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Flyer Title Year Genre Description Screenshot
Battlezone arcade flyer Battlezone 1980 Simulation Tank simulation with wireframe enemy tanks, UFOs and obstacles. Movement and turning is similar to that of a tank: slow as fuck. Once an enemy has you in his sights it's pretty much over.
Some of the old cabinets to this game had an awesome, pseudo-3D effect with a graphical overlay you had to look through.
Battlezone
Berzerk arcade flyer Berzerk 1980 Run and Gun / Maze Berzerk is a very straight to the point game. Shoot anything that moves and survive as long as you can. Despite having only one real enemy, the game still keeps things fresh and varied with encounters. The fear of accidentally killing yourself by touching walls or robots is very real, and the synthesized voice-acting is very charming and memorable still today. Check it out for a simple but fun action shooting experience. Berzerk
Blaster arcade flyer Blaster 1983 Shoot 'em Up OH GOD MY EYES. Pilot a space ship in search of paradise through a bunch of rainbow-flavored strobe levels. Joystick action which is better emulated with an actual joystick. Supposedly the envisioned sequel to Robotron: 2084 though it bears little resemblance. Blaster
Bosconian arcade flyer Bosconian 1981 Shoot 'em Up 8-directional movement with a tail gun that allows you to make quick work of enemy squadrons even when running away. Hunt the green enemy space stations to progress through levels and keep your threat level manageable. Red threat level is when the kamikaze pilots start coming out of the woodwork. Bosconian
Bump 'N' Jump arcade flyer Bump 'N' Jump 1982 Action / Driving description goes here Bump
BurgerTime arcade flyer BurgerTime 1982 Puzzle Make gigantic burgers by dropping ingredients downward and avoiding enemies. BurgerTime arcade screenshot
Centipede arcade flyer Centipede 1980 Shoot 'em Up Similar to Space Invaders, but involves bugs and mushrooms instead of shields and aliens. SFg
Defender arcade flyer Defender 1980 Shoot 'em Up Battle against confusing six-button controls trying to save humanoids from hordes of enemies. Has a "sequel" named Stargate, which is more of the same, but with extra enemies. Defender arcade screenshot
Dig Dug arcade flyer Dig Dug 1982 Maze Tunnel underground and shoot monsters with a spike that fills them up with air until they explode. Digdug
Discs of Tron arcade flyer Discs of Tron 1983 Action description goes here Discs of Tron arcade screenshot
Donkey Kong arcade flyer Donkey Kong 1981 Platformer Run and jump through 4 stages to rescue Pauline from Donkey Kong. KILL SCREEN COMIN' UP. Donkey kong arc
Donkey Kong II Jumpman Returns arcade flyer Donkey Kong II: Jumpman Returns 2006 Platformer/Mod A great mod/sequel to the arcade classic, Jumpman Returns features all of the classic elements of the first Donkey Kong with 4 entirely new levels, and "Cutscenes"
Gameplay footage can be found here
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Frenzy arcade flyer Frenzy 1982 Run and Gun Fantastic sequel to Berzerk. A lot of things have been reworked for the better: walls are no longer electrified and instead can reflect bullets or be destroyed, single-sprite robots now come in skeleton and.. uh.. octopus variety, and Otto can be killed! That can be seen as a blessing or a curse, because after he dies he comes back faster than before. Markedly weaker voice work, something that made the original so memorable. Frenzy
Frogger arcade flyer Frogger 1981 Action Cross the highway and avoid getting splattered. Frogger arcade screenshot
Galaga arcade flyer Galaga 1981 Shoot 'em Up Shoot aliens. Protip: Get one ship captured and save it, now you have DOUBLE SHOT POWER. Galaga arcade screenshot
Gorf arcade flyer Gorf 1981 Shoot 'em Up description goes here Gorf arcade screenshot
Gravitar arcade flyer Gravitar 1982 Shoot 'em Up description goes here Gravitar arcade screenshot
Gyruss arcade flyer Gyruss 1983 Shoot 'em Up Save the solar system from great evil as you make your way to Earth!

A fun and unique Konami "tube shooter" (meaning the field of play is akin to a giant abstract tube with the player's ship). Gameplay involves quick reflexes dodging satellites, space lasers, asteroids and all manner of obstacles in the reaches of space while destroying all the enemy ships that are coming after you. This is all done while listening to a radical electronic version of Bach's Toccata and Fugue.

There are many ports of this game, including an excellent NES port with 39 looping stages that take you past Earth and to the Sun (not 24 like the arcade which take you as far as only Earth), a bit of added throwaway plot and an intense end boss at the Sun.

Gyrussgameplay
Halleys Comet arcade flyer Halley's Comet 1986 Shoot 'em Up While it may look painfully basic the gameplay is actually quite fun, well worthy of a quick play. You launch from a planet and scroll vertically towards a hollowed out, alien-infested comet. Enemy ships that make it past you damage your home planet for a set percentage, where 100% damage results in a game over. Tiered weapons, erratic enemy patterns and random warp jumps give the game variety.

Spawned a sequel on the Game Gear: Halley Wars.

Halleys
Joust arcade flyer Joust 1982 Platformer You're a knight. You joust... ON AN OSTRICH.

Joust is a competitive game, requiring precise movement and momentum to eliminate the ever-increasing throng of enemy knights. Elevation is the only factor in rendering a killing blow. The knight flying above at the point of contact kills the opposing one. Contact on an equal level is a draw, resulting in both bouncing away.

