The Best Commodore 64 Arcade Ports Ever!

[@fatherjack636]

Great list and 100% agree with the list. My favourite is Ikari Warriors. The biggest surprise is Power Drift looking at the Arcade version. Chris Butler did a great job.

[@oldstylegaming]

Yeah im just glad they didnt try and make it like for like with the arcade cos that could have been more of a disaster than hard drivin lol

[@jeeperscreepers8902]

The c64 had great ports of Frogger, Tapper, Donkey Kong, Centipede, Digdug,Popeye,Donkey Kong jr. , Ghouls and Ghosts, Gyruss,Qbert,Paperboy. Crystal Castles and many others. This was the best 8th grade graduation gift my Parents bought me. They have both passed , but every time I fire my c64 up , I think of the both of them immediately. Happy Mother's day Mom. Thanks for all the memories your wonderful gift provided me in my teenage years. You saved me alot of quarters.

[@virtuafighter3]

You are right about Qbert. If people look at that conversion on the C64 they will see it is very good indeed. The spits are multicolour and well drawn. There was a Gaplus / Galaga 88 Mastertronic conversion in 1988 sometime that was excellent too wasn't there?

[@OldAussieAds]

Sorry to hear about your parents. They sounded awesome giving you that great gift back then.

[@TheStuffMade]

That's a nice list of good arcade conversions on the old C64, thanks. Another arcade conversion I enjoy a lot is R-Type, it's not arcade perfect, but a very nice conversion with excellent music.

[@oldstylegaming]

I love r-type on the c64 but as far as conversions go it lost the r-type feel but thats just cos its a reskinned rushed version of katakis due to the controversy that surrounds the game. The original unfinished and unreleased version of c64 r-type would have been much closer to the arcade

[@glennmk5167]

Buggy boy was brilliant conversation 👍

[@paulh2282]

The whole time watching this I was thinking "he better have Bubble Bobble and Ghost N Goblins in here." One port I thought was near perfect and missing from this list was Tapper.

[@MASTERSLY1973]

Great list but you had to add Green beret, Mikie, Yie ar kung fu and arguably Kung fu master. I like your videos so keep up the good work my good man!

[@patsfan4life]

Yie Ar Kung Fu was very well done but not sure how close to the arcade it was?

[@MegaasAlexandros]

King fu master definitely and wonderboy

[@marksims3904]

Buggy Boy was incredible on the C64, fantastic conversion. But for me the greatest is Bubble Bobble, spent more time playing that than any other game in the late eighties. And the music, the music...........

[@mikestunt77]

I would have added ghouls&ghosts to the list, that game was an amazing port from a very advanced game and the music, in particular the intro and the level 4, is the the best ever made for c64 imho.

[@JoeSim8s]

I super-loved level 2 music!

[@tchall6195]

Yeah, Tim Follin's music is vastly superior to the arcade. Same with C64 Bionic Commando.

[@MrUncledarth]

Great list OSG. So many timeless classics. I remember spending many an afternoon playing Buggy Boy.

[@JonasRosenven]

Great list. The transitions between them is also pretty sweet.

[@geoffreyjohnstone5465]

Brill video OSG.....Lots to like there. I would have had Gauntlet and Gren Beret in there as I had a hoot with them all those years ago but 20 solid games there that are hard to argue with

[@joesshows6793]

I had no idea most of these existed! Maybe time to update the library

[@diegotassi456]

Frogger Arcade and Donkey Kong Arcade (2016). Thanks for your great videos!

[@oldstylegaming]

They making some really good new ports ive played both those and the are really good

[@hazy33]

Interestingly Chris Butler wrote Power Drift and the original versions of Commando and Ghosts n Goblins. The guy is a genius. But has sadly refused to do interviews :-( He also did Space Harrier, 720 Degrees, Thunderblade, Turbo Charge and Arnie.

[@houseoftheted637]

My favourite arcade port, from back in the day, was Mr Heli. My biggest disappointment was Strider. Great video 😎👍

[@molhoy]

Great video! Salamander was outstanding at the time. Spent hours on that game. Love the side-by-side comparison to the original arcade versions. Your production values are getting better with every video 🙂

[@oldstylegaming]

Thanks mate, they are much more time consuming but worth it i think

[@Vindicator18]

Great list OSG! I might get lynched for this but I always liked the C64 port of Ghouls n Ghosts. It was the amazing Geoff Follin music that sold it for me!

