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.
Aug
13, 2009 - DK3 Instruction sticker now available for purchase!
Rich over at This
Old Game is now selling the DK3 instruction sticker that
I designed. How cool is that?
This is a fictional sticker that never existed. DK and DK
Jr. both have these instruction stickers that go on the horizontal
bar above the CPO and DK3 has always looked naked without it.
I think these turned out great!
Rich is selling them for $6.00. Order
one today along with his EXCELLENT DK and DK JR. control
panel stickers.
I picked up a BurgerTime earlier this week, and I frickin'
LOVE IT. I love this game!! I easily put this in my Top 20
greatest arcade games and have been seeking one out for some
time. They don't come up 'For Sale' very often. And, it's one
of my wife's favorite games. It's a must own to me.
Anyways, check out the video. I'll be adding a detailed page
soon.
Aug
5, 2009 - DK3 Instruction sticker, now a reality?
I am not sure if you noticed, Donkey Kong and Donkey Kong
Jr. both have a "instruction sticker" that goes on
the horizontal cross bar above the Control Panel. I like this
sticker.
Donkey Kong 3 has no such sticker. I have been thinking that
my DK3 has been looking a little naked above the CP. So, I
decided to make fictional art for a DK3 instruction sticker.
Blasphemy? Who cares. I think it turned out pretty cool. I
am going to look into making a bunch of these and selling them
dirt cheap. Stay tuned.
In the mean time, here's the art. What do you think?
(click to enlarge)
Here's a comparison the DK, DK Jr. and my new proposed DK3
instruction stickers:
I have had a few people ask me for a new Baby Pac-Man video.
And, here it is! I think this is a more detailed video and
I hope it explains the game better.
Today, a bunch of us went down to an operator's warehouse
in Cape Cod. I was going to pick up a Nintendo cabinet to finish
my DK3 project. I already had the bezel, control panel, wiring
harness and PCB. I just needed a Donkey Kong style cabinet
and a Marquee. My buddy Dan, who also went, had a marquee for
me. Sweet!
So, anyways we met down there and had a great time. Tons of
games and the prices were great. I ended up with a Nintendo
Vs. RBI Baseball cabinet that was formerly a Donkey Kong.
Here's the cabinet:
I then took my Ninty magic wand and transformed it into this:
And, I then fired it up and BAM! It worked. Woot. Here's how
it looks:
Jul
23, 2009 - New game added to the collection - Gravitar!!
This is a bad ass game. Really bad ass. I played it at Funspot
earlier this year and fell in love with it. Never played it
when I was a kid.
It's an Atari Color Vector game that has a serious reputation
for being incredibily hard. For me, that's the appeal. Totally
looking forward to mastering this game. I'll be adding a Gravitar
page and vids to the site soon.
I
just finished correcting and adding all of the dip switch settings
for the Nintendo Vs. System games. This includes pretty much
ALL of the known Vs. system games, even the super rare ones!
Data was compiled from the MAME dip extractions. I fixed all
of the wrong data, so they should all be correct now and each
one is available as a handy little .txt file.
Jul
11, 2009 - Vs. Top Gun and Vs. Clu Clu land videos!
I
am slowly making videos of each of my Nintendo Vs. games. Are
you enjoying them? I hope so!
Today I filmed two videos. The first one is Vs. Top Gun and
the second is Vs. Clu Clu land. They are both pretty decent
Nintendo Vs. System games.
Vs. Top Gun is based on the movie of the same name and is
suprisingly hard. It's nearly impossible to land your jet on
the aircraft carrier. I used to play this game on the NES and
I don't remember it being this hard! Vs. Top Gun is a daughter
board game.
Vs.
Clu Clu Land is a pretty interesting title. It features a little
round bubble guy that sports some arms. This little creature
is moving out of control and you have to use your arms to swing
on pegs while trying to reveal Zelda looking jewels to form
shapes. It's a crazy little puzzle game. I LIKE IT!
Check out the videos and let me know what you think!
