Author Topic: What is the most fun you've had playing your custom arcade cab? (Read 5869 times)

wongojack · « **on:** January 25, 2011, 07:04:02 pm »

Just wondering what everyone thinks is the most fun they've had with their cab or controls. It doesn't have to be MAME of course - I just like to hear about what everyone thinks is fun.

Alternatively what have you spent the most time playing on your custom cab/controls?

Paul Olson · « **Reply #1 on:** January 25, 2011, 07:28:17 pm »

.Most fun I have had on my MAME cab was teaching my nephew to play Donkey Kong. He visited for a week a couple of years ago, and he got to about 45,000.

I have fun playing Tron, and I swap that joystick on fairly regularly. I have been playing robotron a bit recently, which is a lot of fun. I don't play defender much anymore. The panel layout works great, but we have a Defender in the lobby at work. We also have Champ Sprint and Super Offroad, so I don't put the steering wheel panels on very often anymore.

I almost forgot. 2 player plowing through the Metal slug series was a lot of fun. I had never played them prior to that.

mgb · « **Reply #2 on:** January 25, 2011, 08:33:24 pm »

I love playing Nibbler and trying to do better everytime.

I also love playing Jumpman on a C64 Emulator. This is one of my all time favorite games and it plays real well with arcade controls (except for the startup of selecting number of players and all)

And Eggventure is always fun

opt2not · « **Reply #3 on:** January 25, 2011, 08:51:30 pm »

Every other weekend or so, grabbing a Two-fer of beer (that's a 24 case of beer for you non-Canadians), going over to my buddy's place and playing random Mame games till the wee-hours of the morning....and by random I mean, hitting random and playing whatever comes up.

Of course with some exceptions, there's only so much Mahjong a person can handle.

drventure · « **Reply #4 on:** January 25, 2011, 09:10:21 pm »

Playing WorldBeach Volleyball with my 6yo is pretty fun. No sound, but she loves it.

I've been having a blast lately with the FoFix version of Frets on Fire. Found a ton of charts online for various songs I love, and the Ashley Guitar controllers I picked up for cheap have a very nice feel to them.

Mille Miglia has also been keeping me occupied.

Smeghead · « **Reply #5 on:** January 25, 2011, 09:23:36 pm »

I enjoy watching my kids play it and anyone else to be honest.
I love seeing them enjoy it.

BUT to answer the question, I love discovering games ive never seen before, I never realised how cool Robotron is!
I have always dreamed about having my own Space Ace though, now I do!

and YES WORLD BEACH VOLLEYBALL thats awesome! if only it had sound my daughter and I love playing it

mgb · « **Reply #6 on:** January 25, 2011, 10:52:19 pm »

My wife and kids really don't like the arcade games but oddly enough we went through a phase where we were all playing King of Fighters.

But usually to get my wife to play, it has to be Bubble Bobble or Bust a Move

wongojack · « **Reply #7 on:** January 25, 2011, 11:05:23 pm »

Awesome - keep em coming! I'm taking notes.

I personally had never played Black Widow before I got a cabinet. Plays like Robotron so it takes advantage of the multiple sticks.

I'm also looking forward to getting the C64 games going (especially jumpman). Gotta keep the keyboard handy for those though . . .

Hituro · « **Reply #8 on:** January 26, 2011, 01:28:08 am »

Quote from: Smeghead on January 25, 2011, 09:23:36 pm

I enjoy watching my kids play it and anyone else to be honest.
I love seeing them enjoy it.

BUT to answer the question, I love discovering games ive never seen before, I never realised how cool Robotron is!
I have always dreamed about having my own Space Ace though, now I do!

and YES WORLD BEACH VOLLEYBALL thats awesome! if only it had sound my daughter and I love playing it

I too enjoy watching others play my cab. I know I made it mostly for myself and my love of games. But it's nice to sit back while others are just having a ball on it. It's like being a kid again. The games I play the most on my cab are Donkey Kong, Marvel Vs Capcom, and a lot of new games I've never played before like Mappy, Mr. Do. The games that I have a lot of fun playing with others are games like TMNT, X-men, Dungeons and Dragons, and of course, me and my roommate, and my fiance all love playing House of the Dead 2 and 3. Good times!

