Classic Arcade Games

Discuss classic and favorite computer or console games here.
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Soul Monster
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Classic Arcade Games

Post by Soul Monster »

What are some of your favorite arcade games? I'm sure a lot of other people on here have fond memories of playing them back in the day
when arcades were more widespread.

A couple of my favorites (in no particular order) are:

-Galaga
-Pacman and Ms. Pacman
-Rampage (also the sequel Rampage: World Tour)
-Splatterhouse
-Mappy
-Ocean Hunter
-Hydro Thunder
-Ghosts N' Goblins (and Ghouls N' Ghosts)
-Mortal Kombat
-Primal Rage
-Anteater (there's a funny story behind this one)
-Chiller
-Jurassic Park 3
-The Simpsons Arcade Game
-The Three Stooges
-TMNT: Turtles In Time
-Gradius
-Arm Wrestling (from Nintendo in 1985)
-Rush 2049
-Battlezone
-Red Baron
-Berzerk
-Tron
-Donkey Kong
-Dig Dug
-Joust
-Frogger
-Godzilla
-Ultraman

Edit: I've added a few more to the list, but that's just scratching the surface, and my list doesn't look anywhere near as nice as DoomJedi's.
Last edited by Soul Monster on Wed Aug 04, 2021 21:00, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by GoldenKey »

That's a pretty good list! I never really got much chance to play the classics when I was a kid, as there weren't many places in the area that had them save for one or two tucked away in a corner store (and they'd be something like a racing or fighting title that I thought was boring).

One that I did get to see was Bubble Bobble, which I loved for its bright, cheerful graphics and music disguising its fiendish gameplay. Some of those levels are almost impossible to finish without understanding the mechanics of the game. Also, the game features many secrets and challenges that can be found with observation (the three hidden rooms that tell you of the special ending, for example).

The thing that bothered me about arcade titles is that their difficulty is a requirement of the setting; the machines were designed to be money makers, so the more likely you were to lose your lives, the more likely you were to insert more coins to keep playing. Of course, the games needed to be playable enough to maintain your interest for long enough to get you invested - which is why some games did a better job and survived the test of time.

EDIT: I'll bite, what's the funny story behind Anteater? :yorp
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by DoomJedi »

I didn't play arcades in my days, just was watching others play, mostly remember Street Fighter 2, Samurai Shodown and World Heroes.

So arcade games to play I met with emulators/Retropie/made myself arcade tabletop.
Should I list my endless favs, or is this only for true arcade players?

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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by Soul Monster »

GoldenKey wrote: Tue Jul 27, 2021 8:41 That's a pretty good list! I never really got much chance to play the classics when I was a kid, as there weren't many places in the area that had them save for one or two tucked away in a corner store (and they'd be something like a racing or fighting title that I thought was boring).

One that I did get to see was Bubble Bobble, which I loved for its bright, cheerful graphics and music disguising its fiendish gameplay. Some of those levels are almost impossible to finish without understanding the mechanics of the game. Also, the game features many secrets and challenges that can be found with observation (the three hidden rooms that tell you of the special ending, for example).

The thing that bothered me about arcade titles is that their difficulty is a requirement of the setting; the machines were designed to be money makers, so the more likely you were to lose your lives, the more likely you were to insert more coins to keep playing. Of course, the games needed to be playable enough to maintain your interest for long enough to get you invested - which is why some games did a better job and survived the test of time.

EDIT: I'll bite, what's the funny story behind Anteater? :yorp
Right? Isn't it crazy how sadistically difficult Bubble Bobble could get? Like you said, for all its bright graphics and cheerful music, there's some stages that nobody is going to know how to beat. In general, yeah, one thing about arcade machines is they gobble up your quarters like candy, but most games are worth dropping a few quarters into if they're fun, or if you get to experience them the way I do (I'll get to that shortly).

As for the story about Anteater, I gotta give some context on how I came across this game. So, me and a few friends run an arcade at a convention in the summer, and one year a few of us went to check out an arcade called Galloping Ghost about 20-30 minutes from the hotel, and the way it works is you pay $20 at the door and you can play all the games you want, and all the machines are set up to provide unlimited continues. Not only that, but there are literally HUNDREDS of machines in this place, ranging from the popular classics like Pacman, Rampage, Mortal Kombat etc, to really rare ones that I've never seen in an arcade before like Chiller and various Japan-exclusive arcade machines. Usually we also rent a couple cabinets to use in our arcade at the convention.

