MJ retro gaming - Moonwalker Arcade & dreaming of MJ Pinball

MJTruth

Proud Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2016
Messages
872
Points
18
I am a fan of the Moonwalker Arcade game released in 1990 and noticed that the arcade board itself rose in value significantly following MJ's death and that there seemed to be increasing love for the game in retro gaming circles. The game was ported to a number of home consoles and computers but none captured the same magic as the arcade version!

When MJ Experience was released and was shown to be successful I remember wishing that the MJ Estate would jump on it and reissue the arcade version for modern systems, hopefully with updated graphics and sound. Since then the retro gaming scene has boomed, particularly in the last few years with two hugely successful consoles released by Nintendo (and the rumoured Gameboy re-release coming soon), and a number of other retro machines being released from companies such as Atari and a renewed push for Sega's licensed genesis/MegaDrive retro consoles.

Developers/publishers have also re-released old games with updated graphics and sound in recent years (e.g. Halo, Starcraft II etc).


Team MJ have never (as far as I know) commented on the potential for releasing Moonwalker post-2009, but I still hold out hope that it could happen.

As the game was originally developed by Sega I suppose that they would actually need to sign up to the deal in collaboration with the MJ Estate.

Is this a product that you would be interested in?

Would you prefer the OG arcade version or perhaps an updated version? Both could in theory be made officially available via services such as the Virtual Console, Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, or Steam in the same way that other classic Sega games have been released. I would personally like updated graphics (but created in a way that reflects the late 80s/ early 90s design aesthetic) because I have played the arcade version to death in recent years.




In addition, Pinball is having something of a renaissance and I have grown increasingly interested in pinball machines over the last few years. I was considering building a custom machine from scratch a while ago and would possibly have themed it around Smooth Criminal/Moonwalker but unfortunately I had to park the project due to family commitments. That project made me wonder whether the MJ Estate could team up with one of the manufacturers to release an official MJ themed pinball machine. That could be fantastic.
Now I know these would be expensive to buy, but if you they were ever released would you ever make the effort to track one down?

Finally some MJ pinball pics.

00-jacks04.jpg


Various-Photoshoots-Todd-Gray-Photoshoot-michael-jackson-7440719-1100-716.jpg


00-jacks10.jpg


Rare-MJ-michael-jackson-13015350-500-308.jpg
 
Last edited:
I’ve been waiting for Moonwalker to be re-released over a few years for both Virtual Consol, PSN and so one and still nothing comes up.
 
I have always liked the arcade version.. I admit I never really gave the sega version much of a chance, but that's because it just wasn't the same for me. I'd love the chance to play that game on my counsel.

If t hey wanted to release a new version, (re imagined/better graphic quality or anything) I am all for it.. I would not be mad at keeping it as is either.

Of course if it were all up to me, I'd have similar game, better graphics etc. but I am in no place to be 'picky'.. I loved what they did with Conkers bad fur day when released on xbox. Graphics improved yet same game..

The MJ experience game was "eh" at best for me.. I could care less to dance along to an impersonator trying to do MJ moves, especially when I know the real choreography inside/out..

a game, with a story like Moonwalker would be much more interesting to us!
 
I love the Moonwalker Arcade game! I remember playing it in the 90s. I still have my Moonwalker game cartridge for the Sega Genesis also!
 
Another part of the reason why the arcade version of Moonwalker has gone up in price is the simple fact that it's hard to find a working version of the game. The game board was made with some kind of anti-piracy method that was used in some other arcade games at the time. It's referred to as the "suicide battery", and what it basically did was that if the game's motherboard was tampered with, the battery would deplete, causing the entire motherboard to die and make the game permanently unplayable. Unfortunately, this would affect people who purchased the game legit, as the battery would deplete over time and die naturally, and then you'd just have a game you bought legit but can no longer play.

Thankfully, as with many anti-piracy methods, people eventually got around it. I have seen at least one cabinet for the game that was modified so the game won't die. No idea how many more there are out there, but that's another reason why the arcade version is so expensive. Although there's always emulators... lol.

While the game isn't a masterpiece or anything, I wouldn't mind seeing an HD remake of it. Better yet, a bundle that contains the arcade and Genesis versions of the game, plus remakes of both versions. I will say the arcade one is arguably better, simply because the special dance attack move doesn't drain your health; you have to use these tokens to use the move instead.
 
Yes, I have heard of the suicide battery.
The same mechanism was used on many arcade boards produced around that time and some of the more popular ones are still found easily today. Of course part of Moonwalker's issue was that a few years after its release came the allegations and many of the cabinets were removed from arcades and disposed of. The system became a cheap option for arcade repairers to use for spare parts so they were stripped down and many of the cabinets were actually recycled to make other game cabinets. I have seen several examples of collectors who have bought an arcade machine only to discover it was recycled from Moonwalker or other games. So, all that taken into account an intact moonwalker cabinet is rare these days.
 
It would be awesome if they remade it in HD and released it on PS4, Xbox One, Switch and PC. Like Capcom did with Ducktales game:


I have only played the Sega Mega Drive version of Moonwalker.
 
Yes that's exactly the kind of thing I'm thinking of!


