Apple II: The mother of invention.They say hindsight is 20/20. (Actually, I think it's more like 10/40, but what can you do?) So, if you found yourself suddenly zapped back to the dawn of the videogame era, what choices would you make? Which systems would you rather have had? And what impact do you think these changes would make on your personality today?

Of course, most of us back then could only afford to support one, maybe two systems (assuming one was older). It would have been nice to have enough money and time to have all of them.

Now that I'm older and hopefully wiser, I've put together a list of the systems I wish I had had, and roughly when. I'd very much like to hear your thoughts and see your lists.

1977-1982: Apple II. There's really no doubt about the importance of this system during this period (and beyond), but it saw the birth of countless genres and franchises. Ideally, I would have been able to expand and keep this system after getting a new computer, since it was still seeing important exclusives well into the 80s, especially the Ultima games and Sierra On-Line adventures.

My second choice for this period would be the Atari 2600, a very capable games console with a respectable lineup and of course immense popularity.

HalfBlindGamer, MrCustard and myself went to the annual Bonami Computer Museum Retro Gaming Event in Apeldoorn (The Netherlands) on October 3rd 2010. One of those rare occasions that retrogaming comes out of the closet over here in the Netherlands. Below you can find official footage taken by the organizers of the event. Seb (HalfblindGamer) and myself shot some really nice quirky things that will of course show up in a dual production video soon.

For you guys who are interested in this event and don't want to wait for our footage to be edited, take a look below. Alas all is in Dutch but the view speaks for itself. If you guys want some additional information on the clips or even some translations, do let me know.

It's Armchair Arcade Radio episode three, featuring the talents of Matt Barton, Rob Daviau, Bill & Christina Loguidice, and Chris Kennedy. I *love* this episode! Everything came together so beautifully; anyone who cares about classic games should not only download it, but take pains to preserve it!

Download the episode here (128K format).

Armchair Arcade is proud to present the second episode of Armchair Arcade Radio. Hosted by Matt Barton, this episode features the music of Metroid Metal and segments from each member of Armchair Arcade: Mark Vergeer, Bill Loguidice, Christina Loguidice, and Chris Kennedy.

Episode Two 48K version
Episode Two 128K version

Topics and Approximate Times Below:

While Matt and I are still hard at work on our upcoming feature film documentary, Gameplay: The Story of the Videogame Revolution, there comes good news related to the producer and financier, Lux Digital Pictures, in a story from indiWIRE, which can be read here. To summarize, Lorber Films will be releasing two of Lux Digital Pictures' recently completed films, “American Grindhouse” and “Nightmares in Red, White, and Blue,” to theaters in both the US and Canada. This is great news, as it's amazingly difficulty to get even limited theatrical distribution for indie productions, and bodes well for Gameplay's future.

As a reminder, Gameplay: The Story of the Videogame Revolution, is a feature film documentary that celebrates the amazing story of videogames, focusing on the industry's most decisive moments throughout its history. Comprehensive in scope, the film covers games from all genres and platforms, from the late 1950s into modern times. Featuring interviews with industry greats such as John Romero (Doom), David Crane (Pitfall!), Steve Meretzky (Planetfall), Todd Howard (Fallout 3), and John Smedley (EverQuest) - plus many others - Gameplay offers an in-depth look at the industry that has redefined popular entertainment. The film explores the impact of mega-hits such as Atari's Pong, Nintendo's Super Mario Bros., and Blizzard’s World of Warcraft, as well as the role played by revolutionary technologies like the CD-ROM and the Internet. Loaded with high-quality clips from hundreds of vintage and modern games, Gameplay is a film no gamer can resist.

The film is being written and produced for Lux Digital Pictures by Bill Loguidice and Matt Barton, authors of Vintage Games: An Insider Look at the History of Grand Theft Auto, Super Mario, and the Most Influential Games of All Time (Focal Press, 2009), Dungeons & Desktops: The History of Computer Role-Playing Games (A.K. Peters, 2008), and Wii Fitness for Dummies (Wiley, 2010). Matt and Bill are also the founders of Armchair Arcade, recognized by PC Magazine as one if its Top 100 Websites. Lux Digital Pictures has produced several recent, critically acclaimed documentaries, including Nightmares in Red, White, and Blue and American Grindhouse, which covers the history of horror and exploitation films, respectively. While Gameplay naturally touches upon controversial topics such as violence and sex in games, the overall tone is overwhelmingly positive. Lifelong, passionate gamers themselves, Barton and Loguidice are committed to ensuring accuracy, fairness, and integrity in all the topics covered in the film.

The official Facebook fan page.

My first attempt at a REAL intro for all future MaximumRD videos. Hope you like it (Be gentle, I am no expert at this stuff LOL!)

Welcome to a very special The Goodnight Gamer - Episode 2, on the serious topic of Manbags, shot on the Flip camera.

Inspired by Bill I wanted to take some casual and somewhat decent unedited photos of my study / rec room / video game area and the rest of the room so like Bill I can more easily refer to specific items when discussing them.

I've been to the previous year's event, and it was well done. I'll definitely try to make it this year as well. From the press release:
Vintage Computer Festival East 5.0 - Saturday, Sept. 13th and Sunday, Sept. 14th, InfoAge Science Center, Wall Township, New Jersey.

The 5th annual Vintage Computer Festival East will be held on Saturday, September 13th and Sunday, September 14th, at the InfoAge Learning Center at Wall Township, New Jersey. The event is sponsored by MARCH and VintageTech.

The exact daily schedule will be announced shortly. Admission is $15 for two days, $10 for one day. Free for ages 17 and younger. Parking is free. For more information http://www.vintage.org .