Google commemorates the release of the Atari classic Breakout with a playable Easter egg.

Released in 1976, Breakout is one of the most successful PONG variants Atari released.

Inspired by the sport of racquetball before the clever wall-breaking conceit was integrated, Breakout was incredibly influential and spawned countless clones.

Its addictive brick-bashing gameplay was a big inspiration behind Taito’s Space Invaders, and its fascinating development tale also links two of America’s biggest ever electronic companies: Atari and Apple.

With the cult coin-op turning 37 this year, Google has chosen to commemorate the occasion with a neat little Easter egg that lets you play a version of the game in your browser.

To access it, simply type “Atari Breakout” into the Google Image search bar and hit return.

Fortuitously, next month in Retro Gamer we have a big feature planned on the story behind Breakout, its sequels and the many clones it inspired.

In it, we speak to Al Alcorn and Ed Logg, creator of Super Breakout, and delve deep into the fascinating history of the franchise.

Issue 117 of Retro Gamer goes on sale 20 June.

Spiritual Road Rash successor Road Redemption has smashed its Kickstarter target.

Despite EA’s Road Rash franchise seeing zero action this console generation, rumours of its return have been circulating for a long while.

Burnout series’ creator Criterion have teased fans in the past by saying it would welcome trying to bring back the series, but so far nothing has been announced officially from either the studio or EA.

Well those pining for its return will be delighted to hear that Road Redemption, a game that is basically Road Rash in everything but name, has recently secured its funding target on Kickstarter.

Developed by DarkSeas Games, Road Redemption will carry the blood-stained baton of the cult Mega Drive born franchise, but update it for modern audiences with slick 3D visuals, finely-tuned physics, online play and battles no longer confined to the tarmac – meaning of course it’ll be possible to get sand and grass rash too.  

The project secured $173,803 of funding despite needing only $160,000, and 4,409 people pledged their support.   

Check out the official game trailer to see it in action.

Bethesda has revealed that a brand new Wolfenstein game is in the works.

Wolfenstein: The New Order is being developed by MachineGames and is due for release in the latter quarter of this year. Id’s original game (which was a tribute to the popular Apple II series) helped create the first-person shooter template when it was released in 1992, and it has since gone on to spawn several sequels.

“We are excited to bring a new chapter of Wolfenstein to gamers everywhere ,” said Jens Matthies, creative director at MachineGames. “As fans of the series, working on this game is an honor, and our team is driven to create an unforgettable action-adventure experience that will make FPS fans proud.”

Actual gameplay details are being kept closely under wraps at the moment, but if it doesn’t feature a mechanised Hitler wielding two mini-guns we’re going to be very disappointed. You can expect more news at this year’s E3.

Classic NES brawler River City Ransom is to receive a sequel. 

Developed by indie Canadian game studio Combit, the project will have input from Million Co. to ensure it stays true to the spirit of the original.

Word of a sequel has been floating around for a little while – a PC and Wii sequel was at one stage in the works by developer Miracle Kidz but was cancelled last year.

According to a statement on Combit’s website though, an official sequel (though they say it most likely won’t be titled River City Ransom 2) is now back on the cards and will be funded by a crowd-funding initiative launching this summer. Here’s said statement: 

“Today that we have started development on an official, worldwide follow-up to River City Ransom. With strong followings in North America and Japan, we will work closely with Million to ensure it is the best game it can be for fans on both continents. We are certainly not the only ones with an abiding love for River City Ransom, and we’ve assembled an amazing team of some of the most ardent fans of the game, each bringing their unique talents and imagination to what we hope will be the follow-up game you’ve always wanted to play.”

Being big fans of the Kunio-Kun series we hope the project meets its target.

The sequel is said to be coming to Windows first, with other platforms currently being considered, and is scheduled for a 2014 release.

Those wanting to keep abreast of its development should visit Combit’s website.

We speak to Flashback’s co-writer, Simon Mackenzie, about the forthcoming Flashback remake.

Flashback was one of the most popular twitch platformers of the Nineties. Released in 1992, it wowed a whole generation a gamers through its mix of deep and engaging sci-fi plot, which borrowed elements from Blade Runner to The Running Man, and fluid rotoscope visuals which helped enhance its cinematic feel.

