Arcade emulator
Encyclopedia
An arcade emulator is a program that emulates
one or more arcade game
s on a different computer
, such as a PC
.
The first known arcade emulation available publicly was the Williams Digital Arcade series from Digital Eclipse Software, released for the Macintosh
in 1994. This series featured the Williams Electronics' arcade classics Joust, Defender and Robotron: 2084
. In 1995, it was repackaged and expanded upon as Williams Arcade Classics for the PC.
DASArcade (written by David Alan Spicer) was arguably the first PC-based multiple arcade game emulator. This was distinct from Digital Eclipse's release in that only one program was required to emulate more than one arcade game, rather than one program per game. The first version of DASArcade was released later in 1995 and emulated a few titles including Pac-Man
and Frogger
(two years before MAME
which now dominates arcade emulation). DASArcade evolved into Sparcade which emulates over 70 games.
See the List of video game console emulators for examples of arcade emulators.
Emulator
In computing, an emulator is hardware or software or both that duplicates the functions of a first computer system in a different second computer system, so that the behavior of the second system closely resembles the behavior of the first system...
one or more arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
s on a different computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
, such as a PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
.
The first known arcade emulation available publicly was the Williams Digital Arcade series from Digital Eclipse Software, released for the Macintosh
Macintosh
The Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
in 1994. This series featured the Williams Electronics' arcade classics Joust, Defender and Robotron: 2084
Robotron: 2084
Robotron: 2084 is an arcade video game developed by Vid Kidz and released by Williams Electronics in 1982. It is a shooting game that features two-dimensional graphics. The game is set in the year 2084, in a fictional world where robots have turned against humans...
. In 1995, it was repackaged and expanded upon as Williams Arcade Classics for the PC.
DASArcade (written by David Alan Spicer) was arguably the first PC-based multiple arcade game emulator. This was distinct from Digital Eclipse's release in that only one program was required to emulate more than one arcade game, rather than one program per game. The first version of DASArcade was released later in 1995 and emulated a few titles including Pac-Man
Pac-Man
is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution in the United States by Midway, first released in Japan on May 22, 1980. Immensely popular from its original release to the present day, Pac-Man is considered one of the classics of the medium, virtually synonymous with video games,...
and Frogger
Frogger
Frogger is an arcade game introduced in 1981. It was developed by Konami, and licensed for worldwide distribution by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct frogs to their homes one by one. To do this, each frog must avoid cars while crossing a busy road and navigate a river full of...
(two years before MAME
MAME
MAME is an emulator application designed to recreate the hardware of arcade game systems in software on modern personal computers and other platforms. The intention is to preserve gaming history by preventing vintage games from being lost or forgotten...
which now dominates arcade emulation). DASArcade evolved into Sparcade which emulates over 70 games.
See the List of video game console emulators for examples of arcade emulators.