Hydro Thunder Arcade - Setting Up A Dream Machine 

While I am working on a follow up video on this, if anyone has any questions they would like answered about the machine feel free to ask them here! I'll try to answer any that I can in the next video.

Hey there, I'm one of the devs of the arcade version of Hydro Thunder. Stumbled across your video and really enjoyed it. To answer some of your questions, we debuted the game at the ATEI show in London in January 1999, but we started ramping production in late 1998, which corresponds to your envelope label. IIRC, the game originally shipped with software version 1.00D but was updated over time for various reasons. Let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks for putting together this video, and congrats on finding 2 of these.

I vividly remember in 81 or 82 there was a tech working on a "tail gunner" arcade machine. I was very much into electronics, so i watched the guy work. He was fixing the coin counter mechanism, so he was running quarter after quarter through the machine to test it. When he finally got it where he wanted, he re-locked the coin counter, and told me to "enjoy." There were like 30+ credits on the machine. I played that game until my parents came and dragged me out. ^-^

That surprise ending 😂🤩

Hi! I'm the actual Wikipedia editor who first claimed Hydro Thunder released in March 1999, back in May 2018. If I'm being honest, looking back I should've done more due diligence when looking up the release date for this one - which I got from either MobyGames and GameFAQs, if I recall correctly. I'm pretty sure they pulled from that same software revision sheet, which I took blindly as "the real date" as I had only seen 1999 floating around as the real release for this date, as I felt 1998 was "suspicious" back then. Of course, knowing what I know now - I could (and _should,_ for that matter) have done much better research, given how there's actually _huge_ problems with release dates floating around (for example, most of the "end of the month" release dates for games for the late 90s actually are _wrong_ due to a GameSpot database glitch that happened in 2000/2001 per a migration/redesign they did back then, which I'm sure GameFAQs, MobyGames, and early Wikipedia editors pulled from)! I am so sorry to have caused that confusion for you, been a long-time viewer of yours! I've already updated the article back to 1998 for you, as well as added the piece of information that it was sold as a HyperDrive conversion kit as well. Hope this helps a little bit! (P.S. if I get reverted, I'll keep trying to keep that intact)

Rent office, fill office, need new office

"With the magic of buying two of them..." Some technology connections vibes in here

From a former arcade operator, and worked on both Hydro Thunder and H2Overdrive, the throttles were painted, not a sticker. Also, there should be backlighting behind the transparent panel under the throttle lever. Awesome looking machines man! They are quite fun!

Ahh! Awesome! This is from the Golfland in Mesa, AZ!! An arcade I still frequent to this day. It's very likely I've played this very machine in the 00s! So cool!

For the convergence calibration, the biggest thing is MARK THE ORIGINAL POSITION OF THE RINGS! Worst case if you totally ruin it, you can just put them back where they were and try again. It is an art and a science...you have to fiddle with it a while and it's likely you will make it worse first. Just take your time and keep fiddling and remember if you totally lose track just put it all back where it was

His enthusiasm is always the best part of a lot of his videos. Very genuine. Awesome!

As a kid, I too had an infatuation and was enamored with this game at the arcades. The first time I ever played it was magical due in no small part to that subwoofer you're talking about. I remember how much the seat shook when I boosted. I had played it a few other times later in my life and was never quite as impressed as those machines had the volume and subwoofer turned way down which greatly affected the enjoyment. Also very impressed that this was a voodoo 2!

Such a legendary game and experience. This plus daytona USA 2 were the peak of my arcade experience

I audibly gasped at that ending reveal! What a great machine and great video, Shelby.

Damn that closing with the second machine was completely unexpected! Happy for you... The only arcade I have this thing for is a driving game I used to go straight to every time I went to the Arcade, I don't remember the name of the game but the only one that it can be is the Atari Race Drivin' Panorama from 1991, it felt like a simulator with a clutch, 4 speed gearbox, force feedback and 3 25" CRT screens.

I freakin’ LOVE Hydro Thunder! I’ve always wanted one of these setups. I’ve even went back to an old roller rink I knew had one YEARS ago. Apparently they traded it out a while back. I remember printing out pages of cheat codes and going there as a kid and unlocking everything lol I even had some random people come up in awe that such a thing was even possible. Awesome video. Thanks for the blast from the past!

Yep, that start sound is absolutely burned into my brain. It is the only reason I bought a Dreamcast too. Very Nice! Welp, that'll teach me to comment before the end of the video... perfect cliffhanger.

This is the kind of thing I like RU-vid for. Here's a man who is just so enthusiastic about this arcade game. I don't care about boat racing arcade games at all, but I've thoroughly enjoyed this video.

You totally caught me off guard at the end. Seeing the second machine really made me smile.

