SoCal arcades
Mystery
After seeing The Claw's message, I thought about the "treasures" in this
area, in terms of arcades....
Glendale:
Still has two arcades on Brand, that are mere blocks from each other. The
larger one plays loud music most of the time..dependent upon the person on
duty...and has pool tables. The other is a small hole in the wall, that has
the most recent fighting games in the front of the room. Either one will have
the best challengers for that city--although, I think that there's other
arcades in Glendale, 'cept they're not listed.
I prefer the smaller one, since they seem to take care of the equipment
better, and will have more than one of any fighting game at a time. Sorry,
forgot the names, but, can't miss them, since they both stand out amongst the
ultra conservative store fronts on that street.
Pasadena:
Skip the Western Arcade on Colorado, and go straight to PakMann Arcade.
Western Arcade has a reputation for not keeping up their machines, and giving
overall bad service--i.e. if a machine takes your quarter, then you just lost a
quarter...other places would give a refund....
Anyway, PakMann Arcade, down the street from Pasadena Community College, is
one of the larger ones that I've found. You'll find that Asteroids Deluxe in
the back and the Gyruss off to the side. But, _you'll_ be amazed at the 8
player Virtua Racing set-up, right next to the other multi-player racing and
fighting games down the center aisle. T-Mek is set for 4 players at a time!
Virtua Stryker (did I spell that right), the soccer game with Sega's Am2
graphics engine is out, as is Street Fighter Alpha and Street Fighter
Zero--same thing as far as I can tell, but, then, I'm still trying to learn all
of the Alpha counters..... PakMann fixes, sells, rents games, and uses the
game room to playtest machines before they get sent out. This place is usually
open until 3 am daily and until 4 am on the weekends. So if you get that urge
to play, PakMann's a good place to start--just bring lots of money...they're
generally on the $.50 and up...for most games, even if you've seen it for $.25
per game elsewhere.
Huntington Beach:
Beach and Werner Arcade, at the corner of...yep, Beach and Werner. This
place is amazing, it's bigger inside that it looks from the outside. You'll
find that this place will have new games usually a week before other get
them...so kudos to the guys who supply their games. Most favorite fighting
games will be the ones you first see when you walk into here. There's a CD
jukebox for the music playing inside, and they have a snack bar, for those
times you need a boost of energy before going back in to kick that little kids
butt--you know, the one who just beat you three times straight...;)
Anyway, older games are near the back corner, and you'll find an older sit
down racing game that looks like Virtua Racing's grandfather. Still a fairly
decent game tho.
Walnut:
I'd say skip it, since the only arcade in this area is Western Arcade--they
have locations in Corona too, and the story is the same--sometimes broken
machines and bad service.
Video 94 is near Nogales High School, in the Stater Brothers shopping
square. This is where there is an occaisional tournament for MK, KI or SF.
Last tournament that was held there, only had $50 for first place, but, there
was less than 20 people entered. Since the prize was dependent on the number
of players entered, it would have been great if there was more than 21
players....La Puente and Nogales, by the Kentucky Fried Chicken place.
San Diego:
Haven't been down there for a bit, but, there was a place down there, in
the mall closest to UCSD, The Yellow Brick Road, right above an ice skating
rink. Very nicely done, and have been known to try out some fairly strange
game configurations--they had two SF machines (with one joystick each) hooked
up together...I suppose that it's too help with not watching the other player's
hands....dunno. Really neat place, though, since they are one of the few game
places in that area.
Anaheim:
Camelot/Family Fun Center....from the 57 (Santa Ana) freeway, take the 91
east. Exit Kraemer, and take a right. Another right turn on the first street
that you get to. Straight ahead you should see the Camelot castle and the the
Family Fun Center (which has a large maze and a water slide that you can't miss
from the freeway). Camelot will generally have the latest games for this city.
I could be wrong on that, so don't quote me. Weekends, theres probably some
decent competition, just name the game. They've got the Street Fighter Alpha
on a big screen and a converted SF (remember the original SF? the one with the
large buttons?) Large place...pizza isn't so hot tho...
Santa Monica:
Arcade at the end of the pier. It's o.k., but, it's a place to visit, if
you have the time, feel like a beach walk, and are looking for some
competition--if you're afraid of kids who belong to a gang and probably pack
some sort of weapon, then don't go here...otherwise this place is alright.
