King's Quest VI - The Perils of Rosella remake - DEMO RELEASED!

You know that KQIV remake I keep posting screenshots of?  Well, now they've released a playable demo.  Grab it here.

NeoGeo X

Well, this isn't exactly retro, but I hadn't seen anything about this before... interesting news!



In reference to the NeoGeo X, I have received the following press release:

Amplitude Studios announces the development of 

Endless Space - Wings of Freedom for Neo Geo X

Haarlem, The Netherlands – April 1st 2013 - Video games developer Amplitude Studios is proud to announce the development of the firstNeo Geo X exclusive title: Endless Space – Wings of Freedom. This Endless Space spin-off will offer a brand new 2D horizontal shoot’em up experience to all Neo Geo X players. Dedicated to involving the gamers in the creation of their games, Amplitude Studios is once again inviting the community to follow and discuss the creation of its latest effort.

 

Amplitude CEO Mathieu Girard says: “We are all big fans of the SNK platforms here at Amplitude Studios, and we have always dreamt of creating something unique for the Neo Geo. The release of the Neo Geo X seemed like the perfect opportunity to make that dream come true. We know shoot‘em up fans have high standards of quality and we aim to live up to them. We’re very excited to bring the Endless Space universe to a new type of player, and we hope that success could even lead to a collector AES version of the game.”

Background story for ‘Endless Space – Wings of Freedom’:

Science has always believed that at any galactic core sits a black hole of tremendous size and density. Following a trail of Endless ruins, based on map fragments found on a lunar temple, a Pilgrim exploration group  is about to discover that this may not be the case... Hopping from planet to planet and system to system, the fleet must fight off increasingly large and powerful waves of automated defenders bent on preventing them from unveiling the truth.

Challenges and questions await the player as they drive toward the core: What secrets are the Endless hiding? What treasures – or horrors – lie in wait? How long can my thumbs keep this up? 

 

Features of ‘Endless Space – Wings of Freedom’:

• 1-2 Player old school 2D arcade action

• 4 different ships with their own weapons and playstyles

• Level, skill and power-up system inspired by RPGs

• Arcade, Boss, Endless Survival and 2P Versus modes

• Specific 16/9 and 4/3 modes

• Chiptune music by FlyByNo

 

About Amplitude Studios

Amplitude Studios is an independent gathering of experienced video game lovers (and developers) with a single goal: create the best strategy games! Based in Paris, the studio boasts an international team that has worked all over the world. Developer credits include franchises such as Battlefield, Rayman, XIII, R.U.S.E., Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter, Call of Juarez, Might & Magic Heroes, Might & Magic Clash of Heroes, and others. Endless Space, a critically acclaimed 4X turn-based strategy game covering the space colonization age, was the first game from Amplitude Studios. Working closely for years with players to share, discuss or compare ideas, the team is bringing the idea of community one step further with GAMES2GETHER, a new way for players around the world to participate in the creation of a video game! Read more at http://www.amplitude-studios.com.

 

About Iceberg Interactive

Iceberg Interactive is an independent video game publisher founded in 2009 by an international group of games industry veterans and is located in Haarlem, The Netherlands. While keeping its roots in the European retail games market, Iceberg has rapidly increased its focus towards the global digital games market, by building strong direct relationships with dozens of Game Portals. Staffed with avid gamers, Iceberg works closely with an international assembly of game developers, both midsize and indie. With a distinct focus on the strategy, action, simulation and adventure game genres, the company has garnered attention with acclaimed releases including Killing Floor,StarDrive,  Wings of Prey, APB Reloaded and Endless Space among its 50+ game arsenal - with more promising games in the pipeline.

DuckTales - Woo-ooh!

A NES game regarded by many as a masterpiece is being remade...

Still love that theme tune!! :-D

From Bedrooms to Billions

From Bedrooms to Billions

A scientific curiosity that sparked a revolution

NEW MOVIE TELLING THE STORY OF THE UK VIDEO GAMES LOOKING FOR SUPPORT ON KICKSTARTER!

Filmmakers Anthony Caulfield & Nicola Caulfield have announced they have launched a new Kickstarter campaign to assist with the funding of a new two hour documentary movie that tells the story of the UK Video Games Industry called ‘From Bedrooms to Billions’.

 

Last year they launched a highly successful campaign on rival crowdfunding site Indiegogo to raise funds to start the filming, with their movie even being placed in the top 12 movie projects of the year by the US site, the only non-US film to do so out of thousands of entries.

