Earlier this year we caught wind of the new Midway Arcade Cabinet to be featured and sold in Target Stores Nationwide. The unit is pictured on their website for pre-order still at $499. However, in stores it’s listed at only $449. I’m not sure which is accurate but for $50 less get it at the store! Anyway, today at lunch…

First Glance
The machine looks very nice. It is a nice black lacquer finish colorfully plastered with the logos from the 12 Midway games that are contained within. It has a small 14″ monitor at the center with a plexiglass window protecting it. The cabinet is cabaret sized. In ‘video game speak’ it is smaller than the standard upright. Often ‘cabaret’ versions of arcade games were used when bars or arcades could not fit the full sized units inside–perfect for the average home! The games?…

Joust

Defender I and II

Robotron

Rampage

Splat

Satan’s Hollow

Root Beer Tapper

Bubbles

Wizard of Wor

Timber

and the cult favorite: Sinistar

(See klov.com for game descriptions)

Controls
The controls are pretty nice. The controls consist of 2 joysticks. Each joystick is accompanied by 6 buttons to control the various games. The joysticks are sturdy and look authentic but lack the substance that the originals had. They are identical to those found on the TV Games that Namco and others have already put out. However, they feel pretty darn good in comparison to many of the TV Games versions. Just having them mounted in a real cabinet is a start. The buttons are a standard arcade button and the player one and two buttons are much smaller–not unlike many 80s arcade games, actually. There is also a reset button in case you get tired of the game you’re on.

Game Play and Navigation
A friend of mine recently visited a Target store with his family. His daughter tried the machine out on Defender. He said that she seemed to be enjoying it! Rightfully so! These games have a timeless quality. Their simplicity makes it a quick fix for your video game needs while still providing a challenge. This cabinet [by Big Electronic Games Ltd] pays special attention to game play. You almost forget you’re playing on a 14″ monitor. The only trick is finding out which buttons to push which is easily done by selecting the game and pulling down on the joystick to see which ones are which. You simply scroll through the games by using the joystick and press the player one or two button. It’s a snap! I was very impressed with the emulator as well–and now a rant that has finally been solved by one of these game companies…

There. *phew* I’ve been meaning to complain about this for some time. EVERY version that has come out for the Playstation or other platforms has neglected to take into account that on these consoles they have TWO analog sticks. The original Robotron 2084 had two joysticks. One for direction and one for firing. This is EXACTLY what this cabinet emulates. It was a real pleasure to play that game again–closer to the way it was meant to be played.

I tried the other games as well. I never much cared for Defender I or II in the arcade. It ate my money too fast. Tapper is of course a real treat but I wish they wouldn’t pair it with its weaker brother: Timber. Bubbles is as cute as ever and fun too. And Wizard of Wor is nicely paired with this cabinet setup. Splat is always a good game–the platform doesn’t matter. Satan’s Hollow has always irritated me as it is generally not that fun, has lame theme music and more importantly–replaced a lot of Tron cabinets as a conversion kit. Rampage was a little difficult and I didn’t figure out how you were supposed to pick your character… but maybe if I get one I will. Interestingly enough, the creme de la creme had to be Sinistar. That game freaked out so many kids! Many of my friends lament the torment they were driven to when they heard the fatal words, “BEWARE! I LIVE!” and “Run coward!” This game is MUCH more playable than it is on any of the handhelds or consoles it was released to–almost worth the price of admission alone.

Pros:

Definitely easier to play then handheld or consoles.

Sturdy Construction–you can beat on it a little more than your console.

A nice conversation piece.

It looks good and has small footprint

12 Classic Games.

Robotron and Sinistar are well emulated.

Navigation is easy.

Price

It’s fun!

good sound–not stellar–but loud enough

Cons:

As with every item at Target, it is sold from a shelf. This add’s 4″ to the 62″ height cabinet. Which, in reality, is about where it should be.

The screen is awfully small.

The screen also showed poorly. I’m hoping that there are contrast/brightness adjustments. This is also a pet-peave of mine. When displaying something to sell, make sure all the doors, dings and whistles work. Who goes to Target or Best Buy to buy a broken entertainment center? The monitor not being setup properly is a problem. Hopefully one that Big Electronic games will notice and tell Target to fix.

A Better Game Selection would be nice. Although this is a good start.

Keep in mind this game is meant to sell at $449 so it’s not going to have everything. I liked it overall. Here are my ratings on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being best:

Looks: 10
Size: 8
Monitor: 4
Game Selection: 8
Playability: 9

Overall: 7.8

Q and A

Some people had more questions about this so I am adding a few of the items here:

Q: so how was it? Isn’t the monitor a little small?
A: Yeah, it’s too small!But you forget about it when you’re playing so…

Q: Would a a 17 or 18″ LCD replace it and would it fit?
A: Oh yeah. It’s a 22″ wide cabinet. keep in mind you can’t have a verticle monitor mounted in it though. Too heavy. The cabinet is not that sturdy.

Q: Hmm, I am thinking that is a cheap price for a cabinet. Can it be modified for MAME?
A: The cabinet will NOT hold a standard 19″ monitor. It is too cheaply made. An LCD is about the best you’ll be able to do.

Q: Can I use it with MAME?
A: It states it has video inputs to add other systems–so I don’t see why not?

Q: That’s really cool. Any word as to when the tabletop version will come out?
A: Nope. The table top will be more like the Jamma era Neo Geo style though. Not Cocktail.

Here is a URL to the NEO GEO style.