Budget Atari and Capcom arcade cabinets to see release this fall!

[ProperRogue]

Having a bunch of cheerleaders who want negative opinions banned...

 

That's exactly the impression I was left with as well. Any realistic comments that suggest the possible downsides to these machines are met with great hostility, no doubt.

[Bill Loguidice]

 

That's exactly the impression I was left with as well. Any realistic comments that suggest the possible downsides to these machines are met with great hostility, no doubt.

Interesting that you have that impression. I think it's more the negatives and downsides have been acknowledged, as have the positives and upsides. It's more like beating a dead horse at this point.

 

Are these perfect? Not even close. Do these serve a market need? Obviously.

[PlaysWithWolves]

Having different perspectives helps people make informed decisions. Having a bunch of cheerleaders who want negative opinions banned makes this place feel more like one giant andertisement.

 

Oh give me a break. Just about everyone in this thread have voiced concerns. But you feel your opinion is more valid than anyone else's, for some reason.

[JBerel]

Not to be argumentative, but I've been my typical version of critical of these things from the beginning. I didn't sense any fanboyism or squashing of opinions. I saw most folks acknowledge their limitations and quality level, but some expressed an interest in buying them. I can't fault anyone, cuz these things appear to actually exist and they are pretty up front about them. I see them like the mini arcade things, but obviously the price point is scaled commensurate.

 

At least we have visuals and reviews. My concern is that sometimes folks may get conned with an overly optimistic preconception from marketing b.s. I don't see that being a big factor here. I'd say three hundred bucks dropped on this beats the hell out of pissing it away on an Atari SA boondoggle. That said, I've got better things to do with three hundred bucks, but at another time I may have bit.

[John Stamos Mullet]

 

Oh give me a break. Just about everyone in this thread have voiced concerns. But you feel your opinion is more valid than anyone else's, for some reason.

I don't feel my opinion is more valid than others. Not at all. But I've been asked/told more than once in this thread "ok dude we get it you don't like this, why are you still posting here/why does the board allow this stuff?"

 

Whereas, neither I, nor anyone else who has taken a negative or skeptical opinion of these has even once suggested that positive opinions weren't welcome or shouldn't be posted here. Just the opposite.

 

What I have done, is post my opinion in a forthright manner, and made logical, reasoned deductions of what is on offer with this product based on video evidence of their quality and common knowledge of what these products cost to make - as most hobbyists here understand.

 

The thing that just makes me scratch my head is that this board is a microcosm of the hardcore retro gaming scene, and therefore I would think most people would be naturally skeptical of projects like this, because history with similar products tells them they should already know better. The vast majority of plug and play retro gaming gear is outright garbage, but at least most of it is cheap. These look to be just barely better than garbage, but are - in my opinion - vastly overpriced.

 

I mean - Bill is a guy whose opinion I respect here, he has a lot of knowledge about producing these things, having been involved to some degree with similar products. Even he pointed out that the target market for these in not the discerning retro gaming collector/enthusiast market, but rather the average middle aged dad who wants a bit of nostalgic fun in his Mancave. I get that and totally agree.

 

So my question is - why are people who know these are lower quality, who have expensive collections of vastly superior genuine arcade gaming equipment even considering these?

 

And I think, at least in some cases here, the answer is that they just can't resist something that looks cool, regardless on how overpriced or lacking in quality it might be. And that bugs me - because it waters down the market, and makes future products have lower targets for quality, because they know they have a built in market of people who will throw their money at poor products because they just have to buy everything they see. Kind of like people who crazy overpay for stuff on eBay, and end up driving the price up on things that aren't worth that much, because they purchasing is being driven by impulse or obsession, rather than quality or reason.

 

Or maybe I'm just a jerk who doesn't want to pay too much for stuff. LOL

[Bill Loguidice]

I don't feel my opinion is more valid than others. Not at all. But I've been asked/told more than once in this thread "ok dude we get it you don't like this, why are you still posting here/why does the board allow this stuff?"

 

Whereas, neither I, nor anyone else who has taken a negative or skeptical opinion of these has even once suggested that positive opinions weren't welcome or shouldn't be posted here. Just the opposite.

 

What I have done, is post my opinion in a forthright manner, and made logical, reasoned deductions of what is on offer with this product based on video evidence of their quality and common knowledge of what these products cost to make - as most hobbyists here understand.

 

The thing that just makes me scratch my head is that this board is a microcosm of the hardcore retro gaming scene, and therefore I would think most people would be naturally skeptical of projects like this, because history with similar products tells them they should already know better. The vast majority of plug and play retro gaming gear is outright garbage, but at least most of it is cheap. These look to be just barely better than garbage, but are - in my opinion - vastly overpriced.

 

I mean - Bill is a guy whose opinion I respect here, he has a lot of knowledge about producing these things, having been involved to some degree with similar products. Even he pointed out that the target market for these in not the discerning retro gaming collector/enthusiast market, but rather the average middle aged dad who wants a bit of nostalgic fun in his Mancave. I get that and totally agree.