Won't have the latest games, but, it will have them in quantity.
Los Angeles:
Family Arcade/???? Arcade across from LACC. Tokens from one arcade aren't
interchangeable with the tokens of the one next door. Generally will have the
latest games a few days ahead of other places--even if the joystick setup is
done sloppily. Open late...but, not as late as PakMann.
Hi-Tech 21...in the Yaohan Plaza off of Union Street in downtown L.A. (J
town). [Not that far from where _the_ trial was] Hi-Tech is...it's a great
place. Buddy of mine works there, and the place is open until midnight and
until 1 am on the weekends (I think). It's clean, all the machines are well
taken care of, and it's...clean! I mean spotless...carpet and all. You'll
find the games here range from Mah Jong to a few that I've never seen
elsewhere. Great place, check it out, if you decide to skip all the others.
Um, nothing to report of the arcades near either UCLA or USC..although I
hear that the UCLA student union (?) has a fairly decent setup.
Palm Springs:
They have a large, fairly new fun park up there. Part of the Golf n' Stuff
chain I think. Nothing to report, but, listed here in case one still needs the
game fix....
El Monte:
Golf N' Stuff on Peck road, right off of either the 605 or 60 freeway.
This place was recently redone, and has the latest games about a few days
before everyone else gets theirs. The machines are kept up fairly well, and
you'll find a two player version of Midway's driving game here. Lots of
pinball machines--must be cheaper to buy....
Downey:
Golfland (I might have the names mixed up with the one above) but, this
place is mixed...don't know who's in charge of the games, but, they need to get
a clue. They will usually end up with two versions of the same game, but, at
different revision levels! Good/bad...you'll find MK in two versions! KI is
on the big screen (converted from a Primal Rage) along with SamSho2.
Forgot the name, but, it's like Tilt...well, in the Stonewood mall, the
arcade there is small, but, there's an occiasional tournament there. Every now
and then, I'll drop in to leave a move sheet or test the players there. This
place does have one of the few 3D virtual games around (bring the aspirin and
motion sickness pills)--neat setup, two players put on some gear and shoot it
out in the virtual world.....
Fullerton:
Um, somebody remember the name of the arcade next to the movie theater off
of Lemon Street? Place has the latest fighting games...
Well, I've tried to remember as much as I could, but, haven't made my rounds
in a couple of months...so some info is lacking--had a change at my job, and
school started. I'll add to this as I go along, but, if you know of a place in
Southern California, post it, of let me know and I'll post (of course, after I
check it out....*heh*)
Mystery
Brandon Wong
: Well,
: After seeing The Claw's message, I thought about the "treasures" in this
: area, in terms of arcades....
: Glendale:
: Still has two arcades on Brand, that are mere blocks from each other. The
: larger one plays loud music most of the time..dependent upon the person on
: duty...and has pool tables. The other is a small hole in the wall, that has
: the most recent fighting games in the front of the room. Either one will have
: the best challengers for that city--although, I think that there's other
: arcades in Glendale, 'cept they're not listed.
: I prefer the smaller one, since they seem to take care of the equipment
: better, and will have more than one of any fighting game at a time. Sorry,
: forgot the names, but, can't miss them, since they both stand out amongst the
: ultra conservative store fronts on that street.
The smaller arcade you're referring to is known as "Video West." Don't
label this place as "a hole in the wall", since its one of the cleanest
places I've ever been to, nice attendants (refunds your money if a game
eats your quarter), and always keeps their games in excellent condition.
The only thing I don't like about this place is that its small. Don't get
me wrong though, its small but also has a nice assortment of games.
The "larger one [that] plays loud music..." should be the one that deserves
to be called a hole in the wall. Though its large, it has a lot of ancient
games such as The Simpsons, Operation Wolf, the silly 3-D time traveling
cowboy game (serious!), and the usual fighters. Sleazy place, not worth
it IMHO. Not only does this place refuse to refund your money, it seems
to attract a lot of weirdos too.
: Pasadena:
: Skip the Western Arcade on Colorado, and go straight to PakMann Arcade.
