Used Arcade Games Buying Guide

“Key Components to Consider When Buying a Used Arcade Games"

At some point in our life we all thought it would be cool to own your favorite arcade game in our home. Without a doubt it would be and as you researched it more you realized that arcade games are expensive. Even an old un-restored Pacman still can cost hundreds and in some cases thousands of dollars. Well before you make that dream come true and you depart with your hard earned cash here are some areas of concern you should consider, keeping your dream from turning into a nightmare! There are three key components that can turn your favorite arcade game into an expensive piece of dead wood sitting in your garage or worst yet a family game room.

Monitors are the "screens" that display your favorite arcade game, also know as the picture tube. From my experience this component causes 75% of the problems/failures in arcade games. This very crucial element causes in my opinion 70% of all the problems/failures when an arcade game doesn't work. It is also one of the most expensive parts to replace but should be considered when buying a used arcade game. If your arcade dream machine is from the 80's the first question you should ask is “is the monitor original?" If it is you should strongly consider two options.

Having a "cap kit" installed or replacing the original monitor with a new monitor. A cap kit simply replaces the old capacitors with new. Often times this brightens the picture and removes "roll over " effects that may appear on the monitor. The repair should cost under $125 and can get some extra hours out of the old monitor. It does not remove or repair "burn-in" that has been permanently burnt into the screen. This doesn't effect the actual game play but when the game is turned off you will still be able to see certain images that have bleed through the game from years of being left on. A classic example of this is often found on Pacman games. When the game is turned off you can see the pacman maze in a hue of dark gray outlined on the picture tube.

Many times the words of the game are also visible once it is turned off and can be very ugly to look at in your home especially if the game has been reconditioned. By replacing the monitor you eliminate all these issues and typically get a one year manufacturers warranty. Don't be fooled by companies offering extended warranties for theses new monitors. If the monitor breaks it usually happen on the day the game is delivered or shortly there after. This usually occurs when something got knocked loose in the shipping process and broke or will short out shortly after it was delivered. After the initial "settling in period" very few problems should occur from the monitor. During this time the manufactures warranty will cover it.

The circuit board in most games is fairly reliable. But if it fails you will need to more than likely sent it back to be repaired. Many game retailers claim to have game tech's all over the country. Don't believe them be more concerned that they have an in house tech that you can sent the board back to and he can fix it for you. Phone tech support is also very important so a qualified game tech can walk you through the process of what to look for and how to remove certain parts to send them back for repair. There is not a lot of preventive measures that can be taken in "bulletproofing" these circuit boards. Often times they are the original game boards and even back when they where new they had problems. Most can be fixed by sometimes they can't and you should ask what the reliability or fix ability is of the boards in the game you are buying.

These items are extremely reliable and should be part of the nominal recondition process for any used arcade game-meaning they should be replaced with new ones. Ask to make sure that these components are replaced with new ones it will save you lots of headaches in the long run. Total cost top replace most of these items is under $125 and should be done on "totally restored" games.

This is very important to understand who it is your buying from. EBay is a large marketplace that has grown in popularity over the years to sell arcade games. Be very careful of this practice. Games are typically sold with "no warranty, expressed or implied" and are not always represented truthfully. You can look at comments and feedback scores but that's only for so long and often doesn't reflect what happens 2-4 months down the road. I know because they call us for help which unfortunate we don't provide to customers who didn't buy their arcade game from us. It sounds mean but we don't have time to assist other customers who want to pick our brain for free and spend their money with someone else.

In recent years many companies have been offering multi-arcades. There are many different versions to choose from these days and all have their good and bad sides. For the home owner its mostly all good. Now you can buy a single new arcade game that has multiple arcade games in it from Ms.Pacman to Donkey Kong to Street Fighter. What I recommend is that you make sure that the game controls are very similar to the original. Nothing is more frustrating than playing your favorite arcade game only to find that the controls are not like you remembered them. If it’s for your children and they are unfamiliar with the controls it's not so bad. For me my favorite was Defender. I have yet to find a multi arcade that played that game as good as the original and therefore i would not want anything but the original. I also appreciate the original game graphics that where on the sides which on the new multi arcades usually consists of a collage of sorts.

Do yourself a favor and before you buy a used arcade game or a new one be prepared to from time to time go in and make repairs. You don't have to be an electrical engineer but you do need to be willing to roll up your sleeves and get dirty with the aide of a good game tech. If you are considering a pinball understand that they require much more general maintenance than video games.