Orioto x Final Fantasy VII

True story: I've only spent about a week of my life playing Squaresoft's (as Square Enix was known at the time) Final Fantasy VII.

This happened back when I was a freshman or sophomore in college, by the way. I used to rent a PlayStation system plus a game or two from a nearby Blockbuster (if memory serves) on a fairly regular basis, and on one occasion Final Fantasy VII was my chosen pick-up.

Oddly, I barely remember anything about this 32-bit RPG other than liking the rather chunky look of its protagonists (in the overworld segments, at least) and its soundtrack.

Which means, of course, that I'm going to have to buy a copy at some point and give it a proper playthrough. Maybe after I finally get a Vita?

In the meantime, I'll have to make do with staring at Orioto's Final Fantasy VII-inspired poster, seen on the right.

Should you want to own one of these posters, by the way, you can do so by heading to redbubble.com. Don't dawdle, though, as apparently Orioto's only selling 50 of them (at $16.20 a pop).

To see more of Orioto's art, check out his deviantart gallery.

It's always a good time for Chrono Trigger fan art, don't you think?

Although I've never played through Chrono Trigger (yes, my head is bowed in shame), I watched my older brother play through enough of it back in the day to feel like I played through it myself.

Don't worry, I'm not planning to go through life without actually experiencing this classic RPG all by myself. In fact, I'd like to finally give it a go sooner rather than later. (The question is, should I opt for the SNES original or the DS port that was released a couple of years ago?)

In the meantime, though, I'll have to make due with staring at the awesome Chrono Trigger-inspired poster collection concocted earlier this year by artist Mikaël Aguirre (aka Orioto).

The one to the right, "Renaissance," is my favorite of the six Aguirre created, but all of them are pretty darn great, in my humble opinion.

You can see the rest of them, by the way, by heading over to Aguirre's deviantART gallery. Oh, and you can buy either posters or framed prints of each of the pieces at redbubble.com. Posters will run you between $16 and $42, while framed prints are $97 to $162.

Missing since 1986

You've got to love German artist Barto's latest creation--aka the cheeky "Have you seen this girl?" poster seen below (and here)--which can be found plastered in front of a subway map near you (should you happen to live in or around Düsseldorf).



Oh, what I'd give for Barto to turn this into a series featuring such luminous "lost girls" as Princess Peach/Toadstool and, er, all of the other pixelated damsels in distress that I currently can't remember.

And the winner of the Ashley Anderson-signed 'Cabana Fever' poster is ...

... Viewtiful_Justin.

Congratulations, Justin! I'll be in touch shortly (via Facebook) in order to nab your contact information. Or, feel free to preempt my touching (hmmm, that sounds wrong) by sending your info to me through whichever channels you prefer.

To all of you who didn't win this awesome poster: My apologies. Thank you, though, for throwing your hats into the proverbial ring. Also, best of luck next time--since you know I'll have another Gay Gamer Giveaway™ as soon as possible (i.e., as soon as someone sends me something I can give away).

One more comment for those of you who don't win: You may want to check out Ashley Anderson's society6 shop, where art prints, stretched canvases, stationary cards, iPhone skins and t-shirts featuring this image can be purchased for as little as $12.

See also: 'Ashley Anderson's Cabana Fever'

The Gay Gamer Giveaway™: Ashley Anderson Edition

Atlanta's one and only Ashley Anderson recently surprised me by sending me the poster--of his crazy, sprite-filled collage titled "Cabana Fever" (below)--that was showcased in a recent issue of Young Foxy & Free magazine.

As much as I love the poster, I thought it might be cool to offer it to one of you via the second Gay Gamer Giveaway™. After mentioning this idea to Anderson, he said he'd send another so I could keep one for myself and give one away. Awesome, huh?

A few details about said poster before I get to how you can win it: It's approximately 18 inches by 23 inches. Also, it's been signed by Anderson. Oh, and it'll be shipped rolled up and in a tube (as opposed to folded and stuffed into an envelope).

Winning this particular giveaway is just as easy as the last one, by the way. Just leave a comment below between now and the end of the day (let's say 11:59 pm Pacific Daylight Time) on Friday, May 25. I'll announce the winner of this oh-so-fabulous poster on Saturday morning.

Those who don't win may want to check out Anderson's society6 shop, where art prints, stretched canvases, stationary cards, iPhone skins and t-shirts featuring this image can be purchased for as little as $12.

