Here is a round-up of notable arcade, pinball and retro-gaming developments, including rare 1970s footage, a new Polycade cabinet, an NFL mobile game and several discoveries from arcade history.
A separate Amusement Expo 2022 recap was planned for the following week, including a brief VR showcase, after video production caused a delay.
Rare footage of Sega’s Heavyweight Champ
Working examples of Japanese arcade games from the 1970s can be exceptionally difficult to document. Sega’s Heavyweight Champ, released in 1976, is a particularly elusive example: photographs of surviving cabinets exist, but footage of an operating machine is extraordinarily uncommon.
Archive footage filmed at a Sega arcade in San Diego in 1977 provides a valuable glimpse of the game. The cabinet appears near the beginning of the footage; here’s the one I saw first.
Heavyweight Champ is historically important because it is regarded as the earliest known one-on-one fighting game. Its unusually large, detailed characters also stood apart from the small sprites common during the period.
The game is not available through emulation. Its rarity is one obstacle, while its TTL-chip hardware, rather than a CPU-based design, creates additional technical difficulties for emulation.
Ms. Pac-Man becomes Pac-Mom in Pac-Land
The long-running rights dispute surrounding Ms. Pac-Man involved GCC, the company associated with Crazy Otto and the Ms. Pac-Man hack, and Namco. Those rights remained divided for decades before AtGames purchased GCC’s rights from Steve Golson and retained them.
Namco appears to have addressed its lack of rights to the Ms. Pac-Man character by using Pac-Mom in the Arcade Archives release of Pac-Land. The recent release of Pac-Land to Arcade Archives also changes Pac-Baby to match her appearance in Pac-Man Museum+.
The character changes are unlikely to prompt operators to replace the marquees on existing Ms. Pac-Man cabinets.
The update was highlighted on April 9, 2022.
Noisz Arc*Coda tested in Japan
Noisz Arc*Coda combines shoot-’em-up action with rhythm-game mechanics and was placed on test at Taito Hey in Japan. In an unusual move, the test session was livestreamed, with the available recording running for more than 11 hours. Although you’ll have to click on this link to watch it, the footage offers an extended look at the game.
With more than 40 songs, the title is aimed at fans of both genres and supports vertical-monitor installations on exA-Arcadia hardware. Here’s the game page.
Polycade introduces the PolyRetro
Polycade showed its PolyRetro cabinet at the NAMA Show in Chicago. The stated price was $2,999, and the cabinet could be configured for free-to-play or paid play.
Payment options included coins, credit and debit cards, plus Apple Pay and Google Pay. Polycade’s commercial game library uses licences for arcade operation, while the games themselves remain unmodified versions of their Steam counterparts.
For Australian home operators considering cabinet formats, RETROCADE’s arcade machine buying guide covers the practical decisions involved in choosing a machine.
Raw Thrills launches NFL QB Shootout
Raw Thrills and Play Mechanix have expanded into mobile gaming with NFL QB Shootout, an NFL-licensed competitive title created with Skillz. The partnership follows Big Buck Hunter Marksman.
The new game is separate from the Tecmo Bowl arcade project that Raw Thrills had also been developing. Players can compete as their favourite NFL team, challenge opponents worldwide and play for cash prizes. The game was promoted as a free download.
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The announcement was posted on April 7, 2022.
Homepin prepares This Is Spinal Tap pinball
Homepin, a pinball manufacturer that began in Australia and is now based in Taiwan, was preparing its second machine. Following Thunderbirds, the company’s next title is This Is Spinal Tap, based on the mockumentary film.
Production photographs had been shared through their Factory Facebook page, while details have also been shared on a thread on Pinside. The images were prototypes rather than final production material, so the design could still change. Shipping was scheduled to begin in May.
The project’s official website provides further information about the theme.
Pump It Up XX receives a long-awaited update
After an extended period without new songs, Pump It Up XX was set to receive another update. A teaser released on April Fools’ Day was confirmed as genuine, bringing relief to the game’s fan community.
The House of the Dead remake arrives
The House of the Dead Remake launched in both digital and physical formats. A direct comparison with the original arcade machine was not available here, although other players had already captured and compared the remake.
Related footage includes comparisons with the original game, a Scarlet Dawn playthrough and a full-game capture of The Walking Dead.
Freddy Flames unearthed from arcade history
A newly documented unreleased game from Century Electronics was called Freddy Flames. The player controlled a firefighter tackling flames around a house, with the available description and photograph suggesting similarities to Donkey Kong and Popeye.
The game reportedly performed adequately during testing but did not become a major success. Century Electronics closed soon afterwards. Check out the full spread, here.
ROCO continues the Finger Coaster concept
Finger Coaster was a VR motion simulator in which players designed a roller-coaster track on a touchscreen before riding it in virtual reality. The concept appeared at several IAAPA events, although the company behind it was uncertain.
ROCO presents a similar idea without VR headsets. Removing the headsets may be beneficial, since combining motion platforms and VR can be uncomfortable for some players.
More arcade and pinball headlines
- I Wish Modern Arcade Tradeshows Did Fun Things Like This — a Mortal Kombat 3-related item.
- A Prototype (Or Super Obscure) Game By Konami For The Famicom Is Up For Auction.
- The Original Proof Of The Amazing Artwork For Namco’s Dragon Buster Arcade Game.
- An Interview With Shigeki Toyama About His Time At Namco, with extensive arcade-history material.
- An Elden Ring Arcade Fighting Game In The Style Of Tekken? Yes Please — a fan-made mod.
- KISS Gets ColorDMD Support.
- Gottlieb’s KRULL Is Being Made For The Atari 7800, alongside the developing Popeye 7800 port.
- So Far It Is Looking Like The Sonic The Hedgehog 2 Movie Is A Hit.
- Namco’s New Logo Finally Rolls Out, including for its arcade division.
For more news and restoration coverage, visit the RETROCADE Arcade Blog or explore virtual pinball machines for a home setup.
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