Who here was a teenager in the 80's?

I feel privileged to have experienced the Golden Age - the games, the arcades, and later all the auctions of those games from those arcades. :)
Similarly, though the home consoles severely affected the arcades, I also appreciate being able to play all those cartridge games on the 2600 and ColecoVision etc.
It truly was a magical time to be a kid (or teenager). Oh, and the music. 80's music rocks.
The 2600 - not so much.

Nintendo - Now You're Playing With POWER - to a large extent.

Better graphics.

Better controls.

Yes, that console and it's successors was the beginning of the eventual end.
 
I feel privileged to have experienced the Golden Age - the games, the arcades, and later all the auctions of those games from those arcades. :)
Similarly, though the home consoles severely affected the arcades, I also appreciate being able to play all those cartridge games on the 2600 and ColecoVision etc.
It truly was a magical time to be a kid (or teenager). Oh, and the music. 80's music rocks.
I missed the auctions somehow. Kids I suspect played a role in that, and blissful unawareness that I could buy the games I loved.

Now I get it. And pay more, but I don't care.
 
1972 here so I fit the demo. My dad was an electronic engineer so we had pretty much every home computer from the Trs-80 Model I forward. I spent a lot of summers at a beach resort and hated the beach so… arcades.

Also loved my 2600 but I think my Sega Master System will always be my fav home system.
 
'69
Yeah, great era, great memories. I was 12 and remember my dad stopping at a 7-Eleven on the way to Miami where I played my first arcade machine, which was a widebody Mario Bros. I was just so fascinated by these moving graphics on the screen. The hotel in north Miami Beach (Heatwood) had a Ms. Pac-man, a Kangaroo, a Donkey Kong Jr. and a Galaga cocktail. Of course I was a dumb dumb as I spent all my time in the hotel lobby/arcade instead of on the beach looking at cute women in their tiny '80s bikinis.
Nothing beats the '80s analogue synthesizer sounds of that music era, so hard to beat!
 
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I always say that being born in 66 was the best time because I got to see electronics go from nothing,through digital watches and calculators up to what we have now.

It's vary rare that an explosion of tech happens.

Think about people who lived though an age where nothing much changes and although it was a great time to live through I'm now spoiled because I miss the ever changing field of electronics where we got new games and tech practically every month for nearly two decades.
 
born 1970 in NYC.
grew up as a kid in a single parent home on food stamps.
around 12-14 i used to swipe a 5 from my mother's drawer, go buy a 25 cent bag of chips to get 3 quarters back. rinse and repeat until I had 15 quarters.
every few days walk a mile (thinking about it now it felt like 10 miles) to the huge arcade (Adventurer's Inn) with an abandoned amusement part attached to it and blow it all. Then do it again next week unless I picked up some odd job or something, then i went back sooner.

By 17 I quit high school and joined the army to stay out of jail or worse. Flushing Queens was pretty crazy in the 80s.

Wish there were pics of the arcade... they had SO many games.

 
I am in a forum of kids. Laughs.
1980 high-school grad. 1981-2 had a full time job as a machinist and went to college. So i enjoy the 80's arcade machine but completely missed the drivers, shooter and the fighters. The discovery of woman ate up my finances and time but it was worth it.
IMG_4915.jpeg
 
1972 here so I fit the demo. My dad was an electronic engineer so we had pretty much every home computer from the Trs-80 Model I forward. I spent a lot of summers at a beach resort and hated the beach so… arcades.

Also loved my 2600 but I think my Sega Master System will always be my fav home system.
Lucky!
 
barely a teen in the 80's born is 64. went from high school to college as a I had earned scholarship, grants, and awards to go you University of san francsico for free. If I did not have that, I am sure I would have gotten a job at atari. my brother worked there for a bit on the loading docks.

you want to talk about inflation, when I went to usf, it was $125 a unit. when I graduated, I think it was $280. today its $2135 a unit at usf. today USF's tuition is a few thousand less than stanford..
 
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born in 1965 . what started it for me was Sam's Town. I wish there where more photo of this place on the internet. Hwy 50 going to tahoe. All 70s stuff, that is where i fell in love with atari drivers. In highschool it was a great arcade in concord. We even had two arcades in little town of crockett. Vallejo had arcades as well. Finding a unknown arcade in the 80s was amazing. chucky cheese in pinole was great too in the 80s. My buddy worked there. back then they just replace parts on machines. My friend has great stories about working there.
 
