Pink Gorilla U-District in Seattle - Shmupmeet 10/02 @ 2pm!

[seattlexc]

I'm planning on stopping by PG later tonight to spend a few credits on Fever SOS. I'm excited to see if you've made any changes to the arcade.

[EPS21]

I was by last saturday to check it out, really nice setup, although I think the volume of all the cabs could be louder. The batrider cab had a broken coinslot too, although you probably fixed that by now.

Gonna change up anything by next weekend? Would love to see galuda in there in anticipation for waiting on E2 to ship

[bobbyconover]

Hey guys, thanks for all the great comments. You will all probably be as shocked as I was to hear that the third highest earner in the first week, behind DDR and Pop'n Music, was Armed Police Batrider! Fever SOS did well too, for only being up and running for half of the week.

Re: the volume, I'll take the suggestion into consideration for sure. I personally like games to be really loud in general -- I think the issue the employees have with those is that they're right next to the counter so when attract mode is on they can get annoying. Maybe I'll just crank up the volume and turn attract mode sound off? Oh, and yes, the coin slot issue was fixed right away, sorry about that. I'm pretty shocked by how unreliable coin mechs are.

The holdup on Espgaluda is really annoying me, but it's unfortunately out of my control. I won a Yahoo auction for the PCB a few weeks ago through a bidding service (Rinkya), who I've had a lot of success with in the past. For some reason they still haven't received it from the seller, much less shipped it to me! Originally I thought it would be a really quick turnaround but it's taking forever. I've been in contact with them over the last few days and they seem bewildered by the whole thing too, so we'll see what happens in the days to come. As soon as I know it's coming I'll let you guys know.

No major additions lately, unless you're into pinball -- I added my Medieval Madness table to the lineup this weekend. I also added my Star Wars machine last week, which seems to be getting a lot of love! We're working on getting some other stuff in ASAP, so I'll keep you guys posted.

[caldwert]

Damn, you're lucky to have a Medieval Madness to just throw out on location. Do you have any pictures of the setup?

[marus]

After spending the whole week writing up term papers, I finally got a chance to play at PG again yesterday. I 1CCed Batrider Normal course - yay! I also saw the ad for the DDR tournament; I don't play rythm games but I think it's cool when an arcade organizes events. So far I really like the direction the arcade is going in.

BTW, is there anything you can do about the scores resetting on the Batrider cab? It's not a big deal, but I feel lonely whenever I put a score on a scoretable that has no names on it

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Sad to say that the Armed Police Batrider high scores and high score intials are lost when powered down for the night. Only if Raizing/8ing had included a back-up battery or some type of flash memory for saving high scores and such, would this feature be possible.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[Dave_K.]

If it was my arcade, I'd have the staff record high scores before powering down and display them on a large scoreboard, or on the cabs themselves, to encourage people to continue playing for score. This was common practice in some Japanese arcades.



Wouldn't hurt to also advertise the highscores and player profiles/bios on the website to draw more interest in competing for score.

[Chainclaw]

I swing by both Pink Gorilla's often. When the U District one opened with a few arcade games it was OK, but the original selection was all '80s stuff that you can find all over the area. The only game of note was Baby Pacman, really.

I ended up going to the U District on the 20th last month, and swung by Pink Gorilla and was amazed by the new arcade game selection. It was clear someone who actually plays the games picked things out for the store, instead of a clueless arcade operator. It was sad to see Baby Pacman gone, but other that that it was an improvement. I hadn't played Batrider or Fever SOS before, but unfortunately Batrider was broken. Fever SOS was pretty amazing, Mr. Driller is my GF's favorite game, overall it was a great selection. Played some DDR (I am way out of practice), and Pop 'N Music as well. Awesome times, and I'll be swinging by more often. The Ave is becoming an arcade paradise now, between Pink Gorilla and the kick-ass pinball games at Sure Shot.

Also, I've been thinking about buying a candy cab as my second cab at-home for a while now, and playing the cabs there just made me want one so much more.

Where did you get a hold of the candy cabs in the area? I will hopefully be looking to buy one in a few months.

