Top 150 Arcade Games Results Thread

[Gopher Mod]

The last one is Time Pilot.

[Al Wilson Lives: Thread Killer]

Jun 12, 2008 17:19:29 GMT -5 Seth Drakin of Monster Crap said:

* Defeat Death Adder

I've often considered naming my children Ax Battler and Gilius Thunderhead.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

80. Golden Axe

Golden Axe is a side-scrolling arcade hack and slash game released in 1989 by Sega for the System 16-B arcade hardware. It is the first game in the series.

Makoto Uchida was the primary developer of the game and also was responsible for the creation of Altered Beast, a similar game. Several translations of the game were created, most notably for the Mega Drive/Genesis and Sega Master System.

The kanji that appear in the title screen read as "Senpu" meaning "Battle Axe", however both the game and series are known as "Golden Axe", even in Japan.

The game takes place in the fictional land of Yuria, a Conan the Barbarian style fantasy world. An evil entity known as Death Adder has captured the King and his daughter, and holds them captive in their castle. He also finds the Golden Axe, the magical emblem of Yuria, and threatens to destroy both the axe and the royal family unless the people of Yuria accept him as their ruler.

The player controls one of three warriors. The first is a battle axe-wielding dwarf, Gilius Thunderhead, from the mines of Wolud, whose twin brother was killed by the soldiers of Death Adder. Another is a male barbarian, Ax Battler, wielding a two handed broadsword looking for revenge for the murder of his mother. The last is a long-sword wielding Tyris Flare, an amazon, whose parents were both killed by Death Adder.

Much of the game consists of the character's journey to the castle. In one of the early stages, the player saves the inhabitants of the ransacked Turtle Village, which turns out to situated on the shell of a giant turtle. The turtle takes the characters across the sea, and they then fly to the castle itself on the back of a giant eagle. Once at the castle the player fights Death Adder, who is wielding the Golden Axe. At the end of the battle Death Adder is knocked down and killed by his own weapon, and the King and his daughter are freed from their captivity.

Progress is made through the game by fighting through Death Adder's henchmen, including men armed with clubs and maces, skeleton warriors, and knights. Aiding the characters in their quest is their ability to cast spells that hurt all enemies on the screen. The force of this magic depends on the number of "bars" of magic power currently available. The bars are filled by collecting blue 'magic potions' found throughout the game. The male warrior Ax, limited to 4 bars, is able to cast Earth spells. The dwarf Gilius, limited to 3 bars, casts lightning spells and the female warrior Tyris can cast devastating fire magic, but her most powerful spell costs 6 bars.

Various steeds are found in the game, which are known as bizarrians. These can be ridden when the enemy rider is knocked off, or if one is found dormant. The least powerful steed is known as a 'Chicken-Leg', which can be used to knock down enemies with a swipe of its tail. The more powerful dragon, which can either shoot fireballs or breath fire, is found later in the game.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

79. Dungeons And Dragons: Shadows Over Mystara

Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara, also simplified to Shadow of Mystara or known as Dungeons & Dragons 2, was developed and published by Capcom as an arcade game, as a sequel to Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom in 1996. Considered the "latest and greatest" in the beat-'em-up game genre by the Gaming Age Review and "one of the finest of its genre" by Jon Thompson, All Games Guide.

The game was also released on the Sega Saturn, packaged with Tower of Doom, under the title Dungeons & Dragons Collection, although the Saturn version limited the gameplay to only 2 players.

Combining the side scrolling gameplay of a beat 'em up with some aspects found in a computer RPG, Shadow over Mystara has many game mechanics not commonly found in arcade games. While things as simple as item collection, finding and equipping new gear and earning new spells as you gain experience is an old idea in console games, it is a rare find at the arcades. Players can wield a large variety of weapons and armor, although this selection is limited by the character you choose (thieves and magic-users, for example, can not use shields). There is also a huge assortment of magical and hidden items in the game, many of which are completely unknown to exist to the typical arcade gamer. This, along with the addition of multiple endings and forking paths, gives the game an extreme amount of re-playability and has led to its cult following.

The game is set in the Mystara campaign setting.

After defeating the Arch Lich Deimos, the heroes continued on their journey through the Broken Lands of Glantri after realising that Deimos is only part of a greater evil plan. Deimos was in fact being used by a mysterious sorceress named Synn. Synn, who appears to be a young woman but commands incredibly powerful magical abilities, was scheming to control the Kingdom of Glantri and conquer the humanoids of the Republic of Darokin. The original plan was having Deimos controlling the Republic of Darokin and Synn controlling the Kingdom of Glantri, and then through Deimos Synn can indirectly control Darokin. But now that Deimos has been defeated, Synn vowed to punish the land that she desired for.

There are four buttons: Attack, Jump, Select and Use. Pressing Select brings up a small inventory ring around the character allowing the player to choose what item is set in the Use slot. Pressing the Use button will activate what ever item is currently set in this Use slot. The Cleric, Elf and Magic-User also have two extra rings for their spells, with the Jump button used to switch from ring to ring.

Shadow over Mystara also introduced a selection of special moves which are executed by moving the joystick and tapping the buttons in certain combinations, in a way similar to the Street Fighter series. The characters (except for the Magic-User) have a Dashing Attack as well as a Rising Attack which can be used to combo monsters or even juggle them in the air. Most characters (again, with the exception of the Magic-User and also Cleric, who has turning undead) also have a Megacrush, a move common to nearly all of Capcom side-scrollers, which damages all enemies standing close enough to the character but in turn also damaging the player themselves.

Treasure on the ground is picked up by standing near it and pressing the Attack button. Due to this feature, characters that stand too close to loot while fighting will instead bend down and retrieve the nearby item. It was very difficult to fight monsters in room full of treasure in the original Tower of Doom, and Capcom addressed these complaints with the addition of Sliding. The maneuver allows players to automatically pick up any treasure and equipment a hero slides over, quickly clearing the area of items.