[@ITdudeUK]

I always thought it was his more well known brother, Tim Follin

[@Vindicator18]

@@ITdudeUK yes it is! Thanks for correcting me on that!

[@earthad666]

Bubble Bobble is my favourite game of all time. The c64 version feels the best in my opinion

[@pomegran100]

Agreed. This was an amazing conversion in a single load with all 100 levels too. Even managed to squeeze in 2 players!

[@JonasRosenven]

DynamiteReggae The game is incredibly charming. I like the looks, the gameplay and the music. I have to say that even though I like all those things I find it hard to enjoy after the first 15 or 20 levels. It seems like the levels take on an attitude of being frustrating instead of fun. It's subjective - I know. It's just my expererience even today when playing with friends that we usually stop playing after level 15 or around that. It's not for lack of playing it on an arcade machine or lack of nostalgia. We just never had the will to finish the game. I love these old games and I play them regularly. I even got a cabinet :). : kzbin.info/www/bejne/qmecfY1jf9lniMk The c64 version was great. I just have a thing with these old games. As much as I like them I think the ones that hold up the best are the ones that don't take longer than 15 or 20 minutes to complete.

[@stevenmillward4105]

Agreed. I think it’s the best C64 game of all time

[@verficationaccount]

Never played the arcade original - but I really liked Midnight Resistance on the 64er.

[@PixelShade]

Awesome video mate! Although I don't own a C64 anymore, I would really love get into playing these games again (through emulation). As a child I loved Buggy Boy, Ghost and Goblin's and Bubble Bobble. I had no idea that the C64 had these many awesome arcade ports. This is definitely a video I will be returning to. :D I don't know if you know this. But these kind of videos are incredibly handy for people wanting to get back to a platform. :D

[@oldstylegaming]

Inbox me at [e-mail] if you need sorting out with an emulator and all the games mate

[@x_RunRummer_x]

Was happy to see Gyruss on there, but surprised Satan's Hollow didn't make the cut.

[@oldstylegaming]

i could have done a top 30 easy, the C64 did some great ports

[@hayesmaker64]

Atarisoft's Mario Bros, Ninja Spirit and Rod-Land would probably be my top 3, great vid as always!

[@oldstylegaming]

Mario Bros is a great conversion ... i know Rodland will be high up on the Amiga video

[@syncrow76]

Ninja Spirit was technically great, fanstastic music and great sprite multiplexer, but it the game's playability was totally unfair. I would pay anyone $500 who would be able to complete it without cheating/trainier. I would pay $200 to anyone completing Cauldron 1 or 2 in front of my eyes, too.

[@hayesmaker64]

@@syncrow76 Ninja Spirit is a lot easier than the Cauldron games.. I'll take you up on that $500!

[@syncrow76]

@@hayesmaker64 Can we make it $200? Seems like you really see a chance of making me pay. $500 is a lot, but I stick to my word. Ok, then I limit the bet to the end of May 2021. $200 goes for anytime later.

[@hayesmaker64]

@@syncrow76 DEAL!

[@knightdriver3592]

Played a lot of Alcon (Slap-Fight) on C64 growing up, and it helped introduce me to the world of arcade shmups. Also had the original version of Ghosts and Goblins, and although the game itself isn’t as good as the arcade with all the missing content, I still think the music was one of the best compositions on the C64. Also, Mr. Do is a great game, but as a kid I had a knock-off called Mr. Dig, and I’ve gotta say that they did a great job copying the gameplay, but in terms of graphics and music and I prefer it to the original. Sometimes the best ports we got on the C64 weren’t the official ones.

[@oldstylegaming]

Mr Dig lol is that like the Aldi Version hahaha. ... oh i dont know where you live ..you might not get that joke

[@Edgel-in6bs]

Agree about Rainbow Islands. Technically a good arcade game, great conversion, but I never really enjoyed it.

[@AvexFuddle]

Great to see the arcade versions to compare. Great vid

[@ITdudeUK]

Brilliant list, although I must agree with some of the commentators here that R-Type should have been included. Also Wonderboy and Pac-Land were very decent conversions.

