You Are What You Were. Celebrate Retro Pop Culture At Retroland.
Crazy Climber brought to mind the ancient myths of poor mortals cursed to repeat the same quest over and over again with no end in sight. That's not to say it wasn't fun. In fact, it was addictively so, enough to lure arcade aficionados to spend their hard-earned quarters ascending skyscraper after skyscraper in this endearing (and enduring) game, released by Taito in 1980.
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Williams Electronics made their living with pinball machines but when the time came to break into the blossoming field of video games, they gave the task to Eugene Jarvis, designer and programmer of many groundbreaking and popular game platforms. He came up with Defender in 1980, a horizontal scrolling shooting game that was harder than it looked.
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Pac-Man's creators toiled long and hard to repeat the success of their yellow pride and joy but didn't have much luck until somebody thought that going around a maze might be more fun if you actually got to create the maze yourself. Dig Dug, released by Namco in 1982, had plenty of monsters lurking around corners and one plucky digger determined to vanquish them all. Let's take a look back.
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Even when apes are angry and throwing things at you, they still retain a certain adorable charm which is why the big gorilla on a rampage in Manhattan is actually the tragic hero of 1933's King Kong. Nintendo might have gambled on simian appeal but could not have foreseen the lasting popularity their Donkey Kong character would have for decades to come. The game, released in 1981, would spawn countless sequels, spin-off and imitators - and even launched the career of Donkey Kong's nemesis, Jumpman.
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It was enough to make your toes curl and clutch your quarters tightly in your pocket. In a sea of arcade games featuring bitmap characters and crude backgrounds, Dragon's Lair looked like a full-fledged animated movie. Released in 1983, its innovative gameplay would earn it a rightful place in arcade game history, fondly remembered by anyone who ever shelled out 50 cents to see how the enchanting story of knight versus dragon played out.
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For those who didn't necessarily want to wage their arcade battles in the far reaches of space, there was once a game called Frogger, which allowed us to help a member of the animal kingdom traverse obstacles both natural and man-made, and find his way safely to his preferred habitat. This journey, both daunting and surprisingly addictive, made Konami's Frogger an instant hit among the masses, and one of the most beloved video games to emerge from the 80s.
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All the way back in 1978, millions of arcade aficionados got their first taste of civil defense experience by protecting the planet from those pesky Space Invaders. And like all good arcade games, competition would soon follow. The next year, Namco introduced Galaxian, a similar game with a few extra bells and whistles. Then, in 1981, they followed up with a sequel, one that would go on to become a certified hit in the video game world. Thy name was Galaga.
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Roleplay and dungeons gained much popularity in the 1980s and naturally, arcade games cashed in on the trend. Being one of the first games to accommodate from one to four simultaneous players, Gauntlet featured a sprawling set of mazes through which the characters wandered and slew monsters. The arcade community embraced the game with open arms and filled each machine with a steady supply of quarters.
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Rescuing a damsel in distress is a plot more than a little familiar to video game aficionados over the years. And, who better to pursue a periled princess than a brave knight named Arthur? Such was the premise for Ghosts n’ Goblins, a Medieval adventure that frustrated many an arcade junkie. Fitted in his trusty suit of armor, Arthur battled his way through six levels of bad guys, creepy graphics. and a ticking clock, all to save his love from impending doom.
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Competition was fierce among pinball machine manufacturers in the early 80s, as each tried to outdo their rivals with new features that would set their products apart from the rest. One of the most creative was the use of multi-level playing surfaces, first introduced in 1980, when Williams placed an additional upper level in their breakthrough game, Black Knight. The following year, Gottlieb countered with a lower level of play, viewable through a window in the main playing field in their game, Black Hole. And seeking to one-up themselves, Gottlieb followed up in 1982 with the first 3-surface pinball game, Haunted House, a game still fondly remembered by pinball aficionados.
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