Home Gaming Friday Debate – What’s the best arcade game of all time?

Friday Debate – What’s the best arcade game of all time?

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26

Friday-Debate-Arcade

There used to be a time that if you wanted to play the best games on the market, you’d need to leave the house. You’d have to make the trek to a shopping mall, which is like this most ancient concept of shopping. Imagine shops like Takealot or Amazon, but you actually had to physically step inside and inspect the merchandise. Wild times.

Anyway, within these “Chopping Mauls” as they were known in the old tongue, were video game arcades. They’d take up a chunk of space, had more flashing lights than a Las Vegas strip and there would be all manner of games inside that used a pay-to-play transaction model that would give you a few brief chances at fun. Some of them were horribly unfair and had the difficulty dialled up to maximum, others would fleece you dry for a few minutes of fun before leaving you broke and retinas seared.

Arcade

Amongst those arcade stands, there’d be a few gems. Games which you couldn’t stop plugging your coins into. For me, Time Crisis was the game that ate up way too many of my tokens. Bandai Namco’s lightgun game was like nothing that had ever been seen at the time. The OG cover-based shooter, it was fast, furious and way ahead of its competition thanks to a novel approach of using a pedal on the floor t switch to cover and reload a handgun that would make Robocop proud.

It was also hard as nails, a proper challenge that required balancing pin point precision with the knowledge that you’d be momentarily blind to enemies advancing on you whenever you went into cover. One of the best games of all time, it got me thinking: What’s your favourite? Which arcade game is the very best in your opinion?

https://youtu.be/mJgpJ1VWtxk

Is it Sunset Riders and that magnificent opening stage that had you running on cows? Afterburner’s iconic cockpit that allowed you to whizz through enemy waves like a hot knife through butter. Maybe you spent many hours playing The Punisher, death-punching your way through Frank Castle’s rogues gallery and savouring those few moments where you were actually allowed to use a gun.

So many good times and memories of a bygone era. What’s your favourite then? Sound off below and let’s start reminiscing yo.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Critical Hit as an organisation.

Last Updated: March 22, 2019

26 Comments

  1. The ones I had fun with my friends in my youth.

    Reply

  2. PoisonedBelial

    March 22, 2019 at 11:13

    Street Fighter 2 Championship Edition.

    Reply

  3. LegionZA

    March 22, 2019 at 11:13

    Has to be Street Fighter II. The amount of coins/tokens I spent on that marvelous game was well worth it. Still my default go to game when I fire up MAME

    Reply

  4. Daniel Hallinan

    March 22, 2019 at 11:20

    • The D

      March 22, 2019 at 11:21

      I like your style Dan 🙂

      Reply

    • Pixelated Gambit

      March 22, 2019 at 11:35

      This series artwork still blows my mind

      Reply

  5. Original Heretic

    March 22, 2019 at 11:28

    Cadash.
    Wonderboy in Monster World.

    Reply

  6. Kromas

    March 22, 2019 at 11:35

    Time Crysis!

    Reply

  7. Pixelated Gambit

    March 22, 2019 at 11:43

    1.Time Crisis
    2.Street Fighter 2 Championship Edition.
    3.Tekken Tag Tournament
    4.SNK vs Capcom
    5.Cadillacs and Dinosaurs

    Honourable Mentions:Sunset Riders, House of the Dead,Final Fight, The Punisher, The Simpsons Arcade Game

    Reply

    • Tbone187

      March 22, 2019 at 16:42

      Ooooh Sunset Riders…The 16 bit console version wasn’t too far off.

      Reply

      • Pixelated Gambit

        March 22, 2019 at 17:44

        Yeah definitely one of the good console ports

        Reply

  8. Pariah

    March 22, 2019 at 11:53

    Mortal Kombat, without question.

    To clarify, I think this was the best. It wasn’t anywhere near the one I played the most.

    Reply

  9. Pariah

    March 22, 2019 at 12:02

    Although I don’t remember the names, I used to spend most of my time on the bike racing games. The ones where you sat on plastic bike-shaped things and raced against a friend who you totally didn’t punch if they beat you. Those and the car racing games were the true heroes of my arcade days.

    Reply

    • The D

      March 22, 2019 at 12:03

      My fat ass broke one of those bike frames at an arcade when I was a kid and I fucking hustled out of there so damn quick.

      Reply

      • Pariah

        March 22, 2019 at 12:03

        I would’ve laughed at you so hard. While trying to keep up as you ran for your life. LOL

        Reply

      • Original Heretic

        March 22, 2019 at 13:22

        I once raced to the local shop on a Friday after school to get to the current popular game that was there.
        Problem was, I actually needed to pee…
        Get to the shop, no one else there to play, so I happily start jamming.
        And subsequently pissed my pants. Never have I left a place so quickly.

        Luckily nobody noticed. Or so I tell myself to this day.

        Reply

    • Tbone187

      March 22, 2019 at 16:42

      ManxTT?

      Reply

  10. Jonah Cash

    March 22, 2019 at 12:02

    Street Fighter 2… And if you don’t agree you are obviously wrong!

    Reply

  11. Craig "Crios" Boonzaier

    March 22, 2019 at 12:03

    The ones I had fun with my friends in my youth.

    Reply

  12. justlikemo

    March 22, 2019 at 12:33

    SHinobi, Golden Axe, Contra, Streets of Rage, Mortal Combat 2, Snow Bros.

    Reply

  13. The Big Bad Wolf

    March 22, 2019 at 12:42

    Pac-Man.

    I’m unoriginal.

    Reply

    • Tbone187

      March 22, 2019 at 16:42

      Bubble Bobble?

      Reply

  14. Mark Treloar

    March 22, 2019 at 13:02

    Space Invaders

    Reply

  15. Tbone187

    March 22, 2019 at 16:42

    MK/SF/Tekken… Shinobi / double dragon…Snow Bros/Pacman…Aero fighters and Super Sidekicks. Most memorable for me. Nobody could beat me in Tekken or MK2!

    Reply

  16. BradeLunner

    March 22, 2019 at 17:25

    Street fighter 2 of course

    Reply

  17. b1nd3r

    March 26, 2019 at 12:01

    1. House of the dead 2. time crisis 3. metal slug 4. tekken 5. Im broke and have no more cash for the arcade XD

    Reply

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