Cassidy Nolen

There are two billion plus females on the planet, and far fewer of even the most common 2600 game (ET?) in box. I agree. Miss the one on the left more. You got rid of both for a reason. One you can start a new relationship with all over again. Games rarely remember your hiatus (Brain Age and some Tamagochi's being the exception Cheers, C

IIRC, the 32X only required the video out of the Genny to plug into the input side and then the output went right to the tv. You could actually put power to the 32X and not hook it up correctly and the games would still "sort of" play (Star Wars did not have all the graphics but still moved around). I have a CDX and was told the 32X would not work with it. Mine worked fine for years... C

The First Quarter by Steven Kent is a MUST. Game Over (about Nintendo) Videocade (great coffee table type book with pics and a very complete history through the early 80's arcade) C

Game I played most: Road Rash. Leave it in attract mode, and it plays all the music videos for the songs in the game. Very good graphics for FMV at that time. NFS is a good player too. I actually liked the dumb games, too like Plumbers Dont Wear Ties. If you like Myst type games, get "D". Its pretty intense. Best figher on the system I think was the Sailor Moon pretty princess fighter. I loved it. 3 button mashing goodness. Its an import but well worth it. Played fine in both my US systems. Steer clear of Primal Rage. I thought it was a steaming pile. Maybe others have different thoughts. The golf games were good on it too. The Majhong game was good too. C

I've operated 25 inch 2 and 4 slot both. Both great machines, great earners and very reliable. They all have an onboard battery that will soon be an issue (next 5 years), given their age. So far so good but just so you know its there. I think the wooden colored cabs were custom built for a chain (like Aladdins Castle, I want to say) and they are not my favorite. I happen to love the big red ones, they can also be touched up pretty easily, if you have to repaint the white part its not bad. 4 slot with good color, probably my personal choice for a home arcade. I have had a few and they always get play. FTWIW, the 6 slot cabinets are wider than most doorways. They are like 35 inches wide, most doors are well smaller than that. Just do your homework with a tape measure first I have hauled a few through kitchen entrances, much to the dismay of restaurant owners, because the front doors were too small! C

In low humidity areas or a carpeted floor that often gives static I just mix a capful of fabric softener and a spray bottle of water. Shake well and mist the carpet around your games. No more shocks. BTW, Bad Dudes is most likely a conversion, you can also be sure there is a ground wire touching the metal frame of the coin door/box and it is tied into the machine ground after you swap the plug head (or cord). Go online and look up how to change an electrical plug if you are unsure. Very basic and can be done with a good pair of needlenose (to cut the old one off) and a screwdriver. (said in my best arcade synth voice) I'm Bad. Cheers, C

What do you need to know? 1 and 2 slot are JAMMA. 4 and 6 aren't. Audio goes bad regularly, few folks actually have the save memory card to carry your games on and the 25 inchers are usually bad color (tubes have been on for a decade and a half). I've seen regular switcher power supplies and I have seen computer type with a fan. Both fail, both serve many years. Flourescent films behind the multi machines have high voltage setups behind them and they often fail. The VFD boards for credits can get cold solder joints on the CP's from years of fighting games. Hardwiring rarely fails. Thats a start? C

You have to go WAAY back past the 2600 to see the greatest minds in Atari. The facts are simple....technology without marketing and application is not profitable (Odyssey 100, ). Nolan is the PT Barnum of the digital age. He was not a programmer, designer, salesman, etc but rather all of these. He was smart enough to get help when he needed it and was charismatic enough to pull the business off. Luck certainly was on his side but there was a visionary view of things. Al Alcorn, The Woz, Jobbs, Gates, Deciur were all brilliant. I still think Nolan is responsible for videogames as we know them. For that, I would say he is the greatest mind. C

Not all were converted. The conversion is very simple with just a few rom swaps and a daughter board. Bottom line, Ms. Pac makes more money than Pac Man on location. Fast Ms. Pac makes more than regular Ms. Pac so theres the motivation. Swapping either to high speed is a simple rom swap, although there are other ways to do it. There was a Midway kit to get it to work with a bizarre wired in part....I have only ever had to bypass and repair boards that they are faulty on, so I could not tell you the subtle differences. I agree Pac is a cool sight. I don't think I have ever seen one on location in the last 7 or so years... C

Did anybody attend? C

Hi-Way was red fiberglass. Computer Space came in red, a number of 70s games were burnt orange, do they count? Reactor, one of the Williams games, I can't remember which one though....small stencil in the center of a red side. C

Arcades only, eh? Gameplay only or importance to the genre? I'd say my tastes are not all mainstream. Mostly driven by nostalgia..... 5. Ms. Pac continues to be profitable today. Thats staying power and counts in a top 5 to me. 4. Robotron still works me over. Love that game 3. Night Driver cockpit. Seriously, its just lines but you get into the zone. 2. Star Wars cockpit. Not the same in standup. Have to have it all around you. 1. I can't actually pick one for number 1....thought I could until I started typing. Possible number ones for me would be Bump N Jump, Tempest, Centipede, Reactor, EDOT or even straight Tron. The problem for me gets into "do I love it" or "do I remember loving it". I don't know which is which sometimes. Wild Western was a love of mine but then when I had one I never played the thing. Same with Jungle King. As for importance, Pong, Space Invaders, Pac Man, Tron and Pole Position would be my 5. True love of the game, see above (as best I can separate then and now). C