[bobbyconover]

Hey, thanks for all the tips and encouragement guys. The arcade has been doing well so far! Batrider and Fever SOS both had their best weeks ever last week, so it seems like the word is spreading. I'm taking every suggestion seriously. First off, the score thing -- I love the idea of writing down the high scores each day and I've been nagging the store employees to get started on that asap.

I would personally love to have some kind of shmup "tournament," but I'm not quite sure how that would work. Have you guys heard of anything similar done at an arcade? If so do you have any insight into how it was run? At the very least I want to start having high score challenges, where we pick one game and set a time period -- say 2 weeks -- and the person with the highest score on that machine by the end of the time period wins a cash prize (or at least a gift certificate). I think it would really help to drive competition?

Chainclaw, I'm sorry to hear Batrider was down when you came in, because it has been running really reliably for the most part. Its only issues have been with coins getting stuck in the coin chute (not the mech, but the actual tube leading to the mech), but I think I've sorted them out completely now. I hope you come back to give it a shot! As for the candy cabs, I actually didn't really find them in the area -- two were random Craigslist finds (spanning 5 years), and two were bought as part of a bulk deal up in BC. I also have a cab I bought from Matsu and drove up here that I'm strongly considering putting out. But there's no reliable local source at all, that I know of -- you pretty much either have to get lucky finding someone else who has imported one, or have one shipped in yourself.

About the Medieval Madness -- I definitely don't just have one I can toss out on location without a second thought. I spent a ridiculous amount of money on thatgame (and I'm not exactly wealthy) and then spent countless hours restoring it. I never would've imagined I would put it in an arcade, but I'm just trying to make this place as cool as possible, so after a ton of agonizing deliberation I decided to give it a try. So far, so good -- it seems that if you keep a pinball machine clean, it doesn't get much wear. But yeah, believe me, I'd love to have it in the safety of my home. Seeing all the love it has been getting from people at the arcade is pretty awesome though. I would love to eventually have a solid lineup of pins out there if all goes well.

You guys should add our group, "Pink Gorilla Arcade," on Facebook if you're on there. It's probably the quickest way to get the latest details on the arcade.

[marus]

I like the idea of a high score competition. I think that would be fun and would get people interested in getting good at different game. Now is a bad time though, what with everybody getting ready for finals and all.

Also, this is just a passing thought I had recently, so take of it what you will, but I was thinking it would be cool to have a little TV in the corner showing off recent superplays and fighting game tournament videos. Just to show people whats been happening recently, and what kinds of things are possible. You could also show ads for upcoming events or store promotions or whatever else you all fancied.

EDIT: I'm really digging the new Raiden Fighters Jet cabinet. Normally I hate playing shooters with American controls, but the sticks in the RFJ cab feel nice to me. The purikura made me laugh too. I almost expected to see a line of schoolgirls taking group photos.

DOUBLE EDIT: Actually, you probably could get a line of schoolgirls if you put the photo booth at the front where the DDR machine is. Non-gamers wouldn't normally walk into the back of a game store on their own, but if you had a cute photo booth and maybe a UFO catcher/crane machine out front then you could probably catch some new attention (just like a Japanese arcade lol).

[seattlexc]

I really like the idea of having a mini high score competition for a 2 week period or so, I would definitely practice like crazy if there was a cash/gift certificate prize too. Hell, I would probably practice a lot even if there wasn't a prize. I just love the thought of competing with some local Seattle people at a shmup.

I stopped by today to check out RFJ and the arcade was packed! I was happy to see people in the arcade but a little annoyed that someone had their backpack and other crap on the Fever SOS stool. Show some respect for the Cave shmup!! I agree that it would be awesome if the employees would keep a high score board going for the games that don't save high scores. Hopefully a little competition would keep people coming back to the arcade.

[Vexorg]

Dang it, how did I miss this? I'll definitely need to come check out the place at some point. I actually saw a blurb about the arcade on Pink Gorilla's site, but the pics provided no indication that there were any shmups going on there. I'm actually working just a few blocks from the International District Pink Gorilla store these days, and I've been meaning to head over and check if they've got any of the region-free Cave 360 shmups. I suspect the International District store might get just a tad crowded with arcade games in it though...

If there's any interest, I've even got a couple of shmup boards here at my place that people might be interested in playing (Raiden DX, Donpachi, Dodonpachi, Battle Bakraid, etc.) if you start looking for more stuff to put in...

