Rad Arcade/Flickr
Were jean shorts really this cool? No, they were not. What the hell were we thinking?
Rad Arcade/Flickr
If you think the symmetry of these lined up Tempests is beautiful…
Rad Arcade/Flickr
… then check out this action.
Rad Arcade/Flickr
I really like this long shot. The best arcades had a labyrinthine quality. They gave us spaces to ourselves.
Rad Arcade/Flickr
I don’t know where this came from, but I like it, and I can’t wait to find out what the other “rules” are.
Daves Portfolio/Flickr
This is one of the most iconic shots in the lot, taken in East Sussex, England, in 1983. I don’t recognize any of the machines behind Defender.
Rad Arcade/Flickr
Damn it! Rule number 1 is cut off!
Rad Arcade/Flickr
Yay!
Neato Coolville/Flickr
From the first issue of the Disney Channel Magazine in 1983. It’s the Disneyland Starcade! No Discs of Tron sightings—yet.
babyfella2007/Flickr
“Now pimpin’ ain’t easy but it’s necessary, so I’m chasin’ bitches like Tom chased Jerry…”
Phillie Casablanca/Flickr
Battlezone sighting. Admit it, that viewer was really unsanitary.
elcaarchives/Flickr
The half shirt! With the short shorts. And Star Castle, remember that game? It was one of my favorites, and I’d totally forgotten about it until now.
2 Warps to Neptune 
Classic shots indeed. LoL, the short shorts don’t bother me as much as those half-shirts. I’ll admit to wearing those shorts just like everyone else did back in the day (not jean ones, though), but I never dug those half-shirts. If you watch the cult classic Sleepaway Camp (©1983), you’ll see a whole bunch of both—worn by the movie’s bullies!
Dood, Battlezone was awesome. And yup, most of the time those viewers were grimy and totally nasty, with that “face-funk” smell (whatever the heck that’s supposed to mean, but you know what I mean). Same thing with SUBROC…remember that? LoL.
I never had a half shirt, but I remember having a pair of cut-off jean shorts, unfortunately. By the time I got to high school it was all about the pinch roll, and I’ve got a sweet pic of that coming up in the next installment.
I happen to be a B-movie fanatic, so I’ll eventually start doing some movie reviews. Right now I’m watching some really bad/awesome ’80s sword and sorcery flicks. Needless to say, I love the Friday the 13th knock-offs as well…