 

So my question is - why are people who know these are lower quality, who have expensive collections of vastly superior genuine arcade gaming equipment even considering these?

 

And I think, at least in some cases here, the answer is that they just can't resist something that looks cool, regardless on how overpriced or lacking in quality it might be. And that bugs me - because it waters down the market, and makes future products have lower targets for quality, because they know they have a built in market of people who will throw their money at poor products because they just have to buy everything they see. Kind of like people who crazy overpay for stuff on eBay, and end up driving the price up on things that aren't worth that much, because they purchasing is being driven by impulse or obsession, rather than quality or reason.

 

Or maybe I'm just a jerk who doesn't want to pay too much for stuff. LOL

 

I don't recall anyone saying "why are you still posting here/why does the board allow this stuff?". Your concerns are acknowledged and we made our own concerns known. We also explained why someone - even a discerning someone - might want something like this. It's not a throwing money away thing. It's a "I think it's worth the asking price and I'll have fun with it" type of thing. I know it's not arcade perfect -- the only thing that's arcade perfect is the original arcade machine. Everything else is an imitation of some type. Like I said, most of us already have dozens of versions/ports of these games, so it's not unusual to want to own yet another set of these beloved games in a different form factor. Being a first mover in this area is also in Arcade1Up's favor, and again, soon they'll have some stiff competition. But for now, they're all there is for this type of turnkey product offering in this price range.

 

Anyway, it's VERY easy to be critical of these mass market type of products. Goodness knows they have their flaws. Working for a company who makes such products, I know we're no different than most of these other companies in our philosophy. You try to please the core crowd as much as you can, but you eventually reach a point where it's no longer financially viable to make it the way many of them want, which can often be literal unattainable perfection for an unrealistically low amount of money. That's exactly why the larger casual consumer market is targeted over the core audience for these types of products. Not only is the other group much larger, but it's almost impossible to please much of the core crowd (even otherwise solid products from ginormous companies like the NES/SNES Mini get criticized for this or that). And that's OK. I always point to homebrew products, products that can do runs in the tens, hundreds, or low thousands and still turn a small profit (or not care about a profit). Those can be far better tuned to the needs/tastes of the hypercritical and demanding core crowd (and I've always supported such efforts because they do things I would never get otherwise).

 

It's important to remember that these mass market products may be in our wheelhouse, but are not really targeted to us. It's OK to expect more, and of course these companies will always try to deliver more, but it's not that easy to deliver more and still work within the confines of the stickier details like profit margins, what the retailers will want and/or carry, licensing requirements, etc. The good thing is that even in that area things are improving all the time. Emulation is getting better, core technology is getting better, game lists and other features are getting better, etc., where these things will start to more and more meet the needs of more and more of the core audience.

[JBerel]

Or maybe I'm just a jerk who doesn't want to pay too much for stuff. LOL

 

But seriously, these things have an audience because the real deal is not cheap, and if ya have a game room, you're probably in a position to pay for the real deal. These things cater to people who can't fathom paying $2500 because they have other bills to pay. $300 probably falls in the descretionary column for the month or xmas holiday.

Edited September 16, 2018 by JBerel

[Bill Loguidice]

But seriously, these things have an audience because the real deal is not cheap, and if ya have a game room, you're probably in a position to pay for the real deal. These things cater to people who can't fathom paying $2500 because they have other bills to pay. $300 probably falls in the descretionary column for the month or xmas holiday.

 

And as someone who owned a behemoth of a machine, I can say again that at least for me, size and weight are also a factor here. I really don't want another unmovable beast in my basement rec room.

[NE146]

So my question is - why are people who know these are lower quality, who have expensive collections of vastly superior genuine arcade gaming equipment even considering these?

Well speaking only for myself, not everything I buy necessarily needs to be the highest quality. I mean heck I sometimes drive through McDonalds.

[OrionB]

I don't feel my opinion is more valid than others. Not at all. But I've been asked/told more than once in this thread "ok dude we get it you don't like this, why are you still posting here/why does the board allow this stuff?"

 

Whereas, neither I, nor anyone else who has taken a negative or skeptical opinion of these has even once suggested that positive opinions weren't welcome or shouldn't be posted here. Just the opposite.

 

What I have done, is post my opinion in a forthright manner, and made logical, reasoned deductions of what is on offer with this product based on video evidence of their quality and common knowledge of what these products cost to make - as most hobbyists here understand.

 

I say this with respect, because a lot of what you say comes across as pretty reasonable, but I don't think you are fairly characterizing your own behavior in this thread. When you say things like

 

And I think, at least in some cases here, the answer is that they just can't resist something that looks cool, regardless on how overpriced or lacking in quality it might be.

The target market for these is people who have disposable income, no impulse control, and who lack the knowledge to understand they are getting taken.

