Repairing The Legendary 1981 Williams DEFENDER Arcade Game

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[@Pluto2363]

The Defender sound IS the sound of 80's arcades to me. Love it.

[@tjsogmc]

After 40 years the game still makes people happy when they play it. Epic.

[@LyonsArcade]

It sure is! Thank you for watching Red Scorpion!

[@LatitudeSky]

People today have NO idea what it was like walking into an arcade in the early 80s and hearing game after game after game all doing their best to make the coolest attract sounds. Williams games created a desire to play them like a hungry man looking at a steak on the grill.

[@LyonsArcade]

Yeah it was really something else! Another thing that is lost is that depending on where you were in the arcade, certain attract sounds were louder, etc. so the stuff faded as you walked around, hard to replicate that...

[@FlyingT5150]

Pizza Hut, Pepsi, and Defender….loved the 80s. Thanks for bringing back the past.

[@dherman0001]

This game was ahead of it's time.

[@LyonsArcade]

Yes it really was! Thank you for watching David!

[@hinzster]

"I think I'm getting better!" - yes, that's exactly how they got you - and your quarters - at those arcades. Nowadays with all the phone games the young ones probably laugh at this, but when we were kids, this was MAGIC!

[@jaybruz.5688]

it was like magic, but i would go back in a heart beat, thinking back how the arcade was a social hub you would show off your Bike or skate board, chill with your friends, and when there was a super popular game we would crowd around to see who could get the furthest along. i remember one afternoon after school there was about 25 of us pitching in coins for a guy who was at the final boss of Double Dragon, we all wanted to see the final fight and the end of the story, it was awesome when he won and the two guys rescued the girl we all cheered in that little arcade, that kind of thing would never happen again.

[@m.a2905]

My daughter thought it was funny,she plays fortnite and overwatch, etc and she’s good. I bought a Ms Pac-Man and galaxy arcade game, she plays it but says it’s to easy lol

[@wilsonlam4272]

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[@GOTTshua]

Beautiful story. The camraderie in the arcades made for a good afternoon or evening. Spotting one another quarters. Learning patterns. Getting to the Level ya never got to before. Glad we all grew up in the years we did. Blessed by God.

[@MaximRecoil]

@@m.a2905 "I bought a Ms Pac-Man and galaxy arcade game, she plays it but says it’s to easy" Too easy? Yeah, right. I bet she doesn't last 5 minutes on any Golden Age arcade game.

[@paulallas7665]

OMG!!! Used to love playing this way back in 1980. Damn I'm old!!!

[@jagc1969]

Watching how you are able to repair these machines is a kind of magic. The sound of Defender and Space Invaders is the sound of my youth. Thanks for sharing this video.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks Juan we appreciate you watching! See you on the next video!

[@keithjohnson1621]

Amen, Juan!

[@stevesmith3890]

I was at Apple in those days. Woz owned a Defender and brought it in to the break room for everyone to play. I learned watching him play, he was amazing. The key to the game is understanding the goals. The game starts with 10 people on the ground. Your job is to defend them, get it? The little ships flying around will pick each one up and slowly carry it up to the top of the screen where two bad things happen. The person dies, and the ship turns into a mutant. Mutants move fast and are supper hard to kill. The strategy is not to let mutants form, and the best way to do that was to get rid of all but one person. You could run around and shoot people or you could wait until they were being carried up and then shoot them or the ship carrying them. If all the people are killed everything turns into mutants, bad. So on round one you kill all but one person, then you let him get picked up, shoot the ship without hitting the person and catch him as he falls to earth. Within a little time you can be carrying the only person and no mutants can form. Run around and kill the rest of the ships. When the next level starts you will have to find the one person and capture him again but no mutants. Continue. At some point the game is programmed to give you all 10 people back after a certain number of levels. The longer that takes the better. When it happens scramble to kill 9 and carry one.

[@imnitguy]

How cool, had a friend who could play this game for hours. He must have used your same process.

[@arthurreyes2632]

Nothing sounds like an arcade until you hear defender. Wow!

[@LyonsArcade]

It's pretty special, thank you for watching Arthur!

[@tomlouie2855]

That "oooh!" when you spot the problem. We've all been there!!!

