Hyper Sports

If Track & Field wrecked your fingers, Hyper Sports came back to finish the job. Konami turned the arcade into a stadium again with seven brand-new events and the same winning formula: pound the run buttons as fast as humanly possible, then hit the action button at exactly the right moment.

This was the cabinet that always drew a crowd. The player was sweating, everybody behind them was counting out loud, and when somebody broke the in-game world record, the whole place heard about it.

History

Konami released Hyper Sports in 1984, the year Los Angeles hosted the Summer Olympics, as a direct sequel to Track & Field. In Japan it went by Hyper Olympic '84.

Instead of rerunning the track events, it brought a fresh lineup: swimming, skeet shooting, vault, archery, triple jump, weightlifting, and pole vault. Each one called for its own mix of raw speed and precise timing.

How to play

You alternate between two run buttons as fast as you can, then use a third button to jump, shoot, or release at the perfect moment. In swimming you have to time your breaths; in skeet you fire when the clay crosses your sights; in weightlifting you mash and then lock it in right on cue.

You have to beat the qualifying mark to move on to the next event. Miss it and it's game over, so being fast isn't enough. You need nerves too.

Fun facts

• It launched in the Olympic year of 1984.
• In Japan it was called Hyper Olympic '84.
• It's the direct sequel to Konami's Track & Field.

In the arcade

Hyper Sports isn't in the arcade yet. It's on the wish list, and you can hit “I Want to Play It” on this page to push it up the line. Coming soon to UsuArcade if the votes are there.

Meanwhile, its predecessor Track & Field is already on the floor, ready to destroy your fingers alongside your friends. For more sports action, try NBA Jam, the soccer of Super Sidekicks 2, or the pool table in Side Pocket.

FAQ