I
LOVES me some Ice Climber. It's a great game and even better
on the Nintendo Vs. System. Howeverm I was always bummed that
the game didn't use two monitors for simultaneous play like
Balloon Fight, Tennis, Baseball, Wrecking Crew and others.
You could only play two player simulataneous play using one
monitor and with your buddy about 3 inches from you. It's a
little cramped.
But, I recently discovered that in Japan, there was a Dualsystem
version of the game! So, I got a set working today and to my
dismay, the game doesn't support dual play using two monitors.
It's like having two separate installs of the game, one on
each side. The sides do not communicate with each other. So,
I am not sure what the point of it is. I was totally bummed.
If you are thinking about getting this game, don't. It's not
worth it. Just get the US version, it's the same as far as
I can tell.
Jul
1, 2009 - One step closer to completing my Donkey Kong trilogy!
I am now one step closer to completing my Donkey Kong trilogy!
Woot! Today my Donkey Kong 3 Control Panel, Harness, PCB, and
Bezel showed up. All I need now is side art and a marquee.
Oh, and a cabinet. Which I should be picking up later this
month. Can't wait to have all three Kongs lined up next to
each other! Yeeha!
Finally got around to filming a video of VS. TKO Boxing for
the Nintendo Vs. Dualsystem and Unisystem. It's a pretty all
right boxing game. It is beyond hard and there is some questionable
things going on between rounds. Check it out!
I just spent some time this morning updating the Nintendo
Vs. Tech page. I have added manuals, some daughter board
images, links to videos, and now show how many roms are needed
for each game. I hope this information proves useful!
Jun
27, 2009 - Namco's Star Luster for the Nintendo Vs. system
Here's a quick video of Star Luster for the Nintendo Vs. Dualsystem
or Unisystem. It's pretty cool. Reminds me of Star Raider for
the Atari 800XL. I guess this game was only released in JAPAN
for the FAMICOM and in the arcades. It's a really crazy and
deep game. A real gem for the Nintendo Vs.
My little site has been getting hammered with filthy dirty
Spam. I tried some Anti-Spam thing on the comment form. I hope
it works. I think it might make adding comments a little slower
to submit. But, if it stops the PrOn links it will be worth
it. Let me know if you have any issues!
Jun
10, 2009 - Punch-Out!! Video and Punch-Out!! and Bubbles
Multi-Williams pages added!
Just got done updating the website... Phew! I added the Bubbles
Multi-Williams page complete with video here. I also
addded the Punch-Out!!
page with video. Check it out and let me know what you
think! And, yes, I got my Punch-Out!! working tonight (with
help from my friend, Adam) complete with freeplay mod. It
rocks!
Jun
7, 2009 - JROK Multi-Williams video (and Garagecade tour)
Here's a quick little video showing the JROK Multi-Williams
PCB in an original William's Bubbles cabinet. This is a pretty
bad ass board that has Robotron, Joust, Sinistar, Bubbles,
Splat, Blaster, Defender, and Stargate. It's a pretty impressive
JAMMA board that was made using the original hardware. No emulation,
no MAME, it's the real deal!
In this video you can also see the current state of my (temporary)
Garcade. Complete with a Radarscope! Woot!
I
cannot tell you how relieved I am to be done with this damn
restore!!!! I think I have about 40hrs. total in this cabinet,
if not more. There is something to be said about spending a
little more and doing less. There isn't a piece in this cabinet
that I didn't touch, repaint, replace, or polish. This thing
was infested with mice when I got it and now it's a pristine
gem. It's minty.
A lot of firsts for me with this one...
I never used bondo before this project and am pretty proud
how it turned out. Can't even tell!
I never built a base from scratch before, looks like new.
Even got new wheels.
Never stripped down coin doors before this, they look like
new now.
Never dealt with mice before this, can't even tell they lived
here at one time.
Never painted an entire cabinet top to bottom, inside and out. It wasn't fun.
