Curious Sofa

Most curious as well, what wassit precious???

It seems strange, and the $ don't add up, but I think the Phantom games are Pac-Man and Ms Pac-Man. And I think they do a Super Phantom later. I was completely guessing on Pumper, but my best guess is Dig Dug? Whether or not these match the manufacturers is another thing entirely. I had thought about Cheese Police being Mouse Trap but...the year didn't seem remotely right.... Oh, and I'm guessing that Volt Storm is Tempest? Hard to say. But I like the call you made on Galaxian and Galaga, that seems about right.

Getting more and more stoked for this, glad I hopped in and ordered! And ready to fire up my Track-ball, which hasn't gotten as much use on my 5200 as I expected. I spend too much time playing Dreadnaught Factor, Moon Patrol, Pac-Man and Mario Bros to use it

Anyone want to spend the time to compile a list of what games are supposed to be what? There's the obvious ones (or maybe to some they're all obvious, and I'm just not very good at deducing such...), like Gecko Run being Frogger, Space Rocks (duh)...Knight Birds as Joust... But how about some of the other strange ones? I'm probably just too tired to put it together and will feel stupid for admitting to now knowing some, but....What is Cheese Police? Ballpark Run? Xzsisar? (Xevious? But there's a Sequel, is it Galaga?)

Wow, I thought I kicked the game's butt by having over $100k in the bank when it ended. It ended with a crash, also. And I rebooted it, and it crashed again, so apparently I will be restarting. I _hadn't_ thought of making Soda $1, good call GDG! I had it at $0.50, constantly running out. My most profitable game was Xsizar, it never went down below 2 stars in popularity and made me something like $20k by the time all was done. And yeah, I got the sequel and put it next to it. I also never sold my Evil Void machine, though the retro collector guy kept wanting to buy it. It kept at least 2 stars in popularity and made me lots of dough. I would love for there to be less hesitations when the month ends (always jarring), better timed events like when new games show up _right_ before month end, more decor options, and more ability to see the screens of the games you buy. And what they are like when you're selecting them after purchase; it doesn't list the game type on the info screen, so when I'm shuffling my arcade it's tough to figure out where to put them sometimes. But this is fun stuff, and well worth my time and $3.

Yeah, I don't think the game is complex in total setup. If they give you the message that a home edition is out, just sell it like a hotcake. And generally, if a collector wants to buy, unless it's making lots of money, sell it. They'll give you a lot more than it will be worth a couple of months later. But I have managed to keep an older machine or two that became classic. How, I'm not sure...

Thank you for posting about this, onlysublime! One of the major events of my lifetime is that I was *this* close to opening an arcade right out of college, but then a series of things fell through and I wound up giving up on the dream. I've always regretted not doing it, even though at the time (around 93) it would likely have been a disaster as everything went straight to hell right about then, arcade wise. But you know, I was 22, mistakes get made.... But this is a great, great sim. I made it past the bank payback session partially because I read the note on here about someone getting hosed by that. I'm still working with setting difficulty levels - seems like if you ever put a game above medium everyone complains up a storm. Same if you make a game $0.50; I only succeeded with that on a sit-down racing game so far. But a very, very nice little sim. Not too shabby for $3.

Thanks for the advice, all. I will check out those Emersons as an idea. I'm also considering getting an up-converting A/V amplifier, some of those are only around $200 and might be a solution too if I get a TV that just has HDMI.

I have a feeling this has been discussed somewhere that I'm not looking but..... My TV is having difficulties, and it is an "older" LCD projection TV that has three Component Video inputs. Which is awesome since I have two regular Xboxes, a white non-HDMI Xbox 360, a PS2 with component video and a Wii with component video going into it (via a 4 - into - 1 Component Video switchbox). Now that I am looking at new TVs in case I have to replace my current one, I am disturbed by how few even have (1) Component video input, ack! Also, while I'm looking for something that will accommodate that, any recommendations for picture, etc, for those uses? I'd also like to watch movies in 1080p via my upscaling DVD player. And the TV I'm replacing is a 44inch, so I'd like something around that size. Possibly could live with a 42", but would probably prefer to step up slightly to a 46" or 47", because why not. Any help or discussion (or redirection) much appreciated!

It does have several games that you won't get at all or won't get a decent version of on the 2600 / 7800. Such as Dreadnaught Factor, Moon Patrol, and a few others. I also just really, really, really like 5200 Pac-Man. Get the 2-port, if the controllers start not working, fix them with the Best Electronics Kit or buy a gold refurb from Best and you're good to go.

Going to second the motions for Project Overkill, Xevious 3d/G, and Deception *(Tecmo's Deception). Also going to recommend Star Gladiator, a Capcom Soul Blade / Street Fighter type but in outer space. And also recommending Star Wars: Masters of Teras Kasi because it is _awful_ and a stark contrast to Star Gladiator It is hilarious how awesome the Tusken Raider is, and the "story" they made for him... but I digress. Big props for recommending Einhander, Metal Jesus!

I cannot tell all of you how strongly I recommend Mark's modded Xboxes. I got one recently, it shipped basically immediately, perfectly packaged... And the thing is simply completely awesome. I am very near blown away, and I'm even fairly jaded - I have a computer basically dedicated to emulation gaming / Mame / with an X-arcade stick, but this Xbox mod is just a wonder. So much on there that's new and surprising, or simply better than it was before.... do yourself a favor and get one from Mark. :thumbsup:

Got a 250gig Xbox from Mark, it _got here_ in like...2 business days, no time flat! Over the holidays no less! Packaged very nicely, expertly. And the system, I can hardly say how happy I am with it. The number of _completely awesome_ games on there is a wonder. Stuff right up my alley that I'd never even heard of, as a person with a dedicated computer for emulation / Mame / x-arcade stick. Highly, highly recommend the man and his Xbox mods. Thanks so much, Mark!

