Hard to crack into the local arcade collector/enthusiast scene

[Atari the Jedi]

Trying to break into the arcade scene is difficult in my area, everyone seems kind of snooty or so much like a hermit. Some of the people won't even give me the time of day, others seem nice at first but don't have any social skills. Many of them simply seem to hide in their room with their precious games. And I've met a couple of pinball people in my area and they look down at me as if they were the Queen of England. Is this common throughout the country or am I just lucky that my area seems to have a few bad eggs? Most hobbies and collector scenes generally have a healthy mix of people who like to have a common interest. I'm finding it a little bit discouraging. Any thoughts on how I can try to plug into my local scene better?

[Austin]

Not really sure what to say. Forums are probably your best bet. Pinside is good for pinball people. KLOV forums for the arcade people.

 

I'm not sure about the video game folks, but I know there are different types of pinball people. Full-on collectors, competitive/tournament players, maybe some that dabble with a little bit of both, etc. Pinball is generally pretty welcoming from what I have experienced, especially the competitive scene.

[Keatah]

Tough to answer. One hand you have to enjoy the atmosphere. On the other, don't be bothered by what others think and say.

 

From time to time I catch flak from a few assholes here, but I'm quite thrilled to see things like the new Star Raiders thread and emulation threads. So don't let them get to you.

 

Most people that bury themselves in their rooms with their games don't have social skills. Never developed them, never will. Comes with the territory.

[Cynicaster]

Trying to break into the arcade scene is difficult in my area, everyone seems kind of snooty or so much like a hermit. Some of the people won't even give me the time of day, others seem nice at first but don't have any social skills. Many of them simply seem to hide in their room with their precious games. And I've met a couple of pinball people in my area and they look down at me as if they were the Queen of England. Is this common throughout the country or am I just lucky that my area seems to have a few bad eggs? Most hobbies and collector scenes generally have a healthy mix of people who like to have a common interest. I'm finding it a little bit discouraging. Any thoughts on how I can try to plug into my local scene better?

 

There's a good to fair chance that once the current generation of 30- to 50-something arcade enthusiasts/collectors stop caring about arcade games, the games will start to die off for good, and you'll need to visit a museum to see one. In light of that, you'd think the community would be actively recruiting members to keep the classic arcade spirit alive for as long as possible, rather than having a bunch of self-styled "gatekeepers" trying to keep the hobby as a good-ol'-boys club.

 

Maybe the problem is those gatekeeper types have spent most of their lives getting stuffed into the figurative locker and now feel a sense of power to be at the helm of a niche community. Whatever the reason, it's lame.

[Keatah]

..In light of that, you'd think the community would be actively recruiting members to keep the classic arcade spirit alive for as long as possible, rather than having a bunch of self-styled "gatekeepers" trying to keep the hobby as a good-ol'-boys club..

 

Does "the community" even care? Does anyone else even care?

 

Case in point:

I have a few bits and pieces of Apple II hardware that haven't been seen in the wild since being manufactured in the 1970's. Direct from Apple. What it is doesn't matter. Outside of a few fanatics in obscure online communities I can promise and assure you no one I've met in the past 20 years cares about it.

 

The room doesn't start vibrating. Ominous sounds don't come from the walls. Glowing alien lights don't emanate from the table it rests upon. It sits there in a plastic bag with a layer of dust accumulating.

 

To add any external sense of worth I have to talk it up, give a history "presentation" and go through lots of dramatics. And still everyone yawns. There might be a few members of an online community that oogle and drool over it. They're they kind of people that get upset and in bidding wars. They themselves are socially inept. I'm not interested in impressing that class of people.

 

What would they do with it if they got it? Same thing I do? Ha!

[Flojomojo]

You might have more luck with one of the meet ups, like classic Gaming Expo, where extroverts are more likely to hang out.

 

Speaking only for myself, a sample size of one, I'm no "gatekeeper" but my reasons for liking old video games are highly personal. It's something I did as a kid, often alone. I have a "big enough" social circle and don't really feel the need to further schedule or stretch myself to people I don't know well, even if we share a hobby. And if you did come over to my house, I would be suspicious of you touching my stuff! :-)

 

Among my peers, I'm considered to be one of the most extroverted, well-adjusted, and socially skilled. Even so, I would much rather walk in the woods than go to a gaming expo where there are a ton of people. So, yeah, many people are introverts and nerds. Can't change them. You can mistake reticence for snootiness, but that doesn't mean you get to be pals with everyone.

