I would totally watch this now, especially if The Real Don Steele was still around to announce it. This was so short lived it isn't even listed on hi IMDB page.
+NODlike 316 - It was a one-shot.... a pilot that didn't get picked up for a full run, sadly. The video game industry was in a free fall at the time... just bad timing.
1983 was the year Millipede's records were set and not broken until 2005. Ben Gold's top score is 4,304,549 points. Later in 1983 two more dudes broke his record, (Steve Winter at 4,702,733 and James Schneider at 6,995,962). The current world record holder is Donald Hayes with 10,627,331 points. Broken on February 7th, 2005.
I always feel statements like this are historical plays on fact. It seems to claim that nobody was capable of setting a new record on the machine from 1983 to 2005. But in that, TG's arcade went out of business in 1984 and they only took scores in tournaments for a couple of more years until shutting down totally until 1999. It wasn't until 2004 after that when they got a full on new database going, one rebuilt from old news clippings and magazines as the original database had been lost. Millipede was still a staple in many arcades well into the 1990s... quite likely that more players were capable of beating the record but had no scoreboard to submit to. Unrealistic to act as if there were simply no challengers for that whole span of time.
That's a good point. But here's the problem... you need to prove it. Look, I grew up in the Middle East, There were a fuckton of arcades where I grew up and no matter where I went, there were always a place or two (or three or four or five) where I could either find a full blown arcade or at least a place with a machine or two to earn the shop owner some extra cash. Some players were extremely (and I mean EXTREMELY) good at some of those games. Keeping track of records was damn near impossible. Did you know that there were Pac-Man and Space Invaders cabinets even in remote settlements in the Amazon Jungle? I'm not kidding. Who knows? Maybe someone in 1985 managed to play the perfect game of Pac-Man 14 years before Billy Mitchell succeeded in doing it. This is the problem. The people who hold the records might not even the true champions. I sure as hell know that many of them aren't (there are youtubers with larger records than some players on Twin Galaxies). But without anyway of authenticating scores those claims are pointless. And even then, rules are needed to judge the scores evenly. Many games eventually added continue features that allowed you to retain your score even after continuing. Someone who is good at finishing a game with 3 or 5 credits and gets a massive score doesn't compare to someone who can finish it with one credit, even if the score is technically less (but in most cases that actually isn't true). In some games the ability to continue almost counts as cheating, like in many beat em' up games. Usually in those games they grant you a level end bonus that awards massive points if your health bar is on max, so dying just before you defeat the boss and kicking his ass while on the temporary invulnerability phase would give an unfair advantage in a competition. Authentication and rules... those are key.
Also one other thing I forgot to mention, and this isn't really specific to any time but... I guess prior to the internet age and keeping records online, most people would have no idea WHAT the high score would be. Some hotshot player somewhere playing his favorite game might rack up an impressive score that would beat anyone in the country and he would not know it, and even that score might not even be nearly enough to break the world record because he doesn't know what it is. I mean as a kid I was a mean Time Pilot player, I finished the game through twice (it loops infinitely), I thought I was the best there was since I figured no one would want to play through all the stages twice. Boy howdy was I wrong...
You get it, but on the other side of the door from me. From my seat, there's such a small cross reference of players of games vs submitted scores that I just have to take it all into perspective. Simply can't take the "first ever" "only in the world" "world record" stuff seriously.... it's simply the highest submitted scores of a literal fraction of 1 percent of people who've played those games. The idea of "getting authentication to make it official" is laughable when there's 60 or so Pac-Man scores considering 100's of millions have played the game.
