Midway Arcade Treasures Review

By Kristan Reed Published 15 April, 2004

At last Kristan gets a justifiable reason to indulge in some rose tinted retro gaming action...

Version tested: Xbox

Old games never die - they just wind up on the permanent life support machine that is the retro gaming collection. Most publishers with a lengthy heritage have peddled them over the years, but normally with limited success thanks to their tight-fisted policy of cobbling together full price packages featuring only two genuine classics and four has-beens (take a bow Namco, Midway, Konami!).

Normally, of course, the very people that these collections attracted had already been feverishly compiling their own multi-thousand retro game via the truly wonderful world of MAME and the dozens of machine specific emulators freely available. Having undoubtedly recognised that it needed to offer something a little extra, Midway has managed to shoehorn together a thoroughly enjoyable '80s revisionist package that somehow unites its own best-ofs with the likes of Atari and Williams.

Over before it has even begun

'Midway Arcade Treasures' Screenshot 1

But however hard companies like Midway try to glorify their past, the central curse of almost every single game on offer here is their resonant design principle of kicking the player off the cabinet as quickly as possible. Back in those heady times when these games were new, and such offerings were years away from being replicated properly via home machines, you'd happily surrender all your pocket money for that precious glimpse into the future of gaming. Decades later, with the palpable thrill of the new long since drained away, we're looking at these money-making relics entirely out of context - and probably unfairly.

On the other hand, Midway has taken the genius step of getting our competitive juices flowing by including the facility to upload your high scores on any of the games over Xbox Live. The thrill of having your name in lights at the top of the chart on your machine of choice was dulled slightly when you realised that as soon as the machine was turned off, your score was wiped. This gaming tragedy need never be an issue again with worldwide players uniting to claim the bragging rights once and for all.

Ultimately, though, whether you'll want to spend hours honing your twitch gaming skills again very much depends on how much affection you had for them in the first place. Some of us weren't even born when half of these games were plying their trade - and much of the game buying public will be in the same situation - so many of these games will probably seem embarrassingly old school for the whippersnappers among you.

You had to be there (No, you really did)

'Midway Arcade Treasures' Screenshot 2

Although it's definitely package that should come with the tagline "you had to be there", at least half of the games here still stand up today in terms of instant pick up and play charm and are worthy of investigation - for the sake of furthering your gaming education if nothing else.

Top of the tree in terms of raw addictive appeal has to be Root Beer Tapper, which simply has you flinging pints of beer to a seemingly never-ending bunch of thirsty punters. Thanks to its high-res (for the time) display, its cute cartoony visuals haven't aged too badly either - and that ditty is as incessant as ever. Not far behind in the manic one-more-go stakes is the psychedelic shooter Robotron 2084. Although hamstrung by peculiarly tiny graphics, the innovative multi-directional fire lends the game a panicked air as you run around clearing screen after screen of marauding hordes.

1985's Gauntlet is undoubtedly one of the more famous titles on show here. Not only was it one of the first co-operative gaming experiences (up to four players at once), it featured incredible speech and allowed players to continue the game for as long as their wallet could stand. Unlike virtually ever other game here, though, it's a pretty pointless experience on your own, especially once the game just arbitrarily turns up the heat (that old coin extraction trick). Even with some mates to play it with, it's lost the ground breaking magic it once had and now just feels like a bit of a repetitive slog. Rose tinted spectacles can't save it, sadly.

Gaming for hardcore perverts

'Midway Arcade Treasures' Screenshot 3

Smash TV is another shooter better played in co-op mode, and is ostensibly a more polished Robotron in its room by room multi-directional shooting mayhem, albeit with insanely unfair odds and the increasingly cynical 'infinite continues' mechanic to lure more coinage from your pocket. Although fun for a while, the ridiculous unfairness soon grates. Side scrolling shooter Defender, meanwhile, perhaps featured the most ill-conceived button-based control system ever in the arcade (awaits flaming from the Defender masses), and although feels much more intuitive on a pad still suffers from one of the most extreme learning curves ever. But some of you liked that. Have we got time for it now? Hmmm, only if we feel like being punished.

Paperboy was probably this author's favourite arcade game of 1985, with its Day-Glo high-res visuals, relentless humour and paper chucking/obstacle avoiding gameplay dynamic and handlebar control system. Take away the novelty factor and reflect on another bloody mindedly hard game that has no continues and it's possibly just too damned frustrating for those not prepared for a rigorous memorise 'em up challenge. Seminal driving duo Spy Hunter and Super Sprint, meanwhile, haven't dated too badly thanks to tight design, delightful handling and visuals that don't try to be too ambitious. The former still charms with its special weapons and land/water dynamic, while the latter remains incredibly good fun in multiplayer all these years later - a semi-serious Micro Machines, basically. The pseudo 3D present in Roadblasters, however, dates it badly, and although initially promising it's evident that its one of those games that tried to impress with graphics.

