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General discussion (archive)Do you still go to arcades?(60 posts)(60 posts)
(60 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted August 15, 2013
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aluinie: Almost all gone in my area although think a caravan park still has a few machines but i dont venture there.
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Sachys: not flamingo land is it?! OH THE HORROR!
lol not quite that almost.
Posted August 15, 2013
Probably been a decade since I've last been to one.
Posted August 15, 2013
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jjsimp: From my drinking days, that is a cheap ass beer. You might be able to buy a Pabst Blue Ribbon for that. Probably more of a conversion thing.
I was talking about Poland. 1 dollar is 3 PLN and this is pretty much OK beer.

Also, arcades here are usually way more expensive than .25 In most cases, two games on an arcade would equal a beer at the same place.
Post edited August 15, 2013 by keeveek
Posted August 15, 2013
Amusing anecdote about Arcades of my youth. I went to the theater to see "TRON" when it was first released. When they went to the arcade to find Flyn, I automatically assumed he must be the bad guy of the film. After all, who else, other than the bad guy, would run such a place?

Any fellow Aussies ever go to the arcades? They never seemed to be all that here. Well, not for me and my areas of cultural experience. In Sydney the arcades had a pretty bad reputation, and anyone who ever even walked past one could understand why. I was only a young kid, so they actually kinda scared me. I never went in them, and would not even walk past one if I could cross the mall / road etc.

My tween / mid teen years were spent in Newcastle where the arcades felt completely different. Had a sort of "family" thing going on. By "family" I mean which ever parent had the kids that weekend would take them there cos they thought that's what kids liked to do, and they were probably right. They were also full of latch key kids who would just go straight there after school and wait for their parents to finish work rather than waiting at home in their empty house. It was a much nicer, if sort of depressing vibe. You never felt.. unwelcome at least.

After high School I moved to Melbourne and the arcades there were much like the nasty Sydney arcades. Possibly worse if the obvious presence of security was any indication in the larger ones in the CBD. It was only a few years after that when they all started to disappear. I have not seen one anywhere now for near 20 years.
Posted August 15, 2013
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Marzooker: I still visit them just like I did back in the day, I still say no console game will ever be like an arcade game.
There's still a few left here in California, the only problem is they want 1.50 per game. Glad there's mame .
Posted August 15, 2013
When I was a kid, the cornerstone would have 2 arcade machines. One of them was Ninja Turtles 2. The game was already out on the NES, but the arcade version at the corner store was superior (more moves for your character and the baddies, more interactive environment, more events, etc). The other one was a roguelike game where you explored a dungeon with a view from above.

I'd watch other kids play them. One day, I decided to give them a try and while it was satisfying, I missed the privacy of my living room and the ability to have an endless supply of free continues. That being said, I couldn't find anything remotely like the roguelike game for my console.

They don't have arcade machines at corner stores anymore.

They do have some arcade machines at the movie theater (about 10) for kids to play while they wait for their movie. I spend 5-10 minutes playing them at one point as I had some time to kill before my movie started and I was curious to compare the experience relative to PC games. Let me tell you, PC games are way better.
Post edited August 15, 2013 by Magnitus
Posted August 15, 2013
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Elmofongo: Games like Pac-Man and Galaga and rail shooters, yes.

Only Fighting Games and Racing Games were not unfair because of the competitive aspect. Single Player Arcade games are more hardcore than the most complex RPG and Simulator :P
But then games that pitted you against a human opponent were limited by the length that match lasts. So it's still a rip off. But as with any broad generalisations it's going to have exceptions.
Posted August 15, 2013
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jjsimp: Afterburner, one of the games I used to spend my allowance on. That was like two quarters a play if I remember correctly.
Yeah, I think that was about the time when 50 cent games started to appear. I remember when those terrible Sega "hologram" games came out and they were $1. I almost had a heart attack when I saw that price. Of course I spent the $1 to experience the "hologram" goodness. Then quickly realized I wasted my money. Those games were terrible.
Posted August 15, 2013
The last time I went to an arcade it was to play Mortal Kombat.... man, where has time gone....

Lately I'm more into RPG so arcades are not that attractive anymore plus, as some here already mentioned, here in Panama the arcades are as easy to find as a VHS tape.
Posted August 15, 2013
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tinyE: I wasn't aware we had any left in the States. When I was a kid I lived in them. From time to time I'll have flashbacks (in a good way) to the vibe you got when you entered one, with the sounds and vibration. Good times my friends.
We have a few here in Seattle, but they're ungodly expensive to visit. Probably the biggest is Gameworks. And I Guess it's not too bad if you go the right time, they do offer unlimited game passes at certain times of the week. I may have to stop by for their lunch menu as 30 minutes is $6.99 including lunch.
Posted August 15, 2013
I still have a Nickle Nickle 5 Cents Games! I don't think they're common around the United States. But I have one here in Whittier, California! I go sometimes! 5 cent games and only like 2 dollar admission.
Posted August 15, 2013
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CrowTRobo: Yeah, I think that was about the time when 50 cent games started to appear. I remember when those terrible Sega "hologram" games came out and they were $1. I almost had a heart attack when I saw that price. Of course I spent the $1 to experience the "hologram" goodness. Then quickly realized I wasted my money. Those games were terrible.
I was too broke to afford those games. So, I just watched as people wasted there money.
Posted August 16, 2013
like one of the guys above I grew up I'm Newcastle and did spend parts of youth playing in arcades. or the odd machine in various milk bars pouring 20 cent coins into galaga, galaxian, gauntlet, nba jam etc.nowadays there's one or two big arcade game chains but.usually located near movie theatres.much fewer independants. games more expensive and tend to be more interactive. 1 to 2 bucks a go now.haven't been in one for months.
Posted August 16, 2013
The only arcade left near me is Intensity, a brightly lit, crappy little arcade full of redemption games, DDR machines, a rail shooter or two and Daytona.

I miss the grimy, smokey arcades full to the brim with cabinets and clashing old gamey noises, the bigger a dive, the better... ah memories.
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HeDanny: Any fellow Aussies ever go to the arcades? They never seemed to be all that here. Well, not for me and my areas of cultural experience. In Sydney the arcades had a pretty bad reputation, and anyone who ever even walked past one could understand why. I was only a young kid, so they actually kinda scared me. I never went in them, and would not even walk past one if I could cross the mall / road etc.
Arcades were everywhere here in Adelaide the late 80's til the mid 90's, I had an awesome, dingy, dimly lit back room down the road from me in a video store that lasted for many years, it was bliss. There were enough arcades that I recall days dragging dad around from one to the other... poor guy XD. We often had random ones pop up for a few months and vanish, only to see another one show up down the road later on too. Even as their numbers dwindled, we still had a colossal Timezone Meridian and a Tilt arcade in Hindley Street up until roughly the turn of the century.
Post edited August 16, 2013 by ReynardFox
Posted August 16, 2013
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nijuu: ...or the odd machine in various milk bars pouring 20 cent coins ...
Milk Bar? Were you up for a little Ultra Violence after you finished your Milk-Plus while playing a few coin op games at your local milk bar
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General discussion (archive)Do you still go to arcades?(60 posts)(60 posts)
(60 posts)