ARCADE

a film by Kurt Vincent and Irene Chin

Last Friday I was a part of a panel discussion about arcades at NY Comic Con.  It was an amazing time.  Somehow, at 11 am on a Friday, we filled the room with people eager to hear a talk about arcades.  Leaves me feeling hopeful that the movie will receive a lot of attention when it is finished!  The panel was moderated by Tal Blevins who has been at IGN since the early days, 13 years and counting!  He was the perfect host.  Seth Killian was there providing an incredibly unique perspective (As far as I can tell he has one of the coolest jobs in the world).  Jamin Warren was beyond articulate, as always.  And let me state this here: In 20 years, Kill Screen will be the Rolling Stone of video games.   The Harlem Hero, Norman Burgess, was there waxing poetic about Chinatown Fair. And the star of the panel, Henry Cen, “Golden Cen” aka 50 Cen, was wonderfully cynical and cracking up the audience with his musings.    

Thank you all for coming and saying hi.  I met some new friends and look forward to continuing this discussion! 

-Kurt

So, as you may or may not know, NYC Comic Con arrives at the Javits center on Thursday, October 13th.  ARCADE is happy to announce that we were selected to host a panel on Friday October 14th at 11 AM to 12 PM.  The panel will be moderated by Tal Blevins and participants will include: Seth Killian, Henry Cen, Norman Burgess, Jamin Warren, and our very own Kurt Vincent.   If you don’t already know who Seth Killian is, he is the face of CAPCOM and a Street Fighter bawse (no literally, the SFIV boss Seth, is named after him).   Henry Cen is a New York City arcade legend and former manager of Chinatown Fair— he has played in every arcade in the city and lived through the golden age and downfall of arcades.  Against all odds, Henry opened up his own Arcade, Next Level, and he will be discussing the role of arcades past, present, and future.   As arcades were dwindling in number, pockets of gamers were gathering in living rooms and basements.  Norman Burgess’s uptown apartment is Harlem Arcade.  Every Friday night, Norman hosts a gaming night with a dedicated group of gamers.  These nights usually end around 7 am Saturday morning.   Gamers Don’t Read.  This is the misconception Jamin Warren is out to dispel with his groundbreaking quarterly, Kill Screen Magazine.  Jamin was an arts and entertainment reporter for the Wall Street Journal, was a columnist for GOOD magazine, and in addition was also a music critic for Pitchfork.  The director of ARCADE, Kurt Vincent will be answering questions about our film.    See more about our Panel, Meet Me at the Arcade: here.

So, as you may or may not know, NYC Comic Con arrives at the Javits center on Thursday, October 13th.  ARCADE is happy to announce that we were selected to host a panel on Friday October 14th at 11 AM to 12 PM.  The panel will be moderated by Tal Blevins and participants will include: Seth Killian, Henry Cen, Norman Burgess, Jamin Warren, and our very own Kurt Vincent.  

If you don’t already know who Seth Killian is, he is the face of CAPCOM and a Street Fighter bawse (no literally, the SFIV boss Seth, is named after him).  

Henry Cen is a New York City arcade legend and former manager of Chinatown Fair— he has played in every arcade in the city and lived through the golden age and downfall of arcades.  Against all odds, Henry opened up his own Arcade, Next Level, and he will be discussing the role of arcades past, present, and future.  

As arcades were dwindling in number, pockets of gamers were gathering in living rooms and basements.  Norman Burgess’s uptown apartment is Harlem Arcade.  Every Friday night, Norman hosts a gaming night with a dedicated group of gamers.  These nights usually end around 7 am Saturday morning.  

Gamers Don’t Read.  This is the misconception Jamin Warren is out to dispel with his groundbreaking quarterly, Kill Screen Magazine.  Jamin was an arts and entertainment reporter for the Wall Street Journal, was a columnist for GOOD magazine, and in addition was also a music critic for Pitchfork.  The director of ARCADE, Kurt Vincent will be answering questions about our film.   

See more about our Panel, Meet Me at the Arcade: here.

