Midway Arcade Treasures 2

Midway Arcade Treasures 2 brings some of the most beloved arcade games of all time, including Mortal Kombat 2 and 3, NARC, Rampage World Tour, Hard Drivin’ and more. In all there are 20 classic arcade titles included on the Playstation 2 disc.

Every game featured in Midway Arcade Treasures 2 is a perfect emulation of its arcade self. The graphics are as good (or bad) as you remember, and all the games play real smooth with no real slowdown. Many even have a button assigned to insert a credit. The games included are: APB, Arch Rivals, Championship Sprint, Cyberball 2072, Gauntlet II, Hard Drivin’, Kozmik Krooz’r, Mortal Kombat II, Mortal Kombat 3, NARC, Pit Fighter, Primal Rage, Rampage World Tour, Spy Hunter II, Timber, Total Carnage, Wacko, Wizard of Wor, Xenophobe and Xybots.

The layout is nothing special; the game titles are listed alphabetically on sort of a helix track with the currently selected game facing the player. A demo video plays to the right of the selected game as well, and from here players can press X to play the game, square to access the game’s options or circle to look at bonus material specific to that game.

The options for each game are fairly deep, with choices like difficulty level, number of continues, player lives, etc. You can also set up two custom controller layouts per game aside from the default, which can be quickly accessed during gameplay via the pause menu. There is also an Extra area in the options that features trailers for some of Midway’s newer games, like Mortal Kombat Deception, Area 51, and NARC.

The bonus content for each game is mostly a novelty, showing off some of their old promo posters, history of the game, detailed game information, and some even have movies of interviews with the creators.

The biggest downside to this collection is its lack of difficulty. Not to say that some of these games aren’t hard, because a few of them are, but having the ability to drop virtual quarter after virtual quarter into the game gives you the power to beat it in one sitting. And since there’s no way to save your progress, that’s how you’d have to do it. Especially for games like Gauntlet II, where a quarter meant feeding your warrior, the magic of the arcade is essentially gone.

This is definitely one of my favorite collections of old games. Midway was able to compile a list of games that were must-haves back when they first came out. If the list of games just weren’t enough, the $20 price tag should make it worth having in your collection.

Gameplay: 7.0
It really depends on the game you’re playing, but most of the arcade titles of that time weren’t terribly sophisticated. Many of these titles are of the button-mashing variety.

Graphics: 7.0
Again, the graphics weren’t so great either. They still look ok, and have been emulated perfectly if not been slightly improved.

Sound: 8.0
The usual arcade sounds you can expect, including some memorable sound effects. To this day “Toasty” is still one of the most rewarding sounds in any game.

Difficulty: Easy to Hard
The overall collection is easy, since you can continue as many times as you need to complete a game. There is also the option of changing the difficulty in the options. Some of these games, though, are insanely tough.

Concept: 8.0 
I don’t know about the rest of the world, but I’m still not getting sick of these classic game collections. I’m hoping that eventually they collect all the games I loved as a kid.

Multiplayer: 8.5
For games like this, multiplayer can do wonders. Some games are better off playing solo, but a lot of these games are made for multiplayer. Good examples include Gauntlet II, Xenophobe, Rampage World Tour, both Mortal Kombats and Total Carnage. If you have a multitap Pit Fighter, Rampage and Xenophobe can support three players, and Gauntlet II can support up to four.

Overall: 8.5
Midway Arcade Treasures 2 is a great collection for all gamers - to have all those classic arcade games within reach for free is a nice feeling. Many people will tell you that Mortal Kombat II and 3 alone are worth the $20, and when you notice how many other great arcade games are gathered here it becomes obvious that it’s well worth its price.