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13.06.08 - Handheld Update Goes Live - Finally! Of all the updates, Handhelds have to be the hardest work. Each game requires multiple pictures from different angles, which then need to be edited into strips. Each game needs to be properly tested, and then there is the level of detail required for each game’s condition, a couple of us in the office judging each box or insert before giving it a grade out of 10. It may all sound like good fun, and to some extent it is, but it’s also a big relief to get this huge update finally uploaded. Now, what has been added is pretty impressive, nearly doubling the amount of available handheld games on the site. Some of the games are particularly immaculate, and some are particularly rare, so there are quite a lot of expensive items, but we hope you’ll still enjoy having a good look at them. There is also a completely new section, ‘Handheld Bargains’, which has games and spares all at £10 or less. There’s not much in it yet, but we hope to have an additional update in the next week or so, just to top this section up. Ok, the updated sections are: LED Handhelds - Two additional pages of games, and loads of re-stocks of games sold out. Phew, more updates very soon. 21.05.08 - Nintendo Update Goes Live Finally our long overdue Nintendo update has just gone live. It includes many rare and exciting games, and makes the Nintendo section the biggest it has ever been. Those of you patiently waiting for the promised giant handheld update will be pleased to see the Game & Watch section has been included as part of this Nintendo update too. The sections with the biggest additions are: Nintendo Hardware Other smaller updates and sold stock removal in these sections: Nintendo NES (all sections) Handheld update is definitely the next one to go live, and i’m sure it will be well worth the wait! ;o) 09.05.08 - Hardware Updates Go Live They’ve been a long time coming, our Hardware sections have been crying out for an update for months. Well finally we’ve updated all the sections, bringing over a hundred new consoles, computers, peripherals and spares to the site. The full list of updated sections is: Atari Hardware More Updates coming Soon. 16.04.08 - HUGE Commodore Update I know what you’re thinking, another Commodore update!! Why do those Commodore fans get so spoilt! Don’t worry, we’ll be concentrating on other formats for the next updates. If you are a Commodore fan though, then you’ll be pleased to hear this is the biggest single update we’ve ever done on the section. We have spent the past two weeks adding literally Hundreds of games, both on C64 Disc and Cassette. There are lots of rarities too, in fact, we’re pretty sure you’ll find at least one game you’ve never seen before! There are new sections to handle the increase in C64 Discs, including Fighting, Driving, Shooting and Platform sections. Meanwhile these C64 Cassette sections have been added to: The Edge : Sega / USG : Tymac : Anirog : Live Wire : Ariolasoft : Terminal : Epyx : Lucasarts : Imagine : Cosmi : Scorpio : Supersoft : Llamasoft : Electric Dreams : Softek : CRL : Krypton Force : Firebird : Software 64 : Interceptor : System 3 : US Gold : Romik : Virgin : Level 9 : Anirog : Artic : Bug Byte : Melbourne House : Atari / USG : EA : Richard Shepherd : Gremlin : Micromega : Capcom / USG : Elite : Audiogenic : Adventure International : Microdeal : New Generation : Alligata : Domark : Quicksilva : Ocean : Activision : Hewson : Other Formats (now four pages!) : Task Set : Incentive : English : Commodore : Microprose : Imagine : Epyx : Plus Brand new C64 Budget Game section. More Updates Soon!! 30.03.08 - Jace’s Rant in Retrogamer If you have seen, and enjoyed the feature in issue 49, and would like Jace to get more space in the magazine, do write or email Darran.Jones@imagine-publishing.co.uk and let them know ;o) Check out our new and huge update of the Atari 800 section, which has now nearly doubled in size. It includes rare and exciting games on Cassette, Cartridge and Disc. There is also a new feature in the Magazine section of the site, as Sean Kavanagh returns to remind us how disappointing the Amstrad GX4000 is. More Updates coming soon. 18.03.08 - RARE Formats Update Our Updates are picking up the pace, with another huge update just going live. We plan to have a couple more big updates before the end of the month too! To Go Straight to the Other Formats section Click Here. Stay tuned for more updates very soon! 13.03.08 - Huge Spectrum Update Quicksilva : D&H : Artic : Automata : Vortex : Domark : Silver Soft : Mikro Gen : Odin : Gremlin : Ocean : Audiogenic : Firebird : Virgin : TV Games : Piranha : Ultimate : The Edge : Hewson : CRL : Melbourne House : CCS : US Gold : Imagine : Blaby : CDS : Software Projects : Scorpio : Lothlorien : Activision : DK’Tronics : Leisure Genius : Incentive : Terminal : Goliath : Infogrammes : Postern : Addictive : Protek : Atarisoft : Softek : Carnell : Gilsoft : Gargoyle : Richard Shepherd : Martech : Alligata : Electric Dreams : Accolade : Digital Integration : Ariolasoft : Arcade : Mirrorsoft : Visions : Elite : US Gold/Sega : US Gold : New Generation : Palace : Micromega : Argus Press : Level 9 : Cascade : Thor : Kryptronic : Other Companies : PSS : Bug Byte : Interceptor : Epyx : Konami. I may have missed a couple too i’m afraid, so it’s probably worth checking all the Spectrum sections if you’re a collector. There’s more good news too, as 100s of games have also been reduced in price. Our prices have always been based on rarity, so as we have more stock available, the prices do drop. You’ll even find a couple of games for a pound if you search hard enough. Not only has the Spectrum section been updated, but we’ve finally added some games to the ‘Other Sinclair’ section. Not many, but it’s a start. You’ll also find an entirely new section, Sinclair Bargains. This section is primarily for job lots, and budget games, but who knows what will end up in there in time! So, i’m afraid still no Sinclair magazine and book sections, but we do hope to finally get them added to the site before the end of the year. All that remains for me to say, is Click Here to go straight to the Sinclair Home Page. Regular followers of this site will know that we started back in 1995 as a magazine for collectors of videogames. When Retro Gamer first came out in 2004 it sounded the death knell to our own magazine, as its quality and size was completely incomparable. In many ways Retro Gamer was exactly the magazine we’d wanted and dreamed of producing. On the plus side, we did feature a little in both the original Live publishing and Imagine publishing versions of Retro Gamer. However this new partnership moves us closer together, and as the only retailer retro gamer recommends, it should help add additional thrust and credibility to our brand and shop. In other news, a new Jace’s Rant has also gone live today. Sega Megadrive (all game types) 18.02.08 - Commodore Update Complete Commodore fans may have noticed additional games miraculously appearing within the Commodore section over the past couple of weeks. Well, not we’re done, and our latest Commodore update has just gone live. Commodore 64 Disc (all sections apart from Utilities) Thalamus 04.02.08 - Retrogames In Loaded
