Weirs Beach, NH, 3/1/2009 -- The annual International Classic Videogame Tournament is quickly approaching and 2009 marks the 11th year for this historic event. The tournament will take place from Thursday, May 28th through Sunday, May 31st, 2009. Tournament hours are Thursday Noon-10pm, Friday and Saturday 10am-11pm and Sunday 10am-5pm. Admission is $30 and includes 175 game tokens. Registration will be at the door only. The annual event is held at the Funspot Family Entertainment Super Center on Route 3 in Weirs Beach, NH. Funspot is the largest arcade in the world and home to The American Classic Arcade Museum.
Each year, championship-caliber players from across the United States and around the world gather for four days of classic game competition, and the fun of playing their favorites in the world’s largest collection of classic arcade games still operating in an arcade setting. Players have come from as far away as Australia, Canada, England, Israel, Holland and Finland to attend this fun-filled event.
For the 2009 tournament there will be a 15 game video game contest and the Manufacturer’s Challenge featuring 6 classic games from a single manufacturer. Last year, Taito was the manufacturer of choice. Which company will it be this year? To keep the competition as even as possible, the game selections will be announced on Thursday, May 28th, the first day of the 4-day event. There will not be a pinball event during the tournament this year.
New for 2009 will be the awarding of cash prizes for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place finishes in the video game tournament. First place will be $500, second place $200 and third place $100. There will be a $200 prize for the1st place winner of the Manufacturer’s Challenge. In addition, cash prizes will be awarded to the winner of each daily Mystery Game Tournament; a popular segment which requires entrants to compete on only one game.
The American Classic Arcade Museum at Funspot has been featured in numerous magazines and has appeared in several films. Many scenes from the critically acclaimed The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters were filmed inside the famous arcade as were scenes from Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade, a documentary by Men at Work Pictures of New York. In March of 2008, Harbor House Pictures of New Rochelle, NY filmed inside the arcade museum for six straight days for their upcoming film, Altar of the Unnamed.
The American Classic Arcade Museum is the first 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to restoring and displaying vintage coin-operated amusements. Located on the third floor of the immense Funspot Family Entertainment Super Center, the museum celebrates the origins of the arcade industry with popular games from the past. Asteroids, Pac-Man, Centipede and Gorgar are just a few of the nearly 300 games in the classic arcade museum. The museum also contains static displays of game history and the walls feature many posters of vintage arcade games.
The Funspot Family Entertainment Super Center is located on Route 3 in Weirs Beach, NH. The facility was founded in 1952 by Bob Lawton and has been continuously operated by him and his family ever since. The 60,000 square foot center features over 500 games, 20 bowling lanes, a miniature golf course, a 400-seat Bingo hall, a restaurant, the D.A. Long Tavern, and a state of the art indoor golf center featuring six Full-Swing Golf Simulators. Funspot and The American Classic Arcade Museum are open year-round. More information can be found at www.funspotnh.com and www.ClassicArcadeMuseum.org.
Funspot – Route 3, Weirs Beach, NH (603) 366-4377