[@byteme6620]

You are the Defender of the Earth. Protecting our memories one saved Arcade Machine @ a time. TY so much. And I so miss the old arcade stuffs.

[@LyonsArcade]

I'm trying :) Thanks for watching Byte Me! See you on the next one...

[@byteme6620]

@@LyonsArcade You are most welcome, you show the troubleshooting issues, where as most, would just trash it as junk. And clearly it is not.

[@rcgamer]

This game still looks and sounds terrific.

[@CitizenPerkins]

Wow! That game brings back some pretty good memories! Around 1981/'82 I worked at a huge arcade/mini-golf range in SoCal called _Castle Park._ I was 18 or 19 and it was the perfect job for a teenager! Back then the place had about 300 arcade and pinball games in it. Haha, I especially loved opening when we turned on the power to the arcade in the morning causing the place to be FILLED with the sounds of each game's "attraction" sequence.

[@majcrash]

I spent many hours at Castle. Opening must have been quite a scene.

[@scottlodge1729]

Boy didn't that take me back!!! Believe I was a freshman in high school when this came out. The first time that soundboard worked I swear I went back in time for just a second!!!! You Kids won't understand the thrill of walking into a little country store and hearing those sounds for the first time! God,to be 14 again. Anyway thank a million my man,made my day

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you for watching Scott, good memories!

[@nickcalthrop4779]

Defender and Scramble where my favourite Arcade games back in the day.

[@LyonsArcade]

I never get scramble anymore cool game though!

[@JamsterJules]

I used to be able to "clock" it in the arcade. Score wraps at 1 million if I remember . And as a reward, everything you shoot in the last 10,000 gives you an extra life. Good old days

[@standupp2885]

There was a secret to playing and winning which was flying really low but I never could do that so I was all over the screen, reversing etc. Best I could do was in the 300 thousands, my buddy could go up into the 500s. My favorite arcade game ever.

[@JamsterJules]

@@standupp2885 On the harder levels, you would shoot all the "men" apart from one, and protect it. This would prevent mutants as they got stupid fast.

[@standupp2885]

@@JamsterJules yes, I remember that now

[@pieandmashlover]

I grew up in the UK in the 70's when video arcades started popping up all over the place... dude, did I spend a lot of money and time in them! But of all the machines I've played, Defender has to be my all-time favourite. 😘👌🏼

[@LyonsArcade]

It's one of the top 5 or 6 most requested games by people when they come looking for machines, it was something special to a loottttttt of people!

[@ommadammo]

From a technical perspective, I don't think I ever saw even a top player ever get ahead of the game. Except for - when a player could cause so much onscreen mayhem that s/he could take a little break (under 5secs) whilst the system sorted out all the explosions. Very rare, but could happen, and the game did not crash, just got a little overloaded. But that appeared to be it, at best, you could give the thing something to think about. You would never get fully ahead. So it never got boring.

[@HUBBABUBBADOOPYDOOP]

My friend's Father bought him the Defender game cartridge on his Commodore vic-20 for home office. We played it for hours, it was such a thrill. Start out easy- it's very discouraging to constantly lose, and work your way up as your coordination gets faster. Thank you for the memories.

[@opansardi]

Joe's is a real magician of electronics williams ... this wonderful sound. it's my favorite game since I was 17... oops I'm 56 and my machine has been broken for quite a few years but I don't despair of seeing it working again one day. I watched the video twice :-)

[@LyonsArcade]

You can fix it :) Thanks for watching twice Olivier!

[@opansardi]

Thanks joe's. I wrote you a private message on Messenger. 🥂

[@maccustoms2295]

A classic Defender was one of the greats of the golden era thanks for sharing. Have a great weekend

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks for watching Mac, glad you enjoyed it!

[@crux9584]

I remember Defender while waiting for my bus to school in England, that was back in 1982 there was always a que to play it. Best retro game out.

[@tubthump]

The arcade near my school had defender, asteroids, galaxian, battle zone, and space invaders etc.

[@vincentlewis1297]

Arguably the best game of the era

[@Mr.Batsu12]

Oh Defender, what memories. I sucked at the game but my best friend was amazing at it. We would go to the arcade in the early 80s and he's put a token in and play for at least 30 minutes. He'd have a huge collection of extra lives and would get 10-15 people crowd around watching him play. He's eventually just get tired of it and give the game up saying "Anybody want to play? I'm done." Then just walk away while people rushed trying to take over the controls.