Genuine best wishes, Curt. I have enjoyed not just all of the products that you have worked on, but have found your spirit and will to be invigorating above and beyond what function and fun your products have been. May those traits serve you well through these difficult health issues!

I pulled the trigger on a CIB one of these a few years ago, I don't remember for sure but think I may have gotten it from atari2600.com. Fun game, and cool art. I am glad I did it. I mostly wish I hadn't sold some CIBs from back in the day. Dragon Force being the main one, those Working Designs materials were so cool, with their raised lettering and overall high quality. And of course...Panzer Dragoon Saga for Saturn. And Snatcher for Sega CD. Once again, games I have owned and foolishly sold for reasons completely unclear to me now. Grr.

Fair enough. But don't forget Tutankham in that group. I actually have a soft spot for Return of the Jedi too; love the sound effects, and don't hate the gameplay like some seem to.

Hey now, I happen to love Sky Skipper.

From that godawful website... "Standard Best Electronics reconditioned Atari CX52 Joystick with new Stock Carbon dot Silicone pads $21 (Exchange / Core Required*) Standard Best Electronics reconditioned Atari CX52 Joystick with new Stock Carbon dot Silicone pads $27 (Out right buy, No Exchange / Core required) Upgraded Best Electronics Atari CX2 Joystick with New Lifetime Gold Metal Dot Silicone Pads and Gold Flex Circuit $32 + Gold Surcharge (Exchange / Core required*) Because of the current high cost of Gold we had to add a $5 surcharge to each Gold Upgraded Reconditioned Atari CX52 Joystick to cover the raising cost of Gold plated Rev. 9 Flex Circuits. Upgraded Best Electronics Atari CX52 Joystick with New Lifetime Gold Metal Dot Silicone Pads and Gold Flex Circuit $38 + Gold Surcharge (Out right buy, No Exchange / Core required) *Exchanged Core / used CX52 Joysticks must have all of the Stock plastic parts, with no cuts or damaged cables. Missing or damaged Silicone pads / boots is OK. What is the US Shipping charge on Exchanged or Out right buys on Best’s Reconditioned CX52 Joysticks? We have a Flat rate shipping charge for US / Domestic shipped Atari CX52 reconditioned Joysticks. $11.15 Priority Mail plus $2.35 Insurance for 1 or 2 CX52 Joysticks. California Residents must add their local CA Sales tax to the total. CA sales tax is based on the CX52 Controller(s) cost only (not on insurance or shipping). Click here for Best's ship to Information." Long story short is...neighborhood of $50 total with shipping for a complete controller. Not cheap. But a good fix to the design. That said, the buttons, even when perfectly functional, are really awfully placed if you ask me. And thus you may want to keep with the 3rd party controller you had in your video. Much improved button placement.

Fantastic video as always! Hope you get a working joystick - I am not good at tinkering / fixing, so I went ahead and bought a "Gold Refurbished" controller from Best Electronics. They have the worst website ever conceived, but their "lifetime gold" joysticks are excellent if a bit pricey, and solved my 5200 issues for good.

I am kind of picking up some PS2 goodies. I personally love Tekken Tag Tournament the best of the entire Tekken series, and it's cheap now. I also love Virtua Fighter 4: Evo, for the "Anniversary" mode that lets you fight with the new characters and moves and framerate, but the old blocky visual style. Other favorites would be Champions of Norrath, The Bouncer (people hated on this but I like it), the God Of War pair of course. And none of these really fit your preferred categories except maybe Champions of Norrath with the US RPG thing. But they're still good.

I was using ING Direct for a savings account online, but they got bought by Capital One, I believe. Soon as I get my act together, I'm closing that puppy and putting what I had in an account with my Credit Union, even if the rate is slightly lower. I called customer service to get help logging in at ING, and they (no surprise) tried to hook me into some "Black Friday" sales of various banking products. Good-bye losers! Damned large banks.

Rock 'n Roll Racing is my favorite SNES of all time. Second the motions for Super Punch-Out and Super Mario Kart, and also throwing out Captain Commando. And F-Zero.

I use two of the Euro Gamepads with the screw-in thumbstick on each, and it works _really well_. I'd love to get my hands on that Battlestation II though.

I am seconding Cimerians' motion to recommend Grabbed by the Ghoulies. The reviews absolutely trashed this, but it's one of my favorite games of all time for any game system. In addition to being hilarious throughout, once you get used to the control scheme (it's a button masher with no button mashing!), the gameplay is excellent also. I also loved Simpsons' Road Rage; it was basically what Crazy Taxi 2 and beyond should have been, it had vehicles that behaved differently from one another, multiple playing fields, hidden stuff, it was surprisingly excellent. And I really thoroughly enjoy a good round or two of Blood Wake. It's simple, it's kind of stupid, but it's basically Vigilante 8 / Twisted Metal but in boats. And I dig it. I can't believe you own Barbie Horse Adventures, Metal Jesus. Or that you were seen on film caressing it.

Ms Pac-Man is _really_ good on 7800, I also love Bob (PacManPlus)'s Moon Cresta, and spend a good bit of time playing Food Fight, Galaga and Crossbow. Also second the motions above for Joust, Dig Dug, Centipede and Robotron 2084.