[Chainclaw]

I swung by last night, and I like the new layout. Played some Medieval Madness, Fever SOS, Raiden Fighters Jet (funny because I was at another arcade earlier playing Raiden Fighters 2), and Batrider.

It's the best arcade in the Seattle area now for sure. Throw in a NEO and it will be pretty much perfect.

[seattlexc]

Hey Vexorg, glad to see your interested in the PG arcade. I would love to see some more Cave shmups in PG (mainly Donpachi) so hopefully Bobby has some room in the arcade. Unfortunately I don't think either of the PG locations have a very good selection of Japanese Xbox 360 games. Every time I've been there I've only seen one or two J-RPGs in their 360 selection. However it is possible that has changed.

[marus]

To everyone else that goes to PG, when are you usually there? I normally just stop by on the weekends after school on the way home, and it's usually just me and one or two other people there. Reason I ask is because I wanted to watch some other people besides myself play. I feel stupid because I keep dying in the same spot in Batrider (High-way stage boss, the green thing with the turrets, don't remember the name). Today I just bombed past the parts of the boss that give me trouble (though I think I finally figured out what I'm supposed to do), and got a decent ways into stage 6 (god damn that stage is long btw). Of course I can just download superplays, but I'd like to watch other people have a crack at it too and see some new strategies. Or if everyone else sucks then I'll at least feel better about myself

[KevinDDR]

I visit either on Fridays around 4-7 pm or on Saturdays around 1-4 pm.

Come on, someone play Raiden Fighters Jet! I don't want my measly 23mil to stay on top.

[seattlexc]

Hey marus, I'm sorry to say that I'm pretty horrible at Raizing games, so I wouldn't be much fun to watch. I would play Batrider some more if they saved the high scores, or if it was part of a score competition. I'm glad so see someone else playing RFJ. I'm not very good at that game either but I'll start practicing it soon. Also, I'll probably show up there today sometime this afternoon to play some Raiden Fighters Jet and Fever SOS.

Hey Bobby, I talked to my old roommate today about that Sky Shark cabinet I was talking to you about a few weeks ago. All of my old roomates have to move out of my old house soon (they're getting evicted ) so I asked him if I could take Sky Shark and he said "sure thing, we were just going to throw it away" . I would have been pissed if they trashed such a classic Toaplan game. I'll pm you some more information about it soon if you're still interested in it.

[Vexorg]

What's the parking situation like over there? Are there any lots which are better than others to park at over in the U district?

[EPS21]

To everyone else that goes to PG, when are you usually there? I normally just stop by on the weekends after school on the way home, and it's usually just me and one or two other people there.

I'm usually there on the saturday nights 7-closing. Haven't been there lately with finals looming, but the time I went it was somewhat crowded, some Japanese dudes playing pop'n and a few guys hogging the MvC2 all night, the shmups were all free though.

Regardless I don't think we could identify ourselves unless we had some of those "Hello, my name is" stickers to wear with our username on em like other shmupmeets have done in the past . Maybe just cause I think it'd little weird to ask anyone touching a shmup if they're from these forums lol.

What's the parking situation like over there? Are there any lots which are better than others to park at over in the U district?

Usually just along University Way its not too hard to find a spot even on the busy saturday nights, or just go one street over to find a spot. And the paid parking spots elsewhere are free after 6pm on saturday and free all day on sundays.

[seattlexc]

What's the parking situation like over there? Are there any lots which are better than others to park at over in the U district?

I've never parked in a lot at the U-district so unfortunately I can't offer any advice. I usually just try to find street parking on a side street, but it's often a pain in the ass trying to find a spot, plus there are parking meters everywhere. I'll probably be riding my bike down there in an hour or so.

[marus]

Hey marus, I'm sorry to say that I'm pretty horrible at Raizing games, so I wouldn't be much fun to watch. I would play Batrider some more if they saved the high scores, or if it was part of a score competition.

It's not a big deal. Batrider is actually the first Raizing game I've played. I'm fairly new to shmups in general, and until a few months ago my background was mostly just Touhou I'd mostly be happy just to see someone else playing. Of all the times I've been there, I've only seen one other guy playing one of the shmups that wasn't credit-feeding. Though I'm probably there at the quieter times.

