I'm just working on my little arcade game setup and having lots of fun. Yes, I'm using MAME to run a smattering of ROMs that I probably don't own, but so be it. The arcade stick I'm using is from 8BitDo, and it's fantastic. They always make good stuff. It works on Switch and Windows, and it just feels right. My experience with golden age arcade games is limited to a laundromat I used to go to as a kid and the odd cabinet here and there in movie theater lobbies. None of the actual arcades I went to had anything like Galaxian or Street Fighter II. I wanted to get into arcade games, so I made a roughly chronological list of popular arcade games, and I've slowly been going through each one. And I've got a handy journal for logging my highscores. That does make things more enjoyable.

Don't laugh at my horrendous highscore. Gotta start somewhere.

My list is mostly based on best-selling games from 1978 through the 1990s. I know Missile Command would need a trackball, so I may need to hold off on some of these.

1. Space Invaders
2. Galaxian
3. Lunar Lander
4. Asteroids
5. Battlezone
6. Berzerk
7. Missile Command
8. Pac-Man
9. Phoenix
10. Rally-X
11. Star Castle
12. Wizard of Wor
13. Centipede
14. Defender
15. Tempest
16. Donkey Kong
17. Frogger
18. Scramble
19. Galaga
20. Gorf
21. Qix
22. Vanguard
23. BurgerTime
24. Dig Dug
25. Donkey Kong Jr.
26. Front Line
27. Joust
28. Jungle Hunt
29. Kangaroo
30. Moon Patrol
31. Ms. Pac-Man
32. Pengo
33. Pole Position
34. Popeye
35. Q*bert
36. Robotron 2084
37. Gravitar
38. Time Pilot
39. Tron
40. Xevious
41. Zaxxon
42. Crystal Castles
43. Champion Baseball
44. Dragon's Lair
45. Elevator Action
46. Gyruss
47. Mappy
48. Mario Bros.
49. Sinistar
50. Spy Hunter
51. Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator
52. Star Wars
53. Tapper
54. Track & Field
55. 1942
56. Karate Champ
57. Kung-Fu Master
58. Punch-Out!!
59. Paperboy
60. Marble Madness
61. Gauntlet
62. Out Run
63. Vs. Super Mario Bros.
64. Championship Sprint
65. Super Sprint
66. Rolling Thunder
67. Double Dragon
68. Street Fighter
69. Final Lap
70. Capcom Bowling
71. Final Fight
72. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
73. Hard Drivin'
74. Raiden
75. Race Drivin'
76. Street Fighter II
77. Time Traveler
78. Mortal Kombat
79. Virtua Fighter
80. NBA Jam
81. Mortal Kombat II
82. Virtua Fighter 2
83. Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors
84. Killer Instinct
85. Sega Rally Championship
86. Print Club
87. Tekken
88. Tekken 2
89. Tekken 3
90. Virtua Fighter 3
91. The King of Fighters '97

Yes yes, it's been lovely so far. My heart is happy.