Good morning gamers (ok technically I’m writing this 12 min. before noon, but for me it’s still “morning”).
Gate 3 opened less than a week ago, and it looks like some of you all are making progress. Kudos and good luck to those who are there already, but I have to say — Femme Gunters, WHERE ARE YOU?!?! I’m calling for a little more estrogen on that list, please :) Girl Gunters Represent!
Me? Oh, I’m totally working on it! Slow and steady wins the race, right?
As we all know….
Your record setting game must be played on the original game hardware, meaning you have to play on an original coin-operated arcade game, or in the case of Joust for the Atari 2600, you must play on an original Atari 2600 game console. No emulators allowed. You can practice any of these games with an emulator, but when you set the world record, it must be done on the original game hardware and your final score must be verified by Twin Galaxies. For more details, please see the Official Contest Rules located on the Third Gate website.
My crew and I (and by ‘my crew’, I mean my husband, my best friend, and her husband) went down to 2 Up last night to test the waters and see which of the final games held the most promise for me. You know, get in a few practice rounds before I signed up for one particular game.
2 Up, that classy-assy classic arcade is located next to the famed Colfax Ave. icons Kitty’s East and Argonaut Liquors. Noted differences between 1 Up (in Lodo) and 2 Up on Colfax: 1 Up serves tap bear from an arcade game. 2 Up doesn’t (they serve beer on tap, just not from a converted arcade console). 1 Up serves food. 2 Up doesn’t — probably a good thing. But, come on, there’s something to be said for being able to get your coin-op arcade fix, a case of wine, and a live peep show all in the same city block. One stop shopping at it’s finest.
Really, I had a blast, and 2 Up was filled with all that grungy, smelly, loud arcade nostalgia that I remembered from childhood. But with more beer, and more girls. Yay!
So I have to admit, when I first saw the 3rd gate on Tuesday I thought – HELL, there’s no way I can set a world record. I was ready to throw in the towel and watch someone else drive off in MY DeLorean. But then I thought, WTF. Maybe I’m less suck-tastic at these games then I remember. Hence, the trip to 2 Up to reconnect with my inner 14-year-old. (lol, as if she’s not the driving force behind most of my decisions on a daily basis already)
As I’m walking through the sea of classic cabinets at 2 Up, looking to connect to THE ONE GAME that will be my gateway to fame and DeLorean-fortune, I kinda feel like this guy:
I went in knowing that a perfect game of Pac Man is probably not going to be my strongest game. I tried Pac Man first, and quickly realized that acknowledging your weaknesses IS your biggest asset. Yep, lack of Pac Man skills — check! Move on. Now I’m feeling more like this guy:
Right next to Pac Man, ironically, was Joust. Ok. This has to be my game. Why? Because those were the only two of the five possibilities that 2 Up had. Wah wah wah. Damn. Ok, maybe I’m better at Joust than I remember.
Chad and I tried it and, no. I pretty much suck at Joust. Chad did rather well, maybe he needs to go crack gate 1 and gate 2. All in all a FANTASTIC night out with friends, beer, and video games. Chris, we still need to go back and get our photo from the picture booth – to be bookends with the photo from Rock Island in ’93!
What have I learned?
Well, if I’m going to attempt to break a record and not break the bank, I need my own console or cabinet. What I really want is Black Tiger — but so far it looks pretty pricey.
So, I’m trying to convince Chad that what this family needs is to remodel our family room into a classic arcade and get lots of cabinets and games. Whoever is on board with this idea, let Chad know what a GREAT idea that is ;-)
Also, if you see a Black Tiger Cabinet for cheap, let me know!
But, I think what we realistically will be trying for is Joust on an Atari 2600. Cheaper and probably easier to find and set up in our smallish house. Unfortunately, this is probably going to be most people’s plan for attack which makes the odds a little harder. LOL – what am I saying! As if breaking a world record were the EASY part of the deal.
hahahah, I crack myself up sometimes.
Happy Gunting.
