Hey yo, welcome everyone to Stay in the Scene by Indie Arcade Wave. I'm Joe, your host. And here on In the Scene, we dive into what's happening in the arcade space from arcade operators and owners, pinball, new indie games, and this week we're actually be talking to a world record holder to kind of talk about how he got into the arcade space and how he set I mean, he has two world records now. He's got tournament play as well as just the general high score for food fight. Um, speaking of, we have Food Fight Frenzy available for sale right now. Justin has purchased one and we're going to talk a little bit about it today. If you're looking to bring a Stern pinball into your arcade, let me know. Star Wars is just around the corner. We've got those ready for order and uh you can email me at indiearchcadewavegmail.com. Now, let's bring in Justin. So, Justin is the world record holder for food fight. He set the world record on July 4th, 2021 at 107.7 million points. I like that's like unfathomable to me. as well as he has the world record for tournament play at over 1.4 million. So, how you doing, Justin?
Good, Joe. How are you?
I'm fantastic. I'm excited to chat. We've been texting and emailing for months now, but this is the first time we're actually like kind of interacting um face to face. So, let's just jump right in with how you got into the arcade space. Like, who's Justin and like how did you get started in the arcade? Well, um, I got started, me and a friend of mine, we picked up a couple games at an auction and we started toying with it, trying to figure out how to fix it. And eventually, we stumbled upon the answer, and it sort of snowballed from there. And, um, you know, before we know it, we got 30 arcade machines and, um, it just snowballed really quick that way as far as getting into arcades. Um, as far as getting into like competitive play, uh, about 2010 or so, I think I saw that movie King of Kong, and that turned me on to Twin Galaxies. I I never knew that there was a scorekeeping entity out there other than, say, Guinness. And after I saw that, I was like, well, you know, that'd be cool to have a score, you know? So, that kind of got me down that road.
Yeah. I mean, obviously, why wouldn't you want to be immortalized in the arcade space by having a world record, right? That's that's once John Youssi it, you're like, this would be pretty cool to have,
right?
And and I spoke with Rodney a while back about the Ice Cold Beer uh world records, which he had a pretty similar story, you know, he found out about the world records. He just happened to be friends with the guy who held the world record, who was local to him and kind of built from there and got comfortable with the game and then played for like 37 hours or something like that. Um, which is nuts. Like
I don't think I could focus on anything for 37 hours. Um,
yeah. And that game is super hard, too. I mean, it's a ball in the physical world, you know? It's
Yeah.
I I love it. I think it's super fun. Like once you clear 10, it's pretty easy to keep it going, but it gets a little harder over time. Um, let's talk about
let's talk about some of your earliest arcade memories. Like were you were you a big arcade kid or was this kind of later on in life that you found this passion?
Well, no. Um, you know, I was born in 1980s, so about 85, 86, I was going to like Chuck-E-Cheese a lot, that kind of thing. And uh even up into the 90s when you know say Street Fighter 2 hit, you know, I was always going to the um arcades at the mall and stuff like that. And uh even to this day, you know, I go to Wieners and Losers arcade up in Winston Salem. Um and there's a few around Charlotte area I go to. So, you know, I've pretty much been going on and off my whole life.
Gotcha. Yeah. I mean, you know, understandable. You play a little bit as a kid, you get older, this resurgence of arcade bars and everything and now they're all over the place.
What about Food Fight was it that drew you in to want to set a world record on that because it's it's not a common game. They're not even easy to find,
right? Um, honestly, I never even heard of Food Fight till say 2010 or so. I went to Funspot New Hampshire and they had one and um I played it for a little bit and it I I like the look of it. I like the simplicity and of course the side art and all the um you know the graphics on it. So and I didn't think much about it and then I went back again in 2011 and played in a tournament there and you know I wasn't very good but I still got fourth place in in the food fight um category and I I barely played it. So that got my interest sort of sort of brewing on that. And then sure enough, a few months later or so, we found one for super cheap, fixed it up, and then I was like, you know, I I got the bug.
