STEVEN DE TONI'S TOP TEN COIN-OP VIDEOGAMES steven@waikato.ac.nz 10. Daytona USA (Sega) While game play is fairly basic -- drive around a circuit and come in first -- It has the ability to allow you to apply your own style of driving and has fast paced graphics. A pioneer in third generation 3D graphics and on-screen action when connected to 4 machines, especially when you drive backward around the track and piss off the other racers. 9. Ikari Warriors (SNK) Another great combination game. Either fight with a friend by foot or with tanks, and varying fire power. Tatics could be applied depending upon your current weapon (i.e. in a tank, on foot with red hand grenades). 8. Galaxian (Namco) Good shooter that added more variety than Space Invaders, and I was quite good at a version of it (can't remember which, there were many). 7. Gauntlet I/II (Atari Games) Great multi-player game where a group can plan moves and help others through the game or not (Elf shot the food)! Game that capitalized on the role-playing type theme, but this type of game was surpassed by classics like Dungeon Master (Atari ST/Amiga). 6. Jackal (Konami) Great two player game that wasn't always hectic so you could coordinate with your game partner on you future moves, or help out in bad situations. 5. Bubble Bobble (Taito) A real team action game where you really do need your gaming partner in some of its levels. Cutesy but addictive game play, and one of the few platform games that I liked. 4. Star Force (Tehkan) One of the rare few games I was good at, it had decent graphics for its time and was quite challenging. Still is an enjoyable game play on an emulator. 3. Black Widow (Atari) Very much like Robotron but with added twists, it's also a game that makes you work out in later levels. 2. Robotron: 2084 (Williams) Very simple game design. Get them before they get you -- very quick game play. A game you can enjoy if you have a spare few minutes and work up a sweat. 1. Star Wars (Atari) Fast-paced action that really gets you going, especially in the later stages. The guys at Atari really pulled finger in designing custom hardware (Math box) and vector monitors to provide us with the super quick frame rate that you just did not see at the time. Definitely a pioneering game of the time, I used to play it lots. Emulated Star Wars does not do it justice, especially without the control yoke of the original. Worst Top 3 3) Donkey Kong Darr boring, multi-screen games are boring, no variety. 2) Defender Cool graphics, its just too hard! 1) Pac-Man It just sucks! Memorable Games Most of the Atari games -- Most had original ideas behind them (e.g. Asteriods, I-Robot, Gauntlet) and used custom hardware to achieve required game play (BattleZone, Star Wars, I-Robot). Atari is definitely the arcade game developer of the last century...