You’ll find several exciting new LED and ‘Other’ Electronic games in the sections, as well as a return of a few favourites into stock, including Grandstand Astro Wars, MB Simon, and the mighty Speak & Spell. 01.02.08 Retro Hub Update We are pleased to welcome Sean Kavanagh to the Retrogames hub, with the first of his ‘8-Bit Graveyard’ features. It’s short and sweet, but funny, and his writing style blends well with the rest of the site. If anyone has any comments, or wants to try their hand at writing a feature, do email us. 26.01.08 Commodore Disc Update Hot on the heels of our Amiga update comes a big Commodore Disc update, lots of new and exciting games have been added, many with multiple pictures. More updates very soon. . 22.01.08 Finally a New Stock Update It’s been an incredibly busy January, but we’re finally back to normal, and our first stock update of the year has just gone live. This is an update to the Commodore Amiga section, we hope to add another Commodore update before the end of the week. As ever, keep in touch with this page for the latest updates, or emailus if you want to be contacted when a particular format is updated. 21.12.07 New Year Updates + NEW Rant We’ve been so busy during December that there have been no updates to the site. Apologies to everyone who’s missed them. The good news is that in the new year normal service will be resumed, with hundreds of new games ready to add. Click Here to go straight to it. 30.11.07 Christmas Rush The Christmas rush is upon us, and we are working really hard, making sure all our orders get out incredibly quickly, meaning you get your parcels well in time for Christmas. This increased level of sales has left a few holes in the inventory, Megadrive games are flying out, and we’ve now sold all NES/SNES/Megadrive hardware. The good news is that we will be adding new stock next week, with some more Megadrive and Nintendo games now waiting to go on. Earlier this week, we re-stocked a hundred or so Spectrum games which had previously sold out. New titles will be added in a huge update soon. 14.11.07 Bigger Update - Lots More Games We are working hard loading the site with games and machines, so while this is our busiest sales period, hopefully you’ll still be able to find lots of interesting items. Today we’ve just uploaded updates to a huge variety of sections. The updated sections are: Sega Hardware We are currently working hard to get parcels out as quickly as possible, to avoid getting them held up in the Christmas rush. We can also send special delivery and priority registered airmail overseas. While last posting dates for Christmas are announced in the next few weeks, most years we manage to get parcels delivered to buyers right up to the last week. 12.11.07 General Update - More Hardware More hardware added today, the updated sections are: Sinclair Hardware 09.11.07 General Update - Handheld & Hardware Another update, as the sales boom continues. We’re struggling to keep up with demands on hardware, but have managed to get a few nice consoles added to the site today, as well as a few important handhelds. Updated sections are: Atari Hardware 02.11.07 General Update - Atari Lynx & Neo Geo Todays update includes games and hardware for Atari Lynx and some more Neo Geo Carts. The updated sections are: Atari Lynx 30.10.07 General Update - Playstation & 3DO Another update today, this time on mainly on 3DO and Playstation. The updated sections are: UK Playstation One More updates soon. 29.10.07 General Update - Sales Rush Today we have just uploaded the first of several general updates coming up in the next few days. This one is primarily for Nintendo formats, adding lots more games and removing sold items. The updated sections are: Super Nintendo Boxed Over the years Retrogames has tended to build stock throughout the year, and then sell larger quantities in the last couple of months. Sales are already picking up in the run up to Christmas, with many of our consoles selling in the past couple of weeks. If you’re looking to buy games or machines for Christmas, I would say to save disappointment later, buy them as soon as possible. We have currently sold out of NES consoles, and only a couple of Super Nintendos are left. While we are hoping to have a few more consoles listed before Christmas, its likely that these will not be around for long. If you are looking for a particular machine or game, it is always worth emailing so we can alert you when stock is available. 23.10.07 Email Problem & Site Problems now Fixed We have now fixed the problem we had with our email messaging, so everything should be back working as normal. If you encounter any problems at all with the site, do let me know, as it’s often hard to find faults without customer feedback. If you’ve been effected by these problems, huge apologies, and thanks for your patience. 23.10.07 Site Problems Sorted But New Email Problems Well, thankfully the site is back up to speed, and all the sections are working. However, we currently have a problem with our SMTP email server. It isn’t emailing confirmations of orders, and I am not getting any emails sent through the site message system. Orders are still being processed fine, and I am personally emailing all buyers. However, if you’ve sent a question in the past 24 hours, we haven’t receieved it. If you can email directly at retrobloke@aol.com we’ll get straight back to you. In the meantime we’re working with our service provider to fix the problem with emails, and i’ll keep everyone updated through this news page. Some Site Problems We currently have some problems with the shop part of the website, it’s either running very slowly or giving dead pages. Please be patient, we are trying to fix the problems with our server. Normal service should be resumed very shortly. 19.10.07 NEW Playstation Section Complete Finally the Playstation gets a dedicated area. It may not match the quantity of formats as Sega or Nintendo, but we have introduced dedicated sections for Playstation formats and added hundreds of games and hardware items. The new sections are. There is a new Playstation Bemani section, especially for those fantastic Japanese music games. There are splits in the Japanese PS1 and PS2 sections, as they bulge with new stock. Now they are divided by category like other big sections. 