Arcade video Machines

[Guest]

I grew up in the era when arcade machines started and when you became a Rock star because of high scores with swarms of kids crowded around to watch you so I thought I'd open a thread for those of us who want to reminisce about the golden days of arcade machines. Your favourites, your top scorers, those you didn't like ...

 

 Space Invaders was the first "shoot em" hit and pacman for the girls but the early games that I started out top scoring on were Galaxians and the incredible Defender (by Williams a great arcade game maker) The sounds on defender were epic. I didn't like asteroids much nor moon base alpha (or something like that) that were also big games at the time. Most of these games appeared in pubs but then amusement arcades became a big thing. Crystals on St Margarets bus station was one of the first in Leicester (long before Thomas's). I also remember a great and difficult game called Robotron which was in a chip shop next to the ABC cinema. You played it with two joy sticks one for movement and the other for shooting and I used to tear my hands up on that. Burst blisters between the thumb and first finger all the time.

 

The other place for the latest arcade games was at the seaside amusements where video machines started to replace some of the slots and even the bingo. And then Arcade machines started to take off both in graphics, size and volume.

 

So what did you used to play? 

 

My Next gen games to follow... 

[Dahnsouff]

Outrun

Afterburner

Double Dragon

Battlezone

 

Edited 3 May 2020 by Dahnsouff

[SpacedX]

 

 

 

And this...

 

 

[orangecity23]

I was all about the lightgun shooters and the racing games. Use to love seeing Sega Rally, or Manx TT with its weird motorbike sit on cabinet you had to lean over in the corners. Love Time Crisis as well, great in the arcade, great back home on a Playstation as well. Shame you don't see arcade games around here so much any more. I (used to) travel a bit with work, and while I was doing some work in Chicago last year, my boss and I found a barcade, where you could eat pizza, grab a beer, and play on a whole bunch of arcade machines, so we teamed up and cleared Time Crisis 3. Great place to spend some time, would love it if they started catching on over here as well.

Didn't realise that not far away was this place though, 765 machines Next time I have to go back there, I'm definitely checking it out ...

https://www.gallopingghostarcade.com/games-list/

[Tuna]

House Of The Dead

Virtua Cop...basically anything where I can wield a plastic firearm.

 

Liked Virtua Striker too.

[Mark]

I always went straight for this

 

[purpleronnie]

I came close to buying one of these once upon a time.

 

Spent most of my holidays in the arcade playing this instead of on the beach.

 

[Blue ROI]

Football Champ from the early 90s. Football with extra violence! Something of a precursor to ISS/Pro Evo.

 

 

Sega Rally

Virtua Striker

Virtua Cop

 

Those 3 were at the end of the Arcade's Golden Era. The SNES/Mega Drive was where the consoles started to catch up and the Playstation was what sealed the Arcade's fate.

 

Was surprised to learn that Outrun was still being made for Arcade's during the 00's. From what I gather the later games might well be the best of the series.

 

[StriderHiryu]

3 hours ago, FIF said:

I grew up in the era when arcade machines started and when you became a Rock star because of high scores with swarms of kids crowded around to watch you so I thought I'd open a thread for those of us who want to reminisce about the golden days of arcade machines. Your favourites, your top scorers, those you didn't like ...

 

 Space Invaders was the first "shoot em" hit and pacman for the girls but the early games that I started out top scoring on were Galaxians and the incredible Defender (by Williams a great arcade game maker) The sounds on defender were epic. I didn't like asteroids much nor moon base alpha (or something like that) that were also big games at the time. Most of these games appeared in pubs but then amusement arcades became a big thing. Crystals on St Margarets bus station was one of the first in Leicester (long before Thomas's). I also remember a great and difficult game called Robotron which was in a chip shop next to the ABC cinema. You played it with two joy sticks one for movement and the other for shooting and I used to tear my hands up on that. Burst blisters between the thumb and first finger all the time.

 

The other place for the latest arcade games was at the seaside amusements where video machines started to replace some of the slots and even the bingo. And then Arcade machines started to take off both in graphics, size and volume.

 

So what did you used to play? 

 

My Next gen games to follow... 

I too grew up in the era of Arcade Machines and used to skip school to play games at the local arcade! I actually now work in the video games industry so when my dad used to say "what will Video Games ever do for you!?" the answer is "quite a lot actually!"

 

 

^ Some of my friends and I rescued some arcade machines from FunLand in the Trocadero in London when it closed down. My friend started his own arcade in South London, at which a few mahines that are there belong to me:
 

 

Also for me personally, it was always my dream to have my own arcade cabinet at home because I wasted so much time and money on them as a kid / teenager. This is my own custom one that I have at home:

 

^ This is actually a PC in a box. I used to have Third Strike as an actual machine but it's better to have a PC as you can play online / change the game, etc. I still have regular get togethers with the boys to play games on the machine and to reminisce about old times.

