Interview With A Gamer #01: @ausretrogamer

Australia... A country so far away from Brazil that we actually hear not much about what's going on in there, besides the burning trees on the summer and other natural tragedies. We brazilians always remember Australia for it's koalas, kangaroos, "Crocodile" Dundee, L.A. Noire, the remake of Castle of Illusion... Stuff like that.

Truth is that we never actually get to know or heard what is going on in there, but companies like Nintendo, Sega, Sony and even Capcom had an studio there back in the 1990's but we don't know what have been released there, with the exception of when a game is banned by is rigid system of cathegories of games - like it happened with Manhunt 2 and Mortal Kombat (2009).

Since I created a Twitter account especifically to my blog, I started to get to know people from all places of the world: United Kingdom, Venezuela, Italy, Mexico, United States, Spain, Oman and guess... Australia too. From a while back I've been reading his blog and finally get to know some useful information about the game scene in Australia. - so I have this amazing idea of interviewing the guy directly from the source!

Me and my friend Telma (@ritalinando) thought about 10 questions for him to answer with the much detail that we can have since basic stuff like "What is your favourite console?" to more elaborated questions like what companies are settled there and what games people from there enjoy the most. I hope you guys enjoy it, because it was amazing for me to finally understand a little bit more about the gaming culture in there!

First time I ever heard about an Brazilian-Aussie connection ;)

Introduction: My name is Alex Boz, I am the editor-in-chief at ausretrogamer.com. Being a 70’s baby, I have been privileged to have witnessed the epoch of video games and its subsequent generations. I am an avid collector of all systems and would like to one day open an interactive video gaming museum to ensure that generations of kids can learn and find out what their parents and even grandparents played on.

You can follow/engage with me via our site, http://ausretrogamer.com or on social media - Twitter , Instagram , Google+  and Facebook .


1. What was the first video game console that were a major hit in Australia?

The first mass produced video games console to hit Australia was the Atari VCS / 2600. There were other “Pong” clones released around that time (late 70’s/early 80’s), like the Hanimex range (I had the Hanimex 666T), but the major hit was the Atari 2600. It paved the way for other video gaming consoles and home computers.

A picture of the Hanimex, but an French version of it.

2. How the games are published? The companies are settled or they have local companies doing this job?

Australia did have development and publishing companies in the mid 80’s (like Melbourne House – they created Way Of the Exploding Fist!), but sadly, these went by the wayside and gave way to the big studios as the 32-bit era took hold. These big studios usually dictate what is produced and stifle freedom in creativity. Fortunately, we do have a thriving indie community, which is great to see.

European cover for the Way of the Exploding  Fist.

3. What were the major consoles on each generation since the 8-bit era?

I may miss a few console and home computers, but here it goes: (NOTE: I have excluded the handhelds like the Game Boy/Game Gear/Atari Lynx/PSP etc from this list)

8-bit: Atari 2600, Atari XEGS, Atari 600/800XL, VIC-20, Plus 4, Mattel Intellivision, Vectrex, C64, Amstrad CPC464, Atari 7800, Sega Master System, NES

16-bit: Amiga 500, Atari 520ST/1040ST, Sega Mega Drive, SNES and the Neo Geo AES (technically a hybrid 24-bit console)

32-bit: Amiga CD32, Playstation, Saturn and 3DO

64-bit: N64 and Atari Jaguar

128-bit: Dreamcast, PS2, Game Cube and Xbox

Gen 7: Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360

Gen 8: Wii U and to be released, PS4 and Xbox One

We never had NEC’s PC-Engine/TurboGrafx officially launched here, which is a shame. I think it would have been a good alternative to Sega and Nintendo. We (in Australia) tend to get systems that were regionalised for Europe (PAL).

4. What franchises made a major success within this consoles?

By far the biggest franchises were the Nintendo ones, like Mario; Zelda; Metroid; Donkey Kong; and also Sega’s Alex Kidd and Sonic The Hedgehog were quite huge over here. In the later generations, Halo, Tekken and Street Fighter II franchises were quite popular. Nowadays, it is all about the first person shooters – Call of Duty anyone!

5. Of this major franchises, which ones you played the most and why?

Without a shadow of a doubt, it was Mario. I don’t recall ever being disappointed by a Mario game. Nintendo, and in particular, Shigeru Miyamoto seem to get the balance right with Mario games – very playable and addictive.

Mario & Luigi sure has fans in all corners of the world. More than 100 different games were released so far.

6. For you, what makes an game an excepcional one?

The mix of game play and game mechanics/control, a semblance of a storyline - there has to be a point to playing the game and lastability – a game should be a perfect balance of being able to get to grips with immediately but requires time to master.

7. What is your favorite game/franchise of all time?

This is a tough question. It always depends on the time, but Super Mario World on the SNES and Super Mario Bros on the NES are two games I keep on coming back to. So, I guess that means if they have endured this long, then they must be one of my favourites.

The Commodore 64 was the most successful 8-bit computer ever released. It sold 17 million units.

8. What is your favorite video game console of all time?

I refuse to answer this question ! HAHA, it is like asking me “Which child is your favourite” – I can’t split them. I have a huge soft spot for the C64 – lots of great memories on that computer. Having said that, I love all my systems equally, even the much maligned Virtual Boy and Atari Jaguar.

9. Did you know that here in Brazil, thanks to a very good job of a local company called "Tec Toy" and their effort to localize some games into local TV shows and magazines, the Master System blowed the NES away and still on the shelves of the stores to this day?

We in Australia are quite aware of the gaming scene across the world, including Brazil. I recall reading about Tec Toy a long time ago. I was pleased to hear that they were still producing the Master System well after it’s use by date. There are other systems out there, not just the NES ;-)

The newer versionf of the Master System released in Brazil doesn't come with an cartridge slot, but instead it comes with 132 games in it's internal memory, 2 controllers and an A/V cable. Plus the system is bivolt.

10. With an new generation of consoles right outside the window, what are your expectations to this consoles?

Honestly, I don’t pay much attention to the new gen. I will wait and see what happens and then make a decision. I currently have the PS3 and use it more as my media centre than to play games on. I am not a fan of DLC, I prefer to be playing on my old systems. If I were pressed to make a decision, I would say I would be keen on the PS4.



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