09.10.07 Amiga Update To go straight to the Amiga section, click Here. As promised, our huge Sega update has gone live today. There are over 500 new games and hardware items to be found, as well as new sections for Sega Memorabilia and Sega Magazines. The complete list of updated sections is: Sega Hardware 25.09.07 MASSIVE Nintendo Update Goes Live We have said it before, but this really is the biggest section update so far. It’s taken a lot of work, so please do check it out. In particular the updated Hardware section has some really interesting items, and the new Nintendo Memorabilia section is a lot of fun too. The addition of Gamecube is something we’ve pondered on for a while. With Playstation 2 already on the site, this is the second of the previous generation consoles to be added. I guess now we’ll have to consider opening an Xbox section. There are a total of twelve new sections, these are: Super Famicom Boxed Strategy Games Of course, its not just the games in these sections which are new, we’ve updated virtually every other Nintendo section too, with over 500 new items! The updated sections are: Sega fans, don’t feel cheated. The ‘Huge Update’ is heading to your section next, and it looking to be even bigger than the Nintendo one! For More news keep an eye on this page. 13.09.07 Vectrex Section Finally Added! That most popular of retro consoles finally gets its section opened. Thankfully it was worth the wait, as it is the biggest section we’ve ever had for the Vectrex. Click Here to go straight there. Only a few empty sections left now, of which ‘Other Sinclair’ is the most obvious. Some other sections, like Interton, TI99 and Hanimex only include hardware so far, Fairchild is also waiting patiently. More updates soon. 10.09.07 Super Nintendo UK/Euro Unboxed (all categories) 28.08.07 Revamped and Updated Commodore Section! The full list of updated and new sections is: Commodore 64 cassette 13.08.07 Huge Atari Update - We’re Making Progress! Apologies for the three week delay between updates. The next update will be quicker! Our new update concentrates on Atari, and updates all the Atari formats, adding hundreds more games. It also pushes the number of different items on the site to just over 6000. We’re far from finished though, there’s always tons more to add! The updated sections are: Atari VCS Boxed And while i’m writing... Thanks to everyone who has written with such warm words of support, and appreciation of the site. I really appreciate it, and whether you choose to buy from us or not, i’m just glad it helps bring back such good memories. Let the gaming continue... 20.07.07 Huge Handheld Update Videopac, CDi, Acetronic, Other Sega, Grandstand - More updates soon... 29.06.07 Famicom Finished and Calculators Added Calculators have finally been added to the site. We do have a few more to add, but these will be part of the ‘Huge’ handheld update we have planned for the month ahead. It’s probably been the biggest month for updates so far this year, June has seen the following sections added to the site: Amstrad CPC More formats were added to the site tonight. The Amstrad CPC section is now listed, a new section for the Amstrad GX4000 has also been added. Work on adding the Famicom section has begun, with boxed games now listed. We will be adding the unboxed Famicom games in the next couple of days. In addition to the added categories, work has started on adding some basic information for each format. First section to benefit is Nintendo, with all formats now with basic information about each machine. Eventually information like this will be added to all sections within the site. This is in response to questions regarding compatibility of formats, and will hopefully make it easier to browse. As ever, more updates soon... 25.06.07 This week we’ve been working on the site mechanics. The site is getting full enough now to start chasing some hits. This means we’ve updated lots of the html titles of particular pages to make them more search engine friendly. All very dull, but the upshot is that if you have bookmarked specific pages of the site, they could now be broken, giving you a dead page. Don’t worry, the page is still there, you’ll just need to find it again from the main pages. Silly really, considering we actually have 90% of our traffic from bookmarks! Hopefully you’ll all forgive us and re-create your bookmarks from the newly named pages. It is possible that the changes could lead to some site issues, though i’ve encountered none when testing. If anyone does have problems accessing the site, or any particular page, please get in touch via email. Huge Sega Update Another huge update has just gone live, this time covering the Sega formats. There are over 200 new additions, including many Megadrive rarities. The updated sections are: UK Sega Megadrive More updates coming soon!! 18.06.07 Commodore CD32 , Oric & Dragon Go Live Updates are speeding up, with Commodore CD32, Oric and Dragon formats going live this afternoon. All three sections are pretty good though we say it ourselves, the CD32 section also includes a CDTV subcategory, though we only have four titles for the ill-fated machine at the moment. Thankfully this puts games into every section for Commodore formats. Don’t worry though, there are still lots more Commodore games to be added in all sections in the coming weeks. 13.06.07 Colecovision Goes Live One of my favourite consoles now has a big section on the site. In fact, the all new Colecovision section offers a far bigger selection of games than we’ve ever had before, with nearly 150 items available. To go straight there, Click Here. Like the Intellivision section, you’ll find seperate sections for Coleco Hardware, Boxed games, Unboxed games, and even a small Coleco Adam section. More updates very soon! 12.06.07 C16 & Intellivision - New Formats Push us over 5000! Next on the hit list are the Colecovision and Commodore CD32, I always view the Coleco and Intelli as companion consoles, so it doesn’t feel right to have one listed on the site without the other. CD32 will complete listings for all the Commodore formats. Also in the pipeline are two big updates of current listed sections, a major Atari update covering all formats and another big Sega update - which still remains our most popular section. Remember that all our games are sold on a strictly first come first served basis, if you want to get in first, simply email us and we’ll add you onto our updates list, you’ll then be emailed when your preferred format/s are updated, giving you the jump on rival collectors. Huge Spectrum Revamp Those of you who thought the gap between updates was growing can rest assured we have been hard at work! This has been a very complicated update, changing the format of the Spectrum section. Previously