VectorGamer

Re: "blah blah" - exactly what I was thinking... OK, I have to tell you that this project is really out there and you get an A+ in creativity. However, as others have stated, how can Atari game cart make a comfortable wallet? What are the dimensions of a cart like 4" x 3" or something like that and I'm supposed to park that in my front pocket? Something more practical would be to make a photo frame and clock out of it.

What's the point? It needs to be demoed on an actual 5200 stock controller. Otherwise, one may as well get the Wico controllers. Unless I am missing something, which may be possible due to the fluctuating volume levels in the video and since I am at work where I need to keep it down.

Also, I found to get rid of the "OK" screen to add "skip_gameinfo 1" to the MAME ini file...

Thanks, man - I was able to get some of those to work!

I run the old version...unless there's an option to turn off the "legalese" screen and having to type "OK" in the newer versions...what the heck is that about?

What's the deal with numerous games with no sound? In particular: Asteroids Space Fury Star Castle BattleZone Space Invaders The first four are all vector games although Asteroids Deluxe and Tempest work. Is their a specific MAME32 ver that one needs for the respective game or are their different config settings.

I agree. I think some will post years outside of that range to make a point, however it is widely accepted that the Golden Age is somewhere between 1978 and 1984. It's more than just a range of years as it reflects the types of games and culture associated with that era. So in that regard, it would be desirable to keep responses on topic in regard to the true Golden Age of gaming and not this NES "poser-era" that needs to make a name for itself. Let the flames begin! : ]

ColecoVision Miner 2049er 5 mins Jumpman Junior 5 mins Galaxian 20 mins Mouse Trap 20 mins Super Donkey Kong 10 mins Space Fury 5 mins

Here's a few more - I hope Scott Higgins is reading this thread! Tazz-Mania <<<- This would be sweet! Space Firebird Scramble

Not too closely; I check the scores occasionally, but my hometown is so far away from ever winning the championship it depresses me too much. Yeah - you guys are up and down all the time like Bielefeld or Koln... I'm a Bayern fan but I love watching any Bundesliga on GolTV - it's the most exciting league out there... Besides, my parents are Deutsche immigrants...

Ahh...that's how it all really started with a Pong machine sitting in a bar. The first video game I played was Pong at a Two Guys department store. The game was parked in an aisle in the middle of the store. A genius decided that it would be a great place since there was a column with power already there. Later, they moved Pong and added Space Fury to the back of that same department store. OK - my trip down memory lane is probably boring, but that's how it started. Pong in a bar or a department store. Then Space Invaders happened. Then Asteroids. Then Pac-Man opened the floodgates. We had a huge arcade at the mall that had at least three full-size billiards tables, air hockey, a row of pinball machines sitting back to back, two of those projection screens for hunting or wild west shootout games and all the classic arcade games. I vividly remember Death Race cuz my mom would always give me hell for playing it. So, when you have a sizable arcade that is packed on a Friday night, all the lights, sound and people create an ambiance that is something I will never forget. Totally off topic, do you follow Bundesliga?

Wasn't Mortal Kombat the first that we can blame "button memorization" on?

I believe there are plenty of those before me that label the pre-crash era the "Golden Age" of gaming. And with good reason - arcades were packed, the games were unique and simple to learn. Pac-Man fever, Space Invaders coin shortage, That's Incredible! video game challenge...others can add more reasons... It sure was great while it lasted... There's lots of reasons why it was truly golden then: There were many arcades all over. Each visit was an almost other worldly experiance. Surrounded by exciting sights and sounds it was easy to lose track of time. Amen, brother... It was not uncommon to have folks looking over your shoulders while playing the game. Although definitely not as fun as actually playing the game, but it was interesting enough to watch. In the pic you can see "Player #2" doing just that. The guy in the red jacket is in the way, but "Player #2" should have his right hand on the top corner of the cabinet in order to be in the correct spectator stance. Maybe we can find a pic on the net documenting the correct stance...

I just had my #3 Pepper II record added : ] http://twingalaxies.com/index.aspx?c=22&am...908&vi=3149

Also, I will be at Hersheypark this Saturday and will report my findings from their arcade.