[@LyonsArcade]

Guy was a complete stud. Thanks for watching Mr_Batsu!

[@kmoorman2008]

I fell in love with Defender on holiday in France on a camping holiday as a kid. The French version gave you 10 credits for a 10 franc coin, which were much the same size as an 2p coin, so I played it a lot in those 2 weeks. Absolutely my favourite arcade game of all time. Thank you very much.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you for watching Kieron!

[@99ronmarsh]

My best friend was the best at this game he just passed away a few weeks ago, R. I. P. Robby!

[@LyonsArcade]

That's pretty cool, some folks got really really good at it!

[@BrundleMoose]

I'm sorry your friend passed away but best at this game?

[@99ronmarsh]

@@BrundleMoose he was the best with the group of guys who would hang out and play.

[@williamcooper2368]

All those sounds bring back so many memories.

[@chuckhagen8966]

Great job resurrecting the game. I always sucked at Defender but I'd still pump quarters into it until I was broke.

[@LyonsArcade]

I'm only now just starting to even understand what you're supposed to do in it, i'm gong to have to practice more :) Thank you for watching, Chuck!

[@MrMattDat]

I've got to admit it. Hearing that startup sound just makes me smile!

[@LyonsArcade]

It's something else alright. There's this old country song that says "Ain't it funny how a melody, can bring back a memory?" sounds can take you right back! Thanks for watching Matt!

[@VID-KIDZ]

I Played Defender Back in The Day and Still Play This Today !!! Shout Out to Stargate !!!

[@Chordonblue]

VID-KIDZ?! Someone's a super fan! Rock on, Eugene!

[@AudioGuyBrian]

Greatest Game in the WORLD! Thanks for saving it from the scrapyard!

[@rickpontificates3406]

As a former arcade repairman myself (now casino repair), it’s interesting how board problems have changed. Back then, the higher chip count created power (current) issues, and now, boards have higher density chips, lower chip count, BUT EVERYTHING IS FREAKING BUCK CONVERTERS, which generally suck. When you jack up the power on these old linear regulators, what you’re doing is either; 1. Overcoming the voltage drop across the power connector caused by corrosion and the high current pulled by these game boards. 2. Compensating for the tolerance drift in the components on the power supply over time.

[@oldestgamer]

Yes, I was just thinking that the replacement SMPS probably isn't supplying enough current to overcome the voltage drops so you have to turn up the voltage at the supply. The old linear supply is probably a better fit to supply the needed current, and they aren't that hard to repair.

[@rickpontificates3406]

@@oldestgamer just read directly from power supply + (red lead) to the furthest point on the PCB power + (black lead) and you can see the drop. I’m sure you know this, but the volt drop can be shocking.. even dangerous to the PCB, if the connection with the volt drop were to intermittently make a better connection

[@BuzzHarrison]

Hurts my feelings to see that original linear power supply sitting in the bottom of that cabinet and not being really used. A properly rebuilt original power supply will last another 30 years or more. Good job Ron, another classic lives!

[@LyonsArcade]

Yeah the linears worked pretty well in my opinion! Thanks for watching Buzz, we appreciate it!

[@CrimFerret]

Linear supplies are pretty straight forward, but horribly inefficient.

[@brooknet]

It's great to see a real Defender machine. One thing that surprised me - having never looked inside such a machine - is .. wow, how many boards? Tons - all jam-packed with ICs! Incredible. Although I love Defender, I'm terrible at it and always have been. I pride myself in having never achieved a score over 20,000.

[@LyonsArcade]

It was a pretty complex game for it's time, lots of hardware to run it! Some of the other games from that time also had a lot of hardware, like Zookeeper... or Paperboy had boards that covered almost the entire back door! Thanks for watching brooknet!

[@tigermike74]

This brings back to a very nice time and great memories. Thank you!

[@stephenwright8103]

I still love space invaders it's got that distinctive sound great memories ...

[@lucasrem]

you still play the Arcade? for decorative needs only?