While the game uses the same kick harness as the first Dungeons & Dragons arcade game, the Select and Use buttons are reversed.

In between many stages the players find themselves inside small town stores where they can restock on common items such as arrows, burning oils, throwing daggers and healing potions. Players can sell items for gold and also trade special items found during boss battles with shopkeepers (by clicking on the shopkeepers head) to earn unique magical items.

For example, during the fight with a large Displacer Beast you can pick up a chunk of his skin. Turning this in to a shopkeeper gets you the Displacer Cloak, an item that sits in the players armor slot and makes all non-magical projectiles pass right through him.

The players can also come across a special gnome village where the townfolk beg to be saved from a Chimera. The gnomes, unlike traditional Dungeons & Dragons gnomes, are very minuscule, standing about a foot tall. If the players choose to fight the beast and are successful, they are given the option to purchase a shrinking potion to visit the villagers (although, due to a strange error in the program, the potion actually costs no gold.)

Players, as they fight their way through each level, will come across a huge assortment of treasure. Treasure is found in chests, stolen from monsters, dropped from dead enemies and bosses, or even found simply lying on the ground. Most treasure is gold and silver, which is used to buy simple items in shops (see below), or precious gems, which add to a heroes experience points. Other treasure include weapons and equipment.

Every character starts with their armor (the second slot) already filled, specific to their character, and remains unchanged the entire game. The character's helmet (the first slot) and shield (the fifth slot) are the other two items that lend to a character's defensive ability. Most characters also begin with a shield, except the Magic-User and Thief, who cannot use shields.

While magical items in traditional Dungeons & Dragons rules are practically invulnerable or tough, the magical items in Shadow over Mystara are very fragile. Magical boots (slot three), gauntlets (slot four), and rings (slot six) are all destroyed after the player is damaged a few times.

The eighth slot is used for miscellaneous items such as the "Skin of the Displacer Beast" or the "Eye of the Beholder". Many bosses drop rare items such as these and they either grant special abilities or can be traded in for special magical equipment.

There are also many rare and unique hidden items. The game includes two cursed swords, one which the Cleric must attempt to pick up (since he cannot actually pick up a bladed weapon) 8 times before it will become the Holy Avenger and a second which must be swung over 30 times, with each swing randomly causing damage to the sword holder, before it is uncursed and transformed into the Sword of Legends.

Hidden near the end of the game is a treasure chest, that if the Magic-User opens it, contains the Staff of Wizardry. If the Magic-User wields the staff during the last boss Synn and there are at least 3 players with a combined total of over 1 million experience points, the Staff will glow and the team will be able to use Final Strike. This secret attack requires that all players press all of their buttons (except the inventory button) at the same time which causes the Magic-User to leap to the center of the screen, screaming out the words "Final strike!" and snapping the Staff in half, over his knee, causing all four elementals and the Djinni to be summoned in succession. This does a considerable amount of damage to Synn and leaves all of the players at 1 hit point.

After the characters destroy the final boss, each member of the group is treated to a short epilogue detailing his or her future exploits. Endings are titled with a simple code: the first letter of the character class followed by the number of the ending. Therefore the Cleric's second ending is called "C-2", the Fighter's best ending is named "F-1", and so on. There are four separate endings per character class and the hero earns an ending based on two facts: total Experience Points earned and rank in the group based on those points.

For example, if two characters, a Fighter and a Magic User, both had the enough experience points to earn their best endings, the one who earned more would win their first ending and the other character would see his second. Or, if a Thief has the second highest amount of experience points in the group but still doesn't end up having enough points to see ending T-2, she would be given ending T-3. The amount of experience needed to earn each ending varies depending on the difficulty that the machine is set at. The Dwarf endings D-2 and D-3 are erroneously identical.

In addition to the original four characters found in Tower of Doom, the Cleric, Dwarf, Elf and Fighter, Shadow of Mystara adds a Thief and a Magic-User to the selection. Furthermore, with the inclusion of two separate version of each character's sprite set, the game allows up to two players to select the same character (in Tower of Doom each of the characters could only be selected once), effectively giving the game twelve "different" characters to choose from. The two Clerics and two Magic Users also have subtle differences within their spell books.

Players, upon completion of their first stage, are prompted to enter a character name. Unlike most arcade games which only allow a person to enter 3 letters, Shadow over Mystara has space for six. For the unimaginative, the game provides a default name for each of the characters. The default name is also automatically used if the player tries to submit a blank name or use vulgarity.

* Cleric
The Cleric's main role is to be the party's healer and buffer. He also has the ability to turn undead and can cast from a large library of Clerical spells including Continual Light, Bless and Cure Serious Wounds. In line with classic Dungeons & Dragons rules he cannot wield any weapon that is bladed. However, he gains new special attacks when wielding the morningstar. The two Clerics have subtle differences within their spell books.

* Dwarf
More hardy than even the Fighter, the Dwarf has the most hit points in the game, as well as being able to deal the most physical damage in a short amount of time. The Dwarf is a difficult character to use as his strengths lie in his special attacks rather than his normal attacks; however, once mastered he is a dervish of destruction. He also has the ability to bash opened treasure chests to reveal extra gold and treasure.

* Elf
The Elf is a fighter-mage, combining the offense of a fighter with the spells of a magic-user. Although she excels at neither, she is a well-rounded character who's main weakness is her low constitution. The Elf has an unlimited quantity of arrows in her inventory and has the ability to fire them in rapid succession. Much like the Dwarf, she reaches her maximum level fairly early in the game, which gives her an early advantage but just as well halts her progression abruptly.

