Arcades... neon overkill, slightly grubby, awash with loose change. And that's just the punters. FG looks at the birthplace of gaming and asks, has it finally come of age?
Jason Brookes

Cast your mind back to the last time you had to physically drag yourself from an arcade. We're not talking one last cheeky credit before sloping off to take your girlfriend shopping. No. We're talking about extreme circumstances when such a noble commitment would have taken a back seat as you set about pummelling the enormous mutant chicken Boss on level three of Rooster Rampage. When you only tore yourself away from a machine because you were in fear of losing your mind.

Still can't remember? Well, those days are long gone, and it's just possible you're too young to remember them. Back when arcades were infamous for being dark, smokey dens of iniquity such behaviour went hand in hand with being a sad, pathetic loser. Never to attain the veneer of cool enjoyed by the skate ramp or the record shop, arcades were always a bit short on style. Patrons suffered bad skin. Girlfriends got bored and strayed.

So, the standard clientele of sweaty-palmed, empty-pocketed Parka-wearers may have been as unsavoury as a Travellers Fare cheeseburger, but look beyond that dark, seedy backdrop and you had a place where the best games of those bygone years could shine.

Throughout the '80s and early '90s, videogaming was epitomised by challenging, addictive arcade games such as Ikari Warriors, R-Type and Commando. Home consoles and computers may have offered similar experiences, but through a combination of skilful game design and superior technology, the arcades always managed to stay several steps ahead. The perfect game was always just around the corner, and such creations were designed to be played to death.

Today, the coin-op machine is still a contender, but it's a very different beast. In its efforts to knacker the plans of its home-based rivals, the arcade industry has been on the defensive for a while now - and graphics rather than sophisticated gameplay have been the weapon of choice.