This is one of my favorite arcade cabinets as well. split between Need For Speed Underground and Hydro Thunder as my all time favorite. grew up playing those machines at my local bowling alley. Time Crisis was a huge one too.

At one point I held the 2nd best time for Nile Adventure. Story Time: Back in the late 90's I would go to Dave and Busters at least a couple times a week with a co-worker. We found that we really loved Hydro Thunder. We got to the point where we were only going to D&B's just to play Hydro Thunder. After a few months we started to notice something odd. While racing, no matter how bad a person did, they could and often would win. What this did was cause us to save every boost, and no matter how bad we did, we could end up within striking distance and have a full boost when it mattered most. Needless to say this became somewhat boring since we would both milk this to try and win. I did some digging and found the programmers email. I wrote to him and asked what was going on with this mechanic? He wrote back and said it was called "Kethcup Mode" and it was designed to make the game fun for both adults and kids alike since no matter what happened you always had a chance. The best part was, he told us how to disable this via some button combinations on the machine. Since we were playing on arcade machines we didn't have access to the config like you do. Needless to say, this really leveled the playing field and changed the way we played. Every game now took on enormous consequences and we could now play without cheats. It really changed the game and over the next several months we would have the high scores every time we played. Then one day, there was a new high score, this guy with the initials of BIL. We were like, who the F is this? we would play and sometimes I would over take BIL and I would enter my initials. Then next week would roll around and there was BIL on top again, I would play and beat him and then I was on top. We did this for months, two people who never met battling it out for numero uno. One day I had a run on Nile Adventure that I knew I had a MONSTER time and looked up world record times and noticed I had the number 2 time for Nile Adventure in the world. I looked up how to submit my score to Twin Galaxies. I was on top of the world, I had a serious accomplishment on my hands. The requirements were this, they wanted a picture of you, next to the high score with your initials while holding your drivers license. The problem is they wanted you to use your actual initials, and I always use STV short for Steve. This was enough to disqualify me and put an end to my excitement. Even though I never got listed on Twin Galaxies, the battle between my co-worker and the faceless opponent I will never forget. This game will be in my basement one day. It is by far the most fun I have ever had with a driving style game. Fun fact, when you pressed the right key combo, you got a picture of a ketchup bottle with the circle and hash through it noting that it was now disabled.

That sound is burned into my brain forever because I worked at an arcade for a while and that machine was one of the loudest ones in the building. I heard that hydro thunder theme over and over and over.

OMG that plot twist at the end : 0

Pre watching the video, I do love how hydro thunder (and a lot of later arcade cabinets in general) were just modified desktops inside. I think hydro thunder specifically had a celeron

Hydro Thunder was also my favorite racing arcade game back in the late 90s, early 2000's! Super jealous, have fun man!

I used to play the original in the arcade by my school every day and it was glorious

This is really awesome, the fact that it has a whole 90s PC inside makes it seem like it’s a powerhouse of a gaming machine. The case for the arcade PC is actually pretty cool also, plain but in a 90s way. That ending was definitely unexpected, but certainly awesome! Can’t wait for more!

This guy is great. Could be a flight instructor, too. He knows how to break down things and explain them. 😃

I have a spinal cord injury. This arcade machine was always my favorite to play as a kid, since you don't need foot pedals.

FAB That was such great end reveal you got me as I truly didn't expect the 2nd one to be real

I'm 24. I feel so fortunate to have played this when it was on it's way out at a local bowling alley. I have so much nostalgia attached to this game as I mostly played in on my Playstation. Playing it with a wheel at the arcade was amazing!

I'm a locksmith in Naples, Florida. On a easy job in a rich neighborhood after Hurricane Ian, I spotted a horrific sight: On the side of the rad was the contents of someone mansions flooded out arcade. Two hydrothunder machines and a DaytonaUSA. So sad. Glad you enjoy yours. I like Daytona USA on my Xbox Series X it's one of my favorites. Lemme know if you want the gore photos I took of the rubble of the machines.

I *love* Hydro Thunder! I remember these arcade cabinets used to be everywhere in Canada and the US in the early 2000s. Every still functional arcade, every Chuck E Cheese's, every interstate rest area had them. I remember going on a family vacation to Cape Cod and seeing a stand-up cabinet in a popular local pizzeria.

This is awesome! Having an Arcade in my room makes me happy every time I walk in. I notice a lot of similarities to my Cruisn World in which the CRT died of heat :( you might want to put a fan up there just in case.

As someone who is an arcade technician, it's refreshing to see someone describe the awkwardness that is involved with working on these cabs. There really isn't much room for getting inside to fix stuff. Our arcade is mostly Early-Mid 00's SEGA stuff, mostly Lindbergh based. I've only been there for a year but did restore our After Burner Climax Deluxe cabinet and our OutRun2 SP SDX 4 player cabinet. And just finished putting together a Let's Go Jungle Special cab as well. Sometimes you go TOO in depth with explanations, but in this case, I was glued to every second. Great video. Oh and yes, finding information on arcade cabs is hard, the manufacturers and part sellers are still trying to sell those.

