Tag Archives: 1980s Arcades

RayGunn’s High Score Review!

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Hey Arcaders!

Let’s talk High Score– the new six part documentary on Netflix. This one kind of came out of the blue for me. There have been a lot of video game documentaries. Some are great (Once Upon Atari is one I liked) some.. not so much for me (Videogames, the Movie– I’m calling you out!) I’m really going to have to do reviews on them as well.

Once I saw the trailer for High Score- it peaked my interest- a documentary not just about the games, or the players…but focused on the designers and programmers (some of which have never done interviews!) I had to watch. And… I wasn’t disappointed.

Right off the bat, it felt like an episode of The Toys That Made Us- which is a great thing. Also, having Charles Martinet- The voice of Mario- narrating… was genius. Another thing I loved about the series, was the chapters- focusing on an era or genre of gaming, and making the flow seamlessly was fantastic. Which should be no surprise- one of the executive producers, France Costrel- has some experience with this subject: she also directed the seven part series- 8 Bit Legacy: The Curious History of Video Games for Great Big Story (a part of CNN). Which seems to be the case for this series as well.

Let’s talk about the episodes (spoiler free where I can.)

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The Electric Circus Podcast Episode #11- The Return

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Hey Arcaders!

We are back with a brand new episode!!

In this episode Ray (aka RayGunn) and Joshua (aka Ubernerd527) talk about what their doing to help pass the time during the quarantine and catch you up on updates for the site. 

Please like us, share us, and give us five stars on Itunes!

Keep Playin’ Like It’s 1981!

A New Song From Buckner & Jones- At The Old Arcade!

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It’s funny how things happen- I just posted Jerry and Gary’s video from American Bandstand in 1982, when I see this on Facebook. I had to share!

From Jerry’s Facebook page- “To mark the 40th anniversary of Pac-Man I have teamed up with my friend Danny Jones to write and record a new song called “At The Old Arcade.” It features Danny on lead and back vocals. He and his partner Mike Stewart worked on the original Pac-Man Fever album and the re-recorded version with Gary and I and have been close friends ever since. With Gary’s passing in 2011 Danny stepped in and sang lead vocals on “Wreck-It Wreck-It Ralph” the theme song we recorded for Disney’s classic movie Wreck It Ralph. The song is about friends and relationships hanging out in the arcades back in the 80’s. It was great time for those who lived through it. Hope you enjoy the song!”

You guys sound great! How about another arcade album- please?

Let Jerry know how much you like the new song in the comments section, as well as his Facebook page and Youtube channel

From this old Arcader to another- Thanks for helping keep the arcade lights on, my friend.

Keep Playin’ Like It’s 1981.

Family Arcade in Los Angeles- an institution since 1971… Remodeling and reopening it’s doors this month!

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I love arcade stories… I mean, that’s what I started the Archives for. But- when this popped up on my Facebook feed, I had to share. Harry & David Peck, brothers from Boyle Heights, CA had a dream to open an arcade. They have been in the arcade business since 1971. They have seen the highs and lows of this industry. In August of last year, a fire damaged a portion of the building- Fortunately from what I can tell, no one was hurt, and a majority of the games were spared. What makes this even more important, is it’s considered to be the oldest active game center in Los Angeles. The good news- they are about to reopen after a lengthy remodel! As sad as it is to loose a piece of arcade history, it’s amazing to see one not only survive 49 years, but to reopen- better than ever! So, in honor of this amazing arcade- I thought I would show pics of the past- and future!

And as a extra treat- let’s do a walkthrough, shall we?

Thanks to Arcade Crainiacs for the video.

Once I get the Video Arcade Raiders together- this might have to be a destination!!!

Hey Arcaders- give this great establishment some love and go visit them yourselves if you happen to be in the Los Angeles area!!!

Oh man- it’s down the street from a Jack in the Box!!!

870 N. Vermont Ave. (2,189.58 miles from me)
Los Angeles, California 90029

Get Directions

Have you ever been to Family Arcade? Do you have any cool stories to tell? Leave a comment below!

Keep Playin’ Like It’s 1981!

New Pac – Man Fever E -Book on Amazon Comes With A Totally Awesome Bonus- Check It Out!!!

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Hey Arcaders!!

My good Facebook Friend and arcade anthem LEGEND Jerry Buckner posted on his page yesterday…

Jerry with book

about a project he had been collaborating on with Mike Stewart  for some time now, That was just released on Amazon’s Kindle E-Book service. The Amazon Page states-

“If you’re a child of the early 1980s it is likely that you were consumed by the ubiquitous Pac-Man video games that seemed to be everywhere at the time.

The game not only spawned a worldwide craze but a million-selling gold record for the Buckner & Garcia duo called “Pac-Man Fever”.

In so many ways, “Pac-Man Fever” became the soundtrack for an era and the unofficial theme song of one of the most popular video games in history. This book captures the story of that song and history that led it to be the unlikely smash hit of 1982.

