I'm always trying to think of ways I can "give back" and show my appreciation for the support I receive from gamers all around the world on Patreon, Twitter, Youtube and more.As I'll be attending PLAY Expo again in Manchester this year, I tried to think of a cool little free gift I can give away to people I meet. As you can see from the photo below, I've designed some MyGamerXP stickers! I will be giving away the smaller sheet on the left (the one with the Sega font "MYGAMERXP" on it), so if you're attending be sure to say hello!The final sticker sheet will be amended slightly and include a "first edition" code so if you're into collecting these (I'll design more in the future), you'll be able to keep track of what order they were released in.For those who can't make the event, but would like to own these, there will be opportunities to still get your hands on them. There are so many of you on Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, etc who are incredibly supportive by sharing and liking my videos, so I don't want anyone to miss out.First of all, those of you who support me on Patreon will receive the sticker sheets I'll be giving away, plus some larger alternate versions (free of charge - I will cover postage). Be sure to message me on the platform, DM me on twitter or send me an e-mail. All the details are on the Patreon post.After that I will see what the reception is like if enough people are interested. I'll obviously send these out to anyone who has bought a t-shirt or helped me in some way. If any of you want the stickers I will try to do some competitions or arrange something in the near future. I'll try my best to ensure nobody misses out, but I may not be able to post out to everyone for free if there are a lot of people who want them.So what do you think? Let me know in the comments below. I have some other ideas in the works, but I hope this is a good start to giving a little something back to you all.  

I'm happy to announce that I'll be attending PLAY Expo in Manchester again later this year (8th-9th October 2016), making this my 3rd year running!I've thoroughly enjoyed PLAY Expo in the past and this year looks to be bigger and better than ever, thanks in part to a 20th anniversary celebration of Tomb Raider; a series I absolutely love, featuring one of the most iconic video game characters of all time.In tribute to gaming's first lady of adventure, the party starts with what is set to be the largest Tomb Raider panel ever assembled! Hosted by Sky Sports^™ eSports commentator Matt Andrews, and with a host of famous names throughout the history of the franchise, fans will be able to engage in a Q&A with the panel as well as hear untold stories from the development of the series. With more names yet to announce, confirmed guests include:

• Ian Livingstone CBE: Former CEO of Eidos^® Interactive
• Natalie Cook: Lara Croft^™ original model for Tomb Raider
• Richard Morton: Lead Game Designer / Level Designer / Environmental Artist - Tomb Raider II^™ – Tomb Raider III^™ – Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation^™ –Tomb Raider Chronicles^™ – Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness^™
• Gavin Rummery: Programmer for Tomb Raider - Tomb Raider II - Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness / Head of Core^® Design
• Heather Gibson: Level Designer for Tomb Raider / Tomb Raider II
• Andy Sandham: Level Designer / Artist / Script Writer - Tomb Raider III - Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation - Tomb Raider Chronicles
• Murti Schofield: Lead Writer / Casting - Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness
• Nathan McCree: Composer - Tomb Raider - Tomb Raider II - Tomb Raider III

With so many cast and development members' together at last, no reunion on this scale would be complete without the opportunity to capture the moment, and a Tomb Raider themed photo shoot will be the perfect place stand shoulder-to-shoulder with gaming's greatest heroes!In a feat worthy of Lara herself, PLAY Expo Manchester has scoured the globe unearthing the rarest of Tomb Raider collectibles, merchandise and memorabilia, on show in a specially designed display. Respecting the ground-breaking gameplay that has defined the series for two decades, PLAY Expo Manchester journeys through time, with every single Tomb Raider game throughout the ages on display and ready to play!You can read about my previous experiences of PLAY Expo here:

• PLAY Expo 2015
• PLAY Expo 2014

You can also find out more about PLAY Expo Manchester, including purchasing tickets for the event on their official website: www.playexpomanchester.com 

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 HD is a fan-made game by a small group of talented people who wanted to re-create Sega and Sonic Team's classic game, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, with high definition graphics and music whilst preserving the original gameplay.This is essentially my first video in the "Quick Play" series, something I hope will be an interesting, informative and entertaining addition to the reviews, top 5 / top 10's, and gaming memories videos.For future episodes, I aim to include funny gameplay with friends, unique challenges and new discoveries, to help make these a little different to the usual "gameplay with commentary" style that saturate YouTube. So... it's something familiar, but with a bit of a twist. So I hope you'll enjoy them.Sonic 2 HD is planned to include new features after the original is recreated, such as online multiplayer modes, extra levels, and Knuckles as a playable character.You can read more about the Sonic 2 HD project here: http://info.sonicretro.org/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_2_HDPlus, you can also keep up to date on development in their project blog here: http://sonic2hd.blogspot.co.uk

Codemasters released Micro Machines on various consoles back in 1991, but the version I played and loved was for the Sega Mega Drive. Being such a huge fan of the toys when I was a kid, when I saw this on the shelves at my local video games store I couldn't wait to get it. Good job I had all that birthday money saved up!Micro Machines was a racing game for up to two players in its original release and came in its very own uniquely shaped cartridge. Later sequels were adapted to allow two controllers to be plugged directly into the cartridge, which I always thought was pretty cool.The game features cartoony visuals and is played from a "top-down" perspective giving you a great view of the level designs which are full of character and themed obstacles. You get to drive a range of miniature vehicles on breakfast tables, the beach, on school desks, in bathtubs and on my personal favourite; the pool tables. I love the use of playing cards for ramps, pockets you drive down and the ability to knock your opponent off the table with a looney tunes style puff of smoke as they fall to their death.In single player you have two modes to choose from which are "Head to Head" and "Challenge". The first offers a simple one-on-one gameplay style where you must beat your opponent to the edge of the screen. Doing so rewards you with a point, until one of you wins by filling them all in your colour. It's quite different to the usual rules in racing games of winning laps and the "stop-start" style of this mode may not be to everyone's tastes. It can take a little bit of getting used to and for single player, this isn't my preferred choice.In challenge mode things feel a little bit more familiar where you complete laps and must finish in first or second place to qualify for the next race. Coming in third or fourth means you lose a chance and have to try again. As you only start the game with 3 chances, if you lose them all it's game over.The game starts off fairly easy and get progressively harder as you would expect. However, each opponent has a different driving style, with some being easier to beat than others, so you do have a chance for some tactical advantage if you're familiar with the game and its characters.Coming in first place for each race in a round also allows you to partake in a bonus stage which grants you an extra chance (which is essentially a continue) if you manage to complete it within the time limit.This is all very nice, but where this game really shines is in its multiplayer! Remember the part where I told you about the head-to-head mode that possibly sounded a little bit boring? Well, not if that opponent is your friend! For a quick pick-up-and-play competitive game with friends, Micro Machines is some of the best fun I've had on the Mega Drive. In fact, whilst recording this gameplay footage with my friend Kev, we were in tears of laughter as we cheekily nudged each other into obstacles or off the track entirely to our doom! There are plenty of opportunities for foul play here which can make this game hilarious.One thing to note here though is we did encounter a few glitches where the better player who was on the track sometimes lost a point to the other person way off, but with a few beers and a good attitude, this just added to the laughs we had.In terms of music there isn't much to talk about here beyond the introductory theme tune, as during the races there's only the engine noises and sound effects to listen to. This didn't matter too much as to be honest, I didn't really notice the absence of music, but I felt it was worth noting.If you find it cheap, I'd say it's definitely worth picking up and keeping an eye out for the other games in the series. They also released Micro Machines v3 on the PlayStation 1 and v4 on the PS2 which are great fun as well and I'll no doubt cover these in the future.