Zapper duel

I don't know about you, but I have an irrational, nostalgia-fueled reaction to the NES Zapper. That's funny to me, because I barely used the orange-and-gray peripheral I owned back in the day. Sure, I played Duck Hunt every now and then, but it definitely wasn't among my favorite games of the 8-bit era.

All that said, I think I'd be drawn to Aaron Jasinski's "The Duel" (below) even if I didn't have an irrational, nostalgic reaction to the Zapper.

This acrylic-on-wood painting can be purchased (here) for a mere $1,100, by the way. To see more of Jasinski's work, check out his blog or his deviantart page.

(Via superpunch.blogspot.com)

Cement pie

It's been known for some time that the red Wii that just hit the streets in Europe would come with a copy of something called Donkey Kong: Original Edition (as well as copies of New Super Mario Bros. Wii and Wii Sports).

What wasn't known until a few days ago (yeah, I'm a bit late to the party on this one) is that Donkey Kong: Original Edition isn't, as some in the gaming press assumed, the arcade version of this Nintendo classic. It also isn't the Famicom/NES version.

Rather, it seems to be a combination of the two--or, more specifically, it seems to be the Famicom/NES version updated to include the arcade version's cement/pie factory level. (This version also re-introduces the animation that shows the titular ape picking up Pauline and taking her to the next stage.)

Here's a fairly horrible video of the whole thing in action:



Skip to the 58-second mark to see the previously absent (in the Famicom/NES version) animation and skip to 1:05 to see the cement/pie factory stage.

(Via gonintendo.com)

'It's not so bad in here'

Thanks to the vivid imagination of illustrator Keith Kuniyuki (aka Lucky1988), all of us old-school gamers *finally* get to see what happens after Pac-Man gobbles up a ghost or a piece of fruit.

For more of Kuniyuki's designs, check out his Flickr photostream.

10 video games that made my life gayer (#10): Rhythm Tengoku

How do I love this import-only GameBoy Advance title? Let me count the ways.

1) I love its hairy--and Arabian, apparently--onions and turnips.

2) I love its heart-shaped flowers and (smiling) star-filled skies.

3) I love its marching men in rabbit suits.

4) I love its safety-seeking rodents.

5) I love its tap-dancing primates.

6) More than anything, though, I love its amazing--and amusing--soundtrack.

For more reasons to love this Kazuyoshi Osawa-conceived game, check out Kurt Kalata's first-rate write-up over at hardcoregaming101.net.

See also: all of the previous '10 video games that made my life gayer' posts

This may be the most annoying game-related ad I've ever seen

To everyone who thought Nintendo of America's Dragon Quest IX TV spots (starring Seth Green) were lame: Please watch Nintendo of Europe's latest effort (below).



(Via tinycartridge.com)