Midwest Gaming Classic 2012

Alright, time for my annual Midwest Gaming Classic recap. This is either the 8th or 9th one I've done, I guess it's a good time to stop counting. As usual I'm going to try to post photos of things I haven't posted before. However there might be a couple images that are eerily similar to previous years.

Also as usual this was another great show. There were a lot of little small themed areas that focused on a particular system or game series. The vendor area now expanded down into the basement and there were tons of cool items and great deals available. Each year they find a new way to expand the show and this was no exception.

Here's where I usually put a disclaimer about my cheap camera. I bought a much better camera recently but I still suck at taking photos. Plus many of the exhibit rooms are really dark to create an authenticate 80s arcade atmosphere. So these photos are far from professional but still provide a glimpse at what the Midwest Gaming Classic has to offer.


Vendors

Vendors - 3DO and 32X games

I'll start this little recap in the vendor hall since it's always the first place I visit. It seemed like this year there were more 3DO and 32X games than previous years. Strangely it was roughly the same 5-6 titles at each location. I assume they're the ones that every collector of those systems already has.


Vendors - 32X games

Here are more of the 32X games I mentioned. Hey, look at that - Zaxxon's Motherbase 2000 - I need that game, why didn't I buy it? Oh well, hopefully someone will have it next year. Also in the back of my mind I just know I'll stumble across some huge collection of 32X games at a garage sale eventually.


Vendors - Jaguar games

I also noticed more Jaguar games than usual but they were also the same 3-5 games everywhere. I swear every vendor was selling a boxed copy of Checkered Flag. I probably should have bought one because even though it's awful it was cheap. That kind of thinking will get me on Hoarders one day.


Vendors - Random assortment of games

Here's a picture of random games because I've come to learn that people like pictures of random games.


Vendors - Mostly Saturn games

Here are some Saturn games to give you an idea of what they go for there. These were some of the cheaper ones there. Although I own an assortment of Saturn games it's not a system I'm trying to collect. The incredibly flimsy boxes make games in good condition rare and many of its best games are available on PlayStation. The few exclusive titles that are worth getting are usually pricey.


Vendors - Various games for Sega consoles

Hey it's a bunch of games for different Sega systems. I think I used a picture like this before so there's not much to say I guess.


Vendors - Atari 2600 games

As usual boxed Atari 2600 were plentiful and cheap.


Vendors - Cheap Atari 2600 games

Here are some even cheaper ones, these specific games are also regular items.


Vendors - Boxed MSX

Here's something I haven't noticed for sale before - a boxed MSX. Unfortunately I know very little about this computer other than many Japanese NES and Genesis games began their life on it.


Vendors - Boxed Sega Mark III

A boxed Sega Mark III was another item I never noticed a vendor selling before.


Vendors - Boxed Wondermega

And one more cool boxed system - the Sega Genesis+CD combo Wondermega. This would be a nice system to own, either it or the CDX. This one also does karaoke though so maybe the CDX is a better choice...


Vendors - Boxed Telstar Arcade

I'm not sure what "rebuilt" meant but if it's complete and working that's not a terrible deal at all. All you need is a vintage black & white TV from the 1970s to complete the experience.


Vendors - Virtual Boy AC adapter

I could swear the Virtual Boy came with an AC adapter, I guess that wouldn't stop Nintendo from selling a replacement one though. Unclear whether this was going for $40 or $19.95.


Vendors - Zapper

You don't see a boxed Zapper often. Once the orange model became a pack-in I think standalone sales must have evaporated.


Vendors - Boxed NES games

Some boxed NES games - there were a lot this year this is just what one vendor had.


Vendors - Cheap GBA games

There were a couple vendors dumping Game Boy Advance games really cheap. With the newer DS variants dropping support for the GBA this is a good time to stock-up on games.


Vendors - Cheap N64 games

I think the market for N64 games has pretty much bottomed-out. There were a handful of bins like this to be found.


Vendors - Naomi

I did zero research but if I understand correctly this is an arcade board that is very similar to the Dreamcast.


Vendors - Neo Geo

Here's a sit-down Neo Geo machine like you'd find in a Japanese arcade. I just now noticed that it includes some kind of pirate cartridge. I understand it's the policy of the MGC to not allow pirate game sales so somebody slipped one by.


Vendors - Sega Saturn in portable case

I don't know, doesn't look very portable to me.


Vendors - Odyssey2

If it works that's not a bad deal, I think I saw someone walking around with this a few minutes later.


Vendors - Songbird games

The fine folks at Songbird Games had their Jaguar, Lynx, and DS games available for sale.


Vendors - Skunk board for Atari Jaguar

If you want to get in on the lucrative world of Atari Jaguar development then you'll need one of these bad boys.


Vendors - Dollar box

Looks like somebody bought out a rental store that was going out of business.


Vendors - Star Wars sheets

One new trend I spotted this year was Star Wars merchandise. I wanna say 2-3 tables were selling vintage Star Wars items. Yes, that's GTA: San Andreas wrapping paper next to it.


Vendors - Star Wars stuff

Here's some more old Star Wars stuff, most of it in great condition.


Vendors - Zangief figure

I just realized I should have bought a complete set of Street Fighter GI Joe figures when then were like $5 a piece.


Vendors - Cheetahmen 2

For some reason the developers of Cheetahmen 2 had a table going to promote their game. They seemed especially proud of their creation, or perhaps like the star of Troll 2 they were taking pride in its infamy.