That's crazy to find. Do you remember how much you paid for that?
I do. It was probably about 150 bucks. Um, we had to drive maybe two hours to get it. Um, the only thing that didn't work, it didn't have a monitor, but the power supply was fine, the board was fine, so we popped a monitor in it, and you know, sunny times.
You can find a monitor anywhere. I mean, that's they're they're getting harder to find, but like that's that's a very simple fix. And 150 bucks, man, that's crazy. That game goes for thousands now. It's
right.
It's it's like the holy grail for a lot of collectors.
Yeah. I couldn't believe it. So, let's talk a little bit about I want to talk about Food Fight Frenzy, but not yet. I want to talk about like you setting the world record. What was that process like? And I mean, putting up 107 million points, that record had stood since 1984. So,
h what was the process like? How long did it take you to set that world record?
Um, I can't remember exactly, but I know it started out with the tournament score and that that was a a slow progression. And once I got that, I was like, man, I saw that marathon score and it kept staring me in the face. I was like, I really want that, but I've never played a game for that long. Um, and little by little, I just sort of worked up to that point. I mean, it must have took a year or something, maybe more. I'd have to look to be sure. But, um, it was a long process. But that being said, once once you get good at playing the later levels, um it it plateaus off, you know, after a level 125, if you can get good at that, you you pretty much have it beat. It's all about stamina and focus and you know, that sort of thing.
That's that's crazy. Like I'm just comparing how I spoke with Rodney about his world record and you you just said once you clear level 125, it's not that bad. How many people are going to get to level 10? You know, like you're talking such a such a high ceiling already. And he was talking like you just have to get past the 20th hour and then you're okay. Like
Well, I will say this. When you own the machine, you you can go into dip switch settings and be able to pick any level you want to. So, I had that advantage. I could run it up to level 125 and start there and and start practicing hard there. And once I got really good at that, you know, I could sort of uh start from the beginning and work my way up there. and I already had the advantage of of playing on playing a lot to get that tournament score. So, um you know, it's not too bad. It sounds bad, but once you get the rhythm down, it it's not too bad.
Got it. Yeah. I mean, it's it's like any other game, you know, you get used to it, you get comfortable with it. Like, some people are incredibly good at at shooters, some are really good at platformers, and everybody's got their specialty.
Um let's let's talk about the rest of your collection. So, obviously you got a food fight in there, but what other games have interested you enough to go out, purchase them, restore them, and, you know, have them in your house?
Okay, let's see. I have a um I have like a Japanese like pachinko machine like The Mummy Returns. That's kind of fun. Um I have a an Atari system one cabinet with Indiana Hilton Jones in it right now, but I also have a kit for Marble Madness and um Road Blasters. Um let's see. I got a Tempest. I have a police trainer 2. I got a centipede. Uh what else? Um what am I leaving out? I got a Cubert. I got a Zookeeper, a Mim. Um and then I got a couple other things. I got a Silver Strike Bowling and a Mega Touch. Um I think that's it as far as arcades. And then I have a bunch of home console stuff too, of course.
Yeah. I mean, it seems like you have a pretty solid lineup of games. Well-rounded and and definitely I mean that Zookeeper is very uncommon as well. Was that another one you found just for an absolute steal?
Oh man, I got that one for probably it had to be a hundred bucks, but um the board was shot. Like it was acid damaged really bad. So, um I had to replace it with like one of those J-Rock boards.
Okay.
And uh you know, it runs it and that's fine. But, uh, you know, of course I cap the monitor, that kind of thing. But yeah, that was a another steal.
That's a great price on that. And I mean, you know, these machines are old, right? They're they're 40, 50 years old. You got to work around some stuff. Getting a JRock is definitely a good way to to deal with that. And uh, yeah, I mean, I'm sure you've you've figured out how to fix everything at this point. So, finding a game for a hundred bucks, even now for a couple hundred bucks, like fixing it up isn't an issue at all for you. So that's that's great. Um, what what what got you into the collecting bug? Like you you said you have consoles, you have you have arcade games. Like what was it that really turned you on to like I need to get more of these?
