Golden age of arcade video games

Okay kiddo, do you know what a video game is? It's a fun thing you play on a computer or a special machine called a console. But before computers and consoles got super popular, there were these big machines called arcade games. You would put a coin in and play the game right there, usually standing up.

Now, a long time ago, in the 70s and 80s, these arcade games became really, really popular. I'm talking lines out the door of the arcade!

And in that time, a lot of really great and famous arcade games were made. It was called the "golden age" because it was a special time when so many awesome games were created.

Do you know some of these games? There was Pac-Man, which you probably know, right? It's the one where a little yellow thing goes around eating dots and avoiding ghosts.

Another one was Donkey Kong, where a little guy named Mario tried to save a girl named Pauline from a big gorilla. Mario would go on to have his own games later, but Donkey Kong was his first big hit.

There was also Space Invaders, where you had to shoot aliens that were coming down from the top of the screen. And Galaga, where you flew a spaceship and shot other spaceships.

These games were really popular because they were fun and challenging, and you could play them over and over again. And even though we have lots of different kinds of video games now, these old arcade games are still remembered as some of the best ever made.