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WARNING: You will probably spend anywhere between $5 to $15 USD in quarters if you play the actual arcade machines in the "wild" over the course of about 30 minutes to an hour; it may be better to use MAME or FinalBurn Neo emulators instead
Alien vs. Predator - a 2D side scrolling beat'em up based on the Alien and Predator film franchises. Up to three players can pick from four characters to kill alien hordes and human enemies: there are two cybernetically enhanced humans (Major Dutch Schaefer, based on Arnold Schwarzenegger's character from Predator, and Lieutenant Linn Kurosawa) and 2 Predators (Warrior and Hunter). All characters are equipped with a gun for ranged attacks, and three also have melee weapons: Linn has a katana, the Hunter has a bladed staff, and the Warrior has an extendable-retractable spear/staff. Dutch uses a cybernetic arm instead of a weapon. Gameplay is typical for the genre - players must walk to the right, kill all enemies, and defeat bosses.
Aliens - a scrolling run 'n' gun game for one or two players based on the classic 1986 science-fiction movie of the same name. Players take on the role of either Ellen Ripley (in the single-player game) or Corporal Hicks (in the two-player game) and must shoot their way through the alien-infested levels of the LV426 base to make their escape together with 'Newt', the little girl who survived the alien invasion of her settlement.
Knights of the Round - an arcade game released by Capcom in 1991. A side-scrolling beat 'em up based loosely on the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, the game features an role-playing video game-like level advancement system, with fighters getting new weapons and armour as they advance through the game, however the player can not choose how to upgrade his/her character - the level up system is static.
Golden Axe - a sideways scrolling beat-em-up set in a traditional fantasy world, in which up to three warriors take up arms to rescue the kidnapped King and his Queen from the evil Death Adder. The game's three different playable characters are an Amazonian warrior named Tyris Flare, a Barbarian hero named Ax Battler, and a Viking dwarf named Gilius Thunderhead. Each character has a special attack move that is activated by pressing both JUMP and ATTACK at the same time. Also, double-tapping the joystick right or left will make the character charge and smash into opponents.
Simpsons, The - a jewel heist gone wrong sees Mr Burns's sidekick, Smithers, kidnapping Maggie and making his escape. Between one and four players take on the role of either Homer, Marge, Lisa, or Bart in this colorful, horizontally-scrolling beat-em-up from Konami. Each Simpsons character possesses an attacking move specific to them; Marge is armed with a vacuum cleaner, Lisa has a skipping rope, Bart has his skateboard, and Homer fights with his fists. The players must battle their way through a variety of Simpsons-themed levels - such as Springfield and Krustyland - fighting goons, thugs, zombies, drunks, firemen, and several Simpsons regulars. Many Simpsons characters that don't appear as enemies have 'cameo' scenes in the game (Otto working at a burgerstand in Krustyland, for example). The archetypal 'boss' character awaits the players at the end of every stage. The game ends with a final showdown with the evil Mr. Burns in his luxurious mansion.
Splatterhouse - in a dark and stormy night, Rick and his girlfriend Jeniffer take refuge in the creepy West mansion, only to find himself dead and Jeniffer missing! Now, a mysterious sacrificial mask with amazing powers brings him back from the dead and in order to free himself from its curse, he must destroy the evil lurking deep within the mansion and save Jennifer in the process! Features some of the goriest graphics ever seen at its release date, awesome music & sound effects, lots of the typical toys seen in horror flicks (knives, etc.) as well as lots of challenge!
Three Wonders - contains three games from which a player may choose; however, the one I am recommending is "Midnight Wanderers: Quest for the Chariot" - a platform game that sees the player control a hobbit named Lou and his traveling companion, Siva, to run, climb, and shoot at enemies.
Mortal Kombat II - a direct sequel to the 1992 original featuring new fighters (increasing the character roster from 7 to 12) and improved graphics. As with its predecessor, MKII's matches are divided into rounds, with victory awarded to the first player to win two rounds. At the point of defeat, the losing fighter will become dazed and the winner is given the opportunity to execute a 'finishing move'. Some of the standard fighting moves (moves shared by all characters) have now been expanded or enhanced. A crouching punch has been added and the 'roundhouse kick' is more powerful and now knocks opponents across the screen. Also, the difference in hit boxes between high and low kicks is now more marked. Additionally, returning characters gain new special moves and MKII marks the first appearence of multiple Fatalities - as well as additional, non-lethal finishing moves - in the series. In addition to the Fatalities of its predecessor, MKII offers 'Babalities' (turning a defeated opponent into a crying baby), 'Friendships' (a non-malicious interaction, such as dancing or giving a gift to the defeated opponent) and stage-specific Fatalities (the winner uppercutting their opponent into an abyss below, spikes above, or a pool of acid in the background). Each character still shares generic attributes - speed, power, jump height and airtime - albeit with differing hit boxes. The sequel drops the points system of its prequel in favour of a consecutive win tally.
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Alien3: The Gun - a light gun, rail-shooter based on the "Aliens3" movie
Ghost Squad - the Ghost Squad is a Special Forces unit established in strict secrecy by the U.N. to combat terrorism and carry out special highly-classified missions without leaving a trace. As an elite member of the Ghost Squad, players will complete dangerous missions such as eliminating terrorist groups, releasing hostages, deactivating bombs, and even rescuing the US President when terrorists hijack Air Force One!
