forget the awesomeness of the Battletoads!

The latest film release of the Teenage MUtan Ninja Turtles has many taking a retrospective look at the Turtles. From the beloved cartoon of the late 1980s, the films and a myriad of toys They've been heroes with adored endurance!

Of course this films release has been a love/hate issue with fans who've grown up with the various animated series and films. We looked at TMNT games & films a while ago and moved on... to Toads!

The Battletoads weren't rivals of the TMNT's (nor a crossover of any sort), but rather they were a game-centric attempt at rivaling the popularity of the Turtles franchise. I've always associated Battletoads with the NES release in 1991 even though it was ported to several consoles and eventually came to arcades in '94... and a terrible cartoon.

Graphically, Battletoads was pretty advanced for an NES game. When you look at it's timeline, 1991 was the year the SNES arrived on retail shelves while the Genesis and TurboGrafX already had a 2-year head start in the fourth-gen market. Ordinarily, such a game would have gone to the SNES alone, but the large base of NES owners and the quality of the game made it a success on the NES first. It wouldn't hi the Super NES until 1993.

It's difficulty is likely a leading factor in it's popularity on both the NES and arcade. The arcade game has 6 difficulty levels and was defaulted to 4, with six being the hardest. Much the way Contra gave recognition to those who could progress deep into the game, some finishing it, Battletoads held a similar niche. I was unaware of the number of platforms it was ported to.

On the nintendo side, the Game Boy saw a release and the tie-in game with Double Dragon was released on both NES & SNES. A version was canceled for the Game Boy Advance. Sega Genesis had Battletoads as did it's Game Gear. On the computer side, I believe the Amiga was the only cpu sporting BattleToads.

Then there's the Battletoads' evil nemesis the Dark Queen. In 1991, the idea of a female "bad guy" in a major game title was fairly rare. The Dark Queen's 8-bit sex appeal probably helped propel her evilness to a wider audience as well. She was Nintendo Power's villain of the year in 1991 and 1993.

In the arcade game, she is shown at several times the size of the Toads. Is this to demonstrate her prowess or does this size better detail her pixelated dominatrix outfit? On top of that was her psychotic lust for power. She was a force to be reckoned with - she was big evil! :)

I've commented on a few games that were released on consoles prior to arcade releases - Electronic Arts' BattleToads is another example. An interesting aspect is the 3-player model with a complete set-up for each of the three players. The service manual references a switch that enables 2 or 3-player modes. In 2-player mode, players select their character, on a 3-player cabinet, each setup is specific to a particular character - similar to Rampage.

The game reached significant status on Nintendo consoles, but their family values may have held back some of the graphic violence. EA's licensing of the game from Rare solved that and was indeed more violent and displayed more bloody gore.

This boost in violence had an associated dip switch on the PCB where your could activate "Blood-Free Mode". Additionally, each character had unique abilities and signature moves.

Doesn't this sort of fan-girl turnout make you think that the Toads need a reboot? Lets get Battletoads updated on modern consoles and into the hands of the next generation. It's a game that has earned a chance to return to today's more powerful consoles... with an alternate 8-bit version! :)

Is it odd that Archie Andrews dies the same month they Release Riverdale Rescue on Android?

I've loved Archie Comics since I was a kid. There's something wholesome and good about those Riverdale kids. No one ever robs Pop' s malt shop to support their Meth habit - they're good kids.

I've never been a fan of parallel story arcs involving the same characters. I know the Archie Comics Co. wanted to shake things up, but killing Archie struck me as too much of a shake.

Weve been building up to this moment since we launched LIFE WITH ARCHIE five years ago, and knew that any book that was telling the story of Archies life as an adult had to also show his final moment, said Archie Comics Publisher/Co-CEO Jon Goldwater.

Even the parallel world's in the TV show Fringe was annoying. Despite following the story, I often had to stop and recall if this was the Good Olivia or the bad Olivia Dunham.


The mobile game is available on iOS and Android and feels like a mix of Tomodachi Life and Clash of Clans... set in Riverdale.

A lot of this is to break free from the 50's era feel that Archie has been carrying for quite a while. Personally, I'd have brought him forward to 1983 in a pixelated infinite runner featuring Archie trying to outrun Mr. Lodge who wised up to Archie's desires for Veronica.

Instagram introduced us to smart phone image filters, but Retrospec nailed the settings

If you haven't been able to tweak Instagram's filters to generate exactly what you want, perhaps you need a better app! :) Seeking that yellowish-green Game Boy style or maybe you want the pixelated beauty of an Atari 2600. Sounds like you need to try John Parker's iOS app, RetroSpecs.

Retrospec lets you transform your pictures into the style and quality of computers and game consoles from decades ago. Take color-depth and pixel counts to new retro gaming lows! With Retrospec, you can shoot a pic with your smart phone or apply it's amazing filters to your existing photos.

Why sift through confusing menus when you know you want to replicate the look of the Colecovision or Commodore 64. Dial in those settings instantly, add dithering and post it online!