On the other end of the scale, Williams' titles like Joust 1 and 2, Bubbles, and Sinistar are forced to rely on the game designer's imagination and guile to overcome the hardware limitations. Joust still feels fun, but none can really occupy your time for more than a few minutes at a time these days. More impressive are the out and out original titles such as Marble Madness and Vindicators that really tried to think outside of conventional control devices to deliver a fresh experience. Both are well worth a look and suffer less from the obsession with ending your game as quickly as possible - and feel much better for it.

Try and get this one past the suits

'Midway Arcade Treasures' Screenshot 4

Of the rest, Rampage seems initially intriguing with its three player cooperative King Kong building-bashing novelty, but quickly becomes tiresome; seminal skateboard title 720 has always been a tricky sonofabitch to control with its trackball-based control and is even harder now (but almost worth the effort if you're prepared to put the practise in); while the rubber ring craziness present in Toobin is exactly the kind of off the wall gaming concept you'd never get past publishers these days - and more's the pity.

Typically, Midway has gathered up a few odds and ends (Klax, Splat, Rampart, Stargate, Satan's Hollow) that never really figured in too many UK arcades (to our knowledge) and unsurprisingly aren't really the stars of the show either. Still, with the package retailing for under £20 in most stores, you won't be complaining about a few obscurities. Midway bookends the package with some fairly half-hearted extras, such as the occasional video clip of the developers, or some horribly low res artwork (note to Midway - Namco did this ten times better eight years ago), but there is work to be done to satisfy the true aficionado.

For many, most of the titles on show will be obscure, but if you want to dip your toes into the bewildering waters of the '80s arcade, this is probably the best introduction released to date. If only the likes of Konami, Namco and Nintendo could join forces to produce the ultimate compendium we could start addressing some of the true classics. For now, as a round up of the greats of the US coin-op scene of the 80s, Midway's Arcade Treasures has no equal - and for the price represents an essential purchase for all nostalgists. Not perfect, yet, but it'll do for now.

8 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Kristan.

About Kristan Reed

Kristan is a former editor of Eurogamer, dad, Stone Roses bore and Norwich City supporter who sometimes mutters optimistically about Team Silent getting back together.

Read more articles from Kristan by visiting the Kristan Reed archive page.

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Comments (47) Latest comment 8 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • martyngates #1 8 years ago


    this came out months ago!, slow news week?

  • Razz #2 8 years ago

    Gaundlet was a great game.. not sure if I'd want to play it on an Xbox tho... these classics seem more suited to handheld than anything else. :/

  • Blerk #3 8 years ago

    You hit the nail on the head there, Razzy - I'd kill for a GBA version of this. Really - I'd kill.

  • krudster #4 8 years ago

    I knew the 'this came out ages ago' comment would arrive. The games came out between 14 and 24 years ago! It's not really a time senistive review is it? Besides, I haven't quite finished Hitman Contracts and didn't want to rush out a review before it was ready. Mmmkay?

  • bmoviebob #5 8 years ago

    Why the review now? February is a long time gone. If news is slow why not an update on Arcade treasures 2, which is to include Mortal Kombat etc. Fingers out guys. While im here you seem to be getting slack on a whole lot of reviews of late. Rainbow six for PS2? - R-Type Delta? Sort it out.

  • martyngates #6 8 years ago

    mainly because anyone who wants the game will have bought it or played it by now!

    and i bet more people would be more interested in this than the 2 ngage stories on the front page

  • squaylor #7 8 years ago

    Supersprint is still one of my favourite games of all time, hence me buying this compilation the day it was released. A few years ago I was on holiday in Italy and let out a distinctly un-manly yelp of joy at discovering an original Supersprint arcade machine in the waiting room at Piacenza railway station. Curse that train for being on time!!!

    Gauntlet is pretty good if you get 4 players going Razz, although it does go on a bit. And I agree totally with Paperboy - was it always that hard?

  • krudster #8 8 years ago

    I just really fancied reviewing ok? Is that alright with you lot?

  • bmoviebob #9 8 years ago

    no mention of the shockingly bad control issues either.