[@OldAussieAds]

I’m torn with Wonder Boy. On one hand, it’s a pretty poor port. The main character looks like a big doofus, especially on the skateboard. And the levels aren’t as varied. But on the other hand I loved playing it back in the day and I love playing it now. I’d love to see a Wonder Boy remake on the C64 where they improve some things. The way the skateboard handles is my main gripe. But none of the home ports got this right. Not even the Sega Master System.

[@Sinisteve]

Enjoyed this mate! How did Simpsons arcade get ported to c64 and not Amiga😳 Think you could’ve shoehorned Kung Fu Master in there somewhere, love that game

[@oldstylegaming]

I maybe should have made this list 30 or 40 as ive had to leave a lot of my favourites out

[@patsfan4life]

@@oldstylegaming would you consider making a video for #21 -40?

[@Edgel-in6bs]

Great list. Nice presentation.

[@Corsa15DT]

Strange, how they got Shinobi right, and the sequel Shadow Dancer wrong.

[@BobbyCharlz]

Excellent collection that you’ve got here. There’s a few that are new to me that I’ll be adding to my list for purchase. Thank you.

[@milthyswinbuckle5158]

One game that I didn't have back in the day, and only recently played on the C64 is Smash TV. The game is awesome, and in my opinion much better than the arcade (mainly because of it's fairness in play... though I do love the arcade as well). However, to play the game you have to use the two joystick method. Playing it on the C64 with the one joystick is good, but not spectacular. As soon as you implement the two joysticks you will experience a game on the C64 like no other....Give it a go (I use keys for both joysticks in WinVice.... WASD for one joystick and the arrow keys for the other).

[@liambyrne3488]

Great list. Though personally I would of found space for R-type. Iron man Stewarts off road was a great conversion and I remember operation wolf being a pretty good conversion too, although time may have clouded my judgment on that one.

[@jurispurins8065]

Also, the side by side with the Arcades is Brilliant!!!

[@EsmeAmelia]

I didn't know any home version of the Simpsons Arcade existed.

[@oldstylegaming]

Only the C64 and Dos got a port of it but i never knew either, its very faithful to the Arcade

[@KingofPotatoPeople]

I set up Simpsons arcade c64 for my kids to see and play and even they were impressed!

[@scottythegreat1]

Apparently, Konami just wanted to make the one game and took out the rights for it. Not too long later, Acclaim wanted exclusive rights to publish for all console related games for any Simpsons related games even though Acclaim was a publisher and not a developer. So Konami was allowed to make their arcade game ports for computers, but not consoles. Its a shame, the Simpsons arcade game would have done well for the Genesis and the SNES (the SNES hardware was somewhat similar to the arcade version, and the Genesis version would have sounded similar music and sound effect wise).

[@JoeSim8s]

Thank you for the amazing list! The only two things I'm not 100% sure: turbo outrun should be higher, maybe even top5 (an incredibile, amazing masterpiece!), and I'm not sure about Shinobi (it was ok, but I remember even back then I was not impressed... I'd rather see something else instead, like the great Ghouls'n'Ghosts, or Dragonninja - but this is maybe more my personal preference)

[@oldstylegaming]

See it is all down to preference really i think. Retro games are always hard to get right and get everyones favourites in and thats not down to how good they are....sure that does play a big part but you also have to take into account the "nostalgia" factor which is massive. We all had our favourites back then and a lot of the time this was governed over which and how many games we could afford as kids. This means that even if a game wasnt the greatest we still had to play it and in most cases ended up over looking or overcoming its flaws and learning to love it.... thats what i love about retro games and making these lists because i get a true insight into other peoples nostalgia

[@JoeSim8s]

@@oldstylegaming Absolutely - nostalgia rocks! For example, I'm still deeply in love with Citadel, a semi-obscure C64 game by Martin Walker... and, guess what, it was one of my very first C64 games! And that's what I love about this channel - cause it makes me remembering how great Buggy Boy and Powerdrift were :)

[@GregDaniel78]

Some notable mentions, although possibly not up to quite the same standard are the Storm/Sales Curve conversions of Rodland, Saint Dragon and Silk Worm.

[@littleblackcat2273]

I always thought that Operation Wolf and Midnight Resistance were very good arcade ports on the C64,

[@gamingtonight1526]

Just found you. Fantastic memories. Subscribed!

