Kim Justice's Top 100 Arcade Games of All Time

At last, here's my Top 100 Favourite Arcade Games of All Time - everything from the Golden Age, to 3D Classics, Sega Super Scalers, Big Names and Hidden Gems. Namco, Taito, Atari, Konami, Capcom...you name it. A celebration of the best of the arcades. Enjoy!
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0:00 Intro
01:33 #100-#91: Pit-Fighter to Mortal Kombat II
10:05 #90-#81: Virtua Fighter to Kung-Fu Master
18:50 #80-#71: Hang-On to Rolling Thunder
28:00 #70-#61: Robocop 2 to Vampire Savior 2
38:00 #60-#51: Time Pilot to Daytona USA
46:30 #50-#41: Sinistar to Chase H.Q.
57:50 #40-#31: Pac-Man to Street Fighter Alpha 3
1:08:30 #30-#21: Bomb Jack to Elevator Action Returns
1:19:00 The Top 20 Arcade Games of All Time
1:30:40 The Top 10 Arcade Games of All Time
1:44:30 The Best Arcade Game of All Time
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#retrogaming #arcadegames #arcadeclassics #goldenagearcades #90sarcade #retrogames #arcadegaming

[@justsignmeup911]

100-51 1:38 Pit-Fighter 2:34 Soccer Brawl 3:20 Robocop 4:20 Renegade 5:24 Great Swordsman 5:59 Bionic Commando 6:46 Tekken 2 7:44 Bonanza Bros. 8:33 Sly Spy 9:31 Mortal Kombat II 10:08 Virtua Fighter 10:54 Enduro Racer 11:29 Vendetta 12:29 Saint Dragon 13:22 Donkey Kong 14:25 Last Bronx 15:18 Defender 16:09 Aliens 17:00 The Punisher 18:01 Kung-Fu Master 18:52 Hang-On 20:00 Aero Fighters 20:49 Star Wars 21:50 Rampage 22:53 Fantasy Zone 23:44 NBA Jam 24:36 Virtua Cop 2 25:30 Progear 26:16 Commando 27:11 Rolling Thunder 28:02 Robocop 2 29:57 Double Dragon, nice 30:00 The Legend of Kage 30:55 Crystal Castles 32:00 Track and Field 33:01 Space Invaders 34:01 Thunder Blade 35:00 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 36:05 Marble Madness 37:00 Vampire Savior 2 38:00 Time Pilot 38:54 Bad Dudes 39:48 Metal Slug 40:41 The Battle of Midway 41:39 Knights of the Round 42:26 Guwange 43:11 Sega Ninja 44:00 Dead Connection 44:50 Pang! 3 45:40 Daytona USA

[@thedng3694]

I was out at Pitfighter. Tha 'game' shouldn't be on any top list.

[@justsignmeup911]

50-11 46:33 Sinistar 47:35 Marvel vs. Capcom 48:50 Gyruss 49:33 Windjammers 50:36 After Burner II 51:44 Smash TV 53:05 Carrier Air Wing 54:12 Sega Rally Championship 55:24 Football Champ 56:45 Chase H.Q. 57:50 Pac-Man 58:55 Sunset Riders 59:55 Mushihime-sama 1:01:03 Galaxy Force II 1:02:05 Die Hard Arcade 1:03:00 Tapper 1:04:17 Mortal Kombat 1:05:30 Gauntlet 1:06:33 Point Blank 1:07:40 Street Fighter Alpha 3 1:08:30 Bomb Jack 1:09:33 Golden Axe 1:10:50 Robotron: 2084 1:12:00 Outrun 1:13:06 Asteroids 1:14:30 Strider 1:15:25 Soul Edge 1:16:15 Final Fight 1:17:19 Shinobi 1:19:05 Joust 1:20:02 Bubble Bobble 1:20:59 Time Crisis 1:22:06 The Simpsons 1:23:15 House of the Dead 2 1:24:23 Flicky 1:25:40 BurgerTime 1:26:44 Tekken 3 1:27:51 Alien Syndrome 1:29:11 Golden Axe: Revenge of Death Adder