@@Hotshotter3000It's not likely people in jungles or the Middle East got the highest scores in the world in the beginning (the 1980s) when the machines were first introduced to the world. The reason for that is because all these games had programmers, and wherever these programmers worked, mostly in Japan and America's Silicon Valley, people who knew those programmers were the first ones to know "insider's secrets" to the games...(don't forget the games had to be test played at the companies where they were produced many times)... because of that, many of the high scores in the beginning came from Silicon Valley where Billy Mitchell grew up. Also, it's not likely for a person who's "ripped off" or copied an inside skill(s) to be a better player than the person who truly discovered/invented it. Life just doesn't work that way.... That being said, records weren't really kept back then, Twin Galaxies was just kind of a page that sort of attempted to record the high scores on many arcade games for posterity (no one else did it at all)... As someone who was playing many of those classic games when they first came out, I can tell you that by 1982 many people had already gotten to the kill screen of Pac Man, (I watched part of these) and so a perfect Pac Man game was probably done well before 1985, but Billy Mitchell happened to do it at a time and place where everything was "officially recognized". I used to flip through Twin Galaxies "world records" when they started and knew of several games where I'd personally witnessed people scoring higher than the "record" listed....that all being said, if you want to see someone who's really good, I can recommend the guy who reached the Ms. Pac Man kill screen, Mikeville66 on Defender, and the guy who scored 800,000+ on Robotron playing with only 5 guys TOTAL (no extra men allowed) at a tournament.
I would like to see the full footage of each of their games. Although entertaining, this video focused too much on the narrators and the interviews. Watching expert players, all the way through, is a sight to behold. Too bad that footage is not available.
Well, it was an attempt at selling a TV show. For every person that would want to watch the full gameplay there are a million others who'd never want to do that. As it was, this show didn't get picked up past this pilot, so people at the time weren't even interested in what they got here.
@@PatrickScottPatterson But I imagine that they did film the games in their entirety. Sure, for a Television show, they had to do what they did. But if they did film those games, it would be great if that footage still exists. That is what I was referring to. I would like to see that footage.
I'd say there's a 1 in 1 trillion chance that footage still exists. TV in those days would very quick erase or tape over things to save money, especially for things that were only supposed to air once or that didn't get picked up for a full series, like this one. It's not only probably gone but it's probably been gone since just after this was cut together.
Yes and no. Something like this IS an example of early competition, but it's not like esports didn't become a thing if this hadn't happened. Nobody watched this. You couldn't draw a direct lineage here.
Not too much, but there were four That's Incredible contests on TV back then, the first on Ms. Pac-Man in 1982. And there was the show Starcade. Thing to remember is that TV shows take time to greenlight and go into production. By the time most caught on to the high score chasing that went mainstream with Space Invaders, Asteroids and Defender... the public had started to care less... so few watched and therefore few aired.
Not really. There'd been numerous organized video game competitions from 1977-1982, including the 1980 Space Invaders tournament that many in the esports world credit as "the first"
Playing millipede in 2023 this game is such a classic
lol - "Ben, what difficulties did you run into?"
"The Camera, lights and the Crew" - haha
I would totally watch this now, especially if The Real Don Steele was still around to announce it. This was so short lived it isn't even listed on hi IMDB page.
+NODlike 316 - It was a one-shot.... a pilot that didn't get picked up for a full run, sadly. The video game industry was in a free fall at the time... just bad timing.
I truly loved playing Centipede. The video arcades back in the early 1980's were frickn amazing.
These guys are amazing. Millipede and Centipede are like the hardest arcade games ever!
And Missile Command. Holy Shit missile command...
And Tempest.
Nobody thought about giving them bar stools.
Amazing game, I loved it as a kid in my local arcade. Yes, I'm old 🤤
I suppose that's true but maybe they didn't think it looked good for television or something.
I was born in Mountain View, California and grew up there. Probably went to the same arcades as this guy.
1983 was the year Millipede's records were set and not broken until 2005. Ben Gold's top score is 4,304,549 points. Later in 1983 two more dudes broke his record, (Steve Winter at 4,702,733 and James Schneider at 6,995,962). The current world record holder is Donald Hayes with 10,627,331 points. Broken on February 7th, 2005.
I always feel statements like this are historical plays on fact. It seems to claim that nobody was capable of setting a new record on the machine from 1983 to 2005. But in that, TG's arcade went out of business in 1984 and they only took scores in tournaments for a couple of more years until shutting down totally until 1999. It wasn't until 2004 after that when they got a full on new database going, one rebuilt from old news clippings and magazines as the original database had been lost. Millipede was still a staple in many arcades well into the 1990s... quite likely that more players were capable of beating the record but had no scoreboard to submit to. Unrealistic to act as if there were simply no challengers for that whole span of time.