What's the parking situation like over there? Are there any lots which are better than others to park at over in the U district?

Keep in mind that a lot of the bus routes run through the area as well, so that's always an option.

[bobbyconover]

If there's any interest, I've even got a couple of shmup boards here at my place that people might be interested in playing (Raiden DX, Donpachi, Dodonpachi, Battle Bakraid, etc.) if you start looking for more stuff to put in...

Interesting! I'd definitely be interested in mixing up the lineup with one or more of those boards. Many people have requested Dodonpachi, so that would probably be a good place to start. Were you interested in selling them or would it be more like a loaner situation? (Incidentally, the TGM is on loan to me right now, courtesy of KevinDDR.) Oh, and XC, I definitely want that Sky Shark cab. If you have the details let me know?

We're having a bit of a cabinet crisis right now, and I'm trying my best to pull up old contacts and add more of them ASAP to accommodate more PCBs. Rest assured that we will have a nice row of candy cabs eventually, it just might take some time. The thing that kills me is that I had 3 more Astros and I sold them all late last year, right before the arcade project started up. Ugh! For the Neo fans, I'm still on the lookout for one of those as well. In fact just yesterday I was trying to convince Kenchan to drive his Neo Candy up here for me!

Also, about the high score recording, I have been hounding the guys at the store to get started on this pretty much every day for the past few weeks now. It's the beginning of the convention season right now, and the PG guys make a lot of their money at cons, so they're incredibly wrapped up with those right now. Even so, I have no idea what's taking so long -- it seems like a pretty easy idea to execute. Marus, I can't believe you mentioned the idea of having TVs running superplay videos. That's something I've been wanting to do since day one, and still plan to set up. I wasn't sure if anyone else would think it was cool, so your post was totally encouraging to me!

It's cool to see this thread doing well, and more shmup fans coming out of the woodwork. Hopefully we can all actually meet each other one of these days, since a lot of the play seems to be pretty solitary. I'd love to get some tips from you guys and see some really good players in action!

[EPS21]

It's cool to see this thread doing well, and more shmup fans coming out of the woodwork. Hopefully we can all actually meet each other one of these days, since a lot of the play seems to be pretty solitary. I'd love to get some tips from you guys and see some really good players in action!

I think a shmupmeet is in order... after finals week of course

[KevinDDR]

Does the 27th sound good to anyone?

[marus]

I could probably make the 27th. I'm still not fully sure what my plans for spring break are.

[Vexorg]

As far as lending or selling boards, I could be convinced to go either way on that. I've got a (western style) cab too that isn't getting a whole lot of use right now, but it's definitely in no shape to go out on location at this point, and probably wouldn't be of much use. PM me if you would like to discuss this further.

[marus]

Does the 27th sound good to anyone?

NVM what I said earlier, I'm going to be in Spokane until Sunday.

If this goes down, I hope you all enjoy yourselves!

[bobbyconover]

Hey guys, good news! I bought an Espgaluda II PCB and it should be up and running in the arcade by tonight. Also for those who haven't been in lately, we have started keeping track of high scores as per everyone's suggestions! If you set a high score on a game that doesn't save them, please let whoever is at the counter know so they can write it down.

By the way, does anyone happen to have (or know where I can find) high-res scans of the Espgaluda II marquee, move strips, etc? I've found them for Espgaluda 1 and many other shmups but I haven't been able to track them down for II. I'd love to have some printouts on the cabinet so if anyone can point me towards the art it would be greatly appreciated.

More cool stuff coming soon, including hopefully a high score competition of some sort. I'll keep you all posted!

[marus]

Sounds great! I just got the port a while ago, it's a very easy game to pick up (for 1CC, fuck scoring), with the slowdown mode and all. I'm glad the staff started keeping track of scores now too.

By the way, does anyone happen to have (or know where I can find) high-res scans of the Espgaluda II marquee, move strips, etc?

I seem to recall seeing them on GaijinPunch's site before. Maybe you can ask him?

[seattlexc]

More cool stuff coming soon, including hopefully a high score competition of some sort. I'll keep you all posted!

Sweet, thanks for all your hard work! I'm excited to play Espgaluda II in a nice cab!