RickR

Here's a picture of my dad hooking up my Super Nintendo on Christmas Eve, 1992. This was back in the days when I didn't know how to hook up a video game system   We were leaving for a road trip the next morning (somehow things were timed that we actually had to drive on Christmas day) so we celebrated and opened presents on Christmas Eve. 
 

Merry Christmas !  
 
Don't really "do" Christmas so much these days but here I am at 13 years old receiving Coleco Galaxian and Pac Man!
 
If you have any Classic Christmas photos (if they include classic computing or gaming all the better !) FEEL FREE TO SHARE AS WELL! 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
Rob aka MaximumRD

I know it's still early, but I already assembled the junk box for next month, there's still time for anyone to join, will be shipping around 15 Jan or so.

Huge shoutout to Willie over there at Arcade USA! Thanks for the shirt, Jag lable and Championship Rally, if this is anything near as cool as Powerdrive Rally I'm super pumped - my first songbird game.
Merry Christmas everyone!

Wife gave me my Christmas present early! This thing is awesome! She gave it to me a couple weeks ago so i could enjoy it. She always gives me my presents early!
 

Spoilers allowed.  Be warned
 
I just saw the movie, and I absolutely LOVED it.  I'm dying to know what you all thought.
 
I loved how they set up the story for "A New Hope".  I loved K2.  I loved the acting.  I loved the use of old footage (how the F did they do that with Tarkin?)  I loved that they had the nuts to end it the way they did.  Vader at the end...chills.  And the very end.....extra double chills.  WOW. 
 
Disney can milk this cow for as long as they want...if they keep the quality this high, we are all in for years of treats.
 
 

Good stuff, dauber
 
Love seeing those colorful old-gen boxes stacked together.
Brings back that first sense of discovery of what the upcoming gaming console arrivals would have to offer.
It was kinda like having a UFO drop in the middle of town and its occupants pop out and tell us "Of course you can fly anywhere, use this".
 
Having the primal colors splayed out in the initial TV and EG ads - then later in our living rooms - felt natural.
As if by learning a new way to have fun interacting with our TVS we were dropping our pens and learning to write again using a rainbow of Crayolas, with the same toddler glee.
 
That's why the initial 2600 simple color scheme and artwork design felt so right (so right INTV cribbed it in its attempted Toyland occupation).
 
Aaaand that's what I would be telling you after you told me I'd been standing there in your lounge for a good thirty minutes, gazing dreamily at the shelved goodness.
Although I sense we'd both agree and keep gazing in sync.

Just added to the lounge.

Saw it on opening weekend in IMAX 3D and, as the series now takes off in the hands of adoring fans who happen to be creative movie people, I too sense a new hope (ahem) in the Star Wars galaxy for the upcoming years.
 
As a gritty war-toned movie, Rogue One delivers on action and hardcore storytelling.
As a Star Wars-based film, with all the baggage that comes with the inception, it more than rises to the challenge by giving somethinig new fans can sink their teeth in, and old fans can proudly say "See? I told you this series was awesome, at least back in the 80s!".
 
Force Awakens also stepped up with renewed energy, but the claims of it re-telling the original story was not far from the truth. More of a reboot in that sense, even though awesome new characters sprung to life within it.
Loved that movie and still do, but there was a dreaded sense of 'downhill from here' if the franchise took that 'gee-whiz' spirit without taking chances with the story (I trust the follow-up will be top-notch, in any case).
 
Now that this new SW movie nudged itself comfortably between Lucas' big-bang trilogy conception and that very first opening crawl, it's clear the DIsney folks are not going to let this fly by as just another cash-machine.
The very fact that they purposely allowed the natural 'no-survivors' thread to survive by reshooting the initial template offering is a sign they want this done right.
And it made my heart rise and swell as it went down, right into Star Wars (yeah, that's that movie's Real Name, none of this 'Episode' crap).
 
Loved Tarkin.
He was essential to this and they just went with it.
And as you say, Row, the tech is getting better (although they should've worked around that last Leia shot, since it was lesser and had the unfortunate fact of being the last thing on screen).
 
All the nods to the original are favorably chosen, the characters are okay and work well in the movie.
Some critics are calling them under-developped, but I think this comes from being spoiled with long-form TV shows nowadays, which have well-rounded concepts on all parts (although still under-written storywise, as good established characters in 6-8 hours still need compelling stories 12 hours later).
 
Walking out of it, the movie had just worked so well for me, I could barely words...
 
Also gotta see it again then rush right back here to re-watch Star Wars (the unedited version) to get the scope of what just transpired.
 
And yeah, no silly comic relief characters. The most fun one is a sassy robot who gets down and dirty as much as the protagonists.
And a heroic movie with anti-heroes!
 
Yeah, lots to talk about on this.
 
