1980's ARCADE CLASSIC - Top 20
The 1980s gave us many awesome and great things Mtv, Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Spuds McKenzie. Unfortunately they also gave us Perfect Strangers, Kajagoogo and the feathered mullet. Even though we had to endure some bad hair and terrible music, it was a hell of an experience growing up in the 80’s arcades!
I know by today’s standards, these games are like comparing the careers of Johnny Deep’s to Richard Greeco’s. That still won’t prevent many of us from having the great memories of the 80’s video games and remembering that feeling of great triumph when you got to put your initials on the High Score board. For some reason all of the games in our town were dominated by the same guy with the initials A.S.S. I wonder if it was that high school kid who would always put his lite cigarette by the buttons and take a drag after he completed that level. Do you remember where you were when you first cleared enough Pac-Man levels to get to an intermission? Damn, good time but let’s get to our list. I’ve had a lot of trouble putting this in the correct order of awesomeness but I’m happy with my final decisions.
20. Zaxxon- This game was cool but it was like flying a space plane through an M.C. Esher painting. Trippy graphics for it’s time so it has to make the list.
19. Mr. Do - Was it a Dig Dug rip off? Well, kind of in just about every way except he could shoot something out of his hand so I guess that makes it completely different. Hey I like DIg Dug and liked this one to. Not every game can be totally original.
18. Centipede - Another cool and dangerous roller game. Still creeps me out for some reason because of that movie Human Centipede.
17. Missle Command - One tiny "+" sign agains a whole army of jagged lines coming down from the sky. It was actually a very terrifying alien invasion if you just visualize it in your head rather than looking at actual graphics on the screen.
16. Dig Dug - I think I was more of a fan of blowing up the creatures with a air pump than actually finishing a level. We used to try it on frogs with our bicycle pump bit didn’t work that well.
15. Any of the Pac-Man games. These are iconic and you just can’t leave them off a greatest hits list. I didn’t go crazy over them but I did play my fair share and download "Pac-Man Fever" to my ipod.
14. That X & O Footbal game- Do you remember that one with the roller ball. You’d be whipping that ball so fast and then the palm of your hand would get sucked up causing terrible pain and a nice blood blister. Things were always more fun when there was a sense of danger attached.
13. Donkey Kong - A true classic and great game but who the hell thought up this idea? I get the whole King Kong stealing the girl reference but throwing flamming barrels down steal beams at a stereotypical Italian plumber? Is that using creativity or using dope?
12. Q-Bert- Nothing complicated about this one. Just a cute creature jumping from one cube to the next. One joystick like Pac-Man but some how it was just very cool and unusual.
11. Pole Position- The classic driving game the was just bad ass. Teaching young impressional kids the rules of driving. Haul Ass as fast as you can but if you hit that sign your car will blow up. I’m a better driver because of it.
10. Defender-This was one for the truely skilled video game player. You had so many buttons and it went so fast that only the really stoned kids could pull it off.
9. Frogger- Who didn’t love Frogger? It was great for video game beginners but even the pros loved it. Even when you died you got to see your frog splatter across the road. That’s kind of heartless and evil now that I thik about it.
8. Burgertime - Man, did I spend a fortune playing this game. Making a giant hambuger was every kids dream. I never knew why the chef was afraid of the Hot Dogs and big pickles chasing him until I was forced to take community showers at summer camp.
7. Donkey Kong Jr- Yes this comes ahead of the original. Junior is trying to save Papa from they evil Pizza guy...or Italian plummer or whatever. Jumping from vine to vine avoiding the metal chomping robots and collecting fruit. I kicked ass at this game but of course no one cared. I was even better at Donkey Kong III but even less people cared about that one.
6. Track and Field - Who would’ve thought this boring ass sport would make such an awesome video game. Some prefered to use a pencil between the finger to help you run faster, but I would always whip out the plastic brush comb from my back pocket. Comb that feathered hair back and get down to business.
5. Galaga - Shooting space bugs...what else do I need to say? Brilliant! Of course there was always your stupid friend who’d let his space ship get captured by the bugs and not realize it was his last man.
4. Pit Fall - Yes, I’m going to the home Atari system and I’m sure you won’t disagree. Swinging from vines over lakes, jumping on aligators and giant scorpions...it was just like being in an Indiana Jones movie. That is if that movie was filmed on a $20 dollar budget...but still awesome!
3. Space Invaders - You can’t leave out this classic. Space Aliens marching down on you and dropping deadly turds all while doing some strange synchronized jazzercise routine.
2. Joust - A knight riding an ostrich fighting other knights riding buzzards. Wasn’t this a Monty Python sketch?
1. Dragon’s Lair - This game was too freaking awesome. It took 2 quarters to play but it was worth it. I never had the deep pockets to play this upscale game but would sit and watch other people for hours and live through them.
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***This Just In...More Styles are coming in...More Dragon's Lair and Space Ace on www.BLTEESHIRT.com!!!
***This Just In...More Styles are coming in...More Dragon's Lair and Space Ace on www.BLTEESHIRT.com!!!
