Midway Arcade Treasures

"Rampart makes it all worthwhile."

I enjoy older games very much and when I heard that there was going to be a compilation of 24 arcade ''classics'' I immediately wanted to get it. I can't say that I was disappointed, only slightly let down because some of these so called ''classics'' are just garbage.

Games 7
I wont go in to every single game, but just give you the highlights and things that annoyed me the most. First let me tell you what to avoid. There are two games on here that I have never heard of called Toobin' and Splat both of which are insults to every good game in the world and to call these classics are to spit in the face of good classics like Rampage and Rampart. Splat is probably the worst arcade game ever. You just move around with slow responding controls and catch food. Toobin' isn't much better with its crappy control and pointless gameplay. By now you're probably thinking ''If he hates it so much why did he give it an 8''. Well its quite simple... Rampart. Rampart is the greatest old school arcade game of all time and to include that in this package makes all of Midways crap seem to disappear. Now I wouldn't pay $20 for just one game so I was very pleased to see other greats such as the addictive puzzler Klax and the original smashing game Rampage. Along with these are my favorite racing game Roadblasters, the first hack and slasher Smash TV and an amusing Pac Man wannabe, Bubbles. The original Gauntlet(which I wasn't very impressed by)is in this as well as Paperboy.

Music/Sounds 9
Rampart has great medieval sounding themes and Klax has lovable sounds and music in it. Marble Madness also has enjoyable tunes. The rest don't really stand out much, but there are no problems in this territory.

Difficulty Slightly Difficult to Very Near Impossible
Any gamer can have some fun with Midway Arcade Treasures, but only the most hardcore gamer can advance very far in Paperboy, or Spy Hunter. For the less insanely unhumanly good video game palyer, you can enjoy Rampage, Roadblasters, Root Beer Tapper, and Klax without going crazy and slamming your controller to the ground from the brain numbing difficulty.

Overall 8
My advice would be to rent it before you commit yourself to purchasing it. While very entertaining and being a great compilation overall, Midway Arcade Treasures is likely to appeal to a small audience. If you can look beyond the rancid garbage that is Splat and Toobin' your in for a wonderful nostalgic experience.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/20/04