Dazz · « **Reply #9 on:** January 26, 2011, 05:22:05 am »

I took my cabinet to Quakecon back in 2005. The cabinet was located out in the open where people could just swing by and play a couple games. The cabinet was a huge hit in one of the toughest gaming arenas in the world. One morning about 4am, Johnathan Wendel aka Fatal1ty, come out to the Bring Your Own Computer gaming area. He was checking out the cabinet and playing a couple games here and there. He fired up Mortal Kombat 2 and we started playing. Eventually we had about 100 people all standing around watching and people taking turns fighting against him. He ended up choosing a random character for every match, finished every round with a fatalities and whatever other finishing moves there are in the game. When all was said and done he had gone through 50 people, non stop, and he lost only 1 round which was to myself. It was actually quite impressive to witness.

Since Quakecon is hosted by id Software, several game developers are always around, including the legendary John Carmack. Yes, Carmack himself stopped by and checked out my cabinet.

Also, during one of the overnight periods someone walked up and asked if I had NBA Jam on the cabinet. Of course we fired it up, played around and he began doing several different things to the game that I've never seen done before. He eventually explained that he was one of the developers that worked on NBA Jam. When I asked if he was upset that I was emulating his game on my cabinet, he said that he was just happy to see his creation being played how it was supposed to be played. I also shared a bunch of my files with the guys at Infinity Ward, the creators of Call of Duty.

I've got to say that that Quakecon 2005 was probably the most fun that I've had with my cabinet. Even though I didn't play my cabinet much during the event I got to see my cabinet being enjoyed by many and bring back memories for lots of people.

I should have pics of some of the devs that stopped by to play as well as the big group playing MK2. I'll try to update this post later with the pics.

I do have to add, that being able to watch my kids be able to play these arcade games is one of the best things ever. When I built my cabinet the kids were 3 & 7, they are now 9 and 13. They have been able to grow up and having the cabinet has made them appreciate the older classic games. It's really nice to see 4 year old playing Frogger and remembering back when I was 4 years old... playing Frogger.

Termin8tor · « **Reply #10 on:** January 26, 2011, 05:30:04 am »

The biggest enjoyment I get is watching my 6 year old son playing the games I used to to play as a kid. The Wii and DS hardly get a look in any more which surprised me, it just goes to show gameplay always wins and the classics will always have a place.

Malenko · « **Reply #11 on:** January 26, 2011, 08:10:47 am »

watching my mom play Ms Pacman and my nephews play NBA Jam TE Scorpion VS SubZero lol

garnerb350 · « **Reply #12 on:** January 26, 2011, 03:50:22 pm »

Best enjoyment I have is when i had a bad day at work... Ill hop on and play any fighter game...My 4 year daughter hops beside me and she thinks she is 2nd player... Then she get "confused" and when i win ....she thinks she has beaten me and yells "I kicked yo butt daddy!" She loves Capcom/SF vs Marvel/Xmen...

Personal enjoyment... I like playing Donkey Kong...and then i get confused and I yell "Take That Billy Mitchell!"

Ginsu Victim · « **Reply #13 on:** January 26, 2011, 04:12:05 pm »

The most fun I had was putting it all together and making it work. I enjoy that more than actually playing it.

mgb · « **Reply #14 on:** January 26, 2011, 04:16:26 pm »

Quote from: Ginsu Victim on January 26, 2011, 04:12:05 pm

The most fun I had was putting it all together and making it work. I enjoy that more than actually playing it.

yes

Creeper · « **Reply #15 on:** January 26, 2011, 04:52:42 pm »

First night I had people over after it was built and watching everyone getting sucked into the old classics and lining up to play. After a long night of Samurai Shodown and Street Fighter someone left a quarter on the control panel.