* Fighter
The Fighter is a melee character with an excellent moveset and high endurance, making him suitable for beginners and experts alike. He can wield nearly every weapon in the game, including the two-handed sword, and is the only character with the ability to dual-wield with a short sword in his offhand. The Sword of Legends is named after the highest ranking Fighter in the high scores.

* Magic-User
The Magic-User is a master of devastating spells but is physically the weakest character in the game. He is quick to die when played by novices due to his low constitution and relatively weak melee abilities. The Magic-User has a useful teleportation move which allows him to dodge all physical attacks, along with a spell that grants him temporary invulnerability. He also can cause critical hits with his poisonous dagger to inflict severe damage. Like the two Clerics, the two Magic-Users have a slightly varied spell selection. The Magic-User is a difficult, but rewarding, character to use that requires previous knowledge of the game and effective management of his spells. His offensive spells are greatly enhanced by the Staff of Wizardry arguably making him the most powerful character in the game.

* Thief
The Thief is a dexterous character, with many unique skills, that can double jump, wall jump, back flip, and leap across the screen. She has the abilities to pick locks, detect traps, pickpocket enemies, and even backstab enemies for severe damage. She also has an unlimited supply of rocks to sling with and utilizes flasks of burning oil in some of her special attacks. The Thief is a powerful melee character whose default weapon deals the most damage in the game. However, she suffers defensively due to her low constitution and lack of a shield.

The game offers a small selection of arcane magic, available for the Magic-User and Elf, and Divine magic, available to the Cleric. Instead of an MP system, characters use D&D's Vancian magic system where a certain amount of each spell ready to cast. Extra uses of the spells can be picked up off the ground, represented graphically as scrolls of paper, or occasionally recharged after certain boss fights.

When a spell is cast the entire game is momentarily paused during which the spell effect is played out. Two spells can be controlled during this time; Lightning Bolt can be aimed up and down and Wall of Fire can be spun in a circle if the joystick is rotated in that fashion.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

78. Marvel Super Heroes

Marvel Super Heroes is a fighting game developed by Capcom. Originally released in the arcade in 1995 on the CPS-2 arcade system, it was later ported to the Sega Saturn and PlayStation. It features many superheroes and supervillains from the Marvel Comics line, including Spider-Man, Doctor Doom, and the Hulk.

The game is loosely based on the Infinity Gauntlet storyline, with the heroes and villains battling each other for the Infinity Gems. The final boss is Thanos, who steals whatever Gems the player had collected (at that point, all but the sixth gem, Mind) and uses them against the player, but with each gem having a strange, new effect when used by Thanos.

The game played similar to a previous fighting game, X-Men: Children of the Atom, but with a more simplified use of the super meter, and the addition of the Infinity Gems. Each Gem could be activated in battle, giving the user a different power for a few seconds. In addition, each character had a Gem that they had a special affinity for, and would get additional abilities whenever they activated it.

Heroes are:
* Captain America uses his shield for most of his attacks. His stage is New York harbor with the Statue of Liberty being reconstructed in the background.
* The Incredible Hulk (Based on the "Professor" persona) is a slow, but powerful character. As expected, his attacks involve the use of gamma energy and strength. His stage is a desolate carnival.
* Iron Man uses energy attacks that include beams and blasts as well as explosives. He can also fly. His stage is the headquarters of his alter ego's company, Stark Industries.
* Psylocke uses ninjutsu and telepathy ("psi-flash" projectiles, telepathic illusions, and psychic blade attacks) like her incarnation in the previous game. Her stage in this game is the top of a moving train in Tokyo.
* Spider-Man's attacks are based on his web abilities as well as his great amount of agility. His stage is on a scaffold that is going up and across the Daily Bugle building.
* Wolverine also has a lot of agility. Like in X-Men: Children of the Atom, he has moves related to his powerful brawling and clawing skills. Wolverine's stage is a wooden bridge somewhere in Canada. The bridge is breakable and will float on the raging river below, going down until reaching a waterfall which the loser of the bout will fall into.

Villians are:
* Blackheart is tall and somewhat slow, but he has powerful dark magic and demon-summoning attacks. His stage is hell.
* Juggernaut, unlike his previous incarnation, is faster in this game but has lost much of his strength and invulnerability. However, he is still slower than the other characters, he usually ignores the first hit of any combo, and his attacks can still devastate the opponent. Like in X-Men: Children of the Atom, Juggernaut can still pick up objects from the ground that he can use against enemies. His stage is an American port.
* Magneto is also much weaker in this incarnation than in X-Men: Children of the Atom. A number of his attacks that he had when he was a boss have been taken away. However, like Juggernaut, Magneto is still very powerful. He has a great amount of agility, and his attacks are mainly magnetic and energy-based. He can also fly. Magneto's stage is Asteroid M as it approaches the Sun.
* Shuma-Gorath mainly uses magic attacks as well as attacks that take advantage of his unique shape. He can also absorb life energy from another character with one of his attacks. Shuma-Gorath's stage is his own domain, the chaos dimension. Shuma-Gorath's stage also has the distinction of having no walls once the small stage barrier is broken, preventing corner traps.

Bosses are:
* Doctor Doom takes great advantage of his armor's abilities and uses magical attacks as well. His armor grants him the ability to do beam and energy attacks. Doom also has the ability to fly with his jetpacks. With these vast amount of abilities, Dr. Doom is arguably as powerful as Thanos, if not more. His stage is a submarine of his that starts out at the bottom of the sea and makes its way to the surface.
* Thanos has a great number of attacks, mostly centered around the gems. While he can use his titanic strength to do normal attacks against opponents, he can use the gems to devastate them. Thanos can perform a supermove for each of the six gems. He also has great agility, which is unusual given his size. However, Thanos is not as powerful as Magneto in the previous game. He can at best be considered on par with Dr. Doom. Thanos's stage is his shrine to Death.