My first visit to Next Level was originally for work rather than play. I went to help document a 3rd Strike tournament, but ended up being completely entranced by its siren-song of gaming. The venue itself lies just off the D train, tucked away amongst residential houses and small shops. The neighborhood is pleasantly quiet, although compared to Chinatown, pretty much everything seems quiet. I enjoyed a shoulder-check-free walk through the neighborhood and upon entering Next Level I was immediately greeted with sweet, glorious, air-conditioning.  For those unfamiliar, Chinatown Fair did not have air-conditioning, and believe you me, that place got hot in the summer. I was greeted by a helpful staff member (he said his name was Kuma, sick) who explained how the arcade worked, which was great, because I’ve never been to an arcade that worked like Next Level (which is not at all a bad thing). I worked my way through the Arcade Edition machines and sat down next to a guy playing Marvel vs. Capcom 3. I pulled out my trusty Hori stick, and instantly remembered why I love arcades so much: I felt that nervousness that you don’t get playing online, or with your friends.  That pit in your stomach, your heart-rate eclipsing that of a mid-jump skydiver who also happened to be on fire and taped to a bear, feeling the need to beseech the Marvel gods so they might be kind in your upcoming match. The match starts, and I immediately went into autopilot. I started strong, hit my combos, got my DHC’s, and ended up winning pretty decisively. And then, I was totally fine. No more nerves, just Marvel. I ended up putting a 30-winstreak on that station, and had other people challenging me left and right. I played some other games, played some money matches, and before I knew it, just like CF, it was 5 hours later and dark outside. As I left, I was greeted by a familiar sight: people hanging out outside, smoking cigarettes, laughing, and talking about games, just like CF. And walking away, I felt that sting of community, and couldn’t wait to go back, just like CF. -Reed

My first visit to Next Level was originally for work rather than play. I went to help document a 3rd Strike tournament, but ended up being completely entranced by its siren-song of gaming. The venue itself lies just off the D train, tucked away amongst residential houses and small shops. The neighborhood is pleasantly quiet, although compared to Chinatown, pretty much everything seems quiet. I enjoyed a shoulder-check-free walk through the neighborhood and upon entering Next Level I was immediately greeted with sweet, glorious, air-conditioning.  For those unfamiliar, Chinatown Fair did not have air-conditioning, and believe you me, that place got hot in the summer.

I was greeted by a helpful staff member (he said his name was Kuma, sick) who explained how the arcade worked, which was great, because I’ve never been to an arcade that worked like Next Level (which is not at all a bad thing). I worked my way through the Arcade Edition machines and sat down next to a guy playing Marvel vs. Capcom 3. I pulled out my trusty Hori stick, and instantly remembered why I love arcades so much: I felt that nervousness that you don’t get playing online, or with your friends.  That pit in your stomach, your heart-rate eclipsing that of a mid-jump skydiver who also happened to be on fire and taped to a bear, feeling the need to beseech the Marvel gods so they might be kind in your upcoming match. The match starts, and I immediately went into autopilot. I started strong, hit my combos, got my DHC’s, and ended up winning pretty decisively. And then, I was totally fine. No more nerves, just Marvel. I ended up putting a 30-winstreak on that station, and had other people challenging me left and right. I played some other games, played some money matches, and before I knew it, just like CF, it was 5 hours later and dark outside. As I left, I was greeted by a familiar sight: people hanging out outside, smoking cigarettes, laughing, and talking about games, just like CF. And walking away, I felt that sting of community, and couldn’t wait to go back, just like CF.

-Reed

Since launching the Kickstarter project, the first thing I do in the morning, even before I brew my customary pot of coffee, I check the Kickstarter status. When Kickstarter.com loaded up today I was pleasantly surprised to see the Arcade project right there on the front page as the selected documentary feature. What a way to start my Monday. It is a strange experience receiving such amazing support from the Kickstarter people. People I have never even met. Not even digitally! At some point I want to thank them for all the help and making this opportunity a reality. I think Irene and I will bake some Pac-Man cookies and bring them by the office. Please keep spreading the word about the project. We are almost at 50% of our funding goal and just broke 100 backers! Over the weekend we met with Henry Cen from Next Level, Pat C, and Suesan from Xcubicle to discuss the Kickstarter backers party at Next Level. If you have donated to the project you are invited to the party at the new arcade in Brooklyn. Free drinks, video games, and music. Plus, I will be showing some footage from the movie. We have a date set for May 25th, so mark your calendars! Like our Facebook page to stay updated. -K

Since launching the Kickstarter project, the first thing I do in the morning, even before I brew my customary pot of coffee, I check the Kickstarter status. When Kickstarter.com loaded up today I was pleasantly surprised to see the Arcade project right there on the front page as the selected documentary feature. What a way to start my Monday.

It is a strange experience receiving such amazing support from the Kickstarter people. People I have never even met. Not even digitally! At some point I want to thank them for all the help and making this opportunity a reality. I think Irene and I will bake some Pac-Man cookies and bring them by the office.

Please keep spreading the word about the project. We are almost at 50% of our funding goal and just broke 100 backers! Over the weekend we met with Henry Cen from Next Level, Pat C, and Suesan from Xcubicle to discuss the Kickstarter backers party at Next Level. If you have donated to the project you are invited to the party at the new arcade in Brooklyn. Free drinks, video games, and music. Plus, I will be showing some footage from the movie. We have a date set for May 25th, so mark your calendars!

Like our Facebook page to stay updated.

-K