: Western Arcade has a reputation for not keeping up their machines, and giving
: overall bad service--i.e. if a machine takes your quarter, then you just lost a
: quarter...other places would give a refund....
: Anyway, PakMann Arcade, down the street from Pasadena Community College, is
: one of the larger ones that I've found. You'll find that Asteroids Deluxe in
: the back and the Gyruss off to the side. But, _you'll_ be amazed at the 8
: player Virtua Racing set-up, right next to the other multi-player racing and
: fighting games down the center aisle. T-Mek is set for 4 players at a time!
: Virtua Stryker (did I spell that right), the soccer game with Sega's Am2
: graphics engine is out, as is Street Fighter Alpha and Street Fighter
: Zero--same thing as far as I can tell, but, then, I'm still trying to learn all
: of the Alpha counters..... PakMann fixes, sells, rents games, and uses the
: game room to playtest machines before they get sent out. This place is usually
: open until 3 am daily and until 4 am on the weekends. So if you get that urge
: to play, PakMann's a good place to start--just bring lots of money...they're
: generally on the $.50 and up...for most games, even if you've seen it for $.25
: per game elsewhere.
You're right about forgetting Western Arcade; I'd rather go to Pak Man, but
only because they have a lot of hard to find games.
Remember the arcade I called a hole in the wall (the one with The Simpsons)?
Well, Pak Man could be called a pig sty. One of the filthiest places I've
seen, they actually allow smoking! (which I thought was banned in most
public places in California), don't refund your money, have this silly
change policy (if you give them a $5 dollar bill, they give you $5 in
quarters, no exceptions. If you give them anyting greater than a 5, then
you must at least change it into $2.00 in quarters. Rather stupid.)
Not only do I hate cigarette smoke, a lot of people like to rest their
cigarette butts on the game console itself, even when ash tray are all over
the place. Now you know why you'll always see a lot of ash stained (black
splotches) near the buttons. Yuck!
But all the "minor" details aside, this dump sure has a lot of games. Night
Warriors, Gunbirds, Cyberbots, Cybercycles, Outfoxxies, Ultra X Weapons,
Flying Vipers, Manzinger Z, Space Invaders '95, Dragonball, Bust A Move Again,
and Elevator Action 2 are just some of hard to find games this place has.
I go here only because I know of no other place in Souther California that
has these games.
: Huntington Beach:
: Beach and Werner Arcade, at the corner of...yep, Beach and Werner. This
: place is amazing, it's bigger inside that it looks from the outside. You'll
: find that this place will have new games usually a week before other get
: them...so kudos to the guys who supply their games. Most favorite fighting
: games will be the ones you first see when you walk into here. There's a CD
: jukebox for the music playing inside, and they have a snack bar, for those
: times you need a boost of energy before going back in to kick that little kids
: butt--you know, the one who just beat you three times straight...;)
: Anyway, older games are near the back corner, and you'll find an older sit
: down racing game that looks like Virtua Racing's grandfather. Still a fairly
: decent game tho.
Don't know anything about these places.
: Walnut:
: I'd say skip it, since the only arcade in this area is Western Arcade--they
: have locations in Corona too, and the story is the same--sometimes broken
: machines and bad service.
: Video 94 is near Nogales High School, in the Stater Brothers shopping
: square. This is where there is an occaisional tournament for MK, KI or SF.
: Last tournament that was held there, only had $50 for first place, but, there
: was less than 20 people entered. Since the prize was dependent on the number
: of players entered, it would have been great if there was more than 21
: players....La Puente and Nogales, by the Kentucky Fried Chicken place.
Ditto here.
: San Diego:
: Haven't been down there for a bit, but, there was a place down there, in
: the mall closest to UCSD, The Yellow Brick Road, right above an ice skating
: rink. Very nicely done, and have been known to try out some fairly strange
: game configurations--they had two SF machines (with one joystick each) hooked
: up together...I suppose that it's too help with not watching the other player's
: hands....dunno. Really neat place, though, since they are one of the few game
: places in that area.
That SF configuration isn't that strange. Try going to UCLA's Ackerman
Student Union. They have several SFA's hooked up like that. I like it.
