#retro-gaming

#retro-gaming

McDonald's just showed how brands can use retro gaming to make pretty much anything look cool. The fastfood giant has cooked up a trio of TV ads that turn its new Street Fighter 'Street Burgers' into signature special attack moves in a pixel-perfect homage to Capcom's classic arcade game. Made for McDonald's Japan, the campaign boasts authentic-looking animation, including custom sprites in the style of Street Fighter II.

PUMA has once again proven its knack for merging pop culture with performance design through its latest collaboration with SEGA's Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. The partnership reimagines two of PUMA's standout silhouettes - the Inhale and the Inverse - through the lens of three beloved characters: Sonic, Tails, and Shadow. The result is a collection that bridges retro gaming nostalgia with contemporary sneaker aesthetics, capturing the energy, color, and personality that defined the iconic SEGA series for generations of fans.

In 2019 researchers at Berlin's Computer Games Museum made an extraordinary discovery: a rudimentary Pong console, made from salvaged electronics and plastic soap-box enclosures for joysticks. The beige rectangular tupperware that contained its wires would, when connected to a TV by the aerial, bring a serviceable Pong copy to the screen. Arcade fire East German attractions at ColdWarGames. Photograph: Dora Csala/AlliiertenMuseum At the time, they thought the home-brewed device was a singular example of ingenuity behind the iron curtain.

I owe the original Game Boy everything. Had it not been for Nintendo's gray brick of a handheld, and a copy of Super Mario Land, I doubt I would be writing these words on Gizmodo. It was the gadget that started my lifelong obsession with cutting-edge technology and my passion for sharing it with others. So excuse me for being overwhelmed with emotion and nostalgia when Lego announced it was making a 421-piece brick set version of the iconic Nintendo handheld.

Ubisoft's classic platforming series Rayman celebrated its 30th anniversary earlier this month. The developer confirmed the next mainline entry is in the works, but it sounds like it's a long ways off. While that's probably not what fans wanted to hear, at least you can buy a brand-new version of Rayman for Game Boy Color. That sentence sounds odd, but it's true: Ubisoft partnered with ModRetro to rerelease the GBC version of the original Rayman. An actual GBC cartridge, in fact, and it looks lovely.

Fidget toys have come a long way from simple stress balls and spinners. These days, you'll find everything from intricate sliders to complex mechanical puzzles designed to keep your hands busy. But 01EDC's Slider-GameMackey takes the concept somewhere completely unexpected, transforming the humble fidget toy into a nostalgic gaming experience that fits right in your pocket. One look at this thing and you're instantly transported back to childhood afternoons spent hunched over handheld game consoles.

After selling out earlier this year, Amazon has restocked the discontinued Atari 2600 Lego set. We doubt that these Lego sets were unearthed from a mass Atari burial site in New Mexico, because unlike the E.T. video game, the Atari 2600 Lego set is awesome, but it is interesting that Amazon has units available. It's also a nice that Amazon is charging the original $240 MSRP for this 2,532-piece set.

Numbers suggest this isn't just nostalgia at work. While the global games market fluctuates, interest in pixel art and retro-inspired titles continues to grow. According to Cognitive Market Research, the pixel‑game games market is projected to expand at around 11.5% (CAGR) between 2024 and 2031. Indie titles, many leaning into 2D or pixel aesthetics, continue to be key drivers of engagement and discovery, even as saturation makes standing out increasingly challenging.

When a name like Acclaim returns, you can't help but expect fireworks. For gamers of a certain age (me included), Acclaim is more than a publisher; it's a time capsule of the '90s and early noughties. This was the label that gave us NBA Jam, Burnout, Re-Volt, Turok, and Shadow Man. It's the kind of back catalogue that makes you imagine instant remasters, slick reboots, maybe even a comeback tour for a series or two.