That's a good point. But here's the problem... you need to prove it.
Look, I grew up in the Middle East, There were a fuckton of arcades where I grew up and no matter where I went, there were always a place or two (or three or four or five) where I could either find a full blown arcade or at least a place with a machine or two to earn the shop owner some extra cash. Some players were extremely (and I mean EXTREMELY) good at some of those games.
Keeping track of records was damn near impossible. Did you know that there were Pac-Man and Space Invaders cabinets even in remote settlements in the Amazon Jungle? I'm not kidding. Who knows? Maybe someone in 1985 managed to play the perfect game of Pac-Man 14 years before Billy Mitchell succeeded in doing it.
This is the problem. The people who hold the records might not even the true champions. I sure as hell know that many of them aren't (there are youtubers with larger records than some players on Twin Galaxies). But without anyway of authenticating scores those claims are pointless.
And even then, rules are needed to judge the scores evenly. Many games eventually added continue features that allowed you to retain your score even after continuing. Someone who is good at finishing a game with 3 or 5 credits and gets a massive score doesn't compare to someone who can finish it with one credit, even if the score is technically less (but in most cases that actually isn't true). In some games the ability to continue almost counts as cheating, like in many beat em' up games. Usually in those games they grant you a level end bonus that awards massive points if your health bar is on max, so dying just before you defeat the boss and kicking his ass while on the temporary invulnerability phase would give an unfair advantage in a competition.
Authentication and rules... those are key.
Also one other thing I forgot to mention, and this isn't really specific to any time but... I guess prior to the internet age and keeping records online, most people would have no idea WHAT the high score would be. Some hotshot player somewhere playing his favorite game might rack up an impressive score that would beat anyone in the country and he would not know it, and even that score might not even be nearly enough to break the world record because he doesn't know what it is.
I mean as a kid I was a mean Time Pilot player, I finished the game through twice (it loops infinitely), I thought I was the best there was since I figured no one would want to play through all the stages twice. Boy howdy was I wrong...
You get it, but on the other side of the door from me. From my seat, there's such a small cross reference of players of games vs submitted scores that I just have to take it all into perspective. Simply can't take the "first ever" "only in the world" "world record" stuff seriously.... it's simply the highest submitted scores of a literal fraction of 1 percent of people who've played those games. The idea of "getting authentication to make it official" is laughable when there's 60 or so Pac-Man scores considering 100's of millions have played the game.
@@Hotshotter3000It's not likely people in jungles or the Middle East got the highest scores in the world in the beginning (the 1980s) when the machines were first introduced to the world.
The reason for that is because all these games had programmers, and wherever these programmers worked, mostly in Japan and America's Silicon Valley, people who knew those programmers were the first ones to know "insider's secrets" to the games...(don't forget the games had to be test played at the companies where they were produced many times)... because of that, many of the high scores in the beginning came from Silicon Valley where Billy Mitchell grew up.
Also, it's not likely for a person who's "ripped off" or copied an inside skill(s) to be a better player than the person who truly discovered/invented it. Life just doesn't work that way....
That being said, records weren't really kept back then, Twin Galaxies was just kind of a page that sort of attempted to record the high scores on many arcade games for posterity (no one else did it at all)...
As someone who was playing many of those classic games when they first came out, I can tell you that by 1982 many people had already gotten to the kill screen of Pac Man, (I watched part of these) and so a perfect Pac Man game was probably done well before 1985, but Billy Mitchell happened to do it at a time and place where everything was "officially recognized".
I used to flip through Twin Galaxies "world records" when they started and knew of several games where I'd personally witnessed people scoring higher than the "record" listed....that all being said, if you want to see someone who's really good, I can recommend the guy who reached the Ms. Pac Man kill screen, Mikeville66 on Defender, and the guy who scored 800,000+ on Robotron playing with only 5 guys TOTAL (no extra men allowed) at a tournament.
Seeing those who have is an amazing thing for sure.
could never master those trackball games
Delightfully '80s, haha! Thanks for sharing.
their skill, it's beautiful
How awesome is it that The Real Don Steele is hosting? A true DJ legend 😎 as for Millipede, that was a killer fun game
It was standing up with that heavy roller controller under my palm that I miss so much.
