Nato – The Lost World: Jurassic Park
F*ck you. As a child, this game scared the piss out of me.
I love Jurassic Park so much, so of course I was absolutely obsessed with an arcade game that literally put us in the driver’s seat of a car bombing around Isla Sorna battling dinosaurs. Aided by Sega’s patented “Magical Bench Seat Air Drive System,” you sit in this enclosed machine with surround sound, keeping you glued to the atmosphere, as you fight your way through a terrifying mix of velociraptors, a T-Rex or two, maybe a Dilophosaurus here and there, and plenty of Brontosaurus poop.
Like I said, as a little kid, I was terrified by this game. Sitting in that dark machine and hearing a raptor squeal right behind me sent immediate shivers up my spine, and then watching the 3D dino charging directly at me turned me into the quickest gun on the island out of sheer necessity. Sorry, I don’t need my insides spilled open by a razor-sharp claw.
Again, the graphics may not hold up today, but the replay value on this arcade classic is through the roof. It’s fun, full of intensity, packed with action, and does an amazing job of setting us in the world of John Hammond’s crazy dinosaur utopia turned island of death. Sounds like a great vacation spot, no?
Remy – Aliens Versus Predator
Before the AWFUL movies, there was a 1994 Capcom side scrolling, beat-em-up game based on the Dark Horse comic. You know all those side-scrolling Capcom games you dug, like X-Men and The Simpsons? Yes, well, this was that, but with an Aliens Versus Predator motif. For a nerd like me, who loved arcade games and horror movies, it was pretty much the best thing ever.
The very best thing about these old side-scrollers was the fact that they were usually four players or more, so if you found one in the back of a Pizza Hut, you could hunker down and play with all your friends while you waited for your food. It did nothing to redefine the side-scroller, but it was still cool as shit being able to play a space marine and fight both the Aliens AND the Predators in one game. Plus, this was a horror side scroller, and as you see from this list, it was a break from the normal horror “gun games” we were used to getting at the arcade.
Seriously though, nothing can touch Chiller.
That shit was f*cked.
Alright readers, so which horror inspired arcade games ate up the most of your parent’s quarters? Which do you still dig today?
*A special thanks to Remy for stepping in to guest write! Feel free to follow either of us on Twitter for even more insanity and updates:
Matt Donato Follow @DoNatoBomb
Remy Carreiro Follow @RemyCarreiro
Like what you read? Check out last week’s article where Remy and I discuss which horror villain throwdowns we’d love to watch play out a la Freddy Vs. Jason!