[@jzed122]

That much Arcade Game history shouldn't be on the same list. Comparing Arcade version 1 of Space Invaders against Super Mario Bros is like comparing eating a just picked orange and watching ducks on a pond while standing by yourself VS eating Duck a'lorange in Paris France sitting down at a cafe with the person you just eloped with. Pong - 1981, 1982 - 1985, 1986 - 1989, The 90s didn't have as much rapid change in hardware tech, for one example though: Virtua Fighter 1 shouldn't have to compete with the final stable patch edition of Gauntlet: Dark Legacy, both are on different hardware platforms that give a completely different gaming experience.

[@mgtproductions9524]

The sound of the guy dying in the attract sequence for Space Harrier could be heard above every other noise in the arcade

[@goonerlee]

That is so true :)

[@gaylordfocker7990]

Not when there was a Punch-Out cabinet in the room. "Body blow, body blow!"

[@jonpon69]

The sounds of Blackpool in the 80s. Good times

[@yozza4978]

"Arrrgggghhhhh.....get ready"...but i think chase hq would give it a run for its money for how loud it was in the arcade.

[@dannyhfx9516]

👌👌👌

[@manoo2056]

Thanks a lot for this Kim! I was addicted back them in Spain, there were a lot of them even in my neighborhood. We had them in "bars" (they are like Spanish version of pubs). It was so shitty to play when everyone was smoking but it was such an excitement when I could discover a hidden treasure. I remember escaping my parents so many times to check the arcade machines of every pub, every city we visited. Cannot wait to see your take on this. Best documentaries of videogames. Thanks!!!

[@ShinSouther]

25-30 years ago I used to visit my grandfathers in Spain for the summer in Cambrils (I live in France) and it was heaven for me; 3 arcades around me, arcade cabinets in almost every bar. I have great memories of a bartender playing the first ASO, it was a pleasure to watch him play, made me fall in love with shmups.

[@neontetra1000]

Ouîu

[@mike04574]

weren't there arcades?

[@Dino83]

Top 100 while I'm wallpapering? Let's go! ♡

[@LeoBassCovers2]

Metal Slug will always be #1 for me. But then you realize that you haven't even played 98% of the games on this phenomenal list.. What a video!

[@Kim_Justice]

Thank you Leo! As it happens, I've enjoyed a lot of your bass vids!

[@rodneyabrett]

Those crunchy bassy punch and kick sounds of the old beat-em-ups as they echoed inside the wooden cabinets really hit the nostalgia bone for me. Some of my fondest memories of spending hours at the arcade.

[@rodneyabrett]

@Newsbender II Not sure where they were located, but the acustics around that region of the wood "tunnel" type shape was really nice.

[@JP-dv7rf]

I was not expecting a Venetian Snares reference in this video but that's why I love the channel. Great video Kim!

[@Jamal_Tyrone]

What was it? i missed it!

[@noaht2005]

@@Jamal_Tyroneshe said Defender sounded like a Venetian Snares concert. The reference caught me off guard too

[@alexmotts]

As an 80s baby i lived in the arcade. Miss those days

[@voltron983]

Funnily enough the first time I played Virtua Fighter was also at Gatwick airport when I was going on holiday with my best friend and her family when we were about 12. We were so intrigued by it we couldn't stop playing, so much so that we almost missed our flight, fun memories. Always enjoy these countdown videos Kim, hope to see more in the future.

[@byRobertEklund]

So many hours I’ve spent playing these games back in the day, and so many coins I’ve spent! Thank you for the trip down memory lane!

[@sideswipe1261]

“Raider Trad” is the only shooter to take more of my money than Galaga!

[@larryregal1172]

I just started watching this video & I never new that ocean made the first robocop game & licensed it to Data East.. I'd love to see a COMPLETE HISTORY OF ROBOCOP VIDEOS GAMES Video from you Kim!! I think you would knock it out of the park & it would be an amazing documentary!!

[@BlueLegend595]

This needs to happen. Only Kim can do this Justice.

[@thejackbull210]

oliver Harper did a pretty good Retrospective for the Robocop games on his channel.

