In Soviet Russia, '80s-era arcade cabinets played you(r allegiances)

The amount of classic Russian arcade games from the '70s, '80s and '90s that revolved around military activities is, well, not all that surprising. These games were created during the Cold War, after all. Sure, U.S. arcades were packed with shooting simulators and the like, but just take at look at these images from The Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines, and you might agree.

According to Cool Hunting, 29-year-old museum director and founder Alexandr Stakhanov started the museum with some friends after coming across an original Морской Бой, or "Sea Battle," machine and buying it for the cost of moving it. From there, Stakhanov and friends worked to collect and restore several classic Russian arcade games for folks from around the world to play with and observe this admittedly fascinating slice of Soviet Russian culture.

Today, the museum is home to about 40 arcade games, including tabletop sports games and even a tank game--Танкодром, or "Tank Training"--in which players man a real plastic tank and fire at old military vehicles. Stakhanov and friends worked put six years worth of blood, sweat and tears into this museum, which looks nothing like its original location. Now, it's inside a 3,660-square-foot former industrial building, and alone worth a trip to Moscow. Check out all of the images here.

Do you have a thing for retro arcade machines like we do? What was your favorite arcade game from the golden era? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.