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Video Arcade

Video Arcade English, baby! Video Lesson

Date: May 02 2008

Themes: Hobbies

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

Video games can be a fun way to escape reality for a moment or challenge your mind by solving a puzzle. You can always play video games at home with a little controller and your TV, but part of the fun for a lot of people is playing on a big machine with big buttons to press.

A place with a bunch of video game machines is called an arcade. Arcades often also have games with real moving parts like pinball, where you push buttons to shoot a metal ball at targets. Watch Jason talk to Amanda who works at an arcade.

3. Watch - Watch the video without reading the dialog.

Dialog

1. Watch and Read - Watch the video and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Jason

Jason

Jason:  Hey, I’m Jason with English, baby! and I’m here at the Ground Kontrol video arcade with…

Amanda.

And so Amanda’s going to tell us a little bit about video games. What’s your favorite kind of video game?
Well, here at Ground Kontrol we have pinball and video games. And my favorite video game is Bust-a-Move, and it’s like a puzzle game. And my favorite pinball game is Lord of the Rings and it is definitely a popular game.

So when you play the puzzle game, are you using a joystick or is it buttons? How does it work?
You use a joystick and buttons. You use a joystick to aim and you use a button to fire.

And then what is pinball exactly? Can you tell us a little bit about that? It’s been a round a while, right?
It has been around a while. Personally, I like the newer pinball games because they’re more detailed and they have multiple levels. But some people like the nostalgia of the old ones. This is a classic arcade, so we have a lot of old games.

Do you play any of this stuff, the home entertainment games?
I have a PlayStation2 and I have a Super Nintendo. My favorite video game for home is for the PlayStation2 and it is Dance Dance Revolution. We also have that here in the arcade, but I have a dance pad at home and it’s pretty fun.

Right on. And so, when you work here, you’re actually a bartender, right?
Yes, I’m a bartender.

That’s pretty rare though, an arcade where you can buy beer, right?
I think there’s one in New York and it’s called Barcade, but I think that this is one of the only other ones. Maybe one in LA that I’ve heard of…

 

Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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Discussion

Most arcades don’t serve drinks. But Amanda is a bartender at Ground Kontrol in Portland, Oregon. Going to the arcade is already a social thing to do, and even more so when it’s also a bar, but there are only a few places like that.

Amanda’s favorite video game is a Bust-a-Move, which, like many older games, is a puzzle game. Amanda’s arcade specializes in older games.

Amanda’s favorite pinball game is Lord of the Rings. A lot of pinball games are based on movies. You can shoot the metal ball at the Terminator’s eye, or Homer Simpson’s bald head.

Another video game that involves more than moving a character on a screen with a joystick is Dance Dance Revolution. The game leads you in a dance, telling you where to put your feet. Amanda practices this game at home!

What are your favorite games to play at an arcade? Can you think of anything else that would be fun to combine with an arcade? Maybe a laundromat or an airplane…

 

Comments

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SÉRGIO

SÉRGIO

Brazil

I’m not fan of playstation, i prefer video machines in arcades!!

05:08 PM May 05 2008 |

ullakhan@gmail.com

India

Hi! friend actually I do not play games,but it  gives a immense curiosity when my friends play it.

12:29 PM May 05 2008 |

许小燕

China

I like this games

03:26 AM May 05 2008 |

nanka

Azerbaijan

I dont like these games.I prefer to spend my spare time in open air.It is much better.

07:29 PM May 04 2008 |

NaimM

NaimM

United States

having a pad at home is really NEAFTY!

06:31 PM May 04 2008 |

chengdhugood

China

only in chat room

02:14 PM May 04 2008 |

chengdhugood

China

would u like to chat in a chatting room

01:40 PM May 04 2008 |

laulan

China

l don't like these games.

01:33 PM May 04 2008 |

pj wang

Taiwan

I have a playstation3. My favorite playstation3 game is the eye of judgment and it is very fantastic.

12:47 PM May 04 2008 |

minea

Cambodia

I like all game especially computer's game. It's easy to type and improve my challegne.

09:58 AM May 04 2008 |

dofkele15

dofkele15

Lithuania

so add me to your friends

 

08:39 AM May 04 2008 |

alogigi

alogigi

United States

I am not big fan of this freaking things  make me sick  kinda boring

07:33 AM May 04 2008 |

vigoss

vigoss

Kazakhstan

I like "Mario" game :)

03:40 AM May 04 2008 |

markwbs

China

i like it very much haha,i like games !!!

02:13 AM May 04 2008 |

Martin GM

Martin GM

Argentina

Hello everyone,I´m Martín from argentina and this topic specially called my attention because I consider myself as a vey old video-games player (and somewhat adict too). I started playing  video games when I was 9 years old, when my father bought a family video game with 42 games for me and my siblings.
From that moment, I spent more time playing video games than doing anything else in my spare time, being "Super Mario" my favourite one (specially Nº2 and 3). Eventually, I bought a SEGA and played games like:"Vectorman" (1 and 2), "Earth worm Jim" (1 and 2), "Sonic 3d blast" (One of the most impressive games I´ve seen for SEGA) and "The lost world". Now, I play in my computer games like: Unreal tournament,
Quake 3 arena (in my opinion, the best video game ever created, "The sims" sucks),  Chessmaster 7000 (yes, I like chess), Warcraft 3 (incredible game, with fabulous videos), Empire Earth, Crimsonland, Need for speed 3-hot pursuit (the best race game I´ve seen),
Jedi Knight 2 special,Resident evil 3 (This game involves you in the story more than any another),Mortal Kombat 4,Yu-Gi-Oh!(very intersting and addictive game) and lots of arcade games emulated through the MAME program,such as: "I,robot" (incredible for the
time in which it was created), "Eliminator", "Qix"(very addictive game), "Quantum", "Tempest tubes" (cool sound),"Major Havoc", "Metal slug" (all of them), "Samurai Showdown" (very cool game),"Wonder boy" (a classic), "Raiden","Raiden fighters jet" (I have no words
to describe this game),"Super 1945 3" (another outstanding game), "Sky adventure", "Varth",
"Puzzle bobble", "Wonder 3" (I really like this game,in fact ,I like the game "Midnight  wanderers" contained insite it. When I was I boy, this game was my favourite arcade),"Rygar", "Ghosts n´ goblins","Cadillacs and dinosaurs", "Shock troopers 2", "Pulstar" (cool game),
"Joe y Mac", "Snow bros", and games in which you don´t have to use a jostick but a weapon,  such as: "Terminator 2-judgement day","The house of the dead", "Virtual cop","Time Crisis" and a  game whose name I don`t remember in which you are a sniper, it has fantastic graphics.
To  end this long list of games, I want to say that thanks to video games, I´ve learnt lots
of words and expressions, I´m studying english at the university and I know that video games
have really improved my vocabulary.   

12:44 AM May 04 2008 |

tscai lynn

tscai lynn

China

Do like that kind of game

03:57 PM May 03 2008 |

tscai lynn

tscai lynn

China

Do not like that kind of game

03:55 PM May 03 2008 |

Hastin

China

I remember ever I was obsorbed into video games.And finally, nothing is important but video games.It is so bad.However,I still love games,it's fun.

05:07 AM May 03 2008 |

tiensitomcang

Viet Nam

Video game is great! I always have a good time when I play it with my friends. It's really fun! ^^

03:50 AM May 03 2008 |

icingblue813

China

Video games is not my cup of tea.But dance dance revolution sounds interesting,I will have a try when I have the chance.

03:01 AM May 03 2008 |

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