Which games are better as a cocktail?

But really, I think it depends on if you're playing alone or with someone.

If you're playing together, a cocktail is almost always more fun than taking turns on the upright, so pick a crowd pleaser for your cocktails. Ms. Pac, Galaga, etc. Something people want to play. It's hard to convince someone to play an obscure game with you unless they're into it too, or unless it's easy to pick up like Warlords.

Tetris is especially great in cocktail form playing head to head.
 
I've owned all versions of this game and this is the only version I've owned twice. Remember playing it back when I was 10 and had to have one in the game room again, this time for good.

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most games don't, but i agree with some exceptions already mentioned, of course games that literally benefit in player count: warlords, eliminator, t&f, sprint 4/8 (if you count them as cocktails)

i haven't seen tetris mentioned which is nice to play simultaneous on a cocktail opposed (like space duel) but on a vertical screen
 
Demo Derby. Pretty much any game that allows you to play head to head with more than 2 players.
 
I've never played it, but I would imagine either Gun Fight or Double Play by Midway. I almost bought a cocktail Double Play. The design is really cool for head-to-head games with people sitting side by side.
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Great responses here. On a side note there are the games that suffer from the cocktail format too.

There's a local seller asking $1200 for a broken Tapper cocktail. They are convinced because of the low production numbers that they are sitting on gold, I explained that there is no comparison between an upright Tapper and the cocktail which lacks all of the aesthetic desirables that make it sought after. Guy won't listen and I've watched this sit for 4 months plus.
 
Idk about better but very interesting is Wizard of Wor. I am a fanatic about that game and it is very odd having to play it sideways when in a cocktail. It is still very playable though and I suppose there are people out there who probably like it better this way.
 
I like pac/ms pac better on a cocktail. Space Duel too. Have a lot of fond memories of cocktails. At Chuck E Cheese the big room with the stage had cocktails lining the room. I would move from one table to the next as the animatronic band played. And Pizza Hut of course.
space duel when you play linked you have opposite visual perspective. you can defender better. I would say ripoff cocktail would benefit too. warlords 4 player is better than 2 player.

eliminator 4 player is better than 2 player. demolition derby is better as 4 player than 2 player.

although there is no direct comparison, indy 800 and tank 8 are better than the 2 player versions.

ripoff is one of the best looking cocktails ever made.

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A lot of these are considered "islands" and not cocktails. Eliminator does have a legit 2-player cocktail, but is not better because it uses Japanese buttons which aren't great.

Space Duel, Warlords are better play wise.
 
space duel when you play linked you have opposite visual perspective. you can defender better. I would say ripoff cocktail would benefit too. warlords 4 player is better than 2 player.

eliminator 4 player is better than 2 player. demolition derby is better as 4 player than 2 player.

although there is no direct comparison, indy 800 and tank 8 are better than the 2 player versions.

ripoff is one of the best looking cocktails ever made.

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Cool, I never before noticed that Indy 800 had mirrors above it for the first "Live Monitor" overhead display. 🙂
 
+1 for Space Duel. Beautiful cocktail, great to play, I definitely feel is superior to the upright experience. Less cramped.

I'd like to have a warlords, but I've never played the cocktail, only the upright.
 
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I just picked both of these up in the last 2 weeks, so I'll say them! I actually really like the paddle control for SID. And there's something classic about a Pac cocktail. 😀
 
Arkanoid is great in cocktail format. I have one (and an upright too). The Roms are DIFFERENT for the cocktail due to the flip mode support. There's no DIP setting to go back and forth from upright to cocktail. Rumor has it that the Arkanoid bootlegs started popping up that supported cocktail mode, so Taito was forced to release a new version of roms that worked in cocktails too.

Tetris is superior in cocktails as well, IMHO. You sit across from your opponent and the game is VERTICAL with split screen upside down for the opposing player. Just like Arkanoid, there are different roms for the cocktail version. Game is horizontal with side by side split screen for 2 players in the upright.

Del
 
Plus 2 for Space Duel. It's the best way to play that game - cocktail format.
 
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