[@MrShiffles]

I love these old pieces of gaming hardware...Every single one of them has a story to tell about their particular history...kind of like a classic car that's been repaired and modified over the years...always great to see you guys breathe new life into one of my favorite shooters back in the days! ❤️💯

[@LyonsArcade]

You see it just like I do MrShiffles, thank you for watching!

[@djlamar2]

Oh hello George. Fancy having you back

[@LyonsArcade]

George must have been on vacation or something :)

[@handyhippie6548]

i had the high score on one of these games for three years in a local pizza place when i was in high school in the 80's. one of my favorite video games ever!

[@LyonsArcade]

that's quite an accomplishment :) Thanks for watching handyhippie!

[@mmaranta785]

I remember fixing arcade games and pinballs in the early 90’s as a tech at CA Robinson. Fun job.

[@louclawges9069]

CA Robinson!!! Wow, does that ever bring back some memories!! I use to live in the SFV and my friend and I went up there to see their machines. Pinball heaven, but the guy really just blew us off like if was no big deal, like we were a bother. That's when games just went digital. We just got out of high school then in 76.

[@thomasmickle7289]

Nice! Just got my Star Gate working. The sounds are the best on these.

[@LyonsArcade]

Yeah the sounds are fantastic. Some of the best sound effects ever!

[@UltraReefReseller]

wow, can only imagine owning stargate....such a killer game!!

[@thomasmickle7289]

@@UltraReefReseller yeah, it's cool but such a hard game. Even with 15 lives I only get to wave 3. Hoping to trade it towards a pin.

[@UltraReefReseller]

@@thomasmickle7289 I just tried to play it through an emulator online and without the buttons and their placement it was impossible. I shut it down after 10 mins and mumbled to myself, that's a hard game. Lol. Back in the day, one of my fellow workers at the grocery store would play for hours on one quarter. It was amazing to watch.

[@silentotto5099]

Watching you play Defender brings back memories of what happened when I tried to play defender. :(

[@LyonsArcade]

They got us man! Thanks for watching !

[@vedranmaricevic6760]

Watching from Berlin, Germany. Enjoying it very much. Thanks for these videos. :)

[@tuckert7883]

One of my favorite for sure, I remember you could tell if someone was rocking a game by the sound, we would all flock around, fun days

[@LyonsArcade]

That's a good point, you can tell just by the noise if they're doing good LOL Thanks for watching Tucker T !

[@clintevans6643]

“Intergalactic Planetary!!!” You crack me up Ron. Great video. I used to love this game.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks Clint, this one's a special one!

[@mikemichaeld2259]

Oh my, I went to live in Trinidad from England there was a games arcade which was air conditioned with thick luscious carpets with large tinted windows so there was no glare it was beautiful you have brought back so many awesome memories of hanging out with great friends having a fabulous time thank you

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Mike i'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@kjrchannel1480]

As a seasoned Arcade technician and former Arcade distributor service manager. I would put off buying home consoles when I could play the real thing. If I had that specimen I would mark those boards and connectors so they couldn't be mistaken again. I would probably rewire them correctly to. I though about using one of those sound boards as a doorbell with. That reminds me of when I repaired a Williams pinball sound board by making my own addressing circuitry to test all sound locations on the bench. When you don't have a machine to test it in then you get creative if you know how. I found a bad Yamaha chip that way. I would note that a person can use any EPROM as long as the image on it is correct and the pin jumpers are compatible with it, but that might screw up the next person if notes aren't left stating what was done.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you KJR, that's a cool idea for a doorbell too!

[@miguelrios4602]

“We done did it!” Great video showing common sense repair tips. I’d be lost, but back in the day, I turned that game over 7 times. Thanks Ronnie!

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks for watching, Miguel! See you on the next video!

[@AsmodeusMictian]

Thanks for bringing a classic back online :)

[@greenlantern1123]

Just the sound takes me back to the 80s as a little boy playing this for hours in Bronx New York!! Man I miss those days. This is a classic . Thank you for sharing 👍🏻

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you for watching greenlantern1123!

[@greenlantern1123]

@@LyonsArcade have to take a trip down to SC! Would love to see the place

[@RobertS-oh9bq]

OMG, I remember playing that back in 1981. I was 20 years old. I would get a blister on my finger playing so hard. I called the condition Defender finger.