Took 6 coats of paint with sanding between to finally get it looking acceptable.
I know it could have looked better with a sprayer. But, I was not about to
buy an expensive compressor so I used a foam roller. Honestly, it turned out
pretty decent. I used Rustoleum Satin Black and thinned it with Acetone.
Anyways, you get the idea! Check it out!
I took a TON of photos of the restore. Click
here to view the album. I will be adding a Punch-Out!! page with video
to the page ASAP.
It seems as if there is a documentary in the works called "The
Truth About King of Kong". If you are not familiar with
the controversy surrounding King Of Kong, it goes a little
something like this... Tim Sczerby was at one time the world
record holder for Donkey Kong. He beat Billy Mitchell's score.
Then, Steve Weibe beat Tim's score. Then Billy beat Steve's
score. The controversy comes in because King of Kong makes
no mention of Tim or his score in the movie or how Tim's score
fits into the timeline. So, this little documentary is looking
to set things straight. Should be interesting.
Check out a preview video of the documentary here.
I actually met Tim at Richie Knucklez arcade event. Check
out photos of him going for the high-score here.
And if you are wondering what it takes to get a million points
in Donkey Kong, here's a copy of Tim's little cheat sheet.
It shows what score is required for each level in order to
stay on pace for the world record:
May
20, 2009 - Williams Bubbles Added to the Collection!
I have been looking and looking for a good solid Williams
cabinet for some time. I want to make a Multi-Williams cabinet
using JROK's
Multi-Williams board. If you are not familiar with this
board, it's basically a multi-game board with all the best
Williams games on it. What's different about this one is that
it's not emulating the hardware. It's the real deal, not MAME,
no emulation. The board has Robotron, Joust, Defender, Stargate,
Sinistar, Splat, and BUBBLES on
it!
So, today on Craigslist a really dirt cheap arcade cabinet
showed up. I knew right away it was a Williams so I made arrangments
to go get it. I suspected it was either a Joust or a Bubbles,
I coudln't quite tell in the photos and the seller knew nothing
about arcade games. Either way, I knew it was for me. It had
been converted to The
Combatribes, it had been JAMMAtized. Actually, this works
out well for my plans as the JROK board is JAMMA. So, that
means I wouldn't need an adpater or a new wiring harness to
make it work in the cabinet.
I got there and knew right away it was a Bubbles. I could
see the bubble faces under the black paint. It was also blue
on the inside in the overspray areas. So, I bought it! I got
it home and plugged it in, nothing. No workee. I inspected
the wiring and saw the power cable was cut in one spot. I patched
it up and plugged it in. Bam! It works! I'm playing The Combatribes!
(it blows!) Woot! Monitor looks pretty decent, needs a cap
kit. No burn in. I am in business.
So, I got a really solid cabinet - it's exactly what I was
looking for. I have high hopes I can remove the black paint
and reveal the intact original Bubbles painted side art. If
I can save the side art I am going to restore it to look like
an original Bubbles and just get a multi Williams control panel
overalay.
Here's the cabinet in its current state, YUCK! It's
actually in really good and solid shape. Built like a tank.
May
12, 2009 - Nintendo Punch-Out! Added to Collection!! WOOT!
Last night I picked up a Punch-Out! arcade machine from some
local collector friends. Huge thanks to Dewman and Wickedbass
over at KLOV for scoring this one for me.
This one has been on my list of Nintendo games to own for
awhile. It's a really cool cabinet and features two monitors.
It needs some TLC and currently has board problems. I also
opened up the marquee tonight and found a huge mouse nest!!
Eek! It was pretty much the most disgusting thing ever.
Anyways, here are some shots of it in its current form and
a shot of the mouse nest.
I have had a bunch of people asking for my MALA layout. Well,
it's now available for download! I think I got it all bundled
correctly, let
me know if it doesn't work.