Most of my teen memories involved arcades.
It was definitely an obsession of mine to try and find money in coin returns or on the ground. The best is when I'd find a bunch of change in a payphone!
 
turned 13 summer of '81... :whistle:

TW LW TITLE Artist (Label)-Weeks on Chart (Peak Position)

1 1 JESSIE'S GIRL –•– Rick Springfield (RCA)-20 (2 weeks at #1) (1)
2 14 ENDLESS LOVE –•– Diana Ross and Lionel Richie (Motown)-5 (2)
3 3 THEME FROM "GREATEST AMERICAN HERO" (Believe It Or Not) –•– Joey Scarbury (Elektra)-14 (3)
4 4 I DON'T NEED YOU –•– Kenny Rogers (Liberty)-9 (4)
5 5 ELVIRA –•– The Oak Ridge Boys (MCA)-13 (5)
6 6 SLOW HAND –•– The Pointer Sisters (Planet)-11 (6)
7 8 BOY FROM NEW YORK CITY –•– The Manhattan Transfer (Atlantic)-12 (7)
8 9 HEARTS –•– Marty Balin (EMI-America)-12 (8)
9 10 QUEEN OF HEARTS –•– Juice Newton (Capitol)-11 (9)
10 2 THE ONE THAT YOU LOVE –•– Air Supply (Arista)-13 (1)

11 13 (There's) NO GETTIN' OVER ME –•– Ronnie Milsap (RCA)-7 (11)
12 7 BETTE DAVIS EYES –•– Kim Carnes (EMI-America)-20 (1)
13 11 YOU MAKE MY DREAMS –•– Daryl Hall and John Oates (RCA)-15 (5)
14 17 LADY (You Bring Me Up) –•– The Commodores (Motown)-8 (14)
15 15 TIME –•– The Alan Parsons Project (Arista)-17 (15)
16 16 TOUCH ME WHEN WE'RE DANCING –•– The Carpenters (A&M)-8 (16)
17 20 IT'S NOW OR NEVER –•– John Schneider (Scotti Brothers)-11 (17)
18 18 THE STROKE –•– Billy Squier (Capitol)-13 (18)
19 19 SWEET BABY –•– Stanley Clarke/George Duke (Epic)-15 (19)
20 22 URGENT –•– Foreigner (Atlantic)-6 (20)

21 23 IN THE AIR TONIGHT –•– Phil Collins (Atlantic)-11 (21)
22 30 WHO'S CRYING NOW –•– Journey (Columbia)-4 (22)
23 28 COOL LOVE –•– Pablo Cruise (A&M)-6 (23)
24 24 DON'T LET HIM GO –•– REO Speedwagon (Epic)-9 (24)
25 38 STOP DRAGGIN' MY HEART AROUND –•– Stevie Nicks (with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers) (Modern)-3 (25)
26 31 FIRE AND ICE –•– Pat Benatar (Chrysalis)-4 (26)
27 27 THE BREAKUP SONG (They Don't Write 'Em) –•– The Greg Kihn Band (Beserkley)-11 (27)
28 12 GEMINI DREAM –•– The Moody Blues (Threshold)-10 (12)
29 39 REALLY WANNA KNOW YOU –•– Gary Wright (Warner Brothers)-6 (29)
30 35 FEELS SO RIGHT –•– Alabama (RCA)-10 (30)

31 32 DOUBLE DUTCH BUS –•– Frankie Smith (WMOT)-13 (31)
32 34 DON'T GIVE IT UP –•– Robbie Patton (Liberty)-5 (32)
33 33 ROCK AND ROLL DREAMS COME THROUGH –•– Jim Steinman (with Rory Dodd) (Cleveland International)-11 (33)
34 36 LOVE ON A TWO WAY STREET –•– Stacy Lattisaw (Cotillion)-8 (34)
35 37 DON'T WANT TO WAIT ANYMORE –•– The Tubes (Capitol)-8 (35)
36 40 YOU'RE MY GIRL –•– Frankie and the Knockouts (Millenium)-6 (36)
37 41 EVERLASTING LOVE –•– Rex Smith/Rachel Sweet (Columbia)-7 (37)
38 50 STEP BY STEP –•– Eddie Rabbitt (Elektra)-3 (38)
39 46 HOLD ON TIGHT –•– ELO (Jet)-3 (39)
40 49 THAT OLD SONG –•– Ray Parker Jr. and Raydio (Arista)-5 (40)

DEBUTS
56 — THE VOICE –•– The Moody Blues (Threshold)-1 (56)
 
Born in '58, so already in my twenties by the 80's.
Pong came out when I was 14 and had hit 20 when Space Invaders first showed up.
Growing up in the era of EM pinball and shooter games, these computerized marvels were a sight to behold.
These games and new wave music (jumped into that with both feet) made this best decade ever. Games, VIC20, C64, living on my own - good times.
Guess that's why my basement looks like it does.
 
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