Superully's Arcade Hiatus - what's been going on ...

[Superully]

ok guys, as some of you MIGHT have noticed, i haven't been active at all over the course of the last few months. apart from the fact that i organized - once again - our local school event of the year, i've become kind of "arcade-bored". i haven't touched any of my restoration projects for a good quarter of a year - let alone played a game. i'm reading this (and other) forum(s) on a regular basis, but that's it. one huge factor is that i still haven't been able to figure out what to do with my games gameroom-wise, but on the other hand this has to do with something which is both a good and a bad thing at the same time: containers!

while i really appreciate the time and effort that thomas spent (and is still spending) on getting those games and containers over to germany, the containers have somehow killed the hobby - at least for me and for now. don't get me wrong: i have greatly benefited from those containers and i would probably have never got games like major havoc or tapper, BUT they also took away what was - to me - the most interesting factor of our hobby: the thrill of the hunt! back in the days, how many hours have we spent on various sites trying to find new games, how important was it to have good connections and how thrilling was it to go on a roadtrip without knowing what to expect. nowadays, it's more like ordering something online from a catalogue (that is: KLOV), waiting for a ship to bring the stuff over and then either pick it up or have it delivered to your doorstep. as simple as that! nothing seems to be impossible anymore and the guy with the deepest pockets brings home the coolest games - basically without having to do anything! this somehow makes me sad ...

(almost) gone have all those great roadtrip reports, those discoveries which were (and still are) to be made on our continent and personally i have lost interest in those things myself, because why should i spent countless hours on the net and on the road when i can have everything with a few emails? once again, don't get me wrong: the containers opened a whole new world for us and our hobby, but they also closed one which was really important - at least for me. i still have a few games over in the US which i'm looking forward to already, but somehow it doesn't (and I don't) feel as enthusiastic anymore as it did years ago ... i really hope it will come back in the months and years to come! i've sold quite a few games, but i'm still on the lookout for a select few. i will eventually get them and they will be transported over here on ships in a container and they will make me happy for sure, but they won't bring back what has been lost ...

what do you guys think? too dramatic, partially right, you don't give a shit, superully's lost his mind, spot on, you couldn't care less, so true, what the hell is he talking about, i need a drink, ...

please share your thoughts!!!

p.s. thomas, hope you're still bringing my remaining games over! as i've said, nothing personal, just something i've been experiencing and wanted to share with you guys!

[Tyrem]

what do you guys think? too dramatic, partially right, you don't give a shit, superully's lost his mind, spot on, you couldn't care less, so true, what the hell is he talking about, i need a drink, ...

please share your thoughts!!!

p.s. thomas, hope you're still bringing my remaining games over! as i've said, nothing personal, just something i've been experiencing and wanted to share with you guys!

yeah.. far too dramatic. it seems that you are in it mostly for the roadtrips...which is absolutely ok. but for me it is all about the cabs. it is the excitement to own what was a dream of my childhood. it is the joy that i get every time i step into my basement. it is the eyes of the people that visit me. it is the smell, the looks, the sound, the lights when my arcade is fired up. it is my passion to own the machines... to save them for the future.

and it never had anything to do with the biggest pockets. i only buy if the price is right... if the cab is worth the amount for me. just like you did with major havoc. we are still lightyears away from the american market and let´s face it... all containers together did only bring around 200 to 250 cabs to europe... which is nothing compared to a normal day at ebay us. and they all came to people who share a dream... at least most of them.

road trips are cool... and no matter how often you mention that there are still places with hidden stuff... for me and for most of us they are totally out of reach because I have absolutely no idea how to get in touch with those people, how to find those places. and chances are rare to find the cabs that i am looking for, even if i would discover such a place.

i love the fact that arcade machines are back... and admired by so many people. a few years back they got thrashed. that´s what makes me sad... not the fact that we all have the chance to complete our collections now.

[Digimon]

I totally agree with you Ully!

I love the hunt, and to organize the roadtrip! I think it is part of the hobby.
For me it is easy to say, because the zaccs i need have no chance to be in a container to europe

Cu
Joerg

PS. Two weeks ago i got my first Pinball F14 tomcat, claimed as not working.
So a small roadrtrip, paid 50€, added new batteries, a fuse, some bulbs. 
I love this feeling . And some weeks ago i said i never will buy a pin .
I think that it what Ully misses!

[Laschek]

I also have to agree with Ully.
If I may compare it to collecting home console games, it's the same with going to the fleamarkets not knowing what to expect (-> exciting and fun) vs. opening the ebay page and simply choosing what to buy (-> booooring).

[Tyrem]

I think that it what Ully misses!

might be... but that´s not gone by any means. nobody is forcing him to quit the hunt.
of course it is far more easy to buy them in the states... but if that´s a problem for you that destroys your feeling... don´t do it.
for me it is the complete opposite. it would leave me out from everything arcade related because I can not spend those "countles hours".
i do understand that Ully misses it. i just don´t see the real problem cause it is a mental state of mind... and since so many people claim that there are still hidden places... it is up to you what you do about it.

[Tyrem]

I also have to agree with Ully.
If I may compare it to collecting home console games, it's the same with going to the fleamarkets not knowing what to expect (-> exciting and fun) vs. opening the ebay page and simply choosing what to buy (-> booooring).

oh come on, guys. those container-deals are not the same.
i got a few games from c1 to c4... and all the cabs came from Thomas offers to the community. Only in C5 it happened that I bought 3 machines from Klov... and in C6 i bought one machine (nearly impossible to find here) because Ully showed me the offer. I never checked Klov before.

