Digimon Returns With 'Digimon Adventure Tri'

While Pokémon may have won the animated monster war in the 90's, I've yet to meet a single person who doesn't agree that the Digimon animated series far surpassed the Pokémon animated series. While the monsters were what kept me coming back as a kid, the inclusion of a consistent story line and characters that actually developed through the course of the series was what continued my love to do this day.

It was announced earlier last year that a new Digimon series would be airing this Spring as a brand new followup to the original two seasons. Unfortunately, like every anime I fall in love with before it's release, the series was delayed. It wasn't until yesterday that an official trailer and release date was announced. Pushing the followup until November 21st of this year. 

What's more surprising is seeing the followup series switched to a 6-movie format, something that seems to be somewhat trending (a la Berserk and Ghost in the Shell Arise). I admit to being a bit bummed I'll have to wait until November to see the first entry, but the trailer has me fully hyped.

Seriously though, seeing Omnimon in full animated glory is something to shed a tear at. 

Worth Checking Out - Toejam and Earl: Back In The Groove

I'm honestly at a loss for words for how ridiculously excited I was when I saw this pop up. Some of my fondest childhood video gaming memories were spawned from late night sessions playing ToeJam & Earl. The weirdness of the game's characters mixed with the ridiculously funky beats melded was an incredibly odd experience, but it worked and it was wonderful. The sequel, ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron, was an odd followup, but it still managed to capture the weirdness from the previous entry despite being a a 2D platformer.

After it's debut on the Sega Genesis, ToeJam & Earl vanished for nearly a decade, only to be revisited in the disappointing Xbox exclusive ToeJam & Earl III: Mission to Earth which almost guaranteed the series' demise. Thankfully, we now live in a world where crowdsourcing exists giving us the chance to bring it back.

ToeJam & Earl: Back In The Groove is looking to bring back what fans loved from the original and give it a modern twist. It's hard to believe it's been over 20 years since the game originally debuted, but that cheese 90's hip hop factor is still there to remind you of it's roots.

The Kickstarted just started today and it's already sitting at a healthy $22,000. There's loads of information on the game and some awesome tiers of backer rewards to choose from. Check out the Kickstarter page over here to drop a few dollars on this 90's re-awakening. 

Worth Checking Out - Strafe

It's sometimes a bit difficult for me to see clearly when I'm flooded with overwhelming nostalgia, but Strafe may have hit perfection with it's Kickstarter trailer. The amount of 90s cheese is amazing and already has me ordering a new fanny pack and a 20-year-old box of Ecto Cooler.

Strafe is a rogue-like with an FPS and resource gathering twist. With procedurally generated levels, players need to make the most out of gathered resources in order to survive the unknown levels. In a world with endless indie rogue-likes, it takes a lot to stand out, but Strafe definitely has the aesthetic to do so.

I'm really digging the art style, which sits somewhere between Doom and a voxel-style game with loads of bloody giblets. The dripping pixels of blood in the above gif really wraps it all up nicely.

The game, which currently has 28 days remaining in it's Kickstarter campaign, is sitting at a healthy $42,000 of it's $185,096 goal, but that doesn't mean it doesn't need your help. For more info and to help fund it's creation, check out the Kickstarter page over here. This game is looking totally radical.

Inside Me Is An Ambient Electronic 3D Trip

Using a 3D-scan and a photo of his body, Dmitry Zakharov has created an incredibly hypnotic and soothing piece of art. Using the surface of his 3D body, Zakharov takes a familiar piece and turns it into an incredible explosions of patterns and colors. Accompanied by the soft electronic ambience of Nils Frahm, Inside Me is a relaxing experience that takes you to the insides of Zakharov's body in an awesomely unique way.

The quick zooms, and the odd shapes created by inverting the 3D-scans create an interesting feeling of nostalgia, reminding me of the awesome, Beyond The Mind's Eye shorts from the early to mid 90's. Pop culture always seems to find a way to remix itself back into art, and the emergence of more abstract 3D animation like this makes me excited for the coming years. 

Mega64 Brings Back All The Nick Arcade Nostalgia For A New Generation

Interesting times are upon us folks, 90s television is no longer a memory of the recent past and the television we once watched has vanished from the minds of millions. We now have an entire generation that will never know the joys of Saved by the Bell, The Adventures of Pete and Pete, and most importantly Nick Arcade. Thankfully, Mega64 is looking to change that with Nick Arcade 2013, rebooted for an entirely new generation. It might not be the show you quite remember, but it's close enough, right?

While funny, this skit holds a lot of sad truths about the current focus of the video game industry. Where it once stood as an outlet for fun and goofiness that could be broadcasted on national television, it's slowly evolved into an over-budgeted kill fest. Of course there are still plenty of gaming gems being developed, the popular is no longer about just fun, it's about hollywood-esque entertainment. Now, excuse me while I go hole up in my room and rock myself to sleep with a pouch of Capri Sun under my Eddie Vedder poster.

Remember When : Nostalgia Bomb

On one hand it gets a bit tiresome to hear how great the 90s were, but on the other hand I completely agree and find myself crying in my bedroom listening to Eve 6 and Everclear on repeat. Yes, everyone enjoys reminiscing about their childhood, but there's something about the 90s that stands out above the rest, although that's probably because I'm a 90s kid myself.

With chiptunes by Anamanguchi's Peter Berkman and voice work by Heather Anne Campbell of Midnight Show fame, this is a match made in nostalgia heaven. Even the the pixel art is pretty damn awesome. Sure, there's a bit of cheese dripping from the corners, but isn't that what the 90s are all about?

Saved By The Bell Makes A Violent Comeback

While I'm not a fan of the overly poppy music presented by Miles Fisher, I can't help but get a great feeling when witnessing a Final Destination/Saved By The Bell crossover. Sure, The Final Destination wasn't the greatest piece of cinema, but watching teens die in horribly violent and creative ways is all I ever expect from the francise. I'm looking forward to turning my brain off for the the fifth installment, but I can't help but wish that New Romance was a feature length movie.

Kid Destroying Vogue Dance Routine, Circa 1991

ME AT NINE, PERFORMING TO MADONNA IN SUMMER '91! from Robert Jeffrey on Vimeo.


I could not stop smiling at how hard this kid nailed the dance routine to Madonna's timeless hit, 'Vogue' to an amazing green screen back drop back in the early nineties. I mean, this kid just gave it his all and did not give a damn whatsoever. The video is just a mesmerizing, magical artifact of the 90's that was recently unearthed to cheer us all up.