Radar Scope

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Nintendo

I find it kind of weird that Radar Scope doesn't get more love from fans since it was made by Nintendo. That's not to say that everything Nintendo makes is gold, but the brand name does definitely seem to push folks towards thinking a game is great sometimes when it's not quite at that level. Instead, opinion seems to skew a bit more towards people thinking that this isn't quite as good as I, personally, happen to think it is. Basically, Radar Scope is Nintendo's attempt at joining the fad of creating Space Invaders-style shooting games for the arcade. However, instead of a straight shot of the action, you've got a slightly isometric view, giving the game a neat, unique look when compared to other shooters of the time. The gameplay itself feels like a mix between Space Invaders and Galaxian with enemies making their way to the bottom of the screen in formation, with some enemies deciding to break formation and dive down towards you. The unique part of this game, though, aside from the visual style, is that at the bottom of the screen, you'll see a health meter. That meter isn't for you, but rather for the "Sonic Spaceport" that you are protecting behind the ship…but you're controlling things on the arcade cabinet, behind the ship…so maybe it is "your" health bar after all. I'm going to start calling myself the Sonic Spaceport and see if it catches on. Anyway, you can't simply avoid the dive-bombing ships: you need to shoot them down. If you fail to blast those ships to smithereens and they crash into the Sonic Spaceport, it loses energy. Even if you're skilled enough to survive and not get shot down, if the energy completely depletes for the spaceport behind you, it's game over. It's a solid game, but unfortunately, it was a commercial failure for Nintendo…in fact, out of the 3000 cabinets sent to the U.S., only 1000 were sold. The remaining 2000 were later converted into Donkey Kong cabinets. Still, Radar Scope's unique visuals and need to protect a spaceport, instead of just yourself, help it stand out a bit among the sea of Space Invaders-inspired games released in the late '70s. It's a solid shooter that's fun to play, but just isn't quite as good as other similar games released around the same time, like Galaxian and Phoenix.

Review added: 02/23/2026

Rally-X

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Namco

Rally-X was designed to be a spiritual successor to Sega's Head-On, a game where you navigated a basic-looking maze while trying your best to avoid a head-on crash with the other vehicle navigating the same maze. Not only does Rally-X surpass Head-On in just about every way imaginable, but it introduces so many new aspects to the gameplay that it almost feels silly comparing Head-On to Rally-X. Basically, unlike in Head-On, where you've got a screen-sized maze and a single car navigating that maze with you, in Rally-X, the maze is so large that you can only see some of it on the screen at a time. Likewise, you don't just have a single vehicle driving around that maze with you attempting to cause a crash, but several suicidal vehicles trying their best to crumple your car up into an awful heap of metal. Rally-X also introduced the ability to use a smoke screen to defend yourself against these other cars, too…having the means to defend yourself, even if with limited use, felt like a big deal compared to Head-On, where your only defense was to avoid the opponent. The goal of picking up dots or lines is replaced with picking up flags, which are placed throughout the maze. To help the player know which direction to go in the giant maze, a crude map is displayed on the right side of the screen, showing the player where the remaining flags are in relation to where the player is. The end result is a very, very well-made game. It was so well-made, in fact, that when it was on display at the 1980 Amusement & Music Operators Association trade show, most of the press felt like it was superior to any other game presented, including Pac-Man. Unfortunately, despite this game's quality, it never really managed to live up to other Namco games of the time like Pac-Man and Galaxian. It had moderate success in Japanese arcades, but it never seemed to get much footing here in North American arcades. Still, though, despite it not getting the love that Pac-Man and Galaxian got, Rally-X is still a very solid title and one of the best games of its time, back in 1980.

Review added: 11/17/2025

Rampage

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Bally Midway

I like giant monster movies like Godzilla, where a giant monster terrorizes a city and topples buildings over. With Rampage, Bally Midway aimed to bring that experience to people in the arcades. Allowing you to take control of one of three giant monsters, and potentially team up with two friends, to demolish all buildings and vehicles that get in your way, many argue that Bally Midway accomplished their goal. After all, how many times have you heard that angry old neighbor call you a "little monster" for leaving that flaming bag of poo on his doorstep and ringing his doorbell?...Oh, that's just me?...Well, Rampage let me be a monster without setting bags of poo on fire, so one could say that it straightened out my life, and the lives of the other "little monsters" out there who were too busy destroying buildings as a giant ape, lizard, or wolf to terrorize the poor elderly people in their neighborhoods…they just terrorized the pixelated tenants in this game. Don't worry, though, the monsters can eat those people, so they don't suffer long. Think of them like cabbage or celery. Those vegetables that start with a "c" are difficult to feel sorry for. See? You've lost your empathy for them already, haven't you? Anyway, while Rampage can be mildly fun for a while, especially with friends, once the novelty of destroying various cities wears off, you start to notice the flaws. When playing solo, in particular, the repetition kicks in a long time before you even get near the goal of destroying New York City. But, in short bursts, Rampage can still be fun if you’ve got some pals to cause some chaos with. It still remains a game that many fondly remember, but a little more variety in the gameplay could have gone a long way with Rampage. As it is, Rampage is like a carrot: the root is delicious, but it's still a 'c' vegetable, so it has lost my empathy…as corny as that sounds.