I'm not even sure I remember this on TV but I like it!
whompmaster - It was a one-and-done pilot episode if I recall correctly. Blink and you'd miss it.
Patrick Scott Patterson Yep, I blinked and I missed it. Looked really cool though!
Except for the heights, they both look almost exactly the same.
Loved this so much!
This was a throwback!
I would like to see the full footage of each of their games.
Although entertaining, this video focused too much on the narrators and the interviews. Watching expert players, all the way through, is a sight to behold. Too bad that footage is not available.
Well, it was an attempt at selling a TV show. For every person that would want to watch the full gameplay there are a million others who'd never want to do that. As it was, this show didn't get picked up past this pilot, so people at the time weren't even interested in what they got here.
@@PatrickScottPatterson But I imagine that they did film the games in their entirety. Sure, for a Television show, they had to do what they did.
But if they did film those games, it would be great if that footage still exists. That is what I was referring to. I would like to see that footage.
I'd say there's a 1 in 1 trillion chance that footage still exists. TV in those days would very quick erase or tape over things to save money, especially for things that were only supposed to air once or that didn't get picked up for a full series, like this one. It's not only probably gone but it's probably been gone since just after this was cut together.
@@PatrickScottPatterson ua-cam.com/video/oVysawwTCMo/v-deo.html
This game is hard
I scored 366,050 on robotron...
who is in it this year?I heard the commercials during this championship rival the super bowl.
Such a piece of history in Esports origin
Yes and no. Something like this IS an example of early competition, but it's not like esports didn't become a thing if this hadn't happened. Nobody watched this. You couldn't draw a direct lineage here.
Back when life and video game was simple.
Bro how's my man just sliding toward each of the players like that at the beginning??
Spoiler Alert: He dies in the end...
Great!
I wonder if Ben still has that arcade machine.
I believe he sold it off online a decade or so ago.
1:52 Members Only jacket?
One of the, if not the earliest official competitive gaming competition I presume?
It would be an early one, yes, but not the first by many years.
In fact, they were both there because they'd each won previous competitions.
Not even. The early 80s were lousy with video game contests.
Was there a lot of stuff like this on TV back then?
Not too much, but there were four That's Incredible contests on TV back then, the first on Ms. Pac-Man in 1982. And there was the show Starcade. Thing to remember is that TV shows take time to greenlight and go into production. By the time most caught on to the high score chasing that went mainstream with Space Invaders, Asteroids and Defender... the public had started to care less... so few watched and therefore few aired.
It's videos like this that make feel like I was born in the wrong era.
Awww. I miss my atari
Yep, hate that clogged screen. Can turn the game south in a split second. Also the reason I can't get past ~415,000
I thought that was Junior Bruce, I know that voice anywhere
I just got 110,295 points
so coool.....one of the best arcade inventions... arcade competitions should have been on tv more often
Amazing how serious they can talk about something that sounds like a bad drug experience, if you hear a section of it without the video...
My score is 1,0000002323
I fainted at end
The tall one was chewing on rocks.
"Until then, keep shootin!"
El origen de los e-sports
So this tournament is lay the foundation for esport. ( Atari still a grandfather of all video game ).
Not really. There'd been numerous organized video game competitions from 1977-1982, including the 1980 Space Invaders tournament that many in the esports world credit as "the first"
He doesn’t give much talk to Eric lmao
These players must have one hell of a time when talking to girls! They seem so reserved/quiet!
The focus these guys have on their games is unbelievable though.
It's called autism nowadays. The lucky ones have Asperger Syndrome. Same trait makes them ace these kinds of games tho.
With Don Steele being there they should have made them dress up like Machine gun Joe and Frankenstein
Ben Gold won but Eric was one bad Ginner!
Don Steel's nose, wtf?
Cocaine is a hell a of a drug
HAHA the last thing he wants to see is that fucking game now he's the best at it xD
they got the personalities of dish rags. lol
SHOVE IT, GINNER!
Damien strong no it wasn't
Ben Gold... is *SPOK*
EEEEEEEEEee-SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORTTTTTSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!