ClubNinja
06-09-2004, 10:16 AM
Four years ago, while visiting a friend about 40 minutes away, we stopped by a local (to her) record shop that specialized in 45s. I find 45s charming, despite what critics may say about their quality, so this place was perfect for me. We get there, wander, browse, purchase a few things, etc. As the lady at the counter is ringing us up, I notice something odd peeking out from the storage room behind her - a Centipede cabinet. Surprised, I inquire. Turns out she bought out some guy's record collection and he wanted to get rid of the game as well, so she took that too. She said it was "busted", though, and it wasn't worth the space it was taking up. Sensing my interest, she said "take it home for $50."
Now, at the time (and still), I really didn't have any room for the thing. My rule for buying a cabinet is that it has to be something I *really* love, otherwise I'll be wasting precious space. I decided it was worth checking out anyway. The cabinet, art, everything was in nice shape and original looking. The only problems were that everything on the screen was red, green, or a combination thereof and it wouldn't come out of attract mode. Being pretty arcade illiterate at the time, I resolved that I had no idea how I might fix the machine and it wasn't worth it. So, we left.
I started to feel pangs of guilt hours later for leaving the thing there, so I called back just to re-inquire before heading home. About 45 minutes after I left the store, a guy with a pickup truck stopped by, saw the game, and took it away. She left him have it for free because: "after you looked at it and didn't seem to think you could fix it, I figured it must be shot for good."
Damn me.
Now, at the time (and still), I really didn't have any room for the thing. My rule for buying a cabinet is that it has to be something I *really* love, otherwise I'll be wasting precious space. I decided it was worth checking out anyway. The cabinet, art, everything was in nice shape and original looking. The only problems were that everything on the screen was red, green, or a combination thereof and it wouldn't come out of attract mode. Being pretty arcade illiterate at the time, I resolved that I had no idea how I might fix the machine and it wasn't worth it. So, we left.
I started to feel pangs of guilt hours later for leaving the thing there, so I called back just to re-inquire before heading home. About 45 minutes after I left the store, a guy with a pickup truck stopped by, saw the game, and took it away. She left him have it for free because: "after you looked at it and didn't seem to think you could fix it, I figured it must be shot for good."
Damn me.