Most memorable (WOW!) Arcade video games

[Thenasty]

First WOW is when Asteriod Deluxe appeared to my FAV spot playing the First Version, Pacman, Ms.Pac.

Then suddenly my next WOW was when the other player next to me was playing Berzerk and it was saying stuff like "Coin Detected in Pocket" and mocking the player "Chicken, fight like a Robot".

The machine make you feel like your a prisoner in that store saying "The humanoid must not Escape".

Then of course "Dragon's Lair" that was a WOW and that WOW includes the $1.00 per game credit.

[garnerb350]

My list of WOWs...

Pac-Man/Combat on Atari 2600... Thats what started it all... (5 year old on Xmas morning)
Dragon's Lair... that just explains it there...
Chiller... Oh my freaking God (that first stage)
Altered Beast... I can play a werewolf? Awesome!
Seeing 2 hot chicks in bikinis playing Tron not noticing 10 guys ( including me) behind them drooling...
Mortal Kombat...I see a group of guys playing and I saw the fatailies... I had to play Raiden (everybody was Sub-Zero)

[Thenasty]

Here was a WOW factor but I never played it:

The Hologram type game "Time Traveller"


I think there's another one made by Sega

[stu33]

Oh man, Battlezone with the scope, and the two sticks...when I first saw that I almost passed out.  My phone plays the fanfare from that game for incoming messages.

[clok]

Old enouhg to rember alot of firsts..

Sky Hunter? B&W scrollingbackground with digtial effects placed over it, Plane that flew over it all shooting it (very early arcade game).
Deathrace- was at local arcade when they put it on.. played it nonstop, couldnt get enough of it, was even their the day they took it.. still playing it.
Gorf- it COMBINED GAMES!!!!
most any of the "gimic" games, stering wheel,  Thunderblade, anything that the cockpit moved on..stuff like that.

[Well Fed Games]

I remember being overwhelmed by Metal Slug the first time I played it in an arcade. My only frame of reference was Contra on the NES, and MS was so detailed I got super distracted... and shot. A lot.

[ark_ader]

Space Invaders.

The cruise ship I was on had two near each bar.  I would be about 10.  The young beautiful women sitting at the bar would give me 50p pieces to let me play on it.

That was a WOW! moment for me.  Being 10 and scoring 50p a time.  Today it would be probably be illegal.

[emphatic]

When I grew up, I only got to see conversion cabinets (except for the Gauntlet dedicated at the local bowling alley), so for me graphics was far more important than gimmicky controls and fancy artwork. The first time I saw Rastan I was blown away. It was like something from a dream. And that music - OMG. It doesn't look very hot now though and the gameplay is... well. 

[jtslade]

Hard Drivin' 

Seems silly now but I remember the first time I played it thinking I was driving a real car.

Yeah the force feedback and the graphics at the time when it came back was amazing to me.