As I mentioned before... I like your romantic view on those things. But somehow this puts so many people behind closed doors.

[kroustibat]

I'm on the side of Tyrem

Even if those containers opened lots of opportunities, it's nothing new... you could have order a special cab from Paul50 in the past... I got my mspacman from him almost 5 years ago.

And still, it didn't prevent us to still do the "hunt" and find good deals and gems.. but now, the situation has changed, people are more aware of the value of the arcade cabs and the retro stuff is "fashion", and it's harder now to do good deals on the continent.

But the hunt is one thing , restoring and sharing games with friends is another one. and i way prefer the sharing to the hunting

[level42]

Ully you need a road trip.

Bring a game to Eurocade/RGE 2014 and we will fill you with so much arcade enthusiasm (you're going to love the people's repsonses) that you'll get back to restoring in no time

I fully understand what you mean and I agree. There is nothing better than having a great story behind a cab, how you found it, the road trip etc. F.I. The strange way how I got my Gravitar.....having helped Erik to pick it up, keeping on teasing him that it's not a game for him and he finally agreeing with me and selling it to me....that is just epic. It adds character to the game.

However, if I could get my hands on a Mad Planets for a good price via the container thing I wouldn't hesitate.

So I am not judging anyone but man, it shouldn't hurt your motivation for your machines.

Loosing interest for a while is part of the hobby. I haven't worked on my machines for a long time, did a lot of vector board fixing but I had problems getting back going. Now I restarted on my Ms.Pac seeing it making steps to getting ready really got me back on track.

yes I do miss roadtrip stories just like you but fact is that there are only so many machines in Europe and it seems we've found most of them

So, do we see you in September ? IF only it is to hang out with the guys again....which is a lot of fun by itself.

[Tyrem]

So, do we see you in September ? IF only it is to hang out with the guys again....which is a lot of fun by itself.

actually THIS is a HUGE factor for me in the whole arcade-business.

[Superully]

I fully understand what you mean and I agree. There is nothing better than having a great story behind a cab, how you found it, the road trip etc. F.I. It adds character to the game.

exactly! there's a story behind all my cabs up in my apartment - and it's a story that I created / wrote myself. that's what makes cabs unique ...

but of course i also understand the desire to complete a collection (although a collection is NEVER complete) and to have games in your basement (or wherever), but there's nothing like a roadtrip into the wild - not knowing what to expect / find. or take andre's star wars cockpit for example: he was one lucky guy to find that, but he didn't know until he finally brought it home whether it had a 19'' or a 25'' monitor in it, right? that's the excitement which is an important part of the hobby for me! i will be back on track eventually and i'm pretty sure i will discover secret locations in europe eventually, they just have to wait a little while longer!

So, do we see you in September ? IF only it is to hang out with the guys again....which is a lot of fun by itself.

as i've told you before NO, because it's the weekend right before school starts all over again and unfortunately all the teachers have to meet there to work out the coming school year - and this takes HOURS!!! therefore, i can't make it ...

[Etienne MacGyver]

I am 100% with Ully.

Nowdays nobody would grab a F@cked up cab from a abandoned waterleaking warehouse in another country and restore it like Ully did with his Jungle king.

heck, i remember the days that people take empty cabinets and mame it so they have it working because the electronics are missing.

i guess things change, i dont Judge anybody, and have respect for everybody that go through the process of importing cabinets, but i 100% understand the feeling and the hunt beeing gone..

again no offence to anybody.

[Tyrem]

Nowdays nobody would grab a F@cked up cab from a abandoned waterleaking warehouse in another country and restore it like Ully did with his Jungle king.

oh of course i would. i would kill for such an opportunity. i just consider them not as a realistic, common scenario these days.

[anunaki]

I like you romantic guys, love to read your stories on great trips to weird forgotten places. But for me personally it doesn't matter at all. I'm just glad I got me a DK cab from the US to play on.

For me it's even more about the games then about the cabs. I have some great dedicated originals I love to look at and play on, but I also have generic cabs to play games like (i.e.) Bomb Jack and Green Beret. Those games don't even have dedicated cabs.

But hey, just share the fun, everyone in his own way

I wouldn't mind going on a roadtrip, but how would I ever find such places

[ckong]

Road trips were and are great, not only to experience, but also to read about. I miss them. But for me road trips were mainly only 'necessary' to collect games to get them in my house/gameroom, I did not and still do not care that much about the hunt and stories of how cabs came in my possesion. The road trips were still exciting though.

For me the hobby is about having the games and holy grails that I want, in my gameroom. The games are the story, and having fun times with fellow cab-collectors and arcade friends makes it complete. I am glad that we have container deals (although, price erosion because of it is less nice. ), otherwise I would have had little chance to get Gyruss, or Juno First, or Tempest. Those games are pretty rare here in Europe.

[old school]

what do you guys think? too dramatic, partially right, you don't give a shit, superully's lost his mind, spot on, you couldn't care less, so true, what the hell is he talking about, i need a drink, ...

please share your thoughts!!!

i' understand what you mean, i' had quite the same feeling when my gaming room was finaly finish and all the cab inside, working and lit

and now...

i' spent 3/4 month without playing or even spending time inside my Gaming room

and suddenly it came again
the pleasure to play and to collect.

sometimes you get bored and it's like arcade got no more taste,

my advice, take a break, stop reading forum and you will see, it will come back again

you just need a good break