Epyx · « **Reply #16 on:** January 26, 2011, 05:44:32 pm »

Anytime my kid indulges me with a Super Puzzle Fighter Beatdown (her beating me down mercilessly) is fun but for regular fun things:

Being a Canadian, every Saturday our main national channel (CBC) has a double header of Hockey action called Hockey Night In Canada. That is about 6 hours of hockey goodness. I usually spend at least one of the games down at my cab with the tv on to the game and play while knocking back a few beers. It is the only real playtime I get during the week.

The other is having my buddies that I grew up with coming over on Poker/D&D/Gaming nights that I host. We usually end up spending a large chunk of the night on the cab.

Other thing I do that involve the cab. Even though my main playtime is Saturdays or gaming nights I do get time in during the week but use it for games I haven't played a lot. Every 5 minutes I spend doing cardio gets me 1 quarter...I am hideously out of shape right now so that is about 4 quarters...I then use them during my cooldown after cardio and force myself to play games in MAME i have never tried before (found lots of gems this way).

DaOld Man · « **Reply #17 on:** January 26, 2011, 05:54:03 pm »

I agree with a lot of you guys, the most fun is watching others play.
We threw a Halloween party right after I finished my first cab.
We have a cheap pool table, a air hockey table and the mame machine in the garage.
Most people lined up to play the arcade. A few of the older guys played the pool table, but I would bet if they could get a chance, they would have got stuck on the arcade too. The only time the air hockey was played was while waiting for the mame cab to get free. (probably a waste of money on that air hockey).
It's fun to hear someone say "Man, I havent played THAT game since I was a kid!"
As far as my personal favorite, they sorta rotate in and out.
Right now Im hooked on Mappy and Galaga88.

wongojack · « **Reply #18 on:** January 26, 2011, 06:35:31 pm »

@drventure (I love the Venture Brothers btw)

I tried to play Mille Miglia - pressing TAB revealed lots of extra input options that I didn't recognize. Is there anything fancy to this game or is it just press gas/turn wheel?

edit: I was playing gtmr2

I have MAME ver .097 on this machine and my gtmr reported missing files, so I went with #2

drventure · « **Reply #19 on:** January 26, 2011, 09:48:08 pm »

Hmm, never pressed tab to see the input options. As far as I knew, yep it's just press gas and steer. You can brake, but letting off on the gas seems to work best...
I'll have to check the tab options now!

flashiv · « **Reply #20 on:** January 27, 2011, 12:12:49 am »

About every 3-6 months I have a game night with a couple buddies and my 2 nephews (18 & 11). Just playing classics and eating pizza. At our Halloween party, not a lot of different people play the cab, but those that do, play it all night long. At last year's party I got to play it for about 20 mins total.

Unfortunately it seems like a lot of the people in my friends circle either weren't big arcaders or have grown too "old" to play that stuff. (too bad for them)

zallax · « **Reply #21 on:** January 27, 2011, 12:48:32 am »

My wife had a staff party over at the house. Two guys decided to play SF2, a game that I totally suck at, but they both excel at.

I always wondered if the button configuration I had along with U360's octagonal restrictors were good enough for SF players to be able to pull off all special moves. They didn't have any problem adapting and beat the hell out of it. They played until their hands wore out. I thoroughly enjoyed watching them battle and watching my cab perform flawlessly.

DirtyDachshunds · « **Reply #22 on:** January 27, 2011, 08:01:54 am »

The most fun I have is either playing 2v2 NFL Blitz or 2v2 NBA Jam with friends. Somehow those two games more than others get everyone yelling and high fives are in excess as games seem to always be close. It usually draws a crowd to the arcade to watch the game, which makes it all the more exciting.

I'm embarrassed I also have a blast playing Derby Day Horse Racing. Pretty much all of my friends are gamblers, and one particular buddy plays "house" and we put a dollar or two on horses. We start the race and everyone is into it of course because there is money on the line. This is another game that can draw attention and gather a crowd when I have parties.
It's funny to think I built this to play all these arcade games and we keep coming back to Derby Day.

newmanfamilyvlogs · « **Reply #23 on:** January 27, 2011, 09:10:48 am »

My ~3yo daughter usually spends 10-15 minutes every morning playing various games while I'm cooking breakfast (the cab is adjacent to the kitchen). Watching her get progressively better at World Class Bowling has been very rewarding. And the day she got to the third round in Robotron made be pretty damn proud.

