Are These the Best Old-School Arcade Games of All Time?

If you grew up in the glow of an arcade cabinet, pumping quarters into machines and battling for high scores, you’re not alone. The golden age of arcade games holds a special place in many hearts—and now, the internet has spoken.

Ranker.com recently asked readers to vote for the best classic arcade games of all time, and the results are basically a love letter to joysticks, 8-bit soundtracks, and pixelated glory. Spoiler: Pac-Man still rules the maze.

Here’s the full Top 20 list:

1. Pac-Man – The OG icon of arcade gaming chomps its way to #1.
2. Galaga – Pew pew! Still one of the most satisfying space shooters ever made.
3. Street Fighter II – Where friendships went to die. Or at least took a punch.
4. Donkey Kong – The game that gave us Mario and barrels of rage.
5. Frogger – Teaching us the dangers of traffic long before driving school.
6. Space Invaders – Those aliens just never quit.
7. Mortal Kombat – Finish him! (And maybe traumatize young gamers everywhere.)
8. Asteroids – A vector-graphic classic. Still hypnotic.
9. Ms. Pac-Man – She’s faster, tougher, and has better mazes than her man.
10. Double Dragon – Tag-team street fighting at its finest.
11. Dig Dug – Blowing up underground monsters with a bike pump never gets old.
12. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Arcade Game – Cowabunga, dudes!
13. Centipede – Speed, precision, and mushroom warfare.
14. Defender – Rescue mission meets button-mashing chaos.
15. Mario Bros. – Before the Super came along, this was the humble beginning.
16. 1942 – Old-school air combat with a side of loop-de-loops.
17. Gauntlet – “Wizard needs food, badly.”
18. Rampage – Smash buildings, eat people, be a monster. Therapeutic.
19. Golden Axe – Swords, magic, and side-scrolling brawls.
20. The Simpsons Arcade Game – A chaotic and hilarious family beat-’em-up.

Whether you were Team Joystick or just there for the greasy pizza and neon lights, this list hits all the right nostalgia buttons. And if you’re thinking “Hey, where’s [insert your favorite]?” — the list actually goes to 100+, so it’s probably on there. Check it out.