LoC 50 - Top Video Games of the '80s (And before!) - Today's High Scores

[Doctor Who?]

It's hard to describe, but there's a charm to the nuts and bolts games that the '80s produced. There weren't any huge video game production companies trying to get everyone to repeat themselves. It was all about cobbling together a game and putting it out there. Long load-times, clunky sprites. They all encouraged creativity. Some weren't up to the challenge, but a lot of great stuff emerged from that situation.

I saw a Vectrex in action for the first time at the Classic Gaming Expo last year. Now I want one bad. :^)

Yeah I am still sad my Vectrex died back in 99.

[Russell]

It's hard to describe, but there's a charm to the nuts and bolts games that the '80s produced. There weren't any huge video game production companies trying to get everyone to repeat themselves. It was all about cobbling together a game and putting it out there. Long load-times, clunky sprites. They all encouraged creativity. Some weren't up to the challenge, but a lot of great stuff emerged from that situation.

I saw a Vectrex in action for the first time at the Classic Gaming Expo last year. Now I want one bad. :^)

Yeah I am still sad my Vectrex died back in 99.

Cough Cough *Neo Geo*

[ColeStratton]

Pretty nice list, a lot of my picks made it...where's the love for King's Quest? And Time Soldiers was awesome. It was one of those joysticks that could be turned 360 degrees so you could move your solider's weapon around while you moved. You battled through several time periods. My list (I'd bold them, but the bold button doesn't seem to work anymore):

1. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game (Arcade)
2. Time Soldiers (Arcade)
3. Super Mario Brothers 3 (Nintendo)
4. King’s Quest (PC)
5. The Oregon Trail (PC)
6. Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out! (Nintendo)
7. Super Mario Brothers (Nintendo)
8. Gauntlet (Arcade)
9. Rampage (Arcade)
10. DuckTales (Nintendo)
11. The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo)
12. Dragon’s Lair (Arcade)
13. Tetris (Nintendo)
14. Defender (Atari)
15. Ms. Pac-Man (Arcade)
16. Shinobi (Arcade)
17. Metroid (Nintendo)
18. Kid Icarus (Nintendo)
19. Super Mario Brothers 2 (Nintendo)
20. Pitfall (Atari)
21. Strider (Nintendo)
22. Lode Runner (Commodore 64)
23. Ninja Gaiden (Nintendo)
24. Castlevania (Nintendo)
25. Double Dragon (Arcade)

[Johnny Unusual]

Sweet list Cole.  I'm pretty out of the loop on Oregon Trail though.  Sounds pretty unique.

[Asbestos Bill]

Sweet list Cole.  I'm pretty out of the loop on Oregon Trail though.  Sounds pretty unique.

The hell? You've seriously never encountered one of Oregon Trail's 50* incarnations?

*(complete BS, but there are ten, according to Wikipedia)

[Rattrap007]

Sweet list Cole.  I'm pretty out of the loop on Oregon Trail though.  Sounds pretty unique.

I thought it was mandatory in grade school to play the game. Either you  are way over 30s or really really young..

[Johnny Unusual]

Plus Canadian.  We never had a game about the glory and dangers of western expansion.  Nor have they made a game in Canada about some of our settlers: no game about how much it sucked to immigrate from Ukraine to find the land you bought nearly unfarmable and had to quickly build a shelter out of grass and mud to survive the winter so you COULD TILL THE HARD STONE STREWN LAND IN SPRING!  I had ancestors who lived in caves by the river in the early 1900's!   Sorry, sorry, lost my train of thought there.

Oh, wait, I guess some schools did have it.  Just not ours.  And I guess there was a game about the hardships of Canadian history in a game called the Yukon trail.  There's also an amazon trail game, which I really hope ends like Aguire: the Wraith of God.

[Asbestos Bill]

There's also an amazon trail game, which I really hope ends like Aguire: the Wraith of God.

Yeah, I had that one too. It wasn't about settling and surviving, though. More about cataloging wildlife.

[Russell]

I must say i am shocked at the lack of love for Mega Man 2.

[Asbestos Bill]

I just picked Mega Man as a representative for the whole series since I've only played #9.

[Invader_quirk]

I must say i am shocked at the lack of love for Mega Man 2.

#14 – Mega Man 2

[RVR II]

I must say i am shocked at the lack of love for Mega Man 2.

It never really appealed to me back in the day..

[Rattrap007]

Plus Canadian.

Ahh. Well we never had any games about beavers and lumberjacks, so guess you get a pass.

[Russell]

I must say i am shocked at the lack of love for Mega Man 2.

#14 – Mega Man 2

Shoulda been NUMBER 1!!!!

I must say i am shocked at the lack of love for Mega Man 2.

It never really appealed to me back in the day..

*jaw drops to floor*

[D.B. Barnes]

I must say i am shocked at the lack of love for Mega Man 2.

#14 – Mega Man 2

Shoulda been NUMBER 1!!!!

I must say i am shocked at the lack of love for Mega Man 2.

It never really appealed to me back in the day..

*jaw drops to floor*

Fucking people and their opinions on stuff.