the Spectrum games were arranged by the year and genre. While this looked great, it didn’t flow very well when browsing for games. It’s been bugging me for a few months, so as the Spectrum was ripe for a stock update anyway, the entire section has been changed. The process has also begun of adding some information about each company. Only a few at the moment, but I hope to add some basic company information for all the sections in time. All utilities and Educational software have been moved into their own sections away from the games. The good news doesn’t stop there!! There are several hundred more Spectrum games added to the section, including many of the titles we had sold out of, and lots more rare titles. We have also updated our ebay shop today, adding 150 more Spectrum games. The Spectrum section was the first major addition to the new site, so has been waiting for a periodic update the longest, I hope everyone is pleased with it. The only problem now is, the ‘company’ order layout works so well, I guess we’ll have to do it for the Commodore 64 soon too!! 30.05.07 Atari ST Section Goes Live Sorry for the delay between updates, we’ve had a hectic few weeks clearing some storage space so we can expand Retrogames even further. Today the Atari ST section has gone live. This pretty much completes all the Atari sections, so you’ll find something in all of them now. There are still lots of updates to the sections waiting in the wings, but at the moment we need to fill a few more format gaps. Next we move on to Commodore, hopefully adding the CD32 and C16/+4 sections next week. Remember, if you want to be emailed when particular sections are updated, just emailus and we’ll put you on the database. 09.05.07 Sega Master System Section Now Open The Sega Master System section has now gone live. Its a pretty big section, split into game types. Most importantly, it marks the completion of the Sega section. There is one more category to add, ‘Other Sega’, which will include SG1000 and SC3000 games. These will be added at a later date, but for now its nice that we have all the major Sega formats now included on the site. New Email Updates As we edge ever closer to getting the site complete, we are now emailing previous customers when a particular section gets updated. At the moment, we are only tracking the sections people are interested in by what they have bought, which isn’t perfect. Whether you are a previous customer, or just a fan of the site, if you would like to be emailed when the site has been updated, simply emailus with your preferences and we’ll add you to our database. If you can stipulate which formats you are interested in, this will stop you being bogged down with unwanted email. To make this simpler, if you can let us know from these options: Sega : Nintendo : Commodore : Sinclair : Handhelds : Atari : Other Formats : or EVERYTHING! 08.05.07 Ebay Shop Update Another 300 games across many formats have been uploaded to our Ebay shop. To grab yourself a bargain, Click Here 04.05.07 Multiple Section Updates UK SegaMegadrive 01.05.07 PC Engine Section Now Open The PC Engine has now gone live. It includes games on HuCard and CDRom. We have also updated several other sections with new games today. The updated sections are: PC Engine 30.04.07 Huge Update! The reason for the slightly larger gap between updates is that this one is HUGE! It doesn’t introduce any of the missing formats, but adds content to most of the established ones - which are also the most popular ones of course. The updated sections are: NES Boxed Some sections have been substantially added too, other with just a few new titles. Keep checking for new updates, we’re working hard to get the site updated as quickly as possible, and there are still thousands of items to add! There has also been an update to our Ebay shop, including Commodore 16, Atari 400/800, BBC/Electron and Vic 20. Another Ebay shop update is planned for tomorrow night. Click Here to go to our ebay shop. 17.04.07 Commodore Amiga Goes Live The Commodore Amiga section has now gone live. It’s a pretty huge section too. There are seven pages of games in total, and at the moment they are not in any particular order. We will arrange the games by genre at a later date, but the most important thing for now is to make them available. Have fun checking them out! 16.04.07 More Hardware and Sega Update Another regular update of the site content has just gone live. It again adds more hardware (when will this hardware section ever be complete!!). We’ve also updated the Sega Megadrive section, the increased number of games adding an extra page to the ‘Movie & TV Licenced’ section. All Megadrive sections have had games added, and there are also a batch of new games added to the Sega Genesis section. The full list of updated sections are: Sega Megadrive (All sections within it) 10.04.07 Written Content Update for the HUB We have finally updated the Magazine/Hub section of the site. It has been a long time coming and the update isn’t particularly big, but it does feature: New Nintendo Wii Feature 03.04.07 Biggest Hardware Update Yet! Another huge hardware update has now been uploaded. It covers a huge amount of sections, and includes peripherals, joysticks, spares and lots more. It’s a relief to now have the bulk of the Hardware listed, it’s a very lengthy process testing all the items, taking multiple photos, and then writing about them. It will be a breath of fresh air to get back to listing games! The size of this update has meant several new pages, there are now two pages of Sinclair Hardware, two pages of Sega hardware, and a mammoth three pages of Nintendo hardware. The full list of sections updated today are: Acetronic Keep in touch with the site, the next update will be soon. 20.03.07 Big Hardware Update Added A big update today sees many computers and consoles added to the site. It covers such a broad range of machines, that it has forced us to open four new categories in the ‘Other Formats’ section. This is the list of all the sections with new stock added: Commodore Hardware Mattel Aquarius One more large hardware update, and that should be the bulk of our hardware on the site. Then it is back onto the games, with many more formats yet to add. Apologies again for lack of updates on the ‘Magazine’ section of the site, i’m afraid getting all our stock onto the site is the current priority. More updates very soon... 13.03.07 New Section - TV Games Added A rapid new update, including a brand new section. There is a new sub-section in the Other Formats category, titled ‘Other Hardware’. This includes two new sections, TV Games, and Joysticks. Joysticks will be added in future, but TV games is up and running right now. To go there directly Click Here. There are more updates today in other sections too. Sinclair Hardware 12.03.07 Major Update + 3DO Goes Live A big update this week. Not only is the 3DO section now complete, but we have updated most of the hardware sections. There are updates in the following sections: Spectrum Hardware + Two new sections More soon, so please keep an eye on this News page for the latest update information. 