I have dedicated this page to a hobby of mine - arcade collecting. No, not the collecting of arcades, but that of arcade video games. Sound a little unusual? Well, it's not NEARLY as space-demanding as classic car collecting, although it comes close and is a lot easier to get carried away. Used arcade games, especially those that are quite old (excepting those, of course, that are classics and are becoming more in demand) can generally be had for $25 to $1000, depending on the state of the machine and whether it works or not. But compared to some other collecting hobbies, $100 isn't much to pay for an item in your collection.

Thinking, "Gee, I'd love to spend $500 and have a couple arcade machines in my basement!"? Well, it's not that easy. Check out the ' Bill and Russ' Excellent Adventure ' page to see the trials involved in purchasing and transporting these games. Beyond that, arcade collecting is really much more involved than buying a machine, stuffing it in your basement and playing it every couple days. There are much more technical aspects, such as replacing and repairing electronics, fiddling with high-voltage monitors, locating obscure old parts, etc.

Plus, if you expect to pay $100 for a 'good' arcade game, a favorite from your past, like Pac Man or Galaxian, you'd better learn patience and get ready to do a lot of restoration work. Look at the progress pictures of my re-conversion of a classic Donkey Kong machine from a newer JAMMA Sky Shark for an idea of the things you might have to go through. Or, visit my newly-created Pac Man Cocktail restoration page. Or, yet again, visit my ' My First Game ' page.