Arcade game

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The arcade game Donkey Kong

Arcade game is a name for video games , which since the 1970s in public playhouses in the United States , so-called penny arcades , or in European gambling halls are available for a fee. In the early 1980s, arcade machines were set up in Germany not only in amusement arcades but also in many snack bars, kiosks and supermarket vestibules until this was prohibited by law. At arcade machines , the user can play against inserting money. The game price in Germany was usually one D-Mark, while abroad it was usually lower. Successful games were later often implemented for the PC as well as for various video game consoles.

The first commercial arcade game was Computer Space (1971) by Nutting Associates . The inventor was Nolan Bushnell , who later also founded Atari . At the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s, arcade classics such as Space Invaders, Pac-Man, Donkey Kong and many others, which are known to this day and are popular with new editions, appeared in the heyday of arcade machines. At the end of the 1980s, the arcade boom slowly ebbed due to the increasing use of home computers and video game consoles. Today there are only a few arcade machines in Germany.

Arcade games were the basis for the success of the computer game industry in the early years. The first big success was the game of pong . Most older games can now also be emulated with MAME. In the context of artistic projects ( arcade art ), such as Blinkenlights , Pong was displayed on a house wall.

Typical characteristics of arcade games

The whole point of arcade games is to make money. The average playing time is therefore often relatively short. The gameplay is easy and quick to understand, and any tutorial is very short. The level of difficulty of the game is also adapted to the intention of the machine:

  • The first rounds or levels are often relatively easy to complete successfully. This should give the player the impression that he has mastered the game.
  • In the following rounds, the level of difficulty increases noticeably, beginners already have to accept setbacks and quickly get a " game over ". However, with most arcade games, you can buy another attempt by inserting money again ( Continue ).
  • The re-insertion of money is “rewarded” by some arcade games (invisible) with a briefly reduced level of difficulty. This should give the player the impression that he has gotten better or simply had bad luck on the first try.

In addition, the machine operator can usually set the level of difficulty using one or more DIP switches , so that the games are not equally difficult everywhere.

timeline

Before the arcade "video" games, mechanical and electro-mechanical arcade games , one -armed bandits and pinball machines , as well as games of skill and sports, were particularly popular in arcades .

Early Chronicle

Galaxy Game, 1971, the world's first arcade game
First commercial arcade game: Computer Space , 1971

(Selection)

The golden era of arcade games began around 1978 .

Chronicle 1978–1984

Milestones after the 1984 crash

Sega's Time Traveler

Special machines

WEC Le Mans 24, Konami 1986 (normal machines in the background)
Galaxian 3, a walk-in arcade game
Ballistics Arcade
  • Air Trix (with skateboard to stand on)
  • Alpine Racer (with ski poles)
  • Alpine surfer (with snowboard)
  • Aqua Jet (Jet Ski)
  • Kick It (with real soccer)
  • Neo Geo - Arcade system and game console with identical hardware
  • Painstation - the only system with direct pain feedback
  • Photo Play - Touchscreen machine with annual game updates
  • PlayChoice-10 - Player buys game time and can switch between games
  • Polyplay - the only arcade machine in the GDR
  • Pump It Up ( dance game )
  • Shoot Away - light gun game with a large projection screen
  • Sports Fishing, Get Bass (with fishing rod)
  • Whac-A-Mole - mechanical (“Redemption” game) and electronic version

There are many special forms of vending machines, such as cars, motorcycles, and boats. There are also more and more simulations and sports games.

See also

Web links

Commons : Arcade games  - collection of images, videos and audio files