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Birth of a Collector 1988:
I was a freshman at Clemson University While wandering around
the campus, not really wanting to go back to my room, I found the "Student
Union", an activity center which had table tennis, billiards, pinball,
and... video games. I don't recall all the games there, but they did have
a Road Runner, a Bubble Bobble, and a Gauntlet II. I was very happy to
find the Gauntlet II, as I had played the heck out of both it and Gauntlet while
a teenager back home in Ohio. I thought I was pretty good at it,
too. After all, my buddies and I could get to level 100 using only one
$5.00 special from Aladdin's Castle.
I walked up to the machine, and thought I'd
watch the guy playing and see if he was any good. Soon after my arrival,
the Yellow Elf died, and only on level 26. I was surprised he didn't drop
in another quarter and continue playing, but didn't say anything. He
started another game, and I was soon dumbfounded to learn this guy was playing
for 20+ levels on ONE credit! Amazing! I hadn't thought it
possible! Over the next few months, he and I struck up a friendship, and
we both were soon able to typically clear over 50 levels on a single
quarter. He and I developed a friendly rivalry, the record changing hands
almost daily. He was the first to break the 100 level barrier, which he
did soon after our discovery of how to get the 200 health foods. It was I
who ended up with the record, when I determined the game began reducing the food
on each level based on your score. It was actually beneficial to keep your
score as low as possible to survive longer. Simply setting the death value
to 1000, rather than 8000 was enough to get me to level 157, which is still my
personal best. 1990:
Some other friends and I were renting a house off campus, and started
reminiscing about the "Great Gauntlet Rivalry". One of them who
had not been present during my record-setting game refused to believe it could
be done. The Gauntlet in the student center was long gone, of course,
replaced by some silly Jamma game. We drove around to various arcades,
looking for a Gauntlet so I could prove my abilities. None of them had
one, since this was 1990, and Gauntlets had all been converted into Super
Volleyball or Crime Fighters. The Putt-Putt in Greenville did have a
Sinistar, and I was happy to play it, since we were there. I noticed it
had a sticker on it: "FOR SALE
- $150", and inspiration
struck: "I'll just BUY a Gauntlet II", I thought!
When we returned to the house, I pulled out the Yellow
Pages, and started looking for the phone numbers to arcades. After a few
calls, I learned I needed to call the people on the other side, the
distributors. Looking back, I realize how incredibly lucky I was.
The third place I called said "Yeah, we have a Gauntlet in the back, but
it's a Gauntlet I, not a II". Probably drooling at this time, I asked
the guy how much it was, and was shocked to hear $400! I was expecting it
to be in the $150 range of the Sinistar, but hardly hesitated before saying
"I'll take it!"
After my friends and I learned the levels, we found that
Gauntlet is a pretty easy game. There are no dragons, and no acid puddles,
so most levels are pretty easy to clear. The group of us decided one day to
see how far we could get on a single quarter. I started us off that
afternoon, and played for about 6 hours, during which I had built the Elf's
health up considerably. One of my friends took over, and played until late
that night. By this time, we had so much health we could just park the elf
in a corner (after clearing all the monsters on that level) and go to
sleep. We'd wake up the next morning, and he'd still be sitting there,
although 20,000 or so health points leaner. One health point ticks off per
second, assuming you aren't being hit by a monster, so 3600 heath was worth an
hour's sleep to us. After 4 days, we finally reached level 999.
There was much speculation about what would happen after exiting this level, and
none of us guessed correctly. It takes you back to level 8, and you begin
again. 1997: I move back to
Ohio from South Carolina, and bring my Gauntlet with me. Unfortunately, I
don't have room for it in my apartment, so I leave it at my parent's house, in
the garage.
1998:
My future wife and I move into a duplex, and there's room for my Gauntlet!
Yay! I drive down to my parents' house to pick it up, and am floored with
what I hear from my mother: "Sorry, Morgan, I sold that at a flea market
for $50" She did feel bad about it, and she did replace it with
another Gauntlet, although it isn't quite as nice as the first one I had.
Soon thereafter, I start attending auctions, and acquire a few more games, and a
few more, and a few more. 2002: I
now have around 40 games, which is about 5
more than will fit in my basement, (and 15 more than the wife wants me to have). Spatial relations apparently are not my
strong point. I keep thinking if I re-arrange the games, it will somehow
create more space in my cramped basement. Damn those immutable laws of physics!
You can see my current collection on the VAPS
site;
I try to keep it current. I'm pretty near finished with my
collection. Sure, I'll still grab an oddball game now and then, and yes,
there are a few games I want that I haven't managed to find yet. If you see me at an auction, come over and introduce yourself. I
always enjoy chatting with other collectors. This is me a few years ago,
just PhotoShop in a little grey hair, and it'll be accurate. Why did
my hair go grey, you ask? Pay attention! I told you I got
married! (and no, I don't wear a tuxedo to vid auctions) |
