Midway dredges up the past

By William Barker

Visually stunted, Midway Arcade Treasures has some great classic gameplay nevertheless

What do they call those old sewing machines? Hammerslabs? Well, it doesn't really matter, but like those old sewing machines or industrial overlockers or whatever they are, classic videogames never go out of fashion.

One moment you're at school, learning about Shakespeare and how hell hath no fury like a family of rodents eating mouldy newspapers, and the next thing you know school's out and it's time to head down to the local arcade parlour to indulge in some senseless violence. And of course to play some arcade games.

You know the ones (or maybe you don't, but humour me) there's Rampage, Smash TV, Paperboy, Super Sprint and even gold nuggets like Root Beer Tapper and Klax.

These videogames may look simple and have rudimentary features, but they spawned what are now the Final Fantasies, the Project Gothams, the Halos and the Gran Turismos.

One day, these games will be looked upon like a Van Gogh, a Picasso or even a Rembrandt masterpiece.

They are the bright sparks that helped galvanise the games industry, created by nerdlingers who cared not for fame and fortune, but for shits and giggles.

And most of all they helped to create a market sector so huge that today it rakes in more cash than Hollywood.

And with Midway Arcade Treasures, all these games that seemingly never go out of fashion (for some) are compiled lovingly, complete with game histories and developer interviews on the one DVD-ROM. It's kind of like a videogame museum, and an interactive one at that.

You may look at the screenshots and think "Will my old buddy, my old friend, you may be missing a few marbles on Wednesdays, but those graphics suck and you smell like vodka."

They may be light on visual complexity, granted, and I may partake in the odd potato juice tipple every now and then - I'm only hurting myself - but Midway more than makes up for this with a level of diversity in the gameplay you just can't find outside of a compilation.

And if you want a first-hand test of what these games play like, you can check out a few shockwave versions from Midway's website, right here.

There are a handful of games in Midway Arcade Treasures that kind of suck a$$, to paraphrase the delightful Mr. Florido, but in general there's enough digital enlightenment here to keep most gamers going until long after the latest 3D action adventure romp has worn out its welcome.

The game's included on the compilation are as follows:

That's quite a list, as you can see, so bang for your buck is not in dispute here. For mine, Smash TV, Rampart, Klax, Gauntlet and Paperboy were the best, and the worst? I thought Bubbles was a bit shitty, but my born again Christian cousin certainly enjoyed it.

And that sums up what these compilations do best - they insane people together. Because there's so many titles to choose from, everybody will eventually find something to suit their acquired gaming tastes, and the games are very simple too, so if you're trying to convert a friend into a gamer, this may be a good place to start.

As a party game, Midway Arcade Treasures shines; taking it in turns to play Toobin is a riot with a bunch of friends, while Paperboy always gets my competitive juices flowing.

Despite a very poor showing in the audio-visual departments, Midway Arcade Treasures is a fairly cool compilation for gamers who remember all the classics, but those who have been gaming for a decade or less will probably find it incredibly annoying and not that much fun.

Game: Midway Arcade Treasures
System: Xbox
Players: 1-4
Online: No
Developer: Midway
Distributor: Red Ant

Rating: 65%

(Ratings Key/Explanation)

Midway Arcade Treasures is on the shelves now.