Midway Arcade Treasures
The dream police--they live inside of my head.
Just as you can't fully appreciate heavy metal without experiencing Black Sabbath, any gamer with any interest in truly understanding the video-game medium's roots should at least rent this compilation of classic arcade games. Sure, Defender doesn't offer vast three-dimensional environments to explore, Robotron: 2084's gameplay mechanics may be primitive, and the animation in Paperboy looks archaic, but ignore these superficies and you'll be treated to some frantic, demanding, and immediately engrossing games. Highlights include the treacherous Tony Hawk's Pro Skater progenitor, 720; the frenzied, addictive puzzler, Klax; the fast-paced Defender; the legendary Joust; the carnage-filled Smash TV; and the reigning ADD-inducing champ, Robotron: 2084. The gems here are the Galaga knock-off, Satan's Hollow, for pitting you one on one against the Great Horned One, and the surreal, Animal House?inspired SPLAT!, which hurls you into crazed food fights against hoodlums, tomato-chucking ears of corn, pie-wielding hitmen, and disembodied heads.
On the other hand, Gauntlet is not as fun as you remember, Vindicators and Marble Madness are virtually unplayable with the analog stick control scheme, and instead of Budweiser Tapper you get, uh, Rootbeer Tapper. The true arcade experience of second-hand smoke, arsenals of carefully hoarded quarters, and Cheap Trick on the jukebox is absent, but you do get treated to original concept art and interviews with some seminal game developers. More than just a nostalgic trip, Midway Arcade Treasures hosts an immediate, action-heavy, and challenging (after all, the publishers needed to keep you pumping quarters into their machines) showcase of games that were meant to be games