06.03.07 Commodore Vic 20 Section Now Added The gaps are still being filled, the Vic 20 section has now gone live, with two sections, one for Cartridge games and one for cassettes. Click Here to go straight there. 27.02.07 General update Another, bigger update, of various sections. These are, Atari Harware, Sega Hardware , Neo Geo, LED Handhelds, LCD Handhelds, Calculators, Game & Watch, and Other Electronic. 25.02.07 General update A small update this week, primarily including some new UK Megadrive games, some boxed Game Gear games, and a couple more bits of Atari Hardware. 18.02.07 Atari Hardware Section Added We have just uploaded the new Atari Hardware section. It’s mainly VCS/2600 stuff at the moment, but will grow to include more soon. There are also a few other hardware additions in other sections. Click Here to go straight to the new Atari Hardware section. Also, apologies for the lack of new content in our online magazine section. At the moment, getting more stock onto the ‘for sale’ side of the site is most important, hopefully in preperation of a press relaunch of the site in the Spring. 07.02.07 BBC & Acorn Electron Go Live One of the biggest sections left to list, the new BBC & Electron section is now updated on the site. It includes four pages of BBC software, a new BBC Disc section, a BBC & Electron dual format section, and a two page Electron section. Click Here to go straight there. 05.02.07 MSX Section has now gone LIVE The first new section of the year has been added to the site. The new MSX section includes both Cassette and Cartridge sections, both of which spread over two pages. Click Here to go straight there. 31.01.07 Site Fixed and First Stock Update of the Year! Finally the shop part of the site seems to be operating properly. Extensive testing over the past week, and it has yet to go wrong, so we head into a more technically secure future. The net result of this new found stability is our first stock update of the year. Those waiting for some of the other formats to be added, i’m afraid they haven’t been yet, but we have completed a new update of the Handheld section, including an entire new page of LED Tabletops, plus new games in the LCD, Game & Watch and Other Electronic sections. Now, technical issues over, we can get on with loading the site with more formats. Check for new updates in the next week. 22.01.07 Still got problems ;o( I have been fighting all day after problems again returned over the weekend, instead of bouncing out of the directory, the crazy program bounced right back into the original website. Confused - it is likely i’ll have no hair if it carries on like this. Have fixed it again (9.50pm) and is running fine as I write, but wouldn’t be surprised if it has all gone pear shaped again by morning. I’ll keep you all informed. The only current problem is with the links on the right of the retrogames.co.uk home page (the instant searches), these are all currently dead, but will be re-instated with our new front page by the end of the week. Thanks for reading! and sorry if you’ve been desperately frustrated by the problems (like me!) 18.01.07 Shop should now be fixed - fingers crossed! At this point, if you notice any problems, poor search results, or broken parts of the shop, please email us so we can get on and sort it out. Many thanks. 17.01.07 Updates Hampered by Site problems Despite our best intentions, there are still very few updates going onto the site. This is primarily because there are still sporadic problems with the shop section, which despite lengthy fixes, still seem to hinder the way the site works. Regular visitors may have noticed that occasionally the section links down the side bring up dead pages, and that searches using the search box send the whole site haywire, bringing back results in a large text, and then showing the items without pictures, and completely odd and garbled check out pages. Suprisingly, i’ve had very few complaints about these problems from visitors, so don’t know if people are just leaving the site frustrated, or if the problem is less common than I think. The last episode of it happening was around 9am this morning, but everything is fine again as I write. If the problem was constant, we could work on fixing it, however, you can be half way through working out a new way of doing things, of deciding whether to change a variable, when you check the site and, you guessed it, all is fine. Grrrr. In a final attempt to fix everything, we will be moving the entire games catalogue section to a new directory in the next couple of days. This shouldn’t lead to any down time, as the new directory will only be linked once all is up and running, but if you are a regular visitor and have noticed these problems, it would be great if you could email to let me know. Once we’re all running and stable, the site will finally start getting filled up. Thanks for your patience. 6.12.06 Handhelds Almost Complete Apologies for lack of an update for the past couple of weeks. This has been thanks to the large amount of work going into the handheld section. Thankfully, the work is now complete, and we have a really nice section of LED , LCD , Game & Watch and other Electronic games. Calculators are still to be added, which should happen in the next week or so. On the ‘Hub’ side of Retrogames, Jace’s review of the Playstation 3 is live, and a new Rant is promised in the next few days. A new letters page will also go live next week. Thanks to everyone for their kind comments on the site, we are working hard to make it even better! 14.11.06 Handhelds Added (Some) The handhelds have started to go on. So far, only LED Games and Other Electronic games have anything in, but more will be added tomorrow - LCD Games and Game & Watch 7.11.06 Updates coming - Slowly A new update of the site has just gone live, there isn’t a new format included, but we’ve added a lot of hardware items to the various hardware formats. Highlights include a 3DO Console (the only item in the current 3DO section), Commodore 64 machines, a CD32, more Nintendo hardware, more Sega hardware and a boxed ZX Spectrum. Any comments on the new site, complaints, or problems using the site, please email us. We take all your comments very seriously. More updates coming soon - some handhelds next! PHEW - We’re Open! - 11:59 31.10.06 It’s been an incredible month of intense work, but the site is actually up on time today, as promised, and slightly ahead of schedule with regard to our stock levels. We have tried to concentrate on the most popular sections, and there are still thousands more items to add, but these are the sections which have been relisted into the new site so far: ZX Spectrum You will also find the odd item in some of the other sections, as you’ll see, all the sections are there, just that many are empty. All the games on the site are available to buy. Hardware & Handhelds KNOWN SITE PROBLEMS To put it simply, it’s possible the item you want has just been sold to someone else - it shouldn’t happen very often - very rarely did two people want the same thing at the same time on the old site, and we’ll update quickly - far quicker than the old system. But it’s still possible. 