[@LyonsArcade]

I think people forget there weren't as many entertainment options in the house back then so it was natural to go out and play a game or go to a movie or a pool hall or bowling or something. Thanks for watching Robert!

[@ginkumpow3726]

When you've put enough quarters into the Defender machine to actually own one, your play will be pretty good.

[@LyonsArcade]

That's about what it takes :)

[@mysterj1]

That is sage experience. I could have bought quite a few pinball tables from all the quarters I dropped :)

[@MikeLynx]

I've been playing defender for years - it's my favourite arcade game. I'm still rubbish at it. You're quite good at it, Ron. 👍

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks Mike, that's nice of you to say, i'm good at fixing it at least :)

[@brunster64]

I always thought it was designed for aliens who had at least one more arm than us 🤔

[@naytch2003]

Failing means yer playin🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿😁..or in other words..mony a mickle maks a muckle..and if that still don't make sense..a little bit goes a long wee laddy😁

[@ronwicker8761]

Thanks for bringing back my childhood. Great video!!!!

[@jeff_haydon]

Could never play this game as good as I wanted but I've always just loved listening to the different sound effects it had

[@ByrdMann2010]

Love the sounds, brings back some great memories of being in an arcade. Don't worry Ron, I know first hand that you're not the only one who's ever had trouble playing this game. I just enjoy picking up tips from a master trouble shooter.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks ByrdMann2010 I appreciate you watching! See you on the next video man.

[@silverian]

This video brings back childhood memories and Arcade Game Halls. It is nice to watch you working and troubleshooting!

[@davekemp1927]

Another game we played for hours in the arcade 80s awesome video

[@trivet1970]

i was never good at it either but loved to watch people play it back in the day

[@LyonsArcade]

I was the same a little later on, I used to go to the arcade and just watch other people, it was just as fun. Thanks for watching!

[@freewheelin7536]

Pinball was my main love but I could always be lured away by a good flying game in the early 80s. Defender was one of the best along with Xevious, Time Pilot 84, Gyruss, Sinistar, and Juno First (my favorite).

[@LyonsArcade]

I've heard others mention Juno First, it's on the multigames but I've never played it much...

[@cnfuzz]

Vanguard , Scramble , pooyan , tempest , battlezone , qix

[@TheRealBobHickman]

This is one of my favorites in my collection. Asteroids and Space Invaders are right up there too.

[@bernardjones6287]

Loved seeing old games I played as a child brought back to life. Keep up the good work!

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Bernard!

[@DDRFreak410]

Nice to see something that is not pinball again. Thanks for the content as always.

[@LyonsArcade]

Did you miss Tuesday's Video :) ? Thanks for watching Mufausa!

[@DDRFreak410]

@@LyonsArcade I might have brother LOL. I'll check it out. Thanks and enjoy your weekend.

[@TheBonsaiZone]

I was the king of Defender in my town, I could play for 4 hrs. on one quarter!

[@LyonsArcade]

I can play for about 4 minutes on a good day for one quarter :) I'm getting there!

[@kirk1968]

Same here, haha. The ice cream place had one and I held the high score record for weeks on end. UNTIL...they got Stargate 😳

[@ericpetersen8155]

Took me a year to master Defender. I became a world class player. I’d like to buy a original Defender, I haven’t had one for a few years.

[@dalea1691]

I played Defender Stargate. Same thing, one quarter for hours.

[@piketfi8139]

I was the guy standing at the back watching, wishing I could play like that, I remember when it was being played properly it was always the loudest machine in the arcade 😎 very very cool machine

[@gfy69]

that is in amazing condition from the start! I think this has to be the most demanding arcade game in terms of player accuracy.

[@LyonsArcade]

Definitely, of the popular ones at least, there may be an obscure one that's harder but out of the most popular ones (and this one was very popular) it's got the crown :)

[@Chordonblue]

@@LyonsArcade Back in the day I was a local champion at this game. But when Stargate came out (Defender II), I had to adjust my skillset a bit - mainly for 'Inviso'. I thought I was a bad ass, rolling my score over 6 times in a row once on Defender - the difficulty would plateau after Wave 30. but Stargate? You didn't roll that one over! After about Wave 25 or so, it'd roll over YOU! I made 18 million on Stargate - normal settings - but eventually that machine would simply beat you to a pulp. End of. Then there was Robotron 2084 and later Blaster... Also relentless games.