Most Arcade1Up releases these days are $500-$600 Deluxe Arcade Cabinets, but Walmart carries a trio of models that more closely resemble Arcade1Up's early hits. These throwback Special Edition machines cost $334 each and are themed around Mortal Kombat 2, Ms. Pac-Man, and Pac-Man. Each cabinet is preloaded with 13 games and has a 15.6-inch IPS display. Other features include dual stereo speakers, Wi-Fi support for leaderboards and multiplayer, and pretty solid controls to mirror Arcade1Up's pricier options.

In the mid-90s, with the arrival of 3D graphics cards, developers were suddenly handed a whole other axis in which to explore. The stand-out example of this new-found freedom was 1995's Descent, know as a "six degrees of freedom" game, where you controlled a floating ship that could orientate itself however it wished in 3D spaces. That shooter was created by Parallax Software, a name you might not recognize until I tell you the studio split in two, one half becoming Volition.

Even retro console superfans would be forgiven for not knowing about the LaserActive, a pricey LaserDisc player released in 1994 alongside swappable hardware modules that could add support for Sega Genesis and NEC TurboGrafx-16 games and controllers. Using those add-ons, you could also play a handful of games specifically designed for the LaserActive format, which combined game data and graphics with up to 60 minutes of full-screen, standard-definition analog video per side.

The Science Museum is hosting adults-only evenings of retro gaming in the Power Up arcade this winter, featuring over 160 consoles and classic games.

PSX Retro Tools is a complete toolkit for creating authentic low-poly, low-resolution, dithered graphics, designed for 3D artists and retro enthusiasts.

UFO 50 is a wildly varied set of retro-styled games belonging to a fictional console, created by a made-up developer UFO Soft from the 80s.

Crafted by Blasphemous developer The Game Kitchen, Ragebound is a deliberately old-school action game that captures the essence of the classic Ninja Gaiden series, with sharp gameplay, challenging levels, and gloriously retro visuals and music that would feel right at home on the Super NES.

ModRetro's M64 is a tribute to the Nintendo 64 costing $200, positioning itself as a more affordable alternative to the Analogue 3D at $250.

Maingear's Retro95 is a prebuilt, customized iteration of the SilverStone FLP01, featuring modern components inside a nostalgic, beige design reminiscent of the 90s.

The Mini Arcade - Steering Dodge Car Toy is nearly as close a rip-off of the classic Road Fighter as possible, bringing the game to life in a non-digital, portable format.

The brand famously known for the Commodore 64, which sold over 15 million units and inspired creativity through its graphics and sound chip, aims for revival.

Francesco Salicini, an Italian retro gaming YouTuber, faces potential jail time and legal charges for reviewing Android handheld gaming devices pre-loaded with old games.

Wilder Toys has launched a new line of Console Heroes Sega Genesis Cartridge Dioramas, resembling popular Sega Genesis game cartridges with tiny diorama scenes inside.

The goal of Chromatic in a non-technical sense is not to replicate the experience of actually playing a Game Boy or Game Boy Color, it's to replicate the way that you felt playing it when you were younger. You want it to be authentic but also to live up to that rose-tinted recollection of how you remember it.

Amazon has taken a nostalgic turn this Prime Day, offering retro-inspired PS5 deals that attract attention with polished remakes of classic games, fully utilizing new console technology.

Terminator 2D: No Fate offers a nostalgic side-scrolling shooter experience inspired by classic titles, featuring beloved characters and retro graphics.

The best home arcade machines combine nostalgia and addictive gameplay, giving players a chance to relive classic games with family and friends, just like in arcades.

The Adventure of Samsara is a retro pixel-art game that combines the aesthetics of classic Atari 2600 games with modern gameplay mechanics, resulting in a unique nostalgic experience.

The mechanical Flappy Bird game is completely playable, with a button for flapping and 3D-printed pipes that mimic the original game's challenge.

Paradox Soul, a free-to-play Metroidvania game on Steam, features Dr. Alli Rose navigating a test facility filled with secrets and robot enemies.