Arcade Games Are Back!

Yes, the Xbox is more high-tech. But a new wave of game players are bringing home something even more special - old-style arcade games.



Home entertainment today is squarely focused on the kinds of high-definition graphics offered up by systems such as the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3. The graphics and speed of those machines can't be matched by the arcade games of 30 years ago. But many people miss the thrill of arcade games, of getting swallowed up by the monstrous machines and immersed in the abstract graphics.

The golden age of arcade games, collectors generally agree, lasted from around the 1978 to the mid-1980s. Despite their size, arcade machines had only a dash of electronics - little more than a few circuit boards and a reasonably sized CRT monitor to show the action. The vivid and bigger-than-life artwork featured on the sides of the machines was never matched by what was on the screen - but it sparked the imagination and competitive juices of waves of teenagers.

Enthusiasm for arcade-style games isn't limited to teenage boys-turned-grownups. The buyers of these machines are families, husbands and wives who grew up playing the games in the arcades and today want them for their game rooms.

As a result, many buyers today are snapping up modern versions of the classic machines. Those machines are pricier - often topping $2,500 - but in many cases they can play up to 80 game titles. CREDIT: Forbes.com