Your last trip to an arcade

[Sotenga]

I'm not sure if this would be best in here, Modern Gaming, or Arcade Alley. I initially thought AA, but since that forum's more concerned with the collection of arcade cabinets and machines, I'm putting it here because I want to talk more about the gaming aspect. If this would be better in another forum, do feel free to relocate.

Anyhoo, arcades have not been very dominant in gaming culture as of late, but they still exist. Lucky for me, a really awesome one is only half-an-hour away. I'm pretty sure intvsama knows which one I mean too.

In this thread, talk about what you did the last time you were at an arcade. Or if you even want to talk about what you played or did at a time other than the last, do that too. I was the aforementioned awesome arcade earlier (the Challenge Arcade, FYI), and since I'm on a lightgun craze at the moment, I went to Crisis Zone and got through two entire areas on one credit, the best I've done so far. But goddammit, three of the four lives I lost were to those motherfuckers who appear right in front of you and slash with a knife. They've become more hated than the red guys who always cause fatal shots in my book. But I forgot how awesome CZ was.

Should have stuck to it as well, because it took me three credits to get to the Hangedman, the second boss of House of the Dead, and I lost to that bastich. Man, I forgot how difficult HotD was... I really sucked wind at it. And... well that was all. Two dollars = eight quarters = 1 play on CZ which cost 50 cents per play + 3 credits on HotD which also cost 50. That little formula was my last time at the arcade, and it was pretty cool, despite the fact that HotD hasn't been kind to me. I blame the stupid innocents. Dammit, I can't help but be trigger-happy, and their pain is mine too!

So, just talk about whatcha did last time (or even a time before the last that was just memorable) at the arcade. If you accidentally hit the screen of Mocap Boxing, cracked it, and got thrown out of the place, talk about that too. (I hit the screen once, but no one noticed, thankfully. Tee-hee. )

[50s Brawler]

The last time I stepped into a "True" arcade, was in 1998. Since then I've stepped into the here and there D&B or Game Works type amusement centres that have some uprights. Last game I played in an arcade was Tekken 5 when it first hit the arcades and can't say it was too memorable. The good ole days was the late 80s to early 90s for me really. I still hit up the POWERCADE at the Dobie Mall in Austin Texas everytime I head up there for a TX Rollergirls game or decide to blitzkreig Waterloo Records and Cheapos Discs and wolf down a Slurpee, since 7-11 doesn't exist anymore in San Antonio.

The best memory I have in an arcade goes back to 1988 at (strangely enough here) a 7-11. Twice a week after martial arts classes [I was taking Shorin Ryu Karate at the time] I'd head over to the 7-11 and waste a few bucks in quarters on Shinobi, Commando, VS. Super Mario Bros and "Operation Wolf". Man those were the days.

[stargate]

I used to spend just about ever day after school in the 80's at Just Fun, which was an arcade in Chicopee, MA at the Fairfield Mall. Both the arcade and the mall have since been leveled and replaced with a Walmart and a Home Depot

Anyway, just for laughs, I stopped by an arcade this past week that I haven't been to since the 80's. It is at the Ingleside Mall in Holyoke, MA. It was pretty depressing. NO good games at all. Just a bunch of beat up driving games and some large shooting games and a bunch of those ticket games that gobble up money. The place was barren and just a shell of it's former glory.

I am afraid the golden days of the arcades are long gone...

[erehwon]

Sadly, I never really got to enjoy arcades being too young when they were still around in my area. I was born in '84. The only arcade I've been in since I was old enough to enjoy them was the one at Cedar Point.

I wonder if they are any good arcades around Fort Wayne, IN or even in northern Indiana? So far I've only seen Put-Put golf and Chuck-e-cheese type places. Well, there is a Coney place in town with a Neo Geo MVS cab. I should go there more.

[Videogamerdaryll]

Was about about 6 to 8 months ago..

I went with my Dad to show him newer type Pinball Machines ..

[kevates]

In my neighborhood, there wasn't an arcade per se (except for the original Chuck E. Cheese), but there were several arcade games at various locations. I remember in Junior High and Freshman year of high school, my friends and I would travel by bike from location to location to play them and hang out and watch others play until we got asked to leave -- we usually carried my friend Azzie's mono one speaker tape player, listening to Pac Man Fever (Buckner & Garcia), Paradise Theater (STYX), Centerfold (J Geils Band) and Journey (Escape). On the way, we'd stop at various stores that stocked 2600 games (Longs Drug Store, K-Mart, and Video Mania) to drool over the new releases and try to talk the clerk into opening one, so we could test them out.

I specifically remember the Berzerk game at 7-11 in Pleasanton, CA, the Centipede & Space Duel machines at the Ice Creamery in Castro Valley, CA, and when I was a little older, the Mr. Do's Castle machine at Denny's where we would hang out after play practice for hours.

My experience with actual arcade games in the wild today (meaning not on my MAME cabinet or at my friend Larry's garage) is similar... there's the centipede machine at the 5th Quarter Pizza Parlor in Redwood City, CA, the beat up Street Fighter Clone at New York Pizza and the Ms. Pac Man cocktail at Pedros Mexican Restraunt.

I still stop in regularly to play a game or two when I'm out and about.

[Vinnysdad]

The last time I was in an arcade was about 3-4 years ago I think. Its at a miniature golf place called GOLF N STUFF. I played Marvel VS Capcom 2 and beat it. The place is still there but I have no idea what games they have now. Its the only arcade anywhere near me that I know about. Kind of sad.

[diskoboy]

Fortunately, I have at least one good one close by, I was at about 2 or 3 weeks ago.

