I played Gorgar

I marveled at its glory... and writhed at my suck.

… and I sucked at it. 

This past weekend I took a short dude’s weekend trip to Southington. None of us knew anything about this rather nondescript town in central Connecticut, save that it was a convenient halfway point between my buddy Scott, who lives in New Jersey, and the other three of us dudes from MA/NH.

Scott did some online scouting. Southington had a venue where we could throw axes, an arcade, and ample beer. The decision was made.

As it turns out GameCraft Arcade is not just any arcade. It’s a two-story homage to old-school gaming. Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out, Double Dragon, Wizard of Wor, Asteroids, Tron, 1941, Castlevania, Joust, Frogger, dozens more of that ilk. So many that I decided to give the place a thorough scouting-out before plunking down my hard-earned coin.

And there it was. On the second floor, tucked way in the back corner, a holy grail for S&S enthusiasts. 

Scantily-clad chicks. Skulls. Muscular warriors with swords and horned helmets. The snake pit. And the leering red demon himself.

Gorgar, in all its glory. The 1979 machine that made famous by being the first-ever talking pinball machine. One I've written about before, here.

I stood back, admired the beautiful artwork. It begged to be played. And of course, I did.

Unfortunately not much to report there. I batted the ball around a few times. Tried my best to land it in The Snake Pit. Failed, and watched helplessly as it guttered over and over before I got much done on the scoreboard.

Despite my enthusiasm for these games as artifacts I suck at pinball. I now realize I like the idea of pinball much more than the game play itself. I adore the aesthetic—the tactile steel ball and the bright lights and clack of the flippers—but in truth I’d rather play Double Dragon or Galaga. Which I did, and got a lot more mileage out of my coin.

GameCraft also had other related pinball games, including Seawitch, Paragon, and Black Knight. Someone there appreciates the sacred genre it seems. Paragon and Seawitch are, like Gorgar, heavily inspired by the Frank Frazetta aesthetic.

Axe throwing was fun, and the venue supervisor who made sure we didn’t plant a heavy hatchet into our foot or our buddies’ back was a huge Lord of the Rings fan, with a sleeve of tattoos on one arm including a JRRT rune on her shoulder and the “One Ring to Rule Them All” inscription wrapped around her bicep. Much Tolkien nerdity ensued. I did not come home with a tattoo of my own though the thought crossed my mind and was liberally encouraged by the dudes. The Groggy Frog was a worthy (2? 3?) beer stop and we got a kick out of the waitress with the Poison half shirt who evaded my question about her favorite Poison song. 

Anyway, should you ever be driving down I-84 and see signs for Southington it’s a worth a visit. Tell the Girl with the Gandalf Tattoo I said hi.