Pinfest: In the crazed mind of a Wizard

There are some great pinball players coming to compete at Pinfest tonight…   Richard (RGR),  Scotty (Cruiserman), Rob (TIN), Mitch (DataBeast), just to name a few.

But what goes on…   in the crazed mind of a top pinball player?

JOMG flipped a few questions to Edy Stevens (aka Dedrok) as he helped setup the machines for this weekend…

To Sir, with games. Karl Adamson.

(CC photo credit)

Videogames allow us to explore space, or race a Ferrari. To match shapes,  or solve ancient mysteries. To make Sonic collect drugs, or throw excrement at Kieron Gillen. And for the latter, we can thank Karl Adamson.

Karl’s a supply/substitute teacher in the UK, teaching Secondary English. In 2008, he made his own interactive fiction (text adventure) game and used it in the classrooom. It was a simple ‘haunted castle’ affair, designed to teach narrative techniques. The students enjoyed the experience and as Karl wrote in The New Statesman, he “realised he’d become irrevocably addicted to designing games.  [It] became both a hobby and an obsession.”

Demo release interview: Sir Arthur’s Spanish cousin

Spanish indie game maker ‘Locomalito’ has just released a demo of his latest ‘big’ game..  The beautifully Ghosts n Goblins-esque Maldita Castilla.  Time for a release-day interview!

But just before we do;  a quick recap.

Just over a year ago,  ‘Loco’ released his biggest game yet – the Gradius-like shmup Hydorah (interview, screenshots). Since that time, he’s released a number of smaller titles, like the Manic Miner-esque L’Abbaye des Morts and he vertically-scrolling gross-em-up Viriax. Both were fantastic, but I had the feeling that they were just entrees compared to the main course of Maldita Castilla .

Now, Locomalito spills the beans on Spanish heroes, dirty monitors, favourite arcade music and the levels you’ll never play…

What’s the (power)point? Synchronization.

So, who likes Powerpoint?

• Microsoft
• Crazies
• People who don’t get to speak to a crowd very often

[click for next slide]

Release day interview: Rocky Memphis

Previews? Reviews? Any blog can do that.

Here at J-OMG we love to give you release-day interviews. Something to read while you download a great new freeware game.

And today’s contestant is… Rocky Memphis & the temple of Ophuxoff.

World exclusive: The Politician who Pwns

Politician by Day, Rockstar after Dark - Photoshop by Gabe

Politicians love to bash videogames.

No matter where you live – you know it. From English Lords attacking Grand Theft Auto to Greek lawmakers banning coin-op arcades. From restrictive laws in Germany, to senators talking ‘murder simulators’ in the USA.

But 2010 is the year of impossible things. People playing Duke Nukem Forever. A brand new Pacman game in the arcades. And now, a politician who likes videogames. Mind you – he’s not just an MP… he’s the Tasmanian state premier. Ladies and gentlemen, meet the world’s most game-friendly politician, David Bartlett.

C’mon baby, do the Locomalito…

You gotta swing your hips now…
(Sorry. Right year – wrong smash hit)

1987.

Around the world, gamers are battling the Bydo empire in Irem’s R-Type. And in a little Spanish arcade… a young boy has made it all the way to the last level! (Respect! I never made it further than level 4. -Ed) He’s excited. He’s hitting the buttons. He’s screaming at the enemies. And all the while, some bemused teenagers are laughing at him. “What a loco-malito!” they said. (If your Spanish is a little rusty, it means “little sick mad kid”.)

JOMG – the interview!

Recently, we highlighted the new(ish) Aussie gaming podcast Game Taco.

Episode 5 of Game Taco is a roundup of Australian indie gaming writers into two parts:

Part 1: Ben Abraham from Ben Abraham dot Net
Part 2: Duncan Fyfe from Life Starts Here
& Gabe McGrath from Just One More Game.

Wait a minute, that’s me!

Fighter Captured – Galaga Phil – part 3

In part 2, we followed Phil’s climb up the score table for Galaga: Tournament in 2009. By late August, he’d claimed the world number 1, but was gutted, when the score was rejected. Eventually, he began training again, and now, as we start the thrilling conclusion…. his confidence had returned…

Friday October 2 was the last day of the school term. Phil was feeling pretty relaxed, so he decided to set up his new camera for a Friday night recording session. As always, he began by filming the inside of his cabinet, to show the dip switches were set to the correct ‘tournament’ settings. He waited for the machine to boot up, then put the camera on the tripod. He grabbed his next ‘lucky 20c coin’– marked ‘number IV’ and put it in the slot.

He hadn’t progressed far before two friends dropped in, asking if he’d like to drive to Canberra to catch a movie. He told them he’d be “up for it” – so they went home to get ready. As Phil approached the 1 million point mark, he asked his wife to call the friends, telling them that he was on a ‘good game’. Soon, at 1.1 million, he lost two of his five lives. He lost another spaceship at 1.7 million. Two lives remaining. “You reach a point of playfulness that is relaxing and no longer a struggle with the game.” he explains. “Then again, maybe I only get a good score when I’m in that mental state.” Phil’s friends returned, hoping the game was over. But the sound of digital warfare were still coming down the hallway. Phil had just entered another ‘challenging stage’. He felt bad for his friends, and promised that if he broke the World Record, he’d ‘shout’ them the night at the movies. It wasn’t long before the outcome was decided.

Phil Day & his lucky 20c number IV

Fighter Captured – Galaga Phil – part 2

In part 1, we traced Phil Day’s history with Galaga… through childhood, adolescence, his university years… Until a chance conversation led him to start competing for the world record. In part 2, he makes his claim for the number 1 spot, but things don’t go always to plan…

Once Phil had achieved world number 3 in Galaga, the word spread at Braidwood Central School. Some students thought playing such an ancient game was a bit dorky, but more & more started to think it was “pretty cool”. They’d leave messages on his Facebook page. Michael left this one: “Make me a Galaga shirt/badge, I don’t care what, just make it and I’ll wear it.” At this time, he’d taken Phil’s lead, and started some competitive retrogaming of his own. He was playing The Pit on MAME and soon managed world-class scores. The Pit is a pretty obscure title. It came out in 1981 – just like Galaga – and it’s the predecessor to games like Dig Dug, Mr Do and Boulder Dash. Phil calls it “The most difficult video game ever.”

The Pit - a very rare & difficult arcade game