2: Disappearing Pictures 3: No return to site after receipt And that’s it for today. Keep an eye on the site, enjoy browsing the new shop and fingers crossed our servers don’t blow a gasket (we’ve had hundreds of mails from people looking forward to it going live - thanks for your support ;o)) Remember to Check again tomorrow night (1st Nov) for more Hardware items added. FINALLY THE SILENCE IS OVER! 24/9/06 After many months of little changes to the site, we can finally reveal that our new look site is imminent. Let’s be honest, as comprehensive as our stock is, as good as our customer service has always been, this website has changed little since it first went live back in early 1998 - yes, eight years ago. While most other games sites have had proper shopping facilities since they began, our reliance on email confirmation of orders has slowed everything down, and made many new customers (understandably) reluctant to buy from us. The manual nature of how we currently list our stock also creates problems, with updates required not just to list new stock, but to remove sold stock too. Well finally, things are going to change! So What’s New? Probably most important is the new shopping environment. A very simple shopping cart and check out system, but most exciting is the new Search Box. Considering we stock more retro games and machines than anyone else, the search box is something which the site has been desperate for, for many years. Further to that, the new item listing format gives us more room for adding information about each item, and more pictures to. Every item on the new shopping site will have at least one picture, with pop up boxes for even more information and pictures on the most exciting items. Other shopping improvements include an automated shipping calculator based on the weight of the items, automated email confirmations of orders and payments and the ability to save your details as a cookie so you don’t have to put your details in again the next time you order. It’s not just the shopping part which is getting updated though. The new Retrogames Hub will eventually give you information on everything you ever wanted to know about retrogaming. For now it will offer some previously written articles on machines and games, Jace’s Rant, and some other interesting things. So, will all this be ready on the 1st of November? Well, no, probably not, but the new site will go live. The huge quantity of Retrogames items and their complete re-listing in the new format is a massive job, but we should have a solid starting point which we will continue to add to into the new year. Numbers are difficult at this stage, but it’s hoped at least 2,000 live items will be available on the 1st of November, with 10,000 available by next Spring. We will leave the old catalogue available for viewing until the new site is fully loaded, meaning you will still be able to enquire about items which may not have made it across yet. As for the reading content of the Retrogames Hub, this is a longer term project, but there are several new features already set for launch. So, put the date in your diary, and let’s remind everyone that we were the first ever Retrogames seller, and help us get back on the map. 7th June 2006 Parts of Site Not Working - Work has begun on rebuilding the site, you should see old parts back online soon!! 24th May 2005 Megadrive Update Over 50 new titles added to our Megadrive sections, plus over twenty price drops as multiples have come into stock. 2nd February 2005 Major Update Over 500 new accross over 20 formats. Formats which have had additional games added are: Super Nintendo : Commodore 64 Cassette : Atari ST : Amiga : Commodore 64 Disc : Super Famicom : Nintendo NES : US SNES : Commodore 16 : Atari XL/XE : Memorabilia : Nintendo 64 : Dreamcast : Mega CD : Playstation : Megadrive : Amstrad CPC : Calculators : Game Gear : Spectrum : Atari VCS : Atari 7800 : Other Sinclair : Sinclair Books : CD32 : 3DO : Mastersystem : BBC : CDI : Gameboy 1st January 2005 Happy New Year to All our Readers, Customers & Friends 7th November 2004 New Updates for ZX Spectrum and Commodore Amiga Over 200 new titles added in total, including some Amiga classics, and some Spectrum super rarities, like Bubbler by Ultimate, and Shadow of the Unicorn, complete with 64k Expansion Pack. 10th September 2004 Huge Site Update - Even bigger than the last one! Site update time finally arrived, and virtually every section has new games in it. Some sections are nearly twice the size, notably Atari ST and Nintendo 64. Check it all out while it’s fresh! 13th June 2004 Complete Site Stock update - over 1000 New Games added Looks like we just can’t stop growing, with tons of new games added across the entire site, including many rarities, there are hundreds of new pictures too. If you happen to be looking at this site on someone elses computer and don’t have regular access, we have a brand new paper catalogue available, if you are in the UK simply send £1 with your address to the retrogames address. 20th May 2004 Megadrive Update Over 70 new games added the Sega Megadrive section, the majority added with pictures. 17th May 2004 New updates - about time New Hardware added, including some really nice Sega and Nintendo items. Every section in the Hardwares Mini-site has been updated. Check the Konix Multi-System in the “Other Consoles” Section. 24th March 2004 Stock Updates - NES / SNES / SATURN + Major updates today of the Nintendo NES, Super Nintendo, Sega Saturn and Super Famicom Sections. Also smaller updates of the UK Megadrive, Jap Megadrive, Gameboy, Mastersystem, Nintendo Famicom, Playstation, PC Engine and Neo Geo. Around 250 new titles added in total. 5th March 2004 Major Stock Updates: Majore New updates of Neo Geo , PC Engine , Nintendo Super Famicom, Sega Saturn sections today. Also updates of Spectrum, Atari XL/XE, Atari ST, Super Nintendo, Sega Megadrive, Gameboy and 3DO sections. 