In order to win a gem from the opponent, a player must hit him/her with several combos in succession.
* Power
Gives the character increased attack strength. Special users are Spider-Man (creates a duplicate on the opposite side of the opponent), Captain America (alters his special attacks into attacks that would be super-attacks in later games in the series), Wolverine (causes trails to follow him and multiply his hits), and Psylocke (creates a duplicate in front and behind her. The duplicates can deal damage but are invulnerable).
* Time
Speeds up the character's movements. Special users are Hulk (allows him to rapid-fire his strongest attacks) and Shuma-Gorath (normal attacks turn opponents into stone).
* Space
Gives the character increased defense. Special users are Juggernaut (makes him immune to all attacks, similar to how he was in X-Men: Children of the Atom) and Magneto (gives him his magnetic shield, making him immune to all attacks, again similar to his boss version's move in X-Men: Children of the Atom).
* Reality
Causes elemental attacks such as flames, icicles, and lightning bolts to accompany the character's regular attacks. Special user is Blackheart (turns invisible, in addition to the gem's normal effects).
* Soul
Causes the character to regenerate health. Special user is Iron Man (adds extra electric damage to his normal attacks)
* Mind
Causes the character to regenerate their super attack gauge. In single-player gameplay, you will not be able to use it until the final battle, as Thanos alone holds this gem. To obtain it, you will have to beat it (and the other five) out of him with Super Combos.

Thanos super-attacks are named after each gem he uses for the attack.
* Power
Creates a miniature sun
* Time
Slows his opponent to half-speed
* Space
Opens up a rift in space and drops asteroid fragments on the opponent
* Reality
Creates two stone walls that crush the opponent between them
* Soul
Shoots an energy pulse that absorbs the opponent's energy into his own life bar
* Mind
Causes the opponent's controls to be reversed for a short period of time.

In reality, Thanos doesn't have to have the gem to use the corresponding super-attack, but his attacks are still named for them, and the CPU won't use the attack without the corresponding gem, though a player-controlled Thanos can.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

77. Samurai Shodown

Samurai Shodown, known as Samurai Spirits in Japan, is the first game in SNK's popular series of fighting games.

The official story, as given by SNK, is as follows:

"Plagues of unknown origin, strange phenomena, repeated outbreaks of war: these were enough to cause panic and plunge people into despair. But one smiled as he surveyed the unfolding chaos rending the world asunder. For this 'man,' once slain by the forces of the Tokugawa Shogunate, hate for the Shogunate is all he possesses along with newly acquired dark powers to bring it down. This 'man,' Shiro Tokisada Amakusa, unleashes his unworldly forces and spreads his false creed in an attempt to lead the world to ruin. But in the midst of such calamities, there were still warriors who put their beliefs to the test. These warriors spurred by different motives and beliefs converge as if drawn together, battle, and make their way to the source of the chaos."

The game is set in the late 18th century and all the characters wield weapons. The game uses comparatively authentic music from the time period, rife with sounds of traditional Japanese instruments, such as the shakuhachi and shamisen, and a refined version of the camera zoom first found in Art of Fighting. True to its use of bladed weapons, the game also included copious amounts of blood.

The game quickly became renowned for its fast pace, focused more on quick, powerful strikes than the combos. As to emphasize the distinction of this gameplay system, slow motion was added to intensify damage dealt from hard hits. Also during a match, a referee held flags representing each player (player 1 was white; player 2 red). When a player landed a successful hit, the referee would lift the corresponding flag, letting everyone watching know who dealt the blow. To lessen the repetition of fights, a delivery man running in the background threw items such as chicken (that healed) or bombs, which could significantly change the outcome of a play.

The cast of characters, like many other fighting games of its time, spanned from fighters across the globe, allowing a wide range of weaponry open for the players' enjoyment. Playable characters include:
* Haohmaru - the main hero; a ronin who travels to sharpen his swordsmanship and his sense of bushido
* Nakoruru - an Ainu miko who fights to protect Mother Nature
* Tachibana Ukyo - an ailing swordsman who searches for the perfect flower for his loved one, Kei
* Wan-fu - a power general from the Qing dynasty seeking to recruit powerful warriors for the unification of China
* Tam Tam - renowned hero from the fictional city Greenhell; he fights to retrieve the sacred artifact, the Palenke Stone
* Charlotte Christine Colde - a noblewoman fencer from Versailles who fights to save her country from Amakusa
* Galford D. Weiler - American surfer turned ninja who fights in the name of justice.
* Senryo Kyoshiro - famed kabuki performer who wishes to strengthen his dances through swordplay
* Earthquake - American ninja flunkie turned bandit, he wants to steal all the world's treasure
* Hattori Hanzo - ninja serving Ieyasu Tokugawa. In this fictional account, he fights to save his son, Shinzo.
* Yagyu Jubei - similar to other fictional accounts, he is a ronin hired by the Shogonate to execute a demon.
* Genan Shiranui - an eccentric member of the Shiranui clan, he strives to make himself more evil
* Amakusa Shiro Tokisada - last boss and villain of the game; in this fictional account, he is resurrected years after his death by the demon, Ambrosia. Due to a pact made with the demon, he wants to revive Ambrosia thus destroying the world.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

76. Time Pilot

Time Pilot is a 1982 arcade game by Konami and distributed in the US by Centuri, designed by Yoshiki Okamoto. It is a flying themed game debuting in the Golden Age of Arcade Games.

The player assumes the role of a pilot of a futuristic fighter jet, trying to rescue fellow pilots trapped in different time eras. The player must fight off hordes of enemy craft and defeat the mother ship (or "boss") present in every level. The background moves in the opposite direction to the player's plane, rather than the other way around; the player's plane always remains in the center.

