New to the forum but not the game (arcade price question)

[crashing bore]

Hello all,

(a little background)

As stated I'm newly registered on the forum but am an old schooler RBI guy. Buddy and I would play the NES version (and RBI2) when he'd get off of work at 11pm and eat Doritos and drink Turkey Hill Iced Tea (anyone know it?) while we played the game until 7am sometimes. We had no extra rules (like straight pitch, etc.) except for if someone called a timeout you had to grant it or had to groove the next pitch. Anyway, it was easily the most fun we had and found that a no hitter was just as fun as a slug fest (personal preference). Easily got our money's worth out of the game and then some. Due to moving 3000 miles away, we only play if one of us visits the other 

Some of the highlights (or lowlights depending on your point of view) were... having some jackass centerfielder cost me the 7 game series on the final play of the game. Easy pop fly to dead center for the final out but nooo, "bonk... he drops it!!!" Winning runs score instead and I go into a fit of rage. A coming song that was sung during the game would be "Here Comes A Run"  (sung to the tune of The Beatles -Here Comes The Sun). Keep in mind we didn't play straight pitch so a run was like gold and it was a sickening feeling when the other person would rip one to the alley and you knew there was nothing you could do to stop that runner from second scoring. Or the announcement of the batter Randy Velarde as the song "Volare.... oooh oh". Lloyd McClendon was commonly known in baseball as Big Lloyd McClendon. To us, he was Big Loins McClendon (if for no other reason than it rhymed). Anyway, i digress.

So, now that all of the skeletons are out of my RBI closet I'm looking for a little help.  I searched the forum about arcade pricing and it seems kind of hit and miss. Noticed that a couple of years back you could get the upright version for around $300 and now it's slightly more. Well, I've come across a machine for sale locally that has just a couple of blemishes. I have yet to go look at it but was told it has some etching on the glass and the side f the cabinet has some scratches on the one side. The screen is bright and crisp and the buttons and joystick are said to be very responsive. As is, the guy wants $495 for it or $595 "fixed". It seems kinda high and not sure the wife will go for it at that price, either.  So, in your "expert opinions", what is a dedicated upright arcade version like this worth on todays market? Would you go as high as $500 for a not perfect machine? It seems they are worth more now but I'm just not sure if they are that high. Any input is appreciated.

Thanks for your time and input!

[TbT]

welcome.  theres a few guys around here with the arcade machine so they could help you out.  I also believe there is 2 styles.  joe dirt has a full upright one which i have played, and i believe gantry has one like the old miss pacman 2 person seated one(?)

or else be a cheap ass and get the arcade version on a cart to play in your nes for 30 bucks from nesreproductions

its the weekend, so its slow around here.  response might be a tad slow.  otherwise were all busy on the foums during the work week.

[crashing bore]

Thanks for the welcome and the info.

This is the unit I'm looking at. Is that the original cabinet? I thought they were light blue.

Thanks again!

[JoeDirt]

Crashing Bore...that still might be the original cab.  It appears to have been painted.

In my opinion, the game is worth whatever you're willing to pay for it.  I wouldn't look at it as an investment--if you can spare $500+, I'd say it's well worth it.  You don't run across good games all that often--and good RBI games even less.  It took me almost 2 years to find my "good" RBI arcade game...and it was 3000 miles away.

I'd be interested to know if that particular game has the side art.  The standard side art (both sides) is just a lame, giant Nintendo sticker.  I've often thought of making my own cool side art and have converted to a giant sticker...like maybe a massive RBI guy or something.

What part of the country are you in, Bored?

[BDawk]

Turkey Hill...PA Maybe?

[Attezzobal]

Turkey Hill...PA Maybe?

Turkey Hill Ice Tea is very popular (relative to other ice teas and such) here in Maryland.

[BDawk]

I do think it's made in Lancaster, though

[ultimate7]

I'd say if the machine is close by, so you don't have to travel far and don't have to pay for shipping, and if it is in nice shape, it's worth $500.

I paid $400 about 2 years ago, but had to drive 5 hours to pick it up

[crashing bore]

yep, Turkey Hill Iced Tea (as well as myself) are originally from Lancaster, PA. I'm now in CA and the game is about a 30 minute drive from where I live so I'm able to check it out no problem (and if it's good and I decide it's a go, I can pick it up fairly easily with a rented truck or something).

I have a pic of the scratches on the side (see below). It is red on the side as well and has no artwork. I'd consider my own graphics for the side if I decided to fix up the scratches but it's not a priority at this point.

