The Stupid Gamer

Back in the early 90s, my cousin and I used to ride our bikes to this Fred Meyer department store in Bountiful, Utah each Saturday. We did so to check out the new comics and to play the 7-8 arcade games that they had in a small room up front. The games would rotate, but the regulars included TMNT, Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter II, and Spy Hunter. Each Saturday for years I’d play that Spy Hunter at least once, until the store remodeled and the arcades were removed. As a kid, I was crushed.

Fast forward to 2008 and the wife and I decide to go camping down in Southern Utah to some sand dunes. Just before leaving I did my daily check on eBay, craigslist, and local ads for a Spy Hunter. BAM! There was one in Las Vegas and the auction was to end Saturday night. I contacted the seller and asked if I could pick it up if I won on Sunday, he said yes. I threw in a token bid, and we went camping.

Sunday morning we got up early, broke down camp, and made our way to St. George, Utah where we got some breakfast and I found a computer I could use in a hotel lobby. I checked eBay and…YES! I won! We started down for Vegas when the seller called and told me the directions to his house and that he’d be there all day.

We got there, crammed the machine in the back of my parent’s Yukon and rearranged all the camping supplies (and our dog) and made it all fit. Just wanting to get home, we drove the long drive back home, which is just north of Salt Lake City, Utah.

Last night as I was going over the machine, I found something really odd: a sticker from Classy Chassis Beauty Supply. This sticker came from a store that’s local to Bountiful, Utah (I googled it, it’s the only one)…and is only about 1/2 a mile away from Fred Meyer! I had somehow found my childhood Spy Hunter. I couldn’t believe it.

The machine needs some work to fix a broken trigger button, and it needs a good cleaning up, but knowing where it came from and where it’s been, I’m never letting this one go. Here’s a picture of the machine, before I get to restoring it, and before I get it down into the arcade room.

For the next 5 days you can have a crack at owning the complete collection of NES games without having to track anything down individually. An eBay seller has listed his entire collection of 739 NES games, many with boxes and manuals, for sale in one giant auction.

At the time I was writing this, the bidding had topped $6,100. With 5 days left, I’m guessing the final bid may break the $10,000 barrier.

Here’s a link to the auction (this link will die about a month after the auction ends): http://tinyurl.com/2k8apu

I’m down and out with a migraine today, but this was so cool I still had to share. This is a remake of Metroid II: Return of Samus. I’ve always felt that the game has been criminally underrated, but I can understand why many Metroid fans aren’t immediately drawn to it. Follow the YouTube link below to check it out.

Metroid II remake.

Side note: For some reason I can’t get YouTube videos to embed properly in posts. When this raging headache disappears, I’ll figure out why and I’ll start making videos a regular part of the site. Excited? I’m sure you are.

Cue the X-Files music…now!

Yesterday I posted about a possibly haunted Ms. Pac-Man machine out in Boston that a Craigslist user was just giving away. Well, by the end of the day the “seller” of the machine had stated that somebody had claimed it, and nobody in either the BYOAC or KLOV forums (two very prominent arcade collector sites) had picked it up, so I figured we’d never hear about it again. I was wrong, however, as a new Craigslist ad popped up for a free Ms. Pac-Man in the same area, just in a neighboring town. Here’s what the ad said:

READ ENTIRE AD: free aracde game

Reply to: sale-604098211@craigslist.org
Date: 2008-03-12, 3:51PM EDT

Free arcade game Ms Pacman. We got this game yesterday from CL. The owner warned us this was haunted and based on what we experienced last night we don’t want this in our house anymore.

Game is in our backyard and under blue tarp. THE FIRST person who picks it up gets it. The person who takes it must understand this is not a joke but that this is serious.

WE WILL NOT ANSWER YOU E-MAILS OR QUESTIONS. WE DON”T WANT TO GIVE OUR ADDRESS OUT TO THOUISANDS OF STRANGERS. WE WILL PICK ONE PERSON, WE WILL CONTACT THAT PERSON ONLY. WE WILL REMOVE THE AD FROM CRASGS LIST WHEN THIS MACHINE IS GONE.

———————————————-

So, it appears that the plot has thickened. Hopefully this time it ends up in the hands of someone who I can contact for firsthand info. Would you take a gamble on this?

This is definitely one of the strangest things I’ve come across during my days browsing through message boards. It’s not so much disturbing as absolutely fascinating. Here’s the basic story, followed by a few links.

BYOAC forum member, JMB, shared with the forum that he had come across a Craigslist posting offering up a free Ms. Pac-Man cabinet. Yes, somebody was willing to give away one of the most sought after and beloved arcade games of all time. All that was required was that somebody come by and pick it up. In fact, here is the listing word for word:

arcade game: Ms. Pac Man

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Reply to: sale-601115305@craigslist.org
Date: 2008-03-09, 11:20PM EDT

full-size stand-up arcade game.

Ms. Pac Mac.Works well, in very good condition.