My issue is with the people who are willfully ignoring the complaints and flaws with these things, and touting them as a "great value", when they are clearly not.

 

you are well past the line of "logical, reasoned deductions" and firmly in the realm of "insulting people who have a different opinion." The fact that some people have decided that these products, which are not perfect, have $300 of value for them doesn't necessarily mean that they have no impulse control, or that they are ignorant, or that they are deluding themselves. It may mean only that they have come to different conclusions than you did, given the same information. Do you actually not accept that reasonable people can disagree about these things? Because these are not the statements of someone who does.

[Tanooki]

Nah he's not, in the middle sure, depending how you feel about it, but you as you know the truth hurts. And if that stuff is hurtful to someone, then they would fall into the camp of the willfully ignorant and intentionally uninformed or just don't care enough in the first place.

[thetick1]

THIS is a Batmobile.

 

I can't afford a real batmobile but I got the toys...

And don't forget the BatComputer. I picked this up at Toy R Us a while back along with a Batman TV Series Batmobile..

 

Edited September 16, 2018 by thetick1

[Flojomojo]

ERMAGERD I did not know this was a thing

Must acquire

[John Stamos Mullet]

 

I say this with respect, because a lot of what you say comes across as pretty reasonable, but I don't think you are fairly characterizing your own behavior in this thread. When you say things like

 

 

you are well past the line of "logical, reasoned deductions" and firmly in the realm of "insulting people who have a different opinion." The fact that some people have decided that these products, which are not perfect, have $300 of value for them doesn't necessarily mean that they have no impulse control, or that they are ignorant, or that they are deluding themselves. It may mean only that they have come to different conclusions than you did, given the same information. Do you actually not accept that reasonable people can disagree about these things? Because these are not the statements of someone who does.

i get what you're saying, but I think you're missing my point. If someone says " I realize these are lacking in quality, but I think they look cool, so I'm going to buy one." That's fine. To each, his own.

 

But I would simply contend that someone who admits they know something is lacking in quality, but decides to buy it anyway - while they are entitled to do whatever they like with their own money, and are certainly entitled to feel that way, that opinion isn't one that other people who are looking for meaningful critical review or informed opinions should pay much attention to.

 

At the end of the day, everyone is going to do what they want with their own money. And if you like it or think it looks cool - great. Buy it. Have a blast. I'll wait until I see it in person, and see more reviews from non-fanboys, and YouTube "personalities" who have created shows for the sole purpose of procuring free stuff for "reviews".

[maxdrive]

These do appeal to me but part of me is on a wait and see mentality. Especially if some of the rumors are true about what could come out next year. I do see this being something your regular guy could put in his man cave.

[digdugnate]

i also want to see what 'real players' think of the mini arcade units- like above, that'd put this in my discretionary money for a month so it'd be nice to see some unbiased reviews.

[Flojomojo]

Nitpicky bickering!

[atarilovesyou]

#firstworldproblems

Ummm....ALL of our problems are first world problems.

[Skeeter]

[negative1]

see, that's the way to do it.

 

limit the games, make it proper (or at least close controls) and now we're talking

==============================================================

 

space invaders - new controls, by adding the joystick, and they added the color version

 

pac man - added pac man plus to the games

 

galaga - nothing new

===================================

 

 

i'm liking the pac-man one, and will be keeping an eye out on those.

 

however, at the rate they are going, i have a feeling a namco compilation

(maybe limited), with more games, would be more appealing to more

people down the road....who knows.

 

 

later

-1

[NE146]

space invaders - new controls, by adding the joystick,

Nitpicking here.. but SI is originally joystick controlled. The licensed US Midway versions used buttons for some reason.

[Flojomojo]

Nitpicking here.. but SI is originally joystick controlled. The licensed US Midway versions used buttons for some reason.

Yeah yeah, and there was a shortage of 100-yen coins. I remember Space Invaders with US quarters to pay, and buttons to control. Pew pew on you.

[NE146]

I remember Space Invaders with US quarters to pay, and buttons to control. Pew pew on you.

Doesn't change the fact. Ones I played used quarters as well and it was 100% a joystick game.

 

2 way joystick in fact!.. which would be pretty cool if they had that.

Edited September 18, 2018 by NE146

[negative1]

Nitpicking here.. but SI is originally joystick controlled. The licensed US Midway versions used buttons for some reason.

 

yes, the japanese ones were.

 

never saw one with a joystick in america.

 

all my memories of the game were the version with buttons.

 

so it's weird to me, to see it played that way, unless of course it

was the 2600 version.

 

too bad, there wasn't an option for buttons only.

 

i like this 40th anniversary video.

 

 

and this cool music video:

 

later

-1

Edited September 18, 2018 by negative1

[Flojomojo]

Doesn't change the fact. Ones I played used quarters as well and it was 100% a joystick game.

 

2 way joystick in fact!.. which would be pretty cool if they had that.