If you were to make a top ten list of arcade games of all time - there is no doubt that Centipede would be close to the top of that list. For this Diary podcast I discuss Atari's masterpiece! The post Diary Of An Arcade Employee Ep. 033 (Centipede) appeared first on The Retroist.
Friends, with the start of a brand new year, it’s time to roll out another episode of the Diary podcast. For this show I discuss Atari’s 1981 classic fixed shooter, Centipede! As I mention on the episode itself this show was supposed to be published much sooner but due to time constraints like work obligations and with my computer dying on me – Centipede is making a debut in 2019 instead of 2018. Hopefully you will find the show itself worth the wait as I feel it’s safe to say we tackle one of the greatest video games of all time!
On this show I make sure to shine a spotlight on Centipede co-creator, Dona Bailey, the first female programmer hired by Atari back in the day. Thanks to some vintage audio interviews and from the likes of a 1983 Video Games magazine article – I feel you get a little taste of what it was like for Bailey during the Golden Age of Atari. Furthermore I add some quotes from her co-creator and fellow legend, Ed Logg in the show – I even managed to find an incredible interview with former Centipede champion Eric Ginnis in the pages of Joystik magazine to share with you all!
Centipede really broke records when it was released to the arcades back in the day. Which naturally meant that it received a lion’s share of home ports to the consoles and computers of the time. In this episode I share how in 1983 DC Comics along with Atari finally gave fans of the game a rather whimsical backstory for Centipede.
This show I have a wonderful segment provided by Jacob Ashley – who just so happens to create beautiful pieces of art that you can check out and purchase on his Wooden Arcade Etsy store. In this episode, Jacob shares his first memories with the classic arcade game in addition to attempting to find an arcade cabinet of his very own!
Also on this episode I reference and include an audio clip from 2015 interview with Dona Bailey by Motherboard – which you can watch for yourself.
If you have any suggestions for future games to cover or comments on the show itself you may email them to me at VicSage@Retroist.com. You can also contact me on Twitter and of course on Facebook. You can also keep up to date on what is going down at the Arkadia Retrocade by making sure to “Like” their Facebook Page. If you need a daily fix you can check out the Official Diary of an Arcade Employee Facebook Page too.
I hope you enjoy the Centipede podcast and I want to thank you again for being patient with this episode’s delay.
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