Coin-op conversions: from the arcades to your home sorted by title, from Z to A
Arcades experienced immense popularity during the 1980s and 1990s, serving as social hubs where people gathered to enjoy video games. Before the rise of poker machines, individuals frequented pubs or dedicated arcades to play video games known as coin-operated machines or coin-ops. These machines required players to insert coins to start playing, creating a pay-to-play model that was both thrilling and addictive.
As home video game consoles and computers advanced, many popular arcade games were adapted for these platforms. The transition allowed players to enjoy their favorite games in the comfort of their own homes. Systems like the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Sega Genesis, and various home computers saw ports of arcade hits, often with slight modifications due to hardware limitations.
Coin-operated machines not only provided entertainment but also influenced game design, community building, and the overall trajectory of the gaming industry.
Most popular coin-op conversion games
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Zaxxon
DOS1984 Sega
Back in 1984, Zaxxon was the future. Isometric graphics? Whoa. Shadow effects? Mind blown. But mostly, it was a game about flying a chunky spaceship through a heavily fortified space base while crashing into walls at high speed. T...
Yie Ar Kung Fu 2: The Emperor Yie-Gah
DOS1985 Konami
The sequel nobody expected but everyone button-mashed through. Yie Ar Kung Fu 2 adds more characters, more chaos, and less coherence. This time you’re Lee (no relation to Bruce, allegedly), battling an army of themed fighter...
Yie Ar Kung Fu
DOS1985 Konami
The proto-fighting game that walked so Street Fighter could punch. Yie Ar Kung Fu is pure arcade joy: a brave martial artist named Oolong fights a rogue’s gallery of opponents with names like “Star” and “Fa...
X-Men: Children of the Atom
DOS1997demo Capcom
X-Men: Children of the Atom is a fighting video game developed by Capcom and released in arcades in 1994. The game features characters from Marvel Comics' X-Men series, including popular mutants like Wolverine, Cyclops, Storm, and...
Volfied
DOS1991 Taito
Volfied is an arcade game developed and released by Taito Corporation in 1989. It's a puzzle game that gained popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The game is named after the fictional planet "Volfied", where the gameplay...
Virtua Cop 2
Windows XP/98/951997 Sega
Virtua Cop 2 is an abandoned light gun first-person rail shooter game designed by Yu Suzuki, developed and released by Sega in 1997 for Windows, and also published for Saturn, Dreamcast and PlayStation 2. Virtua Cop 2 is the secon...
Virtua Cop
Windows XP/98/951997 Sega
Virtua Cop is a light-gun arcade game released by Sega in 1994, developed by the Sega AM2 division (also known for games like Virtua Fighter). It was a pioneering title in the genre, offering a fully 3D shooter experience with pol...
Turbo OutRun
DOS1990 Sega
Turbo OutRun is an abandoned DOS action racing game set in North America, developed and published by Sega in 1990. Turbo OutRun is a conversion from the arcade classic of the same name and it's the sequel of the popular OutRun. Th...
Trog
DOS1990 Midway Manufacturing Company
Total Carnage
DOS1994 Midway Manufacturing Company
Toobin
DOS1989 Domark Software
Toobin is an abandoned action game developed by Domark Software and released in 1989. Toobin runs on DOS but was also published for Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Game Boy Color, MSX, NES, ZX Spectrum. It's a conversi...
Thunderblade
DOS1989 Sega
The Typing of the Dead
Windows XP/98/951999 Smilebit
The Typing of the Dead is a distinctive video game, essentially a typing adaptation of the classic rail shooter arcade game, The House of the Dead. Initially debuting in 1999 as an arcade machine, it later became available on othe...
The Simpsons
DOS1991 Konami
The Simpsons Arcade Game, developed and published by Konami, is a classic side-scrolling beat-'em-up that became highly popular in arcades during the early '90s. Players take on the roles of the Simpson family members: Homer,...
Tapper
DOS1984
Taito's Super Space Invaders
DOS1991 Taito
Super Space Invaders is a video game developed and published by Taito Corporation, released in 1991. It's a sequel to the classic arcade game Space Invaders, which was originally released in 1978 and is one of the most iconic vide...
Tag Team Wrestling
DOS1986 Technos Japan
Super Street Fighter 2
DOS1996 Capcom
Super Street Fighter II is an enhanced version of the iconic arcade fighting game Street Fighter II, developed and published by Capcom. It was released in 1993 as an upgrade to Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting and introduce...
Super Hang-On
DOSMac OS1988 Sega
Super Hang-On is an abandoned motorcycle arcade racing game, developed by Sega, designed by Yu Suzuki and published by Data East for DOS in 1988 (the arcade was released in 1987). Super Hang-On was converted for a great number of ...
Strider
DOS1989 Capcom
Street Fighter 2 Championship Edition
DOS1996 Capcom
Street Fighter 2
DOS1992 Capcom
Street Fighter II is a classic arcade fighting game developed and published by Capcom. It was first released in 1991 as a sequel to the original Street Fighter. Street Fighter II is widely regarded as one of the most influential a...
Stargate
DOS1983 Williams Entertainment
Star Wars
DOS1988 Atari
Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator
DOS1983 Sega
Space Harrier
DOS1989 Sega
Space Harrier is a 3rd-person view rail-shooter developed by Sega in 1985. Space Harrier was a hit in the arcades, and later it was converted for a number of platforms, including DOS (4 years later!). The sequels - Space Harrier 3...
Space Commanders
DOS1983remake Columbia Data Products
Space Ace 2: Borf's Revenge
DOS1991 ReadySoft
Space Ace
DOS1989 ReadySoft
Sky Shark
DOS1989 Toaplan