Step into nearly any indie game of today and you will be able to sense it—the whole atmosphere of the old-school arcade games that is still alive and kicking after all these years. The impact of these guys is not only through the use of some vintage elements, but actually, they are the source of game design nowadays, a reason why games have the same look and sound, and are drawing us in with the words “just one more game”. The first question to be answered was how the arcade period is still shaping the games we play now.
Visual Design That Lasts: Bold Colors and Simplicity
Greatest arcade games were designed to cut through loud, busy rooms and shout, “Hey, look at me!” with bold, bright graphics. Pac-Man’s glowing labyrinths or Galaga’s neon pixel spacecraft weren’t fashion statements—each was a brilliant hack of the hardware constraints of the day. Programmers relied on contrast and large, readable sprites so you could follow the action even from across the room. Not only did this make them more playable, but it also made them unforgettable.
Contemporary indie creators draw from the same playbook. Celeste and Shovel Knight employ pixel art and bright palettes to tap into that arcade flair. For them, the retro aesthetic isn’t nostalgic—it’s about creating gorgeous, unique games without enormous studio budgets.
Soundtracks That Stick: The Magic of Simple, Catchy Tunes
If you’ve ever had the Pac-Man theme stuck in your head, you’ll understand how potent arcade soundtracks were. With minimal sound chips, early composers relied on short tunes and looping melodic snippets that could pierce the ambient noise of an arcade. These weren’t songs—these informed you that you’d picked up a power-up, defeated a boss, or lost your final life.
Indie games now still utilize that magic. Undertale and Shovel Knight, for example, use 8-bit and 16-bit-inspired music to make the player feel nostalgic and emotional. Chiptune music, built around those very same sound chips, has become its genre in recent years, showing how a handful of simple notes can be so powerful.
Mechanics That Hook: Easy to Play, Hard to Put Down
Arcade games succeeded because anyone could just walk in and play. Frogger, Tetris, or Space Invaders were explained just by their names—you didn’t need instructions. The problem was to master the game. That “easy to learn, hard to master” model is still alive and well with today’s bestsellers like Candy Crush or Angry Birds, whose simple controls and progressive difficulty curve are addictive.
The nicest thing about this design is how convenient it is. Regardless of how long you’ve been playing games or whether you’re a complete beginner, you can jump in and have fun. And because the difficulty level changes with your ability, there’s always something to come back to.
Reward Systems: High Scores and Instant Gratification
Arcade programmers understood how to keep players at the controls. High scores, bonus lives, and gaudy power-ups maintained quarters dropping into machines. Immediate feedback—such as a happy beep when you advanced or the excitement of reaching the top of the leaderboard—formed a cycle of rapid rewards that compelled you to play again.
Arcade Culture: More Than Just Games
Arcades were never about the machines—the arcades were a cultural moment. During the 80s, you’d see the machines jammed into pizza joints, grocery stores, and especially 7-Eleven. Mini-arcades for many children, those convenience stores had cabinets like Joust, Out Run, or Super Pac-Man lined up alongside the Slurpee machine. It was as much a social experience as a play.
The merchandising was everywhere, as well. Pac-Man decals, special-edition Slurpee cups, candy tie-ins—you couldn’t escape it. To this day, nostalgia for the era remains strong, with collectors hunting down vintage merch and brands like 7-Eleven consistently bringing back gaming alliances.
The Arcade Spirit in Modern Indie Games
Indie developers have maintained that arcade spirit. They pass along the heavy graphics, great tunes, and responsive mechanics that made the originals timeless. But it’s not just nostalgia—those decisions make games simpler to grab and play, more compelling, and just flat-out fun.
Classic arcade games didn’t only tell us how to play—but they also dictated how we think about play in itself. Their fingerprints are on everything from game design and graphics to the fact that rewards hook us again and again. The next time you hunt for a high score or launch a pixel-perfect indie title, know that you’re engaging with a tradition that started with a quarter and a dream.