Written by Jason Cisarano  on November 28, 2007

Special: The perfect way to spend your lunch hour

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If you've been playing computer games for a while, you've no doubt experienced the heartbreak of obsolescence. The game you loved a few years back is no longer compatible with your hardware. Or you lost your copy. Or the disks are scratched beyond any hope of using them. Etc, etc. And if you've been at it long enough, you know the feeling of having a beloved arcade game disappear from the local bowling alley. Or worse, you may have lived through the closing of the arcade where you first heard the words УGet the humanoid! Destroy the intruder!Ф Fortunately, there's no need to build your own MAME cabinet to get back into those old games, since once again, the Internet proves that it holds the answers to all of life's problems. Some generous folks out there have posted versions of classic arcade games so that now, instead of skipping school and wasting quarters in the arcade, you can dodge the boss and spend the morning with some old friends. Here are five favorites, in no particular order.

Belter Ц Back in the day, Asteroids was a game only for the daring and truly dextrous. Lightweights such as myself stuck to Gorf, or maybe Galaga on a good day. Belter, from Truant Duck, is your chance to practice up and enjoy that feeling of gliding through space with no way to slow down except a properly aimed thruster blast. It looks nothing like the original, and there are a few features added, but it will please all but the die-hard purists. The shields have been replaced with missiles, weapons powerups and health packs. And the asteroids come in several varieties, including an annoying green gassy beast that regenerates between shots. Definitely a five-star remake.


Galaga Ц Here's a pixel-perfect rendition of the original arcade game, complete with all the right sound effects. Galaga is the one where the УbossФ bad guy could capture your fighter with a tractor beam and make it a part of his armada. If you're careful, though, and avoid hitting your ship, you'll win it back and double your firepower when it attaches itself to your current ship. This is a great Internet game, but the only downside to this one online is that it doesn't quite feel right playing without a joystick. It'll take a bit of time to get used to using the keyboard, but it's well worth the effort.

Leather Goddesses of Phobos Ц Okay, so this one was never in the arcade, but Infocom ruled much of the '80s with Zork, Planetfall, Deadline and plenty of other games for the Commodore 64 and the like. Sure they're text-only, but remember that those were the days when we wished our computers had graphics like Donkey Kong JrЧthe plain text took you places you could never go otherwise. Infocom produced a slew of memorable games, and many of them are available for online play. But Leather Goddesses stands out for its goofy sense of humor and also for the fact that it gave the player the choice of three different play modes: Lewd, Suggestive, and Tame. The descriptions and some actions the player can take are based on this level of naughtiness. If you haven't played a text adventure in a while, grab a pencil and a sheet of graph paper and get exploring. Remember that simple command structure? УnwФ Уtake allФ УinventoryФ УlookФ I know it's coming back to you.

Defender Ц Another tough game that would have eaten up plenty of your hard-earned quarters as you tried to get the hang of it. Defender has you skimming a barren landscape in a hot-rod spaceship as little green men try to abduct the humans wandering around on the ground. The bad guys' aim is uncannyЧthey seem to have no problem targeting you as you zip around this extremely faithful rendition from Midway, the folks that made the game in the first place. Check their website for other classics, including Rampage, Tapper, and the all-but-forgotten Satan's Hollow.

Kung Fu Remix Ц 1984 was a good year for martial arts games: enthusiasts saw Kung Fu Master, Karate Champ, and Karateka arrive all in the same year. Technically, this one isn't an arcade remake, since it looks like it's based on the NES game Kung Fu instead of the arcade original, Kung Fu Master. Still, Kung Fu Remix needs to be on this list. It's all about quick kung fu action, and its plot follows along with Bruce Lee's last movie, Game of Death. There's no yellow and black body suit, but the player fights his way up through the floors of a temple facing bosses similar to those of the movie. The game doesn't quite live up to Lee's legendary moves, but there is plenty of action in this remake. Once you start, you won't want to quit until you've made it all the way through all five levels and rescued the princess.

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So those are my picks for few great online versions of classic '80s games, all available online for your enjoyment. My criteria as I collected these games were simple: the games had to be good, faithful to the spirit of the original, and free to play. Some are pixel-perfect renditions of the originals. One or two don't look much like their arcade counterparts. But they'll all take you back to that golden age, in one way or another.