[@Sheeptimusprime]

Love watching your vids. Growing up with an Amstrad and C64, seeing these lists brings back some great memories. Keep them coming :-)

[@oldstylegaming]

Glad you like them!

[@Sheeptimusprime]

@@oldstylegaming as soon as I see a notification, I’m watching.

[@oldstylegaming]

good man :-)

[@BIadesMan]

Good video mate I grew up with C64 and commodore Amiga so these videos bring back lots of childhood memories.👍Ghost n Goblins,Wonder boy,Shinobi and Ikari Warriors were my favourite games.👍

[@10MARC]

Great list, but I think Ms. Pac Man should be on the list. It is an incredible and very accurate port of the Arcade version.

[@alerey4363]

There was nothing more annoying than picking up the torch in Ghosts & Goblins all of a sudden

[@oldstylegaming]

I know...i mean who thought of that crappy weapon

[@patsfan4life]

I was hoping to see Mario Bros (Atarisoft) , Q Bert, Mr. Do and Spy Hunter....

[@oldstylegaming]

Loads had to be missed out to get it down to 20

[@JoshuaGanoTyraxLightning]

To be fair, in regards to Q-Bert, on the Arcade Version, that I now know existed for the first time, your money was on the line so ya'd wanna try as hard as ya can... the Home Version on the other hand, what was stopping anyone from suiciding Q-Bert over & over & over just to keep hearing that comically funny 'falling down scream'? :P (So notorious this was that it even made it into the Movie "Wreck It Ralph"!)

[@jurispurins8065]

Great Video esp as there are some new Retro 64 people out there

[@KiR_3d]

Rampart is cool! I remember it from my Amiga times.

[@marcusmalone]

'Waggling king' is a pretty dubious honour!

[@oldstylegaming]

Lol well its better than calling him a w*nker lol

[@BillsOldandNewGaming]

The c64 was home to some fantastic arcade conversions. You really didn't need to go to the arcades with some of these.

[@oldstylegaming]

True that

[@Eudessp]

Impressive ports!

[@TheOriginalNCDV]

Great video, definitely a few I need to check out!

[@Philosophoholic163]

Didn't realise Buggy Boy was an arcade game. Was one of my favourite C64 titles back in the day.

[@Dennis-nm4qh]

Pure Classic C64 games on this great list🤩

[@mrkirk4944]

What let the C64 version of Buggy Boy down was the size of the car sprite, it was too small. Compare that to the excellent Spectrum version, where they managed to get a near perfect car sprite, and speed was good for the Spectrum. What let the Spectrum version down was the lack of coloured flags, and gates - this was part of the arcade machine's gameplay, you had to collect flags in a colour order to get a bonus, so when they're just black it took that feature away, and you just collected black flags.

[@franzutubeable]

Good parade, some games are missing... What about Pacland, Metrocross, Green Beret, Combat School? I think there are better coversion than Power Drift or Turbo Outrun... Even if these are very good games, but coin op is impossible to convert...

[@dingo4010]

I prefer the original C64 ghosts and goblins music to the remake music.

[@oldstylegaming]

yeah the original music was special

[@maxsmarts8210]

Great video OSG, thanks mate!

[@ebbbbs]

Terra Cresta and Slapfight were also good conversions I thought. Anyway good video bud.

[@BeanoTubes]

Smashed, snapped and broken C64 joysticks! 🕹. I'm not sure if I'm the only person who kept all his busted up joysticks in a black bin bag full of them. Joysticks graveyard!! Lol!! Hoping to use the parts to try fix other broken joysticks!!

[@oldstylegaming]

No you were just normal we all did it haha

[@Corsa15DT]

These games are what separates C64 from ZX48

[@_devik]

its a no competition at this point.