26th November 2003 Final MINI-SITE Now complete Our final mini site is now finished, dedicated to Books and Magazines. You’ll find hundreds of newly listed items in the section. Click Here to go straight there. There have been loads more updates too, with all Sega sections now fully updated, and a huge revamped Nintendo Famicom section, in fact, there are currently only three stock sections which have yet to be updated, Other Formats, Neo Geo, and Philips CDI. Don’t worry, they’ll be completed very soon. 25th October 2003 15 New Updates Including 8 Brand new Sections The last couple of months have been the busiest yet in the history of the Retrogames website. On top of the all new Hardware Mini-Site which was added at the beginning of October, there are now another 15 major updated format sections, including a whopping eight entirely new format sections. Click Here to go straight to the new A-Z of Games for sale. The following have been completely updated and reformated with pictures added: Atari 7800 : Atari ST : BBC B & Electron : 3DO : MSX : Intellivision : Colecovision : The Following are completely new sections: Dragon : Oric : Interton : Fairchild : Vectrex : TI99 : Amstrad : Philips Videopac What’s Next? There are still quite a few sections to be changed into the new listing format, and it’s a lengthy process with all the new photos which need to be edited and attached to the database. A new Philips CDI section should be on the site in the next couple of weeks, along with updates of the PC Engine, Playstation and Neo Geo sections. Then we un-earth the mountain of magazines crated up in the Retrogames stock room, to create all the brand new book and magazine sections which are hinted at by the logos already implemented. . 24th October 2003 What the Amstrad is going on!! Original readers of the Retrogames magazine will no doubt be most surprised at the recent addition of an Amstrad CPC section to the stock pages. I’ll admit, we’ve always shown ourselves to be very anti-CPC, mainly because of the bad feeling after Amstrad bought and destroyed Sinclair. It’s also very difficult to think of one game to reccomend the format which isn’t a conversion of a Spectrum or C64 Game. Of course, the “I hate Amstrad” attitude was fine in the days when we were just the first UK retrogaming fanzine, but now eight years later, with over one and a half million hits on the site a month, it seems silly to discount any of the retro formats from our catalogue. Anti-Amstrad gamers shouldn’t feel let down by the new section, maybe they should just order all the games it contains so we can close it down again ;o) 6th October 2003 Brand new Hardware mini-site No, we haven’t been sitting around for months doing nothing with the site, finally our new hardware mini-site is complete, and I really mean complete. Over 100 new machines, peripherals and spares have been added, with dedicated pages for each format. I hope it’s been worth the wait. Elsewhere on the site, new icons have been added and there have been redesigns of the mini-site homepages. Next in line for a revamp is Commodore Superstore, with the C64 listings put into the new format. And what next after that? Well, it’s the turn of the books and magazines to get their own mini-site, so keep in touch with the ever growing Retrogames.co.uk. 2nd May 2003 NEW LISTING FORMAT IMPLEMENTED It’s true, after all the work turning the listings into galleries, they are going back to a better listing format. Why I hear you cry? Well, while we always liked the look of gallery style listings, with each item with its own picture and info underneath, it seems that loading times for some people were unbearable, and it would certainly be benefitial to include more information. The solution is a new boxed listing format, easily copyable into Excel/access/works if you want to have a record of our listings on your own hard drive, and still with all the pictures previously included, but with click options within the item line to access them. The first section to get the revamp treatment was the all new Spectrum listing, but that still has a seperate gallery. This will soon be demolished, and the pictures intergrated back into the list. The first formats to be fully revamped that are up and running are: Sega Megadrive : Sega Master System : Super Nintendo : Super Famicom : US Snes There are lots more updates to come, starting with a revamp of the Spectrum section (again) and a completely updated Handheld/Electronic game section. As ever, it’s all a matter of time, and thanks to everyone for their patience, particularly with some parts of the site which haven’t been updated for months. The Advantages of the new system are multi-fold. Number one though, is the ease of keeping it updated, no more dates of the last update, the new lists should always be up to date, with games being removed as they are sold. Bigger pictures are also an advantage, all the new pics are denoted with an asterix, and they are considerably bigger and better quality than those on the old style pages. (the ones not denoted by an asterix). Finally, you should be able to view the pages far quicker, and there is now additional info too. Thanks as ever to all of you for your continued support. We are constantly trying to improve the site, and i’m sure it’s going to be amazing one day ;o) 9th February 2003 Sinclair & Commodore mini sites go live Our portfolio of mini-sites is now complete with the introduction of Sinclair Search and Commodore Superstore. There are a few parts of these mini-sites yet to be completed, like the hardware and magazine sections, but all will be up and running soon. Also, sister site Retrobloke.com is finally live, so if you happen to be a retrogamer who’s into record collecting too, we should be able to help you out on both counts! 22nd October 2002 SEGA’S PLANET & NINTENDO’S WORLD It has taken some time, but Sega and Nintendo now have dedicated mini-sites to match those for Atari and handhelds. The Playstation section has also had a complete revamp. Nintendo’s mini-site includes dedicated Game & Watch page with information on rare types, a new Super Nintendo section with 100% pictures, and a new dedicated NES section. There are future improvements intended to the Nintendo site, with N64 having a dedicated section. Planet Sega brings a new format to the Retrogames site, the fantastic Dreamcast. While this is a very modern console, it became retro very quickly, and is currently one of the most highly collectible formats. The sections also brings 100% picture Saturn section, new dedicated Megadrive and Gamegear sections, plus loads more. New improvements are in hand, most importantly a new payment options section, which should make buying from Retrogames a whole lot easier. Next up is mini sites for Sinclair and Commodore, a pretty daunting prospect considering the size of the task, so please be patient. Issue 23 of Retrogames is still on the drawing board i’m afraid. Plans for a pre-Christmas release are slipping now, but rest assured it will be a fantastic issue. Hopefully, it will include even more colour than issue 22, and sees a return to our traditional format, of a mixture of different formats and systems, rather than being dedicated to a particular theme. There are several articles complete already, so please don’t give up on it. