Kurt Cobain wrote "it's better to burn out than to fade away", but it's a pity he never played Midway Arcade Treasures 2. What strikes us most when playing games like Mortal Kombat II, Xybots and Hard Drivin' is just how innovative Midway was in the 1980s.

Hard Drivin' was way ahead of its time as the first ever 3D racing game. Featuring crash physics and action replays, you have to wonder if there would have ever been a Burnout 3 if it weren't for Midway's creative genius.

Although not as much fun to play, Xybots was also a real groundbreaker. It was the original third- person shooter, using pseudo-3D similar to the original Wolfenstein. Surprisingly, Xybots, like many other games in this collection, also includes a two-player co-op mode. Out of the 20 classics on display, a massive 18 let your friends join in the fun. Gauntlet II even lets four players slug it out through the murky pixellated corridors of yore.

How much you enjoy playing the less ostentatious '80s games like Timber and Wizards of Wor probably depends if you grew up with them. That's why playing an arcade-perfect version of Mortal Kombat Il really gets our nostalgia glands racing. There's something so cool about that game; the fatalities, babalities and characters like Baraka that help it stand the test of time. Hardcore fight fans will hate us for this, but we'd still rather punch someone's torso off than do a super dragon punch in Street Fighter Anniversary Collection.

In any case, this overall package is a far more worthy tribute to the games that built an empire. One crucial factor is the inclusion of archive movies, video interviews and scans of promotional material. While there aren't as many new interviews as we'd have liked, it still makes fascinating viewing and adds bags of value.

Equally valuable is the inclusion of Xbox Live scoreboards. Imagine the kudos of being number one in the world at SpyHunter II and, best of all, there's no way to cheat! Midway has even been kind enough to include multiple boards for each game. For example, there's a unique set of scores for Gauntlet II depending on your character class.

Arcade Treasures 2 has its fair share of crusty titles you won't play, but the good ones are absolute gems. £15 is a bargain price to relive your misspent youth, if only for a few precious hours.

1. Xbox Live scoreboards are a vital feature, giving you a good reason to go back and play these games more than once.
2. Mortal Kombat II and 3 are here! We're still slightly narked that the original game isn't included (you'll find it in MK: Deception)
3. Every game is the original arcade version, not some substandard 8-bit console conversion.
4. Eighteen out of twenty games feature multiplayer modes - a mixture of versus and cooperative play.

1. Presentation is slightly clunky and we'd have liked more archive material but at least some has been scraped together.

The games are much better than the first Treasures. Presentation could've been better but otherwise it's superb.