Modifications are consistently made in the video game industry. It’s always exciting to see how far developers can push boundaries. The advent of console gaming provided a fascinating competition to the arcade experience. Eventually, it made sense for these two separate worlds to combine.
There’s a wide range of ports that occur in video games, titles migrate over to other consoles. However, there are plenty of occasions where arcade games benefit from their transition to console.
10 SoulCalibur Set A New Standard For Console Fighters
The SoulCalibur series continues to go strong and has even found ways to include figures like Darth Vader, Spawn, and The Legend of Zelda’s Link in its blade-filled chaos. There’s still a tremendous amount of reverence for the original SoulCalibur, which was one of the most impressive of the Dreamcast’s launch titles. SoulCalibur wasn’t just a perfect port, but it included upgraded and additional content. SC proved that the Dreamcast could handle arcade fighters of this nature.
9 San Francisco Rush 2049 And Its Predecessor Hit New Speeds On Consoles
Due to the inferior hardware on home consoles, racing games are a genre of video games that dominated in arcades for decades. San Francisco Rush, and its successor, San Francisco Rush 2049, were both superlative arcade racers that made waves on both the Nintendo 64 and the Dreamcast. These console ports are just as satisfying as the arcade versions, but the addition of the Stunt Track mode pushes them to another level. Fans of polished, traditional racer dynamics will love the San Francisco Rush console ports.
8 Golden Axe Is An All-Time Sega Genesis Classic
Sega’s Golden Axe has fallen out of favor in the more recent gaming generations, but it was a staple for the company during the 1990s. The hack-and-slash action Golden Axe started as an arcade title, but it truly found its audience after being ported over to the Sega Genesis.
The Genesis still allowed audiences to cooperate and play as a two-person experience. The Golden Axe port found such success that it spawned several sequels, which refined the original’s controls. The original remains a satisfying and addictive action title with great enemies.
7 The Super Nintendo’s NBA Jam Is A Slam Dunk Port
A tense match of NBA Jam in an arcade is a beautiful thing, but there’s just as much fun to be had with a bunch of friends in the comfort of one’s own home. A lot of basketball games have come out over the years, but NBA Jam set a standard that few have been to live up to. NBA Jam provides the perfect mix of tight controls and odd sensibilities that give the game a distinct voice. It’s so easy to get lost in the game for hours and discover tons of hidden content.
6 Tekken Tag Tournament Is A Standout PS2 Fighter
Tekken Tag Tournament’s release as a launch title for the PlayStation 2 could be seen as comparable to the Dreamcast and SoulCalibur. The Tekken series is a fighting franchise that’s all about the fundamentals. Tekken Tag Tournament is one of the best entries in the franchise that pushes the series to new and exciting ground. TTT‘s easily one of the best fighting games on the PlayStation 2 and doesn’t lose any of the arcade’s nuance. It’s a game with mechanics that are deep enough that it benefits from the repeated playing that consoles allow.
5 The Sega Saturn’s Virtua Cop Games Excel With A Light Gun
Arcade and console gaming are separated by extraneous accessories. Some arcade games are accompanied by light guns, which weren’t as accessible for console games. The PlayStation and Sega Saturn era of gaming made serious strides in this regard.
Franchises that seemed destined to live in the arcade, like Virtua Cop, finally made their way over to home consoles. Virtua Cop and its sequel are two of the best games on the Saturn, provided the gamer has light guns. The Dreamcast would carry this goodwill on and deliver more light gun hits.
4 Crazy Taxi Is A Perfect Translation Of The Audacious Arcade Experience
Crazy Taxi heads into new territory with a fast-paced and heightened version of a taxi cab simulator. Players pick up and drop off passengers, but a flare for reckless and speedy driving gets rewarded. The Dreamcast seamlessly recreates the arcade hit and throws in some additional material for good measure, too.
3 Mortal Kombat II Helped Define A Generation
The Mortal Kombat series remains one of the most popular and resilient fighting franchises of all time. It’s a title that was rampant in arcades and it’s the second entry in the series that really clicked on the console market. The Super Nintendo’s Mortal Kombat II is a pretty flawless port of the arcade original. Mortal Kombat II and Street Fighter II were signature SNES games with arcade roots. There’s just enough present in Mortal Kombat II before the series starts to get increasingly out of control.
2 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles In Time Is A Beat-’Em-Up Classic
Anyone who’s spent significant time in an arcade understands the joy of engaging in a multiplayer beat-’em-up experience with a number of strangers. There’s no shortage of exceptional arcade beat-’em-up games out there, with some of them making for excellent console ports.
There are Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles games for both the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis, but the beloved arcade game, Turtles in Time, became Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time for the SNES. It’s one of the best side scroller beat-’em-ups on the console and still considered a top tier Ninja Turtles game.
1 Marvel Vs. Capcom 2: New Age Of Heroes Was The Fighting Benchmark For Years
The public’s love and understanding of Marvel Comics has surged since the late 1990s and early 2000s. The Marvel vs. Capcom fighters were still some of Capcom’s most popular games. Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes is still regarded as one of the best fighting games of all time and its exceptional port over to the Dreamcast was enough to sell the console itself. The port has more content and takes full advantage of the Dreamcast’s capabilities, like online gaming. It’s an experience that’s been hard to match.
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About The Author
Daniel Kurland (1208 Articles Published)
Daniel Kurland is a freelance writer, comedian, and critic, who lives in the cultural mosaic that is Brooklyn, New York. Daniel’s work can be read on ScreenRant, Splitsider, Bloody Disgusting, Den of Geek, and across the Internet. Daniel recently completed work on a noir anthology graphic novel titled, “Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Noir: A Rag of Bizarre Noir and Hard Boiled Tales” and he’s currently toiling away on his first novel. Daniel’s extra musings can be found @DanielKurlansky on Twitter.