[YouTube] 1970s/80s Character Cups

https://youtu.be/2nZm2kSBS2U

As I mentioned in the previous glassware post, I've got a bunch of similar plastic cups too. I know the Child World cup has appeared on the blog previously in the post about toy stores and maybe the G.I. Joe cup has but I can't seem to find a post with it, so maybe not. There are quite a few Disney cups here, many likely purchased at Walt Disney World, however, they could have been available at other stores as well and none have copyrights on them. In the event that you don't watch the video, the western-themed cup with Donald Duck came with a blue hat topper which I couldn't find so I used the mouse ears which is meant for another Disney cup I don't have. Also, many of these were used and went through the dishwasher numerous times. 

Hanna-Barbera's Grape Ape & Snagglepuss (Cookie Crisp, 1979)

Camp Snoopy Collection (McDonald's, 1983)

Kool-Aid (Kraft Foods, 1980s/90s)

Disney

SpaghettiOs (Franco-American)

G.I. Joe - Cobra Commander (Maramor Candy Co., 1988)

Masters of the Universe (Burger King/Pepsi, 1985)

Child World/Children's Palace

[YouTube] 1970s/80s Character Glassware

https://youtu.be/xifbrHFkk_Q

In the 1970s and '80s glasses were a popular promotion with restaurants and soda companies. This month McDonald's introduced a line of collector's glasses which inspired myself to make this video. I think my family had a few more than what I have to show but some likely broke and others might be in the possession of my parents or sister. Something I forgot to mention in the video is gas stations often had glassware promotions as well, though many of those featured the local sports teams and I'm focusing on movie, cartoon, and other well-known characters here. Also, some of these may have appeared in previous posts/videos.

McDonaldLand Action Series (McDonald's, 1977)

Garfield (McDonald's, 1985)

Looney Tunes (Pepsi, 1979)

Star Wars: A New Hope & Return of the Jedi (Burger King/Coca-Cola, 1977/1983)

Archie (Welch's Jelly, 1973)

Winnie-the-Pooh and Friends (Sears)

E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (Pizza Hut/Pepsi, 1982)

Electronic Arts Takes on the Video-Game Market (Video Games & Computer Entertainment - August 1990)

Today Electronic Arts (EA) is a juggernaut video game publisher but it was strictly a computer game developer and publisher for eight years before releasing its own games for consoles. Before 1990, other companies had licensed and ported EA's computer games to consoles. This article from Video Games & Computer Entertainment magazine was written shortly before EA's first video game releases for the Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Genesis. Of course, we now know how significant EA's decision to make console games was and it entered the market at a great time, as 16-bit consoles elevated the gaming industry and EA's sports titles would eventually take the company to another level. One oddity about EA's Genesis cartridges is that they are about three quarters of an inch taller than the standard size and its earliest releases used cardboard boxes instead of the nice clamshell cases. That is likely a result of EA not actually having a Sega license at the time as is mentioned in the interview with Trip Hawkins at the end of the article.

Year 8: July Update

I've been very slow to get any videos done this year and have been falling behind on blog posts too. Sorry! I rarely talk about my personal life, aside from the past in relation to toys and video games, but that's what will likely keep me from updating very often going forward. There isn't much to say other than I lost my long-time job earlier this year and am starting something new this month that will keep me busy. When I've had free time of late, I've been playing Marvel's Midnight Suns from 2K and Firaxis which was a free game on the Epic Game Store earlier this summer. Although it has tactical combat, it's not like Firaxis' XCOM games that I'm a big fan of. Players control a team of three in battle, drawing and using cards to perform most actions. Outside of battle players control an original character, interact with the Marvel heroes to gain friendship, edit card decks, explore their home and its grounds, and select poolside, casual, and battle outfits.

As I sit here after viewing the numerous digital press events from the past two months, I can't recall anything that stood out. Let's see, the Nintendo Direct announced Mario & Luigi: Brothership, Super Mario Party Jamboree, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, and Donkey Kong Country Returns HD. There are plenty of sequels and updates in development, like Sid Meier's Civilization VII, Gears of War: E-Day, and Age of Mythology: Retold. Unfortunately, my PC is on the old side and I don't have a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X so I probably won't be able to play the games I'd like to try later this year, such as Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Star Wars Outlaws, and Assassin's Creed Shadows.

                                        Mario & Luigi: Brothership                                      TMNT: Mutants Unleashed

Rumors appeared online in May about a Total War Star Wars game but there still hasn't been an official announcement. Also, two months ago Outright Games and Mattel unveiled a multi-year deal. The family-friendly game publisher will be releasing at least three titles based on Mattel properties this year: Matchbox Driving Adventures, Monster High: Skulltimate Secrets, and Barbie Project Friendship. Other upcoming games from Outright include Transformers: Galactic Trials, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed, and Nick Jr. Party Adventure.

In an unexpected move, Hasbro and Mattel teamed up to create a Hot Wheels Optimus Prime, and it does transform, of course. Optimus is exclusive to Mattel Creations and is currently sold out; I'm not sure if that's final or if more are in production. LEGO always has a lot of cool sets on the way but I'll only highlight a few: Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 from The Legend of Zelda series, the Transformers' Bumblebee, and Star Wars TIE Fighter & X-Wing Mash-up. With the Star Wars set you can create standard TIE Fighter and X-Wing ships or swap the wings between the two iconic starfighters.

Something unexpected occurred in video games as well. Back on May 23rd, Atari announced that it had acquired the Intellivision brand. It now owns the Intellivision name and classic game catalog, not the company Intellivision Entertainment (renamed Amico Entertainment) or its long-in-development console, the Amico which I'd thought dead on more than one occasion. The sale provides Amico Entertainment some much needed financial help but, surprisingly, it isn't ready to give up on the console yet. While it can still release games based on Intellivision properties for Amico, those will be under license from Atari. 

One final note before I sign off. Author Lewis Packwood contacted myself two years ago to ask for permission to use a Captain Power photo from the blog in his then upcoming book. I agreed and while I've not read his book, nor am I benefitting from its sales in any way, I thought it was worth mentioning as the subject matter will likely interest Vault 1541 readers. The title is Curious Video Game Machines: A Compendium of Rare and Unusual Consoles, Computers and Coin-Ops. There is a nearly 40-minute video about it on YouTube with store links in the description.

Thanks for visiting,

Jonathan

Indiana Jones Game Reviews

Within the last hour I learned that July 1st is the birthday of one of the most iconic movie characters of all-time: archaeologist Indiana Jones. Although this is very last minute, I'd been scanning Indiana Jones game reviews when I came across them over the past few years so I already most of these ready to go for whenever I had a good reason to post them. Maybe I should have put a post together when the fifth movie released but I forgot to do that. Four of the eight reviews are based on The Last Crusade and five are from Video Games & Computer Entertainment  (VG&CE). Surprisingly, I couldn't find any Indiana Jones game reviews in my issues of GamePro and only one in Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM), which is of Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures, the game in the ad to the right. One of the VG&CE pages has a couple of other handheld game reviews I'm leaving in: Star Wars (Game Boy) and Pinball Jam (Lynx). The other two are from Sega Visions, however, the Sega CD game doesn't read like a review even though it's from the "Just Review It" section. 

Electronic Gaming Monthly & Sega Visions

Video Games & Computer Entertainment