This game has the player travel through five time periods, rescuing stranded fellow pilots. The player must fight off droves of enemy craft while picking up parachuting friendly pilots. Once 56 enemy craft are defeated, the player must defeat the mothership for the time period. Once she is destroyed, any remaining enemy craft are also eliminated and the player progresses to the next level. All the levels have a blue sky and clouds as the background except the last level, which has space and asteroids instead. The specific eras visited, the common enemies and the motherships are:
* 1910: biplanes and a blimp
* 1940: WWII monoplanes and a B-25
* 1970: helicopters and a large, blue CH-47
* 1982 (Konami version)/1983 (Centuri version): jets and a B-52
* 2001: UFOs

The mothership is destroyed with seven direct hits. Once all the eras have been visited, the levels start over again but are harder and faster. The Gameboy Advance version of Time Pilot in Konami Arcade Classics includes a hidden sixth era, 1,000,000BC, where the player must destroy vicious pterodactyls in order to return to the early 20th century.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

Countdown Update:

150. Arch Rivals
149. Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator
148. Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike
147. Super Off Road
146. Primal Rage
145. Moon Patrol
144. Mortal Kombat 4
143. Submarine
142. Big Buck Hunter
141. Toki
140. Vs. Baseball
139. San Francisco Rush
138. Sunset Riders
137. NBA Jam
136. Golden Tee Golf
135. WWF Wrestlemania
134. Hogan's Alley
133. CarnEvil
132. Kung Fu Master
131. Berzerk
130. Tekken 5
129. Puzzle Bobble aka Bust A Move
128. Time Traveler
127. 3 Count Bout
126. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
125. Mr. Do!
124. Crisis Zone
123. Captain America and The Avengers
122. Joust
121. Track & Field
120. P.O.W.: Prisoners Of War
119. Area 51
118. Virtua Cop 3
117. Dig Dug
116. Gauntlet
115. King of the Monsters
114. ESP Ra.De.
113. 1942
112. Mercs
111. Street Fighter III: The New Generation
110. Out Run
109. Mappy
108. The Real Ghostbusters
107. Street Fighter Alpha 3
106. Saturday Night Slam Masters
105. Virtua Fighter
104. Elevator Action
103. Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000
102. World Heroes
101. 10-Yard Fight
100. Cruis'n Exotica
99. Tetris
98. Frogger
97. Mat Mania
96. Cruis'n World
95. Defender
94. Arm Champs II
93. Centipede
92. Yie Ar Kung Fu
91. Burgertime
90. Cabal
89. Hang-On
88. Ninja Gaiden
87. Crazy Climber
86. The House Of The Dead III
85. Arkanoid
84. Race Drivin
83. Tron
82. Revolution X
81. Mortal Kombat 3
80. Golden Axe
79. Dungeons And Dragons: Shadows Over Mystara
78. Marvel Super Hereos
77. Samurai Shodown
76. Time Pilot

That is all for today. Join me tomorrow as we find out who made the Top 75.

Here are the clues to the next five games.

* Challenge The Mega Bucks

* Defeat Deimos

* Deliver Newspapers

* Destroy The Death Star

* Play As A P-38 Lightening Or A Mosquito MK IV

[Al Wilson Lives: Thread Killer]

Sounds like Superstars and Paperboy are on deck

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

75. WWF Superstars

WWF Superstars is an arcade game manufactured by Technos and released in 1989. It is the first WWF arcade game to be released. A series of unrelated games with the same title were released by LJN for the original Game Boy. Technos followed the game with the release of WWF WrestleFest in 1991.

The game features some of the signature moves and trademark mannerisms of the wrestlers in the game. There are also cut scenes featuring Ted DiBiase, André the Giant and Virgil. Mean Gene Okerlund and Miss Elizabeth make appearances as well. Before the first match, the player's chosen team enters the arena via the "ring cart" seen in Wrestlemania III and Wrestlemania VI.

The game features a basic grappling and attack system. From a grapple, a player can either toss the opponent, throw them into the ropes, or go into a headlock from which two character-specific grapple moves can be performed. Each wrestler also possesses standing strikes, running attacks, running counter attacks, ground attacks, and moves from the top turnbuckle. Brawling outside of the ring and usage of weapons is also allowed in each match. A referee is present in the ring, but cannot be attacked or otherwise affected by the wrestlers.

Players select two wrestlers to form a tag team. The playable wrestlers are Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior, Big Boss Man, Randy Savage, Honky Tonk Man, and "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan. Up to two players can play at once. The players take their team through a series of matches with other tag teams in New York City and then Tokyo. After three matches are won, players get to challenge the Mega Bucks ("The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase and André the Giant). The Mega Bucks are not selectable characters. However, there are cheats for MAME that allow them to be used (together or separately), the drawback being that if DiBiase or André get a submission victory, the game will think that the player lost. Also, there can sometimes be graphical errors which will make the in-ring opponent disappear.

If the player wins the title match, a newspaper headline heralding the players' tag team as champions is shown. The player is then taken through another series of three matches (one of which will feature DiBiase) in the other city and a final match against DiBiase and André before the game ends.

All playable characters move and respond at different speeds. Randy Savage and Honky Tonk Man have the fastest movement speed and reflexes, while Big Boss Man and Hacksaw Jim Duggan move at the slowest rate. The player does need to take this into account when attempting to pin the computer-controlled opponent, as a slower partner may not keep the other CPU player from interfering with the pin if he cannot traverse the distance from the ring apron in time to intercept them.

Some characters have two attires. Randy Savage alternates green and pink trunks, Ultimate Warrior switches between green/white and pink/white attire, Honky Tonk Man can appear in either red or blue tights, and Hacksaw Jim Duggan wears blue or black trunks.

CPU-controlled characters can perform a taunt (e.g. Hacksaw's "thumbs up" gesture) after downing the player's character during the match.

