5 Arcade Games That Are Worth A Fortune Today

For years, arcades were the lifeblood of the gaming industry. This was before the proliferation of gaming personal computers and both home and handheld consoles. Decades later, arcades are something of a niche in the United States, while cabinets from the scene's commercial zenith fetch a high price on the resale market. Just like rare Atari games now worth thousands of dollars, there are expensive arcade markets for discerning collectors. These stand above the mass-produced rank-and-file cabinets from the '80s that didn't appreciate all that much in value.

Whether it's games that received a low production run for their content or saw significant revisions with later editions, there are some arcade titles that are big collectors' items. We're not talking about modern arcade pad re-releases but cabinets dating back to the '70s and '80s. If you're serious about these titles, prepare to shell out some serious cash. These rare toys cost a pretty penny. Here are five arcade games that are worth a fortune today, for any collector looking for an impressive cabinet to acquire.

The arcade game developer Exidy garnered a reputation for making dark and edgy games, compared to its more family-friendly contemporaries. This included 1976's "Death Race," not to be confused with the dystopian action movie that came out the preceding year. The game has players controlling cars in a dark background, offering both a single-player experience and two-player multiplayer. Players accrue points by running over humanoid gremlins moving across the level, who then let out a death scream and drop a tombstone.

"Death Race" gained notoriety for that core concept of running over apparent pedestrians for a high score. This led to the game being pulled in several North American markets in reaction to the backlash. That limited availability had the unintended consequence of driving up prices for the game in the after-market, with some cabinets selling for $8000. Given how crude '70s arcade games are, the controversy is a bit laughable now, but "Death Race" is an early collectible.

Among the types of arcade games in the medium's early years are vector-based titles, with Cinematronics continuing to produce games in the format into the '80s. This includes 1983's "Cosmic Chasm," a space shooter that has players pilot a ship inside a large space station. Blasting through enemy ships and forcefields, the player navigates through each level as they advance towards the station's reactor. After destroying the reactor, the player has to escape from the station before it explodes, avoiding enemy fire and the station's walls throughout the entire mission.

By the early '80s, vector-based games were on the decline and, after enduring several flops, Cinematronics declared bankruptcy in 1982. This meant that "Cosmic Chasm" was not only one of the last vector-based games that Cinematronics produced, but it received a limited production run due to the company's financial status. This was coupled by the game being released in the midst of the video game crash of 1983, which severely impacted the entire industry. These factors make "Cosmic Chasm" arcade cabinets quite rare and expensive, selling for as high as $11,000.

A relatively simple but addictive arcade game is 1983's "Tapper," which was originally sponsored by beer manufacturer Anheuser-Busch. The initial version of the game has players control a bartender at an establishment with multiple counters and the Budweiser logo, naturally, prominently displayed. The bartender must fill and slide beer glasses down the counters to waiting patrons and catch empty glasses as they slide back before they hit the ground. The bartender can collect tips for bonus points while progressing through four levels, each with their own visually distinct bar theme.

While "Tapper" was a success upon its release, its core concept also drew a fair bit of controversy. Parent groups were concerned that the game encouraged underage drinking to young arcade patrons, leading to a redesign of the game. Rebranded as "Root Beer Tapper" in 1984, the alcoholic beverages were replaced with soda while references to Anheuser-Busch were scrubbed. The original arcade cabinet, with its Anheuser-Busch branding intact, can retail for well over $6,500 now on the resale market.

Another infamous arcade title from Exidy, this time published in 1986, "Chiller" revolves around another macabre concept. The game has players control an unseen torturer who, for the first two levels, kills hapless victims confined to a garish torture chamber. Using the cabinet's light gun peripheral, players blast away body parts from their targets exposing their innards, with higher scores given to more creative kills. The game's last two levels pivot to a more traditional shooter experience, with the player killing monsters in creepy castle catacombs and nighttime graveyards.

Like "Death Race" before it, "Chiller" was widely deemed as a horror game too disturbing for kids. That means many arcades refused to even carry the cabinet in order to avoid upsetting customers over its gory concept. That makes the game another '80s rarity, with resale prices ranging from $3500-5000 based on the cabinet's condition. "Chiller" has also become something of a collectible on the console scene too, with the publisher creating unauthorized cartridges to get around Nintendo's content restrictions.

1990's "Galaxian3: Project Dragoon" showcased how far the space shooter genre had advanced since its humble origins. After releasing a 28-player version as a theme park attraction, publisher Namco later released a six-player version of the game for wider arcade distribution. Players blast incoming enemies and space debris coming their way in vibrant chaos as they defend their spaceship. This culminates in the players setting out to destroy a superweapon threatening humanity's continued existence in the cosmos.

What's driving up prices for "Galaxian3" isn't some response to controversial backlash or manufacturer difficulties. At the end of the day, it's just a large and unwieldy cabinet that's hard to find working, much less with its pristine presentation intact, given its size. A complete working cabinet was purchased for $178,000 in 1994, which has likely only appreciated significantly since then. A rare find in arcades, let alone from resellers, "Galaxian3: Project Dragoon" is the white whale for many serious collectors. Happy hunting.