Haunted Ms PacMan on Craigslist

[dalum]

Sorry, if this has been talked to death already but I did do a search and nothing seemed to come up about this.

 

http://kotaku.com/366370/the-haunted-ms-pac-man

 

Sounds creepy and cool all rolled into one. I followed the nested links and it seems that it was finally given away and the listing is now marked to removal but still... *ooooweeeeeooooooooooo*>

[ComputerSpaceFan]

I have what I believe to be a haunted Tron arcade cabinet. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not crazy and nor do I believe in ghosts. But whenever I play my Tron I have a real sensation of someone standing just over my right shoulder watching me play. And this has happened pretty regularly when I am all alone in my apartment. I just shrugged it off as something I am imagining but I did notice someone else selling a Tron on eBay with a similar story to your Ms Pac Man story. He claimed it was haunted and needed to get rid of the thing.

Personally in the case of Tron, I put it down to the shape of the cabinet. The fact that the speakers bounce the audio off the tilted screen and this is all in an enclosure you look in to causes me to think maybe what I am sensing is some kind of weird echo effect that makes my brain think there is someone watching over my shoulder. That does not explain why it is always over my right shoulder and doesn't happen 100% of the time.

Go figure.

Sure is creepy though to experience it.

[jboypacman]

Ok thats just creepy gives me the chills.

[dalum]

Well the BS meter seems to jump up on some stories but this guy is wanting to pitch it for free. People that want money for their cabinets are usually too greedy and deserve to be haunted by their live in gamer-geist. This one seems to be legit enough.

[ovalbugmann]

Shhhhhh!..........I see dead people. Or, I see dumb people. haha.

 

Non......belief. I'll take that Ms. Pac-Man! I just have never had a para-normal experience personally, so it's kind of like you have to see this stuff to believe it- you know what I mean? I just haven't had the opportunity. His wife saw a dark figure move across the basement and into the machine...this might be a way that his wife is using to get him to get rid of this machine! I really would like to see or experience something like this and am open to it, and I watch Ghost Hunters on Sci-Fi (The Shining Hotel investigation was a good episode), but I haven't personally experienced anything like this or seen any UFO's or these new things called "flying huminoids." Crop circles are weird. I have seen a lot of video of ufo's and flying huminoids and some material is quite compelling - but it's not a real experience, it's just video and that can be manipulated. Mexico gets a LOT of people making sightings. I am in Phoenix but didn't catch the famous, Phoenix lights, either. Of course, I am more inclined to believe in UFO's & aliens, than poltergists, which is what we have here.

[Atari5200]

as one of my other hobbies, I do run and fund 100% a paranormal society in my area. My group has 3 members in which we try to bring a scientific explanation to hauntings, much like TAPS on sci-fi.

 

With that being said it is not uncommon for spirits to be attached to specific items. The problem with the article is that they say it is a poltergeist style haunt, which is false. Poltergeist haunts are usually female spirits, not male, and they usually manifest from the energy of teen age females in a household, not a 3 year old.

 

At first reading the post I thought it would be a residual style haunt, and still do, BUT it was stated that when the machine was moved, they found tools missing or scattered about, this would not dictate a residual style haunt but an intelligent haunt.

 

A residual haunt does not know you are there, it's basically a memory or moment stuck in time. Think of it as a video tape that is stuck on loop. It repeats the same motions over and over again regardless of changes to landscape. You could tear a house down and rebuild and it wouldn't matter, you could board up doors, do whatever, and still hear sounds of doors opening and closing. These are the most common styles of haunts and was what I thought might have been going on with the Pac-man machine, just a residual spirit stuck in loop of playing pac-man. It would explain the machine coming on, shadow figures, etc.

 

With an intelligent haunt, the spirit does know you are there and will try to communicate or interact with you. It may be trying to get your attention to help you or just might be getting it's kicks from scaring you. Either way this can be frightening. There was nothing to suggest in the article that the spirit was trying to communicate or was interacting. The only thing was about tools being scattered about or missing, this can't happen with a residual haunt, and if you moved the machine out of the presence of a female, it pretty much rules out a poltergeist style haunt.