[Atari the Jedi]

I can totally understand if somebody doesn't want to stretch their social circle because they already have too many friends and commitments I've been there myself many times. I think the problem is going to become like those in the antique watches and clock hobby where many of them have pretty much died out and there's not a whole lot of people who know how to repair watches anymore. If you want to keep the hobby alive you have to allow a new blood in. I have personal connections too many big car collectors and enthusiasts and they finally are starting to see the light in growing their hobby as many of their stock is in their sixties and above. I've been into Atari and console gaming all of my life and have been more than willing to help people put their stuff together give advice knowledge and help the hobby grow. For the longest time before the internet I was the only person who I knew who was directly into a few of the boutique / niche items such as 5200.

[Flojomojo]

That makes sense. It's the main reason (apart from money and space) that I won't take on an arcade cabinet, even though it would be great fun to have vector Star Wars at home with the original controls, screen, speakers, and cabinet. If it broke, I'd be SOL because I'm no electrical expert.

 

I don't feel like I need to preserve anything. The serious collectors can do that, along with the archivists at the Library of Congress, the Videogames Preservation Society, and Archive.org.

 

What exactly are you looking for? A game pal, someone to apprentice (either as a teacher or a learner), someone to trade with, or what? Seems there's enough going on in the wider world that you could be as involved as you want to be. Nevada, with its casino scene, seems like as good a place for that as any. Looks like there was an expo in Vegas last year, and Oregon this year. That's what I'd try to hit if I were you.

[Austin]

I don't think you're going to have to worry about that with pinball. New blood is being introduced to it all the time and it's making a comeback with new locations to experience it at cropping up all the time.

 

Arcade machines and videogames, I could see that going to way of the Watch/Clock hobby. I haven't seen too many younger enthusiasts in that hobby (but then again, I'm not knee-deep in it, I don't have a great feel for that landscape outside of my own local niche). The youngest I've seen in my area is about my age (early 30's), but there may be a few younger folks into it. Hard to say.

[Keatah]

Older arcade coin-op videogames are too narrow in focus because they only play one game in one way. And difficulty ramps up too quickly - thus alienating young newcomers. I myself have been turned off from many games because of exactly that. And it became a point of hate. You have to be a savant in order to make any progress. And then its just more and more of the same old same old. Let us not forget that most coin-op videogames have obscure rules and tricks you have to learn, from off-beat channels, too. Or they rely on superhuman timing and reaction. And none of it is convenient. Too many other things compete for time nowadays.

 

The general non-arcade videogame landscape is so much better today, and I don't really miss the arcades of yore. Nobody does. You see.. Videogames no longer have the camaraderie and after-school socialization of the 80's propelling them. It was that which made the games popular, not necessarily the games themselves creating the environment. Don't get confused there. It was just an 80's phenomenon.

 

Young kids will develop social skills around facebook and facetime, instagram and youtube. Not a dark dingy musty arcade. However with pinball, everyone understands it. They're all mechanical. They make noise. And that's cool.

 

Sorry to say it but arcade machines have already lost popularity and they're not coming back outside of niche circles. And those circles are naturally populated with eccentrics and unbalanced personalities. Don't bother trying to tell me otherwise. Just look on youtube at some of the restoration shops. They're manned by dumpy old fat men in their 50's. Last place young people want to spend time. Even some classic arcades are run by like brethren.

 

In thinking about preservation. There's videos, MAME and rom packages for sale, various on-line repositories, and restored machines in replica arcades or museums. That's plenty good enough for me! Not that I care about any of that crap much anymore.

Edited December 15, 2015 by Keatah

[Turbo-Torch]

Older arcade coin-op videogames are too narrow in focus because they only play one game in one way. And difficulty ramps up too quickly - thus alienating young newcomers......Or they rely on superhuman timing and reaction.

 

I guess those in the 70s and 80s had much better reflexes and timing as it didn't seem to matter back then....or you just suck at video games that require those skills.

 

I don't really miss the arcades of yore. Nobody does.

 

 

Nice of you to speak for everybody.

 

Videogames no longer have the camaraderie and after-school socialization of the 80's propelling them. It was that which made the games popular, not necessarily the games themselves creating the environment. Don't get confused there. It was just an 80's phenomenon.

 

 

I'm sure it was nothing but a fluke as to why certain games like Space Invaders, Pacman, Donkey Kong, Galaga etc. were insanely popular and causing coin shortages. It was just the environment and had nothing to do with the game play...right?

 

Not a dark dingy musty arcade.

 

 

But wait...I thought it was a great 80s social environment that made the games great?

 

And those circles are naturally populated with eccentrics and unbalanced personalities. Don't bother trying to tell me otherwise. Just look on youtube at some of the restoration shops. They're manned by dumpy old fat men in their 50's.

 

 

Would you mind citing some examples?

Most videos I see are of fit and intelligent guys (can actually move and maintain the games) who enjoy a hobby and like to have a killer man-cave to entertain family and friends. They have jobs, commitments and other things going on in their lives and don't feel the need to obsess over one hobby by creating local "club meetings", attending events or making 10s of thousands of posts on internet forums.

