- Video game graphics get more impressive and more intricate every day.
- But there’s something nostalgic about playing a classic arcade game in its original form.
- From multiplayer games like Streets of Rage to single-player legends like Pac-Man, there’s a large selection of old-school arcade games you can play on your phone.
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Pac-Man is a simple game that seemingly never gets boring.
One of the many classic games you can download Pac-Man from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store for free.
The game, which first launched in the US in October 1980, has been touted as “one of the most popular video games in history,” according to ThoughtCo.
The original Sonic the Hedgehog game started a massive franchise.
The Sonic the Hedgehog arcade game is available for free on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. It features the SEGA game’s classic design as well as some of the features of later games, like Sonic’s spin dash move.
The game was first released in the US in June 1991.
Crazy Taxi is another franchise-making game from SEGA.
This driving game was originally released in arcades in 1999 and is available for free on Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
Players get behind the wheel of a yellow taxi cab and race to rack up the highest amount of cab fare.
Digger places players virtually underground.
Digger is available for free on the Google Play Store or on the Apple App Store.
Also a game from the '80s, the objective of this game is to dig horizontal or vertical tunnels underground to find and collect emeralds and kill monsters.
Phoenix is a game set in space.
Versions of this classic arcade game are available for free on Google Play Store or for $1.99 on Apple App Store (called Phoenixx there). In both versions, players aim to shoot aliens from a spaceship.
The mobile version features arcade-like buttons.
Q*bert uses optical illusions to make its two-dimensional game look like it has three-dimensional graphics.
Q*bert is an adventurous game of solving isometric puzzles. It's available for free on both Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
The game is originally from the '80s, but the character appears in Disney's animated movie "Wreck-It Ralph."
Frogger is a simple game of helping an animal cross the road — and then a stream in this case.
Versions of the game from the early '80s are available for free on both Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
Players are tasked with helping a frog make it across a road with heavy traffic and then across an obstacle-laden stream before finally landing on a lily pad.
Streets of Rage lets players choose from three characters.
This game, originally released in 1991, is available for free on Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
Players can choose their weapons for fighting crime on the streets in cities. The sequel to this game is also on both app stores. You can even stay connected with your friends and play in multiplayer mode.
Altered Beast takes players into "the underworld" and draws inspiration from Greek Mythology.
This classic SEGA game was first released in 1988 and is now available for free on both Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
Players navigate the game as the Altered Beast character and can morph into different "killer predators" in order to rescue Athena from Hades.
Kid Chameleon uses magical masks to transform into other characters.
Kid Chameleon is available for free on Google Play Store and Apple App Store. It was released worldwide in 1992.
In this SAGA game, players take on the character of Kid Chameleon, who has to defend his reality from a video game villain come to life.
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