Feb 5, 2012 - Q*Bert Qubes and Multi Q*Bert 10-in-1 Kit Video
Recently I installed the new Multi Q*Bert 10 in 1 kit in my Q*Bert, it's pretty cool! I just put up a video showing how it works. This video mostly focuses on Qubes but also shows the multi menu and how the mod is installed. This mod was created by Dave Widel and Mike Doyle. It is available on Mike Doyle's blog and here.
It's definitely a cool mod. Most of the games are not that great but I really like FHMC Q*bert and Q*bert Qubes. It also adds a more modern way to save games. This is good because my Q*bert never saved high-scores properly. The only negative is that you need to exit out of the game and go back into the menu to save scores. This is a minor annoyance as you have to remember to do so before you turn the game off.
I just updated the Nintendo Vs. Tech page with some pretty useful info and a new manual!
2600 over at KLOV sent me a copy of the Nintendo Vs. Playchoice conversion kit manual. It's now available at the bottom of this page. This manual is for the kit from Nintendo that allows you to add a PC-10 to one side of a Nintendo Red Tent. Neat kit.
I also added a notes column to the list of games on the Nintnedo Vs. Tech Page. I hope these notes are helpful as I added a little bit of information for each game. And, I also added Konami Vs. Daughter Board conversion info. Did you know you can convert a Vs. Top Gun to a Vs. Castelvania? Well you can! Head on over here and check it out!
So, GameRoom Junkies Podcast (which is a GREAT podcast, BTW) just had a little "2011 Game Room of the Year" contest. And... John's Arcade took 3rd place!! Woot! How cool is that? Big thanks to everyone that voted and the guys at the podcast for doing this. Very cool.
I posted a couple of new videos the last few weeks. One is for a new pin I picked up called "NBA FASTBREAK", the other is for the awesome Atari Cabaret Cabinet, Tempest. Check them out below!
NBA FASTBREAK PINBALL REVIEW VIDEO - WILLIAMS/BALLY
Sep 4, 2011 - Popeye Instruction Sticker now available for sale!
So, Radarscope, Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Junior, Donkey Kong 3, and Popeye all share the same cabinet design. Nintendo released DK and Jr. with an instruction sticker that went across the cross member above the control panel. For whatever reason, they didn't continue this tradition with DK3 and Popeye. So, last year or so I made a (fictional) DK3 instruction sticker to fix this issue! :) And, now I have just finished my Popeye sticker! Both are available from Rich at thisoldgame.com - Go get them!
Jul 10, 2011 - The Kill Screens, Science Fiction Movie, now available!
Hey, did you know I have a band? It's true! I have been in bands for a long long time. My current project is called "The Kill Screens". The band is basically me and my pal, Matt. We have been working on this CD for two years. And, well, it's amazing. It's the greatest CD I have ever been a part of. It really is that good. It's Indie Electronic Pop/Rock. Think Postal Service or Owl City. Plenty of synths, 8 bit sounds, guitars, and clean vocals. The album has 14 tracks and every song is a keeper. The album has been very well received. It has been the #1 new release on Amazon for its genre and in the top 75 electronic albums on iTunes.
Ayways, I made a little video for one of our songs in my arcade tonight. It's not the most amazing video but it's kind of cool. Check it out and let me know what you think!
Jun 24, 2011 - Moe's Tavern Mod for The Simpsons Pinball Party TSPP
I just installed the cool illuminated Moe's Tavern sign mod on my Simpson's Pinball Party. This is a light up sign mod that replaces the static plastic Moe's Tavern Sign. It's a piece of EL paper with printing. It's very easy to install and is completely reversible. No hacking or anything. It's plug and play. The mod is made by Niles from wolfpackpinball. You can order this sign from Niles by e-mailing him at nlrobert (at) earthlink (dot) net. The cost is $60.00 plus $5.00 shipping. Neat mod for sure!
I recently aquired a Big Guns Pinball game by Williams. I actually won it in a raffle. Crazy! The game had some issues though, and I have fixed them all. I replaced an opto board, a bunch of switches and targets, about 50 bulbs, and also did a quick shop job. Decent fun game with these cannons that fire the balls through the air! Neat!
I recorded a video for it a few weeks ago, check it out. I have since fixed that gate issue. It was a bad IC on the CPU board. Woot!
For some reason I picked up a Fire Trap game by Data East. This was a game that showed up on CL for $60.00. I figured it was worth it just to get the monitor. Turns out, the game is actually pretty neat!
May 15, 2011 - ZOMG! Street Fighter II CE Turbo Hyper Fighting!