[Turbo-Torch]

Trying to break into the arcade scene is difficult in my area, everyone seems kind of snooty or so much like a hermit. Some of the people won't even give me the time of day, others seem nice at first but don't have any social skills. Many of them simply seem to hide in their room with their precious games. And I've met a couple of pinball people in my area and they look down at me as if they were the Queen of England. Is this common throughout the country or am I just lucky that my area seems to have a few bad eggs? Most hobbies and collector scenes generally have a healthy mix of people who like to have a common interest. I'm finding it a little bit discouraging. Any thoughts on how I can try to plug into my local scene better?

 

It's not like a car hobby where you can head to a different cruise night each day of the week or a few car shows/swap meets each month.

I know of only a handful of people in my area who have small game rooms, and like me, it's more of a fun personal hobby that can entertain family and friends of all ages.

 

Head over to Craigslist and start shopping. Once you get a game or two, there are an endless amount of dedicated sites, parts suppliers and vendors of new repro items to keep any games you buy running strong.

There also used to be auctions like USAA which would travel all over the country and they were a ton of fun. Plenty of cool people would attend them and you could get some incredible deals. Unfortunately, those type of auction companies seemed to have disappeared...probably too much competition from Craigslist and eBay.

 

Hit some of the dedicated arcade sites. You won't find much of anything on AA except a few who think a hard drive with some stickers on it is an arcade collection.

[VectorGamer]

Older arcade coin-op videogames are too narrow in focus because they only play one game in one way. And difficulty ramps up too quickly - thus alienating young newcomers.

 

Every game is different. Sinistar for example is hard from the get go. An arcade machine is not going to make money if everyone can play for an hour on one quarter. That's just painfully obvious.

 

I don't really miss the arcades of yore. Nobody does.

 

I guess people are just going to beercades for the drinks alone. I have no clue then as to why people travel from all over the world to attend the annual tournament at Funspot.

 

Just look on youtube at some of the restoration shops. They're manned by dumpy old fat men in their 50's. Last place young people want to spend time. Even some classic arcades are run by like brethren.

 

 

Tood Tuckey is a friend of mine and has been restoring amusement machines for over 30 years. How does his oversized gut have anything to do with the wealth of knowledge he brings to the hobby?

 

Maybe the deal is that you're just not an arcade gamer. Which is fine but there are a lot of passionate arcade gamers and collectors that appreciate the beauty of an arcade machine and the atmosphere of arcades.

 

I'll give you reps for the troll post though.

[VectorGamer]

You won't find much of anything on AA except a few who think a hard drive with some stickers on it is an arcade collection.

 

Yeah what's funny about AA is the Pie Factory Podcast thread gets more posts than anything here in the arcade forum.

[Keatah]

Not a troll post. Right or wrong, accurate or inaccurate, just how I see things in this day and age. It was different years ago - when I was a serious arcade enthusiast.

 

A beercade is also majorly different from a regular 80's arcade. And out in my part of town the local sports bar has a few classic video machines just sitting there. Never see them get played. Whereas the ticket dispensers are always occupied, difference like night and day.

 

What is popular are those half-height bartop units running 60-in-1 boards or mame. Practically most everyone in my part of town has something like that.

Edited December 16, 2015 by Keatah

[Crimefighter]

Are these grouchy crabby arcaders you're finding on Craigslist or somewhere else?

 

I'd tune into John's Arcade hosted by John Jacobson, he's a lot friendier and likeable.

[Atari the Jedi]

Yeah I wish we werw more like the car crowd. I understand some of the frustration I'm hearing on this thread, I have gotten myself a couple of arcade games, however, I have also tried going on Craigslist and trying to plug in the scene so basically no avail. I consider myself a pretty level headed person I'm not crazy and I don't try to smother new friendships or anything. As a console gamer / collector I have found Atari Age to be really cool to make some awesome people even if it is just online but the arcade scene seems to be a different animal altogether. I will continue to try and check Craigslist slum around the couple of semi-arcades that we have in town. I'm not going to give up. I do think that times have changed and ywt do I not expect there to be a 1980s arcade in some sort of time bubble, however, common courtesy can still be had in this world and I'm not finding it in my local scene too much. It's not really much trouble to call somebody back nor would it be much trouble to say to somebody I'm sorry I just have too many friends and commitments to really devote anymore. I'm an adult I would understand that. But understanding introverts I know that such courtesy may never happen from some people. I truly think that there's some really awesome people, Tom Tucker or least someone at his store was kind enough to answer a couple of emails pretty quickly a question that I had. They didn't make any money off of it but to get the free information was very valuable to me.

 

 

It's not like a car hobby where you can head to a different cruise night each day of the week or a few car shows/swap meets each month.

I know of only a handful of people in my area who have small game rooms, and like me, it's more of a fun personal hobby that can entertain family and friends of all ages.