Review added: 11/01/2019

Robotron: 2084

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Vid Kidz

I've always loved Robotron: 2084. About 20 years ago, in Seattle, I remember going to Gameworks for the first part of my friend's bachelor party. I broke away from the group and spent a good chunk of the night over in the classics corner, breaking into the top 10 high scores on Donkey Kong and the top 3 on this game. I remember being told that they went back a few months later and that my score was still standing tall. Robotron: 2084 has a special place in my heart for that reason, but it's also an absolutely fantastic game. While twin-stick shooters are pretty common these days, Robotron: 2084 is what put the genre on the map. Each stage is more and more heavily populated by enemy robots, to the point where it can almost look overwhelming at times. The game isn't simply about shooting everything that moves, though. Sprinkled in with the robots are men and women who you want to try to save by walking into them for bonus points. If you fail to save them, you have to live with yourself after hearing the screams they let out with their final breaths. Games like Geometry Wars took this formula and tweaked it to improve on it and make it more visually pleasing, but Robotron: 2084 was still absolutely fantastic for its time and still holds its own as one of the best twin-stick shooters of all time.

Review added: 12/27/2022

Rollergames

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Konami

Rollergames is one of my favorite and lesser-known arcade games. Based on the popular roller derby show from the '80s with the same name, Rollergames in the arcade is not like Rollergames on the NES. The NES Rollergames is a brawler like Double Dragon or Battletoads. The arcade version of Rollergames is an actual roller derby game: as far as I’m aware, the only roller derby game ever made. If anybody reading this knows of another roller derby game, please let me know. Good or bad, I would love to play it. Anyway, Konami did a fantastic job of bringing the sport of roller derby to an interactive digital form with this game. While the rules aren’t exactly what real roller derby rules are, it works well here. Basically, you start each quarter by going up a wall, then off a ramp. If you can make it high enough on the wall, you get extra points. If you land far enough away from the ramp, you get more extra points. After landing from the ramp jump, the remainder of the time in the quarter is spent brawling with the others on the roller derby track, with points awarded for each member of the opposing team that you knock out. If the round ends in a tie, then the skaters duke it out in an admittedly poor one-on-one fighting game. I understand that ties are rare, so the need to tweak the one-on-one fighting was probably a low priority, but if you're going to allow players the ability to pop the opponent in the jaw one-on-one, then the least you can do is make it as fun as the rest of the game. Overall, though, this is a very enjoyable game…made even more enjoyable by the fact that there isn’t another game of this kind out there. If you like roller derby and always wanted to play it in video game form, Rollergames is a worthwhile game to track down.

Review added: 07/31/2020

Route 16

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Sun Electronics

One could make the argument that maze-style games started with games like Head-On, which involved the player navigating a maze with a vehicle while also trying to avoid a collision with a computer-controlled vehicle. Then Namco put out Rally-X, which gave you more free movement as you worked your car through a giant, scrolling maze while avoiding multiple cars. Sun Electronics brought vehicular maze gameplay to the arcades once again in the form of Route 16, but they had a slightly unique take on it. In Route 16, your goal is to maneuver your way through mazes and collect all of the money bags that you see, while also avoiding the enemy vehicles that attempt to crash into you. That may sound like Rally-X, but the key here is the word "mazes." There's an "S" at the end there. Rather than have players navigate through one giant maze, Route 16 has players navigate sixteen different, screen-sized mazes. You can clear the mazes in any order, thanks to the ability to exit a maze by driving to an exit on the outside edge of the screen. Upon entering that exit, you'll be taken to an overworld map, which displays all sixteen mazes, as well as shows icons to let you know where enemy vehicles are. If you're able to outwit them, you can lose the computer-controlled rival cars and have some time without the need to avoid pursuers in a maze before they finally manage to catch up to you and/or figure out where you're located. The inclusion of that overworld map and the freedom to tackle each maze in whatever order you want help Route 16 stand out a bit. While I don't consider it anywhere near the same quality as Rally-X in terms of gameplay, Route 16 is still a passable game worth checking out if you're a fan of the genre.

Review added: 08/16/2026