Available computer & game console emulation:

• Teletext
• Apple ][ (Low res)
• Atari 2600 (NTSC)
• Intellivision
• IBM CGA (6 variations)
• BBC Micro (Mode 1 & 2)
• Sinclair ZX Spectrum
• Commodore 64 (Low & high res modes)
• Colecovision
• Dragon 32 (PMODE 3)
• MSX (Screen mode 2 and 3)
• Sinclair QL (Low & high res modes)
• Apple Macintosh (Original 1984 model)
• Amstrad CPC (Color & green screen versions)
• IBM EGA
• Nintendo Game Boy

While this app is tremendous fun, there's a serious side that deserves a lot of recognition. We've become accustomed to 8-bit art styles and easily identify pixelated images as "that retro game" style. I included John's list of console and computer emulation filters because this isn't an app that generates "more" or "fewer" pixels. It delivers a graphic style on par with each of the listed systems. It was necessary to match specs with each computer and console in order to achieve each individual style.

The results are quick and simple, which is a tribute to the knowledge that must have gone into development of this app! Enjoy it, but appreciate it's awesomeness.

Sure, you can make your own in PhotoShop (see below), but that's a hassle (highly inaccurate) and you have to know the specs of each system. Retrospec removes the guesswork in a convenient app that will hopefully expand to offer more console/computer styles.

I will confess to being an Android user (hey, when's the Android version coming out?) but I had a friend install it so we could check out all the features and individualized outputs based on each computer and console. This is a really creative app with retro flair and best of all it works quite well.

There's no single solution to engaging kids with math, science & tech ...and retro gaming

I've read the stats & arguments and I think its important to encourage girls to pursue their interests in technology. Furthermore I think it's important to encourage boys as well. All kids need such encouragement! I think part of the solution is exposure. Most kids are exposed to teachers each day, but may not really know what their own parents do for a living.

Ask a kid what an engineer does and you'll likely hear something about trains. That answer is correct, but kids should also know about electrical engineers, structural engineers, and that not all engineers do the same things. Not many kids will tell you they want to be a biochemist or an architect. Often this is because they haven't been exposed to these careers - they don't necessarily know such opportunities exist!

When my 9-year-old told me he hated math, I gave him a brief explanation of how math plays a big role in designing video games. He loves making things and the idea of making his own video games is very enticing to him. At the same time I don't want to preclude him from becoming a botanist or a journalist. Kids will grow up to competently choose a career, but I think it's helpful if they know more about the kinds of jobs that exist outside their friends and family.

Everything Comes Back to Retro Gaming

Look at how diverse we are as gamers. When I tell someone that I'm a retro gamer, they may assume I've played some Atari 2600 or Intellivision games. They probably don't know that I love the simplistic beauty of vector graphics in arcade games like Asteroids and Star Castle or those on the Vectrex home console. Just when you think you've narrowed gaming down to a single niche, like retro gaming, you discover the breadth of diversity within that one niche.

A kid who enjoys Sly Cooper or Ratchet and Clank may very well be enchanted by Pitfall or Adventure on the 2600, but never had the opportunity to play them. Conversely, before I bought Donkey Kong Country Returns for his Wii, my son and I played Donkey Kong on the 2600, 7800, NES, and at our local arcade.

I wanted him to see where DKCR came from, understand the differences between the consoles on which it was released, and experience it in different ways. BTW- he was blown away by DKCR, but still loves DK Jr. :)

Learn to Code/Program

I've seen several websites geared toward teaching programming. Tutorials aimed at kids range from HTML and JavaScript to Python and simple mobile apps. No one is expecting their 5-year-old to make the next must-have app, but exposure to the tools and techniques are invaluable to young minds that will grow up to be the future of the workforce.

When a kid creates a piece of art or completes a puzzle, they're elevated to a feeling of pride and achievement. That feeling seems tenfold when they achieve a computer-oriented goal. As kids see parents working on computers, they want to excel there too.

Here area few sites offering coding/tech tutorials:

• Code - a non-profit dedicated to expanding participation in computer science by making it available in more schools, and increasing participation by women and underrepresented students of color.
• Hopscotch - We founded Hopscotch so we could build the toys that we wish existed when we were kids.
• Girls Who Code - Girls Who Code programs work to inspire, educate, and equip girls with the computing skills to pursue 21st century opportunities.

Explore some of these sites and the ones they will link you ou to. There is a wealth of online knowledge to help you or your kids explore programming of all sorts.

Nintendo Girl's Club

When I heard about the Nintendo Girl's Club on YouTube, I was curious to see if it tied in with the initiative to bring tech to girls. Please keep in mind that those who develop and code games began by playing games, so it's logical to equate attracting girls to Nintendo products as part of the effort. On the other hand, this Girls Club could be a bright pink sales pitch.

