In contrast to those of the 80's, today's games show a remarkable lack of originality and innovation. Martial arts games in particular follow this trend. In the 80's, as today, the two kinds of fist fighting games were one-on-one, as introduced by Karate Champ (Data East, 1984) and Yie Ar Kung Fu (Konami, 1985), or one vs. myriad weak enemy clones, i.e. Kung Fu Master (Data East, 1985) and Double Dragon (Taito, 1986). In 1991, Capcom released Street Fighter II, arguably one of the best arcade games ever made, and followed with five upgrades which made only minor improvements on graphics and gameplay.

The success of the Street Fighter series has paved the way for many rip-offs, much as in the 80's, only back then the games which followed usually improved on the original. Today, the opposite holds true, as such titles as Time Killers (Strata, 1992), Tekken (Namco, 1995), and Virtua Fighter (Sega, 1994) are vastly inferior to any SF game.

But what makes the fighting games of the 80's superior to those of today is not the lack of originality, as literally dozens of Double Dragon clones exist from the 80's. But rather that Yie Ar Kung Fu and Kung Fu Master among others are better than most 90's martial arts games because they are far simpler to play (two or three buttons as opposed to six) and more engrossing. Not only may they be enjoyed by seasoned players and novices alike, but they also do not end upon completion of the final enemy. There is always room for improvement in the classic games, and you don't have to be an expert just to defeat the first few enemies.

Among the simplest yet most enduring from this era were the shooting games. There are two basic kinds of shooters; one utilizes a light gun to blast on-screen enemies, the other has the player represented as a spaceship shooting enemies from either a vertical or horizontal perspective. While light gun games are still being produced, the latter are obsolete, which is a shame considering the quality of many of these games. Probably the first and most famous of these was Space Invaders (Midway, 1978) which inspired a plethora of sequels and rip-offs. The object of this game was to shoot rows of increasingly descending aliens attacking Earth. Galaxian (Namco/Midway, 1979), Galaga, Gorf (Midway, 1981), Gyruss (Centuri, 1983), Centipede (Atari, 1981), and Rabbit Punch (Taito) all have essentially the same object, but each adds its own unique twist to game play. Today (with the exception of Galaga), these games have been replaced by such modern titles as Area 51 (Atari, 1995) and Lethal Enforcers (Konami), which offer either highly detailed digitized images or sophisticated rendered graphics. Instead of annihilating an enemy armada, the player's object is to kill terrorists, gang members, armed robbers, or all of the above while trying not to kill nearby police officers or innocent civilians who inevitably fall prey to either the player or on-screen enemies.

I'm not saying that I dislike any of today's popular shooters. I am saying that many shooters like Galaga provide more entertainment value than current shooters, a notion supported by the fact that it is still relatively easy to find Galaga, which was released over a decade ago, in restaurants, bars, hotels, and other assorted gathering places. It is extremely unlikely that any of the games from the 90's will be enjoyed by generations of players ten years from now the same way that Galaga and Centipede are enjoyed today.

Maze games are an all but forgotten genre in the world of electronic gaming. Starting with Pac-Man and its many sequels and wannabes including Barracuda (Coinex) and Lady Bug (Universal, 1981), this type of game, characterized by the player eating or walking over dots while evading ghosts, bugs, or other assorted meanies, quickly became a staple in early 80's arcades. Like the aforementioned titles, what sets these games apart and makes them superior to those today is their ever increasing challenge and beautiful simplicity, as one need not spend a great amount of time and money merely to learn the rudiments of a game. There are some exceptions (Trog [Midway]), but maze games are, for all practical purposes, doomed to obsolescence and will likely never be made again.

Another superb, albeit outdated, class of coin-op is the platform game. Donkey Kong and DK Jr. are perfect examples. Platform games always share the characteristic of the player ascending or descending from one floor to the next, usually to reach a goal at the top or bottom of the screen. Platforms have had numerous incarnations in such classics as Elevator Action (Taito, 1984), Kangaroo (Atari, 1982), Mappy (Midway/Namco, 1983), Burgertime (Data East, 1983), and Pig Out (Leland, 1991), but like maze games, the odds of seeing a new platform game released today are slim to none.