 

I really miss the arcades actually. Online gaming is fun, but playing together in a social setting is so much fun. I made so many friends playing in arcades over the years and many of them I am still in touch with.

[Guest]

Favourite sports simulation (maybe speedball):

 

 

 

 

 

 

my favourite racer:

 

 

Most unusual hybrid:

 

[ozleicester]

 

Original Donkey Kong

 

And of course the original...... Pong   

Edited 3 May 2020 by ozleicester

[Guest]

In a seafront arcade (upstairs) at Scarborough in perhaps 1979 or 80 there was a game called Red Tank. It wasn't particularly interesting but I could play on it and never lose. which meant I could stay away from my parents spending only 10p whilst I waited for friends. I remember playing it one day for over 3 hours.

 

 

Here's the Robotron screen screen I spoke of earlier:

 

 

You had to dodge around the manic moving aliens, shooting them whilst saving the humans. The speed became a blur.

 

I remember enjoying this with my wife and the 2 oldest kids. we each had our own turtle (I was Leonardo, of course).

 

[purpleronnie]

Anyone remember those arcade table games they used to have in pubs?  Sit and have a pint (or at my age a coke and crisps) and have a game too.

[Mike Oxlong]

 

Edited 3 May 2020 by Mike Oxlong

[SpacedX]

1 hour ago, Mike Oxlong said:

 

Ha! Hyper Olympics. We used to say that the athlete looked like Bobby Smith - but actually, it was more Terry McDermott. 

[Julian Joachim Jr Shabadoo]

7 hours ago, Blue ROI said:

Was surprised to learn that Outrun was still being made for Arcade's during the 00's. From what I gather the later games might well be the best of the series.

 

OutRun 2 came out in the early 2000's, they had a 4 player setup at Hollywood Bowl at Meridian. Fantastic arcade game

 

I used to love Street Fighter 2 and the Alpha series, TMNT, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, Time Crisis, Virtua Cop. I do miss a good arcade, unless they had it set to £1 per play (or more) and the difficulty ramped up so your wallet was empty in 10 minutes

[Guest]

On 03/05/2020 at 13:44, purpleronnie said:

Anyone remember those arcade table games they used to have in pubs?  Sit and have a pint (or at my age a coke and crisps) and have a game too.

They seemed to be mostly pacman type games. I didn't really get into them because playing sitting down in those days was just weird.

[Trav Le Bleu]

No mention of

 

 

For shame!

[kingcarr21]

 

When I was a kid my uncle had a caravan at a site just outside of Skegness. It had a little arcade in it which had this beauty of a game.

 

The money we would spend trying to finish this game. Never did though. Might have to go on youtube now just to see how it ends  

[Guest]

On 21/05/2020 at 10:24, Trav Le Bleu said:

No mention of

 

 

For shame!

 a true legend.

[Sir Shep]

Pheonix for me, loved that game. Operation Wolf was another. 

[ithuriel]

Bygone days when games were just fun, nothing more, used to like playing the Terminator 2 arcade game at the old bowling place where Debenhams is now, also did the quasar thing in there a few times too even if it did feel a little silly.

[Leicester_Loyal]

Now we're talking, what a ****ing thread sir!

• Fast & Furious
• Time Crisis
• Manx TT Superbikes
• The Simpsons
• Outrun
• Daytona USA
• House of the Dead
• SEGA Rally

I remember Fast & Furious was groundbreaking because you could create a unique pin code ID (7 or 8 digits) and carry on your progress, which meant after a week in Skegness I had unlocked loads of stuff rather than having to start again like on other arcade machines.

 

My nan would put 20ps away for all the grandkids all year, then each night of the holiday she'd give us a bag of about £3-£4 in 20ps and we'd have the time of our lives. Bless her, what a woman

[lcfc278]

When I was young we used to go on holiday to this little caravan park just outside of Great Yarmouth and they had Michael jackson's Moonwalker in the arcade. This is back when MJ was cool. I used to spend all my money on this bad boy and loved it. Depending on which controller you picked MJ had a different colour suit and hat which I remember thinking was the coolest thing ever, and it played a few of his tunes as well, great memories.

 

 

[SeCrEt FoX]

Bad Dudes vs Dragon ninja

Rolling Thunder 

Turtles Arcade

Outrun

Daytona

Streetfighter

Double Dragon

+ loads I've forgotten! 

Few football games I can't remember there names. Mostly played in Yarmouth/Mablethorpe circa 1990 good old days. 

Anyone remember the old newsagents in the 90s on Saffron Lane across the road from the swimming baths had a hidden arcade upstairs? 

Edited 16 August 2020 by SeCrEt FoX