The Arcade Files

It's December of 1980, a new game shows up at the local arcades from Centuri it's called Phoenix. Never heard of it, but it's an important one. Doing something Space Invaders and Galaga didn't do, introducing a "boss" as the final encounter of the game and progressive level game design, no repeats here, a true first indeed. Enjoy the episode!

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In late 1980, Namco released a maze chase game, Rally-X, in Japan and with the help of Midway, Rally-X was brought to North America in 1981. Originally, Rally-X was thought to be a big hit, however, when it finally released against Pac-man and Defender, it fell to the wayside. Regardless, Rally-X was a pioneer in the video game industry, being the first to have a bonus stage and background music. Enjoy the episode!

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It's 1980 and arcades are dominated by One Player games. However, Midway is here to solve the problem with Wizard of Wor, a pioneer of Two Player cooperative play, even with the computer AI helping if you are a lone gamer. Also an early adopter of synthesized speech and a maze like game at that. A truly unique title during the early years of the Golden Age. Enjoy!

Forbes Article Link mentioned in today's episode

https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattgardner1/2021/02/19/insanely-rare-sega-arcade-cabinet-found-abandoned-in-uk-field/?sh=4195c73256bd

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It's 1981 and arcades are in desperate need of some variety. Enter Qix, the first puzzle game for the arcades and developed by a married couple. Qix went on to be a initial big hit for Taito America and is an incredibly unique game to this day. What many consider a sleeper hit today, this game paved the wave for future puzzle games that would later pop up in the gaming industry. Enjoy the episode!

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Released in 1981 by Stern in North America, Scramble made quite a bit of money and brought some new features never before seen in an arcade game. However, many have forgotten about this pioneer, but not today. Enjoy a very early game in the shoot-em-up genre, that helped define it. Check out the social media links and email for the podcast, as well as, articles and YouTube video mentioned in today's episode.

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Arcade Heroes article: https://arcadeheroes.com/2021/01/16/newsbytes-atgames-launches-arcadenet-new-videos-vr-wow-arcade-ports/

Wilcox Arcade article: https://www.wilcoxarcade.com/single-post/my-thoughts-on-arcade-port-begging

YouTube Video with discussion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sS8XRSskN30

It's the late 1970s and Taito dominated the arcades with Space Invaders. However, Namco wanted to cash in as well by releasing Galaxian in 1979. They had developed never before seen hardware and a complete 100% RGB color game, Galaxian quickly became the game to play in the early 1980s. Galaxian has a history and story worth sharing, helping propel Namco in the arcade scene, especially in North America and creating the iconic little spaceship we all know and love. Enjoy today's episode and check out the links mentioned in the podcast.

Play Conquest Online: http://www.codemystics.com/conquest/

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It's May 1983 with Star Wars: Return of the Jedi coming out in theaters and Atari has timed it just right to release a Star Wars arcade game. With the blessing of George Lucas, Atari created a beloved game that is still enjoyed today. This is the story of Star Wars: The Arcade Game, enjoy!

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It's 1981 and the Gorfian Empire is invading Earth, you must protect it all cost! Gorf was a pioneer in during the Golden Age of Arcade, being an early adopter to use synthesized speech and the first arcade game to feature multiple screens. We can thank Jamie Fenton for creating this little gem and giving other developers new ideas for future titles. I hope you enjoy the history and story of Gorf.

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Insert Coin Documentary

https://www.insertcoindoc.com

Hot off the heels of his successful Missile Command game, David Theurer used inspiration from a childhood nightmare to create what many considered to be his magnum opus, Tempest, and provided another legendary title for the Golden Age of Arcade. However, Tempest had a rather interesting beginning that could have lead to a disastrous release, if Theurer hadn't changed course.

Plus today's episode features special guest music from Night Rider 87, if you are interested in their music, check out the following links and follow them on social media.

Links

http://nightrider87.com/

http://www.youtube.com/c/NightRider87

http://twitter.com/nr87_official

https://open.spotify.com/artist/3VAER4DIsFQnc5plsXy1X4

https://www.instagram.com/nightridermusic

https://nightrider87.bandcamp.com/

https://soundcloud.com/nightrider87

Released by Atari in June of 1981, David Theurer created the legendary game, but one that has a no win scenario. The game was released during the middle of The Cold War, between the USA and the USSR. It hit a little too close to home for the developers, but they were trying to convey a message to the player. What message was that? Tune in to find out.

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