This past Sunday my wife decided to try a Golden Tee 2k after watching the same daughter amuse herself by hitting every water hazard available. She ended up playing an entire 18 holes, setting the record for longest drive and the record for longest putt

Nacimroc · « **Reply #24 on:** January 27, 2011, 09:33:02 am »

I could put 10,000 games on but the only game everyone always plays is street fighter 2 turbo! Can't walk away until its cleared!

Although the best part is when its just built and you turn on power button, then you hear the buzz and pop of the speakers turning on and LED's lighting up and nothing explodes! Great feeling!

JohnEDollar · « **Reply #25 on:** January 27, 2011, 08:50:42 pm »

Quote from: mgb on January 26, 2011, 04:16:26 pm

Quote from: Ginsu Victim on January 26, 2011, 04:12:05 pm
The most fun I had was putting it all together and making it work. I enjoy that more than actually playing it.

yes

"The Journey is more rewarding than the Destination".

mgb · « **Reply #26 on:** January 27, 2011, 10:01:34 pm »

Quote from: JohnEDollar on January 27, 2011, 08:50:42 pm

"The Journey is more rewarding than the Destination".

Man,
I love playing Journey

kagaden · « **Reply #27 on:** January 28, 2011, 02:15:14 am »

Most fun: Bringing the cab into work so the guys can play on breaks and we can get some competition going!
Most played: Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike

kagaden · « **Reply #28 on:** January 28, 2011, 02:23:57 am »

Quote from: zallax on January 27, 2011, 12:48:32 am

My wife had a staff party over at the house. Two guys decided to play SF2, a game that I totally suck at, but they both excel at.

I always wondered if the button configuration I had along with U360's octagonal restrictors were good enough for SF players to be able to pull off all special moves. They didn't have any problem adapting and beat the hell out of it. They played until their hands wore out. I thoroughly enjoyed watching them battle and watching my cab perform flawlessly.

Playable for the SFII & IV series, terrible for the SFIII series unfortunately

Or I was sent defective sticks... They're replaced now anyways with microswitch JLF's

Hituro · « **Reply #29 on:** January 28, 2011, 03:27:21 am »

Quote from: DaOld Man on January 26, 2011, 05:54:03 pm

I agree with a lot of you guys, the most fun is watching others play.
We threw a Halloween party right after I finished my first cab.
We have a cheap pool table, a air hockey table and the mame machine in the garage.
Most people lined up to play the arcade. A few of the older guys played the pool table, but I would bet if they could get a chance, they would have got stuck on the arcade too. The only time the air hockey was played was while waiting for the mame cab to get free. (probably a waste of money on that air hockey).
It's fun to hear someone say "Man, I havent played THAT game since I was a kid!"
As far as my personal favorite, they sorta rotate in and out.
Right now Im hooked on Mappy and Galaga88.

Haha, this reminds me. When I had my cab set up, it's not 100% finished mind you, but it's functional. When it was up and running my roommate asked me with this look in his eye that was like a little kid asking what they wanted for Christmas, "Do you have Mappy!?" At the time I had heard of Mappy but never played it. I said yes and asked what exactly Mappy was, and he said "YOU'VE NEVER PLAYED MAPPY!??" It was totally worth building the cab for moments like that. So I turned Mappy on, and I have to say, it's a new fav for me!

angryred · « **Reply #30 on:** January 30, 2011, 03:16:17 pm »

Breaking a million on Robotron, when back in the day I was lucky to break 50k.

Beyond that, it's pretty much anytime any of my friends lay eyes on it for the first time, and I get to see what their old arcade obsession was.

"Dude! Does it have, uh, Trax? Do you have one called Trax?"

"Do you mean Make Trax?" (boot it up)

"...OH MY GOD!!!"


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