[@diddrumdontdrum]

What a thoroughly enjoyable journey through your favourite arcade games. I can’t argue with any of your choices as this is such a personal list. My age and nostalgia for certain titles might produce a slightly different list / order but wouldn’t be essentially much different. Thanks for taking the time to make this one. So nice to sit through and let the memories flood back.

[@jamiecampbell8855]

Your work, Jeremy parish, mvg and the retro hour, all great chroniclers of gaming history. Each with a unique take. Love all of your work.

[@jexthegamer]

I love your top 100 lists so much and have been missing them lately. Thank you for this

[@skijumpnose]

Wow! Thanks for this Kim! I always enjoy videos like this, The Top 100 Amiga games being a big favourite.

[@GKitz211]

The perfect topic for the moment. Thank you for this glorious list of childhood-memories!

[@carlosbfly]

Brilliant video as always, so indepth and I always come away learning more about gaming history. Well done Kim!

[@markmacrae8158]

A very enjoyable video Kim. Thanks for your time making it :)

[@rockykimpel]

TMNT, Simpsons, and Gauntlet Legends were always my favorites!! Awesome list and so much nostalgia.

[@seebarry4068]

I always loved the surprise cabinets you’ve never seen before. Commonly found in chip-shops and motorway service stations.

[@BrimarBrimar-gv5lc]

Love to hear Kim talking really chills me out after a hard days graft

[@krissymarklewis1793]

wow, think I'm gonna have to pop to the shop and grab a few red stripes for this bad boy:)

[@liveyourdreammedia]

Imma roll one up for this. Enjoy!

[@Blue-zw8er]

People actually buy and drink red stripe? amazing

[@pigsymagic4741]

@@Blue-zw8er one of the best largers lghter/fuller/sweeter than bud, and not as heavy/dense as stella like goldilocks said this ones just right

[@krissymarklewis1793]

@@Blue-zw8er Red Stripe is the best larger!

[@christschin3708]

@@Blue-zw8er I find that people actually buy and drink Carling amazing.

[@montypeno1495]

Making a list like this really does come down to your memories of playing these games growing up. In the last year I was able to get a home system with many of these games loaded on to it and it has been a lot of fun rediscovering them or playing them for the first time. My personal favorites would be Galaga, Street Fighter 2-Champions Edition, and Konami's X-Men 6 player, but again when it comes to favorites it's all about those great memories at your local arcade. Now I'm going to try a few of them from your list that I didn't see as much growing up.

[@optima-nova772]

Thank you Kim! Cool to see an arcade list from you, enjoyed it.

[@terrythe2dmaniac71]

As usual an expertly made video chook full of nostalgia, thanks and keep up the amazing work.

[@onomatopoeia7505]

I can't even imagine how many hours you sunk into this, but it really shows. They provide me with some sort of "during the day"-asmr 👍 Very well done!

[@michael.almond]

Great video. Thanks for making it! So many excellent games here that I still haven’t got round to playing…

[@btetschner]

Amazing video, thank you for much for making it. I especially like the pick of Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, I have never seen that on any list before. Hopefully the days of the arcades with these classics will return!

[@mamehaze]

I do find it fascinating how different this list is compared to anything I'd put together if doing one myself. I wasn't fortunate enough to get to play the majority of games in an arcade, but instead have spent over 20 years getting them emulated so what I've been exposed to and grown to enjoy is almost entirely different. I should put together that list of my own at some point, but I know just how long it takes to record the footage, script everything, record and edit the voiceover etc. even for a short 10-15 minute video, so I can only imagine how long this almost 2 hour one too you.

[@seebarry4068]

It’s not quite the same as having lived it tiger.

[@mamehaze]

@@seebarry4068 yeah that's what I'm getting at. Kim's stories of multiplayer experiences are replaced with ones more focused on a single player experience, and trying to figure out how things worked. It's why I always enjoy watching these videos, hearing the different stories etc.

[@HighwayMule]

What an epic video, so much beauty in action in sprite, polygon and synth music form!

