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Watch this: one-time 1983 special 'Battle of the Video Games'

Watch this: one-time 1983 special 'Battle of the Video Games'

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The Awl has dug up the intro to "Battle of the Video Games," a spectacular taste of the culture of 1983 — that's nearly thirty years ago if you've conveniently let that slip from your mind.

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Battle of the Video Games THE AWL
Battle of the Video Games THE AWL

The arcade as we know it may not exist anymore in the US, but there was a time when they were big enough to garner their own TV shows. The Awl has dug up the intro to "Battle of the Video Games," a spectacular taste of the culture of 1983 — that's nearly thirty years ago if you've conveniently let that slip from your mind. The one-time special features Heather Locklear, Happy Days' Anson Williams, Lou Ferrigno, Scott Baio, and other '80s — erm — stars. The contest pits the celebrities, split into two teams, against each other in three rounds: Ms. Pac-Man, BugerTime, and Frogger. Unfortunately it appears that only the introduction to the show has survived to make it onto YouTube, but it's certainly worth a watch to see the gameplay mechanics of Pac-Man explained for someone who's never heard of it before. If you're hooked, The Awl offers a oddly-captivating look at the show, with some stills showing what happened after the intro.