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Arkanoid

Manufacturer: Taito
Year: 1986
Class: Wide Release
Genre: Ball and Paddle
Type: Videogame

Monitor:

Orientation: Vertical
Type: Raster: Standard Resolution
CRT: Color

Conversion Class: Taito Classic
Number of Simultaneous Players: 1
Maximum number of Players: 2
Gameplay: Alternating
Control Panel Layout: Single Player Ambidextrous
Controls:

Rotary: Optical
Buttons: 1 [Fire/Release Ball]

Sound: Amplified Mono (one channel)

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Arkanoid Description

This is a variation on an early ball and paddle video game where the paddle moves left and right at the bottom of the screen and a ball is deflected to hit bricks. Some bricks contain special powers to enhance play. The next level achieved by removing all the bricks.

Cabinet Information

Most of these games were sold as conversion kits so the cabinets either have generic Romstar side graphics or no art at all.

Game Introduction

In this game, move a paddle (Vaus) to deflect a ball towards rows of various colored bricks. Some of the bricks have special powers to increase the speed of the ball. Extra points are earned from destroying all of the bricks. This is a color variation of Atari's Breakout.

Game Play

The object of this game is to keep the ball between the Vaus and the bricks.

Hacks

Akka Pong - Changes the paddle to the one from Pong.
Arka Boom - A gory hack of the original.
Arkanoid Plus - Improves the graphics.
Teknoid - A groovy hack.

Miscellaneous

Manufacturer: Taito. Licensed to Romstar for US distribution. A bootleg of this game is called Block.

CAPS/VAPS Arcade Census

There are 6,862 members of the Classic Arcade Preservation Society / Video Arcade Preservation Society, 3,937 whom participate in our arcade census project of games owned, wanted, or for sale. Census data currently includes 64,459 machines (3,753 unique titles).

Very Common - There are 231 known instances of this machine owned by Arkanoid collectors. Of these, 32 of them are original dedicated machines, 86 of them are conversions in which game circuit boards (and possibly cabinet graphics) have been placed in (and on) another game cabinet, and 113 of them are only circuit boards which a collector could put into a generic case if desired.

This game ranks a 87 on a scale out of 100 (100 = most commonly seen, 1=least common) in popularity based on census ownership records.

Wanted - Popular - There are 14 VAPS members currently looking for Arkanoid.

This game ranks a 37 on a scale out of 100 (100 = most commonly seen, 1=least common) in popularity based on census want list records.

For Sale - There are 11 VAPS members with Arkanoid machines for sale. There are 11 VAPS members with extra Arkanoid circuit boards for sale. VAPS members are totally independent of VAPS and the International Arcade Museum, and we are unable to recommend, endorce, or guarantee any person or company selling games or game parts.

Rarity is NOT necessarily an indication of value. [More Information]

Technical

The original does not have a cocktail mode. Bootlegs use DIP switch 1 to enable cocktail mode (screen flips for player 2).

Trivia

Bootleg versions have on-screen copyrights of "Tayto" instead of "Taito". A game called Arkanoid: Doh It Again was released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1997. This release contained the original, as well as some new backgrounds an a two-player mode.

Legacy

Manuals

Instruction Manual 8 Pages, 756 KB File.

Contribute Links

eBay Listings

Click to search eBay for Arkanoid Videogame machines and related items.

Click to search eBay for machines and parts made by Taito.

Check out the IAM/KLOV report of the hottest coin-op machines on eBay, powered by Ace.com.

Arkanoid - Title screen image

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