CORGSCON 2024 SPECIAL GUESTS

Performers: Stage Select

Stage Select Band plays rock and roll covers of video game music, anime music & retro tv/cartoon theme songs. They jam out songs like Halo, Tetris, Sonic the Hedgehog, Star Trek, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Legend of Zelda, X-Men, Pokemon and more! Stage Select Band was the first Video Game rock band ever to be hired by the City of Virginia Beach to perform for tourists for their “Live! on Atlantic” entertainment program. Their band consists of keys, aerophone, singers, drums, bass & electric guitars. Follow them on any social media @StageSelectBand or visit their website www.StageSelectBand.com

Hailing from Dallas, TX, MC Squareroot is a hip-hop artist that raps about mathematics and science. Beginning as a way to engage his students in 2015, MC Squareroot began to publicly perform soon afterwards. In 2019, he signed with local music label, Gitmo Music, subsequently releasing his first album in 2020. Since then, MC Squareroot has released 3 albums, 1 EP, and multiple singles. He has also traveled the U.S. extensively, performing in states such as Colorado, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Iowa, New Mexico, and of course Texas. Remember, everyone counts in math!

Programmers and Artists (and the games they are best known for): Garry Kitchen (Atari), David Crane (Atari), Dan Kitchen, Paul E. Niemeyer (Mortal Kombat Artist), Brian F Colin (Rampage),

Garry Kitchen – Garry Kitchen is a renowned toy/video game designer. Kitchen’s hit games include Donkey Kong (Atari), Keystone Kapers, GameMaker (1985), and Bart (Simpson) vs. the Space Mutants. Garry’s awards include Designer of the Year, Video Game of the Year, and SPA Excellence in Software. His work is highlighted in many documentaries, including World 1-1, Atari: Game Over, Batteries Not Included, The Artists, and Unlocked: The World of Games, Revealed. Kitchen serves on the Advisory Board of the National Video Game Museum.

David Crane – David Crane is one of the most successful designers of entertainment software in the world. His award winning video games, led by Pitfall!™, Ghostbusters™, A Boy and His Blob™, and Amazing Tennis™ are acknowledged as some of the most innovative and popular in the interactive entertainment industry.“ – Classic Gaming Expo “Crane helped define Activision’s earlier efforts with games like Pitfall!, Decathlon, Ghostbusters (a particularly great effort considering most licensed games — especially in the earlier days of the industry — were terrible to the point of almost causing it to cave in on itself) and Little Computer People (arguably the first modern digital pet).” — IGN

Dan Kitchen – As passionate game player and veteran Activision Game Designer, Dan Kitchen is credited with producing over 240 commercially released games across 15 game platforms.  During his career Dan is renowned for designing such Atari 2600 classics as CRACKPOTS™, GHOSTBUSTERS™, TOMCAT: THE F-14 FIGHTER SIMULATOR™, CROSSBOW™ and KUNG-FU MASTER™.  Dan is now designing and programming DAN KITCHEN’S CASEY’S GOLD!™ for the Atari 2600 which he hopes to release in late 2024.

Paul E. Niemeyer – Paul E. Niemeyer’s game art career began at Bally/Midway in 1982, working for pinball legend, Paul Farris. Paul did art on “Tapper”, “PacMan Plus”, “Super PacMan”, “Professor PacMan”, “TRON”, “Satan’s Hollow”, “Spy Hunter”, “WACKO”, and “Midnight Marauders”, as well as dozens of prototype games. In 1984, he went freelance and worked on games like “Time Killers”, “Aeroboto”, “Star Guards”, an endless list of prototype games, and the huge success, the Original “Mortal Kombat”. Paul had simultaneous careers as a designer/illustrator in the Chicago ad agencies, a nature artist for the DNR, and a game art designer/illustrator for the video/pinball game community. Movie properties like “Little Mermaid”, “Jurassic Park II”, “Men in Black”, “Star Trek 5”, “Star Wars: Phantom Menace”, “Pirates of the Caribbean” are among the many projects in his years in the ad agencies.

Brian F Colin – Creator of such videogame classics as RAMPAGE, XENOPHOBE and GENERAL CHAOS, Brian F Colin is a vastly experienced Game Designer, Artist, Animator and Development Group Leader with over 90 video game titles to his credit…. including the creation of some of the most-popular, highest-earning & best-selling titles in video game history! 

Wrestlers: Tower and Tugboat/Typhoon

Steve “Tower” Henneberry premiered as an American Gladiator in 1991 during the middle of the second season and remained a regular on the show until 1995. American Gladiators is competition television program that aired from September 1989 to May of 1996. Before American Gladiators, Steve competed in Mr. America, winning his division. After American Gladiators, Steve made appearances on television shows like Married with Children. He is now in real estate, but still hits the gym six days a week. A special thanks to ATD Promotions for the appearance of Tower from 11am-3pm.