Ted DiBiase and André the Giant have the only submission holds in the game: The Million Dollar Dream sleeperhold and the Canadian Backbreaker, respectively. Both moves will eat up five life squares unless the player's partner can rescue him from the hold.

Bodyslams against André fail most of the time, due to his colossal weight. However, if André is more that 50% worn and the player's character is at 75% life or higher, the player can successfully bodyslam him if the button is hit fast enough. Besides an Irish Whip into the ropes and, if conditions are right, a bodyslam, most moves that require grabbing or grappling automatically fail against André (Big Boss Man's headbutt and Honky Tonk Man's headlock & punch are two exceptions to this rule). Striking attacks (punches, kicks, dropkicks, clotheslines, knee shots, elbow/leg drops, stomps) work, as well as back body drops.

If DiBiase is hit in rapid succession with punishing moves, he will "beg off", putting up his hands and shaking his head, imploring for mercy. This gives the player an opportunity for a free attack.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

74. Paperboy

Paperboy is a 1984 arcade game by Atari Games. The players take the role of a paperboy who delivers newspapers along a suburban street on his bicycle. This game was innovative for its theme and novel controls.

The player controls a paperboy on a bicycle delivering newspapers along a suburban street which is displayed in a cabinet perspective view. The player attempts to deliver a week of daily newspapers to subscribing customers, attempts to vandalize non-subscriber's homes and must avoid hazards along the street. Subscribers are lost by missing a delivery or damaging the subscriber's house, and can be recovered after a perfect day's delivery.

The game begins with a choice of difficulty levels: Easy Street (easy), Middle Road (medium) and Hard Way (hard). The object of the game is to perfectly deliver papers to subscribers for an entire week and avoid crashing (which counts as one of the player's lives) before the week ends. The game lasts for seven in-game days, Monday through Sunday.

Controlling the paperboy with the handlebar controls, the player attempts to deliver newspapers to subscribers. Each day begins by showing an overview of the street indicating subscribers and non-subscribers. Subscribers and non-subscribers' homes are also easy to discern in the level itself.

The paperboy begins his route at the start of the street (bottom of the screen) and progresses towards the end. The player can control the paperboy's speed: faster delivery earns a higher score. But the paperboy is in constant movement and cannot stop moving forward until the level (day of the week) has ended. Should he slow down or stop for more than a few seconds, bees will appear.

The primary objectives of the game are to keep as many subscribers as possible and to stay alive. Secondary objectives include vandalizing non-subscribers' homes and hitting nuisances with newspapers.

Keeping subscribers is fairly straightforward: the player must deliver a paper to them. While the player may deliver more than one paper to each customer, they have to avoid accidentally damaging their homes, such as by throwing a paper through a closed window. Delivering a newspaper directly into the customer's newspaper box (or mailbox, as the voiceover calls it) earns bonus points. Accidentally damaging a customer's home or failing to deliver a paper causes the customer to cancel his subscription and may cause him to set traps for the paperboy the next day. In more advanced rounds, the homeowner may immediately run after the Paperboy after the house was vandalized.

The player must stay alive by avoiding obstacles that appear along the street. Some obstacles include everyday nuisances such as bees, fire hydrants, storm drains, break dancers, cars, skateboarders, drunks, and kids playing with radio controlled toys and even rather bizarre foes such as a tornado, oversized house cats, and even the Grim Reaper himself. The player must also cross street intersections successfully (which gets harder each day). Some obstacles can earn the player bonus points. For example, the breakdancer and some men brawling in the street can be "smacked" with a newspaper for extra points. Hitting any of the obstacles with the bike results in the loss of a life.

Along the way, the paperboy can pick up extra bundles of papers since he can carry only a limited number. These are usually located in difficult-to-reach spots.

The end of each level contains a "training course" which the player can traverse within an allotted time for bonus points. In the training course are various targets to be struck with papers, jumps, water and other hazards, etc. Riding over a jump replenishes the paperboy's stock of papers in addition to earning points. As with the rest of the level, the difficulty of the training course increases over the week, with new hazards added each day. Crashing on the course or running out of time ends the day, but does not result in the loss of a life. Successful completion of the training course rewards the player with a bonus for any remaining time.

The next day begins with the neighborhood overview again, highlighting new subscribers and any un-subscribers. A flawless delivery record for the previous day results in a new subscriber. The next day through, the street is harder with more obstacles and faster cars.

The game concludes with the Sunday delivery. Papers on Sunday are heavier and can't be thrown as far as the regular dailies. Also, since they're heavier, the paperboy can't carry as many. Successfully delivering papers this day ends the game, but with a newspaper headlined "Paperboy Wins Award For Outstanding Paper-Delivery."

Losing all lives also ends the game with a headline reading "The Paperboy Calls It Quits." Causing all subscribers to cancel their subscriptions results in a headline reading "Paperboy Fired" along with a digitized voice which states "You're fired!"

The arcade version of the game included a number of voice clips, used both as voiceover commentary at game start ("Paperboy... stopping at nothing in his valiant effort to save this land from TV journalism," e.g.) and as the voice of the paperboy himself when tossing a paper into a mailbox or losing a life. Hitting a few particular obstacles could trigger voice clips specific to the obstacle (for example, a satirical "Let's see you hang ten!" when struck by a skateboarder, or when struck by the tricyclist, he replies "I hate that kid.")

The cabinet of this game is a standard upright but with custom controls. The controls consist of a bicycle handlebar with one button on each side, used to throw papers.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

73. Star Wars

Star Wars is an arcade game produced by Atari Inc. and released in 1983. The game is a first person space simulator, based around Star Wars - Episode IV: A New Hope. More specifically the game's action covers the final act of the movie: the attack on the Death Star. The game is composed of 3D color vector graphics.