[@GryphonICD]

Can you imagine trying to survive family holidays back in the 80s and 90s without the aid of arcades? A truly horrifying thought. Great list. Definitely similar to my own experiences, and honestly, fighting and wrestling games can come and go, adding more bells and whistles, but the top two here will always be the benchmarks.

[@Gecko1993HogheadIncOfficial]

Never should I have shown up to a Kim Justice video so early! As always, excellent work, Kim!

[@Briarcastle]

Always wonderful stuff! Thanks for putting in the work!

[@businesscat380]

Great video 👍 Surely Ghoul 'n' Ghosts and R-Type need a place in there? You should play Boogie Wings too. It's what would happen if UN Squadron, Metal Slug and Dynamite Headdy had a lovechild...it's insanely good 😂

[@ninjapirate47]

At number 2, I literally said out loud "so what's your 1st? Wrestlefest?" In a joking manner as I always played it as a kid. I burst out laughing when I was right. It wasn't the best, it was kinda clunky and an absolute coin devourer. But there's no denying the effect it had when we were young. I loved it too. The chunky characters, the voices... it was great. Mame..... oh maaaaaame! Love it! Great list, Kim! Incredibly entertaining watch.

[@Whiskeyklone]

Seeing this uploaded just brighten my day! Fanks, you wightious webel of KZbin retro gaming! EDIT: and an RLM reference to start. *chef's kiss*

[@1989ArcadeBar]

Fantastic list Kim! Very happy to see a lot of your top 20 games are in the '89 arcade!

[@iamthatguyfromslipknot1137]

I always get very nostalgic when i watch your videos as i played and loved most of these games when i was a kid in the 80s and also grew up on the speccy..keep up the great work mate..

[@Spodikus]

Another great video of the games of yesteryear. Brilliant stuff well done. Keep em coming Kim

[@miaouew]

I love arcade games so much I turned my wayfair desk into a cabinet...drilled the holes for the buttons and lever, added supports so it is mounted to the corner walls of my office so I can really jam down on the lever without moving the desk a nanometer. It barely obstructs my ability to type and use the desk, too...best idea I have had in awhile. I love it, and use the stick for everything from Streets of Rage Remake to Rondo of Blood to Final Fantasy 7 to Chilren of the Atom and all my fav 90's arcade titles via retroarch.

[@execation]

Kim, I love you.. These videos are the highlight of my KZbin journey - for real.

[@RodTejada502]

Pretty solid list! Thanks for sharing this Kim!

[@nickysilks]

Me and my mate used to travel an 80 mile round-trip to play Wrestlefest in Swansea cinema. Great game and great days!

[@aztockdog]

Thanks great video! I am in an arcade mood atm has been great seeing so many great ones I’d never seen b4…

[@peter486]

thank you for existing on youtube your videos are so good.

[@stevesteve0521]

Another amazing list, doing a top 100 of anything is extremely difficult. I look forward to the next one

[@tuco2k]

Thank you for the memories that this video contains. Nice list :)

[@keness4768]

Banger of a list. Good job, mate!

[@dantronic1836]

Great video Kim, loved every minute of it!

[@salvatoreconte6332]

Kim, I'm loving that Wrestlefest is #1. Great list, thank you for sharing with us!

[@BURRITO44]

Awesome compilation!!!

[@haveanotherpinacolada]

When you mentioned about that game being at your local chippy that you'd play whilst you wait... that is a genius idea. All these takeaways and whatnot should have a game or 2 for whilst you're waiting for the food. So you're not just sat pretendingt to look at your phone waiting awkwardly for 10 minutes.

[@OrgyOfArcade]

I remember chip shops and other takeaways having them, then it went to fruit machines and then nothing. Bring them back

[@Aboveup]

One of the takeaway places my family ordered food from frequently had a Bust A Move cabinet and good lord I played a ton of that. The place is still in business, but the cab is gone now. Such a shame.

[@jamesw3546]

Was waiting to see where Neo Turf Masters placed haha. Nice to see it so (deservingly) high up :) Another great video!