Fred Ottman is a retired American pro wrestler. His first appearance with WWF/WWE was under the ring name of Big Steel Man in June 1989 later debuting as Tugboat Tyler/Tugboat Thomas. His ring name was then shorted to just Tugboat. He faced the team of Earthquake, Dino Bravo, Haku and The Barbarian alongside Hulk Hogan, The Big Boss Man and Hacksaw Jim Duggan. That team up was his pay-per-view debut on Survivor Series. In 1991, Tugboat was reintroduced as Typhoon and him and Earthquake became known as Natural Disasters. He departed WWF and signed with WCW in 1993 under the infamous ring name, The Shockmaster. A special thanks to ATD Promotions for the appearance of Tugboat from 11am-3pm.

Youtubers, Authors, and Publishers: Nintendrew, Gamer Ahmer, Kristopher Carlson (Gamedad), Steve Wright Jr. (Mr. Wright Way), Jay Malone (Square Pegs), Matt Wolfe (Retrowolf88), Stephen Heywood (The Tech Buzz Gaming), Eric and Jared Young (Retro Gaming Pandemic), Michael Thomasson (Good Deal Games), Leonard Herman (Game Historian),

Nintendrew is a video game collector, indie developer, and YouTuber with a passion for strange and obscure corners of Nintendo history, the ups and downs of the retro game market, and DIY/how-to projects. With a professional background in game development, he has also published his cross-platform title, C.A.R.L., as a love letter to the classic games he grew up with. Keep an eye out for the Mario suit – you can’t miss it!

Gamer Ahmer has a passion for retro and modern gaming which is shown throughout her YouTube Channel. Having a massive collection of Videogames, Gaming Kiosks, Authentic Store Displays, Standees, Action Figures, and Vintage Toys, she shares her “Tips and Tricks” on her channel and takes everyone along on her “Collecting Journey” while finding deals and preserving the history of these items. She has always had a love for these items growing up in the 90’s and strives to relive her childhood memories and give everyone that nostalgic feeling.

GameDad is a Content Creator who loves collecting and playing games. On his YouTube channel you will find Console Repairs & Mods, Game Reviews, Pickups Videos, Unboxings and more. With a focus on all things retro & modern, this channel features a little bit of everything gaming and tech related.

Mr. Wright Way is a Retired United States Navy Veteran who has always had a passion for Video Games, Collectibles and Photography. He has photographed for All the Major Pro wrestling companies like WWE, AEW, NJPW and more. You can catch his bi-weekly videos as he shows you his tips and tricks on how to Game Hunt, Video Game Collection Videos, and how to get Wright deals, The Wright Way. www.youtube.com/mrwrightway

Jay Malone started his video game journey in the 80’s, when his cousin sat him down in front of an old TV and played him in Atari Super Football. Since that day, a love of all forms of interactive entertainment has been his primary obsession. Hours upon hours of playing Mega Man 2 and Earthbound eventually led him to work in the game industry for the better part of a decade on titles like NCAA Football 2004, Mirror’s Edge, and Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure. In 2019, Jay used that lifelong love of video games to launch the YouTube channel Square Pegs, dedicated to the best in retro and modern gaming. With a love of the Sega Genesis, Nintendo GameCube, and Nintendo 3DS as his favorite consoles, Jay dives into a wide variety of subjects – from platformers to sports, his sincere desire is that we all Play More Games and Stay Square!

RetroWolf88 is a game collector and YouTuber who had a complete US GameCube game set and sold it. Now he is rebuilding the complete set a 2nd time and sharing his journey through EPIC Retro hunting videos.

The Tech Buzz Gaming is comprised of retro and modern gaming. I run a highly successful show every Wednesday night and Thursday at 8 pm ET called “The Retro Buzz” and “Creators Corner.” I have been building my arcade and game collection since 2017 and it continues to grow! I try and produce at least 2 YouTube videos a week, YouTube shorts twice a week, and a social media post daily to push as much content out to the masses. I have recently embarked on a journey to collect the full North American NES collection! I’ve been in the broadcast space for nearly 20 years and bring the professionalism of broadcast to the gaming space. Follow me on that journey won’t you?

Retro Gaming Pandemic features twin brothers and Columbus natives — Eric and Jared. Their YouTube journey began Summer 2021 when they were nicknamed the Super Mario Bros by Pixel Game Squad. Join them on the hunt for retro games and toys as they build a collection nostalgic for their childhood days. 

Brett Weiss has been a gamer since 1975 and a professional writer since 1997. He’s the author of 13 books, including The NES Omnibus, The SNES Omnibus, and The 100 Greatest Console Video Games. With his Classic Home Video Games series, he wrote the world’s first complete guides to numerous video game consoles. Weiss has appeared in video game documentaries and is the host of the YouTube show, Tales from a Retro Gamer.

Michael Thomasson is one of the most widely respected videogame historians in the field today. He currently teaches college level videogame history, design, and graphics courses. He authored Downright Bizarre Games, and has contributed to nearly a dozen textbooks. Michael’s historical columns have been distributed in newspapers and magazines worldwide.

Leonard Herman – The Game Scholar is regarded as one of the most respected videogame historians. His book Phoenix IV: The History of the Videogame Industry has been called the Bible of videogame history. He has written articles for Videogaming & Computer Illustrated, Games Magazine, Electronic Gaming Monthly, the Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine, Pocket Games, Classic Gamer Magazine, Edge, Game Informer, Old School Gamer Magazine, Gamespot.com and Video Game Trader.