Gaming Target - Xbox: Midway Arcade Treasures

Written by Ryan Genno on August 26, 2003

First Impressions: The next best thing to a time machineЕ

I have a question for you, when was the last time you put coins in a real arcade machine? If you're like most of us then it has been a while. The golden age of the arcades is long gone now and the coin operated gaming industry is almost non-existence in this modern age. You'll be lucky to find any stand up games from the 1980's anywhere. So how we to get are classic gaming fix now? Midway is giving us retro fanatics a chance to play some of their favourite legends on all three of the current home consoles and that includes the Xbox.

This new game is called Midway Arcade Treasures and this collection includes the arcade classics:

720
Blaster
Bubbles
Defender
Defender II
Gauntlet
Joust
Joust 2
Klax
Moon Patrol
Paperboy
Rampage

Rampart
Road Blasters
Robotron: 2084
Root Beer Tapper
Satan's Hollow
Splat!
Spy Hunter
Sinistar
Super Sprint
Smash TV
Toobin
Vindicators

Not a bad line up of games, eh? These titles range from old Williams favourites like Defender and Joust to actual Atari Games titles like Paperboy and Gauntlet. Here is a more in-depth look at some of these video games here:

720 skateboarding
720 is an early Tony Hawk-like game where you compete in various events to earn fame and fortune but be careful of your time limit. I wonder if Midway will gives us analog support with this one I hope. Can you pull off the 720?

Blaster
This is a colourful little shoot em up with over 20 difficult levels plus everything is in 3D as well, something that was very rare in its day. Blaster may surprise you.

Bubbles
In Bubbles you must clean up the sink of dirty scum in this odd game. Sure it sounds stupid but it's a fun, simple game.

Defender and Defender II
Sure, these two shooters don't differ much from one another, but these games are very intense classics where you have to guard humans from an aggressive alien invasion. Defender II has more enemies and new star gate portals.

Gauntlet
ФNow we're talking!Ф Gauntlet may be old but it's still an amazing four-player action/Role Playing Game with different classes and tons of levels. I wonder if Midway will give us unlimited credits because I don't want the game to be too easy like in was on the Playstation.

Joust and Joust 2
Joust is a unique and simple game where you do battle with rival bird riders in the dark ages. The real fun starts when a friend joins in because they can either help take out the others or your buddy can just get in your face. Joust 2 is a rare 1986 sequel with better graphics and sounds.

Klax
Atari's famous puzzle game is another nice edition to MAT. Line up coloured tiles in many different ways to score points but space is limited and so is time. This game is filled with many technique and even secret warps but don't expect an easy game.

Moon Patrol
One of my all time favourites! MP is an impressive yet quite challenging action/shooter game where you shoot down aliens on the moon. The game is filled with some unique 3D graphics, background music, and stellar game play that is still good even by today's standards. Moon Patrol excels in so many areas that it's sure to please. I can wait to get my high scores on Xbox Live for this one.

Paperboy
Sure, being a real Paperboy may be a pain in the neck but in this game there are no rules because you can throw papers at anyone or anything. The controls are the only thing that could hold back this awesome title.

Root Beer Tapper
Root Beer Tapper was originally a Beer game that was popular in the bars but it got a new name for the different markets. Tapper is a very tough game where you have to serve your thirsty customers before things get out of hand.

Satan's Hollow
I never got the chance to play this game before and I think this is the first time I seen it in a home console so we have an exclusive here! I'm curious to see what this game is all about my self.

Sinistar
ФBE-WARE, I LIVE!Ф Sinistar kind of plays like a juiced up Asteroids but here you have to watch out for the giant destroyer the evil Sinistar that can eat you alive. This is a wild shooter originally from the early eighties.

Smash TV
Not only was Smash TV a popular arcade shooter but it was also a hit on the Super Nintendo. Smash TV plays a lot like the insane Robotron 2084 but this game takes place in a TV game show where the contestant fight for survival and big prizes.

Splat!
Never heard of it? Be thankful! This is an overly difficult food fighting with some ugly game play. If this is going to be arcade perfect then you're in a horrible game.

Toobin
Atari; they'll make a game out of anything, won't they? Simply travel down the lake while avoiding the many hazards. That's it really.

If you don't remember any of these games from the arcades then maybe you've seen them before in previous Midway compilations for several other game systems like the Sony Playstation. Unlike those old wimpy Playstation compilations, however you now get over 20 legendary video games in one exciting package instead of just 5 or 7 titles.

Midway isn't stopping there because the producers are promising some interesting developer bios, galleries, and exclusive interviews so you learn some cool video game history. If you also have the Xbox Live service then you can post your top scores online to spark up some competition. I'll love to see how this is done but if it works then it could a great selling piece for this game. This is something that the earlier Namco Museum was missing when it came to the Xbox.