It's called Snookers. It's mainly a pool hall, but they do have a bunch of video games

They have a very good mixture of classics (Time Pilot, Galaga, Out Run, and Centipede off the top of my head) and newer titles (Crazy Taxi, Crisis Zone, Marvel Vs. Capcom 2)

And, thank god, we also have a Dave & Busters.

[Fighter17]

Last time I was in a arcade was three years ago.

It was near Jacksonville and it was in a Go-Kart center.

For starters it had tons of good games (but no 2D shmups ). From a Neo-Geo MVS cab (with Metal Slug I in it), to some good light-gun games (Silent Scope). Various DDR machines can be found in there, and some interesting arcade games (a Star Wars game from Sega), and get this, a IMPORT Daytona USA 2001 two player cab. The place I herd paid tons of money for that Japanese Daytona USA 2001 cab.

My last time ever I was in a arcade. My dream is opening up a arcade actually.

[MarkMan]

I was just at the arcade last week.

<3 arcades.

[ecresto]

i havent been to an arcade in ages , but i can remember spending days & nights and plenty of quarters in our local mall . we had an arcade called alladins castle .i could sit and play mortal kombat 2 & street fighter 2 all night . man to get them good ole days back .

[shoes23]

Last May when my local arcade shut it doors. It was a favorite spot of mine in town, and its recent departure from my local mall leaves nothing for me to do when the woman wants to go shopping. The little arcade had changed owners more than three times that I can remember, but it a local hangout for many kids/people (I live in a small rural town so not much else to do here).

It always kept a nice mix of classics like Shinobi, Galaga, Arkanoid, a sit down Roadblasters, Black Tiger, Truxton, and Sega's Wrestle War. We only got a handful of newer games these last 10 years like Tekken Tag, SF Rush, the Jurassic Park sitdown, ect. They even had a nice selection of pinball tables, my favorite being High Speed.

I probably spent too much time in it througout my lifetime, so maybe its not such a bad thing that its moved on, as I probably should at times. But, the experience I got out of the whole venture was amazing. I played Double Dragon, Mario Brothers, and Ninja Gaiden for the first time there. I watched as Street Fighter was replaced by Street Fighter II, which in turn was replaced by Mortal Kombat (MK's sucsessor was horrible Time Killers). I remember the pumping my allowance into the quirky Hologram game (maybe someone can eleborate, it had something to do with a time travelling cowboy, and I distinctly remember shooting up some drug dealers in the 1990's stage). I spent many a friends birthday party there pumping tokens into game like Turtles in Time and 4P X-men.

Sorry for the ramblings, but even though I experienced great arcades in other towns/cities, I wouldn't have traded any of them for the one in my hometown. RIP.

[fahlim003]

There are a few arcades in Toronto and if I'm nearby I usually hit them up. I was last in one about 3 days ago busting up Initial D Ver.3.

[Push Upstairs]

Last year I wen to an "Alladins Castle" but it was mostly full of shooter/sniper and dance games.

My GF played some skee-ball and I saw that the tickets were Namco related and had Pac-Man on them.

Small bonus.

[Zadoc]

The last time I visited an arcade was on 2/2 of this year. I celebrated my 25th birthday at GameWorks. Alcohol and arcades, what a combination!

I really appreciate the arcades for the types of experiences that home consoles and online gaming simply cannot provide.

For example, I spent a considerable amount of time with "Afterburner III." Like "Afterburner II," the cockpit of the arcade cabnent moves with your aircraft. For me, this greatly enhances the experience.

Also, driving sims are hard to duplicate at home, even with the best steering wheels.

Finally, some games, such as Silent Scope, simply cannot be duplicated.

GameWorks has a hot-air baloon videogame that carries players players up and down three stories. Do that at home? I think not!

I got there 2-4 times a year just to see if they have anything new.

[NESHero]

The other day me and some freinds played Daytonna USA
There arnt many decent games there, its pertty boring.

[DeputyMoniker]

I went to Cactus Jacks a couple years ago with another DP member. Back in the early to mid 90's it was the place to hang. I believe they used to serve alcohol there so I very rarely was allowed to go in there prior to when Killer Instinct was the big thing. It was still a decent place but nothing too special, there were better options at that time. (Billy Baloos being the best) Anyway, the last time I was there I bought $5 in tokens and I still have most of them. That should tell you how wonderful a place it is these days. Sadly, I've found no better options either. (I should probably spend some more time looking though)

[davidbrit2]

The other day me and some freinds played Daytonna USA
There arnt many decent games there, its pertty boring.

Bah, you don't need anything else when you've got 4 Daytona cabinets.

Last trip was the past weekend, and it involved assloads of Drummania, and a bit of DDR, as usual. I need to convince myself to make the 2 hour drive to Gameworks again soon, so I can get my Daytona 2 and Outrun 2 SP fix.

[Rogmeister]

The last time I planned to go to an arcade was probably about two years ago. I went up to the mall...the whole trip wasn't planned to play in the arcade but (as I often did) I thought I'd stop in and play a few games here and there. When I got there, however, I found the arcade was no more...it had closed down and all the games were gone. When it was open, I thought they could've put in a lot more games as the machines were fairly spread apart. To the best of my knowledge, there's no other arcade in this area.

[Technosis]

Last visit to an arcade...unless you count my own coin-ops would have been a month or so ago in Toronto. There's a nice arcade beneath Union Station that has a half dozen pinball games plus an assortment of vids (including several MAME type and Williams multigame vids). I also hit up an arcade on Younge street that has loads of stuff, including some classics in the back.