EDIT:

LOL I just found this modified "The Walking Dead" pinball machine called "The MoonWalking Dead"



At least they gave it a go :)
 
Last edited:
Even SEGA Genesis just released yet, they failed to include Moonwalker in so what’s the bloody point anyways? The Gaming Gods continues to defy us by denying us Moonwalker repeatedly.
 
Nobody seems to mention the Personal Computer versions that were developed by Emerald Software & Keypunch Software, those versions are completely different from the Arcade & Home Console releases.


From what it looks, it seems closer to the movie in terms of scenes (starts off at "Speed Demon" section instead of the end of "Smooth Criminal" section) & uses this cool shooting section during "Smooth Criminal".
 
PoP;4282260 said:
Even SEGA Genesis just released yet, they failed to include Moonwalker in so what’s the bloody point anyways? The Gaming Gods continues to defy us by denying us Moonwalker repeatedly.

I get the feeling that Moonwalker wasn't included on the Genesis Mini due to licensing/copyright issues, plus it's possible that Sega may not have the source code for the game anymore. Thankfully it is possible to hack the system and add the game to it that way, assuming you have a ROM of the game.

Seldervi;4282262 said:
Nobody seems to mention the Personal Computer versions that were developed by Emerald Software & Keypunch Software, those versions are completely different from the Arcade & Home Console releases.

[video=youtube;c0xPDFxlN0I]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0xPDFxlN0I[/video]

From what it looks, it seems closer to the movie in terms of scenes (starts off at "Speed Demon" section instead of the end of "Smooth Criminal" section) & uses this cool shooting section during "Smooth Criminal".

I have heard of this! I couldn't get past the first stage, though; kind of a difficult game to play with a keyboard.
 
It would be nice if they did rerelease the moonwalker. nowadays they are rereleasing older games. i think if his estate still have copyright to the game they can rerelease. this game is now I think 30 something years old. so yeah it's time for a rerelease. like they rerelease the movie on bluray a few years ago.

as long they stick to the original content and don't screw up the game because a lot of new games rereleases are very awful. so if they do rerelease it keep like it was and don't change the storyline.

they may have tell new gamers what is the moonwalker movie and who was and is Michael Jackson if they don't know.

so I hope one day they go for it. space channel 5 getting released without Michael.

the last game related to Michael was i think the dance game from the wii with other platforms and systems. so yeah we need a new Michael game. it been about almost 11-12 years since the last one.
 
Just play it on an emulator. HD ports of old classics are 99% trash with horrible flash graphics and/or smudgy pixel filters.

But yeah, a new Moonwalker game, that would be dope. I would go for a 2D pixelated hand drawn Castlevania style game. If done right, it would become an instant classic.

3447995-whatisaman.jpg
 
Nobody seems to mention the Personal Computer versions that were developed by Emerald Software & Keypunch Software, those versions are completely different from the Arcade & Home Console releases.


From what it looks, it seems closer to the movie in terms of scenes (starts off at "Speed Demon" section instead of the end of "Smooth Criminal" section) & uses this cool shooting section during "Smooth Criminal".

WOW! I knew a version for Amiga existed - a mate of mine found the game in his house. But I assumed it was either the Sega or arcade version. Never seen this. The cut scenes are wonderful.
 
Having a new Moonwalker game would be pretty nice. They could do alot with that i think . I would love to see 2020 graphics of m on a game screen.
The Michael Jackson experience game on the wii was nice. Ive only just gotten round to play that :coockoo:- I didnt need it faceless/blurred out though.
 
I always knew there was different versions of this game. there was different systems during the time as well. I haven't played any of them because I don't own no older systems. but maybe one day when I get a chance I will checkout and see can i play it on my computer.

It would nice to see them update the game. as long they stick with the storyline and don't screw it up.
 
Since PS5 coming out it would be nice if they brought back the Moonwalker game. update it and stick with the story. they do need to rerelease the Moonwalker. it's been 30 something years since been released.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We&#39;re back with more licensed video games! Today, celebrity games!<br>Did you know Michael Jackson was a gaming superfan? Not only did he compose music for several video games, he even starred in a few! Check out <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Moonwalker?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Moonwalker</a> for the Sega Genesis: <a href="https://t.co/97MJPP13iH">https://t.co/97MJPP13iH</a></p>&mdash; Licenseathon (@licenseathon) <a href="https://twitter.com/licenseathon/status/1240669718777921538?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
Made a gaming YouTube channel recently, and it wouldn't have been right if I didn't grace my channel with Moonwalker. Appeciate anybody that watches ! :)

 
^Haha! Loved the costume change. Great video, man!

When I first started watching I was like 'argh he's missing all the windows'!
 
Made a gaming YouTube channel recently, and it wouldn't have been right if I didn't grace my channel with Moonwalker. Appeciate anybody that watches ! :)


Oh man, I didn't know Chadwick Boseman does youtube!
 
ChrisC;4291722 said:
^Haha! Loved the costume change. Great video, man!

When I first started watching I was like 'argh he's missing all the windows'!

Thanks man, I appreciate it!!!! Lol yeah I&#8217;ve have cleaner runs on the first level than that lol
 
Back
Top