TODAY'S REVIEW Midway · 1997
NFL Blitz,
football with the rulebook torn out
Real football asks you to sit through a huddle, a play clock and a flag on the field. This cabinet asked for none of that, and it turned a sport most kids only watched into something they could shout at.
Latest reviews
Hydro Thunder review: the boat race that rewarded showing off
Hit the red boost, pull the Hydro Jump, and land somewhere the other boats cannot follow.
Tekken 3 review: the step to the side that opened the ring
One sidestep for every fighter, and suddenly the background was somewhere you could go.
Virtua Fighter review: three buttons and a ring you could fall out of
Three buttons, a ring you could fall out of, and fighters built out of bare polygons.
![Daytona USA Longplay (Arcade) [4K]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/X1V_2pvlAiE/hqdefault.jpg)
Daytona USA review: the race that read you on the first lap
It watched your first lap, then decided whether the other cars would make room or block you.
The House of the Dead review: the bridge that split the night in two
Save the man on the bridge and you walk in the front door. Miss him and you go through the sewers.
![Arcade Longplay [1177] Time Crisis](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/tqL4Hi1VZrE/hqdefault.jpg)
Time Crisis review: the pedal that taught you to hide
One foot pedal turned a shooting gallery into a game about the half second you spend behind cover.
Indie games, one at a time
Some games are designed, drawn and coded by one person, others by a small team. We pick the ones worth playing if you grew up in front of an arcade cabinet, and review them one at a time.
PengPong review: a penguin that never hits anything directly
Throw your weapons and let them bounce. A bullet-hell roguelike your pinball hands will recognise.
![[ 스타더스트: 별과 마녀 ] 정식 출시 트레일러](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ffHPKoZVUJ4/hqdefault.jpg)
STARDUST: Wish of the Witch review: a card SRPG that began in a barracks notebook
A Korean tactics RPG that lays a deck of cards over the classic SRPG turn, made by a studio born in basic training.
Shotgun Cop Man review: there is no jump button, so you shoot the floor
No jump button. You fire downward to launch yourself through more than 150 short levels. Made by one developer.
PengPong video: Gamirror Games · YouTube · STARDUST: Wish of the Witch video: Kniv Studio ( 크니브스튜디오 ) · YouTube · Shotgun Cop Man video: Devolver Digital (DevolverDigital) · YouTube
Today's indie chart
Updated daily from public Steam data.
Most played indies
- 1no changeWARDOGS200,134 peak players
- 2no changeSlay the Spire 291,563 peak players
- 3no changeGeometry Dash55,433 peak players
- 4no changeValheim105,226 peak players
- 5no changeStardew Valley85,038 peak players
Best-selling indies this week
- 1no changeEnshrouded
- 2no changeover the hill
- 3no changeWARDOGS
- 4no changeScam With Your Friends
- 5no changeRust
The verdicts
a racer that turned boost into strategy and made every ramp a question worth asking.Hydro Thunder
the moment a polygon fighter stopped just looking three dimensional and started playing that way.Tekken 3
the fighting game that traded flash for footing, and taught a generation to respect the edge of the ring.Virtua Fighter
By genre
Shooters
- The House of the DeadSega · 1997
- Time CrisisNamco · 1995
- Area 51Atari Games · 1995
- 1942Capcom · 1984
- Star WarsAtari · 1983
Fighters & brawlers
- Tekken 3Namco · 1997
- Virtua FighterSega · 1993
- Killer InstinctRare / Midway · 1994
- Mortal Kombat IIMidway · 1993
- Golden AxeSega · 1989
Action & platform
- Marble MadnessAtari Games · 1984
- PaperboyAtari Games · 1985
- TapperBally Midway · 1983
- TronBally Midway · 1982
- JoustWilliams Electronics · 1982
Other classics
- NFL BlitzMidway · 1997
- Hydro ThunderMidway · 1999
- Daytona USASega · 1994
- Cruis'n USAMidway · 1994
- Ms. Pac-ManMidway · 1982
NFL Blitz video: Arcade1Up Official · YouTube · Area 51 video: HIDEFACES · YouTube · Cruis'n USA video: AL82 Retrogaming Longplays · YouTube · Killer Instinct video: RieLoveChan Gaming · YouTube · Ms. Pac-Man video: World-of-Longplays · YouTube · Hydro Thunder video: Killer Arcade Games · YouTube · Tekken 3 video: FIGHTERS CHOICE Arcade · YouTube · Virtua Fighter video: Randomised Gaming · YouTube · Daytona USA video: AL82 Retrogaming Longplays · YouTube · The House of the Dead video: Nintendo of America · YouTube · Time Crisis video: World-of-Longplays · YouTube
For developers
Made a game on your own or with a small team?
We introduce indie games to readers who grew up in front of arcade cabinets. We never take money for a review, and we check the facts in every piece. Please read how we choose and write first.
Review policy and how to reach usOne review at a time,
not a list of thousands
Search for the games you played and you get tens of thousands of entries, most of them a screenshot and a download link. We take one machine at a time: what the design actually did, and what it meant to stand in front of it.
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