Anyway, once we paid the $20 we all went off on our own to explore all the different games this place had, and while I was browsing through what they had, I stumbled across the marquee art for this game called Anteater that made me bust out laughing when I saw it, because it showed this really depressed looking anteater that looks like it's ready to just end it all, and I found it to be a weird choice that that's what they chose to use for the marquee art. I mean, THIS is supposed to make you want to play the game?
Image
So just to laugh at it, I gave it a try, and the first thing that happens is the anteater walks to the anthill with the same 2 frames of animation (this came out in 1982, so it gets a pass on that), and being that I didn't know what to do, I died pretty quickly, and for some reason, it looks downright pissed when you die. So as I'm playing, 2 of my friends come around the corner and see me, and they gave me so much **** for playing this since we're at one of the biggest arcades in the country with just about every machine imaginable, and while they're off playing stuff like Mortal Kombat and Primal Rage I'm playing this dumb game. I gave them my reasons, and as my friend puts it, I have a weird sense of humor where I try to find the stupidest game to play and laugh at, so now the game has become a running joke among us that I travel to Chicago and spend hundreds of dollars on the hotel and food and such just to play Anteater.
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by Soul Monster »

DoomJedi wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:46 I didn't play arcades in my days, just was watching others play, mostly remember Street Fighter 2, Samurai Shodown and World Heroes.

So arcade games to play I met with emulators/Retropie/made myself arcade tabletop.
Should I list my endless favs, or is this only for true arcade players?
By all means, please do list as many of your favorites as you'd like!

Also, that's awesome that you have a tabletop machine! I would love to get me one of those some day!
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by DoomJedi »

Soul Monster wrote: Sat Jul 31, 2021 9:43 By all means, please do list as many of your favorites as you'd like!
Well, already mentioned Street Fighter 2, World Heroes and Samurai Shodown
Besides that one can't miss

A. Pure arcade classics: Pacman, Joust, Galaga/Galaga88, Galaxians, Frogger, Defender, Mario Bros, King&Baloon, Donkey Kong, Dig Dug, Cavelon, Pang, Columns 2, Puyo Puyo (1/2), Puzzle Bobble, Tank Force, Snow Bros, Dr Mario, Tapper etc.

B. Fighters - too long to list, love Street Fighter, many NeoGeo fighting games (Fatal Fury series etc)...

C. Beat'em Ups - Final Fight, 64 Street (amazing!), Knights of the round table, Ninja Turtles, Golden Axe, Double Dragon series, King of Dragons, Dynasty Wars, Metamorphic Force, Warriors of Fate, Vendetta, Crime Fighters, Violent Storm, Knights of Valour, Sengoku series, Dungeons&Dragons, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs....

D. Flying Shooters - Insector X, Darius, Salamander, R-Type, Star Force, Ordyne, Sonic Wings series...

E. Retro Racers: Outrun, AB Cop, Bimini Run, Hang On, (less fan of Chase H.Q.)

F. Plaformers: Tiger Road, WonderBoy, Shinobi, Ninja Kun, Ghosts and Goblins, Legend of Hero Tomma, Quartet (because of 4 players), Metal Slug series, .

G. Sports: Neo Turf Masters (amazing golf game).

I can go on and on and on...
Also, that's awesome that you have a tabletop machine! I would love to get me one of those some day!
Thank you, enjoying it much.
Can send you or post here the tutorial I was basing on (raspberry pi 3B/retropie inside), aliexpress links of various details I ordered etc, have even assembly shots while I was making it.
It's not too easy to do, but sure doable, with some help.
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by Soul Monster »

DoomJedi wrote: Sat Jul 31, 2021 14:13 Well, already mentioned Street Fighter 2, World Heroes and Samurai Shodown
Besides that one can't miss

A. Pure arcade classics: Pacman, Joust, Galaga/Galaga88, Galaxians, Frogger, Defender, Mario Bros, King&Baloon, Donkey Kong, Dig Dug, Cavelon, Pang, Columns 2, Puyo Puyo (1/2), Puzzle Bobble, Tank Force, Snow Bros, Dr Mario, Tapper etc.

B. Fighters - too long to list, love Street Fighter, many NeoGeo fighting games (Fatal Fury series etc)...

C. Beat'em Ups - Final Fight, 64 Street (amazing!), Knights of the round table, Ninja Turtles, Golden Axe, Double Dragon series, King of Dragons, Dynasty Wars, Metamorphic Force, Warriors of Fate, Vendetta, Crime Fighters, Violent Storm, Knights of Valour, Sengoku series, Dungeons&Dragons, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs....

D. Flying Shooters - Insector X, Darius, Salamander, R-Type, Star Force, Ordyne, Sonic Wings series...

E. Retro Racers: Outrun, AB Cop, Bimini Run, Hang On, (less fan of Chase H.Q.)

F. Plaformers: Tiger Road, WonderBoy, Shinobi, Ninja Kun, Ghosts and Goblins, Legend of Hero Tomma, Quartet (because of 4 players), Metal Slug series, .