The articles about Nintendo's efforts to reach girls have ranged from deranged outrage to gender stereotyping. A casual glance reveals enough pastels to choke a unicorn, but if you only watch their intro video, you won't see the whole picture. Nintendo wants to introduce it's products to a wider range of customers which means they are trying to reach more non-gamers.

They have a few different presenters in their videos. Some appeal to the Barbie-girl while others take a more technical approach. It seems that Nintendo is making an effort to appeal to a wide group rather than a single-pronged approach that would be less balanced.

You can't please all the people, but some detractors have forgotten that if you're not part of the solution, you're probably part of the problem. Among all the angry reviews of Nintendo Girl's Club, that I read, there weren't any suggestions. It was the typical onslaught of "You're doing it wrong!"

Some may have been angry that primary presenter Jorgie Porter is an actress/model with a resume somewhat outside Nintendo's typical fare. I credit Nintendo for having different hosts/presenters that represent different elements of gaming. There is no single solution to engaging girls with tech, but where many folks try one approach, Nintendo made a good effort to broaden their appeal to different viewers.

Our Conclusion

As I said at the outset, there is no single solution to attract kids to technology. I think it's imperative to do so, but there are many ways to accomplish it. Rather than debating which is the one perfect solution, I think we need to realize the diversity of kids in the marketplace and understand that everyone learns differently and is inspired by different things.

Parents shouldn't force their kids to like math or science. They should ensure that kids are exposed to these things in a positive manner. Teachers do the best the can in crowded classrooms, but parents know their children best and should play an active role in relating science, math and technology to the everyday things their kids enjoy.

We send our kids to school to learn, but often we forget how much they learn at home by simply observing and interacting with siblings and parents. Make that interaction count!

Flappy Birds Family returns, with 2-player mode, exclusively on Amazon's Fire TV

When Flappy Bird first hit the mobile market, it was a frustrating game where a double-digit score was rather impressive. It's difficulty and simplicity took the world by storm. Our frustration was actually love-in-disguise. Everyone seemed to need (crave) this game... and then the clones invaded and everything was "Flappy".

After a few peculiar tweets in mid-February 2014, the developer decided to pull the game from online distribution citing "user obsession" as the reason. This struck the internet community of Flappy fans as odd since he was making insane amounts of money from the advertising - no, really insane amounts - and the game was very popular.

Regardless of that odd saga, the app is back! Sort of... I saw a story on Polygon stating Flappy Bird was back, free of charge and had a 2-player mode! Cool! I rushed past the details, loudly yelling, "Gimme!" and clicked the download link on my Android phone.

The Amazon App opened - to my surprise - and offered to download the app. Hell yeah - I pressed the button! A pop-up window said it wasn't compatible with my device. What?!? I'm pretty good about keeping the OS and apps current.

Then I realized the issue. It wasn't compatible with my device or any other for that matter. It was a release exclusively for Amazon's Fire TV. Then my head began filling with conspiracy theories that frightened me a little bit...

• Did Amazon cut a deal for a period of exclusivity with Fire TV?
• Was this release intended to jump start Fire TV sales?
• Would Flappy Bird ever reappear for Android and iOS?
• Was Amazon responsible for the February removal of Flappy Bird?

New Features in Flappy Birds Family

Assuming you bought a Fire TV game box from Amazon, you'll find that Flappy Birds Family has a 2-player versus mode and new obstacles. If simply navigating through the pipes wasn't enough, new obstacles, like ghosts, have been added.

Just as the Ouya took the ease of mobile game development and aimed it back to the living room TV, the Fire TV requires no tapping or finger swiping. In the case of this suspicious release of Flappy Birds Family, you play it with a controller/remote which demands button pressing - which could be construed as tapping. But the control scheme is different on the Fire TV as opposed to your phone.

One can only assume Flappy Bird will eventually show up in the customary sales channels for mobile phones, but this whole scenario makes me wonder about the sales figures and install-base of Fire TV. You can now play Flappy Bird on a variety of retro consoles including the Atari 2600 and Vectrex - are we all going to buy Amazon's Fire TV to rekindle our awkward love/hate affair with .Gear's Flappy Bird?

Tie will tell. Let the madness ensue!

Competing w/ Sinclair's Speccy in the mid-80s, Tangerine's Oric still has a vibrant homebrew community

Sometimes it's the randomness of retro gaming that makes it far more exciting than simply "playing old games". Too often the term "old games" comes up as a derisive term without an understanding of how diverse gaming was as it evolved decades ago. To think that there are only 3 major hardware players these days pales against the console wars and and diversity of the early days.

Today I received a tweet about a new game for the Oric, called Oricium, by Defense Force Games. I'd heard of Tangerine due to their namesake originating from another successful fruit-named company... Apple. I didn't know much about the Oric line, but I liked the game video I watched and wanted to find out more about both the computer and Oricium.

