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The 18 Greatest Arcade Games of All Time

by YPB Team

Cabinets that ate quarters for thirty years, and a few that just looked good in the corner. The pecking order was never settled.

  1. Pac-Man — ranked #11
    Pac-Man
    Namco's 1980 maze chase that turned a yellow circle into the most recognisable character in games.
    1000pts
  2. Galaga — ranked #22
    Galaga
    Namco's 1981 fixed shooter, remembered for the tractor beam that let a captured ship fight alongside you.
    794pts
  3. Daytona USA — ranked #33
    Daytona USA
    Sega's 1994 racer, the eight-cabinet linked setup that defined the mid-90s arcade floor.
    676pts
  4. Space Invaders — ranked #44
    Space Invaders
    Taito's 1978 shooter that started the arcade boom and reportedly caused a coin shortage in Japan.
    643pts
  5. Ms. Pac-Man — ranked #55
    Ms. Pac-Man
    The 1982 sequel with four mazes and smarter ghosts, widely held to improve on the original.
    566pts
  6. Golden Axe — ranked #66
    Golden Axe
    Sega's 1989 fantasy beat-em-up with rideable beasts and a co-op mode people still remember.
    566pts
  7. Gauntlet — ranked #77
    Gauntlet
    Atari's 1985 four-player dungeon crawler and its narrator announcing your health running low.
    566pts
  8. Donkey Kong — ranked #88
    Donkey Kong
    Nintendo's 1981 platformer that introduced Mario and made narrative a part of arcade play.
    500pts
  9. Dance Dance Revolution — ranked #99
    Dance Dance Revolution
    Konami's 1998 rhythm machine that put the player's whole body on display in the arcade.
    423pts
  10. NBA Jam — ranked #1010
    NBA Jam
    Midway's 1993 two-on-two basketball game, all dunks, fire and commentary.
    423pts
  11. Asteroids — ranked #1111
    Asteroids
    Atari's 1979 vector shooter and the company's best-selling arcade machine.
    333pts
  12. Time Crisis — ranked #1212
    Time Crisis
    Namco's 1995 light-gun shooter with a foot pedal for taking cover.
    333pts
  13. Defender — ranked #1313
    Defender
    Williams' 1981 side-scrolling shooter, famous for a control panel that scared off casual players.
    333pts
  14. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles — ranked #1414
    Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
    Konami's 1989 four-player beat-em-up that turned a cabinet into a group activity.
    333pts
  15. Out Run — ranked #1515
    Out Run
    Sega's 1986 driving game with a hydraulic cabinet, branching routes and a radio you could tune.
    227pts
  16. Mortal Kombat — ranked #1616
    Mortal Kombat
    Midway's 1992 answer to Street Fighter II, built on digitised actors and finishing moves.
    227pts
  17. Tekken 3 — ranked #1717
    Tekken 3
    Namco's 1997 fighter, the high point of 3D arcade fighting before the genre moved home.
    227pts
  18. Street Fighter II — ranked #1818
    Street Fighter II
    Capcom's 1991 fighter that defined the one-on-one genre and kept arcades alive through the decade.
    0pts

#Games275#80s149#90s153#Classics492#Arcade4

Comments

Capcom shifted more than 200,000 Street Fighter II cabinets, and Mortal Kombat arrived a year later as Midway's answer to them: https://youpick.best/articles/mortal-kombat-vs-street-fighter-ranked

YP
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