UPDATE: The Arcade Collector, Season 2 is here! After reading this piece, check out what other games Classick and 75 go after!
This post is my weekly submission to the League of Extraordinary Bloggers, which is a fellowship of online writers such as myself who assemble weekly to crank out various blogs centered around a specific topic. This week’s topic:
Television executives have determined that you lead an amazing life and have pegged you as the next big reality TV star. What’s the name and the premise of your show?
Well now, this is interesting…
Let’s be for real though, my life as it is isn’t that interesting. I work a 9-5, then head home and put out new blog posts and podcast episodes here on this site. Aside from hanging with Spider-Dog and getting a lot of mileage in on XBox, there’s not much else to ole Classick these days. Howevah when you look at what passes for Reality TV, most of it’s scripted and not much of it’s based on reality. Let’s say these execs wanted me to star in a show. Let’s say they offered a nice-sized budget along with my salary for said show. You know what I’d do? I’d mark the following off of my bucket list, is what! I present to you…
The Arcade Collector
starring Classick Material, Tuesday nights on BET Spike TV Lifetime AMC
It’ll happen on my new reality show!
On this show, your host (that’s me) along with two of my good friends will travel the world over to collect many favorite, classic or rare arcade games in order to add to our collection. We’ll surf the online ads, scour the secondary markets and even visit some odd and exotic locales in order to find, play and possibly earn these games.
Every episode will focus on three games that we will pursue. Each game will have a specific reason for us wanting to find it. For instance, maybe I want to pick up The Combatribes because it’s a fun, three-player beat-em-up that reminds me a lot of The Warriors and was a quarter muncher in my high school days. Or I know one of my good friends @75BLVD will want to grab Shinobi or Ninja Gaiden because, well, ninjas are awesome!
Whatever the decision, we’ll head out to the owners to check out the game. A few factors here, we’re not gonna just pick up any cabinet we find. We want to see if it’s in good condition, minimal damage to the cabinet itself, joystick and buttons in working order, coin slots undamaged and functional , etc. We’ll even consider a few restoration projects, but they will impact the price we’re willing to pay.
Other than just haggling on price, however, we’ll also make the show interesting at times by engaging in challenges for said video games. For instance, let’s say we were looking to acquire the seated cockpit version of the SEGA classic After Burner II… we head on over to this small town arcade in a New Hampshire suburb because we hear they have one there that’s collecting dust. The owner might be the competitive type and that might work in our favor. We put up our Super Hang-On cabinet (won a few episodes earlier) in a wager and play head-to-head in After Burner II. Higher score would win the loser’s game. Now, this won’t be clear-cut each week, as there are some episodes where we might actually lose games, but hey, that’s the way it goes sometimes…
Where will these games be stored? Well, other than buying out Flynn’s, we’d prefer that our Arcade Collector museum/playroom be somewhere that’s difficult to find. Where better than this unused area in Gotham City (restored after flood damage).
And transport will be a snap, because along with the budget for purchasing these cabinets, I will request an official Arcade Collector vehicle that will also serve as on-site securty…
Here’s what the first ten episode season of The Arcade Collector would look like, with each episode carrying a theme for the games we are seeking as we look to fill our museum:
Episode 1: The Classicks
Ms. Pac-Man, Baby Pac-Man, Space Invaders
Episode 2: Ninjitsu!
Shinobi, Ninja Gaiden, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (4-player)
Episode 3: Behind the Wheel
Road Blasters, Spy Hunter, Daytona USA
Episode 4: Beat ‘Em Up
Double Dragon, The Combatribes, Final Fight
Episode 5: For the Sport of It!
Pole Position, Punch-Out!!, NBA Jam
Episode 6: More Classics
Popeye, Gauntlet, Crystal Castles
Episode 7: Just Because…
Smash TV, The Main Event, Xenophobe
Episode 8: Have Gun, Will Travel
Robocop, Operation: Wolf, Time Crisis II
Episode 9: SEGAAAAAAAA!!!
Afterburner II, Out Run, Super Hang-On
Episode 10: The Must-Haves
X-Men, Star Wars, Discs of Tron
Oh, and just because, let’s also include some valets in the show…
Image via 3Wishes.com
Oh, but we’re not quite done! In the Season One DVD release, we’ll throw in a bonus episode to include our search for three of our favorite pinball games, because NOBODY plays pinball anymore, yet like the now extinct drive-in movie theaters, we still love ’em!
Bonus DVD Episode: Pinball Panic!
Twilight Zone, The Simpsons, Star Wars Trilogy
***
Well, that’s my submission for this week’s edition of The League of Extraordinary Bloggers. Like what you’ve read? Did I miss any? The comments are further down the page, add yours!
Check out these other awesome entries from fellow League bloggers:
Monster Cafe Saltillo hosts a show about none other than Monster Cafe Saltillo
Lair of the Dork Horde goes huntin’ for pressed pennies
Green Plastic Squirt Gun’s show comes to grips with his fear of technology
Primordial Badger’s Media Hoard takes advice from his birds and plastic toys
Iok of That Figures shows us what he watches on Netflix. Kind of a TV show Inception!
Primordial Badger takes a Willy Shakespeare to the penal system
Traveling Pics takes us with her mountain climbing and makes you google who Michel Strogoff is
YankeesJetsFan Mike shows us his “House of Swag”
Friend of the CSP William Bruce West dispenses “Thrift Justice” in his League debut.
Chris from Random Nerdness presents his unusual adventures
3B’s Toy Hive has the world’s shortest yet most urgent work phone number
Geeky Vixen is all about sharing the love
Thanks for dropping by!
The CSPN 
I’ve been saying for months now that there needs to be a video game collecting show or something like Pickers for gamers on TV. Yours sounds awesome, and it would probably be my favorite reality show.
I’ve been lusting after that 6 player X-Men cabinet for a long time. If I had the money and room in my house for it, I would own it.
Well we heard you loud and clear, ShezCrafti! At least the telepath on staff did…
I borrowed the play for keeps concept from a show I once caught on Speed Channel called “Pinks”, where contestants raced with the ownership of their cars on the line.
Oh yeah, I’d watch the hell out of this show!
Excellent post! During sweeps, we should have a crossover. I can take down a drug cartel operating out of a warehouse. Little did they know it was full of old arcade cabinets. I call my buddy Classick to come take a look. Ratings gold!
Video game collecting has got to be on the radar of reality TV execs, and your concept would be a great way to handle it. I’d watch the heck out of this if it was on the History Channel alongside pickers and Pawn Stars.
ahhh!! Pinball games bring me good memories of my first year at university, I had a friend that loved pinball games. We spent a couple of hours after classes each week with those colorful machines 😀
Now that’ve googled Michel Strogoff, now you know how awesome he is! 😀
Reblogged this on OGR.