So, I have been wanting to add a dedicated fighting game to the arcade for some time. I kind of thought I wanted to go with a variation of Mortal Kombat but Street Fighter II kept calling my name. I don't know about you, but most people I know consider Street Fighter II the standard. And, well, when a local collector offered one up for trade, I had to jump on it. I am pretty happy I grabbed it, it's pretty bad ass!
Check out the Street Fighter II Champion Edition Turbo Hyper Fighting Video Review below!
Hey, I just picked up a Mad Planets arcade game by Gottlieb. This was a crazy game that shared the same cabinet as Q*bert. I put up a video and also did a Q*Bert video a week or so ago.
Anyways, here are the video reviews of these classic Gottlieb games! Enjoy!
Mar 30, 2011 - The best racing games of 1981 and 1982
I put up a couple of videos of the two best racing games of 1981 and 1982. The first is 1981's SEGA's Turbo which was the first racing game to feature a third person perspective behind the car and with a "vanishing point" perspective. It was pretty bad ass back then. A lot of people said it was the most realistic driving game to date. Nothing could touch it. That was until 1982 when NAMCO released Pole Position (distributed by Atari in the USA). They upped the ante with killer graphics, sounds, and insane controls. It was the game of the year.
They are both very different games. SEGA's Turbo features fast and twitchy gameplay that takes place in many different locales. You'll drive through the city, tunnels, snow, near the ocean, etc. Pole Position is a straight F-1 style driving game that takes place on a single closed track. Both are very fun to playand both were the top dogs in their day. Love them!
Here's a quick little video of the awesome Pat Lawlor designed pin, No Good Gofers. No Good Gofer's features this almost CaddyShack type style, it is a golf themed pin. This game has tons of flow and is a really fast pin. Anyways, check out the video below!
Feb 20, 2011 - Vs. Red Tent Instuction Cards added!
Some folks over at KLOV have been hard at work reproing some hard to find Nintendo Red Tent Vs. instruction cards. Raikus, OldTymeToys, and Modessitt have managed to create some bitchin' instruction cards for Vs. Balloon Fight, Vs. Wrecking Crew, Vs. Pinball, and Vs. Soccer. I have added these to the site and they are here. Huge thanks to these guys for createing these, they rock. I also added a bunch of other instruction cards that I found at ARCade ARChive! Hopefully these guys are cool that I did so! :)
Feb 9, 2011 - Stern The Simpson's Pinball Party Review Gameplay Video!
Wanna know what my favorite pin is? Well, at least the favorite pin out of my collection... It's The Simpson's Pinball Party! Seriously. This is a pin that Stern put out in 2003 and it's just crazy. Crazy deep. Crazy awesome.Crazy amazing. Crazy fun! I personally think it's the best pin that Stern has ever made. Have you seen the crap pins they have made lately? Nothing compares to the amount of toys, rules, depth, features, ramps, shots, gizmos, gadgets, etc. that The Simpson' Pinball Party has. So, after many requests, I finally did a video review of my Simpson's Pinball Party. Check it out below!
I get a TON of messages asking me for help, advice, etc. So, I figured a forum could be a good way to communicate with everyone and we can try to help each other out. I think there is a need for this and a lot of the other forums out there are pretty intimidating for new or would-be collectors. So, let's give this a shot. If people like it, and use it, I'll invest the time needed to make it kick ass.
Also, I want to use this forum as place to discuss all things Nintendo Vs. So, if you have questions about this or need help, please post in the forum. It should be a good place to get a hold of me if you have questions.
Feb 7, 2011 - Jungle Hunt / Jungle King Video Review!
I just posted a video of one of my favorite games from the 80s, Jungle King! This game was actually changed later to Jungle Hunt because the Tarzan folks didn't take too kindly to the main character and his jungle yell. He looked and sounded exactly like Tarzan!
Anyways, check out the video here and let me know what you think!
Dec 19, 2010 - Ho! Ho! Ho! Moon Patrol and arcade vid!
It's been over a year since I moved all my games into my basement. In that time I have never once had EVERY SINGLE game working. I would fix one, and the next would break. These games are tempermental! Well tonight I managed to get Zoo Keeper working (picked up a new PCB and then replaced all the RAM on it) and that meant every game was now working. w00t!
So, to celebrate the event I filmed a quick video of Moon Patrol! :) Enjoy!
