The old arcade at Square One in Mississauga was a hugely popular hangout for kids

Take a trip back in time to the late 1970s/early 1980s, and you’d find a good number of Mississauga pre-teens and teens hanging out at this fun-filled spot in the heart of the city.

Whether dropped off by their parents or arriving by an old-school Mississauga Transit bus or cycling, or even walking if they lived close enough, crowds of kids descended on Square One Shopping Centre to hang out at the arcade.

It was located, for a few years anyway, on the lower level right next to the original movie theatre. A constant and noticeable buzz, complete with “bleeps” and “bloops” and dozens of other assorted sound effects from all the big, bulky and popular arcade games of the time, drew kids inside much like ants to a community picnic.

By the hundreds each hour–it seemed like thousands at the time–Mississauga kids aged about 10 to 16 would stream into the arcade, pockets filled (hopefully) with quarters, and spend an hour or several playing favourites like Space Invaders (circa 1978), Galaxian (1979), Asteroids (1979), Sprint 2 (1976), an underrated gem in Tank (1974), Pong (1972) and dozens more.

Those were just a few of the classic arcade games that would quickly suck up the 25 cent coins while keeping happy young customers occupied for a while.

In a story published on insauga.com just over seven years ago, 5 awesome things we wish Square One in Mississauga still had, the arcade received an honourable mention.

On most “Top arcade games of the 1970s” lists out there, you’ll find Galaxian, Space Invaders and Asteroids consistently in the top five, if not top three.

Check out the video below for a trip back in time to the arcade games of the 1970s.

Square One in 1973.