|
TAFC#2: 50 Best Arcade Games - Part 1 by Michele Christopher
After the finish of The Almost Final Countdown #1 The Fake Bands Edition, we thought we would jump right in with TAFC #2. Congratulations to Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem Band for winning the first TAFC, but we need to move on. For some strange reason, we have been playing a lot of old games. Well, I have been playing a lot of old games that I totally forgot existed and in going through the collective that is FTTW, we realized a bunch of games were great, almost incredibly great, but were forgotten. So we decided to take these games, the ones that were great, and list them. To figure out what was and is the best all time arcade game that ever was. From Pong to whatever the hell is out there now, let's list them and see which ones stand up to the vote. Same rules as last time. Nominate whichever ones you want. We get 50 and list them out as the week goes on from your nominations. At the end of the week, we take them all and you vote on them. So let's start this. The 50 BEST Arcade Games Baby Huey gets things started with a bang. And a crash. And an explosion. Rampage Oh, man. I love this game. I'm not even a big video game person. But I love this game -- Wolfman was my guy. I'd always play as wolfman. GIANT WOLF. CRUSH BUILDING. EAT PEOPLE. I loved it. When you beat a level you got your name in a fake newspaper. You got to break shit and you could get shocked, and you never died. You just turned into a naked dude. That's AWESOME. Turtle sticks you with the POWERBALL!! This was one of the greatest games ever made. Sure it was forgotten in the great rush of crap games that came out in the late 80's. What was really funny about these games were the stereotypes of the playes came into the game. Iceland is cold so you play on slippery ice. Kenya is in African so you play on slow dirt. Japan always passes the ball to their leader who makes the big throw. Germany is a bunch of huge thugs. India is quick . China is a bunch of small guys who get together and gang up on you. The USA were the superstars. See, that's Techmo Super Dodge Ball. Always striving for racial equality while sticking you with the powerball. - T
Except Evil Otto could not be destroyed. I knew this, knew this was how the game worked and there was nothing I could do about it, but that did not stop me, especially when I was drunk, from thinking that one more quarter, one more game, would let me somehow find some deep, dark secret hidden deep within the code that would let me destroy Otto. “Chicken! Fight like a robot!" How could you not love a game that mocked you? -M And thefinn starts looking for some action: Spy Hunter
Now we need you. You need to tell us what we need to put on the list. This will go on each day untill Thursday when we put them all together. But for now.... what games were the best?
| Permalink
| Del.icio.us It
| Fark It
| Digg It| |
Whilst the line for Double Dragon streched out the door, this game sat in the corners waiting to be played by only those who were too tired to wait for Double Dragon or were just bored. But, when this game was activated, a whole new level of gaming came in. Super Dodge Ball!! Here you had to take the USA to the top while beating the other countries on their home turf. Dodge ball style. 
“Intruder Alert! Intruder Alert!” I can still hear that loud and clear in my head as if I was still standing there, beer balanced on a barstool pulled up next to the machine, quarters laid out in a row as if to say to anyone else “This is my place. I’m not leaving. Don’t even think that you are going to get anywhere near this game tonight. Cause I am on fire and fucking Evil Otto is going to die a brutal death this evening.” 
Oh yeah… Slide into the seat, check the wheel and drop the quarter into the slot. The familiar “Peter Gunn” theme starts up and you’re ready to roll. Spy Hunter let me relive just about every pre-adolescent fantasy I had about James Bonds’ Astin Martin. Hauling ass in that souped up little white ride, shooting everything is sight (Who cares if you don’t get points for killing the civilians ?), just trying to get far enough so you can get resupplied by the weapons van. The smokescreen was great for those bulletproof bastards, the oil slick took the piss out of that damned limousine and the missiles dropped that that damned dogged helicopter out of the air. I would spend hours in that seat, just trying to get the car along, a little further down the road. This game had it all; civilian deaths, burning helicopters falling from the sky and enough action to make you want to blow your entire allowance in a single afternoon. Even if it was just to die in a fiery crash by the side of the road. --F
Stumble It!
Comments
Mortal Kombat 2
All three Time Crises
The Grid (nobody played this one but it was wonderful)
TRON the arcade game.
Posted by: Tim | January 15, 2007 1:34 AM
Oh man, I don't look forward to voting in this one. It's going to be a brutal decision.
RAMPAGE!! Oh man, I love Rampage. I still play it every once in awhile on an Xbox arcade game collection. Great stuff. Beating the shit out of buildings, eating people, getting electrocuted, and shuffling naked off the side of the screen never gets old.
One classic arcade game off the top of my head is The Simpsons. That was just a great sidescroller. Remember beating people to death with Marge's vacuum? Brilliant.
Posted by: Joel | January 15, 2007 4:37 AM
Sinistar
Star Castle
Naughty Boy
Posted by: ESQ | January 15, 2007 5:13 AM
For just the amount of money I
pissed awayinvested, Bubble Bobble, Bomb Jack, and Dig-Dug.Posted by: Richard | January 15, 2007 5:21 AM
Wow, I never knew about the original Bubble Bobble game. I just know those damn dinosaurs from Bust-A-Move on the Playstation (I think it was). I lost many hours to that crazy addictive puzzle game.
