Awesome Retro

’80s kids might remember Atari’s classic Star Wars arcade machine. The sit-down cabinet version always had a line at our local arcade, and it’s become quite collectible, with prices upwards of $7,000. Retro Recipes decided to replicate the machine using parts from 1upArcade’s $400 standup version of the game.

Ratalaika’s arcade game combines the strategic elements of a tower defense game with an old-school platform shooter. As your spacecraft is invaded by aliens, you must use a combination of turrets and handheld weapons to keep your level from being overrun. Available 6.12.20 on Nintendo Switch and Xbox One.

The 1994 point-and-click adventure game Beneath a Steel Sky is a cult classic. Now, a sequel is in the works, picking up the story of Robert Foster and his quest to discover the dark secrets of Union City. Naturally, the game’s environments are dramatically richer thanks to modern graphics tech. Coming to Steam and Apple Arcade.

This cocktail style arcade system is ideal for two-player gaming in both horizontal and vertical orientations. It’s got a 26″ flat screen display, a tempered glass top, and slide-out controller drawers on three sides. Comes loaded with 1162 ’80s and ’90s arcade games, and a pair of swivel stools. Measures 37″l x 28″w x 28″h.

Basic Fun, the guys behind the portable version of The Oregon Trail, comes another retro-inspired handheld game. This time, we get the educational mystery adventure Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?, complete with authentic sounds, graphics, and gameplay, and a case that looks like a tiny computer from the 1980s.

Go back to the 1990s with this fast-paced party game inspired by the iconic video rental chain Blockbuster. The game asks players to act out, describe, and quote scenes from 200 classic movies. Naturally, it comes in a Blockbuster VHS tape case. For 4 to 12 players.

Frustrated with the hyperconnected world of smartphones, engineer Justine Haupt designed and built a custom cell phone that replaces the modern touchscreen with an old-fashioned rotary dial. She’s had so many requests from followers that she’s open-sourced the design and is offering a partial kit so you can build your own.

If you grew up in the 1980s, Garfield was everywhere. The cynical, lasagna-loving kitty was licensed beyond belief. Snellby Reviews looks back at perhaps the greatest Garfield merch ever – Tyco’s phone that was shaped like the fat orange tabby, along with a strange story about the phones washing up along the coast of France.

Techmoan checks out another unusual gadget from the past – though this one only dates back to 2007. For a brief period of time, videogame company SEGA’s toy division made a pricey miniature grand piano with mechanical keys that move in time with the music. You could also play it yourself – if your fingers were really tiny.

Squirrel Monkey’s retro tech series “Wonders of the World Wide Web” ponders what it might have been like if eBay shipped on a stack of floppy diskettes, and ran on a late 1980s PC. It includes the most hilariously skeuomorphic user experience since Microsoft BOB.

Remember when Home Improvement was the biggest show on TV? Or Roseanne? Data Broz put together this motion infographic which recaps the shifting interests of the U.S. TV viewing public over nearly 70 years. We had no idea that The Beverly Hillbillies was so wildly popular. (Pro tip: play at 2x speed for faster viewing.)

If you can believe it, 2020 is the 40th anniversary of the release of Pac-Man. Numskull Designs is celebrating 4 decades of the dot gobbler with a special edition 1/4-scale arcade machine, a collectible gift set, pin badges, and socks. There’s also a limited-edition mini machine signed by Pac-Mac creator Toru Iwatani.

New Wave Toys expands their lineup of retro-inspired miniatures with a pair of detailed, working boomboxes. The M90 Mini is about 40% of the size of its muse, with dual 2.5″ speakers and 16w of amplification, while the teensy M90 Micro is a 1/6th scale replica that looks perfect alongside Replicade arcade machines.

Latvian gadget maker SlavaTech creates USB flash drives that are encased in authentic vacuum tubes. Each one has an LED that lights up when the drive is plugged in, giving it that warm, vintage glow. They come in 8GB to 256GB storage capacities.

Anyone who lived through the 1990s can tell you that watching movies on videotape was a decidedly lower quality experience than today’s HD and UHD technologies enable. Tom Scott met up with the team from Red Giant to learn how their software can make modern footage look like it was recorded on VHS.

Back in the 1970s, Pong was all the rage. But for those who didn’t have a spare TV to play the game on, there were handheld knock-offs like Blip. YouTube channel Tech Tangents takes a look at this unusual piece of gaming history, and shows off its clever mechanical innards.

Nebula-75 brings back the style of classic puppet serials like Thunderbirds and Fireball XL-5. Working with a remote pre- and post- production crew, a team of three from Century 21 Films is shooting the series in their small London flat, since they were living together when the lockdown started. Catch Episode 2 here.

“My heart is human, my blood is boiling, my brain IBM.” Styx’s 1983 track Mr. Roboto represented the pinnacle of overwrought concept rock. Yet there has yet to be a more appropriate song played by Paweł Zadrożniak’s electromechanical orchestra, the Floppotron and its servo-powered instrumentation.

The G-Boy is a handheld gaming system that can play classic Wii and GameCube games with actual Nintendo hardware. Shank Mods shows off the kit that lets you build your own portable using the actual circuit board from a Wii. GMan’s slick, professional-looking system simply trounces those that run emulators.

Nintendo fans, start your day with Paladone’s officially-licensed Nintendo Game Boy alarm clock. It looks just like the classic 8-bit handheld. Use its D-pad and buttons to set the time and alarm, which plays the chiptune theme music from Super Mario Land.

Kings Wild Project masterfully makes unique premium playing cards. Among their decks is this series, with a design inspired by VHS tapes. The card backs look like video tapes, their packs look like VHS boxes, while their fronts are a 1980s cyberpunk dream. Sadly, the affordable standard edition has already sold out.

Philip Lee and Classicbot expand their series of retro tech-inspired figures with an adorable take on the original iPod, named “iBoy.” This little guy comes with removable magnetic arms and legs, and a pair of headphones for him to wear. While there are no electronics inside of iBoy, he does have delightfully clicky buttons.

This tiny 6.5″ tall arcade machine features graphics inspired by Stranger Things‘ Palace Arcade, along with images from Namco games Dig Dug, Galaga, Galaxian, and Pac-Man. It’s fully playable, with those classic 8-bit titles, plus 16 Stranger Things-themed games.