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our subscribers for their incredible patience. You are all stars. Hopefully those of you who have bought from us recently will have noticed our far faster delivery times. 90% of all paypal payments see their orders in the post by the next day, and postal orders are being dealt with almost as quickly. Thanks for all the kind comments we have had regarding our improved service, it certainly makes the job more worthwhile. 25th July 2002 ATARI SAFARI & HANDHELD HEAVEN Completely revamped sections for Atari and handhelds are now online, including the beginners guide to handhelds, and our fantastic Game & Watch page. Next on the revamp hitlist is the Nintendo section, so keep in touch with the site, there are hundreds of new games on their way. 11th July 2002 SITE EXPANSION MOVES UP A GEAR It has been a tough month, organising the stock into it’s new warehouse space, but the site upgrade has begun. The Machine section was upgraded, with pictures of each unit for sale, a couple of weeks ago, and last week saw the revamp of the magazine section, with new options and all the reported browser problems hopefully resolved. Next is Atari Safari, a project to completely revamp the Atari section, bringing individual pages for each format, hardware, and peripherals. In effect, a complete mini site just for Atari. Part one is now complete, Atari Safari is dedicated to collectors of Atari VCS/2600, and provides 100+ pictures of games we have in stock for sale. You can link to the page directly from Retrogames home page. In time, additional space will be given to Atari related reviews and features, giving the mini-site a more magazine style feel. After all, if it wasn’t for the retrogames magazine, we wouldn’t even be here. If you have written anything interesting about the world of Atari, and would like to see it published on the site, let us know. 8th June 2002 BYE BYE SHOP - HELLO BIGGER SITE The Retrogames shop is gone, long live Retrogames. Thanks to everyone who visited in the final weeks, and indeed all those that supported the Retrogames shop over the past four years. Now Retrogames can look to a brighter future. Issue 23 can finally get closer to the printing stage. The Site is going to improve in many ways, the first thing to be addressed is more improvements to the stock section. Thanks to some glowing feedback for our improved 100% picture handheld section, we are now to revamp the Machines section and provide pictures of every console and computer in stock. New sections are on their way too, a new book section (seperate from the magazines), new bigger sections for Spectrum and C64, and the new T-Shirt section. Once those changes have been implemented, it’s the editorial content of the site which will improve, with Issue Two finally making it online to join Issue One. So, don’t mourn the passing of the Retrogames shop for two long, the future is actually looking far more rosey. 12th May 2002 RG SHOP CLOSES IT’S DOORS It may have been open for four years, attracted thousands of wide-eyed gamers from all over the world, but the legendary Retrogames shop is closing at the end of May. Those of you who visited regularly will no doubt be upset at the news, but rest assured, the closure has nothing to do with the current state of the Retrogames company, quite the opposite in fact. This website is currently attracting 1,000,000 hits per month, which has helped the mail order section claim over 80% of our retail sales. When retrogames first started it was a magazine with a small associated mail order business, but this part has boomed over the past seven years. The retail shop provided a high profile venue for London bound collectors, but never got close to generating the sales of Retrogames mail order. So, in a way, the closure could be justified in that way, but in truth, sales weren’t what the shop was set up for. It has been a tremendous pleasure to meet the fellow collectors who have visited, many who I now consider good friends. A huge thank you to all those who travelled accross continents to get here, from the US and Japan, even Australia and New Zealand. Rest assured the decision to close isn’t one that I have taken lightly. The biggest deciding factor is commuting. Driving to London each day can’t be described as pleasurable at the best of times, but in the past couple of years, congestion has slowed the journey considerably. With between 2.5 and 3.5 hours every day being lost to the M1, i’ve got to the point where enough is enough. Those interested in the record shop part of the store, will be pleased to note that part of the shop is to continue as normal. It’s possibly a little early to make any rash promises, but the additional time should make the rest of the Retrogames empire a lot more efficient. Improvements to the site are high priority, with new Book and T Shirt sections coming soon. Issue Two of Retrogames, an issue unavailable in print form for three years, is finally to make it’s online debut. Work on Issue 23 of Retrogames will also gather momentum, promising to be even more impressive than 22!! So, you see, it’s not really bad news, just a change of priorities. Hopefully we’ll be able to serve you guys even better, with even more amazing games in stock, and an even bigger site. Now I just have to work out what to do about the 100+ emails we get a day :o) 24th December 2001 RETROGAMES LOGO UPDATE: PAC MAN LIVES! Our good friends at Namco are now preparing new characters to appear in our logo. Artists at Namco’s Japanese HQ are currently working to bring us official character graphics to appear in the regular E and A spots in the logo. Official Endorsement from Namco is something I am certainly very proud of, and their official characters add yet more credibility to our company. Thanks to everyone who has written to me regarding the problems, and to Namco for all their help. The new logo will be unveiled as soon as possible. 28th November 2001 RETROGAMES LOGO UNDER FIRE The advertising in Edge has brought its problems. A couple of days ago I was told by our good friends at Namco that there was a problem with us using Pac Man in our logo. Today I agreed to remove the Pac Man and Ghost characters from our logo. All is not yet lost, hopefully there will be a way to use the Pac Man characters with permission in the future. I will of course keep you all informed of developments. 4th November 2001 | |||
