Brett Weiss's Blog, page 18
July 15, 2019
Old School Gamer Magazine #11 - Kelsey Lewin Article
Old School Gamer Magazine #11 is now available. It features such writers as E.T. and Yars' Revenge programmer Howard Scott Warshaw, The Father of Video Game History Leonard Herman, historian and professor Michael Thomasson, and yours truly. You can read my article about popular YouTuber Kelsey Lewin by clicking on the images below.
You can read the digital version of the magazine for free HERE, and you can subscribe to the mag HERE. Thanks for reading and enjoy!
Published on July 15, 2019 15:28
July 13, 2019
Tales from a Retro Gamer -- My New YouTube Show!
My latest venture is called "Tales from a Retro Gamer", a YouTube series where I discuss the history of video games from a personal standpoint. Things like my first video game, rare finds I've made, conventions I've attended, famous gamers I've met, the first time I played the NES, and much more. I'll cover various retro gaming topics in the news as well. New episode every Tuesday at 2:00 PM Central Standard time. Click HERE to check out the channel. Please subscribe--after all, it's free! Thanks--enjoy the videos!
Published on July 13, 2019 21:03
June 20, 2019
SNES Omnibus Writer Spotlight #50 - Cierra Caballero
If memory serves, I was the first person Cierra Caballero interviewed for PopNerdTV, a geeky news site covering all the cool things in life, such as comic books, movies, and video games. She interviewed me at the 2016 Retropalooza video game con in Arlington, TX, where I was selling and autographing my books. I could tell right away that she was a cool and fun person to be around, thanks to her chill attitude and big smile.
Cierraand I have been friends ever since, and we’ve even collaborated on a few projects, such as my 50th anniversary feature on Night of the Living Dead and a story I did for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on the Texas Frightmarehorror convention. Cierra is a purveyor of all things pop culture, but she’s especially keen on horror, and she’s always interesting to talk to about things that go bump in the night. I was very happy when she agreed to write a story about SimCity for my latest book, The SNES Omnibus: The Super Nintendo and Its Games,Vol. 2 (N–Z).Here’s her bio from that titanic tome:
Cierra Caballero is a versatile writer and show host whose passion for creating and storytelling lead her to wanting to create her own path in the entertainment world from a young age. From writing articles, to singing in a band, to hosting her own horror edutatinment show “Jump Scare” on PopNerdTV, there is no limit to the mediums she wants to create in. Cierra stars in Berenice and Irene, a comedy web series she co-created with Jacqueline Davis.
Published on June 20, 2019 13:41
June 11, 2019
Ozzy Osbourne, Wanna Play Pac-Man?
In the latest episode of my new YouTube series, Tales from a Retro Gamer, I talk about the time I met Ozzy Osbourne and asked him if he wanted to play Pac-Man. We also met Sharon, as well as Ozzy's band. Earlier in the day, we met Metallica at a record store signing. You can watch the video HERE. Thanks for watching!
Published on June 11, 2019 17:31
June 4, 2019
The Final 12 Games Announced for the Sega Genesis Mini
And the final 12 games for the Sega Genesis Mini are:
- Tetris- Darius- Road Rash II- Strider- Virtua Fighter 2- Alisia Dragoon- Columns- Dynamite Headdy- Kid Chameleon- Monster World IV- Light Crusader- Eternal Champions
Strong titles. I think it will be a trip playing Tetris on the Genesis, and I'm a big fan of Columns, Road Rash II, and Strider. Can't go wrong with Darius, a cool shooter, and Light Crusader and Alisia Dragoon are hidden gems.
Published on June 04, 2019 07:52
May 28, 2019
Old School Gamer Magazine #10 Now Available -- READ FOR FREE!
Old School Gamer Magazine #10 is now available! And you can read it for FREE. Simply click HERE to download the new issue. You can subscribe to the digital or physical edition HERE. Enjoy!
Published on May 28, 2019 11:31
May 27, 2019
Forever Classic Podcast Appearance
I was on the Forever Classic Podcast recently, where we talked video game history, writing about video games, and more. You can listen HERE.
