Around the corner from Backspace is The City of Roses’ favorite arcade, Ground Kontrol. It’s a huge collection of classic pinball and arcade games. What a find!
Eons ago, when I was in high school, every Friday night my sister and I would go hang out at The Castle. Miniature golf, go-karts, bumper boats, rides, and, of course, a huge arcade to eat your quarters. We’d take our money and save the last quarter. After we’d spent the rest, we took that last quarter and headed over to Eight Ball Deluxe, our favorite pinball machine. We knew we’d be able to rack up free games on points and specials. We’d quickly bump it up to 15 or 20 games, then sell those games to someone for a dollar. We’d spend three quarters of it, and repeat the scenario ad infinitum. It was rare that we lost that last quarter.
I was overjoyed to find that machine at Ground Kontrol, in as perfect condition as *cough* years ago. They’d changed it so only one game could be won. But, yes, I did win games. It felt good! Transported back to my youth for only a quarter. Such a deal! It was such fun showing my boys games that I had played when I was their age. Some that had been difficult for me to master (Gauntlet II) were boringly easy for these Nintendo-generation kids. With others, like Galaga, nobody was going to beat “The Champ”. We had a great time and made some wonderful memories.
Most of the older games are only a quarter so your money goes a lot further. Four of us played for about two hours on $25. It’s a clean place with clean bathrooms (available only by key). You might have to ignore some of the music. Go before 7 pm because after that, it’s 21+ because they have bands and serve beer. There’s only one public exit and it’s visible from just about anywhere in the arcade, so you don’t have to worry too much about keeping your children by your side. Ground Kontrol is destined to be a frequent stop every time we hit Portland. Who’s up for a game of Joust?