There used to be 4 linked at the theatre, playing with my friends after a movie was so much fun.

I'm an old man. It warms my heart to hear that people still love "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure".

I was going to say that you left it in networked mode (31:28), but then I found out that it wasn't an error

It always makes my day to see you so happy and excited with your projects. Especially watching you put the cabinet together.

Hydro Thunder is my favorite arcade game. I probably spent hundreds of dollars over the course of my life playing it. I am so god damn jealous of you having TWO cabinets, I couldn't watch this video until now I knew exactly how I would react. Legendary

Better plot twist at the end there than any movie ever made.

Congratulations! Me I am a fan of the game for decades too.....thanks for taking us on the adventure of getting this running in you room.

This is a man who is truly happy. Us guys are simple creatures. Awesome!!!

Ive played this game so many times when I was younger! So insane seeing it again! and how it was built, totally awesome!

As a fan of both retro arcade cabinets and retro PCs, this was an absolute treat! Also, thank you for mentioning the other Thunder series games. When I was a kid, my local indoor skating rink had an Arctic Thunder cabinet that I used to play and I totally forgot the name of it until you mentioned it in this video. Regardless, I can't wait for the next video on this machine! Err... machines that is.

The excitement is palpable. It's so fun to watch someone's dream unfold. I'm happy for you!

So cool, I really appriciate your style and knowledge. The genuine excitement about hydro thunder was nice, glad that you got your cabinet(s).

Clicked on this out of curiosity and nostalgia. Great video. I'll watch the "Two Hydro Thunders" now. As a kid I spent holydays with my cousin in Italy and there was an arcade on the holiday compound. We spent three weeks playing in the arcade and the pool. That was fun.

You are amazing! The surprise that you kept until the end of the video made my day. Thank you for the great video.

When you revealed the second cab, that put a real smile on my face 😁 great stuff, it's really satisfying to get your dream machine, which for me, was a Neo Geo.

That reveal though! Arcade machines are a slippery slope for collecting, may [deity here] have mercy on your soul (wallet).

My buddy and I used to wear these machines out at our local Dave and Busters. So much fun, miss those days.

This was such a major part of my child hood as my grandparents on my dads side have one of these cabinets in their lake house basement which as something I got hyped to play every time I went to Wisconsin. My gamer tag for most games is a reference to my favorite boat… Rad Hazard.

Congrats on the purchase man, I always wanted Initial D as a kid, played it in arcades as much as possible, when I was finally able to acquire the cabinet I was beyond stoked and its one that will never leave my collection!

Oh man, our local community center had a Hydro Thunder machine and we'd always hang out there after school, and I'd always watch the credits with the developers in the water... good times.

This game brings back excellent memories for me, my grandpa used to bring me to Red Robin on some Saturdays and they had a Hydro Thunder arcade and I loved playing it.

HYDRO THUNDER!!!! One of the best games that you ever bought on this RU-vid video! Congratulations!

Welcome to the hobby and congrats on your first machine 😉. My first machine was a pair of Rush 2049 sit down racers. I've found discovering the history of you cabinets to be one of the more fun aspects to the hobby. Operators did some crazy things when they need to get a machine back out on the floor!

your enthusiasm for these projects is awsome,keep it up dude.

I played Hydro Thunder religiously as a kid, mastered Razorback and all. You're living the dream, my dude. I need to get one of these at some point, even just for the aesthetic alone lol

I grew up being put in a sort of day-care/arcade at a local casino while my family gambled and stuff, there were tons of arcade cabinets I played in that place. One of the few that really stuck in my head was Hydro Thunder. I am eternally jealous that you have this. (Granted I don't live in a place big enough to put one of these in) I've always dreamt of owning one of these but alas money and space constraints would never allow it.

I commend you good sir for helping archive these awesome machines!

I never played Hydro Thunder all that much, but the Cici’s Pizza I had near me when I was about 9 had a Arctic Thunder machine with the fans that blasted you in the face. Tons of fun, and I am still a sucker for arcade experiences that can’t be replicated at home.

I'm glad I'm not the only one that has wanted one of these games ever since I first saw it and played it every chance I saw one. It wasn't very difficult and even the different boat difficulties, it didn't feel very difficult, but something about the feedback in the wheel, the rumblers in the seat and the gameplay just made it so much fun.

This is so awesome, I'm happy for you man. I love the feeling of finally owning the game from your past. It brings back your child hood. Enjoy it bro🤙

Thanks for sharing some of the secrets. I loved this game back in the days.

This was awesome to watch. God bless you, my brother!