[@Michhael]

Wow!! Beyond helpful! Just brought home a Defender game that has a new power supply connected to the service outlet. Also the power to the coin door isn't hooked up. Halfway through this video and I've already learned how to fix everything that I've (so far) found wrong with this. Thanks !!!!!

[@LyonsArcade]

Very cool Michael, have fun with that thing!

[@dinocorreia1202]

I spent days...weeks playing this beauty. Damned, i'm old

[@joeperkowski]

I played Defender for 27 hours straight on one quarter in 1981 LOL when the score gets to 999999 every object you hit gets you a free man

[@LyonsArcade]

Man you were like a Defender Alcoholic, lol I will never know what happens when you get to 999999 unfortunately :) Thanks for watching Joe!

[@AwesomeGames56]

You’re much better than myself at Defender! Very cool to see the thought process on this one.

[@LyonsArcade]

Glad you enjoyed it man :) Thanks for watching!

[@smeatonmedia]

Joe your videos are invaluable. I'm picking up a dead-as-nails defender cocktail this afternoon and I can't wait to get my hands dirty. Wish me luck!

[@LyonsArcade]

You can get her going again man :)

[@smeatonmedia]

@@LyonsArcade you were right Joe! I got it working! A bunch of dead fuses and some busted legs on one of the program roms was what was killing it. I replaced some sockets and caps and switched the batteries to lithium for good measure. All fixed now! Wahoooo!!

[@Critter482]

ANother awesome save of a classic... I have played these games since I was 8 and went from playing to getting my AAS in Electronics I now have a large collection of 80s and a few 90s era games to restore.

[@EsotericArctos]

When I first saw this video up I thought " I haven't seen this one on a video before ", and then you confirmed it. The broken wires on the amp chip are likely because the heatsink was loose and this has been moved around so much. All the vibrations of going overseas and coming back likely caused it work harden over time and eventually just snap. I know people like switching power supplies, but I prefer the originals in these machines and to repair at component level. The switching power supplies tend to introduce a lot of noise these machines were not designed to handle or filter. I know they generally work well. It's just my personal feelings. Why fix what ain't broke lol :). Love your work Ron. You always have great, down to earth and easy to follow videos that help even the biggest dumbass fix their machines :).

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks Brendan, we appreciate you watching man :) I prefer the original ones too, those switching power supplies people think if you add that in you're making it easier to fix since you can just swap a new one in, but on a machine like Defender you're not going to be able to get away with just swapping parts to fix it, you're going to have to do component level repair, and if you're doing that the power supply is the easiest thing to repair components on :) It causes issues on Williams games anyways because of the way the cmos ram works but it's pretty common to put those switcher kits in these unfortunately!

[@Practicedummy1]

I remember back then that I had considered the game too complex at the time to play due to how many buttons there were for the game (I was 9). :D

[@LyonsArcade]

I would agree with your assessment :)

[@ovalteen4404]

Uggh... reverse and thrust buttons rather than a 4-way joystick. That's one case where the console versions were a welcome change.

[@fred_derf]

@@ovalteen4404 Once you got the controls down you could fly, flip, fire, flip faster than you can with a joystick.

[@SpearM3064]

@@fred_derf That's true, but I had the same problem as Oval Teen. I never played the game enough to get used to all those buttons. I hate XBox and PS4 controllers for the same reason. Too damn many buttons. (Well, also, I have small hands and those controllers cause thumb cramps after about half an hour.)

[@fred_derf]

@@SpearM3064, writes _"That's true, but I had the same problem as Oval Teen."_ Hey, I didn't say it was easy. But if you invested the time (and quarters) to master the controls you could do really good and impress all the ladies! (that last bit is a joke).

[@simongarlinge3669]

Back in the day I was the master of DEFENDER, I could clock this machine all day long !!!

[@LyonsArcade]

Not I :) I wasn't really ever the master of any of them though!

[@Dr_Kenneth_Noisewater]

I was shit at Defender too but damned if that wasn’t the most popular game everywhere it was installed. And you were right…those old sounds took me back! Cool video.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Brandon, we appreciate you watching man!