I was at The Coliseum last night with the kids. Down in the lower level bar they had two Galaga/Ms. Pac-Man cocktails and a multi-classic game cabinet with at least 30 to choose from. I sat down at the Galaga cocktail (of course!) and got 120,000 on my first play - not too shabby for a little rust. After playing a round of Ms. Pac-Man, I got on that multi-classic cabinet and played Space Invaders, Asteroids, Satan's Hollow and Robotron. Asteroids took some getting used to with using the joystick to turn left and right. I tell you what, the arcade versions of Asteroids and Space Invaders are TOUGH compared to their home console comrades. I remembered this being true back in the day but last night served as a reminder. As for The Coliseum itself, the ambience is right with the "kid carpet," lighting and paint scheme. They had about a half-dozen skee ball games that played our arms off, three air hockey tables, a small merry-go-round that my daughter road 1200 times, those basketball games with the mobile backboard and some kind of two-seated simulator thing (is it supposed to be a rollercoaster? - I don't know). I think the game selection was too heavily concentrated on racing games. They had about four NASCAR racing games, two "Need For Speed: Underground," two other car racers and about four motorcycle (or jet ski?) racers. Now, most if not all of these do head-to-head racing which takes up more space but still the selection appeared tilted toward the racing games. I would have liked if The Coliseum had more classic arcade games as they do have the room for it. Additionally, I would have liked if they placed the games in the main arcade instead of burying them in the lower level bar. I only recall one pinball machine in the joint and that was a Simpson's down at the bar on free play. Additional items of interest at The Coliseum is a bowling alley, a poker room, a bar, restaurant and an ice cream shoppe. Despite the shortcomings, the kids and I had a great time and I pooped them out as they were still asleep when I left for work this morning.

How about: Turtles Spiders Magical Spot Also, Opcode you better get to work on that Satan's Hollow cart, looks like it's in demand! : ]

Do you mean the Encyclopedia of Arcade Video Games by Bill Kurtz? I have that, excellent book, though a little spartan in text. But I love the pictures of all arcade cabinets. That's the one - man that book takes me down memory lane... Did you notice the screen in Asteroids? I could be wrong but it seems to be fake... Perhaps they were trying to simulate phosphor persistence... BTW, how about arcade remakes? There are some arcade ports for the CV that I would love to see remade: I sorta remember playing this one in the arcade at least once but I think this one is an excellent candidate for a home brew port: Eagle As far as arcade remakes, I would rather see new titles than remakes for the ColecoVision. I'd wind up buying them though.

That's a brand new control panel and overlay from Mike's Arcade. I'm converting the Satan's Hollow cabinet to make it look like a Galaga Arcade cabinet. As far as the disk goes, it cost $36 but I'm going with another vendor which costs about $75. The motherboard is no financial loss since I got it free from work. I do have the original Satan's Hollow control panel which I am going to put on display in the man cave.

I believe there are plenty of those before me that label the pre-crash era the "Golden Age" of gaming. And with good reason - arcades were packed, the games were unique and simple to learn. Pac-Man fever, Space Invaders coin shortage, That's Incredible! video game challenge...others can add more reasons... It sure was great while it lasted...

Here's an update... The 4th pic is of a IDE Flash drive that burned up and fried the mobo...pretty sweet, eh? The last pic I did a test drive of the controls and sound...

They now have a rebuilt Death Race at Funspot in Laconia, NH. Check it out. That's interesting - I thought the monitor was elevated more than that but the pix at KLOV confirm that's how they were. Unless there are other versions of the cab that are not pictured on KLOV. http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=7541

Hmmm...then I guess I will take a stab at it and be the polar opposite and create my own cult following... Nah...

Do you mean the Encyclopedia of Arcade Video Games by Bill Kurtz? I have that, excellent book, though a little spartan in text. But I love the pictures of all arcade cabinets. That's the one - man that book takes me down memory lane... Did you notice the screen in Asteroids? I could be wrong but it seems to be fake...

I didn't want to include 1984 because of the introduction of laser disc games were far removed from the classic games released previously. As a whole, I'm not finding a whole lot of really good games released in 1984. There were some big guns released in 80-81 that spawned numerous sequels - Pac-Man and Donkey Kong for example. Some of the games took previous releases an extra step like Galaga. Some of games were innovative like BattleZone and the one you mentioned in Tempest. Doesn't seem like anyone can pinpoint one year as being the best so far, not even the original poster.