 

I honestly still think if anything the haunt was residual, tools missing or scattered could be a lot of different things, there are many unknown factors, how were the tools set up, is there anything that could have caused them to fall, was anybody else in the garage, etc. etc., but what was described in the article, seeing a shadow figure, man at the machine, machine turning on, with absolutely no other mention of intetaraction from the spirit stand point suggest it was purely a residual haunt.

 

I guess the new owner might be in for some surprises as you will never get rid of it.

Edited March 13, 2008 by Atari5200

[FastRobPlus]

I have what I believe to be a haunted Tron arcade cabinet. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not crazy and nor do I believe in ghosts. But whenever I play my Tron I have a real sensation of someone standing just over my right shoulder watching me play. And this has happened pretty regularly when I am all alone in my apartment. I just shrugged it off as something I am imagining but I did notice someone else selling a Tron on eBay with a similar story to your Ms Pac Man story. He claimed it was haunted and needed to get rid of the thing.

Personally in the case of Tron, I put it down to the shape of the cabinet. The fact that the speakers bounce the audio off the tilted screen and this is all in an enclosure you look in to causes me to think maybe what I am sensing is some kind of weird echo effect that makes my brain think there is someone watching over my shoulder. That does not explain why it is always over my right shoulder and doesn't happen 100% of the time.

Go figure.

Sure is creepy though to experience it.

 

Sorry, All this haunted stuff is stupid.

 

But - the Tron arcade cabinet... Is this the enclosed one you stand up in? Never mind - just re-read your post. I have not been in one for years, but I got the same sensation and I remember two coworkers said the same thing about the cabinet (we were just talking Tron recently becuse the games came out on Xbox Live last month.)

 

The Tron cabinets seem to throw the sound around in an odd way and this coupled with the semi closed-in sensation from the cabinet's back shape gives the feeling that someone is behind you. A very cool/creepy sensation.

[Atari5200]

in the case of Tron, from an investigative standpoint, and granted I'm not familiar with the game, there are a couple things you need to look at.

 

The main thing is the elctro magnetic field that the thing throws off. I know with my CABS at home they throw off some serious EMF. Most people are not sensitive to it and may never have problems, but others are. And prolong exposure can cause dizziness or nausea, paranoia or the feeling of being watched, and sometimes skin irritation.

 

of course sound would play a part in it as well possibly, with a closed in area sound bouncing off the different walls, especially if the sound is loud enough to feel the vibration.

 

With the EMF part of it as well as the sound, It would be easy for some to think that something like this could be labeled as haunted, or just get a general creeped out feeling .

Edited March 13, 2008 by Atari5200

[FastRobPlus]

Interesting. I have not been in a Tron cabinet for years, but I seem to remember that there must have been a lighting fixture directly behind where your head is in the "environmental cabinet" version of the game. I think it's flourescent tubing that lights the outward facing artwork.

 

Here's a web page discussing the wiring:

http://users.rcn.com/jenison/mars/pages/DoT/

[Atari5200]

yeah that thing is putting out some serious power, if i'm not mistaken, my MVS is only 5V. this thing is pumping out 12v in some instances with the lighting. And there's probably no kind of shielding around the wiring or anything to protect from EMF pollution.

 

Just an idea at what at least could be giving people these feelings.

[redglass77]

I'm a little late in finding out about this

 

I better get with it or I'm gonna miss out on the next chance to own a haunted arcade cab.

 

I always really get into stories like this, I was in Derby England for 6months a few years back and while staying there I learned that Derby was the most haunted of all towns/cities in the whole of England, so there were some really cool stories from the locals about the haunted history....lots of the drinking pubs are haunted I guess some spirits just dont get it when it's "last call". (yeah I know that was really bad of me and I shouldn't have gone there..but I did)

 

Whats weird is despite only a few select areas feeling creepy, most of the town actually felt warm and safe as if u were being watched over for the better.

 

DAMN I REALLY WANT TO PLAY THIS MACHINE NOW, lol

[jboypacman]

I think "Ghosts" can attach themselfs to objects just as easy as they can to houses or other places so something like this isnt too far fetched.