The last two side art applications I have done, I did using Rapid Tac. Prior to using this stuff, I have had mixed results and often air bubbles and sometimes creases. This stuff just works and it really makes it amazingly easy to do. I HATE PUTTING ON SIDE ART. It's sooo stressful. Not with this stuff, it makes it a breeze!
I have no idea what is in the bottle. Maybe it's just windex. I don't know. But whatever it is, it just works. I will never put on side art again without it.
It's easy too!
1) Clean the side art area of the cabinet with Rapid Tac. Spray it on and wipe it off with a paper towel.
2) Spray the cabinet again with Rapid Tac (where the side art is going!)
3) Now, take the wax paper off of the side art and start lining it up where it needs to go. Since the cabinet is wet with Rapid Tac, you can easily remove and readjust where the side art goes. This is the best part!
4) Side art looks good? Now, take a squeegee and push all the liquid and air bubbles out. Rub the hell out of the art with this thing until it is silky smooth.
5) Wait 30-90 seconds. Now, spray the pre-mask with the Rapid Tac. Get it nice and wet. Now, remove the pre-mask and gaze at your beautiful side art with no bubbles, creases, etc!
Sep 25, 2010 - MY COLLECTION and OTHER STUFF pages updated!
I quickly updated the MY COLLECTION and OTHER STUFF pages tonight. I still need to add thumbnails to the MY COLLECTION page, but I did list all the games in my collection and the related links. I think it's complete.
Added some more current commentary to the supplier links on the OTHER STUFF age. Also added a few more links to that page.
I spent a good chunk of today cleaning up my Q*Bert and tidying up a few things. The first thing I did was clean the hell out of the cabinet. I used a magic eraser on the sides and it turned out pretty great. I really should be painting these sides but for some reason I am not motivated to do so. I might touch up the yellow and then put new side art on. There is something about having an original cabinet that has all the battle scars. Or, that's just me being lazy. :) Anyways, side art was ordered from ArcadeShop and I hope to have it soon!
Overall, the cabinet is decent and it looks very presentable. It's gonna look really sharp when I stick side art on it! I also cleaned the heck out of the control panel overlay with a magic eraser and it's looking like brand new. The CPO has some minor issues and tearing around the bend but I think I am ok with that. Again, it's original and looks very presentable.
I replaced the rusty CPO bolts with new ones from Home Depot and also got to the bottom of my coin door light issue. Turns out there was a ground wire that was off. So, I soldered that back on and now I have coin door lights! Sweet.
The last thing I need to do is rebuild the "legs" on the bottom of the cab. It's nothing more than (2) 2" x 3" pieces of wood attached to the bottom. I'm gonna do that tomorrow.
Sep 24, 2010 - My appearance on the ALL GEN GAMERS Podcast
Hey, did you know I was recently on the All Gen Gamer's podcast? It's a podcast started by YouTube superstars Pete Dorr and Gamester 81. Big fans of these guys and their YouTube Chanels.
Anyways, this podcast was all about Arcade Collecting and talking about my collection, etc. It was a great time and these guys are awesome!
Sep 24, 2010 - Q*Bert added to collection! WOOOOOT!
This has to be one of my best pick-ups EVER. So, I have been looking for a Q*Bert for a LONG TIME. These games are hard to come by. I have been talking to this guy for about a month trying to make a deal for his game. His game is nice looking, complete, etc. However, it is BROKEN. It's totally dead and doesn't work. The seller told me that the sound went out on the game but it still played for awhile. Then, one day it just stopped working altogether. I had faith in the idea that I could fix it. As long as everything was there, I would take the chance.
So, I go to pick it up tonight and the game looks great. Real clean inside. The sides are a tiny bit rough and most definitely not perfect. Not perfect but presentable. The particle board has swelled in spots. I could live with it, I think. And yes, the game is broken. No signs of life. I get it home and plug it in. DEAD. So, I start checking the fuses and the interlock switches. The interlock switches basically kill the power to the game when the back door is open. These are also sometimes on the coin door. But, I didn't see one. This is an annoying safety measure so you didn't open the game and start touching live circuits. All fuses on the power supply are GOOD. The interlock on the back door is on as it should be. But, no life. So I start looking around the inside cabinet trying to figure out why this thing isn't powering on. Even the monitor is not coming on. This is actually a good sign. Cause if EVERYTHING IS DEAD then it could be something VERY simple. Well, I discover that the operator or previous owner or someone moved one of the interlock switches to inside the cabinet and on top of the coin door. It was CLOSED! I opened it open and BAM! The game fired right up! WOOOOOT! The monitor was crisp, the game played great, everything was perfect. But, NO SOUND. I remember the seller telling me that at some point the sound went out when he owned it. So, I start checking the sound board and the sound amp. And, guess what? I find a dead fuse on the sound AMP board. Wanna know something? It looked like a good fuse. You couldn't tell it was bad. But, I always check my fuses with a multimeter. It's the only way to know if a fuse is good or bad. And, well, this fuse LOOKED good but it was BAD. I replaced it and BAM! I got sound. THIS GAME LOOKS AND PLAYS AWESOME! W00t!