[@TheSlysterII]

Great video Kim, thanks! xx

[@cloudtx]

Another fun top 100! Great work Kim! We're getting closer and closer to that Top 100 PS1 games, that's the one I'd like to see the most since it's my N1 console :D

[@leewprice]

This is great Kim! I've built my own arcade machine, running a Virtuaman image with over 2000 games; so much history to catch up on. Yesterday I played through Sunset Riders. And I had all the coins I could ever need to do so! Happy days

[@realmchat6665]

Great video, always enjoy your excellent retro gaming content, and you get bonus points for putting Alien Syndrome high on the list :)

[@rinner2801]

I simply can't play Bionic Commando without the amazing C64 soundtrack.

[@DEVILTAZ35]

I remember the C64 loading music for games it was so cool :) . Nowadays games load so fast and with Resume on Xbox Series X there is zero wait time at all. It's incredible really but i do miss the music of the old days :)

[@rinner2801]

@@DEVILTAZ35 Cybernoid 2 had the best loading music. I wish I kept all my C64 music tapes from the magazines. I have tap backups but its not the same :)

[@torbjornallguren5321]

One of the best list of 80+ arcade games. Nice to watch

[@wrena79]

Awesome video!! Thanks Kim. Was literally looking at my YT subs and thinking to myself - "you know what...I could definitely do with an upload from KJ"....et voilà immediately catch sight of this. Made my day. Lucky enough to own quite a few of these. Great to hear your thoughts on them.

[@leepellett]

Loved this list. was not expecting the number one but completely agree with it.

[@dalewylie5312]

I absolutely love your videos!

[@mattjames6349]

Another great video Kim! I appreciate that 15 minute videos on You Tube have their place but everytme I get a notification for one of yours, I know It will be a good long one! Keep it up! :)

[@frevilo1]

These bring back some crazy memories! Thanks (some I'd forgotten). Also paperboy, r type 2, forgotten worlds and ghouls and ghosts along with many others. London as a kid was such a fun time.

[@PigsysRetroGameDevTutorials]

Good first choice! I played that Royal Rumble mode so much, it was such hectic fun. That era when you could randomly walk into an arcade and be absolutely blown away by some game you never even know existed has long past, but I'm glad I'm old enough to have experienced it.

[@PigsysRetroGameDevTutorials]

Great video btw. It's not many youtubers that I could sit through a 2 hour top 100 for, but Kim's are always fantastic!

[@NebLleb]

[sees House of the Dead 2 high on the list] Aah, I see you're a man of culture as well.

[@Gurneyface]

Well done Kim, I couldn't even name 100 Games, never mind put them in order and speak so eloquently about them!

[@Cephlin]

Thanks for the video Kim!

[@fastphotos78]

What a great list! A couple I haven't heard of and I'm definitely going to cheak out!

[@nauglefest]

I work at an arcade, it's actually a restaurant that is also a vintage 1980's and 1990's arcade and we had RoBo cop there on grand opening but it was glitching pretty bad just a week later. I really liked the RoboCop arcade game too.

[@luisrivera7991]

I was finding your ranking so weird and then i remember your 80's-90's home computer back ground,it makes total sense

[@sanny87]

Thank you for your work. I bloody love it.

[@KabukiKid]

Your lists are always such fun journeys. :-) If I could own one cabinet in my home, it would be an old-school Asteroids cab. That game never gets old to me.

[@davidc6836]

Just discovered your channel and you have a new subscriber😊amazing content like this video!! Greetings from Spain!

[@ST91111]

Love these top 100 videos ❤

[@jameslovesbutter2314]

Thanks for the content, great work man :)

[@104d_3rr0r_vince]

I always felt that heaven will be full of flashing screens and williams jingles.

[@BinnisRetro]

Wow I did not expect that so many of my quirky top 10 picks ended up in your top 10 as well…number 9, 6 and 5! Huge favourites here. Great video overall. Only games I would have loved to see there would be some Psikyo games: Strikers 1945 and Gunbird series are amazing. Of the golden age games I also love Centipede and Dig Dug, but I loved all your shoutouts to that era. One gaming company I used to work for had a Robotron machine and man if I had one machine from that era at home that would be an easy pick.

