Finding Ms PacManThe Arcade Game Revival

1. Finding Ms. Pac-Man: The Arcade Game Revival Take a short drive west of Colorado Springs into the foothills of Pike’s Peak, and you’ll find yourself in Manitou Springs — a small, Victorian-era mountain town known for its gorgeous scenery, quaint shops and the naturally occurring mineral water from which it derives its name. Many tourists have found their way to this little town to enjoy the shops and restaurants of the historic downtown district. But a jaunt into one of the side alleys will bring you to something unexpected: Tucked into a little enclave between Manitou Avenue and Canon Avenue, an unassuming set of storefronts offers rows upon rows of working vintage arcade games from decades past. Classic games from the early 80s like Pac-Man, Galaga, Centipede. Pinball machines from the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Mechanical baseball. Love testers. Even those penny arcade peep show machines from the 1930s and earlier. One of the storefronts is closed to the public, but if you peer through the Photo: cbikle at Morguefile.com

2. window you’ll see a whole room full of games that are apparently being worked on and restored. The whole area feels like you’ve found yourself in the lair of a passionate collector who’s just nice enough to let you play with some of the toys, to share in some of the enjoyment he (or she) gets from finding and restoring these treasures. It’s not a place that’s widely advertised; more like something you stumble upon by happy accident. What’s remarkable is how many people do stumble upon it, and once they’ve found it stay to play for hours on end. Beautiful mountains all around, bubbling streams, lots of shops and galleries to look through — but the tourists are hanging out at the arcade. Granted, pinball machines have been around forever, but the advent of computerized arcade games in the late 70s and early 80s took our collective love for gaming to a whole new level and made a lasting impact on our culture. Growing up in the heyday of this wave, the high point of our week as teenagers was when we could go to the nearby arcade, or Chuck E. Cheese or some other knockoff pizza joint — not to eat pizza, but to lose ourselves in the acres and acres of video games. I was obsessed with Pac-Man, then with Ms. Pac-Man. Many weeks’ worth of allowance money were spent on just those two games. It seems like that era ended as quickly as it began. Once computers and game consoles became household items, we no longer needed to go to Chuck E. Cheese to get our fix. Nowadays, we play games with surround sound and stunning, high-definition graphics that put those old cabinet-based games to shame, often playing others from around the world in real time, all from the comfort of the couch. And yet, there’s something about those glory days that draws many of us back, and some of us for the first time. Perhaps that’s why a little-known enclave is one of the busiest hotspots in Manitou Springs. Perhaps that’s why these games, once nearly forgotten, are seeing a fresh surge of popularity today. Here are three ways in which we are rediscovering our love of the classic arcade game. The New Arcade An article published by the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review explores the recent revival of gathering places that are once again touting the arcade game experience. These aren’t the dark caves you once haunted in the local mall, nor are they Chuck E. Cheese (though you can still find those if you look). These new gathering places are retrofitted for the tastes of grown-up Gen-Xers and up-and-coming Millennials, offering designer coffees, various types of alcohol, or both, depending on the time of day. “Because many gamers are of drinking age, the combination of beer and games is a popular one,” the article explains. Sometimes you’ll also find food, as well, though the menus are a bit more evolved than cheap pizza. You’re liable to find anything from handcrafted sandwiches to dishes with stuff we never heard of as kids — stuff like quinoa and kale. In other words, these arcades aren’t for your children, who are of course content to sit in their bedrooms and play Overwatch on their PS4s while snacking on Hot Pockets. No, these are places for you.

3. Vintage Collections Another way many of us are revisiting the glory days is by bringing the arcade home. One extreme example is Matthew Russell of Alberta, Canada, whom the St. Albert Gazette reports has accumulated nearly 100 restored video games and pinball machines in his basement. It’s not a cheap hobby; Matthew claims he’s spent about $80,000 on it thus far. (Sounds like he could be related to whomever owns the enclave in Manitou Springs.) For most collectors, the obsession doesn’t extend that far, but it’s increasingly common for people to accumulate at least a few vintage arcade games in their rec rooms, basements and man-caves. Home builders are even accommodating this trend as seen by the uptick in game rooms in new home builds. All-In-One Arcade Games For gaming enthusiasts who have neither the time, space or budget to collect and restore vintage games, another popular alternative is the all-in-one game system — a single cabinet or cocktail table loaded with dozens or even hundreds of classic games. Since video games are basically software, it stands to reason that with enough hard-drive storage and the right set of controllers, an entire arcade’s worth of games can now exist inside a single cabinet where it used to require many rooms to contain them called All In One Arcade Games. Jim Kimbrell, owner of Arcade Maverick, has seen the effects of this growing trend firsthand with his own customers. He attributes the popularity of retro games to a combination of nostalgia and simplicity of gameplay. “Playing the games allows users to engage in simple and direct storylines,” says Jim. “Those who appreciate nostalgia are reminded of their first exposure to these gaming systems, and those memories are shared with their entire family.” Ultimately, modern culture and even retro culture have their own ways of infiltrating our lives. For us children of the 80s, playing retro games is a way to recover our youth and remember. For the next generation, it’s more like a novelty. It’s become chic to like retro games, the same way it’s chic to like Sinatra or shoulder pads. Either way, the classic arcade game once thought extinct now has a second wind. My son is the guy who loves sitting in his room, playing the latest PS4 release. For me…I’m the guy who wanders into an enclave in Manitou Springs, finds Ms. Pac-Man and never leaves.