The game was followed up with the sequel Fade To Black in 1995, which expanded on hero Conrad Hart’s battle with the sinister alien Morphs and saw the series make a pretty comfortable leap to 3D.

But though it was well received, Fade To Black didn’t enjoy the same level of acclaim as its predecessor, and it is perhaps for this reason why Ubisoft and VictorCell,  a studio headed by Flashback creator Paul Cuisset and comprising many members of the original FB team, announced last month they are joining forces on a HD remake of the original.

We caught up Simon Mackenzie, Flashback’s co-writer, to find out what the remake will offer over the original and what it’s been like reuniting with team members and the franchise at the same time.

Why are you remaking Flashback as opposed to making a sequel?

Technology has advanced so much, that we’re now able to make the game as the team originally saw it in their heads back in the day. We also wanted to tell more stories in this universe and to do this we needed to introduce a whole new generation to Flashback and bring it up to speed for modern audiences. Indeed, a lot of people have heard of Flashback but the youngest might not have had the chance to play it in 1992. It’s a way for them to discover a piece of video game History but with today’s standards. For the original players, they can now rediscover a re-imagined version of the game they loved.

How long have you been working on the project for?

The ball started rolling roughly two years ago. We had so many fans asking us to make a remake, but we also wanted to wait for the right time to be able to gather all the original core team.

What’s it like re-working with a lot of the original team?

Amazing! Flashback had always been special to all of us; there was a real camaraderie on the project. Everyone was pretty excited to rework on Flashback, to find ways to improve it. It’s very rare in this industry to be able to give a second youth to a game so long after.

What improvements will it offer over the original game?

Our first objective was to remain faithful to the spirit of the original game, but to also take full advantage of the computing power of today’s machines. Quite a few points were considered to bring the game up to standards. The first was obviously in the graphics department. We also gave a facelift to the gameplay by making it more reactive and dynamic, the reactivity and instinctive control of Conrad being two points that we really take to heart. We also integrated an experience progression system for the character and his equipment, with upgrades that can be found throughout the various levels. Accessibility was brought up to current standards as was the Level Design that would seem rather punishing through today’s lenses if we had kept it exactly as it was. All in all, though, we’re extremely happy with the result. We feel we were able to keep Flashback’s soul and put it into a new body. We also have some new weapons & gadgets that will let you approach a same situation differently.

Flashback will be released digitally this summer across PC, PSN and Xbox Live Arcade.

DuckTales is one of the most iconic and beloved Disney platformers of the 8-bit era, and is currently recieving a HD remake courtesy of retro revival maestros WayForward Technologies (Contra 4, Double Dragon: Neon).

In an exclusive interview, we caught up with Capcom producer Derek Neal to find out what fans can look forward to in the revamp, and if Chip ’n’ Dale Rescue Rangers could be next on Capcom’s hit list.  

How does it feel going back to such a loved game?

It’s an amazing feeling to be honest. Personnel on all side at Capcom, Disney, and at WayFoward are big fans of the NES game and the show. To say “big fans” is actually a little bit of a disservice to be honest. In our groups, there are some uber fans who redefine what dedication is. The love that we all have for this franchise is translating to a title that has extreme attention to detail will be faithful to both the NES original and the show.

Have Disney had any input into the game’s fantastic new look?

Of course. Disney was there to make sure everything looked “right”. There is a look and feeling that only Disney knows how to craft. They made sure that all of the characters looked correct and are on model. They have also provided plenty of suggestions in game that have resulted in the game itself feeling more Disney.

DuckTales: Remastered will feature stunning new hand drawn visuals.

What enhancements will DuckTales: Remastered be offering over the original NES game?

The most obvious enhancement is the graphics. All of the character animations are created using individually hand drawn cells that are animated using contemporary 2D animation programs. DuckTales: Remastered will also feature new backgrounds inspired from the show, fully voiced VO work (with some of the original show actors), and remastered music. On the game side, the title will feature some tweaks to the level design to improve flow as well as three new areas. The beginning level will serve as a tutorial and the introduction of the story, a hub level that includes the game gallery and the ability to swim in Scrooge’s money bin, and finally an all new final level that will lead to the final boss.

Any chance of Rescue Rangers appearing next?

Anything is possible really. Let’s all make DuckTales the success story that it deserves and we’ll go from there.

It’s been rumoured but this week Sega made it official: Castle Of Illusion is getting a HD remake.