G. Sports: Neo Turf Masters (amazing golf game).

I can go on and on and on...
That's a pretty good list! Makes we want to update my own list on here. Also, I had to laugh when you mentioned Tapper, because when I played that at the arcade me and my friends go to, I was playing it as my friends were turning the corner and spotted me, so one of them came up to me and said "TAPPER?! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU PLAYING TAPPER FOR?!", and my other friend said I turned and shot him a look like "Leave me the F alone, I'm having fun!". Good times.
Thank you, enjoying it much.
Can send you or post here the tutorial I was basing on (raspberry pi 3B/retropie inside), aliexpress links of various details I ordered etc, have even assembly shots while I was making it.
It's not too easy to do, but sure doable, with some help.
It's funny you mention that, because there's a guy I know who builds raspberry pis to use in our arcade, and in the past he mentioned that he'd be open to selling us some for a reasonable price, so this might be something I'd have to ask him about. But in the meantime, please feel free to post the tutorial on here for reference!
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by DoomJedi »

That's a pretty good list! Makes we want to update my own list on here.
Thanks, I could really go and an on (played and loved so many), some I just couldn't remember the exact name in the original reply (like "Magic Sword", "Black Dragon"...and how could I ever forget "Rush & Attack"/"Green Beret" and unique and amazing "Chelnov"??)
...ask me and will keep on going :)

I have even rare arcade rom version of "Sky Destroyer", with almost all features working. Cooler game than nes version.
Last edited by DoomJedi on Thu Aug 12, 2021 21:06, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by Soul Monster »

DoomJedi wrote: Mon Aug 09, 2021 10:25
That's a pretty good list! Makes we want to update my own list on here.
Thanks, I could really go and an on (played and loved so many), some I just couldn't remember the exact name in the original reply (like "Magic Sword", "Black Dragon"...and how could I ever forget "Rush & Attack" and unique and amazing "Chelnov"??)
...ask me and will keep on going :)

I have even rare arcade rom version of "Sky Destroyer", with almost all features working. Cooler game than nes version.
Yeah man, keep going! I'd love to hear some of the other ones you've played!

Also, I updated my list as well, but will probably list some more as I think of them.
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by DoomJedi »

Soul Monster wrote: Wed Aug 11, 2021 20:59 Yeah man, keep going! I'd love to hear some of the other ones you've played!
Thanks :)
..if I'll list all I have played, this thread will get to 100 pages heh :)

I will try just to list ones I especially liked.

Rygar, Ataxx, Exerion, Gyruss, Mizubaku Adventures, Moon Patrol, Seicross, Sky Lancer, BattleToads, Altered Beast, Astyanax, Bubble Bobble, Moon Cresta, Rad Racer, Riot City, Sailor Moon, Space Harrier, Strider, Undercover Cops, Wits, Image Fighter, Parodius, Ninja Gaiden, Two Crude, Bomberman World, Boulder Dash, Avengers game, Excite Bike, Gauntlet, Macross, Mega Twins, Renegade, Circus Charlie......
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by Soul Monster »

DoomJedi wrote: Thu Aug 12, 2021 21:24 Thanks :)
..if I'll list all I have played, this thread will get to 100 pages heh :)

I will try just to list ones I especially liked.

Rygar, Ataxx, Exerion, Gyruss, Mizubaku Adventures, Moon Patrol, Seicross, Sky Lancer, BattleToads, Altered Beast, Astyanax, Bubble Bobble, Moon Cresta, Rad Racer, Riot City, Sailor Moon, Space Harrier, Strider, Undercover Cops, Wits, Image Fighter, Parodius, Ninja Gaiden, Two Crude, Bomberman World, Boulder Dash, Avengers game, Excite Bike, Gauntlet, Macross, Mega Twins, Renegade, Circus Charlie......
That's a pretty good list! Some of these I've never even heard of!

I'm the same way. If I listed all my favorites as well as the ones that I've played it'd just go on forever. But it's great to meet someone on here who knows from arcade games and enjoys playing them as much as I do. I'm sure we could go on and on about stories and experiences playing all these great old games.
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by DoomJedi »

Same here pal :)

I can always talk arcade games and retro games in general, sure for older consoles.
Having retropie makes it easy for me to try and discover new old games.