In 1983 the Oric-1, sold in the UK and France, was based on a 6502A CPU and came in 16K or 48K RAM configurations. This matched the models available via Sinclair's ZX Spectrum and slightly undercut the price. As I understan it, part of Tangerine's mission was to get a product into the retail channel. "Good ideas" are swell , but having a physical product gave companies the leverage to move forward and grow. It was a fast paced time in the home computer market - if you couldn't prove yourself in the marketplace, you'd fail.

Alas, The Oric was short-lived even as updated models were released and news of an IBM-compatible computer were announced. The company changed ownership and ultimately was out of business in late 1987.

Getting back to the randomness of being a retro gamer... Shortly after seeing the tweet about this new homebrew game, Oricium, I watched the game-play video (below) and read up on some of the modern techniques used in developing this game running on a 30-year-old defunct computer. Next, I found myself seeking an Oric emulator for my Mac.


For those of us at 8-Bit Central, this is part of the joy of retro gaming. No sooner had I seen the Oricium tweet, I was checking out ROMs on an emulator for a classic computer I knew very little about. Such wonderful diversions are a big part of what makes "Playing old games" a lot more fun than many modern gamers may think. There's a very engaging learning-element to exploring areas of retro gaming that we're not very familiar with!

You have to love an awful movie with an equally awful tie-in game: Sharknado

If you caught last year's TV movie Sharknado on Syfy Channel, you got a taste of what is likely to become a yearly release franchise to kick off Shark Week with a bang laugh. In this idiotic film, sharks get embroiled in a water spout and soon after have the ability to invade downtown Los Angeles where ever there is water. Up hills. Down hills. Sharks sharks everywhere!

In the technology age, it's not enough to simply swap coasts, for the sequel, and have shark-infested tornadoes in the Big Apple. Naw, you need an app and a mobile game! This year's release (officially making this an anual event) comes with an app to make shark-bite selfies and an infinite runner game where you play 90210-alum Ian Ziering running and jumping down a New York City street filled with power-ups and sharks.

As for an app... since our society seems self-absorbed with selfies, you can download the attack themed selfie app, Go Shark Yourself. You can use the front or facing camera to snap a shot that becomes superimposed in your choice of shark motifs. I like this app... I hope it still works around Christmas.

Sharknado App: Go Shark Yourself

The Go Shark Yourself app - for Android & iOS - will walk you through the process of converting your camera into a Sharknado-making selfie machine with the ability to share across your social networks.

Sharknado Mobile Game

The Sharknado mobile game seems to be limited to iOS, but it hasn't received much positive attention and was released only a few days ago, so it may have been a rush job to get it out in time for premiere night. After all, who wants to play a Sharknado game the day after the premiere? Right? Maybe... I don't know.

Sharknado on DVD

The first movie is available on DVD and I would asume that the sequel will try to cash-in in a similar manner.

Van Damme, Julia, Minogue, Wen: the Street Fighter movie will be 20 years old in December

Just a few years after we did the Loco-Motion with Kylie Minogue, she became Cammy in a cast of characters pulled straight out of video game history. Street Fighter (Dec. 1994) came to cinemas and was greeted with poor reviews and a straight-to-DVD life span. But the title lives in infamy!

The passion for Street Fighter always emanated from the Capcom video game, not Hollywood's adaptation. The arcade game was released in August 1987 bringing a new genre and play-style to arcades. It's sequel (Street Fighter II - Feb 1991) solidified Capcom's game as an ongoing franchise that would take it to multiple platforms and tie-in products. The fighting genre became huge and the notion of co-op play became commonplace. Suddenly, gamers played simultaneously - side by side- rather than waiting for the other player to crash/fail/die.

years later, Capcom's characters are still favored by cosplayers who will don their persona over a weekend convention. Capcom themselves, released a 25th anniversary film I Am Street Fighter which can be seen on YouTube. The film is told through the words of fans and spans the franchise from it's beginning to the international tournaments of today's networked world. There's a lot of passion our there for an arcade game that started out years ago.

We could have waited until December to unfurl this post, but we have no patience for things like waiting. And the real amazingness behind Street Fighter is rooted in the CRTs that still display those beloved characters, so the flick takes a backseat to the arcade game. Check out the 25th anniversary flick on YouTube, Ogle Kylie as Cammy and ask your local arcade operator if they've heard of Street Fighter... you may have to mention it doesn't have a claw or spit out redemption tickets.

GameStop e-mailed me to say my video game collection is valued at $103

Much like personalized emails that open up with "Dear Pete" as opposed to a generic "Dear Friend", I can see that GameStop is trying to deliver a personal message in this mailing. Alas, their valuation of my game collection is likely based on the few games I've bothered registering with their Power Up Rewards program or possibly it's based on recent purchases. Who knows?

Regardless, I got a chuckle out of the subject on their email: "Your Game Collection is Worth Up to $103.50". A quick calculation revealed that GameStop would be willing to pay me mere pocket-change per game!