The player assumes the role of Luke Skywalker ("Red Five"), as he pilots an X-wing fighter from a first-person perspective. Unlike other arcade games of similar nature, the player does not have to destroy every enemy in order to advance through the game; he must simply survive as his fighter flies through the level, which most often means he must avoid or destroy the shots that enemies fire.

The player's ultimate goal is to destroy the Death Star through three attack phases.
* In the first phase of the game, the player begins in outer space above the Death Star. He must engage in a dog fight with Darth Vader and enemy TIE fighters.
* In the second phase (occurring beginning with the second wave), the player reaches the Death Star's surface as laser turrets on towers rise to confront the player. If the player manages to destroy all of the towers, he will receive a sizeable point bonus.
* In the final scenario, the player finds himself speeding through the trench of the Death Star, avoiding obstacles and blasting gun turrets until, finally firing a proton torpedo at the correct time for a direct hit on the exhaust port target. What follows, if the player is successful, is the Death Star exploding in a multitude of different colours. If the player manages to do this without firing at anything but the exhaust port, he will receive a sizeable point bonus for "using the force." Then it is on to do battle again.

Each successive Death Star run greatly increases the difficulty; TIE Fighters shoot more often, there are more Laser towers and batteries in the second round, and there are many more obstacles and laser fire during the trench run. Unlike the movie, where the units shoot beams similar to lasers, the enemy units in this game shoot projectiles resembling fireballs, in order to give the player a chance to destroy the fired shots.

The game featured several digitized samples of voices from the movie, including Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Alec Guinness as Obi-Wan Kenobi, James Earl Jones as Darth Vader, Harrison Ford as Han Solo, the mechanized beeps of R2-D2, and the growls of Chewbacca.

The game is available as a standard upright or a sit-down cockpit version, both of which are elaborately decorated. The controls consist of a yoke control (similar to a steering wheel — twisting left and right gives combined roll and yaw; twisting forwards and backwards with the side control gives pitch) with four buttons — two trigger style and two in position to be pressed by the thumbs — each of which fired a laser positioned on the four leading edges of the X-Wings.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

72. Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom

Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom is the first of two arcade games created by Capcom and based on the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The game was also released on the Sega Saturn, packaged with its sequel, Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara, under the title Dungeons & Dragons Collection, although the Saturn version limited the gameplay to only 2 players. The game is set in the Mystara campaign setting.

Tower of Doom is a side scrolling beat 'em up with some RPG elements mixed in. Notable bosses include a troll that regenerates unless burned, a large black dragon, the dreaded Shadow Elf (Mystara's equivalent of the drow), a beholder, the optional superboss Flamewing (a great wyrm red dragon) and the final boss Deimos (an archlich).

The gameplay is more technical than the average on beat'em up games. In addition to the usual basic attacks and jumping it includes blocking, strong attacks, turning attacks, dashing attacks, crouching and evading. It also requires the use of careful tactics, as most enemies have the same abilities as the heroes and can outreach them, too.

As important as melee combat is ranged combat and the use of spells. Daggers, hammers, arrows and burning oils can be used as throwing weapons, and many enemies have similar weapons. Spells can be used by means of magical rings or by the two playable spellcasters (a cleric and a fighter/mage).

Characters are:
* The Fighter is the balanced fighter of the game. He has great reach and power.
* The Elf packs noticeably less power than the fighter, but has seven arcane spells at her disposal: Magic Missile, Invisibility, Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Polymorph Others, Ice Storm, and Cloudkill.
* The Cleric has fighting skills comparable to those of the elf. He can destroy undead and use five divine spells: Hold Person, Striking, Continual Light, Sticks to Snakes, and Cure Serious Wounds.
* The Dwarf has short reach, but he is the most powerful character in close combat.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

71. 1941: Counter Attack

1941: Counter Attack is an arcade game in the "vertical scrolling shooter" genre made by Capcom in 1990. It was also released on Capcom Classics Collection Remixed for the PSP and Capcom Classics Collection Vol. 2 for Playstation 2 and Xbox.

The goal is to shoot down enemy airplanes and collect weapon power-ups (POW). One is only able to perform three loops per level and a bonus is awarded at the end of the level for unused loops. Player 1 uses a P-38 Lightning and Player 2 uses a Mosquito Mk IV.

It was the first Shmup to add +1 to the score when a continue is used.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

Countdown Update:

150. Arch Rivals
149. Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator
148. Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike
147. Super Off Road
146. Primal Rage
145. Moon Patrol
144. Mortal Kombat 4
143. Submarine
142. Big Buck Hunter
141. Toki
140. Vs. Baseball
139. San Francisco Rush
138. Sunset Riders
137. NBA Jam
136. Golden Tee Golf
135. WWF Wrestlemania
134. Hogan's Alley
133. CarnEvil
132. Kung Fu Master
131. Berzerk
130. Tekken 5
129. Puzzle Bobble aka Bust A Move
128. Time Traveler
127. 3 Count Bout
126. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
125. Mr. Do!
124. Crisis Zone
123. Captain America and The Avengers
122. Joust
121. Track & Field
120. P.O.W.: Prisoners Of War
119. Area 51
118. Virtua Cop 3
117. Dig Dug
116. Gauntlet
115. King of the Monsters
114. ESP Ra.De.
113. 1942
112. Mercs
111. Street Fighter III: The New Generation
110. Out Run
109. Mappy
108. The Real Ghostbusters
107. Street Fighter Alpha 3
106. Saturday Night Slam Masters
105. Virtua Fighter
104. Elevator Action
103. Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000
102. World Heroes
101. 10-Yard Fight
100. Cruis'n Exotica
99. Tetris
98. Frogger
97. Mat Mania
96. Cruis'n World
95. Defender
94. Arm Champs II
93. Centipede
92. Yie Ar Kung Fu
91. Burgertime
90. Cabal
89. Hang-On
88. Ninja Gaiden
87. Crazy Climber
86. The House Of The Dead III
85. Arkanoid
84. Race Drivin
83. Tron
82. Revolution X
81. Mortal Kombat 3
80. Golden Axe
79. Dungeons And Dragons: Shadows Over Mystara
78. Marvel Super Hereos
77. Samurai Shodown
76. Time Pilot
75. WWF Superstars
74. Paperboy
73. Star Wars
72. Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom
71. 1941: Counter Attack

Here are the clues to the next five games.