This eBook is specifically designed for fans of the song, the Pac-Man game, and the 1980s. The stories in the book were derived primarily from interviews and conversations with Jerry Buckner.

Not only will you read about the history of the music but we’ve included exclusive and extended Pac-Man Fever downloadable tracks of the song (including a karaoke version) as well as sheet music. Also included are never before seen behind the scenes photos and links to videos and other exclusive multimedia content.

Get the story behind the unlikely ’80’s hit that defined a worldwide craze in an exclusive digital music e-book commemorating the 40-anniversary of the Pac Man video game.

This is a digital music ebook which means you get…

* DOWNLOADS! Exclusive Pac-Man Fever music from the original album including Pac-Man Fever, Froggy’s Lament, Ode to a Centipede, Do the Donkey Kong, Hyperspace, The Defender, Mousetrap, Goin’ Berzerk, Country version of Pac-Man Fever… it’s never sounded so good!

* KARAOKE! You also get the karaoke version plus lyrics so you’re ready to perform!

* SHEET MUSIC! Get your band together to play Pac-Man Fever!

* BEHIND THE SCENES! Get exclusive video content behind the scenes and how the song became the anthem for one of the most popular video games in history

* SUPER-FAN! Get the inside story of how Pac-Man Fever became a worldwide hit a 80’s pop-culture fixture

If you want to enjoy and re-live music from the 1980’s, have fun singing Pac-Man Fever karaoke, and/or play Pac-Man Fever with your band… then this is the most important digital music e-book you’ll ever purchase!

Now is the best time to enjoy nostalgic music from the 1980’s! – Order Now!”

So- You get history of the making of the arcade anthem of my generation, AND… THE PAC MAN FEVER ALBUM on MP3 to boot!!!

Great Job, Jerry!!!

I’ll pick it up this weekend and do a review in the next few weeks!

And at only $4.99- that’s a bargain for everything you get !!!

Click HERE to go to the Amazon page and get yours TODAY!!!

Happy Tim McVey Day!

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Hey Arcaders!

Wanted to call out and important day in history-

On this day, 33 years ago, a young man stepped into the Twin Galaxies arcade in Ottumwa, Iowa, and put himself in arcade history as the first person to get ONE BILLION POINTS on a video game! We will be doing a review of the movie of his accomplishment- Man Vs Snake soon- but today I wanted to give a shout out to Tim, congratulating him on his day!

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In the man’s own words-

Keep Playin’ Like It’s 1981!

or in this case, 1984!

Raygunn

Video Game All Stars Part 3!!!

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Hey Arcaders… I’m back… sort of.  More on that later.

It’s the Third- and unfortunately- final episode (that I know of) of Video Game All Stars!

We have a new host (hosts), puppet, new games, and a new sponsor… Nickels & Dimes! I worked at a Gold Mine Arcade for about a year in 1986! Awesome arcade that ACTUALLY LOOKED LIKE A MINE!!!

It looked like they finally had some grasp on this show (or not, depending how you look at it…)

Your new host, Jeff Valdez and -Mel Grier give us the inside scoop on the latest games of early 1984!  And your scorekeeper and the creepiest puppet you will ever see..

BIG DADDY VIDEO!!!

The Competition games  of this episode-

 

Dragon's Lair

Dragon’s Lair

 

Xevious

Xevious

 

Pole Position

Pole Position

 

Congo Bongo

Congo Bongo

Mario Bros.

Mario Bros.

I  wish this show had gone on longer-  it had that kooky local feel- something today’s TV is lacking. i love the new intro- using an Alan Parsons Project song- I Robot!

Lat’s get to some classic game fun!!!

 

As a special bonus, here’s the album I Robot by The Alan Parson Project!

Keep Playin’ Like It’s 1981!

Pac-Man Fever Eat-em Up 2016 – Video Game Boom Box

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Pacman Video Game BoomBox logo

Fans making songs about their favorite games on YouTube is common place now. However, back 30 years ago that was almost unheard of. That is until an album came out called Pac-Man Fever by Buckner and Garcia. These guys created a wonderful soundtrack dedicated to the arcades that were super popular at the time. But not because they wanted a pay check (although I am sure it helped) but because they were fans themselves of the games that they sang about. Even going so far as to fill the lyrics with tips on how to play the game. Just recently Jerry Garcia along with Jace Hall released a new remixed version of their classic song. if you haven’t heard it yet it is awesome and I will put the video at the bottom of the post. If you like it you can even get a free download of the song (click here).

Happy Halloween From The Stephens Clan!

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HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Yeah, I know it’s a day late- someone had the games running at DisneyQuest last night! So, with Super Mario Month out of the way, and Halloween done, I’ts time for the holiday season to begin. But, Before we move on, one of my favorite artists has celebrated a milestone.

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Four years ago, Sperry posted her first Saga of The Seven Steves!  The characters have come a long way since then, but her attention to detail and story writing have always been the cornerstone of the comic.

Now, to celebrate I have a new comic for Halloween, and a surprise!

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…And now, circa 1982-

Congratulations Theo!