MUST BE ABLE TO PICK-UP at 9:00 AM TUESDAY MORNING.

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JMB contacted the “seller” to see if it was still available, if he had any pictures, and why in the world he’d be giving away a free arcade cabinet. Here’s the reply he was given:

“When I bought this machine the previous owner told me it was haunted. I laughed, didn’t believe him, because I didn’t believe in that sort of thing.

Got a bad feeling the day it was delivered. Game started on its own in the middle of the night several times, had a tech service the machine three times (very pricy housecalls), but he couldn’t find the problem.

Three-year old daughter started talking about the “man in the video machine”, didn’t think much of it, then my wife saw a dark figure move across the basement and into the machine. She ran out of the house, would not return until the machine was out of the house. I moved it to my business garage (two miles away), and several times I have opened the garage to find tools missing or scattered, things tipped over.

This is why I am giving away a $1000 machine for free.”

I don’t know so far if anybody has claimed the machine, but I’m secretly cheering for somebody from the BYOAC or KLOV forums to pick it up so we can find out whether or not this Ms. Pac-Man is in need of a old fashioned exorcism or if paranoia is just playing with people’s minds. Whatever happens, it’s definitely something the seller believes in, because you don’t simply throw away that kind of money, and surely don’t tell somebody that what you have to offer is haunted, unless you feel morally obligated to do so.

Original Craigslist posting: Haunted Ms. Pac-Man?

BYOAC Forum Thread: Where the story is unfolding.

I was at a Rock Band event last night at Sundance and they had the wireless guitars there. They played pretty much like the ones now, but, well, wireless. They still use the leaf switches (no clicky), but they felt a lot more responsive. To tell the truth, I usually use my GHII guitar when playing, but I did fine with the new guitar. I’ve got a full writeup of the event coming in the next day or two. I spotted Paris Hilton outside (blech), 50 Cent inside, and Scott Weiland inside as well. I can’t remember the name of the band that played, I think it was Incident Zero or something like that, but I’ll get the name for the writeup. And man…the things that go on in a VIP room back stage…

Here are a couple of pics:

Me looking like a dork on stage with the new guitar.

Ladies getting in on the action. That’s Jeff Castaneda, from MTV Games, kneeling down with the big grin.

Mallika, one of Harmonix’s concept artists (I got some good info on some neat upcoming RB stuff):

Sorry, but cool details about what I learned about PS2’s future with Rock Band, a possible Wii version, DLC content, and more will come in an official writeup. Just know that it was a great event and the Harmonix and MTV Games guys are some of the happiest people I’ve ever met in the industry.

To help make amends for the terrible connection issues that 360 owners have dealt with since Christmas, Microsoft is going to give every 360 owner a free Xbox Live Arcade game. Posted over at Major Nelson’s blog, the letter from Microsoft says that details on how to get your free game will be coming soon. We still don’t know if you’ll be able to choose any game, or if MS will simply make an upcoming release a free download. The offer is good for both Gold and Silver members.

Source: Major Nelson

I rarely advertise prices, but outside of Portal I believe that Puzzle Quest was the best puzzle game released all year and this is an excellent deal. If you have a Wii, this is the perfect game to pass time in both short and long play sessions. It’s also quite good for multiplayer. Buy it!

Amazon Link - Click to View Product Page (and buy!): Puzzle Quest: Challenge Of The Warlords

If you’ll notice, there’s a link in the header of the site asking you to visit The Stupid Gamer Store. We’ve implemented an Amazon powered store right into the blog…so if you are in the market for games, tech gear, books, or other related stuff, feel free to shop from here. As we mentioned in a previous podcast we’re looking to start up contests, giveaways, and promotions here on the blog, and this will go a long way toward making that happen (we hope). If you browse the store and can’t seem to find a product listed that you’re interested in buying, let us know and we’ll get it included.

Thanks for your continued support!

Link: The Stupid Gamer Store.

Jason and Melissa Jones have continued to expand their offerings for custom carvings through their website Nice Carvings. In our first look at the custom carving work being done, Jason and Melissa were focusing mostly on characters from the video game world. While the colorful characters are still the top draw for Jason and Melissa, they are now offering custom signs and full canvas art as well. Take a look at some of the newest examples of Melissa’s handiwork below.

This is canvas art populated with painted castings of Melissa’s carvings.

Above are two examples of custom signs. These are perfect for businesses or home decoration.

Jason and Melissa use castings to do production runs. Multiples are quite easy for Nice Carvings.

Yep, the characters are still around. Find a pic you like, and Melissa will make it into a painted carving.

The canvas art pieces are pretty big!

If you want to check out pricing, examples of work, or you want to contact Jason and Melissa, visit them over at Nice Carvings. Both Jason and Melissa are extremely friendly and will usually respond to any questions you have that very same day. Pretty soon I plan on having a full Donkey Kong casting set adorning the walls of the Stupid Gamer arcade room.