Best Arcade Games Of The 1980′s

Back in the day, we didn't have the luxury of controlling our video games, wirelessly, at home. Sure, there were some game consoles, but nothing like what we have today. We had arcade games - huge rooms in local malls - filled with arcade games of the eighties that took a quarter to play a game. While these arcades would always be filled, there were certain games that were better than others. Here is a list of my favorite quarter eaters from the 80s.  What were yours?

 

myfivebest -1SPY HUNTER

I have always been a fan of James Bond, so when I first saw this game in 1983. The game consisted of a steering wheel, gear shift, accelerator, and buttons to use the super-spy gadgets.  You would drive along the road while enemy cars try to destroy you.  You can ram the cars, shoot oil, have smoke screens, and missiles.  You could also shoot a machine gun at your enemies. This game might not have been on everyone's list, but it combined a shooting game with a car game, which to me, was the best of both worlds.

 

myfivebest - 2PAC MAN

How could this list not have Pac Man in the top five? This 1980 game featured a dot-eating Pac Man, who goes through a maze avoiding four ghosts (Inky, Blinky, Pinky, and Clyde). If Pac Man gets caught, he loses a life. If he eats all of the dots, he goes onto the next level. This game was an instant smash and in 1982, even had a song written about it.

One of the most famous and iconic video games of all time, it was originally released in Japan in 1980. It definitely became a part of pop culture (including the 1982 pop music hit "Pac Man Fever") and created a new genre for arcade games. I really enjoyed this game, but as you will see, I enjoyed his wife's game a little better.

 

myfivebest - 3STAR WARS

This 1983 game could possibly be the reason I was broke a lot in my teen years.  I loved this game!  It's based on Star Wars IV: A New Hope.  You play the part of Luke Skywalker and it's your job to attack the Death Star. Unlike other games, you didn't have to kill every enemy. You just had to avoid being hit seven times. Each level became harder as you got closer to shooting the Death Star into a million pieces.  What made the game really interesting was that they used the voices of the actors in the game. Another great part of this game was that it came in two versions: The stand alone arcade console or the sit-down variation.

 

 

myfivebest - 4DEFENDER

Defender, which came out in 1980, was something like the earlier games of Space Invaders and Asteroids.  The difference was, this game was much harder. It was a fast-paced game that had a joystick and five buttons. All of the kids today are probably saying "So what? We have more buttons and combinations than that!"  Great...but try doing it standing up, surrounded by people bumping into you while they are carrying a slice of pizza and a drink! In the game, you command a space ship flying over a 2D terrain and protecting and rescuing astronauts as invaders try to take them and kill you. If your astronauts get captured, they come back as mutants and try to attack you!

 

myfivebest - 5DRAGON'S LAIR

This arcade game came out in 1983 and, despite its fifty cent cost, it was always occupied. The reason was because of the graphics at the time.  A medieval fantasy, Dragon's Lair was like you were actually controlling a cartoon. It was because it was the first laser video disk game. In the game, you played the character of Dirk, the Daring and it was your job to rescue Princess Daphne from the dragon, Singe. The game was primitive by today's standards, but the death scenes were classic.

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