What if there was no MAME or XXX-1 boards?

More Cowbell

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What do you think the values of arcade games would be if there was no MAME or multi boards? I mean, would they be worth double or more? Or would there not be as much interest in the hobby keeping prices low? Would we be just a small group of people toiling away on these ancient machines or would there still be arcades out there in larger numbers? The mind reels! I know MAME is what got me into the dedicated cab hobby so I'm not sure that I would even know about it if not for MAME. Also, higher prices might have kept people out of the hobby altogether. I know if I saw that a Pac-Man machine went for $1,500, I'd give up on an arcade in my basement pretty quick and be playing more X-Box games.
 
Without MAME there would be a lot more cabs in the dump.

I had a Tempest before I heard of MAME, but sold it and bought a pinball machine. The next cab I built was a MAME cab which got me searching the web for all kinds of arcade info. After a while I sold the MAME cab and bought a JAMMA converted Tempest which I restored.

I've un-JAMMAtized and restored 3 Tempests and a Defender cocktail, fixed 2 non working Omega Races as well as buying several more games that I cleaned up and sold to other collectors.

The majority of those cabinets would most likely still be crappy conversions or in the dump if it wasn't for MAME.
 
Well, I can't imagine there would be more interest. Many games have been forgotten even with MAME, let alone without. If anything it's driven the price of cabinets up overall as people want to have a single cabinet in their house that can play all the games they want.
 
That's a question that one can only speculate on. I guess I'm one of the few that got into the hobby before discovering MAME. There would be many more cabinets out there, but I don't know what if any effect that would have on the prices. I'm inclined to agree that many more would have probably been abandoned or trashed.
 
I tend to think the price for games would go up. I mean if you can't play a game any other way but to own the original hardware (not counting home console version) it seems like that would drive prices higher. Without MAME/emulation I can't say I'd be in the hobby either. it's what sparked my initial interest in retro arcade gaming. :)
 
Mame

I think the prices would go up. Especialy the 60-1 games like Ms. Pac and Galaga. The games that are not on the multies seem to hold there value better than the ones that are.
 
I'd still be in the hobby. I still have never used MAME or any of the X-in-1 boards. I think some games would be higher priced (the rarer ones), and people wouldn't be able to test out unknown games and see if they're good or not.
 
Are we including re-releases in the MAME category? Many of the classics are available on just about every platform including web browers. Surely that's had an impact on the prices as well.
 
Are we including re-releases in the MAME category? Many of the classics are available on just about every platform including web browers. Surely that's had an impact on the prices as well.

Good point. If anyone can play Robotron by downloading it on your XBox 360, does that hurt the value of the original stand up game? Likely. I purposely don't buy or play any arcade games on anything other than my arcade cabs or my MAME cab.
 
I wouldn't have a big ugly 4 player mame machine taking up valuable floor space in my game room ;)

Seriously... it got me into this hobby and I think its helped start many collectors in this way.
 
This is an interesting question... I actually discovered MAME while looking for info on Robotron in the late 90's. There is a very good chance I would have bought a Robotron machine had I not been able to play it via MAME.

The other side to this is that I probably would have gotten tired of just playing Robotron and either stopped playing or just sold it. Having the variety of that first MAME cab kept my interest up and also led to the purchase of other dedicated machines.

I'm inclined to think values would be higher for dedicated stuff if there was never emulation, but the hobby is stronger for it due to all the extra exposure emulation brings.
 
I would guess that arcade games would be valued higher. I would also guess that the market for arcade games isn't big enough for it to make much of a difference.

For me, MAME got me back to playing the games of my youth. I also transitioned from MAME into the arcade game restoration hobby, so big thanks to MAME for me!
 
I remember when these boards didn't exist. The price of legit stuff didn't really change much. That could be from a ton of other factors.

I also remember when you would be laughed out of the room for utilizing this stuff in a legit cabinet, let alone creating some bajillion in 1 mame beast.

Times change. Needs must when the devil drives.
 
I wouldn't have a big ugly 4 player mame machine taking up valuable floor space in my game room ;)

Seriously... it got me into this hobby and I think its helped start many collectors in this way.

I never even heard of MAME til joining this site in 2006. It was always a goal of mine to assemble a home arcade. I loved arcade games as a youth, graduated college, got a job, then went looking for a Ms. Pacman machine on eBay for my wife. My next want was an Altered Beast. I just wanted the games I remembered playing when I started collecting. THIS site got me into looking for other games that I had either never played or simply had no knowledge of. I'm not sure where the hobby would be without MAME, but I know it didn't affect me one way or the other. I still don't have it on any of my home or work computers. My question is where would the hobby be without KLOV? I was never on RGVAC, so for me, KLOV has been my soul lifeline to this hobby.
 
My question is where would the hobby be without KLOV? I was never on RGVAC, so for me, KLOV has been my soul lifeline to this hobby.

QFT

I came to KLOV when I bought my first game in oct. 02 and haven't left.
 
I got into the hobby (bought my Demolition Derby) right before I found my first emulator online, which was an emulator for Mr. Do!

I hadn't played Mr. Do! in years, and the emulator didn't have all of the color routines figured out. But, when I saw the attract screen and heard the sound, my immediate reaction was, "This is insanely cool. If they can do Mr. Do!, they can do a lot more..." (I didn't know about the other emulators around at that time.)

I then got JROK's Ms. Pac-Man simulator, which tripped my friends out ("It's just like the arcade") and then Sparcade. I think I must've checked Sparcade updates three times a day for word of them getting Galaga to boot up...

In terms of what MAME has done for this hobby, the countless "Saw this in MAME and now I have to have it" responses speak for themselves.
 
If it wasn't for MAME, I wouldn't be here today...wouldn't own any vids.

Nod. Me as well. I went from mamehead to now dedicated collector. Seems backwards. :D But more satisfying.

I do still like having a mame cab for when someone asks if I have a game that I don't... Because then I do. (As far as they're concerned, anyway) ;)
 
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