PHOTO:

Asteroids Control Panel

Asteroids

This was the game that really started it all for me. There was one at the neighborhood bowling alley I'd sneak off and play weekend mornings. The bowling alley would still smell of beer and cigarettes from the previous night. They would open the front door in the late morning when the bar opened and begin the process of airing out the place from the previous night. That was my invitation to walk in and plunk down some coin on the games they had, including Asteroids. It's so hard to describe how new and cool this game was by today's standards. At the time the graphics were something straight out of sci-fi movies as if I was controlling the action on a galactic radar screen. The cabinet itself seemed to draw you into the game with it's shape and colorful artwork. The cardboard bezel that surrounded the screen was a painted space scene with asteroids breaking out of the frame and intruding onto the screen giving it a dimensional appearance. The backlit marquee, the buttons that blinked when a coin was inserted, the high tech controls, and the thumping sound effects all came together into a package no 11-year old could resist in 1979.
Gold Stars: 3

Sith Penguin said on 03/07/09...
"nice!"

jupiter said on 02/12/09...
"Great memory! Thanks for sharing."

kendra 02/09/09