I also collect hacks (mainly nes, but snes and megadrive too, even atari2600), multicart roms/dumps, cooperative hacks (2P instead of 1P, 4P instead of 1-2P) etc. There are cool sport games hack replacing old players with modern ones...alot of cool stuff going on in hacking and modding scene.
Have very cool collection.
It's not fun till you tried 2 player coop mario on nes or snes, or other classics with more players :)

So talk, let's have fun. Choose a topic/game/genre :)
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by Nisaba »

I'm a huge fan of Hacks & Homebrews and of course of Demakes as well! Over time I came across a bunch of superb and unique ROM Hacks, Mods and Homebrewed games which really impressed me. please allow me to list just a few that I really enjoy playing.

Atari 2600
Super 3D Portals 6 (Puzzle, Demake by Hinchy)
"A 2D demake of Portal. Super 3D Portals 6 consists primarily of a series of puzzles that must be solved by teleporting the player's arrow using a portal device that can create inter-spatial portals between two planes.
Image Image Image


NES
Alter Ego (Puzzle, Homebrew by Shiru)
"A port of the original (by Denis Grachev for the ZX Spectrum), Alter Ego is a puzzle game for NES. Swap positions with your “alter ego” to move about the level and obtain all the bouncing “pixels”."
Image Image Image

Super Painter (Puzzle, Homebrew by Retrosouls)
"Run and paint the environment green but be sure to avoid hazards and enemies."
Image Image Image

The Wit.nes (Puzle, Demake by Dustmop)
"A demake of Thekla Inc's 2016 game "The Witness" has you exploring a mysterious island* and solving puzzles. This Nes ROM stands as a reinterpretation and tribute to the original work. Aimed at both players unfamiliar with the full game who want to learn what it's like, as well as veterans that need a fix of new puzzle panels to solve."
Image Image Image


SEGA Genesis:
Miniplanets (Platformer, Homebrew by sikthehedghog)
"you have to travel travel planet by planet solving puzzles on them. You control Qisha, who have to free 5 planet systems, guarded by her children, who had been cursed by an unknown force. Colorful, funny and additive game. "
Image Image Image

Tanglewood (Puzzle, Platformer, Homebrew by Big Evil Corporation)
"Set in the realm of Tanglewood, the game follows a young creature, Nymn, separated from the pack after the sun sets. Unable to get back to the safety of the family's underground home, Nymn must find a way to survive the night terrors and get to morning. Tanglewood’s world is a dangerous one after dark; guiding Nymn you must use your skills of evasion, traps and trickery to defeat predators."
Image Image Image


SNES:
100 Rooms of Enemies (Puzzle, SMW hack by Daizo Dee Von)
"Do you like the "Pit of 100 Trials" side-challenges from the Paper Mario games? If you did, then you'll sure like this concept. 100 Rooms of Enemies is a enemy rush platformer that consists of 100 setups for the player to go through. Think of this as if you're in an arcade game; you essentially try to improve your record as you die many times..."
Image Image Image

Call of Cthulhu (Platformer, SMW hack by Yashum)
"A hard SMW game based around one incredibly long level that is loosely based on a role playing game/ story book called "Called of Cthulhu" tale by H.P. Lovecraft. Mario must gather all the cat tokens in this world before Cthulhu wakes up or else Mario is doom..!"
Image Image Image

Super Mario Logic (Puzzle, SMW hack by Final Logic aka. Final Theory)
"Solve one room mini puzzles to proceed. Join Mario on a brand new adventure as he conquers each task an order to break the spell and return the land back to normal."
Image Image Image


Now I am curious about your list. What have you discovered in the vastness of the internet? And which hacks do you enjoy best?
out now (link) : Image
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by Soul Monster »

That's a nice list, Nisaba.

I gotta be honest, I haven't used many hacks or homebrews, but there's one that my friends figured out that I've used.

I'm not sure if you guys have ever played Godzilla: Save The Earth on PS2/Xbox, but there was a character that was scrapped from the game before being nearly completed, and had been mentioned for years by the game developer in interviews. So, in the last few years, people figured out how to hack the source code and were able to find the character's files still intact, and managed to make the monster (Biollante) a playable character in the game. Some of the attacks and animations are a little unpolished, but at the very least Biollante is playable. Nowadays, as I mentioned in previous posts, I'm a staff member in an arcade at a convention me and my friends attend, and every year we bring the hack so the average person can have the opportunity to play as her.
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Re: Classic Arcade Games

Post by DoomJedi »

Oh yes, "Alter Ego" I played (also the great "Micro Mages"), also there are some other similar new nes games I would recommend like "Multidude", "Inversion", "Milionesy", "Zooming Secretary" and even "Lawn Mower"...

I do love Mario coop hacks on nes and snes, also other coop hack of classics like Baloon Fight, Ice Climber, Battle City and such.
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