: Anaheim:
: Camelot/Family Fun Center....from the 57 (Santa Ana) freeway, take the 91
: east. Exit Kraemer, and take a right. Another right turn on the first street
: that you get to. Straight ahead you should see the Camelot castle and the the
: Family Fun Center (which has a large maze and a water slide that you can't miss
: from the freeway). Camelot will generally have the latest games for this city.
: I could be wrong on that, so don't quote me. Weekends, theres probably some
: decent competition, just name the game. They've got the Street Fighter Alpha
: on a big screen and a converted SF (remember the original SF? the one with the
: large buttons?) Large place...pizza isn't so hot tho...
Heh, the only reason I go to Anaheim is for Disneyland (which by the way, has
several lousy arcades).
: Santa Monica:
: Arcade at the end of the pier. It's o.k., but, it's a place to visit, if
: you have the time, feel like a beach walk, and are looking for some
: competition--if you're afraid of kids who belong to a gang and probably pack
: some sort of weapon, then don't go here...otherwise this place is alright.
: Won't have the latest games, but, it will have them in quantity.
I haven't been to this one is years.
: Los Angeles:
: Family Arcade/???? Arcade across from LACC. Tokens from one arcade aren't
: interchangeable with the tokens of the one next door. Generally will have the
: latest games a few days ahead of other places--even if the joystick setup is
: done sloppily. Open late...but, not as late as PakMann.
: Hi-Tech 21...in the Yaohan Plaza off of Union Street in downtown L.A. (J
: town). [Not that far from where _the_ trial was] Hi-Tech is...it's a great
: place. Buddy of mine works there, and the place is open until midnight and
: until 1 am on the weekends (I think). It's clean, all the machines are well
: taken care of, and it's...clean! I mean spotless...carpet and all. You'll
: find the games here range from Mah Jong to a few that I've never seen
: elsewhere. Great place, check it out, if you decide to skip all the others.
: Um, nothing to report of the arcades near either UCLA or USC..although I
: hear that the UCLA student union (?) has a fairly decent setup.
Don't know anything about the Family Aracde, but the UCLA Ackerman Student
Union is very nice. During Happy Hour (on weekends I think), you pay five
bucks at the door, and for about three or four hours, everything is set on
freeplay! Time to practice on games you suck at for free!
: Palm Springs:
: They have a large, fairly new fun park up there. Part of the Golf n' Stuff
: chain I think. Nothing to report, but, listed here in case one still needs the
: game fix....
Never been here.
: El Monte:
: Golf N' Stuff on Peck road, right off of either the 605 or 60 freeway.
: This place was recently redone, and has the latest games about a few days
: before everyone else gets theirs. The machines are kept up fairly well, and
: you'll find a two player version of Midway's driving game here. Lots of
: pinball machines--must be cheaper to buy....
Ditto.
: Downey:
: Golfland (I might have the names mixed up with the one above) but, this
: place is mixed...don't know who's in charge of the games, but, they need to get
: a clue. They will usually end up with two versions of the same game, but, at
: different revision levels! Good/bad...you'll find MK in two versions! KI is
: on the big screen (converted from a Primal Rage) along with SamSho2.
: Forgot the name, but, it's like Tilt...well, in the Stonewood mall, the
: arcade there is small, but, there's an occiasional tournament there. Every now
: and then, I'll drop in to leave a move sheet or test the players there. This
: place does have one of the few 3D virtual games around (bring the aspirin and
: motion sickness pills)--neat setup, two players put on some gear and shoot it
: out in the virtual world.....
Um... Golfland is located in El Monte, not Downey. Though I haven't been
here is a long time, they do have a hugh minature golf course. I used to
come here all the time when I was a kid.
: Fullerton:
: Um, somebody remember the name of the arcade next to the movie theater off
: of Lemon Street? Place has the latest fighting games...
Never heard of this one.
: Well, I've tried to remember as much as I could, but, haven't made my rounds
Buz
--I don't want to plug my own place, but Aztec Amusement Center near
SDSU is decent..we ge most everything as it comes...Two big screens
One with Alpha, one with Mk3..it's clean. nice, and no little kids
biting at your ankles. Yellow Brick road acroos town is owned by
Capcom..at the old YBR in the Grove in SD they had like 8 SSFII
turbo machines all linked--in tournament mode...Anyways, that's SD info
