OOTS 354 is up... and I feel old now...

[diaglo]

Henry plans it.

i think i saw him mention this in at least 3 other OotS threads.

 

[kenobi65]

Elf needs food... badly...

When my PT Cruiser drops under an eighth of a tank of gas, a little light on the dashboard illuminates, accompanied by a chime. When we hear that chime, my wife and I say, in unison, "Elf needs food, badly!" It chimes repeatedly at a sixteenth-tank, which is accompanied by, "Elf is about to die!"

Yes, we're 70s-vintage nerds. What can I say?

 

[kenobi65]

For some strange reason I thought Track and Field was earlier than Centipede in using the trackball controller? Maybe not ... probably have my years/memories all mixed up.

Not sure, myself. I remember the arcade in Green Bay having a two-player football video game (the "players" in the game were Xs and Os), with trackballs, around 1978 or 1979. I'm pretty sure that'd pre-date Centipede by a couple of years; not sure about Track and Field.

 

[Sejs]

Though I notice that the Linear Guild wizard just isn't as powerful as the rest of the gang - Summon I and II? C'mon!

Other explanation is that he's just tossing them out as distractions to keep the enemy occupied without blowing the majority of his spells like the druid seems to have done. A few first and second level spells arn't a big investment of resources and they do the job nicely.

Besides - if he hadn't we might've never got the Centipede joke. Can't have that now.

 

[Kid Socrates]

I really, -really- wish I hadn't sold my Atari 2600 at a garage sale shortly after getting my NES (along with the 40+ atari games I had...).

Ebay time.

I picked mine up at a yard sale two years ago for $20. It works, and had Pac-Man and Combat. We've got a chain of stores called Vintage Stock out here that are -covered- in old games, so I'm slowly building a solid library up.

It's the silly wood paneling on the Atari that really gets me, though. Classic.

 

[Henry]

I had lots of fun as a kid

-Hyp.

The more you reveal about your childhood, it's like you were raised by the Cool parents in the City of Cool-ville, in the Country of Cool-onia, where Cool was spoken as a native tongue.

I'm waiting to hear how your Grand-dad was Edmund Hillary, who introduced you to Sam Neill and Lucy Lawless at a Bungie Jumping Convention at an early age.

 

[Henry]

Other explanation is that he's just tossing them out as distractions to keep the enemy occupied without blowing the majority of his spells like the druid seems to have done. A few first and second level spells arn't a big investment of resources and they do the job nicely.

Don't forget, they found him at a Wizard's School; plus, he wasn't in the plan, per se, he was guarding the helpless prisoner -- and not even doing THAT succesfully. He might not BE very high level.

 

[Festivus]

Ahh, the trackball... wasn't Centipede one of the first (if not THE first) arcade game to utilize the analog trackball for control?

Back in the day (like '81) my dad used to take me to the arcade and we'd play for hours. Centipede, Defender, Galaxians (different game from Galaga), oh yeah.

Now I'm jonesing for a good 5-hour marathon of Gauntlet... mmmm, Gauntlet.

"Valkyrie is about to die."

And yes, what Shilsen said - Rich has been on quite a roll lately with the strip. I'm checking for updates waaaay too often.

I thought it was Missile Command that was first with the trackball, but yes Centepede was an early adopter of that palm pincher.

Edit: I stand corrected, the first game with the trackball was "Gotcha" per Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_trackball_arcade_games

 

[amethal]

I thought it was Missile Command that was first with the trackball, but yes Centepede was an early adopter of that palm pincher.

Edit: I stand corrected, the first game with the trackball was "Gotcha" per Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_trackball_arcade_games

No worries.

I've just gone into Wikipedia and changed it to "Missile Command" for you.

 

[Sejs]

Don't forget, they found him at a Wizard's School; plus, he wasn't in the plan, per se, he was guarding the helpless prisoner -- and not even doing THAT succesfully. He might not BE very high level.

True enough, heh, but in that case he'll be a brief evil double.