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Ksyrup
12-05-2003, 03:23 PM
I post this article because I had what appears to be a related question that I meant to ask a few days ago, but forgot about until I read this. Walking through the mall on Wednesday night, I twice passed by one of those carts set up in the middle of each mall walkway (the kind that sells phone accessories, license plates, etc.), and as I passed by, I got a glimpse of several kids playing computer games that looked like the kind I played when I was 10.

So, my question for all of you younger and/or "in the know" guys is, are these games making a comeback? Is there going to be a Pong craze soon? The game I saw was a tennis game with block people - as these old games, or new games designed to look old?

Just wondering. It's amazing what people find interesting. I assume this means that in 15 years, when someone has perfected the state-of-the-art intuitive AI for a text sim, there will suddenly be a backlash and longing for FOF1 and Baseball Mogul 1999.




TOKYO, Japan (Reuters) -- Game over? Think again.

Japanese game machine maker Taito Corp said on Friday it plans to restart sales of "Space Invaders" in the United States, almost 25 years after the game first appeared in video arcades.

The classic arcade game centers on a fleet of invading aliens looking to take over earth, but they must first deal with a lone gunner -- the player -- holed up behind a fragile set of shields.

It has been one of the most popular video games of all time since it was developed in 1978.

"There has been a rebirth of classic video games in America," said Taito spokesman Kengo Naka. "We thought it would coincide nicely with the 25th anniversary of its debut in the U.S."

Taito aims to sell 10,000 of the stand-alone game machines at 300,000 yen (U.S. $2,772) a unit.

While the game will not change in this latest offering, inflation has taken its toll. One play will now cost 50 cents, compared with 25 cents a generation ago.

Since Taito no longer has operations in the United States, the game machines will be made through an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) agreement with game software maker Namco Ltd.

Namco, which also has it own classic video game, "Pacman," will handle sales of Space Invaders in the United States.

Maple Leafs
12-05-2003, 03:34 PM
Not a bad idea. With everyone running around listening to Human League and wearing Padres jerseys from 1980, why not bring back some more 80's retro? I can see these being reasonably popular in bars and restraunts, at least for a little while.

rkmsuf
12-05-2003, 03:39 PM
can't see the younger sect enjoying this. Compared to playstation et all why are they going to plunk down 50 cents to play with a bunch of dots?

They are cheap machines I guess and it only takes around 1400 plays to break even...how long would that take?

MikeVic
12-05-2003, 03:40 PM
The thing I liked about the old games was that it was so simple. I could sit down for 10 minutes and enjoy myself. It seems like a lot of games right now are complicated.. of course, I still like the realism and strategies and stuff, but there are time that I just want to sit down and not "think."

I notice this a lot with the 3D games. It's why I'd rather play Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga on the Advance, than Super Mario Sunshine on the Cube. Much simpler to play :)

QuikSand
12-05-2003, 03:41 PM
Are people really running around wearing 80s Padres jerseys?

rkmsuf
12-05-2003, 03:42 PM
Originally posted by QuikSand
Are people really running around wearing 80s Padres jerseys?

The only one I can think of is P Diddy that I've seen...then again I'm not exactly down with the whole hip scene either...

Fidatelo
12-05-2003, 04:02 PM
Originally posted by MikeVic
The thing I liked about the old games was that it was so simple. I could sit down for 10 minutes and enjoy myself. It seems like a lot of games right now are complicated.. of course, I still like the realism and strategies and stuff, but there are time that I just want to sit down and not "think."

I notice this a lot with the 3D games. It's why I'd rather play Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga on the Advance, than Super Mario Sunshine on the Cube. Much simpler to play :)

That's my biggest complaint of games today too. My brother and I have played sports games against each other for years, back to the days of Atari. He has always been more of a sports game (and video games in general) fanatic than me, so he always owns and hosts the games. Despite this, with the exception of football games I have always been as good if not better than him at most games. Even in football games, which he won say 60-70% of, the games were always very competitive.

But in the past few years, the games have become so complex that even though we play every week, I find I cannot remember enough of the controls in each game to compete very well. In fact I even bought Madden 2004 for my GameCube this year, not because I wanted to play the franchise mode, but because I felt i needed to play during the week just to remain familiar with all the controls and nuances between gaming sessions with my bro.

Now, needless to say none of our friends can even come close to competing with us. We were always better than them at video games just from playing them so much more, but with games today they can't even have fun because they spend the entire evening trying to learn the controls. More and more I find that we are drawn to games like NHL Hitz instead of NHL 2004 or 2K4, because in a few minutes everyone can pick up the controller and be at least proficient. And of course games like Mario Party or Mario Golf are even better in this regard.

tucker342
12-06-2003, 03:00 AM
I hate Space Invaders.

damnMikeBrown
12-06-2003, 04:39 AM
Originally posted by tucker342
I hate Space Invaders.
\

Of course you do. They're damn rank and file, pushing their way downwards, destroying your shields. Increasing their velocity, coming down, down, until you are no more. . . They are a hateable bunch those damn Space Invaders.

mckerney
12-06-2003, 04:45 AM
Originally posted by QuikSand
Are people really running around wearing 80s Padres jerseys?

I saw Byron Chamberlin wearing one on a TV appearance back in his days with the Vikings.

mckerney
12-06-2003, 05:04 AM
Coming back? It's still here and I play for free

http://www.spaceinvaders.de/


Though my dentist does have an old space invaders machine in the waiting room of his office.



Also, the high score of the link above disturbs me a little...