Features include:
Number of times a game has been played
Marquee images instead of text when selecting games
Videos and Start Screen Snaps
Colorful graphics
Vertical Orientation only and designed for an arcade monitor
(640x480)
After you download you'll need to grab the game videos and
start screen snaps. I purchased mine from emumovies.com.
I suggest you do the same, it's totally worth it!
I have included all of the marquee images that have been resized
so each marquee is the same size. Some are normal, some are
stretched and some are squooshed. It's the best solution I
could come up with for a consistent look.
I just FINALLY added the Nintendo
Vs. Dualsystem page to the MY COLLECTION section of the
site. This page features videos of some of my games as well
as a wealth of Vs. info. Check it out!
I also finally got Vs. Super Sky Kid working. I have posted
a video, check it out! This game is pretty bad-arse!
Mar.
21, 2009 - OMGWTF BBQ!!! Vs. Balloon Fight is in the house!!
After months of plotting, planning, loathing, wanting, needing,
dreaming of, lusting after, thinking about, and crying over,
I have finally acquired my holiest of Nintendo Vs. grail's...
Vs. Balloon Fight!!! This game is totally different than the
NES version and features two player simulataneous play on two
monitors. It pretty much frickin' RULES. It was released in
JAPAN and is one hell of a special Vs. game. It ROCKS. Check
out my video you muthas'!
I finally added the Toobin'
page complete with a video and some minor details. I
still need to add some photos and other info.
Nintendo Vs. Tech update! I have been getting a lot of questions
regarding how the whole Nintendo Vs. system works as it relates
to PCBs, Roms, PPUs, CPUs, and daughter cards. I hope these
new videos can help anyone that is not sure how it works. Check
it out here.
Mar.
18, 2009 - Richie Knucklez Arcade Video Tour and Photos
So, I just got back from the Classic Arcade
Gaming Tournament down at Richie Knucklez arcade in Flemington,
NJ. First off, Richie is a class-act. The guy rules, and so
does his arcade. His place reminds me of the suburban Chicago
arcades I used to ride my bike to as a youth.
The tournament was very competitive. I realize now that I
completely suck at these games. But, really, I knew that already.
It's ok with me as I am just playing for fun.
Anyways, check out the photo
album here or check out the video below!
Mar.
8, 2009 - Donkey Kong Junior Restore COMPLETE!
Took
me all day, but it's finally done! My Donkey Kong Junior has
been restored to its former glory. Well, mostly. I decided
to leave the original side-art intact and didn't mess with
any of the scuffs in the laminate. I did, however, replace
the t-molding, CPO, buttons, coin door lock, and fixed the
broken bottom front piece of missing wood, painted all the
black parts, sanded the rust off all the metal parts, and cleaned
the living daylights out of everything. It was a major ordeal
and I'm glad it's done. It looks AWESOME!
Mar.
4, 2009 - Vs. Mighty Bomb Jack added to collection!
I picked up a totally rare Nintendo Vs. game on eBay last
week. It's called Vs. Mighty Bomb Jack and it was only released
in Japan. This game did appear on the NES but was never released
in the arcades in the USA on the Nintendo Vs. Dualsystem or
Vs. Unisystem. The Nintendo Vs. version is a little different
than the NES version and it adds a 2 player mode and some minor
changes to level warping, etc.
Feb.
28, 2009 - Donkey Kong Junior added to collection!
After much searching, I finally picked up a Donkey Kong Jr.!
I found one that is in pretty decent shape and for a fair price.
It's all original and only needs some minor cosmetic tweaks.
I plan on replacing the CPO, T-Molding, buttons, and maybe
side art. Other than that, it just needs a good cleaning. The
monitor is bright and strong and the controls are perfect.
I love it!
Check out the photos and a little YouTube video tour.
I never had one of these when I was younger. In fact, I am
pretty sure I was in high-school when these came out. So, that
wouldn't have been 'cool'. Well, now I am an adult, and who
cares!! Check out my vintage Nelsonic Super Mario Bros. watch.
Beyond nerdy!
Feb.
20, 2009 - Walter Day to attend arcade event in NJ!