I love the used game market as it affords me a larger array of titles than I would ordinarily purchase at full retail pricing. The drawback is that those low used prices come at the expense of folks who don't place much value on their games. If you paid $60 dollars for a title, why would it be worth less than half, only a few months later?

I have never traded in any of my games to anyone - GameStop or otherwise. The math simply doesn't add up. Their profit goals quickly rob me of my game's real value. I've long thought that much of the used market is fueled by kids who will cannibalize their game collection to buy the latest $60 game... which will be in the discount bin in under six months. If you keep your old games, you can go back to them years later and hopefully achieve a better return on the investment than $4 from a retailer's trade-in program.

GameStop recently stated that less than half of their customers know that they accept trade-ins. GameStop president Tony Bartel, told VentureBeat, "Believe it or not, only 40 percent of the people who walk into a GameStop store today know that we accept trades of games." If true, that's a staggering statistic considering I'm always assaulted with their top-5 talking points every time I go to a GameStop.

I wish GameStop had more respect for their used game market and would have higher thresholds for the condition of traded games. Nearly every disc I've purchased has been badly scratched and most of the time the original case and manual have been discarded. I try to buy used Games from Newbury Comics since they won't resell scratched, damaged or incomplete games. GameStop seems far more focused on making a buck than delivering a quality product or customer experience.

My infatuation w/ Nintendo's 3DS Tomodachi Life increases as I collect CRTs, Virtual Boys & NES consoles

From flight simulators to pet care games and even EA's long running series of Sims games, I've never had any interest in this genre. I have no problem pretending I'm flying a spaceship, invading a village or any of the myriad of scenarios that video games can immerse us in.

I'll happily be the leader of a squadron of intergalactic battleships, but I have no desire to be the Mayor of a small town... or island... until now.

My son was visiting for Summer vacation so I had lined up several games that we could play via local-play on our 2DS's. We always play a lot of mini-golf, build sandcastles, endure epically long Monopoly games and have bike races, but a fair amount of our time centers on video games from my youth and his.

We're both pretty new to the 2DS, so I thought it would be fun to interact via StreetPass and try some of the local-play options in it's game library. From Super Street Fighter IV to Ridge Racer and Mario Kart, we had a blast whipping out our 2DS' and engaging in a brawl or a race... not to mention checking for StreetPasses.

There were a lot of ads for Tomodachi Life. It was being touted as the end-all-be-all of handheld gaming. Knowing little about it, I equated it to one of those Sims-type games that I had no interest in. Additionally, I'd heard the outrage from the LGBT community who started a #MiiQuality campaign to let Nintendo know that there are wider varieties of relationships in the real world than depicted in the game. This made my curiosity about the title grow a bit more.

When I discovered there was a demo of it on the e-Shop, my tune changed. After launching the demo, I was quickly hooked! Looking over my shoulder, my son could no longer take it and he too downloaded the demo. The ability to connect locally and share both Mii characters and various items we'd collected made this a really fun game outside of all the options you have in managing your island and it's residents.

Imaginary Mayor

You manage a small island of residents, much like a mayor. Part of the fun is populating the island... well, not in that way. We'll discuss mii sex later. You can import miis from your Plaza, create them from scratch, use a photo or photograph a celebrity mii QR code. You can create QR codes of your miis as well. in choosing emotional factors of your mii islanders, consider that this probably determines which ones will date, marry and have kids.

Obviously everything is pre-determined as the game is coded to a game cart, but it's fun to unlock items and see where the game will take you. You might even learn a few life lessons along the way.

This is probably one of the most creative uses of StreetPass I've seen to date from choosing your island's name to it's chief export. Your island can choose to export an item. As you encounter other Tomodachi Life players you exchange exports via StretPass. As your island residents begin dating and getting married, they'll soon have children - in a very Nintendo family-friendly manner.

These kids quickly grow up and you can choose to let them travel to other islands - another clever use of StreetPass. It also takes advantage of SpotPass by delivering custom items to one of the island's stores.

Tomodachi Gets a Little Retro

At various points you can award a gift to your islanders in a variety of ways. In terms of gifts you can bestow them their very own 3DS XL or Wii U game console. All my islanders get those, but the islanders will reward yo with items - typically by winning a mini game you play with them. So far, I've won an NES, old CRT TV, GameBoy, Virtual Boy and SuperScope. I love that they included some retro Nintendo items - particularly the Virtual Boy!

Wackenhammer's Clockwork Arcade is an eclectic adventure into the past w/ lots of innovation

From the street, the "L" shaped building housing Wackenhammer's Clockwork Arcade features a large courtyard with a good-size carousel, a bouncy house and several 1-person coin-op kiddie ride-ons.

Large overhead rolling doors open the arcade to the outdoor courtyard making it very inviting. My son & I ventured in to find a very unique arcade run by folks who love arcades and showcased plenty of inovations to keep it fun! With steampunk stylings, you'll find a great deal of things to play, explore and marvel at.