Your enthusiasm is infectious! Keep up the great work you are doing creating these videos! 🤗

You are so lucky. This was my favorite racer. It was so immersive.

One of my dreams! Have my own Arcade machine... I will someday. What a wonderful ride! Awesome episode! 🌞💪

Very nice, that's indeed an awesome game! Nice that you could score an original arcade! Makes me wanna play the Dreamcast version just now 😄

You've got me thinking about the old Arcade games I loved, Ikari 3 III, can't recall the names of the others but nice memories.

Never seen this channel before until right now, and this is some good stuff!

Maaaaan, this was my all time favorite arcade game that I played back in the day when our local arcade was still open. Have fun with those!

So cool! I remember seeing one of these at a Walmart and loved it.

That's so cool, I loved this game I used to play it on Dreamcast and later played a ton of Hydro Thunder Hurricane on Xbox 360 which was a blast especially racing against others online.

I've played this a few times in the arcade. Very awesome game! I never knew all those cool tricks.

A complete Hydro Thunder cabinet is one of the few things I would consider a holy grail for my collection. The rumble of the buttkicker is a weirdly vivid memory.

I was literally telling my Dad about this last week that this was the best game ever. I never had enough money to play the different tracks at the arcade. Now the pricing makes sense. So dope.

Wow, wow, wow! That was well worth the watch of the entire video for that ending!!!

Oh man, I remember sinking so much time into this and Crazy Taxi at a nearby family diner growing up. They had both of those arcade systems and we'd go almost every week just to play. I actually didn't even know they released this on PlayStation or PC!

Nice! Very engaging story through the video. The 60 fps for the game play was superbly smooth! But I wasn't expecting that mostly standard PC, was fully expecting to see obscure custom logic and ASICs on a bunch of big card PCBs in a back plane, somehow I've only ever seen much older arcade machines being talked about, never PC ones. Do most in the scene avoid PC arcade systems or something? I wonder what sort of DRM is implemented in that PC and if others, specifically more modern ones that have hardware timers or internet connected DRM are lost causes and doomed to be scrapped and never preserved.

a bit of a note on the lack of dumps for arcade drives and updates. From what i can tell its a a mixture of arcade publishers being very lawyer happy with dumps and a certain genre of collector that will refuse to dump anything in fear it will lower its value :( This is generally more true with newer titles from the HD era but is definitely true for some older games

I played this game all the time when I was a young one at a local pizza place! Awesome to see you get an actual cabinet!

Glad I didn't read the comments before watching the whole video. I got the biggest grin at the end 😁

That is such a surprise to see basically just a PC inside. When I was a kid, I was thinking that arcade machines are PCs with a slightly modified PC version of the game running. I didn't know better. In the early 2010s when Videogamehistorysource started doing the comparison videos, I realized that arcade machines were custom hardware years ahead of consumer grade tech. And then... this! Turns out I wasn't too far off about the ones that came out in my time. But that also means it was the sunset era for arcade machines, as consumer tech had caught up.

My son and I loved playing this game together. Great memories and one of my favorite arcades.

Thanks for showing this. Hydro Thunder was always my favorite arcade game as a kid and now they are extremely hard to find. It's really interesting to see someone show how it works.

this is so sick. ive always wanted an arcade machine for one of these games i like and this is just so surreal to see.

I loved the ending! :D Glad to see the player 2 cabinet!

You are super passionate about games and really give such insightful details about these games. I'm new to your channel but you should start reviewing old arcade units i'd love to see you build a full on arcade in your place bro! i cant imagine the nostalgia factor that added to your house

Awesome video! Loved Hydro Thunder in the arcade.

Man. How glad am i that my nostalgia isn't tied around arcade cabinets. And things it is tied around i got a plenty. Even got myself microsoft hellbender sourcecode under nda. Thanks again Mark.

Man, these videos of yours are an absolute joy to watch.

Really nice video. I can’t believe you ended up with tokens, too. Thank you for sharing this with us.

This is so, so damn cool!! Definitely understand the "dream come true" aspect, I've longed for a Sega Rally cabinet but have neither the space or finances to do so currently.

Pro tip, never use windex, or detergent based cleaners on acrylics or plastics. Windex is generally safer on older screens as they were actually glass back then. (it actually eats the plastic over time and makes things milky white rather than clear.) (look up windshield cleaners for motorcycles etc.)

Thank you for honoring the good old days...from dos ipx configurations to run tri screens on doom to simply using original CRT's. God has things become easy now. There is that lack of accomplishment that one would get from building and configuring systems from back in the day as it wasn't so easy nor were things "plug and pay" I think it would be really cool to work with you . Thank again

Me too I would be stoked about the coins, and the sweet sound they make

the same walmart where i bought crash bandicoot 3 had this arcade machine and i loved it, it was like a deep forgotten memory, i recently bought a hotwheel that looks like the race boats in this game.