Zachary Quinto stopped by the Video West arcade in Glendale, CA, last week to get his game on and help promote Stride Gum’s mission to help Save the Arcades. To help choose which local arcade will get a $25,000 boost from Stride, old-school gaming fans can play the online Flash game Zapataur — then choose which arcade gets their earned in-game points. The arcade with the most points in the end gets the cash.

As most gamers know, the arcades of the 70s and early 80s met their demise (mostly) with the increased popularity and affordability of home consoles. The Wikipedia entry on arcade history explains how arcades began to develop a reputation for being “seedy, unsafe places” while home gaming technology like the Nintendo NES, Sega Genesis, and eventually the PlayStation advanced to become equal to and eventually better and cheaper than arcade gaming — not to mention longer playing times.

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