On my first visit to any arcade, I long for the 80's when arcades were packed with video games and pinball tables with their flashing marquees and brilliantly noisy attract modes. Alas, these days, such faire are few and far between. However, Wackenhammer's Clockwork Arcade offers a similar, but unique feel. It has a few of my faves like Millipede and Pac-Man along with a 2-player sit-in Final Lap 2 (Namco 1990).

The real gems in this arcade are the older machines/games that pre-date my arcade days of the 80's. Some border on carnival fixtures while others are purely mechanical - no electricity needed.








There's not a lot of info on Wackenhammer's website, so you will want to check out Wackenhammer's Clockwork Arcade on Facebook. Many of the attractions are geared toward little kids, but my son (age 9) and I spent an hour or 2 here having a great time. From things to gawk at and marvel over to games that make us drop quarters like crazy, Wackenhammer's Clockwork Arcade is definitely worth a visit if you're on Cape Cod, MA!

Rarely can you save more than $90 when shopping retail for video games

Lately, Toys R Us has been having clearance sales that are right up my alley. Too often I'll drop in to find clearance bins full of One Direction dolls, horrible DVDs, and odd plush characters I've never heard of. Lately, I've been finding Skylanders accessories and video games at insanely low prices. The games weren't exactly A-list titles, but I found a few that I'd try for a few bucks each.

Today's savings at TRU:
I only bought 7 items and still saved a lot!
Today, I found a Skylanders Battle Arena display stand for $4. There was also a bin of PS3, DS and 3DS games ranging from 75¢ to $3. Last week I bought 2 Skylanders castle casses and a 3DS pack including a car charger, ear bud headphones and 2 styluses for $4 each! I rarely buy video games at TRU, but their clearance bins have been phenomenal the last few weeks.

Recovered games from the Atari landfill in Alamogordo, NM on display at San Diego Comic Con

A small sampling of Atari artifacts excavated from the infamous landfill in New Mexico were on display at the San Diego Comic Con. On April 26, 2014 a small crew entered the landfill with the intent to unearth untold items disposed from an Atari warehouse in 1983. With the documentary due out in the Fall of 2014, it was fun to find this pic from SDCC14.

The documentary, Atari: Game Over, is being released by Microsoft's Xbox Studios and should be out this Fall (2014).

You'll find more info about the Atari excavation on our Atari Landfill Dig Summary that features a list of recovered titles, images and info about the Atari Legend.

GDL Entertainment melds video gaming into events, creating shared experiences w/ face-to-face fun

Over the years, I've encountered quite a few businesses that will integrate video games into your party. From customized buses full of game consoles & flatscreens to networked PCs engaged in a common game, the various business models fascinate me.

As a retro gamer, if I were to hire a company to add games to my event, I'd want a truck load of vintage arcade cabs and enough 25-year-old game consoles to constitute a museum exhibit. :)

But none of the companies I found offered retro gaming. They'll bring a ton of Microsoft hardware and games, but I want a truckload of vintage arcade cabs at my shindig. I don't want to play Halo on a flatscreen. I want Missile Command, Defender, Berzerk... and the chaotic beauty of flashing marquees and attract mode sounds!

GDL Entertainment Isn't Like Those Other Companies

I recently came across the GDL Entertainment website. They tout a software and hardware library spanning decades of videogame classics and customized events! Their Twitter bio says they span from "Xbox One to Atari." I had to investigate the Atari connection!

A few e-mails later I was Skyping with GDL Entertainment owner Chris Hatala. He has a lot of passion and enthusiasm for video games and loves bringing that feeling to his clients through customized events. From birthday parties to lavish fundraisers, his company will customize the gaming experience to meet the client's needs. Part of his experience comes from working on large-scale events like international Street Fighter events spanning 10 countries with 600+ players. That makes a birthday party seem like a cakewalk!

Chris' passion and experience plays into his success at bringing gaming to events that aren't necessarily game-centric. Birthday parties sometimes feature video games, but not always in an organized & structured manner. And... how often have you attended a corporate function that offered video games? I'd love to attend a corporate event that offered something as diverse as video games. Next time your company does a team building exercise, remind them that 4-player Warlords is a better option than a climbing wall and trust-falls.

I remember the career days we were forced into during high school. They paraded the typical dentist, lawyer and accountant opportunities without mentioning that melding arcade games with a corporate event can become a lucrative career. No one wanted to mention that you can earn a living doing something you really love.

An interesting part of my conversation with Chris was his support of face-to-face gaming. Despite a strong background in networked gaming events across many borders, he is in favor of bringing people together face-to-face via gaming. I've never liked the idea of yelling into a headset as opposed to having friends over to play in my living room.

From his website- "I've witnessed firsthand how social videogaming brings inclusiveness, camaraderie, and electrifying experiences to any group."

The GDL Entertainment website is focused on bringing video games to events - not necessarily "gaming events". The idea that Chris can blend video games into fundraisers and corporate events - not typically associated with gaming - certainly speaks to the popularity and pervasiveness of video games in our culture today. For those who think video games are "silly distractions for kids", you should know that GDL Entertainment is registered with ISES (International Special Events Society). They take your fun very seriously.