[@MrButtonpresser]

Great job. Now, if I could only have all my coins back from when I was a kid, I’d be worth $$$$$ ! ; )

[@LyonsArcade]

It happens :) You probably paid for this one...

[@izzynutz2000]

You know I just realized something I've been watching you guys since day one and Ron I have never seen what you look like.... Plus the legs and the heat sink probably broke on that thing from all the transporting that he's done with it bouncing around and fiddling with it and blah blah blah "it was that pothole in Atlanta"😵💥😫

[@naytch2003]

He's made it clear I believe several times he ain't the star of the show🤠, that's why he won't show his face:)

[@LyonsArcade]

There are tons of potholes in Atlanta, that's for sure :) I'm in the witness protection program so I never show my face to protect my identity :)

[@naytch2003]

Yeah lol Ron actually works undercover for the FBI..(female body inspectors)😁😂

[@LyonsArcade]

@@naytch2003 We gotta think of a better one than that, I wouldn't want my name associated with such a group of slimy individuals :) Isn't there a WIC , Women Inspectors Club I can join or something?

[@naytch2003]

@@LyonsArcadeOh absolutely..my apologies..

[@videomaniac108]

I used to play this back in the day in the game room at the university where I got my undergraduate degree. I remember it being a very challenging game and one of my friends, a graduate physics student, who was a master of this game. The things he would do on it were amazing, none of us could match him. Good memories.

[@LyonsArcade]

I was speaking with somebody else about it, I think just a certain type of mind excels at this type of game better than others. A guy who's good at this game might be horrible at a fighting game, or a pattern game like Pac-Man.... certain people just get it better. Thank you for watching Jim!

[@ommadammo]

I used to be pretty good. You had to get into a Zen-like state, hardly even watching the screen. It was almost more enjoyable to watch someone at that level, they seemed to be doing the impossible. I think the hardware engine was back-to-back (clock cycles) CPU's (6800s, 6502's - can't remember, but there were two running on interleaved clocks). This heuristic gameplay solution perhaps made the very best use of the technology at the time. I used to use it as a physical and mental workout. Don't think the arcades made much money out of this, as it was way too hard for the casual players, and the good players could make their coin work for over an hour at a time.

[@gordontownsend1544]

Hi there Guys, I just found your channel by accident, it's the Best. I love all these old Machines, I still remember going out with my Dad to the Pub, He would give me 5 x 20cent coins and said go try that noise box over there. Space Invaders was that game, and when you only get 5 games you soon become very good or very board, LOL. Soon after that I started playing any Arcade Machine I could find, I Loved Defender, yes the sounds, but at that time the Graphics were very cool. Although my Favourite was Donkey Kong, Crush Roller and Moon Patrol. Since then, I made my own Bar Top Machines and my Grandchildren asked me where I got all these new games from. They love them also. So I can't wait to watch some more. Good Luck, and Thanks for Sharing. Regards, Gordon - Australia

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you for your stories Gordon, we appreciate you watching! I've been amazed in my shop at how well the classics hold up with kids, my theory is that they had to be fun to earn another quarter so most of them that were famous enough to be everywhere were very well designed games, whereas now a lot of games are all flash. Something like Defender though was very well thought out....

[@sideburn]

“Tin roof rusted”. So that’s what she says in “Love Shack” !

[@LyonsArcade]

That's it!

[@deanrussell2224]

I think it’s a way of saying someone is pregnant???

[@mrk1075]

Back in the 80s me and my brother would sneak out of the house at night and go up to the open all night convenient store/gas station and play this game while drinking soda and eating hostess cakes. 😀

[@LyonsArcade]

Livin' the life :) It sounds like a youth well spent, thanks for watching mrk107!

[@az_stan]

Back in high school, during lunch, I used to watch my friend play this game every day. He was quite good at it. It was very cool to see the guts of this thing and learn a bit how it works. Thank you!

[@peetiegonzalez1845]

The sound on this game is just awesome.

[@635mobile7]

Great job diagnosing and repairing!👍🏾

[@cryptojohnny7781]

One of the best games EVER , good job!!!

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Crypto Johnny!

[@stewsretroreviews]

Great video to a classic game! One of my favourite early arcade games.

[@LyonsArcade]

It's one of the best ever! Thanks for watching Stew!