Posted by: Joel | January 15, 2007 5:34 AM
Robotron 2084
Posted by: geoff | January 15, 2007 7:17 AM
That game kicked ass, Geoff.
I loved Tron, too.
Just looking at that image gives me flashbacks.
Posted by: michele | January 15, 2007 7:24 AM
Howzabout Pole Position?
Posted by: mike | January 15, 2007 7:47 AM
total carnage!
Posted by: the turtle | January 15, 2007 7:56 AM
If I had the money I spent on Asteroids and Robotron, I wouldn't be worried about my retirement...
Posted by: Solonor | January 15, 2007 8:01 AM
Golden Tee
/game is much better if you are drunk
Posted by: JJ | January 15, 2007 8:06 AM
I can still hear the announcer in my head, Turtle... "Big Money ! Big Prizes! I love it!"
Other noteworthy additions:
Punch Out
Star Wars
Battlezone
Defender
Posted by: thefinn | January 15, 2007 8:06 AM
Posted by: obi | January 15, 2007 8:11 AM
food fight was hard to control. everything was at an angle
but it was fun
Posted by: turtle | January 15, 2007 8:20 AM
Joust
Tempest
Posted by: Cullen | January 15, 2007 8:43 AM
A.P.B.
Man, I loved the confess-o-meter
When a criminal is caught and returned to the station, the player must "persuade" (that is, beat) a confession out of them before the Captain enters the room. This is done by filling the "Confess-O-Meter" by tapping alternatively on the "fire" and "siren" buttons.
Posted by: turtle | January 15, 2007 9:13 AM
Golden Tee golf was the ultimate back corner bar game.
When I was a kid my fav was Galaxian (not Galaga, Galaxian).
Donkey Kong, Pac Man and anything that involved driving cars. There was one that was really good but I can't remember the name, where you would pick the drive, and the radio station and so on...
Posted by: Ernie | January 15, 2007 9:36 AM
Posted by: michele | January 15, 2007 9:42 AM
Ha ha! Yes it is very important to differentiate between the two games.
Also: Smash TV was fun. Even though you were always clubed to death when you lost.
There was an older game where you flew a plane over a city and had to avoid stuff shooting up at you and stuff. I can't remember what it was called.
Star Wars was cool and also Tank.
Posted by: Ernie | January 15, 2007 9:52 AM
Ernie, Zaxxon?
I loved that game. It was in the lobby of a place I worked at and I think I spent my entire paycheck playing it.
And I swear to this day that there is a sound effect from Zaxxon in Rock the Casbah.
Posted by: michele | January 15, 2007 9:58 AM
i liked Tapper til the company who made it caved under pressure and turned it to Rootbeer Tapper.
Cut the balls right off that game
Posted by: turtle | January 15, 2007 10:03 AM
I'm not sure if they were the best or not, but these are what kept me from being a richer man in my youth.
BattleZone
Space Wars
Joust
Loved Spy Hunter
Asteroids
Hell, I remember when me and a bud were playing Space Invaders and saying, "Sure beats the hell out of Pong doesnt' it?"
What was the name of that "new" style video game featuring Sir Rodney that had all the cut scenes in it? The arcade in my neighborhood had it on a "Big Screen" TV. Everyone blew a lot of money on it until we realized it looked cool but most of the actual play was totally out of your hands.
Posted by: Timmer | January 15, 2007 10:06 AM
Ugh. Dragon's Lair.
Interesting concept for the time, great graphics. Horrid gameplay, though.
Posted by: michele | January 15, 2007 10:07 AM
Yes! Zaxxon!! That was it!
Oh and dont forget Missile Command.
Posted by: Ernie | January 15, 2007 10:10 AM
Almost forgot:
DONKEY KONG!
Is this video only or should we list our favorite tables too?
For Pinball Table: Eight Ball, not Eight Ball Deluxe, Not Super Eight Ball, Eight Ball. Great targets, sweet spot ramps, ya had to use English to win.
Posted by: Timmer | January 15, 2007 10:14 AM
Oh and that car game I mentioned earlier was called Out Run.
That game is great.
Posted by: Ernie | January 15, 2007 10:15 AM
I don't think dragons liar or that horrible "Space Ace" should make this list
Posted by: turtle | January 15, 2007 10:15 AM
Is this video only or should we list our favorite tables too?
hm. i think that might be a whole different list. I would go for Terminator 2 for pinball.
or Fun House. Can't play that anymore cause every sound from in has been put into a Mr. Bungle song
Posted by: turtle | January 15, 2007 10:20 AM
The kids in my hometown were OBSESSED with the Legend Of Zelda.
There was one game in our town grocery store (wow, now I am really aging myself) and on any given day you could find 10-15 teenaged boys huddled around the game.