[@Corsa15DT]

@@_devik yap, the zx looks like a calculator at this point

[@Lucasrainford]

Nice showcase of some top C64 ports! I bet you could've done a top 30 easy! I'm hoping for Amiga best Arcade Ports Ever! Great vid m8 :)

[@oldstylegaming]

On with it now

[@Lucasrainford]

@@oldstylegaming Nice :)

[@kez69ful]

I absolutely loved my C64! So much so, that I sold and bought them 3 or 4 times, the last one being the new style casing. I too didn't realise how many amazing arcade ports there were. In the right hands the C64 could pull off almost any port to a reasonable degree. I agree with another viewer who stated that these types of videos encourage people to get back into retro gaming but I do believe the main reason people love retro games is the originality and diversity of games and genres at the time. Think about 'Thing on a Spring', 'Boundet', 'sheep in Space '..brilliant games which were different from anything else..today, its about 75% FPS. Admittedly some amazing FPS' have been made but only since the Switch came out has there been a glut of original Indie games which hark back to the good old days which have been very popular. Retro means different things to different people but there is no doubt that "old" games are here to stay. Thank you for channels like yours which keep them alive 🙏

[@oldstylegaming]

Thanks mate :-)

[@SChristianCollins]

It's weird to see the sprites horizontally misaligned in the C64 Wizard of Wor. This was never an issue on my NTSC C64 growing up, where a friend and I poured countless hours into this game. It was definitely one of the best 2-player experiences among the games I had, along with Bubble Bobble.

[@oldstylegaming]

Ill try switching to ntsc in vice see what its like

[@Wacholder]

uugh, those scanlines ...

[@Avo7bProject]

Solar Fox was also a very close-to-arcade conversion.

[@mcd3379]

"Time Pilot" (Space Pilot) was also very good on the C64.

[@willrobinson7599]

C64 was great in mid to late 80s as the arcade games weren't to advanced.i had lots on your list and loved them all,Hyper sports,bubble bobble ,gyrus to name a few Thought operation wolf may of been on the list along with silkworm So many happy memories of a time long gone when life was much simpler.

[@paolosixtyforeverdipace4416]

Finally you released this video!!!!

[@oldstylegaming]

I actually thought this is a video i had done ... but no i hadnt even on my old channel

[@gumdeo]

Salamander was excellent, the best horizontal shooter of the time.

[@krissymarklewis1793]

You know what OSG, i didn't know Simpsons arcade was on C64. I didn't see any reviews back in the day.

[@lurkerrekrul]

Commando Arcade - Personally, I think they made a mistake by trying to mix sound effects with the arcade music. The arcade music on its own isn't bad, but when you keep taking away one voice to do the sound effects, it ends up sounding rather poor. I wish they had offered a choice of the Rob Hubbard music, the arcade music or sound effects alone. It was a nice idea to try and have both the arcade music and sound effects, but I don't know anyone who actually prefers that option.

[@TheBerk01]

Here's one up for debate: Was Radar Rat Race better than Rally X? Sure, the c64 version was based on the vic 20 version so it was entirely character based and had no sprites, unlike rally x with it's smooth scrolling and animated turning. But it was so much easier to play, and the addition of the 'three blind mice' single voice soundtrack gave it a real frantic feel, especially when it time was running out and it seemed to speed up on its own, while the red rats relentlessly closed in

[@PedroFerreira-sx2gd]

A good list but always debatable. If you consider the most faithful I think Is great, of you consider the most fun ports (whether they are faithful or not) there are gems like rtype and midnight resistance

[@dimimmobiliare]

Pacland for commodore 64 iscritto best conversion for home computer

[@ripxkid]

There are tons of them lol :D Pang Silkworm Green Beret Kung Fu Master R-Type Alien Syndrome Badlands Burger Time Cabal Phoenix aka Eagle Empire Ninja Spirit Midnight Resistance Paperboy Popeye Robocop Rastan Rygar Time Pilot aka Space Pilot Sly Spy - Secret Agent Super Monaco GP Tiger Road

[@oldstylegaming]

Yeah could have done a longer list.... Rastan wouldnt have been in as its bugged and has a un makeable jump in

[@patsfan4life]

Badlands was well done for sure

[@aiddogg3]

I played at least 12 of those on my C64 back in the day

[@eskey691]

First arcade i ever played was Pacman, an now i feel old lol. Great list as always buddy and 1 or 2 of them i have never played so will be fixing that haha. So until next time take it wasy and roll on the next one 👍 Ps, Salamander was a pure class game.

[@oldstylegaming]

It was mate

[@petergare4766]

Gauntlet was pretty good on the C64, alongside The Deeper Dungeons expansion and sequel. Only 2 player but it did the job.

