Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade (2007)

1982's Video Game World Champions share their philosophies on joysticks, groupies and life.

Director:

Lincoln Ruchti

Stars:

Walter Day, Ben Gold, Steve Sanders

1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Walter Day	...	Himself
Ben Gold	...	Himself
Steve Sanders	...	Himself
Kent Farries	...	Himself
Darren Olsen	...	Himself
Billy Mitchell	...	Himself
Ronald Bailey	...	Himself
Sam Blackburn	...	Himself
Mark Robichek	...	Himself
Todd Rogers	...	Himself
Robert Mruczek	...	Himself
Joel West	...	Himself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Leo Daniels	...	Himself

Storyline

1982's Video Game World Champions share their philosophies on joysticks, groupies and life.

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Genres:

Documentary

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, language and brief drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 January 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Охота на призраков

Company Credits

Production Co:

Men at Work Pictures LLC

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The 35 hour Nibbler performance submitted to Robert Mruczek by Dwayne Richard was his then second place confirmed record of 883,402,770 points. A large Nibbler controversy is explored in the doc, "Man vs. Snake: The Long and Twisted Tale of Nibbler (2015)."

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Alternate Versions

A more complete Screener-version leaked out on the web. It has copyrighted songs instead of the specially made synth-tunes of the retail-version. It also has an extra scene with Rob's "art" collection.

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Connections

Referenced in The Video Craze (2013)

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Soundtracks

Never Grow Old
Performed by Walter Day
Written by Walter Day
Recorded for Chasing Ghosts 2006

User Reviews

A Nice Companion To "King of Kong"

When it comes to documentaries about old-time video gaming, "King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters" is still the standard against which all others are measured. However, "Chasing Ghosts" serves as a nice little companion piece to "Kong" by explaining more of the history behind how the "Twin Galaxies" arcade helped video games "go national".

For a basic plot summary, "Chasing Ghosts" gives some background information on Twin Galaxies arcade by primarily focusing on the participants in the big video game championship in Iowa in 1982. Billy Mitchell (the "villain" from "King of Kong") is (of course) in on the action again, but this time surrounded by many other formidable arcade-style gaming champions who were truly the first of their kind back in the early 1980s.

For anyone who has ever experienced the thrill of playing a video game, this documentary gives some history as to how the industry became the billion-dollar mega-giant it has morphed into today. The arcades were a HUGE part of that success, with Twin Galaxies being the first arcade to recognize national champions, and "Chasing Ghosts" tells that story.

Be warned, however, that if you aren't "into" gaming at all then this is one you should probably stay away from, as without an appreciation of the industry all these guys will seem like complete losers, idiots, selfish jerks, or worse. Some of them may very well fit those descriptions, but only gamers can appreciate their extreme skill in such a specific area.

Overall, then, "Chasing Ghosts" should be watched right after "King of Kong" for some more background information on the "Arcade Wars" of the early 1980s. It doesn't have the gripping drama of "Kong", but it is at times informative, funny, and interesting.