[@ph1llyg24]

Not even watched yet but it's a new KimJ vid on arcade games.... Can't wait.

[@ashdoginc]

Yes! Wrestlefest! It is such an amazing game, the biggest compliment I can give it is that it has never been replicated. The AI is excellent and better than the likes of No Mercy.

[@duxmyman555]

I never knew there was a sequel to one of my favourite ever games.. UN squadron... I'm off to find it and play it 👍

[@redhat9691]

Great video Kim, keep it up

[@steelcurtain187]

Damn, this is a great list. Good call on number 1!

[@poco_a_poco_music]

Thumbs up before I've even started watching. I love these.

[@NewportBox100s]

Such an amazing episode, Kim! You truly go above and beyond in your videos. I truly appreciate all the work you put in. Now I've got to check out your Top 100 Mega Drive video. 😁

[@dylanthomas9907]

Thank you for this video i loved the old school arcade

[@EsmeAmelia]

Ah, arcades. Such good memories. I remember you saying in one of your other lists (can't remember which one) that you might someday make a list of the top games in your Steam library - if you ever did that, I'd totally be interested in it.

[@gnattress]

Kim, yes, it's the music in Marble Madness that makes it eerie! Classic soundtrack, wonderful graphics, iconic game!

[@mik310s]

Thanks for the fond memories Kim

[@HanMono]

Wonderful content. Nothing else to expect from you Kim. Thanks for all the work. Greets from Germany.

[@BuzzaB77]

good list, I just got a legends ultimate machine, compiling your list As I type. Cheers Kim.

[@lizstar3630]

I love how whenever I watch your lists, even though we really disagree on a lot of games, you sell your reasoning very well. I totally get why you put what you put well. Though obviously a list like this will have some steep cuts, there are a few games I feel are sorely missing! At least for me, some of my favorites: Satan's Hollow. Tempest. Battle Zone. I Robot. Star Trek. Super Locomotive. Columns. Jackrabbit. Radiant Silvergun. Ikaruga. Fighting Vipers. Sonic the Fighters I could go on for literal ages lol

[@lizstar3630]

OMG I FORGOT ANTEATER. I feel ashamed, that's like #3 for me. Super locomotive, Tempest, Anteater. My top 3. I'm a big 80s arcade girl, I love score grinding =w=

[@MrSmokincodz]

Robocop 2 is one of my favorite games. I feel it was much better than the first. When Murphy dies and the count down begins, the animation of him is tramatic af lol

[@dintyshideaway9505]

That was such a good list, I think I am going to tackle the 2 hour 41 minute Sinclair Triology now. It is a holiday weekend after all.

[@iamthatguyfromslipknot1137]

Yeah do it as its well worth a watch specially if you grew up on a speccy like i did..

[@dintyshideaway9505]

@@iamthatguyfromslipknot1137 I did and it was awesome!!!!

[@peterfairchild258]

WOW...I feel so old 😂 Good video,better day's and better games cheers mate👍

[@yoso378]

It's kinda crazy finding out so many cool games had really cool soundtracks. The arcades I used to go to with my dad were always pretty busy and it was hard to hear the games a lot of the time. Definitely glad to see Space Harrier so high up on the list. I only played it for the first time 1 or 2 years ago when I got it on my switch and I fell in love with it. Definitely holds up today and it still looks really cool!

[@xarosnation4043]

I am going to buy a Pandora Box this Year and this video gave me 100 more reasons to do so! Thanks for the wonderfull list!

[@lanceuppercut3498]

Brilliant, thanks for doing this. Some great choices there. And yes The Legend Of Kage. I loved that game as young un. Although believe it or not I actually didn't know it was an arcade game until recently. I played it death on The ZX Spectrum, I loved the Spectrum conversion. I got it one Christmas and must of played it for months and months, even after completing it multiple time, for me personally I just couldn't get enough of it.

[@zultan824]

Awesome list. I'm gutted that X-Men arcade and road blasters didn't make the list but then it's not my list. Thanks Kim