Published on May 27, 2019 21:12
May 23, 2019
SNES Omnibus Writer Spotlight #49 - Kelsey Lewin
When I went to my first Portland Retro Gaming Expo more than two years ago, one of my primary objectives was to meet the Seattle area YouTubers, specifically the “Metal Jesus Crew”: John Riggs, Reggie Williams, John Hancock, Kinsey Burke, and Kelsey Lewin (I had already met Metal himself and interviewed him for a Retropalooza article). They were as cool and as nice as I expected—what you see on their channels is what you get—and it was great talking to them in person, as opposed to mere online correspondence.
I discovered that Kelsey grew up near me in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, so the next time she was in town, we went to The National Video Game Museum in Frisco, and then had some dinner later that day at a video game-themed restaurant called Nerdvana. Her brother went with us as well, which was cool. What struck me about Kelsey is that she’s mature, intelligent, and composed beyond her years. She’s also a lot of fun. We had a blast playing the world’s largest Pong machine, checking out the rare games, investigating the back room (thanks to John Hardie for the grand tour), and talking about all kinds of geeky stuff.
At the Portland Retro Gaming Expo the following year, Kelsey’s boyfriend proposed to her at the Saturday night auction in a highly unusual way, which you can check out HERE. It was awesome watching it live, and we were all super happy for the couple.
If you enjoy watching Norm “The Gaming Historian” Caruso’s videos, you should subscribe to Kelsey’s channel. She recently hit 100,000 subscribers—she really knows her stuff! I’m honored that she has a story in The SNES Omnibus: The Super Nintendo and Its Games, Vol. 2 (N–Z). Want to know why Kelsey is obsessed with strange and unusual gaming items? It’s in the book.
Here’s her bio as it appears in The SNES Omnibus Vol. 2:
Kelsey Lewin is a YouTube content creator covering weird and obscure games, consoles, and accessories. She co-owns Pink Gorilla Games, a retro and import video game store in Seattle, Washington, and she donates her spare time to the Video GameHistory Foundation.

I discovered that Kelsey grew up near me in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, so the next time she was in town, we went to The National Video Game Museum in Frisco, and then had some dinner later that day at a video game-themed restaurant called Nerdvana. Her brother went with us as well, which was cool. What struck me about Kelsey is that she’s mature, intelligent, and composed beyond her years. She’s also a lot of fun. We had a blast playing the world’s largest Pong machine, checking out the rare games, investigating the back room (thanks to John Hardie for the grand tour), and talking about all kinds of geeky stuff.
At the Portland Retro Gaming Expo the following year, Kelsey’s boyfriend proposed to her at the Saturday night auction in a highly unusual way, which you can check out HERE. It was awesome watching it live, and we were all super happy for the couple.If you enjoy watching Norm “The Gaming Historian” Caruso’s videos, you should subscribe to Kelsey’s channel. She recently hit 100,000 subscribers—she really knows her stuff! I’m honored that she has a story in The SNES Omnibus: The Super Nintendo and Its Games, Vol. 2 (N–Z). Want to know why Kelsey is obsessed with strange and unusual gaming items? It’s in the book.
Here’s her bio as it appears in The SNES Omnibus Vol. 2:
Kelsey Lewin is a YouTube content creator covering weird and obscure games, consoles, and accessories. She co-owns Pink Gorilla Games, a retro and import video game store in Seattle, Washington, and she donates her spare time to the Video GameHistory Foundation.

Published on May 23, 2019 18:02
May 21, 2019
New Video! - Arcade Gaming on a Budget
Tales from a Retro Gamer episode 2 is now online! In this video, I discuss Breakout, pinball, and how my brother and I played arcade games on a VERY limited budget. You can watch the video below or click HERE to watch it in full screen. I'm trying to grow my channel, so if you like the video, please consider clicking on thumbs-up and subscribing. Thanks and enjoy!
Published on May 21, 2019 15:48
May 18, 2019
MY NEW YOUTUBE SHOW - Tales from a Retro Gamer #1: My First Video Game
I’ve been gaming since the mid-1970s, collecting since the late ’70s, and writing professionally since 1997. Sorry if that sounds like some kind of a sad bragging montage, but my point is that I’ve been doing this for a very long time, and I’ve got stories to tell. So I’ve started a new YouTube show called Tales from a Retro Gamer, the first episode of which is now online. I discuss my first video game, dating all the way back to 1975. You can watch it below or check it out in full screen by clicking HERE.Thanks for watching, liking, and subscribing!
Published on May 18, 2019 22:37


