                            Microsoft Arcade
                        Review by Patrick Grote

    It's amazing to think that this computer revolution started about 15
years ago. Remember the early 80s? The cutting edge couldnt be found on
your computer at home, Commodore 64, IBM PC or Timex Sinclair, but at
the arcade.
    The arcades contained these illuminated boxes that could propel you
through space or put you in the seat of a tank. Everyone thought arcades
would bring the final sweeping blow to modern civilization. Heck, a kid
would go into the arcade at 1:00pm, come out at 6:00pm and swear only 30
minutes passed. Arcades were a place of refuge were a quarter could buy
a good player fifteen minutes of fun, an excellent player an hour of
worship from fellow gamers.
    If you stop by arcades these days you dont get the same feeling of
time loss. Heck, instead of a quarter, most of the games cost fifty
cents to a dollar. Sure, they are really cool, nothing beats Mortal
Kombat II, but the sense of accomplishment is lost in the new cutting
edge of games. That loss coupled with the fact many of todays arcade
games barely beat whats available on a PC today, add to the fact
arcades arent what they used to be.
    With games today that actually show a persons head being taken off,
I found sanctuary in simpler games like Ms. PacMan. Sure, the games
werent as visually stunning, but they had a basic one on one against
the computer. You against some silicon.
    One of my all time favorite games was Asteroids. A very simple game
based on the story that you were stuck in an asteroid belt and had to
blast your way out. The graphics were stunning black and white with
animation rivaling that of the early Pong games. Today the only
Asteroids games you can find are in so called Coin Operated Museums
where old games go to die.
    Of course, leave it to Microsoft to bring back five arcade classics
from the grave. MICROSOFT ARCADE includes five classic Atari arcade
games in Windows versions. The games include my favorite Asteroids,
Missile Command, Centipede, Tempest and Battle Zone.
    Asteroids features you in a triangular shaped spaceship clearing an
asteroid belt of deadly asteroids while fighting off UFOs. You can warp,
jet around and even hyperspace.
    Missile Command features you as a laser missile defense operator
charged with saving the cities in your territory. To do this, you must
launch your anti-missile lasers at incoming nuclear warheads.
    Centipede is probably the most poplar arcade game of its time. You
are in charge of a mushroom patch and charged with exterminating all
insect life. Not only do you have to worry about the centipede that
snakes quicker and quicker through the mushrooms towards you, but
spiders, fleas and scorpions make their presence felt.
    Tempest pits you against the unknown. It is your job to ensure that
creatures climbing up from the pit dont make it into our universe.
Lighting quick reflexes are needed to completed the task.
    Battle Zone is a classic tank simulation game. You steer left, right
and move forward, backward to home in on targets and attack. Not only
are you after tanks and other military vehicles, but UFOs make their
presence felt as well.
    All the games were originally made between 1979 and 1983 by Atari.
During this timeframe Atari not only owned the arcade game market, but
also the home game market. These were the glory days for arcade games.
    Each game is not only an actual port to Windows with sound card
support, but includes a really neat help file section describing how
they designed, manufactured and marketed the original arcade games. Some
of the neat trivia includes the design team on Missile Command started
having nightmares of nuclear war and Battle Zone achieved multicolor by
using red cellophane across the top part of the screen. The only changes
Microsoft made to each game is the ability to control your playing
environment. You ca ontrol items like the number of points needed for an
extra ship in Asteroids or Spike Protection in Tempest. Microsoft even
left in the animated volcanoes in Battle Zone and the UFOs in Missile
Command.
    If you are looking for fun games to play between tasks on your PC,
you need MICROSOFT ARCADE.

                               Microsoft
                           One Microsoft Way
                         Redmond, WA 98052-6399
                             (206) 882-8080

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