Sega Of America released a black and white teaser trailer for the game last week, and this has now been followed up with a far less ambiguous colour trailer.     

Neatly, the second trailer also expands the first’s dark intro to show Mickey approaching the eponymous castle in a way designed to mimic the classic box art of the original Mega Drive game (said artwork shown above).   

Sega also released a few screenshots, giving a glimpse of the new art style the remake will be adopting.

We really like how it looks, and look forward to seeing more of the project as the game edges closer to its summer release.   

Given that this news comes after Capcom announced that it will be releasing a HD remake of its classic NES platformer Duck Tales, it seems like 2013 will be the summer of Disney remakes, if not warmth.

The Legend Of Zelda: A Link To The Past will be receiving a brand new sequel later this year.

Nintendo dropped its bombshell at the end of its most recent Nintendo Direct video, which highlighted a host of games that will be appearing on the 3DS and Wii U later on in the year.

The new Zelda game was by far the most exciting and promises to be a brand new story that will follow on from the original SNES classic which will be celebrating its 21st birthday later this year.

While we’re not a fan of the new viewpoint (chosen to obviously highlight the 3DS’s 3D capabilities) we love the new gameplay mechanic that allows Link to turn into a drawing and move around walls and access areas that he couldn’t otherwise reach.

Nothing else was really revealed, other than that its release is tantalisingly close, with the game arriving at the end of the year.

Yoshi’s Island was another franchise to receive a sequel, but we were less than impressed with the graphical style that Nintendo has chosen. It’s clearly recreating the pastel hues of past games, but looks a little too plastic like in its appearance. Yoshi’s boots also look bizarre, being massively oversized and looking like Mr Men feet. The gameplay itself looks fun, but again, little has been given away, although we do know that we’re desperate to throw the giant egg that was shown in the trailed.

Interestingly, the main focus of the video was on Luigi, with Mario & Luigi: Dream Team Bros and the Luigi version of New Super Mario Bros U featuring prominently at the beginning of the video.

Other highlights was the news that Bravely Default: Flying Fairy and Shin Megami: Tensei IV would be getting English localisations and the announcement of a brand new Mario Party (Wii U) and Mario Vs Donkey Kong (3DS) which both offer a selection of mini-games to show off the capabilities of each system, as well as a brand new Mario Golf.

Nintendo also revealed more snippets of Animal Crossing: New Leaf, and that The Legend Of Zelda: Oracle Of Ages and Oracle Of Seasons and Earthbound would be heading to the Virtual Console, which will also be arriving on Wii U shortly.

All in all then a good announcement from Nintendo with plenty of interesting games to look forward to in the coming year.

Retro Gamer coasters are available to buy now from ImagineShop, and make the perfect gift for fans of the magazine and classic hardware and games from yesteryear.

Each set of 4 coasters shows off some of our all-time favourite covers, including issue 100′s Sgt. Pepper homage to the iconic artwork of Laser Squad, and have a high quality colour print with a gloss finish, as well as a cork backing to protect your desk.    

Featuring our favourite covers…
- Laser Squad
- Rare
- Isometric gaming
- Missile Command
- Atari 2600
- Metal Slug
- Level 9
- Bubble Bobble
- Axelay
- Prince of Persia
- Rainbow Islands
- Ghosts N Goblins
- Sonic
- C64
- And classic Oliver Frey covers 

Retro Gamer coasters are on sale now priced £4.99 (set of 4), and are available from www.imagineshop.co.uk

Ubisoft has officially announced that a HD remake of the hit platformer Flashback will be coming to PSN and Xbox Live later this summer.

One of the most popular action platformers of the 16-bit era, Flashback was developed by the acclaimed French game designer Paul Cuisset and his studio Delphine Software International.

After finding big success on the Amiga, Flashback was ported for a raft of formats and received a 3D sequel in Fade To Black in 1995.

A third game, Flashback Legends, was in development for the Game Boy Advance but never saw release as a result of the studio falling into financial trouble and subsequently closing in 2002.

Developed by Cuisset’s new studio VictorCell, and with input from members of the original team, this polished retelling will be built using the Unreal Engine, have new voice acting, a ‘beefed up’ story and plenty of new tricky platforming/shooting sections we’re sure.

You can check out the official announcement trailer here.