My favorite was Super Hang On, the game with the the handle bars!
Posted by: Kathy | January 15, 2007 10:29 AM
When was Zelda an arcade game??
Posted by: michele | January 15, 2007 10:34 AM
Sorry, I in NO way meant to nominate Dragon's Lair, just couldn't get Sir Rodney's face or stupid walk out of my head. The arcade in my neighborhood, Silver Sue's, had it right as you walked in the door for almost a year.
The Tron knockoff where you did nothing but throw light frisbees? I loved that game. Google: Discs of Tron! It was supposed to be part or the original but the code wasn't done in time.
Posted by: Timmer | January 15, 2007 10:37 AM
That's Tron's Deadly Discs. It was never an arcade game. It was made initially for Intellivsion, but was also available for the 2600.
Posted by: michele | January 15, 2007 10:42 AM
That's Tron's Deadly Discs. It was never an arcade game. It was made initially for Intellivsion, but was also available for the 2600.
Nerdcore, kid. And that's why you're the best....
Posted by: thefinn | January 15, 2007 12:15 PM
Zelda was an arcade game in the form of those put-in-a-quarter-to-play-NES machines.
But my nomination:
Posted by: Ian S. | January 15, 2007 12:23 PM
Also, Discs of Tron was an arcade game separate from Tron Deadly Discs.
See here.
Posted by: Ian S. | January 15, 2007 12:27 PM
Mentioning Out Run reminded me of all those totally insane AM2 games and their ridiculous cabinets, like Afterburner II's gyroscope version where the whole damn thing moved with the game. And Space Harrier! Awesome game.
They're also responsible for Virtua Fighter, the most complex fighting ever. As my friend Ian says, "Street Fighter, down forward punch, fireball. Virtua Fighter, back forward back hold block up up down release block kick delay punch, take a step back.
Posted by: Tim | January 15, 2007 12:27 PM
Ian is a bigger nerd than me!
Posted by: michele | January 15, 2007 12:34 PM
Well he does play World of Warcraft like 8 hours a day.
Posted by: Tim | January 15, 2007 12:54 PM
What about Street Fighter 2?
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?
But I've gotta agree with Joel -- beating people wtih Marge's vacuum cleaner was always great.
Posted by: Adam P. Newton | January 15, 2007 1:03 PM
I used to love the Mutant Turtle video game. I was always Leonardo.
I used to like the X-Men game too. I was always Wolverine in that one.
Posted by: Ernie | January 15, 2007 1:14 PM
Star Wars. The ability to make the trench run and blow up the Death Star was the greatest thing in the world.
Nowadays, games based on movies are a given (and crap), so the novelty is lost. But back then, being Luke Skywalker and playing the movie was the height of awesome.
Posted by: Paul | January 15, 2007 1:47 PM
OH MAN, Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time is one of the greatest games ever! My friend and I made it through in 20 minutes without dying.
Posted by: Tim | January 15, 2007 2:01 PM
I loved NARC. You could blow people apart with rocket launchers and the whole message of the game was "don't do drugs."
Smash TV was great too.
Posted by: Philbrick | January 15, 2007 3:03 PM
Thanks Ian, I thought I my memories were melding again...it happens.
Posted by: Timmer | January 15, 2007 3:36 PM
Adam, I loved TMNT, as well. Of course, I'm pretty sure it and The Simpsons were both the same game, just with different characters. I'd put them both in for nominations, though.
Also, Ms. Pac-Man! How'd I forget that?
And I second After Burner. Classic. Of course, it was never long before I turned into a fireball.
Posted by: Joel | January 15, 2007 3:58 PM
Oh geez, how could I forget the first game that every got 50 cents a game from me? PAPERBOY! I also fourth the nomination of Joust.
Posted by: Richard | January 15, 2007 7:03 PM
There's really too many choices. So many games were a huge obsession for me at one time or another. Here's a few off the top of my head (there's no limit to nominations, is there?)
Crazy Climber
Bosconian -- still play it occasionally on MAME
Assault -- awesome tank game
Gauntlet -- the worst coin sucker ever
Elevator Action
Turkey Shoot -- I think I was the only person to love this. Obscure Eugene Jarvis game.
City Connections
Gravitar!
Ok. I'd better stop...
Posted by: Bruce Gottfred | January 15, 2007 8:41 PM
Besides the standards, a few that I remember choking with quarters:
Xevious
Major Havoc
Looping
NARC (only game I've encountered where evil junkies throw syringes at you ... was hilarious).
Posted by: Midgard | January 15, 2007 8:52 PM
Centipede, Tempest, Defender, and BattleZone were all popular amongst my peers in college.
Always thought DigDug was a little odd in a sexual overtone sense. QBert didn't let you shoot anything. Gravitar required too much patience.
Posted by: geoff | January 15, 2007 9:07 PM
Paperboy! I second it, Richard. Addicting, and damn hard.
Posted by: Joel | January 15, 2007 10:44 PM