Arcade games are an age-old tradition. They have existed as a term since the heyday of the pinball machine, and even earlier in many cases. There are several websites that offer free arcade games including solo player, multi-player, action, adventure, card/casino, racing or skill games. Some of the popular free gaming sites on the Internet are game.co.in, free-games-online.com, freearcade.com, ultimatearcade.com, Cnet’s download.com, and freeclassicgames.com. Arcadenut.com, Funny-games.biz and GameAlbum.com are other great entertainment sites which offer free arcade games.

Free Games (www.free-games.au) is an online directory of free games on the Internet, which also reviews and ranks the most popular games. Per their lists, the five most popular games available on their site are The Mafia Boss, Real Mud - the 4th Coming, Runescape, Aegis and Terraworld. All these games are massively multi-player online role-playing games (MMORPG).

Some popular arcade games from the 1980s are available at Triplets and Us (http://www.tripletsandus.com/80s/80s_games/arcade.htm). These include PacMan, Frogger, Space Invaders, Mario Brothers, Asteroids and Tetris. The site also contains links to several Java arcade emulator game sites.

Flash Games (http://www.t45ol.com/flash-game/arcade-games.php) offers all free arcade games in Flash. The site contains the traditional arcade games in flash format like Space Invaders, Pong, Super Mario Brothers, Tetris, Donkey Kong and Street Fighter.

Arcade RockStar (http://www.arcaderockstar.com/) is a free gaming network where members participate in daily tournaments, and win cool prizes like cell phones, iPods, gift cards and Sony PSPs, among others. Since it is an ad-supported network, the members must be prepared for different forms of ads such as sponsorships, sweepstakes, banners, text links or pop-ups.

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I remember playing my first arcade game in a bar in Montreal. It was 1981 I was underage, drunk, in a digital delirium, and the arcade game was the original Pacman. This was about the coolest thing I had ever seen. I’d always had a thing for games, even before the first arcades and arcade games sprung up. Even before computer games for the home PC. I used to subscribe to games magazines that never, ever mentioned the word computer. This was something totally new and sumptuously fascinating. Countless hours of my well wasted youth were spent in arcades, long after plenty of beer swilling at the local pub. Arcade games, and computer games have come a long way since then, but there’s nothing like your first time.

Frag This You Bourgeoisie Backgammond Barnacle

Shortly after my lascivious encounter with arcades and the hypnotizing arcade game jewels hidden within, my family purchased it’s first home PC. A radio shack trs-80. More commonly called a trash-80. It was here that I learned the cunningly devious game of backgammon. Not sure I would have ever learned that game without being introduced to it by a computer. It’s not the kind of game that would have appealed to a veteran of the arcade game wars. Something that belonged more to the smoky backrooms of a retirement home. Computers, arcades, and arcade games were already broadening my vistas.

Avast Commodore, Ya Scurvy Megabyte

Next on my list of technological wonders ya scallywags, is the Commodore 64. Now here was an arcade game killer if I every gazed upon one. Arcades are few and far between now, and the Commodore, is one of the reasons why. Why spend hours in an arcade, having a machina suck and swallow every last quarter in my pocket? When I can sit in the less the luxurious decadence of my basement playing the likes of jumpman, and setting arcade game style high scores for my baby brother to frantically try to match. Not like in the arcades where he could be humbled in front of the masses, but this arcade game jewel would serve my purposes none the less.

Arcadia Arise Oh Mighty Griffon

Old is new, black is blue, and from the depth, arises the legends of old and times forgotten. Huh? What I’m frothing forth about here, is that arcade games are back with a vengeance. All us old fogies, who remember time spent in arcades watching the neighborhood masters pummel evil incarnate up till level 9999 rejoice! You can once again relive the glories of the golden age of arcade games. Just google around a little, and you’ll find free versions of all the great arcade game from the past. Not to mention a few new legends being born in the ancient art of arcade games. And hey save your quarters. These games are free as the air you breathe. Of course you better not let those quarters get too far, your gonna need them to keep that old jalopy of a Commodore in running order.

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Internet games use the cyber world technology for playing. Games are extremely popular and constantly evolving.

There are:

Games played using e-mail.

Games played on a browser window by using a web address.

Games played using Internet Relay Chat, Telenet, MUD client, or a Web based forum.

Games that are graphic need stand-alone software that permits players to play with or against one another using an Internet connection.

The first game, MUD, was developed in 1978, and the market has burgeoned since then.

To play, one needs:

A reliable Internet connection.

A personal computer or game console.

Selected software required by specific games.

One can play simple board games like scrabble, or bingo, or games like poker, mahjong, and pool. Another popular category is simulation gamesthese imitate real-life situations and cover aspects like combat, city planning, strategies, as well as flight simulation.

For serious gaming the computer performance must be optimized. This can be done by:

Running the disk defragmenter and organizing the computer files. This should ideally be done once a month at least.

Correct folder and file errors by using scandisk—use once a week and the computer will give trouble free performance.

Clean your hard drivesget rid of Internet files, temporary files, as well as files in the trash/recycle bin. Clear the cache and uninstall programs that are not in everyday use.

Update the operating system software. Download any new security patches. Keep video drivers updated.

Clear space on the hard drive—store files on a back up system.

Clear any spyware you have inherited from websites.

Minimize number of programs runningwhen playing a graphic intensive game if there are too many programs running simultaneously the graphics will become choppy and game will be slow.

Delete add on game fileswall papers and other paraphernalia will just clutter the computer.

Run an anti-virus program regularly but disable it when you are loading/playing games. Antivirus programs slow down games.

Always shut down the computer properly.

The Internet allows gamers to compete with people across oceans, on the other side of the world and anywhere in the universe. Some use PCs while others use consoles. What you use is a personal choice and depends on issues like costs and so on.

Before you buy a game you must:

Consider “system requirements” - some games can run on systems that are not exact others need specific hardware.

Find out if the game is single player or multi-player. Many games need the Internetand, the broadband connection is more efficient than the dial-up connection. Many like Xbox Live only work on a broadband connection.

Find out if the game can be played using a mouse/keyboard or whether it will need a full-featured joy stick.

Be wise and try a demo before making an actual purchase. Playing a demo benefits the player as well as game developer. Many online games offer free trial periods —beta testing is a great opportunity to find out if the game suits your taste as well as pockets.

Do your research thoroughlyusually there are several games competing for players within a genre. Read game reviews before taking the final step.

Paul Wilson is a freelance writer for http://www.1888FreeOnlineGames.com, the premier website to play thousands of free online games including arcade games, action games, card games, flash games, strategy games, puzzle games and more. He also freelances for http://www.1888SoftwareDownloads.com

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