The return of bad-ass Vader.
The most glaring flaw in the first movie gets ret-conned in the bestest way possible.
X-Wings! Old footage! Red Five origins!
The Rebels as a three-dimensional, flawed group yet with the best interest of the galaxy at heart!
Bail Organa has an old jedi friend! Yeah, we know! WOOT!
The Tantive V flies away! What's gonna happen next? Tune in to 1977 to find out!
 
Yeah, lots and lots of talk.

Spoilers allowed.  Be warned
 
I just saw the movie, and I absolutely LOVED it.  I'm dying to know what you all thought.
 
I loved how they set up the story for "A New Hope".  I loved K2.  I loved the acting.  I loved the use of old footage (how the F did they do that with Tarkin?)  I loved that they had the nuts to end it the way they did.  Vader at the end...chills.  And the very end.....extra double chills.  WOW. 
 
Disney can milk this cow for as long as they want...if they keep the quality this high, we are all in for years of treats.
 
 

Spoilers allowed.  Be warned
 
I just saw the movie, and I absolutely LOVED it.  I'm dying to know what you all thought.
 
I loved how they set up the story for "A New Hope".  I loved K2.  I loved the acting.  I loved the use of old footage (how the F did they do that with Tarkin?)  I loved that they had the nuts to end it the way they did.  Vader at the end...chills.  And the very end.....extra double chills.  WOW. 
 
Disney can milk this cow for as long as they want...if they keep the quality this high, we are all in for years of treats.
 
 

This 7800 version is really great.  Initially, I wasn't a big fan.  Everything is "bigger/chunkier" than the arcade version.  And I hate the lined border around the screen. 
 
But then I got addicted playing for this contest.  The 7800 was built for this game.  Things get really fast.  There's not a trace of flicker.  Super tight controls. 
 
I now love it. 

RickR tips - (heavily borrowed from Dauber)
Making a tunnel in the center really works.  Keep it cleaned up as best you can.  Once the centipedes make it near the bottom, abandon the tunnel and chase and shoot.  Spider can't seem to get you initially if you are in the center and on the bottom.  So while you are tunnelling...stay center high.  As soon as you hear the spider sound, go center/bottom.  The points rack up quickly once you reach 50k. 

81829.  I switched to a TAC-2 joystick, which I'm a little torn about.  The button on the TAC-2 is so much easier on my hand and thumb.  But the joystick isn't as tight as the Slik Stik.  Still, the higher score....I think I like the TAC-2 best. 
 
One more note, there is a person on Facebook that wants to trade a TAC-2 for a Video Game Brain.  What do you guys think?  Good trade?  That's why I got the TAC-2 out...to make sure it worked well for a trade.
 
 

Spoilers allowed.  Be warned
 
I just saw the movie, and I absolutely LOVED it.  I'm dying to know what you all thought.
 
I loved how they set up the story for "A New Hope".  I loved K2.  I loved the acting.  I loved the use of old footage (how the F did they do that with Tarkin?)  I loved that they had the nuts to end it the way they did.  Vader at the end...chills.  And the very end.....extra double chills.  WOW. 
 
Disney can milk this cow for as long as they want...if they keep the quality this high, we are all in for years of treats.
 
 

Yeah, the stuff with Cushing was amazing wasn't it.  Graphically they are getting better at playing with that stuff like they did in Tron: Legacy with Jeff Bridges.
 
K-2SO is great, perfect empire snark.
 
It's a little choppy at first, but when it kicks in its great.

Spoilers allowed.  Be warned
 
I just saw the movie, and I absolutely LOVED it.  I'm dying to know what you all thought.
 
I loved how they set up the story for "A New Hope".  I loved K2.  I loved the acting.  I loved the use of old footage (how the F did they do that with Tarkin?)  I loved that they had the nuts to end it the way they did.  Vader at the end...chills.  And the very end.....extra double chills.  WOW. 
 
Disney can milk this cow for as long as they want...if they keep the quality this high, we are all in for years of treats.
 
 

i would like to thank all of you guys and girls for saying the things that you said it means alot and makes me feel very welcome on the site, looking forward to talking to all of you in the next few days, Marry Christmas every one.

@GervGirl, it was me! I thought it was hilarious when I opened your package yesterday. Great minds...
 
It is a very awesome book. My daughter is an artist and we were looking at it together this morning. I love the industrial design section. Thanks again and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

I got the same thing I got for my Secret Santa! I just do not know who my Secret Santa was but who ever it was thank you! This book is awesome!!

Very welcome ????

Thanks GervGirl for the Art of Atari and carts! The book is amazing.
 
Happy holidays everyone!

28,241 after about six tries. I'm going to try again later today.
 

Same to you and everyone else! 

Welcome Space Invader/Mike!  Great intro story!  :thumb:
 
I think we can all agree that Justin is a great guy. There's some really cool background info about this site that I very much enjoyed reading in your intro.  Thank you!