Like I have said in one of my videos, don't be afraid to buy broken games! Cause you never know what is really wrong and it's always a learning experience. Tonight was a good night. Really happy to own this Q*Bert and the seller was such a cool guy. Really great guy. You meet so many awesome people in this hobby and tonight was no exception. Big thanks to the seller of this game! Great guy.
Also, big HUGE thanks to my friend Pete for coming with me to help move this game out of the guys basement. It was a serious chore and I couldn't have done it without him. Thanks, Pete!!!
Here's a quick preview video (I'll be posting a full video soon!):
Wow, I have been SLACKING. I have actually been putting up YouTube videos but not updating this site. I SUCK! Sorry about that!
So, what's new? Hmmm.... Well, I picked up a Frogger. How awesome is that? I LOVE me some Frogger. And, well, I picked up a second Frogger too. I plan on making one bad ass Frogger from two cabs... stay tuned.
Well, I did manage to shoot a Frogger video from the one Frogger cab, check it out here:
And, I also picked up an Ice Cold Beer. Ice Cold Beer you say? Pretty neat and unique game. I LOVE IT. LOVE IT.
Check it out:
And, lastly, I just got a new monitor for my PaperBoy and filmed a quick video here, check it!:
Last winter I picked up a project Domino Man. It was an absolute mousey disaster. The outside wasn't that bad, but man, the inside! It was explosion of mouse hair, poop, dirt, mud, grossness, sick stuff, and other horrible things. It took a very strong stomach to clean and restore this cabinet. Once I got into it, I stopped thinking of the filth. And, well, it was worth it!
Anyways, check out the photo album and video below!
This is the first of a few videos I will be posting
over the coming days. I need to get caught up!
The first video is of my new Asteroids Deluxe. GREAT B/W
vector game. I have been looking for one for some time. I
finally grabbed one and couldn't be happier. It's such a
cool cabinet. It has a projected (mirrored) floating image
that hovers over a cardboard asteroid field with a black light.
It's totally nuts.
May
23, 2010 - Dear John... Where do you get your games?
It
seems like lately, a lot of people keep asking me questions
like, "Where
did
you get your games?" , "What website did you buy
game x?".
"Are they
expensive?", etc. etc. Well, the answer is... get your
butt out there and meet people! This hobby has some of the
nicest
and coolest people you ever will meet. They also might tip
you off to a local warehouse, an old time collector, or other
resource. You need to meet people and get active in your
local scene if you want to grow your collection without going
broke.
There are some good deals out there.
Be warned, there is no question, this hobby can be an addiction.
When you meet so many awesome people in the hobby, you get
so many
more
opportunities to buy great games at great prices. Games have
been falling out of the sky lately - this is a great time to
be a collector.
And, one word of advice... Don't buy games as an investment.
I have never seen this work. This is a hobby. Have fun with
it, and buy stuff YOU like and that makes you happy and that
you want to PLAY. Isn't that the point? :)
I am a lot late posting this, but it's still cool...
Below is a quick little video I took at PAX EAST in
the American Classic Arcade Museum exhibit. I volunteered
to work the exhibit and it was a lot of fun. Long day, but
fun.
:)
Will Wheaton (Stand by Me, Star Trek, etc.) stopped
by the exhibit as shown in the video. It was cool.
Video also features the ultra rare Crazy Otto game
that was the pre-cursor to Ms. Pac. This game was never released
and isn't even in MAME. ULTRA Rare.
Mar
21, 2010- Richie Knucklez's Tournament Video and Photos!
I just got back from Richie Knucklez's annual tournament
that is organized by CAGDC. It was a total blast. Equally,
if not more fun, than last year. Richie is such a great host
and overall good guy. I really enjoy attending his events.
As usual, I came nowhere near placing in the tournament but
that's
not
why I
go. It's
just a great excuse to spend time with friends from the
arcade world and play games non-stop for two days. Even though
I collect games,
I
never
get to play games like this. 12 hours straight
of gaming really forces you to focus on a game and really
try to get a high-score.
The tournament had its share of arcade gaming rockstars.
