Getting Your Quarter's Worth: Year-by-year Breakdown of the Eighties Top Games

Getting Your Quarter's Worth: Year-by-year Breakdown of the Eighties Top Games
by Erik Sincoff

1980
Battlezone (Atari)
• First 1st person shooter, 1st major 3d game

Pac Man (Namco, lic Midway)
Ms. Pac-Man (1981)
• First cute character
• Proved that women would play video games.
• First maze game

Defender (Williams)
Stargate (1981)

Tempest (Atari)

Also notable: Berzerk (Stern), Missile Command (Atari), Phoenix (Amstar), Space Duel (Atari), Star Castle (Cinematronics), Wizard of Wor (Midway)

1981
Centipede (Atari)
• First by a woman designer

Donkey Kong (Nintendo)
(Donkey Kong Jr (1982)
• First Nintendo American success

Galaga (Namco, lic Midway)
• Amazingly timeless

Also: Frogger (Konami), Gorf (Midway), Omega Race (Midway), Qix (Taito), Turbo (Sega), Vanguard (Centuri), Venture (Exidy)

1982
Dig Dug (Namco)

Joust (Williams)

Pole Position (Namco, lic Atari)

Robotron 2084 (Williams)

Time Pilot (Centuri)

Tron (Midway)

Zaxxon (Sega)
• First 3d scroller

Also: Black Widow (Atari), Burger Time (Data East), Jungle Hunt (Taito),
Kangaroo (Sun Electronics, lic Atari), Moon Patrol (Irem, lic Williams),
Pengo (Sega), Q*bert (Gottlieb), Sinistar (Williams)

1983
Dragon's Lair (Cinematronics) (Space Ace 1983)
• First laser disc game

Mario Bros (Nintendo)

Star Wars (Atari)
• First successful cross gaming/movie venture.

Also: Cliff Hanger (Stern), Elevator Action (Taito), I, Robot (Atari),
Mr. Do's Castle (Universal), Spy Hunter (Midway), Tapper (Midway),
Track & Field (Konami)

1984
Karate Champ (Data East)
• Spawned martial arts fight genre

Punch-Out! (Nintendo)

Also: Kung-Fu Master (Irem, lic Data East), Marble Madness (Atari),
Paperboy (Atari), Vs. Baseball (Nintendo), Vs. Tennis (Nintendo)

1985
Gauntlet (Atari) (Gauntlet II 1986)
• First 4 player (simultaneous) game

Super Mario Bros (Nintendo)
• Instant classic scroller

A lso: Commando (Capcom lic Data East),
Ghosts 'n Goblins (Capcom) (Ghouls'n Ghosts 1988),
Yie Ar Kung-Fu (Konami)

1986
720 degrees (Atari)

Outrun (Sega)

A lso: Arkanoid (Taito), Rampage (Midway)

1987
Double Dragon (Technos, lic Taito)

1943: The Battle of Midway (Capcom)

A lso: APB (Atari), Final Lap (Namco), Road Blasters (Atari),
Street Fighter (Capcom), Tecmo Bowl (Nichibutsu), Xenophobe (Midway)

1988
Hard Drivin' (Atari)
• First 3d polygon based driving game

A lso: Altered Beast (Sega), Tetris (Atari)

1989
Golden Tee (Strata)
• New versions still going strong

Also: Final Fight (Capcom), Golden Axe (Sega)