[@stewsretroreviews]

@@LyonsArcade No probs 👌🏻

[@my2cents645]

Brings back good memories.

[@bobsyouruncle2020]

I loved playing Defender! A very cool way to "freak out" the game was to catch all 10 humanoids, raise the ship to the top of the screen, stop the ship, and then drop the ship to the ground and place all 10 humanoids in one spot. The ship would pass completely through the ground and come out of the top of the screen! Some of the astronauts would land on the ground, but some would travel with the ship and then hang suspended in the air. The game would "freeze" until the CPU could process what just happened. The game would eventually continue to play on from whatever point in the game you happened to be. Another strategy is as you gather the astronauts, place them in one small area. It is much easier to defend the astronauts from the landers if they are collected in one spot. Then you have few to no mutants to deal with.

[@saintsfan7991]

Wow! You are an incredible troubleshooter with a ton of knowledge!

[@boomer170dB]

Ron - awesome video and thank you. This game caused an obsession for me back in the day as it was located in a drug store that I ended up working for in high school. Can't recall how many rolls of quarters got dumped into my obsession but it was fun. Today I am very fortunate to live near a 'retro' arcade and am one of the few who can play and high score on Defender. Even my hard-core Xbox Live addict kids admitted years ago "that's a hard game Dad..."

[@LyonsArcade]

Watching somebody good play Defender is definitely impressive, the learning curve is so steep it's something else to see :) Thanks for watching George, glad you enjoyed it!

[@pezjohnson]

I am ALSO horrible at Defender. Thanks for showing the process.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks for watching Pez!

[@dariodarekdariuszwjdetomas8156]

Wow! Man! This is my GAME! First love!

[@LyonsArcade]

Glad you enjoyed it Dario :) See you on the next video!

[@Tranarpnorra]

I loved 'Defender' and still do. The gameplay and graphics are awesome but what struck me as crazy cool were the sound effects. They really did a good job with that. You're right Ron, goose bumps for the sound. Dang, I need to buy a Mister FPGA so I can upgrade my tabletop arcade cabinet.

[@LyonsArcade]

It's hard to emulate because the controls are so unique. You can DO it, but the controls will be completely different than original so it takes a lot of the feel of it away....

[@Tranarpnorra]

​@@LyonsArcade Well, I neither have the money or the space to house a real Defender game so I'll just have to make do with what I got. If you know me, I have recources and know-how to pull from. I'll be fine, just settle on that. =) Nice troubleshooting there, BTW. Hardware emulation by FPGA is the next best thing. Don't be too hard on yourself, Defender is a pretty challenging game to play, hehe.

[@glassbeveller]

When you fixed it 😊 Now I remember this game . Never liked it but the attraction was awesome sound effects back then 👍 thanks buddy

[@RickWright66]

I loved this game... played 5hrs straight one 1 token. This and Robotron I could play as long as I wanted!

[@scotthoover6689]

Awesome job troubleshooting the problems! I have that same game, but it never has worked, so thank you so much for giving me some direction to go in, because it didnt have any paperwork or anything. Thank you very much for the info, and video!

[@LyonsArcade]

Good luck with it, these are great games!

[@truhunk1]

Good job. I own a Stargate (Defender 2) and I still play that thing. Its the type of game that doesn't get boring because you always get better. I bought it in 2008 and have it in my man cave. Great game.

[@Argyle302]

I’ll buy that Stargate game from you for $200, including shipping and handling in that $200. 🤣😂🤣

[@truhunk1]

@@Argyle302 lol. Ya well, you forgot a zero.

[@antonnym214]

"Verdified" is a good word. You own that. I like it! I have to say I enjoy watching you work because I like the logical way you think when tracking down a problem. It's more fun than a video game! That sound is great! It's like phasing with echo. Great stuff!

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you for watching Anton, glad you enjoyed it :) I'm trying to illustrate that you don't have to know everything to fix these you just have to think about them logically and often you can work it out :)

[@tommylakindasorta3068]

I enjoyed the fake-out you did with the price of the amp. Like you set it up to where it was this rare priceless treasure to replace, and then you hit us with the actual price of ten cents. lol.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Tommy glad you got a laugh out of it :) See you on the next video!