Developer/Publisher: Konami Release: 1992 CPU: 68000 @ 16Mhz

Display: Raster - 288×224 pixels (Horizontal), 2048 Colors

“WELCOME TO DIE!! -Magneto

In the world of retro reviews there is always one given: the reviewer is usually in his/her thirties. For many of our younger readers, this may seem…what’s that word…awful. But for those of us who were around in the young to middle years of the video game industry, it simply means that: A) We have more points of reference, and B) We appreciate things that back then were truly awesome.

The X-Men arcade game was one of those truly awesome things.

So here we go.

I think the coolest thing about the game was the duel-screen. Up to six players could join in as Colossus, Wolverine, Rogue, Nightcrawler, Cyclops or Storm (in all their classic outfits no less). At the time, two screens and six players were unthinkable, so that alone was worth the quarters (which you would literally dump into the machine). And although the six-person matches were possible, most people stuck to four player games due to the cramped conditions of the 5th and 6th person entries.

Graphically, the game was astounding - especially for those of us stuck in the middle of nowhere with our consoles and no close arcades (me*AHEM*). The level of detail, vivid colors and the large sprites were immersive and gave you that feeling of playing the comic book (as it turns out, the animation was used from the 1989 X-Men pilot episode, Pryde Of The X-Men. Huh.)

The storyline was par for people writing for a video game and not the actual property. But the point got across and gave the player a twist or two in the process. Magneto is the running amok and giving humanity its what-fors, as usual, and has sent his army of Sentinels (with varying degrees of power, of course) and other generic baddies to stop you from ruining his plans. Along the way, you would run into the likes of The Blob, Juggernaut, Pyro as well as second stringers such as Wendigo, The White Queen and Master Mold. Main bosses were Magneto and Mystique (twice). After some time things could get a little dull story-wise but the kidnapping of Professor Xavier and Kitty Pryde give the game some much needed momentum.

Although at the time beat ‘em ups were standard fare (and by standard fare I mean fast, furious and often overwhelming) in the way of gameplay (the bar set by Final Fight), X-Men did a couple things differently that are still implemented in fighting games today. The ability to pummel an enemy on the ground was outstanding as well as the ‘Mutant Power’ you could use to pretty much clear the screen of all the enemies. Mutant powers could be stored up as you play and if none were stored, some of your health would be drained. I do have to say that even though these ideas were implemented in X-Men, other games had done them first. Although I think X-Men had a larger impact, especially Wolverine’s “Berserker Barrage” and Cyclops’ giant super death-beam thingy (that’s right, I said ‘thingy’…do something about it).

Anyways.

At the end of the day, the end result was a fast paced and visceral beat-’em-up starring some of Marvel’s most beloved characters. For many, this will stand as the pinnacle of X-Men games in both simplicity and fun - and really there are few who remember that would argue.

So if you’re ever in some old, forgotten area of the world - or a really great arcade with a retro section - and come across this gem of a game, do yourself a favor: grab ten bucks worth of quarters and give it a go. You’ll be thanking me later.

Durka!

Then: 9 out of 10, Now: 9 out of 10