Joust
Jungle Hunt arcade flyer Jungle Hunt 1982 Action

A game where you guide the intrepid, nameless, khaki clad jungle hunter through trials of vine swinging, river swimming, and, uh, jumping over rocks in order to save your female companion from the savages. Lots of the game is reaction/timing based.

Oh, and P.S. you'll never get the damn soundtrack out of your head after the first 30 seconds.

There's also a pirate themed sister-game called Pirate Pete. Pretty much the same thing, just pirate-y.

Jungle Hunt arcade screenshot
Kangaroo arcade flyer Kangaroo 1982 Platformer description goes here Kangaroo arcade screenshot
Kung Fu Master arcade flyer Kung Fu Master 1984 Beat 'em up Aka Spartan-X and Kung-Fu. Kick assholes and save your girlfriend. Kung Fu Master arcade screenshot
Lady Bug arcade flyer Lady Bug 1981 Maze description goes here Lady Bug arcade screenshot
Lode Runner arcade flyer Lode Runner 1983 Platformer Get gold and escape. Dig holes in front of or behind you to trap enemies. Lode Runner arcade screenshot
Mario Bros arcade flyer Mario Bros. 1983 Platformer Collect coins, stun monsters then kick them. Avoid Fireballs. Much more fun in later remixes with 4 players. Mario Bros arcade screenshot
Millipede arcade flyer Millipede 1982 Shoot 'em Up Shoot the millipede to bits while collecting magic wands. Don't let it eat all the mushrooms! It's as frenetic and trippy as it sounds. Millipede arcade screenshot
Motos arcade flyer Motos 1985 Action description goes here Motos arcade screenshot
Mr Do arcade flyer Mr. Do! 1982 Maze description goes here Mr Do arcade screenshot
Ms Pac Man arcade flyer Ms. Pac-Man 1981 Maze If you've played Pac-Man, then you've played Ms. Pac-Man. Fortunately, it's just as good as its predecessor. Ms Pac Man arcade screenshot
Nibbler arcade flyer Nibbler 1982 Maze Let the snake eat the food without running into itself or the walls. Nibbler arcade screenshot
Pac Man arcade flyer Pac-Man 1980 Maze Eat pills in a dark room and chase ghosts while listening to repetitive techno music. Pac Man arcade screenshot
Pole Position arcade flyer Pole Position 1982 Racing Drive through a course to get the best time. A lot harder than it sounds. Pole Position arcade screenshot
Qbert arcade flyer Q*bert 1982 Puzzle / Platformer Jump on every panel to make them the same color. Avoid enemies by jumping away or jumping on flying saucers. Qbert arcade screenshot
Qix arcade flyer Qix 1981 Action Try to make a picture by clearing away the cover sheet with careful navigation. Qix arcade screenshot
Rally X arcade flyer Rally-X 1980 Racing / Maze description goes here Rally X arcade screenshot
Robotron 2084 arcade flyer Robotron: 2084 1982 Shoot 'em Up Dual-stick shooter, later copied by Smash T.V. Shoot robots and save humanity. This game doesn't pull punches. Robotron 2084 arcade screenshot
Sinistar arcade flyer Sinistar 1982 Shoot 'em Up I AM SINISTAR. BEWARE, I LIVE. Shoot aliens and asteroids to collect crystals and stop a planet-sized monster from eating you. Sinistar arcade screenshot
Space Invaders arcade flyer Space Invaders 1978 Shoot 'em Up You pilot a mobile cannon tasked to repel an alien invasion. As you kill aliens the music speeds up and they start to descend faster, with the last one styling all over your cannon-y ass. Good luck sniping that swift bastard.

One of the most iconic games on the arcade which helped bring video gaming into the limelight. If you've been living under a rock there's been multiple remakes which are simply AMAZING.

SpaceInvaders
Space Zap arcade flyer Space Zap 1980 Shoot 'em Up description goes here Space Zap arcade screenshot
Star Wars arcade flyer Star Wars 1983 Rail Shooter description goes here Star Wars arcade screenshot
Tapper arcade flyer Tapper 1983 Action Serve (Root) Beer to customers. Don't let them break anything. Harder than it sounds. Tapper arcade screenshot
Tempest arcade flyer Tempest 1980 Shoot 'em Up / TUUUUBES Vector tube-based shmup which utilized a paddle controller. You're a crab-shaped spaceship. There's a bunch of monsters coming up at you from the depths of god-knows-where. Scroll your wheel, slide around the tube, and blast that shit back to oblivion. Also, watch out for pulsars and those goddamn fuseballs.

One of the most addictive shooters of its day. There's not much plot aside from "SHOOT THE LITTLE BUGGERS", but the original designer says it was going to be a sort of first-person Space Invaders until he had this trippy nightmare about monsters coming out of a hole. Take from that what you will. Has a few direct remakes and ports, like Tempest 2000. Geometry Wars could be considered a mix of this and Robotron 2084.

Tempest arcade screenshot
Tutankham arcade flyer Tutankham 1982 Maze description goes here Tutankham arcade screenshot
Vanguard arcade flyer Vanguard 1981 Shoot 'em Up description goes here Vanguard arcade screenshot
Wizard of Wor arcade flyer Wizard of Wor 1980 Action / Maze Pac-Man with guns. Blast through a labyrinth with weird looking creatures while hunting the elusive Wizard of Wor. Snipe the Worluk/Wizard before they escape to start a double score bonus stage. Shit gets real on the Worlord levels.
Allows for bro-op if you both are well coordinated.
WizardofWor