Exhibits

Exhibits - N64 Drive

Alright, on to the exhibits... first stop was the Ben Heck room which had some N64 project going. I forgot what it was until I looked at this picture again, it was an N64 with VGA out.


Exhibits - Atari 5200 30th Anniversary

A little display to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Atari 5200. Try to not feel old.


Exhibits - ColecoVision

I still need to buy a ColecoVision, don't know why I've been putting it off for so long.


Exhibits - Ms Pac Man on an old Compaq

For some reason I thought this green screen version of Ms Pac Man looked awesome. I wish Windows 7 or Ubuntu included a green screen mode.


Exhibits - MSX2

I'm not sure what to make of this setup.


Exhibits - Radio Shack system

RadioShack apparently made a 1st generation system. I guess that's not too surprising. What's really surprising is how they manage to stay in business.


Exhibits - Nuon with Tempest 3000

Every year I look forward to trying an obscure system I never played before. This year it was the short-lived Nuon running Tempest 3000. Pardon the fuzziness in this photo, for whatever reason I couldn't get a clear shot of this.


Exhibits - Super A'Can

The Super A'Can is a Taiwanese system that's roughly equivalent to a Sega Genesis. This was the first time I played one, it was not bad at all.


Exhibits - Guardian Heroes

They had a section dedicated to multi-player gaming with a number of four player games. First up, Guardian Heroes on the Saturn.


Exhibits - Gauntlet 4

Gauntlet 4 is really just the original Gauntlet. I don't know this for a fact but suspect the "4" was added to trick people. Whatever the case, it's a good version of the game.


Exhibits - Sunset Riders

Sunset Riders was a fun arcade game with accurate ports on the Genesis and Super Nintendo.


Exhibits - Cable madness

In case you're curious what it takes to hook-up an old computer to a VGA monitor, here's a picture to give you an idea.


Exhibits - Pac Man table

I assume there was some kind of exhibit on this table later. The tablecloth itself was pretty sweet though.


Exhibits - Sinclair movie player

I had something like this on my Amiga 500. Back in the day it was amazing and is still impressive now.


Exhibits - Eye of the Beholder for Atari Lynx

As far as I know, Eye of the Beholder for the Lynx was only a prototype. I'd be curious to learn the whole story behind it sometime.


Exhibits - Loopz for Atari Lynx

Every year they do a really nice Lynx exhibit with several playable units and just about any game you can think of. This was one of the few non-playable things.


Exhibits - Lynx Reloaded

This wasn't playable either but that's cool because they had a ton of other games to try. It's always amazing to me how much dedication people put into developing Lynx games. I'd like to develop for an old system myself but don't have the patience.


Exhibits - Food Fight

Food Fight is one of my favorite arcade games, maybe because it's really easy. I played through about a dozen rounds on this machine here.


Exhibits - Travel Time pinball

There were a few old pinball games that were cool to try. This one runs on a timer instead of a fixed number of balls. It's an idea that would have worked in newer games too, I don't know pinball well enough to say whether anyone tried this idea later.


Exhibits - Friendship 7 pinball

The older pinball games are extremely unforgiving compared to ones in the 70s and beyond. The flippers are short and there's a huge gap between them. This was one of the more difficult machines there.


Exhibits - Greyhound pinball

For whatever reason my daughter got completely hooked on this game and played it for over an hour (across several visits to the arcade room). It looks like it was built in somebody's garage and from what I can find on the internets that appears to be the case.


Exhibits - Mego 2-XL

This is a semi-educational system that uses 8-track tapes - the 70s version of Teddy Ruxbin maybe.



Stuff I Bought

Space Harrier for 32X

Alright so let's wrap up with a gallery of the stuff I bought. This year I went in looking for about 20 specific titles and came away with a few of them.

One vendor was selling two sealed copies of Space Harrier for the 32X for only $20 each. I've seen people ask $200 on eBay, don't know what they actually got. In hindsight maybe I should have bought both and tried to sell the other. I was a little skeptical that they might have been re-wraps but the one I bought was totally new. Yes, I opened it and played it the second I got home. I've been waiting 16 years to try this game because it was scarce when it was new.


King's Quest V for NES

I had a copy of King's Quest V for the NES in the 90s but traded it in like an idiot. I was very happy to find a copy for $8. I wonder if I can still beat it without having to read a FAQ...


Legend of Xanadu for PC Engine CD

Even though I can't read Japanese I'm still determined to buy all the Falcom games. Maybe someone did a translation patch for this one, if not I'll still enjoy the soundtrack.


Escape from Monster Manor for 3DO

My 3DO wishlist is very short, it's Escape from Monster Manor and maybe Night Trap. $18 wasn't a bad deal especially because this copy was in near perfect condition.


Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story for Atari Jaguar

My Atari Jaguar wishlist is even shorter - this is it. This is a really fun and under-appreciated game. Easily the best fighting game on the Jaguar but I guess that's a pretty low bar.


WWF Raw for 32X

This game represents the absolute worst era in the history of the WWF. It is no surprise that WCW managed to steal their best talent and (briefly) squash them just a few months later. Yet it's a 32X wrestling game so I had to have it.


Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

This was an impulse buy. I played Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? on the Apple II a million years ago. Although the series is meant for kids it's still one I enjoy.


So I guess that's the 2012 Midwest Gaming Classic. I hope to meet some of you there next year or whatever year you're reading this in.



Related