See also: 'Ashley Anderson's Cabana Fever'

Ashley Anderson's 'Cabana Fever'

Remember how I introduced you to the "Alien Goose of Love" a couple of weeks ago? (If not, you'll probably want to check out this post before continuing on.)

Well, artist Ashley Anderson just shared (OK, so he shared it a few days ago) the full, final product on his Flickr photostream and, boy, is it a doozy. Don't believe me? Click on the image to the right and take a good, long look at it.

The piece's official title is "Cabana Fever," by the way, and it's currently featured (as a pull-out poster, I believe) in the latest issue of Atlanta's Young Foxy & Free magazine.

Sadly, I can't tell you at this time which games Anderson, who's also based in Atlanta, plundered to find the sprites that make up this crazy collage. I'll ask him to spill the beans--via his Facebook page--shortly, though, and then share the details here, OK?

Any of you who really like "Cabana Fever," by the way, might like to know that prints, stationary cards and iPhone cases/skins featuring Anderson's illustration can be bought via society6.com.

See also: Previous Ashley Anderson posts

In this post: Proof that any piece of pixel art that borrows graphics from TwinBee is awesome

I've been a smidge obsessed with the TwinBee series of "cute 'em ups" (you know, shoot 'em ups that are cute) ever since I first laid eyes on the PC Engine port of Detana!! TwinBee as a teenager.

Actually, I'd say I was only intrigued by the series at that time; I didn't develop a real interest in it until I bought Detana!! TwinBee--it was the first game I ever imported--and played through it a few times, and I didn't become fully obsessed with the series until I picked up--and loved dearly, I might add--Pop'n TwinBee and TwinBee: Rainbow Bell Adventure for the Super Famicom a few years later.

Anyway, I'm sharing all of this in order to show that I have a definite appreciation for Konami's series of cute, overhead shmups. I also have a definite appreciation for the poster to the right, produced by artist Ashley Anderson for the Atlanta-based band, Little Tybee.

Anderson says (on Flickr) that he sifted through nearly 7,000 pixellated images before settling on the ones that appear in this colorful illustration. If you're at all interested in hearing how the artist pieced all of those elements together, check out this blog post at your convenience.

'Collage of found game imagery'

The words above are used by artist Ashley Anderson to describe his latest creation (below), which appears to be a concert poster of some sort.

Although I generally consider myself to be an über retro-gaming geek, I feel more like a retro-gaming noob when I look at Anderson's poster. I mean, I know the images of Scrooge McDuck near the center of the poster were pulled from Capcom's Duck Tales title for the NES, but that's about the only one I can ID.

Do any of you know the origins of the rest of the poster's images?

(Via flickr.com)

'The Hyrule Fantasy'

The Legend of Zelda is one of my all-time favorite games. That's true for a number of reasons, but perhaps the most telling is that, even 23 years after it was first released, it never fails to pull me into its world of Keese and Octorocs and Stalfos.

Would that still be the case if the North American version of the game had been named Hyrule Fantasy: The Legend of Zelda, as it was when it hit the streets in Japan? I should think so, especially since I've always had a soft spot for the "Hyrule Fantasy" part of the Japanese title.

If any of you consider yourselves to be in the same boat, head on over to videogamesarerad.com and download the full-sized version of the promo poster above. (While you're at it, grab the Metroid one, too--assuming you're a fan of Yoshio Sakamoto's classic.)

Now, *this* is what I call viral marketing

The folks at Capcom USA recently took to the streets of New York City in an attempt to raise awareness about the release of Okamiden.

Will the following poster prompt New Yorkers to run out and purchase a copy of this chibi-fied Okami sequel when it's released stateside in late March? I'm not sure, but who really cares when it's so darn cute?

I especially like the part (on the right) that reads, "Likes: the sun, painting [and] peanut butter."

Pre-order: Okamiden

'Gaming heads to a new chapter'

That's the official slogan of this year's Tokyo Game Show. It matches up nicely, I think, with the event's "main visual," created by Japanese illustrator Ippei Gyoubu.

Gyoubu's past clients include Konami and Sega, according to gamesetwatch.com--which may be why the image above reminds so many gamers of the art featured in the Dreamcast classic Jet Set Radio.

(Via andriasang.com)