80s
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Contra movie coming to alternate-universe theaters in 1988
If you haven't clicked the Play button on the video yet, go ahead and take care of that -- whatever we've written underneath the embedded movie cannot even begin to match its excellence. Team Awesome, the same group that put together the fictitious Punch-Out!! trailer for Nintendo's Short Cuts Showcase contest, created this ultra-macho masterpiece as an homage to Contra. The production parodies not only the original NES game, but 80s action films like Predator, Aliens, Rambo: First Blood, and other indisputable classics. Pretty much, if it was rad and from the 80s, then it's somewhere in this trailer.
Game-related record sleeve art hurts our brains
Video game soundtracks might be a big deal nowadays, but back in the '80s the video-game-related albums at the record store tended to be a little different. AZ Nighbuzz has assembled a collection of some of the wonderfully weird game-related album art from the golden age of the arcades.While various international versions of Pac-Man Fever clog up the list, the selections include everything from spoken word strategy to a Breakout backstory and even a Super Mario Land remix that was pressed onto vinyl as late as 1992. Our favorite, though, has to be the inexplicably weird cover for Scientist Encounters Pac-Man, in which a metal, piranha-toothed monstrosity devours a dark-skinned man (presumably the Scientist?) in futuristic skin-tight garb. They just don't make album art like that any more. Thank goodness.
Guitar Hero '80s edition in June -- maybe July
A Guitar Hero: '80s Edition for PlayStation 2 was unofficially announced back in January by EGM. Although the game still hasn't been officially announced -- like some other games that kept popping up without official confirmation -- sites are starting to show release dates for GH: '80s.Gamespot says GH: '80s is being released June 4, 2007. However, Gamefly and Amazon Canada (but not US) have the title slated for a July 31 release. Gamefly has been a pretty reliable source for a title being legitimate, but the release date is up for debate. What we do know is that the ESRB has not rated the game yet. So rockin' to the '80s is in the cards for the near future, but we hope to get a solid date real soon for this still officially unannounced game.[Thanks, Brian]
Original Transformer voices returning for game
While you were busy eating your Captain Crunch and sitting around watching Transformers in your Underoos in the 80s, Peter Cullen and Frank Welker were busting their humps to make sure that you had the finest in children's programming as the voices of Optimus Prime and Megatron, respectively.Gamespot has reported they'll be back at the grindstone for the upcoming Transformers: The Game, due this summer for pretty much every system on the market. The site also features in-depth interviews with Cullen and Welker to mark the occasion, where we get some insight into how the two voices were created. Needless to say, it's more involved than you probably imagined. Before you click, be aware, the voice of Optimus gushes quite a bit about how talented the guy voicing Megatron is so, if that's going to ruin the series for you (or make it harder to enjoy the latest Transformers fan fiction), you may want to pass.
Ugliest Luigi ever
Poor Luigi. The lanky plumber already has enough problems dealing with his older brother always stealing the spotlight and Princess Daisy's failure to commit to a serious relationship, but now he has to worry about embarassing photos from 20 years ago resurfacing on the internet. We all have our fair share of unflattering pictures from the 80s, but the images posted for this vintage Super Mario Bros. doll auction are downright embarassing. This 3.5'-tall toy was a promotional item from Nintendo that was never released to the general public. Head past the post break to see what the green guy looked like before he tamed his hair and trimmed his mustache. He really let himself go back then -- look at that hat![Via GameSniped]
Today's 80s-est game video - Game Over
We're sort of terrified and entranced by this at the same time -- it involves bad 80s music and video games, and combines them into one extremely strange video. Words fail to describe just how bizarre this is. Although, one thing's for sure ... that version of Pac-Man he's playing has some pretty damn smooth graphics.When you're done watching this, rubbing your eyes, and practicing your double-takes, hit up the video that this is a response to. YouTube just never ceases to amaze, does it?
Vice City Stories website wastes hours of my life
Not only did Rockstar release an awesomely sweet trailer for their upcoming Vice City Stories, they also updated the official website. The site includes aforementioned trailer, but in PSP format, tons of screenshots, wallpapers, and a sampling of the ever-popular (and always amazing) radio. Yes: I listened until the feed looped... twice. The trailer and the radio were enough to secure a pre-order from me. The game will release in October.[Thanks, ZENegade!]
