Current Events > Was it actually fun playing arcades in the 90s?

(+) Yeah! (+)

The first few years were at least.
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I loved going to arcades, I still go to them whenever I see them

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I liked them.
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People who fondly remember arcades and yet hate modern mobile games are weird to me since theyre basically the same thing

That Lost World Jurassic Park Arcade Game was the GOAT

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coh posted...

People who fondly remember arcades and yet hate modern mobile games are weird to me since theyre basically the same thing

Yup just like watching a movie on your phone, alone in your mom's basement, is the exact same thing as going to the movies with a bunch of friends, exact same thing.

It was very fun, same in the 80s
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_____Cait posted...

Yeah. Its mostly music games and mobile game adaptations though.

Sounds lame

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*Pours 40 oz out for namcos time out*
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coh posted...

People who fondly remember arcades and yet hate modern mobile games are weird to me since theyre basically the same thing

Please, explain further. All I know of mobage is gacha and microtransactions. I see no local co op tekken or rail shooters or anything on mobile.
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I absolutely owned fools in Tekken 3. I bought the strategy guide for it and that thing became my bible.

Everybody loved to spam Eddie so I learned how to play him properly, then used that knowledge against them. I also learned all of King's chain throws and mained him relentlessly. I had many Fist of the Northstar "you're already dead" moments after inputting the final command in the grab sequence. This was back when more than half of King's chains would literally kill you from full health.

People would walk away from the machine when they saw me come in.
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Even as a kid, I never liked the idea of paying to play perpetually. Stuck with SNES games
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The Wheelman1 posted...

I kinda believe that online gaming is what killed it.

No the main reason was console systems becoming more powerful. No reason to go to the arcade when you can buy and play the exact same game from the comfort of your home.
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I loved my local arcade when I was a kid. It's where I'd usually spend my weekly allowance.
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DuranOfForcena posted...

BlazinBlue88 posted...

The Wheelman1 posted...

I kinda believe that online gaming is what killed it.

No the main reason was console systems becoming more powerful. No reason to go to the arcade when you can buy and play the exact same game from the comfort of your home.

no, it was more than that in the case of competitive games. before online play, the only way to play competitive games against people other than just a sibling or a close friend was to go to the arcades. introduce online play and suddenly no one needs to go to the arcade anymore to test their mettle.

Arcades were on the way out even before the West had widespread, and reliable, internet connection for typical arcade fare. Even now, fighting game fans recognize a difference in quality between online and locals, and arcades had plenty of other non-competitive games that made up the bulk of their hardware.
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Guide posted...

DuranOfForcena posted...

BlazinBlue88 posted...

The Wheelman1 posted...

I kinda believe that online gaming is what killed it.

No the main reason was console systems becoming more powerful. No reason to go to the arcade when you can buy and play the exact same game from the comfort of your home.

no, it was more than that in the case of competitive games. before online play, the only way to play competitive games against people other than just a sibling or a close friend was to go to the arcades. introduce online play and suddenly no one needs to go to the arcade anymore to test their mettle.

Arcades were on the way out even before the West had widespread, and reliable, internet connection for typical arcade fare. Even now, fighting game fans recognize a difference in quality between online and locals, and arcades had plenty of other non-competitive games that made up the bulk of their hardware.

Agreed. Absolutely was the case among my circle. We all noticed the steep arcade desertion when consoles were getting powerful enough to compete. (with quicker good-enough home releases)

The upside was (pre-reliable console internet) was we would hang out more at each others houses to get our game on.

We can say it was a 2 stage collapse. Powerful consoles, with quicker releases... and later on better available internet was the coup de grace to arcades. (as far as I am concerned, never cared too much for single player arcade too much once I became a teenager. Competitive or coop with others only)
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I loved this game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvvgwFbHr7Q" data-time="

&

This game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkVdJXolW_0" data-time="

I wish fighting games were worth the frustration.
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I dunno, I never did. Closest thing was the mini arcade at the gym. My mom took a water aerobics class, which meant the pool was closed, so she would give my sister and my 50 cents apiece. They had a Donkey Kong cabinet, a Ms. Pac-Man cabinet and an air hockey table lol.

Ms. Pac-Man had a bow so I wouldn't play it (lol) and I have always hated competetive gameplay, so I usually played DK twice. Which took maybe three minutes because I sucked at it, and then I really don't remember what I did after that. After the class was over, we got to swim though, so that was cool.

Anyway, I always wanted to hit up the arcade at the mall but there was no money for that. I saved my allowance because I was told it was the responsible thing to do, and my mom didn't even have the cash to buy anything at the mall period, let alone to spare for me to go to the arcade. She would just drag us along for hours of window shopping every Saturday.

CE makes me feel old af, lol. Somebody asks a basic question, and next thing I know I'm talking about past decades that I remember fondly and realizing the longer I talk that they actually sucked.
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DuranOfForcena posted...

Notti posted...

We can say it was a 2 stage collapse. Powerful consoles, with quicker releases... and later on better available internet was the coup de grace to arcades.

fair enough. online play was the final nail in the coffin.

Definitely agree it was the final nail.

fenderbender321 posted...

Yes but there was a point in the 90s I remember where suddenly it felt like machines went from all being 25 cents to play to like 50 cents to a dollar. That is when I stopped going.

Like, I can understand price increases over time but not double to quadruple the cost all at once.

I assumed it was to offset the declining amount of people going to arcades. Also you started seeing more expensive arcade games that they had to justify the cost for. Games like DDR, Police 911, Mocap Boxing, and Time Crisis 3.
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fenderbender321 posted...

Somebody told me that some of the newer games like DDR and Time Crisis costed the arcade like $10,000. Could never understand why. A video game was like $50, console was like $200, and a TV was a couple hundred as well. Did all that extra plastic, quarter mechanism, and shipping really cost an additional $9,000? Seems like a losing investment from the start.

depended on the arcade.

a popular, hard game, and fighting games would eat quarters like nobodies business, plus you could change the credits-to-play. 50 cents per try adds up quick.

BlazinBlue88 posted...

DuranOfForcena posted...

Notti posted...

We can say it was a 2 stage collapse. Powerful consoles, with quicker releases... and later on better available internet was the coup de grace to arcades.

fair enough. online play was the final nail in the coffin.

Definitely agree it was the final nail.

fenderbender321 posted...

Yes but there was a point in the 90s I remember where suddenly it felt like machines went from all being 25 cents to play to like 50 cents to a dollar. That is when I stopped going.

Like, I can understand price increases over time but not double to quadruple the cost all at once.

I assumed it was to offset the declining amount of people going to arcades. Also you started seeing more expensive arcade games that they had to justify the cost for. Games like DDR, Police 911, Mocap Boxing, and Time Crisis 3.

In my experience when they moved to 1 dollar per credit that just accelerated things.
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