Tuesday afternoon at the arcade (photos)
by ZDNet Author | February 11, 2012 10:00am PST | Image 1 of 26
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SANTA MONICA, Calif.--The giant gaming machines of the Pac-Man era were pushed aside long ago by home consoles. And now smartphone games like Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja (not to mention ports of classics like Pac-Man itself) may be threatening to drive the arcade as a whole into oblivion.
But vintage machines are still in use, and the pleasure palace known as the arcade can still be found. We happened on one recently at the Santa Monica Pier in Southern California: "Playland" opened in 1954 and is still run by the same family.
Of course, Playland predates "video games" like Pac-Man by nearly three decades, with its offerings suggesting even the shooting galleries and carnival games of the 19th century and beyond. Indeed, the place feels like a living museum of sorts, a curio shop of pop culture, a last resting place for the all-but-forgotten recreational rituals of yesteryear.
The video game definitely made a place for itself here, so let's start with that and then move farther afield. We'll grab some quarters and drop them into that slot there on the time machine (we'll be sure to save a few coins so we can get ourselves back)...
But vintage machines are still in use, and the pleasure palace known as the arcade can still be found. We happened on one recently at the Santa Monica Pier in Southern California: "Playland" opened in 1954 and is still run by the same family.
Of course, Playland predates "video games" like Pac-Man by nearly three decades, with its offerings suggesting even the shooting galleries and carnival games of the 19th century and beyond. Indeed, the place feels like a living museum of sorts, a curio shop of pop culture, a last resting place for the all-but-forgotten recreational rituals of yesteryear.
The video game definitely made a place for itself here, so let's start with that and then move farther afield. We'll grab some quarters and drop them into that slot there on the time machine (we'll be sure to save a few coins so we can get ourselves back)...
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