Konami Digital Entertainment, has announced the GRADIUS ORIGINS collection—this compilation will release on the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam on August 7 with digital pre-orders starting on March 27 (yesterday). GRADIUS ORIGINS is the definitive collection of the earliest games from the GRADIUS series—2D shoot 'em up classics that embody nostalgic gaming from the 1980s.

GRADIUS holds a special place in gaming history - not just for its side-scrolling spacecraft battles, but also for introducing a legendary cheat code. First appearing in the original 1986 Japanese FAMICOM version, the now-iconic code (activated once players pushed the ↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A buttons on their controllers) gave players a crucial power-up boost, and would later go on to become a staple in gaming culture. With this new collection, players can relive the challenge of GRADIUS while paying homage to the origins of one of gaming's most famous secrets.

Ken Kutaragi—the former chairman and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE)—met with retro PlayStation enthusiasts earlier this month. Almost three weeks later, news outlets have just familiarized themselves with Julian Domanski's happy (March 1) social media post. The Tokyo-based professional videographer/photographer spent some time with the "The Father of the PlayStation," as well as an extremely rare piece of console gaming history: "I never thought I'd see something so rare, but today I actually got to fondle a Nintendo PlayStation! The last one in existence was believed to have sold at auction for $300,000. Turns out the ex-CEO of Sony CEI has one in his closet. Ken Kutaragi, top bloke. Signed my PS1 too!" Back in the late 1980s, Sony and Nintendo started work on a CD-ROM version of the 16-bit Super Famicom (international SKU: SNES). Sony unveiled a prototype "Play Station" at the 1991 Consumer Electronics Show; apparently Nintendo's internal reference name was simply "SNES-CD."

Famously—a day later—the House of Mario broke away from this partnership and ended up working with Philips; resulting in the extremely underwhelming CD-i home entertainment system. Kutaragi and colleagues formed Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) in late 1993, and proceeded with the development of their first-gen proprietary 32-bit RISC-based console design. Ultimately, the PlayStation would far surpass Nintendo's N64 (expensive cartridge format) gaming platform in terms of sales by the late nineties. Since then, hardcore collectors have spent countless hours tracking down Nintendo PlayStation prototypes. Rumors had spread about only two-hundred units being produced back in the day. Domanski's mentioning of a $300K+ winning bid harkens back to another former SCEI executive; Ólafur Jóhann Ólafsson. As reported by VGC, the other example: "was once owned by the first CEO of Sony's games division." This BBC article does a good job of describing a bizarre chain of events; ending with Ólafsson's prototype being sold for $360,000, including a $60,000 buyer's premium fee. Kutaragi's variant seems to be in much better condition, and sports slightly different external markings—most notably; a strong blue PlayStation logo.

We are proud to announce that THE400 Mini—a modern day mini recreation of the pioneering home computer that first appeared in 1979, will be launching worldwide on 28th March 2024. Retro Games Ltd., one of the world's leading producers of re-imagined home computers, is proud to reveal that our modern day mini recreation of a pioneering home computer is now available to pre-order.

For those looking to relive the gameplay experiences of the 1970s and 1980s, included with THE400 Mini is our THECXSTICK, an enhanced, updated recreation of the iconic CX40 Atari joystick for that added touch of nostalgia. This new controller comes with an additional seven seamlessly integrated function buttons and USB, making it compatible with a wide range of platforms.

Atari - one of the world's most iconic consumer brands and interactive entertainment producers - announced, on April 19, the acquisition of more than 100 PC and console titles from the 1980s and 1990s. The collection includes notable games from the Bubsy, Hardball, Demolition Racer series, as well as the 1942: Pacific Air War, F-117A, and F-14 air combat series. Atari will seek to expand digital and physical distribution of the classic titles, create new games based on the IP, and explore brand and merchandising collaborations.

"This is a deep catalog that includes groundbreaking and award-winning titles from Accolade, Infogrames and Microprose," said Atari CEO Wade Rosen. "Many of these titles are a part of Atari history, and fans can look forward to seeing many of these games re-released in physical and digital formats, and in some cases, even ported to modern consoles." Atari also acquired the trademark to the Accolade and GTI brands. Accolade was a well-respected US-based video game developer and publisher from 1984 until 2000.