 

Head over to Craigslist and start shopping. Once you get a game or two, there are an endless amount of dedicated sites, parts suppliers and vendors of new repro items to keep any games you buy running strong.

There also used to be auctions like USAA which would travel all over the country and they were a ton of fun. Plenty of cool people would attend them and you could get some incredible deals. Unfortunately, those type of auction companies seemed to have disappeared...probably too much competition from Craigslist and eBay.

 

Hit some of the dedicated arcade sites. You won't find much of anything on AA except a few who think a hard drive with some stickers on it is an arcade collection.

Edited December 17, 2015 by Atari the Jedi

[Atari the Jedi]

For me the console gaming and anything Atari was something I would try to hold onto and yes myself I was primarily alone especially as Atari died out and intendo was in and then when Nintendo and Super Nintendo begin to fade out I became a gatekeeper of those items too. I was a poor kid and we never had money there would be no way that I would have ever had an arcade game. Even as the young adult such thing would seem a million miles away. But here I am I got to arcade games and I wanted to learn more about them how to take care of them how to enjoy them and appreciate them to the fullest. I figured if I had a car from 1972 there would be a bunch of enthusiasts for it who would be willing to help me and be one more person in the crowd. But I totally agree and understand where you're coming from when you say it's something personal for me there are just some games that I would never get rid of and that they mean so much to me

You might have more luck with one of the meet ups, like classic Gaming Expo, where extroverts are more likely to hang out.

 

Speaking only for myself, a sample size of one, I'm no "gatekeeper" but my reasons for liking old video games are highly personal. It's something I did as a kid, often alone. I have a "big enough" social circle and don't really feel the need to further schedule or stretch myself to people I don't know well, even if we share a hobby. And if you did come over to my house, I would be suspicious of you touching my stuff! :-)

 

Among my peers, I'm considered to be one of the most extroverted, well-adjusted, and socially skilled. Even so, I would much rather walk in the woods than go to a gaming expo where there are a ton of people. So, yeah, many people are introverts and nerds. Can't change them. You can mistake reticence for snootiness, but that doesn't mean you get to be pals with everyone.

Edited December 17, 2015 by Atari the Jedi

[Atari the Jedi]

For me it's generally the local scene to be honest I've only found one person who is even willing to give me the time of day. But we don't have that kind of relationship. I have seen John's videos and Thom's videos and I find them both to be entertaining and informative. As well as other people online.

 

Are these grouchy crabby arcaders you're finding on Craigslist or somewhere else?

 

I'd tune into John's Arcade hosted by John Jacobson, he's a lot friendier and likeable.

Edited December 17, 2015 by Atari the Jedi

[racerx]

Older arcade coin-op videogames...that crap much anymore.

This has to be longest post in which every point has been wrong. But this?

 

However with pinball, everyone understands it. They're all mechanical. They make noise. And that's cool.

If someone cant immediately grasp a Galaga, Donkey Kong, or Pacman, there's no way they'll EVER understand the ruleset of a modern Stern pin.

 

My advice to the OP is to find a local Facebook collector group. They usually hold get togethers at each other's homes. It's how I met the guys in my area after I bought my first machines, and I've met some great friends who don't hesitate to help out with problem cabinets.

[Keatah]

There's an active dislike of arcade games from some neighbors in my area. I mean like they don't call the cops or anything they just look down up the gamers.

 

If you look at a pinball machine the objective is instantly obvious. If you look at Major Havoc or I Robot or Assault, there is a learning curve and the objective isn't clear.

[Flojomojo]

There's a lot more going on in a modern pinball machine than "keep ball from falling down hole." The progression and phases in stuff like a modern Stern game are more like poorly documented adventure games (think Raiders of the Lost Ark on VCS) than pew-pew arcade games.

 

I agree with you that the style of 80s arcade games is not meant to entice for long periods of time. I think that's part of its charm, but I'm old.

[Inky]

 

Yeah what's funny about AA is the Pie Factory Podcast thread gets more posts than anything here in the arcade forum.

Uhhh.. Thanks?

[Dauber]

BTW, VectorGamer...how in the heck is your classicarcadegaming.com handle supposed to be pronounced??? "left paren right paren"??? "parentheses"?? It's...quite a mouthful....(which I totally understand...I use "37!WS" on one message board I frequent...and yep, it is awkward saying "thirty-seven-bang-W-S")

[VectorGamer]

Uhhh.. Thanks?

 

I just think it's ironic that a thread devoted to a podcast about arcade gaming gets more posts than that found in the arcade forum on AtariAge. I was just trying to illustrate my point that people are going to have to go elsewhere like the forums at KLOV.com if they want a site with a generous amount of discussion on arcade gaming.

 

Just the facts. Look at this thread I started: 0 replies. I thought the Atari fanboys would've had a hard-on for that post.