The problem with trying to make a console game more like an arcade game is... well, you simply can't.
A good example is Pac Man... Back in the day when I had Pac Man on my Intellivision, it was an okay game... But nothing beat playing it at Pizza Hut on the old table top (assuming you were lucky enough to get to sit there!). Playing an arcade game is more than just the game itself... If that were the case, I'd been content to have pizza delivered and play the game at home unlimited (well, until mom said it was bedtime - in which case I could just leave the system on overnight and continue from there) - going simply by game play, there is no possible way to compare arcade games and console games - the arcade game wasn't just about the gameplay. It's about challanging the limits set forth to you... and we're not talking about "fake" limits created by the game, I'm talking real world limits. The number of quarters, for example. Or when mom is ready to leave the store.
A lot of the great old arcade games didn't generally have limits on the numbers of continues you could have... you were limited by the number of quarters and how fast you could make it to the change machine and back (which was another challange!). X-Men, The Simpsons, TMNT, they wern't about "You die and it's over!", they were about "You die and you give us more money!" It was all about beating the machine before it asked for more.
Short of putting a coin slot on your GCN (Maybe that's what the other port is for!), I don't think it's realistic to expect a console game to live up to the same types of fun that arcade games offer.
Look at Gauntlet. Probably in the top ten best arcade games ever (IMHO). If I saw it in an arcade, I'd jump at the chance to play it. Even though I own Midway Arcade Treasures. Because in the arcade, I'm going to be playing for money - gambling, if you will. I've already spent the money at home, it doesn't matter how much more I spend at home, I'm not going to get any more enjoyment out of the game. But in the arcade... oh yeah... It's all about how much time I can make the machine give me for each individual quarter I put in it.
Granted, you could put limits on console games - Let's say a Pac Man with no continues. You die, you start from scratch. Okay, but then you can start over right then. Mom (or in today's case, the wife) isn't yelling that it's time to leave. You don't have to worry about spending your lunch money (or car insurance) in the coin slot. You just play and keep playing until you have it beat. Which is, in and of itself, less of a challenge since you aren't waiting a day/week, etc inbetween attempts and you don't lose that "zone" you're in while playing.
I agree completly that today's games are a heck of a lot easier than they used to be when it comes to console games now vs. console games then. Too many save points and too many continues... Heck, in a lot of games, I'd even give you the lower difficulty level... But this is because it's what people want. Look at how badly Majora's Mask was ragged on because of it's limited save system.
And you simply cannot make a short game now-a-days and expect for it to sell well. We're dealing with a day where "traditional" puzzle games only sell when they're in nice sized collections or at discount prices. Even if the game is fun and mostly original, it just won't sell if it's short (Ikaruga, as a good example). People want games that are going to give them a lot for their $50 investment (I seem to recall hearing a lot of whining that Wind Waker was too short and I thought it was a nice sized game). So then you end up with a Beat 'em up/Shoot 'em up that's too long. And gets boring (the complaints here). And could you imangine if you had a 4-hour long beat 'em up that you could never save in?
I do agree with what you're saying (mostly) don't get me wrong... But I don't think a short, hard game is the answer.
Now what would be great is a game that's an arcade simulator. Packed with a *lot* of old-style arcade games, you get to play 10-20 at a time (the "Operator" switches games out based upon the GCN's clock and how long the current games have been there vs how often they're played). The games keep your high scores (and anyone else who happens to play, letting you create profiles). Each arcade game is a respectable game by itself, but short. You play it, you beat it, you go on to something else... You challenge your friends into beating your high scores. There's limits on continues (if only there was a fun way to limit the amount of "Quarters" you have in the game and a way to "earn" them....)
It'd be more fun if someone managed to get lisence to acutally use older arcade games in this...
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