Retro Thing is a great blog about all things retro, with a slant towards gadgetry and gaming. Now they are getting into the hardware business with the Retro Thing USB Controller.

They had this designed and manufactured here in the United States, it lights up blue when plugged in via USB, and they even took some extra steps to make it extra hackable for the DIY crowd. It’ll work on Atari, Amiga, and Commodore emulators, or as a controller for your very own MAME cabinet (which is something I’ve been meaning to do). For $30, it’s a steal.

Check out the full story at Retro Thing or jump straight to the order page and support the geek cause.

Everyone’s favorite 80s-themed t-shirt purveyor 80sTees.com has released an amazing Shredder Hoodie for anyone out there brave enough to wear it.

Everything about this is pretty brilliant, from the zip-up mask to the little knobby spikes and the purple back that looks like his cape.

The Shredder Hoodie is $60 on 80sTees, and if you buy me one I will happily tell the world how awesome you are.

Buy the Shredder Hoodie on 80sTees

Good news! The 1982 Rankin/Bass animated fantasy film The Flight of Dragons is finally available on DVD, via the Warner Archive. The movie is based on a couple books from the 70s, and stars John Ritter as a Dungeons & Dragons-type board game inventor who gets transported into the world of his game (which is really the world of his ancestors, go figure).

I had never seen this movie before, as it was just a little before my time, but it was pretty entertaining. Not in the way that Rankin & Bass intended, I’m sure, but it was entertaining nontheless. It kind of feels like a cross between Dungeons & Dragons and Monty Python at times.

It stars John Ritter, James Earl Jones, Bob McFadden, and Don Messick, and even includes a title song by non other than Mr. American Pie himself, Don McLean.

You can pick it up exclusively on the Warner Archive website today.

Further Reading
The Flight of Dragons on Wikipedia.

As if there wasn’t enough cool stuff to help deplete our checking accounts this year, on October 20th Shout! Factory is releasing a Transformers: 25th Anniversary “Matrix of Leadership” Edition Collector’s Set. It’s going to contain 16 DVDs, 98 restored episodes, a ton of bonus content, voice cast reunions, a 60-page book, Autobot and Decepticon magnets, and more.

This set is a beast. It’s going to be over 38 hours long. It’s going to have archival Hasbro toy commercials, PSAs, art galleries, and even an animated fan film called Transformers: Generations, which is hopefully better than Star Trek Generations.

No word on the cost yet, but we’ll find out closer to October 20th.