As if it wasn't enough to meet Matt
McCarthy and I at Richie
Knucklez arcade in NJ on Mar. 14, 2009, it now looks like Twin
Galaxies referee superstar Walter Day will be attending the
Classic Arcade Gaming Tournament! You know who he is, he's
the guy with the referee shirt on in King of Kong. Should be
cool!!
Feb.
9, 2009 - VGO Spring FunSpot event!
Well, it's official. The VGO Spring arcade tournament will
be on April 25, 2009 at the FunSpot arcade in Weir's Beach,
NH. Sign-Up
here. Check out photos from the previous event
here.
Feb.
9, 2009 -'Other Stuff' UPDATED!
Ok, I just finally added the Other
Stuff page. Check it out
for arcade photos, links, and more! The site is pretty much
done!
Feb.
9, 2009 -Nintendo Vs. Updates!
I just updated the Nintendo
Vs Tech page with images of daughter
boards. If you have images to contribute to this section, please
e-mail me.
Feb.
8, 2009 - Popeye Page Update
Whoa. Two updates in one day. Crazy talk!
Anyways, I just added the Popeye
cocktail page complete with
a video and photos. Check it out!
Feb.
8, 2009- Ms. Pac-Man Page Update
I just finished the Ms.
Pac-Man page. This page features my
Ms. Pac-Man with 60-in-1 JAMMA board with the Lizard Lick JAMMA
adapter. Good stuff!
Feb.
2, 2009 - Arcade Tournament and Vs. Update!
Sorry for the lack of updates. I need to get back to working
on this site and finishing up all the sections! Stay tuned.
I did manage to update some info in the Nintendo
Vs. Tech section.
I recently added a few Nintendo Vs. games to my collection
and updated the page to reflect this. My collection is near
complete!
Muhahaha
Arcade tournament!
Join Matt McCarthy (The
Kill Screens) and
I at Richie
Knucklez arcade on March 14 for the 2009
Classic Arcade Gaming Tournament. We will be competing
(and losing) on Saturday. The tournament is being held on March
14 and 15 and is open to anyone. Registration is $40.00 per
entry. We are entering it just for fun and it should be a good
time. A bunch of people who were in the background of King
of Kong will be there. So, if you ever wanted to get close
to that world, now's your chance!
Demo video of Ms. Pac-Man with 60-in-1 JAMMA board
and how to wire the Control Panel:
Dec 11, 2011- End of year John's Arcade All Access Video Tour!
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.
I
just finished correcting and adding all of the dip switch settings
for the Nintendo Vs. System games. This includes pretty much
ALL of the known Vs. system games, even the super rare ones!
Data was compiled from the MAME dip extractions. I fixed all
of the wrong data, so they should all be correct now and each
one is available as a handy little .txt file. 
I
am slowly making videos of each of my Nintendo Vs. games. Are
you enjoying them? I hope so! 
Vs.
Clu Clu Land is a pretty interesting title. It features a little
round bubble guy that sports some arms. This little creature
is moving out of control and you have to use your arms to swing
on pegs while trying to reveal Zelda looking jewels to form
shapes. It's a crazy little puzzle game. I LIKE IT! 
I
LOVES me some Ice Climber. It's a great game and even better
on the Nintendo Vs. System. Howeverm I was always bummed that
the game didn't use two monitors for simultaneous play like
Balloon Fight, Tennis, Baseball, Wrecking Crew and others.
You could only play two player simulataneous play using one
monitor and with your buddy about 3 inches from you. It's a
little cramped.
I
cannot tell you how relieved I am to be done with this damn
restore!!!! I think I have about 40hrs. total in this cabinet,
if not more. There is something to be said about spending a
little more and doing less. There isn't a piece in this cabinet
that I didn't touch, repaint, replace, or polish. This thing
was infested with mice when I got it and now it's a pristine
gem. It's minty.
Whoa. Two updates in one day. Crazy talk!
I just finished the 