  • Sko #10 8 years ago

    No, you smell. Nerrrr.

  • Razz #11 8 years ago

    Paperboy is still rock hard then? Nothing changes.... :/

    Yeh the shoddy controls are what made this game great ;)
    Edited by 1 at 15/04/04 @ 10:35

  • Blerk #12 8 years ago

    Miserable lot - EG's free, y'know. Leave Kristan alone, you big bullies. :-)

  • groovychainsaw #13 8 years ago

    Bit harsh on rampart - so far ive played it more than any of the other games - even though i knew nothing about it - its like a cross between tetris and beachhead, and you can play multiplayer....

  • krudster #14 8 years ago

    Sorry John, I'm just bitter that I was useless at Defender!

  • riz23 #15 8 years ago

    "For those wanting a more relaxed blast, the underrated Moon Patrol handles the side scrolling shooting concept with some style, given the utter saturation of similar games at the time."
    Are you saying Moon Patrol is on the collection? 'cos it aint you kno'. And you really should mention some of the control difficulties, personally I cannot play Spyhunter or 720 on the xbox because of the control implementation, and they were two of my favourites back in the day, bunking off maths lessons and smoking fags. *gets misty eyed*

  • DDevil #16 8 years ago

    Remember when I got the Star Review for reviewing this in Feb?

    I gave it the same score and everything...

  • Nemesis #17 8 years ago

    Gauntlet stole more 10p coins from me than any other game. They did have a cabinet at Leysdown for AGES, which was ace. Nothing like playing it in an arcade with friends. At home, it loses the magic I think.

  • krudster #18 8 years ago

    No Moon Patrol. Correct, the press materials said so, but you're right.

  • bmoviebob #19 8 years ago

    krudster have you actually played the collection??? I am sure if you had you would have noticed the lack of moon patrol.

  • krudster #20 8 years ago

    Of couirse I have, but I assumed having checked the press materials that I'd missed it.

  • sam_spade #21 8 years ago

    You could have done the top games of 2003, instead.

  • keenest #22 8 years ago

    Damn I also wish Moon Patrol had been included in the package. Otherwise Rampart is great multi-player fun. Defender remains the best game for me in this compilation.

  • Dizzy #23 8 years ago

    Robotron == God

  • sickpuppysoftware #24 8 years ago

    Ramparts is the best one here and is still great fun, shame the controller isn't quite up to it.

    720 didn't have a trackball, it had a joystick that you couldn't centralise. You had to sort of rotate it round in a circle.

  • mal #25 8 years ago

    Only had this for a few days now, and I have to say that the games I hadn't played before seem to be the worst of the bunch. I haven't booted up Root Beer Tapper yet though. 720 I remember only being cool because of the 'Skate or Die' sample, and playing it now seems to prove me correct. Joust is still great, though Joust 2 seems to be even more of a waste of space than Defender 2. I just hope they've retained the original control scheme for Defender - the version on the DC had the option just to use the D-pad to do up and down and automatically control turn and thrust, and I just couldn't get used to it.

  • krudster #26 8 years ago

    It's a sub 20 quid compliation of 24 old games, get over it. At less than a quid a game, I can forgive a few control issues on certain games that were never designed for home consoles, and I'm *really sorry* that I've never seen Klax in an arcade. Can some of you just complain about something else other than the fact that I misreported one out of 24 games thanks to midway's press materials and the fact that I wrote it at 6AM? Jebus. We all make mistakes.

  • mingster #27 8 years ago

    Yup 720 had a joystick that rotated not a trackball.
    Due to this its always been unplayable on any emulator i've tried as the control is a hard one to recreate. (joypad doesnt doesn't do the trick either)
    Paperboy had a bicycle handlebar contraption that also doesnt translate well to joypad.
    Unfortunately any of the games that used a proprietry controller really shouldn't be in this collection. BUT the majority of the games are perfectly playable just not all of them unfortunately.
    What i'm wondering is considering you can get mame for the xbox as a download and the same for the PS2 and PC and even dreamcast i wonder if many people will really bother with this collection.
    I bet everyone whos into old arcade games has them already.
    Edited by 1 at 15/04/04 @ 14:38

  • krudster #28 8 years ago

    Oh go on then, just have a rant if it makes you feel better.

  • squaylor #29 8 years ago

    There's no option to save progress is there? I did several levels of Gauntlet and had to turn it off as I couldn't save it. That would add a point to my score, for sure.

  • krudster #30 8 years ago

    Yawn.

  • Feanor #31 8 years ago

    I would of liked to have seen Moon patrol in there.