 

'From Bedrooms to Billions' is a two hour feature length documentary film telling the remarkable, true story of the British Video Games Industry from 1979 to the present day and how the creativity and vision of a relatively small number of individuals allowed the UK to play a key, pioneering role in the shaping of the billion dollar video games industry which today, dominates the modern world's entertainment landscape.

 

Featuring interviews with key contributors to the UK story in video game development, publishing and journalism from over the last 40 years, combined with compelling archive, ‘From Bedrooms to Billions’ is the first to attempt to bring this fascinating story together starting in the late 70's, spanning 'Thatcher's Britain' of the 80's and culminating in the dramatic shift of fortunes for the UK Video Games Industry by the late 90's and beyond. The film celebrates the importance of this era and why it has become such a landmark period in the history of British invention, creativity and industry.

 

Producer, Anthony Caulfield said “From Bedrooms to Billions has been a very personal project for us since June 2008. Having completed many documentaries we have always wanted to document the rise of the British video games industry and the incredible story that went with it. What’s so fascinating is how the UK computer scene was originally nothing more than a scientific curiosity which snowballed into something so vast. As we started putting this film together we uncovered so many incredible personal stories, these people had to literally make up an industry as they went, some were very successful, but others were not so, however collectively we felt it a strong story that’s long overdue and should make a wonderful movie”.

 

Fellow Producer Nicola Caulfield said “This film will be a great piece of nostalgic entertainment that documents an important part of UK history. This era is so often overlooked and not known by young British talent looking to enter the games industry, as the vast majority of UK children, school leavers and even students believe that gaming originated mainly from the US and Japan and have little to no knowledge that a British games industry even once existed. It meant a great deal to us that last year enough people out there wanted to see this film made and backed our original funding campaign to begin filming. However as is common with many films financed via crowdfunding, money is now needed to complete post-production, to secure archive footage, stills, music usage and clearances. Without these crucial elements the film would simply be 2 hours of talking heads and not the true and lasting documentary movie experience that the subject matter deserves. So we hope people will rally and help us make a permanent record of this golden era in British Industry”

 

The ‘From Bedrooms to Billions’ project went live on Kickstarter on Monday 25^th February and has just 60 days to reach its funding goal of £18,000.

 

To help with their cause as well as having the option to simply order a copy of the film on digital download, DVD and Blu-ray, some of the most famous UK Video Games makers and musicians have donated and signed various items that are being offered as funding perks.

 

The film’s trailer as well as further information on the ‘From Bedrooms to Billions’ Kickstarter campaign can be found at http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1195082866/from-bedrooms-to-billions

 

You can also visit the film’s official website www.frombedroomstobillions.com

 

Also the Facebook page for the film can be visited at http://www.facebook.com/pages/From-Bedrooms-to-Billions-History-of-UK-Video-Games-Industry-Movie/136306856397331

Gracious Film’s own website can be found at www.graciousfilms.com

 

About the filmmakers

Nicola Caulfield & Anthony Caulfield

Nicola and Anthony began their careers by making film shorts, ‘The Majestic Side’ and ‘Night of your Life’ which won high praise at the 1997 BAFTA Short Film Competition, before going on to make the comedy sketch show ‘Hals Hangover’ in 1999.

They were commissioned by the government of Macau to produce a film on the East Asian Games and have also worked with the rock group ‘Pink Floyd’ to produce a theatrical version of ‘Pink Floyd's – Pulse’  and a TV version of ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ which were both distributed worldwide.

 

Nicola and Anthony have also written, produced and directed various acclaimed documentaries for both broadcast and commercial release, including ‘The Story of The Young Ones’, ‘Alternative Rebellion: The beginning of Britain’s Alternative Comedy Scene’, ‘Doctor Who - Stripped for Action’ for theBBC, as well as ‘George Michael – FAITH’ and ‘Jeff’s Wayne’s The War of the Worlds’ for Sony Music. They have made two documentaries on gypsy punk group ‘Gogol Bordello’ for Channel 4 and produced the celebrated HD world music TV series ‘Soundcheck at Momo’s’. 

2010 saw the release of their first feature film, ‘Immodesty Blaize – Burlesque Undressed’, which had a worldwide theatrical release and then later on DVD and terrestrial broadcast worldwide.

 

In addition to this work they have always had a real passion to produce films that document the video games industry. Some of their work has included short films such as ‘The Newsfield Years’ which looks at 1980’s CRASH & ZZAP!64 video game magazine publishers Newsfield Publications and a making of on ‘Ant Attack’ featuring creator Sandy White. In addition they have been commissioned to document worldwide franchises such as an official 10^th anniversary film on Virtua Tennis (Virtua Tennis - 10 Years Gone), as well as the official Sonic the Hedgehog 20th Anniversary documentary titled ‘Sonic - The Birth of an Icon’ which was broadcast worldwide.