Don Hayes, the new DK world record holder - Hank Chien, Twin
Galaxies #1 guy - Dave Nelson, DK guru - Ben Falls, that guy
from KoK that has the Mappy high score, Mark Apliger (the guy
with the glove in KoK) and other notables were all there. I
really had fun. Good times.
Big thanks to my pals that joined me down there, Matt, Brian,
Scott, and Mark.
Anyways, I picked up a few things the last few weeks and also
sold a game. Toobin' is no longer in my collection. I sold
this to my good friend Dan to make room for a Paperboy. Sweet!
I also managed to pick-up a Centipede Cabaret and a Tapper.
Both of which I have been wanting for some time. I added the
multipede
kit to the Centipede and the Tapper is everything
I ever dreamed of. I LOVE ME SOME TAPPER! :)
Anyways, I have some photos of the games below as well as
a video of Tapper and how I installed a battery on the MCR
Power Supply on Tapper. Enjoy!
I have been looking and looking for my next pin for some time.
I have had a mental list going that looked something like:
The Addams Family, Twilight Zone, Funhouse, White Water, Attack
From Mars, and Revenge From Mars. The more I looked the more
I kept coming back to Revenge From Mars. There is just something
about it that I love. If you don't know, it was part of the
Pinball
2000 series of (two) games that featured a monitor
above the playfield that projected
targets, characters, and objects onto the playfield in a almost
holographic kind of
way. It's really cool. (It was also William's last ditch effort
to save pinball. There
is a terrific documentary about this called "Tilt",
I highly recommend watching it.) Besides being really fun,
it also seemed to be the least expensive of all
the pins
on
my
hit
list. I
think it is incredibily undervalued and now seems to be the
time to get one. Based on how other pins are priced, I have
a feeling that these are going to go up in value, and soon.
So, after some searching, I found a nice one near Boston for
a fair price. It's an incredibily heavy game and thankfully
my buddy Dan and my neighbor were able to help me get it in
my basement. It was not fun!
Anyways, I have really been enjoying the
game, it's loads of fun. It's by far
the
best
pin in my
collection.
What's
also
great
is
that there is a nice community that still supports the game.
The
pinball
2000 games essentially have a PC in them. So, if you were
to install a NIC card into the pin's PC it is possible to access
a community
created tournament server and upload your scores and
download other players high-scores to your machines leaderboard!
How
cool is that? It's kind of like Xbox
Live Leaderboards, but on a pinball machine! Sweet!
Anyways, check out the video below and click here to see some
photos of my machine. Enjoy!
Oh,
joy! Another mouse infested cabinet. This time, it's Domino
Man. I picked it up from a friend that took it
out of an operator's warehouse. It had been in storage for
some time.
Overall, the cabinet is in pretty nice shape. The
outside is doable. The marquee, CPO, and bezel are decent.
The side art has some minor tearing which reveals some Lazarian side art. This
was
a factory
conversion, which is somewhate common for these. Lazarian
was a weak game and Bally converted them to the hopefully better
performing game, Domino Man.
The inside of the cab? That's a whole other
story. Mice crap,
mice hair stuck to
the
PCB, mud,
ugliness,
disgusting
stuff, you name it... it's inside this cab. The good
news? It's all here. The cab is complete. So, it looks
like later
this year I'll be in the garage sanitizing this game
and getting it ready for the basement. If you have any Domino
Man parts for sale, please let me know. I would love to grab
another PCB and Power Supply.
I am pretty excited to own this rare game. It was designed
by a legenedary Toy and Game development company in Chicago
named Marvin Glass. They designed countless toys and games
we all know like the Milton Bradley board game staples Mouse
Trap and Operation. And, they
designed the arcade games
Tapper,
Timber, and Domino Man. They all pretty much feature the same
character. I hope to someday have a Tapper and Timber. They
will look awesome next to this cabinet!
Anyways, click the image below to see a gallery of Domino
Man "Before" images.
I just finally updated the "My
Collection" page on the site.
On this page you'll find links to videos, photos, info, and
more for all the games in my collection. Enjoy!
Look for some more videos to be posted this weekend too. I
am thinking of doing one for my dart board and Megatouch. Should
be cool. :)
Dec
20, 2009 -Some new arcade photos and a Black Widow video
So, how are your holidays going? Haven't really been adding
too much to the collection lately. But, I have been playing
the heck out of my games. I took some photos tonight of the
current
state of the arcade. You can see them by clicking the thumbnails
below:
I also filmed a quick Black Widow video. This is a conversion
for Gravitar and it's pretty damn cool! Check it out here:
I feel like I have been slacking lately, I need to update
this site more often! The "My Collection" section is a bit
dated. Eek!
