10 Best Golden Age Arcade Games

Summary

• The golden age of arcades spanned from 1978-1983 and is remembered for its legendary games that still hold a special place in gamers' hearts.
• Frogger, Dragon's Lair, Dig Dug, Space Invaders, Galaga, Pac-Man, Asteroids, Star Wars, Donkey Kong, and Ms. Pac-Man are all iconic games from this era that are still enjoyable to play today.
• These classic arcade games have enduring legacies due to their captivating visuals, innovative gameplay, and ability to evoke nostalgia.

The golden age of arcades is generally considered to be the five-year period between 1978 and 1983, when arcades ruled the world and gaming had its first taste of being a mainstream form of entertainment. The games released in arcades during this period are the stuff of legend, with many still holding a special place in gamers' hearts decades later.

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These games are foundational to everything that came afterward, and their bright colors, high-pitch sound effects, and simple yet effective gameplay are still what many people think of when they hear the word “video game.” They’re golden for a reason: they’re still as fun to play today as they were back in the late seventies and early eighties.

10 Frogger

Hop To The Top (Of The Screen)

This classic game sees you guiding the titular amphibian from the bottom to the top of the screen, all the while dodging cars, hopping on logs, and doing your best to get home in one piece. Frogger’s popularity can be attributed to its bold colors, pick-up-and-play nature, and balanced sense of difficulty.

There’s something so satisfying about timing the hops of your frog to perfectly intersect traffic or bounce from log to log. Frogger even heavily inspired the mega-popular mobile game Crossy Roads, which is proof of the original's enduring legacy.

9 Dragon’s Lair

The Original “It Looks Like A Cartoon” Game

Today, it’s a cliché to describe a game as having a cartoony art style, which is especially surprising as Dragon’s Lair pulled off this feat all the way back in 1983. With cartoon visuals drawn by legendary animator Don Bluth, Dragon’s Lair stood out from every other arcade game back in the day.

Showcasing the futuristic power of the LaserDisc (at least, for its era), Dragon’s Lair lets you play an epic, fantastical adventure that looks just like an animated movie. It was an impressive feat back in the eighties and still looks fantastic over forty years later.

8 Dig Dug

An Easy Game To Dig

Dig Dug stood out amongst other arcade games of its era thanks to its unique gameplay concept. While many golden age arcade games had you flying to the stars, Dig Dug sees you mining through the earth as you try to defeat every subterranean enemy on screen.

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There are few feelings in gaming as satisfying as perfectly timing a rock fall to crush multiple enemies at once. Equal parts methodical and exhilarating, Dig Dug is a classic of the arcades that are still fun to dig up all these years later.

7 Space Invaders

Taking Gaming To The Stars

While no one can really agree on the exact end dates of the golden age of arcade eras, the release of Space Invaders in 1978 is generally regarded as this era’s genesis. The influence of Space Invaders cannot be overstated as it not only popularised the shoot ‘em up genre, but it launched gaming’s position within the entertainment industry into the stratosphere.

The gameplay of Space Invaders is so simple, but that’s why it has remained an enduring classic. It’s so easy to sink hours into this game, trying to beat your high score and save the planet from the invading aliens time and time again.

6 Galaga

The Timeless Space Shooter About Blasting Alien Bugs

Galaga takes the basic concept of Space Invaders and turns it up to eleven. Diverse enemy formations and faster-paced gameplay always keep you on your toes, and the Boss Galagas add nuance and strategy to how you tackle each stage.

And who could forget the special bonus stages where you try to shoot down as many of the aliens without them firing back? With smooth controls and memorable visuals, Galaga soars to the top of arcade classics.

5 Pac-Man

The Snappy Circle With An Appetite Unlike Any Other

What more is there to say about Pac-Man that hasn’t already been said? The maze-like level design, the unique AI attributed to each ghost, the absolutely iconic visuals and sound effects—each a little stroke of genius that culminate into one of gaming’s most treasured jewels.

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Step into any retro arcade, and there will still be people crowded around the Pac-Man cabinet. And every few years, a new Pac-Man game releases, reminding us of what made this concept so strong in the first place.

4 Asteroids

Cleaning Up The Debris In Outer Space

In Asteroids, you shoot down the titular space rock while avoiding the scattered debris, racking up more and more points as you progress. You also fight off enemy spaceships, who periodically show up to ruin your asteroid-blasting mission.

While the gameplay of Asteroid is fun—if nothing special—what really made this game stand out was its vector display graphics. Unless you see Asteroids playing on an actual vector monitor, it’s hard to appreciate how vibrant and entrancing each sprite looks—even if they are drawn with just a few basic lines against a black backdrop.

3 Star Wars

The Force Was Strong With This Game

Releasing in North America less than three weeks before Return of the Jedi dropped in cinemas, the Star Wars arcade game was a technological marvel that showcased the full magic of vector graphics. The colorful visuals and effects are a feast for the eyes, inspiring the same sense of awe that the movies were famous for.

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Lightsabers, blasters, and a great mix of science fiction and fantasy make Star Wars a perfect setting for video games.

The gameplay is nothing to sniff at, either. As an on-rails shooter, Star Wars is more than capable of capturing the energy and excitement of engaging in an outer space dogfight. Star Wars will always go down in history as one of the best movie tie-in games ever developed.

2 Donkey Kong

The Arcade Smash That Everyone Went Ape For

In 1981, a little-known game developer called Nintendo released Donkey Kong into arcades. And the rest, as they say, was history. Climbing up the different stages and navigating the various obstacles in Donkey Kong is a gaming rite of passage that still captures the imagination of players to this day.

It was the introduction of Donkey Kong, Mario (albeit known as Jump Man originally), and the combined design genius of Shigeru Miyamoto and Gunpei Yokoi. And while each of them would go on to achieve bigger and better things, there remains something so endearing about the original arcade Donkey Kong.

1 Ms. Pac-Man

A Golden Age Arcade Game In Every Sense Of The Word

The best game to come from the golden age of arcades started out life as a fan modification of the original Pac-Man. Eventually, the developers slapped a red bow on the iconic yellow circle, and Ms. Pac-Man was born—a brilliant sequel that expands on the original in nearly every way.

There are more mazes to explore, the enemy AI is more advanced, and the overall experience feels more comprehensive. Ms. Pac-Man displayed a level of sophistication that was far ahead of its time and is still the best game to return to from this storied era of arcades.

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