Released in 1982, Atari’s Gravitar, represents one of the last great colour vector titles released during the Golden Age of classic arcade gaming. Project led by Mike Halley and programmed by Rich Adam, the game is generally regarded as being hard as nails. This, coupled with a general downturn in the industry and a level…
The TDE Podcast Ep 16: author Tim Lapetino
Episode 16 of the Ted Dabney Experience podcast is available now for your listening pleasure! If you enjoy reading ArcadeBlogger.com, you’ll love the other project I’m involved with: A great discussion with author Tim Lapetino on the underrated yet enduring legacy of Atari creative director George Opperman. We also go behind the scenes on both…
Freddy Flames: Centuri’s Lost Arcade Game
Some time back, I wrote about Centuri’s successful but brief stint as an arcade manufacturer in the early 80s. In that article, which you can check out here, I touched on a game developed by a member of Centuri’s in-house development team. This week I want to share some more detail about that game –…
The TDE Podcast Ep 15: Atari Programmer Bob Flanagan
Episode 15 of the Ted Dabney Experience podcast is available now for your listening pleasure! If you enjoy reading ArcadeBlogger.com, you’ll love the other project I’m involved with: Honing his coding skills producing games for the Apple II, Bob Flanagan joined Atari in 1984. It was a difficult time for the company and the industry…
Capcom Mini Cute Restoration 1
The Capcom Mini Cute arcade cabinet was launched in Japan during 1991; which for older readers of this blog is probably a frightening thought: 30 years ago! Primarily aimed at kids, it stands at just 1300mm tall, resulting in one of the most diminutive arcade cabinets ever released. As a result, this all-steel games machine…
The TDE Podcast Ep 14: Q*Bert Co-creator Jeff Lee
Episode 14 of the Ted Dabney Experience podcast is available now for your listening pleasure! If you enjoy reading ArcadeBlogger.com, you’ll love the other project I’m involved with: Jeff Lee was the original video artist at D. Gottlieb and Company, designing the character Q*Bert and working on titles such as Krull, The Three Stooges and…
Weekend Pickup! Robotron Cabaret
Well “Weekend Pickup” is maybe stretching things a little in this case, but still. I’ve been on the lookout for one of these cabinets for years. I regarded it as one of my “grail” arcade cabinets, but the potential cost has always been a hindrance to my acquiring one. Not to mention, the cabinet was…
The TDE Podcast Ep 13: Atari veteran Dennis Koble
Episode 13 of the Ted Dabney Experience podcast is available now for your listening pleasure! If you enjoy reading ArcadeBlogger.com, you’ll love the other project I’m involved with: Recruited by the company in 1976, Dennis Koble was one of Atari’s earliest coin-op game designers. Koble stayed with Atari for five years and was responsible for…
Crystal Castles Conversion Kit
We’ve looked at arcade conversions here on the blog previously. Put simply, this was a way for arcade operators to maximise their profits. When an arcade machine got to the end of its play life and stopped taking money, why buy a whole new cabinet, when a simple swap of the game’s PCB, controls and…
The TDE Podcast Episode 12: Atari Researcher Carol Kantor
Episode 12 of the Ted Dabney Experience podcast is out now! If you enjoy reading ArcadeBlogger.com, you’ll love the other project I’m involved with: Hired by Atari in 1976, Carol Kantor became the videogame industry’s very first market researcher. Kantor talks to us about the game-changing yet quotidian minutiae of market research in the late…
The Arcade Blogger 