Anyways, I got a new camera today that does HD videos and
I finally filmed a NEO GEO video. Tell me what you think. Like
the HD thing better?
Anyways, this is a cool video. I talk about how the NEO GEO
works, the memory card, the games, etc. I also demo the bitchin'
game NEO Mr. Do. Check out and enjoy!
I picked up this odd little pin by Gottleib called "Super
Mario Mushroom World". It has a short playfield 2/3 size
but everything else is full-sized. It's pretty neat.
When I
purchased it, it didn't work . It had a bad driver board
and a burnt up coil. I replaced all the bad parts and bam!
It works.
Pretty fun little machine and it has a ticket dispenser too.
As your playing the game it spits out tickets. Wild.
I guess
about only 500 of these were made so it's not that common.
I really like the artwork and the sounds in the game are
really terrific. It's from the Super Mario 3 era of Nintendo.
Good stuff.
I
picked up this cheap Red Nintendo cab from a buddy (wickedbass)
for like $50 and decided to turn it into a Nintendo Vs. cab.
My wife loves Dr. Mario and my kids love Super Mario Bros.
so I figured a cab that plays both would be cool. Didn't want
to spend tons of time or money on this one and I think it
turned out pretty cool. I kind of like the red cab with the
Dr. Mario
marquee. What
do you think? I didn't repaint the red. Just sanded all theblack
wood and metal parts and repainted and put some new t-molding
on it. I think it
will look great between
two games in the Nintendo row. :) There is something to be
said about not going crazy on every game since you'll never
see the sides anyways.
Here's a game I kind of never thought I would own. I always
liked this game. The cabinet is beyond amazing. It has cool
artwork, neat black-light effects, awesome in-game music, and
some somewhat decent gameplay. Ok, maybe the cabinet is better
than
the game.
But,
it's not a really a bad game. It just gets pretty hard pretty
quick.
Anyways, a local collector offered this up to me and I had
to jump on it. Fair price, decent cabinet, it all works and
it's all here. I plan on restoring it completely with new
art, etc. But I
think
I'll
do a little
at a time. The TRON repro art is not cheap!
Anyways, click the photo to see it larger and here's a video!
Enjoy!
Aug
22, 2009 - Whirlwind added to collection and video!
I
actually got this a few weeks ago. I have been looking for
a pinball to add to my collection for some time. I wanted
a really good one but didn't want to spend a fortune. Pins
can be quite expensive. I lucked out and found a local Whirlwind
for a really fair and great price. Whirlwind is one of the
better pins out there. I couldn't be happier. It has this cool
fan
on
the top that blows when you activate the storm. When the
storm is going, there are also spinners on the playfield that
mess with your ball. It's a good time.
Well, I just had my second arcade party this year and it was
a huge success! Thanks to everyone that came. It rocked! We
capped monitors. We applied CPOs. We fixed boards. We played
games. We drank beer. We ate burgers. We enjoyed each others
company. We had a cranky neighbor come over and tell me the
music was too loud. We had FUN!!!!
HUGE thanks to PEALE and ADAM for helping me cap my Punch-Out!!
monitors. They work great and it never looked better! WOOT!
Serious thanks to everyone that showed... Eric, Cartouche and
wife, Peale and son, Brian, Adam and family, Cartouche's friend,
John, Chip and Diane, Dane and girlfriend, Quin and family,
etc. Sorry if I missed anyone.
I have a Nintendo VS Unisystem upright Super Mario game that the monitor
doesnt work. The game has been sitting for several years now because I dont
know what to do with it. Game appears to have power everywhere. The monitor
pops when the game is powered up like it wants to come on but the monitor
stays black. I unhooked the edge connector and got the same results (found
it in the manual). The glass tube on the end of the monitor starts to glow
for about one second and then goes out. This could be normal because like I
said before I dont know anything about these things but it would seem to me
it should glow all the time. The game does plays blind. Could this be a cap
issue or something else? PS I know nothing about these games other than I
love to play them and cant afford to pay hundreds of dollars for someone
else to fix it. Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.
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John
16 Aug 2011, 23:04
$1450 is TOO much for a pac man!
rodney
21 Feb 2011, 18:34
Hey John was wanting to ask you
what you about buying a pacman
i find one online for 1450 i wanted
to know what you think about that.
rodney
Nathan Short
16 Oct 2010, 09:01
Hi, John. I'm back! Hey, try to find a
Jr. Pacman machine Okay?