* 2 on 2 Basketball With 1997 Roster

* Control Either A Helicopter Or A Jeep

* Jiggly Boobs

* Save The President's Daughter From A Band Of Terrorists

* Sega Grand Match Has A Carpet Surface

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

70. Virtua Tennis

Virtua Tennis (Power Smash in Japan) is a 1999 tennis arcade game created by Sega-AM3. The player competes through tennis tournaments and various arcade modes. For the home console market the game was expanded upon with the introduction of the campaign mode. It was later ported to Sega Dreamcast in 2000, and for Microsoft Windows in 2002. A Game Boy Advance version was also released in 2002.

A sequel, Virtua Tennis 2, appeared on Sega NAOMI, Dreamcast and PlayStation 2. In 2005 another sequel, Virtua Tennis: World Tour was released for the PlayStation Portable. 2006 saw the release of Virtua Tennis 3 in the arcades (using the Sega Lindbergh hardware). Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Playstation Portable and PC versions were released in 2007.

The player must win 5 matches to win a tournament. Each match is played on a different surface:
* Australian Challange - Hard Surface
* French Court - Clay Surface
* US Super Tennis - Hard Surface
* The Old England Championship - Grass Surface
* Sega Grand Match - Carpet Surface

Characters include several real world tennis players, with their respective strengths:
* Jim Courier (USA) - Various Shots
* Tommy Haas (Germany) - Forehand
* Tim Henman (UK) - Volley
* Thomas Johansson (Sweden) - Quickness
* Yevgeny Kafelnikov (Russia) - Bankhand
* Carlos Moya (Spain) - Groundstrokes
* Mark Phillippoussis (Australia) - Serve
* Cedric Pioline (France) - All-Around

Two bosses are:
* Master - High Performer
* King - Perfect Player

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

69. Die Hard Arcade

Die Hard Arcade is the licensed American/European version of the Japanese videogame Dynamite Deka. The game is a beat 'em up with loose ties to the Die Hard movie series of the same name.

However, other than the title, the building and the fact that the hero (Bruno Delinger) looks like John McClane, the game and the movie have little to do with each other (in fact, the license was purchased when the game was essentially complete for the American and European releases). It is a 1 - 2 player game in which the male and/or female characters fight through action-packed levels to save the president's daughter from a band of terrorists.

The game is played by fighting your way through waves of enemies, using your fists, feet, and a ludicrous variety of weapons. You progress through the requisite enemies and bosses with cutscenes interspersed into the action. Various cutscenes in the game contain Quick Time Event sequences, in which the player must press a particular button within a short time limit to alter the impending scene e.g., defeating an enemy or group of enemies in the sequence so that the player will not have to then engage them in combat.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

68. NBA Maximum Hangtime

A two-on-two action-oriented basketball game with digitized faces of NBA players, including the 1997 season roster changes. Players can execute high-flying fantasy dunks, alley-oops, and "double dunks." Three consecutive shots in a row puts a player "on fire," raising their shot accuracy.

This game was an upgrade for existing NBA Jam or NBA Hangtime cabinets. The original NBA Hangtime was shipped as a dedicated 25-inch, four-player cabinet or as a conversion kit. No dedicated NBA Maximum Hangtime cabinets were made.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

67. Silk Worm

You control either the jeep or the helicopter traveling through enemy terrain. The jeep shoots machine gun or jumps and the helicopter shoots a machine gun or cannon. Collect power cells and destroy enemy crafts until the "MH-C2" is reached. Destroy it and save the world from its evil tyranny.

[Seth Drakin of Monster Crap]

66. Dead or Alive

Dead or Alive is a fighting game in the Dead or Alive series.

Tomonobu Itagaki has stated that he was dissatisfied with the way modern fighting games were presented, he missed the old arcade style of play and had another vision for the fighting game genre. Having worked for Tecmo for a long time, Itagaki was eventually given the opportunity to develop a fighting game. The game, the first Dead or Alive, was released in 1996 as an arcade game for the Japanese market. It had been a success in Japan, but not in the West. This was possibly because of the competing game Tekken, which was already a popular fighting game series for the PlayStation.

Dead or Alive was unique in its debut that featured fairly different choices in gameplay than other 3D fighting games. Its most defining features were its speed and countering system. Unlike Tekken, Dead or Alive put an emphasis on speed, and relied more on simplistic commands and reaction time rather than long strings of combos. Furthermore, its countering system was the first in the fighting genre to utilize different commands that corresponded to each type of attack. There are two kinds of holds, an offensive hold (OH) and a defensive hold (DH), furthermore, these commands are executed by holding back or forward on the directional pad along with the guard input to either force away or counter-damage an opponent. Finally, the game used an environmental addition called the danger zone, which surrounded the outer edges of the fighting arena (depending on the options, it could also completely consume it), and when a character came in contact with it, sent them in the air so the opposing player can execute a juggling air combo. However, this can be avoided with a Ukemi (defensive roll).

Characters are:
* Bayman
* Gen Fu
* Jann Lee
* Lei Fang
* Kasumi
* Ryu Hayabusa
* Tina Armstrong
* Zack
* Raidou (boss character, unlockable)