You've got PM. Cassidy

Started for me when I dug my Vader out of Dad's storage in summer of 2000. Took until 2001 PhillyClassic when I saw a Crazy Climber sell for like 100 bucks that I was hooked. I was heavy into arcades (still have a decent collection) and other consoles but my small stack of original 2600 games started to grow. That story seems about right, you are in good company. Now my basement is a shrine to 80's gaming. C

Its a throw-away society now and they do the same thing to gaming. My students think the first system ever was the NES. They can't make sense of the primitive games and therefore dismiss them. So does mainstream gaming. Its annoying that classic gaming is a catch-all phrase but I think we all know better. The more obscure the 2600 gets again, the better for prices. That way the Antiques Roadshow Quadrun episode doesn't pollute all sellers into thinking they have a goldmine when they find a dusty box of games. Imagine how the Vectrex folks feel, they are really left out. For me, classic gaming will ALWAYS be Frogger on Christmas morning, Kaboom! and Jungle Hunt with friends and an arcade with blacklights and little else on to light the rows of games. C

Activision followed with a close second by Atari. I think the inhouse games were fantastic. I loved the simplicity of the early titles. While I didn't get Yar's Revenge, I would say I spent a good amount of time with every Atari title I got. Ok, so Math is a stinker but what edutainment games aren't? C

autiongamesales.com is having a winter auction at the Richmond International Speedway on December 8. You have a buy night on the 7th if you want to go see what is for "sale". I guess its like Buy it Now's on ebay? Never been to an auction with one. Take a dolly, cash and a good extension cord. Don't let your pals roll the games over your toes either. I have broken more toes that way....seriously. They say they have food. I would suggest eating before arriving... Cassidy

If I recall the story correctly, they had to go around to all the pawn stores in town to buy back the tv's that the employees were stealing and selling. The rink/assembly line used skateboards to move the machines around and Al Alcorn said they had an absolutely awful delivery truck. I know there was a neat story there just can't recall it. Talk about grass-roots efforts. Atari not only invented arcades they invented a billion-dollar gaming industry. History will remember the "winners" and all too often I am reminded that Nintendo is a "winner". NONE, and I do believe NONE of this would have happened without Nolan. Happy Birthday Pong, wish we could go to Andy Capp's place and have one to celebrate (isn't it a strip mall now?). C

Threads like this remind me there are some seriously smart folks on this board. You guys rock. C

Man that is a GREAT looking screen on that one. Those are notorious for blacking out so badly you can't play them. I think its the way they are stored (heat sensitive?) over the years. Great boxes, too. Only thing missing is styro inserts for the big box. I wish I had a spare tabletop for trade. I don't but heres a bump for a great system.... Cassidy

IIRC, there were three made? Curt, can you confirm? One working, one broken and one mock-up. The working one is the one Curt has. For some reason I remember the story that the one Jon has fell off the table at an Atari trade show/table and broke? There was a third one but it was a model only, non-functional. Apparently migranes are pack-ins with the games. I would have preferred a poster C

Al, I read Corvetteforum.com daily as well and they have a free service to most members. The supporting vendor status allows you to sell mass-produced items or resell at a fee. If you have a single item, then its free to sell. If you want to sell a bunch of stuff, then you pay for bandwidth. Not a bad way to do things here...the lurkers and daily readers stay free but the sellers that are making money from your site have to pay. Makes some sense. Mind you, their structure is insane on pricing....its $300 a month to be a vendor. Does not matter if you sell stickers or 100K turbocharger conversions....maybe yours would be tiered and, well, slightly more affordable for each person. I would gladly pay to be a member. You have a wonderful site that has its own bizarre little culture. BTW, GG is a good gift. I actually voted for that for you before reading the post. Meeting Rose on the lanai, man thats good stuff C

What a great find! Good for you. That is a very clean machine for its age. Pong Enterprize....thats classic They really thought that was the one trick pony back then. There was nothing but a sea of blips and bloops and a crapload of variants on the theme. Amazing what gaming became given the primitive hardware in the 70's. Great piece and a great story. Way to go! Cassidy

Well, if there were any shows around I might I sort of got out of arcades (sold my business) and spend my extra on other hobbies these days. Still love my 8-bit gaming but not spending the time and money on it much anymore. I have actually looked into selling the game recently. I have an interested party but I can't bring myself to sell it yet... Good luck with your sales and TTT for you. Hope you get a good offer on the Kelly Multicart. Funny how the CC2 and Kroc carts sort of replaced this one. If you'd said 5 years ago one would not sell, I would not believe you. Your stuff is top-notch. Are you selling your protos too? Cassidy

I'll throw a prop in for Splatterhouse too. Now that I read this and see there were other version than the TG I will be hunting them down. Loved that game (still do). Big hulking side scroller that it is. I will also throw in "D" for 3D0 or for PS1. Bizarre story about your dad being a vampire and tons of gory stuff, just weird. Creepy old house and multiple endings. I beat it with a guide years ago but have not played it since. Honestly, I get so little time to actually game anymore, the thought of being creeped out or scared during a game is not on my radar. I am so hooked on Rayman Rabbids right now its not funny. That is just creepy in an odd way. Not scary, just odd. Why can a bunny use an outhouse but not close the door? C