Tom
08 Oct 2010, 13:32
John,
Awesome site, collection and videos!! I found it last night while
searching the web for Baby Pacman parts (I just picked one up).
It’s cool to see someone else has the same hobby as me. I have over 20
games and am always looking for more.. I probably need an arcade game
intervention…its addicting!
I saw a Kiss bar stool in one of your videos.. You don’t have a Kiss pin?
You’re not really missing much… boring game..but as a Kiss fan I had to get
one..
Tom
TomW
28 Jul 2010, 19:28
Hi there I recently purchased 3 arcade machines for $100 from an old
cottage resort game room(Coney island Pinball, brute force cabinet) and of
course a red tent dual system. Hence why I have posted here! I think it may
be fried from dust and 5 years of sitting and was wondering if there is a
place I can buys games, monitors and especially keys, so I don't have to
drill out the locks? I'm not even sure what's inside because I would like
to unlock it first and there is no marqee.
I recently purchased an upright Nintendo Vs. Super Mario Bros Cabinet and
thought I could bounce a question your way. It looks like you've had a lot
of experience with these cabs so I figure who better to ask. Here's my
question... The connector that goes from the joystick control panel to the
PCB board is slightly loose. Let me explain... the actual green connection
that plugs into the back of the cage has the 2 black and 1 green cable at
the very top of the connection that came loose. From my troubleshooting
investigating, I was able to associate these cables with the Player 1 and
Player 2 buttons. I've tried to solder the wires on the green connection
adapter and now when I try to play, the game glitches and restarts, gets
distorted, etc... I'm now scared that there is more wrong than just this
connection, but before I go down that path, I figured that you may be able
to shed some light on my situation.
Can you tell me if the 3 wires (2 black and 1 green) are supposed to fit on
the top gold piece of the green adapter?
Do you have any idea why it's glitching now?
One extra piece of information, I had to pull an "empty" gold piece from an
(I think?) unused part of the adapter to replace the top one as it broke
when it originally came loose. I fit it on to the best of my abilities and
it looks like it's connected. This is the top spot that I am trying to
connect to.
Any help would be greatly appreciated as this game seemed to working fine
prior to this incident. One last thing, is there any way to "stretch" the
video so that it covers the entire width of the screen?
Thanks a million!
Regards,
Javier
JBarnatt
24 Apr 2010, 21:34
My MAME is about the same size as that Leprechan machine. I even have the
game.
mikeysvidfs
29 Dec 2009, 04:29
Test topic for you!
Caleb
13 Dec 2009, 23:54
John,I'm a kid I know nothing about the hardware and I want to do it the
right way. So i was hoping that you could make video showing how you fix on
a machine, and maybe give me a link to some cheep parts I'm on budget
Looks good with the new DK3 sticker. If I had the 3 DK games I would like a
sticker too if one was missing.
Great job with the website. I love those videos. Are you planning on making
the Punch-Out work as a Super Punch-Out!! game?
joe
05 Aug 2009, 03:26
hey john i may be a kid but im gonna start a Pha (personal home arcade) any
suggestions? im planning to start it at my dads house hope ya respond. see
ya P.s great vids
Michael Kohne
22 Jul 2009, 12:24
John, I'm loving the Vs. videos. This is a system I've only recently become
aware of, and it's neat to see play on the various games.
Have you considered getting a tripod for your camera? I think you'd have
less trouble if you could just lock the thing down and play for a minute or
two, instead of trying to play one handed. And you'd have less of that
'shakey-cam' feel.
Thanks!
Jess
12 Jul 2009, 20:51
Thanks for all the new videos and dip switch settings! Clu Clu Land looks
awesome!
FYI, they had a dualsystem cab at CAX with Vs. SMB and Vs. Top Gun. You
would have liked it. Used to be a Vs. Baseball based on heavy screen burn
on both monitors.
Keep the videos coming. Lovin' it.
John
28 Jun 2009, 23:39
Tom, I didn't delete your message. The comment system I installed is weird.
It treats johnsarcade.com and johnsarcade.com/index.php as different pages.
So, I have two sets of comments on the same home page. Not sure how to fix
it!
If you got to KLOV.com and look up Wickedbass, he is selling the
Punch-Out!! freeplay ROMs.
I haven't seen many nice Donkey Kongs for sale lately. They do show up, but
are in demand or no one is selling right now since the Steve Weibe madness.
