The second retro compilation on Nintendo 64, this time for Midway’s classic arcade games, which generally aren’t as well remembered as the likes of Namco’s. The menu is much nicer than Namco Museum 64, and gives you a look at the arcade machines, but is still fairly bland. The only extra feature is a short and simple quiz about the games. There’s six in this compilation, with a lot of overlay with Williams Arcade’s Greatest Hits on the SNES.

Defender

Use the tiny map at the top to dart back and forth, to blow up aliens before they capture civilians. It feels a bit too small on N64, so it can be difficult to see things.

Robotron 2048

The N64 had its own really good Robotron game, now here’s the original twin-stick shooter. It plays quite well, even if the screen gets very busy.

Root Beer Tapper

I had no idea that this non-alcoholic version of Tapper existed. Patrons will enter the bar on the left, and you have to quickly fill glasses and slide them down. Simple, but probably the most playable game in this collection.

Joust

Use a bird and a stick to stab your foes, however, you have to be extremely precise – another example of a game designed for someone’s face to be right next to an arcade screen.

Spy Hunter

Shoot your way through cars in this Bond-inspired game. It does show how quickly arcade graphics evolved. I kept blowing up civilians without realising they were civilians.

Sinistar

I’d never heard of this one before. It’s like an easy to control Asteroids with enemies, and extremely hard to see due to how scaled down everything feels.

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If you specifically wanted these games on N64, they’re fine, although they don’t translate as well to a TV screen (especially with the N64’s resolution) compared to the games in Namco’s collection.

Poor

All six games have been perfectly converted by Digital Eclipse – the team behind last year’s diddy Game Boy versions – and the analogue stick is a superb replacement for those chunky black arcade joysticks. It’s just a shame that, aside from a laughably poor trivia quiz sub-game and a clunky 3D ‘virtual-reality arcade’ that’s plainly been coded in a spare lunchtime, the cart’s devoid of extras.

Mark Green, N64 Magazine #50. Review Score: 71%

Remake or remaster?

We definitely need a new Midway collection, if licensing allows (which, considering none are on Arcade Archives yet, seems unlikely). The last is 2012’s Midway Arcade Origins, which at least is backwards compatible on Xbox One/Series, but never got a PC version. I did have a fever dream where Tapper still appeared in some imaginary Wreck-It Ralph sequel about the internet.

Official ways to get the game.

There’s no official way to get Midway’s Greatest Arcade Hits: Volume 1