If you're looking to add an edge to your party or event, video games may be the perfect ingredient. GDL Entertainment can provide a professional component to your event that will engage and energize your guests - young and old alike!

Fortunately for Connect-Four aficionados, robots don't have dicks

I came across a Facebook post from Polygon about an MIT student, Patrick McCabe, who built a robot that plays Connect Four, Milton Bradley's dot-connecting game. My son and I sometimes play the SpongeBob version of this MB classic and I always likened it to tic-tac-toe in that it should always end in a draw.

I'm sure there is a mathematical perspective to the game and it's strategies. Without that, a robot wouldn't be a very formidable opponent. With a 2051 micro processor, UP Mini 3D printer and a Cypress PSOC 5LP kit he managed to create a bot that will likely kick your ass at Connect Four.

I've always been fascinated by numbers and mathematics, but to show my true nature... What I loved most about this project was the odd cartoon (shown below) that immediately followed the Polygon post.





This cartoon immediately followd the Connect Four robot article in my Facebook feed...

Version 4 of prominent multi-platform Atari 2600 emulator, Stella, releases w/ significant updates

When it comes to emulating the Atari 2600, Stella has been a favorite for a long time. As an open source project, Stella is continually improved and ported to more platforms. Version 4 brings native hardware acceleration support for Windows (Direct3D) and Linux/OSX (OpenGL). Additionally, full screen modes use the desktop resolution!

You can find a listing of all the updates on the official Stella emulator website.

The Importance of Emulation

Many retro gamers balk at the use of emulators in favor of playing classic games on original equipment. In the case of Stella, many of us would rather play on a 2600! We agree to an extent. We'd rather "insert a cartridge" than "load a file", but either way emulators are not just a cheap way to avoid using original consoles and games.

Not all games are released on actual cartridges and others are so rare/expensive, that owning the cart is fairly unrealistic. Think about all the awesome homebrew games that have been created for the Atari 2600. While some are placed on cartridges and come in an authentic box with a manual, many wonderful games exist only as a computer file. Every collector who's heard of rare games like Chase the Chuck Wagon should have the opportunity to experience it's game play. Why deny yourself as a gaming purist? Enjoy all the games the platform has to offer.

The other noteworthy facet of emulators is the ways in which they help preserve retro gaming itself. All those dusty consoles sitting on folding tables at yard sales aren't getting any younger and computer technology is marching forward. Emulators, like Stella, that get development attention and offer frequent releases, enable gamers to continue to experience many game titles otherwise unobtainable. At the same time, updates to Stella keep it functioning on current computer operating systems.

Those of us that saw the superiority of the Betamax has little choice as VHS dominated and later when VCRs disappeared from retail shelves. However, the movies we loved were released to other platforms like DVD. Similarly, the technology behind emulation enables gamers to continue to play classic games!

As a kid, I owned about 30 2600 games. Today I have substantially expanded my game cart collection. However, there are still many titles I don't own and others I will never own. I love my Atari 2600, but I also love being able to experience it's entire game library. Emulation lets me do that and ensure that my favorite games will be playable as computer technology changes and improves.

Atari CEO believes fast-food makeovers of iconic games is a “brand exposure” strategy

I've loved Atari since purchasing a 2600 console in the late seventies. I'd discovered the joy of Space Invaders in a local bowling alley and was delighted when it was later released on the Atari 2600.

In those days "Atari" was synonymous with "video games". The Nolan Bushnell company that I loved ceased shortly after my first Atari purchase. However, the company forged ahead in many incarnations under various leaders. Their retro IPs have always been a high point. Beloved by many, the Atari brand is as recognizable today as it was in the 70's.

However, Atari seems farther from it's roots than ever. They've released reboots of their elder iconic arcade titles for the web, mobile platforms and classic collections on Sony & Microsoft consoles. Such efforts retain some of the original "magic" while keeping the Atari brand alive in the retail environment.

I wouldn't suggest they continually repackage Asteroids as a revenue stream, but it wouldn't hurt to be in the public's mind... right? However, re-skinning it as Hashteroids for a Denny's fast-food hash brown tie-in seems a frivolous waste and dilution of a valuable IP.

In 2011 they rebooted Yar's Revenge as an online game. It was met with a lot of criticism, but I liked the update and was happy to see the iconic title back in action. Hasteroids? Take-Out? WTF!?!

Denny's partnership with Atari is part of a history of quirky advertising strategies by Denny's. With millions of smart phones and tablets loaded with games, Dennys wants to leverage it to try reaching new customers & build a stronger bond with existing connoisseurs of cheap food. Released on iOS and Android, Denny's Greatest Hits Remixed games tie in with their current menu offerings by the same name.