 

2012 saw the release of their films ‘Hitman – Burning Hope’ an in-depth ‘fly’ on the wall documentary account of the production of ‘Hitman Absolution’ and‘Jet Set Radio – A Rude Awakening’ a retrospective look back at the iconic game with the original creators and graffiti legend Eric Haze.

Museum of Computing Celebrates its 10th Anniversary

On Wednesday 5th February 2003 the UK’s first computer museum opened. The Museum of Computing, based in Theatre Square, Swindon, is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a robotics theme, and hosting a party on the 8th of July 2013, which is sponsored by redheadPR at Swindon Central Library.

There will be a new interactive exhibition of robotics at the museum, which will run for six months and a talk on state-of-the-art robotics sponsored by the information technology giant, Intel.

Other events will include a Lego robotics programming day at the museum, where people can drop in and have hands-on experience of programming to control a robot.

Simon Webb, the museum curator said “What an astonishing 10 years it has been. We have created a vibrant interactive museum, which is run by an enthusiastic team of volunteers. We have engaged with the community and assisted with the education of today’s generation of computer enthusiasts. Every year there are seismic changes in technology, and we have captured an impressive catalogue of hardware, documenting its incredible development. This is going to be a fantastic year for the museum with a huge amount of activity and growth. We look forward to exhibiting today’s cutting edge technological developments.”

In 2005 The Guardian newspaper listed the Museum of Computing as one of the top 25 museums to visit in the country, rivalling the Science Museum in London. Visitors to the museum have included Sir Clive Sinclair in 2006 and the Duke of Kent in 2007, and there is a constant stream of visitors from around the globe.

The Museum of Computing has been on television and radio, from BBC Breakfast TV, to Regional TV, America’s CNN and BBC World Service, and is used as a source for leading publishers and researchers in the sector.

There have been many exhibitions and events during the past ten years. These have included a human Pacman game in Swindon’s Wharf Green, which was projected onto a giant screen, and “Retro Gaming Days” exhibiting gaming classics like Super Mario, Space Invaders, Nintendo, Atari, and Sonic the Hedgehog.  The Museum has also hosted exhibitions of the Bombe and Enigma code breaker from Bletchley Park, and talks on various subjects such as “The History of the Calculator”.

The Museum of Computing opened its doors in 2003 at the University of Bath in Swindon, and thanks to the generosity of Intel and much goodwill from others, including local businesses, councillors, other museums and volunteers, it was able to build an excellent reputation globally.

In 2008 the museum faced a dilemma: the University of Bath closed their premises in Swindon, leaving the museum without a home, but rescue came when Swindon Borough Council offered the location of Theatre Square in the centre of Swindon.  The museum’s reputation was further enhanced in 2012 when it was awarded full accreditation from the Arts Council England.

Weekly events include a children’s computer club, where they learn to program, build robots and take part in various scientific experiments. This has proved so popular there is now a waiting list. The museum also runs the Swindon Hackspace where people with an interest in technology can get together and share ideas and resources to build, program and learn.

The Museum of Computing was the first dedicated computer museum in the UK, opening in 2003. It is a not-for-profit Company limited by guarantee and is run entirely by volunteers. The museum has a collection of over 3000 objects related to the history of computing and holds regular exhibitions andevents.

• The museum is in Swindon town centre at 6-7 Theatre Square, Swindon SN1 1QN
• Opening times are: Fridays from 10:00-16:00 and Saturdays from 9.30am to 5 pm. There is a classroom for talks, PC clinics, gaming events and school visits.
• Admission fees are: £5.00 for a family ticket, £2 for adults, £1.50 for Students and Concessions, children age 6-15 yrs cost £1, children under five enter free. All children under 14 must be accompanied by an adult. We welcome school parties and private groups by appointment.

The museum is sponsored by the following organisations:

• Clark Holt Commercial Solicitors (www.clarkholt.com)
• Intel UK (www.intel.com)
• Silent-G Design (www.silent-g.co.uk)
• Shepherd Consulting (http://www.shepherdconsulting.co.uk/)
• Dennis's Removals and Storage (www.dennissremovals.co.uk)
• redheadPR (www.redheadpr.co.uk)

The museum is supported by the following organisations:

• Wiltshire Branch of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT (www.@wiltshirebcs.org)

Torin's Passage

Just bought a Sierra adventure game from 1995, developed by Al Lowe of Leisure Suit Larry fame (but this one is a family game). Pretty cool so far!