90s
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The last Blockbuster is hosting an Airbnb sleepover in September
Stay the night in a bunker of '90s nostalgia.
Hasbro is relaunching classic Tiger Electronics gaming handhelds (updated)
A few years ago, Bandai revived its line of Tamagotchi virtual pets. The new versions of the toy were smaller than the originals from the '90s and had fewer features. They must have sold pretty well, though, since the company followed those up with full-sized reissues of both first- and second-generation Tamagotchis. According to The Verge, Hasbro is banking on '90s nostalgia, too, and will reintroduce the then-ubiquitous Tiger Electronics LCD handhelds. The affordable games took cues from Nintendo's Game & Watch portables, featuring one title per device and a simple form of gameplay. The big reason for their success -- and what Hasbro is likely hoping to still be a selling point -- was that they were based on popular console and arcade games like Mega Man and Ninja Gaiden, as well as movies and TV shows like 101 Dalmations and Beavis and Butthead.
Epic reverts 'Fortnite' turbo building changes after players push back
Stop us if you've heard this one before: Epic made a change to its hit battle royal shooter that was supposed to make the game more even, and has now changed it back after a near-revolt by the Fortnite community. Just like its move to nerf B.R.U.T.E. mechs last week, this evening the company announced that after just one day, it's changed the timing on "Turbo Build" back to its previous settings. Yesterday, the developers changed the time delay between placing building items from 0.05 seconds to 0.15 seconds. That's still just a blink of an eye, but for experienced players, being able to pull off slick "90s" moves that can take you up to high ground very quickly or defend yourself against the detuned mechs requires a high level of responsiveness.
RIP, AOL Instant Messenger
We knew this day would come. One of the major parts of our formative years on the worldwide web -- we called it that back in the day -- will cease to be. AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) came to a close a few hours ago. While we've already eulogized it, it doesn't make the moment any less bitter. Sunrise, sunset.
Remember Mplayer? The '90s game service is relaunching
If you lived in the '90s and tried to run multiplayer Quake across a 56K modem, you may have fond memories (or not) of MPlayer. The '90s PC gaming service is coming back after being defunct for 15 years, thanks to a company called MPlayer Entertainment. To refresh your memory, MPlayer was a free, ad-supported online community that hosted up to 20 million visitors a month. It ran between 1996 and 2001, and offered over 100 free games, including Quake, Mech Commander and Rogue Spear. It also popularized the idea of VoIP chat between gamers. The ad-supported service was never profitable, however, and was eventually sold to GameSpy, which took it offline in 2001.
Unfortunately, Guess The 90s is really, really good
There are already enough (or perhaps too many) trivia games on the iPhone. There are all-encompassing gems like QuizUp but most aren't nearly that well done, and to be honest, I was kind of hoping Guess The 90s would be a dud as well. I was born in the mid 80s, so the vast majority of my childhood memories took place during the decade that brought us Pogs and popularized snap bracelets. But to my chagrin, the trivia puzzler is fantastic, and so I've been reliving my childhood in 2-minute bursts for the past week or so. The puzzles in Guess The 90s simply ask you to name whatever object, musical group, tv show, or other piece of pop culture it displays on the screen. You have rows of letters with which to spell out the answer, and you can use a hint if you get stuck (but a simple Google search is usually a quicker way to find the answer if you truly get stumped). What really makes the game special is the wealth of 90s content on offer. There are some truly obscure items here, and you'll need a pretty robust knowledge of 90s media, with a huge focus on the TV shows that were popular at the time. There's also a ton of toys to name, one-hit-wonder bands, and even some fashion trends that will make you cringe. Guess The 90s is free to play, but includes in-app purchases of "coins" (which are used to gain hints), as well as the occasional pop-up advertisement. The cash-making features shouldn't hinder your experience too much, and if you don't want to drop a few bucks to score some cheap hints, you can always use the web. If you're a 90s kid -- or really anyone who wants to take a brief nostalgia break -- you might find yourself getting sucked into it.