I'd seen one on ebay last week or so that went for $400 with the Buy It Now feature. The shipping was going to be close to another $200 so I keep telling myself this one is a bargain  I was just kind of looking for that re-assurance from you guys. That one had no chance to see how much someone was willing to pay for it because of how the auction was set up. Anyway... thanks for the input from you all and I'm going to try and set something up to see the game soon (it has been sitting in storage for an unspecified amount of time). Is there anything I should specifically check out other than the display and general gameplay? Thanks again for all of the helpful suggestions.

[BDawk]

Crashing, I grew up not far from Lancaster. I lived in west chester before moving to Boston

[fknmclane]

Crashing, I grew up not far from Lancaster. I lived in west chester before moving to Boston.  I'm lonely.  I want someone to hold me and tell me everything is going to be alright.  Call me at 1-800-STRT-PCH

[BDawk]

McLane always knows what I really want to say

[nightwulf]

If I remember correctly, most (all?) of the Vs. Unisystem upright cabinets were converted via kit from Donkey Kong uprights, so I wouldn't be terribly concerned about finding an "original" cabinet.

Also note that it's relatively easy (not quite changing an NES cartridge, but not requiring anything much above common sense) to swap Vs.U boards. Pick up something the wife might play, and that may help ease her concern over the price. More information is available about the games in a few different places.

[crashing bore]

Also note that it's relatively easy (not quite changing an NES cartridge, but not requiring anything much above common sense) to swap Vs.U boards. Pick up something the wife might play, and that may help ease her concern over the price.

Good call. LOL! Is that suggestion from experience? I appreciate the sentiment but gaming isn't her thing. I think I've actually got the $$$ things smoothed over pretty good (as long as I don't do or say something stupid at the last minute 

I'd read in one of the other threads about swapping boards and that's cool. I always liked Excitebike and may consider it.

As for the cabinet, I'm sure some of you have seen this pic. Is it just a hack photoshop job or did someone construct a cabinet to play RBI this way? I totally dig the double screen.

[TβG]

welcome, crashing bore.  what part of california are you in?

[crashing bore]

welcome, crashing bore.  what part of california are you in?

Central Coast. Been jumping around this area since '92.

I gotta admit that I'm a bit surprised by the sheer number of people that contracted the illness that is RBI Baseball and have been carriers ever since it came out. I thought my buddy and I were the only ones that were crazed and that surely no one else could appreciate it as much as we did (and do). Amazing 

[nightwulf]

As for the cabinet, I'm sure some of you have seen this pic. Is it just a hack photoshop job or did someone construct a cabinet to play RBI this way? I totally dig the double screen.

That would be a Vs. Dualsystem cabinet.

[crashing bore]

Hmmm, does anyone actually own one like that for their game? I'd love to have the game in one of those cabinets instead of the standard. Just to clarify, the extra two joysticks and buttons for the 3rd and 4th players are useless, right (unless of course you jam another pcb in there)? Also, it'd be easy to just put RBI in a dual cabinet like that by just swapping out the board with whatever game is in there?

[nightwulf]

The exact specifications and behavior of most of the Vs.D games are largely undocumented. Well, they are, but not publically. I couldn't find any solid information about the Vs.D version of RBI (note that Vs.D uses different boards than the Vs.U system). Best educated guess is that the same (2-player) game would run on both monitors with one RBI board installed. That is, four people could play at once, but two different games, and only one board would be required.

Then again, you may need two boards for four people to play (again, two separate games), or maybe two people can play the same game on both monitors (and no idea whether that would require one or two boards). I really have no idea. Of course as a gaming enthusiast I should officially encourage you to buy a Vs. Dualsystem version and have the boards dumped so people like me can get their hands on it, but that's entirely self-serving.

[TβG]

The exact specifications and behavior of most of the Vs.D games are largely undocumented. Well, they are, but not publically. I couldn't find any solid information about the Vs.D version of RBI (note that Vs.D uses different boards than the Vs.U system). Best educated guess is that the same (2-player) game would run on both monitors with one RBI board installed. That is, four people could play at once, but two different games, and only one board would be required.

Then again, you may need two boards for four people to play (again, two separate games), or maybe two people can play the same game on both monitors (and no idea whether that would require one or two boards). I really have no idea. Of course as a gaming enthusiast I should officially encourage you to buy a Vs. Dualsystem version and have the boards dumped so people like me can get their hands on it, but that's entirely self-serving.