A.B. Cop - a futuristically-themed racing game from Sega in which the player takes on the role of a law enforcement officer - riding a heavily armoured and heavily armed hover-bike - who must chase down and destroy the perpetrators of an armed robbery before the time limit expires. A.B. Cop is hugely reminiscent of Taito's superb racing legend, "Chase HQ", released two years earlier.Place-holder - ???
1942 - a vertically-scrolling shoot-em-up set in the Pacific theatre during World War II, in which the goal is to reach Tokyo and destroy the entire Japanese air fleet. The player pilots a plane dubbed the "Super Ace" (its appearance is that of a Lockheed P-38 Lightning) and has to shoot down waves of enemy planes while avoiding incoming enemy fire. The 'Super Ace' can perform a limited number of rolls or 'loop-the-loops' to evade enemy planes and shots. During the game, waves of red enemy planes periodically appear. If the player manages to destroy a red wave, a power-up, in the form of a 'POW' symbol, will be dropped and can be picked up. The power-up will award either increased fire-power (doubling the player's guns from two to four), a smart bomb that destroys all on-screen enemy planes the instant it's collected, two wingmen planes that flank the Super Ace and increase fire power, or simply extra points. At the end of each stage the 'Super Ace' lands on an aircraft carrier and bonus points are awarded based on player performance. "1942" differs from other games in that its levels are numbered in reverse order, so the game begins at stage 32 and ends at stage 1.
1945K III - a scrolling shooter arcade video game. It was developed and published by the Korean developer Oriental Software in 2000. In this game, the player controls a fighter and has to shoot as many enemy fighters as possible while the stage is moving forward. There are many bonuses and new weapons available. The gameplay is reminiscent of several 1980s scrolling shooter arcade video games, and is therefore considered a retro game.
Aero Fighter - a superb vertically scrolling shoot-em-up in which the player chooses an ace fighter pilot from a selection of 4 countries (USA, Japan, Sweden and Britain) and takes to the skies to destroy enemy jets, boats, helicopters
Aero Fighter 2 - a vertically-scrolling shooter in the same vein as 1942 and similar games. It supports up to two players and has 8 different aircraft to choose from, each equipped with unique primary and secondary weapons. Power-ups upgrade the look, power, size and shape of the shots. Bombs activate a special power that usually wipes off the enemies on the screen. The game has a total of 10 stages (Japan, Brazil, Atlantic, U.S.A., France, Australia, Himalayas, Mexico, Hawaii and Space), all of them with a boss battle.
Aero Fighter 3 - a vertically-scrolling shooter in the same vein as 1942 and similar games. It supports up to two players and has 10 different aircraft to choose from, each equipped with unique primary and secondary weapons. Power-ups upgrade the look, power, size and shape of the shots. Bombs activate a special power that usually wipes off the enemies on the screen. The game has a total of 8 stages placed on several countries (Japan, Germany, Libya, Egypt, Pacific, U.S.A., England, France, Panama, Thailand, Ukraine, Atlantic and Space), all of them with a boss battle.
After Burner II - another Sega game rendered with their then-ubiquitous 3-D sprite-scaling technology; this time putting the player into the seat of a powerful F14 Tomcat jet fighter. Players must fight their way through 21 colourful, fast-moving stages, shooting down waves of enemy fighters while avoiding the enemy's incoming missiles. The F14 is equipped with a machine gun and a limited number of homing missiles. The gun has infinite ammunition and targeting is achieved by maneuvering the Tomcat so that the targeting cursor situated just in front of the jet is placed over an enemy fighter. After Burner's straightforward shoot-em-up gameplay is simple and repetitive, but the game's incredible visuals ensured its success.
Aqua Jack - a chase-view shoot'em up were you pilot a hovercraft over water and land while dodging bullets and avoiding objects by either going around them or jumping over them.
Galaga - a single-screen shoot-em-up in which the player controls a 'Fighter' spaceship and must defend the home planet against the on-coming hordes of alien invaders called "Galagans". The Fighter can only move left and right along the bottom of the screen. Galagans fly onto the screen in a variety of formations before forming troop lines at the top of the screen. Once all troop lines are formed the Galagans separate and start attacking the player's Fighter in ones, twos and threes. The top-line Boss Galaga need to be shot twice before they are destroyed.
Gunbird - a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up developed and published by Psikyo and released in Japanese arcades in 1994. It has been re-released multiple times, including on the Sega Saturn, PlayStation, and Steam. When originally localized outside Japan by XS Games, Gunbird was retitled Mobile Light Force. The game was followed by Gunbird 2 in 1998 and was included in Gunbird Special Edition.
Raiden II - excellent sequel to the classic original "Raiden". As in the original, players control a fighter jet/spaceship through various levels while shooting down other planes and bombing tanks on the ground.
Astyanax, The - a side-scrolling platform action game set in a fantasy world. The hero sets out to slay the evil wizard terrorizing the land. He is armed with an ax and also has a magic lightning spell that can be powered-up two times. Magic upgrades and health potions can be found in small stone pillars. The player needs to beat monsters in a number of locales, jumping across pits and fighting bosses at the end of stages. Two-palyer co-op is supported, with the second player being palette-swap of Player 1.Place-holder - ???Place-holder - ???Place-holder - ???Many of the video game descriptions and images above come from the "TheGamesDB," "ScreenScraper," or "Moby Games"