 

And i agree with Dalum there are alot of "BSers" out there but this guy was giving the Ms.Pac-Man cab away for free and why in the world would he do that?

 

I would of took it thats for sure and me and the "Ghost" would have a little talk about the rules of the house.

Edited March 18, 2008 by jboypacman

[MrAtari2600]

I think "Ghosts" can attach themselfs to objects just as easy as they can to houses or other places so something like this isnt too far fetched.

 

And i agree with Dalum there are alot of "BSers" out there but this guy was giving the Ms.Pac-Man cab away for free and why in the world would he do that?

 

I would of took it thats for sure and me and the "Ghost" would have a little talk about the rules of the house.

 

 

ok if this is so

 

 

when i die i will attach myself to my 2600, and make sure people keep Atari alive forever

lol

[tremoloman2006]

I'm from Boston... I wish I had known about this as I would have grabbed this cabinet for sure.

 

If this machine is truly haunted please contact the show Paranormal State so they can do an episode on it.

 

I wonder where the machine is now and who owns it...

[theking21083]

I'm from Boston... I wish I had known about this as I would have grabbed this cabinet for sure.

 

If this machine is truly haunted please contact the show Paranormal State so they can do an episode on it.

 

I wonder where the machine is now and who owns it...

Paranormal State would just want to burn it. Didn't you see the episode with the piano?

[tremoloman2006]

I'm from Boston... I wish I had known about this as I would have grabbed this cabinet for sure.

 

If this machine is truly haunted please contact the show Paranormal State so they can do an episode on it.

 

I wonder where the machine is now and who owns it...

Paranormal State would just want to burn it. Didn't you see the episode with the piano?

 

I know this is old but yes I saw that episode... I'd tell them it was a religious symbol and had to be blessed instead.

[Gigabyte]

It's really quite simple:

 

1. Computer glitches do things like this and even stranger things.

2. Everyone has had an electronic device malfunction.

3. The guy may now have actually paid for the pricey service on repairing the machine.

4. Even if he did, there is no guarantee the operators were competent, or that the glitch is so small as too avoid detection.

5. Sounds like a power supply to me, was the power supply changed?

6. If not, change the board.

7. Machines resetting and turning off and on is a super-common problem. It was even documented extensively in the documentaries "High Score" and, to a lesser extent, "Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade."

8. The wife is obviously on drugs/crazy/imaginary

9. Ghosts aren't real.

 

EDIT:

 

10. Even if ghosts were real, who cares if you have an arcade ghost. Seriously, I'd just lol at how awesome it was that my machine was haunted.

Edited January 19, 2010 by Gigabyte

[StoneAgeGamer]

It's really quite simple:

 

1. Computer glitches do things like this and even stranger things.

2. Everyone has had an electronic device malfunction.

3. The guy may now have actually paid for the pricey service on repairing the machine.

4. Even if he did, there is no guarantee the operators were competent, or that the glitch is so small as too avoid detection.

5. Sounds like a power supply to me, was the power supply changed?

6. If not, change the board.

7. Machines resetting and turning off and on is a super-common problem. It was even documented extensively in the documentaries "High Score" and, to a lesser extent, "Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade."

8. The wife is obviously on drugs/crazy/imaginary

9. Ghosts aren't real.

 

EDIT:

 

10. Even if ghosts were real, who cares if you have an arcade ghost. Seriously, I'd just lol at how awesome it was that my machine was haunted.

 

Oh come on now. The only logical conclusion is that if weird things are happening it has to be ghosts.

 

[Catsmasher]

What kind of ghost would haunt an arcade machine?

A video game geek, that's what kind. Video gamers are not even much of a threat to anyone when they are alive, why be afraid of one that is a ghost? What is the worst he could do, beat your hi score?

[Inky]

Ms. Pac Man. Ghosts. Need I say more?

[nathanallan]

What kind of ghost would haunt an arcade machine?

A video game geek, that's what kind. Video gamers are not even much of a threat to anyone when they are alive, why be afraid of one that is a ghost? What is the worst he could do, beat your hi score?

Finding tools scattered around suggests that the guy was definitely a geek, but maybe a technical one.

 

An old thread, glad someone 'resurrected' it, mwuhaHAHA!