Space Jam comes back to life with NBA 2K14 mod
A new NBA Jam may not be in the cards, but that's okay; a different kind of jam is here. A Space Jam. NBA 2K series modder MGX has released a set of files that transform NBA 2K14 into an adaptation of the 1996 classic film, with the Looney Tunes and Michael Jordan on one side and the Monstars on the other. Transforming a 2D anthropomorphic animal or space monster into a 3D model is no easy feat. Combine this with the fact that the 3D model versions of the Looney Tunes crew are basically human bodies with animal heads attached and you have a recipe for some serious nightmare fuel uh ... '90s nostalgia. If you want to get in on this mod or others, check out MGX's Facebook page. Now's your chance. Do your dance. At the Space Jam. [Image: 2K Sports/MGX]
Gone Home sets the stage with two original Riot Grrrl bands
Gone Home uses an atmospheric, introspective exploration game to tackle one of the most mysterious, emotional and twisted phenomena of human existence – being a teenage girl in the 90s. Trust us, it's terrible.Regardless of gender or decade, one thing that alleviates the confusion of adolescence for millions of teenagers worldwide is music. For Gone Home's narrative, a teenage girl discovering herself in the 90s Pacific Northwest, this means Riot Grrrl. Riot Grrrl is a feminist punk movement that hit Washington and Oregon beginning in 1991, which spawned an influx of new bands and written publications focused on female empowerment.Developer The Fullbright Company – formed by three ex-BioShock developers – snagged two original Riot Grrrl bands, Bratmobile and Heavens to Betsy, for Gone Home. It's an important get for Fullbright co-founder Steve Gaynor."It's really goddamn amazing to have the opportunity for this music to be in Gone Home," he says. "Authenticity is our No. 1 priority, and the inclusion of tracks by Heavens to Betsy and Bratmobile really drives home the era and the place and the feelings surrounding the story of Gone Home. We're psyched."%Gallery-183348%
The Sims 3 DLC packs some bellbottoms
The Sims 3 "70s, 80s and 90s" DLC pack says it has "all-new outfits, crazy hairstyles, and facial hair," but considering each of these "new" looks comes from a decade long since past, that description is a bit of a stretch. The 70s, 80s and 90s pack is available now on Steam for $20.The 70s portion includes bellbottoms, halter top catsuits and platform shoes, along with minimalist furniture and a disco ball. The 80s bring legwarmers, leotards, headbands and shoulder pads, and the decor portion includes arcade machines and an entertainment system. The 90s remind us why "grunge" generally isn't a complimentary term, with tattered jeans, layered tops, asymmetrical handkerchief hemline skirts, and furniture in distressed and industrial metal styles. Each decade comes with the related hairstyles and facial hair.Remember, in 20 years we'll all look back on the 2010s with just as much revulsion, but with more photographic evidence of our absurd tastes.
This is the Modem World: The internet used to be better
Each week Joshua Fruhlinger contributes This is the Modem World, a column dedicated to exploring the culture of consumer technology. Back in the '90s -- before many of you were born -- the internet was much better than it is today. I'm only halfway kidding, too. Let me explain. At the time, we were sure anything was possible. We were also pretty stupid. We launched sites that just sold socks. Others sold balls. Social networking was just something we did -- we didn't need a site or a name for it. We were happy to go out at night and create real-life memes over drinks regarding the 2-minute video that took all afternoon to download.
Nokia goes bullet time on snowboarders, the '90s wants its culture back (video)
Nokia's been an annual fixture at the Open Snowboarding Championships for a few years. While one gets sponsorship dollars, the other gleans a slice of snow sport cool. At this year's event, Nokia rigged up 18 Lumia 800s to capture the snowboarders' mid-air posturing, recording the video with a specially developed app. After a WiFi hook-up (and presumably a little bit of editing), the result was the montage you can see up top, made from around 100 different videos. But where's the iShred?