    Can all the 12 year old lamers please go back to jerking off for real instead of doing it into the Comments section.

  • alcolepone #32 8 years ago

    hope the controls are too bad as i've just ordered the game. It passed me by the first time it came out, so the late review was worth it, hopefully.

    Managed to find it for a £10, so its even better value

  • mal #33 8 years ago

    Uh, I seem to have forgotten to add the positive ending to last moaning post, so:

    ...but all that said, it's still got Defender, Joust and Robotron which are just tremendous, and unlike the last collection I bought on DC, it probably works with an arcade stick. For 20 quid: result.

  • riz23 #34 8 years ago

    Marble Madness actually plays a helluva lot better with an analog stick than it ever did with a trackball, and the sounds of Robotron and Defender are simply Far Out Groovy. Little niggles aside I like owning this and after all the roms I have nicked for MAME, it eases my conscience to cough up 15 quid for this.

  • Lutz #35 8 years ago

    Erm... "Can't remember Username" guy... what's wrong with the controls? I've played all of the games and done remarkably well on them. The only one I'd complain about a litte was Rampart. I've even finished Smash TV.
    Klax wasn't much of a success on the Megadrive either. It was barely a success at all.

  • funk #36 8 years ago

    i never did like paper boy, it was a struggle to complete the first level with a poor score, never did figure out how to consistently get the paper in the hole

    stop whining about the release being old

  • LaundroMat #37 8 years ago

    Widescreen mode: yes

    What is meant with this? Were the screens of the games redesigned?

  • mustardkid #38 8 years ago

    bloody hell Kristan can't you do anything right?????

    what is it with this baying mob constantly dogging your virtual heels?

  • krudster #39 8 years ago

    Nothing's been changed aspect ratio wise. Can anyone else verify whether it has a proper widescreen mode? The vertically arranged screens don't get stretched out, for instance. Not 100% sure on this.
    I'm surprised so many of you had control issues. After years of Mame toil, I found these intelligently arranged and made some games playable that previously were hard to get working properly on a PC. Good call on Marble Madness, for instance, that felt great on the pad.

  • krudster #40 8 years ago

    Andy, this is the deal. You put your words in the public domain, you get shot down by an army of people determined to find fault with every word you write. Opinion's one thing, but heaven help you if you get something factually incorrect like I did, and damn you to hell if you're honest about the error.
    Edited by 1 at 15/04/04 @ 18:04

  • mustardkid #41 8 years ago

    can it really be true kristan? surely you arn't saying that people twist the beauty of the interweb into a thing of pedantry? well i must say im shocked.

  • Razz #42 8 years ago

    I love Krudster we are good friends. I won't have people talk against him.

    /prepares whip

  • krudster #43 8 years ago

    Crack it baby!

  • mal #44 8 years ago

    Razz wrote:
    *not gay

    So I take it I'm the only one that can't control Super Sprint using the d-pad then? Meh.

  • Razz #45 8 years ago

    KA TISHHHHH!!!!

  • Trowel #46 8 years ago

    Klax and Rampart "a few odds and ends"?!?

    Fkin hell man, Klax on the CPC464 ate more hours of my life than I'd like to remember. Hours and hours of "diagonal wave"s, big Xs, and Tengen Ts. Beautiful game, needs a few hours to get your head around. Sadly the conversion's joypad control is less than perfect (I'm GCing it), with a few too many bricks being flipped back up the belt unintentionally.

    And then Rampart.... it's RAMPART man!! Get a couple of mates on it for a few hours and you're talking fun levels approching Bomberman-esque proportions. And the single player mode is racked with underlying strategy: from identifying which classes of ship need to be destroyed first, to positioning your cannons, to chosing your castle, and then the moment when you discover you can destroy your own walls...! Again the control is a little iffy, and as there was a rarer joystick version of Rampart in the arcade it makes you wonder why they opted for another trackball conversion.

    At least the brilliance of Root Beer Tapper was recognised! Kudos your way!

    Gauntlet, Smash TV, Roadblasters and a couple of others are brilliant games in their own right, but infinite credits destroys them; they become a chore. Terrible shame there wasn't at least an option to turn off/on credits or set a limit as with 720 of Rampart.

    Only got this pack a couple of weeks back, but found it on ebay.com for GC for about a tenner (at current exchange rates, plus about £5 postage). Highly recommended.

  • krudster #47 8 years ago

    I guess I'll go back and see what the fuss is about on the Klax score...

    Best thing about the compilation is that there's something for everyone.