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Buying Arcade Classics?
spock123 writes "I grew up in the 80s and spent most of my time playing the old arcade classics (Pacman, Galaga, Asteroids, DigDug, etc). Now I feel a sudden urge to own one of these guys - but I can't figure out where and how to buy them. =Do the SlashDot readers know about companies selling 80's arcade machines? Where's the best place to buy? Recommendations, links and experiences are welcome."
Start off with VAPS (http://www.vaps.org/), the Video Arcade Preservation Society.
Do *NOT* ask those members if you can buy their equipment. But rather, talk to them to gain advice. Many will let you visit, and play their games...
Buying arcade games is not for the faint of heart. You need to be comfortable with taking apart a TV set, 'cause the monitors are usually internally open, exposed, with lots of high-power sources lying around.
You should be comfortable working with hardware. You should know how to solder, how to fix/repair electronics... Knowing how to troubleshoot an electrical circuit is useful...
Transporting arcade games is a logistical nightmare. You will need a truck. You will need friends. Good friends. Lots of them. You will discover, very quickly, just how good those friends are. And how strong. Games typically weigh on the order of 200-300 lbs.
Plan on blowing $100 or more for a good appliance dolly up front. Something with stair-climbers and straps. The sort of thing you use for hauling around a full-size refrigerator.
Be careful about laying games down on their back, coffin-style. Sometimes things are not as well attached as they should be. (Had a CRT like that once...)
Now, you are ready to start shopping.
Check your local paper for auctions in the classifieds. I've found video-game auctions being held locally (or nearby at any rate) at a frequency of about once a year, and acquired most of my games through them. Several for under $50. (Yes, the truck rental to move them home cost me more than that.) One thing to watch out for at auctions: Sometimes the bidding gets hot, and you lose all track of what something is worth. I've walked away from auctions before, when I've said hey, what the hell, this is far too much money for that...
Periodically, there are major video game auctions held around the country. You can try to track those down too.
Alternatively, try online sales. rec.games.video.arcade.marketplace is a good place to start...
Just one thing: Try to examine the product before you buy. I've seen games that were absolute crap, that had been stored outside, with monitors that were completely burned in (to the point that the phosphorus had come off the inside of the monitor), yet they were still listed as "good". Needless to say, one look and I said no thanks.
Also, check the controls. Check everything you can. Try to see whats broken. Besides, it's fun to play the games...
And yes, MAME is a lot easier to deal with...
- Check rec.games.video.arcade for arcade auctions near you, and advice on how to deal with operators
- Check in your yellow pages for a place that sells arcade machines
- Go to an arcade and talk to the operators there. Some are cool, but most aren't. Find out if they have machines for sale.
Hope this helps!Or they might be a bunch of jerks and tell you to buzz off. Won't know 'til you ask.
I see even classic Slashdot is now pretty much unusable on dial up anymore.
check out TNT Pinball. They have a ton of games,in all sorts of enclosures (mmmm, outrun cockpit...). they also come with a warrenty. They are a bit expencive though, in comparison to ebay and the like.
"Even Prophets don't know everything"
I've not had any luck with the 'local' papers. But going to the nearest large city (Wash. DC, in my case) is much better.
I would try going to a few auctions, and purposely underbidding on some stuff to get a feel for how they work.
Beware eBay. You will spend as much (or more) as from a company like TNT, and get a much dicier product.
I'll second your advice about being able to solder. If you always get a cold joint, get some practice.
Yes, MAME can be easier, but the ROMs are probably not legal for you to have unless you have the game. In which case, why would you want MAME?? I thought about building a MAME-cab, but decided against it. MAME is best for trying a game to see if the game is really as good as you remembered.
But remember that you have an 'investment' for life. Go to your local arcade, and check out how they are abused, and they keep on running. Once your machine is up and going, it takes very little to keep it in good shape.
Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. -John Lennon
Mame has a time and place where it is appropriate. IMNSHO:
When deciding whether or not to buy a game. Mame can give you a general feel for the gameplay and appearance. Of course, without the ROM file, THIS IS ILLEGAL.
Mame can also serve as motivation to finish that cabinet resto.
Finally, there are some cabs that you will never find, or be able to restore, or that are truly out of reach (Star Wars cabs come to mind).
Mame is to the real thing as masturbation/blow-up-dolls are to the real thing.
(Again, I don't discount the work done on MAME. It is truly an amazing emulator. It just isn't a replacement for a cab)
Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. -John Lennon
I could deal with the shipping prices. My problem when I was looking at the auction sites was that the prices were so high, especially for stuff that has no warranty.
Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. -John Lennon
How to Buy an Arcade Game gives you a good start on purchasing an arcade game. I wrote the FAQ because I got so tired of answering people's questions in my mailbox about how to get ahold of one, or how to find one. There's a lot more to it, and I'm currently writing a book (MS Word format, sorry) all about collecting classic arcade games.
The way I got into it was a local arcade was going out of business, I picked up an upright Top Gun machine for 300$, not to shabby. I found 2 really helpful sites out there. One is Namco Game Search and there is also US Amusement which not only auctions of arcade games, but Pinball machine, pool tables, and other misc stuff. (Pachinko anyone?) The beauty of collecting arcade games is literally the low cost. There are *ALOT* of games out there for under 1000$ USD. I ran out of space (and Im single in a 3 bedroom house) so I seem to land incredible deals now all the time =\. Have fun.
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Looking for hardware (Currently need: Large Etch-a-Sketch) Have one? See my journal!
I love Mame! I have it installed on all of my PCs, but I also own actual classic arcade PCBs (too poor to own full cabinets). For some of the core games that Mame emulates, it does a really good job, but the emulation is never perfect... true fans that have spent 1000s of hours on a pac-man machine or a Street Fighter II machine will be able to "feel" the difference. The slight timing differences, the slight color problems, the off-ness of the sound emulation. The masturbation analogy is a really good one. You can have fun playing Mame, but its shy of the realy thing.
I think (but I could be wrong) finding and buying the original cabinets is going to be pretty hard and expensive.
Ryan T. Sammartino
Ryan T. Sammartino
"Ancora imparo"
NBA Jam isn't exactly 80's I guess, but we got it for 1200$ CDN. There is a HUGE warehouse in Nova Scotia, Canada. The owner was a friend of a friend who let 3 of us come in and have a look around. I still get goosebumps thinking about all the stuff they have in there. I'm quite certain these types of warehouses are all around. Ebay is cluttered with the machines, as well as the Jamma boards. It's not a hard hobby to get in to at all. I can't really compile all the links, etc. that he has into this post, but if you're really interested in getting into this, email me. There's lots of cool stuff to learn about them.