You know, it's hard to say. Um it's just something I've always been into like since I was a kid, you know. Um I've always played games and collected. Um really that's about it. Um,
yeah, nothing really specific got the bug. It's a it's just sort of always been there. You know,
it's not about getting it specifically for the arcade. It's just, you know, you found a game, you were interested, you started collecting more stuff. You just kind of always had the collector's bug. Um, I'm definitely that way, too. You know, you you get into something and you enjoy it, and you just get more and more, and then all of a sudden, you're like, I got too much of this. I got to start thinning it out.
Right. Right. I've I've had a bunch of games. I bought and sold. Um I actually ran a small arcade right before CO for a short time. Um it didn't last long. I was just sort of doing it as an experiment. Um and actually I used to have a um a major havoc in a Tempest cabinet and uh I had to actually sell it to make room for that food frenzy. So that stung a little bit, but um you know I was happy to get something new in there and something fresh and you know sort of an indie game too. I like the idea of that.
Yeah. I mean let's let's talk about that. So obviously you have an insane amount of hours on Food Fight. And one thing that we've talked to a lot of people about after we made Food Fight Frenzy and we were demoing it at different trade shows is a lot of people were talking about how the controls felt very accurate to the original and that was something that we were really really like focused on. We didn't want it to feel like a new game. We wanted to bring new breath into a classic, a game that we enjoyed too. And we got all the original art packages from Atari too. So all the art is is original but all the code is brand new. It got written all the way from the beginning. So, what did you think about the game? Your first impressions? Like, did it live up to your expectations or was there a different direction that you thought of it?
No, no, it was awesome. Um, it definitely lived up to my expectations. Um, I think going the four player route was a a cool choice to make. Um, and uh, the way the game is played, um, if you notice on my high score runs, it's more advantageous and it's better it's better scoring wise, especially in the later levels, to just go for the cone. Like, it it's almost impossible to hit the enemies with the food and stuff at that point in the game. This game sort of forces you to do that. It forces you to use the food and not just run for the cone level and level, you know, after level. So, I like I really like that aspect. I like the hidden Easter eggs in it. Um, I had a bunch of friends over and man, we had a great time with it.
Yeah, I'm glad to hear that. Have you unlocked the the secret level at the end? Yes. And that's going to be the secret of, you know, sort of getting a high score on that once I get the the scoring track set up for it being a brand new game. But getting to that level and being able to just see how long you can push it, that's what I'm looking forward to.
Yeah. So, for anybody that doesn't know, there is a secret level. There's a couple things you need to collect on specific levels while you're playing the game. I'm not going to give you any more than that because we want people to find it. But it's it's fun. Like when you get that and you're on that final level and you're just going berserk and there just endless waves of enemies coming, it's it's super super fun.
Um yes.
What did you think about the individual characters? Because we created different personalities for each AI. So have you noticed that and kind of like played around it? Do you do you pick a specific character each time or do you just pick whichever one you walk up? No, I haven't dug that far into it, unfortunately. Um I've played it a good bit, but um work and life's been getting in the way, but I'm about to throw some hours on it and get that all figured out because I'm I'm still experimenting with all that. Like um that's something I would really like to know more about. What what's the best character for what and you know, the best strategy to go with basically. Yeah, we we spent some some time definitely trying to figure out how to make each character a little bit different. And I'll give the tip of if you take believe it's Charlie. If you take Charlie off the table, the game's much easier. If you play a different character and you leave Charlie on the table, he's pretty difficult to deal with. Um he's good. He's very good AI. Um but yeah, we we definitely wanted to integrate as much as we could with it. And I know I was I was talking to you briefly about it recently that the system is modular too. So as we develop more games in the future, you'll be able to swap out the computer and the play field and it could be a whole new game. Um something in the the classic Atari realm basically is the plan with that. I think it's it's fun. I'm I'm super glad that you were the first one to get it. You have the first one off the line period. Like other than the prototypes. So what are your plans for the future of the arcade? Like how much more do you want to bring into your collection? And are there any games that you're still on the hunt for?