[@VersusCity96]

good stuff! have a great day! 👍👍

[@emilybaxterthecartoonywitc1805]

I remember playing Track and Field

[@DjClarky78]

Did you have many cartridge games on your C64? Did you think the graphics were generally better? I had I think Navy Seals, and Terminator 2. They definitely felt a bit more polished than the cassette stuff, I am assuming simply by the speed of loading?

[@scottythegreat1]

The Simpsons port was a decent attempt, but the C64 showed its age by this point. You couldnt draw too many men on the screen because of low memory and even the movements werent perfect. It was a good attempt to turn a 8 voice sound system to a 3 voice sound system, but it just didnt have it all.

[@talhafatihuzun]

Let's not forget Cabal. It's one of the best ports and one of the best games on C64.

[@Gamevet]

You should check out Road Runner on the C64. It's an amazing conversion.

[@DenisBrkhus]

Is there something funky with the Wizard of Wor clip now too? Player and enemies seem to clip the walls? But great vid, agree on all these. Didn’t know a G’n’G arcade version was out tho! Thanks 👍

[@oldstylegaming]

Apparently its cos im running it in pal

[@DenisBrkhus]

@@oldstylegaming Hmm, never saw it like this before. Remember playing it as a kid too, off a cart, and later a crack. Also played it on my MiSTer recently, no bug like that there either? Can double check!

[@DenisBrkhus]

@@oldstylegaming Double checked now. Ran the CRT version (1983 by Commodore) in PAL mode, no such bugs there.

[@oldstylegaming]

Im assuming im using a NTSC rom on pal settings

[@lordevyl8317]

I also like the NES version of Bionic Commando better than the arcade as well

[@Technokrat1981]

Hey Bro super nice video. My very first computer was a c64 in 1993 and I still have in place. Also my very first game is still my fav and also it is in your list. Its WizzardOfWor. I played it with my cousine when ever we were allowed to play. I loved to sound and very polished coop experience of that game. I still have the cartridge version, and if my cousine comes to visit me once in a year, we play M.U.L.E. and WizzardOfWor! Thx for the great content

[@leighpark3917]

Honorable mention - kung-fu master

[@trickysoft]

Lots of those games look like good versions, but the fat pixels, wrong aspect ratio and often wrong movement speeds mean that they are not good arcade ports for me. Some of them could have been made pixel perfect with some effort, but I guess commercial reasons probably got in the way. I'm from a BBC micro background and we have some great ports of the earlier games, but rarely got anything of the later games!

[@poppinandrottin]

I had suprisingly many of these.

[@fionagibson3314]

When I got the c64, I have the white one, looking abit like the amiga, I had wizard of war on cartridge.

[@oldstylegaming]

Nice mine was a c64c too

[@Corsa15DT]

If Giana Sisters had an arcade version, C64 would rule it.

[@ncf1]

no Double Dragon?? :D ;)

[@oldstylegaming]

that would never be on... one of the most painful memories from my childhood that lol

[@ncf1]

@@oldstylegaming hehe me too. I agree with you, some of the games in your video were better in many ways than the arcade versions, I was actually playing Metrocross just yesterday, I reckon that could be another one, I preferred the C64 version. But loved the video mate, great work!

[@oldstylegaming]

thanks man :-)

[@MrFed.]

I broke so many joysticks playing Track and Field!

[@nellitheretrogamer8666]

I never played most of these games. I liked Gauntlet and Terra Cresta.

[@basvanharen2904]

Great list! now I have to spin the c64 on again tonight😁👍🏻

[@oldstylegaming]

It would be rude not to :-)

[@ranmaz76]

r-type should have been there too...

[@oldstylegaming]

Rtype is one of my favourite c64 shoot em ups but its not really a arcade port though its more of a rushed reskin of katakis...which isnt a bad thing. I did a whole video on this exact subject about a year ago called backstabbing and lawsuits the c64 rtype story. Its a very controversial game

[@Simon0]

What about bionic granny? Nah just joking. Great video

[@Corsa15DT]

Everybody keeps forgetting Pooyan.

[@ChrisHopkinsBass]

Rodland was fabulous too

[@darrenproctor1687]

How could kong fu master not be on here it's the closest game iv played from the arcades!

[@metalcoola]

Rod-Land, doesn't have in-game music, colorful backgrounds or half of levels (and, to be fair, not a single port had it) but other than that, it was an excellent port.

[@oldstylegaming]

Its a brilliant Amiga arcade port