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Best arcade games on GamesNostalgia

Arcade games are video games commonly installed in cabinets and placed in bars; they were very common in the '80s. Many arcade games were ported to home computers and consoles, even if the conversion sometimes required the removal of some features due to different hardware. However, in this case, we are not really talking about actual arcades but more about the genre. Arcade games are often simple titles based on skills and speed. Initially, they were based on single screens - think about Pac-Man and Space Invaders, for example, but then they started to feature scrolling screens.

In this group, you can find some of the most popular titles in the history of video games, such as Taito's Bubble Bobble or CAPCOM's Ghosts 'N Goblins. Some of the best beat-em-ups have been born as arcades, like Street Fighter or Double Dragon. SEGA's Golden Axe was a fantastic example of a hack-and-slash theme with cooperative action for two players (that could choose between 3 different characters). We should also not forget OutRun, an arcade that revolutionized racing games, and Irem's R-Type, a title that set the standard for horizontal scrolling space shooters. And let's not forget Arkanoid, the successor of Breakout. The list is long, but we cannot end this overview without mentioning one of the cutest platformers ever created, Taito's The New Zealand Story. In the list below, you will also find some games not originally born as coin-ops but only inspired by the classic arcades of the past. If you are interested in this genre, we suggest you also check the group coin-op conversion.

Slam Tilt amiga

Slam Tilt is a pinball simulation developed by Liquid Dezign and published by 21st Century Entertainment in 1996 for Amiga. The game required the AGA chipset, like the one present on the A1200.

Year: 1996 Genre: Arcade

aga amiga original game arcade bat and ball hotseat multiplayer pinball

Tiny Bobble amiga

Tiny Bobble is a modern conversion for Amiga of the famous coin-op Bubble Bobble. The fantastic work, made by Bartman and Pink of the demo scene group called "Abyss," started in 2018.

Year: 2020 Genre: Arcade

2 players amiga original game arcade clone co-op coin-op conversion flip-screen freeware public domain

Rainbow Islands amiga

Rainbow Islands is the sequel to Bubble Bobble and was developed and published by Taito in 1987 for arcades only. It would remain a coin-op until 1990 when it was ported to the Amiga, Commodore 64, and other home platforms.

Year: 1990 Genre: Platformer

arcade coin-op conversion fantasy jumper platformer vertical-scrolling

Rainbow Islands Extra genesis

Rainbow Islands Extra is a vertical-scrolling arcade created by Taito in 1990. Rainbow Islands, also known as Rainbow Islands: The Story of Bubble Bobble 2, is a sequel to Taito's hit title Bubble Bobble.

Year: 1990 Genre: Arcade

2d arcade coin-op conversion fantasy jumper platformer vertical-scrolling

Golden Axe genesisamiga

Golden Axe is a side-scrolling hack and slash fantasy game created by Sega and released for arcade machines in 1989. The game was ported the same year to the SEGA Mega Drive/Genesi...

Year: 1990 Genre: Brawler

2 players arcade brawler co-op coin-op conversion fantasy hack and slash progressive beat-em-up sword and sorcery

Street Fighter II dosgenesisamiga

Street Fighter II is the arcade sequel to the original Street Fighter and was developed and published by Capcom in 1991. Originally made for arcades, it was later released for other platforms, including that Amiga and PC.

Year: 1992 Genre: Brawler

2 players anime arcade brawler competitive fighting

Megaball amiga

Megaball is a legendary Breakout clone for the Amiga created by Ed Mackey (with his brother Al) and released initially in 1990 as shareware. Since then, the game got several updates until version 4.

Year: 1991 Genre: Arcade

aga amiga original game arcade bat and ball breakout clone paddle pong public domain

Bubble Bobble amiga

Bubble Bobble is one of the most famous arcades ever created and a personal favorite of GamesNostalgia. This 2D cartoon action platformer designed by Fukio Mitsuji (aka MTJ) was released by Taito initially in 1986.

Year: 1987 Genre: Platformer

2 players arcade clear screen co-op coin-op conversion platformer

R-Type amigamsxpc-enginesega-master-system

R-Type is a side-scrolling shoot-em-up arcade created by Irem in 1987. The graphics design was inspired by H. R. Giger's artwork for the Alien movies. It was ported to several home...

Year: 1989 Genre: Shooter

arcade coin-op conversion freeware h-scrolling shoot-em up science fiction shooter side-scrolling

Bob's Garden amiga

Bob's Garden is an Amiga public domain clone of the 1982 arcade Mr. Do!. The game was created in 1993 by Justin Leck, previously the author of Digger, a clone of Dig Dug (kind of predecessor of Mr.

Year: 1993 Genre: Arcade

2d amiga original game arcade clone fantasy maze public domain single screen

Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone amiga

Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone is the third and final chapter of the popular series Double Dragon created by Technos Japan. The side-scrolling beat 'em up was created originally as an arcade, then ported later to home computers.

Year: 1991 Genre: Brawler

2 players arcade brawler co-op coin-op conversion progressive beat-em-up

The House of the Dead windows

The House of the Dead is a shooter arcade game with an action-horror thematic created by Sega and released in 1996. The title was ported to Sega Saturn and Windows in 1998. These l...

Year: 1998 Genre: Shooter

3d arcade coin-op conversion first-person horror rail shooter

Pinball Fantasies amiga

Pinball Fantasies, the sequel to Pinball Dreams, is a pinball game initially developed for the Amiga by Digital Illusions in 1992. It was later ported to DOS, Playstation, and many other platforms.

Year: 1992 Genre: Arcade

aga amiga cd32 amiga original game arcade bat and ball hotseat multiplayer pinball

Blazing Lazers pc-engine

Blazing Lazers (also known as Gunhed) is a sci-fi vertical scrolling shooter created by Hudson Soft for the TurboGrafx-16. The game, released in 1989, is considered one of the best...

Year: 1989 Genre: Shooter

arcade pc engine shooter space top-down turbografx-16 v-scrolling shoot-em up vertical-scrolling