A quote from Atari's CEO makes me wonder if he understands his IP's value and the difference between brand exposure & expansion as opposed to transformation!

We are excited to be partnering with Dennys on this partnership. Transforming our classic and beloved games into a retro, remixed promotion will be a natural way to expose our brand to a new generation and resonate with our long-time fans in a fun and unique way, Atari chief executive officer Fred Chesnais said.

Hashteroids on a mobile phone is a disposable triviality that won't likely spawn interest in the Atari brand. Asteroids was a successful game that helped spawn an entire industry (in a manner of speaking).

Can Chesnais really believe that this Denny's promotion is at all helpful to the Atari brand? Exposing a brand means introducing it to those that are not familiar with it. This promotion is a windfall for Denny's. They get to link their menu items to "Atari". They want to sell more food!

What is Atari getting from this? How does a mock-up 2600 cartridge with a Hashteroids label benefit Atari? Most people who are not familiar with Atari's classic games are also not familiar with the old game carts. If you're not familiar with Atari, I doubt you know what game carts looked like in the 1980's.

This is an awesome partnership for Denny's! Any link they can achieve to the beloved Atari IPs will only benefit them. Atari has recently been quoted saying they want to go beyond just putting logos on a t-shirt. I understand the desire and savvy behind that idea, but at least the logo on a shirt doesn't alter or transform the brand. It expands/preserves it.

Creating a mobile game with a strong tie-in to a non-gaming entity doesn't seem to benefit Atari as a gaming company. Even if they go down the path of online gambling, hash browns seem a poor choice. They say all publicity is "good" publicity, but this partnership does little to define or expand the Atari brand. Recently emerging from bankruptcy, this may simply be a lucrative move to score some capital. Who knows...

I'd rather see Atari-logo t-shirts! I can't even remember the last time I saw an Atari shirt in a retail store. :)

What Would Mario Do?

Nintendo has a long history with McDonalds from play areas with Nintendo consoles to Nintendo Wifi Zones and Happy Meal Toys. Never do you see Mario in a clown wig or donning the Hamburgler's striped suit. He's Mario and he's iconic. You don't mess with that. Take note, Atari!

McDonalds currently has Mario Kart Happy Meal toys and you won't find any alterations to Mario. He's Nintendo's primary brand, so he may be packaged in a McDonald's product, but you won't find any Super Mario Fries or Luigi Milkshakes. Mario belongs to Nintendo and with McDonalds, they can showcase their brand to a myriad of children who will instantly tell Mom & Dad they need a Wii U and Mario Kart. Take note, Atari!

Ouya nimbly goes where the Big-Boys dare not - all-access subscriptions and a Reading Rainbow console

Every time I ponder the future of my favorite ROM station - the Ouya - it appears in new territory. As the "little guy" in the world of game consoles, they're doing some pretty interesting things that the less nimble mega-corps have difficulty with.

It's no secret that the Ouya is a niche product that doesn't sit on the same retail shelves as the PS4 or Xbone. So, having stirred up a lot of energy during their launch, what's a a small company to do to stay relevant? They challenged the growing mobile market, by directing the ease of Android development to living room TVs via a small Android console. Coming to market was a great feat, but staying there is difficult. While the iTunes and Play stores are flooded with titles, how can Ouya's software offering of 800 games compete?

They announced a limited test of a subscription service last month. For the price of an average next-gen game title ($59.99) they will grant users access to all the games for a year. Valued at $2,000 one has to wonder if this signals innovation or desperation. This seems like a win for gamers, but makes me wonder how successful they've been with software sales from their proprietary store.

Geordi La Forge Wants You to Read

For those who saw the Kickstarter for LeVar Burton's (from ROOTS and Star Trek: The Next Generation) effort to bring Reading Rainbow back as an app, the once popular show is coming back as an app. Formerly a PBS TV show (1983-2006), Burton was it's exec producer. Various celebrities would read books aloud to inspire kids to read. As technology improved this canceled show was recently KickStarted into a modernized online variation.

The oddity to this tale is Ouya has released a Reading Rainbow edition of their console. It seems like an odd pairing, but Ouya was another insanely successful Kickstarter campaign and this Smurf-blue console and controller are more than a reward tier. Having reached $5 million on their kickstarter, Reading Rainbow will port it's app to the Ouya platform.

I'm glad to see Ouya keeping it's name on the public's radar with such a high profile project. It will be interesting to see how an educational app does on a platform primarily geared towards gamers. Hey, a lot of gamers have young kids! :)

Do you know that today is a holiday? It's Video Games Day!

Spend the day gaming! Invite friends over and revel in what face-to-face gaming is all about. We particularly encourage this among those who play online with a headset. Back in the NEW era, there was nothing better than having the crew over to play games. Some played. Some watched. But everyone was into it and yelling at the TV! Good times!

Online gaming offers a lot of new experiences, but it never struck me as the same sort of fun that group play in the living room offered. So, grab a few friends and game together- in the same room! It's Video Game Day!