Hey!

Happy Thursday! This week there’s been a plethora of retro gaming news, from new games for old systems, to scandals, and some tasty reissues!

I’ve been asked what the newsletter considers retro. For home consoles, anything up to and including the PS2 is fair game. For portable systems, anything up to and including the Nintendo DS will make it into the newsletter. We’re undecided on the PSP - what do you think?

Thanks for reading!

Benjamin @ Thumb Punks

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WATA Mess: More controversy in the world of game-grading and auctioneering: co-founder of WATA, Mark Haspel, has been selling graded games on eBay using his personal account, contradicting company promises. It is alleged that Haspel was hoping to drive up the prices of Atari 2600 games and, if he was using internal WATA data to do so, may be participating in insider trading. The plot thickens!

And in more retro game auction madness, some eBay sellers are receiving some very strange messages.

Summing Up: The Nintendo Game Boy is getting its own calculator, note pad, and clock apps. The GB Productivity Suite is fully-funded on Kickstarter, available in both physical and digital editions, with the promise of extra apps as stretch goals are met.

Wonder Boy: The Game Boy seems to be getting a lot of new titles at the moment, and this week is no exception: preorders for Tales of Monsterland open on Saturday! Published by Bitmap Soft and developed by JJ Games, this Wonder Boy-alike comes as both a standard physical cart and a special ‘Dark Edition’, limited to just 50 copies. You have six weeks to snap up either version, and there’s a teaser to help you make up your mind.

Drawn Again: Remember Hand-Drawn Game Guides? These unofficial books looked amazing, but have ended up being canceled owing to legal pressure. Rather than shaft backers by being unable to return their money, the people behind the tomes elected to end the Kickstarter early and refund everyone.

Boldly Going: Classic Star Trek games have landed on GOG. They include 2000 FPS Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force, its 2003 sequel, 1999 adventure Hidden Evil, 2001 turn-based strategy Away Team, and 2002 gems Starfleet Commander 3, and Bridge Commander.

Silhouette - The secret SNES Emulator developed by Nintendo (Modern Vintage Gamer, 13 minutes)

Silhouette was one the first SNES emulators, released in 1998. It was claimed to be a internal Nintendo project that was leaked to the internet. But was it all an elaborate hoax? MVG investigates.

How "Winners Don't Use Drugs" & The FBI Invaded The Arcade (Wrestling With Gaming, 11 minutes)

“It’s a phrase and screen seared into the memories of anyone who visited an arcade in the late 80s and 90s. An arcade staple that’s just as recognizable as Street Fighter 2, NBA JAM, or Pac-Mac. “Winners Don't Use Drugs.” Where did this screen come from and how did it end up on most arcade games from the 90s? This is the story of the Winners Don’t Use Drugs screen.”

The Nintendo Handheld You Never Knew Existed (Retro Dodo, 7 minutes)

“This is the Nintendo Micro VS System and older handheld from Nintendo that has a few interested things tucked away inside. Let's take a look!”

The Short Story of SEGA Visions Magazine (Erin Plays, 7 minutes)

“Today we're taking a look at the brief history of Sega Visions magazine. Was this Sega's answer to Nintendo Power? Let's find out!”

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Porno Hustlers Of The Atari Age (Kotaku, 45 minutes)

Very NSFW: a look at the lost age of adult games for the Atari 2600, involving everything from Ed Wood to Swedish erotica.

Why Make A New GBA Game In 2021? (NintendoLife, 7 minutes)

Creators of Goodboy Galaxy, the first new GBA game in 13 years, sit down to discuss the influences on their game.

Why Blowing Air Into NES Cartridges Is Gaming’s Greatest Urban Legend (Den of Geek, 8 minutes)

We’ve all done it: faced with a NES cart that won’t load, we’ll blow into the blighter, hoping some voodoo will rid the thing of dust and allow for a clean connection. Turns out it’s been a myth all along, as Den of Geek explains.

So good they saved the world twice (KimimiThe Game-Eating She-Monster, 11 minutes)

Kimmi turns their attention to beloved RPG sequel The Legend of Xanadu II.

Quiz Time: What was the full title of Street of Rage in Japan?

Answer at the end of this email!

USAAF Mustang (PS4/Switch, $7.99)

Another week, another retro horizontal shmup on Arcade Archives. Originally released in the arcades in 1990, it was ported to the Sega Genesis as Fire Mustang.

The Adventures of Panzer (NES, $12.00)

“Legendary retired raid leader Panzer and his trusty sidekick Blarghe attempt to reunite with their former comrades to undertake a momentous mission. Unfortunately, after 10 long years apart, the old crew may not be happy to see them! Join Panzer and Blarghe for five unique levels of incredible platforming action!”

Mirrors (English Patch) (NEC PC-88, $FREE)

“Mirrors is a visual novel (VN) game, originally released for NEC PC-8801 MC. The story, written by Hiroyuki Kitahara, tells the player a story of David Astley, the lead singer of promising “Eleno Vision”, who is being haunted by nightmares about mysterious man who is going to kill him. While he and his bandmates are preparing for their first tour of Europe, David’s dreams are getting worse and just on the eve of tour something ominous happens…”

Super Zelda Editor (SNES, $FREE)

Not so much a game, as a game studio, Super Zelda Editor lets you create your dream Link to the Past sequel.

• Happy 65th birthday to Zangief

• These Super NES and Virtual Boy books would look great on the coffee table

• Prototype footage of Streets of Rage 2 has been unearthed, featuring different enemies and more

• All hail these framed deconstructed retro consoles

• A bunch of Dreamcast prototypes and rare documents are up for sale

• Kirby was… er… different in Germany (NSFW)

• Keep a look out for this mosaic Mario street art

Quiz Answer: Bare Knuckle: Furious Iron Fist.

Thanks to John for the question! Have a better one? Send it over and we’ll put it in a future edition!