Um, well, now that you say that, I really want a pinball. I had a couple of good pinballs and sold them, and I I've always regretted that. So, I want to get a good pinball. Um, something newer. I would love to get maybe a Willy Wonka or something like that. Um, anything stern. Also, ice cold beer like we were talking about. I would love to have one of those. Um, those are super rare other than the remake, which that would be fine, too. Also, instead of a ice cold beer, a Zeke's Peak, man, that would look so cool beside my Zookeeper. Um, that's about it probably, unless I come across a great deal of some kind I can't pass up, you know?
Right. There there's always deals. There's always something something down the pipeline, and you never know what's going to come your way.
Um, you mentioned Zeke's Peak. that is actually on its way. It's it's just an art package. So, that's that's going to be the next production line for the Ice Cold Beers. There's probably going to be some Zeke Peaks in the future. And uh like you were talking about with the remakes, one cool thing that I I was talking to Tom recently about is you can do custom art on those, too. So, with the title license for Ice Cold Beer, they were given the liberty to change the the side art and the bezel. So they can put custom art for whether it be an arcade, your home collection, whatever it is, you can put custom stuff on there.
Wow, that's so cool.
So there's definitely some some things coming and and pinball. I agree, man. I I've been in the arcade a lot and I am I'm freaking hooked on pinball. It's so much fun. So I'm sure we could probably figure something out to get you one of those. But
that's that's really all I had for you, Justin. Like I just wanted to talk about the world record, what you thought of food fight and everything. So uh any final thoughts? anything you want to tell maybe an aspiring collector or an arcade owner that that you know is on your mind for obviously the time that you ran an arcade like what were some of the pitfalls that you encountered?
Um you know I was only open maybe six months so I can't really say that um as a collector putting my games in the arcade that was that was a weird experience you know watching people uh really abuse those things, put gum on them, scratch them up and stuff, you know, I was like, "Ah, that hurt a little. That stung." So, be wary if if you put games in there you really care about, you know, be willing to make a sacrifice, I guess.
Yeah. It's almost like if you want to open an arcade, create a collection that's for the arcade, not for your house. Keep the ones that you want to keep at home at home and put the arcade ones on the side.
You nailed it, man. I didn't I didn't know that going into it.
Yeah, I've heard I've heard mixed reviews on it and you know, it's it'd be hard to put something out there that, you know, you paid thousands of dollars for. You put hours and hours into restoring. Like
I'm thinking of uh ground control. Um one of the owners has a food fight. He did a big restore on it. Took him like six months. Redid all the art. It's beautiful cabinet. He brought it out to Portland Retro Gaming Expo and had it there in the booth. Would not put it in the arcade. So, I I get it. It's perfectly understandable not to put that in the arcade.
Um,
but I just want to say thanks Justin for coming on kind of telling your story, letting people know about, you know, world records. And
that's that's the other thing is like you haven't been playing this game for 40 years. You know, you just started playing it a few years before you set the world record. And it's totally doable to do that. Like you have the the world record was set in 2021 and then the tournament was 2018. So that's only a couple years apart.
Yeah.
Um so yeah, you got hooked on it to it and they really want to do it. I mean
they can do it.
Yeah. It was a pleasure and really it was a pleasure buying the food fight frenzy. I appreciate you working with me. You know your communication was topnotch through the whole process.
Yeah, I appreciate that. We hit some speed bumps, but you know, we got it fixed. It's working now.
And uh I mean, you're going to help us in the future not hit those speed bumps next time. So, thanks Justin for coming on. I appreciate your story. For anyone still watching, don't forget to like, share, and subscribe. It helps us a ton the way we'll continue to grow and we can all ride it together. Again, if you're looking for a food fight frenzy, an ice cold beer, any indie games, or Stern Pinball, you can email me at indie arcade wave and we will get everything figured out. We will add it to your arcade or collection. And until next time, peace. Heat. Heat. [Applause] [Music]