Former Sun CEOs recount plan to buy Apple in 1995
At a recent Churchill Club dinner in California, Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy and former Sun CEO Ed Zander spoke candidly about Sun during its heyday in the 90s when it was poised to buy the then-struggling Apple. Michael Spindler headed Apple at that point, and the company was on the downswing. It had licensed the Mac OS to Radius and Power Computing, faced the looming threat of Windows 95, and launched the ill-fated PowerBook 5300. Regarded as one of the worst Apple products of all-time, the 5300 was prone to catching fire due to a defective Sony battery and earned the nickname HindenBook. Zander recalls the day when the leading server and enterprise company was hours away from buying Apple for about $5 to $6 a share. Sun was geared up to announce its acquisition at an upcoming analysts meeting, but an Apple investment banker got in the company's way at the last minute. McNealy says, "We wanted to do it. There was an investment banker on the Apple side, an absolute disaster, and he basically blocked it. He put so many terms into the deal that we couldn't afford to go do it." This unnamed banker unknowingly changed the future of Apple. If Apple was acquired, would Sun have developed the iPod, iPhone and iPad? "No," said McNealy, "If we had bought Apple, there wouldn't have been iPods or iPads ... I'd have screwed that up."
Gaming in the 90s was way, way better
It's an incredible time for gaming. There are dozens of top-notch titles released every year, the hobby has reached broader social acceptance than ever before and a vast array of independent developers are pushing the boundaries of what can be achieved with interactive entertainment. But compared to the 90s? It sucks. Need proof? Check out the Everything Is Terrible video we've placed after the break and then tell us gaming today wouldn't be twice as good if it had one tenth of the 90's neon, cargo pants and "Woo!"-ing.
The Daily Grind: Are the stakes too low in modern PvP?
Player vs. Player gameplay has undergone a drastic change in recent years. Games like Meridian 59 and Ultima Online didn't pull any punches. Anyone could kill anyone anywhere, and the penalties could be quite severe. When you died In Meridian or UO, you dropped all of your gear. The person who killed you could steal whatever he or she pleased.Of course, in games like that, gear wasn't quite such a big deal. In Meridian a sword would wear out after a few of hours of use anyway. But combined with stat and skill losses, death in the games of the 90s was comparatively harsh. Now, in World of Warcraft, Age of Conan, and Warhammer Online, the stakes are lower. You have absolutely nothing to lose by dying in PvP in WoW, and AoC and WAR's designs aren't much more aggressive.But here's a question from a veteran of the oldschool: with stakes this low, does PvP really matter? Will it really get you sweating? Will you really care that much about winning or losing? Some oldschool folks will argue that PvP is boring and meaningless now that death has been de-clawed. Maybe we should go back to the barbarism of the old days. What do you think?
Nirvana: Plugged back in and electronicized
Were this a perfect world, all of our favorite alternative songs from the 90s would be remade by instrumental-electronic band The Hunt for Yoshi. Weezer's "El Scorcho," Superdrag's "Sucked Out," and The Vaselines' "Son of a Gun" -- the list goes on.We'll settle for this excellent cover of Nirvana's "All Apologies" in the meantime, grabbed from The Hunt for Yoshi's Nintendo Goes 90s album. The entire CD is available for download, packed with reimagined songs from bands like REM and Soundgarden. Pull up a stool, throw on a cardigan, and check past the post break to stream this In Utero classic.
Everybody hurts, everybody cries, SingStar 90s tracklist
Are you a Barbie girl, in a Barbie world? Well, if you think being filled with plastic is fantastic, then you'll be happy to know that SingStar 90s is coming to the love shack. The game popped up on a New Zealand store with an August 3rd release attached to it. You can't touch this compilation of the '90s most addicting, and therefore ultimately annoying, songs; full list can be found after the break. So, tell us what you want, what you really, really, want to see on this compilation if you notice anything missing from the '90s? Maybe they'll add it in the PS3 SingStar download service. There's always the debate between which is tougher: SingStar or Karaoke Revolution? Well, if you missed it the first time, our intrepid Kyle Orland reported on this a few months ago. Checka checka check it out!%Gallery-3496%[Via PALGN]
Movin' with the B-Boys
Man, I feel like it's 1990 all over again. Sony's upcoming B-Boy looks like it'll be a blast. You control a break dancer trying to prove his worth on the street. We've covered this game pretty extensively so far, so read up and then enjoy this lengthy gameplay video.