I suggest checking Craig's List daily. Use Crazedlist.org to search many
areas around you. I do see a lot of Blue Nintendo Vs. cabinets that were at
once Donkey Kongs. It's possible to restore one back to DK but that'll take
some work. Good luck!
John one more question...Where did you get that awesome Donkey Kong
Cabinet? It looks freakin brand new. I cannot seem to find a cabinet worth
buying without restoring the whole thing. I live in New England as well if
that helps.
Tom
20 Jun 2009, 18:51
John what the heck man :) You deleted my messages :) Can you help me with
the chip for Punch-Out!!
Hello, John. I enjoyed your website and I was hoping you could give me a
little advice. I have been a big fan of the Donkey Kong series since I was
12 year's old and I was looking into purchasing an upright unit. I was
hoping you could tell me your opinion of the Namco three-in-one DK/DK
Jr./Mario Bothers unit. While I am sure you are familiar with it, can you
tell me your opinion? Is it true to the original games? Would you advise
me to go this route if having original equipment is not a must for me? In
an ideal world I would have mint DK, DK, Jr., DK 3 and Popeye, but the task
of finding and renovating is not my area of expertise and the whole process
concerns me. If you are open to a phone call I would appreciate your
input. If so, how can I reach you? Thank you for your time.
Jeffrey Ajluni
Director of Marketing & Business Development
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Hey I saw your site on the web and I was wondering if you might have some
info on the nIntendo vs. system? I have both the red tent and the stand up
unisystem. I moved some roms around and now three of my games wont work.
Excitebike, Golf, and Top Gun are all doing nothing when I turn them on. I
know the roms are in right as I have done this before. Could they have
been erased by something? I have tried other cpu chips and other boards
and I get nothing. My other games, SMB, mach rider, slalom, etc.. all
still work fine. Just thought you might have some ideas, any help is
appreciated.
Great site! I found you through some message board posts about your 60-in-1
Ms. Pac-Man. I'm thinking of doing the same thing and like the Lizard Lick
jamma-pac adapter because it doesn't require the separate power supply like
some other adapters. How did you get the player 1/2 buttons wired up to
act as the fire buttons? Like you, I don't want to modify any of my stock
parts. It looks like there's a connector on the adapter to plug in the
buttons, but what's involved on the buttons themselves? Any wire
cutting/soldering or just plug-n-play on that end too? Thanks for any
help!
BKO
09 Jan 2009, 01:17
John, a little tip to make you hate Shaun White less: Hit the down arrow on
the D-Pad. You can then set a marker by pressing X, and warp to it by
pressing B. That way, if you miss a coin or something by a few inches, you
can warp back a few week and try again. Won't make you love the game
probably, but you can regret your purchase a little less this way. :)
NOTE: I installed an Anti-Spam script
on the comment form. It now takes longer for comments to post after
pressing
Submit. Please wait
while the form is submitting. It will go through if you are not
a spammer!
Feb 5, 2012 - Q*Bert Qubes and Multi Q*Bert 10-in-1 Kit Video
This has to be one of my best pick-ups EVER. So, I have been looking for a Q*Bert for a LONG TIME. These games are hard to come by. I have been talking to this guy for about a month trying to make a deal for his game. His game is nice looking, complete, etc. However, it is BROKEN. It's totally dead and doesn't work. The seller told me that the sound went out on the game but it still played for awhile. Then, one day it just stopped working altogether. I had faith in the idea that I could fix it. As long as everything was there, I would take the chance.
It
seems like lately, a lot of people keep asking me questions
like, "Where
did
you get your games?" , "What website did you buy
game x?".
"Are they
expensive?", etc. etc. Well, the answer is... get your
butt out there and meet people! This hobby has some of the
nicest
and coolest people you ever will meet. They also might tip
you off to a local warehouse, an old time collector, or other
resource. You need to meet people and get active in your
local scene if you want to grow your collection without going
broke.
There are some good deals out there. 
I just got back from Richie Knucklez's annual tournament
that is organized by 
Anyways, I picked up a few things the last few weeks and also
sold a game. Toobin' is no longer in my collection. I sold
this to my good friend Dan to make room for a Paperboy. Sweet! 
Oh,
joy! Another mouse infested cabinet. This time, it's Domino
Man. I picked it up from a friend that took it
out of an operator's warehouse. It had been in storage for
some time. 
inside this cab. The good
news? It's all here. The cab is complete. So, it looks
like later
this year I'll be in the garage sanitizing this game
and getting it ready for the basement. If you have any Domino
Man parts for sale, please let me know. I would love to grab
another PCB and Power Supply.
